JACANA . — Farr a Jacana . 
The Jacanas are remarkable 
for the extraordinary develop- 
ment of their toes, which are so 
long and so slender that they 
seem to have been drawn out 
like wire, and to impede the pro- 
gress of their owner. These 
elongated toes are, however, of 
the greatest use, as they enable 
the bird to walk upon the float- 
ing leaves which overspread the 
surface of many rivers, and to 
pick its food from and between 
the leaves on which it walks. 
As the bird marches upon the 
leaves, the long toes dividing the 
pressure upon several leaves at 
each step, they are slightly sunk 
below the surface by the weight, 
so that the bird appears to be 
really walking upon water. 
The Common Jacana is a na- 
tive of Southern America, and 
there are other species scattered 
over Africa, Asia, and Australia. 
Mr. Gould tells us that the 
Australian species is a good diver, 
but a bad flier. “ Their powers 
of diving and of remaining under 
water are equal to those of any 
bird I have ever met with ; on 
the other hand, the powers of 
flight are very weak. They will, 
however, mount up fifteen or 
twenty yards and fly from one end of the lake to the other, a distance of half or 
three-quarters of a mile ; but generally they merely rise above the surface of the 
water, and fly off for about a hundred yards. During flight their long legs are 
thrown out horizontally to their full length. While feeding, they utter a slowly- 
repeated 4 cluck, cluck/ The stomach is extremely muscular, and the food 
consists of aquatic insects and some kind of vegetable matter/' 
