Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume IX.djvu/152

 IBIS IBRAHIM PASHA far north as New Jersey. They breed in large companies on the Florida keys on trees; the nest ia about 15 in. in diameter, formed of twigs and roots, flat on the inside ; the eggs are three, and are laid only once a year, 2J by 1& in., dull white, with pale yellow blotches and reddish brown spots ; incubation generally takes place between the 10th of April and the 10th of May ; the eggs afford excellent eating, though the yolk is of a reddish orange color when boiled, and the white a liver-colored jelly. When breeding, they fly in flocks of several hundreds to the mud flats, sometimes to great distances, where they feed on crabs, crawfish, and other crustaceans, mollusks, and aquatic animals, until the tide begins to come in, whether by day or night. The flight is rapid and well sustained, effected by alternate flappings and sailings; they often rise very high, performing beautiful evolutions. They are fond of resorting to ponds or lakes in the woods, and often breed in such localities more than 300 m. from the sea; though not taking naturally to the water, they can swim tolerably well when forced to it ; the walk is light and graceful. The flesh has a very fishy taste, and is rarely eaten except by the Indians. The glossy ibis (/. Ordi, Bonap.) is a smaller species, being about 21 in. long, with a bill of 4J in. ; the general color is chest- nut brown, with the back and top of head me- tallic green glossed with purple ; the feathers continue almost to the bill, which is of a dusky black color. It exists in great numbers in Mex- ico, and it has been procured as far north as Massachusetts. The green ibis (7. falcinelhts, Linn.) is a native of southern Europe and northern Africa; it much resembles the glossy ibis, being purplish brown, with a deep green mantle ; in the young birds the head and neck are pointed with whitish. These ibises all live in warm climates, performing their annual mi- grations, and are generally seen on lands re- cently inundated, and on river banks, seeking for worms, snails, crustaceans, insects, and the roots of bulbous plants, or on the sea coast as above mentioned. The genus geronticus has a stronger bill, a longer and broader tail (the third and fourth quills the longest), the tarsi and toes stouter, and the head and neck more denuded of feathers than in the preceding ge- nus; in some of the species the scapulars are long, and consist of decomposed plumes. There are about 20 species, found in the warmer parts of Africa, Asia, and South America, of which only one will be mentioned here, the sacred ibis of the ancient Egyptians (O. Mihwpicm, Lath.). It is about as large as a domestic fowl ; the plumage is white, with the ends of the quills, the elongated barbs of some of the wing coverts extending over the wings and tail, bill, feet, and naked part of the head and neck, black ; it is found throughout northern Africa. This bird was reared in the temples of ancient Egypt with the greatest care, and was em- balmed ; it was forbidden to kill one on pain of death. This superstitious people reverenced the ibis, not because they supposed that it de- stroyed noxious reptiles, or that there was any relation between the changes of its plumage and the phases of the moon, but because they associated its annual appearance with the pe- riod of the inundation of the Nile, the source Sacred Ibis (Gcronticus J2tMopicu3). of the fertility and healthfulness of the land ; the crafty priests led the people to believe that the increase of the river, which brought the birds there in search of food, was the conse- quence instead of the cause of their visit ; the educated class regarded the ibis as the harbin- ger of the fruitful epoch of their year, as we look upon the coming of the bluebird and the swallow as the signs of spring. A black ibis was also honored and embalmed. The flight of these birds is powerful and high, with the neck and feet extended horizontally, and ac- companied by occasional harsh cries. They probe the mud with their bills in search of in- sects, worms, mollusks, &c., advancing by slow steps ; they arrive in Egypt when the Nile be- gins to increase, and migrate about the end of June, not nesting in that country; they are caught in great nvimbers by the modern Egyp- tians in nets, and their bodies are frequently exposed for sale in the markets. Both species usually go in small flocks. All the species have the same habits, frequenting both over- flowed lands and dry open plains; they some- times devour frogs and small aquatic lizards, but do not destroy serpents as Herodotus and many writers since have maintained; when satiated with food they perch on high trees, and are very watchful ; the nest is either on a decayed tree or on the ground, and the eggs are two or three in number. For full details on the sacred ibis, see Savigny's Histoire natu- relle de Vibit (8vo, Paris, 1805). IBN BATt'TA. See BATUTA. IBRAHIM PASHA, an Egyptian viceroy, the son, or according to some the adopted son, of