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THE

ANIMAL KINGDOM,

ARRANGED ACCORDING TO ITS ORGANIZATION,

SERVING AS A

FOUNDATION FOR THE

NATURAL HISTORY OF ANIMALS,

AND AN

INTRODUCTION TO COMPARATIVE ANATOMY.

BY

BARON CUVIER,

Great Officer of the Legion of Honour, Counsellor of State, and Member of the Royal Council of Public Instruction ;
One of the Forty of the French Academy ; Perpetual Secretary to the Academy of Sciences ; Member
of the Academies and Royal Societies of London, Berlin, Petersburgh, Stockholm, Turin,

Edinburgh, Copenhagen, Gottingen, .Bavaria, Modena, the Netherlands,
and Calcutta ; and of the Linnaean Society of London, &c. &c.

WITH FIGURES DESIGNED AFTER NATURE:

THE

BY

M. L ATREILLE,

Chevalier of the Legion of Honour, Member of the Institute (Royal Academy of Sciences), and of the greater
portion of other learned Societies in Europe, America, &c.

^ranslatelf from tfje latest Jvemf) lEBitfon.

WITH

ADDITIONAL NOTES,

AND

ILLUSTRATED BY NEARLY 500 ADDITIONAL PLATES.

IN FOUR VOLUMES.

VOL. I.

LONDON:

G. HENDERSON, 2, OLD BAILEY, LUDGATE-HILL,

AND SOLD BY ALL BOOKSELLERS.

1834.

■

■

l

LONDON :

W. M'DOH’ALL, PEMBERTON ROW..
GOUGH SQUARE.

ADVERTISEMENT.

IN presenting this version of the “Animal Kingdom” of the celebrated
Cuvier to the British public, the Translator feels assured that he has
only acted in compliance with the wishes of the most intelligent portion
of the community, inasmuch as the great deficiency in our language of a
complete work in this grand department of Natural History is thus
supplied in a manner that it is impossible to excel. It is essential for
the reader to understand that the attempts hitherto made by English
authors to enrich British scientific literature with the labours of Cuvier,
have been confined to the translation of the first edition of the “ Regne
Animal,” which made its appearance so far back as the year 1816.
With respect to that translation, it is not necessary that we should dwell
upon it farther than to observe, that it is the version of a work which may
now be deemed to be completely superseded. The great French author
himself, indeed, has acknowledged the imperfections of his first edition,
as compared with the last, which is now enriched with the results of
labours, whereby, during the interval of twelve years, an immense pro-
gress is declared by Cuvier to have been effected in this science. It is
scarcely necessary to add, that no part of those labours, and no por-
tion of that improvement, failed to be examined by this indefatigable
naturalist. His connection with the government of France, his reputa-
tion throughout Europe, and his consequent unbounded facilities of com-
munication with fellow-labourers in all quarters of the globe, gave to
Cuvier opportunities of procuring information of new facts, or corrections
of former errors, such as could not be accessible to almost any other
individual.

From considering these facts, the reader will not fail to conclude that a
difference, to no small amount, must necessarily exist between the former
and the latter edition of the “ Animal Kingdom;” nor will he, upon due
examination, be prepared to deny that the latter is essentially a new and
distinct work, from the number of alterations and improvements which
have been incorporated with it. Cuvier records, with the most grateful
expressions, his sense of the value of the information derived by him
from the vast number of faithfully executed figures in Natural History
which were supplied by recent travellers. The difficulties presented in
the arrangement of the synonymes in the nomenclature of animals were
also found by our great author very seriously diminished when he came
to prepare the second edition of his “ Regne Animal.” Naturalists of

11

ADVERTISEMENT.

all countries felt the necessity of more minute distinctions being esta-
blished amongst those extensive groups which they had previously formed,
and the result was a much nearer approximation than ever to an exact
definition of each of the species. We refer to the Preface, at page xxx
of the present volume, for a more copious account of the advantages
which the last edition of the “ Animal Kingdom” presents, as compared
with the first.

It remains for us, then, merely to state, that we felt the great importance
of at once adding to our scientific literature a work of such permanent value
as the “ Animal Kingdom” of Cuvier. The character of the author for
a profound knowledge of his subject — the conviction which we entertained
of his exact accuracy in all that related to his labours, seemed to be
sufficient to authorize us in trusting altogether to his authority ; and if we
have added a few notes occasionally in the present volume, our object only
was to enable our readers to make such an application of the text as our
local advantages in this country enabled us to do.

In the following work, therefore, the reader will not find himself di-
verted from the regular current of the simple text by any protracted and
tedious notes, which dispute, as it were, the right to the space of every
page with the actual contents of the original. We have, in the front of
our announcement to the public, pledged ourselves to place the British
reader on a level with the French one, in comprehending the result of Cuvier’s
researches into the most interesting of the subjects that can engage the
mind of man ; and to the fulfilment of that pledge we feel it to be our duty
to adhere. Fidelity, then, in the translation, was the first grand object of
our care. We have laid it down as a fixed rule, never to depart, even in
a casual expression, from a most faithful representation of the thoughts
and words of the original ; and we trust that we have not failed altogether
in our attempt to transfer from his pages some portion at least of the
energetic spirit, yet true simplicity, by which Cuvier’s style is so happily
distinguished. It has been, therefore, no object of our ambition, on this
occasion, to attempt the improvement of the charming colours of the
lily, or give fresh beauty to the glowing hues of the violet. Our task
was plain ; and we felt that we performed enough, in devoting the whole of
our exertions to effect the nearest possible approximation to the style and
manner of the great Original — in other words, to secure to the English
nation all the advantages of such an easy and instructive exposition of
scientific knowledge as the French nation had already at their command.

MEMOIR OF BARON CUVIER.

ALTHOUGH France is entitled to all the glory which is reflected upon
her by the fame of the illustrious Cuvier, yet he was only her child by
adoption, if we are to consider the claims of locality as capable of deciding
the point of affinity between country and individuals. He was born
on the 23d of August, 1769, at Montbeillard, which was, at the period
of his birth, and for several years afterwards, included in the duchy of
Wirtemberg. Here it was that his father had ultimately chosen his re-
sidence, after having devoted the best years of his life to the military
service. The elder Cuvier was a Swiss, who had in early life entered the
French army, and, having faithfully adhered to the government of France,
he, at the conclusion of his active labours, retired to his native town of
Montbeillard, on a small pension, which eventually was considerably in-
creased by the revenue accruing from a fresh appointment as com-
mandant of the artillery.

In his childhood, the subject of our memoir exhibited all the charac-
teristic marks of a feeble constitution. The cares of his mother were for
this reason redoubled; and her affectionate vigilance was rewarded in the
unceasing veneration of the surviving object of it to the latest moment of
his existence. It was to her that he was indebted for his early devotion
to books and the art of drawing. He was successively placed in the in-
stitutions for education in its various branches, which had, even at that
early period, been common in the country ; and, it is a curious fact, that
his first impressions of partiality for natural history were derived from the
sight of a Gesner with coloured plates, and also from the perusal of those
accompanying the work of Buffon, of which a copy was by accident
accessible to him. The sort of talent displayed by young Cuvier
whilst still occupied in the rudimentary schools of Montbeillard, was of a
nature to point him out as a fit candidate for the church ; and, as he was
educated in the Protestant religion, the local government, which was Pro^-
testant also, took the usual measures for securing the services of such a
promising auxiliary in maintaining a religion surrounded by an opposition
of the most formidable nature.

In furtherance of these views, Cuvier was sent to Studtgard, and was
placed, by order of Prince Charles of Wirtemberg, in the college called

VOL. i. 6

11

MEMOIR.

the Academie Caroline, an institution belonging to the university of that
city. After having spent some time in the various studies which were en-
joined on pupils of his age, Cuvier appears to have been closely attended
to by the Duke, and, as there is reason to believe that the latter acknow-
ledged some serious obligations in former times to members of the Cuvier
family, so did he feel a peculiar interest in forwarding the views of the
young aspirant. It appears, that though the youth was at first intended
for the clerical profession, yet at Studtgard his studies were all directed
to his education for performing political duties. We can readily believe
that the courses thus enjoined upon him were sufficiently agreeable to his
tastes, when we remember that they comprehended the branches of natural
history. He seems to have had leisure enough to perform herborizing ex-
cursions, to visit collections of objects in art and nature, and even to copy
the representations of animals. At Studtgard he distinguished himself by
obtaining many of the prizes, and succeeded in attaining the order of chi-
valry, a sort of distinction which fell to a very small number of the pupils
who won it by their merit.

The accident of the retirement of Duke Frederick, the governor of
Montbeillard, into Germany, deprived young Cuvier of his most powerful
friend, and, for a moment, he suspended those ambitious hopes which had
long floated before him. Without patrimony, or the means of entering
upon any permanent system for his life, Cuvier was under the necessity of
seeking out a tutorship. In 1788, we find him in the family of Count
d’Hericy, at Caen, in Normandy, where he was engaged in the instruc-
tion of an only son. The proximity of this Norman residence to the sea
afforded to the active tutor facilities for such observations on natural pro-
ductions as his instinctive inclinations led him to seek ; and it was to the
accidental opportunities thus presented to him, that he owed the impulse,
which, in its subsequent influence, so vastly contributed to build up his
great reputation. Cuvier, being destitute of books or other means of re-
ference at the period we are speaking of, committed the results of his disco-
veries to paper, and the manuscripts survived to be of essential service to
him afterwards. At this interesting era of the life of Cuvier, a circum-
stance occurred which must not be omitted in the detail of the auspicious
events which led him gradually to his exalted destiny. At the little town
of Yalmont, near the residence of the Count d’Hericy, a society used to
meet for the purpose of discussing points connected with the most im-
portant public question of the locality, viz. its agriculture. At this so-
ciety an individual of the place usually took a leading part; and it was not
long before the penetrating tutor recognised in him a contributor on this
subject to the Encyclopedic Methodique, then a highly popular scientific
work, published in Paris. Cuvier, in the ardour of an energetic spirit,

MEMOIR.

Ill

made known to this individual the nature of his discovery, when the latter
exclaimed, “ Then I am lost!” “ Lost?” replied the young man; “ no,
no; henceforth you shall be the object of my anxious care.” The fact
was, that the person spoken of was M. Tessier, who wras resident at the
place in question in a disguised character, having fled from Paris to avoid
the dangerous chances of the reign of terror. Through M. Tessier, the
aspiring young naturalist had the gratification of opening a correspondence
with the most celebrated naturalists of the day.

In the spring of 1795, the reflecting portion of the Parisian commu-
nity saw the necessity of making some attempt at restoring at least the
literary institutions, which with every other means of utility had fallen in
the recent revolutionary devastation. Cuvier had laid such a foundation
for the eminence of his character by this time, as to be received into the
select few who were to take a practical part in the great work of intel-
lectual renovation ; and, being invited to Paris, was at once appointed
Commissioner of Arts, and Professor at the Central School of the Pan-
theon. Shortly afterwards, M. Mertrud, who had occupied the chair of
Comparative Anatomy, finding the duties of his situation too fatiguing
for a person of his advanced age, obtained the consent of his colleagues,
the illustrious triumvirate, Jussieu, Geoflroy, and Lacepede, to appoint
Cuvier as his assistant.

In this fortunate promotion, Cuvier saw that he had passed the portals
of that high way of fame to which all his ambition had been directed.
It was towards the close of 1795, that he fixed his residence at the Gar-
den of Plants, and a moment did not pass after he became master of a
comfortable home, before he determined on sharing it with his aged
father and his brother, the only members remaining of his immediate
family.

