These birds seek some remote and solitary islet for the purpose of breeding. They build their nests in holes in lofty trees, or in the clefts of rocks, but always in some position difficult of access. They lay two or three eggs. The young ones, when just hatched, owing to their dazzling-coloured down, bear a considerable resemblance to powder-puffs. There are three species of the Phaeton--the Red-tailed Phaeton (_Phaeton Phoenicurus_), with white plumage, shaded with a light rose-coloured tint, having the two long feathers of the tail of a red hue. It inhabits the seas of India and Africa, Madagascar, the Isle of France, and the Pacific Ocean. The White-tailed Phaeton (_Phaeton æthereus_), with white plumage, with the two long feathers in the tail white. It is a native of the Atlantic Ocean. The Yellow-beaked Phaeton (_Phaeton flavirostris_) is distinguished by the colour of its beak. It is a native of the islands of Bourbon and Mauritius. THE DARTER (_Anhinga_). SYNONYMS.--_Plotus_: Linn., Klein, Scopoli. _Anhinga_: Brisson, Temminck. _Darter_ of English and American writers. [Illustration: Fig. 102.--Darter (_Anhinga_, Levaillant).] The Darter (Fig. 102) has a straight and pointed bill, with indentations at the point, turned in a backward direction. Its head is slender and cylindrical, and forms the termination of a slim and excessively long neck, which gives it much the resemblance of a serpent grafted on a bird. In all its movements this neck is the counterpart of the reptile, and imitates its undulations; therefore, in the United States it has received the name of the "Serpent-Bird." They are untiring swimmers and excellent divers. When any danger threatens them, they dive completely under water, and do not reappear until they have found some tufts of reeds in which to hide, even should the distance be as much as one thousand feet from the spot where it disappeared. These birds are of a wild and suspicious nature, confining themselves to solitary places. They perch upon trees which grow by the sides of a pool or river, in order to dart upon any unfortunate fish which comes within their reach, which they seize with extraordinary address, swallowing it whole if not too large. If they cannot manage this, they carry it to a rock, where they dismember it with their beak and claws. The Anhinga builds its nest on the topmost branches of trees, constructing it of dried twigs and reeds, and lining it inside with a thick layer of down. Only two species of the Anhinga are known: the _Anhinga (Plotus) Levaillantii_, a native of Africa, the plumage of which is black from the breast to the tail; and the Black-bellied Darter (_Plotus melanogaster_), an American species.