Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1906-04-17
DIFFERENT KINDS OF BIRDS.

| Z
me hooking bird is much sought
Tor on account of its wonderful facul-
" OF initiating the tone of every
lnhabitant of the woods, from the twit-
ter of the hummingbird to the scream
of the eagle.
me blackbird gets name from it's
color, which is a jet black. A large
number OF them go south together
ana they feast on the farmers corn
nelds as they go. We children say
they are having camp meeting by
thelr noise, 1t seems like they all want
to talk at the same time.
Inc most beautiful humminghirds
are found in the West Indies and
south America. The crest Of the tiny
mead OF one of these shines like a
sparkling crown of colored lights. AS
IT Hits from one object to another It
looks more like bright flash of sun.
Aght than it does a living being. They
are called hummingbirds because they
| make soft humming noise. The nest
IS about half the size of very small
hens egg and are made of cotton f1b-
ers and is covered with softest bits of
leaf and bark.
| Owls are found In every country.
but their headquarters may be said to
be in the north and In cold climates
They feed on little birds and insects.
The head is large, the eyes very large.
During the night the irises are con-
tracted to great size which enables
the owl to see better during the night.
The voice of the owl is harsh and
screeching.
The snowbird is seen In midwinter
and you can hear their chic-a-de-dee
when just before snow storm, they
seem to delight in seeing 1t snow and
to be out in the snow.
There are two kinds of canary birds.
The tame, which are kept in cages.
These are a bright yellow and can
sing sweetly The wild canary lives
in the woods, but has not such a beau
tiful color as the tame.
The fish hawk is not SO large as the
eagle but he has like the eagle a
hooked bill and sharp claws. The
color is a dark brown with black and
white spots, the breast is mostly
white. They are often found sitting
upon a tree over pond, lake or river
where they watch for fish which is
mostly their food.
The meadow lark lives in the mead
ow where they build their nest in the
long grass. Their eggs are brown with
white specks.
The whippoorwill is a small bird,
the color is black and brown with
white spots and in the evening you
can hear its whip-poor-will.
The quail is a domestic bird, the
color is brown with speckled breast.
They whistle bob white" and If you
are kind to them they will visit your
barnyard, and sing for you upon the
boughs of the apple tree by your
gateway. They choose some grassy
tussock where, safe from danger there
they make their nest and raise their
little ones in peace. The eggs are
pure white and are good to eat as
we'll as the bird.
The redbird has beautiful color.
They are an early spring bird and
have topknot like the blue jay.
The English sparrow is a little
brown bird They build their nests in
barns and in the caves of the house.
The king bird is not bigger than a
robin. They eat flies, worms, bugs
and berries. And 1T builds its nest
in tree near some house. When
there are little ones in the nest the
king bird sits on the top of some tree
near them, and watches to see that no
birds come to hurt them. If hawk
or crow comes near he makes dash
at it, though he is SO small he ia
brave and never fails to drive off
other birds from his nest. Because he
can drive off all other birds he is SO
called the king bird.
The robin is an early spring bird.
The color is brown with a red breast
Their food is worms, berries and
grain. They make their nest out of
sticks, leaves and straw.
Miss Cleo Dulin, age IA.
sR5 .5- SnIn,o To s,.