In a letter, which is found prefixed to the first volume of his Compa-
rative Anatomy, and which was addressed by Cuvier to Mertrud, he re-
fers to various circumstances connected with this critical epoch of his
career. John Claude Mertrud held the situation of Demonstrator of
Anatomy in the Garden of Plants, from 1750 up to the period when he
was appointed Professor of Comparative Anatomy. He assisted Dauben-
ton in the great Natural History; and his services to BufFon are recorded
by the latter in terms such as the highest esteem and the warmest affec-
tion alone could dictate. In this epistle Cuvier particularly refers to the
progress which comparative anatomy was then making; and he shewed
how the learned men formerly connected with the National Museum of
Natural History, at Paris, strove to aid and promote that science. With
respect to those who then filled the offices of the former, Cuvier thus
addresses his friend and master: — “The learned men who compose the

b 2

IV

MEMOIR.

present administration of the Museum, are worthy of imitating the glo-
rious examples of their predecessors. I have received from them, as
well as from you, all the assistance I could have expected from an en-
lightened love for science, rendered more grateful by all the attentions the
most generous friendship could suggest. Nothing has been spared that
could lead to discoveries, or to the completion of the system of our know-
ledge in comparative anatomy. The correspondents of the Museum
have imitated the example of its depositaries. Citizen Baillon, in parti-
cular, so well known by the valuable observations which he furnished to
Buffon, and by those which he continues to make, procured me, with un-
exampled zeal and generosity, the rarest birds and fishes. Citizen Hom-
bert, of Havre, who has applied, with the greatest success, to the study
of Mollusca and Sea Worms, has favoured me with a great number of
these animals, the perfect preservation of which rendered their examina-
tion exceedingly useful. Citizens Beauvois, Bose, and Olivier, the two
first returned from North America, the third from Egypt and Persia,
have kindly communicated to me some of the valuable specimens they
have brought to Europe. I have, therefore, no reason to envy the good
fortune of Aristotle, when a conqueror, who was the friend of the sciences,
made other men subservient to him, and placed millions at his disposal,
to enable him to forward the history of Nature.

“ This assertion will not surprise, -when it is known that I have been
permitted to dissect, not only the animals which have died in the mena-
gerie, but also those which have been brought, during a great number of
years, from all parts of the world, and preserved in spirits. Time only
was capable of bringing this collection to its present degree of perfection,
and has, in this instance, performed what no other power was capable of
accomplishing.

“ In opening to me your treasures — in admitting me to a share of the
labours necessary to their arrangement and their augmentation, you have
imposed upon me only one condition : that is, to enable other naturalists to
enjoy them, by giving such a description of them as they merit. You know
with what assiduity I endeavour to perform this task, but you also
know better than any other what time such a work requires. However
rich may be the acquisitions that are made, more will still be desired.
Sometimes a new species is discovered, which we wish to compare with
those we already know. Sometimes the consideration of an organ induces
us to make further attempts to develope its structure. On other occa-
sions it is necessary to extend our observations ; because something re-
mains to be learned respecting the object as a whole, or the relation of its
parts. In natural history, in particular, we are always dissatisfied with
what we perform, for Nature proves to us, at each step, that she is inex-
haustible.”

MEMOIR.

V

The French. National Institute, which has been so powerful an engine
in the diffusion of a taste for natural history, was instituted in 1796, and
amongst its founders the name of Cuvier is conspicuous. The first of
his contributions to the literature of science bears the date of 1792;
several detached papers were, about this period, written and published by
him in periodical journals, and in them we trace the commencement of
that powerful devotion to fossil anatomy, which he subsequently elevated
into such an empire of natural wonders. The first of his more extended
and important works was the “ Tableau Elernentaire of the Natural His-
tory of Animals,” which he published in 1798. In his capacity of
assistant to M. Mertrud, Cuvier had to deliver lectures on Comparative
Anatomy; and so valuable were they deemed, that a favourite and able
pupil of his, M. Dumeril, was induced to take notes of them, which,
with the author’s sanction and assistance, he placed before the public.
They form the first two volumes of the Comparative Anatomy of Cuvier.
The “ Tableau,” just alluded to, was the rudimental form in which the
great principles of classification founded by Cuvier were fully developed.
In detached memoirs, such as that on the circulation of White-blooded
Animals, he had already supplied some knowledge of those principles;
but it was only in the larger work that he had entered upon the general
plan of classification, which was to rest, perhaps for ever, on the ruins of
the Linnaean system.

In 1800, Cuvier succeeded Mertrud, and resigned the chair of the
Central School of the Pantheon.

When the expedition to Egypt was contemplated, Cuvier was amongst
the savants who had been nominated as fit to accompany the army, in the
capacity of naturalists. But he declined the compliment, having the at-
tractions at home, by which were provided for him a quiet life, and un-
bounded facilities for his favourite study. When Bonaparte assumed the
office of President of the National Institute, he selected Cuvier as one of
the six individuals who were to act as Inspectors-General, for the purpose
of establishing Lyceums for education in thirty towns of France, and in
this character he established useful seminaries for youth in Marseilles,
Nice, and Bordeaux, which still flourish under the title of Royal Colleges.
Whilst he was engaged in this important duty, a change of the constitu-
tion of the National Institute was effected, whereby the secretaryships
were made perpetual; and Cuvier being raised to that of the National
Sciences, it remained in his hands up to the period of his death.

The father of Cuvier having died from a fall, an event which was soon
followed by the premature death of his brother’s wife, his home was no
longer that centre of domestic comfort which he had found it before. The
natural resource of a refined and prudent man placed in such a condition

VI

MEMOIR.

as this was resorted to by Cuvier, and a matrimonial alliance was formed
by him in 1803. The lady whom he selected as his partner for life, wras
the widow of M. Duvaucel, a fermier general, who fell a sacrifice to the
fury of the revolutionary rabble in 1794. The circumstances under
which he chose Mrs. Duvaucel for his wife, are at once decisive of the
disinterested feelings which accompanied the resolution ; for the calamity to
which her late husband had become a victim extended to his fortunes,
and only a wreck of what she once was fell to the lot of Cuvier. Nay,
he saw, that by the alliance a burden would be placed upon his industry;
for the widow had under her protection four children, the fruit of her
first marriage. But though these accompaniments formed very powerful
objections, as well they might, to a union of his destinies, on the part of
Cuvier, with this female, still he saw in her mind and feelings an
abundance of what was calculated to make him forget those objections.

The four children of the former marriage met with a very various des-
tiny. One was assassinated during the retreat of the French army from
Portugal, in the memorable campaign of 1809: a second, who had fol-
lowed the example of his illustrious step-father, and encountered perils
and fatigues in pursuit of science, exhausted his vital powers by a vain
attempt to defy the deleterious influence of an uncongenial climate : he
died in Madras. The third of the sons of Madame Duvaucel is still
living, an officer of customs at Bordeaux ; and his sister, the last of the
children, performed the amiable duties of nurse to the illustrious object
of all the anxious cares of his family, and remains as the chief source of
consolation to the old age of her mother. Madame Cuvier, besides the
three sons and daughter just spoken of, had four children more whilst
married to her last husband, but, unhappily, both the parents survived
them all. There is no one, therefore, now in existence, to whom we can
look as the hereditary successor of Cuvier’s peculiar intellect; that great,
and to his fellow-creatures, most beneficial endowment, ceased with his
life-breath, and is buried, we fear, with him in his grave.

In the mean time, as a public man, Cuvier was the object of fresh ho-
nours, the testimonies of the increasing esteem which his labours had
earned. In 1809, Napoleon appointed him to the office of Councillor of
the Imperial University, which that emperor had created; and, in this
character, Cuvier was entrusted with the establishment of new seminaries
of instruction in that branch of the French empire which, for a season,
consisted of several Italian states. The principles which he laid down for
the constitution and government of these asylums of science, receive their
best panegyric from the circumstance that they were perpetuated by the
succeeding governments, who could not have been interested in the pre-
servation of national memorials so adverse to their own interest.

MEMOIR.

Vll

The extent to which the time of Cuvier was employed, in consequence
of his appointments by Napoleon in political affairs, was such as to induce
us to conclude that he found it necessary to abandon the pursuit of
science. But the real truth appears to be, that, whilst he scrupulously
fulfilled his obligations as a public functionary, he made the very occasions
in which he was occupied in that capacity subservient to the one ulterior
object of his life; and the affairs connected with the establishment of se-
minaries in Marseilles and Bordeaux were only so many inducements to
him to proceed to the sea shore, there to behold and to investigate his
favourite department of the animal series — the Mollusca tribes.

We have mentioned, that the labours of Cuvier in the department of
comparative anatomy had been completed in 1805, by the publication of
the three successive volumes as the sequel of the first two which appeared
in 1800. The knowledge which he acquired by his labours in this de-
partment proved the source of some of the most memorable triumphs of
his genius; amongst which we may especially mention his grand re-
searches on the fossil remains of the bones of animals. The history of
the causes which led Cuvier to the investigation of the geology of the site
of Paris is amongst the most curious and agreeable chapters in the annals
of science.

Up to a very recent period, not only in France, but also in England,
the conclusions to which the celebrated German, Werner, had come, in
the science of mineralogy, appeared to leave nothing to be done for the
further elucidation of the knowledge of the crust of the earth. His sys-
tem comprised, it was thought, the most perfect explanation of the whole
series of the strata of that crust ; and the scientific world seemed to think
it a work of superfluity to attempt to add new facts to the series which
that naturalist had collected in reference to this subject. But, as edu-
cation, assisted by the progress of the habit of a free exertion of mind,
scattered abroad the contagion of a disposition to inquiry, the scientific
men of Paris began to acknowledge, that, in the very heart of their city,
in every inch of the soil upon which they daily trod, they saw before them
a series of geological structures, of which the supposed infallible apostle
of mineralogy had certainly predicated nothing whatever. A nearer in-
spection of the phenomena, which powerfully arrested their attention,
brought them at last to the conviction, that either they were incapable of
making a due application of the system of Werner, or that that system
was altogether inadequate to expound the whole of what it undertook to
explain with satisfaction. The savants of Paris, thus forced in self-de-
fence to the task of inquiry, directed their own and their pupils’ attention
to the German and Swiss mountains, and they wrere ultimately prevailed
upon to render justice to science, through the influences which arose from

VU1

MEMOIR.

tlie grand progress of comparative anatomy, its pioneer being the immor-
tal naturalist of the present memoir.

In the last years of the late, and during the early part of the present
century, the professors of the Garden of Plants, and of most other estab-
lishments of Paris, where the teaching of comparative anatomy formed a
part of the sciences which were taught, had frequently brought to their at-
tention either skeletons, or detached portions of skeletons, dug up from
beneath the soil of the city, evidently the relics of animals, and, in com-
parison with which, the bony structures of the present race of living
beings were altogether on a different scale. The comparative anatomists
of the Parisian schools would have lost their reputation, as well as their
hearers, were they to allow these discoveries to pass for objects inexpli-
cable by human penetration, particularly as every day brought forth, in
the neighbourhood of the city, some object that was calculated still further
to perplex the mystery of its origin. At last, the multitude of these spe-
cimens was such as to reach the power of irritating the pride of Cuvier ;
and that chivalrous champion of Nature’s jurisdiction said that there was
no alternative but to grapple with the apparition, and ascertain at once its
nature and properties. Cuvier, in association with M. A. Brongniart,
proceeded to the investigation of the soil, and, after many a laborious year
of toil and fatigue in quarries, caverns, &c., after many a tedious ascent
up the heights of Montmartre, the indefatigable inquirers collected such
a body of information, as at once shed abundant light upon the phe-
nomena that had perplexed the scientific world so long. The results
were published in 1812, in a large work on the fossil bones, which
has since been reproduced with such improvements as to render it, ac-
cording to the opinion expressed by one of the most celebrated of the
geologists of this country (Mr. Bakewell), “ the most luminous and inte-
resting exposition of local geology ever presented to the world.” The
great authority just mentioned adds, that it is from the era of this publi-
cation that we are to date the first accurate knowledge, of what is called
by geologists, the “ tertiary strata*.”

From the work on fossil organic remains just mentioned, the conclusion
is obvious, that Cuyier was the first, who, by the application of the rarest

* The high place assigned by the learned of all countries to this great composi-
tion, has induced the proprietor of the present translation of the “ Animal Kingdom,”
to prepare a version of the last edition of the “ Fossil Bones” of the same cele-
brated author. This is the work which exhibits the wonderful genius of Cuvier in
its most triumphant exertion; and it is only surprising that British enterprize, in all
that regards the advancement of science, should not, ere this, have secured to our
scientific literature a source of knowledge of so much consequence. The translation
here announced, and its multitude of graphic illustrations,, will be on the same ex-
pensive scale to the proprietor, and the same economical one to the public, as have
been adopted in the present work.

MEMOIR.

