CHAPTER XIII 



NiGHTjAEs, Swifts and Humming-birds 

 ORDERS— CAPRIMULGI, CYPSELI 



IT is now an established fact that the Nightjars are 

 near relatives of the Owls. They may be re- 

 garded, indeed, as representing the ancestral 

 stock from which the Owls descended. 



The most striking feature of the Nightjars is the 

 huge size of the mouth and the remarkably small beak, 

 which is fringed on either side by long, stiff bristles. 

 These birds also have large eyes and extremely small 

 feet. The former are necessary because the food is 

 largely sought during the twilight hours, while the 

 smallness of the feet is due to the fact that all their 

 food is procured while on the wing. When not flying 

 they remain motionless, either squatting on the 

 ground or along the bough of some tall tree, for these 

 birds are peculiar in that they do not perch like other 

 birds, with the body across the bough, but along it. 

 This unusual method of perching is adopted for pro- 

 tective purposes, for the plumage, which is always of 

 some brown hue, pale or dark, is freckled or powdered 

 with grey, thereby enabling the bird so closely to har- 

 monise with its surroundings as to become well-nigh 

 invisible. 



The Common European Nightjar is a representa- 



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