THE FOUNTAIN THAT UNCLE JOHN BUILT

About the Book

THE FOUNTAIN THAT UNCLE JOHN BUILT

written by Annette Spelman
illustrated by Josephine Casados

This picture book for children of early school age is based on a true story. It began when "Uncle John" and his friend, Shim'on, brought a large fountain up to "Grandma's" house in the mountains of New Mexico, a high desert state which often is very dry. Uncle John wanted the birds to find water all year round. Slowly and cautiously the first five species of birds one group at a time came to the fountain to drink. The birds that are featured: the American Robin, House Finch, Pinyon Jay, Northern Flicker, and the Dark-eyed Junco. Grandma describes what happens with each group of birds in her yard. To make the book more educational this author has added more information from two books written by authors who have studied bird habits for many years. They are listed in the bibliography.

There are paintings of each bird so that the children can look at the pictures while the birds' features are being described. There are also paintings that help tell the story. It is hoped that this book will inspire children to learn more about the beautiful creatures that fly our skies.

Here are some excerpts from the book:

Robins are very plentiful in New Mexico and all over the United States. They are known to fly together in huge numbers. At first only small groups of Robins came to Grandma's fountain and they were fascinating to watch. She noticed that a Robin perched on top of her green bench kept tipping his head to the side. She learned that because the Robins' eyes are placed far back on the sides of their heads they cannot see food, such as berries or worms, when they look straight ahead. If you have a lawn in your yard you might see some Robins hopping across the grass looking for worms or insects. If they find their prey they will happily dig them up with their yellow bills .

The next bird to come to the fountain was the smallsized House Finch, 5 inches long. It also is a commonly seen bird. Grandma saw a very small flock of House Finches flying above the pinon pine trees. Then cautiously they flew nearer and swooped down to land on the top two basins of the fountain.

To see what the male House Finch looks like find his picture. What do you notice first? I think it could be the bright orange-red color on his forehead, extending down his throat and breast. It is also on his rump. Otherwise he has streaks on his brown wings and back and streaks on his lighter-colored belly. The female is much less colorful.

It was several days later when Grandma saw her first Pinyon Jay. It was not just one Jay. A flock of at least 3 dozen (36) birds were flying over and around the fountain. Some perched on top of the pinon trees and then swooped down to land on the basins filled with water. Some birds took one sip and flew off while others were landing. They made a ring around the top and middle basins. Then suddenly there was a loud bang from a car and the startled birds instantly fanned out into the air and flew away as quickly as they had come.

One of the most striking birds to come to Grandma's house is the Northern Flicker, a woodpecker. This bird likes to peck at the wood under the edge of her roof. A few times Grandma has heard the pecking in the middle of the night. Woodpeckers have been known to do much damage but Grandma cannot bring herself to shoo the few birds away.

The Northern Flicker is 12 inches long. He eats food mostly on the ground. He eats insects, especially ants. He eats more ants than you could imagine. Luckily Grandma has a large ant hill near her house. The Flicker pecks at the hill which disturbs the ants and causes them to come out ofthe ground right into the Flicker's long bill.

Winter was coming and the first snow fell. One of Grandma's favorite birds, the Dark-eyed Junco,

About the Author

Annette Spelman is a grandmother. She was a registered nurse working with children for many years. As a pilot she was an instructor in general aviation at Brown Field near the California/Tijuana border. For twenty-three years she has lived near the mountains of Santa Fe County, New Mexico. This is her first book. Illustrator Josephine Casados is a mother of two sons. She works with children as a registered nurse at a pediatric center. She has many artistic talents, including painting, retablos, award winning irises, jewelry and wooden angels. She lives with her husband, Alex, in Santa Fe, New Mexico.