IX

powers of observation and reflection, and by an unequalled ingenuity, con-
verted comparative anatomy into a sort of talisman for unfolding the won-
ders of the osseous contents which lay for ages in the caverns of the
earth. His researches on the fossil bones, as they now appear in the
work to which we have just alluded, form an epoch in the annals of
geology, that yields to no part of its history in deep and durable interest ;
nor has even the great author himself of this important discovery which he
has made in his beautiful scheme of exposition, failed to consider it to be a
source of wonder, as it was of pride, to his own heart. “ When,” said he,
“ the sight of some bones of the bear and the elephant, twelve years ago, in-
spired me with the idea of applying the general laws of comparative ana-
tomy to the reconstruction and the discovery of fossil species ; when I
began to perceive that these species were not perfectly represented by
those of our day, which resembled them the most, I did not suspect that
I was every day treading upon a soil, filled with remains more extraordi-
nary than any that I had yet seen; nor that I was destined to bring to
light whole genera of animals unknown to the present world, and buried
for incalculable ages at vast depths under the earth. It was to M. Yeurin
that I owe the first indications of these bones furnished by our quarries :
some fragments which he brought me one day having struck me with as-
tonishment, I made inquiries respecting the persons to whom this indus-
trious collector had sent any formerly : what I saw in these collections
served to excite my hopes and increase my curiosity. Causing search to
be made at that time for such bones in all the quarries, and offering re-
wards to arouse the attention of the workmen, I collected a greater num-
ber than any person who had preceded me. After some years I was suf-
ficiently rich in materials to have nothing further to desire; but it was
otherwise with respect to their arrangement and the construction of the
skeletons, which alone could conduct me to a just knowledge of the spe-
cies. From the first moment, I perceived that there were many different
species in our quarries ; and soon afterwards, that they belonged to various
genera, and that the species of the different genera were often of the same
size ; so that the size alone rather confused than assisted my arrange-
ment. I was in the situation of a man who had given to him, <pele mele ,
the mutilated and incomplete fragments of a hundred skeletons belonging
to twenty sorts of animals, and it was required that each bone should be
joined to that which it belonged to. It was a resurrection in miniature ;
but the immutable laws prescribed to living beings were my directors.
At the voice of comparative anatomy, each bone, each fragment, regained
its place. I have no expressions to describe the pleasure experienced, in
perceiving that, as I discovered one character, all the consequences, more
or less foreseen, of this character, were successively developed, The feet

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MEMOIR.

were conformable to what the teeth had announced, and the teeth to the
feet; the bones of the legs and the thighs, and every thing that ought to
reunite these two extreme parts were conformable to each other. In one
word, each of the species sprung up from one of its elements. Those who
will have the patience to follow me in these memoirs, may form some idea
of the sensations which I experienced, in thus restoring by degrees these
ancient monuments of mighty revolutions. This volume will afford much
interest to naturalists, independent of geology, shewing them, by multi-
plied examples, the strictness of the laws of co-existence, which elevate
zoology to the rank of the rational sciences, and which, leading us to
abandon the vain and arbitrary combinations that had been decorated with
the name of systems , will conduct us at last to the only study worthy of
our age — to that of the natural and necessary relations, which connect
together the different parts of all organised bodies. But geology will lose
nothing by this accessary application of the facts contained in this volume :
and thus the numerous families of unknown beings, buried in the most
frequented part of Europe, offer a vast field for meditation.”

The reader will not fail to be struck with the expression of confidence
which is uttered by Cuvier in the above passage, on the security which
he felt in appealing to the immutable laws of nature, as the light which
would enable him to trace the most beautiful of systems of harmony and
order in this apparent chaotic mass of fragments; and he does not hesi-
tate to enter further into detail on the nature of those immutable laws
prescribed to living beings, to which he devoted the worship of his
earliest and latest years.

In the following passage Cuvier has more fully explained what he de-
nominates “ the immutable laws prescribed to living beings — “Every
organised being forms a whole and entire system, of which all the parts
mutually correspond and co-operate, to produce the same definite action,
by a reciprocal re-action; none of these parts can change, without a
change of the others also. Thus, if the intestines of an animal are
organised in a manner only to digest fresh flesh, it is necessary that his
jaws should be constructed to devour the prey, his claws to seize and tear
it, his teeth to divide the flesh, and the whole system of his organs of
motion to follow and overtake it, and of his organs of sense to perceive
it at a distance. It is necessary, also, that he should have seated in his
brain the instinct to hide himself and spread snares for his victim : such
are the general conditions of a carnivorous regimen; every carnivorous
animal must infallibly unite them — without them the species could not
subsist. But, under these general conditions, there are particular ones
with respect to the size of the species, and the abode of the prey for
which each animal is disposed.”

MEMOIR.

XI

In this vast work on the fossil remains, Cuvier furnished to the
world not only the ample results of his personal labours, in the neigh-
bourhood of Paris, in different parts of provincial France, in Italy and
Holland, whither he had been sent on political or educational purposes,
but also the fruits of researches carried on by the naturalists of other
countries, which he gathered either from their published productions or
from their correspondence. The effect in the scientific world which was
produced by the intimate connection demonstrated by Cuvier to subsist
between Zoology and Geology, was altogether of the most useful and gra-
tifying kind; and it was the fond superstition of the enthusiastic students
of those branches of intellectual pursuit to believe, that the unparalleled
assemblage of opportunities of which Cuvier had the command for the
elucidation of this mingled science, were purposely consigned to one
whose rare qualifications rendered him the only competent agent to
make the proper use of them.

Whilst the world’s honours were thus profusely showered upon Cuvier’s
head, his heart was doomed to feel all the anguish which the bereave-
ment of the dearest objects of life is calculated to excite. In 1812, he
lost a daughter at the age of four years, and the year which succeeded
swept away an only son in his seventh year. The latter calamity occur-
red whilst the father was fulfilling the duties of a high commission at
Rome, where he proved that his philosophy was sufficient to enable him
to avoid the evil consequences that usually arise from collision of creeds
in matters of state importance. His services in Italy were rewarded with
the appointment to the office of Master of Requests in the Council of
State; and, in 1813, he was nominated Imperial Commissioner, and set
out for Mayence, in order to rouse the people on the left bank of the
Rhine to declare in favour of France; but his journey terminated at
Nancey, into which the allied army had just made its entrance, and he
returned to Paris. Napoleon finally advanced him to the rank of Coun-
cillor of State; but the promotion of Cuvier only took place on the eve
of his master’s downfall. After the restoration he was re-appointed to
the same office. During the hundred days Cuvier lived in retirement;
and when Louis finally came to the possession of the crown, the illus-
trious Naturalist continued to receive from the restored dynasty that
respect and attention which he deserved. He was made Chancellor of
the University by Louis XVIII., and enjoyed office until his decease.
In 1819 he was created a Baron.

From the history of the career of Cuvier to this point, we learn that
under every form of government his scientific merits were uniformly ac-
knowledged. The republic, the imperial ruler, and the regal dynasty,
alike rendered homage to his talents and his integrity. Jealous of

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MEMOIR

Cuvier’s devotion to science, ail thes& governments sought to avail
themselves successively of his assistance ; and being thus compelled to
enter upon the field of politics, no man could pass through the temptations
and seductions with winch that field abounds more free from taint than
Cuvier. When called upon by authority to act the part of a political
minister, he obeyed the command with the fidelity and promptitude which
a sense of duty in all conscientious subjects would compel them to adopt.
But here the political tendencies of Cuvier stopped: when summon-
ed to appear in the arena of the Court, he neither looked to the left
hand nor to the right, to select the intriguing group, with whom he
should hire himself, or put up his influence and patronage to the highest
bidder. He stood indifferent amid the agitations of parties around him,
and saw without uneasiness that the contempt with which he looked upon
their designs and their exertions had rendered him an object of hostility
to them. Having been entrusted with the duty of superintendant to the
educational and religious establishments connected with the Protestant
community of France, Cuvier appears to have executed his functions in
such a manner as that, whilst he satisfied the wishes of those whom he
was appointed to serve, he, at the same time, made his arrangements
agreeable to all. His good sense, his benevolent mind, his religious im-
pressions, so guided and animated his whole conduct, that the very sources
of animosity in most countries, religious distinctions, were converted,
through his skilful exertions, into motives of charity.

The first visit made by Cuvier to England was in the year 1818,
and his sojourn there lasted six weeks. He saw the memorable Vfest-
minster election, which was contested by Sir Murray Maxwell; he was
kindly received by the Prince Regent ; he went down to Oxford, and the
whole of the scientific lions of London were pointed out to him by Dr.
Leach, wdio took great pleasure in acting the part of his cicerone ; he
went to Windsor — called at Herschel’s and saw the great telescope, and
paid a visit to Spring Grove, where he was treated with due worship by
Sir Joseph Banks. Cuvier ever after spoke with emotion of the recep-
tion which he had obtained in England.

It was not without good reason that the scientific circles of Great
Britain were emulous in paying respect to the eminent naturalist. His
work on Fossil Bones, and particularly the preliminary discourse on the
revolutions on the surface of the globe, together with his volumes on
“ Comparative Anatomy,” but above all, his “ Animal Kingdom,” had
already established his reputation in England, and the full amount of the
merit which these various productions represented was unhesitatingly ac-
corded to him by the general voice of the learned in this country. The
year before his excursion to England wTas that in which the “ Regne

MEMOIR.

Animal” appeared; and as the first and second Prefaces of the author,
which will be found in the present volume, abundantly explain the nature
and objects of that great performance, and the circumstances under which
it was undertaken, we do not feel ourselves at liberty to dwell upon the
subject. In reference, however, to the important question of classifica-
tion, it is of some consequence that we should render complete justice to
the original labours of Cuvier.

Those who are familiar with the works of the antient philosopher,
Aristotle, will be astonished to find that, in an age so remote as that in
which he flourished, the true principles on which the classification of animals
should be effected were perfectly well understood. Mankind, at least, seem
to have been contented with them, inasmuch as no attempt, from the days
of that Father of Naturalists to the age of Linnasus, was ever made to
alter the system of the former. The attempt made by Linnaeus to im-
prove upon Aristotle, is held by Lamarck to have been successful in these
respects, that the Swede uses the term mammalia , which is sufficiently
distinctive — that he has put the Whales into that class — that he forms
the Reptiles into a separate class, placing them between the Birds and
the Fishes. If we can suppose these changes to be incorporated with
the system of Aristotle, there will be very little difference between that
system and the one universally adopted in modern times. It follows,
therefore, that the improvement in the right distribution of animals
effected by Linnaeus, is comparatively trifling, and, in our view, much in-
ferior in the depth and importance of its principles to that which was
discovered and established by the subject of this biography.

Whilst Aristotle exhibited wonderful judgment in his arrangements,
still he had no true notion of the laws which regulate species; he was
confounded altogether by the limits of the variation of species, and here
it is that the second Aristotle has been able triumphantly to succeed.
Cuvier studied ardently and incessantly the nature of the conditions that
allow of the developement of individuals or species in the form in which
they appear, and the results of his original and wonderful labours have
cast a light over the mysteries of living nature, such as discloses them in
a condition in which they are most calculated for our comprehension.
Cuvier, in traversing the relics of the antient world, and comparing them
with the structures which compose the breathing beings of this, disco-
vered the talisman which opened every locked treasure to his hand, in
the simple law that every part of any animal, and in some, the very smallest
portion, constitutes a certain index of the character in all respects of the
rest. The successful ^application of this law is one of the greatest
triumphs of the genius of Cuvier.

The Bourbons increased in their attachment to the illustrious natur-

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MEMOIR.

alist as time went on, and at the coronation of Charles X. he officiated
as President of the Council. He received from that monarch the deco-
ration of Grand Officer of the Legion of Honour, and to his sole super-
intendence were left the whole of the religious communities of France,
which were unconnected with the prevailing faith. The calamities which
multiplied so unhappily in his domestic life, were increased to a degree
almost beyond endurance, in 1827, by the death of the only relic of the
general wreck of his children, in the continuance of whose society he had
any reason to confide. His daughter Clementine had attained her twenty-
second year, and had then been bound to her parents by bonds of the
dearest connection. But she fell like a flower in her prime, and left her
parents to seek that consolation in their affliction which can only be ob-
tained from Heaven. Cuvier manifested but too tenderly, for a long time
afterwards, the effect of his privations.

In 1830, Cuvier resumed the office of Lecturer at the College of
France, and delivered a series of discourses on the progress of science in
all ages, which shewed the most extraordinary erudition. In 1832, he
was elevated to the rank of a Peer of France, and received the appoint-
ment of President of the Council.

