AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
^57 
1875.] 
The Stilt.—The Darter, or Water-Turkey. 
It often happens that American plants are first 
^figured in European journals, and it is still more 
frequently the case that our birds and quadrupeds 
are better known abroad than at home. The re¬ 
sources of the Royal Zoological Society allow it to 
bring together animals from all parts of the world, 
and many rare American quadrupeds, reptiles, 
the size of the head, it is short compared with the 
legs, and the neck being also short, the bird can 
with difficulty reach the ground to feed. But the 
structure is admirably adapted to the bird’s mode 
of feeding, which is to wade in shallow water and 
take such insects and snails as it may find upon 
aquatic plants, or floating upon the surface of the 
water. The length of the Stilt, from the tip of the 
bill to the end of the tail, is 13 to 15 inches.—The 
larger bird is well known to all sportsmen who visit 
fore re-appearing. Those who have watched tho 
movements of the bird are astonished that so 
large a body can plunge so quietly. The bird 
very often swims with the body wholly sub¬ 
merged, the long neck only appearing above the 
surface, and looking so much like some kind of a 
water-serpent, that it lias been called the “ Snake- 
bird.” When swimming upon the surface, they, 
when alarmed, sink quietly backwards, leaving the 
head only in sight. They are remarkably quick in 
THE STILT. —THE DART 
and birds are seen by Londoners at “the Zoo,” 
that in this country can only be seen in their na- 
ti\ haunts. The engraving above given is from 
thi London Field ; the artist, having the live birds 
as studies, is able to make a more life-like picture 
than can be produced from stuffed specimens—the 
models from which rare birds are often of necessity 
drawn. The smaller bird in the engraving is the 
3t ! t, (Himanoptus nir/ricollis), which has, among 
y er names, that of “Longshanks,” the applica¬ 
tion of which is sufficiently obvious, though why it 
should also be called “Lawyer,” is not so easy to 
see. This bird is found from New York south¬ 
ward, and also in the West Indies. . It is black 
above, and its forehead, sides of head and neck, 
and under parts white ; its bill is black, and its legs 
carmine. The legs of this bird are remarkably 
long, and, though the bill is long in proportion to 
R, OR WATER-TURKEY, — i 
the southern states, especially Florida, as the 
“ Water-Turkey ” (Plotua ahinga ); it is also called 
the “Darter,” in some places it is the “Water- 
Crow,” and, oddly enough, the “Grecian Lady.” 
It is closely related to the cormorants, but more 
slightly built, and has a very long neck and 
small head. It is about three feet long; the 
color is a glossy greenish-black, with a broad 
gray band on the wings; there are also markings 
of ash, and in the female there is brown on the 
head and neck, and fawn on the breast. The bird 
has the habit of sitting motionless upon branches 
of trees overhanging the water, and when alarmed, 
it drops from the perch, head foremost, with 
its wings close to its sides, with astonishing 
velocity disappearing beneath the surface, making 
scarcely a ripple. It swims under water with 
great rapidity, and goes to a safe distance be¬ 
wn and Engraved for the American Agriculturist. 
all their movements, swimming with great rapidity, 
and have a strong flight, often going up out of 
sight. The food of the Darter is fish ; it does not 
dive for its prey, as some birds do, but pursues and 
captures it under water. The number of fish 
it consumes must be very large. Audubon gives 
an account of a tame bird, seven months old, which 
swallowed in rapid succession nine fishes, each 
about 7i inches Ung, and was accustomed to take 
at a single meal forty fishes, which were about 3i 
inches long each. The Darteris easily domesticated, 
and it has been suggested that it might be trained 
to catch fish, in a manner similar to the cormorants 
in the East. The flesh of the bird is very oily, and 
of such bad flavor as not to be desirable as food. 
The nest, built sometimes in trees, but often on 
low bushes, a few feet above the water, is two feet 
in diameter, and constructed of sticks, leafy twigs, 
