The Flamingo." 



-BIRDS.- 



-TiiK Wild Swan. 



421 



enormously long legs, of wliich the naked part extends 

 far above the articulation of the tarsus, as in the Wad- 

 ing birds, wilh which it was, on this account, long asso- 

 ciated by ornithologists ; but the feet are fully webbed, 

 it presents the same lamellated structure of the edges 

 of the bill which prevails amongst the Anatidai, and 

 its plumage possesses all the characters of that of 

 these birds. The bill itself is of a singular form, but 



Fig. 131. 



5^ V 



Head of Flamingo. 



is wonderfully well adapted to the peculiar mode of life 

 of this bird —fig. 131. As the Flamingo stalks along 

 upon its long stilt-like legs, or wades in the shallow 

 waters, it holds down its long neck towards the ground, 

 and the peculiarly formed upper mandible is thus turned 

 back downwards, and constitutes a receptacle for any 

 small objects in the mud or water. These are retained 

 by the lamellffi of the mandibles, assisted by the spines 

 which fringe the fleshy tongue, and the Flamingo is 

 thus enabled to retain the small fishes, moUusca, and 

 Crustacea which constitute its food. 



The Flamingo is an inhabitant of Southern Europe, 

 Africa, and Asia. It is a large bird, old males often 

 standing nearly five feet in height, and as it is grega- 

 rious in its habits, collecting in large flocks upon the 

 sea-coast, its bright red wings give these parties a 

 close resemblance to bodies of soldiers standing in line. 

 The nest of this bird is very curious, being a small hill 

 of mud, with a cavity in its summit ; in this the female 

 lays two or three eggs, which she hatches by sitting 

 astride upon the hillock. Other nearly allied species 

 are found in both hemispheres. 



THE WILD GOOSE (.4 rM«- /eras) —Plate 29, fig. 110 

 - — also known as the Gray-lag Goose, is believed 

 to be the original stock of our domestic geese, though 

 another species, the White-fronted Goose, is also pro- 

 bably one of their progenitors. It is a migratory bird, 

 inhabiting most parts of Europe and Asia, frequenting 

 high northern latitudes in the summer for the purpose 

 of breeding, and descending to the warm and temperate 

 regions in the autumn. It was formerly not uncom- 

 mon in this country in the winter, but of late years 

 has become rare. 



THE BEAN GOOSE {Anser segeium) is the most 

 abundant of our British species ; and although chiefly 

 resident here only in the winter, a few pairs are known 



to remain in Britain through the summer to breed, espe- 

 cially in the north of Scotland. It is found all over 

 Europe, and breeds in the extreme north of that con- 

 tinent. Its name of Bean Goose is given to it from its 

 fondness for pulse and grain ; it is known to frequent 

 corn-fields often in great flocks, which do considerable 

 damage. In its migrations this bird, and many of its 

 allies, usually fly at a great lieight in the air, and in 

 the form of a wedge, or rather of the letter V, with 

 the point directed forward ; they generally fly by 

 night, when their passage is betrayed by the clanging 

 sound of their voices. 



THE WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE (Anser alhlfrons), a 

 rather smaller species than either of the preceding, is 

 distinguished by having a white band at the base of 

 the ujiper mandible, continued in the form of a patch 

 on the forehead ; it is an inhabitant of the whole 

 northern hemisphere, and is an abundant winter visitor 

 to this country. Its note somewhat resembles a laugh ; 

 and hence it has sometimes been cahed the Laughing 

 Goose. 



THE BRENT GOOSE {Anser Dernicla), the smallest 

 British species, has a white spot on each side of the 

 neck. It is very abundant here during the winter, 

 but, unlike the preceding species, dwells chiefly upon 

 the coast, feeding upon sea-weeds of various kinds. 



THE NEW HOLLAND GOOSE {Ccrcupsis Nora: Hol- 

 landice) — Plate 29, fig. 111. — Of the numerous other 

 species of Geese distributed in aU parts of the world, 

 our space will only permit us to refer to the curious 

 Australian bird, to which the name of Coreopsis has 

 been given. In this bird the base of the upper man- 

 dible is occupied by a large cere, towards the front ot 

 which the nostrils are pierced ; the tarsi are rather 

 elongated, and the webs uniting the toes are dee]ily 

 cut out in a semicircular form. It is about the size 

 of our Common Goose, and is of a gray colour, wilh 

 the quills of the wings and tail blackish ; the bill is 

 black, the cere yellow, the tarsi reddish-orange, and 

 the feet black. The Cereopsis frequents the shores of 

 Australia. Its voice is verj' strong and clanging. 



THE WILD SWAN [Cygnusferus], called the Whoop- 

 ing Swan, in allusion to the whooping cry of the male, 

 is a winter visitor to this country, its summer residence 

 and breeding place being in the high northern latitudes 

 of the Old World. In the Orkneys, however, a few 

 pairs generally remain through the summer and breed. 

 The WboojMng Swan is about the same size as the 

 ordinary Tame Swan and, like it, is of a white colour ; 

 but the bill is yellow, with the extremity black, while 

 in the Tame Swan the black is at the base of the bill. 

 In this country the Wild Swans frequent the rivers 

 and lakes, and in severe winters move down to the 

 sea-shore. As in the cranes and several other birds 

 which have a loud and trumpet-like voice, the trachea 

 of the Wild Swan is very long, and is bent back into 

 a large fold or loop, enclosed in the interior of tlie 

 breast-bone. 



THE TAME SWAN {Cijymis olor), or Mute Swan, 

 so called from his possessing only a soft and ratlier 

 musical voice, very different from the strong notes of 

 the preceding species, is the well-known and grace- 

 ful species so often seen adorning with its delicate 



