BIRDS of PREY.

ALL the birds almoſt might merit this ap⯑pellation, ſince by far the greater number ſearch for inſects, worms, and other ſmall crea⯑tures; but I ſhall confine it to thoſe which ſub⯑ſiſt on fleſh, and wage perpetual war againſt the other winged tribes. On compariſon, I find that they are much leſs numerous than the ravenous quadrupeds. The family of the lions, the tigers, the panthers, the ounces, the leopards, the hunt⯑ing cats, the jaguars, the couguars, the Mexican cats, the margays, and the wild or domeſtic cats: that of the dogs, the jackals, the wolves, the foxes, and the arctic foxes: the more numerous tribes of the hyaenas, the civets, the oriental civets, the dwarf civets, the Madagaſcar pole-cats: the ſtill more numerous tribes of the pole-cats, the mar⯑tens, the fitchews, the ſkunks, the ferrets, Guinea weaſels, the ermines, the common weaſels, the ſables, the ichneumons, the Braſilian weaſels, the gluttons, the pekans, the minks, the ſouſliks; the opoſſums, the mar-mice, the Mexican opoſ⯑ſums, the woolly jerboas, the Surinam opoſſums: that of the rufous, red, and common bats: To theſe we may add the whole family of the rats, [38] which being too weak to attack other animals, prey on each other:—all theſe rapacious qua⯑dupeds exceed greatly in number the eagles, the vultures, the ſparrow hawks, the falcons, the jer⯑falcons, the kites, the buzzards, the keſtrels, the merlins, the owls, the ſhrikes, and the crows, which are prone to rapine: and many of theſe, ſuch as the kites, the buzzards, and the crows, prefer carrion to freſh prey. In ſhort, there is only a fifteenth part of the birds carnivorous, while of the quadrupeds more than a third come under that deſignation.

The birds of prey being much fewer and weaker than the rapacious quadrupeds, commit leſs depredation on land; but, as if tyranny never relinquiſhed its claims, whole tribes in⯑habit the ocean and ſubſiſt by their ravages. Of the quadrupeds, ſcarce any, except the beavers, the otters, the ſeals, and the ſea-horſes, live on fiſh; yet multitudes of birds derive their ſupport entirely from that ſource. We have therefore to divide the birds of prey into two claſſes, cor⯑reſponding to the elements of air and water, which are the ſcenes of their havocks. Thoſe which war againſt the finny race are provided with a ſtraight pointed bill; their nails are ſlender, their toes webbed, and their legs bent backwards. Thoſe, on the contrary, which riot in carnage at land, and which are properly the ſubject of this article, are furniſhed with talons and with a ſhort curved bill; their toes are parted, and [39] without membranes; their legs are ſtrong, and generally covered by the feathers of the thighs; their nails large and hooked.

We ſhall for the preſent ſet aſide alſo the noc⯑turnal birds of prey, and adopt what appears to be the moſt natural order in treating of thoſe which commit their ravages during the day. We ſhall begin with the eagles, the vultures, the kites, and the buzzards; then the hawks, the jerfalcons, and falcons; and cloſe with the merlins and the ſhrikes. Many of theſe include a great number of ſpecies and of permanent families produced by the influence of climate; and with each we ſhall range the kindred foreign birds. In this way we ſhall delineate not only thoſe of Europe, but alſo all thoſe which inhabit remote countries, whether deſcribed by authors, or procured by our correſpondence.

There is a ſingular property common to all the birds of prey, but of which it would be difficult to aſſign the cauſe^*; that the female is ſtronger, and a third larger than the male; exactly the reverſe to what obtains in the quadrupeds, and even in other birds. In fiſhes and inſects, the female is indeed larger than the male: this is [40] owing to the immenſe number of eggs which ſwell their bodies. But this reaſon will not apply in the caſe of birds.—In thoſe which are the moſt prolific, ſuch as the domeſtic poultry, the ducks, turkies, pheaſants, partridges, and quails, the hen lays eighteen or twenty eggs, and yet is ſmaller than the cock.

All the birds of rapine fly in a lofty courſe, their wings and legs are ſtrong, their ſight ex⯑ceedingly quick, their head thick, their tongue fleſhy, their ſtomach ſingle and membranous, their inteſtines narrower and ſhorter than in other birds; they prefer the ſolitary tracts, the deſert mountains, and they commonly breed in crags, or on the talleſt trees. Many ſpecies in⯑habit both continents, and ſome appear to have no fixed abode. The general characters are, that their bill is hooked, and that they have four⯑toes on each foot, all of which are diſtinctly parted. But the eagle's head is covered with feathers, which diſtinguiſhes it from the vulture, whoſe head is naked, and only ſhaded with ſlight down: And both theſe are diſcriminated from the hawks, the buzzards, the kites, and the falcons, by an obvious property; for their bill continues ſtraight to a certain diſtance before it bends, but in the latter it aſſumes its curve at the origin.

The birds of prey are not ſo prolific as other birds. It is ſtrange that Linnaeus ſhould aſſert that they lay about four eggs: for there are ſome, ſuch as [41] the common and ſea-eagles, which have only two; and others, as the keſtrel and merlin, that have ſeven. In birds, as in quadrupeds, the general law obtains, that the multiplication is inverſely as the bulk. There are ſome apparent excep⯑tions to this rule, pigeons for inſtance; but the ſmallneſs of the hatch will be found to be com⯑penſated by its frequent repetition.

The birds of prey are more obdurate and fe⯑rocious than other birds. They are not only intractable, but have the unnatural propenſity to drive their tender brood from the neſt. Accuſ⯑tomed continually to ſcenes of carnage, and torn by angry paſſions, they contract a ſtern cruel diſpoſition; all the ſofter feelings are era⯑dicated, and maternal attachment itſelf is blunted. She regards not the imploring calls of her help⯑leſs young, but when ſtraitened for food, ſhe rudely thruſts them upon the world, or murders them in a tranſport of fury.

This obdurate ſelfiſh temper produces in the birds of prey, as well as the carnivorous qua⯑drupeds, another effect. They never aſſociate together, but, like robbers, lead a roving ſolitary life. Luſt indeed draws together the male and female, and, as they can mutually aſſiſt in the purſuit of prey, they ſeldom ſeparate even after the breeding ſeaſon. But the family never coaleſces; and the larger kinds, ſuch as the eagle, will not ſuffer their young to be rivals, but ex⯑pel them from their domain: Whereas, all birds [42] and quadrupeds which ſubſiſt on the fruits of the earth, live in harmony with their offspring, or aſſemble joyouſly in numerous troops.

Before we proceed to the detail of facts, we cannot avoid making ſome remarks on the com⯑mon methods of claſſification. The nomencla⯑tor ſtrives to deſcribe the colours of the plumage with minute preciſion; he enumerates their diſ⯑poſition, all the ſhades, the ſpots, the bars, the ſtripes, the lines; and if a bird does not come under the deſcription which he has thus formed he regards it as a different ſpecies. But all ani⯑mals change their early garb and complexion; and the tints of the rapacious birds are won⯑derfully altered by the firſt moulting. A ſecond conſiderable one ſucceeds, and this is often fol⯑lowed by a third; ſo that a perſon who ſhould judge entirely from the colours, would imagine that a bird of ſix months old, another of the ſame kind of eighteen months, and another of two years and a half, belonged to three different ſpecies. But the plumage is alſo affected by various other cauſes; by difference of ſex, of age, and of climate; and therefore the colours can never afford any permanent diſtinction.

The EAGLES.

MANY birds come under this deſignation. Our nomenclators reckon eleven ſpecies natives of Europe, beſides four other, two of which are from Braſil, one from Africa, and another from the Eaſt Indies. Theſe eleven ſpecies are: firſt, the Common Eagle; ſecond, the White-headed Eagle; third, the White Eagle; fourth, the Spotted Eagle; fifth, the White-tailed Eagle; ſixth, the Little White-tailed Eagle; ſe⯑venth, the Golden Eagle; eighth, the Black Eagle; ninth, the Great Sea-eagle; tenth, the Sea-eagle; and, eleventh, the White John. Nothing is eaſier than to ſwell the catalogue of names, and by a profuſion of diviſions and diſtinctions to dazzle the ignorant. We need only to wade through books, ranſack cabinets, and adopt as ſpecific characters all the differ⯑ences in ſize or colour that may occur. But the true object of the naturaliſt is to weigh and reflect; to endeavour to ſeize the general views, and to concentrate and arrange; and thus, by introducing order and preciſion, to ſmooth the progreſs of the ſtudent.

[44] Omitting therefore the four foreign ſpecies of eagles, which we ſhall conſider in the ſequel, and excluding from the liſt the White John, which is entirely a different bird, we may re⯑duce the eleven ſpecies to ſix, of which there are three only that properly deſerve the name of Eagles. Theſe three are: firſt, the Golden Eagle; ſecond, the Common Eagle; third, the Rough-footed Eagle. The remaining three are: firſt, the Pygargue, or Bald Eagle; ſecond, the Oſprey; third, the Sea-eagle.

The Golden and Rough-footed Eagles form each an independent and unconnected ſpecies; but the Common and Bald Eagles are ſubject to variety. The ſpecies of the Common Eagle in⯑cludes the brown and the black. The Rough⯑footed Eagle contains three varieties, viz. the Great White-tailed Eagle, the Little White tailed Eagle, and the White-headed Eagle. I ſhall not add the White Eagle, for I am confident that it owes its colour to the influence of exceſſive cold.

I am induced to adopt this arrangement, both becauſe it was known even in the time of the ancients, that the different kinds of Eagles inter⯑mix, and becauſe it nearly coincides with the diviſion marked by Ariſtotle, who appears to have been better acquainted than any of our nomenclators with the real diſcriminating cha⯑racters. He ſays, that there are ſix ſpecies of Eagles; but among theſe he includes a bird, which he himſelf confeſſes belongs rather to [45] the vultures^*, and which we muſt therefore ſet aſide. Of the five remaining ones, the three firſt are the ſame with thoſe on which I have fixed; and the fourth and fifth correſpond to the Bald Eagle and the Oſprey. I have ventur⯑ed, notwithſtanding the authority of that great philoſopher, to ſeparate theſe laſt from the Ea⯑gles properly ſo called; in other reſpects, our ideas exactly correſpond.—I ſhall conſider theſe ſubjects fully in the following articles.

GOLDEN EAGLE.
• Le Grand Aigle, Buff. , • Falco Chryſaëtos, Linn. , • In Spaniſh, Aquila coronada. , • In Poliſh, Orzelprzedni. , • In Perſian, An ſi muger. , • In Syriac, Napan. , • In Chaldaic, Niſra. , and • In Arabic and Hebrew, Neſer. 

This ſpecies inhabits Greece, the mountains of Bugey in France, thoſe of Sileſia in Germany, the foreſts of Dantzic, the ſummits of the Car⯑pathian mountains, the Pyrenees, and the moun⯑tains of Ireland. It is found alſo in Aſia Minor, and in Perſia; for the Perſians had, before the Romans, aſſumed the eagle as the ſtandard of war; and it was this great eagle, this golden eagle, aquila fulva, which was conſecrated to Jupiter. The teſtimony of travellers aſcertains its exiſtence in Arabia, in Mauritania, and in many other provinces of Africa and Aſia, as far as Tartary; but it has not been diſcovered in Siberia, or in any other part of the north of Aſia. The ſame remark may be extended to Europe. For this noble bird, which is every where rare, is more frequent in the warm re⯑gions than in the temperate countries, and it is [48] ſeldom obſerved to penetrate farther north⯑wards than the latitude of fifty-five degrees. Nor is it found in North America, though the common eagle is an inhabitant of that part of the globe. The Golden Eagle ſeems to have continued its ancient reſidence; like the other animals, which, being unable to ſupport an in⯑tenſe cold, could not migrate into the new world.

There are ſeveral points, both phyſical and moral, in which the eagle reſembles the lion. Both are alike diſtinguiſhed by their ſtrength; and hence the eagle extends his dominion over the birds, as the lion over the quadrupeds. Magnanimity is equally conſpicuous in both; they deſpiſe the ſmall animals, and diſregard their inſults. It is only after a ſeries of provocations, after being teazed with the noiſy and harſh notes of the raven or magpie, that the eagle is deter⯑mined to puniſh their temerity or their inſolence with death. Beſides, both diſdain the poſſeſſion of that property which is not the fruit of their own induſtry; and they reject with contempt the prey which is not procured by their own exertions. Both are remarkable for their tem⯑perance. The eagle ſeldom devours the whole of his game, but, like the lion, leaves the frag⯑ments and offals to the other animals. Though famiſhed for want of prey, he diſdains to feed upon carrion. Like the lion alſo, he is ſolitary, the inhabitant of a deſert, over which he reigns [49] ſupreme, and excludes all the other birds from his ſilent domain. It is more uncommon per⯑haps to ſee two pairs of eagles in the ſame tract of the mountain, than two families of lions in the ſame part of the foreſt. They ſeparate from each other at ſuch wide intervals, as to afford ample range for ſubſiſtence, and eſteem the value and extent of their kingdom to conſiſt in the abundance of the prey with which it is re⯑pleniſhed. The eyes of the eagle have the glare of thoſe of the lion, and are nearly of the ſame colour; the claws of the ſame ſhape, the organs of ſound are equally powerful, and the cry is equally terrible. Deſtined both of them for war and plunder, they are equally fierce, equally bold, and intractable. It is impoſſible to tame them, unleſs they be caught when in their in⯑fancy. It requires much patience and art to train a young eagle for the chace; and, after he has attained to age and ſtrength, his caprices and momentary impulſes of paſſion are ſufficient to create ſuſpicions and fears in his maſter. Authors inform us, that the eagle was anciently uſed in the eaſt for falconry, but this practice is now laid aſide. He is too heavy to be carried on the hand without great fatigue, nor is he ever brought to be ſo tame or ſo gentle, as to remove all ſuſpicions of danger. His bill and claws are crooked and formidable: his figure correſponds to his inſtinct. His body is robuſt; his legs and wings ſtrong; his fleſh hard; his [50] bones firm; his feathers ſtiff; his attitude bold and erect; his movements quick; his flight rapid. He riſes higher in the air than any of the winged race, and hence he was termed by the ancients the Celeſtial Bird, and regarded. in their auguries, as the meſſenger of Jupiter. He can diſtinguiſh objects at an immenſe diſtance, but his ſmell is inferior to that of the vulture. By means of his exquiſite ſight, he purſues his prey, and, when he has ſeized it, he checks his flight, and places it upon the ground, to examine its weight, before he carries it off. Though his wings be vigorous, yet his legs being ſtiff, it is with difficulty that he can riſe, eſpecially if he is loaded. He bears away geeſe and cranes with eaſe; he alſo carries off hares, young lambs and kids. When he attacks fawns or calves, he inſtantly gluts himſelf with their blood and fleſh, and afterwards tranſports the mangled carcaſes to his eyry or airy, (ſo his neſt is called,) which is quite flat, and not hollow like that of other birds. He commonly places it between two rocks, in a dry inacceſſible place. The ſame neſt, it is ſaid, ſerves the eagle for the whole courſe of his life. It is indeed a work labori⯑ous enough not to be repeated, and ſolid enough to laſt for a conſiderable time. It is conſtructed nearly like a floor, with ſmall ſticks, five or ſix inches long, ſupported at the extremities, and croſſed with pliant branches, covered with ſeveral layers of ruſhes and heath: the neſt is ſeveral [51] feet broad, and ſo firm, as not only to receive the eagle, the female, and the young, but to bear the weight of a large quantity of proviſions. It is not covered above, but is ſheltered by the projection of the upper part of the rock. In the middle of this ſtructure, the female depoſites her eggs, which ſeldom exceed two or three, and covers them, it is ſaid, for thirty days; but ſome of theſe are commonly addle, and it is ſeldom that three young eagles are found in a ſingle neſt. It is even pretended, that after they have acquired ſome ſtrength, the mother deſtroys the weakeſt or the moſt voracious of her infant brood. Exceſſive ſcarcity of proviſions alone can occaſion this unnatural treatment. The parents, not poſſeſſing a ſufficiency for their own ſupport, endeavour to reduce the members of their family; and when the young are able to fly, and in ſome degree to provide for themſelves, they expel them from their natal abode, and never ſuffer them to return.

The plumage is not of ſo deep a caſt in the young eagles as in thoſe that are full grown. At firſt it is white, then a faint yellow, and afterwards it becomes a bright copper colour. Age, as well as gluttony, diſeaſe, and captivity, contributes to render them white. It is ſaid they live above a century, and that their death is not occaſioned ſo much by extreme age, as by the inability to take food, the bill growing ſo much [52] curved as to become uſeleſs. However, it has been obſerved, that eagles kept in confinement occaſionally ſharpen their bill, and that its in⯑creaſe is, for ſeveral years, imperceptible. It has alſo been remarked, that they feed upon every kind of fleſh, and even upon that of other eagles. When they cannot procure fleſh, they greedily devour bread, ſerpents, lizards, &c. If they be not ſupplied with food, they bite cruelly the cats, dogs, and men that come within their reach. At intervals, they pour forth in an equable ſtrain their ſhrill, loud, and lamentable notes.—The eagle drinks ſeldom, and perhaps not at all when in perfect liberty, becauſe the blood of his victims are ſufficient to quench his thirſt. His excrements are always ſoft, and more watery than thoſe of the other birds, even thoſe which drink frequently.

To this great ſpecies we muſt refer the ac⯑count in the paſſage of Leo Africanus which we have already quoted, and what travellers in Africa and Aſia relate, who agree in aſſerting that this bird not only carries off kids and young deer, but when taught, that it will even attack foxes and wolves^*.^A [53]

The RING-TAIL EAGLE.
• L'Aigle Commun, Buff. , • Falco Fulvus, Linn. , • Aquila, Briſſ. and Klein. , • Chryſaëtos, caudâ annulo albo cincta, Will. and Ray. , • The Black Eagle, Penn. , • In Spaniſh, Aquila Conocida. , and • In German, Adler, Arn, Aar. 

THIS ſpecies of eagle is not ſo pure or ge⯑nerous as the Golden Eagle. It is com⯑poſed of two varieties; the brown-eagle, and the black eagle. Ariſtotle has not diſtinguiſhed them by name; and it appears that he claſſed them under the denomination of [...]; that is, black or blackiſh eagle. He properly ſeparates this ſpecies from the preceding, becauſe it differs: 1. in ſize; the Ring-tail Eagle, whe⯑ther black or brown, being ſmaller than the Golden Eagle: 2. by the colours, which are con⯑ſtant in the Golden Eagle, but vary in the Ring⯑tail Eagle: 3. by its cry, the Golden Eagle utter⯑ing often a doleful plaint, while the Ring-tail Eagle, black or brown, ſeldom ſcreams: 4. by its natural diſpoſitions; the Ring-tail Eagle feed⯑ing [55] all its young in the neſt, training them, and conducting them to prey after they are partly grown; while the Golden Eagle drives them out of its airy, and abandons them as ſoon as they are able to fly.

It appears eaſy to prove that the Brown and Black Eagle, which I have claſſed together, do not really conſtitute two diſtinct ſpecies. We need only compare them together, even from the characters given by nomenclators with the view of diſtinguiſhing them. They are both nearly of the ſame ſize; they are of the ſame brown colour, only ſometimes of a deeper ſhade; in both, the upper part of the head and neck is tinged with ferruginous, and the baſe of the large feathers marked with white; the legs and feet are alike clothed; in both, the iris is of a hazel colour, the cere of a bright yellow, the bill that of bluiſh horn, the toes yellow, and the talons black: in ſhort, the whole difference conſiſts in the ſhades and diſtribution of the colour of the feathers; which is by no means ſufficient to con⯑ſtitute two different ſpecies, eſpecially when the number of the points of reſemblance ſo evidently exceeds that of the difference. I have therefore without ſcruple reduced theſe two ſpecies to one. Ariſtotle has done the ſame thing without men⯑tioning it; but it appears that his tranſlator, Theodore Gaza, perceived it; for he does not render [...] by Aquila nigra, but by Aquila nigricans, pulla fulvia, which includes the [56] two varieties of this ſpecies, both of which are blackiſh, but the one of which is more tinged with yellow than the other. Ariſtotle, whoſe accuracy I often admire, gives names and epi⯑thets to the animals which he mentions. The epithet of this bird is [...], or the deſtroyer of hares. In fact, though the other eagles alſo prey upon hares, this ſpecies is a more fatal enemy to thoſe timid animals, which are the conſtant object of their ſearch, and the prey which they prefer. The Latins, after Pliny, termed this eagle Valeria, quaſi valens viribus, becauſe of its ſtrength, which appears greater than that of the other eagles in proportion to the ſize.

The Ring-tail Eagle is more numerous and ſpread than the Golden Eagle. The latter is found only in the warm and temperate countries of the ancient continent; the former prefers the cold tracts, and inhabitants of both continents. It occurs in France, Savoy, Switzerland, Ger⯑many, Poland, Scotland, and even in North America, at Hudſon's Bay^*.^A [57]

The ROUGH-FOOTED EAGLE.
• Le Petit Aigle. Buff. , • Falco Naevius. Linn. , and • In German, Stein Adler, Gauſe aar. 

THE third ſpecies is the Rough-footed Eagle, which Ariſtotle deſcribes as a plaintive bird, with a ſpotted plumage, and ſmaller and weaker than the other eagles. It meaſures, from the point of the bill to the extremity of the feet, only two feet and a half; and its wings are proportionally ſmaller, fearcely extending four feet. It has been termed Aquila planga ^B, Aquila clanga, the Plaintive Eagle, the Screaming Eagle. Theſe names are very applicable; for it continually utters moans, or lamentable cries. It was ſurnamed Anataria, becauſe it commonly preys upon ducks; Morphna, becauſe its plum⯑age, which is of a dirty-brown, is marked upon the thighs and wings with ſeveral white ſpots, and its neck is encircled with a large whitiſh [59] ring. It is more tractable^* than any of the eagles, and not ſo bold or intrepid. It is term⯑ed by the Arabians Zemiech ^†, to diſtinguiſh it from the Golden Eagle, which is called Zumach. The crane is its largeſt prey, and it generally confines its ravages^‡ to the ducks, the ſmall birds and rats. This ſpecies, though not plen⯑tiful in any particular ſpot, is ſcattered over the extent of the ancient continent^§; but it does not appear that it is found in America: for I preſume that the bird called the Oronooko Eagle, which bears ſome reſemblance to this in the variety of its plumage, is yet of a different ſpecies.—If this Rough-footed Eagle, which is much more docile, and more eaſily tamed than the other two, and which is alſo lighter on the hand, and leſs dangerous to its maſter, were equally intrepid, it would have been employed for the purpoſes of falconry. But it is as cow⯑ardly as it is plaintive and noiſy. A well-trained ſparrow-hawk can attack it, and come off vic⯑torious. [60] Beſides, our authors on the ſubject of falconry inform us, that, in France at leaſt, the two firſt ſpecies of eagles only have been trained for ſport^*. To ſucceed in teaching them, they muſt be taken when young, for an adult eagle is not only ſtubborn, but quite intractable. They muſt be fed upon the fleſh of the game which they are intended to purſue. Their education requires more watchful attention than that of the other birds employed in falconry.—We ſhall give a ſketch of that art when we treat of the falcon. I ſhall only mention here ſome peculi⯑arities which have been obſerved with regard to eagles, whether in the ſtate of liberty, or in that of domeſtication.

The female, which in the eagle as in all other birds of prey is larger than the male, and alſo ſeems in the ſtate of nature to be bolder, more intrepid, and more ſubtle, appears to loſe its courage and ſagacity when reduced to cap⯑tivity. The males are preferred for ſport; and it is obſerved that, in the ſpring, when the ſeaſon of love returns, they endeavour to eſcape to their females. And if we employ them dur⯑ing [61] this critical period, we run a riſk of loſing them, unleſs we cool the ardour of their paſſion by adminiſtering violent purges. It has alſo been remarked, that when an eagle, after leaving the hand, ſkims along the ground, and afterwards riſes perpendicularly, he meditates an eſcape. He muſt inſtantly be ſolicited to return, by throw⯑ing him food. But if flies wheeling above his keeper, and does not ſtretch to a diſtance, it is a ſign of his attachment and conſtancy. It has been obſerved likewiſe, that an eagle trained for ſport, loſing its original inſtinct, often attacks and devours the gos-hawk and other ſmall birds of prey; but in the ſtate of nature, it only contends with them, or plunders them, as rivals.

In the ſtate of nature, the eagle never en⯑gages in a ſolitary chace but when the female is confined to her eggs or her young. This is the ſeaſon when the return of the birds affords plenty of prey, and he can with eaſe provide for the ſuſtenance of himſelf, and that of his mate. At other times, they unite their exertions, and they are always ſeen cloſe together, or at a ſhort diſtance from each other. The inhabitants of the mountains, who have an opportunity of obſerving their manoeuvres, pretend, that the one beats the buſhes, while the other, perched on a tree or a rock, watches the eſcape of the prey. Often they ſoar beyond the reach of human ſight, and notwithſtanding the [62] immenſe diſtance, their cry is ſtill heard, and then reſembles the barking of a ſmall dog. Though a voracious bird, the eagle, eſpecially in captivity and deprived of exerciſe, can endure for a long time the want of ſuſte⯑nance. I have been informed by a man of veracity, that a common eagle caught in a fox⯑trap, paſſed five whole weeks without the leaſt food, and that it did not appear ſenſibly weak⯑ened till towards the laſt week, after which they killed it, to put an end to its lingering pain.

Though the eagles in general prefer deſert and mountainous tracts, they are ſeldom found in narrow peninſulas, or in iſlands of ſmall extent. They inhabit the interior country in both continents, becauſe iſlands are commonly not ſo well ſtocked with animals. The antients remarked that eagles were never ſeen in the iſle of Rhodes, and conſidered it as a prodigy, that when the Emperor Tiberius viſited that famous ſpot, an eagle perched upon the houſe where he lodged. Eagles make excurſions into iſlands, but do not fix their reſidence there, or lay their eggs; and when travellers ſpeak of eagles, whoſe neſts they find on the ſea-ſhore or in iſlands, they mean not thoſe which we have mentioned, but the Oſpreys, commonly termed Sea-eagles, which are birds of a different inſtinct, and which feed on fiſh rather than on game.

[63] I ought here to relate the anatomical obſerva⯑tions that have been made on the internal ſtruc⯑ture of eagles; and I cannot draw my informa⯑tion from a better ſource than the Memoirs of thoſe Gentlemen of the Academy of Sciences who diſſected two eagles, a male and a female, of the common ſpecies. After remarking, that the eyes were deep ſunk; that they were of a pink colour, with the luſtre of the topaz; that the cornea was arched with a great convexity; that the ligament was of a bright red, the eye⯑lids large, and ſufficient to cover the whole eye; they obſerved, with reſpect to the interior ſtruc⯑ture, that the tongue was cartilaginous at the tip, and fleſhy in the middle; that the larynx was blunt and not pointed, as in moſt of the birds whoſe bill is ſtraight; that the oeſophagus was very large, and widened below to form the ſtomach; that this ſtomach was not a hard gizzard, but pli⯑ant and membranous like the oeſophagus, and only thicker at the bottom; that theſe two cavities, both the lower part of the oeſophagus and that of the ſtomach, were very broad, and ſuited to the voracity of the bird; that the inteſtines were ſmall, as in all other animals which feed on fleſh; that there was no caecum in the male, but in the female there were two pretty broad ones, more than two inches long; that the liver was large and of a bright red, the left lobe larger than the right; that the gall-bladder was large, and about the ſize of a cheſnut; that the [64] kidnies were ſmall, compared with the other parts, and with thoſe of other birds; that the male-teſticles were only of the ſize of a pea, and of a yellow fleſh colour; and that the ova⯑rium and vagina of the female were like thoſe of other birds.^A

The ERNE.

THE Erne tribe appears to me to conſiſt of three varieties: the Great Erne ^*, the Small Erne ^†, and the White-headed Erne ^‡. The two firſt are diſtinguiſhed only by their ſize, and the laſt ſcarcely differs at all from the firſt; and the ſole diſcrimination is, that it has more white on its head and neck. Ariſtotle^‖ deſcribes the ſpecies alone, and omits to men⯑tion the varieties: he ſpeaks indeed only of the Great Erne, for he gives it the epithet of Hinu⯑laria, which denotes that this bird preys upon fawn, that is, young ſtags, deer, and roebucks; a character that cannot belong to the Small Erne, which is too weak to attack ſuch large ani⯑mals.

[66] The difference between the Ernes and the Eagles conſiſts, Firſt, In the want of plumage on the legs; the Eagles are clothed as far as the pounces; but the Ernes are naked in all the lower part. Secondly, In the colour of the bill; in the Eagles, it is of a bluiſh black; in the Ernes, it is yellow or white. Thirdly, In the whiteneſs of the tail; which circumſtance has given riſe to the name which the Erne has ſometimes received of White-tailed Eagle. In fact, the tail is white both in the upper and un⯑der ſide through its whole length. They differ from the Eagles alſo in their inſtincts and ha⯑bits. They fix their reſidence not in deſerts, or lofty mountains; they haunt the plains or woods that are near the habitations of men. The Erne appears to ſhew, like the Common Eagle, a preference to cold countries. It is found in all the northern kingdoms of Europe. The Great Erne is of the ſame ſize and the ſame ſtrength, if not more vigorous, than the Common Eagle: it is at leaſt more bloody and ferocious, and leſs at⯑tached to its young; for it feeds them but a ſhort time, drives them from its neſt before they can procure ſuſtenance; and it is pretended that, without the aſſiſtance of the Oſprey, which generally takes them under its protection, they would periſh. It has commonly two or three young, and builds its neſt upon large trees. A deſcription of one of theſe neſts occurs in Wil⯑loughby, and in ſeveral other authors who have [67] copied it. It is an airy, or floor quite flat, like that of the Great Eagle, ſheltered above by the foliage of trees, and formed with ſmall ſticks and branches, which are covered with ſeveral alternate layers of broom, and other plants. That unnatural diſpoſition which inſtigates thoſe birds to expel their young before their feeble ſtrength is able to procure an eaſy ſubſiſtence, and which is common to the Erne, the Golden Eagle, and the Spotted Rough-footed Eagle, proves that theſe three ſpecies are more vora⯑cious, and more inactive in the purſuit of their prey, than the Ring-tail Eagle, which watches and feeds^* generouſly its infant brood, and after⯑wards trains them, teaches them to hunt, and does not deſert them till their dexterity and vi⯑gour are ſufficient for their ſupport. The young alſo inherit the inſtinct of their parents. The Eaglets of the common kind are gentle and peaceful; but thoſe of the Golden Eagle and the Erne, as ſoon as they have acquired ſome ſtature, are continually fighting and contending about their food, and their place in the neſt: ſo that the father and mother, to terminate the quarrel, often deſtroy a mutinous ſubject. The Golden Eagle and the Erne generally point [68] their attacks upon large animals; they often ſatiate themſelves upon the ſpot, being unable to tranſport their prey: hence their depre⯑dations are leſs frequent, and, not preſerving carrion in their neſt, they are often reduced duced to want. On the other hand, the Com⯑mon Eagle, which catches every day hares and birds, ſupplies more eaſily and more plentifully the neceſſary ſubſiſtence to its young. It has alſo been remarked, eſpecially with regard to the Ernes, which chuſe their haunt near ſettled ſpots, that they ſearch for their prey only du⯑ring a few hours in the middle of the day, and devote the morning, the evening, and the night to ſleep; whereas the Common Eagle (Aquila Valeria) is more adventurous, more active, and more indefatigable^A.[69]

The OSPREY.
• Le Balbuzard, Buff. , • Falco Haliaëtus, Linn. , • The Bald Buzzard, Will. , • The Morphnos, or Clanga, Ray and Will. , • Fiſhaar. Wires. , • In Italian, Anguiſta Piombina. , and • In Poliſh, Orzelmarſky. 

[73] I am not ſurpriſed that Ariſtotle called this bird [...], Sea-Eagle; but I am aſtoniſhed that all the naturaliſts, ancient or modern, have copied the name without ſcruple, and I might ſay without reflexion; for this bird frequents the ſea-ſhore not from any decided preference. It oftener haunts inland countries that are con⯑tiguous to rivers, lakes, and other freſh waters; and it is even more common in Burgundy, which is the centre of France, than on any of our coaſts. As Greece is a country which has few rivers, pools, or lakes, and which is much in⯑terſected and indented by the incroachment or retreat of the ocean, Ariſtotle obſerved that theſe bird-fiſhers ſought their prey on the beach, and for this reaſon he named them Sea-Eagles. But had this philoſopher lived in the heart of France, Germany^*, Switzerland^†, or any other coun⯑try diſtant from the ſea; and where theſe birds are common, he would probably have termed them freſh-water-eagles. Ariſtotle affirms, that this bird has a keen ſight; it compels its young, he ſays, to look at the ſun, and kills thoſe whoſe eyes cannot ſupport the glare. I cannot authen⯑ticate this fact, which appears to me rather [74] improbable, though it has been related or rather repeated by ſeveral authors; and though it has even been generalized and attributed to all the eagles, which are ſaid to force their brood to look ſteadily at the ſun. This is an obſervation which it would be difficult to make; and Ariſtotle was beſides not much acquainted with the facts re⯑lating to the young of this bird. He alleges that they rear only two, and kill that one whoſe eyes cannot bear the dazzling rays of the ſun. But we are certain that they often lay four eggs, and ſeldom three only, and that they raiſe all which are hatched. Inſtead of inhabiting rocky precipices and lofty mountains, as do the eagles, it prefers the haunts of low and marſhy grounds, in the vicinity of pools and lakes that abound with fiſh. It appears that we muſt aſcribe to the Oſprey, and not to the Sea-Eagle, what Ariſtotle mentions with regard to the purſuit of ſea-birds; for the Sea-eagle fiſhes rather than hunts; nor have I heard that it ſtrays to a diſtance from the beach in the chace of gulls and other ſea-birds: on the contrary, it ſeems to ſubſiſt entirely upon fiſh. Thoſe who have diſ⯑ſected this bird, have found nothing but fiſh in its ſtomach; and its fleſh, which, as I have ſaid, has a very ſtrong ſmell of fiſh, is a ſufficient proof that this conſtitutes its ordinary food. It is com⯑monly very fat, and can, like the eagles, ſupport for ſeveral days the want of ſuſtenance, without ſuffering inconvenience or loſs of ſtrength. It [75] is not ſo bold or ſo ferocious as the eagle or erne; and it is pretended that it could be as eaſily in⯑ſtructed for fiſhing, as the other birds are trained for the ſport.

After comparing authorities, I am of opinion that this ſpecies is one of the moſt numerous of the large birds of prey; and is ſcattered over the extent of Europe, from Sweden to Greece; and that it is even found in warmer countries, as in Egypt and Nigritia.

The internal parts of this bird differ little from thoſe of the eagles. The academicians have per⯑ceived the moſt conſiderable diſtinction in the liver, which in the Sea-eagle is very ſmall. The caecum of the female alſo is not ſo large; and the ſpleen, which in the eagle is cloſely attached to the right ſide of the ſtomach, is in this bird placed under the right lobe of the liver. Like thoſe of moſt other birds, its kidneys are proportionally large, whereas thoſe of the eagle are ſmall^A.

The SEA-EAGLE.
• L'Orfraie, Buff. , • Falco Oſſifragus, Linn. , • Aquila Oſſifraga, Briſſ. and Klein. , • In Italian, Aquilaſtro anguiſta barbata. , • In German, Groſſer haſenahr. , and • In Poliſh, Orzel-Lomignat. 

If the facts related by Ariſtotle in his Hiſtory of Animals, be diſtinguiſhed by their accuracy, his treatiſe De Mirabilibus is no leſs remark⯑able for its abſurdities and errors. The author even makes aſſertions in it which are totally in⯑conſiſtent with what he has delivered in his other works; and if we were to compare the opinions, but particularly the facts, with thoſe in his Hiſ⯑tory of Animals, we never ſhould aſcribe the treatiſe De Mirabilibus to that enlightened phi⯑loſopher. Pliny, whoſe Natural Hiſtory is en⯑tirely extracted from Ariſtotle, would not have related ſo many things that are falſe or equivocal, had he not borrowed indiſcriminately from the different treatiſes attributed to the Greek, and collected the opinions of ſubſequent authors which are tinctured conſtantly with popular pre⯑judices. We can give an example without de⯑viating from our preſent ſubject. Ariſtotle diſ⯑tinguiſhes the ſpecies of the Oſprey in his Hiſtory of Animals, ſince he makes it the fifth ſpecies of eagles, to which he gives accurate diſcriminating characters. At the ſame time, the Oſprey conſtitutes not a diſtinct ſpecies in the treatiſe De Mirabilibus, or rather is only a [81] variety. Pliny, enlarging on this idea, affirms not only that the Oſpreys form no ſeparate race, and that they proceed from the intermixture of the different ſpecies of eagles, but that the young are not Oſpreys, and only Sea-Eagles; which Sea-Eagles, ſays he, breed ſmall vultures, which engender great vultures, that have not the power of propagation. What a number of incredible circumſtances are grouped into this paſſage? How many things that are abſurd, and contrary to every analogy? Let us even extend, as much as poſſible, the probable limits of the variations of Nature, and let us give this paſſage the moſt favourable explanation. Suppoſe for a moment, that the Oſpreys are really the hybriduous off⯑ſpring of the union of two different ſpecies of eagles; that they are prolific, like the croſs-breed of ſome other birds, and produce between them a ſecond mongrel, which approaches nearer the ſpecies of Sea-Eagle than if the firſt mixture were that of the Sea-Eagle with another eagle; ſo far the laws of Nature are not entirely vio⯑lated: but to add, that theſe Oſpreys, after they become Sea-Eagles, breed ſmall vultures, and theſe again the great, which are incapable of generation, is to join three facts that are abſolutely incredible, to two that already can hardly be believed. And though Pliny has written many things haſtily, I can hardly per⯑ſuade myſelf that he is the author of theſe three aſſertions; and I am rather inclined to ſuppoſe, [82] that the end of the ſentence has been entirely altered. At any rate it is certain that the Sea-Eagles never breed ſmall mongrel vultures, nor do theſe give birth to large hybriduous vultures, whoſe prolific powers are extinguiſhed. Every ſpecies of vulture produces its like, and the ſame is the caſe with each of the eagles, the Oſprey and the Sea-Eagle; and the intermediate kinds, bred by the intermixture of the eagles, conſti⯑tute independent tribes, and are perpetuated like the others by a generation. Particularly, we are well informed, that the male Oſprey breeds with its female young Oſpreys; and that, if it ever begets Sea-Eagles, this is only in the union with the Sea-Eagle. The copulation of the male Oſprey with the female Sea-Eagle is ſimilar to that of the he-goat with the ewe: a lamb is the fruit of this commerce, becauſe the influence of the ewe predominates in the conception. A Sea-Eagle is alſo the product of the other inter⯑courſe; for, in general, the character of the female preponderates, and the prolific mongrels approach to the ſpecies of the mother; and even the true hybrids, or the barren mongrels, bear a greater reſemblance to the race of the female than to that of the male.

