225 
All frequenters of Canadian waters know the Kingfisher. It sits 
motionless on a commanding perch over the water watching for the fish 
below. Suddenly it dashes off, hangs suspended a moment in the air, and 
then drops with a resounding splash into the water, rising a moment later 
with a luckless fish in its capacious bill, and is off around the bend of the 
stream. Within its daily range the Kingfisher knows every perch and 
branch from which it can get a comprehensive view of its fishing grounds 
and returns to them again and again. Streams are not its only habitat; 
it frequents lakes, ponds, and seashore. Kingfishers fish sometimes at con- 
siderable distances from their nests, as they are often seen in country where 
earth banks such as they require for nesting are few. However, they 
are adaptable and sometimes use the most unexpected substitutes, such as 
the earth clingling to the roots of an overturned tree, or the sides of a drain- 
age ditch. 
Economic Status. The Belted Kingfisher lives upon small fish, and 
whether or not this constitutes a grave economic offence is a question 
that cannot be answered offhand. The minnows caught by this bird along 
our larger streams, ponds, or lakes are certainly not of importance, but 
when Kingfishers frequent small preserved trout streams they may possibly 
commit rather serious depredations. Their effect on the larger salmon 
waters is less clear. Ordinarily the fish they take are small perch, shiners, 
chub, and other minnows that frequent the surface or shallow, warm water. 
The number of young game-fish that are taken cannot be great. On waters 
given to the culture of trout the question is different. The fish taken there 
are comparatively well grown and, even if the Kingfishers are not very 
numerous, they cannot be looked upon with friendly eyes by the angler. 
However, the evil done by this species can easily be exaggerated. 
Order — Pici. Woodpeckers 
The world-wide order Pici is a rather heterogeneous division including 
numerous subdivisions, and there is little uniformity of opinion as to their 
exact relations. In Canada, there is only one family of the order— Picidae, 
the Woodpeckers. 
FAMILY — PICIDAE. WOODPECKERS 
General Description. The Woodpeckers are an easily recognized family. They have 
either three or four toes ending in well-hooked claws for clinging to the rough bark of 
trees, and, as in the Cuckoos, two are directed forward. In one group, the Three-toed 
Woodpeckers, one of the hind toes is absent. The bill is straight, stout, and chisel-shaped 
at the tip. The tail is well developed; not remarkably long, but stout, and ending in stiff 
bristles that are commonly worn and frayed by pressure against rough bark (Figure 241). 
Distinctions. Feet, bill, and tail characters make reliable distinctions. 
Field Marks. Tree-climbing habits; and flight by series of quick wing-strokes with 
slight pauses between, causing a waved course like a succession of festoons. 
Nesting. In holes excavated in trees or stubs. 
The Woodpeckers are well known for their ability to cling to per- 
pendicular or overhanging surfaces. The stout, chisel-shaped bill is 
admirably adapted to drilling into wood whence the larvae of borers or other 
insects are extracted. The tongue is long and extensible, and in 
most species furnished with a sharp point, armed with minute barbs 
to assist in holding the impaled prey and withdrawing it from the wood 
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