430 BIRDS FROM SOUTH FLORIDA. 



the feathers ; and being obliged to skin the birds in a hurry, I was 

 careless with the arsenic, which threatened at one time to deprive me 

 of my finger nails. You will receive six flamingoes, which will be sent 

 in the early part of next winter, with other birds and specimens. A 

 wrecker informs me that a flamingo has become perfectly tame on board 

 his vessel, and will take the food from his hands. Our success encour- 

 aged others to start on an expedition after flamingoes, but they 

 returned without having been able to find the channel. 



[The flamingo is found in great numbers on the Bahama Islands. 

 Mr. J. L. Hindis states that a party from Bermuda, in July, 1850, 

 caught a number. The following account was given by one of the 

 party: " They visited Lake Rosa at a distance of fifteen miles from 

 the port where the vessel lay, and waded to some of the islands which 

 dotted its surface, the water being only knee deep. On one of these 

 islands they disturbed a large number of flamingoes, at least two hun- 

 dred, which were too shy to admit of a near approach, and were all in 

 red plumage. These would settle on some distant margin of the lake 

 inline 'resembling a company of soldiers.' On reaching the rocky 

 shore of the island in question, many young flamingoes were discovered, 

 some of which were run down and captured. They had an awkward 

 gait, but scuttled along at a good pace. These were in the gray 

 plumage, and of different stages of growth, the larger just putting forth 

 the quill feathers of the wings. Hollis confidently states that he saw 

 upwards of a thousand old flamingoes on the lake that day, or rather 

 on the small portion of it visited by him. He also saw many nests of 

 these birds, and found several of their eggs, which appeared to have 

 been thrown out by the parent birds, and proved to be addled. They 

 were white and about the size of a common goose egg. The nests were 

 composed of mud and sticks more or less raised, on account of surround- 

 ing water ; the highest of these were certainly not more than nine 

 inches from the ground, while many others were nearly level with it. 

 The surface was hollowed out, and capable of holding about two eggs ; 

 not more. I referred to Wilson's "American Ornithology," and read 

 the paragraph which describes the elevated nest constructed by this 

 bird to admit of its long legs dangling on each side during the duties 

 of incubation. At this my informant smiled, and assured me that he 

 had seen nothing of the kind ; that he had particularly noticed many of 

 their nests, and that in no one instance did the height of any of them 

 exceed what he had already stated."] 



A few warblers, and a large number of house and barn swallows, 

 made their appearance here during the last two weeks. The latter are 

 only seen flying, and never alight. 



The mourning doves and king birds were the only birds that spent 

 the summer on this key. 



I shall soon go to Cape Florida, and, if nothing happens, collect all 

 the birds to be met with in that region. 



Note. — The birds referred to by Mr. Wurdeman will be found described in the ninth vol- 

 ume of the Pacific Railroad Reports, as follows: Noddy, (Jlnous slolida;) Laying Gull, 

 (Sterna fuliginosa;) Black Parrakeet, (Crotophaga rugirostris ;) Flamingo, (Phoenicopterus 

 ruber;) Man-of-war Hawk, (Tachypetes aquila;) Wild Pigeon, (Columba leucocephala;) Indian 

 Pullet, (liramus giganteus.) 



