154, BIRDS 



for it is very nervous and quickly takes to flight with noisy 

 beating of wings and raucous lamenting cry, frightening 

 everything within earshot, so that it must be a great 

 nuisance to sportsmen. I have already related how one 

 of them frustrated my hoped for interview with a hippo. 

 Sometimes these birds perch on a tree top, at other times 

 sit among the rushes and bushes on the shore, but wher- 

 ever they are their wailing cry betrays them. When 

 flushed they make a great noise with the hurried strokes 

 of their wings and have a characteristic flight, interposing 

 an extra quick beat here and there until they feel steady 

 in the air. Presumably the main object is to rise quickly 

 from the ground, and not to place a great horizontal 

 distance between themselves and the disturber of the 

 peace. 



The other species is the handsome sacred ibis (Ibis 

 oethio])ica), whose plumage, half black, half white, makes 

 it easy to recognize. It is very far from common, and is 

 only to be seen occasionally here and there, so that it is 

 unfamiliar to the natives, and I could obtain no native 

 name for it. During 1914 there was usually to be seen 

 one on a rock off Kizima Islet, and it was noted to be a 

 very silent bird, thus contrasting strangely with its 

 relative. I did not notice the hurried flight, with inter- 

 posed beat, so characteristic of the Hagedash ibis. 



Of Storks, several species are noticeable, particularly the 

 curious " open-billed " species {Anastomus lamelligerus), 

 the two halves of whose beak do not meet along the middle 

 of the bill, giving the bird an unusual appearance. It is 

 rather an uncouth and ungraceful black bird, met with 

 along the shore, where it is said to feed on the large 

 Ampullaria " water snails," its curious bill being adapted 

 to enable it to deal with their strong shells. The natives 

 call it " Enkonamasonko," which shows that they know 

 its habits, " E'sonko " (jilural Masonko) meaning " shell," 

 and " Oku-kona " meaning " To knock." 



