THE WOODPECKER. 
81 
imprisonment, everybody keeping at a distance for 
fear of infection, when, one morning while at break- 
fast, a bird of the Woodpecker species, flew in at 
the window, with, to use his own words, “ all the 
familiarity of an old friend,” hopping on the table, 
and picking up the crumbs and flies. It had be- 
longed to a young girl just buried, and by a singular 
instinct left the house of the dead, and flew into his 
room. Its habits were curious, and so familiar that 
they were quite attractive ; it climbed up the wall 
by any stick or cord near it, devouring flies. It 
sometimes began at his foot, and at one race would 
run up his leg or arm, or round his neck, and down 
his other arm, and so to the table. It would there 
tap with its bill with a noise as loud as a hammer, 
and this was its general habit, on the wood-work in 
every part of the room ; when it did so, it would 
look intently at the place, and dart at any fly or 
insect it saw running — in all probability adopting 
this noisy mode of disturbing such insects as might 
be concealed within, that it might seize them the 
moment they appeared*. 
The Wryneck is a small bird about the size of a 
Thrush, which comes and goes nearly at the same 
time as the Cuckoo, whence it is in some places called 
the Cuckoo’s Mate. Its habits and formation in 
many respects resemble those of the Woodpecker, par- 
ticularly its tongue, which well deserves examination. 
On opening the mouth of either of these birds, the 
tongue appears neither larger nor longer than the 
usual size, but if taken hold of by the tip, which in 
* Walsh’s Constantinople , p. 310. 
VOL. II. 
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