73 PELICANS Pelicans are huge, squat-looking birds of rivers and lakes living mainly on fish which they systematically hunt in parties in a semi-circular form- ation, driving the fish into the shallows and then gobbling them up. Their most characteristic external feature is the enormous elastic skin-bag which hangs below the large flattened bill, and this is large enough to contain a man's head. Besides fish they pick up and swallow young birds and even half-grown Ducks coming within their reach. The species that are found in India range from 5 to 6.5 feet in length and r over 10 feet in wing-expanse. No wonder such a bird is called fee in Hindi and also in Sanskrit. "Jalasind" in the F.B.I. is a printing error. The water- bird called केसरी in चरक, and पुण्डरीक in सुश्रुत (lion and tiger respectively ) is no other than the pelican; Cf. पक्षिसिंह for गरुड or the Golden Eagle. शाईल of the lexicons and we off, 6.2, are additional names for it. Lastly it is also प्लव in a special sense as defined in कल्पद्रुकोश : प्लवो महाप्रमाणः स्यात् प्रसेवकगज (गल ? ) श्र्व सः । But it would be more correct to call it was against for the cormorant and the coct. i also defines grs in a similar way, and the ff referring to its size, calls it a greft. As the different species of Pelican are difficult to distinguish in the field they are not differentiated Sanskrit nomenclature. Prakrit कासिह (- जलसिंह) and हय-पोंडरीय of प्रश्नव्याकरण and पोंडरीग (पुण्डरीक) of अभिधानराजेन्द्र, all refer to this bird. The following corrupt synonymy in धन्वन्तरि probably includes जलसिंह for it: जलपक्षी महापक्षी जलसाघ (संह) तिवासकः । If the second half of the above is read "aftsferrer" the expression afers may refer to the belief that fish are attracted to Pelicans by their oily secretion (Jerdon). The first half of the verse (not reproduced) is also corrupt but includes yet another Prakrit name for it, viz. (पाशगल), the same as प्रसेवकगल of कल्पद्रुकोश, 1. हय पोंडरीय equated with हृद पुण्डरीक- Lake-tiger in पा. स. म. is the same as कासिह of the same lexicon. 74 CORMORANTS & DARTER 1. Three species of Cormorants are found in India, viz., the Large Cormorant which measures about 32 inches in length, the Indian Shag (25 inches) and the Little Cormorant (20 inches), all of them of a generally black colour with a green gloss. They live entirely on fish which is caught by diving under water with the thin but hooked bill. When not feeding they perch on rocks, stakes in the water. with wings spread out in the sun for drying. They frequent both fresh and salt water, the latter near the sea-coast. or on trees. The Darter or Snake-bird is about three feet long including its long snaky neck. It is of a black colour but with white on the neck. It has a long, thin and sharp pointed bill with which it impales fish under water. It is a much better diver than the Cormorants. 2. The well-known naturalist "E HA" speaking of Cormorants and the Darter says, "The Cormorant is a thoroughly shabby bird, with large, ragged tail, and coloured all over a sordid black,...the Snake-bird so called from its serpentine head and neck...sitting on a low tree, with its wings held out to dry, looks like a big Cormorant with the neck of a Heron fitted on its shoulders; but at close quarters it is a very handsome the shoulders especially bird. Its plumage is peculiar, the feathers being long and narrow, like the hackles of a Cock. Each feather is black or dark brown, with silvery border, or spotted with a silvery white, and the effect is very beautiful." Because of its plumage it is also known as the silver-laced Snake Bird. 3. The Hindi names for the Cormorants are बड़ा or छोटा-जलकौक्षा (Skt. e) corresponding to the Large and the Little Cormorant, but there. is no separate name for the Shag which being larger than the Little Cormorant would pass as बड़ा पनकौआ In Sanskrit they are प्लब or जलकाक though the name rifer would seem to imply the Little Cormorant. 1. This is the reason why both , the cormorant, and w, the Darter, have been des- cribed as a kind of water-crow , in equations Nos. 1 and 3 reproduced in Para. 3. below. 2. The Common Birds of Bombay, 2nd Ed., pp. 186-187.
