BIRDS, XXVU 



DIVISION II. WATER BIRDS. 



ORDER VII. WITH CLOVEN FEET. 



BILL sub-cylindric. 



Feet cloven. Thighs half naked. 



Body compressed. Skin very tendei*. Tail short. Flesh savoury. 



Food, iu marsh)- places, fish, marine insects, molluscse. 



Nest chiefly on land, sometimes on trees. Mode of pairing various. 



ORDER VIII. WITH PINNATED FEET. 



BILL, Body, and Food, as in the former. 

 Feet made for wading, naked, more or less, above the knees. 

 Toes cloven, but pinnated, or webbed, the whole of their length. 



Nest large, of leaves, grass, or water plants, in moist grounds, and often close to the 

 water. — Monogamous. 



ORDER IX. WEB-FOOTED. 



* With Long Legs. 



BILL various. .' ■- . _ „ ,. 



Body rather depressed, conic. The flesh of the young savoury. 



Legs very long, made for wading. Thighs naked the greater part of the length. 



Toes furnished lialf way w ith a membrane. 



Food obtained from the water, as small fish and insects. 



Nest placed on the ground. — Monogamous. 



** With Short Legs. 



BILL smooth, covered with a skin, enlarged at the base. 



Feet made for swimming. Shins short, compressed. The toes united by a membrane. 



Body fat. Skin tenacious, covered witli excellent feathers. Flesh, for the most part, 

 savouiy. 



Food water plants, fish, and reptiles. 



Nest chiefly on the ground, seldom on trees. The mother rarely broods tiie young 



For the mobt part Polygamous. 



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