ORNITHOLOGY. INTRODUCTION.

The term Ornithology is derived from the Greek ὄρνις, a bird, and λόγος, discourse, and denotes that part of Zoology which treats of birds.

Birds are two-footed animals, covered with feathers, and furnished with wings. Like quadrupeds and the cetaceous tribe, they have warm blood, a heart with two ventricles and two auricles, and lungs for the purpose of respiration; but they are distinguished from both by their feet, feathers, wings, and horny bill, as well as by the circumstance of their females being oviparous.

The elegant and beautiful colouring of many of the feathered race, the graceful ease of their flight, their various music, their tender solicitude for their offspring, their engaging instincts, their susceptibility of domestication, and their subservience to the fulness of man, have, in all ages, contributed to interest the latter in the study of their history.

Of the naturalists, however, whose writings have descended to us from antiquity, Aristotle and Pliny are the only two who appear to have entered into any details on a subject so inviting and important. Though the former composed no particular treatise on birds, he brings them under review in different parts of his History of Animals. In the third chapter of the eighth book, for example, he enumerates the different sorts of nourishment adapted to different species, and their various modes of feeding. The ninth book contains his very imperfect nomenclature, his remarks on the diversified modes of nidification, and some valuable observations on the family of eagles. His notion of the organization and habits of birds are interspersed in the body of the work, and introduced in the way of comparative reference to the structure and manners of other animals. Pliny's enumeration of the feathered species, is extended over most part of his tenth book, but is defective of precise description, and encumbered with absurdity and fable.

Of the numerous ornithologists of more modern date, some have chiefly directed their labours to method and classification, others have been more solicitous to describe and delineate; some have treated of the whole class, others of particular portions of it; while, lastly, some have been contented to define and describe, and others have illustrated and enhanced their text by more or less accurate designs from living or prepared specimens. This combination of the pen and the pencil, which has so eminently contributed, in our day, to the acquisition and diffusion of knowledge, seems to have been unknown to the ancients.

Although the unavoidable limitation of our plan precludes a minute and critical report of the works to which we have just alluded, we shall briefly advert to a few of the most conspicuous. Among the first who excited, on the continent, a taste for the study of ornithology, and for a methodical distribution of that portion of science, we may mention Belon. Aware that nature Belon is most successfully contemplated in her own works, he travelled from the laudable desire of collecting information, and communicated to the world the results of his enquiries. His History of Birds, a thin folio volume, divided into seven books, or parts, and illustrated by wooden cuts, was published at Paris, in 1555. His principle of classification being chiefly founded on the circumstances of habitation and food, and only occasionally on external forms and characters, is obviously very defective; his descriptions, though tolerably accurate, are, for the most part too concise; and many of his plates are very inadequate representations of their originals. It must, at the same time, be allowed, that he frequently suggests judicious views of his subject; that he notes with ingenuity, the points of resemblance between the human skeleton and that of birds; that he has penned several passages which may still be perused with interest and instruction; that the naïveté of his manner is always pleasing, and that when we reflect on the period in which he flourished, he is entitled to no ordinary praise.

The celebrated Conrad Gesner, physician and professor at Zurich, and contemporary with Belon, has devoted the third volume of his History of Animals to the department of ornithology. It is an erudite, but ponderous tome, exhibiting alphabetical tables of the names of birds, in Hebrew, Chaldee, Arabic, Greek, Latin, and most of the spoken languages of Europe. His descriptions are compiled abridgements; but his references, at the close of each article, are very numerous; for if any author of his acquaintance happen to mention a bird, his name and the passage are duly commemorated. Gesner's arrangement differs in no respect from that of any common dictionary; and few of his engravings are executed with correctness. The curious reader will probably be gratified with the perusal of his account of the art of rearing birds for falconry, the diseases to which they are liable, and the remedies which the learned doctor prescribes.

The same topics are discussed by Aldrovandus, a physician of Bologna, who availing himself of the writings of the two preceding naturalists, added to their indebted stores, and compiled three folios, divided into 20 books, and illustrated by wooden plates. His catalogue, however, scarcely comprises any birds but such as are natives of Europe, and by no means all even of these. He too implicitly adopts the vague distinctions of Belon; and on various occasions, not only copies Aristotle with fervency, but overlays his borrowed materials with a mass of dark commentary. The motley complexion of the whole production, in fact, betrays the desire of accumulation rather than the exercise of taste and judgment.

Johnston, who published in 1657 a folio volume of 160 pages, did little else than greatly condemn the heavy compliments of Gesner and Aldrovandus. He divides the whole class into land and water birds, and deduces his subordinate divisions from the nature of their aliments. His descriptions are generally correct, but scanty; and even his figures, though traced with more character than those of his predecessors, bespeak a parsimony of engraving.

The next writer of eminence in this department, who merits particular quotation, is Francis Willoughby, Esq., an English gentleman, who laid the foundation of a more accurate arrangement. His work, which appeared in 1676, was revised and edited by his friend the celebrated Ray. It is divided into three books, of which the first is allotted to general views of the subject, and an explanation of the author's method. The first chapter treats of the form and external structure of birds, the second of their organization and internal structure. The third includes 24 queries, the answers to which, if founded on fact, would greatly contribute to the advancement of ornithology. Mr Willoughby formally recognizes the grand division of terrestrial and aquatic, comprising under the former those which live at a distance from water, and under the second, those which live on the margin or surface of that element. He then institutes his leading distinctions from the form of the bill and feet, and would doubtless have accomplished a more complete arrangement, had he uniformly adhered to the same principle; but in compliance with the prejudices of his time, he assumes the different kinds of food, the varieties of size, the nature of the flesh, and even moral qualities, as the grounds of subdivisions. At all events, however, he has the credit of having opened a career, which others have successfully pursued. His second and third books contain the description and history of the species, distributed according to the rules laid down in the first. To the exposition of each genus are prefixed two chapters of general observations; the first including the vague or fabulous accounts of the ancients, and the second such common properties as appertain to the genus. The author then proceeds to the specific details, stating the most important particulars with precision and neatness, and concluding with an account of peculiar habits.

Ray, in his Synopsis Avium, follows, with a few exceptions, the method of his friend, referring at the same time to the tail feathers, and some parts of the internal conformation. The latter, we need scarcely remark, cannot with any propriety be adopted as generic or specific characters.

The new method of classing birds proposed by Monsieur Barrere in 1745, implies either a total ignorance or blamable neglect of the writings of Willoughby and Ray. As its only tendency was to confuse and perplex, we forbear noticing its details. Suffice it to remark, that it includes the peacock and man-of-war bird in the same family, and ranks the yellow-hammer between the bustard and the ostrich. In his Essay on the Natural History of Guiana, the same author enumerates the birds in alphabetical order; but his catalogue has been more than doubled by subsequent travellers.

Jacob Theodore Klein, member of several learned academies, published at Lubeck in 1750 a quarto volume, entitled, Historiae Avium Prodromus, cum praefatione de ordine animalium in genere. In this work he divides birds into families, orders, and tribes. His eight families are distinguished by the conformation of the feet, his orders by the form of the bill, and his tribes, sometimes by the form and proportions of the head, sometimes by accidental differences of the bill, and sometimes by the author's own fanciful ideas. From too great an anxiety to simplify, this naturalist is generally too brief, and adds to his obscurity by an affectation of learned phraseology.

This last mentioned quality likewise disfigures the scientific catalogue of Meehring, physician to the prince of Anhalt, which appeared in 1752. His classes, orders, and genera, are founded on the formation of the feet and bill; and his descriptions of birds examined by himself, are usually accurate; but he is often misled by the errors of others, and the method which he proposes is complex and incommodious.

In this summary of celebrated systematic ornithologists, we may assign to Linnaeus the date of 1766, when he published the 12th edition of his Systema Naturae. In so far as that astonishing body of arrangement respects the feathered tribes, it certainly manifests at once the extent and minuteness of the author's discriminating powers. As the same nomenclature and divisions are still the most familiar to British naturalists, we purpose to be chiefly regulated by them in the sequel, and consequently shall, for the present, waive any explanation of the Linnean arrangement.

M. Salente physician at Orleans, left behind him a sublime MS. treatise on Ornithology, which was published by his friends in 1767. His method is that of Ray. The historical part is from the pen of Salente himself; but the body of the text is a promiscuous and clumsy compilation. The typography is executed with neatness and elegance, and the plates, which are 31 in number, are engraved with uncommon skill; though the larger birds are for the most part represented on too small a scale.

M. Briffon of the Royal Academy of Sciences, published, in 1760, A System of Ornithology, in Latin and French, in six quarto volumes. He distributes birds into 26 orders, instituted from the form of the feet, bill, &c. 115 genera, which are determined by the peculiarities of the bill or mandibles, and about 1300 species. Each article is preceded by a numerous and accurate list of references and figures; many species, till then undefended, are particularized; and the work is illustrated by upwards of 220 excellent engravings. The principal merit of Briffon's plan consists in the adoption of external and permanent characters, which enable the student to affix the name and station of a bird which he sees for the first time. The descriptions are equally accurate with those of Willoughby, and more copious. Though not exempt from errors and defects, this work still holds a respectable rank in the library of the ornithologist.

