The nature of their food varies with the form and strength of the bill and the locality they inhabit; it consists generally of fish, small batrachia, mollusks, worms, and insects; sometimes of small mammalia and reptiles, and more rarely of grasses and seeds. This kind of sustenance must be wonderfully fitted to develop the savoury qualities of their flesh, for it is among this class that we find our most delicious specimens of "game." The mere mention of the Woodcock, Snipe, Plover, Pewit, and Bustard is sufficient to establish their claim upon the epicure. Some kinds, which are utterly devoid of any culinary properties, are furnished with a plumage to which ladies owe some of their most brilliant adornments. The Ostrich and Marabout feathers, and those of the Heron, are keenly appreciated by many fair ones, whose beauty the feathers are supposed to greatly enhance. In short, this order of birds possesses two important qualities--worthily ministering to the taste of the most fastidious palate, and handsomely decorating with its gorgeous plumage our fashionable and wealthy belles. Gormandising and coquetry alike find satisfaction, and derive from these birds some of their most agreeable sensations. If they had the additional gift of melody they might lay claim to perfection; however, such is not the case, as their notes are shrill and discordant. The Waders are monogamous or polygamous according to their species; but their history furnishes us with some touching instances of conjugal attachment. They make their nests either on trees, buildings, or the surface of the earth; sometimes even in the middle of the water, among the reeds, sedges, and other aquatic plants. In general, they evince but little care in the construction of their progenies' birth-place. In most cases they are contented to collect together a variety of substances without much discrimination; sometimes they merely scratch a hole in the ground, in which they deposit their eggs without any further care. The Waders are usually divided into six great families, which are again divisible into many genera. Following Cuvier's classification, with some slight modification, we propose arranging the group as follows:--I. _Palmidactyles_, II. _Macrodactyles_, III. _Longirostræ_, IV. _Cultrirostræ_, V. _Pressirostræ_, and VI. _Brevipennæ_. THE PALMIDACTYLES Have the anterior toes united by a wide membrane; the hind toe is absent, or is very small; the legs are very long and smooth; from their webbed feet they may appear to belong to the _Palmipedes_, but the arrangement of their toes is altogether different, and constitutes them most strikingly characteristic of the order of Waders. [Illustration: Fig. 114.--The American Flamingo (_P. ruber_, Wilson).]