We now approach the only repugnant portion of our task — the account
of Cuvier’s death. We, of course, have no other materials to refer to
than those furnished by the immediate friends of the deceased, and
amongst these, the report of M. Rousseau, the assistant of the Baron at
the Garden of Plants, and who was in close attendance upon him during
the whole of his last illness, appears to be that which deserves the
greatest confidence. It appears from the statement of this gentleman,
that, “ on Monday the 7th of May, 1832, M. Cuvier had slight diarrhoea,
with disturbance of the bowels, for which he took a lavement, with some
drops of laudanum in it. On Tuesday he felt quite well, and gave his
accustomed lecture at the College of France with even more than his
usual energy; so much so, indeed, that he was covered with perspiration
at its conclusion. The day was rather cold, and M. Cuvier walked home,
contrary to his ordinary custom. He dined as well as usual, and in the
evening attended a soiree of the Professors at the Museum, where he
talked a good deal. It was on the next morning, Wednesday, that he
complained of the stiffness and difficulty of moving his right upper ex-
tremity ; yet he attended the Council of State, and on his return had an
appetite for dinner; but though he could eat his soup well enough, he
was surprised to find that it was almost impossible for him to swallow any
thing more solid. That night leeches were applied to the anus. On
Thursday the right arm was perfectly paralyzed; deglutition was more
difficult than ever; but he could walk about very well. The pulse was

MEMOIR.

XV

normal, beating from 80 to 85 in the minute. One of the medical attend-
ants, however, thought fit, in the course of the day, to bleed the patient
largely: two pounds of healthy looking blood were drawn from the left
arm. A mustard foot-bath was used in the evening, and a large blister
applied to the back of the neck. The night was spent very restlessly;
and about three, a.m., the pulse seemed so hard and full that the attend-
ants were induced to repeat the bleeding, which they now did from the
right arm. After this the patient’s muscular powers sunk rapidly, though
his nervous sensibility and intelligence were not at all impaired. On
Friday morning he was ordered a little tartar emetic, which however did
not act upwards. His mouth was then observed to be filled with a copious
flow of mucous saliva; and this, together with the difficulty 'which he felt in
swallowing the emetic solution, induced the patient himself to remark that
he was like a person labouring under hydrophobia. In the afternoon, M. Du-
puytren, in order to excite the action of the oesophagus and pharynx, threw
into the stomach four-and-twenty grains of ipecacuanha, but no vomiting
ensued. In three hours after double the quantity was employed, but
without the occurrence even of nausea. At seven in the evening, a strong
lavement of salt and water (saturated) was given : this produced a super-
purgation. Same night two or three large ‘ English vesicatories’ were
applied along the course of the cervical plexuses, and the patient was in a
most restless condition. On Saturday morning it appeared that the left
leg was beginning to be paralyzed. At the patient’s earnest request,
some bouillon was conveyed into his stomach : he was also removed from
his bed-chamber into his spacious saloon. The blisters did no good;
they did not even irritate the skin. In the course of the day he had given
him some iced raspberry vinegar, and enjoyed comparative repose; but
the night brought on much severe suffering. All power of motion and
swallowing was now extinct. Twenty leeches were applied to the region
of the mastoid processes. ‘ When I saw him on Sunday morning,’ says
Dr. Rousseau, ‘ it seemed as if he had grown on a sudden ten years older ;
his voice also was wonderfully changed.’ That day (Sunday, 13th — the
day of his death) the patient began to lose all hope. When any new mea-
sure was proposed to him he shook his head with a desponding assent.
He was cupped on the loins about noon; and again, about eight in the
evening, he was persuaded to suffer himself to be cupped below the sca-
pulas. This operation fatigued him greatly. At a quarter to nine he
asked the hour, and complained that his faculties were leaving him; ‘ and,
at a quarter to ten,’ says Dr. R., ‘ I observed three or four slight motions
of the head and a feeble expiration, which I found had deprived the world
of a man of vast knowledge and the most extraordinary genius. He died
in his arm-chair, sitting erect, with his head neither inclined one way nor

XVI

MEMOIR.

the other. His*figure was majestic, in the attitude of deep contemplation.
So like the life did he seem, that his family would not believe the melan-
choly fact; but the illustrious patient was no more,’”

To Mrs. Bowditch, an intimate acquaintance of the Baron and of his
family, we are indebted for the following details respecting the person and
habits of this illustrious man.

“ In person M. Cuvier was moderately tall, and in youth slight; but the
sedentary nature of his life had induced corpulence in his alter years, and
his extreme near-sightedness brought on a slight stoop in the shoulders.
His hair had been light in colour, and to the last flowed in the most pic-
turesque curls, over one of the finest heads that ever was seen. The im-
mense portion of brain in that head was remarked by Messrs. Gall and
Spurzheim, as beyond all that they had ever beheld; an opinion which
was confirmed after death. His features were remarkably regular and
handsome, the nose aquiline, the mouth full of benevolence, the forehead
most ample ; but it is impossible for any description to do justice to his
eyes. They at once combined intellect, vivacity, archness, and sweetness ;
and long before we lost him, I used to watch their elevated expression
with a sort of fearfulness, for it did not belong to this world. There are
many portraits published of M. Cuvier, formed of various materials ; but,
with the exception of the medallion of M. Bovy, the copper medal, the
piaster bust, the lithographic print by M. le Meunier, and the oil paint-
ing by Mr. Pickersgill, they scarcely convey any just idea of M. Cuvier’s
expression: in fact, some of the prints are positive caricatures.”

We may add, that it afforded Cuvier singular satisfaction in his dying
hours, to reflect that the great work on which his heart was entirely
bent — that performance on which he most desired to rest his claims to the
respect of posterity — his Ichthyology, was in part before the public, and
that the remainder would come forth under a superintendance in the
value of which he entertained unbounded confidence.

PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION.

HAVING from my earliest years devoted myself, from taste, to the study
of Comparative Anatomy ; in other words, to the laws which preside over
the organization of animals, and the modifications of that organization, as
they are found throughout the diversified species — having, for nearly thirty
years, consecrated to this science every moment which my duties left at
my own disposal, I have ever kept in view, as the object of my labours,
the resolution of the science into general laws, and into propositions of the
simplest expression. My first essays soon made me perceive, that I could
only attain this in proportion as the animals, whose structure I should
have to elucidate, were arranged in conformity with that structure, so that
in one single name of class, order, genus, &c. might be embraced all those
species which, in their external as well as internal conformation, might
have affinities either more general or particular. Now, this is what the
greater number of naturalists of that epoch had never attempted, and what
but few of them could have effected, had they even been willing to try,
since a similar arrangement presupposes an extensive knowledge of the
structures, of which it is partly the representation.

It is true that Daubenton and Camper had supplied facts, — that Pallas
had indicated views; but the ideas of these learned men had not yet exer-
cised upon their contemporaries the influence which they merited. The
only general catalogue of animals then in existence, and the only one we
possess even now, the system of Linnaeus, had just been disfigured by an
unfortunate editor, who did not even take the pains to examine the prin-
ciples of that ingenious methodist, and who, wherever he found any dis-
order, seems to have tried to render it more inextricable.

It is no less true, that, upon particular classes, there existed some very
extensive works, which described a considerable number of new species;
but then the authors of these performances scarcely carried their attention
beyond the external relations of these species, and no one was found to
employ himself in arranging the classes and orders according to the nature
of the structure of the animals.

I was compelled then, — and the task occupied a considerable period of
time, — to make anatomy and zoology, dissections and classification, the
pioneers of my steps; to search for better principles of distribution in my

VOL. i.

c

PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION.

xviii

first remarks on organization — to employ them in order to arrive at new
ones, and to render the distribution perfect — in fine, from this mutual re-
action of the two sciences, to elicit a system of zoology that might serve
as an introduction and a guide in anatomical investigations, and as a body
of anatomical doctrine fitted to develope and explain the zoological system.

The first results of this double labour appeared in 1795, in a special
memoir upon a new division of the white-blooded animals. A sketch of
their application to genera, and to their division in subgenera, was the
object of my elementary “ Tableau Elementaire des Animaux,” printed
in 1798, which, in conjunction with M. Dumeril, I improved, in the tables
annexed to the first volumes of my “ Leqons d’Anatomie Comparee” in
1800.

I should, perhaps, have contented myself with perfecting these tables,
and proceeded immediately to the publication of my great work on ana-
tomy, if, in the course of my researches, I had not been frequently struck
with another defect of the greater number of the general or partial sys-
tems of zoology; I mean the confusion in which the want of critical
acumen has left a great number of species, and even several genera.

Not only were the classes and orders not in conformity with the in-
timate nature of the animals, for the purpose of forming a foundation for
a treatise on comparative anatomy ; but the genera, though undoubtedly
for the most part better composed, presented in their nomenclature very
inadequate materials, inasmuch as the species were not arranged under each
of them respectively according to its character. Thus, in placing the Sea-
cow (Manatus, Cuv .) in the genus Morse (Trichechus, Lin .), the Siren in
that of the Eels, Gmelin had rendered any general proposition relative to
the organization of these two genera impossible, just as by approximating
to the same class the same order, and placing side by side the Sepia and
the fresh water Polypus, he had made it impossible to say any thing in
general on the class and order which embraced such different beings.

The examples above cited are selected from the most striking of these
errors ; but the number of them that existed was infinite, and, though
not so easily to be perceived at the first glance, still they were not the
less sources of real inconvenience.

It was not enough, then, to have imagined a new arrangement of classes
and orders, and to have properly placed the genera there ; it was also ne-
cessary to examine all the species, in order to ascertain if they really be-
longed to the genera in which they had been placed.

When I came to do this, I not only found that the species were either
grouped or distributed in defiance of common sense ; but I saw that many
of the species were by no means positively established by the characters
attributed to them, or by the figures and descriptions given of them.

PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION.

XIX

In some parts, one of the species, by means of synonymes, is made to
represent, under a single name, a great number, which are so different
from each other as to be incapable of being placed in the same genus ; in
others, a single species is doubled, and trebled, and appears again and
again successively in divers subgenera, genera, and even sometimes in
various orders.

What shall we say, for instance, of the Trichechus Manatus of Gmelin,
which in one single specific name comprises three species and two ge-
nera; two genera, differing in almost every thing! By what name shall
we speak of the Yelella, which figures there twice among the Medusas,
and once among the Holothuriae? How are we to bring together the
Biphoras ; some of which are called there Dagysas, the greater number
Salpae, and several placed among the Holothuriae?

Thus, then, in order completely to attain the object, it was not sufficient
to review the species — it was necessary to review even their synonymes,
or, in other words, it was indispensable to reconstruct the system of
animals.

Such an enterprise, from the prodigious development of the ..science in
late years, could not have been executed completely by any one individual,
even supposing him to have no other employment, and to live the longest
possible term of years. Had I been constrained to depend upon myself
alone, I should not have been able to prepare even the simple sketch I
now give ; but the resources of my position seemed to me to supply what
I wanted both of time and talent. Living in the midst of so many able
naturalists— drawing from their works as fast as they appeared — enjoying
the use of their collections as freely as themselves — and having formed a
very considerable one myself especially appropriated to my object, a great
portion of my labour consisted merely in the employment of so many rich
materials. It was not possible, for instance, that much remained for me
to do on shells studied by M. de Lamarck, or on quadrupeds described by
M. Geoffroy. The numerous and new affinities observed by M. de
Lacepede were so many traits for my system of fishes. Among so many
beautiful birds, collected from all parts of the world, M. Le Vaillant per-
ceived details of organization, which I immediately adapted to my plan.
My own researches, employed and multiplied by other naturalists, yielded
those fruits to me which, in my hands alone, they would not all have
produced. Thus, by examining, in the cabinet I have formed, the anato-
mical preparations on which I designed to found my division of reptiles.
M. de Blainville and M. Oppel anticipated (and perhaps better than I
could have done) results of which as yet I had but a glimpse, &c. &c.

These reflections encouraged me; and I resolved on prefixing to my
Treatise on Comparative Anatomy, a sort of abridged systematic table

c 2

XX

PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION.

of animals, in which I should give their divisions and sub-divisions in
the greatest detail, as established both in their internal and external
structure ; in which I should indicate the best authenticated species be-
longing to each of the subdivisions, and in which, to increase the interest
I should add some details regarding those species that are rendered re-
markable by their being so common in this country, by their utility or
mischievous practices, by the singularity of their habits and their economy,
by their strange forms, their beauty, or their size.

In so doing I hoped to prove useful to young naturalists, who, for the
most part, have but little idea of the confusion and errors of criticism in
which the most accredited works abound, and who, in foreign countries
particularly, do not sufficiently attend to the study of the true relations of
the conformation of beings; I considered myself as rendering a more
direct service to those anatomists, who require to know beforehand to
what orders they should direct their researches, when they wish to solve
any problem of human anatomy or physiology by comparative anatomy,
but whose ordinary occupations do not sufficiently prepare them for ful-
filling this condition, which is essential to their success.

