452 



THE LIVING ANIMALS OF THE WORLD 



Zooloo-ical Gardens of London. For the sake of those who have not, we may say that the 

 darter may be described as a long-necked cormorant, with somewhat Hghter plumage. The 

 head is small and flat, and armed with a pointed, dagger-like bill, whose edges are finely 

 toothed, with needle-like points projecting backwards. The neck is very long and slender; 

 hence its name of Snake-neck. Furthermore, it is remarkable for a very strange " kink," 

 formed by a peculiar arrangement of the neck-bones— an arrangement intimately associated 

 with its peculiar method of capturing its prey, which, as with the cormorant, is pursued 

 under water. How dexterously this is done ma>' be seen any day in the Fish-house at the 

 Zoological Gardens, where, as we have already mentioned, these birds are kept. At feeding- 

 time they are turned loose into a large tank 



'■*"^W — ^'^'■''^'^tt; 



into which a number of small fish have 

 been placed. The birds dive as soon as they 

 reach the water, and v\ith surprising speed 

 chase their pre}' till within short range. 

 Then, by a sudden bayonet-like lunge, made 

 possible by the peculiar " kink " in the neck, 

 a victim is transfixed, brought to the surface, 

 released from the bill by a series of sudden 

 jerks, tossed into the air, and dexterously 

 caught and swallowed. 



The darter is found in Africa, India, 

 the Malay region, Australia, and South 

 America, frequenting the banks of rivers, 

 lakes, and swamps, sometimes singly, some- 

 times in pairs or in immense flocks. 



Very different from either of the fore- 

 going species, both in build and coloration, 

 is the Gannet. In its habits it is also 

 different. The adult bird is about the size 

 of a goose, white in colour, and armed with 

 a powerful pointed bill. The young have a 

 quite distinct plumage, being deep brown, 

 speckled with white, this livery being worn 

 for nearly three years. 



The greater part of a gannet's lifetime 

 seems to be spent upon the wing, a fact 

 which implies a very different method of 

 feeding from that followed by the cormorant 

 and darter ; and this is actuall}' the case. 

 Preying upon shoals of herring, mackerel, 

 sprats, or pilchards, the birds, fl3'ing singly 

 or in flocks, as soon as the fish are discovered, 

 rise, soar in circles to such a height as experience shows best calculated to carry them 

 by a downward motion to the required depth, and then, partialh' closing the wings, plunge 

 upon their prey, and rarely without success, the time which elapses between the plunge 

 and the immersion being about fifteen seconds. A flock of gannets feeding is a really 

 wonderful sight, and can be witnessed in many places around the British coasts, for the 

 gannet is one of tlie very common British birds. The pilchard-fishermen off the Cornish 

 coast learn when the shoals are at hand, and the direction in which they are travelling, 

 by the actions of these birds. A very cruel experiment is sometimes practised upon the 

 gannet, based upon its well-known method of fishing. A herring is tied to a beam and 

 set adrift, and the bird, not noticing the trap, plunges with its usual velocity upon the 



m^^^ 



CORMORANT 



In the ipriiig a ilight cral Is Jc-c/ofiiJ, and a ivliite patch apltriii- 

 the thigh 



