598 



COLLEGE ZOOLOGY 



that of a turkey to nearly ten feet high. They were flightless, 

 but possessed enormous hind limbs. 



Order 8. JEpyornithiformes. — Elephant-birds. — These 

 birds have probably become extinct within the past five centuries. 

 They inhabited Madagascar, were flightless, and possessed hind 

 limbs more enormous even than those of the moas. Many of 

 their eggs have been found in the sand near the sea-shore; they 

 are more than thirteen inches in length and nine inches wide, 

 and have a capacity of over two gallons. 



Order 9. Apterygiformes. — Kiwis. — These wingless birds 

 of New Zealand belong to the single genus Apteryx (Fig. 485) 



and to five or six 

 species. They are 

 about the size of a 

 common fowl; their 

 wings are aborted, 

 and they lack tail- 

 feathers. In habit, 

 they are nocturnal, 

 feeding upon worms, 

 which they probe 



Kiwi, Apteryx australis. 

 Evans.) 



(From 



for with their long 



Fig. 4S5 



beaks, and also upon 

 vegetable matter. The nest is made in a hole in the ground, 

 and one or two large eggs are laid. 



Order 10. Sphenisciformes. — Penguins. — The penguins, of 

 which about twenty living species are known, are confined to 

 the rocky and barren islands of the Antarctic region. They are 

 adapted for life in the water; the fore limbs are modified as 

 paddles for swimming; the feet are webbed; the cold water 

 can be shaken entirely from the feathers; and a layer of fat just 

 beneath the skin serves to keep in the bodily heat. They feed 

 on fishes and other marine animals. On shore they stand erect 

 (Fig. 486), side by side. They nest in colonies, laying the one 

 or two eggs either among the rocks or in a burrow. 



