132 



IN BIRD LAND. 



Younger readers may, perhaps, need to be in- 

 formed that the wood-pewee belongs to the family 

 of flycatchers, as do also the king-bird or bee- 

 martin, the phcebe-bird, the great-crested fly- 

 catcher, and a number of other interesting species, 

 all of which have a peculiar way of taking their 

 prey. The pewee will sit almost motionless on a 

 twig, lisping his plaintive tune at intervals, until a 

 luckless insect comes buzzing near, all unconscious 

 of its peril, when the bird will make a quick dash 

 at it, seize it dexterously between his mandibles, 

 and then circle around gracefully to the same or 

 another perch, having made a splendid " catch on 

 the fly." If the quarry he has taken is small, it 

 slips at once down his throat ; but should it be 

 too large to be disposed of in that summary way, 

 he will beat it into an edible form upon a limb 

 before gulping it down. Agile as he is, he some- 

 times misses his aim, being compelled to make a 

 second, and occasionally even a third attempt to 

 secure his prize. I have witnessed more than one 

 comedy which turned out to be a tragedy for the 

 ill-starred insect. Sometimes the insect will resort 

 to the ruse of dropping toward the ground when it 

 sees the bird darting toward it, and then a scuffle 

 ensues that is really laughable, the pursuer whirl- 

 ing, tumbling, almost turning somersault in his 

 desperate efforts to capture his prize. Once an 

 insect flew between me and a pewee perched on a 

 twig, when the bird darted down toward me with 

 a directness of aim that made me think for a 



