El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1900-01-20
.FEHTHEhED HUNTERS WHO SEEK
their PREY IN COUPLES.
s-.-s-->;- s-s-s-s-
BY c. 2. HOLDER.


500. .<.y. 80: %. g. -. 80. Is. q
a party of travellers through north
ern Africa some years ago came q camp
on the borders of a tract of land that
had been burned over quite recently,
leaving the ground covered with a soft
layer of ashes From this the skeleton
branches of shrubs of various kinds pro-
truded. and the larger limbs of mimosas
yet so bare that game could be seen for
a long distance. The caravan had late
" crossed terrible desert, where the
trail was lined with the skeletons of
camels and various animals that had
fallen by the way, and the glimpse of
living animals was so welcome that the
various creatures that wandered about
the camp were unmolested-
AS they sat one morning resting they
were astonished to see walking toward
them flock of black and white storks.
common in the country and to be seen
everywhere sitting by the banks of the
Nile watching for prey. The birds
numbered twenty or more and came
gravely on, as if they were a body of
dignifed ambassadors intent on some
mission of Importance. They paid not
the slightest attention to the camp, but
walked slowly by. When opposite to
them, the travellers saw that upon the
back of each stork perched a small bird
about as large as robin. There seemed
to be a perfect understanding between
the steeds and their riders. Ordinarily
a bird like the stork would have been
annoyed by such companion, but
these walked calmly along with their
little riders, who occasionally flew away
and returned again. When the strange
cavalcade passed near the camp, it was
apparent that the storks were on
hunting expedition and that the small
er birds had attached themselves to the
hunters evidently to save trouble in
transportation. The storks were pick
ing up the grasshoppers out of the
ashes. and if one by any chance escaped
their watchful eyes or sharp beaks down
pounced one of the copper colored riders
and seized it, returning to the back of
the stork to devour it. To this the latter
made no objection, taking it all as a
matter Of course. And SO the curious
procession moved on, the men in camp
watching their strange actions until
they had passed out of sight.
This action ON the part of the large
bird in not only permitting another
bird to ride on its back and pound its
feathers with grasshoppers in its at
tempts to devour them, suggests that
there must have been some under
standing between the birds. The small
bird might properly be considered an
interloper, but from the quiet manner
in which the stork accepted the stu
alton it would appear that good fellow
ship prevailed among them.
1 have often observed similar asso-
citation among birds in the south,
though in this instance the smaller bird
was evidently a roEber. 1 first noticed
it when drifting on lagoon among
the Florida keys. My boat was an
chored to a coral bank, and was lying
down on the little deck, looking down
into the water, when a brown pelican
came flying along, closely followed by
a large gull, which we termed the
laughing gull, from its note, which was
a decided ha hal many times repeated.
The pelican, perceiving a school of
small fish near my boat, rose a few feet,
then dashed headlong among them. 1t
came up shaking it's feathers and al
lowing the water to drain from its pom
derous pouch, in which were several
fishes. The moment the pelican rose the
laughing gull swooped down and alight-
ed on its head, and. leaning over just
as the pelican was about to swallow,
deftly snatched one of the fish from its
long bill and with derisive laugh flew
away, Immediately returning to the
pelican's back, where it apparently
rested, while the large bird swan
about, offering not the slightest objec-
ton to the rider.
In this instance the act of the gull
was certainly theft of the most bare
faced character, yet the big pelican,
which could have annihilated its rider.
accepted the situation in apparent good
nature, so that the impression was
created that the two hunted together,
and the pelican was content to share it's
spoils with the laughing gull.
That birds apparently hunt together
is not go remarkable as the fact that
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