418 AVES. 
. inclining backwards; the nostrils are prolonged by a line which ex- 
tends to near the point. The throat is naked as well as the circum- 
ference of the eye, the former not being susceptible of much dilata- 
tion; the nail of the middle toe is serrated, the wings much smaller 
than those of the Frigates, and the tail somewhat wedge-shaped. 
They are called Boobies on account of the excessive stupidity with 
which they permit themselves to be attacked by men and birds, the 
Frigate Birds particularly, which, as already stated, force them to 
yield up the fish they have captured. The most common is, 
Pelecanus bassanus, L.; Enl. 278; Vieill.; Brit. Zool. pl. L.; 
Naum. Sup. 56, f. 106. (The Common Booby). White; the pri- 
mary quills of the wings and the feet, black; the beak greenish; 
nearly as large as the Goose. It is called the Bassan Booby 
from a small island in the gulf of Edinburgh, where it is very 
abundant although it lays but a single egg. It is frequently seen 
on the coast of France during the winter. The young is brown 
spotted with white, Enl. 986. The remaining species are not 
yet sufficiently ascertained.(1) ’ é 
Prorus, Lin.(2) 
The Darters have the body and feet very similar to those of a Cor- 
morant; a long neck and small head, with a straight, slender, pointed 
beak, whose edges are denticulated; the eyes and nudity of the face, 
as in the Pelicans; their habits also are similar, perching on trees. 
Several species or varieties are known from the hot climates 
of both continents. They are not larger than the Duck, but 
they have a longer neck.(3) [See dpp. XXVII of Am. Ed.) 
Puaton, Lin. . 
The Tropic Birds are known by two very long and narrow feathers 
that flow from their tail, which at a distance resemble so many 
straws. There is no naked part about the head. Their bill is 
straight, pointed, denticulated, and tolerably strong; their feet short 
and their wings long: their powers of flight are consequently great, 
and as they rarely quit the torrid zone, their presence announces to 
the mariner his vicinity to the tropics. On land, where they seldom 
resort except to breed, they perch on trees. 
(1) Add the Fou brun (Pelec. sula, L.), Enl. 973, Catesb. I, 87; Vieill. Gal. 277. 
[See App. XXVI of Am. Ed.] ore 
(2) Plotus, or plautus, signifies, in Latin, flat-foot. Klein has employed it for 
one of his families of the Palmipedes. Linnzus applied it to the Darters. 
(3) Plot. melanogaster, Enl. 959 and 960; Vieill. Gal. 278; Wils. IX, Ixxiy, 1, 2;— 
Enl. 107;—Lath. Syn. VI, pl. 96:—Anhinga Levaillant, T. Col. 380. 
