Barbara Books age 11, of Lakewood, Oh'io, or Her question:
What is a money bird?
This majestic bird is lord of the wide oceans and he may spend months without sighting land, When hungry, he dips into the water for fish, little squid and other sea dwellers: When tired, he simply sits down and floats like a duck on the rolling waves.
Almost always, he travels alone though he is friendly and may follow ship for days. He was named the gooney birds alias frigate bird by the mariners of old sailing ships. They loved to watch him following their ships, soaring and wheeling without seeming to move his wings for hour after hour.
The old time sailors felt there was something eerie about this wide winged bird. It was lucky, they said, to have him around. But, if a sailor killed or harmed the gooney bird then woe betide that ship. Yes, the gooney bird is the tragic hero of the famous story poem, the Rime of the Ancient Mariner. He is the lonely, wandering albatross.
The lordly bird probably follows a ship for scraps of food. When sailors toss scraps to him he swoops down, skims the water and maybe snatches up the food with his strong bill. However, he may land and sit on the water and take his time to dine.
Launching himself into the air again is quite a problem, The wandering albatross, bigger than any of his 16 cousins, weighs about 25 pounds. This is almost the weight limit for a flying bird. He needs quite a long runway to become airborne. When he lands on a ship, as he often does s he may be in trouble. Unless he lands on an aircraft carrier, the deck will be too short for the take off. He starts to run, flapping his great wings for a take but he comes to the end of the desk before he is air borne and topples into the sea.
Howevaxv the big bird can take off from the water. He has very very large feet and the three front toes are webbed. He runs along, beating the water at the surface, flapping his huge wings, At last he soars into the air. His great wings may be twelve feet from tip to tip. The word albatross is coined from an older word meaning white.
The wandering albatross is white as driven snow, accented with bet black icing tips. His wife is white, blotched with brown marks on her neck and back. Other members of the albatross family are smaller and less white . and some are too timid to come near ships.
Mr, and Mrs. Gooney Bird are seldom seen together. They rendezvous at nest building time on some bleak island in the icy Antarctic waters. There they build a nest of mud and grasses on the ground. The mother bird lays but one egg and both parents tend it with loving care. Soon after Junior learns to fly, the family separates. Each goes his or her separate way to lead a life of solitude over the tropical and semi-tropical oceans around the world,