214 BIRDS 



shade trees. Indeed, we should be very much better off if 

 cuckoos were more numerous." 



Kingfishers are fishing birds in America, though some 

 Old World species are insectivorous and also feed on mol- 

 lusks. They are solitary birds of local habits. 



About twenty-five species of woodpeckers are found in 

 North America. The feet have two toes extending forward 

 and two backward. All toes are strong and equipped with 

 long, sharp claws ; the bills are strong and chisel-like. They 

 are arboreal, though the flicker is found often on the ground, 

 searching for ants. The tail feathers are stiff, ending in 

 spines for propping the bird; the tongue is distensible and 

 has a horny, spear-like tip suitable for probing into the 

 holes of wood larvae in order to spear and withdraw these 

 grubs. These birds are of great economical value to agri- 

 cultural and horticultural interests. The mate call includes 

 the drumming with the bill on the dead trunks or limbs of 

 trees. Eggs are uniformly white and placed in holes usually 

 hollowed by the bird in the trunk of a tree. 



CAROLINA PAROQUET 



The range of the Carolina Paroquet is now restricted to 

 parts of Florida; formerly north to southern Ontario. 



" It was not possible that, in an age of guns and women, 

 a creature of such beauty as the Carolina paroquet should 

 have been spared to grace our landscape. Besides brilHant 

 plumage, a dashing figure, and a strident voice, fondness 

 for fruits and young grains conspired to bring about the 

 practical extermination of this once abundant bird. 



