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CHAPTER II.

Table of Contents

BIRDS OF THE PAST.

Table of Contents

1. As civilized man advances and takes possession of forest and plain, the larger wild animals that formerly inhabited the region must either come into his service or be destroyed. The wolf has disappeared from the eastern forests of America, and the bear is found only in the most remote places. In Asia and Africa, lions and tigers retreat as the wilds become settled, and take up their abode in inaccessible mountains and jungles; and the rhinoceros and giraffe are rapidly disappearing, as they demand a wide range for their food, and must be destroyed to protect the crops of the farmer. The elephant is made a servant of man, and will probably survive in a domesticated state, long after his wild kin have disappeared from the forests.

2. The same fate awaits the larger birds. Most of the feathered tribe have special means by which their lives are protected. Rapid flight carries them beyond the reach of man; and beauty of plumage and song renders them objects to be preserved rather than destroyed. But the birds without the power of flight can not escape from the advance of the settler, or from the keen eye of the hunter. If they can be made to serve man, their existence may be prolonged; but if not, they must perish from the earth.

The Ostrich at full Speed.

3. The ostrich is as well equipped for living in semi-desert regions as are any of the larger animals. It has great strength and speed, and will fight or run as the occasion requires. While it can not fly, it is bird-like in its whole structure, with boat-shaped body, light, hollow bones, and soft, light feathers. Its wings, too small for flying, aid in running by performing the office of sails. Its feathers, also, having no need of being compact to resist the air like those of flying birds, have no little hooklets binding the parts together, but are loose and downy so as best to catch the wind.

4. Miss Buckley says: "There are soft pads inside of the two toes of each foot, and these rebound from the yielding sand as the well-bent legs straighten with a jerk one after the other, making his body bound forward at full speed. Then he raises his wings, sometimes on one side, sometimes on both, to balance himself, and to serve as sails to help him; and with this help his stride is sometimes as great as twenty feet, and he dashes along at the rate of twenty-six miles an hour, rivaling the rail-cars in speed.

5. "If we go back to long by-gone times, before the lion, the leopard, and other ferocious animals found their way into Africa, we can imagine how this great running bird took possession of the land, and, finding food in plenty, soon became too heavy for flight; while, as time rolled on, it gained that strength of body and leg which afforded it protection from enemies of all kinds. It could travel over wide distances from one oasis to another, feeding on seeds, fruits, beetles, locusts, and small animals, and fighting fiercely with leg and beak if attacked."

The Ostrich at Rest.

6. But the protection which nature has afforded the ostrich in its struggle for existence against wild beasts and savage men, is of no avail against the arts of the practical hunter. The speed of the bird is no match for trained horses in relays, so that a fresh one is ready to continue the chase when the last one gives out; and its strength is useless as against gunpowder and the rifle. From year to year, as explorations are made and settlements spread, the wild flocks of this bird retire farther into the interior of the continent, and, in the natural order of events, it is on the high-road to extermination.

7. One peculiarity in regard to its plumage, however, and one in regard to its disposition, serve to prolong its existence. The light, graceful feathers on wing and body are highly prized as ornaments for ladies' wear, and the bird is easily domesticated. So, the ostrich is now rapidly changing from the wild tenant of the desert to the peaceful occupant of the farm-yard, where it enters into the service of man as the fowls and turkeys have done in the time gone by.

8. The cassowary of New Guinea and adjacent islands is a cousin of the ostrich, and but little inferior in size. It is a stupid, gluttonous bird, devouring fruits, herbs, and small animals in great numbers. Its flesh is coarse and unsavory, and there is nothing graceful or beautiful in its coat of black, hair-like feathers. It has no qualities to render it serviceable to man. A few pairs are usually found in the principal zoölogical gardens, but the birds are too wild for domestication, and in their native regions they are becoming scarce. When New Guinea becomes the center of a civilized community, the cassowary will probably be numbered among the birds of the past.

The Cassowary.

9. The emu of Australia, belonging to this same family of birds, is nearly as large as the ostrich. It is wild and timid, running away from danger with the speed of the wind. It is much like the ostrich in structure, but has no ornamental plumage. It shuns the presence of man, and has entirely disappeared from the settled regions of Australia. It is probably destined to extinction at no distant day, for, though its flesh is esteemed as an article of food, its appetite is too voracious to make its preservation profitable.

The Dodo.

10. When the Mauritius Island was discovered by the Portuguese, in 1505, among the native birds was one with an enormous hooked bill and curious structure called the dodo. In shape it was somewhat like a duck, but its wings were too short for flying; it had only the rudiments of a tail, and its toes showed that it belonged to the scratchers. It was a fat, stupid bird, and could only waddle along at a slow gait upon its short legs. It had survived on the lonely island because it had no enemies.

11. Its flesh was good for food, and when the island became colonized this bird fell an easy prey to the inhabitants. Its eggs and young were also destroyed in great numbers by dogs, cats, and rats. In the course of a hundred years it had entirely disappeared, and the dodo is now reckoned as among the birds of the past. From specimens preserved, and from the descriptions left by the early settlers, the dodo is regarded as belonging to the family of the pigeons, and as a connecting link between the birds of the present and those of past geologic ages.

Wingless Birds of New Zealand.—The Giant Moa.

12. The natives of New Zealand have traditions of the existence of a gigantic bird that once roamed over the islands, and with which their ancestors had fierce fights. These birds were represented as much taller than men. These stories were regarded as fabulous until bird-bones of enormous size were discovered in various places. Naturalists now tell us that at no very remote period the moa or dinornis inhabited New Zealand; that it stood sixteen feet high; that it was without wings and tail; and that it had a covering which was a cross between feathers and hair. The moa evidently belonged to the same general family as the ostrich, and it may be regarded as the big brother of the apteryx, the wingless bird which is still found on the islands. It is believed by many that the moa still exists in the unexplored regions of New Zealand, and many stories are told of their having been seen by hunters at different times.

13. Such are some of the great birds that are extinct, or are rapidly passing away. Having served the purpose of their existence, they are no longer needed. When we leave geography for geology, and the study of what is for that of what was, we find evidence that the earth was once peopled by birds even greater than the gigantic moa, and that, at one time in the earth's history, monsters which seem to be a cross between a bird and a reptile held sway over all other animal life. From these terrible creatures we have happily escaped, and bird life now, with its beauty and song, has to us become a source of perpetual delight.

Some Curious Flyers, Creepers, and Swimmers

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