BELTF.T) KiyCFlsHKB. :1SJ 



height of from twenty to thirty feet :i1)ovo tlie surface, tlicn poising tlu-insolvcs \7ith rap- 

 iiUv viliratiui;- wings for a few seconds, they will ihirt siulJenly downward, stvi'.ang the 

 Wilier so foreibly as to froipiently become entirely submerged. If the attempt be success- 

 iul, th(\v will rise wi,th their prey which is usually a small fish, in their beaks, shake the 

 water from their wings, give a triumphant rattle, and fly either to some favorite perch to 

 dc\()ur it or cany it to their nests. 



1 have mentioned that the Kingfishers are found throughout Florida, being as abun- 

 (huil on the Keys as on the St. John's River. They must breed in all those localities, and 

 on the St. John's and other streams, bhill's having abrupt banks occasionally occur in 

 which tlu'v can ncdce their holes, but I cannot conjecture where they build on the Keys as 

 I do not know of a single bank throughout their entire extent. (!ii Indian River I found 

 them nestins;- in a sin;rular situation. There is a narrow canal which connects Indian Riv- 

 or with ]Mos(iuito Lagoon at a point where the two bodies of water approach (>ach other 

 (pite closely. It is nearly twelve feet deep where the ground i ^ most elevated and, as 

 only about four feet of this space is occupied ])y the water, the reiui-inder forms perpen- 

 dicular banks. There is but little soil in this p(n-tion of Florida, t!u; underlying strata heing 

 coquona, a substance which is composed of fragments of shells cemented together by press- 

 ure. AVhen first dug, this rock, as it is called, is soft and crumbling, but upon being 

 exposed, becomes nearly as hard as any limestone. Thus a crust was formed over the 

 .surface which could not be penetrated without the aid of an iron instrument, yet there 

 were a dozen holes made by Kingfishers in the banks of the canal. These must have been 

 excavated years before when the coquena was soft, but, at least, one was occupied during 

 my visit as I frequently saw the birds emerge from it, and they exhibited great solicitude 

 whenever I approached. Although I coul I not ascertain for a certainty, as it would have 

 required consiilerahle labor to penetrate to the nest, I judged that they had eggs as early 

 as the last week in March. 



The Kingfishers are solitary birds, even after the young are out they do not accom- 

 pany their parents long. They are fed for the first few days after leaving the nest but they 

 soon learn to fish for themselves and then tliey disperse about the country. These birds re- 

 main quitt^ late in Massachusetts, rarely one will be seen in the winter if the season chance 

 to be mild. They ai'c more frequently found then in Pennsylvania, and occur regularly be- 

 low this point, consequently are constantly resident in the South. 



ORDER ITI. CAPRIMUr.OT. GOAT-SUCKERS. 



S.'crmim, with two ivide marginal indentations. BUI, short, with a wide and deep gape, 

 and with more or less bristles at the base. The ^.lumage is soft. 



The wings are long and pointed. The tail has ten feathers, two less than in the pre- 

 ceding order, and is of varying form. The feet are small with the upper face of the t:;rsus 

 feathered on its basal portion. The anterior toes are webbed at the base and the uuiiiber 

 of bones an- not normal, the inner ha\iiig three and each of the others, four. The ey'-'' 

 are large as the birds are, more ar less, noeluiual in habit. 