What renders the poſſibility of the croſs-breed of the Sea-Eagle and the Oſprey credible, is the ſimilarity of the inſtincts, the diſpoſitions, and even the figure of theſe birds; for though [83] they differ widely in point of ſize, the Sea-Eagle being near one half larger than the Oſprey, they are yet very much alike in their propor⯑tions. Their wings and legs are ſhort, com⯑pared with the length of their body; the lower part of their legs and feet are naked; they fly neither ſo high nor ſo rapidly as the eagles; they derive their ſubſiſtence more from the finny tribe than from the beaſts of game; and they haunt places contiguous to lakes or fiſhy ſtreams; and both of them are common in France and other temperate countries. The Sea-Eagle, as it is larger, lays only two eggs, and the Oſprey four^*. The cere of the Oſprey and the legs and feet are generally blue, but the ſame parts of the Sea-Eagle are of a bright deep yellow. There is alſo ſome difference in the diſtribution of the colours of the plumage, but this is too ſlight to prevent their intermixture; and ana⯑logical [84] reaſons induce me to ſuppoſe that the union is prolific, and that the male Oſprey, by coupling with the female Sea-Eagle, produces Sea-Eagles; but that the female Oſprey, by pairing with the male Sea-Eagle, gives birth to Oſpreys; and that ſuch hybrids, whether they be Sea-Eagles or Oſpreys, inherit almoſt entirely the nature of their mother, and retain but ſlight traces of the character of the father; which cir⯑cumſtance diſtinguiſhes them from legitimate Oſpreys or Sea-Eagles. For example; Oſpreys ſometimes occur with yellow feet, and Sea-Eagles with blue feet, though the reverſe commonly takes place. This variation of colour muſt ariſe from the mixture of the two ſpecies. For the ſame reaſon, Oſpreys are found, ſuch as what the members of the Academy have deſcribed, that are much larger than ordinary; and at the ſame time ſome Sea-Eagles are much ſmaller than common; and the diminutive ſize of theſe can be aſcribed neither to the ſex nor to the age, but muſt ariſe from a mixture with the ſmaller ſpecies; that is, of the Oſprey with the Sea-Eagle.

As this bird is very large, and conſequently little prolific, laying only two eggs once a year, and often raiſing but a ſingle young one, the ſpecies is no where numerous. It is however widely diffuſed; it is found in almoſt every part [85] of Europe, and it even appears to frequent the lakes of North America^*. ^A

The WHITE JOHN^*.
• Jean ie Blanc, Buff. and Lath. , • Falco Gallicus, Linn. , • Falco Hypoleucos, Decouv. Ruſſ. , • Aquila Pygargus, Briſſ. Johnſt. Belon. , • L'Albanella, Let. uc Sard. , and • Blanche-Queue, Hiſt. de Lyon. 

The White John is more widely removed from the eagles than any of the preceding. It reſembles the Bald Eagle only by the want of plumage on the legs, and the whiteneſs of the rump and tail; but its body is differently ſhap⯑ed, and is much thicker, compared with its bulk; for its extreme length is only two feet, and the expanſion of its wings ſeven feet; while the girth of its body is as great as that of the Ring-tail Eagle, the length of which is two feet and an half, and the alar extent more than ſeven. Hence the White John reſembles in its ſhape the Oſprey, whoſe wings are alſo ſhort in propor⯑tion to its body; but its feet are not, as in that [88] bird, blue: its legs alſo appear to be more ſlen⯑der and tapered than any of the Eagles. Thus, though it bears ſome analogy to the Eagles, the Oſprey, and the Sea-eagle, it is yet quite a diſ⯑tinct ſpecies. It has ſome reſemblance alſo to the Buzzard in the diſpoſition of its colours, of its plumage, and alſo in a circumſtance which has often ſtruck me, viz. that, in certain atti⯑tudes, and eſpecially in the front view, it ap⯑pears like an Eagle; and that, ſeen ſideways or in other attitudes, its figure is ſimilar to that of the Buzzard. This remark was alſo made by my deſigner and others; and it is ſingular that this ambiguity of figure correſponds to its equi⯑vocal diſpoſition, which is really analogous both to that of the Eagle and that of the Buzzard; inſomuch that the White John may, in certain reſpects, be conſidered as forming the interme⯑diate ſhade between theſe two birds.

It appeared to me that this bird ſaw very diſtinctly in the day-time, and was not afraid of the ſtrongeſt light; for it ſpontaneouſly directed its eyes to the moſt luminous quarter, and even to the ſolar effulgence. It ran with conſiderable ſwiftneſs when ſcared, and aſſiſted its motion by its wings. When confined to its chamber, it ſought to approach the fire; but cold did not ſeem to be abſolutely pernicious to it, for it paſſed ſeveral nights in open air in froſty wea⯑ther without appearing to ſuffer inconvenience. [89] It fed upon raw bloody fleſh; but, when pinch⯑ed with hunger, it ate meat that had been cook⯑ed. It tore the fleſh that was offered it with its bill, and ſwallowed it in large morſels. It never drank when any perſon was beſide it, or was within its ſight; but when it was in a conceal⯑ed place, it was obſerved to drink, and to uſe more precaution than might be expected. A veſſel filled with water was left within its reach; it looked anxiouſly on every ſide, to aſcertain that it was quite alone; it then approached the veſſel, but ſtill caſt an attentive look around: at laſt, after many heſitations, it plunged its bill up to the eyes in the water, and repeated its draught. It is probable that other birds of prey conceal themſelves in the ſame manner when they want to drink; the reaſon probably is, that theſe birds can take no liquid but by immerſing their head beyond the opening of the mandibles, and even as far as the eyes; in which caſe, they are thrown off their guard, and have reaſon to entertain fears: however, this is the only cir⯑cumſtance in which the White John ſhewed any miſtruſt; and in other things he appeared indifferent, or rather ſtupid. He was not at all miſchievous, and ſuffered himſelf to be handled without diſcovering reſentment. He uttered the ſound, co, co, a ſlight expreſſion of contentment when food was offered him; but he ſhewed no particular attachment to any individual. He grew fat in the autumn, and got [90] more fleſh, and became plumper than moſt other birds of prey^*.

This bird is very common in France; and, as Belon ſays, there is hardly a cottager who is not acquainted with it, and who dreads not its ravages among his poultry. The peaſants have given it the name of White John ^†, becauſe it is remarkable for the whiteneſs of its belly, of the under ſurface of its wings, of its rump, and of its tail: theſe characters, however, are diſtinctly [91] marked only in the male; for the famale is al⯑moſt entirely grey, and the feathers of the rump alone of a dirty white. As in the other birds of prey, ſhe is larger than her mate; ſhe neſtles almoſt cloſe upon the ground, in tracts covered with heath, fern, broom, or ruſhes; ſometimes, however, ſhe builds on firs, and other high trees. She commonly lays three eggs, which are of a grey ſlate-colour; the male provides largely for her ſubſiſtence during the time of incubation, and even while ſhe is employed in watching and educating her young. He haunts the vici⯑nity of inhabited places, eſpecially near hamlets and farms; he plunders chickens, young tur⯑kies, and tame ducks; and when poultry can⯑not be had, he catches young rabbits, par⯑tridges, quails, and other ſmall birds; nor does he diſdain the more humble prey of field-mice and lizards. As this bird, particularly the fe⯑male, has ſhort wings and a thick body, the flight is laborious, and they never riſe to a great height; they conſtantly ſkim along the ground, and commit their ravages upon the earth rather than in the air^*. Their cry is a kind of ſhrill whiſtling, which is ſeldom heard. They ſcarce⯑ly ever ſeek their prey but in the morning and the evening; and the middle of the day is de⯑voted to indolence and repoſe.

[92] One ſhould be apt to ſuppoſe that there is a variety in this ſpecies; for Belon gives a de⯑ſcription of a ſecond bird, ‘which is,’ he ſays, ‘another ſpecies of the St. Martin, alſo named White-tail, of the ſame ſpecies with the above⯑mentioned White John, and which reſembles the Royal Kite ſo exactly that we could diſ⯑cover no difference, except that it is ſmaller, and whiter under the belly, the feathers of its rump and tail being on both ſides of a white colour.’ Theſe points of reſemblance, to which we may add what is ſtill more important, that its legs are longer, prove only that this ſpe⯑cies is allied to that of the White John: but as it differs conſiderably in its ſize, and in other circumſtances, we can but infer that it is a va⯑riety of the White John; and we have per⯑ceived that it is the ſame bird which our no⯑menclators have called the Cinereous Lanner; and which we ſhall mention under the name of St. Martin, becauſe it has not the leaſt reſem⯑blance to the Lanner.

The White John, though very common in France, is unfrequent in every other country; ſince none of the naturaliſts of Italy, England, Germany, or the North, mention it, except from the authority of Belon. For this reaſon I have dwelt more fully upon the facts relating to its hiſtory. I muſt alſo obſerve, that Salerne commits a great miſtake, when he ſays that this bird is the ſame with the Ringtail of the Eng⯑liſh, [93] the male of which is termed Hen-harrier. The character of the White-tail, and the prone⯑neſs to prey on poultry, common to the Ring⯑tail and the White John, have deceived him, and induced him to conſider theſe birds as the ſame; but if he had compared the deſcriptions of preceding authors, he would have eaſily perceived that they belong to different ſpecies. Other naturaliſts have taken the Blue-hawk of Edwards for the Hen-harrier, though theſe birds are alſo of different kinds. We ſhall en⯑deavour to clear up this point, which is one of the moſt obſcure in the natural hiſtory of the rapacious tribe.

Birds of prey are divided into two orders: the firſt of which includes the warlike, the noble, and the intrepid; ſuch as Eagles, Fal⯑cons, Ger-falcons, Gos-hawks, Lanners, Spar⯑row-hawks, &c.: the ſecond comprehends thoſe that are indolent, cowardly, and voracious; ſuch as, the Vultures, the Kites, the Buzzards, &c. Between theſe two orders, ſo oppoſite in their inſtincts and habits, are found, as every where elſe, ſome intermediate ſhades, or ſome ſpecies which participate of the character of both. Theſe are: Firſt, The White John, of which we have now treated, and which, as we have ſaid, is a-kin to the Eagle and the Buzzard. Secondly, The St. Martin, which Briſſon and Friſch have called the Cinereous Lanner, and Edwards has named the Blue Falcon, but which reſembles [94] more the White John and the Buzzard than the Falcon or Lanner. Thirdly, The Sou-buſe, with which ſpecies the Engliſh ſeem not to have been well acquainted, having taken ano⯑ther bird for the male, whoſe female they have named Ring-tail, and the pretended male Hen⯑harrier. Theſe are the birds which Briſſon has called Collared Falcons; but they have more af⯑finity with the Buzzard than the Falcon or the Eagle. Theſe three ſpecies, and particularly the laſt, have been miſrepreſented, or confounded, or improperly named; for the White John ought not to be ranged among the eagles. The St. Martin is neither a Falcon, as Edwards ſays; nor a Lanner, as Friſch and Briſſon aſſert; for in its inſtinct it is different, and in its habits it is oppoſite to thoſe. It is the ſame with the Sou⯑buſe, which is neither an eagle nor a falcon, ſince its appetites are entirely diſſimilar to thoſe of theſe two ſpecies.

But I am of opinion that we ought to claſs with the White John, with which we are well acquainted, another bird, known only by the indication of Aldrovandus, under the name of Laniarius; and of Schwenckfeld, under that of Milvus albus. This bird, which Briſſon has alſo called the Lanner, appears to me to be more different from the true Lanner than the St. Martin. Aldrovandus deſcribes two of theſe birds; the one of which is much larger than the other, being two feet from the point of the [95] bill to the end of the tail, and is of the ſize of the White John; and appears, from comparing the account of that naturaliſt, to have the ſame characters. Nor need we be ſurpriſed that Aldrovandus, whoſe ornithology is on the whole excellent, eſpecially with regard to the Euro⯑pean birds, ſhould commit this overſight, ſince he derives his acquaintance of the White John entirely from Belon^*, and has even borrowed his figure. ^A

FOREIGN BIRDS, RELATED TO THE EAGLES AND OSPREYS.

The VULTURES^*.

We muſt therefore ſeparate the Vultures from the Eagles by this difference of inſtinct; and their external appearance ſufficiently marks the diſtinction. Their eyes are raiſed, while thoſe of the Eagle are ſunk in the orbit; the head is bare, the neck almoſt naked, or covered with a ſlight down, or ſprinkled with a few ſtraggling hairs; while the Eagle is completely clothed with feathers: the nails of the Eagle are almoſt ſemi⯑circular, ſince they ſeldom reſt upon the ground; while thoſe of the Vulture are ſhorter and leſs [106] curved: their poſture is more inclined than that of the Eagle, which is boldly erect, and almoſt perpendicular upon its feet; while the Vulture, whoſe ſituation is half horizontal, ſeems to be⯑tray the baſeneſs of its character by the inclined poſition of its body. The Vultures can even be diſtinguiſhed at a diſtance; becauſe they are the only birds of prey that fly in flocks, that is, more than two or three together: beſides their flight is ſlow and laborious; it is painful for them to riſe from the ground; and they are obliged to make three or four attempts before they can ſucceed^*.

We have included in the genus of Eagles three ſpecies, viz. the Golden Eagle, the Ring⯑tail Eagle, and the Rough-footed Eagle; and we have added thoſe birds which bear the greateſt reſemblance to them; ſuch as the Erne, the Oſ⯑prey, the Sea-Eagle, and the White John, and the foreign birds related to theſe: viz. 1. The Beautiful Bird of Malabar. 2. The Bird [107] of Brazil, Oronooco, Peru, and Guinea, called by the Indians of Brazil Urutauana. 3. The Bird called in the ſame country Urubitinga. 4. That which we have called the Little American Eagle. 5. The Bird Fiſher of the Antilles. 6. The Mansfeni, which appears to be a kind of the Rough-footed Eagle:—theſe conſtitute in all thirteen ſpecies, of which the Little Eagle of America has been mentioned by no naturaliſt. We proceed to make in the ſame manner the enumeration and reduction of the ſpecies of the Vultures, and we ſhall firſt treat of a bird which has been ranked among the Eagles by Ariſtotle, and after him by moſt authors, though it is really a Vulture.

The ALPINE VULTURE.
• Le Percnoptere, Buff. , • Vultur Percnopterus, Linn. , • Falco Montanus Aegyptiacus, Haſſelq. , and • Vultur Aquilina, Alb. 

THIS bird is by no means an Eagle, and is certainly a Vulture; or if we could follow the opinion of the ancients, it forms the laſt ſhade between theſe two kinds of birds, bearing a much cloſer reſemblance to the former than to the latter. Ariſtotle^*, who ranges it among the Eagles, confeſſes himſelf that it is rather of the Vulture race, having, he ſays, all the bad qua⯑lities of the Eagles without any of their virtues; ſuffering itſelf to be purſued and haraſſed by the crows; indolent in the chace, and tardy in its motions; always crying and complaining; always famiſhed and ſearching for carrion. Its wings are alſo ſhorter, and its tail longer than the Eagles; its head is of a fine blue, the neck white and naked, or covered merely with a [109] hoary down, with a collar of ſmall white hard feathers below the neck like a ruff; the iris is of a reddiſh yellow; the bill and the cere black, the hook of the bill whitiſh; the lower part of the feet and legs naked, and of a leaden colour; the nails are black, ſhorter, and ſtraighter than thoſe of the eagle. It is remarkable for a brown ſpot ſhaped like a heart, and edged with a ſtraight white line, and ſituated on the breaſt under the ruff. In general, this bird is of an ugly and ill proportioned figure; it has even a diſguſting appearance from the continual flux of rheum from its noſtrils, and the flow of ſaliva from two other holes in the bill; its craw is pro⯑minent; and when it is upon the ground, it keeps its wings always extended^*. In ſhort, it reſembles the Eagle only by its ſize; for it is larger than the Ring-tail Eagle, and approaches the Golden-eagle in the thickneſs of its body, though the expanſion of its wings is leſs. This ſpecies ſeems to be more rare than thoſe of the other Vultures; it is found however in the Pyrenees, the Alps, and the mountains of Greece. ^A

The FULVOUS VULTURE.
• Le Griffon, Buff. , • Vultur Fulvus, Linn. , and • Vultur Ruber, Rzac. 

THIS bird is ſtill larger than the Alpine Vul⯑ture; its wings extend eight feet; its body is thicker and longer than that of the Golden⯑eagle, the legs being more than a foot in length, and the neck ſeven inches. It has, like the Alpine Vulture, a ring of white feathers at the origin of the neck; the head is covered with ſimilar feathers, which are collected into a tuft, under which can be perceived the perforations of the ears; the neck is entirely deſtitute of plumage; the eyes are level with the head, with large eye-lids, which are moveable, and furniſhed with laſhes; the iris is of a beautiful orange colour; the bill long and hooked, black at its origin and termination, and bluiſh in the middle. The bird is alſo diſtinguiſhed by a re-entrant craw, or a large cavity above the ſtomach, which cavity is covered with hairs, pointing to its centre, and occupying the place of the craw; it is neither prominent nor pendulous, as the Alpine Vulture. The ſkin, which appears naked on the neck, round the eyes, ears, &c. is of a brown grey, [111] and bluiſh; the largeſt feathers of the wing are two feet long, and the quill is an inch in cir⯑cumference; the nails are blackiſh, but not ſo large or ſo crooked as thoſe of the eagles.

I believe, as the Members of the Academy of Sciences have ſaid, that the Fulvous Vulture is really the Great Vulture of Ariſtotle; but, as they give no reaſons in ſupport of their opi⯑nion, and as Ariſtotle ſeems to form only two ſpecies, or rather genera of Vultures, the Little one being whiter than the Great, which differs alſo in its form^*; it would appear that this genus of the Great Vulture includes more than one ſpecies. For there is only the Alpine Vul⯑ture which he particularly mentions, and as he does not deſcribe any of the other Great Vultures, we may reaſonably doubt if the Fulvous Vulture was the ſame with his Great Vulture. The Com⯑mon Vulture, which is as large, and perhaps more common than the Fulvous Vulture, might be equally taken for this Great Vulture; ſo that we may infer that the Members of the Academy of Sciences were raſh in affirming as certain, a thing ſo equivocal and ſo doubtful, without even mentioning the reaſon or ground of their aſſer⯑tion; which may be perhaps true, but which muſt be proved by reflections and compariſons which they have not made. I ſhall endeavour [112] to perform this taſk; and ſhall here ſtate the reaſons which have convinced me that the Fulvous Vulture is really the Great Vulture of the ancients.

I am then of opinion, that the ſpecies of Fulvous Vulture conſiſts of two varieties; the firſt called by naturaliſts the Tawny Vulture ^*, and the ſecond the Golden Vulture ^†. The dif⯑ference between theſe two birds, of which the firſt is the Fulvous Vulture, is not ſo conſiderable as to conſtitute two diſtinct ſpecies, for both are of the ſame ſize, and nearly of the ſame colour; in both, the tail is comparatively ſhort, and the wings very long^‡, and by this common cha⯑racter they are diſtinguiſhed from the other Vultures. This cloſe reſemblance^§ has ſtruck ſome naturaliſts even before me, and has induced them to reckon theſe kindred ſpecies. I am even inclined to believe that the bird mentioned by Belon, under the name of Black Vulture, is ſtill of the ſame ſpecies with the Golden and Fulvous Vulture; for it is of the ſame bulk, and its [113] back and wings have the ſame colour as in the Golden Vulture. But if we unite theſe three varieties into one ſpecies, the Fulvous Vulture would be the leaſt unfrequent of all the Great Vultures, and conſequently that which Ariſtotle would principally mention. And what adds probability to the preſumption is, that, accord⯑ing to Belon, this Great Vulture is found in Egypt, Arabia, and the iſlands of the Archipelago, and therefore common in Greece. At any rate I am confident that we may reduce the Great Vultures which appear in Europe into four ſpe⯑cies:—the Alpine, the Fulvous, the Vulture properly ſo called, of which we ſhall treat in the following article, and the Creſted Vulture; which differ ſufficiently from each other to con⯑ſtitute ſeparate and diſtinct ſpecies.

The Academicians, who diſſected two female Fulvous Vultures, have well obſerved, that the bill is longer, and leſs incurvated than in the Eagles; and that it is black only at the origin and the tip, the middle being of a bluiſh grey; that the ſuperior mandible is marked within with a groove on each ſide; that theſe receive the cutting edges of the inferior mandible when the bill is cloſed; that towards the point of the beak there is a ſmall round protuberance, on the ſides of which are two little perforations through which the ſaliva is diſcharged; that at the baſe of the beak are placed the two noſtrils, each [114] ſix lines long and two broad, meaſuring down⯑wards, which gives an ample ſpace for the external organs of ſmell; that the tongue is hard and cartilaginous, ſcooped near the tip, and the edges raiſed; that theſe raiſed edges are ſtill harder than the reſt of the tongue, and form a kind of ſaw, the teeth of which are pointed towards the gullet; that the oeſophagus dilates below, and forms a large ſac; that this ſac differs from the crop of fowls only becauſe it is interſperſed with the ramifications of a great number of veſſels which are very diſtinct, the membrane being exceedingly white and tranſ⯑parent; that the gizzard is neither ſo hard nor ſo thick as in the gallinaceous tribe, and that the fleſhy part is not ſo red as in the gizzards of other birds, but white, like the ventricles; that the inteſtines and the caecum are ſmall as in other rapacious birds; and that the ovarium is of the ordinary ſhape and ſize, and the oviductus ſome⯑what ſerpentine, as in the poultry, and does not form a ſtraight regular canal as in moſt other birds.

If we compare theſe obſervations on the in⯑terior ſtructure of Vultures with thoſe which the ſame anatomiſts of the Academy made on Eagles, we ſhall eaſily perceive, that though the Vultures feed upon fleſh, as do the Eagles, they have not the ſame conformation in the organs of di⯑geſtion; and that, in this reſpect, they approach [115] much nearer to the poultry and other birds that live upon grain; ſince they have a craw and a ſtomach which, from the thickneſs of its lower part, may be regarded as almoſt a gizzard; ſo that the Vultures ſeem deſtined by their ſtructure, not only to be carnivorous, but gra⯑nivorous, and even omnivorous.

The CINEREOUS VULTURE.
• Le Vautour, ou Grand Vautour, Buff. , • Vultur Cinereus, Linn. , • In Italian, Avoltorio. , • In Spaniſh, Buyetre. , • In German, Geyr. , • In Poliſh, Sep. , and • In Arabic, Racham. 

THIS bird is thicker and larger than the Com⯑mon Eagle, but rather ſmaller than the Fulvous Vulture, from which it is not difficult to diſtinguiſh it:—1. Its neck is covered with a longer and thicker down, of the ſame colour with that of the feathers on the back; 2. It has a ſort of white collar, which riſes on both ſides of the head, and extends in two branches to the bottom of the neck, bordering on each ſide a pretty broad black ſpace, under which is a nar⯑row white ring; 3. Its feet are covered with brown feathers, while, in the Fulvous Vulture, they are yellowiſh or whitiſh; and, 4. The toes are yellow; whereas in the Fulvous Vulture they are brown, or of an aſh colour.

The HARE VULTURE.
• Le Vautour à Aigrettes, Buff. , • Vultur Criſtatus, Linn. , and • Vultur Leporarius, Ray, Will. and Klein. 

THIS Vulture, though ſmaller than the three firſt, ſtill deſerves to be ranked among the Great Vultures. We cannot deſcribe it better than in the words of Geſner, who is the only naturaliſt that has ſeen many of theſe birds. The Vulture, ſays he, which the Germans call Haſengeier, (Hare Vulture,) has a black bill, hooked at the point, ugly eyes, a large and ſtrong body, broad wings, a long and ſtraight tail; a blackiſh ruſty plumage, and yellow feet. When at reſt, whether on the ground or perched, it erects the feathers of the head, which then reſemble two horns, but which are not perceived when it flies. The expanſion of its wings is near ſix feet; it walks well, advancing fifteen inches at each ſtep; it purſues birds of every kind, and preys upon them; it alſo catches hares, rabbits, young foxes, and ſmall fawns, nor does it ſpare-even the fiſh. Its ferocity is ſuch, that it cannot be tamed. Sometimes it ſeizes its prey in its flight; at other times, it darts upon [118] its victims from the top of a tree or elevated cliff; but always upon the wing. It makes much noiſe in its flight. It breeds in the thick and deſert foreſts on the talleſt trees. It eats fleſh, the entrails of living animals, and even carrion; and though extremely voracious, it can bear the want of food for fourteen days. Two of theſe birds were caught in Alſace in the month of January 1513; and in the following year, more were found in a neſt built on a thick lofty oak, at ſome diſtance from the city of Miſen.

All the Great Vultures, including the Alpine, the Fulvous, the Cinereous, and the Hare Vulture, have but few young, and breed only once a⯑year. Ariſtole^* ſays, that they generally lay only one or two eggs. They build their neſts in places ſo lofty and inacceſſible, that they are ſeldom diſcovered; they muſt be ſought for only on the giddy heights of deſert mountains^†. The Vultures prefer the gloomy haunts during the [119] whole of the fine ſeaſon; but when ſnow and ice begin to cover the ſummits of the mountains, they deſcend into the plains, and ſeek more hoſ⯑pitable abodes. Vultures ſeem to dread more than Eagles the influence of cold; they are leſs common in the north, and it would ſeem that they have not penetrated Sweden, or the more diſtant boreal regions; for Linnaeus, in the enu⯑meration which he has given of the Swediſh birds, makes no mention of the Vultures: how⯑ever, in the following article, we ſhall deſcribe a Vulture which we have received from Norway. But they delight in warm climates; and in Egypt^*, Arabia, the iſlands of the Archipelago, and other parts of Africa and Aſia, they are numerous. In thoſe countries the natives make great uſe of Vultures' ſkins; the leather is almoſt as thick as that of the kid, and covered with a fine, cloſe, warm down, and they manufacture it into ex⯑cellent furs^†.

[120] It appears to me that the Black Vulture, which Belon ſays is common in Egypt, is one of the ſame ſpecies with the Cinereous Vulture, and that we ought not to ſeparate them, as ſome naturaliſts have done; ſince Belon, who alone has mentioned them, does not diſtinguiſh them, and ſpeaks of the Cinereous and the Black as compoſing the ſpecies of the Great Vulture. In ſhort, it is probable that there are really black ones, ſuch as figured N^o 425, and others that are Cinereous, but which we have not ſeen. The Black Vulture and the Black Eagle are both of the common ſpecies of the Vulture or the Eagle. Ariſtotle properly remarked, that the genus of the Great Vulture was various; for without including the Alpine, which removes from the Vultures, and ranges with the Eagles, it is really compoſed of three ſpecies; the Fulvous, [121] the Cinereous, and the Hare Vultures. The Lit⯑tle, or Aſh-coloured Vulture, on the contrary, forms a ſingle ſpecies only in Europe; and thus the philoſopher had ſtill reaſon to ſay, that the genus of the Great Vulture was more varied.

The ASH-COLOURED VULTURE.
• Le Petit Vautour, Buff. 

WE have now to conſider the Small Vultures, which differ from thoſe of which we have already treated, not only by their diminutive ſize, but by other peculiar characters. Ariſtotle rec⯑kons only one ſpecies, but our nomenclators make three; the Brown Vulture, the Egyptian Vul⯑ture, and the White-headed Vulture. The laſt^*, which is the ſmalleſt, appears really to be of a different ſpecies from that of the two firſt; for its legs and feet are naked, while in the others they are feathered. This White-headed Vul⯑ture is probably the Little White Vulture of the Ancients, which was common in Arabia, Egypt, Greece, Germany, and even as far as Norway, whence it was ſent to us. We may remark, that the head, and the under part of the neck, are naked, and of a reddiſh colour; and that the bird is entirely white, excepting the large feathers of the wings, which are black^†.—Theſe characters are full ſufficient to diſcriminate it.

[123] Of the other ſpecies of the Aſh-coloured Vul⯑ture, I am inclined to reject, or rather to ſepa⯑rate, the ſecond, which, from Belon's deſcrip⯑tion, is not a Vulture, but a bird of another genus, which he calls the Egyptian Sacre. There remains therefore only the Brown Vul⯑ture; with regard to which I ſhall obſerve, that I cannot perceive the reaſons which led Briſſon to refer it to the Aquila Heteropos of Geſner. On the contrary, it appears to me, that inſtead of reckoning the Heteropede Eagle a Vulture, we ought to eraſe it from the cata⯑logue of birds; for its exiſtence was never proved; no naturaliſt has ſeen it; and Geſner, who is the only one that mentions it, and whom all the others have copied, had only a drawing of it, which he cauſed to be engraved, and from the figure, referred it to the genus of Eagles, and not to that of Vultures; and the epithet of Heteropede alludes to the circumſtance that one of the legs was blue, and the other whitiſh brown. But a bird, figured by an un⯑known perſon, and named afterwards from an inaccurate drawing, and which the difference of colour of the legs is alone ſufficient to render ſuſpicious; a bird which has never been ſeen by thoſe who mention it; can we conſider ſuch as an Eagle or a Vulture? or has it any real ex⯑iſtence? It appears then, that to refer it to the Brown Vulture is mere hypotheſis.

FOREIGN BIRDS, WHICH RESEMBLE THE VULTURES.

The CONDUR.
• Le Condor, Buff. , • Vultur Gryphus, Linn. , and • Avis ingens Chilenſis ^*, Cuntur, Ray. 

IF the power of flying conſtitute the eſ⯑ſential character of birds, the Condur Vul⯑ture muſt be conſidered the largeſt of all. The Oſtrich, the Galeated Caſſowary, and the Hooded Dodo, whoſe wings and feathers are not calculated for flying, and who for this reaſon cannot quit the ground, ought not to be com⯑pared with it; they are (if I may be allowed the expreſſion) imperfect birds, a ſort of terreſtrial bipeds, which form an intermediate ſhade be⯑tween the birds and quadrupeds on the one hand; while the rouſſette and rougette and the bats form a ſimilar ſhade, on the other, between the quadru⯑peds and the birds. The Condur poſſeſſes, even in a higher degree than the Eagle, all the qualities, all the endowments which Nature has beſtowed on the moſt perfect ſpecies of this claſs of be⯑ings. Its wings extend eighteen feet; the body, the bill, and the talons are proportionally large and ſtrong; its courage is equal to its ſtrength, &c. [140] —We cannot give a better idea of its form, and the proportions of the ſeveral parts of its body, than by an extract from Father Feuillée, the only naturaliſt and traveller who has given a full deſcription of this bird:—‘The Condur is a bird of prey which haunts the valley of of Ylo in Peru.—I diſcovered one that was perched upon a great rock: I approached it within muſket ſhot, and fired, but, as my piece was only loaded with ſwan-ſhot, the lead could not pierce its feathers. I perceived however, from its motions, that it was wound⯑ed; for it roſe heavily, and could with dif⯑ficulty reach another great rock five hundred paces diſtant upon the ſea-ſhore. I therefore charged my piece with a bullet, and hit the bird under the throat. I then ſaw that I had ſucceeded, and I ran to ſecure the victim; but it ſtruggled obſtinately with death; and reſting upon its back, it repelled my attempts with its extended talons. I was at a loſs on what ſide to lay hold of it; and I believe that if it had not been mortally wounded, I ſhould have found great difficulty in ſecuring it. At laſt I dragged it down from the top of the rock, and, with the aſſiſtance of a ſailor, I carried it to my tent, to figure it, and make a coloured drawing.’

‘The wings of the Condur, which I meaſured very exactly, extended eleven feet four inches from the one extremity to the other, and the [141] quill-feathers, which were of a fine ſhining black, were two feet two inches long; the thick⯑neſs of the bill was proportioned to that of the body, and its length was three inches and ſeven lines, the upper part pointed, hooked, and white at the end, and all the reſt black; a ſmall ſhort down of a tawny colour covered the whole head; the eyes were black, and encircled with a brown⯑iſh-red ring; the under-ſurface of its wings, and the lower part of its belly as far as the tail, were of a light brown; the upper ſurface of the ſame colour, but darker; the things were covered as low as the knee with brown feathers; the os femoris was ten inches and a line in length, the tibia five inches and two lines; the foot was compoſed of three anterior pounces and one poſterior, the laſt being an inch and half long, with a ſingle articulation, terminated by a black nail nine lines in length; the middle or great anterior pounce was five inches eight lines, with three articulations, and the nail which terminated it was an inch and nine lines, and was black like the others; the inner pounce was three inches two lines, with two articula⯑tions, and terminated by a nail of the ſame ſize with that of the great pounce; the outer pounce was three inches long, with four articulations and a nail of an inch; the tibia was covered with ſmall black ſcales, and ſo were the pounces, only theſe were larger.’

‘Theſe animals commonly ſettle upon the [142] mountains, where they procure their ſubſiſt⯑ence; they reſort to the ſhore only in the rainy ſeaſons; and feeling the approach of cold, they ſeek for ſhelter and warmth in the plains. Theſe ſummits, though ſituated under the torrid zone, are yet expoſed to a chill air; they are covered almoſt the whole year with ſnow, but particularly in winter, which had ſet in on the 21ſt of this month.’

‘The ſcanty ſubſiſtence which theſe animals can pick up upon the margin of the ſea, ex⯑cept when ſtorms caſt aſhore large fiſh, obliges them to make but a ſhort ſtay; they appear on the beach generally about evening, and there paſs the night, and return to their proper haunts in the morning.’

Frezier, in his Voyage to the South Sea, ſpeaks of this bird in the following terms:—‘One day we killed a bird of prey, called Condur, whoſe wings meaſured nine feet; it had a brown comb, but not jagged like that of the cock; it had in the forepart a red gizzard, naked as in the turkey; it is com⯑monly bulky, and can with eaſe carry off a lamb. Garcilaſſo ſays, that he found ſome in Peru whoſe wings extended ſixteen feet.’

In fact, it appears that theſe two Condurs, mentioned by Feuillée and Frezier, were young and uncommonly ſmall for the ſpecies; and accordingly all the other travellers repreſent [143] them of a greater ſize^*. Fathers Abbeville and Laët affirm, that the Condur is twice as large as the eagle, and ſo ſtrong that it can pounce and devour a whole ſheep; that it ſpares not even ſtags, and eaſily overthrows a man. There are ſome, ſay Acoſta and Garcilaſſo^†, whoſe wings extend fifteen or ſixteen feet; their beak is ſo firm, that they pierce a cow's hide, and two of them are able to kill the animal, and eat the carcaſs. Sometimes they even dare to attack men; but fortunately they are rare, for if they were numerous, they would extirpate the cattle. Deſmarchais relates that theſe birds meaſure eighteen feet acroſs the wings; that their talons are thick, ſtrong, and very hooked; that the American Indians affirm, that they ſeize and tranſport a hind or a young cow as they would do a rabbit; that they are of the ſize of a ſheep, [144] and that their fleſh is coriaceous, and ſmells like carrion; that their ſight is ſharp, their aſpect ſtern and cruel; that they ſeldom frequent the foreſts, where they have ſcarcely room to wield their enormous wings; but that they haunt the ſea-ſhore, the ſides of rivers, and the ſavannahs, or natural meadows^*.

Ray, and almoſt all the naturaliſts after him, have conſidered the Condur^† as a kind of Vul⯑ture, becauſe its head and neck are deſtitute of plumage. But there is ſtill reaſon to doubt this concluſion; for it appears that its diſpoſitions have a greater reſemblance to thoſe of the Eagles. It is, ſay the travellers, bold and in⯑trepid; it ventures alone to attack a man, and can, with little difficulty, kill a child ten or twelve years old^‡. It ſtops a whole flock of [145] ſheep, and, at its leiſure, ſelects its prize. It carries off roebucks, kills hinds and cows; and alſo catches large fiſh. It therefore lives, like the eagle, upon the ravages which it commits; it feeds upon freſh prey, and not upon dead carcaſſes.—Theſe are rather the habits of the eagle than of the vulture.

