iOS 8 Swift Programming Cookbook

Colophon

The red-billed tropicbird (Phaethon aethereus) is also called the boatswain bird. Tropicbirds look like terns but are not genetically related to them; in fact, tropicbirds have no close living relative species, making them a bit of an evolutionary mystery. The red-billed tropicbird was featured on the Bermudan $50 bill starting in 2009, but it was subsequently replaced by the native white-tailed tropicbird, which has a higher population in Bermuda.

Red-billed tropicbirds are large, with long tails, white bodies, and the eponymous red bill that curves downward. With the tail feathers included, they are almost 40 inches long; a wingspan of one meter balances out their bodies and makes them graceful flyers. They have black markings on their flight feathers and in their eyes. Male and female birds look similar, but males can have longer tails. Red-billed tropicbirds’ feet are located very far back on their bodies, so their movements on land are almost comically awkward and occur mostly on their bellies. They are not nimble swimmers either, but they move comfortably through the air over the ocean, where they hover in hopes of catching flying fish. Flying fish appear to be a favorite prey, but tropicbirds will eat other fish and even cephalopods as well.

Red-billed tropicbirds live in places like the Galapagos, the Cape Verde islands, the West Indies, and even the Persian Gulf. Despite their preference for warm, tropical waters, a particular single red-billed tropicbird keeps ...