378 Birds. 



it on, and forces it to the sea in search of nourishment., 

 when thus excited to exertion, the Pelican flies from the 

 spot, and, raising itself thirty or forty feet above the 

 surface of the water, turns its head with one eye down- 

 ward, and continues to fly in that position till it sees a 

 fish near the surface. It then darts down with astonish- 

 ing swiftness, seizes its prey with unerring certainty, 

 and stores it in its pouch. Having done this, it rises 

 into the air, and repeats the same action till it has pro- 

 cured a sufficient stock. The Pelican is by no means 

 destitute of natural affection, either towards its young 

 ones or towards others of its own species. Clavigero, in 

 his " History of Mexico," says, that sometimes the Ameri- 

 cans, in order to procure, without trouble, a supply of 

 fish, cruelly break the wing of a live Pelican, and, after 

 tying the bird to a tree, conceal themselves near the 

 place. The screams of the miserable bird attract other 

 Pelicans to the place, which, he assures us, eject a por- 

 tion of the provisions from their pouches for their impri- 

 soned companion. As soon as the men observe this, they 

 rush to the spot, and after leaving a small quantity for 

 the bird, carry off the remainder. 



In America, Pelicans are often rendered domestic, and 

 are so trained, that at command they go in the morning 

 and return before night with their pouches distended with 

 prey, part of which they are made to disgorge, while the 

 rest is left them for their trouble. The bird is said to 

 live sometimes a hundred years. 



Our forefathers attributed extraordinary affection to 

 this bird, more than is attested by any save heraldic evi- 

 dence. Thus, in several crests, it is represented in the 

 act of feeding its young with its own blood, which it 

 procures by striking its breast with the sharp point of 

 its beak. And the ancients fully believed that in times 

 of scarcity the female Pelican resorted to this means of 

 supporting her brood. The nest of the Pelican is made 

 with sedges and grass, close to the water's edge; the 

 female lays two or three white eggs, and the male is said 

 to supply his partner with food while she is engaged in 

 the work of incubation, 



