Lewis: August 8, 1804

August 8th 1804 we had seen but a few aquatic fouls of any kind on the
river since we commenced our journey up the Missouri, a few geese
accompanied by their young, the wood duck which is common to every part of
this country & crains of several kinds which will be discribed in
their respective placesthis day after we had passed the river Souix
as called by Mr. MacKay (or as is more properly called the stone river,) I
saw a great number of feathers floating down the river those feathers had
a very extraordinary appearance as they appeared in such quantities as to
cover pretty generally sixty or seventy yards of the breadth of the river.
for three miles after I saw those feathers continuing to run in that
manner, we did not percieve from whence they came, at length we were
surprised by the appearance of a flock of Pillican at rest on a large sand
bar attatched to a small Island the number of which would if estimated
appear almost in credible; they apeared to cover several acres of ground,
and were no doubt engaged in procuring their ordinary food; which is fish,
on our approach they flew and left behind them several small fish of about
eight inches in length, none of which I had seen beforethe Pellican
rested again on a sand bar above the Island which we called after them
from the number we saw on it. we now approached them within about three
hundred yards before they flew; I then fired at random among the flock
with my rifle and brought one down; the discription of this bird is as
follows.

Habits

They are a bird of clime remain on the coast of Floriday and the borders
of the Gulph of mexico & even the lower portion of the Mississippi
during the winter and in the Spring (see for date my thermometrical
observations at the river Dubois.-) visit this country and that farther
north for the purpose of raising their youngthis duty seems now to
have been accomplished from the appearance of a young Pilacon which was
killed by one of our men this morning, and they are now in large flocks on
their return to their winter quarters. they lay usually two eggs only and
chuise for a nest a couple of logs of drift wood near the water’s edge and
with out any other preperation but the thraught formed by the proximity of
those two logs which form a trough they set and hatch their young which
after nurture with fish their common food

Measure

F I

From beak to toe 5 8
Tip to tip of wing 9 4
Beak Length 1 3
Do. Width from 2 to 1 1/2
Neck Length 1 11
1st joint of wing 1 1
2ed Do. 1 4 1/2
3rd Do. – 7
4th do. – 2 3/4
Length of leg including foot 10
Do. of thy 11

Discription of Colour &c

The beak is a whiteish yellow the under part connected to a bladder like
pouch, this pounch is connected to both sides of the lower beak and
extends down on the under side of the neck and terminates in the stomachthis
pouch is uncovered with feathers, and is formed two skins the one on the
inner and the other on the center side a small quantity of flesh and
strings of which the anamal has at pleasure the power of moving or drawing
in such manner as to contract it at pleasure. in the present subject I
measured this pouch and found it’s contents 5 gallons of water

The feet are webbed large and of a yellow colour, it has four toes the
hinder toe is longer than in most aquatic fouls, the nails are black, not
sharp and 1/2 an inch in length

The plumage generally is white, the feathers are thin compared with the
swan goose or most aquatick fouls and has but little or no down on the
body. the upper part of the head is covered with black feathers short, as
far as the back part of the headthe yellow skin unfeathered extends
back from the upper beak and opening of the mouth and comes to a point
just behind the eye

The large feathers of the wings are of a deep black colourthe 1st
& 2nd joint of from the body above the same is covered with a second
layer of white feathers which extend quite half the length of those large
feathers of the wingthe thye is covered with feathers within a
quarter of an inch of the knee.

Inch
1st joint of wing has feathers No. 21 Length 9 Black
2ed Do. No. 17 Length 13 Inch
3rd Do. No. 5 Length 18 Inch
4th Do. No. 3 Length 19 Inch

it has a curious frothy substance which seems to devide its feathers from
the flesh of the body and seems to be composes of globles of air and
perfectly imbraces the part of the feather which extends through the
skin.the wind pipe terminates in the center of the lower part of the upper
and unfeathered part of the pouch and is secured by an elastic valve
commanded at pleasure.

The green insect known in the U States by the name of the sawyer or
chittediddle, was first heard to cry on the 27th of July, we were then in
latitude 41° some minutes.

The prarie hen or grouse, was seen in the praries between the Missouri and
the river platte