756 



THE TEOPIC BIED. 



the Caspian Tern {Sterna Casjna), a fine species, twenty inclies long ; the Eoseate Tern 

 (Sterna jjaradisea), remarkable for the rosy white hue of its under surface; and several 

 other species, all resembling each other in habits and general form. 



We now arrive at the last family of birds, the Pelicans, a gronp which includes many 

 species, all remarkable for some peculiarity, and many of them really fine and handsome birds. 



As its name implies, the Tropic Bird is seldom to be seen outside the tropics unless 

 driven by storms. It is wonderfully powerful on the wing, being able to soar for a 

 considerable period, and passing whole days in the air without needing to settle. It is a 

 beautiful and delicately graceful bird, and always calls forth the admiration of the 

 beholders, as it hovers above the vessel or darts into the water in pursuit of prey. While 

 on the wing it utters a loud, shrill, and grating cry, which often indicates its presence at 



-/Hm^ig^ 



TROriC BIRD.— J7((lcC-o7i a-tU.eiis. 



night as well as by day. On account of this shrill cry, the sailors call it the Boatswain 

 Bird. They also call it by the name of Startail, on account of the long projecting tail- 

 feathers. 



As a general fact they do not fly to very great distances from land, three hundred 

 miles being about the usual limit ; but Dr. Bennett observed them on one occasion when 

 the nearest land was about one thousand miles distant. The long tail-shafts of the Tropic 

 Bird are much valued in many lands, the natives wearing them as ornaments, or weaving 

 them into various implements. The feathers of a closely allied species, the Eoseate 

 Tropic Bird (Phaeton p/iceniciirus), are used in the South Seas for various purposes, and are 

 obtained by visiting the birds during the time of incubation, when they sit closely in their 

 nests, and quietly plucking out the coveted plume. Dr. Bennett observes, " The ' red caps' 

 mentioned by Captain Cook as worn by the natives of the Friendly Islands are formed 

 principally from these red shafts, and I observed the same use of them in the island of 

 Eotuma, South Pacific Ocean, the caps (named sJioid, or war head-dress of the natives of 

 that island, and worn as a decoration by warriors in battle) being formed from the red tail- 

 feathers of the Eoseate Tropic Bird, which the natives procure with some difficulty, and they 

 are consequently very highly valued. The cap is in the form of a semicircle, without any 

 crown, and is tied on the forehead. I have also seen many neat baskets in which the red 

 shafts of this bird had been very ingeniously interwoven ; they were exposed for sale at the 

 Sandwich Islands, and even stated to be brought from some part of the coast of California." 



