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616 



EAPTOBES, OE BIRDS OF PEEY. 



nklll to disable tlio seipeuts, of wliicli its food principally consists 

 It has on its head a tuft of long feathers, which can be raisi 

 at will. This has been the origin of its name, in allusion to ' > 

 custom that clerks had of placing their pen behind their ear in tii' 

 days when goose-quills were used for writing. Its toes are shorti 

 and its claws blunt and well adapted for walking. It con4 







l-'ig. ;^iU6. — Si.ereUiry Bii-d [Gi//iOfft'ranus serjjcnturia^). 



sequently runs \orj rapidlj' ; hence it sometimes obtains the name 

 of Messenger Bird. 



A contest between a Secretary Bird and a Serpent is a most 

 curious sight. The reptile, when attacked suddenlj', stops and 

 rears itself up, swelling its neck and showing anger by shrill 

 hissings. 



" At this instant," sa_ys Levaillant, "the bird of prey, spreading- 



I 



