KEEL-BREASTED BIRDS, 



2 9 i 





moss ever kept green from the spray of the falls. The 

 entrance is a doorway formed in the moss, leading to the 

 interior, which is 

 lined with soft 

 grasses, and con- 

 tains four or five 

 pure white eggs. 



The large fam- 

 ily of thrushes 

 (Turdidz) is rep- 

 resented by the 

 robin, mocking- 

 bird, cat-bird, 

 and others. The 

 wood thrush is 

 the highest of the 

 ciass of birds. 

 The pervading 

 color is cinna- 

 mon-brown, grad- 

 ing into olive on 



the rump, the 



FIG. 320. Bird architecture : Hanging tit and 



breast blocked or nest 



marked with dis- 

 tinct spots. They attain a length of eight inches, and are 

 noted for their glorious powers of song, resembling the 

 tinkling of a bell or the soft notes of a flute. The nest is 

 found in low hollows, and contains four or five blue eggs. 

 Specimens for Study. For purposes of study, the skele- 

 ton of a common fowl or other bird offers good material. 

 The flesh can be boiled away, and the bones arranged as 

 in Fig. 268 ; the limbs and skull should be compared with 

 the corresponding parts of reptiles and mammals, and the 

 difference noted. If the skeleton is to be mounted, the 

 bird should be skinned and macerated. The tools neces- 

 sary for work are a hook for suspending large specimens, 



