THE FLAMINGO. 
829 
the neck is carried in the form of an S, the head being 
laid close to the same; and it is only when on the 
“ look-out ” that they stretch their necks out in the 
unnatural manner in which stuffed specimens and draw¬ 
ings so often represent them. When perfectly at rest the 
neck is contracted, so as to appear as if swallowed, and 
is laid against the breast, the only position which would 
render it possible for the bird to hide its head under the 
feathers of its back; on such occasions it stands on one 
leg, the other being drawn close up to the body. The 
Flamingo swims well in deep water, and often does so 
without being obliged. This bird’s flight is easy and 
beautiful: the motion of the wings is somewhat rapid, 
rarely gliding; the neck and the legs are extended, 
and thus look extraordinarily long and slender, the bird 
having, when soaring, the appearance of a regular cross. 
Like wild Geese, these birds fly one after another, though 
generally in single file, and not in the form of a wedge. 
A large flock of Flamingos form a splendid spectacle 
when seen in the light of a southern sun. Their note is 
a hoarse, though not loud, “crak” or “craik,” to which 
that of the wild Goose seems musical in comparison. 
The Flamingo is excessively shy and cautious; a flock 
will never allow a boat to approach within shot during 
the daytime : the elders of the troop keep watch, and are 
not easily deceived. Solitary young birds are, on the 
contrary, seldom shy: one of the latter allowed me to 
approach it on the shores of the Bed Sea in the most 
unconcerned manner possible, and naturally paid for its 
temerity with its life. Those that I saw in captivity all 
conducted themselves most quietly and sensibly from the 
first day they were caught, although they showed a 
certain amount of anxiety, which only disappeared with 
