36 , CASSELL'S BOOK OF BIRDS. 



he imagines to be the callow young, starts with horror at the sight of a hideous shape, and retreats 

 down the tree with terrified precipitation. Several adventures of this kind have come to my know- 

 ledge, and one of them was attended with serious consequences — both snake and boy fell to the 

 ground ; and a broken thigh and long confinement cured the youngster of his ambition for robbing 

 '\^'oodpeckers' nests." 



THE ANT-E.VTING BLACK WOODPICCKER. 



The Ant-e.ating Bl.\ck. Woodpecker {Mdanerpes formicivonis) is an inhabitant of California 

 and Mexico. Its body is black ; the brow, a spot on the exterior quills, the anterior border of the 

 hinder quills, and the rump are white ; the top of the head as far as the nape is light red ; the throat 

 and a band upon the breast are black ; the region of the throat is relieved by the sulphur-yellow 

 feathers, by which the black portion is surrounded ; the back and sides are streaked longitudinally 

 with white ; the eye is yellow, the beak and feet are black. This species is nine inches long ; 

 the wing measures five inches and a quarter, and the tail two and a quarter. 



" The Mclancrpes formicivorus" Hermann tells us, " is the noisiest and most numerous of all the 

 Woodpeckers inhabiting California. During the summer these birds are constantly to be seen chasing 

 their insect prey about the topmost branches of the trees, and in autumn are equally busy in laying \\^ 

 a store of acorns against the approach of winter. This is accomplished by boring a series of holes in 

 the trunk of a tree, into each of which an acorn is so firmly introduced as to render its extrication a 

 work of difficulty. An oak or pine tree thus pierced often presents the appearance of being studded 

 with a multitude of bronze nails." 



The VARIEGATED WOODPECKERS {Picus) constitute a group of small or moderate-sized 

 and compactly-built birds. Their straight beak almost equals the head in length, and is as broad as it 

 is high at the base ; the toes are short, and in some species but three in number ; in the wing the 

 third quill is the longest ; and the tail is conical. The plumage is black, marked with white, and 

 enlivened in some parts by an intermixture of red or yellow. The various members of this group 

 inhabit all those parts of the earth frequented by their congeners, with the exception of Central and 

 Southern Africa. 



THE GREAT SPOTTED MOODPECKER. 



The Great Spotted Woodpecker {Picus major) is black upon the upper portion of the body, 

 of a dull yellowish grey beneath, and the brow indicated by a yellow line. The cheeks, a line on the 

 sides of the throat, the large spots on the shoulders, and some irregular markings on the wings are all 

 white ; the back of the head and lower part of the belly are light red ; and a black line passes from 

 the base of the beak to the nape. The female is without the red upon the nape ; and in the young 

 the top of the head is bright red. The eye of all is brownish red, the beak light grey, and the foot 

 greenish grey. 



These well-known birds inhabit the whole of Europe and Siberia, as far as Kamschatka. AVoods, 

 forests, and plantations of all kinds are their principal resorts, and they especially delight in fir or pine 

 trees. In these localities each bird appropriates a certain district as its own particular domain, and 

 within this boundary no intruder is permitted to forage ; for no sooner does the vigilant proprietor 

 hear the bony tap that indicates a close inspection of his hunting-ground than he sallies forth and 

 encounters the unwelcome visitor, chasing it from tree to tree, until it is glad to retire in search of 

 more hospitable quarters. Nuts and the seeds from fir and pine cones are largely consumed by these 

 birds, who exhibit the utmost adroitness in extricating the latter from their hard covering. 



This species, which is found throughout the British Isles, though less common than the Green 



