The daily sentinel., 1901-02-08
THE BIGGEST BIRD.
CONDOR OF THE ANDES GIVEN
FIRST PLACE.
Harry Eagle of tho Philippines Gets
Second Placs-Our Own Turkey L. .
Good Third = some Demand Second
Place for the BustArd. v

Inc Orn1thologtStS OF Great Britain
and America have Just finished a spir-
ited discussion which has lasted for
more than year. as to which is the
largest bird that flies. The prize has
been awarded to an American bird,
the great condor OF the Andes. To an
other bird. which is an American now,
mas been given the second prize. 1t Is
the fierce harpy eagle Of the Philip
pines. Our own turkey comes near the
second place, and If England succeeds
In present attempt at reintroducing
the famous great bustard into the tight
little island 1t will have the next larg-
est bird to our turkey. In this discus
sion the term largest" has been de-
nned as meaning bird which has both
the largest spread of wing and the
heaviest weight. This combination of
two essentials has made the exact
choice for second. third and fourth
place matter for fine calculation. But
there Is no question about the choice
for flrst place. The condor is king. In
the United States we have, besides the
turkey, four other birds which are
ranked high in the list Of the largest
flying birds. They are the beautiful
golden eagle, the national bald-headed
eagle, the great wild swan, known spe-
ciacally as the whooper, and the Cali
fornia condor, which is almost as large
as his South American brother. In
many respects the South American
condor is the most remarkable of all
living creatures. No other bird can
Nv c<N hfCh hn1df M Avin o
over Chimborazo at height Of $4,000
feet It seems to fly as easily and
breathe as easily in the rarefied atmos-
phsre at that great height as 1t does
At the level OF the sea. No other Gre
ated being can do this, as no other
living creature can lift itself SO far
above the earth. When flying it sails
In majestic circles or hangs poised in
the air as II suspended there by an in
visible cord. Darwin once watched a
condor for half an hour as 1t hung
over an Andean valley, and never once
did he detect the slightest movement
in the great bird or its widespread
ptnions. Its home Is above the snow
line. and it chooses as its favorite
dwelling places where great cliffs de-
scend sheer down for thousands OF feet.
It wandsrs sometimes to where the
cliffs Of Patagonia sfrown over the
troubled seas, but prefers to seek Its
food in the mountain valleys. 1t Is a
bird blessed with an appetite as re-
markable as itself, and one condor has
been known to devour calf. dog
and a sheep in a single week. On the
other hand. it can go without food for
more than forty days Probably no
other created animal has such keen
sight a. the condor From tremendous
heights and from great distances 1t
can spy carcass and will swoop down
on It with the rush and speed OF the
wind sweeping through the mountain
gorges.
There are those who not only de-
mand second place for the bustard,
but are Inclined to give him first place
among the birds that fly. Even such
an eminent authority as j. e. Harting
Of London, seems to incline that way.
But the biggest bustard Mr.. Harting
cites is the Seville bustard. with
weight OF 80 pounds, and the biggest
authentic spread of wings he cites is.
only seven feet. three inches. The
German naturalist, the younger Maui
mann, tells Of bustards weighing 81
pounds. and says that he has been as
sured of the former existence OF spect-
mems OF the bird Weighing So or 81
pounds.-Boeton Journal.