TANTALUS, Lin. Tern. who has much circumscribed its range. Couricaca, Ibis, of former ornithologists.
Bill very long, straight, without a nasal foss, a little in flected at the tip, which is curved, the upper mandible arched, the base broad, sides ciliated, tip compressed and cylindrical, edges of' both mandibles much inflected and sharp ; face naked ; nostrils basal on the surface of the bill, longitudinally cleft in the corneous substance which invests them above; legs very long; tarsus double the length of the middle toe, and the lateral toes united by a broad scal loped membrane.
T. ibis, Lath. &c. Solleikel Couricaca or Egyptian Ibis. Face red ; bill pale yellow ; quill feathers black ; body red dish-white. The bill is seven inches long. This is a large bird, somewhat exceeding the stork in bulk, and measur ing from thirty to forty inches in length. The fore part of the head, all around, as far as the eyes, is naked and reddish. The skin under the throat is also naked and di latable. This species abounds in Lower Egypt, in places just freed from the inundation of the Nile, living on frogs and insects. It frequents gardens in the morning and evening, and sometimes in such flocks that whole palm trees are covered with them. It rests in an erect attitude, with its tail touching its legs, and it builds its nest in the palm trees. The Egyptians call it Pharaoh's bird, and Hasselquist conjectures that it is the Ibis of the ancients; but mummies of two other species seem to have been preserved ; and it is not improbable that worship was paid to it, and to two other sorts belonging to the next genus.
lms, Lacepede, Illig. Tern. TANTALUS, Lin. &c.
Bill long, slender, arched, broad at the base, tip de pressed, obtuse, and rounded, upper mandible deeply fur rowed in its whole length; nostrils near the base in the upper portion of the bill, oblong, straight, and perforated in the membrane which invests the furrow; the face, and frequently a part of the head and neck, naked; legs of mo derate dimensions, or slender and naked above the knee, the fore-toes united as far as the first articulation, the hind one long, and reaching the ground.
The birds of this recently instituted genus, which have been confounded with the preceding, and with the cur lews, haunt the banks of rivers and lakes, where they feed on worms, insects, testacea, and often also on vegetables; but the popular reputation which they have acquired of devouring poisonous reptiles seems to be quite unsup ported by fact. They are stated migrants, and undertake long voyages.
I. falcinellus, Tern. Tantalus falcinellus, and T. ig neus, Gmel. &c. Bay and Glossy Ibis of Latham, Black Ibis of Savigny. The young correspond to Tantalus yin- dis of Gmel. and Lath. or Green Ibis. Head, neck, front of the body, and sides of the back, of a beautiful deep ches nut hue, the upper part of the back, wings, ai d tail, brassy or golden green, according to the reflections of the light; bill greenish-black, and the tip brown ; irides brown ; and legs greenish brown. Total length twenty three inches. Before their third year the young have the feathers of the head, throat, and neck, longitudinally striped with black ish-brown, and edged with white ; the under part of the neck, the breast, belly, or thighs, cinereous black ; the up per part of the back and scapularies cinereous brown, and the green reflections on the wings and tail less lively than in the mature bird. Frequents the margins of lakes and
rivers, and visits, in its passage, Poland, Hungary, Tur key, and the Archipelago. It also visits the banks of the Danube, and occasionally Italy and Switzerland, and even sometimes wanders into Holland and England. It occurs likewise in Siberia, and resorts periodically to Egypt, where it appears to have been formerly the object of di vine worship.
I. religiosa, Cuv . Tantalus Lath. _lbou hannes of Bruce. Sacred Ibis. Part of the head and neck naked, the general plumage diversified with glossy black and white. The young differ considerably from the old birds, and have the crown of the head and the nape fur nished with long pendent plumes. Common in Ethio pia and in the whole of Lower Egypt during part of the year. It sometimes lives in a solitary state, and sometimes in small bands of eight or ten. Its flight is powerful and elevated. When on wing it stretches out its neck and feet horizontally, like most of its congeners, uttering, from time to time, a very hoarse scream. Groups of them will remain close by one another, and for hours together, on ground recently abandoned by the water, incessantly busied in ex ploring the mud with their bill. They do not hop and run nimbly like the curlews, but walk step by step. Their breeding quarters have not been ascertained ; but they ar rive in Egypt when the Nile begins to swell, and diminish in number in proportion as the waters retire. For more ample particulars relative to the sacred ibis, we beg leave to refer our readers to Bruce's Travels, and to Savigny's ingenious disquisition.
I. rubra, Vieill. Tantalus ruber, Lath. Scarlet Ibis. Face, bill, and legs, red; body scarlet ; wings tipped with black. From twenty to twenty-four inches long. In the female the bill is yellowish-grey ; a mixture of white and prevails in different parts of the plumage; and the tips of the two first quills are of a deep azure. The young are at first blackish, then grey, whitish just before they fly, and gradually assume their beautiful scarlet livery. These elegant birds are spread over the most of the warm countries of South America. In Brazil they are known by the name of Guara, and in Cayenne by that of Flamin go. Whether on the ?-ing, or searching for food on marshy shores, they arc always observed in society, retir ing during the heat of the day into small inlets, and court ing the coolness of the shade, to which they again return at night. They begin to incubate in January, and finish in May. They lay their greenish eggs in long grass, among the brushwood, or among a parcel of sticks care lessly put together. The young may be taken with the hand, are far from shy, and are readily reconciled to al most-any kind of food ; but in their native state they sub sist on small fish, testacea, and insects. Their flesh is reckoned worthy of a place at table. The Tantalus fus cus of some authors is the young of the present species.