miller's woods with us, uncle, and perhaps
we can find the Downy's nest hole," said Nat.

"Yes, I will come and tell you about the fourth Woodpecker on the
way--the one called the Yellow-bellied Sapsucker. Though very handsome,
this is not a bird that you would care to have come in great numbers to
your garden or orchard. For this bird makes holes in the tree bark and
eats the sap that leaks out, from this habit gaining the name of
Sapsucker. Of course you see that this is a very bad thing for the
trees; for when a great many holes have been bored near together the
bark loosens and peels off, so that the tree is likely to die. The
Sap-sucker also does harm by eating the soft inner bark which is between
the rough outside bark and the hard heart-wood of the tree; for this
soft bark is where the sap flows to nourish the tree.

[Illustration: Yellow-Bellied Sapsucker.]

"When the bird bores the holes and the sap oozes out, a great many
insects gather to feed on it--hornets, wasps, spiders, beetles, flies,
and other kinds. These the Sapsucker also eats, sweeping them up in the
sap with his tongue, which is not barbed like that of other Woodpeckers,
but has a little brush on the end of it, shaped something like those we
use for cleaning lamp chimneys. In this way he can easily lick up great
quantities of both sap and insects. You will not probably see him before
autumn, for he nests northward from Massachusetts; but you can write
down his table now, and then be on the watch for him."

The Yellow-Bellied Sapsucker

Length about eight and a half inches.

Upper parts mixed black, while, and dull yellowish; wings and tail
black, with much white on both; crown scarlet in the male.

Under parts light yellow on the belly, scarlet on the throat, black on
the breast, and with black marks on the sides.

A Citizen of eastern North America, roving further north than most
Woodpeckers and wintering as far south as Central America. A useful bird
in wild places, but unwelcome in gardens and orchards, and not a good
neighbor.

A member only of the guild of Tree Trappers.

"I wonder if I shall see the little Downy," said Dodo, as she skipped
down the road to the woods between her uncle and Nat.

"Don't hop so," said Nat; "it doesn't do at all when you are
bird-hunting. Rap says you must go quietly, and not swing your arms
either, for it frightens birds more than even a scarecrow."

"It is very hard to keep still when you are