. The bird, its form and function . ^ devoursnakes. They dash down at oneof these reptiles, catch it up intheir beak, and, flying back toa branch or stone, hammer thesnake flail-like, until its life isbattered out. Certain small king-fishers living in New Zealandhave deserted the habits of their group, and subsist on theremarkable diet of flies, young birds, and cherries! The change in habits of the Kea Parrot is only toowell known, especially to the sheep-raisers in New Zea-land, the home of these birds. Originally exclusivefruit-eaters, they have lately become so fond of the fatfrom the back
. The bird, its form and function . ^ devoursnakes. They dash down at oneof these reptiles, catch it up intheir beak, and, flying back toa branch or stone, hammer thesnake flail-like, until its life isbattered out. Certain small king-fishers living in New Zealandhave deserted the habits of their group, and subsist on theremarkable diet of flies, young birds, and cherries! The change in habits of the Kea Parrot is only toowell known, especially to the sheep-raisers in New Zea-land, the home of these birds. Originally exclusivefruit-eaters, they have lately become so fond of the fatfrom the backs of living sheep that they have developedinto ravenous birds of prey, vivisecting their victims andrejecting all but the choicest morsels. Gulls have longbeen known to enjoy an insect diet, and on the pampasin the vicinity of Buenos Ayres the people look and prayfor flocks of gulls as the only relief from the hordes of. Fig. 124.—Texas for insects. 162 The Bird grasshoppers which occasionally devastate that the antipodes we find a gull with crepuscular habits,whose entire food consists of night-flying moths. Birds in captivity may sometimes be induced to eatfood which they would never touch when in a state offreedom, but there are three species of birds the varietyof whose natural diet will challenge that of any livingcreature. The first is a Burrowing Owl. This bird willnot disdain vegetable food, and in its underground dining-chambers have been found remains of ducklings, spar-rows, mice, and many other small birds and rodents;snakes and frogs, besides spiders, beetles, and apparentlyall small forms of life which these little birds are able tocatch and kill. But leaving even the Burrowing Owlfar behind in this respect is the Chimango Carrion-hawkof southern South America. Hudson tells us that noth-ing comes amiss to these birds. The vulture habit is per-haps strongest
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