the Sheldrake, from its variegated plum- 

 age, the Coot, from its short tail. Cor- 

 morant comes from two words which 

 mean sea raven. The name Raven de- 

 notes the rapacious character of the bird 

 that bears it." 



"But, Auntie, Ravens are some times 

 petted and much beloved, as was the case 

 with Dickers pet Raven, Grip," said 

 Edith. "I remember reading that it had 

 been taught to talk and its favorite ex- 

 pression was 'Hello, old girl !' " 



*'Why is the best bird-talker called 

 Parrot?" asked John. 



"The name is from a human being — 

 'Pierrot,' the diminutive of 'Pierre.' Of 

 all the more than one hundred species 

 only one is found in the United States. 

 The Carolina Paroquet has been seen 

 in twenty different states but it is rap- 

 idly being exterminated and soon will be 

 known only in museums and in litera- 

 ture. It's a great pity it should have 

 been exterminated before its habits were 

 thoroughly studied." 



"I suppose," said Edith, "that the 

 Hummingbird has its name from the 

 humming sound of the wings when 

 poised above flowers." 



"True, and it frequently cross fertil- 

 izes the flowers. In tropical countries 

 Sunbirds, Honey Eaters and Lories do 

 the same helpful work. Darwin says 

 the Hummingbirds of Brazil fertilize 

 various species of Abutilon. Fortu- 

 nately where these birds abound, the 

 flowers are large, so the birds are as 

 well adapted to them as insects are to the 

 flowers of colder climates. It is also to 

 be noted that there is an abundance of 

 honey-bearing flowers as if for the spe- 

 cial use of the 'honey-eaters' who are 

 so well named after their favorite diet." 



"Where did the Ibis get his queer 

 name?" Howard asked. 



"It is the Egyptian 'Abose-mengel,' 

 'father of the sickle' named from the 

 shape of its bill. It was once a sacred 

 bird, dwelling in temples instead of mus- 

 eums. It was the direct gift of Osiris 

 to Isis, or the soil, after being over- 

 flowed and thus fertilized by the Nile. 

 Wilson tells us that two species of the 

 Egyptian Ibis are occasional visitors to 

 the coast of the United States.'* 



"Haven't we any native Ibis?" ques- 

 tioned John. 



"Yes, the Wood, the White and the 

 Red or Scarlet Ibis. Then there is the 

 Flamingo which gets its name from its 

 flame color. It belongs to the warm 

 regions of America, but is an occasional 

 visitor to Florida." 



"But I'd like to know how a bird ever 

 got such a name as the 'Puffln.' Per- 

 haps John has read something about it 

 as well as the Flamingo," said Alice. 



"Not a word," was the response, "ask 

 Aunt Jane." 



"The Northern Puffin is named from 

 the appearance of the young," she said, 

 "who, wanting feathers, are covered at 

 first with wooly black down, making 

 them resemble little puffs. The Puffin 

 is a marine bird whose flesh is said to 

 resemble fisTi in taste. It not only 

 moults its feathers but also certain horny 

 appendages on the bill. There is an- 

 other bird of somewhat similar name, 

 the Puff Bird of South America. It 

 has a head large in proportion to its 

 body, with a habit of raising all its 

 feathers on end hence its name. The 

 Penguin has no feathers on its wings 

 but as they move freely at the shoulders 

 it uses them as paddles in the water and 

 for progression on land. It is a plump 

 bird and its name is derived from a 

 Latin word meaning fat." 



"I can see why the 'Stilt' is so called 

 but I should never have guessed the 

 Penguin," said Edith. 



"The reason of the Stilt's name is 

 self-evident. It has long, bare legs 

 adapted to its habit of seeking food in 

 shallow water," continued Aunt Jane. 

 "The Plover, or Rainbird, is named 

 from a phrase which means to rain, and 

 the Snipe from its long bill. The Shear- 

 water is named from its habit of swim- 

 ming lightly on the water. It is espec- 

 ially adapted to getting its food' on the 

 waves. The lower mandible is sharp, 

 the upper one, short and pointed. Its 

 food is swallowed at once, mastication 

 being performed by a gizzard of un- 

 usual strength. As there must be re- 

 sistance to water as well as air, the 

 wings are broad. 



Belle Paxson Drury. 



13 



