434 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY, Vol. VIII. 
No. VI.—THE SNAKE-BIRD, 
(Ploius melanogaster.) 
This bird is what we in India calla “ Snake-bird,” because, when it swims 
with the whole body under water, the long writhing neck and head remind one 
of asnake, But another species in the warm regions of America has long 
been called the “ Darter”; and this name is commonly used for the genus, 
which is represented also in Africa and Australia. it was probably given on 
account of the bird’s habit of sitting on trees over the water, and ‘‘ taking 
a header’? when disturbed, or attracted by the sight of fish moving 
below. 
But there has long been an idea that the bird uses its long pointed beak asa — 
“dari” or spear, and this is best illustrated by the following quotation from 
Nature republished in the “Indian Annals and Magazine of Natural 
Science” from which I have extracted it. I have not been able to compare it 
with the original which seems to have been in the January number of Nature 
for 1883, 
_ “The Darter in its normal position sits erect upon a branch or stump over- 
looking the water, When proceeding to ish, it dives head foremost into the 
stream, and swimming entirely under water, transiixés its fnny prey with the 
rapidity of lightning. HKmerging from the water with the fish speared upon 
its long slender beak, the Darter chucks the tsh into the air, and catching it 
head foremost with unerrmg aim, swallows it whole, This peculiar and 
interesting mode of fish-catching may be witnessed every day when the Darters 
in the Zoological Gardens are fed with their usual meal of small fishes,” 
“The Darters usually exhibited in the Society's Gardens are of the South 
American species (Plotus anhinga), which, it seems, is the most easily obtained 
alive. But in 1878 an example of the African form, Le Vaillant’s Darter 
(Plotus levaillant:), was received, and lived for some time in the Gardens, 
where it exhibited the characteristic mode of feeding previously observed in 
its American brother, In April last an example of a third species of this 
genus—the Indian Darter (Ploius melanogaster, was obtained in exchange from 
the Zoological Gardens of Calcutta, After living for many months in excel- 
lent health this bird died suddenly on the 21st of December last, apparently 
from a sudden shock produced by feeding too rapidly.” 
Any one reading it as reprinted would think that the bird speared the fish on 
its closed beak, as a regular thing. I have always doubted this; because the 
beak is serrated inside on both jaws, like those of several other birds that seize 
living fish, and I have observed that wild snake-birds seldom catch fish as big 
even as herrings. The head and neck, indeed, are too small for the bird to 
swallow large tish,though the gape is wider in life than it can be shown in this 
dry and rigid specimen on our table, and the gullet is very elastic,so 1 watched 
many wild birds, but never could see the spearing, 
