l62 



of dirt, and perchance the tail of Koskome- 

 nos for a brief instant, then a period of wait- 

 •\komenos i^g) '^'^^ another shower. This kept up till 

 ^tcasf the tunnel was bored perhaps two feet, when 

 they undoubtedly made a sharp turn, as is 

 their custom. After that they brought most 

 of the earth out in their beaks. While one 

 worked, the other watched, or fished at the 

 minnow pool, so that there was steady 

 progress as long as I observed them. 



A curious thing about these birds, which 

 you may see for yourself on any wilderness 

 river, is that each pair of kingfishers have 

 their own particular pools, over which they 

 exercise unquestioned lordship. There may 

 be a dozen pairs of birds on a single stream; 

 but, so far as I have been able to observe, 

 each family has a certain stretch of water on 

 which no other kingfishers are allowed to fish. 

 They may pass up and down freely, but they 

 never stop at the minnow pools ; or, if they 

 are caught watching near them, they are 

 promptly driven out by the rightful owners. 



The same thing is true on the lake shores. 

 Whether there is some secret understanding 



