614 
BIRD-LIFE. 
with every spring, and shuffling over the rough bark 
with such ease that when close by, one can easily hear 
the slight rustling of his claws and stiff tail-feathers, 
especially in dry weather, and on old pine trees. He has 
a perky bearing, inasmuch as he carries his head, neck, 
and the fore part of the breast, well away from the tree. 
As compared with other Woodpeckers, his movements 
have something imposing in their appearance. Easy 
as it is for him to run up the trunk of a tree, it is 
equally so for him to move sideways, and that without 
altering his position, while he slips round a tree with so 
much rapidity that one is lost in astonishment to see 
such perfection displayed in the art of climbing. He can 
also, like other Woodpeckers, perform a slightly retrograde 
movement, but, like these, is unable to descend head 
downwards.” 
While climbing, this bird hunts about for beetles and 
their larvae, or such other insects as may lay hidden 
under the bark; as soon as it finds anything, it instantly 
sets to work with strong blows of its beak to extract the 
hidden treasure. The keen sense of smell enables it with¬ 
out fail to discover its prey, while the sharp beak soon lays 
bare the buried morsel, just sufficiently to allow the bird to 
extract the same with its long and flexible tongue. It also 
despises any insect inhabiting the forest which it may 
happen to come across, though it shows a decided preference 
for the horse-ant (Formica herculeana) and its eggs. As soon 
as it espies a hill of these ants it alights on the ground 
with alacrity, and approaches with a heavy, hopping gait, 
when it seeks out a suitable spot, and at once commences 
an attack upon the well-ordered citadel of these creatures 
by making a breach in the outer wall of their fortress. 
The enraged ants instantly arrive in hundreds from all 
