San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1896-02-01
ACCIDENTS TO BIRDS.
Singular Misfortunes Which Be-
fall the Little Creatures.
a Heron Choked by q Fish That was
Too Large to swallow-A Bird Hung
by n Hair In a Colts
Tail.

Many strange accidents have oc-
CURED to birds while feeding. An Irish
naturalist once observed a dunlin be,
having very curiously on the seashore.
The bird rose in the air and few for a
short distance, then alighted and shook
its head violently in a vain endeavor to
detach a round lump observable upon
It's bill. The CIRCUMFERENCE proved TO
be cookie which the dunlin had found
open, and, in innocently attempting to
negotiate, had been trapped by it. This
kind of bivalye accomplishment no less
than an authority than Mr.. Tegemier
declares to be not at all uncommon on
our shores. A Whitstable cookie recent
ly bore testimony to the veteran
naturalist's assertion by capturing a
green linnet by one of its toes.
A poor little ehaffinch was found dead
in the neighborhood of EPSON short
time ago with its lower mandible firmly
imbeded in the shell of beechnut
that had become so inextricably fixed
that the bird had died of starvation.
A hen pheasant was not long since OBJ
served by a sportsman flying round and
round in the most unaccountable fash
ion, and on being shot was discovered
to have large oak leaf impaled upon its
beak so as to completely obscure its
vision.
Herons sometimes choke themselves
by attempting to swallow large trout,
how large may be judged to some ex-
tent from the fact that recently dis
sected a bird of this species in whose
nav was large water rat in perfect
state of preservation. An elder duck
has been killed through attempting to
swallow toad, and bullhead or mill
er's-thumb" has proved too much for
water rail, little grebe, and king
fisher. A member of the last named
species was discovered season or two
back in Cambridgeshire ditch by some
sportsmen unable to fly except for
short distance, and upon being caught
and examined it was found that the
bird had young pike protruding from
it's gullet. AS soon as the fish, which
measured no less than Az inches, was
removed, the kingfisher few away APP
parently none the worse for its expert
ence. y
Birds that employhair in the building
of their nests sometimes come to grief
b.. hanging, but I SHOULD say very sci;
dom indeed in the following manner.
4 gentleman who had number of colts
upon his farm one day noticed a small
bird entangled in the long hair of the
tail of one of them. The little creature
had evidently been in search of material
wherewith to line its nest, and by some
unaccountable accident had become en-
shared in the unkempt hair of the colts
tail. Cases of birds getting their feet
entangled in bits of yarn or string are
not uncommon, especially in the breed
Ing season, and whenever the victim of
this kind of mishap happens to get the
impeachment fastened in tree or among
stones. Death is pretty sure to be the re-
suit urless prompt human aid is forth
coming. In the spring of the year, as
everybody k66ws, the dead leaves of
pampas grass fen to the ground and
curl up like the sfrayings from a car
penter's bench. A Field correspondent
mentions finding a poor robin which
had accidentally got'one OF these pieces
coiled around its neck so tightly that
it was unable to feed, anddied OF starva-
ton.
Booth describes a very peculiar acI
cident to a kingfisher, thus: while
snipe shooting one winter round Hick-
ling Broad, in Norfolk, noticed some
small object splashing in the water. at
the side of the dixie, and on proceeding
to the spot discovered an unfortunate
lingfisher that had come to grief in a |
rather singular manner. The bird had |
evidently at some former time been
struck by a shot which had passed
through the upper mandible. This
wound was quite healed up, but a small
piece of the horny substance of the beak
had been splintered, and into the crack
produced by the fracture two or three
Of the fine fibres which form part of the
flowers or seeds of the reed were so
firmly fixed that the bird was held fast.
1t must have been flying up the dixie
and brushing too closely to the reeds
that grow on the banks, to have been
caught in the manner described.-I
Cornhill Magazine. |
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