Four feet, wings, and fins . ig woodpecker. So naturally do ducks take tothe water that almost the very moment they hatch,the little ones scrabble to the edge of the nest, andif they see water under them they let themselvesdrop, daring little birds that they are! If the nestis away up high, then the old bird takes them upin her bill, one by one, and carries them to thewater. They are crowned with a flowing crest,which I suppose the great naturalist, Linnaeus,thought resembled a bridal vail, since he gave thisspecies the title of Spousa, or the Bride. But themost beautiful of all the duck tribe
Four feet, wings, and fins . ig woodpecker. So naturally do ducks take tothe water that almost the very moment they hatch,the little ones scrabble to the edge of the nest, andif they see water under them they let themselvesdrop, daring little birds that they are! If the nestis away up high, then the old bird takes them upin her bill, one by one, and carries them to thewater. They are crowned with a flowing crest,which I suppose the great naturalist, Linnaeus,thought resembled a bridal vail, since he gave thisspecies the title of Spousa, or the Bride. But themost beautiful of all the duck tribe are the have raved about their grace and beauty, andnatural historians expatiated on it. There are sev-eral species of swans. Dont swans look like geese ^. asked Frank. 327 KENNY S GOSLINGS. Yes, only the goose is clumsy and awkward whilethe swan is the embodiment of grace and neck is much longer than the gooses, andcurved beautifully. There are the whistling swans,the mute swans and the black I never heard of a black swan. I thought theywere all snov/y white, said May. In Australia, that greatest of all places to turnout strange birds, jet black swans have been found, 828 KENNY S GOSLINGS. and some few captured and domesticated. Themost remarkable thing about the whistling swan isits windpipe. It is formed like a trumpet, enablingthe swan to utter a loud, clear note. The Icelanderscompare it to the notes of a violin when heard awayup above them in the air. Cousin Grace, is it true the swan sings thesweetest when she is dying ? asked Frank. So the ancients thought. But the tame or muteswan is unable to utter a sound, save a hiss on beingprovoked. The swan is able to swim faster than aman can walk, and when they are flying before astrong wind, proceed at the rate of a hundred milesan hour. They are also very strong, being able toknock a man down with a single stroke of a make their nests the same as wild geese andducks, among the grass
Size: 1812px × 1379px
Photo credit: © The Reading Room / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1870, booksubjectzoology, bookyear1879
