ABOUT THE TROPIC-BIRD. 
183 
the full glory of the sun, she deserves the significant name which she 
owes to the fancy of the great Swedish naturalist. Even the careful 
and sober Bennett is stirred into enthusiasm by this " fairy of the 
ocean." She is unquestionably, he says, one of the handsomest of 
the sea-birds, and excites general admiration when the sunshine plays 
on the beautiful hues of her plumage. Her habits are as gentle and 
amiable as her flight is graceful, and to watch her evolutions is a 
genuine pleasure. Ships seem often to attract the attention of her 
and her companions; they approach and fly round them, descend 
from on high in regularly contracting spirals, hover for a while at 
a certain elevation, and occasionally, but rarely, perch upon the yards. 
When not disturbed, they will accompany the vessel for days, until 
the latter passes beyond their usual sphere of flight, or some other 
cause necessitates their departure. Tliey display, when fishing, all 
their power of movement. Like the sea-swallows, they poise above 
the same point, keeping a vigilant eye upon everything passing 
beneath them, and swooping suddenly, with wings unfolded, and 
almost perpendicularly, down upon the water; using such force and 
impetuosity that they sink to a depth of several feet, and thus lay 
on themselves the necessity of violent exertion of their wings and legs 
in order to recover their balance. Nuttall affirms that they are fre- 
quently seen in pursuit of the flying-fish ; while Bennett has found in 
their stomach the remains of cephalopods. 
The Earl of Pembroke, in his amusing book, " South Sea Bubbles," 
furnishes some interesting particulars of these birds, which occur in 
great numbers on the island of Tubal. He says: "We began shooting 
the tropic-birds as they flew over us ; but we soon gave it up, for two 
reasons. First, that we found that if we got a rocketter, the chances 
were ten to one that we cut the scarlet feathers out of his tail ; and 
secondly, because we discovered that by diligent peering under the 
bushes we might pick up as many live, uninjured specimens as we 
liked. I never saw birds tamer or stupider; which tameness or 
stupidity may be accounted for by the extreme smallness of their 
brain, which is really not larger than that of a sparrow. They sat, 
and croaked, and pecked, and bit, but never attempted to fly away. 
