458 SWIMMING BIRDS. 



collects its food from the marshy soil. They feed upon shelled 

 mollusks, insects, and eggs of fishes, which they procure hy means 

 of their long neck and their strangely-shaped heak. They construct 

 their nest upon a raised platform that they build in the marshes, 

 and sit astraddle upon it during incubation, their long legs pre- 

 venting them from taking any other position. Flamingoes are 

 common both in the old and new world, but they are seldom found 

 further north than the 40th degree of latitude ; sometimes, however, 

 they are to be seen on the banks of the Rhine. 



PALMIPEDES* OR SWIMMING BIRDS. 



The last and lowest Order of birds comprehends 

 those whose feet are specially made for swimming ; 

 they are placed far back upon the body, the legs are 

 short and compressed, and the toes are connected 

 together by a web. Their plumage is thick and 

 shining, impregnated with oil, and closely packed 

 with soft down, so as to preserve them from all con- 

 tact with the water in which they live. They are 



FIG. 387. FOOT OF PELICAN. 



also the only birds the length of whose neck . some- 

 times much surpasses that of their legs, thus enabling 

 them, while swimming on the surface, to obtain their 

 food at the bottom. 



The birds belonging to this order may be divided into 

 four sections, as in the following table : 



* Palma, the palm ; pes, the foot palm-footed. 



