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THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE 



diet of fish that it is startling to learn that 

 many of the family have other habits. 1 

 recall distinctly my own surprise in north- 

 ern Argentina when a tiny green-backed 

 kingfisher, no larger than a sparrow, flew 

 out to seize a passing insect on the wing. 



True enough, this mite of a bird came 

 later to fish for minnows in a lagoon, but 

 wherever I encountered it afterward I had 

 the feeling that it was always likely to do 

 some strange and unusual thing. 



The kingfishers (family Alcedinidae) 

 have almost world-wide distribution and 

 number more than 200 forms. 



The kingfisher of Europe {Alccdo at- 

 this), whose flashing colors I have seen 

 along the Thames in England, is only seven 

 inches long. Above it is bright blue, and 

 below it is colored rusty red. 



The kookaburra, or laughing jackass, of 

 Australia is a large kingfisher that lives on 

 dry land far from water. At intervals it 

 opens its huge bill to utter a loud, rolling 

 call from which it derives its common name. 

 It is one of the famous birds of the island 

 continent, widely known, and often dis- 

 played in zoos (page 828). 



Many other kinds of kingfishers live in 

 forests or on dry land, where they feed on 

 insects, lizards, and other animal foods. 



FLYCATCHER CLAN 600 STRONG 



The pampas of South America offer 

 many anomalies in their birds. On my 

 first day afield near the great Rio de la 

 Plata of Argentina I saw a small, jet-black 

 bird the size of a phoebe running like a 

 robin on the ground. About the eye there 

 was a curious wattled circle, like a little 

 comb, of yellow, and when the bird flew 

 there was a brilliant flash of white from the 

 center of each wing. This was the pko 

 plata, or silver bill, a curious flycatcher. 



Later I found a number of related spe- 

 cies, all as much at home on the ground as 

 so many sandpipers. The majority of the 

 flycatcher family, however, are iDirds of 

 thickets and woodlands (Color Plates V- 

 VIII). 



The flycatchers (family Tyrannidae) 

 are one of the few families of birds con- 

 fined entirely to the New World. INIore 

 than six hundred kinds are known to 

 science, some of them of beautiful color 

 and striking form, but many so obscure that 

 they are known to few ornithologists. They 

 are most abundant in the Tropics, but range 

 widely, except in regions of extreme cold. 



The majority are small birds and feed 

 on insects which they capture expertly on 

 the wing. They have developed broad flat 

 bills and a fringe of hairlike bristles about 

 the sides of the mouth that assist in en- 

 trapping their moving food. Their bodies 

 are slender, and their feet small. 



A number have greatly elongated tails, 

 and many sport concealed spots of color in 

 the feathers of the crown which they dis- 

 play at times with a surprise effect that is 

 highly pleasing. 



The most ornamental in this respect are 

 the royal flycatchers of tropical America 

 which have a conspicuous crest of red, 

 tipped with steely blue, that is spread like 

 a fan, much larger than the head, to form 

 a truly resplendent ornament. 



Carolina Parakeet 



{Conuropsts carolincnsis) 



The Carolina parakeet, like the vanished 

 passenger pigeon and great auk, has dis- 

 appeared with increasing settlement in 

 our country, untO now it is nearly extinct 

 (Plate I). 



When the southeastern and central United 

 States was first explored, the parakeet was 

 abundant in many localities. Travelers, 

 attracted by its flocking habit and brilliant 

 colors, made frequent mention of "parrots' 

 in their writings. But none recorded the 

 habits of this bird in detail, so that now 

 what information we have must be pieced 

 together from scattered sources. 



Although most common apparently in the 

 Gulf States, the parakeet ranged widely 

 toward the north even during seasons of 

 cold. Captain John Smith wrote of V'ir- 

 ginia that "in winter there are great plenty 

 of Parrats,'' and the birds were also re- 

 corded from Maryland at that season. 



Their decrease began early. Audubon in 

 1832 said the parakeet was lessening in 

 numbers, and by 1900 few remained in 

 Florida, where they were once abundant. 

 Dr. Frank M. Chapman saw two small 

 flocks in April, 1904, near Lake Okeecho- 

 bee, and casual report of them came from 

 residents in that area until 1920. 



For years the bird was considered extinct, 

 but recently there has been persistent claim 

 that a few remain in certain remote swamps 

 of South Carolina. At this writing (April, 

 1936) the number left is not known, but 

 we may hope that this interesting species 

 may not be lost to us as a living bird. 



