BIRDS AND BIRD LIFE 



23 



and curved. A general description of our domestic fowl will 

 be given later. 



Aerial Birds. — This is by far the largest group of birds, 

 including more orders than all of the other groups combined. 

 Members of this group have toes especially fitted for grasping 

 or perching, the fourth toe being level with the other three. 

 The wings are designed for rapid flight. They hop along on 

 the ground rather than walk. They usually build their nests 



Fia.I2. 



Fig. 13. 



Fig. 12. — Green Heroa's nest and eggs. The nest is built of coarse reeds and 

 elevated above the ground. 



Fig. 13. — BobwMte'a nest and eggs. The Bobwhite, often called "Quail," 

 is ranked as a game bird of a high order, but to the farmer it is vastly more valuable 

 as a destroyer of weed seed and insects than it is as game or food for the huntsman. 

 One thousand two hundred and eighty-six rose slugs were devoured in a single day 

 by an immature Bobwhite; from 75 to over 100 potato beetles have been found in 

 single stomachs. (Photos by B. S. Bowdish, Secretary, New Jersey Audubon Society.) 



in trees, bushes or elevated places (Figs. 15, 16, 17, 18, 19,20, 

 21 and 22). Many of them have beautiful voices, and are 

 called song birds. As a rule, they live in pairs, but rarely more 

 than four to six eggs are laid in the nest (Figs. 23 and 24). It 

 generally takes from fourteen to twenty-one days to hatch 

 their eggs. At hatching time the young are helpless, and 

 must be fed by the parent. Some common examples of 

 this group are the humming bird, the woodpecker, the 

 thrush, etc. The eagle is one of the largest and most power- 



