290 THE PELICAN. 
was supposed to be the bird intended ; in fact, I have 
heard that the representation (which I am very anxious 
to see) is much more like a flamingo than a pelican. 
Again, a flamingo is much more a bird of the wilderness 
than the pelican, seeing that the pelican requires a 
good supply of fish, while the flamingo can live 
and does well upon very small insects, seeds, and little 
fry, and is found in places in which the pelican would 
starve.” 
This communication naturally drew forth some com- 
ments. Mr. Houghton, in a long letter to the editor of 
the same journal, dated 24th April, 1869, says :—“ That 
this is the origin of the old story of the pelican feeding 
its young with its blood seems very plausible. I purpose 
to examine this ingenious idea, and to offer a few remarks 
on the old fable. It is commonly supposed—and you 
will often find it so expressed in works on natural history 
—that this fable is a classical one. This is an error: I 
have searched in vain amongst classical authors for any 
allusion to the pelican feeding its young with its blood. 
To the Greeks this bird was known by the name of zeAexdv, 
or meAékac, Or weAekevoc, though it would appear that some 
species of woodpecker was also intended. by the word 
wedécag (see Aristoph. Aves, 1155). Aristotle mentions 
pelicans two or three times in his ‘ History of Animals ;’ 
he speaks of their migratory habits and flying in crowds. 
He says they take large shell-fish into their pouches (éy 
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