The Natural History of Birds, by the Comte de Buffon, and his learned associates, is too generally known to require our analysis or criticism. Its great defect is want of scientific arrangement, a want which is scarcely redeemed even by the popular, luminous, and elegant style of the descriptions, combined with the highly finished execution of the coloured plates. With the exception, however, to which we have just alluded, we feel no hesitation in adopting the language of the English translator. "The history of birds possesses every quality that could recommend it to the public; it exhibits a clear and comprehensive view of the knowledge acquired in ornithology, scattered through a multiplicity of volumes, and in various languages, it diffuses and elucidates with critical accuracy, the numerous controverted points; it reduces the whole to simplicity, order, and elegance; and, by large additions of valuable matter, it greatly extends the bounds of the science."—M. de Buffon was not to be deterred by the difficulty and extent of the undertaking. The correspondents of the king's cabinet continued to transmit numerous communications, and specimens from all parts of the world. Above eighty artists were, under the direction of the younger M. Daubenton, employed five years in the drawing, engraving, and colouring, of upwards of a thousand birds. But the commencement of the work which these were intended to illustrate was delayed two years, by reason of a severe and tedious indisposition, which during that space afflicted the excellent naturalist. And after he had recovered his health, he reflected that at his advanced period of life he could not reasonably expect to be able to accomplish the history of birds, and also that of minerals, in which he had already made some advances. He judged it expedient therefore to have recourse to the affiance of his friends; and he was peculiarly fortunate in the choice of the learned and eloquent M. Gueneau de Montbeillard, who cheerfully undertook the laborious task, and composed the greatest part of the two first volumes of the History of Birds, which appeared in 1771, under the name however of M. de Buffon. In his complex of thought and mode of expression, M. de Montbeillard followed so closely his illustrious associate, that the public could not perceive any change. It was now proper to throw off the mask; and in the publication of the four subsequent volumes, each author prefixed his name to his own articles. The third volume was nearly printed when new affiance was received from the communications of James Bruce, Esq. of Kinmaird. That accomplished and adventurous traveller, in his return from Abyssinia, passed some days with M. de Buffon at Paris. The count was filled with admiration on seeing the numerous and elegant drawings which Mr Bruce had made of natural objects; and on several occasions he mentions the explorer of the source of the Nile in terms the most flattering and respectful. After the publication of the fifth volume in 1781, M. de Montbeillard was desirous of devoting the whole of his leisure in composing the History of Insects, which had become his favourite study. The three remaining volumes were therefore written by M. de Buffon himself; though he acknowledges that the Abbé Bexon had collected the nomenclature, formed most of the descriptions, and communicated several important hints. The work was completed in 1783; and as only a few copies of the illuminated plates were on sale, and these extremely costly, a small set of engravings were made, to accommodate ordinary purchasers."

Soumini's recent edition of Buffon's Natural History contains many valuable additions; and forms, perhaps, one of the most complete works of the kind that has yet appeared. In the department of ornithology, it presents us with descriptions and figures of every bird to which the editors could have access, either in the living or preserved state, or of which they could be favoured with drawings.

Mauduyt's Dictionary of Ornithology, which makes part of the Encyclopédie Méthodique, deserves to be particularly quoted, on account of the preliminary discourse, the accuracy of the descriptions and references, and the correct execution of the plates. The whole forms an excellent collection of the most important particulars which lay within the author's reach; and we have occasionally availed ourselves of his labours in the compilation of the present article.

A series of splendid plates was executed at Florence, Gerini, in illustration of Gerini's Ornithology; but they betray, in general, a disregard of nature, and are, in many instances, merely copied from imperfect drawings or inaccurate engravings. Gerini's nomenclature is, likewise, very faulty, and too frequently confounds species and varieties.

In 1773, the ingenious and indefatigable Mr Pennant published a small volume, entitled, Genera of Birds. In his preface, he enters into a minute account of the external parts of birds, their feathers, flight, nidification, &c. In his selection of systematic arrangement, he gives the preference to that of Ray, whose plan appears to him to be so judicious, that it is scarcely possible to make any change in it for the better. At the same time, he admits, that later discoveries had made a few improvements on his labours. "My candid friend, Linnaeus," adds Mr Pennant, "will not take it amiss, that I in part, neglect his example; for I permit the land-fowl to follow one another, undivided by the water-fowl with pinnated feet, placing them between the waders or cloven-footed water-fowl, and the web-footed. The ostrich, and land-birds with wings useless for flight, I place as a distinct order. The trumpet (Pipioptera Linnaei) and the lyfordes, I place at the end of the gallinaceous tribe. All are land-birds. The first multiparous, like the generality of the gallinaceous tribe; the last granivorous, swift runners, avoiders of wet places; and both have bills somewhat arched. It must be confessed, that both have legs naked above the knees, and the last, like the waders, lay but few eggs. They seem ambiguous birds, that have affinity with each order; and it is hoped, that each naturalist may be indulged the toleration of placing them as suits his own opinion." Mr Pennant's grand divisions, then, are into land-birds, and water-fowl. The first he distributes into the six following orders. 1. Rapacious, 2. Piers, 3. Gallinaceous, 4. Columbine, 5. Pafserine, and 6. Struthious. The second comprehends, 7. Cloven-footed, or Waders, 8. those with Pinnated feet, and 9. the Web-footed.

In 1781, Dr Latham commenced his General Synopsis of Birds, a work of much accurate detail, and extending to three double quarto volumes, with two of supplement. Admitting the primary division of Ray, he adheres, with a few exceptions, to the Linnaean genera, which as well as the species, his opportunities of research enabled him to multiply to a very considerable amount. Each genus is illustrated by one coloured copperplate at least, usually of some rare species. Of these plates, however, the execution is sometimes coarse or meagre; and candour will not permit us to compliment the author on the purity or correctness of his style. His volumes, nevertheless, constitute a precious repository of descriptions and facts, and must always hold a distinguished place in the library of the ornithologist. Dr Latham is likewise the author of an Index Ornithologicus, which forms a convenient compend of his larger work, being comprised in two quarto volumes. About two years ago, Sébastien Gérardin de Mirécourt published an "Elementary View of Ornithology, or the Natural History of those Birds which usually occur in France," &c. This gentleman appears to have been born and bred in the department of the Vôges, in which he discharged the duties of professor of natural history, and which is known to contain a greater diversity of the feathered race than almost any province in Europe. His preliminary discourse explains the general topics of ornithology in language at once succinct and perspicuous. The five chapters of which it consists were submitted to the revision of the estimable Daudin, whose premature death his friends and science will long deplore. The arrangement of the work, which is limited to two octavo volumes, and a thin quarto volume of plates, has been chiefly regulated by that of Cuvier, in his Sketch of the Natural History of Animals; but M. Gérardin has ventured to introduce a few occasional alterations, which were suggested in the course of his teaching in the central school, and which he conceived would facilitate the progress of his pupils. His synonymy is that of Linnæus and Brillon; and his descriptions are generally minute, distinct, and accurate. On the whole, however, the reader is entitled to expect more copious information relative to the manners and habits of many of the species, than will be found in these results of thirty years application to the subject, combined with many favourable opportunities. We have also remarked a want of uniformity and precision in some of the author's statements. The engravings are chiefly valuable on account of the correctness of their outlines.

Of the numerous writers who have treated of the birds of particular countries, we may observe, that Hernandez, a Spanish physician, has described those of Mexico. His work consists of 229 chapters, each of which, generally, treats of a single species. As they are, however, designed only by their Mexican names, and described with too much brevity, their precise stations in the Linnæan arrangement are with difficulty ascertained. Similar objections apply to the work of Nierenberg, who has described the birds of the same country. From both we may infer, that the feathered tribes in Mexico are numerous, and diversified with the most brilliant colouring; and that the natives had made considerable progress in the study of their history.

Brazil presents a still more rich and splendid field to the researches of the ornithologist; but Marcgrave, who professes to delineate its natural history, and allots his fifth book to the birds, is not less defective than the two writers whom we have just mentioned. His plates are not only wretchedly executed; but frequently do not correspond with the descriptions.

Sir Hans Sloane, in his History of Jamaica, has represented 44 species of birds, in 18 plates, annexed to the second volume; but it is seldom that the reader can rely on the accuracy of his delineations.

To Mr Catesby of the Royal Society, we are indebted for an excellent account of the birds of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama islands, in two volumes imperial folio, in French and English. The first volume, and part of the appendix in the second, are devoted to the birds. The descriptions are concise and perspicuous, and accompanied with some interesting notices relative to the manners and habits of the species described. The plates, which are numerous, are generally faithful representations of the originals, and admirably well coloured. The introduction followed in these splendid volumes, approaches somewhat to that of Willoughby.

Schwenckfeld, a physician, who published in 1603, a natural history of Siberia, in two quarto volumes, includes the birds in his fourth book. His enumeration and description of the parts which belong to birds in common with other animals, and of the appropriate parts of the organization of the former, are neat and accurate. His differences, founded on habitation, food, &c., are less valuable. The introduction is followed by the enumeration of birds, in alphabetical order, according to their Latin names. The descriptions, though accurate, are, for the most part, too short; and though adequate to recall a bird already known, are not sufficient to convey a precise notion of those which are described for the first time. The historical portion is too much condensed; and with facts which are calculated to excite interest, the author often blends such as are superfluous, or improbable.

M. Brunnich published in 1764, an account of the Brunnich birds of Denmark, and the neighbouring islands and provinces. In most instances he follows the Linnæan nomenclature, and sometimes the synonymy of Brillon. He chiefly dwells on the rare and non-descript species, but even then seldom enters sufficiently into detail, to enable the student to ascertain the species in question.

M. Sonnerat, corresponding member of the Royal Sonnerat Academy of Sciences of Paris, published, in 1776, an account of his voyage to New Guinea, the Molucca and Philippine islands, the Isle of France, and some other islands, in the Indian ocean; and in 1783, he favoured the world with a relation of his second voyage, to several parts of the East Indies and China. Though this zealous and learned naturalist was prevented by want of time, from forming very extensive collections, his descriptions and designs manifest both accuracy and taste. Besides correcting the errors of former travellers and voyagers, he has noticed a considerable number of birds for the first time, and most of them remarkable either for their singularity or beauty. His account of the wild cock and hen, the origin of our common domestic fowl, will be perused with peculiar interest.

The splendid work of Frisch, a German naturalist, Frisch, chiefly consists of coloured plates of the birds of Europe, arranged in 12 classes according to distinctions which are sometimes vague and inconvenient. The figures are, for the most part, accurate and lively representations from nature, though, in some instances they are larger than the life. The author has bestowed particular attention on the different colourings of the two sexes of the same species.

M. le Vaillant, author of a voyage to the Cape of Good Hope, and of the natural history of the birds of Africa, is eminently distinguished by the ardour and acuteness with which he has prosecuted his ornithological researches, and has availed himself with laudable diligence of his rare opportunities of collecting accurate details relative to every species which he undertakes to illustrate. His natural history of the birds of paradise, rollers, promeropes, toucans, and barbets, is perhaps the most highly finished and sumptuous publication that has appeared in any of the departments of ornithology. The figures, about one hundred in number, are engraved by Péreé, from the drawings of Barraband, coloured by Langlois. Langlois, and retouched by the pencil of the original designer; while the elder Didot has executed the typography, in his best style, on vellum paper. Each figure is as large as life, and is usually drawn from a specimen in the highest state of preservation; and in many cases, an exact representation of the female bird has also been obtained. Though the pre-eminent merit of the work consists in the figures and descriptions, it is in a few instances agreeably diversified by traits of character, which the author remarked in the living bird, and by some interesting hints of a more general complexion, which his accurate and extensive observation enabled him to collect. We cannot, however, refrain from expressing a wish, that he had been more liberal of his synonyms and references, and that he had treated systematic writers with a little more respect. We should not forget, that methodical nomenclature, though the result of art, and liable to many errors, is entitled at least to subordinate regard, and as an unpleasing aid to the memory. Even if we should concede to our innovating author the propriety of those more fanciful arrangements to which he manifests a predilection, it would still admit of doubt, whether, on the whole, they would more accord with gradations unequivocally indicated by nature. Are we certain that, amid her countless productions, nature recognizes a single line of demarcation? or, that the study of ornithology would be essentially promoted by clasping the fillet with the jays, or every individual furnished with parade feathers among birds of paradise?

