148 ANHINGA OR SNAKE-BIRD.
two inches and livo-oighths in length, byjjgjfe and a quarter in diameter,
and aie of an elongated oval form, of a dull uniform whitish colour
externally, being' covered with a chalky substance, boueiilh which the
slmll'fou being carefully scraped, if of a light blue, precisely roscmbHjig
in this respect the eggs of the different specíBé'Uf Ameriêîp CormoraBtísfith
which I am acquainted.
The young when about a fortnight old are clad with a uniform
buff-coloured down ; their bill is black, thuirfe«t yellowish-white, their
head'aftd neoknëaxly naked; and now they resemble young Cormorants,
though' of a différent colour. The wing leathers 'make their appearanee
through Wo down, and are dark brown. The birds in the same nest
differ as much in size as those of Cormorants, the largest tx-ing alinfcS •
'twice the size of the smallest. At this age tliey arc in the habit of raising
themselves by placing 'their bills oil the tipper part (if the iif^-t',' or over
á branch it convenient, and drawing tkemsolvSíftip by their jaws, which
m such'tô'ïsioiis thoy open very widely:11' This habit is continued by
young birds whilst in coiilitionintit, and was also 'observed in fife Cormorant,
l'h'dwyroarrasc Gario, the young of whi'c'lv "assisted themselves
with their while criiwling!'about on the'dock of' the Ripley.: ' The
action is indeed performed by'the Anhihga at all periods of its I He.
At an early age the young utter a low wheezhjig'çttl|&id at timeá some
cries res'éiiibling those of the young of "thfe'! smaller species of Herons.
From birth they are fed by regurgitation, which one might suppose an
irksome task to the parent birds, a.s -during the act t'hev open their
wings and raise their'tails'. I have not been able to ascertain 'the period
of incubation, but km sure that the male andjîhiwiiialo sï| alternately,
the latter'however remaining much long» oil the nest. Y oung
Anhingas when approached While in the ' ti'cst filing tenaciously to it,
until seSSïlï Snd if thrown down, they merely float on tBS' water, and
axe easily captured. On thé "contrary, the young Florida Cormorants
throw themselves into the water, and 'divo?at once.
When th!ey are three w'eëks *oldj "ffie quills and tail-feathers grow
rapidly, but continueroultho same dark brown colour, and so remain
until they are able to fly, when they leave the nest, although they still
' present a singular motley appearance, the breast and back- being buflccoloured,
while the wings and tail are nearly black. After the'foathors
of the wings and tail arc nearly fully' developed,||«»e of the sides of
ANHINGA OR SNAKE-BIRD. 149
the body and breaAt become visible througt'i .the down,, and- the bird
appears more, curiously ¡mottled than before. The young male now assmnes.
thc colour of the adult female, which it retains until the beginning,
pf •October, when, the breast becomes streaked with,dusky ; white
spots, shew themselves,on the ,back, the black of which becomes more
intejsg j'ancL: the crimpijags on the two middle feathers of the tail, which
ha^eenprnre ox fes apparent from the first,, are now perfect. By
«^middle of February, the male is in full plumage, but t h e s e s have
sot yetacqruired their full colour, being only of a dull reddish-orange.
In th» respect also two d i f f e r e n c e s . a r e observed between the Anhmga
and the Cormorants. .The first is the rapid progress of the Anhifiga
towards maturity plumage, thfe, other- the retaining of its complete
dress through the whole of its-liftv no: change taking place in its colours
at each successif moult. The fexmorants, on the contrary, take
three or four years to attain their full dress of the love'season, which
lasts, only during that, period of. excitement. The progress: of the pltfe
mage in the female Anhingaws as rapid as in the male, and the tints
also remain unaltered through each successive moult.
l.iko „11 other carnivomus and piscivorous birds, the Anhinga can
remain days and.iiigbts without food, apparently without being much
incommoded. When overture», on being wounded, and especially if
brought fer the ground,, it, .seems to regard its enemies without fear.
(),i several occasions of this kind, I have seen it watch my approach,
o r that of my dog, standing as erect aj:» could under the pain of its.
wounds, with, its Nad drawn back, its bill open, and its throat swelled
with anger until, when at u sure distance, it would dart its head forward
and give,a,se,vere wound. One which had thus struck, at my dog's
,10S(!, hung to it until dragged 1o my feet over a space of thirty paces:.
When seized by the neck, thoy scratch severely with their, sharp claws,
and beat their wings about you with much more vigour than you would
suppose tkuy.could possess.. Having. witnessed the singular means
employed by this bird in making; Its escape on sudden emergencies, I
will here relate an instance, which evinces a kind of reason. Whilst
ascending the St John's river in East. Florida, along with Captain
I'tEROY. o.f the U. S. Navy, our boat was rowed into a circular basin of
clear shallow water, having a sandy bottom ; such places being found
occasionally in that country, produced; by the flowing of springs from
the more elevated sandy parts into the muddy rivers and lakes. We