. Biology; the story of living things. NATURAL HISTORY. Wright Pierce Adaptations of beaks of birds for food-getting. different kind of food. Carnivorous mammals have sharp teeth fitted for tearing and holding prey ; herbivorous mammals have flat, corrugated teeth ; rodents, gnawing or chisel-like teeth ; while snakes, which swallow their prey whole, have pointed, needlelike teeth to hold their food securely. More striking adaptations for food-getting are found in birds whose beaks and feet both give clues to their food habits. The flesh-eating birds have hooked beaks and curved claws; aquatic
. Biology; the story of living things. NATURAL HISTORY. Wright Pierce Adaptations of beaks of birds for food-getting. different kind of food. Carnivorous mammals have sharp teeth fitted for tearing and holding prey ; herbivorous mammals have flat, corrugated teeth ; rodents, gnawing or chisel-like teeth ; while snakes, which swallow their prey whole, have pointed, needlelike teeth to hold their food securely. More striking adaptations for food-getting are found in birds whose beaks and feet both give clues to their food habits. The flesh-eating birds have hooked beaks and curved claws; aquatic birds have feet shaped like paddles and scooplike bills for straining out small organisms from the water; wad- ing birds display a remarkable variety of highly specialized beaks and feet; and the smaller land birds show equally interesting adaptations for se- curing food. Bizarre adaptations for procuring food characterize the giraffe, with its long neck that enables it to reach up to feed on branches of trees fifteen feet from the ground, the ant- eater, with its sticky tongue, and the walrus, which digs bivalves with its tusks. Scavengers Some forms of life are not only om- nivorous in their diet, but are actually scavengers, living on dead organic ma- terials. The bacteria,^ smallest of all plants, feed upon or destroy millions of tons of organic wastes which other- wise would make life on earth impossi- ble. Think of a world without decay. Land and water would soon become ' See pages 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 original Hunter, George W. (George William), 1873-1948; Walter, Herbert Eugene, b. 1867; Hunter, George W. (George William), 1902-. New York, Cincinnati [etc. ] American book company
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