The Belted Kingfisher One of the singular habits of this peculiar bird is connected with its breeding. It does not build a nest in a tree or on the ground, but it ex- cavates a hole in the side of a bank, usually near water, but not always, as railroad cuts are sometimes selected. The location of the burrow is prob- ably determined largely by the character of the soil, the favorite kind being clay, compact sand , or mixed gravel and loam. Both the male and female bird join in the labor of excavation, which is done with their large and power- ful bills, the feet being used to push out the loosened soil. The passage is round and about four inches in diam- eter and extends inward, straight or with bends to a FEET OF KINGFISHER varying depth from four to twenty feet, and terminates in a round domed living-room. Here the clutch of five to eight pure white eggs are laid and the young are hatched. As the nestlings are protected from cold, heat and storms, there is little or no nesting material used, although in old excavations a considerable amount of fishbones and scales may be found. If the birds are not disturbed, a burrow will be used for a number of successive seasons. The young, when hatched, are naked, very helpless and their eyes are not opened. They grow very slowly. Kingfishers belong to the class of birds known as Altrices, or those whose young are helpless at birth and require feeding and care in the nest. They are in striking contrast to the Pracoces, whose young are able to run about and feed themselves as soon as they are hatched. One of the most interesting subjects in the study of birds is the difference in habits between the altri- cial and precocial birds ; it will be a never-ending source of interest to the teacher and the pupils. Contrast, for instance, the helpless young of the Kingfisher with the downy, self-reliant young of the Spotted Sandpiper, that well-known bird that is seen in sum- mer teetering on the margin of almost every river or pond in this country.* Another interesting subject is the investigation of the food of birds and their means of procuring it; in other words, how the bills and feet are adapted to the needs of the bird when procuring food. Kingfishers subsist principally on small fish not over three inches in length which are of little or no value. They also eat Crustacea, grasshop- pers, beetles, crickets, frogs, lizards, etc. Major Bendire says, in ' Life Histories of North American Birds' : "In southern Arizona, where streams are few, I have found Kingfishers breeding in localities where fish must
- Read ' The Kingfishers' Home-Life,' by William L. Baily, Bird-Lore, Vol. II, p. 76, 1900.
FOOT OF OSPREY
