The First Is The
Delicate Bill Of The Bird Itself, And The Latter Is The Strong
Fibre Of The Bark Of A Tree, With Which The Bird Sews Every Leaf,
Lapping One Over The Other In The Same Manner That Slates Are
Laid Upon A Roof.
Nevertheless this is simple instinct; the tailor-bird in the days
of Adam constructed her nest in a similar manner, which will be
continued without improvement till the end of time.
The grosbeak almost rivals the tailor-bird in the beautiful
formation of its nest. These birds build in company, twenty or
thirty nests being common upon one tree. Their apparent
intention in the peculiar construction of their nests is to avoid
the attacks of snakes and lizards. These nests are about two
feet long, composed of beautifully woven grass, shaped like an
elongated pear. They are attached like fruit to the extreme end
of a stalk or branch, from which they wave to and fro in the
wind, as though hung out to dry. The bird enters at a
funnel-like aperture in the bottom, and by this arrangement the
young are effectually protected from reptiles.
All nests, whether of birds or insects, are particularly
interesting, as they explain the domestic habits of the
occupants; but, however wonderful the arrangement and the beauty
of the work as exhibited among birds, bees, wasps, etc., still it
is the simple effect of instinct on the principle that they never
vary.
The white ant - that grand destroyer of all timber - always works
under cover; he builds as he progresses in his work of
destruction, and runs a long gallery of fine clay in the
direction of his operations; beneath this his devastation
proceeds until he has penetrated to the interior of the beam, the
centre of which he entirely demolishes, leaving a thin shell in
the form of the original log encrusted over the exterior with
numerous galleries.
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