The natural history of tanagers, todies, and manakins, by Anfeline Gaëtan Desmaretz, with coloured engravings, from drawings by Paulina de Courcelles, pupil of Barraband, is another of those recent and splendid productions of the Parisian press, which reflect so much honour on the zeal, industry, and taste of the French naturalists. The paper, type, and figures, all bespeak the excellence of the respective artists who have produced them, as well as the love of chaste and elegant embellishment which has presided over the undertaking. The ornamental style of the work, however, is not its sole passport to our favourable notice. The exposition of the three genera mentioned in the title, is a subject which calls for much critical research and laborious investigation. M. Desmaretz, without presuming to entitle the whole nomenclature, lays down many important distinctions, and proceeds with circumspection, so far as his opportunities have enabled him to advance.

"Before we enter," says he, "on the details of the species, it may be proper to mention, that we shall limit our descriptions to those which we have seen, and of which we have been enabled to exhibit figures. We shall, moreover, endeavour to analyze, and if possible, to unravel the references of authors. Should success thus far attend us, we conceive that we shall have duly performed the part of zealous naturalists." Besides descriptions and plates of the male, the author has also, not unfrequently, represented the female, or young of the same species, or an individual as it appears in the moulting state. His pages will afford least entertainment to those who delight to observe the instincts and economy of the feathered race; and who shrink from the minute adjustment of classification and synonymy. It ought, however, to be remembered that few authentic facts have been collected relative to the history of these foreign birds; and that though future travellers may increase the scanty stock of interesting notices, the exertions of the present author may not a little contribute to systematize and facilitate their observations.

The Natural History of Birds, by George Edwards, Edwards, in four quarto volumes, without any reference to country or method, contains many excellent coloured designs, and correct descriptions; and the same remark applies to his Gleanings of Natural History, the most considerable portion of which relates to birds.

Several of his countrymen have expounded or delineated the birds of our own island with more or less ornithologists' city of manner. The ornithological part of Pennant's British Zoology, Hayes's Natural History of British Birds, with their portraits accurately drawn, and beautifully coloured from nature; Lord's Natural History of British Birds, Lewin's Birds of Great Britain, with their eggs, in three volumes quarto, Walcott's Synopsis of British Birds, two volumes quarto, Bewick's History of British Birds, with figures engraved on wood, &c. &c. are all entitled to critical notice; but the limitation of our plan forbids us to dwell on them. We shall, therefore, close this portion of our introduction by pointing to a work which seems not yet to have procured its due share of the public favour; we mean the Ornithological Dictionary, or Alphabetical Synopsis of British Birds, by George Montagu, F. L. S. &c. in two small octavo volumes. We are acquainted with few publications of the kind that contain a larger quantity of accurate and important information within such a narrow compass. As a book of reference and consultation, it is well calculated to suit the occasions of ordinary readers, and even to convey instruction to the learned student. The synopses and specific descriptions evince much diligence and accuracy; and various articles are enriched by the result of personal observation and extensive travel. Sufficiently aware of the fallible indications of plumage, the writer is more solicitous to reduce than to multiply distinctions; and in doubtful cases, has sometimes had recourse to the unequivocal test of dissection. A few of the articles, however, are dismissed with too much brevity, and the style is very deficient in polish and correctness.

If any of our readers are desirous of procuring a more complete catalogue of works published on ornithology prior to the year 1760, they will find it in Gronovius's Bibliotheca regni animalis atque lapidei, ac recensio autorum et librorum qui de regno animali et lapideo, methodice, physicè, &c. tractant.

The structure of the feathered tribes, and their habits of life, are wonderfully adapted to the various functions which they are destined to perform. The pointed beak, the long and plant neck, the gently swelling shoulder, the expansive wings, the tapering tail, the light and bony feet, are all wisely calculated to assist and accelerate their motion through the yielding air. Every part of their frame is formed for lightness and buoyancy; their bodies are covered with a soft and delicate plumage, so disposed as to protect them from the intense cold of the atmosphere through which they pass; their wings are made of the lightest materials, and yet the force with which they strike the air is so great, as to impel their bodies forward with astonishing rapidity, while the tail serves the purpose of a rudder to direct them to the different objects of their pursuit. The internal structure of birds is no less wisely adapted to the fame. same purposes; all the bones are light and thin, and all the muscles, except those which are appropriated to the movements of the wings, are extremely light and delicate. The lungs are placed close to the back bone and ribs. The air, entering into them by a communication from the windpipe, passes through, and is conveyed into a number of membranous cells which lie on the sides of the pericardium, and communicate with those of the sternum. In some birds, these cells are continued down the wings, and extended even to the pinions, thigh bones, and other parts of the body, which can be filled and defended with air at the pleasure of the animal. The feathers, too, and particularly those of the wings, contain a great quantity of air. The almost universal diffusion of this fluid in the bodies of birds is of infinite use to them, not only in their long and laborious flights, but likewise in preventing their respiration from being stopped or interrupted by the rapidity of their motion through a resisting medium. Were it possible for man to move with the swiftness of a swallow, the actual resistance of the air, as he is not provided with internal reservoirs similar to those of birds, would soon suffocate him.

Birds, like quadrupeds, may be divided into granivorous and carnivorous. The former are furnished with larger intestines than those of the latter. Their food, which consists of grain of various sorts, is conveyed entire into the first stomach, or craw, where it undergoes a partial dilution by a liquor secreted from the glands, and spread over its surface. It is then received into another species of stomach, where it is farther diluted, after which it is transmitted into the gizzard, or true stomach, consisting of two very strong muscles, externally covered with a tendinous substance, and lined with a thick membrane of prodigious power and strength, in which organ the food is completely triturated, and prepared for the operation of the gastric juices. In order to ascertain the strength of these stomachs, Spallanzani had recourse to a great variety of ingenious experiments. Tin tubes, full of grain, were forced into the stomachs of turkeys, and, after remaining 20 hours, were found to be broken, compressed, and distorted in the most irregular manner. In the space of 24 hours, the stomach of a cock broke off the angles of a piece of rough jagged glass, though, on examining the gizzard, no wound or laceration appeared. In a ball of lead were fixed 12 strong needles, with the points projecting about a quarter of an inch from the surface. Thus armed, the ball was covered with a case of paper, and forced down the throat of a turkey. The bird retained it a day and a half without manifesting any symptoms of uneasiness, and the points of all the needles were broken off close to the surface of the ball, except two or three, of which the stumps projected a little. The same interesting observer relates, that he fixed 12 small and very sharp lancets, in a similar ball of lead, which was given in the same manner to a turkey cock, and left eight hours in the stomach, at the expiration of which the organ was opened; but nothing appeared except the naked ball, the lancets having been broken to pieces, and the stomach remaining sound and entire. Hence we may infer, that the stones so often found in the stomachs of many of the feathered tribes, may powerfully contribute to the comminution of grain and other hard substances which constitute their food.

Granivorous birds partake much of the nature and disposition of herbivorous quadrupeds, agreeing with them in the number of their stomachs, the comparative length and capacity of their intestines, the quality of their food, and the gentleness of their manners. Contented with the seeds of plants, with fruits, insects, and worms, their principal attention is directed to procuring food, hatching and rearing their offspring, and eluding the fancies of men, and the attacks of predaceous animals. As they are generally tractable and easily domesticated, man has selected for his own advantage those which are most prolific and profitable. Of these the hen, goose, turkey, and duck, are the most considerable, and form a valuable store of rich, wholesome, and nutritious food.

Carnivorous birds are provided with wings of great length, the muscles which move them being proportionally large and strong, so that they are enabled to keep long on the wing, in search of their prey. They are, besides, armed with strong hooked bills, and sharp and formidable claws. They have large heads, short necks, strong and brawny thighs, and a flight so acute and piercing, as to enable them to view their prey from the greatest heights in the air, and to dart down on it with incredible swiftness and undeviating aim. Their stomachs are smaller than those of the granivorous kinds, and their intestines are much shorter. The analogy between carnivorous birds and quadrupeds, is too obvious to escape the notice of even the superficial observer. Both of them are provided with weapons which indicate destruction and rapine, their manners are fierce and unfeeling, and they seldom congregate, like the offensive granivorous tribes; but, when not on the wing, retire to the tops of sequestered rocks, or to the depths of extensive forests, where they conceal themselves in fullest and gloomy solitude. Such of them as feed on carrion, have the sense of smelling so acute, that they can scent carcases at astonishing distances.

Without the means of conveying themselves with great swiftness from one place to another, birds could not easily subsist; the food which nature has provided for them being so irregularly distributed, that they are obliged to take long journeys to distant parts in order to procure the necessary supplies. Hence one cause of those migrations which are so peculiar to the feathered race. Besides the want of food, however, two other causes may be assigned, namely, the want of a proper temperature of air, and of a convenient situation for the important work of breeding and rearing their young. Such birds as migrate to great distances, are alone denominated birds of passage; but most species are more or less so, although they do not move to places remote from their former habitations. At particular periods of the year, most birds remove from one country to another, or from the more inland districts towards the shores, or vice versa. The reasons of these migrations are observed with the most astonishing order and punctuality; but the secrecy with which immense flocks take their departure, and the suddenness with which they reappear, are not easily explained. We are also apt to suppose, that, during long flights over immense tracts of water, the means of subsistence would inevitably fail, without reflecting on the superior velocity with which birds are carried forward in the air, and the ease with which they continue their exertions for a much longer longer time than can be done by the strongest quadruped. Our swiftest horses are supposed to go at the rate of a mile in somewhat less than two minutes; and there is one instance on record of a horse that went at the rate of nearly a mile in one minute, but only for one second of time. In such cases an uncommon degree of exertion has been attended with its usual consequences, debility, and a total want of power to continue that exertion; but the motions of birds are not impeded by similar causes, and they not only glide through the air with a quickness superior to that of the swiftest quadrupeds, but can continue on the wing with equal speed for a considerable length of time. Now, if we can suppose a bird to go at the rate of only half a mile in a minute, for the space of 24 hours, it will, in that time, have gone over an extent of more than 750 miles; which is sufficient to account for almost the longest migration; and, if aided by a favourable current of air, there is reason to believe, that it will perform the same journey in a much shorter space of time.