It appears to me that this bird, which is ſtill but little known becauſe it is very rare, is not confined to South America; I am confident that it is found both in Africa and Aſia, and perhaps even in Europe. Garcilaſſo properly remarks, that the Condur of Peru and of Chili, is the ſame bird with the Ruch or Roc, of the eaſtern nations, ſo famous in the Arabian Tales, and which is mentioned by Marco Paolo; and, with equal propriety, he quotes Marco Paolo along with the Arabian Tales; for, in the account of the Venetian, there is almoſt as much exaggeration. ‘In the iſland of Mada⯑gaſcar,’ ſays he, ‘there is a wonderful kind of bird, which they call Roc, which bears a [146] reſemblance to the eagle, but is incompa⯑rably bigger . . . . . the wing-feathers being ſix fathoms long, and the body large in pro⯑portion. Its ſtrength is ſo aſtoniſhing, that, ſingly and unaſſiſted, it ſeizes an elephant, hurries the ponderous animal into the air, drops it, and kills it by the fall, and after⯑wards feeds upon the carcaſe.’ It is unne⯑ceſſary to make any critical reflections; it is ſufficient to oppoſe facts of greater veracity, ſuch as we have already related, and what we ſhall ſtill produce. It appears to me that the bird mentioned almoſt as large as an Oſtrich in the Hiſtory of the Voyage to the Southern continent^*, which the Preſident de Broſſes has digeſted with as much judgment as care, muſt be the ſame with the Condur of the Ameri⯑cans, and the Roc of the Orientals. Moreover, I am of opinion, that the bird of prey found in the vicinity of Tarnaſar^†, a city in the Eaſt [147] Indies, which is much larger than the eagle, and whoſe bill ſerves for the hilt of a ſword, is likewiſe the Condur; as well as the Vulture of Senegal^*, which attacks and carries off children; and that the ſavage bird of Lapland^†, as large and thick as a ſheep, mentioned by Regnard and Martiniere, and of whoſe neſt Olaus Mag⯑nus gives an engraving, is probably the ſame. But not to draw our compariſons from ſuch diſtant countries, to what other ſpecies muſt we refer the Laemmer Geyer (Lamb-Vulture) of the Germans^‡? This Vulture, the plunderer of lambs and ſheep, which has been often ſeen at [148] different times in Germany and Switzerland, and which is much larger than the agle, muſt be the Condur. Geſner relates, from the teſti⯑mony of an author of credit (George Fabricius) the following facts. Some peaſants between Mieſen and Briſa, cities in Germany, loſing every day ſome of their cattle, which they in vain ſought for in the foreſts, obſerved a very large neſt reſting on three oaks, conſtructed with ſticks and branches of trees, and as wide as would cover a cart. They found in this neſt three young birds already ſo large, that their wings extended ſeven ells; their legs were as thick as thoſe of a lion, the nails of the ſize of a man's fingers; and in the neſt, were ſeve⯑ral ſkins of calves and ſheep. Valmont de Bo⯑mare and Salerne have thought, as well as my⯑ſelf, that the Laemmer Geyer of the Alps muſt be the Condur of Peru. Its ſpread wings, ſays Bomare, extend fourteen feet; it commits dread⯑ful [149] havoc among the goats, the ſheep, the cha⯑mois, the hares and the marmots. Salerne alſo relates a deciſive fact on this ſubject, which de⯑ſerves to be quoted at length. ‘In 1719, M. Dé⯑radin, father-in-law to M. de Lac, ſhot at his caſtle of Mylourdin, in the pariſh of Saint-Martind' Abat, a bird which weighed eighteen pounds, and whoſe wings meaſured eighteen feet. It flew for ſome days about a pond, and was pierced by two balls under the wing. The upper part of its body was mottled with black, grey, and white; the top of its belly red as ſcarlet; and its feathers were criſped. They ate of it both at the caſtle of Mylour⯑din and at Châteauneuf-ſur-Loire; the fleſh was found tough and fibrous, and ſmelt of the marſh. I ſaw and examined one of the ſmall feathers of the wings, which was larger than the quill-feather of the ſwan. This ſingular bird ſeemed to be the Condur.’ In ſhort, the enormous ſize muſt be conſidered as a deciſive character; and though the Laem⯑mer Geyer of the Alps differs from the Condur of Peru by the tints of its plumage, we cannot but refer them to the ſame ſpecies, at leaſt till we obtain a more accurate deſcription of both.

It appears from the teſtimonies of travellers, that the Condur of Peru has a plumage marked with black and white, like that of the magpie; and therefore the large bird killed in France at the caſtle of Mylourdin reſembles it both in ſize [150] and colour. We may therefore conclude, with great probability, that theſe exalted ſort of birds, though very rare, are ſcattered over both con⯑tinents; and feeding upon every kind of prey, and dreading nothing but the human race, avoid the habitations of men, and confine their haunts to extenſive deſerts, or lofty mountains.

The KITE and the BUZZARDS.

THESE ignoble, filthy, and ſlothful birds ought to follow the vultures, which they reſem⯑ble by their diſpoſitions and habits. The vul⯑tures, though deſtitute of every generous qua⯑lity, claim, by their ſize and ſtrength, a princi⯑pal rank among the feathered race. The Kites and Buzzards, inferior to theſe in force and magnitude, far exceed them in numbers. They are more troubleſome; they oftener viſit inha⯑bited ſpots, and ſettle nearer the reſidence of men; they build their neſts in places more ac⯑ceſſible; they ſeldom remain in deſerts, but pre⯑fer the fertile hills and dales to the barren moun⯑tains. In ſuch ſituations, Nature, aſſiſted by the forming induſtry of man, teems with vegetable and animal productions, and preſents an eaſy and abundant harveſt to the voracious tribe. The Kites and Buzzards are neither bold nor timid; they have a kind of ſtupid ferocity, which gives them an air of cool intrepidity, and ſeems to remove the ſenſe of danger. It is eaſier to approach and to kill them than the eagles or vultures; when detained in captivity, they are leſs capable of inſtruction; and they have always [152] been proſcribed and eraſed from the catalogue of noble birds, and baniſhed from the ſchool of falconry. In all ages, it has been common to compare a groſs ſhameleſs man to a Kite, and a diſguſting ſtupid woman to a Buzzard.

Though theſe birds reſemble each other in their inſtinct, their ſize^*, and the form of their bill and other characters, the Kite is however eaſily diſtinguiſhed, not only from the Buzzards, but from all other birds of prey, by a ſingle prominent feature: its tail is forked; the middle feathers being ſhorter than the reſt, leave a blank which can be perceived at a diſtance, and which has improperly given occaſion to the name of Forked-tail-Eagle. Its wings are alſo propor⯑tionally longer than thoſe of the Buzzard, and it flies with far greater eaſe. It ſpends its life in the region of the clouds; it ſeldom courts repoſe, and every day it traverſes an immenſe range. But it performs theſe continual circling journies, not with the view to procure its prey; it only indulges its natural its favourite exerciſe. One cannot but admire the eaſe and the elegance of its motion; its long narrow wings ſeem perfectly fixed; the tail alone appears to direct all its evo⯑lutions, and it quivers inceſſantly; it riſes with⯑out making an exertion, and deſcends as if it [153] were gliding along an inclined plane; it accele⯑rates its courſe, it retards it; it ſtops, hovers ſuſpended in the ſame place for whole hours, nor is obſerved even in the leaſt to quiver its expanded wings.

In our climate, there is only one ſpecies of Kite, which the French call the Royal Kite ^*, becauſe it was formerly an amuſement for princes to hunt this cowardly bird with the falcon or the ſparrow-hawk. It is indeed entertaining to ſee it, though poſſeſſed of all that ought to inſpire courage, and deficient neither in weapons, ſtrength, nor agility, decline the combat, and fly before a ſparrow-hawk ſmaller than itſelf; it conſtantly circles, and riſes, as it were, to conceal itſelf in the clouds, and when overtaken, it ſuffers itſelf to be beaten without reſiſtance, and brought to the ground, not wounded, but vanquiſhed, and rather overcome with fear, than ſubdued by the force of its antagoniſt.

[154] Though the Kite ſcarcely weighs two pounds and an half, and meaſures only ſixteen or ſeventeen inches from the point of the bill to the toes, its wings extend near five feet; the cere, the iris, and the feet are yellow; the bill is of a horn colour, blackiſh towards the point, and the nails are black; its ſight is as keen as its flight is rapid; ſometimes it ſoars ſo high in the air, as to be beyond the reach of our view, and yet at this immenſe diſtance, it diſtinctly perceives its food, and deſcends upon whatever it can devour or ravage without reſiſtance; its attacks are confined to the ſmalleſt animals and the feebleſt birds; it is particularly fond of young chickens, but the fury of the mother is alone ſufficient to repel the robber. ‘Kites,’ one of my friends writes me^*, ‘are exceedingly cowardly animals. I have ſeen two of them chaſe a bird of prey together to ſhare the ſpoils, and yet not ſucceed. The ravens in⯑ſult them, and drive them away. They are as voracious as they are daſtardly; I have ſeen them pick up, on the ſurface of the water, ſmall dead and half rotten fiſh; I have ob⯑ſerved ſome carry a large viper in their claws; others feed upon the carcaſſes of horſes and oxen. I have ſeen ſome alight upon tripes, which women were waſhing by the ſide of a rivulet, and ſnatch it almoſt in their preſence. [155] I once offered a young Kite, which the chil⯑dren were breeding in the houſe where I lived, a pretty large young pigeon, and it ſwallowed it entire with the feathers.’

This ſort of Kite is common in France, eſpe⯑cially in the provinces of Franche-compté, Dau⯑phiné, Bugey, Auvergne, and in all the others which are in the vicinity of mountains. It is not a bird of paſſage, for it conſtructs its neſt in theſe countries, and breeds in the hollow of rocks. It appears even that they neſtle in England, and remain there during the whole year^*. The female lays two or three eggs, which are whitiſh, with pale yellow ſpots, and like thoſe of all the carnivorous birds, are rounder than hen's eggs. Some authors have ſaid that they build their neſts in the foreſts, upon old oaks or firs. Without venturing abſolutely to deny the fact, we can affirm that they are commonly found in the holes of rocks.

This ſpecies ſeems to be ſcattered through the whole extent of the ancient continent, from Sweden to Senegal^†; but I am uncertain if it [156] be alſo found in the new; for no mention is made of it in the accounts that are given of America. There is indeed a bird, which is ſaid to be a native of Peru, and appears in Carolina only in ſummer, which in ſome reſpects reſem⯑bles the Kite, and has like it a forked tail. Cateſby gives a deſcription and figure of it under the name of Swallow-tailed-Falcon, and Briſſon terms it the Carolina Kite ^A. I am inclined to believe that it is a ſpecies related to that of our Kite, and occupies its place in the new continent.

But there is another ſpecies ſtill nearer related, and which appears in our latitudes as a bird of paſſage; it is called the Black Kite. Ariſtotle diſ⯑tinguiſhes this from the preceding, which he [157] names ſimply Kite, and gives it the epithet of Aetolian, becauſe, in his time, it was probably moſt common in Aetolia^*. Belon alſo mentions theſe two Kites; but he is miſtaken when he ſays that the firſt, which is the Royal Kite, is blacker than the ſecond, which he notwithſtand⯑ing calls Black Kite. Perhaps it is an error of the preſs, for it is certain that the Royal Eagle is not ſo black as the other. No naturaliſt, an⯑cient or modern, has attended to the moſt obvious diſtinction between theſe two birds, which is founded in the difference of the figure of their tails. But in ſize, their ſhape and their in⯑ſtinctive habits, they bear a cloſe reſemblance, and muſt therefore be conſidered as kindred ſpecies^†.

Aldrovandus ſays, that the Hollanders call this Kite Kukenduff, and that though ſmaller than the Royal Eagle, it is ſtronger and more agile. Schwenckfeld affirms on the contrary, that it is weaker and more ſlothful, and that it preys only upon field-mice, graſshoppers, and upon ſmall birds, as they riſe from their neſts.

[158] He adds, that this ſpecies is very common in Germany; this may be true, but we are certain that in France and England it is much leſs frequent than the Royal Kite. The one is a native, and reſides with us the whole year; the other is a bird of paſſage, which quits our cli⯑mate in autumn, and migrates to warmer re⯑gions. Belon was an eye-witneſs of their paſ⯑ſage from Europe to Egypt;—before the ap⯑proach of winter, they traverſe the Black-ſea, marſhalled in numerous lines, and return in the ſame order about the beginning of April: they remain the whole winter in Egypt, and are ſo tame, that they enter the cities, and alight upon the windows of the houſes; their ſight is ſo quick, and their flight ſo ſteady, that they catch in the air the bits of meat that are thrown to them^A.

The BUZZARD^*.
• La Buſe, Buff. , • Falco Buteo, Linn. , • Goiran, Hiſt. de Lyons. , • Maaſſe Geyer, Gunth. , and • Pojana Secunda, Zinn. 

THE Buzzard is ſo common and ſo well known, that it requires no particular de⯑ſcription. Its length is twenty or twenty⯑one inches; its alar extent four feet and an half; its tail is only eight inches, and the wings, when cloſed, reach a little beyond its point; the iris is of a pale yellow, and al⯑moſt whitiſh; the cere and feet are yellow, and the nails black.

This bird reſides the whole year in our foreſts; it appears ſtupid, whether in the domeſtic ſtate, or in that of liberty; it is ſedentary, and even indolent; it often continues for ſeveral hours together perched upon the ſame tree; its neſt is conſtructed with ſmall branches lined in the in⯑ſide with wool, and other ſoft, light materials; it lays two or three eggs, which are whitiſh, [160] ſpotted with yellow. It feeds and tends its young longer than the other birds of prey, moſt of which expel their brood before they are able to provide with eaſe for themſelves. Ray even af⯑firms that if the mother happen to be killed in the time of her tender charge, the male Buzzard patiently diſcharges the truſt.

This bird of rapine does not ſeize its prey on the wing; it ſits on a tree, a buſh, or a hillock, and darts upon the humble game that comes within its reach. It catches young hares and young rabbits, as well as partridges and quails; it commits havoc upon the neſts of moſt birds; and when more generous ſubſiſtence is ſcanty, it ſubſiſts upon frogs, lizards, ſerpents, and graſs-hoppers.

This ſpecies is ſubject to great variety, ſo that if we compare five or ſix common Buzzards together, we ſhall ſcarcely find two that are alike. Some are entirely white; in others, the head only is white; others again are mottled with brown and white. Theſe differences are owing chiefly to the age and ſex, for they are all found in our own climate^A

The HONEY BUZZARD.
• La Bondrée, Buff. , • Falco Apivorus, Linn. , and • Pojana, Zinn. 

AS the Honey Buzzard differs but little from the Common Buzzard, they have been diſtin⯑guiſhed by thoſe only who have carefully com⯑pared them. They have indeed more analogous than diſcriminating characters, but the difference of external appearance and of natural habits, is ſufficient to conſtitute two ſpecies; which, though allied, are yet ſeparate and independent. The Honey Buzzard is as large as the Buzzard, and weighs near two pounds; its length from the point of the bill to the end of the tail is twenty-two inches; its wings extend four feet two inches, and when cloſed reach to three-fourths of the tail; its bill is rather longer than that of the Buzzard; the cere is yellow, thick, and un⯑equal^*; its noſtrils are long and curved; when the bill opens, the mouth appears very large and of a yellow colour; the iris is of a bright yel⯑low; the legs and feet are of the ſame colour, [162] and the nails, which are not much hooked, are ſtrong and blackiſh; the head is large and flat, and of a grey cinereous. A full deſcription of this bird occurs in the work of Briſſon and in that of Albin; the laſt author, after deſcribing the ex⯑ternal parts of the Honey Buzzard, ſays, that its inteſtines are ſhorter than in the Common Buzzard; and he adds, that there are found in the ſtomach of the Honey Buzzard ſeveral green caterpillars, as alſo ſome common caterpillars and other inſects.

Theſe birds, as well as the Common Buzzards, build their neſts with ſmall ſticks, and line them with wool; their eggs are of an aſh-colour, and marked with ſmall brown ſpots. Sometimes they take poſſeſſion of the neſts of other birds; for they have been found in an old neſt of the Kite. They feed their young with cryſalids, and particularly with thoſe of waſps. The heads and different portions of waſps have been diſ⯑covered in a neſt in which were two young Honey Buzzards. At that tender age, they are covered with a white down, ſpotted with black; the feet are of a pale yellow, and the cere white. In the ſtomach of theſe birds, which is very large, there are alſo found entire frogs and lizards. The female is larger than the male, and both trip and run, without the aſſiſtance of their wings, as faſt as our dunghill cocks.

Though Belon ſays that there is not a young ſhepherd in Limagne in Auvergne, who is not [163] acquainted with the Honey Buzzard, and could not catch it with a ſnare baited with frogs, or bird⯑lime, or even with a nooſe, it is certain that at preſent they are more rare in France than the Common Buzzard. Among twenty Buzzards brought to me at different times in Burgundy, there was not a ſingle Honey Buzzard; nor do I know from what province the ſpecimen came which we have in the king's cabinet. Salerne ſays, that in the country of Orleans, the Com⯑mon Buzzard is named Honey Buzzard; but theſe may be different birds.

The Honey Buzzard generally ſits upon low trees to ſpy its prey. It catches field mice, frogs, lizards, caterpillars, and other inſects. It ſcarcely flies but from tree to tree, or from buſh to buſh, always low; nor does it ſoar like the Kite, which it reſembles by its inſtincts, but from which it can be readily diſtinguiſhed by its motions and the ſhape of its tail. It is com⯑mon to place ſnares for the Honey Buzzard, becauſe in winter it is very fat and delicate to eat.

The BIRD SAINT MARTIN.
• L'Oiſeau Saint Martin, Buff. and Bel. , • Falco Cyaneus, Linn. , • Falco Torquatus (Mas.) Briſſ. , • Pygargus Accipiter (Mas.) Ray and Will. , • Falco Albanella, Gerin. , • Lanarius Cinereus, Friſ. , • Falco Plumbeus Cauda Teſſelata, Klein. , and • Hen Harrier, Penn. Edw. Will. Alb. and Lath. 

THE modern naturaliſts have given this bird the name of Lanner Falcon or Cinereous Lanner; but it appears to be of a different genus from either the Faĺcon or the Lanner. It is rather larger than the common crow, and its body is proportionally more delicate and flex⯑ible. Its legs are long and ſlender: whereas thoſe of the Falcon are robuſt and ſhort; and the Lanner is deſcribed by Belon to be ſtill lower on its legs than any Falcon; but in this character it reſembles the White John and the Ring-tail. The only analogy therefore which ſubſiſts be⯑tween it and the Lanner, is founded in the habit of tearing with its bill all the ſmall animals which it catches, and in not ſwallowing them entire like the other large birds of prey. It ought, ſays Edwards, to be claſſed with the Long⯑tailed Falcons: in my opinion, it ſhould be [165] ranged with the Buzzards, or rather placed next the Ring-tail, to which it is ſimilar in its in⯑ſtincts, and in many of its properties^*.

This bird is pretty common in France, as well as Germany and England; the ſpecimen which we have figured was killed in Burgundy. Friſch has given two plates of this ſame bird, N^o 79 and 80, which differ ſo little from each other, that we cannot conſider them, as he does, a different ſpecies; for the varieties which he re⯑marks are ſo light, that they muſt be aſcribed ſolely to age or ſex. Edwards, who alſo pre⯑ſents an engraving of this bird, ſays, that the ſpecimen from which it was taken was killed near London; and he adds, that it was obſerved to flutter about the foot of ſome old trees, and ſometimes to ſtrike the trunks with its bill and claws, and that the reaſon of the motion could not be perceived till after its death, when the body being opened, there were found in its ſtomach twenty ſmall lizzards, torn or cut into two or three portions.

[166] When we compare this bird with what Belon ſays of this ſecond Saint Martin, we cannot doubt of their identity; and beſides the reſem⯑blance in point of ſize, ſhape, and colour, their natural habits of flying low, and ſearching eager⯑ly and inceſſantly for ſmall reptiles, belong not ſo much to the Falcons and other noble birds, as to the Buzzard, the Harpy, and others which partake of the groveling manners of the Kites. This bird, which is well deſcribed and figured by Edwards, is different from what the authors of the Britiſh Zoology name the Hen Harrier. Theſe are diſtinct birds, of which the firſt, what we call after Belon the Saint Martin, has, as I have ſaid, been mentioned by Friſch and Briſſon under the name of Lanner-Falcon or Cinereous Lanner; the ſecond, which is the Subbuteo of Geſner; and which we term Soubuſe, has been named White-tail-Eagle by Al⯑bin, and Collared-Falcon by Briſſon. Beſides, the falconers call this bird Saint Martin, the Hawk Harpy. Harpy is among them a generic name, which they apply not only to the bird Saint Martin, but to the Ring-tail and the Red Buz⯑zard, of which we ſhall afterwards ſpeak.

The SOUBUSE.
• La Soubuſe, Buff. , • Falco Pygargus, Linn. , • Falco Torquatus (fem.) Briſſ. , and • Ring-tail, Penn. Alb. Will. Lath. &c. 

THIS bird reſembles the Saint Martin in its inſtincts and habits; both fly low to catch field-mice and reptiles; both enter the outer⯑court, and haunt the places where poultry is kept, to ſeize young pigeons and chickens; both are ignoble birds, which attack only the weak and feeble, and therefore deſerve neither the name of Falcons nor that of Lanners.

The male, as in other rapacious birds, is much ſmaller than the female, and is beſides diſtin⯑guiſhed by the want of a collar, that is of ſmall feathers briſtled round the neck. This differ⯑ence ſeemed to conſtitute a ſpecific character; but very ſkilful falconers aſſured us, that it was only ſexual; and upon examining more cloſely, we found the ſame proportions between the tail and the wings, the ſame diſtribution of colours, the ſame form of the neck, head, and bill, &c. ſo that we could not oppoſe their opinion. But what occaſioned more difficulty was, that almoſt all the naturaliſts have given the Ring-tail a different male, which is what we have named [168] Saint Martin; and it was only after numberleſs compariſons that we determined to ſet aſide their authority. We ſhall remark that the Sou⯑buſe is found both in France and in England; that it has long and ſlender legs like the Saint Martin; that it builds its neſt in thick buſhes, and lays three or four reddiſh eggs; and that theſe two birds, with the one which we ſhall mention in the next article by the name of Harpy, form a ſmall genus more nearly allied to the Kites and Buzzards than to the Fal⯑cons. ^A [169]

The HARPY^*.
• La Harpaye, Buff. , • Circus Rufus, Gmel. , • Fiſch-Geyer, Brand-Geyer, Friſch. , and • Harpy Falcon, Lath. 

HARPY is an ancient generic name which has been beſtowed upon the Moor or Marſh Buzzards, and ſome other kindred tribes; ſuch as the Ringtail and the Hen-harrier, which has been termed the Hawk Harpy. We have conſidered the name as ſpecific, and have ap⯑plied it to the bird which falconers at preſent call Red-harpy, and which our nomenclators term Red-buzzard; and Friſch, improperly, Middle Lanner Vulture, as he has alſo impro⯑perly termed the Marſh Buzzard, Great Lanner Vulture. We have preferred the ſimple name of Harpy, becauſe it is certain that this bird is neither a Vulture nor a Buzzard. Its habits are the ſame with thoſe of the two birds which we have treated in the two preceding articles. It catches fiſh like the White John, and draws them alive out of the water. It ſeems, ſays [171] Friſch, to have a more acute ſight than any of the other birds of rapine, its eye-brows being more projected. It is found both in France and in Germany, and loves to haunt the ſides of rivers and pools. In its inſtincts it reſembles the preceding, and therefore we ſhall not be more particular.

The MOOR BUZZARD^*.
• Le Buſard, Buff. , • Falco Aeruginoſus, Linn. Gmel. Ray, Will. Klein, & Friſch. , • Falco Boeticus, Gerin. , • Faux-Perdrieux, Belon. , • Il Bozzargo, Cet. , and • Il Nibbio, Zinn. 

Though the Moor Buzzard reſembles the Black Kite in many reſpects, we muſt take care not to confound them; for the Moor Buzzard has, like the Common Buzzard, the Honey Buzzard, &c. a ſhort thick neck; whereas the Kite has a much larger one. And the Moor Buzzard is diſtinguiſhed from the Common Buzzard: firſt, by the places it haunts; ſecondly, by its flight, which is more rapid and ſteady; thirdly, be⯑cauſe it never perches upon large trees, but reſts upon the ground, or in the buſhes; fourthly, by the length of its legs, which, like thoſe of the Hen-harrier and Ringtail, are proportionally taller and ſlenderer than thoſe of the other birds of rapine.

The Moor Buzzard prefers water-fowl; as divers, ducks, &c. It catches fiſh alive, and tranſports them in its talons; and when nobler prey fails, it feeds upon reptiles, toads, frogs, and aquatic inſects. Though ſmaller than the Common Buzzard, it procures a more plentiful ſubſiſtence; probably becauſe it is more active and vigorous in its movements, and has a [174] keener appetite: it is alſo more courageous. Belon aſſerts, that he has ſeen it trained to hunt and catch rabbits, partridges, and quails. It flies more heavily than the Kites; and, when it is purſued by the Falcons, it does not riſe into the air, but flies in a horizontal direction. A ſingle Falcon is not able to get the better of it, and it would require two or three to be let looſe at once; for, like the Kite, it meets its antago⯑niſt, but makes a more vigorous and bold de⯑fence. The hobbies and the keſtrils are afraid of it, decline the conflict, and even fly its ap⯑proach.

FOREIGN BIRDS, WHICH RESEMBLE THE KITE, THE BUZZARDS, AND THE RINGTAIL.

The SPARROW-HAWK^*.
• L'Epervier, Buff. , • Falco Niſus, Linn. , • Accipiter, Briſſ. , • Accipiter Fringillarius, Ray, Will. and Klein. , • Niſus Striatus, Sagittatus, Friſ. , • Lo Sparviero, Cett. , and • Sperver, Gunth. 

THOUGH nomenclators have reckoned ſeveral ſpecies of Sparrow-hawks, we are of opi⯑nion that they may all be reduced to one. Briſſon mentions four ſpecies, or varieties; viz. the Common Sparrow-hawk, the Spotted Spar⯑row-hawk, the Small Sparrow-hawk, and the Lark Sparrow-hawk. But we have diſcovered that this Lark Sparrow-hawk is only a female Keſtril. We have alſo found that the Small Sparrow-hawk is but the Tiercel, or male of the Common Sparrow-hawk; ſo that there remains only the Spotted Sparrow-hawk, which is mere⯑ly an accidental variety of the common ſpecies of the Sparrow-hawk. Klein is the firſt who has mentioned this variety; and he ſays, that it was ſent to him from the country of Marienbourg: we ought therefore to refer the Small Sparrow-hawk [180] and the Spotted Sparrow-hawk to the common ſpecies, and exclude the Lark Spar⯑row-hawk, which is only the female Keſtril.

It appears that the Sorrel Tiercel of the Spar⯑row-hawk, N^o 466, pl. Eul. differs from the Haggard Tiercel, N^o 467, pl. Eul. the breaſt and belly of the former being much whiter, and with a much ſmaller mixture of ruſt-colour than in the latter, in which theſe parts are almoſt en⯑tirely ruſt, and croſſed with brown bars; in the former the breaſt is marked with ſpots, or with much more irregular bars. The male Sparrow-hawk is called Taſſel ^* by the falconers; its back receives more brown as it grows older, and the tranſverſe bars on the breaſt are not very regular till it has undergone the firſt or ſecond moult: the ſame may be obſerved of the female, N^o 412, pl. Eul. To give a fuller idea of the changes in the diſtribution of the colours, we ſhall remark that the ſpots on the breaſt and belly of the Sor⯑rel Tiercel are almoſt all detached, and form ra⯑ther the figure of a heart, or rounded triangle, than a continued and uniform ſucceſſion of a brown colour, ſuch as we perceive in the bars on the breaſt and belly of the Haggard Tiercel, that is of the Tiercel which has had two moult⯑ings: the ſame changes happen in the female, in which the brown tranſverſe belts are in the firſt year only unconnected ſpots. It will be found in the following article that the Gos-hawk [181] is ſtill more remarkable for the variations of colour. Nothing more clearly demonſtrates that the characters which our nomenclators have drawn from the diſtribution of colours are in⯑ſufficient, than that the ſame bird has the firſt year ſpots or brown longitudinal bars extend⯑ing downwards; and the ſecond year is marked with tranſverſe belts of the ſame colour. This ſingular change is more ſtriking in the Gos-hawk, and in the Sparrow-hawks; but it occurs in a certain degree alſo in other ſpecies of birds. In ſhort, all the ſyſtems that are founded upon difference of colour and diſtribution of ſpots, are in the preſent caſe entirely futile.

The Sparrow-hawk continues the whole year in our provinces. The ſpecies is numerous; I have received many in the depth of winter that had been killed in the woods; at that time they were very lean, and weighed only ſix ounces. They are nearly of the ſize of a magpie. The female is much larger than the male; ſhe builds her neſt on the loftieſt trees of the foreſt, and generally lays four or five eggs, which are ſpot⯑ted with a yellow reddiſh near the ends. The Sparrow-hawk is docile, and can be eaſily train⯑ed to hunt partridges and quails; it alſo catches pigeons that ſtray from their flock, and commits prodigious devaſtation on the chaffinches, and other ſmall birds which troop together in win⯑ter. It is probable that the Sparrow-hawk is more numerous than we ſuppoſe; for beſides [182] thoſe that remain the whole year in our climate, it appears at certain ſeaſons to migrate in im⯑menſe bodies to other countries^*; and the ſpe⯑cies is found ſcattered in the ancient continent^†, from Sweden^‡ to the Cape of Good Hope^‖. ^A [183]

The GOS-HAWK.
• L'Autour, Buff. , • Falco Palumbarius, Linn. Gmel. Will. Klein, &c. , • Aſtur, Briſſ. , • Groſſe Gepfeilter Falck, Friſch. , • In Italian, Aſtore. , • In German, Habicht, Groſſer Habicht. , and • In Poliſh, Jaſtrzabwielki ^*. 

The Gos-hawk is furniſhed with longer legs than other birds to which it bears a cloſe analogy; as the White Jer-Falcon, which is nearly of the ſame ſize: the male is much ſmaller than the female: both are carried on the hand, and not uſed as decoys; they ſoar not ſo high as thoſe whoſe wings are longer in proportion to their body; they have many habits in common with the Sparrow-hawk, yet they do not dart directly downwards upon their prey, but catch it by a ſide ſhoot. It appears by Belon's account that the Gos-hawk can be enſnared by a contriv⯑ance ſimilar to what is practiſed againſt the Spar⯑row-hawk. A white pigeon, which can be per⯑ceived at a great diſtance, is placed between four nets, nine or ten feet high, incloſing a ſpace of nine or ten feet each way round the pigeon, which is in the centre, the Gos-hawk deſcends ob⯑liquely, (a proof that he makes only ſide attacks,) puſhes the net to reach his prize, and though [186] entangled, he devours it, and till ſated makes few attempts to eſcape.

The Gos-hawk is found in the mountains of Franche Compté, of Dauphinè, of Bugey, and even in the foreſts of the province of Burgundy, and in the neighbourhood of Paris; but it is ſtill more common in Germany than in France, and the ſpecies ſeems to penetrate in the countries of the north as far as Sweden, and advance in thoſe of the eaſt and ſouth, to Perſia and Bar⯑bary. Thoſe bred in Greece are, according to Belon, the beſt of all for falconry. ‘They have,’ ſays he, ‘a large head, a thick neck, and much plumage. Thoſe of Armenia,’ he adds, ‘have green eyes; in thoſe of Perſia, they are light-coloured, hollow and ſunk; in thoſe of Africa, which are leſs eſteemed, they are at firſt black, and after moulting, become red.’ But this character is not peculiar to the Gos-hawks of Africa; thoſe of our own climate have eyes which aſſume a deeper red as they advance in age. There is, in the Gos-hawks of France, a difference or variety even of plumage and colour, which has drawn naturaliſts into a ſort of miſ⯑take. They have applied the name of Moor Buzzard (Buſard) to a Gos-hawk, whoſe plumage is light-coloured, and which is more indolent than the Brown Gos-hawk, and not ſo eaſily trained. It is, however, undoubtedly a Gos-hawk, though the falconers reject it. This light-coloured Gos-hawk admits even a ſlight [187] variety, where the wings are ſpotted with white, from which circumſtance it has been called the Variegated Moor Buzzard. But both theſe birds are really Gos-hawks.

I kept for a long time a male and a female of the Brown Gos-hawk: the female was at leaſt a third larger than the male, and its wings, when cloſed, did not reach within ſix inches of the end of the tail: it was more bulky at four months old, which I conceive to be the term of the growth of theſe birds, than a large capon. During the firſt five or ſix weeks, theſe birds were of a grey white; the back, the neck, and the wings, became gradually brown; the belly and the under-part of the throat did not change ſo much, and were generally white or yellowiſh white, with longitudinal brown ſpots the firſt year, and tranſverſe brown bars the following years. The bill is of a dirty blue, and the cere is of a leaden colour; the legs are featherleſs, and the toes of a deep yellow; the nails are blackiſh, and the feathers of the tail, which are brown, are marked with very broad bars of a dull grey colour. During the firſt year, the feathers under the throat are in the male mottled with a reddiſh colour, by which circumſtance it differs from the female; though, if we except the ſize, it cloſely reſembles it in other re⯑ſpects.

It was obſerved, that though the male was much ſmaller than the female, it was fiercer and [188] more vicious; they were both difficult to tame; they fought often, but rather with their claws than with their bill, which they ſeldom employ but to tear the birds or other ſmall animals that they want to catch; they turn upon their back and defend themſelves with their ſpread talons. Though confined in the ſame cage, they were never perceived to contract the leaſt affection for each other. They continued together a whole ſummer, from the beginning of May to the end of November, when the female in a violent fit of rage, murdered her mate, at nine or ten o'clock in the evening, when the ſilence of night had ſoothed the reſt of the feathered race in profound repoſe. Their diſpoſitions are ſo bloody, that if a Gos-hawk be left with ſeveral Falcons, it butchers them all, one after another. It appears, however, to prefer the common and field mice and ſmall birds, and eagerly devours raw fleſh, but conſtantly de⯑clines meat that has been cooked; however, by long faſting, it can be brought to overcome this natural averſion. It plucks the birds very neatly, and tears them into pieces before it feeds; but it ſwallows the mice entire. Its excrements are whitiſh and watery; it often diſgorges the ſkins of the mice rolled together. Its cry is raucous, ending always in ſharp notes, the more diſa⯑greeable the oftener they are repeated; it diſ⯑covers a conſtant uneaſineſs when a perſon ap⯑proaches; it ſtartles at every thing; ſo that a [189] perſon cannot paſs near the cage where it is kept, without throwing it into violent agitations, and occaſioning repeated ſcreams. ^A

FOREIGN BIRDS, THAT ARE RELATED TO THE SPARROW-HAWK AND GOS-HAWK.

The JER-FALCON.
• Le Gerfaut, Buff. 

THE Jer-falcon, both in its figure and its diſpoſitions, deſerves to be ranked the firſt of all the birds of falconry. It exceeds them all in point of ſize, being at leaſt equal in bulk to the Gos-hawk. It differs from them by certain general and invariable characters which belong excluſively to thoſe peculiarly calculated for ſport. Theſe noble birds are, the Jer-falcons, the Falcons, the Sacres, the Lanners, the Hob⯑bies, the Merlins, and the Keſtrils; their wings are almoſt as long as their tail; the firſt feather of the wing, called the ^* hoop, is nearly as long as that inſerted next it, and about an inch of the extremity is ſharpened into a figure re⯑ſembling the blade of a knife. In the Gos-hawks, the Sparrow-hawks, the Kites, and the Buzzards, the tail is longer than the wings, and the firſt feather of the wing is much ſhorter, and is rounded at the end. Beſides, the longeſt feather in theſe is the fourth of the wing, but it is the ſecond in the former. We may add, that the Jer-falcon differs from the Gos-hawk []

[193] alſo by its bill and feet, which are bluiſh, and by its plumage, which is brown on all the upper part of the body, and white ſpotted with brown on the under, and its tail, which is gray, and barred with duſky lines. (N^o 210, Pl. Enl.) This bird is common in Iceland, and it appears that there is a variety in the ſpecies; for we have received from Norway a Jer-falcon, which is found in all the arctic regions, (N^o 462, Pl. Enl.) but differs ſomewhat from the other by the ſhades and diſtribution of the colours, and which is more eſteemed by the falconers than that of Iceland, on account of its greater courage, ac⯑tivity, and docility. But there is another vari⯑ety, (Pl. Enl. N^o 446.) which is entirely white, and which, if it were not found alike in all the dreary tracts of the north, might be aſcribed to the influence of the climate. Intelligent fal⯑coners inform me, that the young have the ſame colour, which they always retain; we can neither attribute the change therefore to extreme age nor exceſſive cold. It is therefore probable, that there are three diſtinct and permanent breeds of the Jer-falcons; viz. the Iceland Jer-falcon, the Norwegian Jer-falcon, and the White Jer-falcon. Theſe birds are natives of the inhoſ⯑pitable arctic regions, both in Europe and in Aſia; they inhabit Ruſſia, Norway, Iceland, and Tartary, but are never found in the warm or even temperate countries. Next to the Eagle it is the moſt formidable, the moſt active, and the [194] moſt intrepid of all the rapacious birds; and it is alſo the deareſt and the moſt eſteemed for fal⯑conry. It is tranſported from Iceland and Ruſſia into France^*, Italy, and even into Perſia and Turkey^†; nor does the heat of theſe climates appear to diminiſh its ſtrength or blunt its vivacity. It boldly attacks the largeſt of the feathered race; the ſtork, the heron, and the crane, are eaſy victims: it kills hares by darting directly down upon them.—The female, as in the other birds of prey, is much larger and ſtronger than the male, which is called the Tiercel Jer-Falcon, and is uſed in falconry only to catch the kite, the heron and the crows. ^A [195]

The LANNER.
• Le Lanier, Buff. , • Falco Laniarius ^*, Linn. Gmel. Ray, Briſſ. Klein, &c. , • Lanneret, Alb. , • In German, Swimer, or Schmeymer. , and • In Italian, Laniero. 

THIS bird, which Aldrovandus calls Lani⯑arius Gallorum, and which Belon ſays is a native of France, and more uſed by the fal⯑coners than any other, is now become ſo rare, that we could not procure a ſpecimen of it. It occurs in none of our cabinets, nor is it found in the ſeries of coloured birds by Edwards, Friſch, and the authors of the Britiſh Zoology. Belon himſelf, though he deſcribes it at con⯑ſiderable length, does not give the figure; and it is the ſame with Geſner, Aldrovandus, and the other modern naturaliſts.—Briſſon and Salerne confeſs that they never ſaw it; and the only figure that we have of it is in Albin, whoſe plates are known to be wretchedly executed. It appears then, that the Lanner, which is now ſo rare in France, has always been ſo in Ger⯑many, England, Switzerland, and Italy, ſince [197] the authors of theſe countries mention it upon the authority of Belon. It is however found in Sweden, for Linnaeus ranges it among the na⯑tive birds of that country; but he gives only a ſlight deſcription, and totally omits its hiſtory. All the information that we can obtain is from Belon, and we ſhall therefore tranſcribe his ac⯑count. ‘The Lanner, or Lanner-falcon,’ ſays he, ‘generally conſtructs its aerie, in France, on the talleſt trees of the foreſts; or on the moſt elevated rocks. As its diſpoſitions are more gentle and its habits more flexible than the Common Falcons, it is uſed for every pur⯑poſe. It is leſs corpulent than the Genteel Falcon, and its plumage is more beautiful than that of the Sacre, eſpecially after moult⯑ing; it is alſo ſhorter than the other Falcons. The falconers prefer the Lanner that has a large head and blue-bordered feet; it flies both on rivers and on the plains. It ſubſiſts better than any other Falcon upon coarſe fleſh. It is eaſily diſtinguiſhed, for its bill and feet are blue; the feathers on the front mottled with black and white, with ſpots ſtretching along the feathers, and not tranſverſe as in the Falcon. . . . When it ſpreads its wings, the ſpots ſeen from below appear different from thoſe of the other birds of prey; for they are ſcattered and round like ſmall pieces of money (deniers). Its neck is ſhort and thick; as alſo its bill. The female is called Lanner, [198] and is much larger than the male, which is named Lanneret; they are both ſimilar in the colour of their plumage. It remains in the country the whole year, and no bird is ſo faithful to its favourite haunt. It is eaſily trained to catch the Crane: the beſt time for ſport is after moulting, from the middle of July to the end of October; but the winter is an improper ſeaſon.’ ^A

The SACRE.
• Le Sacre, Buff. , • Falco Sacer, Gmel. Briſſ. Will. Klein, &c. , • In German, Sacker. , and • In Italian, Sacro. 

