DOMESTIC LIFE OF THE BIRDS 



the pleasant duty of feeding the young, at times 

 shielding the little ones from the hot rays of the sun 

 with their half-extended wings, and now and then 

 driving away intruders. The common passerine 

 birds also attend carefully to the sanitation of the 

 nest and remove the feces, which is inclosed in a 

 membrane and is thus easily carried in the bill. 

 This is usually dropped several yards away. If 

 allowed to accumulate on the ground beneath the 

 nest it might attract the attention of some prowling 

 enemy and lead to a disastrous discovery. 



Parental Care of Young. — There is a wide difference 

 in the relative helplessness of nesting birds, and a 

 corresponding difference in the methods of parental 

 care. The young of praecocial birds are able to run 

 or swim with their parents almost as soon as hatched, 

 for they not only have the strength to do this, but 

 their bodies being covered with down they are pro- 

 tected from the sun or cold. Examples of such birds 

 are the Quail, Grouse, Sandpipers, Plovers, and 

 Ducks. The young of these and allied species are 

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