The wings of birds are so constructed, that, in striking downwards, they expand very considerably, and, except that they are somewhat hollow on the under side, they form, in this act, almost two planes. The muscles that move the wings downwards are very large, and have been estimated, in some instances, at not less than the fifth part of the weight of the whole body. When a bird is on the ground, and intends to fly, it takes a leap, stretches its wings from the body, and strikes them downwards with great force. By this stroke, they are put into an oblique direction, partly upwards, and partly horizontally forwards. That part of the force which tends upwards is destroyed by the weight of the bird, while the horizontal impulse serves to carry it forwards. The stroke being completed, it moves its wings; and they, being contracted, and having their edges turned upwards, meet with very little resistance from the air. When they are sufficiently elevated, it makes a second stroke downwards, and the impulse of the air again moves it forward. These successive strokes act as many leaps taken in the air. When the bird wants to turn to the right or left, it strikes strongly with the opposite wing, so as to impel the body to the proper side. If it wants to rise, it raises its tail, and if to fall, depresses it. When in a horizontal position, the tail keeps the body steady. A bird, by spreading its wings, can continue to move horizontally in the air for some time, without striking, because it has acquired a sufficient velocity; and the wings, being parallel to the horizon, meet with but small resistance. On alighting, it expands its wings and tail full against the air, that they may meet with all possible resistance. The centre of gravity in birds is somewhat behind the wings; and, to counterbalance it, most of them may be observed to thrust out their head and neck in flying. This is very apparent in the flight of ducks, geese, and several species of water-fowl, whose centre of gravity is farther backwards than in the land birds. In the heron, on the contrary, whose long head and neck, although folded up in flight, overbalance the rest of the body, the long legs are extended, in order to give the proper counterpoise, and to supply what is wanting in the shortness of the tail.

The feathers of birds would constantly imbibe the moisture of the atmosphere; and, during rain, absorb so much wet, as would almost, if not wholly, impede their flight, had not the wise economy of nature obviated this by a most effectual expedient. They are furnished on the rump with two glands, in which a quantity of unctuous matter is constantly secreting. This is occasionally preflled out by means of the bill, and used for the lubrication of the feathers. The birds which share, as it were, the habitations of man, and live principally under cover, do not require so large a supply of this fluid, and, consequently, are not provided with such a large stock of it as those that rove abroad, and reside in the open element. Hence poultry, when wet, assume a ruffled and uncomfortable appearance.

As birds are continually puffing among hedges and nettling thickets, their eyes are protected from external injuries, membrane, as well as from too much light, when flying in opposition to the sun's rays, by a nettling or winking membrane, which can at pleasure be drawn over the whole eye like a curtain. This covering is neither opaque, nor wholly pellucid, but somewhat transparent. By means of it the eagle is said to gaze at the sun.

It appears from observations, founded on numerous song experiments, that the peculiar notes, or songs, of the different species of birds, are altogether acquired, and are no more innate than language is in man. The attempt of a netting to sing, may be compared with the imperfect endeavour of a child to talk. The first effort seems not to possess the slightest rudiments of the future song; but, as the bird grows older and stronger, it is not difficult to perceive its aim. While the scholar is thus endeavouring to form his song, when he is once sure of a passage, he commonly raises his tone, which he drops again when he is not equal to what he is attempting. A common sparrow, taken from the nest when very young, and placed near a linnet and goldfinch, though in a wild state it would only have chirped, adopted a song that was a mixture of these two. Three netting linnets were educated, one under a skylark, another under a wood-lark, and a third under a tit-lark; and, instead of the song peculiar to their own species, they adhered entirely to that of their respective instructors. A linnet, taken from the nest, when but two or three days old, and brought up in the house of an apothecary at Kennington, from want of other sounds to imitate, almost articulated the words "pretty boy," as well as some other short sentences. These and other well-authenticated facts seem to prove, that birds have no innate notes, but that the language of those to whose care they are committed at birth, will be the language which they adopt in after life. It may, however, appear somewhat unaccountable why, in a wild state, they adhere so steadily to the song of their own species only, when so many others are to be heard around them. This arises from the attention paid by the netting bird to the instructions of its own parent only, generally disregarding the notes of all the rest. Persons, however, who have an accurate ear, and have studied the notes of different birds, can very often distinguish some that have a song mixed with those of another species; but these are in general so trifling as scarcely to be reckoned anything more than mere varieties of provincial dialects.

All birds are oviparous, or produce eggs, from which, after the process of incubation, the young are extruded. These eggs differ in different species, in respect of number, figure, and colour. They contain the rudiments of the future young, for the maturation of which a bubble of air is always placed at the large end, betwixt the shell and the inside skin. It is supposed, that, from the warmth communicated by the fitting bird to this confined air, its spring is increased beyond its natural tenor, and at the same time its parts are put into motion by the gentle rarefaction. Hence prelude and motion are communicated to the parts of the egg, and seem, in some unknown way, gradually to promote the growth of the young till the appointed time of ex- citation. Houfewives, when they suspect an egg is not good, put their tongue to the great end, to feel if it be warm. If that is not the case, it is considered a certain proof, that the air, having, by degrees, effected its escape, the egg is at length become putrid or ad- dled.

The nests of birds are, in general, constructed with astonishing art, and with a degree of skill and neatness that often defies the efforts of the human hands. Both the male and female generally assist in this interesting concern. They each bring materials to the place, as sticks, moss, straws, &c. for the foundation and exterior; and hair, wool, or the down of animals or plants, to form a soft and commodious bed for their eggs, and for the tender bodies of their young when hatched. The outside of the nest usually bears no great resemblance in colour to the surrounding foliage or branches, as not easily to be discovered even by persons who are in search of them.

The term of life varies greatly in birds, and does not seem to bear the same proportion to the time of acquiring their growth as has been remarked with regard to quadrupeds. Most birds acquire their full dimensions in a few months, and are capable of propagation the first summer after they are hatched. In proportion to the size of their bodies, they possess more vitality, and live longer, than either man or quadrupeds. Notwithstanding the difficulties which arise in ascertaining the ages of birds, there are instances of great longevity in many of them, particularly geese, swans, ravens, and eagles, which have been known to attain to the age of seventy, fourscore, or even a century. Pigeons usually live more than twenty years, and even linnets and other small birds have been kept in cages for nearly the same period.

The diseases to which birds, in their natural state, are incident, are probably neither numerous nor formidable; at least we seldom meet with individuals of the feathered race which seem to labour under sickness or infirmity. In our northern latitudes they are indeed frequently subjected to the prelude of cold and hunger; but the debility and other symptoms attendant on these external accidents, hardly deserve to be noticed in a zoological point of view. Seclusion from the open air, and a total change of habits, induced by confinement and domestication, are usually accompanied by appropriate disorders, such as the pip, or swelling on the extremity of the tongue, a softening of the bill, a gradual decay of the feet, convulsions, and general pinching. The moulting process, from which none of the species are exempted, may also be regarded, in some measure, as a diseased state of the animal. All birds moult, or cast their feathers once, and some twice, in the course of a year. This change takes place in autumn, or in the season which corresponds to it in different climates, and uniformly after the breeding season. Those which moult twice a year, also change their feathers in spring. Most of the young males, which bear originally the plumage of the mother, assume, at their first moulting, the colouring which they afterwards retain; but some species do not put on their characteristic garb till the end of the second, or even of the third year. Among those which moult twice a year, both males and females change their plumage; but the latter retain the same markings, while the former exhibit a more gaudy covering in the season which precedes their pairing, and a more sober one, often similar to that of the female, after the period of breeding. In most cases, the feathers fall off in gradual succession; but in some species nearly the whole plumage comes off at once, and is speedily replaced. This periodical affection is always attended with more or less languor and depression.

For the anatomy of birds, we beg leave to refer to Anatomy, the article Comparative ANATOMY; and shall close this introduction by a brief explanation of some of the most important technical terms in ornithology, employed by Technical Pennant and Linnaeus.

1. Cere (Cera, Lin.),—the naked skin which covers the base of the bill in the hawk kind.

2. Capillium,—a word used by Linnaeus to express the short feathers on the forehead just above the bill. In some birds, these feathers fall forward over the nostrils; they quite cover those of the crow.

3. Lore (Lorum, Lin.),—the space between the bill and the eye, generally covered with feathers; but, in some birds, as in the black and white grebe, naked.

4. Orbis (Orbita, Lin.),—the skin that surrounds the eye, which is generally bare, particularly in the heron and parrot.

5. Emarginatus (Emarginatum),—said of a bill which has a small notch near the end, as that of the butcher bird, thrush, &c.

6. Vibrissae pectinatae,—stiff hairs which grow on each side of the mouth, formed like a double comb, as in the goatfucker, fly-catcher, &c.

7. Alula Spuria, Sparious or bastard wing,—a small joint rising at the end of the middle part of the wing, or the cubitus, on which there are three or five feathers.

8. Tectrices princeps, Lesser wing-coverts,—the small feathers which lie in several rows on the bones of the wings. The under coverts are those that line the inside of the wings.

9. Tectrices secundae, Greater coverts,—the feathers which lie immediately over the quill-feathers and the secondaries.

10. Primores, Quill-feathers or Primaries,—the largest feathers of the wings, or those that rise from the first bone.

11. Secondaries, Secondary feathers or Secondaries,—those that rise from the second bone.

12. Tail-coverts, (Uropygium),—those which cover the base of the tail on the upper side.

13. Vent-feathers (Criftum),—those which lie from the vent to the tail, underneath.

14. Rictrices, Tail-feathers.

15. Scapulars, or Scapular feathers,—those which take their rise from the shoulders, and cover the sides of the back.

16. Nucha,—the hind part of the head. 17. **Subulatum**, Subulated or awl-shaped,—applied to a bill that is straight and slender, in the form of an awl.

18. **Pes ambulatorius,**—all the toes divided to the bottom.

19. **Pes gregorius,**—the outer toe more or less united to the middle one, particularly conspicuous in the feet of the king's fisher.

20. **Pes scamnarius,**—formed for climbing, like the foot of the woodpecker.

21. **Pes lobatus,**—finned, or lobed, like those of the grebes.

