The Bird Book Part 15

These are generally located on the ground but occasionally in low mangroves, these latter nests being more bulky than the ground ones.

They lay from two to five chalky white eggs during May and June. Size 3.

1.90. Data.--Tampa Bay, Fla., May 29, 1894. Three eggs. Nest in the top of a stout mangrove; made of sticks, branches and leaves. Collector, Geo. Graham.

127. CALIFORNIA BROWN PELICAN. _Peleca.n.u.s californicus._

Range.--Pacific coast from British Columbia south to the Galapagos Islands.

This bird is similar to the preceding, but larger and the pouch is reddish. They breed abundantly on the Coronado Islands and southward.

Their habits, nesting habits and eggs are the same as those of the Brown Pelican. Size of the three or four chalky white eggs is 3.10 1.95.

Data.--Coronado Islands, Calif., March 28, 1897. Three eggs. Nest of sticks, lined with green leaves, located on the ground. Collector, H.

McConville.

[Ill.u.s.tration 087: Chalky white.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Brown Pelican. White Pelican.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: deco.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: right hand margin.]

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MAN-O'-WAR BIRDS. Family FREGATIDae

128. MAN-O'-WAR BIRD. _Fregata aquila._

Range.--Tropical seas, north regularly in America to the South Atlantic and Gulf coasts, casually farther.

Man-o'-war Birds or "Frigates," as they are often called, are remarkable birds in many respects. In comparison with their weight they have the largest expanse of wing of any known bird. Weighing only about four pounds they have an extent of from seven to eight feet, their wings being extremely long and pointed. The length of the bird is about 40 inches, of which the tail comprises about 18 in., 10 inches of this being forked. They have a large bright orange gular sac, a long, hooked bill, and small slightly webbed feet. Their powers of flight combine the strength of the Albatrosses and the grace of the Terns. They are very poor swimmers and do not dive, so are forced to procure their food by preying upon the Gulls and Cormorants, forcing them to drop their fish, which the pirates catch before it reaches the water. They also feed upon flying fish, catching them in the air, whither they have been driven by their enemies in their natural element. They nest in large colonies on some of the Bahama Islands and on some of the small Florida Keys. Their nests are small frail platforms of sticks and twigs and the single egg is laid in March and April. It is white and has a smooth surface. Size 2.80 1.90. Data.--Key Verde, Bahamas, March 6, 1889. Single egg. Nest a frail affair of sticks on a cactus. Collector, D. P. Ingraham.

[Ill.u.s.tration 088: White.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Man-O'-War Bird.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: deco.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: left hand margin.]

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Order V. ANSERES DUCKS, GEESE AND SWANS. Family ANATIDAE

The birds comprising this family are of greatly varying sizes, but all have webbed feet, and generally the bill is broader than high, and is serrated on the edges or provided with gutters to act as a strainer in a.s.sisting the birds to gather their food.

129. MERGANSER. _Mergus america.n.u.s._

Range.--North America, breeding from the northern border of the United States northward.

The three species of Mergansers are almost exclusively fish eating birds. Therefore their flesh is unpalatable and they are known as "Fish Ducks." They are also sometimes called "Sawbills" because of the teeth-like serration on both the upper and the under mandibles. Unlike the other species of ducks, their bills are long, slender and rounded instead of being broad and flat; it is also hooked at the tip. Like the Cormorants, they often pursue and catch fish under the water, their teeth-like bills enabling them to firmly hold their prey.

The American Mergansers, Goosanders, or Sheldrakes, as they are often called, are found both on the coast and in the interior. Except in certain mountainous regions, they breed chiefly north of the United States. The male bird has no crest and the head is a beautiful green, while the female has a reddish brown crest and head, shading to white on the chin. They build their nest in hollow trees near the water. It is made of gra.s.ses, leaves and moss and is lined with feathers from the breast of the female. During May, they lay from six to ten eggs of a creamy or buff color. Size 2.70 1.75. Data.--Gun Is., Lake Winnipeg.

June 16, 1903. Eleven eggs in a nest of white down, located between two large boulders. Collector, Walter Raine.

[Ill.u.s.tration 089: Brownish buff.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: American Merganser. Red-breasted Merganser.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: right hand margin.]

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130. RED-BREASTED MERGANSER. _Mergus serrator._

Range.--North America, breeding from northern United States northward.

This species is more abundant than the preceding. It is slightly smaller, being 22 inches in length, and the male is crested. Found abundantly in the United States in winter. Breeds commonly in the interior of British America and in Labrador and Newfoundland. They make their nests on the ground, near the water, concealing them under rocks or tufts of gra.s.s. The nest is made of gra.s.ses, leaves and moss and lined with feathers. They lay, generally, about ten eggs of a buffy or greenish buff color. Size 2.50 1.70. Data.--Lake Manitoba, N. W.

Canada. Two eggs in a hollow lined with down, under a patch of rose bushes near sh.o.r.e. Collector, Jos. Hamaugh.

131. HOODED MERGANSER. _Lophodytes cucullatus._

Range.--North America, breeding locally throughout its range, in the interior. These are beautiful little Ducks distinguished from all others by the semi-circular, compressed crest which is black with an enclosed white area. They make their nests in hollow trees, in wooded districts near the water, lining the cavity with gra.s.ses and down. They lay ten or twelve grayish white eggs. Size 2.15 1.70.

132. MALLARD. _Anas platyrhynchos._

Range.--Northern Hemisphere, breeding in America from northern United States northward, and wintering south to Panama and the West Indies.

Contrasting with the preceding Fish Ducks, the Mallards are regarded as one of the most esteemed table birds. They feed on mollusks and marine insects which they generally reach by tipping in shallow water. They nest in many localities in the United States but more abundantly north of our borders. They nest in fields in close proximity to ponds or lakes, placing their nests of gra.s.ses and feathers in the tall gra.s.s. In May and June they lay from six to ten eggs of a buffy or olive color.

Size 2.25 1.25. Data.--San Diego, California, May 19, 1897. Nest made of gra.s.s, lined with down, placed on the edge of a field near a pond.

[Ill.u.s.tration 090: Hooded Merganser. Mallard.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Grayish white.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: left hand margin.]

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[Ill.u.s.tration 091: Lake Winnipegosis, June 16, 1902 Walter Raine NEST AND EGGS OF AMERICAN MERGANSER.

This species usually nest in holes in trees, but on this island they were nesting in holes under boulders.]

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133. BLACK DUCK. _Anas rubripes._

Range.--Eastern North America, breeding from the middle portions north to the Hudson Bay territory and Labrador.

Throughout their breeding region, one or more pairs of these ducks nest in nearly every favorable locality. Their nests are placed on the ground in marshes, swamps or fields bordering a pond or lake, the nest being concealed in the long gra.s.s or reeds. They breed in equal abundance, either in the interior or along the sea coast; in the latter case their nests are often placed beside of, or under an overhanging rock. It is made of weeds, gra.s.s and moss and is lined with feathers and down. They lay from six to twelve eggs during May and June; these are buff or greenish buff in color. Size 2.30 1.70. Data.--Duck Is., Maine, June 3, 1893. Nest of gra.s.ses, concealed in a large tuft on water's edge.

134. FLORIDA DUCK. _Anas fulvigula fulvigula._

Range.--Florida and the Gulf of the Mississippi.

This is a similar, lighter colored, locally distributed race of the foregoing. The most noticeable difference in plumage between this and the Black Duck is the absence of markings on the chin. The habits are the same, and the eggs, which are deposited in April, are similar to those of the Black Duck, but smaller. Size 2.15 1.60.