I had no intention, however, of extending this two-fold view to all the
classes of the animal kingdom; and the Vertebrated animals, as in every
sense the most interesting, naturally claimed a preference. Among the
Invertebrata, I had to study more particularly the naked Mollusca and
the great Zoophytes ; but the innumerable variations of the external forms
of shells and corals, the microscopic animals, and the other families whose
part, on the great theatre of nature, is not very apparent, or whose or-
ganization affords but little room for the use of the scalpel, did not require
a similar minuteness of detail. Independently of this, so far as the shells
and corals were concerned, I could depend on the work of M. de Lamarck,
in which will be found all that the most ardent thirst for knowledge can
desire.

As regards Insects, which, by their external form, organization, habits,
and influence on all animated nature, are so highly interesting, I have
been fortunate enough to find assistance, which, in rendering my work
infinitely more perfect than it could have possibly been had it emanated
from my pen alone, has, at the same time, considerably accelerated its
publication. My friend and colleague, M. Latreille, who has studied
these animals more profoundly than any other man in Europe, has kindly
consented to give, in a single volume, and nearly in the order adopted for
the other parts, a summary c£ his immense researches, and an abridged
description of those innumerable genera entomologists are continually es-
tablishing.

With respect to the remaining portion, if I have given in some places

PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION.

XXI

a less extended explanation of the subgenera and species, this imperfec-
tion does not hold in the portion relating to the higher divisions and the
relative characters, these being every where placed on foundations equally
solid, the result of researches equally assiduous.

I have examined, one by one, all the species of which I could procure
specimens ; I have approximated those which merely differed from each
other in size, colour, or in the number of some parts of little importance,
and have formed them into what I denominate subgenera.

At every opportunity I dissected one species at least of each subgenus ;
and if those be excepted to which the scalpel cannot be applied, there
will then be but very few groups of this degree found in my work, of
which I cannot produce some portion of the organs.

Having determined the names of the species which I observed, and
which had been previously either well described or well figured, I placed
in the same subgenera those I had not seen, but whose exact figures, or '
descriptions, sufficiently precise to leave no doubt remaining as to their
natural relations, I found in authors ; but I have passed over in silence
that great number of vague indications, on which, in my opinion, natur-
alists have been too eager to establish species, whose adoption is what
has mainly contributed to introduce in the catalogue of animals that con-
fusion which deprives it of so great a portion of its utility.

1 could, every where, have added great numbers of new species, but as
I could not refer to figures it would in that case have been necessary to
extend their descriptions beyond my limits ; I have preferred, therefore,
depriving my work of that ornament, and have indicated those only whose
singular formation gives origin to new subgenera.

My subgenera, once established on undoubted relations, and composed
of well ascertained species, nothing remained but to construct this great
scaffolding of genera, tribes, families, orders, classes and divisions which
constitute the community of the animal kingdom.

Here I have proceeded, partly by ascending from the inferior to the
superior divisions, on the principles of affinity and comparison, and partly
by descending from the superior to the inferior divisions, on the principle
of the subordination of characters; carefully comparing the results of
the two methods, verifying one by the other, and taking care to establish
always the correspondence of forms, external and internal, both of which
constitute integral parts of the essence of each animal.

Such has been my mode of proceeding whenever it was necessary and
possible to form new arrangements ; but I need not observe that, in many
places, the results to which it would have conducted me had been already
so satisfactorily obtained, that no other trouble wras left to me than that
of following the track of my predecessors. Even in these cases, how-
ever, where I had nothing more to do than they had, by new observations

XXII

PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION.

I have verified and confirmed what was previously acknowledged, and
what I did not adopt until it was subjected to a rigorous scrutiny. An
idea of this mode of examination may be obtained from the Memoirs on
the anatomy of the Mollusca, which have appeared in the “ Annales du
Museum/' and of which I am now preparing a separate and augmented
collection. I venture to assure the reader, that the labour I have bestowed
upon the Yertebrated animals, the Annulata, the Radiata, and many of
the Insects and Crustacea, is equally extensive. I have not deemed it
necessary to publish it with the same detail; but all my preparations are
exposed in the Cabinet of Comparative Anatomy in the Jardin du Roi,
and will serve hereafter for my Treatise on Anatomy.

Another work of considerable labour, but whose proofs cannot be made
so authentic, is the critical examination of species. I have verified all
the figures adduced by authors, and as often as possible referred each to
its true species, before making a choice of those I have cited; it is from
this verification alone, and never from the arrangement of preceding clas-
sifiers, that I have referred to my subgenera the species that belong to
them. Such is the reason why no astonishment should be experienced
on finding that such or such a genus of Gmelin is now divided and dis-
tributed even in different classes and divisions ; that numerous nominal
species are reduced to a single one, and that vulgar names are very dif-
ferently applied. There is not a single one of these changes that I am
not prepared to justify, or of which the reader himself may not obtain
the proof by recurring to the sources I have indicated.

In order to diminish this trouble, I have taken care to select for each
class a principal author, generally the richest in good original figures, and
I quote secondary works only in those cases in which the former are
silent, or where it was useful to set up some comparison, for the sake of
better establishing synonymes.

My subject could have been made to fill many volumes, but I consi-
dered it my duty to condense it, by contriving abridged means of publi-
cation. I have obtained these by graduated generalities; by never
repeating for a species what could be said of a whole subgenus, nor for a
genus what might be applied to an entire order, and thus is it that we ar-
rive at the greatest possible economy of words. To this my endeavours
have been, above all, particularly directed, inasmuch as this was the prin-
cipal end of my work. It may be observed, however, that I have not
employed many technical terms, and that I have endeavoured to commu-
nicate my ideas without that barbarous apparatus of factitious words,
which, in the works of so many modern naturalists, pyove so very repul-
sive. I cannot perceive, however, that I have thereby lost any thing in
precision or clearness.

I have been compelled, unfortunately, to introduce many new name#.

PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION.

XXIII

although I endeavoured, as far as possible, to preserve those of my pre-
decessors ; but the numerous subgenera I have established required these
denominations, for in things so various the memory is not satisfied with
numerical indications. I have selected them, either for an indication of
some character, or from the common names which I have latinized, or
finally, after the example of Linnasus, from the mythological nomencla-
ture, which are generally agreeable to the ear, and which we are far from
having exhausted.

In naming species, however, I would recommend the employment only of
the substantive of the genus, and the trivial name. The names of the
subgenera are designed as a mere relief to the memory, when we wish to
indicate these subdivisions in particular. Otherwise, as the subgenera,
already very numerous, will, in the end, become greatly multiplied, in
consequence of having substantives continually to retain, we shall be in
danger of losing the advantages of that binary nomenclature so happily
imagined by Linnaeus.

It is for the better preservation of it, that I have dismembered, as little
as possible, the genera of that illustrious reformer of science. When-
ever the subgenera in which I divide them were not to be translated to
different families, I have left them together under their former generic
appellation. This was not only due to the memory of Linnaeus, but it
was necessary in order to preserve the tradition and mutual understand-
ing of the naturalists of different countries*.

This habit, necessarily acquired in the study of natural history, of the
mental classification of a great number of ideas, is one of the advantages
of that science which is seldom observed, and which, when it shall have
been generally introduced into the system of common education, will become,
perhaps, the principal one. By it the student is exercised in that part of
logic which is termed method, just as he is by geometry in that of syllo-
gism, because natural history is the science which requires the most pre-
cise methods, as geometry is that which demands the most rigorous rea-
soning. Now this art of method, once well acquired, may be applied,
with infinite advantage, to studies the most foreign to natural history.
Every discussion implying a classification of facts, every inquiry which
demands a distribution of materials, is performed according to the same
laws; and the young man wrho had cultivated this science merely for

* Here the author inserts a page of matter containing an explanation of the
causes which induced him to direct the employment of several forms of type in the
body of the work, and also of the classes and other divisions which were to he indi-
cated by the varieties of the letter. “ Thus,” he concludes the paragraph, “ will the
reader he able, at one glance, to distinguish the most important portions in every
page, and the order of arrangement of every idea, and thus will the printer have se-
conded the author in all those contrivances which his art is capable of supplying to
the faculty of the memory.” — Eng. Ed.

Xxiv PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION.

amusement, is surprised, when he makes the experiment, at the facilities
it affords him in disentangling all kinds of affairs.

It is not less useful in solitude. Sufficiently comprehensive to satisfy
the most powerful mind, sufficiently various and interesting to calm the
most agitated soul, it consoles the unhappy, and calms animosities. Once
elevated to the contemplation of that harmony of nature irresistibly re-
gulated by Providence, how weak and insignificant appear those causes
which it has been pleased to leave dependent on the arbitrary will of man!
How astonishing to behold so many examples of fine genius consuming
themselves so vainly for their own happiness, or that of others, in the pur-
suit of empty speculations, whose very traces a few years suffice to sweep
away !

I boldly avow it — these ideas have always been present to my mind in
my laborious hours ; and if I have endeavoured by every means in my
power to diffuse this peaceful study, it is because, in my opinion, it is
more capable than any other of supplying that want of occupation which
has so largely contributed to the disorders of our age — but I must return
to my subject.

There yet remains the task of accounting for the principal changes I
have effected in the latest received methods, and to acknowledge the
amount of my obligations to those naturalists whose works have furnished
or suggested a part of them.

To anticipate a remark which will naturally present itself to many, I
must observe that I have neither desired nor pretended to class animals
so as to form one single line, or so as to mark their relative superiority.
I even consider every attempt of this kind impracticable. Thus, I do
not mean that such of the Mammalia or of the Birds as come last are
the most imperfect of their class ; still less do I believe that the last of
the Mammalia are more perfect than the first of the Birds, the last of
the Mollusca more so than the first of the Annulata or of the Radiata,
even confining the meaning of this vague expression, most perfect , to
that of most completely organized. I regard my divisions and subdivi-
sions as merely the graduated expression of the resemblance of the
beings which enter into each of them; and although in some we observe
a sort of degeneration or transition from one species to the other, which
cannot be denied, this disposition is far from being general. The pre-
tended scale of beings is but an erroneous application to the whole crea-
tion of those partial observations, which are only true when confined to
the limits within which they were made — and this application has, in my
opinion, prejudiced the progress of natural history in modern times, to an
extent which it is not easy to imagine.

It is in conformity with these views that I have established my general
division into four sections, which have already been made known in a se-

PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION.

XXV

parate Memoir. I still think it expresses the real relations of animals
more exactly than the old arrangement of Yertebrata and Invertebrata,
and for the reason that the former animals have a much greater re-
semblance to each other than the latter bear to each other, and that it
was necessary to mark this difference in the extent of their relations.

M. Yirey, in an article of the “ Nouveau Dictionnaire d’Histoire Na-
turelle,” had already discovered a part of the basis of this division, and
principally that which depends on the nervous system.

The particular approximation mutually between the Oviparous Yerte-
brata originated in the curious observations of M. Geoffroy on the com-
position of bony heads ; and from those I have added to them, relative to
the rest of the skeleton and to the muscles.

In the class of Mammalia I have brought back the Solipedes to the
Pachydermata, and have divided the latter into families, in conformity
wiith new views ; the Ruminantia I have placed after the Quadrupeds,
and the Sea-cow near the Cetacea. The arrangement of the Carnaria I
have somewhat altered — the Ouistitiss have been wholly separated from
the Monkeys, and a sort of parallelism between the pouched animals and
other digitated Mammalia indicated; the whole from my own anatomical
researches. All that I have given on the Quadrumana and the Bats is
based on the recent and profound labours of my friend and colleague,
M. Geoffroy de Saint-Hilaire. The researches of my brother, M. Fre-
derick Cuvier, on the teeth of the Carnaria and the Rodentia, have
proved highly useful to me in forming the subgenera of these two orders.
Notwithstanding the genera of the late M. Illiger are but the results of
these same researches, and those of some foreign naturalists, I have
adopted his names whenever my subgenera could be placed in his genera.
I have also adopted M. de Lacepede’s excellent divisions of this descrip-
tion; but the characters of all the divisions and all the indications of
species have been taken from nature, either in the Cabinet of Anatomy, or
the galleries of the Museum.

The same plan was pursued with respect to the Birds. I have exa-
mined with the greatest care and attention more than four thousand indi-
viduals in the Museum; I arranged them agreeably to my views in the
public gallery more than five years ago, and all that is said of this class
has been drawn from that source. Thus, any resemblance which my
subdivisions may bear to some recent descriptions is on my side purely
accidental*.

