We have now studied our five species of woodpeckers common in New York State, and I trust that you know them all by sight. When you are teaching the children about the woodpecker, there are many interesting stories to tell about the way that his form is adapted to his life. Some of these stories are as follows: First. The woodpecker's bill, which is a drill and chisel, and how he uses it for getting at the grub or the borer in the wood, and for making the hole for the nest, and for drumming when he feels musical. Second. The tongue, which is a barbed spear, and has a wonderful spring attachment of bones which allows it to be thrust far out. This tongue is fitted in each case to get the kind of food which sustains its owner. Third. The feet have a special arrangement of toes which allows the bird to cling tenaciously to a tree trunk. Study the way the fourth toe, which may be compared to our little finger, has been moved around backward so that it acts as another thumb. Fourth. Study how the tail made of stiff feathers is particularly adapted to act as a brace, helping the bird to climb a tree. In studying all these things I would especially recommend you to a little book called, "The Woodpeckers" by Fannie Hardy Eckstrom, published by Houghton, Mifflin & Co., price $1.00. QUESTIONS ON THE FLICKER. 1. Have you ever seen a flicker? 2. Do you know its song? 3. Has the flicker a straight bill like the downy's? 4. What are the differences between the male and female flicker? 5. Have you ever seen a flicker catching ants? Describe. 6. Do you think the flicker is a beneficial bird? If so, why? 7. Have you ever seen a flicker's nest? Describe. 8. Do you know how the flicker feeds its young? Explain. 9. Describe the difference in color between the male and female of the (a) downy, (b) the hairy, (c) the redhead, (d) the sapsucker, (e) and the flicker. 10. How can you tell the difference between a flicker and a meadow lark during flight? [Illustration: _Downy's long tongue._] LEAFLET XXV. THE CHICKADEE.[34] [34] Home Nature-Study Course, Vol. V, No. 3, December, 1903. BY ANNA BOTSFORD COMSTOCK. _He is the hero of the woods; there are courage and good nature enough in that compact little body, which you may hide in your fist, to supply a whole groveful of May songsters. He has the Spartan virtue of an eagle, the cheerfulness of a thrush, the nimbleness of Cock Sparrow, the endurance of the seabirds condensed into his tiny frame, and there have been added a pertness and ingenuity all his own. His curiosity is immense, and his audacity equal to it; I have even had one alight upon the barrel of the gun over my shoulder as I sat quietly under his tree._--ERNEST INGERSOLL. [Illustration]