. The bird, its form and function . ^ than fish. Pebbles and shells,which shelter so manytoothsome morsels alongthe shallow^s of our sea-shore, offer sumptuousfeasts to birds furnished with beaks adapted to pningand probing, and w^e find all sorts of sizes and collection of bills of various wading-birds would looklike a complete set of surgical tools! There is the stilt,whose bill is almost straight; the ibis, with mandiblescurved downward to probe the crevices between thepebbles on which he stands; the avocet has a pair ofrecurved pliers, which search out the w^orm or snail inthe dee
. The bird, its form and function . ^ than fish. Pebbles and shells,which shelter so manytoothsome morsels alongthe shallow^s of our sea-shore, offer sumptuousfeasts to birds furnished with beaks adapted to pningand probing, and w^e find all sorts of sizes and collection of bills of various wading-birds would looklike a complete set of surgical tools! There is the stilt,whose bill is almost straight; the ibis, with mandiblescurved downward to probe the crevices between thepebbles on which he stands; the avocet has a pair ofrecurved pliers, which search out the w^orm or snail inthe deepest fissures ahead of him. At the slightest touch. Fig, 179.—Bill of Great Blue Heron. 238 The Bird of such a beak, the 03sters and other large bivalvesclose with a snap, defjing these birds to penetrate theirli\ing armour. Indeed, more than once a gull or waderhas rashly pecked at the sweet flesh, when the two tight-fitting doors hnve suddenly closed, pinning the bird help-
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Keywords: ., bookauthorbeebewil, bookcentury1900, bookdecade1900, bookyear1906
