THE WOODPECKER. 81 



imprisonment, everybody keeping at a distance for 

 fear of infection, when one morning while at break- 

 fast, a bird of the Woodpecker species, flew in at 

 the window, with, to use his own words, " all the 

 familiarity of an old friend," hopping on the table, 

 and picking up the crumbs and flies. It had be- 

 longed to a young girl just buried, and by a singular 

 instinct left the house of the dead, and flew into his 

 room. Its habits were curious, and so familiar, that 

 they were quite attractive; it climbed up the wall 

 by any stick or cord near it, devouring flies. It 

 sometimes began at his foot, and at one race would 

 run up his leg or arm, or round his neck, and down 

 his other arm, and so to the table. It would there 

 tap with its bill with a noise as loud as a hammer, 

 and this was its general habit, on the wood -work in 

 every part of the room ; when it did so, it would 

 look intently at the place, and dart at any fly or 

 insect it saw running in all probability adopting 

 this noisy mode of disturbing such insects as might 

 be concealed within, that it might seize them the 

 moment they appeared*. 



The Wryneck is a small bird about the size of a 

 Thrush, which comes and goes nearly at the same 

 time as the Cuckoo, whence it is in some places called 

 the Cuckoo's Mate. Its habits and formation in 

 many respect resemble those of the Woodpecker, par- 

 ticularly its tongue, which well deserves examination. 

 On opening the mouth of either of these birds, the 

 tongue appears neither larger nor longer than the 

 usual size, but if taken hold of by the tip, which in 



* Walsh's Constantinople, p. 310. 

 VOL. IT. G 