* [Note added by the Author to this Preface in the Second Edition. — Eng. Ed.]
This observation not having been sufficiently understood abroad, 1 am compelled to
repeat it here, and openly to declare a fact witnessed by thousands in Paris — it is
this, that all the birds in the public gallery of the Museum were named and arranged
according to my system in 1811. Even such of my subdivisions as I had not yet
mimed were marked by particular signs. This is my date. Independently of this,

XXVI

PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION.

Naturalists, I hope, will approve of the numerous subgenera I have
deemed it necessary to establish among the Birds of Prey, Passerinae,
and Shore-Birds; they appear to me to have thrown the greatest light
on genera hitherto involved in much confusion. I have also marked, as
exactly as I could, the correspondence of these subdivisions with the
genera of MM. de Lacepede, Meyer, Wolf, Temminck, and Savigny,
and have referred to each of them all the species of which I could obtain
a very positive knowledge. This fatiguing work will prove of value to
those who may hereafter attempt a true history of Birds. The splendid
works on Ornithology published within a few years, those chiefly of M.
Le Vaillant, which are filled with so many interesting observations, and
those of M. Vieillot, have been of much assistance to me in designating
with precision the species they represent.

The general division of this class remains as I published it in 1798 in
my “ Tableau Elementaire

The general division of Reptiles, by my friend M. Brongniart, I have
thought proper to preserve, but I have prosecuted very extensive and
laborious anatomical investigations to obtain my ulterior subdivisions.
M. Oppel, as I have already stated, has partly taken advantage of these
preparatory labours ; and whenever my genera finally agreed with his, I
have noticed the fact. The work of Daudin, indifferent as it is, has
been useful to me for indications of details ; but the particular divisions I
have made in the genera Monitor and Gecko, are the product of my own
observations on a great number of Reptiles recently brought to the
Museum by Messrs. Peron and Geoffroy.

My labours with regard to the Fishes will probably be found to exceed
those I have bestowed on the other vertebrated animals. Since the pub-
lication of the celebrated work of M. de Lacepede, the accession to our
Museum of a great number of fishes has enabled me to add several sub-
divisions to those of that learned naturalist, to form different combinations
of several species, and to multiply anatomical observations. I have also
had better means of verifying the species of Commerson and of some
other travellers, and on this point I owe much to a review of the drawings
of Commerson and of the dried fishes he brought with him, by M.
Dumeril, which have been but very lately recovered : resources to which
I added those presented to me in the fishes brought by Peron from the
Indian Ocean and Archipelago ; those which I collected in the Mediter-
ranean, and the collections made on the coast of Coromandel by the late

my first volume was printed in the beginning of 1816. Four volumes are not printed
as quickly as a pamphlet of a few pages. I say no more.

* I only mention this, because an amiable naturalist, M. Vieillot, in a recent work,
has attributed to himself the union of the Piece with the Passeres. 1 had published
it in 1798, exactly as I had made my other arrangements, so as to render them pub-
lic, in the Museum, since 1811 and 1812. -

PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION. XXvii

M. Sonnerat, at the Isle of France by M. Mathieu, in the Nile and Red
Sea by M. Geoffroy, &c. I was thus enabled to verify most of the
species of Bloch, Russel, and others, and to have prepared the skeletons
and viscera of nearly all the subgenera, so that this portion of the work
will, I presume, present to icthyologists much that is new.

As to my division of this class, I confess its inconvenience, but I still
think it more natural than any preceding one. When 1 some time ago
published it, I put it forth for what it was worth ; and if any one discovers
a better principle of division, and as conformable to the organization, I
shall hasten to adopt it*.

It is well known that all the works, on the general division of the
Invertebrated animals, are mere modifications of what I proposed in 179.5,
in the earliest of my memoirs; and the time and care I have devoted to
the anatomy of the Mollusca in general, and principally to the know-
ledge of the naked Mollusca, are likewise well known. The determina-
tion of this class, as well as of its divisions and subdivisions, rests on
my observations ; the magnificent work of M. Poli had alone anticipated
me by descriptions and anatomical researches, useful to me it is true, but
confined to bivalves and multivalves only. I have verified all the facts
furnished to me by that skilful anatomist, and I have, I think, marked
with greater accuracy the functions of some organs. I have also endea-
voured to ascertain the animals to which the principal forms of shells
belong, and to arrange the latter from that consideration ; but as to the
ulterior divisions of those shells whose animals resemble each other, I
have examined them only so far as to enable me to describe those admitted
by Messrs, de Lamarck and de Montfort; even the small number of
genera or subgenera which are properly mine, are derived from observa-
tions on the animals. In citing examples I have confined myself to a
certain number of the species of Martini, Chemnitz, Lister, and Soldani,
and that only because the volume in which M. de Lamarck is to treat this
branch, not being yet published, I was compelled to fix the attention of
the reader on specific objects. In the selection and determining of these
species, however, I lay no claim to the same critical accuracy I have em-
ployed for the Vertebrated animals and the naked Mollusca.

The excellent observations of Messrs. Savigny, Lesueur, and Desmarest,
on the compound Ascidia, approximate the latter family of the Mollusca
to certain orders of Zoophytes — a curious relation, and an additional proof
of the impracticability of arranging animals on one single line.

The Annulata (the establishing of which order, although not the name,
belongs de facto to me) have, I think, been extricated from the confusion

* The Second Edition, however, as will be seen in the Second Volume of this
Translation, contains a new arrangement of the class of Fishes, which, though pre-
senting some deficiencies in precision, still possesses the advantage of not breaking
in upon its natural families. — Eng. Ed.

XXViii PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION.

in which they had hitherto been involved among the Mollusca, the Tes-
tacea, and the Zoophytes, and placed in their natural order — even their
genera have been elucidated only by my observations on them, published
in the “ Dictionnaire des Sciences Naturelles,” and elsewhere.

I shall say nothing relative to the three classes contained in the third
volume. M. Latreille, who, with the exception of some anatomical de-
tails, founded on my own observations and those of M. Ramdolir, added
to his text, its sole author, will explain in an advertisement whatever is
particularly deserving of remark in his performance.

As to the Zoophytes, which terminate the animal kingdom, I have
availed myself, for the Echinodermata, of the late work of M. de Lamarck,
and for the Intestinal Worms, of that of M. Rudolphi, entitled Entozoa;
but I have dissected all the genera, some of which have been determined
by me only. Besides this, there is an excellent work of M. Tiedemann
on the anatomy of the Echinodermata that received the prize of the In-
stitute some years ago, and which will shortly appear — it will leave no-
thing to be wished for in the description of these curious animals. The
Corals and the Infusoria, allowing no field for anatomical investigations,
have been briefly disposed of. The new work of M. de Lamarck will
supply my deficiencies*.

With respect to authors, I can only mention here, those who have fur-
nished me with general views, or who were the origin of such in my own
mindj\ There are many others to whom I am indebted for particular
facts, whose names I have carefully quoted wherever I have made use of
them. They will be found in every page of my book. Should I have
omitted to do justice to any, it must be attributed to involuntary forget-
fulness— no property, in my eyes, is more sacred than the conceptions of
the mind, and the custom, too common among naturalists, of disguising
plagiarisms by a change of names, has always appeared to me an un-
doubted crime.

The publication of my Comparative Anatomy will now occupy me with-
out intermission ; the materials are ready, great quantities of preparations
and drawings are finished and arranged; and I shall be careful in divid-
ing the work into parts, each of which will form a whole, so that should
my physical powers prove insufficient for the completion of the whole of
my plan, what I shall have produced will still form integral parts, and the
materials I have collected be ready for the hand of him who may under-
take the continuation of my labours.

Jardin du Roi , 1816.

* I have this moment received, VHistuire des Polypiers coralligenes fiexibles of M.
Lamouroux, which furnishes an excellent supplement to M. Lamarck.

t M- de Blainville has recently published general zoological tables, which I regret
came too late for me to profit by; having appeared when my hook was nearly printed.

PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION.

THE preceding preface exhibits a faithful account of the state in which I
found the history of animals at the time the first edition of this work
was published. During the twelve year3 that have since elapsed, this
science has made immense progress both in the harvests which have been
reaped by numerous travellers, as accomplished as they were intrepid,
who have explored every region of the globe, either by means of the rich
museums formed under the auspices of various governments, or by those
learned and beautiful works in which new species are represented and
described, and in which we feel prompted to catch their mutual relations,
and to contemplate them under every point of view*.

I have endeavoured to avail myself of these discoveries, as far as my
plan permitted, by first studying the innumerable specimens received at
the King’s Cabinet, and comparing them with those which served as the
basis of my first edition, in order to deduce thence new approximations or
new subdivisions, and then by searching in all the books I could procure
for the genera or subgenera established by naturalists, and the descrip-
tion of species by which they have supported these different combina-
tions.

This study of synonymes has become much easier now than it was at
the period of my first edition. Both French and foreign naturalists seem
to have felt the necessity of establishing divisions in those immense
genera, in which such incongruous species were formerly heaped toge-
ther; their groups are now precise and well defined, their descriptions
sufficiently detailed, their figures scrupulously exact even to the most
minute characters, and very frequently of the greatest beauty as specimens
of art. There now remains scarcely any difficulty in fixing the identity
of their species, they had only to establish an understanding about the
nomenclature. Unfortunately that object of care was the one which
they most neglected; the names of the same genera and of the same spe-
cies are multiplied as often as an author speaks of them, and, in conse-
quence of this disagreement, the same chaos will spring up in all its
former confusion, though arising altogether from a different cause.

* See my Discourse before the Institute on the “ Progr£s de l’Histoire Naturelle
depuis la Paix maritime,” published at the commencement of the third volume of
my “ Eloges.”

XXX PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION.

I have used every effort to compare and approximate these redundant
names, and, forgetting even my own petty interest as an author, I have
frequently specified names which had every appearance of being con-
trived merely for the purpose of evading the acknowledgment that they
were borrowed from my decisions. But for the complete execution of
such a work, the very pinnacle of the Animal Kingdom, but which every
day becomes more necessary, — for the discussion of evidence, and for
settling the permanent nomenclature that ought to he adopted upon ade-
quate descriptions and figures — for all this, a period of time would be
required which I have not at my disposal, and which is imperiously de-
manded by other works. It is in the “ History of Fishes,” which, as-
sisted by M. Valenciennes, I have commenced publishing, that I intend
to give an idea of what I think might be effected with respect to all parts
of the science. Here I pretend to furnish only a mere abridgment, in-
deed a simple sketch — happy will I be if I only succeed in rendering it
correct in all its parts.

Various descriptions of a similar kind have been published of some of
the classes, and I have carefully studied them all, in order to perfect my
own. The “Mammalogie” of M. Desmarest, that of M. Lesson, the
“ Treatise on the Teeth of Quadrupeds” of M. Frederick Cuvier, the
English translation of my first edition by Mr. Griffith, enriched by nu-
merous additions chiefly by Hamilton Smith, the new edition of the
“ Manual of Ornithology” of M. Temminck, the “ Ornithological Frag-
ments” of M. Wagler, the “ Description of Reptiles,” by the late Mer-
rem, and the dissertation on the same subject by M. Fitsinger, were
principally useful to me for the Vertebrated animals. The “ History of
the Invertebrated Animals” of M. de Lamarck, and the “ Malacologie”
of M. de Blainville, were also of great use to me for the Mollusca. To
these I have added the new views and facts contained in the numerous
and learned writings of Messrs. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, father and son,
Savigny, Temminck, Lichtenstein, Kuhl, Wilson, Horsfield, Vigors,
Swainson, Gray, Ord, Say, Harlan, Charles Bonaparte, Lamouroux,
Mitchell, Lesueur, and many other able and studious men, whose names
will be carefully mentioned wherever I speak of the subjects they have
described.

The fine collection of engravings which have appeared within the last
twelve years have allowed me to indicate a greater number of species,
nor have I failed to make ample use of the opportunity. I must parti-
cularly acknowledge what I owe on this score to the “ Histoire of Mam-
mifeyes” of MM. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire and Frederick Cuvier, the
“ Coloured Plates” of Messrs. Temminck and Laugier, the “ Gallery of
Birds” of M. Vieillot, the new edition of the “ German Birds” of M*

PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION. XXxi

Nauman, the “Birds of the United States” of Messrs. Wilson, Ord,
and Charles Bonaparte*, the great works of M. Spix and of the Prince
Maximilian de Wied on the animals of Brazil, and to those of M. Ferus-
sac on the Molusca. The plates and zoological descriptions of the tra-
vels of Messrs. Freycinet and Duperrey, given in the first by Messrs.
Qnoy and Gaymard, and in the second by Messrs. Lesson and Garnot,
present, also, many new objects. The same should be said of the ani-
mals of Java, by M. Horsfield. Though, on a smaller scale, new figures
of rare species are to be found in the “ Memoires du Museum,” in the
“ Annales des Sciences Naturelles,” in the different dictionaries of the
natural sciences, in the “ Zoological Illustrations” of M. Swainson, and
in the Zoological Journal published by able naturalists in London. The
Journals of the Lyceum of New York, and of the Academy of Natural
Sciences of Philadelphia, are not less invaluable; but in proportion as
the taste for natural history becomes extended, and the more numerous
the countries in which it is cultivated, the number of its acquisitions in-
crease in geometrical progression, and it becomes more and more difficult
to collect all the writings of naturalists, and to complete the table of their
results; I rely, therefore, on the indulgence of those whose observations
may have escaped me, or whose works I may not have studied with as
much care as would enable me to avail myself of all which they were
capable of affording me.

