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THE YOUNG OOLOGIST. 



A Bird Island. 



BY E. c. w. 

 Off the east coast of Last Island, La., 

 encircled by the blue waters of the Gulf of 

 Mexico, lies a small sand island, quarter of 

 a mile in breadth and three-quarters of a 

 mile in length. As this bird island became 

 visible from our approaching sailboat, a 

 beautiful scene met our view. Along the 

 northern coast for about a quarter of a 

 mile a column of White Pelicans were ar- 

 rayed, and along the southern side a line of 

 Gray Pelicans were stationed, all basking 

 in the sunshine. On our boat nearing the 

 shore the column of White Pelicans arose, 

 and with the regularity of drilled soldiery 

 leisurely took their flight, their ebon black 

 primaries in rich contrast with their pure 

 white bodies. Away, away they went, the 

 column never breaking. When they reached 

 the gray ones they too rose in splendid 

 order, and the two separate columns left us, 

 bound for the shores of some other island. 

 They do not breed on this island, but 

 among the scented evergreens and other 

 marine plants of Timbalier and Last Island, 

 where each pair builds a conical-shaped nest 

 and incubate their two white eggs, which 

 in size and proportions equal those of a 

 goose. Their breeding season is in the 

 latter part of spring. When a Pelican de- 

 sires fish it flies aloft over the waves till it 

 descries one; partly closing its wings, so as 

 to form a resemblance to an arrowhead, it 

 darts down on its finny prey with such 

 velocity as to disappear beneath the waters. 

 Quickly Rising, it buoyantly rests on the 

 wave a moment to^store the fish in its capa- 

 cious pouch, and rises again to repeat the 

 performance until its storage room is well 

 filled, when it wings its way to the shoi'e 

 to devour in silence'the objects of its exer- 

 tions. Troops of thein may be seen any 

 day on these coasts fishing in this way. 

 Sometimes a different [method' is adopted. 

 A body of them alight in a small and shal- 

 low bay, and, [forming a line across the 

 mouth, the invaders march along, driving 

 the fish before them ' into shallower water, 

 where they seize and transfer them with 



ease to their pouches. In the crop of a 

 specimen killed by a fisherman two trout 

 six inches long were found, g.These birds 

 are respectively Pelecanus americanus and 

 Pelecanus fuscus of "Audubon. The bird 

 island is only a waste of white sand thickly 

 spangled with sea-shells of many forms 

 and colors. Not a bit of vegetation 

 is to be found. A strong scent of fish 

 is exhaled from the hot sand, caused 

 by the innumerable fish eaten by these 

 birds. Under a July sun this island would 

 suggest a desert but for the beat of the 

 the waves on the shores and medley cries 

 of seabirds. Thousands of birds live and 

 breed here, and earth and air are fairly 

 alive with them; auks, gulls and terns, as 

 far as the vision reaches you observe birds. 

 Rookeries resembling cities and towns are 

 regularly laid out over the whole island by 

 them. Each nest, or rather depression in 

 the sand, is about two feet from its neigh- 

 bors, thus leaving paths or streets through 

 which a person may walk and view every 

 citizen's home, with its one, two, three or 

 four young, or eggs of different sizes and 

 markings, according to the species. A 

 pretty sight it is, to view this vast con- 

 course of birds from a distance, when un- 

 molested. The gleaming of their uniform 

 or variegate^ plumage in the sunlight; the 

 roar of the breakers as crested with foam 

 they roll on the shore, and the distant out- 

 lines of Vine and Last Island, render the 

 region and scene picturesque. Visitors to 

 Last Island stop and gather some ot these 

 eggs; some_as curiosities and others as sub- 

 stitutes for domestic fowl's eggs. The 

 young of these birds can scarcely be distin- 

 guished from the sand, so near in color is 

 their down, and which the parents, to make 

 the deception complete, scatter sand on. 

 When unfledged they will not move from 

 the abode provided them by their parents, 

 though you touch them, but if removed 

 and placedronjhe sand again, they hastily 

 scamper away. 



Lattin's new Catalogue is at last ready 

 for delivery. Send for a copy-. It is inval- 

 uable to collectors. 



