ORNITHOLOGY. 



633 



Palmi- any animal substance conies amiss. They breed along the 

 pedes, shores, on unfrequented islands and headlands, laying in a 

 "" ~ v "~ hollow on the ground from two to four eggs, spotted with 

 dusky. 



Among the larger species, some are remarkable for the 

 dark or blackish hue of their back and wings; but in ge- 

 neral the colour of those parts is a light-grayish blue, 

 while that of the lower is pure white. One species, the 

 ivory gull, Larus eburneus, has the plumage entirely of the 

 latter colour when in the adult state. The greater black- 

 backed gull, Larus marinus, the smaller black-backed 

 gull, Larus fuscus, and the thick-billed gull of New Hol- 

 land, Larus melanoleucos, afford examples of the first kind 

 above alluded to. The largest known species is the bur- 

 gomaster, Larus glaucus. of a light-grayish blue above, 

 ■white beneath, with the tail and tips of the wings also 

 white. It inhabits the arctic regions of Europe and Ame- 

 rica, seldom making its appearance in the temperate cli- 

 mates. One of the most common species on our coasts is 

 the herring gull, Larus argentatus, which remains with 

 us throughout the year. A gradual transition is observ- 

 able from these larger species, which assimilate to the alba- 

 trosses, to the smaller, which are intimately connected with 

 the terns. 



Some species having very peculiar characters, have been 

 separated from the gulls, and formed into a genus apart. 

 These are the jagers, genus Lestris, which have the tip 

 of the upper mandible hooked, and the nostrils larger and 

 placed nearer the end of the bill than those of the gulls. 

 Their tail is generally pointed, their wings long, and their 

 flight is extremely rapid. Although they occasionally fish 

 for themselves, they obtain their food chiefly by attacking 

 various species of gulls and terns, which they teaze to make 

 them disgorge their food, which they then swallow. 



Of this genus the more remarkable species are the skua, 

 Lestris catarractes, which is nearly equal in size to the 

 great black-backed gull ; the pomarine jager, L. pomari- 

 nus ; and Richardson's jager, L. Richardsonii, which is 

 common on our coasts in autumn, and breeds in the Shet- 

 land Islands and Hebrides. 



The terns, genus Sterna, are generally of small size, 

 and remarkable for their slender body, long and narrow 

 wings, and forked tail. Their feet are extremely short, 

 and their bill longish, compressed, and pointed. They very 

 seldom swim, but, when fatigued or satiated with food, re- 

 pose on the rocks or sands. Their flight is extremely 

 buoyant, and they usually obtain their food by plunging 

 after it into the water from on wing. From their form 

 and the peculiar mode of flying, they have also obtained 

 the name of sea-swallows. 



The most common species on the coasts of Europe are 

 the arctic tern, Sterna arctica ; the common tern, St. Hi- 

 rundo ; and the little tern, St. minuta ; but several other 

 species occur there. 



The noddies, genus Anous, differ from the terns in hav- 

 ing the tail even at the end, and nearly equal with the 

 wings. Their bill also is more like that of the smaller 

 gulls. They are said to be so stupid as to allow themselves 

 to be killed without attempting to fly off; but this only 

 happens in places where they have not been accustomed 

 to meet with man. 



The species best known is the black noddy, Anous 

 niger (Sterna stolida, Linn.), which is very common in the 

 tropical seas, and is of a sooty-brown, excepting the top of 

 the head, which is grayish white. It often settles on the 

 rigging of vessels, when the sailors sometimes catch it at 

 night while asleep. 



The skimmers, genus Rhynchops, Plate CCCCI. fig. 7, 

 are very nearly allied to the terns, l>ut are distinguished 

 from all other birds by the extraordinary form of their bill, 

 of which the upper mandible is considerably shorter than 



the lower, and grooved beneath, so as to receive the edge 

 of the latter, which is extremely thin. They procure their 

 food in the same manner as the terns, skimming along the " 

 surface of the water, and dipping their bill into it to seize 

 a small fish, as opportunity occurs. 



The only species whose habits are known is the black 

 skimmer, Rhynchops nigra, which is about twenty inches 

 long, its bill and feet red, its upper parts black, the lower 

 white, its wings considerably longer than the tail. It oc- 

 curs along the coasts of America, from New York to Bra- 

 zil, breeding on the sandy shores in June, and continuing 

 in flocks all the year. 



FAMILY III TOTIPALM.E. 



The birds of which this family is composed are those to 

 which the epithet palmipede is more peculiarly applicable ; 

 for not only are their anterior toes connected by webs or 

 membranes, as in the other tribes, but their hind toe is 

 similarly connected with the inner. Their tarsi are gene- 

 rally short, their wings and tail long, their neck elongated, 

 and their bill rather slender, somewhat conical, but gene- 

 rally hooked at the joint. They swim, and for the most 

 part dive, with admirable dexterity, generally fly with 

 great celerity, feed entirely on fishes and other marine ani- 

 mals, and are remarkable among web-footed birds for fre- 

 quently perching on trees. 



The pelicans, Pelecani, comprehend those which have 

 at the base of the bill a space destitute of feathers. The 

 skin of their throat is extensile, their tongue very small, 

 their gullet of great width, their caeca small, their nostrils 

 mere slits, sometimes obsolete. 



The pelicans properly so called, genus Pelecanus, Plate 

 CCCCI. fig. 10, are distinguished from all other birds by 

 the singular structure of their bill, of which the upper man- 

 dible, however, presents nothing very remarkable, while 

 the lower has its rami extremely slender and elastic, with 

 a large dilatable membranous bag attached to it. They 

 are birds of large size, with wings of moderate length, the 

 tail rounded, the feet short, and the claws curved. 



The most remarkable species is the common pelican, 

 Pelecanus onocrotalus (above referred to), which is as large 

 as a swan, and entirely of a white colour tinged with red, 

 excepting the alula and primary quills, which are black. 

 Its length is nearly six feet, and its extended wings mea- 

 sure about fifteen. Its upper mandible is flattened, with 

 a hook at the point ; and the sac appended to the lower 

 mandible extends about nine inches down the neck, and 

 may be dilated so as to hold a man's head with ease. This 

 pelican occurs in the tropical and warmer temperate re- 

 gions of the old continent, and is common in the eastern 

 countries of Europe. Its principal food is fish, which it 

 catches with great dexterity, by plunging after it from on 

 wing. In fishing it fills the gular pouch, and does not im- 

 mediately devour its prey, but when it has obtained a suf- 

 ficiency, returns to the shore, and swallows it at leisure. 

 The female forms a large nest of grass in a marshy place, 

 and lays two or three white eggs, similar to those of a 

 swan. 



The brown pelican, P.fuscus, of a grayish-brown colour, 

 and nearly four feet in length, is common in most parts of 

 America, and especially in the West Indies. A very large 

 species, P. australis, of a white colour, with the upper part 

 of the back, the quills, and tail, black, inhabits New Hol- 

 land. 



The cormorants, genus Phalacrocokax, resemble the 

 pelicans in their general form, but are destitute of the 

 large gular sac, having merely a bare dilatable mem- 

 brane at the base of the lower mandible. Thej' differ far- 

 ther in not procuring their prey by plunging after it from 



Palmi- 

 pedes. 



