They look
like bees going across the face of the moon.
Large birds, like ducks, fly very swiftly. It is thought that they may
travel one hundred miles an hour. But the small warblers and flycatchers
go less than half as fast.
Most birds that fly at night are far above the earth. They go as high as
two or three miles. If you have ever been on a mountain top or a very
high building, you will know how much farther you can see than when you
are on the ground.
So the birds, too, can see a great distance as they fly by, high in the
air. At night they can see the water sparkling in the starlight. This
helps them to find their way.
When it is foggy or raining they cannot see which way they are going
This is a sad time for the little feathered travelers. Some fly far out
to sea and are drowned. The feathers of some are so wet that they cannot
fly. Then they must seek shelter in the trees.
In wet and foggy weather the birds sometimes fly to the lighthouses. The
light seems to attract them, just as a light attracts moths. They fly
against the glasses which protect the light, and often are killed.
Sometimes large birds fly through the glass about the light. The light-
keeper therefore puts wire netting outside the glass to protect it from
these large birds.
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