236 



ORDEES OP BIEDS— BIRDS OF PREY 



birds. For three years, a very fine specimen 

 has lived in the National Zoological Park, at 

 Washington, shut up at night in an elevated sleep- 

 ing-box. In the morning when liberated in its 

 enclosure, it perches aloft, spreads its wings 

 and holds them out to catch the sun's rays, in 

 true vulture fashion. 



Largest of all the Birds of Prey is the Condor^ 

 of the Andes, a bird of lofty home but lowly hab- 

 its. In the Andes of ChiU and Peru, its range is 

 from 9,000 to 16,000 feet above the sea, and it 

 not only feeds upon dead guanacos and vicunias, 

 horses and other domestic animals, but it also 

 ventures to attack living calves and old horses 



1 Sar-co-rham'jms gry'phus. Length of male, 48 

 inches; spread of wings, 8J to 9J feet. 



that are almost incapable of defence. Condors 

 are so easily captured alive that the zoological 

 gardens of the world are always well stocked 

 with them. 



By nature the Condor is a peace-loving bird, 

 and for two years visitors to the New York Zoo- 

 logical Park have witnessed the strange spectacle 

 of the world's largest bird of prey — the fine adult 

 male shown in the accompanjdng plate — Uving 

 in the great Flying Cage in peace and harmony 

 with about eighty flamingoes, herons, egrets, 

 ibises, ducks, other water-birds and various land- 

 birds. Encouraged by the success of the Condor 

 experiment, a large griffon vulture has been 

 added to the "happy family," with very satis- 

 factory results. 