I HAVE removed this bird from the Falcons, and placed it after the Lanner; though ſome of our nomenclators conſider it only as a variety of the ſpecies of Falcons: becauſe, if we reckon it a mere variety, we ought to refer it to the Lan⯑ners rather than to the Falcons. Like the Lan⯑ner, the feet and bill of the Sacre are blue; while thoſe of the Falcons are yellow. This character, which appears ſpecific, would incline us to conclude that the Sacre is but a variety of the Lanner; but they differ widely in their ſize and the colour of their plumage, and ſeem rather to be two diſtinct though proximate kinds. It is ſomewhat ſingular that Belon is the only one who has noticed the diſtinguiſhing marks of this bird, and, without his aſſiſtance, naturaliſts would be ſcarcely, if at all, acquainted with the Sacre and the Lanner. Both have become very rare, and it is probable that their inſtincts are the ſame, and conſequently that they are kindred tribes. But as Belon examined theſe birds, and has deſcribed them really diſtinct, we ſhall [200] tranſcribe his account of the Sacre, as we have already done that of the Lanner:—The plumage of the Sacre is inferior in beauty to that of the other birds of falconry; being of a dirty fer⯑ruginous colour, like that of the Kite. It is low, its legs and toes blue, in ſome degree ſimi⯑lar to the Lanner. It would be equal to the Falcon in bulk, were it not more compact and rounder ſhaped. It is a bird of intrepid courage, and comparable in ſtrength to the Pilgrim Falcon; it is alſo a bird of paſſage, and it is rare to find a man who can boaſt that he has ever ſeen the place where it breeds. Some falconers are of opinion that it is a native of Tartary and Ruſſia, and towards the Caſpian Sea; that it mi⯑grates towards the ſouth, where it lives part of the year; and that it is caught by the falconers who watch its paſſage in the iſlands of the Ar⯑chipelago, Rhodes, Cyprus, &c. And as the Sacre can be made to ſoar after the Kite, it can alſo be trained for rural ſport, to catch wild geeſe, buſtards, olives, pheaſants, partridges, and every ſort of game. The Sacret is the male, and the Sacre the female; the only difference between which conſiſts in ſize.

If we compare this deſcription of the Sacre with what the ſame author has given of the Lanner, we ſhall eaſily perceive, firſt, that theſe two birds are nearer related to each other than to any other ſpecies: ſecondly, that they are birds of paſſage; though Belon ſays that, in his [201] time, the Lanner was a native of France, it is almoſt certain that it is not now found there: thirdly, that theſe two birds ſeem to differ eſſentially from the Falcons, becauſe their body is rounder, the legs ſhorter, the bill and the feet blue, on which account we have ſeparated them.

Some years have elapſed ſince we cauſed a bird of prey, which we were told was a Sacre, to be figured; but the deſcription which was then made has been miſlaid, and we cannot re⯑place it. ^A

The COMMON FALCON.
• Le Faucon, Buff. , • Falco Communis, Gmel. & Briſſ. , • Accipiter Fuſcus, Friſ. , • Il Falcone, Cet. uc. Sard. , and • In German, Falck; in Poliſh, Sokol; in Spaniſh, Halkon. 

Thoſe who inhabit the vicinity of our great mountains in Dauphiny, Bugey, and Auvergne, and the foot of the Alps, can aſcertain the vera⯑city of all theſe facts. There have been ſent to the King's falconry from Geneva young Falcons that had been caught in the adjoining mountains in April, and which appeared to have acquired their full ſize and vigour before the month of June. When they are young they are called Sorrel Falcons, becauſe they are then browner than in the following year (Pl. Enl. N^o 470.); and the old Falcons, which are much whiter than the young, are termed Haggards (Pl. Enl. N^o 421.). The Falcon repreſented in the laſt plate appears to be hardly two years old, and has ſtill a great number of brown ſpots on the breaſt and belly; for in the third year theſe ſpots diminiſh, and the quantity of white on the plumage increaſes (Pl. Enl. N^o 430.).

As theſe birds every where ſeek the higheſt rocks, and as moſt iſlands are but groups and points of mountaints, they abound in Rhodes, [206] Cyprus, Malta, and in the other iſlands of the Mediterranean, and even in the Orkneys and Iceland: but, according to the different climates which they inhabit, they admit of varieties, which it will be proper to mention.

The Falcon which is a native in France is about the ſize of a hen; its extreme length is eighteen inches; its tail is five inches; and its wings when ſpread are three feet and a half, and when cloſed reach to the end of the tail. It is unneceſſary to take notice of the colours of the plumage, becauſe they vary with the age. I ſhall only remark, that the feet are commonly green, and that when the feet and the cere are yellow, they receive the name of Yellow-billed-Falcons (Pl. Enl. N^o 430.), and are conſidered as inferior to the others, and deemed unfit for the ſport. The Tiercel is employed to catch par⯑tridges, magpies, jays, blackbirds, and others of that kind; but the female is engaged in the nobler chace of the hare, the kite, the crane, and other large birds.

It appears that this ſpecies of Falcon, which is very common in France, is found alſo in Germany. Friſch has given a coloured figure of the Sorrel Falcon with yellow feet and cere, by the name of Enter-ſtoſſer, or Schwartz-braune Habicht (i. e. Plunderer of ducks, or Black-brown Hawk); but he is miſtaken in terming it Brown Gos-hawk (Autour); for it differs from that bird [207] by its ſize and inſtincts^*. It ſeems that theſe occur alſo in Germany, and ſometimes in France; another ſpecies, which is the Rough-footed Fal⯑con with a white head, and which Friſch impro⯑perly calls Vulture. ‘This Vulture is completely clothed with feathers on the feet, in which cir⯑cumſtance it differs from all the diurnal rapa⯑cious birds that have a hooked bill. The Rock⯑eagle is furniſhed with ſimilar feathers, but they only reach half-way to the feet. The nocturnal birds of prey, ſuch as the owls, are indeed co⯑vered to the nails; yet this is rather a ſort of down. This Vulture chaſes every kind of prey, though it never grovels among dead carcaſſes.’ It feeds not upon carrion, becauſe it is not a Vulture but a Falcon; and ſome of our natura⯑liſts have conſidered it as only a variety of the common ſpecies in France. It bears indeed a cloſe reſemblance, and differs chiefly by the whiteneſs of its head; but the character, that its feet are covered with feathers to the nails, ſeems to be ſpecific, or at leaſt to indicate a conſtant independent variety.

A ſecond variety is the White Falcon, which occurs in Ruſſia, and perhaps in other countries of the north. Some of this ſort are of an uni⯑form white, except at the ends of the great fea⯑thers [208] of the wings, which are blackiſh; others are alſo entirely white, except a few brown ſpots on the back and wings, and a few brown ſtripes on the tail^*. Since this Falcon differs from the common kind in nothing but the whiteneſs of its plumage, we may conſider it as merely a va⯑riety occaſioned by the general influence of ex⯑treme cold. Yet in Iceland there are Falcons which have the ſame colour with ours, and are only ſomewhat larger, and have their wings and tail longer: theſe then ought not to be ſeparated from the common ſpecies. The ſame remark may be made in regard to the Genteel Falcon, which moſt naturaliſts have ſtated as different; in fact, the epithet Genteel ^† is applied when the bird is high bred, and of an elegant ſhape. Accordingly the old writers on falconry reckon⯑ed only two kinds of Falcons; the Genteel Fal⯑con, which is bred in our climates, and the Pilgrim or Peregrine Falcon, which is of foreign extraction; and they regarded all the others as varieties of either of theſe. Some Falcons in⯑deed from foreign countries pay us tranſient vi⯑ſits; they appear moſtly on the ſouthern ſhores, and are caught at Malta; they are for that rea⯑ſon called the Paſſenger Falcons, and are much blacker than the common kind. It would ap⯑pear that this Black Falcon enters into Germany as well as France; for it is the ſame with the Brown Falcon of Friſch. It even penetrates to [209] more diſtant climates; and Edwards has figured and deſcribed it under the name of the Black Falcon of Hudſon's-bay.

To the ſame ſpecies we may alſo refer the Falcon of Tunis or Carthage, mentioned by Belon, ‘which,’ he ſays, ‘is rather ſmaller than the Pilgrim Falcon, its head thicker and rounder, and in its bulk and plumage like the Lanner.’ The Tartary Falcon ought perhaps to have the ſame arrangement; which is on the contrary ſomewhat larger than the Pilgrim Falcon, and is repreſented by Belon to differ in another circumſtance, that the upper part of its wings is ruſty, and its toes longer.

To give a condenſed view of the facts which we have conſidered in detail: 1. There is in France only one ſpecies of Falcon well known, and which conſtructs its aerie in the mountain⯑ous provinces: the ſame is found alſo in Ger⯑many, Poland, Sweden, and as far as Iceland, to the north; and in Italy^*, Spain, the iſlands in the Mediterranean, and perhaps Egypt^†, to the ſouth. 2. The White Falcon is merely a variety of the ſame ſpecies, produced by the influence of a northern climate. 3. The Genteel Falcon is of the ſame ſpecies with the common kind^‡. 4. The Pilgrim or Paſſenger Falcon is [210] of a different ſpecies, and perhaps includes ſome varieties; ſuch as the Barbary Falcon, the Tunis Falcon, &c.

Whatever then the ſtatement of our nomen⯑clators may be, there are only two kinds of Fal⯑cons in Europe, the one native and the other to be regarded as foreign. If we ſurvey the numerous catalogue which Briſſon has given, we ſhall find, 1. That his Sorrel Falcon is only the young of the common ſpecies: 2. That his Haggard Falcon is an old one of the ſame: 3. That his Falcon with a white head and rough feet, is a permanent variety of the ſame kind: 4. That his White Falcon comprehends two, perhaps three, different ſpecies of birds; the firſt and third of which may derive their colour from the general influence of the arctic climates, but the ſecond, which Briſſon borrows from Friſch, is undoubtedly not a Falcon, and is only a bird of prey common in France, and named the Harpy: 5. That the Black Falcon is the true Pilgrim or Paſſenger Falcon, which may be re⯑garded as foreign: 6. That the Spotted Falcon [211] is only the young of the ſame: 7. That the Brown Falcon ought rather to be reckoned a Moor Buzzard: Friſch is the only one who has given a figure of it, and he obſerves that it ſome⯑times ſeizes wild pigeons in its flight; that it ſoars high; that it is difficult to ſhoot, and yet that it watches the aquatic birds near pools and marſhes:—theſe circumſtances combined would ſhew that it is only a variety of the Moor Buzzards, though its tail is not ſo long as theirs: 8. That his Red Falcon is only a variety of the Common Falcon, which, Belon and the old writers on falconry ſay, frequents the fenny tracts: 9. That his Red Indian Falcon is a foreign bird, of which we ſhall afterwards treat: 10. That his Ita⯑lian Falcon, the account of which he borrows from Johnſton, may be regarded as a variety of the common ſpecies of Falcon inhabiting the Alps: 11. That his Iceland Falcon is, as we have al⯑ready remarked, another variety of the Common Falcon, and only ſomewhat larger: 12. That the Sacre is not a variety of the Falcon, but a different ſpecies, which muſt be treated of ſe⯑parately: 13. That his Genteel Falcon is really the Common Falcon, only deſcribed at a different ſeaſon of moulting: 14. That Briſſon's Pilgrim Falcon is the ſame, only aged: 15. That the Barbary Falcon is but a variety of the Foreign or Paſſenger Falcon: 16. And that ſo is the Tartary Falcon: 17. That the Collared Falcon is a bird of a different genus, which we have [212] termed Soubuſe (Ring tail): 18. That the Rock Falcon is not a Falcon, but is moſt related to the Hobby and Keſtril, and ſhould therefore be con⯑ſidered apart: 19. That the Mountain Falcon is only a variety of the Rock Falcon: 20. That the Cinereous Rock Falcon is only a variety of the common ſpecies of Falcon: 21. That the Hudſon's Bay Falcon is of a different ſpecies from the European: 22. That the Stellated Falcon is of a different genus: 23. That the Creſted Falcon of India, the Falcon of the An⯑tilles, the Fiſher Falcon of the Antilles, and the Fiſher Falcon of Carolina, are all foreign birds, of which we ſhall treat in the ſequel.

Thus the Falcons are reduced to two ſpecies; the Common or Genteel Falcon, and the Paſ⯑ſenger or Pilgrim Falcon.—Let us now con⯑ſult our old writers on falconry in regard to the difference of their inſtincts, and in the pro⯑per mode of education. The Genteel Falcon drops its feathers in March, and even earlier; the Pilgrim Falcon does not moult until Auguſt. It is broader over the ſhoulders, its eyes are larger and deeper ſunk, its bill thicker, its legs longer and better ſet than in the Genteel Fal⯑con^*: thoſe caught in the neſt are called Ninny Falcons (Faucons-niais); when taken too young, they are often noiſy and difficult to train; they ought not therefore to be diſturbed till they are [213] conſiderably grown; and if they are to be re⯑moved from the neſt, they muſt not be handled, but put into another neſt as like the original one as poſſible, and fed with bears fleſh, which is common in the mountains where theſe birds are found, or inſtead of that, they may be nouriſhed with the fleſh of chickens: without theſe pre⯑cautions, their wings do not grow^*, and their legs are eaſily broken or diſlocated. The Sorrel Falcons, which are the young ones, and which have been caught in September, October, and November, are the beſt, and the eaſieſt bred: thoſe which are caught later, in winter or in the following ſpring, and conſequently are nine or ten months old, have taſted too much of freedom to ſubmit patiently to captivity, and their fidelity or obedience can never be relied on; they often deſert their maſter when he leaſt ex⯑pects it. The Pilgrim Falcons are caught in their paſſage every year in September on the iſlands in the ſea, and the high beaches by the ſhore. They are naturally quick and docile, and very eaſy to train; they may be flown all May and June; for they are late in moulting; but when it begins, they are ſoon ſtripped of their plumage. The Pilgrim Falcons are caught not only on the coaſts of Barbary, but in all the iſlands of the Mediterranean, and particularly [214] that of Candia, which formerly furniſhed our beſt Falcons.

The art of falconry does not belong to Natural Hiſtory; we ſhall not therefore enter into details, but refer to the Encyclopedie for information on that ſubject. ‘A good Falcon,’ ſays Le Roi, author of the article of falconry, ‘ought to have a round head, a ſhort thick bill, a very long neck, ſinewy breaſt, broad long thighs, ſhort legs, broad feet, ſlender toes, that are lengthened and ſinewy at the joints, ſtrong incurvated nails, long wings: the marks of ſtrength and courage are the ſame in the Jer-falcon and the Tiercel, which is the male in all the rapacious birds, and which is ſo called, becauſe it is one third leſs than the female. A more certain indication of the goodneſs of the bird, is its riding (chevaucher) againſt the wind; that is, briſtling againſt it, and ſitting firm on the hand when expoſed to it. The plumage of a Falcon ſhould be brown and of an uniform colour: the proper caſt of the ſole is ſea-green. Thoſe whoſe ſole is yellow, and whoſe plumage is ſpotted, are leſs eſteemed; the black ones are prized: but whatever be their plumage, the boldeſt are the beſt. . . . Some Falcons are lazy and cow⯑ardly; others are of ſo fiery a temper, that they can bear no reſtraint; both theſe kinds are to be rejected,’ &c.

[215] Forget, director of falconry at Verſailles, has been pleaſed to favour me with the following note:

‘There is no material difference between the Falcons of different countries, except in the ſize; thoſe which come from the north are commonly larger than thoſe from the moun⯑tains, from the Alps, and Pyrenees; the latter are taken in the neſt, the former are caught in their paſſage in various regions; they migrate in October and November, and return in February and March. . . . The age of Falcons is marked very preciſely in the ſe⯑cond year, that is, at the firſt moulting; but afterwards it is much more difficult to diſ⯑tinguiſh it. It may however be diſcovered till the third moulting, not only from the changes of the colour of the plumage, but from the complexion of the feet and cere.’

FOREIGN BIRDS, WHICH ARE RELATED TO THE JER-FALCON AND FALCONS.

The HOBBY.
• Le Hobreau, Buff. , • Falco Subbuteo, Linn. Ray, Will. Aldr. &c. , • Falco Barletta, Ger. Orn. , • Dendrofalco, Briſſ. Friſch. , and • Baum-Falck, Gunth. Neſt. 

THE Hobby is much ſmaller than the Falcon, and of a different diſpoſition. The fiery courage of the Falcon prompts him to attack birds that are far ſuperior in ſize; but the cau⯑tious Hobby, unleſs it is trained to the chace, never aſpires beyond the prey of larks and quails. The want of boldneſs, however, is compenſated by its induſtry. No ſooner does it eſpy the ſportſman and his dog than it hovers in the train, and endeavours to catch the ſmall birds that are put up before them; and what eſcapes the fowling-piece eludes not the Hobby. It ſeems not intimidated by the noiſe of fire-arms, and ignorant of their fatal effects; for it con⯑tinues to keep cloſe to the perſon who ſhoots. It frequents the champaign country near woods, eſpecially where the larks are numerous. It commits great havoc among them, and theſe are well apprized of their fatal enemy; they are alarmed when they deſcry it, and inſtantly dive into the buſhes, or ſeek concealment in the [224] herbage. This is the only way in which the lark can effect its eſcape; for though it ſoars to a great height, the Hobby can ſtill outſtrip it. The Hobby lodges and breeds in the foreſts, and perches upon the talleſt trees. In ſome of our provinces the name of Hobby is applied to the petty barons who tyrannize over their pea⯑ſants, and more particularly to gentlemen of the ſport who chuſe to hunt on their neighbours' grounds without obtaining leave, and who hunt leſs for pleaſure than for profit^*.

We may obſerve, that in this ſpecies the plu⯑mage is blacker during the firſt year than in the ſucceeding ones. In France there is a variety of the Hobby, which is repreſented Pl. Enl. N^o 431. The difference conſiſts in this; that the throat, the lower part of the neck, the breaſt, a part of the belly, and the great fea⯑thers of the wings, are cinereous and without ſpots; whereas, in the Common Hobby, the throat and the lower part of the neck are white, the breaſt and the upper part of the belly are white alſo, with longitudinal brown ſpots, and the great feathers of the wings are almoſt blac⯑kiſh. The tail, which in the common ſpecies is whitiſh below, daſhed with brown, is in the va⯑riety entirely brown. But notwithſtanding ſuch [225] differences, theſe two birds are ſtill of the ſame kind; for their ſize and port are the ſame, and they are both natives of France; and beſides, they have in common a ſingular character, that the lower part of the belly and the thighs are covered with feathers of a bright ruſt-colour, and which is ſtrongly contraſted with the reſt of the plumage. It is even not unlikely that all this diverſity of colours ariſes from the age or the ſeaſon of moulting.—We have only to add, that the Hobby is carried on the hand without any cover or hood like the Merlin, the Spar⯑row-hawk, and Gos-hawk, and that it was for⯑merly much uſed in hunting partridges and quails. ^A

The KESTREL^*.
• La Creſſerelle, Buff. , • Falco Tinnunculus, Linn. Ray, Will. Friſ. &c. , • Cenchris, Klein. , • Falco Aureus, Id. , • Bothel Geyer, Gunth. , • Kirch Falck, Brunn. , • Windwachel, Bittelweyer, Wannenweyer, Kram. , • Gheppio Acertello, Gavinello, Zinn. , and • Stannel, Stonegall, Windhover, Alb. Sloan, &c. 

The Keſtrel is a pretty bird; its ſight is acute, its flight eaſy and well ſupported: it has perſe⯑verance and courage, and reſembles in its in⯑ſtinct the noble and generous birds; and per⯑haps it might be trained, like the Merlins, for falconry. The female is larger than the male: its head is ruſt-coloured, the upper ſide of its [228] back, wings, and tail marked with croſs bars of brown, and all the feathers of the tail are of a ruſty brown variouſly intenſe; but in the male, the head and tail are grey, and the upper parts of the back and wings are of a vinous ruſt colour, ſprinkled with a few ſmall black ſpots.

We cannot omit to obſerve, that ſome of our modern nomenclators have termed the female Keſtrel the Lark-hawk (epervier des alouettes), and have reckoned it a diſtinct ſpecies from the Keſtrel.

Though this bird habitually frequents old buildings, it breeds ſeldomer in theſe than in the woods: and when it depoſits its eggs neither in the holes of walls nor in the cavities of trees, it conſtructs a very flimſy ſort of neſt, compoſed of ſticks and roots, pretty much like that of the jays, upon the talleſt trees of the foreſt; ſome⯑times it occupies the neſts deſerted by the crows. It lays four eggs, but oftener five, and ſometimes ſix or ſeven; of which the two ends have a reddiſh or yellowiſh tinge ſimilar to the plumage. Its young are at firſt covered with a white down, and fed with inſects; they are afterwards ſup⯑plied with plenty of field mice, which it deſcries from aloft, as it hovers or wheels ſlowly round, and on which it inſtantly darts. Sometimes it carries off a red partridge, which is much heavier than itſelf, and often catches pigeons that ſtray from the flock. But, beſides field mice and reptiles, its ordinary prey are ſparrows, chaffinches, and [229] other ſmall birds. As it is more prolific than moſt of the rapacious tribe, the ſpecies is more nu⯑merous and wider diffuſed; it is found through the whole extent of Europe, from Sweden to Italy and Spain, and it occurs even in the more temperate parts of North America. Many Keſtrels continue the whole year in France; but I have obſerved that they are much leſs fre⯑quent in winter than in ſummer, which induces me to think, that ſeveral migrate into other countries to paſs the inclement ſeaſon.

I have raiſed numbers of theſe birds in large volaries: they are, as I have already obſerved, of a very fine white during the firſt month; after which the feathers on the back become ruſty or brown in a few days: they are hardy, and eaſy to feed; they eat raw fleſh when it is offered to them, when they are a fortnight or three weeks old. They ſoon become acquainted with the perſon who takes care of them, and grow ſo tame as never to give offence: they early acquire their cry, and repeat the ſame in confinement as in the ſtate of liberty.—I have often known them eſcape, and return of their own accord after a day or two's abſence, pro⯑bably compelled by hunger.

I am acquainted with no varieties of this ſpe⯑cies, except a few, in which the head and the two feathers of the middle of the tail are gray, ſuch as figured by Friſch; but Salerne mentions a yellow Keſtrel, which is found in Sologne, [230] and of which the eggs are of the ſame yellow hue. ‘This Keſtrel,’ ſays he, ‘is rare, and fights nobly with the White John, which, though ſtronger, is often forced to yield the conteſt; they have been ſeen,’ he adds, ‘to hook together in the air, and fall to the ground like a clod or a ſtone.’ This appears to me very improbable; for not only is the White John much ſuperior to the Keſtrel in ſtrength, but its movements are performed ſo differently, that the birds could ſcarcely ever meet. ^A

The STONE-FALCON.
• Le Rochier, Buff. , and • Falco Lithofalco, Gmel. Briſſ. Will. &c. 

THIS bird is not ſo large as the Keſtrel, and appears to me very like the Merlin, which is employed in falconry. It lodges and breeds, we are told, in rocks. Friſch is the only natu⯑raliſt preceding us, who has given a diſtinct de⯑ſcription of it; and, upon a compariſon of his figure with thoſe which we have given of the Keſtrel and Merlin, we are much inclined to believe, that the Stone-falcon and the ſpecies of the Merlin uſed in falconry are the ſame, or at leaſt cloſely related:—but we ſhall conſider this more particularly in the following article. ^A

The MERLIN^*.
• L'Emerillon, Buff. , • Falco Aeſalon, Gmel. Ray. Will. Klein. Briſſ. , • Cenchris, Friſ. , and • Accipiter Smerillus, Ger. Orn. 

This ſmall bird, which reſembles the Com⯑mon-falcon ſo much in its diſpoſition and cou⯑rage^*, is however ſhaped more like the Hobby, and ſtill more like the Stone-falcon: but its wings are much ſhorter than thoſe of the Hobby, and reach not near the end of the tail; while, in the Hobby, they project ſomewhat beyond it. We have hinted in the preceding article, that its rela⯑tion to the Stone-falcon is ſo clear, in the thick⯑neſs and length of the body, in the ſhape of the bill, feet, and talons, in the colours of the plumage, the diſtribution of the ſpots, &c. that there is reaſon to ſuppoſe that the Stone-falcon is a variety of the Merlin, or at leaſt that they are two ſpecies ſo nearly connected, that they ought to ſuſpend any deciſion reſpecting their diverſity.—The Merlin differs from the Falcons, and indeed all the rapacious tribe, by a character which ap⯑proximates it to the common claſs of birds; viz. the male and female are of the ſame ſize. The great inequality of ſize therefore obſerved be⯑tween the ſexes in birds of prey, cannot be at⯑tributed to the mode of life, or to any peculiar habit: it would ſeem at firſt to depend upon the magnitude; for, in the Butcher-birds, which are ſtill ſmaller than the Merlins, the males and [234] females are of the ſame ſize; while, in the Eagles, the Vultures, the Jer-falcons, the Gos-hawks, the Falcons, and the Sparrow-hawks, the female is a third larger than the male. Upon conſulting the accounts of the diſſection of birds, I find that moſt females have a large double caecum, while the males have only one caecum, and ſometimes none at all: this difference of the internal ſtructure, which is much more frequent in the females than in the males, is per⯑haps the true phyſical cauſe of this exuberant growth. I ſhall leave it to anatomiſts to aſcertain the fact more accurately.

The Merlin flies low, though with great ce⯑lerity and eaſe: it frequents woods and buſhes to ſeize the ſmall birds, and hunts alone unaſ⯑ſiſted by its female: it breeds in the mountain foreſts, and lays five or ſix eggs.

But, beſides the one we have juſt deſcribed, there is another kind of Merlin better known by naturaliſts, which Friſch has figured and Briſſon deſcribed from nature. This differs con⯑ſiderably from the former, and ſeems to reſem⯑ble more the Keſtrel; at leaſt, if we may judge from the figure, not being able to procure a ſpe⯑cimen. But another circumſtance ſeems to coun⯑tenance this opinion: the American birds, which we received by the name of the Cayenne Merlin (Pl. Enl. N^o 444), and the St. Domingo Merlin (Pl. Enl. N^o 465), appear to be varieties, or per⯑haps the male and female, of the ſame ſpecies, [235] and, when viewed attentively, diſcover more re⯑ſemblance to the Keſtrel than to the Merlin of the falconers. This would imply, that the Keſtrel has migrated into the new continent; and ac⯑cordingly, as a further preſumption, Linnaeus ranks it among the natives of Sweden, while he omits the Merlin. We may therefore diſtinguiſh it by a particular name, and that given it in the Antilles may not be improper. ‘The Merlin,’ ſays Father Tertre, ‘which our ſettlers call gry-gry, from the cries which it makes in flying, is another ſmall bird of prey that is ſcarcely larger than a thruſh: all the feathers on the upper ſide of the back and wings are ruſty, ſpotted with black; the under ſide of the belly is white, ſpeckled with ermine: it is armed with a bill and talons proportioned to its ſize: it preys only on ſmall lizards and graſs-hoppers, and ſometimes on young chick⯑ens newly hatched: I have frequently reſcued them; the hen makes a ſtout defence, and drives off its enemy.—The ſettlers eat it, but it is not very fat.’

The reſemblance between the cry^* of this Merlin of Father Tertre and that of the Keſtrel, is another mark of the proximity of theſe ſpecies; and it appears that we may conclude with tole⯑rable certainty, that all the birds mentioned by [236] naturaliſts under the names of Merlin of Europe, Carolina or Cayenne Merlin, and the St. Domingo Merlin, or that of the Antilles, form only one variety in the ſpecies of the Keſtrel, and which we may diſtinguiſh from the common Keſtrel by the appellation of gry-gry. ^A

The SHRIKES.
• Les Pie-Grieches ^*, Buff. , and • (Including the genus Lanius in the Linnaean ſyſtem.) 

THOUGH theſe birds are ſmall and of a delicate make, yet their courage, their appetite for carnage, and their large hooked bill, entitle them to be ranked with the boldeſt and the moſt ſan⯑guinary of the rapacious tribe: it is aſtoniſhing with what intrepidity the little Shrikes combat the Magpies, the Crows, and the Keſtrels, which are all much larger and ſtronger than themſelves. Not only do they act on the defenſive, but they ſometimes commence the attack; and they are ever ſucceſsful in the rencounter, eſpecially when the parents unite to drive the birds of prey to a diſtance from their neſt. If they fly near their retreats, the Shrikes ruſh upon them with loud cries, inflict terrible wounds, and force them to retire with little inclination to repeat the viſit. The more generous of the rapacious tribe regard them with reſpect, and the Kites, the Buzzards, and the Crows ſeem rather intimidated at their appearance. Nothing in nature can give a bet⯑ter idea of the privileges annexed to courage, [238] than to ſee theſe little birds, ſcarcely equal in ſize to the larks, flying with ſecurity among the Sparrow-hawks, the Falcons, and other tyrants of the air, and hunting in their domains with⯑out apprehending danger: for, though they commonly live upon inſects, they prefer fleſh; they chaſe all the ſmall birds upon wing, and they ſometimes catch partridges and young hares. Thruſhes, black-birds, and other birds caught in the nooſe, are their common prey; they fix on them with their talons, ſplit the ſkull with their bill, ſqueeze or cut the neck, and then pluck off the feathers, and feed at their leiſure, and tranſ⯑port the mangled fragments to their neſts.

The genus of theſe birds conſiſts of a vaſt number of ſpecies; but we may reduce thoſe of our climate to three principal ones: theſe are, the Great Cinereous Shrike, the Woodchat, and the Red-backed Shrike. Each of theſe three ſpecies requires a ſeparate deſcription, and in⯑cludes ſome varieties which we ſhall notice.

The Great CINEREOUS SHRIKE.
• La Pie-Grieche Griſe ^*, Buff. , • Lanius Excubitor, Linn. Brun. Kram. , • Falco Congener, Klein. , • Lanius, ſeu Collurio Cinereus Major, Ray & Will. Briſſ. & Friſ. , • Ferlotta Berettina, Zinn. , • Caſtrica Palombina, Olin. , • Il Falconetti, Cett. , • The Greater Butcher bird, or Mattageſs; in the north of England Wierangle, Will. , • The Night Jar, Mort. North. , and • The Butcher bird, Murdering bird, or Shreek ^†, Mer. Pinax. 

THIS bird is very common in France, where it continues during the whole year. It in⯑habits the woods and mountains in ſummer, and reſorts to the plains and near our dwellings in winter. It breeds among the hills, either on the ground or on the loftieſt trees. Its neſt is com⯑poſed of white moſs interwoven with long graſs, and well lined with wool, and is commonly faſtened to the triple cleft of a branch. The female, which differs not from the male in point of ſize, and is only diſtinguiſhed by the lighter caſt of its plumage, lays generally five or ſix eggs, [240] ſometimes ſeven or even eight, as large as thoſe of a thruſh. She feeds her young at firſt with cater⯑pillars and other inſects, but ſoon inſtructs them to eat bits of fleſh, which her mate brings with wonderful care and attention. Very different from the other birds of prey, which expel their helpleſs brood, the Shrike treats its infant young with the moſt tender affection, and even after they are grown ſtill retains its attachment. To⯑wards autumn the offspring aſſiſt the parents in providing for the common ſupport; and the members of the family continue during winter to live in harmony, till the genial influence of ſpring awakens the appetite for propagation, and forms other unions.

The Shrikes may be diſtinguiſhed both by their flying in ſmall troops after the breeding ſeaſon, and by their zig-zag courſe, which waves not ſideways, but bends with ſudden flexures upwards and downwards. They are alſo diſcovered by their ſhrill cry trŏuī, trŏuī, which can be heard at a great diſtance, and which they inceſſantly repeat when perched on the ſummits of trees.

In this firſt ſpecies there is a variety in the ſize, and another in the colour. We have re⯑ceived for the King's cabinet a Shrike from Italy, which differs from the common kind only by a ruſty tinge on the breaſt and belly (Pl. Enl. N^o 32, Fig. 1.). Some are found entirely white on the [241] Alps^*, which, as well as thoſe with a rufous tinge on the belly, are of the ſame ſize with the Great Cinereous Shrike, and it does not exceed the red-wing^†. But others are found in Ger⯑many and Switzerland which are ſomewhat larger, and which ſeveral naturaliſts have rec⯑koned a different ſpecies; yet in other reſpects theſe birds are ſimilar, and their growth might be affected by the plenty or ſcarcity of ſubſiſt⯑ence which the country affords. And if the Great Cinereous Shrike varies ſomewhat in Europe, we may expect it to vary ſtill more in remote climates. That of Louiſiana (Fig. 2, N^o 476, Pl. Enl.) is the ſame with the common kind, differing leſs than the Italian bird; only it is rather ſmaller, and of a deeper caſt on the upper parts of the body. Thoſe from the Cape of Good Hope^‡ (Fig. 1, N^o 477), and Senegal [242] (Fig. 1. N^o 297), and the Blue Shrike from Ma⯑dagaſcar (Fig. 1, N^o 298), appear to be three contiguous varieties, and equally related to the Great Cinereous Shrike of Europe. The only differences are, that in the one from the Cape, the upper parts of the body are of a blackiſh brown; in that from Senegal, they are of a lighter brown; and in that from Madagaſcar, they are of a fine blue: but ſuch differences of plumage may ſtill have place in the ſame ſpecies, for we ſhall have frequent occaſion to point out as great changes produced in our own climates, and the variations ought to be ſtill greater in diſtant regions. The Shrike from Louiſiana re⯑ſembles that of Italy; and the temperature of theſe countries are nearly alike. The others, from the Cape, Senegal, and Madagaſcar, bear leſs ana⯑logy; and the climates to which they belong are alſo more different.—The Shrike from Cay⯑yenne is variegated with long brown bars (Pl. Enl. N^o 297); but the ſize and other properties being the ſame, we have ranged it likewiſe with the common kind. ^A [243]

The WOODCHAT.
• La Pie-Grieche Rouſſe ^*, Buff. , • Lanius Rutilus, Lath. , • Lanius Rufus, Briſſ. and Gmel. , • Lanius Pomeranus, Muſ. Carlſc. , • Lanius Minor Cineraceus, Ray, Klein, Friſ. , • Ampelis Dorſo Griſeo, Faun. Suec. ed. 1. and Kram. , and • Buferola, Ferlotta Bianca, Zinn. 

THIS bird is rather ſmaller than the preced⯑ing, and may eaſily be diſtinguiſhed by the tinge of its head, which is ſometimes red, and commonly bright ferruginous; its eyes alſo are whitiſh or yellowiſh, while in the Great Ci⯑nereous Shrike they are brown, and its bill and legs are blacker. Its inſtincts, however, are near⯑ly the ſame; both of them are bold and miſ⯑chievous, yet they are evidently of different ſpe⯑cies; for the Great Cinereous Shrike is a per⯑manent ſettler, while the Woodchat quits the country in autumn, and returns not till ſpring. The family, which does not diſperſe after the young are fledged, departs alone in the begin⯑ning of September; they flutter from tree to tree, and ſupport not a continued flight even in their migrations. They reſide during ſummer in the plains, and neſtle on the buſhy trees; in [245] that ſeaſon the Great Cinereous Shrike inhabits the foreſts, and ſeldom emerges from the retreat till after the departure of the Woodchat. The Woodchat is ſaid to be the moſt palatable of all the Shrikes, or perhaps the only one that is fit to be eaten^*.

The male and female are almoſt exactly of the ſame ſize, but differ ſo much in their co⯑lours as to appear of diſtinct ſpecies. I ſhall only add, that both the Woodchat and the Red⯑backed Shrike conſtruct their neſt very neatly, and employ the ſame materials as the Great Ci⯑nereous Shrike; the moſs and wool are ſo well connected with ſmall pliant roots, long fine graſs, and the tender ſhoots of low ſhrubs, that the whole ſeems interwoven. It has generally five or ſix eggs, ſometimes more; theſe are of a whitiſh ground, and either entirely or partly ſpotted with brown or fulvous. ^A

The RED-BACKED SHRIKE.
• L'Ecorcheur, Buff. , • Lanius-Collurio, Linn. Gmel. Briſſ. Brun. Kram, &c. , • Lanius Minor Rufus, Ray and Will. , • Lanius Aeruginoſus Major, Klein. , • Ferlotta Roſſa, Zinn. , and • The Leſſer Butcher bird, called in Yorkſhire Fluſher, Will. 

THE Red-backed Shrike is only a little ſmaller than the Woodchat; and its habits are ſimilar. It departs with its family in Sep⯑tember, and returns in the ſpring. It breeds in the trees or buſhes in the open country, and not in the woods. It feeds its young commonly with inſects, and preys upon the ſmall birds. In ſhort, the only material difference conſiſts in the ſize, and in the diſtribution and ſhades of the colours, which ſeem to be invariably diſcri⯑minated in both ſpecies: but the difference is ſtill greater between the male and female in each ſpecies. We may therefore with propriety regard the Woodchat, the Red-backed Shrike, and the variegated Red-backed Shrike, as varie⯑ties of the ſame ſpecies. Some naturaliſts^* have indeed reckoned the laſt a diſtinct ſpecies; but the compariſon of the figures ſeems to prove that it is only the female of the Red-backed Shrike.

