In turning, the body is tilted sideways, so that the tip of 

 one wing points skywards, the other earthwards, as in the 

 case of the goshawk illustrated in this book. The pigeon, 

 and some other birds seem further to spread out the long 

 stiff quUls borne by the thmnb, which form what is known as 

 the " bastard-wing." This turning movement is well shown, 

 again, in the very realistic coloured picture of the woodcock 

 turning in mid-air, and bearing too the burden of one of its 

 nestlings. 



If it is difficult to satisfy oneself as to the way in which a 

 bird aUghts, it is no less so to detect its movements in taking 

 wing. Most of us must have seen sparrows making this 

 effort from the road, thousands of times. But ask of any 

 one. How is it done ? The act takes place so quickly that 

 the eye cannot follow its execution. And what is true of 

 the sparrow is true of most birds. But there are some where 

 this is not the case. Many water-birds, the cormorant, for 

 example, get under way but slowly, and with evident effort. 

 They flap along the surface for some distance before they 

 gain sufficient impetus to lift them into the air. And there 

 are many long-winged, short-legged birds which can rise 

 from a level surface only with great difficulty, or not at all. 

 The swift is one of these, for its legs are excessively short. 

 The albatross is another : and this is true, indeed, of many 

 of the petrel-tribe. The puffin, again, seems unable to rise 



39 



