MAN-O-WAR BIRDS 
Soaring at a great height over the South Seas, the immense man-o-war 
or frigate bird sights a tern or booby bearing a fish in its beak. Itself an 
excellent fisher, the frigate apparently prefers to let other birds do its 
fishing. It is a hi-jacker among birds. Darting down like a meteor, it forces 
the smaller birds to relinquish their prey, either by the mere threat of its 
presence or, if necessary, by a swift peck which may break its adversary’s 
wing. So swift is its flight that it often catches the dropped fish in mid-air. 
Despite its remarkable power of flight, the man-o-war clings closely to its 
breeding areas and is seldom found far out in the ocean. 
A full-grown frigate bird has a wing spread in excess of six feet. Its 
tail, regulated by seven distinct sets of muscles, is well developed and is all 
important as a rudder in directing the bird’s spectacular aerial gyrations. 
The body plumage of the male is a glossy, metallic black, that of the head 
bluish-green. Hanging from its neck is a red sac, which it distends in the 
mating season. The female is less glossy and has a brownish breast. 
The frigate bird eats young sea turtles in addition to immense quan¬ 
tities of fish. A chick has been known to disgorge as many as seven flying 
fishes. These birds are most at home in the air, and consume their food 
as they fly. At night they roost in trees on lonely islands, only rarely alight¬ 
ing on level beaches, as it is difficult for them to take flight unless they 
have a short distance to drop. 
Many breed in February. Nests are built in trees, brushes or rocks, 
building material being sticks torn from branches while the birds are on 
the wing. Into the nest one white oval egg is laid. Father and mother bird 
take turns in sitting, and one is always present, for otherwise a neighboring 
frigate bird will steal the nest and eat the egg or chick. 
The names frigate or man-o-war, conferred on these belligerent birds 
by the early Spanish explorers, today seem hardly adequate. But to those 
seafaring men, centuries before modern war planes, the man-o-war was the 
most striking symbol of speed, grace and fighting power. 
54 
