CONTENTS 
PART II 
CHAPTER PAGE 
I. CONCERNING WINGS aes ne ss 137 
What a wing is—The quill feathers and their function— 
The skeleton of the wing—The muscles of the wing—The 
great air-chambers of the body—The bat’s wing—The 
see of flying dragons—The wings of dragon-flies and 
beetles. 
II. THE First Birp ... tas _ w. I51 
The ancestors of birds—The first known bird and its many 
remarkable features—The gradual evolution of the birds of 
to-day. 
III. THE SIZES AND SHAPES OF WINGS AND THEIR 
RELATION TO FLIGHT ... ase var (259 
The evasiveness of flight—The size of the wing in relation 
to that of the body—Noisy flight—‘ Muffled”’ flight— 
The swoop of the sparrow-hawk—The “flighting” of 
ducks—The autumn gatherings of starlings and swallows— 
“Soaring ” flights of storks and vultures—The wonderful 
“sailing”? feats of the albatross—The “soaring” of the 
skylark—The ‘‘ plunging ”’ flight of the gannet, tern, and 
kingfisher. 
IV. Moves oF FLIGHT fax ne eo 3 | 
The movements of the wing in flight—Marey’s experi- 
ary Mag and turning movements—Alighting— 
“Taking off ’—-Hovering—The use of the tail in flight— 
The carriage of the neck in flight—And of the legs—The 
flight of petrels—The speed of flight—The height at which 
birds fly—Flight with burdens—Experiments on the sizes 
of the wing in relation to flight—Flight in “‘ troops.” 
