194 REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1901. 



although it is rather common over a wide area in the United States. 

 Its curious visage stamps it as a bird of great rarity in the minds of 

 the laymen. 



Of almost equal interest to the people at large are two other com- 

 mon American birds, the night hawk and the whip-poor-will, which 

 !>\ many are thought to be one and the same species. These two 

 species were exhibited side by side, and accompanied by explanatory 

 labels, pointing out the differences in structure and habits of the two 

 birds. 



Two birds of singular appearance included in the collection were 

 the roseate spoonbill {Ajaja qjaja), a bright-plum aged bird of tropical 

 America, remarkable for its flattened spoon-shaped bill and crimson 

 shoulder patches; and the boatbill (Cochlearvus zeledoni), a nocturnal 

 variety of heron from tropical America, named from its bill, which 

 bears a striking resemblance to the upturned surface of a boat. 



Of Arctic birds the exhibit included, among others, the tufted puf- 

 fin (Lunda cirrhata), a member of the auk family, of plain black 

 plumage, peculiar for its high, laterally compressed, bright-colored 

 bill, and curly tufts of white hairy feathers springing from the sides 

 of its head; and the snowj' owl {Nyctea nyctea), one of the largest 

 species of the owl tribe. This bird is dressed in pure white, relieved 

 here and there by a few black spots. Its plumage is very thick, even 

 the bill and feet being hidden in a dense covering of hairy feathers to 

 protect them from the Arctic cold. 



Very owl-like in appearance is the grand potoo (JVyctibius grandis), 

 a bird belonging to the whip-poor-will family. It is of a mottled gray 

 and black color, and has an enormous mouth. It inhabits the northern 

 half of South America. The specimen exhibited was of large size, 

 but hardly in so good plumage as many of the North American birds. 

 The oil bird (Steatomis steatornis) is related to the goat suckers. It 

 dwells in caverns in the northern part of South America, and was dis- 

 covered by Humboldt during his travels in that region. It lives upon 

 fruits and berries. An adult specimen was exhibited. A bird which 

 attracted the attention of many visitors was the man-o'-war bird, whose 

 abnormally long, folded wings project far beyond its body. In flight 

 it is one of the most active and graceful of all birds. It is a native of 

 all tropical seas. Of the commoner birds exhibited one of the most 

 curious was the anhinga {Anhinga anhinga) or snake bird, a native of 

 Florida and tropical America, where it haunts sluggish streams and 

 wooded swamps, usually perching upon snags or stumps projecting 

 from the water. It has a very small head and long, narrow neck, 

 whence the name " snake bird.'" 



Among the woodpeckers exhibited at Buffalo may be mentioned two 

 species mounted upon one perch and labeled "giant and pygmy wood- 

 peckers." The giant is the imperial woodpecker {Campephilus impe- 