My celebrated friend and colleague, M. Latreille, as in the first edi-
tion, having consented to take upon himself the important and difficult
subject of the Crustacea, Arachnides, and Insects, will himself point out
the path he has pursued ; so that on these points I need say nothing
more at present.

Jar din du Roi, October, 1828.

* The work of M. Audubon upon the Birds of North America, which surpasses
all others in magnificence, was unknown to me till after the whole of that part which
treats of birds was printed.

I N D E X

SYSTEMATICALLY ARRANGED.

INTRODUCTION.

Nature, 1

Physics, 1

Chemistry, 1

Natural history, 2

Classification of animals, 4

Living beings and organization, 5

Generation, 7

Varieties of living beings, 8
Animals and vegetables, 9

Animal structure, 10
Cellular tissue, muscle, and blood, 1 1
Forces acting on animals, 12
Their functions and organs, 14
Their intellectual functions, 19
' Man, 20
i Instinct, 21

Principles of classification, 22

ANIMAL KINGDOM.

GREAT DIVISIONS.

I. Animalia Vertebrata, 23
II. Mollusca, 24

III. Animalia Articulata, 24

IV. Radiata, 24

FIRST GREAT DIVISION— VERTEBRATA.

CLASSES.

I. Mammalia, 30
II. Birds, 30

III. Reptiles, 30

IV. Fishes, 30

FIRST CLASS— MAMMALIA.

I. Bimana, 35
II. Qajadrumana, 35

III. Carnaria, 35

IV. Marsupialia, 35
V. Rodentia, 35

ORDERS.

VI. Edentata, 35
VII. Paciiydermata, 35
VIII. Ruminantia, 35
IX. Cetacea, 36

GENERA, SUBGENERA, AND OTHER DIVISIONS.

I. BIMANA:

Man, 30

his peculiar conformation, 36

his physical and moral development, 39

his varieties, 42

VOL.

d

xxxiv

INDEX.

II. QUADRUMANA:

I. Genus , Simia, 46

a ^ C Monkeys of the Old
Subgen. 1.^ cJ[nent> 47

Groups of 7 Pithecus, 47
Subgen. ) Hilobates, 49

Cercopithecus, 50
Semnopithecus, 51
Macacus, 52
Inuus, 53
Cynocephalus, 53
Mandrills, 54

a i ~ C Monkeys of the New
Subgen. 2. ^

Sapajous, 55
Groups of 7 Mycetes, 55
Subgen . 3 Ateles, 56

Lagothrix, 57
Cebus, 57
Sajou, 57
Saimiri, 58
Sakis, 58

Sagonins, 58
Pithecia, 58
Brachiurus, 58
Callithrix, 58
Nocthorus, 58

II. Genus , Ouistitis, 59

Subgen. — Hapale, 59

Groups of ) Jacchus, 59
Subgen. ) Midas, 59

III. Genus, Lemur, 60

Subgen. — Makis, 60
Indris, 61
Loris, 61
Galago, 62
Tarsius, 62

III. CARNARIA, 63

Fam. I. Op Carnaria, the Cheiroptera, 64

Gen. 1. Of Cheiroptera — The Verspertilio,64

Subgen. — Pteropus, 64
Cephalotes, 66
Molossus, 66
Dinops, 66
Nyctinomus, 66
Cheiromeles, 67
Thiroptera, 67

Noctilio, 67 ( continued )

INDEX.

XXXV

II. CARNARIA — ( continued ).

Subgen. — Phyllostoma, 67
Vampirus, 67
Glossophaga, 68
Megaderma, 68
Rhinolophus, 68
Nycteris, 69
Rhinopoma, 69
Taphozous, 69
Mormoops, 69
Vespertilio, 69
Plecotus, 70
Nycticees, 71

Gen. 2. Of Cheiroptera — Galeopithecus, 71
Fam. II. Of Carnaria, the Insectivora, 71
Gen. — Erinaceus, 72
Centenes, 73
Cladobates, 74
Sorex, 74
Mygale, 76
Chrysochloris, 76
Talpa, 77
Condylura, 78
Scalops, 78

Fam. III. Of Carnaria, the Carnivora, 79

Tribe 1, Of Carnivora — the Plantigrada, 80
Gen. — Ursus, 80

Procyon, 83
Ailurus, 83
Ictides, 83
Nasua, 84
Meles, 84
Gulo, 85
Ratelus, 85

Tribe 2, Of Carnivora:

1 Subdiv. — Digitigrada, 86

Gen. — Mustela, 86

Subgen. — Putorius, 86
Mustela, 87
Mephitis, 88

2 Subdiv. — Lutra, 89

Gen. — Canis, 90

Subgen. — Canis familiaris, 91
Canis lupus, 91
Canis vulpes, 92
Megalotis, 93
Hyaena, 93
d 2

XXXVI

INDEX.

II T. CARNARIA — (continued).

Gen. — Viverra, 94
Subgen. — Viverra, 94
Genetta, 94
Paradoxurus, 95
Mangusta, or Herpestes, 95
Gen. — Ryzaena, 96

Grossarchus, 96
3 Subdiv. — Gen. — Hyaena, 98
Felis, 99

Tribe 3, Of Carnivora — the Amphibia, 102
Gen. — Phoca, 103
Subgen. — Phoca, 103

Caiocephala, 103
Stenorhyncus,104
Pelagus, 104
Steinmatopus, 104
Macrorhinus, 105
Gen. — Otaries, 105

Trichechus, 106

IV. MARSUPIALIA, 107

1 Subdiv.— -Gen. — Didelphis, 108

Chironectes, 110
Thylacinus, 110
Phascogale, 110
Dasyurus, 110
Perameles, 111

2 Subdiv. — Gen. — Phalangista, 112

Petaurus, 113

3 Subdiv. — Gen. — Hypsiprymnns, 114
A: Subdiv. — Gen. — Macropus, 114

5 Subdiv. — Gen. — Koala, 116

6 Subdiv.— Gen. — Phascolomys, 116

V. RODENTXA, 117

Gen. — Sciurus, 118

Subgen. — Sciurus, 118
Tamia, 119
Guerlinguets, 119
Pteromys, 119
Cheiromys, 120

Gen. — Mus, 120

Subgen. — Arctomys, 120

Spermophilus, 121
Myoxus, 122

Echimys or Loncheres, 123
Hydromys, 123
Capromys, 124
Mus, 124
Gerbillus, 126
Meriones, 127
Cricetus, 127

.INDEX.

Y. R0DENT1A — ( continued ).

Gen. — Arvicola, 128

Groups of Arvicola. — Fiber, 128

Arvicola, 128
Georychus, 129
Otomys, 130
Dipus, 130

Gen.- — Helamys or Pedetes, 131
Spalax, 131
Bathyergus, 132

Geomys, or Pseudostoma, or Ascomys, 132

Diplostoma, 132

Castor, 133

Myopotamus, 134

Hystrix, 134

Subgen. of Hystrix.— Hystrix, 135

Atherubus, 135
Eretison, 135
Synetheres, 135

Gen. — Lepus, 136

Subgen. — Lepus, 136

Lagomys, 137
Gen. — Hydrochoerus, 138

Cavia or Ancema, 138
Subgen. — Kerodon, 139
Gen. — Chloromys or Dasyprocta, 139
Ccelogenys, 139

VI. EDENTATA, 140

Tribe 1, Tardigrada, 140

Gen. — Bradypus, 141
Acheus, 141
Cholaepus, 142
Megatherium, 142
Megalonyx, 143

Tribe 2, Edentata Ordinaria, 143
Gen. — Dasypus, 143

Subgen. — Cachichamus, 143
Apara, 144
Encoubertus, 144
Cabassous, 145
Priodontes, 145
Clamyphorus, 145
Gen. — Orycteropus, 146

Myrmecophaga, 146

Manis, 147

Tribe 3, Monotremata, 148

Gen. — Echidna or Tachyglossus, 148

Ornithorhynchus or Platypus, 149

xxxvii

XXV111

INDEX.

VII. PACHYDERMATA, 150

Fam. I. Proboscidiana, 150
Gen. — Elephas, 151
Mastodon, 153

Fam. II. Pachydermata Ordinaria, 154
Gen. — Hippopotamus, 154
Sus, 154

Subgen. — Phacochaerus, 155
Dicotyles, 156
Gen. — Anaplotherium, 156
Rhinoceros, 157
Hyrax, 158
Palaeotherium, 158
Lophiodon, 159
Tapir, 159

Fam. III. Solipedes, 160

Gen. — Equus, 160

VIII. RUMINANTIA, 162

Without Horns .

Gen. — Camelus, 164

Subgen. — Camelus, 164
Auchenia, 165

With Horns.

Gen. — Moschus, 165
Cervus, 167
Camelopardalis, 170
Antilope, 171

Subgen. of Antilope. — Colus, 172

Damalis, 172
Reduncae, 173

Gen. — Capra, 176 Oryx, 173

Ovis, 177
Bos, 179

IX. CETACEA, 181

Fam. I. Herbivorous Whales, 182
Gen.‘ — Manatus, 182

Halicore or Dugong, 182
Stellerus, 183

Fam. II. Ordinary Whales, 183
Tribe 1, Delphinus, 184

Gen. — Delphinus, 184

Subgen. — Delphinus, 184

Delphinorhynchus, 185
Phocaena, 186
Delphinapterus, 187
Hyperoodon, 187
Gen. — Monodon, 188
Physeter, 188

Subgen. of Phy-i physeter> lgo

Gen. — Balasna, 190

Subgen. — Balaena, 190

Balaenoptera, 192

INDEX,

XXXIX

SECOND CLASS.— BIRDS.

OVIPAROUS VERTEBRATA IN GENERAL, 197
BIRDS, 202

ORDERS OF THE CLASS OF BIRDS.

I. Accipitres, 207
II. Passerine, 207
III. ScANSORI/E, 207

IV. Gallinacea:, 207
V. Grallatorle, 207
VI. Palmipedes, 207

GENERA, SUBGENERA, AND OTHER DIVISIONS.

I. ACCIPITRES:

Gen. I. — Vultur, 208

Subgen. — Vultur, 209

Cathartes, or Gallinazas, or Catharistes, 210
Percnopterus, Gypaetos, or Neophron, 210
Gypaetos or Phene, 211

Gen. II. — Falco, 212

Sect. 1. — Noble Birds of Prey.

Falco, 212
Hierofalco, 214

Sect. 2. — Of the Gen. Falco. — Aquila, 215

Ignoble Birds of Prey.

Subgen. — Aquila, 215

Halisetus, 216
Pandion, 217
Circaetus, 217
Harpyia, 218
Morphnus, 219

Gen. — Astur, 220

Subgen. — Astur, 220
Nisus, 221

Gen. — Milvus, 221

Subgen. — Milvus, 222]
Pernis, 222

Gen. — Buteo, 223
Circus, 224

Serpentarius or Gypoeranus, 225

Nocturnal Birds of Prey.

Gen. — Strix, 225

Subgen. — Otus, 226
Ulula, 226
Strix, 227
Syrnium, 227
Bubo, 227
Noctua, 228
Scops, 229

INDEX.

x\

II. PASSERINE, 230

Division I, of Passerinre, in which the external Toe is united to
the inner one by a single 'phalanx or two.

