
"There be three things which are to wonderful for me," says Agur, son of Jakeh, in the Bible's Book of proverbs. "Yea, four which I know not: The way of an Eagle in the air; the way of a serpent upon a rock; the way of a ship in the midst of the sea; and the way of a man with a maid." Like Agur, untold numbers of men and women have marveled at "the way of an eagle in the air; - or, for that matter, the way of a sparrow in the garden.

Active, abundant, often brightly colored and gaily vocal, birds are certainly among the most noticeable of man's fellow inhabitants on earth.

BIRD, common name for any member of the vertebrate class Aves. Definition of the class is simple: Any animal with feathers is a bird, because feathers are unique to birds. All adult birds have feathers, although some kinds, such as pelicans, kingfishers, woodpeckers, and jays, are completely naked when hatched.

The group known collectively as birds of prey, or raptors, includes a generally night-hunting order, the owls (Stringiformes), and a day-hunting order (Falconiformes) that includes hawks, eagles, and falcons, as well as the carrion feeding vultures. They are all meat eaters (except for one strange African vulture that feeds on palm nuts), although the "meat" for the smaller species is generally insects, and some feed on fish. All have powerful, sharp bills, and all but the vultures have grasping toes tipped with curved, sharp claws, or talons.