PELICAN. 439 



35— BOOBY. 



Pelecanus Sula, Ind. Orn. ii. 892. Lin. i. 218. Gm. Lin. i. 578. Bris. vi. 495. Id. 



8vo. ii. 489. Borowsk. iii. 44. Bartr. Trav. 293. Mi. Trans, xiii. 330. 

 Phalacrocorax rostro et pedibus luteis, Gerin. v. t. 503. 



Anseri Bassano congener fusca avis, Raii, 191. 6. Sloan. Jam. 322. pi. 271. f. 2.* 

 Plancus Morus, Klein, Av. 144. 4. 

 Fou comraun, Buf. viii. 368. pi. 29. 

 Booby, Gen. Syn. vi. 612. Brown, Jam. 481. C'a£. Car. i. pi. 87. 



SIZE of the Lesser Gannet ; length two feet six inches. Bill 

 nearly four inches and a half long, toothed on the edges, and grey, 

 with a pale brown base ; space round the eyes and the chin bare of 

 feathers, and yellowish; irides pale grey; the head, neck, upper 

 part of the body, wings, and tail, cinereous brown; the greater 

 quills much darker ; tail brownish at the end, composed of fourteen 

 feathers, and in shape greatly cuneiform ; the breast, belly, thighs, 

 and vent, white ; legs pale yellow ; claws grey. 



According to Catesby, some have white bellies, and others not ; 

 and no perceivable difference between male and female. 



The young birds have the head and neck white, with a very 

 slight tinge of brown ; but may be distinguished, from having the 

 feathers of those parts downy and soft, and not of the usual texture. 

 In some birds the parts usually brown are deep black. 



This is frequent in the Bahama Islands, and we have received it 

 from Cayenne, but it appears to be common in many other parts of 

 the world. It may probably be the sort mentioned by Dampier, as 

 plentiful in the Island of Aves, eight or nine leagues E. of Buenos 

 Ayres, and described as being a very simple creature, that will hardly 

 go out of a man's way. They are said to make the nests on the 

 ground, in places where no trees grow ; but on the latter, whenever 

 they can be found. The flesh is black and fishy, yet is often eaten 

 by navigators for want of better food. 



