VERTEBRATA. 277 



birds to find their food by catching insects on the 

 wing. The Deniirostres, so called because the upper 

 beak has a slight notch near the point, include the 

 crows, rooks, starlings, shrikes, and flycatchers, and 

 the titmice, and wagtails, wrens, and thrushes. The 

 (7o?itVosf res, with a strong, short, cone-like beak, include 

 the larks, finches, and weaver birds. The last order 

 of the Carinatse are the Raptores, or birds of prey. 

 These are distinguished by their especially strong 

 beaks and claws, and they have a soft membrane or 

 cere, covering the root of the beak ; they include owls, 

 vultures, eagles, and falcons, and the secretary bird of 

 Africa, which lives on snakes. The other birds of the 

 order usually live on birds and mammals. 



Various classifications have been framed to super- 

 sede the above. Professor Huxley has classified birds 

 according to the characters of certain bones in the 

 skull, and there are other and newer classifications. 



The Intelligence of Birds. — In some respects 

 birds may almost be said to dispute with mammals the 

 right to be regarded as the most highly developed of 

 the Vertebrates. The high perfection of their locomotive 

 powers, the intelligence manifested in the building of 

 their nests, and the varied range of feelings evinced 

 by their powers of varied song, all entitle them to a 

 high place in the scale of animal life. The well-con- 

 trived homes which so many of them build are only 

 the outward expression of the existence of the family 

 affections : the care of the parent bird for its young 

 has afforded a symbol of the mOst unselfish and 



