THE AMERICAN FLAMINGO. 



{Phosnicopterus ruber.) 



When Nature produced the Flamingo 

 she evidently tried to make a composite 

 bird, which would be suggestive of al- 

 most all the rest of the water birds and 

 the wading birds. With long legs and 

 a long neck like a crane, webbed feet 

 like a goose, and a lamellated bill like 

 a shoveller duck, this beautiful bird is 

 certainly unique among avian creatures. 

 Its bill is very peculiar, being bent on the 

 back and peculiarly flattened. When 

 feeding, the Flamingo appears to liter- 

 ally stand on its head. 



There are six species of Flamingoes 

 known, two being species living in the 

 old world and four in the new. One of 

 the best known of the latter is the sub- 

 ject of this sketch. 



The American Flamingo ranges 

 from Southern Florida and the Bahamas 

 to Brazil and the Galapagos Islands. Al- 

 though a very abundant bird in its 

 breeding range, the Flamingo was until 

 recently quite unknown in its domestic 

 life. Various authors have argued pro 

 and con in regard to its alleged habit 

 of straddling the nest when incubating 

 its eggs, a fable started by Lampier in 

 1699. It remained for Mr. Frank M. 

 Chapman, of the American Museum 

 of Natural History, New York City, to 

 visit a colony of these gorgeous birds 

 and to clear up the mysteries surround- 

 ing the home life of the American Flam- 

 ingo. His articles in "Bird Lore," and 

 in the "Century Magazine" give us the 

 first complete account of the nesting 

 habits of these birds and this article is 

 drawn mainly from these papers. 



While the American Flamingo is 

 known in Florida and in parts of South 

 America, it is in the Bahama Islands 

 that it can best be studied in large num- 

 bers. It is here that the little ceritc snail 

 shell (cerithium) is to be found in 

 countless numbers in the shallow la- 

 goons and flooded areas, which is said 



to be the exclusive food of this bird. Its 

 enemies (save man) are absent from 

 this region and it is, therefore, an ideal 

 place for a nesting colony. 



Mr. Chapman's first sight of a Flam- 

 ingo colony is thus described : "With an 

 utterly indescribable feeling of exulta- 

 tion we advanced rapidly to view at 

 short range this wonder of wonders in 

 bird life. At a distance of about three 

 hundred yards, the wind being from us 

 toward the birds, we first heard the 

 honking notes of alarm — a wave of deep 

 sound. Soon the birds began to rise, 

 standing on their nests, facing the wind, 

 and waving their black and vermilion 

 wings. As we came a little nearer, in 

 stately fashion the birds began to move, 

 uniformly like a s^reat body of troops, 

 they stepped slowly forward, black pin- 

 ions waving and trumpets sounding, and 

 then, when we were still a hundred and 

 fifty yards away, the leaders sprang into 

 the air. File after file of the winged 

 host followed. The very earth seemed 

 to erupt birds, as flaming masses 

 streamed heavenward. It was an appal- 

 ling sight." 



The flock of birds observed by Mr. 

 Chapman was estimated to contain 

 about two thousand birds. The re- 

 turn of this vast multitude of birds 

 after they had been frightened from 

 their nests by the presence of Mr. 

 and Mrs. Chapman was interest- 

 ing. Mr. Chapman had constructed a 

 blind at the edge of the rookery from 

 which he could take photographs and 

 make notes unobserved by the birds. In 

 order to deceive the birds the ruse was 

 hit upon of having Mr. and Mrs. Chap- 

 man enter the blind together, but only 

 Mrs. Chapman left it. As the birds 

 could not distinguish between one and 

 two persons, the ruse worked to perfec- 

 tion. As soon as the retreat of Mrs. 

 Chapman was observed by the birds, 