[247] Theſe two ſpecies of Shrikes, with their va⯑rieties, breed in Sweden as well as in France. We may preſume therefore that they will be found in the new continent; and we may rec⯑kon the foreign kinds as only varieties of the Woodchat produced by the influence of climate.

Nothing can ſhew better that birds migrate into warmer countries to paſs the winter, than the Woodchat (N^o 477, Fig. 2, Pl. Enl.) ſent by Adanſon from Senegal, and which is preciſely the ſame with the European Woodchat. There is another (N^o 279, Pl. Enl.) which we received from the ſame place, and which may be regard⯑ed as merely a variety, ſince the only difference is, that its head is black, and its tail rather longer, which is not material.

The ſame obſervation may be extended to what we have called the Philippine Woodchat ^* (Pl. Enl. N^o 476, Fig. 1.), and alſo to the Louiſiana Shrike (Pl. Enl. N^o 397), which, though brought from climates widely different, appear to be really the [248] ſame bird, and only a variety of the Red-backed Shrike, whoſe female it reſembles almoſt ex⯑actly. ^A

FOREIGN BIRDS, RELATED TO THE GREAT CINEREOUS AND RED-BACKED SHRIKES.

The NOCTURNAL BIRDS of PREY.

THE eyes of theſe birds are ſo delicate, that they ſeem to be dazzled by the ſplendor of day, and entirely overpowered by the luſtre of the ſolar rays; they require a gentler light, ſuch as prevails at the dawn, or in the evening ſhades. They leave their retreats to hunt, or rather to ſearch for their prey, and their ex⯑peditions are performed with great advantage; for in this ſtill ſeaſon, the other birds and ſmall animals feel the ſoft influence of ſleep, or are about to yield to its ſoothing power. Thoſe nights that are cheered by the preſence of the moon, are to them the fineſt of days, days of pleaſure and of abundance, in which they ſeek their prey for ſeveral hours together, and procure an ample ſupply of proviſions. When ſhe with⯑holds her ſilver beams, their nights are not for⯑tunate; and their ravages are confined to a ſingle hour in the morning and in the evening; for we cannot ſuppoſe that theſe birds, though they can diſtinguiſh objects nicely in a weak light, are able to perform their motions when involved in total darkneſs. Their ſight fails when the [258] gloom of night is completely ſettled; and in this reſpect they differ not from other animals, ſuch as hares, wolves, and ſtags, which leave the woods in the evening to feed or to hunt during the night: only, theſe animals ſee ſtill better in the day than in the night; whereas the organs of viſion in the nocturnal birds are ſo much overpowered by the brightneſs of the day, that they are obliged to remain in the ſame ſpot with⯑out ſtirring; and when they are forced to leave their retreat, their flight is tardy and interrupted, being afraid of ſtriking againſt the intervening obſtacles. The other birds, perceiving their fear, or their conſtrained ſituation, delight to inſult them: the tit-mouſe, the finch, the red-breaſt, the black-bird, the jay, the thruſh, &c. aſſemble to enjoy the ſport. The bird of night remains perched upon a branch, motionleſs and con⯑founded, hears their movements and their cries, which are inceſſantly repeated, becauſe it anſwers them only with inſignificant geſtures, turning round its head, its eyes, and its body with a fooliſh air. It even ſuffers itſelf to be aſſaulted without making reſiſtance; the ſmalleſt, the weakeſt of its enemies are the moſt eager to torment it the moſt, determined to turn it into ridicule. Upon this play of mockery, or of natural antipathy, is founded the pretty art of bird-calling. We have only to put an Owl, or even to imitate its notes, in the place where the limed twigs are ſpread, in order to draw the other [259] birds^*. The beſt time is about an hour before the cloſe of the day; for if this diverſion be deferred later, the ſame ſmall birds which aſ⯑ſemble in the day to inſult over the bird of night with ſo much audacity and obſtinacy, avoid the rencounter after the evening ſhades have reſtored his vigour, and encouraged his exertions.

All this muſt be underſtood with certain reſtrictions, which it will be proper to ſtate here: 1. All the ſpecies of Owls are not alike dazzled with the light; the Great-eared Owl ſees ſo diſtinctly in open day, as to be able to fly to conſiderable diſtances; the Little Owl chaces and catches its prey long before the ſetting, and after the riſing of the ſun. Travellers inform us, that the Great-earned Owl or Eagle-Owl of North America catches the white grous in open day, and even when the reflection of the ſnow adds to the intenſity of the light: Belon remarks, ‘that whoever will examine the ſight of theſe birds, will find it not ſo weak as is commonly ima⯑gined.’ 2. It appears that the Long-eared Owl ſees worſe than the Scops, and is the moſt dazzled by the light of day, as are alſo the Tawny Owl, the White, and the Aluco; for theſe equally attract the ſame birds, and afford [260] them ſport. But before we relate the facts which apply to each particular ſpecies, we muſt men⯑tion the general diſtinctions.

The Nocturnal Birds of Prey may be divided into two principal genera: the genus of the Hibou, (the Long-eared or Horned Owl,) and that of the Chouette, (the Earleſs or Little Owl,) each of which contains ſeveral different ſpecies. The diſtinguiſhing character of theſe two ge⯑nera is, that all the Hibous have two tufts of feathers in the ſhape of ears erect on each ſide of the head; while, in the Chouettes, the head is round without tufts or prominent feathers^*. We ſhall reduce the ſpecies contained in the genus of the Hibou to three. Theſe are, 1. The Great-eared Owl. 2. The Long-eared. 3. The Scops. But the genus of Chouette in⯑cludes at leaſt five ſpecies: which are, 1. The Aluco. 2. The Tawny. 3. The White. 4. The Brown. And 5. The Little Owl. Theſe eight ſpecies are all found in Europe, and even in France; ſome are ſubject to varieties, which ſeem to depend on the difference of climates; others occur that reſemble them in the New [261] World; and indeed, moſt of the Owls of Ame⯑rica differ ſo little from thoſe of Europe, that we may refer them to the ſame origin.

Ariſtotle mentions twelve ſpecies of birds which ſee in the dark, and fly during the night; and as in theſe he includes the Oſprey and Goat-ſucker, under the names of Phinis and Aegotilas; and three others, under the names of Capriceps, Chalcis, and Charadrios, which feed on fiſh, and inhabit marſhes, or the margins of lakes and ſtreams, it appears that he has reduced all the Owls known in Greece in his time to ſeven ſpecies: the Long eared, which he calls [...], otus, precedes and conducts the quails when they begin their migration, and for this reaſon it is named dux, or leader; the etymology ſeems certain, but the fact muſt be ſuſpected. It is true that the quails, when they leave us in the autumn, are exceſſively fat, and ſcarcely fly but in the night, and repoſe during the day in the ſhade to avoid the heat; and hence the Long⯑eared Owl may ſometimes be obſerved to ac⯑company or go before theſe flocks of quails; but it has never been obſerved that the Long-eared Owl is, like the quail, a bird of paſſage. The only fact which I have found in travellers that ſeems to countenance this opinion, is in the Preface to Cateſby's Natural Hiſtory of Carolina. He ſays, that in the twenty-ſixth degree of north latitude, being nearly in the middle of the Atlantic, in his paſſage to Carolina, he ſaw an Owl over the [262] veſſel; and he was more ſurpriſed at this cir⯑cumſtance, as that bird has ſhort wings, and is eaſily fatigued. He adds, that after making ſeveral attempts to alight, it diſappeared.

It may be alleged in ſupport of this fact, that the Owls have not all ſhort wings, ſince in moſt of theſe birds they ſtretch beyond the point of the tail, and the Great-eared Owl and the Scops are the only ſpecies whoſe wings do not reach quite its length. Beſides, we learn from their ſcreams, that all theſe birds perform long journies; whence it ſeems that the power of flying to a diſtance during the night, belongs to them as well as to the others; but their ſight be⯑ing leſs perfect, and not being able to deſcry re⯑mote objects, they cannot form an idea of a great extent of country, and therefore have not, like moſt other birds, the inſtinct of migration. At leaſt, it appears that our Owls are ſtationary. I have received all the ſpecies not only in ſum⯑mer, in ſpring, in autumn, but even in the moſt piercing colds of winter. The Scops alone diſappears in this ſeaſon; and I have actually been informed, that this ſmall ſpecies departs in the autumn, and arrives in the ſpring: hence we ought to aſcribe to the Scops, rather than the Long eared Owl, the buſineſs of leading the quails. But this fact is not proved, and I know not the foundation of another fact advanced by Ariſtotle, who ſays, that the Tawny Owl (Glaux Noctua, according to his tranſlator Gaza) con⯑ceals [263] itſelf for ſeveral days together; for in the chilleſt ſeaſon of the year I have received ſome that were caught in the woods: and if it be pretended that the words Glaux Noctua ſignifies the White Owl, the fact would be ſtill wider off the truth; for except in very dark and rainy evenings, it is conſtantly heard through the whole year to whiſtle and ſcream about twilight.

The twelve Nocturnal Birds mentioned by Ariſtotle, are: 1. Byas; 2. Otos; 3. Scops; 4. Phinis; 5. Aegotilas; 6. Eleos; 7. Nyctico⯑rax; 8. Aegolios; 9. Glaux; 10. Charadrios; 11. Chalcis; 12. Aegocephalus; which Theodore Gaza tranſlates by the Latin words, 1. Bubo; 2. Otus; 3. Aſio; 4. Oſſifraga; 5. Caprimulgus; 6. Aluco; 7. Cicunia, Cicuma, Ulula; 8. Ulula; 9. Noctua; 10. Charadrius; 11. Chalcis; 12. Ca⯑priceps.

The nine firſt ſeem to be as follow:—

1. The Great-eared Owl; 2. The Long-eared Owl; 3. The Scops; 4. The Oſprey; 5. The Goat-ſucker; 6. The White Owl; 7. The Aluco Owl; 8. The Brown Owl; 9. The Tawny Owl.

All the naturaliſts and men of letters will readi⯑ly admit that, 1. The Byas of the Greeks, Bubo of the Latins, is our Great-eared Owl. 2. That the Otos of the Greeks, Otus of the Latins, is our Long-eared Owl. 3. The name of Scops in the Greek, in Latin Aſio, is the Small Owl. 4. The Phinis of the Greeks, Oſſifraga of the Latins, [264] is the Oſprey. 5. The Aegotilas of the Greeks, Caprimulgus of the Latins, is the Goat-ſucker. 6. That the Eleos of the Greeks, Aluco of the Latins, is the White Owl. But at the ſame time it will be aſked, why I tranſlated Glaux, by the Tawny Owl; Nycticorax, by Aluco; and the Aegolios, by the Brown Owl; while all the no⯑menclators and naturaliſts who have preceded me have rendered Aegolios by Hulotte (Aluco), and are obliged to confeſs that they know not to what bird to refer the Nycticorax, nor the Cha⯑radrios, the Chalcis, and the Capriceps. I ſhall be blamed for transferring the name of Glaux to the Tawny Owl, ſince it has been applied, by the uni⯑form conſent of all who have gone before me, to the Brown Owl, or even to the Little Owl.

I proceed to explain the reaſons which have induced me to make theſe innovations, and to remove the obſcurity which attends their doubts and their falſe interpretations. Among the Nocturnal birds, which we have enumerated, the Tawny Owl is the only one whoſe eyes are blueiſh, the Aluco the only one whoſe eyes are blackiſh; in all the reſt the iris is of a golden, or at leaſt of a ſaffron colour. But the Greeks, whoſe accuracy and preciſion of ideas I have often admired in the names which they have applied to the objects in nature, which always mark the characters in a ſtriking manner, would have had no foundation to beſtow the name of Glaux (glaucous, coerulean) upon birds which have [265] none of the blue ſhade, and whoſe eyes are black, orange, or yellow; but they would have had the beſt reaſon to give this name to that ſingle ſpecies which is diſtinguiſhed from all the reſt by the blue tinge of its eyes; nor would they have called thoſe birds whoſe eyes are yellow or blue, and whoſe plumage is white or grey, and bear no reſemblance to the Raven, by the term Nycticorax, or Raven of night; but they would with great propriety have beſtowed this name on that Owl, which is the only one of the Nocturnal Birds whoſe eyes are black, and whoſe plumage is almoſt black, and which in its ſize bears a greater analogy than any other to the Raven.

The probability of this interpretation derives additional force from another conſideration. The Nycticorax was a common and noted bird among the Greeks, and even among the Hebrews, ſince it is often the ſubject of their compariſons (ſicut nycticorax in domicilio). We cannot imagine with thoſe literati, that this bird was ſo ſolitary and ſo rare, that it can be no longer found. The Aluco is common in every country, it is the largeſt of the Earleſs Owls; the blackeſt and the likeſt the Raven: it differs widely from every other ſpecies; and this obſervation drawn from the fact itſelf, ought to have more weight than the authority of thoſe nomenclators, who are too little acquainted with nature to interpret with accuracy its hiſtory.

[266] But admitting that the Glaux ſignifies Tawny Owl, the Earleſs Owl with blue eyes, and Nycticorax, Aluco, or Earleſs Owl with white eyes, the Aegolios muſt be the Earleſs Owl with yellow eyes.—This requires ſome diſcuſſion.

Theodore Gaza renders the word Nycticorax, firſt by Cicuma, then by Ulula, and afterwards by Cicunia: this laſt is probably the miſtake of the tranſcribers, who have written Cicunia in⯑ſtead of Cicuma; for Feſtus, prior to Gaza, alſo tranſlated Nycticorax by Cicuma; and Iſidorus by Cecuma; others by Cecua.—To theſe words we may even refer the etymology of Zueta in Italian, and Chouette in French. If Gaza had attended to the characters of the Nycticorax, he would have adhered to his firſt interpretation, Ulula, and would not have made a double ap⯑plication of this term; for he would, in that caſe, have tranſlated Aegolios by Cicuma. Upon the whole therefore we may conclude, that Glaux is the Tawny Owl, Nycticorax the Aluco Owl, and Aegolios the Brown Owl.

The Charadrios, the Chalcis, and the Capriceps, ſtill remain to be conſidered: Gaza is contented with giving the Greek words a Latin termina⯑tion. But as theſe birds are different from thoſe of which we at preſent treat, and ſeem to be the inhabitants of marſhes and the margins of lakes; we ſhall defer the conſideration of the ſubject till we come to the hiſtory of the birds that fiſh in the twilight. The Little Owl is the only [267] ſpecies whoſe name I cannot diſcover in the Greek language. Ariſtotle never mentions it, and probably he confounded it with the Scops, which it indeed reſembles in its ſize, its ſhape, and in the colour of its eyes; and the only eſ⯑ſential difference conſiſts in the ſmall projecting feather which the Scops has on each ſide of its head.—But we ſhall deſcribe theſe diſtinctions more minutely in the following articles.

Aldrovandus juſtly remarks, that moſt of the miſtakes in Natural Hiſtory ariſe from the con⯑fuſion of names, and that the ſubject of Noc⯑turnal Birds is involved in the obſcurity and ſhades of night. What we have now mentioned will, I hope, in a great meaſure diſpel the cloud; and to throw greater light, we ſhall ſubjoin a few remarks. The names Ule, Eule in German, Owl, Owlet in Engliſh, Huette, Hulote in French, are derived from the Latin Ulula, which imi⯑tates by its ſound the cry of the large kind of Nocturnal Birds. It is probable, as Friſch remarks, that this appellation was firſt appropri⯑ated to the Great Earleſs Owl, but was after⯑wards applied to the ſmall ones, from their re⯑ſemblance in form and inſtinct; and at laſt be⯑came a general term, comprehending the whole genus. Hence proceeds that confuſion which is but imperfectly remedied by annexing epi⯑thets that allude to their haunts, their ſhape, or their cry. For example Stein-eule in German, Stone-owl, is the Chouette, or the Brown Owl; [268] Kirch-eule in German, Church Owl, is the French Effraie, White Owl, which is alſo named Schleyer-eule, Winged Owl, Perl-eule, Pearl Owl. Ohr-eule in German, Horn Owl, is the Hibou of the French (Long-eared). Knapp-eule, Nut⯑cracker Owl, is a name which might have been applied to all the large Owls, which make a noiſe like that action with their bills. Bubo in Latin, the Eagle Owl, is derived from Bos, from the reſemblance of its note to the lowing of an ox. The Germans have imitated the ſound, uhu.

The three ſpecies of Earleſs Owls, and the five ſpecies of Eared Owls, which we have now diſtinguiſhed, include the whole genus of the Nocturnal Birds of Prey. They differ from the birds that commit their ravages in the day. 1. By the ſenſe of ſight, which is delicate, and unable to ſupport the glare of light. The pupil contracts in the day-time, but in a manner differ⯑ent from that of cats; for it retains its form, and contracts equally in every direction, while that of cats becomes narrow and extended vertically. 2. By the ſenſe of hearing, which appears to be ſuperior to that of other birds, and perhaps to that of every other animal; for the drum of the ear is proportionally larger than in the qua⯑drupeds, and beſides they can open and ſhut this organ at pleaſure, a power poſſeſſed by no other animal. 3. By the bill, whoſe baſe is not, as in thoſe birds which prey in the day, covered with a thin naked ſkin, but is ſhaded with fea⯑thers [269] projecting forward; it is alſo ſhort, and both mandibles are moveable like thoſe of the parrokeets, which is the reaſon that they ſo often crack their bill, and can receive very large morſels, which their wide throat admits to be ſwallowed. 4. By their claws, which have an anterior mov⯑able toe, that can be turned backwards at pleaſure, and enables them to reſt on a ſingle foot more firmly and eaſily than others. 5. By their mode of flying, which when they leave their hole, is a kind of tumbling, and is conſtantly ſideways, and without noiſe, as if they were wafted by the wind.—Such are the general diſtinctions between the Nocturnal and Diurnal Birds of Prey: they have nothing ſimilar but their arms, nothing common but their appetite for fleſh and their inſtinct for plunder.

The GREAT-EARED OWL^*.
• Le Duc, ou Grand Duc, Buff. , • Strix Bubo, Linn. Gmel. Will. Kram. Briſſ. &c. , • Ulula, Klein. , • Bubo Maximus, Ger. Orn. , • In Italian, Gufo, Duco, Dugo. , • In Spaniſh, Buho. , • In Portugueſe, Mocho. , • In German, Uhu, Huhu, Schuſſut, Bhis, Becghu, Huhuy, Hub, Huo, Puhi. , • In Poliſh, Puhacz, Sowalezna. , and • In Swediſh, Uf. 

Theſe birds are ſometimes kept on account of their ſingular figure. The ſpecies is not ſo nu⯑merous in France as thoſe of the other Owls; and it is not certain whether they remain the whole year in the country. They however neſtle ſometimes in hollow trees, and oftener in [273] the crags of rocks, or in the holes of lofty old walls. Their neſt is near three feet in diameter, compoſed of ſmall branches of dry wood inter⯑woven with pliant roots, and ſtrewed with leaves. They commonly lay one or two eggs, and but ſeldom three; theſe reſemble ſomewhat the colour of the plumage of the bird, and are larger than hens eggs. The young are very vo⯑racious; and the parents are vigilant in provid⯑ing ſubſiſtence, which they procure in ſilence, and with much more agility than we ſhould ſuppoſe from their extreme corpulence. They often fight with the buzzards, are victorious in the combat, and ſeize the plunder. They ſup⯑port more eaſily the light of day than the other nocturnal birds; for they leave their haunts earlier in the evening, and later in the morning. Sometimes the Great-eared Owl is ſeen attacked by flocks of crows, which accompany his flight and ſurround him by thouſands; he withſtands their onſet^*, drowns their hoarſe murmurs with his louder ſcreams, diſperſes them, and often when the light begins to fail he ſeizes ſome fated victim. Though his wings are ſhorter than thoſe of moſt of the birds that ſoar, he can riſe to a great height, eſpecially about twilight; but at other times he generally flies low, and to ſhort diſtances. The Great-eared Owl is employed in falconry to attract the notice of the Kite, and [274] he is furniſhed with a fox-tail to heighten the ſingularity of his figure. Thus equipped, he ſkims along the ſurface of the ground, and alights on the plain, without venturing to perch upon a tree. The Kite perceives him from a diſtance, and advances not to fight or attack him, but to admire his odd appearance, and ge⯑nerally hovers about unguarded, till he is ſur⯑priſed by the ſportſman, or caught by the birds of prey that are flown at him. Moſt of the breeders of pheaſants alſo keep a Great-eared Owl, which they place in a cage among the ruſhes in an open place, to draw together the ravens and the crows, which gives them an opportunity of ſhooting and killing a greater number of theſe noiſy birds, ſo alarming to the young pheaſants. To avoid ſcaring the phea⯑ſants, they ſhoot at the crows with a croſs-bow.

With regard to the internal ſtructure of this bird, it has been remarked, that the tongue is ſhort and broad, the ſtomach capacious, the eye incloſed in a cartilaginous coat in the form of a capſule, the brain inveſted with a ſingle coat thicker than that of other birds; and, as in the quadrupeds, there are two membranes which cover the cerebellum.

It appears that in this ſpecies there is a firſt variety which includes a ſecond; both are found in Italy, and have been mentioned by Aldro⯑vandus. The one may be called the Black⯑winged [275] Great-eared Owl ^*; the ſecond, the Naked⯑footed Great-eared Owl ^†. The firſt differs from the Common Great-eared Owl only by the co⯑lours of its plumage, which is browner or blacker on the wings, the back, and the tail. The ſe⯑cond, which reſembles it exactly in the deepneſs of its colour, is diſtinguiſhed by its legs and feet, which are but ſlightly ſhaded with feathers.

Beſides theſe two varieties, which are found in our own climate, there are others which oc⯑cur in diſtant countries. The White Eagle-Owl of Lapland, mottled with black ſpots, and which is deſcribed by Linnaeus, appears to be only a variety produced by the cold of the north^‡. Moſt of the quadrupeds are either white, or ſoon become ſo, within the polar circle, and many birds are ſubject to the ſame change. This bird, which is found in the mountains of Lapland, is white, ſpotted with black; and the difference of colour is what alone diſtinguiſhes it from the Common Great-eared Owl. We may therefore refer it to that ſpecies as a mere variety.

As this bird can bear both heat and cold, it is found in the north and ſouth of both continents; [276] and not only is the ſpecies ſpread ſo extenſively, but even the varieties. The Jacurutu ^* of Brazil, deſcribed by Marcgrave, is exactly the ſame as our Common Great-eared Owl; and one brought from the Straits of Magellan differs little from the European ſpecies. That mentioned by the author of the Voyage to Hudſon's-bay by the name of Crowned Owl ^†, and by Edwards Eagle Owl of Virginia, are varieties which occur in America the ſame with thoſe in Europe; for the moſt remarkable difference between the Com⯑mon Eagle-Owl, and that of Hudſon's-bay and of Virginia^‡ is, that the tufts riſe from the bill, [277] and not from the ears. But in the figures of the three Eagle-Owls given by Aldrovandus, the tufts riſe from the ears in the firſt only, or the Common; and in the others, which are but varieties that occur in Italy, the tuft feathers are not inſerted at the ears, but at the baſe of the bill, as in the Eagle-Owl of Virginia deſcribed by Edwards. Klein was therefore raſh in aſſert⯑ing, that the Eagle-Owl of Virginia was a ſpe⯑cies entirely different from that of Europe. If he had conſulted the figures of Aldrovandus and Edwards, he would have found that this diſtinc⯑tion, which only conſtitutes a variety, occurs in [278] Italy as well as in Virginia, and that in general the tufts of theſe birds do not proceed exactly from the ſide of the ears, but rather from below the eyes, and the upper part of the baſe of the bill. ^A

The LONG-EARED OWL^*.
• Le Hibou, ou Moyen Duc, Buff. , • Strix Otus, Linn. Gmel. Will. Kram, &c. , • Aſio, Briſſ. and Klein. , • Noctua Minor Aurita, Friſch. , • Hornoder Ohr-eule, Gunth. Neſt. , and • The Horn Owl, Albin. 

THE ears of this bird are very wide, like thoſe of the Great-eared Owl, and covered with a tuft formed of ſix feathers pointing for⯑wards^†; but theſe tufts are much ſhorter than thoſe of the Great Owl, and hardly exceed an inch in length; they are however proportioned to its ſize, for it weighs only about ten ounces, and is not larger than a crow. It is therefore a ſpecies evidently different from that of the Great-eared Owl, which is about the bulk of a gooſe; and from that of the Scops, which is not larger than a blackbird, and in which the tufts above the ears are very ſhort. I make this re⯑mark, [280] becauſe ſome naturaliſts have conſidered theſe as merely varieties of the ſame ſpecies. The Long-eared Owl meaſures about a foot from the point of the bill to the claws; its wings extend three feet, and its tail is five or ſix inches. The upper part of its head, neck, back, and wings, are marked with rays of gray, ruſty, and brown; the breaſt and belly are ruſty, with irregular and narrow brown bars; the bill is ſhort and blackiſh; the eyes of a fine yellow; the feet covered with ruſty-coloured feathers as far as the origin of the claws, which are pretty broad, and of a blackiſh brown. We may alſo obſerve, that the tongue is fleſhy, and ſomewhat forked, the nails very ſharp, the outer claw moveable, and may be turned backwards; the ſtomach capacious, the gall-bladder very large, the guts about twenty inches long, the two caecas two inches and a half deep, and proportionally thicker than in the other birds of prey.

The ſpecies is common, and much more nu⯑merous in our climate^* than the Great-eared Owl, which ſeldom occurs in winter. The Long-eared Owl is ſtationary during the whole year, and is even found more readily in winter than in ſummer. It commonly lodges in old ruined buildings, in the caverns of rocks, in the hollows of aged trees, in mountain-foreſts, and [281] ſeldom ventures to deſcend into the plains^*. When attacked by other birds, it makes a dex⯑terous uſe of its talons and bill; and it even turns on its back when its antagoniſt is too powerful.

It appears that this bird, which is common in our part of Europe, is found alſo in Aſia; for Belon mentions his having met with it in the plains of Cilicia.

This ſpecies admits of ſeveral varieties, the firſt of which occurs in Italy, and has been de⯑ſcribed by Aldrovandus. It is larger than the common ſort, and differs in the colour of its plumage.

Theſe birds ſeldom take the trouble to con⯑ſtruct a neſt; for all the eggs and young which I have received were found in the neſts of other birds; often in thoſe of magpies, which it is well known conſtruct a new one every year; ſometimes in thoſe of buzzards; but I could never procure a neſt built by themſelves. They generally lay four or five eggs, and the young, which are at firſt white, acquire their natural colour in the courſe of fifteen days.

As this Owl can ſupport cold, and is found in Sweden^† and in France, and paſſes the winter in our latitudes, it could migrate from one con⯑tinent into the other. It appears that it is found [282] in Canada^*, and in many other parts of North America; and probably the Owl of Carolina deſcribed by Cateſby, and that of South Ame⯑rica mentioned by Father Feuillée^†, are only varieties of our ſpecies, occaſioned by the differ⯑ence of climates; eſpecially as they are nearly of the ſame ſize, and differ only in the ſhades and diſtribution of their colours.

The Long-eared and Tawny Owls^‡ are em⯑ployed to attract the birds by their call; and it is obſerved that the large birds more readily obey [283] the note of the Long-eared Owl, which is a kind of plaintive cry or hollow moaning, clow̄, cloūd, inceſſantly repeated during the night; and that the ſmall birds reſort in greater numbers to the invitation of the Tawny Owl, which is louder and a kind of hallooing, hŏhō, hŏhō. Both theſe in the day-time make ludicrous geſtures in the preſence of men, and other animals. Ari⯑ſtotle aſcribes this buffoonery to the Long-eared Owl alone, Otus. Pliny beſtows it on the Scops, and terms it Motus Satyricos (i. e. Satiric Move⯑ments). But the Scops of Pliny is the ſame with the Otus of Ariſtotle; for the Latins con⯑founded theſe names together, and united them into one ſpecies, qualifying them only by the epithets of great and ſmall.

What the ancients have related with reſpect to theſe awkward motions and ridiculous geſtures, muſt be principally applied to the Long-eared Owl; and, as ſome philoſophers and naturaliſts have pretended that this was not an Owl, but quite a different bird, which they term the Lady of Numidia, I ſhall here diſcuſs the queſtion, and remove the miſtake.

The Anatomiſts of the Academy of Sciences are thoſe to whom I allude; who, in their de⯑ſcription of the Lady of Numidia (Demoiſelle de Numidie), have endeavoured to eſtabliſh this opinion, and ſtate their reaſons in the following terms:—‘The bird,’ ſay they, ‘which we de⯑ſcribe, is called the Lady of Numidia; becauſe [284] it is a native of that part of Africa, and ſeems to imitate in ſome degree the light air and ſkip of a lady who affects a graceful motion. It is more than two thouſand years ſince na⯑turaliſts have ſpoken of this bird, and remark⯑ed this peculiarity of inſtinct. Ariſtotle gives it the name of Juggler, Dancer, and Buffoon, aping what it ſees.—It would ſeem this danc⯑ing mimicking bird was rare among the an⯑cients, becauſe Pliny believes that it was fa⯑bulous, referring this animal, which he calls Satyricus, to the claſs of Pegaſuſes, Griffons, and Syrens. It has probably been till now un⯑known to the moderns, ſince they do not de⯑ſcribe it from their own obſervation, but only from the writings of antiquity, in which it re⯑ceived the names of Scops and Otus from the Greeks, and Aſio from the Latins, and which they had termed Dancer, Juggler, and Comedi⯑an; ſo that it muſt be inquired, whether our Lady of Numidia is really the Scops or Otus of the ancients. The deſcription which they have given us conſiſts of three particulars:—1ſt, It imitates geſtures.—2d, It has tufts of fea⯑thers on both ſides of the head, like ears.—3d, The plumage is, according to Alexander the Myndian, in Athenaeus, of a leaden colour. But all theſe properties belong to the Lady of Numidia; and Ariſtotle ſeems to mark their manner of dancing, which is that of leaping the one before the other, when he ſays, that [285] they are caught when they dance one oppoſite to the other. Belon however believes, that the Otus of Ariſtotle is the Owl, for this only reaſon, that that bird makes many geſ⯑tures with its head: moſt of the tranſlators of Ariſtotle, who are alſo of our opinion, found it upon the name Otus, which ſignifies having ears; but they are not peculiar to the Long-eared Owl; and Ariſtotle evidently ſignifies that the Otus is not the Long-eared Owl, when he ſays, that the Otus reſembles it; and this re⯑ſemblance is probably not in regard to the ears. All the Ladies of Numidia which we have diffected, had on the ſides of the ears theſe feathers, which have given occaſion to the name Otus of the ancients. . . . Their plumage was of an aſh-colour, ſuch as is deſcribed by Alexander the Myndian as be⯑longing to the Otus.’

Let us compaare Ariſtotle's deſcription of the Otus with that of the Academicians. ‘The Otus is like the Owl, being furniſhed with ſmall projecting feathers about the ears, whence its name, Otus or Eared; ſome call it Ullula, others Aſio; it is a babbler, a tumbler, and a mimic, for it imitates dancers. It is caught like the Owl, the one bird-catcher going round it, while it is intent upon the other.’

The Otus, that is, the Long-eared Owl, is like the Noctua or Tawny Owl; they reſemble in [286] fact, in their ſize, their plumage and natural habits; both are nocturnal birds of contiguous ſpecies; whereas the Lady of Numidia is ſix times thicker and larger, and is of a quite different ſhape, and of a different genus, being by no means a nocturnal bird. The Otus differs from the Noctua only by the tufts on the head near the ears, and Ariſtotle remarks this diſtinction. Theſe are ſmall feathers, ſtraight and tufted, not the long ones that fall back, and hang from each ſide of the head, as in the Lady of Numidia. We cannot therefore refer the word Otus to this bird, but evidently to this Long-eared Owl (Noctua Aurita); and this inference is con⯑firmed by what Ariſtotle immediately adds, ‘ſome call it Ulula, and others Aſio.’ Nothing therefore is more groundleſs, in my opinion, than the pretended reſemblance which they have en⯑deavoured to trace between the Otus of the an⯑cients and the Lady of Numidia, the whole of which is founded on ſome ludicrous geſtures and motions which diſtinguiſh this ſprightly bird; but the Long-eared Owl is ſtill entitled to the epithets Screamer ^*, Mimic, Buffoon. The other character which Ariſtotle mentions, that this bird is eaſily caught, as the other Owls, can only be applied to this bird of night. . . . I might enlarge [287] upon this ſubject, and bring paſſages from Pliny to ſupport my criticiſm; but a ſingle remark will remove all doubt. The ludicrous geſtures aſcribed by the ancients to the Long-eared Owl, belong to moſt of the nocturnal birds^*; their aſpect is marked with aſtoniſhment, they turn their neck frequently, move their head upwards, downwards, ſideways, crack their bill, tremble with their legs, ſhifting their toe backwards and forwards; theſe geſtures may be obſerved in birds kept in captivity; but unleſs they are caught while young we cannot rear them; for thoſe grown up, obſtinately refuſe all ſuſtenance. ^A

The SCOPS-EARED OWL^*.
• Le Scops, ou Petit Duc, Buff. , • Strix Scops, Linn. Gmel. Will. Briſſ. Klein. , • Hornoder Ohr-eule, Gunth. Neſt. , and • Chiu, Alloccarello, Chivino, Zinn. 

THIS is the third and laſt ſpecies of the Eared-Owls. It is eaſily diſtinguiſhed from the other two; for its ſize exceeds not that of the black-bird, and the tufts over the ears project only half an inch, and conſiſt of a ſingle feather^†:—alſo, its head is much ſmaller in pro⯑portion to its body, and its plumage is more ele⯑gantly and diſtinctly mottled, being variegated with grey, ferruginous brown, and black, and its legs are clothed to the origin of the nails with feathers of a ruſty grey mixed with brown ſpots. It is diſtinguiſhed alſo by its inſtinct; for in ſpring and autumn it migrates into other climates. It ſeldom paſſes the winter in our provinces, but departs after, and returns a little before, the ſwal⯑lows. Though the Scops-eared Owls prefer the high grounds, they crowd where field-mice []

[289] abound, and are uſeful in extirpating theſe de⯑ſtructive animals, which, in ſome years, multi⯑ply extremely, and conſume the grain, and de⯑ſtroy the roots of plants that are the moſt ne⯑ceſſary to the ſupport of man. It has been often obſerved, that when this calamity is threatened, the Scops aſſemble in flocks, and make war ſo ſucceſsfully againſt the mice, that in a few days they entirely clear the field^*. The Long-eared Owls alſo gather ſometimes to the number of an hundred: and of this fact we have been twice informed by eye-witneſſes; but it ſeldom occurs. Perhaps theſe aſſemblies are formed with the view of beginning a diſtant journey: it is even probable, that they migrate from the one conti⯑nent into the other: for the Bird of New Spain, mentioned by Nierenberg by the name of Tal⯑chicualti, is either of the ſame ſpecies, or of one nearly allied to that of the Scops^†. But though it travels in numerous flocks, it is ſtill rare and [290] not eaſily caught; nor have I been able to pro⯑cure either the eggs or the young; it was even difficult to inſtruct the ſportſmen to diſtinguiſh it from the Little Owl, becauſe both theſe birds are of the ſame ſize, and the ſhort prominent feathers which form the ſpecific character of the Scops, cannot be perceived at a diſtance.

The colour varies much, according to the age, the climate, and perhaps the ſex; they are all gray when young, but as they grow up, ſome are browner than others; the colour of the eyes ſeems to correſpond to that of the plumage; thoſe that are gray have eyes of a pale yellow, in others the colour is deeper; but theſe differences are ſlight, and ought not to alter the claſſifi⯑cation.

The ALUCO OWL.
• La Hulotte, Buff. , • Strix Aluco, Linn. Gmel. and Scop. , • Ulula, Briſſ. and Will. , • Noctua Major, Friſ. , • Ulula Vulturina, Klein. , • Black Owl, Albin. , and • Brown Owl ^*, Penn. and Lewin. 

THE Aluco, which may be alſo named the Black Owl, and which the Greeks called the Nycticorax or Night Raven, is the largeſt of all the Owls. It is near fifteen inches long from the point of the bill to the claws; its head is large, round, and without tufts; its face ſunk as it were in the plumage; its eyes are buried in greyiſh ragged feathers; the iris blackiſh, or rather deep brown; the beak of a yellow or greeniſh white; the upper part of the body a deep iron-gray, mottled with black and whitiſh ſpots; the under white, with longitudinal and tranſverſe bars; the tail ſomewhat more than ſix inches, the wings ſtretching a little beyond its extremity, and when ſpread, meaſure three feet; the legs covered to the origin of the nails with white feathers, ſprinkled with black [292] points^*: theſe characters are fully ſufficient to diſtinguiſh the Aluco from all the others; it flies lightly, and not ruſtling with its wing, and al⯑ways ſideways, like the reſt of the Owls. Its cry^†, hoō, ōō, ōō, ōō, ŏŏ, ŏŏ, ŏŏ, reſembling the howling of wolves (ululare), was the founda⯑tion of its name ulula among the Romans; and the ſame analogy has led the Germans to apply the term hoō, hoō.

The Aluco lodges during ſummer in the woods, and conſtantly in hollow trees. Sometimes it ventures in winter to approach our habitations; it purſues and catches ſmall birds; but field-mice are its more uſual prey; it ſwallows them whole, and afterwards diſcharges by its bill the ſkins rolled into balls. When it is unſucceſsful in the field, it reſorts to the farm yards and barns, in queſt of mice and rats. It retires early in the morning to the woods, about the time that the hares return to their retreats, and conceals itſelf in the thickeſt copſe, or remains the whole day motionleſs in the foliage of the ſhadieſt trees. During inclement weather, it lodges in hollow trees in the day, and makes its excurſions in the [293] night.—Theſe inſtinctive habits are common to it and to the Long-eared Owl, as well as that of depoſiting its eggs in the neſts of other birds, ſuch as the Buzzards, the Keſtrels, the Crows, and Magpies. It generally lays four eggs, of a dirty gray colour, round ſhaped, and nearly as large as thoſe of a ſmall pullet. ^A

The TAWNY OWL.
• Le Chat-Huant ^*, Buff. , • Strix Stridula, Linn. Gmel. Brun. and Kram. , • Noctua Major, Friſ. , • Strige, Zinn. , and • The Common Brown or Ivy Owl ^†, Will. and Alb. 

