Vol. II, Pt. I] GIFFORD— BIRDS OF THE GALAPAGOS ISLANDS 67 



Flamingoes were not abundant. Albemarle, Charles, and 

 James seemed to be the most frequented islands, and about 

 thirty was the largest number of birds seen in one flock at one 

 time. On Indefatigable Island they were very scarce, only 

 two being taken; and likewise on Jervis, where a young one 

 was found in the small lagoon on the north side of the island. 

 On Chatham Island a dead one was found on the shore of the 

 tidal lagoon near the warehouse at Wreck Bay. This bird, 

 we were told, had been brought over alive from Charles 

 Island. The lagoon at the base of the precipitous mountain 

 known as Finger Point, near Sappho Cove, Chatham Island, 

 appeared to be a suitable one for flamingoes; but none were 

 found there. 



The salty coastal lagoons seemed to be the sole haunts of 

 these birds. These lagoons are unaffected by the tides, and 

 are therefore saturated solutions of salts, their shores often 

 being paved with crystalline deposits. Their beds are usually 

 composed of reddish mud, sometimes quite hard and firm. 

 The shores, as a rule, are fringed with mangroves and salt- 

 loving bushes, which in many cases grow in almost impene- 

 trable thickets. Some of these lagoons are bounded by bare 

 lava. 



With only one or two exceptions, it was not difficult to get 

 within shot-gun range of the flamingoes, and the discharge 

 of a gun usually caused them to fly only a short distance. 



Where the ground is clear, and the bird's movements are 

 unimpeded by rocks and bushes, the flamingo is a good runner, 

 being able to cover ground very rapidly, and giving a person 

 a lively chase. At James Bayj James Island, a young bird 

 not quite able to fly got through the bushes from the lagoon 

 to the ocean beach. I pursued it for nearly half a mile south 

 along the beach late one afternoon. I was, however, unable 

 to overtake it before it reached the rocks at the end of the 

 beach. Perceiving that it would be caught if it remained on 

 the beach, the bird stepped into the water and struck boldly 

 out from shore, swimming over an eighth of a mile. As soon 

 as I left the beach, it returned and commenced walking up 

 and down again in the attempt to find its way back to the 

 lagoon. The following morning it had disappeared. 



