The Cormorant is exceedingly voracious, and devours an almost incredible amount of fish. It is an excellent diver, and chases the fish actually under the water, seldom if ever returning without having secured its prey. Like the otter, when engaged in chase, it occasionally rises to take breath, and then resumes the pursuit with renewed vigor. It has the power of perching on trees, an accomplishment which we should hardly suspect a web-footed bird of possessing.
The Cormorant is easily tamed, and its fishing propensities can be turned to good account. The Chinese, at the present day, employ a kind of Cormorant for that purpose, having previously placed a ring round the bird's neck to prevent it from swallowing the fish. Its length is about three feet.
The Petrels.
The Stormy Petrel is, under the name of Mother Carey's Chicken, the terror of the sailor, who always considers the bird as the precursor of a storm. It is the smallest of the web-footed birds. Few storms are violent enough to keep this curious little bird from wandering over the waves in search of the food that the disturbed water casts to the surface.
The Albatrosses.
The Albatrosses are relatives of the Petrels, but much larger birds.
The Wandering Albatross, the largest of the genus, is a well-known bird in the southern seas, following ships for many miles. The flight of this bird is peculiarly majestic. Its extreme length of wing prevents it from rising at once from the ground, but when once launched into the air it seems to float and direct its course without effort.
ALBATROSS.
The Terns.