AFTER the Aluco, diſtinguiſhed from the reſt of the Earleſs Owls by its magnitude and its blackiſh eyes, come the Tawny with bluiſh eyes, and the White with yellow eyes. They are both nearly of the ſame ſize; being thirteen inches long from the point of the bill to the claws; ſo that they are only two inches ſhorter than the Aluco, but appear proportionally more ſlender.—The Tawny Owl is diſtinguiſhed by its bluiſh eyes, the beauty and variety of the colours of its plumage, and its cry hŏhō, hŏhō, hŏhŏhŏhŏ, by which it ſeems to ſhout or halloo with a loud voice.

A large head, fixed eyes, a bill fitted for ra⯑pine, hooked nails, are characters common to all theſe birds; but the whiteneſs of the plumage, canities pennis, belongs more properly to the White Owl than to any other; but what in my opinion decides the queſtion is, that the word ſtridor, which in Latin expreſſes a grating noiſe reſembling that of a ſaw, marks preciſely the cry grĕ, grĕi of the White Owl; whereas the cry of the Tawny Owl is rather a loud hallooing than a creeking noiſe.

[296] The Tawny Owls are ſcarcely found any where but in the woods. In Burgundy they are more common than the Alucos; they lodge in hollow trees, and I have received ſome in the ſevereſt winters; which fact ſeems to prove that they are ſtationary in the country, and ſeldom approach the habitations of men. Friſch gives the Tawny Owl as a variety of the ſpecies of Aluco, and takes the male for another variety; but if we admit this claſſification, we muſt de⯑ſtroy invariable characters, which ſeem to be numerous and diſtinct.

The Tawny Owl is found in Sweden and other northern countries, and hence it has mi⯑grated into the continent, or is found in America, even between the tropics. There is in the ca⯑binet of Mauduit a Tawny Owl, which he re⯑ceived from St. Domingo, and which ſeems to be a variety of the European ſpecies, differing only by the uniformity of the colours of its breaſt and belly, which are ferruginous, and almoſt ſpotleſs, and by the deeper ſhades of the upper part of the body. ^A

The WHITE OWL.
• L'Effraie, ou La Freſaie, Buff. , • Strix Flammea, Linn. Gmel. Mull. and Bor. , • Aluco, Briſſ. Ray, Brun. and Klein. , • Aluco Minor of Aldrovandus, Will. , • Tuidara, Marcgr. , and • Schläffer Eule, Perle-Eule ^*, Friſch. 

THE White Owl alarms the timid by its blowing notes, ſhē, ſhēi, ſhēiē; its ſharp dole⯑ful cries, grĕi, grĕ, crĕi, and its broken accents which often diſturb the dread ſilence of night. It is in ſome degree domeſtic; it inhabits the moſt populous towns, towers, belfries, the roofs of churches, and other lofty buildings, which afford it retreat during the day. It leaves its haunts about twilight, and continually repeats its blowing, which reſembles the ſnoring of a man which ſleeps with his mouth open. When it flies or alights, it utters alſo different ſharp notes, which are all ſo diſagreeable, that, joined to the awfulneſs of the ſcene, re-echoed from the tombs and the churches in the ſtillneſs and [298] darkneſs of night, inſpire dread and terror in the minds of women and children, and even of men who are under the influence of the ſame prejudices, and who believe in omens and witches, in ghoſts and apparitions. They re⯑gard the White Owl as a funereal bird, and the meſſenger of death; and they are impreſſed with an idea, that if it perches upon a houſe, and utters cries a little different from ordi⯑nary, it then ſummons the inhabitant to the tomb.

It is readily diſtinguiſhed from the other Earleſs Owls, by the beauty of its plumage; it is nearly of the ſame ſize with the Tawny Owl, ſmaller than the Aluco, and larger than the Brown Owl, of which we ſhall treat in the fol⯑lowing article. Its extreme length is a foot, or thirteen inches; its tail meaſures only five inches; the upper part of its body is yellow, waved with gray and brown, and ſprinkled with white points; the under part white, marked with black ſpots; the eyes regularly encircled with white feathers, ſo ſlender that they might be taken for hairs; the iris is of a fine yellow, the bill white, except the end of the hook, which is brown; the legs covered with white down, the claws white, and the nails blackiſh. There are others which, though of the ſame ſpecies, ſeem at firſt to be very different; in ſome the breaſt and belly are of a fine yellow, ſprinkled with the ſame black points; in others they are [299] perfectly white; in others they are yellow, and without a ſingle ſpot.

I have had ſeveral alive. They are eaſily caught, by placing a ſmall net at the holes where they lodge in old buildings. They live ten or twelve days in the cages where they are ſhut, but they reject all ſuſtenance, and die of hunger. They continue motionleſs during the day, but mount the top of the rooſt in the night, and whiſtle the note ſhē, ſhēi, by which they ſeem to invite the others; and indeed I have often ſeen them attracted by the calls of the priſoner, alight near the cage, make the ſame whiſtling noiſe, and allow themſelves to be caught in the net. I never heard them when confined utter the grat⯑ing cry (ſtride) crĕī, grĕī; this ſound is given only in the flight, when they are in perfect freedom. The female is ſome what larger than the male, and the colours of its plumage are lighter and more diſtinct; and of all the nocturnal birds its plu⯑mage is the moſt beautifully varied.

The ſpecies of the White Owl is numerous, and very common in every part of Europe. It is alſo found through the whole extent of the continent of America. Marcgrave found it in Braſil, where the inhabitants call it Tuidara.

The White Owl does not, like the Aluco and the Tawny Owls, depoſit its eggs in the neſts of other birds. It drops them in the bare holes of walls, or in the joiſts of houſes, and alſo in the hollows of trees; nor does it ſpread roots or [300] leaves to receive them. It begins early in the ſpring, in the end of March, or the beginning of April. It lays five egs, ſometimes ſix or ſeven, of a longiſh ſhape, and whitiſh colour; it feeds its young with inſects and fragments of mice. They are white at firſt, and are not an unplea⯑ſant meal at the end of three weeks, for they are fat and plump. Their parents clear the churches of the mice; frequently drink or ra⯑ther eat the oil from the lamps, eſpecially when it has congealed; ſwallow mice and ſmall birds whole, vomiting afterwards the bones, feathers, and ſkin. Their excrements are white and liquid like thoſe of the other birds of prey. In fine weather, moſt of theſe birds viſit the neigh⯑bouring woods in the night, but return to their uſual haunts in the morning, and there ſlumber and ſnore till dark, when they ſally from their holes, and fly tumbling almoſt to the ground. In the ſevere ſeaſons five or ſix are ſometimes diſcovered in the ſame hole, or concealed in the fodder, where they find ſhelter, warmth, and food; for the mice are more plentiful then in the barns than at any other time. In autumn they often pay a nightly viſit to the places where the ſprings are laid for the wood-cocks and thruſhes; they kill the wood-cocks, which they find hang⯑ing, and eat them on the ſpot; but they ſome⯑times carry off the thruſhes and other ſmall birds that are caught, often ſwallowing them en⯑tire with their feathers, but generally when [301] they are larger, plucking them previouſly.—Theſe inſtincts, and that of flying ſideways with ruſtling wings, are common to the White, the Aluco, and the Tawny Owls. ^A

The BROWN OWL^*.
• Le Chouette, ou La Grande Chevéche, Buff. , • Strix Ulula, Linn. Gmel. Mull. and Georgi. , • Ulula Flammeata, Friſch. , • Strix Cinerea, Ray, Will. and Browſk. , • Noctua Major, Briſſ. , • Noctua Saxatilis, Geſn. and Aldrov. , • Grey Owl, Will. , and • Great Brown Owl, Alb. 

THIS ſpecies is pretty common, but does not frequent our habitations ſo much as the White Owl. It haunts quarries, rocks, ruins, and deſerted edifices; it even prefers moun⯑tainous tracts, craggy precipices, and ſequeſtered ſpots; but it never reſorts to the woods, or lodges in hollow trees. The colour of its eyes, which is a bright yellow, diſtinguiſhes it from the Aluco and the Tawny Owls. The differ⯑ence is more ſlight between it and the White Owl; becauſe in both, the iris is yellow, ſur⯑rounded with a circle of ſmall white feathers; the under-part of the belly is tinged with yel⯑low; and their ſize is nearly the ſame. But the Brown Owl is of a deeper colour, marked with larger ſpots reſembling ſmall flames; whereas []

[303] thoſe of the White Owl are only little points or drops; hence the former has been termed Noctua Flammeata, and the latter Noctua Guttata. The feet of the Brown Owl are cloſely covered with feathers, and the bill is brown; while the bill of the White Owl is whitiſh, and brown only near the tips. In this ſpecies alſo, the plu⯑mage of the female is marked with ſmaller ſpots than the male, and its colours are more dilute. Belon conſiders the White Owl as allied to the Little Owl; and indeed they bear a reſemblance in their figure and inſtincts; and in German they both have the generic name Kautz (Coot). Salerne informs us, that in the province of Or⯑leans the labourers have a great eſteem for this bird, becauſe it deſtroys the field-mice; that in the month of April it utters day and night the ſound goo in a ſoft tone; but before rain it changes this note into goyong; that it builds no neſt, and lays only three eggs, which are en⯑tirely white, perfectly round, and about the ſize of thoſe of a wood-pigeon. He adds, that it lodges in hollow trees, and that Olina was groſsly miſtaken when he aſſerted that it hatches in the two laſt months of winter. The laſt cir⯑cumſtance, however, is not far from the truth; for this bird, and thoſe of the ſame kind, lay their eggs in March, and the incubation muſt take place about the ſame time. Nor is it caught in hollow trees, but, as we have already ſaid, it haunts the rocks and caverns. It is con⯑ſiderably [304] ſmaller than the Aluco, and even than the Tawny Owl, its extreme length being only eleven inches.

It appears that this Brown Owl which is com⯑mon in Europe, eſpecially in the hilly countries, is alſo found in the mountains of Chili; and that the ſpecies deſcribed by Father Feuillée by the epithet of Rabbit, becauſe it was diſcovered in a hole in the ground, is only a variety of the European kind, differing by the diſtribution of its colours. If indeed it had made the exca⯑vation itſelf, as Father Feuillée imagines, we muſt conſider it as entirely diſtinct from any Owl even of the ancient continent^*. But ſuch a ſuppoſition is unneceſſary; it is moſt likely that, guided by inſtinct, it only crept into holes which it found already formed. ^A [305]

The LITTLE OWL^*.
• La Chevêche, ou Petite Chouette, Buff. , • Strix Paſſerina, Linn. Omel. Scop. Brun. Mul. Kram, &c. , • Noctua Minor, Ray, Will. and Klein. , and • La Civetta, Olin. and Zinn. 

THE Little Owl and the Scops Owl are nearly of the ſame ſize, both being the ſmalleſt of the genus. They are ſeven or eight inches long from the point of the bill to the claws, and not larger than a blackbird; but they are ſtill a diſtinct ſpecies; for the Scops is furniſhed with very ſhort ſlender tufts, conſiſt⯑ing of a ſingle feather on each ſide of the head, which are entirely wanting in the Little Owl: beſides, the iris is of a paler yellow, the bill brown at the baſe, and yellow near the point; but that of the Scops is entirely black. It may be readily diſtinguiſhed by the difference of co⯑lours, by the regular diſpoſition of the white ſpots on the wings and the body, by the ſhort⯑neſs of its tail and wings, and by its ordinary cry, poŏpoŏ, poŏpoŏ, which it conſtantly reiterates []

[307] while it flies; and another note which it has when ſitting, and which reſembles the voice of a young man, who repeatedly calls aīmë, hēmĕ, ēſmĕ ^*. It ſeldom haunts the woods; but its ordinary abode is among ſolitary ruins, caverns, and old deſerted buildings, and it never lodges in hol⯑low trees. In all theſe reſpects it reſembles moſt the Brown Owl. Nor is it entirely a bird of night; but ſees much better in the day than the other nocturnal birds, and even chaces the ſwal⯑lows and other ſmall birds, though with very little ſucceſs. It is more fortunate in the ſearch for mice, which it ſwallows, not entire, but tears them in pieces with its bill and claws; and it even plucks the birds neatly before it eats them; and in this inſtinct it differs from the other Owls. It lays five eggs, which are ſpotted with white and yellow, and conſtructs its rude, and almoſt bare neſt in the holes of rocks, and old walls. Friſch obſerves, that this bird loves ſolitude, and haunts churches, vaults, and cemeteries, the reſi⯑dence of the dead; that it is ſometimes called Church-Owl, Corpſe-Owl; and that as it has been remarked to flutter about houſes where there were perſons dying, the ſuperſtitious people name it the [308] bird of death, and imagine that it portends ap⯑proaching diſſolution. Friſch does not reflect that theſe gloomy images are connected only with the White Owl, and that the Little Owl is much more rare; that it hovers not about churches, nor has the plaintive moan or the piercing inti⯑midating cry of the other. At any rate, if the Little Owl be reckoned the bird of death in Ger⯑many, it is the White Owl that is held ominous in France. The Little Owl which Friſch has figured, and which occurs in Germany, appears to be a variety of ours: its plumage is much darker, and its iris black. There is alſo a va⯑riety in the king's cabinet, which was ſent from St. Domingo, and which is not ſo white on the throat, and whoſe breaſt and belly are regularly marked with brown tranſverſe bars; while, in our Little Owl, the brown ſpots are ſcattered confuſedly.

FOREIGN BIRDS, WHICH RESEMBLE THE OWLS.

BIRDS WHICH HAVE NOT THE POWER OF FLYING.

FROM the light birds which ſoar in the re⯑gion of the clouds, we paſs to thoſe that are borne down by their weight, and cannot riſe from the ſurface. Our tranſition is ſud⯑den; but knowledge is acquired in the mode of compariſon, and the oppoſition and contraſt will throw additional light on the hiſtory of the winged race. Indeed, without examining cloſely the end of the chain, we cannot diſtinguiſh the intermediate links. When Nature is diſplayed in her whole extent, ſhe preſents a boundleſs field, where the various orders of being are con⯑nected by a perpetual ſucceſſion of contiguous and reſembling objects: but it is not a ſimple uniform ſeries, it ramifies at intervals in all di⯑rections; the branches from different parts bend, and run into each other, and theſe flexions and this tendency to unite, are moſt remarkable near the extremes. We have ſeen in the claſs of quadrupeds, that one end of the chain ſtretches to the tribe of birds in the different kinds of bats, which like theſe have the power of flying. The other end of the chain, we have perceived, deſcends to the order of whales, in the ſeal, the [320] wallrus, and the manati: another branch was ob⯑ſerved riſing from the middle, and connecting the monkey to man by the intermediate links of the baboon, the pigmy-ape, and the orang-utang. On the one ſide, a ſhoot bending through the ant-eaters, the phatagins, and the pangolins, which reſemble in ſhape the crocodiles, the inguana, and the lizzards, unites the reptiles to the quadru⯑peds; on the other, through the tatous, whoſe body is completely ſheathed in a bony covering, it approaches the cruſtaceous animals. It will be the ſame with reſpect to the band which connects the numerous order of birds; if we place its origin in thoſe birds which ſhoot nim⯑bly with light pinions through the mid-way air, it will gradually paſs through various minute ſhades, and at laſt terminate in thoſe which are oppreſſed with their weight, and deſtitute of the inſtruments neceſſary to impel their aërial courſe. The lower extremity will be found to divide into two branches; the one containing terreſtrial birds, as the Oſtrich, the Touyou, the Caſſo⯑wary, and the Dodo, which cannot riſe from the ground; the other including the Pinguins and other aquatic birds, which are denied the uſe, or rather the reſidence of earth and air, and which never leave the ſurface of the water, their proper element. Such are the ends of the chain; and we ought to examine theſe with attention before we venture to ſurvey the intermediate links, in which the proper⯑ties [321] of the extremes are variouſly blended. To place this metaphyſical view in its proper light, and to elucidate the ideas by actual ex⯑amples, we ought, immediately after treating of quadrupeds, to begin the Natural Hiſtory of the Birds which are the neareſt related to theſe animals. The Oſtrich reſembling the camel in the ſhape of its legs, and the porcupine in the pipes or prickles with which its wings are arm⯑ed, ought to be ranged next the quadrupeds. But philoſophy muſt often yield to popular opi⯑nions; the numerous herd of naturaliſts would exclaim againſt this claſſification, and would re⯑gard it as an abſurd innovation, proceeding merely from the love of ſingularity and contra⯑tradiction. But beſides the general reſemblance in ſize and outward appearance, which alone ought to place it at the head of the winged race, we ſhall find that there are many other analogies to be found in the internal ſtructure; and that being almoſt equally related to the birds and to the quadrupeds, it muſt be conſidered as the intermediate ſhade.

In each ſeries or chain which connects the univerſal ſyſtem of animated nature, the branches which extend to the ſubordinate claſſes are al⯑ways ſhort, and form very ſmall genera. The birds that are not fitted to fly, conſiſt only of ſeven or eight ſpecies; the quadrupeds that are able to fly, amount but to five or ſix. The ſame remark may be applied to the other lateral [322] ramifications. Theſe are fugitive traces of na⯑ture, which mark the extent of her power, which ſet defiance to the ſhackles of our ſyſtems, and burſt from the confinement of our narrow circle of ideas.

The OSTRICH^*.
• L'Autruche, Buff. , • Struthio Camelus, Linn. Gmel. Will. Briſſ. &c. , and • The Black Oſtrich, Alb. Sparr. Lath. &c. 

THE Oſtrich was known in the remoteſt ages, and mentioned in the moſt ancient books. It is frequently the ſubject from which the ſa⯑cred writers draw their compariſons and allego⯑ries^†. In ſtill more diſtant periods, its fleſh [324] ſeems to have been commonly uſed for food; for the legiſlature of the Jews prohibits it as un⯑clean^*. It occurs alſo in Herodotus^†, the moſt antient of profane hiſtorians, and in the writings of the firſt philoſophers who have treated of the hiſtory of Nature: how indeed could an animal ſo remarkably large, ſo ſtrangely ſhaped, and ſo wonderfully prolific, and peculiarly fitted for the climate, as the Oſtrich, remain unknown in Africa and part of Aſia, countries peopled from the earlieſt ages, full of deſerts indeed, but where there is not a ſpot that has not been trodden by the foot of man?

The family of the Oſtrich, therefore, is of great antiquity; nor in the courſe of ages has [325] it varied or degenerated from its native purity. It has always remained on its paternal eſtate; and its luſtre has been tranſmitted unſullied by foreign intercourſe. In ſhort, it is among the birds what the elephant is among the quadru⯑peds, a diſtinct race, widely ſeparated from all the others by characters as ſtriking as they are invariable.

The Oſtrich is reckoned the largeſt of the birds; but it is deprived of the prerogative of the winged tribe, the power of flying. The one which Valliſnieri examined weighed, though it was very lean, fifty-five pounds, after the en⯑trails were taken out; ſo that, allowing twenty pounds for theſe, and the fat that was wanting^*, we may eſtimate the weight of an Oſtrich when alive, and in tolerable habit, at ſeventy-five or eighty pounds. With what amazing force, then, muſt the wings, and the impelling muſcles of theſe wings, have been endowed, to have been able to raiſe and ſuſpend in the air ſo huge a maſs? The power of Nature appears to the ſuperficial ob⯑ſerver as infinite; but when we examine cloſely the minute parts, we perceive that every thing is limited; and to diſcriminate with accuracy theſe limits, which the wiſdom, and not the weakneſs, of Nature has preſcribed, is the beſt method to [326] ſtudy her works and operations. In the preſent caſe, the weight of ſeventy-five pounds exceeds all the exertions of animal force to ſupport it in the medium of the atmoſphere. Other birds alſo which approach in ſize to the Oſtrich, ſuch as the Thuiou, the Caſſowary, and the Dodo, are held down to the ſurface of the earth: but their weight is not the ſole obſtacle; the ſtrength of the pectoral muſcles, the expanſion of the wings, their favourable inſertion, the ſtiffneſs of the quill-feathers, &c. would here be conditions the more neceſſary, as the reſiſtance to be overcome is greater: but theſe requiſites are entirely want⯑ing; for, to confine myſelf to the Oſtrich, this bird has, properly ſpeaking, no wings; ſince the feathers inſerted in the ſhoulders, inſtead of forming a compact body fit to make a powerful impreſſion upon the air, are divided into looſe ſilky filaments, and the feathers of the tail are of the ſame downy texture; nor can they ad⯑mit the varying poſitions which are neceſſary for regulating their courſe. It is remarkable that in the Oſtrich the feathers are all of the ſame texture; whereas in moſt other birds, the plumage is compoſed of different kinds of fea⯑thers. Thoſe next the ſkin are ſoft and woolly; the coverts are cloſer and more ſolid; and the quill-feathers, which are deſtined to perform the motions, are long and ſtiff. The Oſtrich is, therefore, confined to the ground by a double chain; by its great weight; and the ſtructure of [327] its wings, it is condemned, like the quadrupeds, to traverſe with labour the ſurface, and exiled from the region of the air; and in both exter⯑nal and internal ſtructure it bears great reſem⯑blance to theſe animals; like them, the greateſt part of its body is covered with hair rather than feathers; its head and ſides are almoſt naked; and its legs, in which its ſtrength chiefly con⯑ſiſts, are thick and muſcular; its feet are ſtrong and fleſhy, reſembling thoſe of the camel, which differs from the other quadrupeds in that re⯑ſpect; its wings, furniſhed with two pikes like thoſe of the porcupine, are to be regarded rather as a kind of arms deſtined for its defence; the ori⯑fice of the ear is uncovered, and only lined with hair in the inſide at the auditory canal; its up⯑per eye-lid is moveable, as in almoſt all the qua⯑drupeds, and is edged with long eye-laſhes as in man, and in the elephant; the general ſtructure of the eyes is moſt analogous to what obtains in man, and they are ſo placed that both of them point to the ſame object. The parts near the bottom of the ſternum, and near the os pubis, which, as in the camel, are callous, and deſtitute of hair or feathers, indicate its weight, and re⯑duce it to a level with the humbleſt of the beaſts of burden. Thevenot was ſo ſtruck with the analogy between the Oſtrich and the Drome⯑dary, that he fancied he could perceive the hump on its back; but, though the back is in⯑deed arched, there is nothing ſimilar to the fleſhy [328] protuberance that occurs in camels and drome⯑daries.

If we proceed, from the ſurvey of its external form, to examine its internal ſtructure, we ſhall diſcover other properties which diſtinguiſh it from the birds, and new analogies which link it with the quadrupeds.

The head is very ſmall^*, flat, and compoſed of ſoft tender bones^†, but the crown is hard⯑ened by a plate of horn. It is ſupported in a horizontal ſituation by a bony column near three feet in height, conſiſting of ſeventeen vertebrae. The body is commonly kept in the direc⯑tion parallel to the horizon; the back is two feet long, formed by ſeven vertebrae, and with theſe are articulated on each ſide ſeven ribs, two falſe and five true; the laſt being double at their origin, and afterwards uniting into a ſingle branch. A third pair of falſe ribs form the cla⯑vicle; and the five true ribs are connected by cartilaginous ligaments to the ſternum, which deſcends not to the lower belly as in moſt birds, and which is leſs projecting; it reſembles a buckler in ſhape, and is broader than even the ſternum of a man. From the os ſacrum ariſes a [329] kind of tail, conſiſting of ſeven vertebrae, ſimilar to thoſe in man; the os femoris is a foot long; the tibia, and tarſus, a foot and a half each; every toe conſiſts of three phalanges as in man, while other birds have ſeldom an equal number^*.

The bill is rather ſmall^†, but opens wide; the tongue is very ſhort, and deſtitute of papillae. The pharynx is broad, proportioned to the aper⯑ture of the mouth, and would admit a body of the ſize of the fiſt. The oeſophagus is alſo wide and ſtrong, and terminates in the firſt ventricle, which in this bird performs three different func⯑tions; that of a craw, becauſe it is the firſt; that of a ventricle, being partly muſcular, and partly conſiſting of longitudinal circular fibres; and that of the glandulous protuberance, which ge⯑nerally occurs in the lower part of the oeſopha⯑gus next the gizzard, ſince it is furniſhed with a great number of glands, conglomerated, and not conglobated, as in moſt other birds^‡. The firſt ventricle is ſituated below the ſecond; ſo that what is generally termed the ſuperior ori⯑ſice, in regard to its place, is in this caſe really the inferior. The ſecond ventricle is often di⯑vided from the firſt by a ſlight conſtricture; and ſometimes it is beſides formed into two cavities [330] by a ſimilar conſtricture; but this diviſion can never be perceived externally. It is covered with glands, and inveſted with a villous coat ſomething like flannel, but with little adheſion, and perforated with an infinite number of ſmall holes, correſponding to the orifices of the glands. It is not ſo ſtrong as the gizzards of birds gene⯑rally are; but it is ſtrengthened externally by very powerful muſcles, ſome of them three inches thick. Its outward form reſembles much that of the human ventricle.

Du Verney pretends that the hepatic duct ter⯑minates in this ſecond ventricle^*, as happens in the tench, and many other fiſhes, and ſometimes even in man, according to the obſervation of Galen^†. But Ranby^‡ and Valliſnieri affirm, that in ſeveral Oſtriches which they examined, they always found the inſertion of this duct in the duodenum two inches, one inch, and ſome⯑times only half an inch below the pylorus. Val⯑liſnieri alſo points out the origin of this miſtake, if it be ſuch, adding that in two Oſtriches he traced a veſſel from the ſecond ventricle to the liver, which he firſt took for a branch of the hepatic duct, but afterwards diſcovered that it was an artery which conveyed blood to the liver, and not bile to the ventricle.

[331] The pylorus varies in regard to its width in different ſubjects; it is generally tinged with yellow, and, as well as the cavity of the ſecond ventricle, is imbued with a bitter liquor. This is eaſily accounted for, becauſe the hepatic duct takes its origin in the duodenum, and runs up⯑wards.

The pylorus diſcharges itſelf into the duode⯑num, the narroweſt of all the inteſtines, and in which are alſo inſerted the two pancreatic ducts, a foot, and ſometimes two or three feet, below the junction of the hepatic; while in other birds the inſertion is made cloſe to the gall duct.

The duodenum and the jejunum are without valves; the ileon is furniſhed with ſome, as it runs into the colon. Theſe three ſmall inteſ⯑tines are nearly half the length of the whole ali⯑mentary canal, which, in different ſubjects even of the ſame bulk, is ſubject to variation, being ſixty feet in ſome, and only twenty-nine in others.

The two caeca riſe from the beginning of the colon, according to the anatomiſts of the Aca⯑demy; or from the end of the ileum, according to Ranby. Each caecum forms a kind of hol⯑low cone two or three feet long, an inch wide at the baſe, and furniſhed in the inſide with a valve in the form of a ſpiral plate, making near twenty revolutions from the bottom to the top, as in the hare, the rabbit, the ſea-fox, the ray, the cramp⯑fiſh, and the thornback, &c.

[332] The colon alſo is furniſhed with leaf-ſhaped valves, but which, inſtead of turning ſpirally, form a creſcent that occupies rather more than half the circumference of the colon: ſo that the ends of the oppoſite creſcents ſlightly overlap each other. And this ſtructure alſo occurs in the colon of the monkey, and in the jejunum of man, and marks the inteſtine exteriorly with tranverſe parallel furrows, about half an inch diſtant, and correſponding to the interior valves: but it is remarkable that theſe creſcents do not occur through the whole length of the colon, or rather that the Oſtrich has two very different colons; the one broad and about a foot long, furniſhed with leafy valves; the other, narrower, and totally deſtitute of valves, but extending to the rectum.

The rectum is very wide, about a foot long, and near its termination covered with fleſhy ſibres. It opens into a large bag or bladder con⯑ſiſting of membranes, the ſame as the inteſtines, but thicker, and ſometimes containing even eight ounces of urine^*. For the ureters make their diſcharge by a very oblique inſertion, as in the bladder of land animals; and not only convey [333] urine, but alſo the white glutinous matter that accompanies or envelopes the excrement in all birds.

This firſt bag, which wants only the neck to be a real bladder, communicates by an orifice furniſhed with a kind of ſphincter with the ſecond and laſt bag, which is ſmaller, and ſerves for the paſſage of the urine and the ſolid excrements; it is almoſt ſhut by a cartilaginous nut, adher⯑ing at its baſe to the junction of the os pubis, and cleft in the middle like that of the apri⯑cot.

The ſolid excrements are very like thoſe of ſheep and goats, being divided into little balls, whoſe bulk bears no relation to the capacity of the inteſtines where they are formed. In the ſmall inteſtines, the appearance is like that of ſoup, ſometimes green, ſometimes black, according to the quantity of aliment, which acquires conſiſtence as it approaches the thick inteſtines, but does not receive its ſhape until it enters the ſecond colon.

Near the anus are ſometimes found ſmall ſacs, ſomewhat ſimilar to what occur in the ſame parts in lions and tigers.

The meſentery is tranſparent through its whole extent, and in ſome parts it is a foot broad. Valliſnieri pretends to have diſcovered in it mani⯑feſt traces of lymphatic veſſels: Ranby alſo ſays, that the veſſels of the meſentery are very diſtinct, but adds, that its glands can hardly be perceived. [334] To moſt obſervers indeed they have been alto⯑gether inviſible.

The liver is divided into two great lobes, as in man, but it is placed nearer the middle of the hypochondriac region, and has no gall blad⯑der. The ſpleen is contiguous to the firſt ſto⯑mach, and weighs at leaſt two ounces.

The kidneys are very large, ſeldom parted into ſeveral lobes as in other birds, but oftener ſhaped like a guitar, with a broad belly.

The ureters never creep along the kidneys as in moſt other birds, but penetrate into their ſubſtance.

The epiploon is very ſmall, and only covers a part of the ventricle; but in its ſtead we find over all the belly, and ſometimes on the inteſtines, a coat of fat or tallow ſpread between the aponeu⯑roſes of the muſcles of the abdomen, and from two to ſix inches thick. It was this fat mixed with blood that formed the manteca, which was highly eſteemed, and extremely dear among the Romans, who, according to Pliny, reckoned it more efficacious than gooſe fat, for rheumatiſm, cold ſwellings, and palſy; and even at preſent the Arabians preſcribe it in theſe diſorders^*. Val⯑liſnieri is the only one who, probably from his happening to diſſect very lean Oſtriches, ſuſpects the exiſtence of this fact; and the more ſo, that in Italy the leanneſs of the Oſtrich has paſſed into [335] a proverb, magro comme uno ſtruzzo ^*; he adds, that thoſe which he examined appeared after diſſection like mere ſkeletons: but this muſt be the caſe with reſpect to all Oſtriches that have no fat, or in which it has been ſeparated, ſince there is no fleſh on the breaſt or belly, for the muſcles of the abdomen do not become fleſhy till they reach the ſides.

If from the organs of digeſtion we paſs to thoſe of generation, we ſhall find other analogies to the ſtructure which obtains in quadrupeds. In the greateſt number of birds, the penis is con⯑cealed; but in the Oſtrich it is apparent, and of a conſiderable ſize, compoſed of two white liga⯑ments, that are ſolid and nervous, four lines diameter, and ſheathed in a thick membrane, and which only unite at the breadth of two fingers from their extremity. Sometimes we alſo meet in the ſame part a red ſpongy ſub⯑ſtance, ſupplied with a multitude of veſſels, and very ſimilar to the corpus cavernoſum that is ob⯑ſerved in the land animals. The whole is in⯑cloſed in a common membrane, whoſe texture is the ſame as that of the ligaments, though not ſo thick or hard. This penis is furniſhed with neither gland nor prepuce; nor, according to the anatomiſts of the academy, is even per⯑forated for the ejection of the ſeminal fluid; but Warren pretends that he diſſected an Oſtrich, whoſe yard was five inches and a half [336] long, and furrowed longitudinally along the up⯑per ſurface, with a kind of channel, which ap⯑peared to him to be deſtined for conveying the ſemen. Whether this channel was formed by the junction of the two ligaments; or that War⯑ren miſtook for the penis the cartilaginous nut of the ſecond bag of the rectum, which is in fact parted; or that the ſtructure and ſhape of this organ is liable to vary in different ſubjects; it appears that the yard adheres at its origin to the cartilaginous nut, and bending downwards, it paſſes through the ſmall ſac, and emerges at the external orifice, which is the anus, and which being edged with a membranous fold, forms at this part a falſe prepuce, that Dr. Brown has undoubtedly miſtaken for a real prepuce, for he is the only perſon who aſſerts that the Oſtrich has that excreſcence^*.

There are four muſcles attached to the anus and the yard, whence reſults a ſympathy of mo⯑tion; and this is the reaſon why, when the animal voids its excrements, the yard protrudes ſeveral inches^†.

The teſticles differ widely in regard to ſize in different individuals, and vary even in the propor⯑tion of forty-eight to one; owing, doubtleſs, to their age, the ſeaſon, the nature of the diſeaſe which preceded death, &c. Their external ſhape varies [337] alſo, but their external ſtructure is always uni⯑form; they lie on the kidneys, nearer the left than the right. Warren imagined he could per⯑ceive ſeminal veſicules.

The females alſo have teſticles; for ſo we ought to call thoſe glandulous bodies, four lines in di⯑ameter and eighteen long, which are found un⯑der the ovarium adhering to the aörta and vena cava, and which nothing but the predilection of ſyſtem could convert into the lower glands of the kidney. The female Little Buſtard is alſo furniſhed with teſticles ſimilar to thoſe of the male, and there is reaſon to believe that the fe⯑male of the Great Buſtard has the ſame ſtructure; and if the Anatomiſts of the Academy, in their numerous diſſections, have ſuppoſed that they never met with any but males, it is becauſe they would not admit an animal in which they found teſticles to be a female. But every body knows that the Buſtard approaches the neareſt of the European birds to the Oſtrich, and therefore all that I have ſaid on the ſubject of the generation of teſticles in the bodies of female quadrupeds, applies readily to this claſs, and will afterwards perhaps be diſcovered to admit of a greater ex⯑tenſion.

Below theſe two glandulous bodies is placed the ovarium, adhering alſo to the great blood veſſels; it generally contains eggs of different ſizes, incloſed in their capſule like ſmall glands, and attached to the ovarium by their ſtalks.

[338] This ovarium is ſingle, as in almoſt all birds; and we may remark by the way that this affords another preſumption againſt the opinion of thoſe who maintain that the two glandulous bodies which occur in all the females of quadrupeds, repreſent the ovarium, which is a ſingle organ; inſtead of admitting that they are really teſticles, which muſt be reckoned among the double parts, both in the males of birds and in thoſe of qua⯑drupeds^*.

The funnel of the oviductus opens below the ovarium, and ſends off to the right and left two winged membranous appendices, which reſemble thoſe that occur at the end of the tube in land animals. The eggs which are ſeparated from the ovarium are received into this funnel, and conveyed along the oviductus to the laſt inteſtinal ſac, where they are diſcharged through an ori⯑fice, which, in its natural ſtate, is only four lines in diameter, but its wrinkled ſurface expands and forms a dilatation proportional to the bulk of the eggs. All the inner coat of the oviductus is alſo full of wrinkles, or rather folds, as in the third and fourth ſtomachs of the ruminating animals.

[339] Laſtly, the ſecond inteſtinal bag has its car⯑tilaginous nut in the female as well as in the male; and this nut, which ſometimes projects more than half an inch from the anus, has a ſmall appendix three lines in length, thin and incurvated, which the Anatomiſts of the Aca⯑demy take for a clitoris, and with the greater probability, as the ſame two muſcles that are in⯑ſerted in the baſe of the yard in the males, are alſo connected to the origin of this appendix in the females.

I ſhall not dwell on the deſcription of the organs of reſpiration, ſince they reſemble almoſt entirely thoſe of the other birds; conſiſting of two lungs of a ſpungy ſubſtance with ten air cells, five on each ſide, of which the fourth is here the ſmalleſt, as uſual in all the bulky ſpecies of birds: theſe cells receive the air from the lungs, with which they have very diſtinct com⯑munications; but they muſt alſo have com⯑munications with other parts, though leſs ap⯑parent; for when Valliſnieri blew into the trachea-arteria, he obſerved an inflation along the thighs and wings, which indicates a ſtructure ſimilar to that of the Pelican, in which Mery perceived, under the inſertion of the wing, and between the thigh and the belly, membranous bags, which were filled with air during expi⯑ration, or when air was injected forcibly into the trachea-arteria, and which probably furniſh it to the cellular texture.

[340] Dr. Brown poſitively aſſerts, that the Oſtrich has no epiglottis: Perrault ſuppoſes the ſame thing, ſince he beſtows on a certain muſcle the office of ſhutting the glottis, by contracting the larynx. Warren affirms that he perceived a glottis in the ſubject which he diſſected; and Valliſnieri reconciles theſe oppoſite opinions, by ſaying that there is really no perfect epiglottis, but that the poſterior part of the tongue ſupplies the defect, cloſing on the glottis in deglu⯑tition.

There are various opinions alſo with reſpect to the number and form of the cartilaginous rings of the larynx: Valliſnieri reckons only two hundred and eighteen, and maintains, with Perrault, that they are all entire: Warren found two hundred and twenty-ſix complete, excluſive of the firſt ones which were imperfect, or thoſe immediately under the forking of the trachea. All this may be true, conſidering the great va⯑rieties to which the ſtructure of the internal parts are ſubject; but it proves at the ſame time the raſhneſs of attempting to deſcribe a whole ſpecies from a ſmall number of individuals, and the danger of miſtaking anomalous varieties for conſtant characters. Perrault obſerved, that each of the two branches of the trachea-arteria is divided at its junction with the lungs into a number of membranous ramifications, as in the elephant. The brain, with its cerebellum, forms a maſs about two inches and a half long, and [341] twenty lines broad. Valliſnieri affirms, that the one he examined weighed only an ounce, which would not amount to the one-twelfth-hundredth part of the weight of the animal: he adds, that the ſtructure was exactly ſimilar to that of the brain of other birds, and preciſely ſuch as de⯑ſcribed by Willis. I ſhall obſerve however, with the Anatomiſts of the Academy, that the ten pairs of nerves ariſe and proceed from the cranium, in the ſame manner as in land animals; that the cortical and the medullary part of the cerebellum are alſo diſpoſed as in theſe animals; and that we ſometimes find the two vermiform apophyſes which occur in man, and a ventricle, ſhaped like a writing pen, as in moſt of the quadrupeds.