22. **Pes pinnatus,**—pinnated, or scoloped. The webs indented in the fides, as in coots and sandpipers.

23. **Pes tridactylus, or curvatus,**—wanting the back toe.

24. **Pes didactylus,**—composed of only two toes, as in the ostrich.

25. **Pes semi-palmatus, Semi-palmated,**—when the webs reach only half the length of the toes.

26. **Ungue pediculatum,**—when the hind claw adheres to the leg without any toe, as in the petrels.

27. **Digitus quattuor omnibus palmatis,**—all the four toes connected by webs, as in the corvornant.

28. **Rostrum cultratum,**—when the edges of the bill are very sharp, as in that of the crow.

29. **Lingua ciliata,**—a tongue edged with fine bristles, like that of the duck.

30. **Integra,**—plain, or even.

31. **Lumbiciformis,**—when the tongue is long, round, and slender, like a worm, as that of the woodpecker.

32. **Pedes compedes,**—when the legs are placed so far behind as to make the bird walk with difficulty, or as if in fetters, of which we have examples in the auks, grebes, and divers.

33. **Nares lineares,**—when the nostrils are very narrow, as in sea gulls.

34. **Emarginatae,**—with a rim round the nostrils, as in the stork.

**Iris,** is that part which surrounds the pupil of the eye.

**Mandibles,** denote the upper and under parts of the bill.

**Compressed,**—vertically flattened at the sides.

**Depressed,**—horizontally flattened.

**Caruncula,**—a fleshy excrescence on the head.

**Hypochondria,**—the hinder sides of the breast and abdomen.

**Ocellated,**—with roundish concentric spots, of different colours.

**Phalanges,**—the articulations of the toes.

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**SYSTEMATIC EXPOSITION OF THE CLASS.**

According to the Linnaean method, the class of Aves, or Birds, is distributed into six Orders, denominated Accipitres, Picae, Anseres, Grallae, Gallinæ, and Pafferes.

**Order I. Accipitres.**

This natural order includes birds of prey, that have the bill somewhat hooked downwards, the upper mandible dilated near the point, or armed with a tooth, the nostrils wide, the feet short and strong, with four toes, three of which are placed forwards, and one behind; toes warty under the joints; claws hooked and sharp-pointed. They live on other animals alive or dead, and are themselves not eatable. They are monogamous, or live in pairs. The females are larger and more beautiful than the males, and generally lay about four eggs. This order includes vultur, falco, strix, and lanius.

**Gen. I. Vultur, Vulture.**

Bill straight, hooked at the point; head bare of feathers.

Birds of this genus are distinguished from eagles and hawks, by being gregarious, by the comparative heaviness of their flight, and by their living on carrion. The females, too, are hardly larger than the males. Unless preffed by hunger, they seldom attack living animals; they fly slowly, unless when very high in the air, and have an exquisite sense of smell. The tongue is large and fleshy; the legs and feet are strong, and mostly covered with scales; and the wings are lined, on the inside, with down.

**Condor, condur, or cuntur.**—Very large, with a runcle on the crown of the head, the whole of its length; the throat naked. Quills of the wings two feet and a half long, and an inch and a half thick; body black, back white; neck ruffled with long white feathers; throat red; head brown, and woolly; eyes black, irides chestnut; bill black, but tipped with white; feet black; claws straight; tail small.—The female differs from the male, in having a tuft on the neck, in its brown colour, and in having no ruff. Britton, however, has properly remarked, that the plumage of this species varies in colour, a circumstance which will, in some measure, account for the discordant descriptions of different authors. At the same time, we must regret, that the history of this enormous bird is so imperfectly known. Its extent of wing is variously stated, from nine to eighteen feet; and, while Freiser attributes to it sufficient strength to carry off sheep, and boys of ten years old, Marco Paolo stoutly affirms, that it can lift an elephant from the ground high enough to kill it by the fall. Though very rare, Buffon suspects that it is not confined to South America, and that it does not essentially differ from the roc of the eastern nations, so famous in the Arabian tales; nor from the laemmer geyer of the German Alps. A preserved specimen in the Leverian Museum measured ten feet, from the tip of one wing to that of the other. It is described and figured in the second supplement to Latham's Synopsis. In Chili, the condors make their nests among the most inaccessible rocks, and lay two white eggs bigger than those of a turkey. They feed on dead carcases, and sometimes prey on sheep, goats, or even young calves, when they stray far from their dams, falling on them in flocks, plucking out their eyes, and tearing them in pieces. The country people Accipitres. use every means to destroy such formidable invaders of their property, and seem to have succeeded in expelling them from the populous districts of both continents.

King vulture, or king of the vultures.—Caruncles on the nostrils; crown of the head and neck bare of feathers. The extreme length of the body does not exceed two feet three inches, and it is not thicker than the hen turkey. Its wings are short in proportion to the other vultures. The bill is thick and short, and begins its curvature only at the point; in some individuals it is entirely red, in others only red at the extremity, and black in the middle. In the cere, which is broad and orange-coloured, are placed the nostrils; and between them the skin projects like a loose jagged comb, falling indifferently on either side, according as the bird moves its head. Under the naked part of the neck is a collar, or ruff, composed of pretty long soft feathers of a deep ash colour, and so broad, that when the bird contracts itself, it can conceal the neck and part of the head like a cowl, whence some naturalists have given it the name of monk. The feathers on the breast, belly, thighs, legs, and the under surface of the tail, are white, slightly tinged with yellow; those of the rump and upper surface of the tail, are black in some individuals, and white in others. The other feathers of the tail are always black, and so are the great feathers of the wings, which are commonly edged with grey. The king of the vultures is a native of South America and the West Indies, and lives on carrion, rats, lizards, snakes, and excrements of all kinds, from which circumstance it has a most offensive odour.

Carrion vulture, or turkey buzzard (carrion crow of Jamaica).—Body gray brown; quill feathers black; bill white; the sides of the head wanting; legs flesh-coloured. Common in the West Indies, and in N. and S. America. Somewhat larger than the black eagle. Is protected in America for its use in devouring dead carcases and serpents, which it does, along with dogs, in the greatest harmony. It will seize meat from the flambles, breathes a most fetid odour, and, when taken, vomits up an intolerably stinking matter. Roosts by night, in flocks, on the highest branches of trees. They are generally very tame in their wild state, probably owing to their being more careful than molested by man.

White, a/b-coloured, or Angola vulture.—Body snowy; quill and tail feathers black; collar white; head and lower part of the neck covered with white down; middle toe covered with 11 distinct scales; claws black. About the size of a female turkey. The female exceeds the male in size, and differs chiefly in being less tinged with reddish. The young have the whole of the naked parts about the head covered with a grayish down.—This species is usually seen in pairs, and not in large flocks, like many of the genus; or, if 10 or 12 alight on one carcass, they are accidentally allured by the smell, which acts on their delicate organs at inconceivable distances. They feed on all manner of carrion, and on lizards, snakes, frogs, and even excrements. They build among the rocks, and lay four eggs. In some parts of Africa they are very common, and in others more rare. The natives tame and respect them, as they contribute to rid their grounds of nuisances. They likewise occur in Norway and Sardinia. Mr Latham supposes that this species is the vautour de Norvège of Buffon; the fauve d'Egypte of the same author, perhaps the Angola vulture of Pennant, and the rachianzah of Bruce. "When, however, (adds this celebrated ornithologist), the division of the vulture genus into real species may take place, is not for us to determine; the variety among individuals, from different periods of life, as well as the different appearances of those in a state of confinement, to what the plumage has, when at large, cannot fail to create no small difficulty; added to that, very few travellers are naturalists in a sufficient degree to discriminate one part of nature from another; besides, the subjects in question being mostly extra European, we cannot wonder at being so long in the dark."

Aquiline or Alpine vulture.—The male of this species is almost wholly white; quill feathers black, with hoary edges, except the two outermost, which are wholly black. The female is all over brown, with the four outer quills black. In both the bill is black; cere yellow; nostrils constantly dripping moisture; feet naked. Inhabits Egypt, Palestine, Syria, and Persia. They fly in large troops, and are extremely useful in destroying mice, with which some countries, of which they are natives, are infested, such as Palestine. The same species, it is said, inhabits the Swiss Alps, where they are of an immense size. Some have been measured exceeding 12 feet from tip to tip of the wings.

Gen. 2. Falco, Falcon.

Bill hooked, and furnished with a cere at the base; head covered with clove-feet feathers; tongue bifid.

Though the birds of this genus are all carnivorous, they seldom feed on carrion, except when preyed by hunger, which they can endure for a long time. They have a very acute sight, and pounce down on their prey with astonishing swiftness and force. From their great strength, they are capable of carrying birds nearly as heavy as themselves, to a great distance, for provision to their young. Their middle toe is slightly connected with the outermost.

A. Bill hooked only at the point, bearded at the base with extended bristles.

Snake-eater, or secretary vulture.—Body black; hind-head crested; tail feathers white at the tips, the two middle ones longest; legs very long. Bill black, cere white; orbits orange, and naked; irides pale cinereous; tail rounded; legs brownish; claws short, black, hooked, not very sharp; crest capable of being erected or depressed.—In seizing its prey, this bird makes use of its wings, with which it inflicts violent blows by means of a bony protuberance at the bend of the wing. It is also by its wings that it defends itself against the bites of venomous snakes, until the latter, tired with their efforts, or nearly bruised to death, are easily dispatched. This species likewise preys on turtles, lizards, and even grasshoppers and other insects. When in a domesticated state scarcely any kind of food comes amiss to it; and, if young birds are presented to it, it will take them by the bill foremoft, and swallow them whole. One of those which Le Vaillant killed, had 21 young turtles, 11 small lizards, and three snakes, in his stomach. Like other birds of prey, it is observed to bring up the undigested parts of its food, in the form of round pellets. In pairing time, two males will often be found engaged in a violent contest for a female. The secretary vulture is Accipiter is three feet high, remarkable for the length of its legs, and inhabits interior Africa and the Philippine islands. These birds make a flat nest, like that of the eagle, full three feet in diameter, lined with wool and feathers, in some high tuft of trees, and usually concealed from observation.

Crested or Oronooko eagle.—Head crested with long feathers; body beneath variegated; eyes with a nictitating membrane. Under the crop, white feathers, which, when the bird is irritated, fall to the ground. Erects the crest in the form of a coronet, is said to be able to cleave a man's skull at a stroke. Inhabits Mexico, Brazil, and other parts of South America, and is as large as a sheep.

