Identifier: babybirdsathomebb00kear (find matches)
Title: Baby birds at home
Year: 1912 (1910s)
Authors: Kearton, Richard, 1862-1928
Subjects: Birds -- Behavior Birds -- Juvenile literature
Publisher: London, New York (etc.) Cassell and company, ltd.
Contributing Library: American Museum of Natural History Library
Digitizing Sponsor: Biodiversity Heritage Library

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Ireland. During the spring and summer its foodconsists of worms, snails, grubs, and beetles,but in the autumn it varies this diet withall kinds of berries, and is especially fondof those of the mountain ash, for whichit will enter even the front gardens ofhouses in large towns during its autumnmigration. The nest is built in all kinds of situations.Sometimes quite on the ground, and at othersin a hole in an old stone wall, on a ledge ina small cliff, amongst heather growing ona steep bank, and, upon rare occasions, ina holly bush. The structure is an exactimitation of that of the blackbird, but is, ofcourse, found in more solitary localities. The eggs number four or five, of a bluishgreen colour, freckled and spotted with brown.The markings are, as a rule, larger and fartherapart than those found on the eggs of theblackbird. The young ones in their first plumage donot resemble either of their parents. Thereis no white crescent on the breast, which isa mixture of black and sandy buff.
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SPOONBILLS. The Spoonbill THE Spoonbill measures about two feeteight inches in length, when full grown.Its plumage is white all over, except on thecrown of the head and part of the neck,w^here a buffish tinge is observable. At theback of the head the feathers are consider-ably lengthened and form a magnificentcrest. In olden times this beautiful bird usedto breed in Norfolk and Suffolk, and evenas close to London as Fulham. It wasbanished, however, by the drainage of manyof its favourite marshes, and, it is to befeared, the too free use of guns. Smallflocks still visit the Norfolk coast during thespring and summer, and form an interestingsight on Breydon Broad, close to Great Yar-mouth. Here they evidently appreciate thewatchfulness of the seagulls, for they like totake a nap or feed in the society of thesewary birds. The Spoonbill is fond of frequenting 6t 62 Baby Birds at Home mud flats, where it feeds upon water-snails,small fishes, frogs, insects, and the budsand leaves of water-p

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