With reſpect to the organs of circulation, I ſhall only notice, that the heart is almoſt round, while in other birds it is generally elongated.

In regard to the external ſenſes, I have al⯑ready deſcribed the tongue, the ear, and the external form of the eye: I have only to add, that its internal ſtructure is the ſame with what is commonly obſerved in birds. Ranby aſ⯑ſerts, that the ball taken from its ſocket, ſpon⯑taneouſly aſſumes a form almoſt triangular; he alſo remarks, that the quantity of the aqueous humour is greater, and that of the vitreous leſs than ordinary.

The noſtrils are placed in the ſuperior mandi⯑ble, not far from its baſe, and on the middle of each aperture riſes a cartilaginous protuberance [342] covered with a very thin membrane, and theſe apertures communicate with the palate by means of two canals which terminate in a pretty large cleft. We ſhould be miſtaken, were we to infer from the complicated ſtructure of this organ, that the Oſtrich poſſeſſed the ſenſe of ſmell in an eminent degree; for the moſt un⯑doubted facts prove exactly the reverſe; and in general it appears that the chief impreſſions, and the moſt exquiſite which this animal re⯑ceives, are thoſe of ſight, and of the ſixth ſenſe.

This ſhort view of the internal organization of the Oſtrich is more than ſufficient to confirm the idea which I before gave, that this ſingular animal muſt be conſidered as a being of an equivocal nature, and as forming the ſhade be⯑tween the quadruped and the bird: and in a ſyſtem which would repreſent the true gradation of the univerſe, it ſhould be referred neither to the claſs of quadrupeds nor to that of birds, but ranged in the intermediate place. Indeed, what rank can we aſſign to an animal whoſe body is partly that of a bird, partly that of a quadruped^*; its feet like thoſe of a quadruped, its head ſimi⯑lar to that of a bird; the male furniſhed with a penis, the female with a clitoris, as in the qua⯑drupeds; which is oviparous, and has a gizzard like the birds, and at the ſame time is ſupplied with ſeveral ſtomachs, and with inteſtines, whoſe [343] capacity and ſtructure are analogous partly to the ruminating, and partly to the other qua⯑drupeds?

In the order of fecundity, the Oſtrich ſeems to be more nearly related to the quadrupeds than to the birds; for its incubations are frequent, and it hatches many young at a time. Ariſtotle ſays, that, next after the Oſtrich, the bird which he calls the Atricapilla, is that which lays the moſt eggs; and he adds, that this bird, Atri⯑capilla, lays twenty and more; whence it fol⯑lows that the Oſtrich lays at leaſt twenty-five. Beſides, the beſt informed modern hiſtorians and travellers relate, that it has ſeveral ſittings, with twelve or fifteen eggs in each. But if we refer it to the claſs of the birds, it would be the largeſt, and conſequently ought to be the leaſt prolific, according to the law which Nature ſeems to have conſtantly obſerved in the multiplication of ani⯑mals, that it is univerſally proportional to the bulk of the individuals; whereas, if we refer it to the claſs of land animals, it appears dimi⯑nutive beſide the largeſt ſpecies, and ſmaller than thoſe of a middle ſize, as the hog, and its great fecundity is therefore conſiſtent with the general order of the univerſe.

Oppian, who entertained the ſtrange notion that the camels of Bactriana copulated back⯑wards, turning their tails to each other, believed alſo that the camel bird (the name anciently ap⯑plied to the Oſtrich) performs its embraces in [344] the ſame manner; and he advances it as an un⯑doubted fact. But this is no more probable with reſpect to the camel-bird than with reſpect to the camel itſelf; and though it is moſt probable that few obſervers have witneſſed their coupling, and that none have deſcribed it, we ought ſtill to conclude, ſince there is no proof of the contrary, that it is accompliſhed in the uſual way.

The Oſtriches are reckoned exceſſively ſala⯑cious, and often copulate; and if we recollect what has been already ſaid with reſpect to the dimenſions of the yard, we ſhall readily con⯑ceive that this act is not performed by mere compreſſion, as in almoſt all the other birds, but that the male organ is really introduced into the ſexual parts of the female: Thevenot is the only perſon who aſſerts that they pair, and that, contrary to what is uſual with the large birds, each male ſelects his female.

The time of laying their eggs depends on the climate they inhabit, but is always near the ſum⯑mer ſolſtice; that is, about the beginning of July, in the northern parts of Africa^*, and towards the end of December, in the ſouthern tracts of that continent^†. The temperature of the cli⯑mate has alſo great influence on the mode of hatching. In the torrid zone, they are con⯑tented with depoſiting their eggs in a heap of ſand looſely ſcraped together with their feet, and [345] leave the developement of the young to the powerful agency of a burning ſun. Nor is this always neceſſary; they are ſometimes hatched, though neither covered by the mother, nor ex⯑poſed to the influence of the ſolar rays^*. But though the Oſtrich has ſeldom or never recourſe to incubation, ſhe is far from abandoning her eggs: ſhe watches aſſiduouſly over their preſer⯑vation, and ſeldom loſes ſight of them. This has given occaſion to the ſaying, that they hatch them with their eyes; and Diodorus relates a method of catching theſe animals, which is founded on their ſtrong attachment to their ex⯑pected offspring: this is to ſet in the ground round the neſt, at a proper height, ſtakes, armed with ſharp points, upon which the mother ruſhes heedleſsly, and is transfixed.

Though the climate of France is much colder than that of Barbary, Oſtriches have ſometimes laid their eggs in the Menagerie of Verſailles; but the Anatomiſts of the Academy were un⯑ſucceſsful in their attempts to hatch them, either by artificial incubation, or by the heat of the ſun, or by the application of the gra⯑dual heat of a ſlow regulated fire; nor could they trace in any of the eggs the leaſt marks of an incipient organization, or diſcover the [346] ſlighteſt indication of the production of a new being.—The yolk and the white of the one that had been heated by the fire, were only a little thickened; that expoſed to the ſun contracted a very putrid ſmell; but neither ſhewed the leaſt appearance of the rudiments of a foetus; and in ſhort, this philoſophical incubation was totally unſucceſsful^*.—Reaumur had not yet appeared.

The eggs are extremely hard, heavy, and large; but ſometimes they are ſuppoſed to be more bulky than they really are, thoſe of the crocodile being miſtaken for them^†. It has been aſſerted, that they are as large as the head of a child^‡, that they would contain a quart^‖, that they weigh fifteen pounds, and that an Oſtrich lays fifty^§ eggs in the year; Aelian goes as far as eighty. But moſt of theſe circumſtances are evidently exaggerated: for, firſt, is it poſ⯑ſible that an egg, whoſe ſhell is not more than a pound in weight, and whoſe capacity is at moſt only a quart, could weigh fifteen pounds? To reconcile this, we muſt ſuppoſe that the yolk and white are ſeven times denſer than water, three times than marble, and almoſt as denſe as tin, which is rather a ſtrained hypotheſis. Secondly, Admitting with Willughby, that the Oſtrich lays annually fifty eggs, weighing fifteen pounds each, it would follow that, in the courſe of the year, ſhe would exclude ſeven hundred [347] and fifty pounds, which is too much for an ani⯑mal that is ſcarcely eighty pounds weight.

We muſt therefore make a conſiderable abate⯑ment both in the weight of the eggs, and in their number; but it is a pity that we have not ſuffi⯑cient data to aſcertain the preciſe quantity. Ari⯑ſtotle indeed renders it probable, that the num⯑ber of eggs is from twenty-five to thirty; and the moſt judicious modern writers ſtate it at thirty-ſix. If we ſuppoſe two or three layings in the year, and a dozen eggs to each, we might alſo admit the weight of each egg to be three or four pounds, allowing a pound for the ſhell, and two or three for the white and yolk; but this is merely conjecture, and far from being accurate. Many people write, but few weigh, meaſure, or compare. Of fifteen or ſix⯑teen Oſtriches which have been diſſected in different countries, only one has been weighed, and it is that which we have deſcribed from Valliſnieri.—We are no better informed with reſpect to the time neceſſary for the incubation of the eggs; all we know, or rather all that is aſſerted is, that as ſoon as they are hatched, the young Oſtriches are able to walk, and even to run and ſearch for their food; inaſmuch that in the torrid zone^*, where they enjoy the proper degree of warmth, and can eaſily provide their ſuitable ſubſiſtence, they are emancipated at their birth, and abandoned by their mother, on [348] whoſe aſſiſtance they are independent. But, in the more temperate countries, as at the Cape of Good Hope^*, the mother watches over her young ſo long as her aſſiduous attention is ne⯑ceſſary; and in every climate her care is pro⯑portioned to their wants.

The young Oſtriches are of an aſh-gray the firſt year, and entirely covered with feathers; but theſe are falſe, and ſoon drop. They are never reſtored on the head, on the top of the neck, on the things, on the ſides, and below the wings; but they are replaced on the reſt of the body by plumes alternately black and white, and ſometimes gray, from the blending theſe two co⯑lours into each other. The ſhorteſt are on the lower part of the neck; thoſe on the belly and the back are longer; but the longeſt of all are thoſe at the extremity of the tail and of the wings, and are alſo the moſt eſteemed. Klein mentions, on the authority of Albert, that the dorſal feathers are very black in the males, and brown in the females; but the Academicians, who diſſected eight Oſtriches, five male and three female, found the plumage nearly alike in all; yet they never obſerved red, green, blue, or yellow feathers, as Cardan ſeems to have be⯑lieved, from a ſtrange overſight in a work De Subtilitate.

Redi diſcovered, from numerous obſervations, [349] that almoſt all birds are ſubject to vermin in their feathers, and even vermin of different kinds; that the greateſt number have inſects pe⯑culiar to them, and no where elſe found; but in no ſeaſon could he ever perceive them in Oſtriches, though he examined a dozen of thoſe animals, ſome of which had been recently brought from Barbary. Further, Valliſnieri, who diffected two Oſtriches, found in the bowels neither lum⯑brici, nor worms, nor inſects of any ſort. It would ſeem therefore, that none of theſe crea⯑tures are fond of the Oſtrich fleſh; that they avoid it with an averſion, and that it has ſome quality pernicious to their multiplication. Per⯑haps the breeding of vermin is prevented inter⯑nally by the great powers of the ſtomach, and the digeſtive organs. Many fabulous opinions have been entertained on this ſubject. It has been aſſerted, that the Oſtrich digeſts iron as poultry digeſt grain; and ſome authors have even gone ſo far as to allege, that it could di⯑geſt red-hot iron^*. The laſt opinion requires no ſerious refutation; and it will be enough to aſcertain from facts, if the Oſtrich can grind down cold iron.

It is certain that theſe birds live chiefly on vegetable ſubſtances; that their gizzard is lined with very ſtrong muſcles, as in all the granivo⯑rous [350] claſs^*; that they often ſwallow bits of iron^†, copper, ſtones, glaſs, wood, and any thing that occurs. I will not deny that they may even ſometimes ſwallow hot iron, if the quantity be ſmall, and this perhaps without ſuf⯑fering any inconvenience. It appears that they ſwallow whatever they can find, till their capa⯑cious ſtomachs be completely filled; and that the need of ballaſting them with a ſufficient weight, is one of the principal cauſes of their voracity. The gallinaceous tribe, and other granivorous animals, whoſe organs of taſte want ſenſibility, alſo ſwallow many ſmall ſtones, when mixed with their food, miſtaking them probably for grains; but if ſtones be offered alone, they will periſh of hunger, and not touch one of them; and ſtill leſs will they meddle with quick-lime. We may therefore conclude, that the Oſtrich is one of the birds whoſe ſenſes of taſte and ſmell are the moſt obtuſe; and in this circumſtance they are widely ſeparated from the quadrupeds.

But what become of thoſe hard noxious ſub⯑ſtances, eſpecially the copper, the glaſs, and the iron, which the Oſtrich ſwallows at random, and [351] merely with the view of repletion? On this ſub⯑ject the authors are divided, and adduce parti⯑cular facts in ſupport of each opinion. Perrault, having found ſeventy doubloons in the ſtomach of one of theſe animals, obſerved, that moſt of them were worn down, and reduced to three-fourths of their prominence. He conceived that this was occaſioned by their mutual friction, and the comminution of pebbles, rather than by the ac⯑tion of any acid; ſince ſome of theſe doubloons were much corroded on the convex ſurface, which was moſt expoſed to the attrition, and yet not in the leaſt affected on the concave ſide. He therefore concluded, that, in theſe birds, the ſo⯑lution of the food is not performed merely by ſubtile and penetrating juices, but is effected by the organic action of the ſtomach, which com⯑preſſes its aliments, and agitates them inceſſantly with thoſe hard bodies which they inſtinctively ſwallow. And, becauſe the contents of the ſto⯑mach were tinged with green, he inferred that the copper was actually diſſolved in it; not by any particular ſolvent, nor by the powers of di⯑geſtion, but in a ſimilar manner to what would take place if that metal were ground with herb⯑age, or with ſome acid or ſaline liquor. He adds, that copper, far from affording nouriſh⯑ment in the ſtomach of the Oſtrich, really acts as a poiſon, and that all thoſe who ſwallowed much of it ſoon died.

[352] Valliſnieri, on the other hand, imagines, that the Oſtrich digeſts or diſſolves the hard ſub⯑ſtances chiefly by the action of the acid liquor of the ſtomach; but he does not exclude the effect of attrition which may aſſiſt the ſolution. His proofs are theſe:

1. Bits of wood, iron, or glaſs, which have remained ſome time in the ſtomach of the Oſ⯑trich, are not ſmooth and ſhining, as they would be if worn by the friction of the coats; but are rough, furrowed, perforated, and preciſely ſuch as would be produced by the corroſion of a ſol⯑vent.

2. This ſolvent reduces the hardeſt and the ſofteſt bodies alike to impalpable molecules, which may be obſerved by the microſcope, and even by the naked eye.

3. He found in the ſtomach of the Oſtrich a nail fixed in one of the ſides, in ſuch a manner as to prevent its meeting the oppoſite ſide, and con⯑ſequently the compreſſion of the contents; yet the food was as completely diſſolved in this ven⯑tricle as in another in which the uſual action could take place; and this at leaſt proves, that in the Oſtrich digeſtion is not performed ſolely by tritu⯑ration.

4. He obſerved a copper thimble in the ſto⯑mach of a capon, which was corroded only where it touched the gizzard, and conſequently where it was leaſt expoſed to the attrition of the [353] hard ſubſtances; whence the ſolution of metals in the gallinaceous tribe muſt be aſcribed rather to the action of ſome menſtruum, than to the preſſure and reſiſtance of the coats; and the ana⯑logy naturally extends to the Oſtrich.

5. He diſcovered in the ſtomach of the Oſ⯑trich, a piece of money which had been ſo com⯑pletely corroded, that its weight was reduced to three grains.

6. The glands of the firſt ſtomach exude, when ſqueezed, a viſcous, yellowiſh, inſipid li⯑quor, which, however, quickly marks iron with a dull ſpot.

7. Laſtly, the activity of theſe juices, the force of the muſcles of the gizzard, and the black colour which tinges the excrements of the Oſtriches that have ſwallowed iron, which alſo happens to thoſe perſons who uſe martial pre⯑parations, and have a vigorous digeſtion, ſup⯑porting the preceding facts, incline Valliſnieri to conjecture, not indeed that the Oſtriches really digeſt iron, and are nouriſhed by it, as ſeveral inſects and reptiles feed on earth and ſtones, but that the ſtones and the metals, eſpecially iron, being diſſolved by the gaſtric liquor, tem⯑per, like abſorbents, the acrid juices of the ſto⯑mach, and mix with the nutriment as uſeful ingredients for ſeaſoning it, and increaſing the action of the ſolids. And this concluſion is the more reaſonable, ſince iron is known to enter into the compoſition of living beings; and, [354] when ſufficiently attenuated by proper acids, it becomes volatile, and ſhews a tendency as it were to vegetate, and aſſume forms analogous to thoſe of plants, as is obſerved in the arbor Mar⯑tis ^*. In this ſenſe only can the Oſtrich be ſaid to digeſt iron: and even admitting that the powers of the ſtomach were ſufficient to pro⯑duce the effect, it is ſtill extremely ridiculous to imagine, that the gizzard has the beneſicial qua⯑lities of a medicine, and is proper for aſſiſting a debilitated appetite. But ſuch is the nature of the human mind! ſtruck with a rare or ſingu⯑lar object, ſhe never fails to heighten the won⯑der by the addition of chimerical, and often ab⯑ſurd qualities. Hence it has been affirmed, that the moſt tranſparent ſtones found in the ſtomach of the Oſtrich, have the virtue, when applied to the neck, of promoting digeſtion; that the inner coat of the gizzard has the power of correcting a cold temperament, and of rekindling the fire of luſt; its liver, that of curing the falling-ſick⯑neſs; its blood, that of reſtoring ſight; and, the ſhell of its egg reduced to powder, that of reliev⯑ing the gout, and the gravel, &c. Valliſnieri had an opportunity of demonſtrating by experiments the falſity of theſe pretended virtues; and his experiments are the more deciſive, as they were [355] performed on perſons the moſt credulous, and the moſt ſubject to prejudices.

The Oſtrich is a bird peculiar to Africa, the iſlands contiguous to that continent^*, and that part of Aſia which borders on it. Theſe regions, which are the native abodes of the came, the rhinoceros, the elephant, and many other large animals, muſt alſo be the paternal ſeat of the Oſtrich, which is the elephant of the birds. They are very numerous, according to Dr. Po⯑cock, on the mountains ſituated on the ſouth⯑weſt of Alexandria. A miſſionary mentions that they occur at Goa, though much more rarely than in Arabia^†. Philoſtratus pretends that Apollonius found them even beyond the Ganges^‡; but this was certainly at a period when Hindoſtan was leſs populous than at pre⯑ſent. Modern travellers have never obſerved any in that country, unleſs ſuch as were carried thither^§; and all agree, that on either ſide of the line, they never paſs beyond the thirty-fifth degree of latitude; and as they cannot fly, they are in the ſame predicament with the quadru⯑peds in the ſouthern tracts of the ancient conti⯑nent; [356] that is, they cannot migrate into the new continent. Hence they have never been diſ⯑covered through the whole range of America, though the name has been applied to the Tou⯑you, which is analogous to them indeed, but is quite a different ſpecies, as we ſhall ſoon find. For the ſame reaſon they have never been found in Europe, though they might enjoy a climate ſuited to their nature in the Morea, in the ſouth of Spain, and in Italy. But, before they could migrate into theſe countries, they muſt have croſſed the intervening ſeas, which was impoſ⯑ſible; or follow the line of coaſt as high as the fiftieth degree of latitude, another obſtacle equally inſurmountable for an animal that de⯑lights in the parched plains. The Oſtriches pre⯑fer the moſt ſolitary and the moſt arid tracts, that are ſcarcely ever refreſhed by genial ſhowers^*; and this confirms the account of the Arabians, that they do not drink. They aſſemble in theſe deſerts in numerous flocks, which at a diſtance [357] reſemble troops of cavalry, and as ſuch have alarmed many caravans. Their life muſt be ſpent rather hardly in theſe vaſt barren ſolitudes; but there they taſte the ſweets of liberty and love. And is not the deſert which offers theſe raviſhing pleaſures converted into an Elyſian field? To enjoy theſe ineſtimable bleſſings they fly the preſence of man; but man learns the profit he can derive from them; he haunts them in their moſt ſavage retreats; he feeds on their eggs, their blood, their fat, their fleſh; decks himſelf with their plumes; and perhaps he flat⯑ters himſelf with the hope of completely ſub⯑duing them, and of ranking them among the number of his ſlaves. The advantages which the domeſtication of the Oſtrich promiſes are ſo important, as to threaten its ſecurity, even in the deſerts.

Whole nations have merited the name of Struthophagi, from the cuſtom of feeding on the Oſtrich; and theſe people bordered on the Ele⯑phantophagi, who had not better cheer. For this diſh Apicius directs, and with great reaſon, a poignant ſort of ſauce; which proves that it was uſed among the Romans; but we have other evidences. The Emperor Heliogabalus once ordered the brains of ſix hundred Oſtriches to be ſerved up for a ſingle repaſt. That mon⯑ſter, it is well known, had a whim of eating each day only a ſingle kind of food; ſuch as pheaſants, hogs, pullets, &c. and the Oſtrich was of the [358] number, but ſeaſoned no doubt after the recipe of Apicius. Even at preſent the inhabitants of Lybia, Numidia, &c. feed upon tame ones; eat the fleſh, and ſell the feathers: yet neither the dogs nor the cats would touch the fragments of the Oſtrich diſſected by Valliſnieri, though it was freſh and florid. It is indeed true that the Oſ⯑trich was extremely lean, and was perhaps old; but Leo Africanus, who taſted them in their na⯑tive deſerts, informs us, that they were ſeldom eaten, except when young, and even after being fattened. The Rabbi, David Kimchi, adds, that the females were preferred; and perhaps the fleſh was rendered more palatable by caſ⯑tration.

Cadamoſto and ſome other travellers men⯑tion their having taſted Oſtrich eggs, which they found not to be unpleaſant food; De Brue and Le Maire affirm, that a ſingle one is a meal ſuf⯑ficient for eight men; and others aſſert, that it weighs as much as thirty hen eggs; but even this is far ſhort of fifteen pounds.

The ſhell of theſe eggs is formed into various ſorts of cups, which in time grow hard, and in ſome degree reſemble ivory.

When the Arabians have killed an Oſtrich, they open its throat, and make a ligature below the inciſion; three or four of them then take it, and ſhake it backwards and forwards, as we would rinſe a bottle: the ligature being then removed, a conſiderable quantity of manteca, [359] of the conſiſtence of concrete oil, oozes from the hole. They extract ſometimes as much as twenty pounds from a ſingle Oſtrich; and this manteca is nothing but the blood of the ani⯑mal mixed, not with the fleſh as has been al⯑leged, ſince there is none on the belly and breaſt, but with that fat, which in plump Oſtriches forms, as we have ſaid, a coat ſeveral inches thick on the inteſtines. The natives of the coun⯑try aſſert that the manteca is pleaſant to eat, but occaſions a looſeneſs.

The Ethiopians flay the Oſtriches, and ſell their ſkins to the merchants of Alexandria. The leather is very thick, and the Arabians formerly made it into inner jackets, which ſerved inſtead of a cuiraſs and buckler. Belon ſaw large quan⯑tities of theſe ſkins ſtripped of their feathers in the ſhops at Alexandria.—The long white plumes of the tail and wings have always been highly eſteemed; the ancients uſed them for decoration, and appropriated them to diſtinguiſh the mili⯑tary profeſſion, in which they ſucceeded to the feathers of the ſwan; for birds have always furniſhed the poliſhed nations, as well as the ſavage tribes, with the materials of ornament. Aldrovandus informs us, that there are ſtill pre⯑ſerved at Rome two ancient ſtatues, one of Minerva and another of Pyrrhus, in which the helmet is decked with the plumes of the Oſtrich. It ſeems probable that theſe alſo compoſed the bunch worn by the Roman ſoldiers, which Po⯑lybius [360] mentions, and which conſiſted of three black or red feathers, about a cubit in height. In Turkey, even at preſent, a Janiſſary, who has diſtinguiſhed himſelf by his warlike atchieve⯑ments, is entitled to wear them in his turban; and in the ſeraglio, the Sultana, when ſhe would heighten her charms to obtain a gentler conqueſt, employs them to decorate her perſon. In the kingdom of Congo, theſe feathers are mixed with thoſe of the peacock, to form enſigns of war; and the ladies of England and of Italy make them into a ſort of fans. It is well known what prodigious conſumption is made of them in Europe for hats, helmets, theatrical dreſſes, fur⯑niture, canopies, funeral decorations, and even for female ornaments: and indeed it muſt be allowed, that they have a fine effect, both from their natural and their artificial colours, and from their gentle waving motion. But it may be proper to obſerve, that the feathers moſt admired, are thoſe which are plucked from the animal while alive; and are known by this pro⯑perty, that when the quill is preſſed by the fingers, it diſcharges a bloody liquor, while thoſe that are pulled after death are dry, light, and very liable to worms.

The Oſtriches, though inhabitants of the de⯑ſert, are not ſo wild as might be ſuppoſed. All travellers agree in ſaying, that they are eaſily tamed, eſpecially when young. The people of Dara, of Lybia, &c. breed them in flocks, and [361] undoubtedly obtain from them feathers of the beſt ſort, which are only gotten from living Oſtriches. They even grow domeſtic without much trouble, merely from the habit of ſeeing men, and receiving food, and experiencing kind treatment. Brue, having purchaſed two of them at Serinpate on the coaſt of Africa, found them quite tame when he arrived at Fort St. Louis.

They have even been brought farther than domeſtication, and ſome have trained them to carry their rider like a horſe. Nor is this a modern invention; for the tyrant Firmius, who reigned in Egypt about the end of the third century, uſed, it is ſaid, to be carried on large Oſtriches. Moore, an Engliſhman, mentions, that he ſaw at Joar in Africa, a man travelling on an Oſtrich. Valliſnieri ſpeaks of a young man who mounted on an Oſtrich, exhibited at Venice before the rabble; and Adanſon ſaw, at the factory of Podor, two young Oſtriches, the ſtrongeſt of which ran faſter than the beſt Engliſh hunter, though it carried two negroes on its back. All this proves that theſe animals, though not abſolutely intractable, are yet of a ſtubborn nature, and if they could be taught ſo much as to keep together in flocks, and re⯑turn to their ſtable, and even to allow themſelves to be mounted, it would ſtill be difficult and per⯑haps impoſſible to inſtruct them to obey the reins, to feel the wiſh of the rider, and comply with it. [362] We ſee, even from the relation of Adanſon, that the Oſtrich of Podor did not make a diſtant ſtretch, but only took ſeveral turns round the hamlet, and that its courſe could only be ſtop⯑ped by throwing ſome obſtacle in its way. Do⯑cile to a certain degree of ſtupidity, it ſeems in⯑tractable from its nature; and this muſt be really the caſe, ſince the Arab, who has tamed the horſe and enſlaved the camel, has never completely ſubdued the Oſtrich; but till this be obtained, advantage can neither be derived from its ſpeed nor its force, for the ſtrength of an indocile do⯑meſtic is always hurtful to its maſter.

But, though the Oſtriches run faſter than the horſe, they are yet caught by means of horſes; but to ſucceed requires dexterity. The plan which the Arabs take is to keep conſtantly within ſight of them, without preſſing them too hard; they are particularly careful not to ſuffer them to feed, though not to diſturb them ſo much as to tempt them to make their eſcape by a ſudden flight. And the execution is the more eaſy, ſince they ſeldom hold a ſtraight courſe, but almoſt always deſcribe a circle. The Arabs therefore, tracing a ſmaller circle within the other, can al⯑ways keep their proper diſtance, and yet paſs over much leſs ground. After a day or two, when the Oſtriches are worn out with fa⯑tigue and want of food, the horſemen ſuddenly dart upon them at full gallop, endeavouring as much as poſſible to drive them againſt the wind, [363] and they kill them with the blows of a ſtick, that the blood may not ſpoil the fine white of the plumes. It is ſaid, that when they feel themſelves overcome, and unable to eſcape from the hunters, they conceal their head, and ima⯑gine that they cannot then be perceived; but that abſurdity muſt be aſcribed to thoſe who attempt to conjecture their intentions; it is evi⯑dent that they only try to protect that part of their body at laſt, which is at once the weakeſt and the moſt eſſential.

The Struthophagi had another method of catching theſe animals: they covered themſelves with an Oſtrich's ſkin, and ſlipping their arms into the neck, they imitated all the ordinary motions of the Oſtrich itſelf, and thus were able to get near it and ſurpriſe it. In the ſame manner, the ſavages of America diſguiſe themſelves like roe⯑bucks, to catch the roe-bucks.

Dogs and nets alſo have been uſed, but it would ſeem that the horſe is moſt commonly employed; and this circumſtance alone is ſuf⯑ficient to explain the antipathy which has been ſuppoſed to ſubſiſt between the horſe and the Oſtrich.

In running, it ſpreads its wings and the large feathers of its tail, not with the view to aſſiſt its motion, as I have already ſaid, but from the common effect of the correſpondence of muſcles; juſt as a man running throws about his arms, or an elephant that turns upon its hunter, erects and [364] diſplays its large ears. But the complete proof that the Oſtrich does not raiſe its feathers to in⯑creaſe its celerity is, that it ſpreads them, even when it runs againſt the wind; in which caſe they can only retard its progreſs. If we con⯑ſider that bulk and ſwiftneſs are combined in the Oſtrich, we muſt be convinced that they are extremely ſtrong; yet it preſerves the manners of the granivorous animals: it never attacks the weak, and ſeldom oppoſes the aſſaults of the ſtrong. Covered with a hard thick coat of leather, and furniſhed with a broad ſternum, which ſerves for a breaſt-plate, and defended by another callous breaſt-plate, it hardly feels the application of external blows; and it eſcapes from the greater and more ſerious dangers by the rapidity of its flight. If it ſometimes makes reſiſtance, it employs its bill, the points of its wings, and particularly its feet. Thevenot ſaw one which overthrew a dog by a blow of its foot. Belon ſays that it could run down a man; but that in its flight it throws ſtones at its pur⯑ſuer. I doubt the fact, eſpecially as its velocity would only diminiſh that of the ſtones which it might throw, the two motions being oppoſite. Beſides, this fact, advanced by Pliny, and copied by many others, does not appear to be confirmed by any modern of credit, and it is known that Pliny poſſeſſed more genius than diſcernment.

Leo Africanus ſays, that the Oſtrich wants the ſenſe of hearing; yet we have already ſeen [365] that it appears to have all the organs which give thoſe ſenſations; the aperture of the ears is even very wide, and is not obſtructed by feathers. It is probable therefore, that either like the grous, it is only deaf in the ſeaſon of love; or that what has been imputed to its deafneſs, is really the effect of ſtupidity.

It is moſt likely that this is the ſeaſon when its cry is heard: this happens ſeldom, for few perſons have mentioned it. The ſacred writers com⯑pare its cry to moaning, and it is even pretend⯑ed that its Hebrew name jacnah is derived from ianah, which ſignifies to howl. Dr. Brown ſays, that it reſembles the wailing of a hoarſe child, and is ſtill more plaintive; how gloomy is it then, and even terrible, to uſe the expreſſion of Sandys, to travellers who penetrate with timorous apprehenſions into the immenſity of theſe deſerts, where every living being, man not excepted, is an object of dread and danger!

The TOUYOU.
• Struthio Rhea, Linn. Gmel. Borowſk. , • Rhea Americana, Lath. Ind. , • Rhea, Briſſ. , • Struthio Nothus, Klein. , • Struthio-camelus Americanus, Ray and Will. , • Struthio Emeu, Nieremb. , • Nhandaguacu Braſilienſis, Marcg. and Piſo. , and • The American Oſtrich, Will. Damp. Lath. 

WHAT is called the Oſtrich of South Ame⯑rica, or the Oſtrich of the Straits of Ma⯑gellan and Guiana, is quite different from the Oſtrich; and Le Maire is, I believe, the firſt traveller, who, deceived by ſome traces of re⯑ſemblance to that African bird, has given it the ſame name. Klein, who perceived that it was of another ſpecies, is contented with calling it the Baſtard Oſtrich. Barrere has ſometimes termed it the Heron, ſometimes the ferrivorous Crane, and ſometimes the Long-necked Emeu. Others have with more accuracy applied a com⯑pound name, expreſſive of ſeveral of its quali⯑ties, the Gray Caſſowary with the Oſtrich-bill. Moehring and Briſſon prefer the Latin name rhea, to which the latter annexes the Ameri⯑can epithet Touyou, formed from Touyouyou, by which it is generally known in Guiana. The ſavages ſettled in other parts of the continent [367] have given it different names: Yardu, Yandu, Andu, and Nandu-guacu, in Brazil^*; Sallian in the iſland of Maragnan^†; Suri in Chili, &c. So many names have been beſtowed on an animal with which we were ſo lately made acquainted! For my part, I ſhall readily adopt that of Touyou, which Briſſon has applied or rather retained, and I ſhall not heſitate to pre⯑fer this barbarous word, which has probably ſome analogy with the voice or cry of that bird, to the ſcientific terms, which only ſerve to con⯑vey falſe notions, and to new names, which mark no character, no eſſential property of the animal on which they are beſtowed.

Briſſon ſeems to imagine that Aldrovandus meant to figure this bird by the name of Avis Eme; and it is true that we find, in the 541ſt page of vol. iii. of his Ornithology, a plate which repreſents the Touyou and the Caſſowary, according to the two plates of Nieremberg, and that it is inſcribed in large characters with the words AVIS EME; in the ſame manner as the figure of the Touyou in Nieremberg bears the name of Emeu. But it is obvious that theſe two titles have been added by engravers or printers who were little acquainted with the views of the authors: for Aldrovandus does not mention a ſingle word of the Touyou, and Nieremberg only [368] calls it Yardou, Suri, and the Occidental Oſtrich; and both, in their deſcription, apply the names Eme and Emeu to the Caſſowary of Java alone. In ſhort, to avoid confuſion of names, the Eme of Aldrovandus and the Emeu of Nieremberg ought henceforth to be excluded from the ſyno⯑nyms of the Touyou. Marcgrave ſays, that the Portugueſe call it Ema in their language; but the Portugueſe, who had often viſited the Eaſt Indies, were acquainted with the Emeu of Java, and applied that name to the Touyou of America, which was more analogous to it than any other bird; for the ſame reaſon that we have applied the term Oſtrich to the ſame Touyou. We muſt therefore conſider it as an eſtabliſhed point, that the Emeu belongs exclu⯑ſively to the Caſſowary of the Eaſt Indies, and has no relation to the Touyou, or any other American bird.

In this detail of the different names of the Touyou, I have in part pointed out the different countries where it is found. It is a native of South America, but is not equally common in every province of that extenſive country. Marc⯑grave informs us, that it is ſeldom ſeen in the vi⯑cinity of Fernambuca, and is equally rare in Peru, and along the moſt populous coaſts; but it is more frequent in Guiana^*; in the ſeigno⯑ries of Seregippe and of Rio-grande; in the [369] interior provinces of Brazil^*; in Chili^†; in the vaſt foreſts ſituated north from the mouth of the De la Plata^‡; and in the vaſt ſavannas which ſtretch on the ſouth of that river, and in all the terra Magellanica, as far as Port Deſire, and even to the coaſt bordering on the ſtraits of Magellan^§. Formerly ſome diſtricts in Para⯑guay ſwarmed with theſe birds, eſpecially the plains watered by the Uraguay; but as the in⯑habitants multiplied, they killed great numbers, and forced the reſt to retire. Captain Wood aſſures us, that though they abound on the northern coaſt of the Straits of Magellan, there is not one to be found on the ſouthern ſhore: and notwithſtanding Coreal's affirming that he ſaw them on the iſlands in the South Sea, theſe ſtraits ſeem to bound the climate ſuited to the Touyou, as the Cape of Good Hope terminates the region of the Oſtrich; and the iſlands where Coreal ſaw the Touyous were probably contiguous to the eaſtern ſhores of America, beyond the Straits of Magellan. It alſo appears that the Touyou, which, like the Oſtrich, delights in the heat of the torrid zone, is yet not ſo much affected by cold; for the promontory which runs into the Straits of Ma⯑gellan is nearer the Pole, than the Cape of Good Hope, or any other climate, where the Oſtrich [370] has ſpontaneouſly fixed its reſidence: but, as according to all accounts, the Touyou is alſo, like the Oſtrich, entirely a terreſtrial bird, and incapable of flying; and as South America is ſeparated from the ancient continent by immenſe oceans; it would follow that we ought not to expect to find Touyous in our continent, any more than to diſcover Oſtriches in America: and this inference agrees with the teſtimony of travellers.

The Touyou, though ſomewhat inferior to the Oſtrich, is yet the largeſt bird in the New World, the full grown ones being ſix feet high^*. Wafer, who meaſured the thigh of one above the ordinary ſize, found it almoſt equal to that of a man. It has the long neck, the ſmall head, and the flat bill of the Oſtrich; but in other reſpects, it reſembles the Caſſowary. I find even in the hiſtory of Brazil, written by the Abbe Prevot^†, but no where elſe, mention made of a kind of horn which this bird has on its bill, and which, if it really exiſted, would be another point of analogy with the Caſſowary.

Its body is of an oval ſhape, and, when cloth⯑ed with all its feathers, appears almoſt entirely round. Its wings are very ſhort, and of no uſe [371] in flying; though they are ſaid to aſſiſt it in run⯑ning. It has on the back and about the rump long feathers, which fall back, and conceal the anus, and it has no other tail. Its plumage is all gray on the back, and white on the belly. It is very tall, having three toes to each foot, all anterior; for we cannot conſider as a toe that callous round tubercle placed behind, and on which the foot reſts as on a claw. To this con⯑formation is imputed the difficulty with which it ſtands on a ſmooth ſurface, and of walking on it without falling; in compenſation, however, it runs very ſwiftly in open ground, raiſing ſome⯑times one wing, ſometimes another, but for pur⯑poſes that have not yet been well aſcertained. Marcgrave ſuppoſes, that it is with the view of ſpreading a ſort of ſail to catch the wind; Nie⯑remberg, that it is to throw the ſcent from the dogs which purſue it; Piſo and Klein, that it is to change frequently the direction of its courſe, by theſe zig-zags to avoid the arrows of the ſa⯑vages; and others imagine, that it ſeeks to in⯑creaſe its ſpeed by pricking itſelf with a kind of needle with which its wings are armed^*. But whatever be the intention of the Touyous, cer⯑tain it is that they run with aſtoniſhing velocity, and that it is difficult for any hound to overtake [372] them. It is related of one, that perceiving itſelf ſtopt, it darted with ſuch rapidity as diſengaged itſelf from the dogs, and eſcaped to the moun⯑tains^*. It being impoſſible to outſtrip them by agility, the ſavages are obliged to employ addreſs, and to lay ſnares for catching them^†. Marc⯑grave ſays, that they live on fleſh and fruits; but if they had been obſerved with attention, it would undoubtedly have been diſcovered which of theſe two kinds of aliments they prefer. For want of facts, we may conjecture that theſe birds having the ſame inſtinct with the Oſtriches, and other frugivorous animals, viz. that of ſwal⯑lowing ſtones, iron, and other hard ſubſtances, that they are alſo frugivorous, and that if they ſometimes eat fleſh, it is either becauſe they are preſſed by hunger, or, like the Oſtrich, their ſenſes of taſte and ſmell being only in an infe⯑rior degree, they ſwallow indiſcriminately what⯑ever comes in their way.