Cinerous or white-tailed eagle: erne of the Scots.—Cere and feet yellow; tail feathers white, the middle ones tipped with black; head and neck pale cinereous; irides and bill pale yellow; nostrils, and the space between the eyes, bluish, with a few bristles; body and wings cinereous, mixed with brown; tail white; legs, below the knees, downy, glossy yellow; claws black. Size of a turkey, feeds on birds and fish. Inhabits Europe, and frequently occurs in Scotland and the Orkney islands.

B. Feet generally feathered, of a large size.

Black eagle.—Cere yellow; feet yellow, and somewhat downy; body rusty black, with yellow streaks; bill horn colour, verging on blue; irides chestnut; exterior part of the tail white, with blackish spots, tip whitish; legs dirty white; toes yellow, claws black. Two feet ten inches long. Inhabits Europe and America.

Osprey, or sea eagle.—Cere and legs yellow; feet half covered with down; body of a rusty colour; inner vanes of the tail feathers white. It is distinguished by the colour and figure of its nails, which are of a thinning black, and form an entire semicircle; by its legs, which are naked below, and covered with small yellow scales; and by the beard of feathers which hangs from the chin, and which has occasioned its receiving the name of the bearded eagle. It measures, from the end of the bill to the point of the nails, three feet and a half, and its wings expand to between six and seven feet. It loves to haunt the sea shore, and often frequents inland tracts, near lakes, marshes, or rivers that are stocked with fish; but, though it preys on the finny tribe, it also attacks game, and, being large and strong, seizes and carries off geese and hares, and sometimes even lambs and kids. It catches fish even during the night, when the noise of its plunging into the water is heard at a great distance. In attempting to lay hold of overgrown fish, it is sometimes dragged under water, being unable to disengage its talons. It inhabits Europe and North America, and was found by Captain Cook, in Botany island. It is not uncommon in Scotland and Ireland. "From the afflicting height (says Mr Montagu), these and some other birds fly, we are led to believe they are capable of living in a much lighter air than other animals. From the top of some of the highest mountains in Scotland we have seen several soaring together at a great distance as to appear scarcely larger than a swallow."—The female sea eagle seldom lays more than two eggs, and sometimes produces only a single young one.

Golden eagle.—Cere yellow; feet downy, and rusty-coloured; body dark brown, irregularly barred; tail black, and covered with ash-coloured bars. It greatly resembles the preceding, but is distinguished from it chiefly by its legs, which are yellow, short, strong, and covered with feathers to the feet. The general length of this species is about three feet and a half; the breadth eight feet; and it usually weighs about twelve pounds. It breeds in the most inaccessible rocks, and lays three or four white eggs. It inhabits Europe and Siberia, and is said to be not unfrequent in the mountainous parts of Scotland, Ireland, and Wales, though it has been frequently confounded with the sea eagle. It feeds on lambs, kids, and all kinds of game, and has been known to carry off infants to its nest. It is remarkable for its longevity and abstinence from food; some having been kept in menageries for upwards of a century; and Pennant records an instance of one which lived twenty-one days without any sustenance whatever. It flies high, during serene weather, and defends nearer the earth in storms.

Ring-tailed, white-tailed, black, or common eagle.—Fulvus Cere yellow; feet downy, and of rusty a brown colour; back brown; tail with a white transverse band. In the bill, cere, irides, and legs, it resembles the preceding, to which it is also nearly equal in size; but the plumage is rather darker, and the tail is white for two thirds of its length. It inhabits Europe, Asia, and America; and is trained by the Tartars to hunt hares, antelopes, and foxes. In Scotland, it is very destructive to deer, which it will seize between the horns; and, by incessantly beating it with its wings, soon makes a prey of the harried animal. It likewise makes great havoc among the white hares and ptarmigans. It builds in high precipices and cliffs; and the nest of a pair has been observed in the same spot, in the Orkney islands, beyond the memory of man. Willoughby describes a nest of this species found in the Peak of Derbyshire, as composed of large sticks, lined with two layers of rushes, between which was one of heath. It contained one young, and an addle egg, and by them a lamb, a hare, and three heath pouts.—There is a variety, with a white tail, tipped with brown.

White eagle.—Entirely white. Inhabits the Alps; of the size of the golden eagle.

Fierce eagle.—Cere green; body brown above; back, belly, and tail coverts snowy, variegated with chestnut spots; tail feathers equal, brown, with four paler bands; bill leaden-black; eyelids blue; irides yellow; head and neck ferruginous, mixed with whitish; quill-feathers twenty-five, black above, white beneath, tipped with grey; tail feathers twelve, white beneath; claws sharp; upwards of two feet long; very rapacious; inhabits Russia, was found frequent near Astrachan in the winter of 1769; will not touch dead animals.

Kite.—Cere yellow; tail forked; body brown; head whitish or grey; back and wing coverts dusky, edged with ferruginous, the under parts more or less ferruginous, streaked with dusky, and lightest on the breast; quill feathers dusky black, with bars more or less obscure; tail bright ferruginous; legs yellow; claws black. But there are several varieties. The female is somewhat larger than the male, measuring in length two feet four inches, and five feet six inches of outstretched wing. It is readily distinguished from its congeners by the remarkable forking of its tail, and by its smooth and even flight, which resembles a gliding through the air. Accipitres, air, without any apparent motion of its wings. It frequently, however, soars very high, and, though beyond the reach of human vision, will distinctly perceive its prey, and dart down on it with irresistible force. Its attacks are confined to such animals as are found on the ground, such as young rabbits, hares, game of all kinds, poultry, and young birds incapable of flying. It will also destroy young lambs, and feed greedily on carrion; but, in default of these, will readily devour mice, rats, worms, and even snakes.—The kite occurs as far north as Greenland, and as far south as Guinea and Senegal. It is common in England, where it continues the whole year; but in the more northerly latitudes, it retires to Egypt before winter, and is said to breed there, and returns in April to Europe, where it breeds a second time, contrary to the nature of rapacious birds in general. The nest is composed of sticks, and lined with wool, the inner bark of a tree, hair, and other soft materials, and is usually made in the fork of some large tree. The eggs are generally three, rarely four, somewhat larger than those of a hen, of a dirty white, with a few rusty spots at the larger end.

Bald-buzzard, or grey, fishing hawk, &c.—Cere and feet blue; body brownish above, white below; head whitish; a brown bar extends from each eye by the sides of the neck to the wings; legs naked, short, strong; claws remarkably long, hooked, and black. Inhabits Europe, Siberia, and America, frequenting marshy places, and the neighbourhood of large rivers and lakes, pouncing on fish with great rapidity and dexterity, and carrying them off in its talons to a small distance to feed on them. It builds its nest on the ground among reeds, and lays three or four eggs of an elliptical form, rather less than those of a hen. Mr Montagu found the nest of this bird on the top of a chimney of a ruin in one of the islands of Loch Lomond. The usual length of the bald buzzard is two feet, and its extent of wing five. The species is now rarely met with in England, but may be frequently seen near the lake of Killarney in Ireland. There are several varieties, among which may be included those of Carolina and Cayenne. Some of the ancient writers, and even Linnaeus, have very erroneously alleged, that the left foot of the bald-buzzard is subpalmated.

C. Legs naked, of a smaller size.

Buzzard, or Putock.—Cere and feet yellow; body brown; belly pale, with brown spots. Scarcely any two individuals of this well-known species are precisely alike. The ordinary length of the body is twenty inches, and the extent of wing four feet and a half. The buzzard is one of our most common species of falcon. It is remarkable for its sluggish, inactive disposition, seldom remaining long on wing, except in the breeding season, when it ascends spirally to a great height. It makes its nest in the fork of a tree, of large sticks, and lines it with wool, hair, and other substances, and sometimes takes possession of a deserted crow's nest, which it accommodates to its purposes. The eggs are two or three, rather larger than a hen's, of a dirty white, and, for the most part, with rufous-coloured spots at the larger end. It feeds and tends its young with great affluence; and Ray affirms, that, if the female be killed, the male takes charge of them, and patiently rears them till they are able to provide for themselves. This bird will continue for many hours perched on a tree or eminence, whence it darts on such birds, small quadrupeds, reptiles, or insects, as come within its reach.

Honey buzzard.—Cere black; feet half naked, and Apivorus, yellow; head ash-coloured; tail with cinereous bands, and tipped with white; of nearly the same size as the preceding, and, like it, subject to considerable varieties in its markings. Its nest, in respect of form and materials, is similar to that of the buzzard, and it sometimes occupies that of other birds. Its eggs are of an ash-colour, with small brown spots. Mr White of Selborne found only one egg in the nest, smaller, and not so round as that of the buzzard. The name seems to have been given it from its feeding on the larvae of wasps; but it is also fond of various other insects, and of field mice, frogs, and lizards. It occurs in all the northern parts of Europe, and in the open tracts of Russia and Siberia, but is far from common in England. Buffon observes, that it is frequently caught in the winter, when it is fat and delicious eating.

Moor buzzard, duck hawk, or white-headed harpy.—Arrogino-Cere green; body brownish; crown of the head, throat, axillae, and feet, yellow. The colouring, however, is subject to considerable variety. Length twenty-one inches; weight twenty ounces. Preys on rabbits, young wild ducks, and other water fowl; and likewise feeds on fish, frogs, reptiles, and even insects; making its haunts in hedges and bushes near pools, marshes, and rivers. The nest is most frequently made on the ground, among short wood, furze, or fern, and sometimes, though rarely, in the fork of a tree. It is composed of sticks and rushes, or coarse grass. The moor buzzard is not a bird of rapid flight, but pounces its prey on the ground, and is generally seen skimming over the surface; but, in the breeding season, the male will sometimes soar to a considerable height, and remain suspended on wing for a great length of time. Inhabits Europe.

Go-bawk.—Cere black; feet yellow; body brown; Palumba-tail feathers barred with pale bands, a white line over the eye; bill blue, black at the tip; irides yellow; head brown; body beneath white, waved with black; tail long, cinereous, and white at the tip; claws black. The wing, when closed, does not reach near the end of the tail; of an elegant slender shape, twenty-two inches long. Inhabits Europe, Tartary, and America; is rarely found in England, but is not uncommon in the more wooded districts of Scotland, where it breeds, and is a great destroyer of game. It feeds on small birds and mice, and eagerly devours raw flesh. It tears birds to pieces before it eats them, but swallows the pieces entire, and frequently disgorges the hair and feathers, rolled up in small pellets. This species was formerly much prized in the sports of falconry, being used not only for partridge and pheasant, but also larger fowl, as geese and cranes, and sometimes for rabbits.

