ANATOMY OF BIRDS
GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION
MIGRATIONS OF BIRDS
CLASSIFICATION OF BIRDS
LIZARD-TAILED BIRD
AMERICAN TOOTHED-BIRDS
THE OSTRICHES
THE RHEAS
EMEUS AND CASSOWARIES
THE TINAMOUS
THE KIWIS
THE PENGUINS
LOONS AND GREBES
ALBATROSSES & PETRELS
STORK-LIKE BIRDS
GOOSE-LIKE BIRDS
FALCON-LIKE BIRDS
FOWL-LIKE BIRDS
CRANE-LIKE BIRDS
PLOVER-LIKE BIRDS
CUCKOO-LIKE BIRDS
THE ROLLER-LIKE BIRDS
SPARROW-LIKE BIRDS
Birds and Birding's Guide to:
Watching THE STORK-LIKE BIRDS
THE FRIGATE-BIRDS (Family Fregatida)
Frigate Birds of the South Pacific
Following is an account, by Mr. J. J. Lister, of a visit to the Phcenix Islands in the South Pacific, where he found the Lesser Frigate-bird (F. a. minor) breeding in great numbers. He says: “From the boat I went off to the part of the island over which the Frigate-birds were wheeling. Here I found their nests in great numbers. They were built of small dead twigs of the plants of the island, placed a foot or so above the ground on the spreading branches of the Sida (a shrubby, malvaceous plant two or three feet high) and on the beaten-down tussocks of grass.
The nests were placed as near together as supports could be found, and there were well-defined limits to the colonies, although the bushes beyond these limits appeared to be just as well suited for the purpose as those within. Each nest was occupied by a bird. As one, approached some of these took flight and joined the whirling crowd overhead, but the rest remained sitting and allowed themselves to be touched with the muzzle of my gun, only chattering their bills by way of remonstrance. Both males and females were to be seen engaged in the duties of incubation.
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