THE PRIGATE BIRD. 
325 
To the same family belongs a bird^ often met with by 
sailors at a great distance from land, when between the 
tropics. It differs from the cormorant in having a forked 
tail, and much shorter legs, the membranes between the toes 
of which are deeply notched ; its wings are exceedingly long 
and narrow^, and both the mandibles of the bill are curved 
at the end. This is the Frigate, or Man-of-War Bird 
{TacJiypeies aqidla) ; the former of these names derived 
from its fast flight and great length of wing, the latter from 
its habit of sometimes attacking other birds and forcing 
them to disgorge their prey. 
The natives of the South Sea Islands, when they were 
first discovered, set a great value on the shining black 
feathers of these birds, and, as they were birds of passage, 
w^atched their arrival at the rainy season. In the Mis- 
sionary Yoyage of the ship ^ Duff ^ an account is given of the 
mode employed in getting the birds. "A float of light 
wood is launched into the water, baited with a small fish, 
as soon as they observe the bird approaching, whilst they 
stand ready with a long pole of sixteen or eighteen feet 
within reach of the float. The moment the bird pounces on 
the fish to seize it, they strike at him with the pole, and 
seldom fail in bringing him down^."*^ Should they miss 
^ Missiou. Voy. p. 382. 