Gentil falcon.—Cere and feet yellow; body ash-coloured, with brown spots; tail with four blackish bands; somewhat larger than the preceding, though some ornithologists reckon it only a variety. It inhabits the Alps of Europe and North America. "In the days of falconry," observes the author of Elements of Natural History, "this species was in high esteem as a bold and spirited bird. It inhabits the north of Scotland. The king's falconer was anciently obliged to supply the court with hawks; and to this day the office is kept up in..." Accipitres in Scotland; a nest of young birds being annually presented by the falconer to the barons of exchequer, who generally give them away in presents."

Peregrine falcon.—Cere and feet yellow; body ash-coloured above with brownish hands, reddish white beneath, with blackish bands; tail spotted with white. Weighs between two and three pounds, is a bold and powerful bird, and inhabits Europe, and the north of Asia and America. It is not uncommon on most of our rocky coasts, usually frequenting such high cliffs as the guillemot and razorbill resort to for breeding. One that eloped from its master in the county of Forfar, on the 24th September 1772, with four heavy bells on its feet, was killed on the morning of the 26th of the same month, at Mosfyn in Flintshire.

Spotted falcon.—Cere yellow; head and body above, white, with pale reddish spots, white beneath; breast a little spotted with ferruginous. Size of the buzzard. Inhabits England; but its history is little known.

Gray falcon.—Cere and legs yellow; body dusky gray above, white, with oblong black spots beneath; tail feathers long, the two middle ones uniform, the rest spotted. Bill blueish; irides red; head dusky brown before, white behind; sides and chin buff; quill-feathers spotted with white. Inhabits England; but is very rare, and by some esteemed only a variety.

Jer-falcon, gyrfalcon, Iceland falcon, white jer-falcon, &c.—Cere and feet of a greenish ash-colour; body white, spotted with brown. Bill blueish-ash, black at the tip; claws lead colour. Larger than the goshawk, and subject to variety, from age, sex, and climate, some in the northern latitudes being found quite white, others brown above, white beneath, spotted with brown, and the tail gray, with transverse brown lines. Inhabits Iceland and the north of Scotland, is a very bold bird, and in the days of falconry, was used for the larger species of game, as cranes and herons.

Laughing falcon.—Cere and legs yellow; eyebrows white; body varied with brown and whitish; crown white, with a black ring. Back, wings, and rump brown; neck, chin, breast, belly, and under parts of the wings white; tail with yellow and black bands. Inhabits South America, and is said to laugh, when looked at.

Lanner.—Cere dull yellow; bill and feet blue; body marked with black longitudinal spots underneath. A white stripe over each eye; breast yellowish white, with brown spots; legs short; primary quill feathers and tail dusky, with rusty oval spots; but there are two or three varieties. Rather less than the buzzard, has its name from tearing its prey into small pieces with its bill. The lanner is very bold, and was formerly used in falconry. It is found in many parts of Europe; inhabits Iceland and the Ferroe isles, Denmark, Sweden, and the Tartarian deserts. It is rare in England, but is said to breed in Ireland, and among the low trees and shrubs in the deserts about Attracon.

Hen-harrier.—Cere white; legs tawny; body hoary blue; edges of the eye-lids yellow, with an arched line surrounding the throat; bill black; irides yellow; hind part of the head white, with pale brown spots; breast and belly white, the former streaked with dusky; two middle tail-feathers gray on both sides, the rest gray above, white beneath, and all streaked with dusky. These characters, however, are far from constant.

This species, in its most perfect state, weighs about thirteen ounces, and is eighteen inches and a half in length. It feeds on birds, lizards, and other reptiles, and is particularly destructive to poultry. It flies low, fishing along the surface in quest of prey. The female nests on the ground, and lays four eggs of a reddish colour, with a few white spots. Inhabits Europe and Africa. Wallis, in his Natural History of Northumberland, remarks, that it breeds annually on the Cheviot hills, and on the thady precipices under the Roman wall, near Craglake. Dr Latham and other eminent ornithologists have supposed, that this and the following are male and female; but the repeated instances of hen-harriers of both sexes having been seen, leave it beyond all doubt that they constitute two distinct species.

Ring-tail, ring-tail hawk, white-rumped bay falcon, Pogonias, &c.—Cere and legs yellow; body cinereous; belly pale, with oblong rufous spots; orbits of the eyes white. Bill pale; irides yellow; tail longish, banded with dusky, and dotted with white, the male marked with tranverse, and the female with longitudinal, spots beneath. Length 18 or 20 inches. Inhabits Europe, and the temperate parts of Siberia. Flies higher than the preceding, and sometimes perches on trees. Its eggs are white, much freckled with red.

Kefiril, kefiril, stonegall, &c.—Cere and legs yellow; back purplish-red, with black spots; breast with tufted brown streaks; tail rounded. Crown of the head of a fine cinereous gray; greater quill-feathers black, very slightly tipped with whitish. Bill lead colour, irides dusky and large. The male weighs about seven ounces, and measures 13 inches in length. The female is considerably larger, and distinguished from the other sex by the head and tail being of the same colour as the back, which is not so bright a red brown as the male. Feeds principally on mice, in search of which it is frequently seen hovering in the air and stationary for a great length of time. Preys also on small birds and insects, and was formerly used for catching game. Inhabits Europe, Siberia, and the more temperate parts of North America. One of our most common birds of prey, especially among the rocks and cliffs of the coast, which favour its breeding. The nest is of sticks, and lined with wool and other soft materials; but it sometimes builds on trees, or is contented with the deserted nest of a magpie or crow. The eggs are usually four or five, of a dirty white, blotched with rust colour, of various shades.—It is a handsome bird, whose flight is acute, and whose flight is easy and graceful. It includes two or three varieties.

Fishing falcon.—Legs brown; head ferruginous, with Picaeus; long feathers; body cinereous above, pale yellowish white beneath; tail pale brown above, blueish-ash beneath. Bill and irides yellow; margin of the upper feathers rusty brown, the under spotted in the middle with brown. Inhabits Senegal, where it is called tanas, preying chiefly on fish, which it takes out of the water, and retires to a convenient place to eat them piecemeal.

Sparrow-hawk.—Cere green; feet yellow; belly Nifus white, waved with gray; tail with black bands. The weight of the male of this species is about five ounces, that of the female nine; the former measures in length about 12 inches, the latter 15. The male is inclined to rust colour on the breast, the female to whitish. On the back of the head, in both sexes, is an obscure broken patch of white. The quill feathers are dusky, barred... Accipitres. red with black on the outer webs, and spotted with white at the base of the inner. The legs are long, slender, and yellow. In some the back is spotted with white, and others have the body entirely of that colour. The sparrow-hawk is very common in our wooded and inclosed districts, but is less frequent in the more champaign parts. The female sometimes builds her nest in hollow trees, high rocks, or lofty ruins, but more frequently takes possession of that which has been deserted by a crow, laying four or five eggs, of a dirty white or blueish tinge, blotched at one end with rusty colour. It is very widely diffused over the world, from Russia to the Cape of Good Hope. It is bold and spirited, making great destruction among pigeons, young poultry, and small birds of all kinds, which it will attack and carry off in the most daring manner; at the same time, that it is obedient and docile, and can be easily trained to hunt partridges, quails, larks, &c.

Hobby.—Cere and feet yellow; back brown; neck white; belly pale, with oblong brown spots. Bill blue; orbits yellow; irides generally chestnut; lateral tail-feathers with blackish bars; primary quill-feathers with oval reddish spots; claws black. The male weighs about seven ounces, and the female nine, or more. Inhabits Europe and Siberia, breeds in Britain, but leaves us the latter end of October. It builds in trees, and sometimes takes possession of a deserted crow's nest, laying three or four eggs, which are said to be white. Though small, it is inferior to none of the falcon tribe in courage, and will frequently pounce a partridge; but its favourite prey is the lark, which it terrifies to such a degree, that it sometimes flies to man for protection, and will allow a net to be thrown over it.

Merlin.—Cere and feet yellow; head rusty; body above, of a blueish ash, with spots and rusty streaks; beneath, yellowish-white, with oblong spots. Bill blueish; irides dusky; tail alternately streaked with dusky and reddish; claws black; eggs brown red. There are several varieties. The merlin is a small species of falcon, being scarcely larger than the black-bird, but is very rapid on wing, and was esteemed for its courage in hawking. It flies low, and is generally seen skimming along the side of a hedge, or over the surface of the ground, in pursuit of small birds. Inhabits Europe; visits the south of England in October, about the time the hobby retires, but has never been observed to breed farther south than Cumberland, where it has been found more than once, with four young ones, placed on the ground.

Minute Falcon.—Cere brown; legs yellow; body white beneath; tail-feathers brown, banded with black. About 11 inches long. Inhabits Malta; and occurs, though rarely, in England.

Tiny Falcon.—Legs yellow; body brown-ash; beneath whitish, with blackish bars; crown whitish. Hardly six inches long. Inhabits Cayenne.

Gen. 3. Strix, Owl.

Characters. Bill hooked; no cere; nostrils oblong, covered with bristly recumbent feathers; head, eyes, and ears large; tongue bifid.

These are nocturnal birds, with the organs of vision so constructed as to see in the dark. Their sense of hearing is very acute, by means of a particular membrane at the opening of the external ear. They can move the outermost toe either backwards or forwards. Accipitres. They feed on carrion, living small birds, hares, mice, field-mice, lizards, &c. When they venture abroad in daylight, they are chased, and infatuated by smaller birds, especially by the crow. In their manner of life, round head, &c., they have some affinity to cats. During the winter, they live retired, fasting, or sleeping in towers and old walls.

A. Eared.

Great owl, great eared owl, great horned owl, &c.—Bubo. Body of a reddish, or tawny colour; irides yellow; head and body variegated with black, brown, ash, and rusty spots and lines; claws large, much hooked, and dusky. Liable to considerable varieties. Nearly the size of an eagle, and very strong, preying on hares, rabbits, moles, rats, mice, and sometimes bats and reptiles. It inhabits Europe, Calmuc Tartary, and South America, haunting mountainous rocks and caverns. Its nest is nearly three feet in diameter, and composed of sticks bound together by fibrous roots, and lined with leaves. It generally lays two eggs, somewhat larger than those of a hen, and variegated, like the bird itself. The young are very voracious, and are plentifully supplied with food by the parents. This bird is by no means common in Great Britain, though it has been occasionally shot both in England and Scotland. It endures day light better than most of the genus, flies low in the day, but sometimes soars very high during the night.