Nieremberg relates very ſtrange ſtories in re⯑gard to their mode of propagation. According to this writer, the male performs the office of hatching the eggs; for this purpoſe he aſſembles twenty or thirty females to lay in the ſame neſt, and after they have depoſited their eggs, he drives them forcibly away, and covers them himſelf, taking the ſingular precaution however to re⯑move two of the eggs from the neſt; theſe two [373] become addle, which the male perceiving, breaks one of them, which invites a multitude of flies, beetles, and other ſmall inſects, on which the young Touyous feed; and after the firſt is con⯑ſumed, he opens another for the ſame purpoſe. But all this may happen, without recurring to an extraordinary ſuppoſition; the addle eggs may be cruſhed by accident, and inſects attract⯑ed, which ſometimes ſerve to nouriſh the young Touyous. We can ſuſpect here the intention of the parent only; for theſe intentions, which we liberally impute to animals, always form the ro⯑mance of natural hiſtory.

With reſpect to the aſſertion, that the male takes upon himſelf, to the excluſion of the fe⯑males, the care of hatching, I am much inclined to doubt the fact, conceive it as not authentic, and as inconſiſtent with the order of nature. But it is not enough to point out the cauſes of error; we ought, as much as we are able, to diſ⯑cover the cauſes of it, which ſometimes lead us alſo to the truth. I ſhould therefore imagine that this report is occaſioned by the finding of teſticles in ſome ſitters; and perhaps an appear⯑ance of the penis, as is obſerved in the female Oſtrich, which ſeemed to evince it to be a male.

Wafer ſays, that he ſaw in a deſert tract ſitu⯑ated on the north of the De la Plata, about the thirty-fifth degree of ſouth latitude, a number of the eggs of the Touyou in the ſand, where, ac⯑cording to him, theſe birds left them to hatch. [374] If this fact be true, the deſcription which Nie⯑remberg gives with reſpect to the incubation of theſe eggs, can only refer to a climate that is colder, and nearer the pole. In fact, the Dutch found near Port Deſire, which is in the forty⯑ſeventh degree of ſouth latitude, a Touyou that was ſitting, which they chaced away, and reckoned nineteen eggs in the neſt. It is for the ſame reaſon that the Oſtriches ſeldom or never hatch at all in the torrid zone, but cover their eggs at the Cape of Good Hope, where the heat of the climate is inadequate to the effect.

When the young Touyous are newly ex⯑cluded from the ſhell, they are very familiar, and follow the firſt perſon whom they meet^*; but as they grow up, they acquire experience, and become ſhy^†. It appears that in general their fleſh is pleaſant to eat; though that of the old ones indeed is tough, and of a bad flavour. This fleſh might be improved by raiſing flocks of young Touyous, which would be eaſy, con⯑ſidering their aptneſs to be tamed; and, by fat⯑tening them, and uſing the precautions which have ſucceeded with the turkey, which alſo de⯑rives [375] its origin from the warm and temperate countries on the continent of America.

Their feathers are far from being ſo beautiful as thoſe of the Oſtrich; and Correal even aſſerts that they are totally uſeleſs. It is to be wiſhed, that inſtead of telling us their little value, tra⯑vellers had given us a preciſe idea of their tex⯑ture.—Too much has been written on the Oſ⯑trich, and too little on the Touyou. In giving a hiſtory of the former, the chief difficulty con⯑ſiſts in collecting all the facts, in comparing the relations, in diſcuſſing the opinions, and in ſe⯑parating the truth from a heap of rubbiſh. To diſcourſe on the Touyou, we muſt often conjec⯑ture what is, from what may be; we are obliged to comment, to interpret, to ſupply; and when facts cannot be had, to ſubſtitute what is pro⯑bable in their ſtead; and, in a word, to remain in ſuſpence till future obſervations can be pro⯑cured to ſupply the blanks in its hiſtory. ^A

The GALEATED CASSOWARY.
• Le Caſoar, Buff. , • Struthio Caſſuarius, Linn. and Gmel. , and • The Caſſowary, or Emeu, Will. Ray, Briſſ. Klein, &c. 

THE Dutch are the firſt who ſhewed this bird in Europe; they brought it, in 1597, from the iſland of Java, on their return from the firſt voyage which they performed to the Eaſt Indies^*. The natives of the country call it Eme, from which the French have formed the word Emeu. It was alſo named Caſſowary, which I have adopted, ſince it has been appropriated to this bird.

The Galeated Caſſowary, though not ſo large as the Oſtrich, is apparently more bulky; be⯑cauſe its maſs is nearly the ſame, and its neck and feet are ſhorter and thicker in proportion; and its body is more protuberant, which gives it a heavier look.

The one deſcribed by the Academicians was five feet and a half long, from the point of the bill to the extremity of the claws; that obſerv⯑ed by Cluſius was a fourth ſmaller. Houtman reckons it double the bulk of the ſwan; and other Dutchmen mention it as of the ſize of a [377] ſheep. This variety of meaſures, ſo far from affecting the truth, is what alone informs us of the real magnitude of the Galeated Caſſowary; for the ſize of an individual is not that of the ſpecies, and to eſtimate that properly, we muſt conſider it as a quantity varying between cer⯑tain limits. Hence a naturaliſt who compares with judgment the deſcriptions of different ob⯑ſervers, will have more preciſe and accurate ideas of the ſpecies, than an obſerver who is only ac⯑quainted with a ſingle individual.

What is moſt remarkable in the figure of the Galeated Caſſowary, is that kind of conical hel⯑met, the fore-part of which is black, and the reſt yellow, which covers the face from the bottom of the bill to the middle of the crown of the head, and ſometimes ſtretches farther. This hel⯑met is formed by the protuberance of the bones in that part of the cranium, and is ſheathed by a hard covering, conſiſting of ſeveral concentric plates analogous to the ſubſtance of an ox's horn. Its entire ſhape reſembles a truncated cone, three inches high, an inch diameter at the baſe, and three lines at its vertex. Cluſius thought that this helmet dropped every year with the feathers, in the ſeaſon of moulting; but the Academicians have properly obſerved, that the external ſheath only could thus fall, and not the inner ſubſtance, which, as we have ſaid, forms a part of the bones of the ſkull; and they even add, that during the four years that [378] this bird was kept in the menagerie at Verſailles, they could not perceive that this ſheath was ever detached. However, this might have happened through length of time, and by a kind of ſuc⯑ceſſive exfoliation, as in the bill of many birds; and this proceſs might have eſcaped the obſer⯑vation of the keepers of the menagerie.

The iris is of a topaz-yellow, and the cornea is remarkably ſmall, compared with the ball of the eye^*, which gives the animal a ſtrange wild appearance; the lower eye-lid is the largeſt, and the upper is ſet in the middle with a row of ſmall black hairs, which form an arch over the eye like the brow, and this, together with the opening of the bill, produces a threatening aſpect. The exterior orifices of the noſtrils are ſeated very near the point of the upper bill.

In the bill we muſt diſtinguiſh the materials which ſerve to cover it. They are three ſolid pieces, two of which form the circumference, and the third conſtitutes the upper ridge, which is much more elevated than in the Oſtrich; the three are ſheathed with a membrane which ſills up the interſtices.

The upper and lower mandibles of the bill have their edges a little furrowed near the end, and ſeem each of them to have three points.

[379] The head and the arch of the neck are ſprinkled with a few ſmall feathers, or rather with ſome black ſtraggling hairs; ſo that on theſe parts the ſkin appears bare. The colours and their diſpoſitions are various; commonly blue on the ſides, violet under the throat, red behind in many parts, but eſpecially in the middle of the neck; and theſe red parts are more prominent than the reſt, on account of wrinkles, or oblique furrows.

The holes of the ears were very large in the Galeated Caſſowary deſcribed by the Academi⯑cians; very ſmall in the one deſcribed by Clu⯑ſius; but in both they were diſcloſed, and beſet like the eyelids with ſmall black hairs.

Near the middle of the fore-part of the neck, and where the great feathers have their origin, riſe two barbels which are red and blue, and round at the ends, and which Bontius places in his figure immediately above the bill, as in poul⯑try. Friſch delineates four; two long ones on the ſides of the neck, and two before that are ſmaller and ſhorter: the helmet alſo appears larger in his figure, and approaches the ſhape of a turban. There is in the king's cabinet a head which ſeems to be that of the Galeated Caſſowary, but which has a tubercle different from what is ordinary. It will require time and obſervation to aſcertain whether theſe varieties, and thoſe which we ſhall afterwards mention, be conſtant or not; if ſome of them be not [380] owing to the inaccuracy of the deſigners, or are only ſexual differences. Friſch pretend that he diſcovered in two ſtuffed Galeated Caſſowaries, the diſtinguiſhing marks between the males and females; but he does not inform us in what theſe conſiſt.

The wings of the Galeated Caſſowary are ſtill ſmaller than thoſe of the Oſtrich, and equally unfit for flying. They are armed with points, and theſe are even more numerous than in the Oſtrich. Cluſius found four or five of them; the Academicians five; and in Friſch's figure there are evidently ſeven: theſe are like the pipes of feathers, and appear red at the end, and are hollow through their whole extent. They contain within their cavity a ſort of marrow ſimilar to what is found in the ſprouting feathers of other birds. The middle one is near a foot in length, and about three lines in diameter, it being the longeſt of all: thoſe placed on either ſide diminiſh gradually like the fingers of the hand, and nearly in the ſame order. Swam⯑merdam uſed them inſtead of a pipe to inflate very delicate veſſels, ſuch as the tracheae of in⯑ſects, &c. It has been ſaid, that the wings of the Caſſowary were intended to accelerate its motion; others have conjectured that they only ſerved them like ſwitches to aſſiſt them in ſtrik⯑ing; but no one can aſſert that he ever ſaw what uſe the bird really makes of them. The Caſ⯑ſowary has alſo another property common to [381] the Oſtrich, viz. it has but one kind of feathers over its whole body, wings, rump, &c. though moſt of theſe feathers are double, each root ſending off two branches of different lengths: nor is the ſtructure uniform throughout; the branches being flat, black, and ſhining, divided underneath into knots, each of which produces a beard or thread, with this difference, that from the root to the middle of the branch, theſe threads are ſhorter, more pliant, ramify more, and are covered with a kind of tawny down; whereas, from the middle of the ſame branch to its extremity, they are longer, harder, and of a black colour, and as theſe laſt cover the others, and are the only ones that appear, the Caſſowary ſeen at a diſtance reſembles an animal clothed with hair, like bears or wild boars. The ſhorteſt feathers are on the neck, the longeſt round the rump, and the middle ſized on the intermediate ſpace. Thoſe of the rump are fourteen inches long, and hanging over the hinder part of the body, they ſupply the place of the tail, which is totally wanting.

It has, like the Oſtrich, a naked and callous ſpace on the ſternum, where the weight of the body reſts when the bird ſits; and this part is ſtill more prominent in the Galeated Caſſowary than in the Oſtrich.^*.

The thighs and legs are clothed with feathers almoſt to the knees, and theſe feathers were of [382] an aſh-gray in the ſubject which Cluſius ex⯑amined; the feet, which are thick and ſtout, have three toes, and not four, as Bontius affirms; all of them directed forwards. The Dutch re⯑late, that the Galeated Caſſowary employs its feet for defence; ſtriking backwards like a horſe, according to ſome; and according to others, dart⯑ing forwards againſt the aſſailant, it throws him back with its feet, and ſtrikes his breaſt with vio⯑lent blows. Cluſius, who ſaw one alive in the gardens of Count Solms at the Hague, ſays, that it makes no uſe of its bill for protection, but that it attacks its antagoniſt ſideways, by kick⯑ing; he adds, that this Count ſhewed him a tree about the thickneſs of his thigh which this bird had ſpoiled, having ſtripped off the bark entirely with its feet and nails. The Caſſowaries kept in the menagerie at Verſailles have not indeed been obſerved to be ſo ſtrong or ſo miſchievous, but perhaps they were grown tamer than that of Cluſius: beſides, they lived in abundance and in cloſer captivity; circumſtances which in time meliorate the diſpoſitions of ſuch animals as are not altogether wild, enervate their courage, blunt their original inſtincts, and render it impoſſible to diſtinguiſh theſe from their acquired habits.

The claws of the Caſſowary are very hard, black on the outſide, and white on the inſide. Linnaeus ſays, that they ſtrike with the middle claw, which is the largeſt; yet the deſcriptions and figures of the Academicians and of Briſſon [383] repreſent the inner claw as the largeſt, which is really the caſe.

Its gait is ſingular; it appears to kick behind, at the ſame time it makes a kind of leap forwards. But however ungraceful its motion may be, it is ſwifter, we are told, than the beſt runner: in⯑deed celerity of motion is ſo peculiarly the pro⯑perty of birds, that the tardieſt of that tribe excel in the rapidity of their courſe the moſt agile of the land animals.

The Caſſowary has the tongue indented along the edges, and ſo ſhort, that it has been ſaid of it, as the moor cock, that it has none. The one obſerved by Perrault was only an inch long, and eight lines broad^*. It ſwallows any thing that is thrown to it; that is, any ſubſtance which its bill will admit. Friſch juſtly con⯑ſiders this inſtinct as indicating an analogy to the gallinaceous tribe, which ſwallow their ali⯑ments entire, without bruiſing them with their bills; but the Dutch, who ſeem to have wiſhed to make the hiſtory of this ſingular bird ſtill more extraordinary by the addition of the mar⯑vellous, have not heſitated to aſſert, that it ſwallows ſtones, bits of iron, glaſs, &c. and even burning coals, without ſuffering incon⯑venience^†.

It is alſo ſaid they eject very ſoon what they have taken, and ſometimes diſcharge apples as [384] large as the hand, and in the ſame ſtate in which they were ſwallowed. Indeed, the inteſtinal canal is ſo ſhort, that the aliments muſt ſoon paſs through it; and ſuch as, by their hardneſs, might occaſion ſome reſiſtance, muſt undergo little alteration in ſo ſmall a deſcent, particularly when the functions of the ſtomach are deranged by any diſeaſe. Cluſius was aſſured, that in theſe caſes, they ſometimes ejected hen-eggs, which they are fond of, and quite entire with their ſhell; but, on ſwallowing them a ſecond time, they completely digeſted them^*. The principal food of this bird, which was the Caſ⯑ſowary belonging to Count Solms, was white bread cut into ſmall bits, which proves that it is frugivorous, or rather omnivorous, ſince it really eats whatever is offered it, and has the craw and the double ſtomach of the animals that live on vegetable ſubſtances, and at the ſame time it has the ſhort inteſtines of ſuch as feed on fleſh. The inteſtinal canal of the one diffected by the Academicians was four feet eight inches long, and two inches diameter through its whole ex⯑tent. The coecum was double, and only one line in diameter, and three, four, or five inches long. From this account it appears, that the inteſtines of the Galeated Caſſowary are thirteen times ſhorter than thoſe of the Oſtrich; and for this reaſon, it muſt be ſtill more voracious, and ſtill more diſpoſed to animal food, which could be [385] aſcertained if obſervers, inſtead of reſting ſatiſ⯑fied with examining the dead bodies, would ſtudy the habits of the bird while alive.

The Caſſowary has a gall-bladder; and its duct, which croſſes the hepatic, terminates higher than that in the duodenum, and the pancreatic duct is inſerted above the cyſtic; a conforma⯑tion of parts quite different from what obtains in the Oſtrich. The organs of generation in the male are not ſo diſſimilar: the penis riſes from the upper part of the rectum; its form is that of a triangular pyramid, two inches broad at the baſe, and two lines at the apex; it con⯑ſiſts of two ſolid cartilaginous ligaments, con⯑nected cloſely to each other above, but parted below, and leaving between them a half-channel covered with ſkin. The vaſa deferentia and the ureters have no apparent communication with the perforation of the penis; ſo that this part, which ſeems to fill four principal offices in the quadrupeds, that of carrying off the urine, that of conveying the ſeminal fluid to the fe⯑male womb, that of contributing by its ſenſibi⯑lity to the emiſſion, that of ſtimulating the fe⯑male to melt in the embrace, ſeems in the Caſ⯑ſowary and the Oſtrich to be confined to the two laſt, which are calculated to excite in the two ſexes the neceſſary correſpondence of mo⯑tion in the venereal act.

Cluſius was informed that, when the animal is living, the penis ſometimes is obſerved to [386] project from the anus; another point of ana⯑logy with the Oſtrich.

The eggs are of an aſh-gray, verging on greeniſh, not ſo thick, but longer than thoſe of the Oſtrich, ſprinkled with a multitude of ſmall tubercles of a deep green; the ſhell is not very thick according to Cluſius, who ſaw ſeveral of them; the largeſt of all thoſe which had fallen under his notice was fifteen inches round one way, and a little more than twelve the other^*.

The Caſſowary has the lungs and the ten air cells as in other birds, particularly thoſe of the large kind; it has that ſcreen or black membrane peculiar to the eyes of birds, and that inner eye⯑lid, which, as it is well known, is attached to the large angle of the eye by two common muſcles^†, and which is at momentary intervals drawn back over the cornea, by the action of a kind of muſcular pulley, which merits all the curioſity of anatomiſts^‡.

The middle of the eaſtern part of Aſia ſeems to be the true climate of the Caſſowary, and its territory begins where that of the Oſtrich ends. The latter ſeldom paſſes beyond the Ganges, as we have already ſeen; but the former is found in the Molucca iſlands, and in thoſe of Banda, Java, Sumatra, and the correſponding tracts on [387] the continent^*. It is however far from being ſo numerous as the Oſtrich, ſince a king of Joar⯑dam in the iſland of Java preſented Scellinger, the captain of a Dutch veſſel, with a Caſſowary as a rare bird. The reaſon probably is, becauſe the Eaſt Indies are much more populous than Africa; and it is well aſcertained, that as men multiply, the wild animals gradually diminiſh, or retire into the more ſolitary tracts.

It is ſingular, that the Caſſowary, the Oſtrich, and the Touyou, which are the three largeſt birds that are known, are all natives of the torrid zone, which they ſeem to ſhare among themſelves, each enjoying its own territory, without incroaching on that of another. They are really all of them land animals, incapable of flying, but running with aſtoniſhing ſwift⯑neſs; all ſwallowing whatever comes in their way, grain, graſs, fleſh, bones, ſtones, flints, iron, glaſs, &c. In all, the neck is of great length, the legs tall and very ſtrong, the claws fewer than in moſt birds, and in the Oſtrich, there are ſtill fewer than in the other two; in all, there is only one ſort of feathers, unlike thoſe of other birds and different in each of the three kinds; in all, the head and the arch of the neck are bare, the tail, properly ſo called, is wanting, the wings are but imperfect, furniſhed with a few pipes, without any vanes, as the quadrupeds that in⯑habit [388] the warm countries have leſs hair than thoſe of the regions of the north. All of them, in a word, ſeem to be natural productions of the torrid zone. But notwithſtanding theſe points of agreement, they are ſtill marked by charac⯑ters that diſtinctly ſeparate the ſpecies; the Oſtrich is removed from the Galeated Caſſo⯑wary and the Touyou, by its ſize, by its feet, like thoſe of the camel, and by the nature of its plumage: it differs from the Caſſowary par⯑ticularly by its naked thighs and flanks, by the length and capacity of its inteſtines, and be⯑cauſe it has no gall-bladder; and the Galeated Caſſowary differs from the Touyou and the Oſtrich, by its thighs being clothed with feathers, almoſt to the tarſus, by red barbils which hang from the neck, and alſo by the helmet on its head.

But in this laſt diſtinctive character we ſtill perceive an analogy with the other two kinds; for this helmet is nothing but a protuberance of the bones of the cranium, which is covered with a ſheath of horn; and we have ſeen, in the hiſ⯑tory of the Oſtrich and the Touyou, that the upper part of the cranium of theſe two ani⯑mals was ſimilarly defended by a hard callous plate. ^A [389]

The HOODED DODO.
• Le Dronte, Buff. , • Didus Ineptus, Gmel. and Lath. , • Struthio Cucullatus, Linn. 10th edit. , • Raphus, Briſſ. , • Cygnus Cucullatus, Nierem. Ray and Will. , • Gallus Gallinaceus Peregrinus, Cluſ. , and • Dod-Acrſen, or Walgh-Vogel, Herb. 

AGILITY is commonly conceived to be pecu⯑liarly the property of the winged tribe; but if we regard it as an eſſential character, the Dodo muſt be excluded from the claſs; for its proportions and its movements give an idea of the moſt heavy and awkward of organized be⯑ings. Figure to yourſelf a body that is bulky, and almoſt cubical, ſupported with difficulty on two exceedingly thick and ſhort pillars, and car⯑rying a head ſo ſtrangely ſhaped, that we might take it for the whim of a caricature painter; and this head, reſting on a huge ſwelling neck, conſiſts almoſt entirely of an enormous beak, in which are ſet two large black eyes encircled with a ring of white, and where the parting of the mandibles runs beyond the eyes, and almoſt quite to the ears; theſe two mandibles, concave in the middle, inflated at both ends, and bent backwards at the point, reſemble two ſharp ſpoons laid on each other, their convexity being turned outwards: all which produces a ſtupid [391] voracious appearance, and which, to complete the deformity, is furniſhed with an edging of fea⯑thers, which, accompanying the curvature of the baſe of the bill, ſtretch to a point on the fore⯑head, and then arch round the face like a cowl, whence the bird has received the name of Capuchined Swan (Cygnus Cucullatus).

Magnitude, which in animals implies ſtrength, produces nothing in this bird but oppreſſive weight. The Oſtrich, the Touyou, and the Galeated Caſſowary, indeed, are alſo incapable of flying, but they run with aſtoniſhing ſpeed. The Dodo ſeems to be clogged by its unwieldy carcaſs, and can hardly collect force ſufficient to drag it along. It is the moſt inactive of the fea⯑thered race. It conſiſts, we might ſay, of brute paſſive matter, where the living organic particles are too ſparingly diſſeminated. It has wings; but theſe are too ſhort and too feeble to raiſe it from the ground. It has a tail, but it is diſpro⯑tioned, and out of place. We might take it for a tortoiſe diſguiſed in the clothing of the winged tribe; and Nature, in beſtowing theſe uſeleſs or⯑naments, ſeems to have deſired to add clumſineſs to its unwieldy maſs, and to render it more diſ⯑guſting, by reminding us at the ſame time that it is a bird.

The firſt Dutch that ſaw it in the iſland of Mauritius, now the Iſle of France^*, named it [392] Walgh-Vogel, Diſguſting Bird, both on account of its ugly figure, and the rank ſmell. This ſingular bird is very large, and is only inferior in ſize to the three preceding; for it exceeds the turkey and the ſwan.

Briſſon aſſigns as one of the characters, its having the lower part of the legs naked; yet in the 294th plate of Edwards it is repreſented feathered, not only as low as the leg, but even to the articulation with the tarſus. The upper mandible is blackiſh throughout, except at the hook, where there is a red ſpot; the holes of the noſtrils are placed very near its middle, and cloſe to the two tranſverſe folds, which riſe at this part on the ſurface.

The feathers of the Dodo are in general very ſoft, and their predominating colour is gray, which is deeper on all the upper part of the body and the lower part of the legs, but brighter on the ſtomach, the belly, and the whole of the under part of the body. There is ſome yellow and white on the quill-feathers of the wings, and thoſe of the tail, which appear frizzled, and are but few in number. Cluſius reckons only four or five.

The feet and toes are yellow, and the nails black; each foot has four toes, three of which are placed before, and the fourth behind, and this hind one has the longeſt nail.

Some have pretended that there was com⯑monly lodged in the ſtomach of the Dodo a [393] ſtone of the ſize of the hand, and to which they failed not to aſcribe the ſame origin and the ſame virtues as to the bezoars. But Cluſius, who ſaw two of theſe ſtones of different ſhapes, and bulky, is of opinion, that the bird had ſwal⯑lowed them like the granivorous claſs, and that they were not formed in its ſtomach.

The Dodo is a native of the iſlands of France and Bourbon, and is probably found alſo on the neareſt parts of the continent, though I know of no traveller who mentions his ſeeing it, except on theſe iſlands.

Some Dutch call it Dodaers; and the Portu⯑gueſe and Engliſh, Dodo; however, it is named by the natives Dronte. It has alſo been called Hooded Dodo, Foreign Cock, Walgh-Vogel; and Maehring, who has found none of theſe names to his liking, has formed that of Ruphus, which Briſſon has adopted for his Latin deſignation, as if there was any advantage in giving the ſame animal a different appellation in each language, when the real effect of the multitude of ſyno⯑nyms is to occaſion embarraſſment and confu⯑ſion. ‘Do not multiply exiſtences,’ was once the maxim of philoſophers; but at preſent we have conſtantly reaſon to remind naturaliſts not to multiply names without neceſſity. ^A

The SOLITARY DODO, and NAZARENE DODO.
• Le Solitaire, et L'Oiſeau de Nazare, Buff. , and • Didus Solitarius, et Didus Nazarenus, Gmel. 

THE Solitary Bird mentioned by Leguat^* and Carré^†, and the Bird of Nazareth by Father Cauche^‡, ſeem to bear a great reſem⯑blance to the Dodo, though they ſtill differ in ſeveral points. I have thought proper to pro⯑duce what theſe travellers relate on this ſubject, ſince, if theſe three names are applicable only to the ſame individual ſpecies, the different rela⯑tions will ſerve to complete the hiſtory of the bird; if on the contrary, they refer to three dif⯑ferent ſpecies, what I ſhall give will be conſider⯑ed as the beginning of the hiſtory of each, or at leaſt as an intimation of a new ſpecies to be examined, in the ſame manner as it is uſual in geographical charts to mark countries unexplor⯑ed. At all events, it is to be deſired that thoſe naturaliſts, who have an opportunity of examin⯑ing theſe birds more cloſely, would compare them if poſſible, and obtain a more preciſe and [395] diſtinct information. Queries alone, made with reſpect to facts with which we are unacquainted, have more than once led to a diſcovery.

The Solitary Dodo of the iſland of Rodrigue is a very large bird, ſince ſome males weigh forty-five pounds. The plumage of theſe is commonly mixed with gray and brown; but in the females, ſometimes brown, ſometimes a light yellow, predominates. Carré ſays, that the co⯑lour of the plumage of theſe birds is gloſſy, bor⯑dering on yellow; he adds, that it is exceedingly beautiful.

The females have a protuberance over the bill reſembling a widow's peak; their feathers bunch out on both ſides of the breaſt into two white tufts, ſomewhat like a woman's boſom. The feathers of the thighs are rounded towards the end in the ſhape of ſhells, which has a very fine effect; and, as if the females were conſcious of their beauty, they take great pains in arranging their plumage, ſmoothing it with their bill, and adjuſting it almoſt continually, ſo that not a ſingle feather is miſplaced. According to Le⯑guat, their whole appearance is noble and grace⯑ful; and this traveller even affirms that their pleaſing demeanour has often been the means of ſaving their life. If this be the caſe, and if the Solitary and the Dodo be of the ſame ſpe⯑cies, we muſt admit a very wide difference be⯑tween the male and the female in regard to their figure.

[396] This bird has ſome reſemblance to the tur⯑key; its legs differ only in being taller, and the bill in being more hooked; its neck is alſo pro⯑portionally longer, the eye black and lively, the head without a creſt or tuft, and with ſcarcely any tail; its hind part, which is round like the buttocks of a horſe, is covered with broad fea⯑thers.

The wings of the Solitary Dodo do not enable it to fly; but they are not uſeleſs in other re⯑ſpects. The pinion-bone ſwells near the end into a ſpherical button, which is concealed under the feathers, and ſerves two purpoſes; in the firſt place for defence, to which the bill is alſo ſubſervient; in the ſecond, to make a kind of clapping or whirling twenty or thirty times on the ſame ſide in the ſpace of four or five minutes. In this way, it is ſaid, the male invites his mate with a noiſe like that of a keſtrel, and which is heard at the diſtance of two hundred paces.

Theſe birds are rarely ſeen in flocks, though the ſpecies is pretty numerous; ſome affirm even that ſcarcely two are ever found together^*.

They ſeek unfrequented ſpots where to lay their eggs; they conſtruct their neſt with the leaves of the palm-tree heaped up a foot and a half high; into this neſt the female drops an egg much larger than that of a gooſe; and the male participates in the office of hatching.

[397] During the whole time of the incubation, and even that of the education, they ſuffer no bird of the ſame kind to approach within two hundred paces; and it is pretended that the male drives away the males, and that the female drives away the females; an obſervation which could hardly be made on a bird that paſſes its life in the wildeſt and the moſt ſequeſtered ſpots.

The egg (for it ſeems that theſe birds lay only one, or rather only cover one at a time) re⯑quires ſeven weeks^* to hatch, and the young one cannot provide for itſelf until ſome months afterwards. During all that time it is watched with paternal care, and this circumſtance alone gives greater force to the inſtinctive affection than in the Oſtrich, which is abandoned from its birth, and never afterwards receives the foſ⯑tering aſſiduities of its parents, and, being without any intimacy with them, is deprived of the ad⯑vantages of their ſociety, which, as I have elſe⯑where remarked, is the firſt education of ani⯑mals, and which moſt of all contributes to de⯑velope their native powers; and hence the Oſtrich is conſidered as the moſt ſtupid of the feathered creation.

After the education of the young Solitary Dodo is completed, the parents ſtill continue [398] united, and on the whole faithful to each other, though ſometimes they intermix with other birds of the ſame ſpecies. The care which in common they have beſtowed on the fruit of their union ſeems to rivet their attachment, and when the ſeaſon again invites, they re⯑new their loves.

It is aſſerted, that whatever be their age, a ſtone is always found in their gizzard, as in the Hooded Dodo: this ſtone is as large as a hen's egg, flat on the one ſide and convex on the other, ſomewhat rough, and ſo hard as to be fit for a whetſtone. It is added, that it is always alone in the ſtomach, and is too bulky to paſs through the intermediate duct which forms the only communication between the craw and the giz⯑zard; and hence it is inferred, that this ſtone is formed naturally in the gizzard of the Solitary, and in the ſame way as the bezoars. But for my part, I ſhould only conclude that this bird is granivorous, and ſwallows ſtones and pebbles like all the reſt of that claſs, particularly the Oſtrich, the Touyou, the Caſſowary, the Hooded Dodo, and that the paſſage between the craw and the gizzard admits of a greater dila⯑tation than Leguat ſuppoſed.

The epithet of Solitary alone indicates ſuf⯑ficiently its native wildneſs; and this is in⯑deed what we ſhould expect. Bred ſequeſtered without a ſingle companion, deprived of the ſociety of its equals, and connected to its parents [399] only by the ties of dependence and want, its latent powers are never awakened and expand⯑ed. But it appears ſtill more timid than ſavage; it even ventures to come nigh one, and with an air of familiarity, eſpecially if it has little ex⯑perience, and is not ſcared by a ſudden onſet; but it can never be tamed. It is difficult to enſnare it in the woods, where it can elude the ſportſman by cunning and dexterity in con⯑cealing itſelf; but as it does not run faſt, it is eaſily caught in the plains and open fields; when overtaken, it utters not a complaint, but waſtes its grief in tears, and obſtinately refuſes every kind of food. M. Caron, director of the French Eaſt India Company's affairs at Madagaſcar, put two of them, from the iſle of Bourbon, on board a veſſel, to be preſented to the Royal Cabinet, but they would neither eat nor drink, and died in the paſſage.

The proper ſeaſon for catching them is from March to September, which is the winter in thoſe countries they inhabit; it is alſo the time when they are fatteſt. Their fleſh, eſpecially when young, is of an excellent flavour.

Such is the general idea which Leguat gives of the Hermit or Solitary Dodo; and he ſpeaks not only as an eye-witneſs, but as an obſerver, who had for a long time ſtudied the habits of the bird; and, indeed, his account, though mar⯑red [400] in ſome places with fabulous notions^*, con⯑tains more hiſtorical details in regard to the Her⯑mit than I have been able to diſcover in a crowd of writings on thoſe birds that are more gene⯑rally and more anciently known. The Oſtrich has been a ſubject of diſcourſe for thirty cen⯑turies, and yet we are ſtill ignorant how many eggs it lays, and how long its incubation laſts. ^A

The Bird of Nazareth^†, ſo called, no doubt, by corruption, becauſe it was found in the iſland of Nazare, was obſerved by F. Cauche in the iſland of Mauritius. It is a very large bird, and more bulky than the ſwan. Inſtead of plumage, its body is entirely covered with a black down; yet it has ſome feathers, which are black on the wings and frizzled on the rump, which ſerves for a tail; it has a thick bill, in⯑curvated ſomewhat below; the legs tall and covered with ſcales, three toes on each foot; its cry reſembles that of a goſling, and its fleſh has a tolerable reliſh.

The female lays only one egg, which is white, and about the ſize of a halfpenny roll. Beſide [401] it, there is generally found a white ſtone of the ſize of a hen's egg; and this perhaps ſerves the ſame purpoſe with the balls of chalk which the farmers place in the neſts where they wiſh their hens to lay. The Nazare depoſits its egg on the ground in the foreſts, on ſmall heaps of graſs and leaves which it makes. When the young one is killed, a gray ſtone is found in its gizzard. The figure of this bird, it would ap⯑pear from a note, is to be met with in "the Jour⯑nal of the ſecond Voyage performed by the Dutch to the Eaſt Indies;" and they called it the Bird of Nauſea. Theſe laſt words ſeem decidedly to aſcertain the identity between the ſpecies of this bird and that of the Dodo; and would in⯑deed amount to a proof, if their deſcriptions did not mark eſſential differences, particularly in the number of their toes. But not to enter into a minute diſcuſſion, or venture to ſolve a problem, for which we are not in poſſeſſion yet of the neceſſary data, I ſhall barely ſtate thoſe points of reſemblance and contraſt, which may be diſcovered from a compariſon of the three de⯑ſcriptions. ^A

It readily appears then from a compariſon, that theſe three birds belong to the ſame climate, and are natives of almoſt the ſame tracts. [402] The Hooded Dodo inhabits the Iſlands of Bour⯑bon and the Iſle of France; the Hermit reſided in the iſland of Rodrigue, when it was a mere waſte, and has been ſeen in the Iſland of Bourbon; the Bird of Nazare has been found in that iſland and in the Iſle of France: but theſe four iſlands are contiguous to each other; and it is to be re⯑marked, that none of the birds has ever been diſ⯑covered on the continent.

All theſe birds reſemble each other more or leſs in point of ſize, inability to fly, the form of their wings, of their tail, and their whole body; and in all of them, one or more ſtones have been found in their gizzard, which implies that they are granivorous. In all of them, the gait is ſlow; for though Leguat does not mention that of the Hermit, we can eaſily infer from the figure which he gives of the female, that it is a ſluggiſh bird.

Finally, Comparing them two and two, we perceive that the plumage of the Hooded Dodo approaches that of the Hermit in its colour, and that of the Bird of Nazare, by its downy qua⯑lity; and that theſe two laſt agree alſo in only laying and hatching a ſingle egg.

Both the Dodo and the Bird of Nazare have been conſidered as having a diſguſting appearance.

Such are the reſemblances.—The differences are as follow:—

The Hermit has the feathers on its thighs rounded at the end like ſhells; which proves [403] that they are true feathers, ſuch as thoſe of or⯑dinary birds, and not a kind of down, as is the caſe with the Hooded Dodo and the Bird of Nazare.

The female Hermit has two white tufts of feathers on its breaſt; nothing ſimilar is men⯑tioned in regard to the female of the two others.

In the Hooded Dodo, the feathers which bor⯑der the baſe of the bill are diſpoſed in the ſhape of a cowl; and the appearance is ſo ſtriking, that it has given foundation for its characteriſtic name (Cycnus Cucullatus). Beſides, the eyes are placed in the bill, which is no leſs remark⯑able; and we cannot doubt that Leguat ſaw nothing like this in the Hermit, ſince he only mentions with regard to that bird, which he had viewed ſo often, that there is neither creſt nor tuft on its head; and Cauche, in ſpeaking of the Bird of Nazare, takes no notice of any thing of this kind.

The two laſt are tall; but the Hooded Dodo has very thick ſhort legs.

The Hooded Dodo and the Hermit, whoſe legs are ſaid to reſemble thoſe of the turkey, have four toes, and the Bird of Nazare, according to Cauche, has only three.

The Hermit makes a remarkable beating with its wings, which has not been obſerved in the others.

Laſtly, It appears that the fleſh of the Her⯑mits, and eſpecially of the young ones, is ex⯑cellent; [402] [...] [403] [...] [404] that of the Bird of Nazare indifferent, and that of the Hooded Dodo, bad.

If this compariſon, which has been made with the greateſt accuracy, does not allow us to decide on the queſtion propoſed, it is becauſe theſe obſervations are neither ſufficiently nu⯑merous nor certain. It is therefore to be wiſh⯑ed, that thoſe travellers, and particularly thoſe naturaliſts, who have it in their power, would examine theſe three birds, and form an exact deſcription of them, attending chiefly to the following points:

• The ſhape of the head and bill.
• The quality of the plumage.
• The form and dimenſions of the feet.
• The diſtinguiſhing marks between the male and female.
• The differences between the chicks and adults.
• Their manner of walking and running.
• Adding as much as poſſible of what can be learnt from the natives reſpecting their pairing, copulating, building their neſt, and hatching.
• The number, ſhape, colour, weight, and bulk of their eggs.
• The time of incubation.
• The manner of rearing their young.
• Their mode of feeding.
• Finally, The form and dimenſions of their ſtomach, of their inteſtines, and of their ſexual organs.