St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1904-05-11
Bird Architecture.
The Bird Circle.
Editor CALIFORNIAN:

| Editor CALEDoNIAN:
In our last article we spoke of the ar
chitectural and artistic features of the
nests of the birds, such as the robin, the
oriole and the humming- We were
then, we might say. inspecting or de-
scribing the work of the weavers, and
| many are the species which would be
classed as such. It would be an interest
ing study, indeed, if we had specimens of
all the tiny and artistic homes of the
warblers, the fy-catchers and the
creepers, for all of these would show the
wonderful skill of these weavers. The
skill of each bird is shown in the process
of weaving, but the supreme test of its
skill is in so weaving that its nest shall
descibe perfect circle.
But let US, for moment, look at the
| work of the wood-workers-the carpen-
tiers, we might say. We will, of course,
go to the homes of the woodpeckers, the
| nuthatches and the fickers. Their
homes are their workshops, and if we
these dwellings,, which serves as door
and window, and nestle down for mo-
ment on the floor of that circular cham
Der, shielded from the storms and winds,
| and take look from that circular win
dow, usually high up on the tree, we
| should perhaps say, "After all, if were
to live in bird-land, should like best to
live with the picidae." Look up there on
the side of that lofty tree. Was that tree
bored with an auger? Who taught
these birds to describe circle? How do
| they do it? It is no easy thing to do.
When Michael Angelo was first asked to
submit an example of his skill in draw
ing, he picked up his crayon and with
| quick stroke left perfect circle upon the
tablet. 1t was enough. 1t was unques-
| tionable evidence of consummate skill.
| No other artist could do more.
How many entrances do we find to the
homes of these little bird architects, the
little busy wood-workers, which will
bear the test Of the compasses. There is
a wonderful similarity in pair of di-
viders and a woodpecker's bill, but the
birds bill is not used as such in describ-
| ing a circle. IF these birds worked ad
libitum. merely to gain entrance to the
| tree, we should see all sorts of shaped en-
| frances, but the anatomy of the bird is
such that perched on one spot on the tree
| while at work, it's bill describes a circle
| without intention on the part of the bird.
It is that perfect law of nature wrought
into the anatomy of the bird. The cir
cular chamber beyond this entrance,
while naturally oblong to give depth.
hence protection, is also an amazing IL
lustration of how closely these birds OBJ
serve the lines OF symmetry.
We might then visit for little the
homes of one of those ancient tribes
which we might call the clif-dwellers-
the bank-swallows. Most of the swal-
low tribes have adapted themselves to
Or identified themselves with the march
of civilization, leaving the cliffs to take
up their abode under the caves of the
buildings erected by man, or within the
buildings themselves. But one tribe still
clings to the traditions of the past and
live in colonies apart from the works of
man. These we know as the bank
swallows. The circular chambers or tun-
nels leading from the perpendicular sides
of our clay banks are familiar to every
one. Who has not as boy tried to en-
large one of those chambers so as to
reach the swallows nest And have we
not wondered how the swallows knew
just how long our arms were and so
fixed the distance that the nest was just
beyond our reach? With bill made not
only for catching insects, but to be used
as a pickaxe and using their feet as
shovels, these small, soft-coated creatures
tunnel to a point well out of reach
through the hardest clay and at the end
of this tunnel lay their nest. We say lay
their nest, for they could hardly be said
to build nest, for sheltered from the
storms and wind there is no occasion for
them to weave nest. but they simply
lay down few stra WIS and soft feathers
in circular form and this is sufficient for
their needs. If were possible for us to
approach one of these nests from the
back and look out into the world from
the point at which the nest is located,
we might well say, 1.-THE only way to
reach theswallow's nest is by the Hoosac
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nels have been found at certain seasons
of the year lighted by electricity, or
rather by lightning bugs, but whether
Intentionally or accidentally lighted is
not known. yet it is well-known fact
that certain birds do illumine or decorate
their nests with glow-worms, replacing
them as fast as they die.
The masonry of the eave-swallow or
the chimney-swallow is worthy of our
careful study. A row of eave-swallows'
nests excites but little attention for we
are so used to seeing them that they
look ordinary, just as any birds nest
looks like an ordinary thing. We lose
sight of the real work the nest repre-
sents. In the first place it is interesting
to note that the swallows house in
which it builds its nest is OF clay, show
ing that when these birds left the cliffs
to cast their lot, as it were, with man,
they took their material with them and