124 MANUAL 



FAMILY LII SULIDAE THE GANNETS 



The deriviition of this word is very questionable. Latin sol, Welch aid, ? 

 This is a small family and is not difficult to distinguish from 

 all others. Though at a distance it might easily be mistaker 

 by a novice for a true Goose, near to it bears no sort of re- 

 semblance. They are large, cumbersome-looking bodies with 

 very little that is graceful or agile about them or their move- 

 ments. They are, on the contrary, fine swimmers ; and are, 

 to a very great extent, gregarious — living and breeding in 

 large numbers in special and favorite localities. Size large — 

 length from 30 to 40 inches and extent of wings 50 to 70 (the 

 average of both species) ; bill long, as long as or longer than 

 the head, straight and slightly compressed, very stout at base 

 and tapering to awl-shaped point which is a trifle decurved ; 

 nostrils and groove very small ; gular sac present, but this 

 also very small ; tarsus short and stout, toes long and slended 

 and fully webbed ; wings long, pointed, and rather clumsy ; 

 tail short and cuneiform. 



Genus, Sula, 4 species. 



Sub-genera, Sida, The Common Gannet and 1 ally. 



Dysporus. The Booby Gannet and 1 all^y. 



The Gannets are still all classed under Sula by many writers ; they for- 

 merly received the generic equivalent of Pelecanus. Though Dysporus was 

 also iised at one time for the Common Gannet, it was discontinued when it 

 was found that that bird was reallj^ a typical Sida. 



FAMILY LIII PELECANIDAE THE PELICANS 



Latin pelecanus, Greek pelekinos, a pelican. 

 The Pelicans require very little description for their deter- 

 mination and identification. Their peculiar shape and size are 

 familiar to us, at least through pictures, from our childhood. 

 The enormous development of the gula sac, a membranous at- 

 tachment to the lower mandible, alone would fix the species 

 — and the family — indelibly in our minds. In size they 

 vary from four and a half to five feet in length, and from six 

 and a half to eight and a half in extent. The bill is very 

 long, and very peculiar in shape and size — as to both upper 



