The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1888-05-05
TROPIC BIRDS.

ing nine thousand four hundred species,
sea birds form but one fourteenth part.
Many of the islands at sea are literally
covered with various marine birds and
their nests. Prominent among these in
many parts are the surprisingly beautiful
tropic birds, the subject of this sketch.
So calm and almost effortlees is their
flight that sesmen and voyagers in those
ATTITUDES, delight in watching their
graceful movements. Elevated far above
the masts of the ships, these denizens of
the South Atlantic, Indian and lower Pa
cific oceans are often seen, with their two
long projecting tail feathers looking like
single, slender shaft protruding from
its body OF spotless white, as on suspend
ed pinions turning their heads from side
to side, they examine the ship over which
they pass.
The common bird Of this species is
somewhat larger than pheasant, meas
uring about thirteen inches from the
point of it's bill to the extremity of the
two long tail feathers, which, as stated,
constitute the popularity of this bird and
are, in this variety, seven inches, making
the length over all, twenty inches The
bill is red with an angle under the lower
mandible; the eyes are surrounded with
black which ends in a point upward to-
ward the back of the head. Three or
four of the largest quill feathers toward
their points are black, tipped with white.
All other parts of this bird are white ex-
cept the back which is variegsted with
curved wavy lines of black. The legs
and feet are of vermillion red, small
and feeble like those of the duck
Though they float through the air with
out apparent effort, at times this smooth
progress is interrupted by sudden jerks.
When they sight ship they never fail to
sail around it, and they do not seem to
weary quickly although they are often
twelve hours on the wing.
They are frequently met with far out
at sea but always return to land at night
to roost amid the rocks where they have
their nests. They live chiefly within the
tropics. and many of them breed on the
rocky islands to the east of Porto Rico
and some on the Bermudas.
The long feathers Of the tail are used
| by the South Sea islanders as ornaments
of dress. The food of these birds is ex-
clusively fish, and everything about them
indicates their homes to be on the deep
rather than on the land. There are but
two species, the pheaton, so interesting to
| all who traverse the equatorial seas. This
one is the most beautiful of the festh-
cred race notwithstanding the fact that
the silver lustre Of its plumage renders
it almost eolorless. The more Southern
members of this family are distinguished
by the red color of the central line of the
elongated tail feathers that appear like
scarlet wire. This species is even more
handsome than the one above named,
its more Northern relative.
The female of this family lays but a
single egg. Many of them breed at Round
Island near Maritus, where they are call
ed the "strawtsil' by the natives. Occa-
sionslly we meet with them in Australia
and few are found at Norfolk Island.
At, or near Maritus there is no water
on the steep, sandy slopes and the rain
that falls soon disappears. Here the
scanty vegetation is very curious. There
being but a small amount of alluvial all
the stunted trees have shallow roots and
attain but limited growth land are princi-
pally the bottle and other dwarfed palms.
The crannaries and lodges of the sand
rocks are fairly salive with the almost
countless nests where thelbreeding birds
are seen, their whereabouts marked by the
telltale red feathers fifteen inches Ion
These birds will not permit any other
birds on the island, the white species at
Maritus and the red on Bourbon just
south of it, keeping quite separate. The
long feathers of both are valuable.
On these islands they congregste in
immense numbers, and the females, which
are yellow billed, will not leave their
nests, even at the approach Of man, suf-
fering themselves to be plucked while
picking at stick or the stock of gun,
while guarding their callow brood. We
saw one party who succeeded in securing
some two thousand feathers in this way
and without injury to the mother bird.
They have a strong and sharp-pointed
bill and the head is entirely festhered.
In the Indian and South Pacific oceans
this species is pale rose color with black
wing coverts, and in all cases breed on
high cliffs.
have stated that the handsomest spe-
cies of these birds would not permit any
other aquatic fowl near their chosen
homes, while nearly all other kinds of
sea birds are greRarious and companion
able, and seem in all respects happy
family, composed of many dozens of diff
ferent species. A sea captain in the In
dian Ocean trade recently discovered
near San Miguel Island, standing out
alone and solitary in the Pacific, a rock
with a surface Of three acres, and was
amazed at the scene presented to his WIS.,
ion. The surface was almost entirely
covered with eggs, and on and about it