﻿August, 
  1 
  907 
  

  

  AMERICAN 
  HOMES 
  AND 
  GARDENS 
  

  

  305 
  

  

  ing 
  the 
  process, 
  being 
  thrust 
  well 
  into 
  the 
  throat 
  of 
  its 
  

   offspring. 
  When 
  we 
  consider 
  that 
  the 
  bill 
  of 
  the 
  pelican 
  is 
  

   at 
  least 
  equal 
  in 
  size 
  to 
  the 
  entire 
  newly 
  hatched 
  young, 
  the 
  

   impracticability 
  of 
  this 
  method 
  of 
  feeding 
  the 
  young 
  in 
  their 
  

   case 
  is 
  at 
  once 
  apparent. 
  The 
  procedure 
  is 
  therefore 
  re- 
  

   versed; 
  the 
  young 
  pelican 
  dives 
  head 
  foremost 
  into 
  the 
  

   cavernous 
  depths 
  of 
  its 
  parent's 
  pouch, 
  and 
  even 
  explores 
  

   the 
  recesses 
  of 
  the 
  parental 
  throat. 
  Fish 
  either 
  predigested 
  

   or 
  freshly 
  caught 
  reward 
  this 
  exploration, 
  according 
  to 
  the 
  

   age 
  of 
  the 
  young 
  pelican. 
  Submergence 
  in 
  these 
  depths 
  

   of 
  the 
  oral 
  larder 
  is 
  apparently 
  a 
  fatiguing 
  process, 
  and 
  it 
  

   is 
  some 
  time 
  after 
  a 
  meal 
  before 
  the 
  young 
  pelican 
  seems 
  to 
  

   feel 
  himself 
  again. 
  Young 
  pelicans, 
  after 
  they 
  arrive 
  at 
  such 
  

   size 
  as 
  to 
  be 
  able 
  to 
  get 
  about, 
  do 
  not 
  restrict 
  their 
  clamor- 
  

   ings 
  for 
  food 
  to 
  their 
  own 
  parents, 
  but 
  even 
  levy 
  on 
  any 
  

   pelican 
  that 
  happens 
  to 
  waddle 
  along. 
  The 
  old 
  birds, 
  how- 
  

   ever, 
  always 
  distinguish 
  their 
  own 
  offspring, 
  and 
  when 
  the 
  

   selection 
  is 
  made, 
  the 
  other 
  young 
  pelicans 
  make 
  no 
  attempt 
  

   to 
  disturb 
  the 
  feed- 
  

   ing. 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  white 
  peli- 
  

   can, 
  the 
  upper 
  man- 
  

   dible 
  is 
  adorned 
  

   with 
  a 
  thin, 
  tri- 
  

   angular, 
  bony 
  crest, 
  

   composed 
  of 
  horny 
  

   fibers, 
  and 
  attached 
  

   to 
  the 
  cutaneous 
  cov- 
  

   ering 
  of 
  the 
  bill, 
  but 
  

   not 
  to 
  the 
  bony 
  

   structure 
  itself. 
  

   These 
  appendages 
  

   are 
  worn 
  only 
  dur- 
  

   i 
  n 
  g 
  the 
  breeding 
  

  

  occasionally 
  indulging 
  in 
  a 
  grotesque 
  dance. 
  Such 
  a 
  habit 
  is 
  

   indulged 
  in 
  by 
  some 
  such 
  birds 
  as 
  the 
  sandhill 
  crane 
  at 
  the 
  

   breeding 
  season. 
  However, 
  the 
  great 
  blue 
  heron 
  has 
  been 
  

   known 
  to 
  indulge 
  in 
  family 
  dances 
  of 
  this 
  character 
  in 
  the 
  

   fall, 
  and 
  such 
  dances 
  having 
  obviously 
  no 
  pairing 
  significance, 
  

  

  Pelican 
  

   Dancing 
  

  

  season, 
  being 
  afterward 
  shed. 
  As 
  the 
  birds 
  are 
  said 
  to 
  be 
  

   somewhat 
  quarrelsome 
  during 
  the 
  breeding 
  season, 
  and 
  as 
  

   these 
  objects 
  are 
  possessed 
  only 
  by 
  the 
  males, 
  it 
  has 
  been 
  

   thought 
  that 
  they 
  are 
  in 
  the 
  nature 
  of 
  weapons. 
  

  

  Pelicans 
  have 
  an 
  amusing, 
  and 
  rather 
  obscure, 
  habit 
  of 
  

  

  there 
  seems 
  no 
  bet- 
  

   ter 
  reason 
  to 
  assign 
  

   for 
  their 
  indulgence 
  

   than 
  that 
  the 
  birds, 
  

   like 
  their 
  human 
  

   brethren, 
  find 
  this 
  

   diversion 
  amusing 
  

   and 
  to 
  their 
  liking. 
  

   The 
  larger 
  crea- 
  

   tures 
  of 
  our 
  country 
  

   passed 
  before 
  the 
  

   advancement 
  of 
  civi- 
  

   lization. 
  Before 
  

   people 
  realized 
  that 
  

   the 
  immense 
  herds 
  

   of 
  buffalo 
  that 
  

   ranged 
  the 
  western 
  

   plains 
  were 
  destined 
  

   to 
  extermination, 
  

   they 
  were 
  gone, 
  and 
  there 
  remained 
  of 
  them 
  only 
  small, 
  

   tame-looking 
  groups 
  in 
  the 
  zoological 
  parks, 
  and 
  the 
  tradi- 
  

   tions 
  that 
  linked 
  them 
  with 
  the 
  Indian 
  and 
  the 
  cowboy. 
  

  

  Our 
  fathers 
  tell 
  us 
  of 
  the 
  flocks 
  of 
  wild 
  pigeons 
  that 
  dark- 
  

   ened 
  the 
  sky, 
  and 
  broke 
  down 
  large 
  branches 
  in 
  the 
  woods 
  

   where 
  they 
  roosted, 
  yet 
  to-day 
  it 
  is 
  rarely, 
  if 
  ever, 
  that 
  one 
  is 
  

   seen. 
  The 
  great 
  auks 
  that 
  once 
  densely 
  peopled 
  a 
  northern 
  

   island 
  have 
  been 
  unknown, 
  save 
  from 
  a 
  few 
  mounted 
  speci- 
  

   mens 
  in 
  the 
  museums, 
  for 
  the 
  last 
  fifty 
  years. 
  For 
  about 
  the 
  

   same 
  period 
  the 
  Labrador 
  duck 
  has 
  been 
  extinct. 
  The 
  king 
  

   of 
  the 
  world's 
  woodpeckers, 
  the 
  ivory-billed, 
  is 
  following 
  

   fast 
  the 
  same 
  road. 
  Many 
  of 
  the 
  sea-birds, 
  and 
  most 
  of 
  the 
  

   ducks 
  and 
  geese, 
  have 
  been 
  greatly 
  reduced 
  in 
  numbers. 
  

  

  Unless 
  the 
  future 
  holds 
  some 
  bright 
  surprise 
  in 
  store 
  for 
  

   us, 
  the 
  white 
  pelican 
  will 
  soon 
  be 
  numbered 
  with 
  those 
  crea- 
  

   tures 
  whose 
  wild 
  life 
  is 
  known 
  only 
  as 
  a 
  matter 
  of 
  history. 
  

  

  