GRALLATORES. 40 { 



Cape of Good Hope. Its flesh, when well fed and fat, is said 

 nearly to resemble in flavor that of a goose. 



The ROSEATE SPOONBILL, P. ajaja, is a beautiful, though sin 

 gular bird, constantly found in Texas and South Florida; it is 

 seen as far eastward as North Carolina. The beak and wings 

 are of a delicate rose-color ; the lower parts of a deeper tint ; 

 the head is yellowish green; the neck white. The length is 

 about thirty-one inches. This Spoonbill is usually fond of being 

 with the Herons, whose keen sight and vigilance apprise it of 

 danger, and allow it to take flight in due time ; it breeds in flocks 

 on trees, low bushes, or cactuses. The feathers of the wings 

 and tail are manufactured into fans by the Indians and Negroes 

 of Florida; and at St. Augustine, form an article of trade. 

 (Aud.) The flesh is oily, and undesirable for eating. 



FOURTH FAMILY. IBISES. 

 Tantalida, (Gr. ravTalog, Tantalos, a proper name.) 



These are birds which, in their general habits and conforma 

 tion, closely resemble the Storks; they chiefly inhabit warm 

 countries, but except in very cold regions, they are to be found in 

 all parts of the world. The bill is very long, robust at the base, 

 and curved at the tip ; the face is naked ; the throat dilatable ; the 

 legs are long, and have four toes ; the front toes are webbed at their 

 base as far as the first joint ; the hind toe is very long, and rests 

 upon the ground. The Ibises frequent the borders of rivers and 

 lakes, feeding on insects, worms, mollusks, and occasionally on 

 vegetable matter. They perform powerful and elevated flights, 

 extending their neck and legs, and uttering a hoarse croak. The 

 family includes between twenty and thirty species, which are 

 distributed over the globe. Four of these are found within the 

 limits of the United States. 



The GLOSSY IBIS, Tantalus faldnettus, (Lat. from falx, a 

 sickle,) is about two feet in length. In the matured bird, the 

 neck, breast, top of the back, and all the lower parts of the body, 

 are of a bright red chestnut; the wing coverts, quills, tail-feath 

 ers, and the rest of the back, of a dusky green, glossed with 

 bronze and purple; but the bird varies much in its plumage at 

 different ages. This species nestles in Asia, and is found on the 

 streams and lakes in flocks of thirty or forty. They migrate 

 periodically to Egypt, and pass in considerable numbers into 

 Europe. The G-lossy Ibis is also found, in the United States. 

 Audubon saw flocks of it in Texas, but it is only a summer resi 

 dent there, associating with the White Ibis. Vast numbers of 