Virginian eagle owl.—Size of the common eagle owl; Virginiana. Ear feathers large, rife above the base of the bill which is black; irides golden yellow; upper part of the body CCXCIII. brown, variegated with flender rufous and cinereous lines; under part pale-ash, transversely striped with brown; throat white; lower part of the neck and sides of the breast orange brown, spotted with darker brown; quills and tail banded with brown; legs and half the toes covered with cinereous feathers; claws horn colour. Inhabits America, Kamtchatka, and Africa. Is a little smaller than the great horned owl, and is supposed by some to be only a variety.

Ceylonese eagle owl.—Bill horn colour; irides yellow; Zeylonen upper part of the body pale reddish brown, under part CCXCIII. yellowish white; ears short, pointed; first quills and tail barred with black, white, and pale red; legs naked to the knees. Length 23 inches; weight two pounds and Fig. 3 near 10 ounces. Native of Ceylon.

Long-eared or horn owl.—Ears with six feathers. Ears Otus. black and yellow; irides yellow; back and wing coverts dusky brown, gray, and yellowish-rusty; breast and belly pale yellow, with brown longitudinal lines; tail barred with ash-colour, and dusky; legs and feet feathered to the claws. About 14 inches long; but there is a variety that is much smaller, and another which is distinguished by the greater darkness of the body. Diffused over the four quarters of the globe, frequenting forests and wooded tracts, and manifesting a partiality to fir, box, or holly plantations, where it more readily conceals itself by day among the ever-green foliage. Its principal food is mice, and sometimes small birds taken at roost. It remains with us the whole year, and is frequently taken; yet little is known of its habits.

Short-eared owl, hawk owl, mouse hawk, &c.—Brachypterus. Ears short; body above brown, feathers-edged with yellow; beneath pale yellow, with longitudinal dusky streaks. Accipitres streaks; head small and hawk-like; bill dusky; irides yellow. Length 14 inches; stretch of wing three feet. Inhabits Europe, Siberia, and America, chiefly in mountainous or wooded countries, and feeds principally on field-mice. Visits England in the latter part of the year, and disappears in spring. It flies by day, and is sometimes observed in companies. It is supposed to breed in the Orkneys, and probably in Norway, making its nest of dry grass, on the ground, and laying three or four white eggs.

Little horned owl.—Ears of one feather each. Gray, rufous, brown or blackish, according to age; legs spotted with brown; toes and claws brown. Between seven and eight inches long. Inhabits Europe, and preys on field mice.

B. Earlefs.

Snowy, or great white owl.—Body whitish, with a few brown lunated spots. Bill black, and almost hid in the feathers; irides yellow; legs covered with white feathers to the toes; claws black. This species is sometimes quite white, and sometimes varies with very numerous spots. About two feet long; flies abroad by day; preys on herons, hares, mice, and sometimes carrion, but is particularly fond of ptarmigans. Makes a howling noise. Inhabits the northern parts of Europe and America, particularly Sweden, Iceland, and Hudson's Bay, and sometimes, though rarely, Pennsylvania.

Gray or barred owl.—Head, neck, breast, back, and wing-coverts brown, spotted with white; belly and vent dirty white, streaked with brown; tail with brown and whitish bands, tipped with whitish. Weighs about three pounds, is two feet long, and four in extent of wing. Feeds on hares, mice, and cranes. Inhabits Hudson's Bay and New York, and rarely occurs in England.

White or common owl.—Body pale yellow, with white spots; beneath whitish, with black spots. Bill white; irides dusky; tail-feathers white within, with dusky lines on the outside; 14 inches long, and weighs about 11 ounces. This species is so well known, that we need not more minutely describe it. It inhabits Europe, America, and Northern Asia, and is by far the most common of British owls, being distinguished by various provincial appellations, as barn owl, gillyhowlet, howlet, madge-howlet, church owl, hissing owl, screech owl, &c. It is partial to the habitations of man, and is rarely found in woods. Its ordinary haunts are barns, churches, old houses, and other uninhabited buildings, in which it continues during the day, but which it leaves in the evening, in quest of prey. Its flight is accompanied with loud and frightful cries, and its repose with a blowing noise, like the snoring of a man; when alarmed, it snaps its bill with great force. It makes scarcely any nest, but deposits five or six whitish eggs in the holes of walls. It feeds on mice, and small birds, which it swallows whole, and afterwards discharges the bones, feathers, and other indigestible parts, at its mouth, in the form of small round cakes, which are called coo-ings, and some buffets of which are sometimes found in the hollows of decayed trees, near farm-houses or villages, in barns, out-houses, &c. When a pair have young ones, they fall out alternately in quest of food for them, and generally return every five minutes, with a live mouse. Dr Latham mentions, that he received a specimen from Jamaica, which differed in no respect from our common owl.—The white owl is very susceptible of domestication, when taken young.

Tawny or brown owl, common brown or ivy owl, Strixula. black owl, howlet, wood owl, &c.—Body ash-coloured, the third flag-feather the longest; plumage marked above with dusky spots and points; breast and belly yellowish, mixed with white; beneath with dusky streaks; irides dusky; tail with pale brown and black spots and lines. Fourteen inches long; stretch of wing two feet eight inches; weight of the female 19 ounces. Inhabits Europe and Tartary. This is another very common species. It resides chiefly in woods and plantations of fir; concealing itself in the thickest recesses; sometimes it settles on the ground, but if molested, takes shelter in a neighbouring tree. It is rarely seen on wing by day, except forced from its haunts, the light dazzling it to such a degree that boys hunt it down with sticks and stones. It breeds in the hollows of trees, and sometimes in barns, where it is protected by the farmer, as it is an excellent mouser. It lays two or three eggs of a roundish form, and dull white colour. It is the only species known to hoot, besides which, it makes a disagreeable screaming noise. It is a great enemy to young pigeons, leverets, young rats, &c. but chiefly subsists on mice.—"We have taken this bird," says Mr Montagu, "in its mature state, as well as young, and found no difficulty in either case of preserving them alive. They were never observed to drink; and indeed for many months together had no water offered them."—The ulula of Linnaeus is now esteemed only a smaller variety of the strixula.

Little owl.—With white spots arranged in five rows on the flag-feathers; bill whitish brown; irides pale yellow; head, back, and wing coverts pale brown, with white spots; breast whitish, variegated with rusty. Scarcely larger than a blackbird, but varies considerably both in respect of size and markings. Inhabits Europe, North America, and the West Indies. Is very rare in England, though it has sometimes been found in Yorkshire, Flinthire, and the neighbourhood of London. It is said to frequent ruined edifices in France, and to build in chimneys, in Carniola: but it frequently nests in the holes of rocks and walls, and lays five or six eggs, spotted with yellowish and white. It can fly by day, and give chase to swallows and other small birds on wing, but mice are its principal food.

White-fronted owl.—Body rusty brown, paler beneath; forehead white; quill feathers barred with black and white. Only five inches long. Native of North America.

Gen. 4. Lanius, Shrike.

Bill nearly straight, with a dent on each mandible, near the end, naked at the base; tongue jagged at the point.

The birds of this genus form a connecting link between the falcons and pies, and have been differently classified by different ornithologists. Though comparatively small, they are very courageous, will attack birds much larger than themselves, and are called butcher birds, because they frequently kill several, before they begin to feed. They fix on their victims with their talons, split the skull with their bill, and then feed on them at leisure. Collared Shrike, canary biter or fiscal.—Tail wedged; body black, white beneath; first quill feathers white at the base; bill and head blackish; tail feathers, except the four middle ones, white at the tips. Very common at the Cape of Good Hope, also found in Senegal, and in the interior parts of Africa. Twelve inches long. Feeds on beetles, grasshoppers, and other insects, which it not only catches with great dexterity; but when it cannot consume them all, will stick them on the pales of farm yards, till it has occasion for them. It also seizes on sparrows and canary birds, of which it devours only the brains.

Cinerous Shrike, great cinereous shrike, greater butcher bird, mattocks, night jar, &c.—Tail somewhat cuneiform, white on the edges; back gray; wings black, with a white spot; bill black, with bristles at the base; upper parts of the plumage of a pale blue ash, the under parts white; legs black. The female differs chiefly in the under parts, which are of a dirty white, marked with numerous semicircular brown lines. There is a variety, with the body white, legs yellowish, and bill and claws blackish; and another with lesser wing coverts and reddish shoulders. Inhabits Europe and North America. Is rather a scarce bird in England, but is said to breed among some of our mountainous situations; coming in May, and departing in September. It makes a nest of heath and moss, lined with wool and gossamer, and lays six eggs, of a dull olive green, spotted with black at the larger end. According to Buffon, it is common in France, where it continues all the year; it kills rats, mice, and small birds, affixing its prey to a sharp thorn, and tearing it in pieces with its bill; it is also said to imitate the notes of some other birds, by way of decoying them to their destruction. Mr Pennant observes, that when kept in a cage, it sticks its food against the wires before it will eat it.

Red-backed Shrike, lesser butcher-bird, or flutier.—Tail somewhat wedged; back hoary; four innermost tail-feathers of one colour; bill of a leaden hue. Irides hazel; head and lower part of the back of a light gray, upper part of the back and wing-coverts of a bright rusty red; breast, belly, and sides of a fine pale roe, or bloom colour; a black streak passes from the bill through the eyes; legs black. Length about seven inches; weight eight drams. The female weighs two drams more, and has all the upper parts of a ferruginous brown. The manners of this species are similar to those of the last. It kills small birds by piercing the skull with its bill, and infests by transfixing them on the thorn of the sloe-bush. It tears off the body of the chaffinch, and leaves the elytra, wings, and head behind. It imitates the song of many of the sparrow tribe, and thus entices them within its reach. It chiefly haunts inclosed moist situations, makes its nest in some thick hedge, composing it very skilfully of moss and fibrous roots put together with wool and lined with hair, and lays five or six eggs of a bluish-white colour, with a circle of brown near the broad end. It inhabits Europe and Africa, visits Britain in May, and departs to some warmer climate in September. Among its varieties Gmelin includes lanius rufulus of Latham, or woodchat, which is very rare in this country.

Tyrant Shrike.—Body cinereous, white beneath; crown of the head black, with a longitudinal tawny streak. Eight inches long. There are several varieties, all natives of America and the West Indies, and all of a fierce and audacious disposition, fixing on the backs of other predatory birds, and making a continual chattering noise, till they force them to retire.