. Nature study and agriculture. Nature study; Agriculture. BIRDS OF THE NORTHERN STATES 30s Hummingbird Family. — Very small birds with exceedingly long and slender bills and small mouths. They live on insects and the nectar of flowers, securing their food while on the wing. They fly " like a streak of lightning," their wings moving so rapidly that they make a humming sound which is usually the first thing to attract our attention when we come across them. These brightly colored birds are of- ten confounded with the sphinx or hum- ming moth, and it is well to be skeptical about repor
. Nature study and agriculture. Nature study; Agriculture. BIRDS OF THE NORTHERN STATES 30s Hummingbird Family. — Very small birds with exceedingly long and slender bills and small mouths. They live on insects and the nectar of flowers, securing their food while on the wing. They fly " like a streak of lightning," their wings moving so rapidly that they make a humming sound which is usually the first thing to attract our attention when we come across them. These brightly colored birds are of- ten confounded with the sphinx or hum- ming moth, and it is well to be skeptical about reports of " hummingbirds " seen near flower beds in the evening or late af- ternoon. Hummingbirds visit the flowers in the daytime. 428 Ruby-throated Hummingbird. Not common in prairie Rdby-throated Humming- bird Perching Birds This class is the highest and by far the largest order of birds, and con- tains over half of all the species known. All our songsters belong to this order, and the term " Song Birds" is sometimes employed as synonymous with Perching Birds. But this practice is confus- ing, as many of these birds (including the en- tire Flycatcher and Crow families) do not sing at all. In size they range from very small birds (Kinglets, 4 inches long) to medium, — the Crow family being the only one with species much larger than the Robin. The legs are comparatively short and slender and so set as to give the body a horizontal position when resting on a perch. All these birds have four toes, the hind one being about as long as the other three and on a level with them, and when these clasp the perch and the bird sits down the automatic action of certain tendons locks it to the perch and None of the toes are webbed for Please note that these images are extracted from scanned page images that may have been digitally enhanced for readability - coloration and appearance of these illustrations may not perfectly resemble the origin
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1920, booksubjectagriculture, bookyear
