OCR Text |
Show Birds to Weave Stooldnjrs? !tH One of a young bird's fallings, and at the same time a blessing to men Is that appetito is about the big-gest big-gest thing in its world. Eating about fifty times a. day as it does, thtre- isn't much time to notice how its homo Is made. Then when they 'M got big enough to leave the nest 'H there are so many gay and happy jf events that more serious thoughts 'VB are. dismissed for tho time. Some observers ,of birds have placed different colored ribbons at the foot of the trees where orioles were building their nest. The orioles accepted the ribbon with silent thanks and wove the colors to- 'Jl gether, not aimlessly, but after a 'jH definite plan. A naturalist tells of ''H showing suoh a nest to an elderly 'iH woman, who seriously suggested us- S jH ing tho bird to knit stockings. 11 iH The nest of the Baltimore oriole, ; jH whose name, by the way, comes H Jl from its colors, yellow and black, ; those of Lord Baltimore, Is con- ''l structed like a pouch and hung from tho limb of an elm, or willow or IH maple. And the wise little bird IH knows enough to build a shallow jH nest if it is attached to a stout il branch and a deep one if on a 91 swaying twig. Few birds surpass the oriole in jH tho beautlfication of their homes, but -H there is one, the baya, of South-eastern South-eastern Asia, which goes a step '1 further. This bird even illuminates 11 its home. It sticks small lumps of 11 moist clay on the Inside walls of the nest and then catches some of the 191 Innumerable fireflies and fastens 11 th&m in the sticky clay. The result 11 Is startling in its evidence of Intel- fSI llgence. The llttlo bird home is Hl lighted by a dim phosphorescent 1 glow. Reluctance to credit a bled 'JM with such ingenuity may be par- doned, but scientists tell tho story, adding -that the baya is capable of learning many clever tricks. B So birds are much like men in their consideration of the home; some are content with rude struc- tures, while others go to great trou- blc for luxurious finery. But the birds are wiser than many men, for with all their attention to decora- tion they never sacrifice utility for fl the sake of beauty. After all, birds build homes for the same reasons that guide men. They build them for the protection of their families. Just why there M should be such a wide range in the kinds of nests is not so easy to un- derstand. No fixed rule can be laid down as to what kind of nest a bird belonging to a certain family will build, but It is generally true that song birds and birds of gay color- ing have the more elaborate, homos, while those of duller feather arc content with the simple, open bowl- jH shaped structure. The rule sounds reasonable In iH that birds of conspicuous coloring 'H need homes where they can hide from their numerous enemies. Thoso of somber dress, like the night- hawks, are fairly safe In their habit of laying eggs and hatching their young on the bare ground of tho fields. The dove is less likely to bo harmed on Its crude jumble of a few twigs and straws on a bough or on the ground than is the brilliant jH cardinal. So the cardinal builds its iM home in a bush. 'M Tho kind of nest also depends to somo extent on the material at hand. Thus the same bird will H build one kind of nest In the forest and another near the home of man. Civilization has caused notable changes in the nesting habits of cer- tain birds. Years ago the swallows 1 built their homes of mud plastered to rocky cliffs and banks of earth, but now they have moved their 'M abode to the rafters and eaves of the barn. Their relatives, the mar- ! tins and swifts, have also become our near neighbors. Though the birds are well ablo to build their own homes, most of thorn do not resent our help. Boxes of suitable construction and size are often tho means of encouraging tho jH swallows, martins, wrens and other useful families to live near us and ! holp in our battle against Injurious jH injects and to cheer us with tholr- happy songs and beautiful colors. |