1.Birds sometimes choose very strange places for making a home.They build their nests among trees or bushes,on the ground,under the ground,in the sides of cliffs,on the tops of mountains,under the eaves of houses,down chimneys,among the rafter.of old buildings,and even on the wrecks of ships,and islands of seaweed floating in the ocean.
2.In choosing a place for a nest,several points have to be noticed by the birds.The place must be within easy distance of their feeding-ground;and it must be of such a kind that they will be safe from their enemies.
3.The feeding-ground of some birds is so difficult to reach,that it is no easy matter to find a place near at hand for the nests.A flock of sea-birds once came upon the wreck of a wheat ship,which had been strande.on a sunken rock.They fed on the cargo of the wrecked ship;and rather than go many miles off to make their home on the shore,they took possession of the vessel,and began house-keeping there.Dozens of them built their nests in the cabin of the ship,in quiet nooks on the deck,and even in the tattered sails.
4.Another strange place for bird-nests was a floating iceberg,which had drifted down from the Northern seas,carrying with it frozen berries,seaweed,and other plants.Two gulls discovered the rich harvest of food on the iceberg,and they followed it for weeks and months.
They built their nests on its summit,and reared young on this strange floating island.
5.Birds often find out clever plans for saving their homes from danger.Those that build in orchards usually hang their nests on branches that are too slender to bear the weight of a cat.They also try to hide them from sight by winding leaves and twigs round the outside,or by keeping a cluster of leaves between them and the ground.
6.A small bird that had been very much annoyed by a cat at last hit upon a plan that baffled pussy.Taking two slender branches of two different apple-trees,she joined their ends together,and hung her nest between them.When the young ones were hatched,pussy tried to reach the nest,first from one tree,and then from the other;but as the branches were high up in the air,she was afraid to venture out on them.
7.Another small bird was in the habit of building its home on the ground,in the same orchard.One season she too fell upon a clever plan to defy the cat.A large,narrow-necked jar had been thrown away behind some bushes.It was half covered over with weeds and leaves,and this made it so much the better for the bird.
8.In spring she took possession of the jar,and built her nest in the farther end of it.The cat vainly tried to reach it by putting her paw in through the neck of the jar,but the distance was too great for her.Then she lay in wait for the old birds,and tried to catch them as they came out of the jar.
9.But they were too smart for pussy.Only one bird would enter at a time,and the other would stay outside to watch and give warning of danger.If the cat was near,the bird on watch outside would chirp loudly to the one inside.Then when pussy left,it would fly to the mouth of the jar and call to its mate to come out.In this way the two birds brought up their young ones in safety,and for three seasons they made the old jar their home.
10.There is a bird of the swallow family found in the East Indies which fastens its nest to the sides of dimly-lighted caves by the sea-shore.The curious thing about this nest is that it is not made of clay or of grass,like those of other birds,but of a white sticky substance which the bird produces in its own mouth.It builds its nest,as the spider spins his web,from its own body.
11.The Chinese are very fond of soup made from these nests,and about twenty-five millions of them are taken to Cantonal one every year.When they are in good condition,white and clean-looking,they are sold for their weight in silver.