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No sooner has the returning sun again caused millions of plants to expand their leaves and blossoms to his genial beams than the little humming bird is seen advancing on fairy wings, carefully visiting every opening flower-cup, and, like a curious florist, removing from each the injurious insects that otherwise would ere long cause its beauteous petals to droop and decay. Poised in the air, it is observed peeping cautiously,and with sparkling eye, into their innermost recesses; while the motions of its pinions, so rapid and so light, appear to fan and cool the flower,and produce a delightful murmuring sound, well adapted for lulling the insects to repose.
Then is the moment for the humming bird to secure them. Its long,delicate bill enters the cup of the flower, and the tongue touches each insect in succession and draws it from its lurking place, to be instantly swallowed. All this is done in a moment, and the bird, as it leaves the flower, sips so small a portion of its liquid honey that the theft, we may suppose, is looked upon with a grateful feeling by a flower, which is thus kindly relieved from the attacks of her destroyers.
The prairies, the fields, the orchards and gardens—nay the deepest shades of the forest—are all visited in their turn; and everywhere the little bird meets with pleasure and with food. Its gorgeous throat in beauty and brilliancy baffles all competition. Now it glows with a fiery hue, and again it is changed to the deepest velvety black. The upper parts of its delicate body are of resplendent, changing green. It moves from one flower to another like a gleam of light—upward, downward, to the right, and to the left. In this manner it searches the extreme northern portions of our country, following with great precaution the advances of the season; and retreats with equal care at the approach of autumn.
( John James Audubon )
John James Audubon (1780-1851) was born in New Orleans. His mother died when he was very young, and his father, who was a Frenchman,took the boy to France. There Audubon grew up and was educated. He studied drawing with some of the celebrated French artists. In 1798 he returned to America, and from that time on, he spent most of his time in this country. He devoted himself to the study of natural history and especially to birds. His great work, The Birds of America, contains life-size pictures of more than a thousand birds. The drawings for these he made himself, and they are artistically excellent as well as true to nature. Because of his interest in birds, the clubs for the care and study of birds, which have been formed throughout the United States, are called Audubon Societies.
expand : to get bigger
baffle : confuses
precaution : to be very careful
Answer the following questions.
1) Have you ever seen a humming bird?
2) How does the bird capture the insect?
3) How does the author excuse the bird’s theft?
4) What service does the bird render to the flowers
5) What can we learn from this poem?