Fam. I. — Dentirostres, 231
Gen. — -Lanius, 231

Subgen. — Lanius, 231
Vanga, 233
Ocypterus, 233
Barita, 234
Chalybaeus, 234
Psaris, 234
Graucalus, 235
Bethylus, 235
Falcunculus, 235
Pardalotus, 235
Gen. — Muscicapa, 236

Subgen. — Tyrannus, 236
Muscipeta, 236
Muscicapa, 237
Gymnocephalus, 239
Cephalopterus, 239

Gen. — Ampelis, 239

Subgen. — Ampelis, 239
Tersina, 240
Ceblepyris, 240
Bombycilla, 240
Gen. — Procnias, 241

Subgen. — Procnias, 241

Casmarhynchos, 241
Gymnoderus, 241

Gen. — Edolius, 241

Subgen. — Phibalura, 242
Gen. — Tanagra, 242

Subgen. — Bullfinch Tanagers, 242
Grossbeak Tanagers, 242
Tanagers proper, 242
Oriole Tanagers, 243
Cardinal Tanagers, 243
Ramphoceline Tanagers, 243

Gen. — Turdus, 243

Subgen.- — Turdus, 243
Grives, 244
Lamprotornis, 246
Turdoides, 246
Enicures, 246
Grallines, 246
Criniger, 246
Gen.- — Myothera, 246

Subgen. — Orthonyx, 247

INDEX.

xli

II. PASS ERIN M — {continued).

Gen. — Cinclus, 248
Philedon, 248
Eulabes, 249
Gracula, 249

Subgen. of Gracula. — Manorhina, 250
Gen. — Pyrrhocorax, 251
Oriolus, 251
Gymnops, 251
Msenura, 252
Motacilla, 252

Subgen. of Motacilla. — Saxicola, 252
Sylvia, 253
Curruca, 254
Accentor, 256
Regulus, 257
Troglodytes, 257
Motacilla, 258
Budytes, 258

Gen. — Anthus, 258
Pipra, 259

Subgen. — Rupicola, 259

Calyptomenes, 259
Pipra, 260

Gen. — Eurylaimus, 260
Fam. 11. — Fissirostres, 260

Diurnal Birds.

Gen. — Hirundo, 26 1

Subgen. — Cypselus, 261
Hirundo, 261
Nocturnal Birds.

Gen. — Caprymulgus, 262

Subgen. — Podargus, 263

Fam. 111. — Conirostres, 264

Gen. — Alauda, 264
Parus, 265
Subgen. of, Rem;

Farus. 3

Gen. — Emberiza, 266
Fringilla, 268
Subgen . of 1 Ploceus, 268
Fringilla. S Pyrgita, 269
Fringilla, 270
Carduelis, 270
Linaria, 270
Vidua, 272
Coccothraustes, 272
Pitylus, 273
Pyrrhula, 273

xlii INDEX.

II. PASSERINiE — {continued).

Gen. — Loxia, 273

Corythus, 274
Colius, 274
Buphaga, 274
Cassicus, 275

Subgen. of Cassicus. — Cassicus, 275
Icterus, 275
Xanthornus, 275
Oxyrhyncus, 276
Dacnis, 276

Gen. — Sturnus, 276
Corvus, 277

Subgen. of Corvus. — Pica, 278

Garrulus, 278
Caryocatactes, 279
Temia, 279
Glaucopis, 279

Gen. — Coracias, 280

Subgen. — Coracias, 280
Colaris, 280

Gen. — Paradisaea, 280

Fam. IV. Tenuirostres, 282

Gen. — Sitta, 282

Subgen. — Xenops, 283
Anabates, 283
Synallaxis, 283

Gen. — Certhia, 283

Subgen. — Certhia, 283

Dendrocolaptes, 284
Ticliodroma, 284
Nectarinia, 284
Dicaeum, 285
Melithreptus, 285
Cinnyris, 285
Arachnothera, 286

Gen. — Trochilus, 286

Subgen. — Trochilus, 286

Orthorhynchus, 287

Gen. — Upupa, 288

Subgen. — Fregilus, 288
Upupa, 289
Promerops, 289
Epimachus, 289

INDEX.

xliv

II. PASSERINJE — (continued).

Division II, of the Passerince , in which the external Toe ,
nearly as long as the middle one , is united to it as far as
the penultimate articulations.

Syndactylse, 290

Gen. — Merops, 290
Prionites, 291
Alcedo, 291
Ceyx, 292
Todus, 292
Buceros, 293

III. SCANSORLE,

Gen. — Galbula, 294
Picus, 295
Yunx, 297
Cuculus, 297

Subgen. of Cuculus. — Cuculus, 298
Couas, 298
Centropus, 299
Courols, 299
Indicator, 299
Barbacous, 299

Gen. — Malcoha, 300
Scythrops, 300
Bucco, 300

Subqen. of Bucco. — Pogonias, 300
Bucco, 300
Tamatia, 301

Gen. — Trogon, 301

Crotophaga, 302
Ramphastos, 302

Subgen. of Ramphastos. — Ramphastos, 302
Pteroglossus, 303

Gen. — Psittacus, 303

Subgen . — Ara, 303

Cornurus, 303
Ara Paroquets, 803
Arrow-tailed Paroquets, 304
Paroquets, with a tail widened
near the end, 304
Cockatoos, 304
Loris, 306
Psittaculus, 305
Paroquets a trompe, 306
Pezoporus, 306

Gen. — Corythaix, 306
Musophaga, 307

NDEX.

xliv

IV. GALLlNACEiE, 307

Gen. — Alector, 308

Subgen. — Alector, 308
Ourax, 308
Penelope, 309
Ortalida, 309
Opistliocomus, 310

Gen. — Pavo, 310

Subgen. — Lophophorus,, 311

Gen. — Meleagris, 311

Subgen. — Numida, 312

Gen. — Phasianus, 312

Subgen. of Phasianus. — Gallus, 312

Phasianus, 312
Houppiferes, 314
Tragopan, 314
Cryptonyx, 314

Gen. — Tetrao, 315

Subgen. — Tetrao, 315
Lagopus, 316
Pterocles, 317
Perdix, 317

Divisions of 1 Francolinus, 317
Perdix j Perdix, 318

Coturnix, 318
Colins, 319

Gen. — Tridactyles or Hemipodius, 319
Subgen. — Y'urnix, 319

Syrrhaptes, 319

Gen. — Tinaraus, Crypturus or Ynambus, 320
Subgen. — Pezus, 320

Tinamoos, 320
Rynchotus, 320

Gen. — Columba, 320

Subgen. — Columbi-gallines, 321
Columbae,' 321
Vinago, 323

V. GRALLATORIiE, 323

Fam. I. Brevipennes, 324
Gen. — Strutliio, 324
Casuarius, 325

Fam. II. Pressirostres, 326
Gen. — Otis, 327

Charadrius, 327

Subgen. of Charadrius. — CEdicnemus, 327
Charadrius, 328

Gen. — Vanellus, 329

Subgen. — Vanellus, 329

INDEX.

xlv

V. GRALLATORLE — {continued).

Gen. — Hematopus, 330

Cursorius or Tachydromus, 330
Cariama, Microdactylus, orDicholophus, 331

Fam. III. Cultirostres, 331

Tribe 1.— Grus, 332

Gen. — Grus, 332

Subgen. — Psophia, 332
Grus, 333
Eurypyga, 333

Tribe 2. —

Gen. — Cancroma, 334
Ardea, 334
Crab-eaters, 335
Onores, 335
Egrets, 335
Bitterns, 335
Night-herons, 336

Tribe 3. —

Gen. — Ciconia, 336

Subgen.- — Bare-necked Storks,
337

Pouched Storks, 337
Gen. — Mycteria, 337
Scopus, 338

Hians or Anastomus, 338
Subgen. — Dromas, 338
Gen. — Tantalus, 338
Platalea, 339

Fam. IV. Longirostres, 340

Gen. — Scolopax, 340

Subgen. — Ibis, 340

Numenius, 341
Scolopax, 342
Rhyncliasa, 343
Limosa, 344
Calidris, 344
Arenaria, 345
Pelidna, 345
Cocorli, 345
Falcinellus, 346
Machetes, 346
Eurinorhynchus, 346
Phalaropus, 347
Strepsilas, 347
Totanus, 347
Lobipes, 349
llimantopus, 349
Gen. — Recurvirostra, 350

xlvi

INDEX.

Y. GRALLATORIiE — ( continued ).
Fam. Y. Macrodactyli:

Gen. — Jacanas, 351

Palamedea, 352
Chauna, 352
Megapodius, 352
Rallus, 353
Fulica, 354
Sub gen. of Fulica.

Gen. — Phaenicopterus, 356
VI. PALMIPEDES, 357

Fam. I. BrACHYPTERjE:

Gen. — Colymbus :

Subgen. — Podiceps, 358
Heliornis, 358
Mergus, 359
Uria, 359
Cephus, 360

Gen. — Alca, 360

Subgen. — Fractercula, 360
Alca, 361

Gen. — Aptenodytes, 361

Subgen. — Aptenodytes, 361
Catarrhactes, 362
Spheniscus, 362

Fam. II. Longipennes, 362

Gen. — Procellaria, 363

Subgen. — Puffinus, 364

Pelecanoides or Halodroma, 364
Pachyptila, 364

Gen. — Diomedea, 364
Larus, 365

Subgen. of Larus. — Goelands, 365
Mouettes, 366
Lestris, 366

Gen. — Sterna, 367

Subgen .- — Noddies, 368

Gen.- — Rhynchops, 368

Fam. III. Topip almat^ :

Gera.— Pelecanus, 369

Subgen. — Pelecanus, 369

Phalacrocorax, 369
Tachypetes, 370
Sula, 370

Gen. — Plotus, 371
Phaeton, 371

— Gallinula, 354
Porphyrio, 354
Fulica, 355
Chionis or Vaginalis,
355

Glareola, 355

INDEX

xlvii

VI. PALMIPEDES — ( continued ).

Fam. IV. Lamellirostres.

Gen. — Anas, 372

Subyen. — Cygnus, 372
Anser, 373
Barnacles, 374
Cereopsis, 374^
Anas, 374
Oidemia, 375
Clangula, 375
Somateria, 376
Fuligula, 376
Rhynchapsis, 377
Tadorna, 378

Gen. — Mergus, 379

CORRIGENDA.

In addition to the errors of haste of Cuvier, which we have noticed in
the particular pages where they occur, there are others which we shall
now point out.

Page

234. By some unaccountable mistake, the Psaris Cuvieri of Swainson is confounded

with the Pachy. semifasciatus of Spix. The first is as big as a sparrow,
olive-green, with a yellow breast; the second is as big as a thrush, cream-
coloured white, with black wings, tail, and crown.

235. for Sphecothere, read Sphecotherws.

238. for Sternura, read Stenura.

— for Tardus volitans, read aurocapillus.

240. for Merrerm'c, read Merrern., Ic.

249. for Cridotheres, read ^cridotheres.

— • note N.B. The genera Anthrocbcera and Myzomela, are not Swainson’s, but those
of Messrs. Horsfield and Vigors.

252. note N.B. The Oroolus regens is the Melliphaga chrysocephala (not regia ) of
Lewin, and the fyc.

— The genus Tropedorhynchus is not Swainson’s, but that of Horsfield and

Vigors.

275. The Or. agripennis has been already noticed at p. 268 (under its original name
of Emb. oryzevora), as the type of the genus Dolichonyx, Swainson.

284. note N.B. The genus Dasyornis is of Horsfield and Vigors; the rest following
are Swainson’s.

The genera Peristera and Estopestes , among the Pigeons, are Swainson’s.

INTRODUCTION.

As correct ideas respecting natural history are not very generally formed,
it appears necessary to begin by defining its peculiar object, and establish-
ing rigorous limits between it and neighbouring sciences.

In our language, and in most others, the word nature is variously em-
ployed. At one time it is used to express the qualities a being derives
from birth, in opposition to those it may owe to art ; at another, the entire
mass of beings which compose the universe; and at a third, the laws
which'1 govern those beings. It is in this latter sense particularly that we
usually personify nature, and, through respect, use its name for that of its
Creator.

Physics, or Natural Philosophy, treats of the nature of these three re-
lations, and is either general or particular. General physics examines
abstractedly each of the properties of those moveable and extended beings
we call bodies. That branch of them styled Dynamics, considers bodies
in mass ; and, proceeding from a very small number of experiments, de-
termines mathematically the laws of equilibrium, and those of motion and
of its communication. Its different divisions are termed Statics, Hydro-
statics, Hydrodynamics, Mechanics, &c. &c., according to the nature of
the particular bodies whose motions it examines. Optics considers the
particular motions of light, whose phenomena, which hitherto nothing but
experiment has been able to determine, are becoming more numerous.

Chemistry, another branch of general physics, exposes the laws by which
the elementary molecules of bodies act on each other; the combinations
or separations which result from the general tendency of these molecules
to re -unite ; and the modifications which the various circumstances capable
of separating or approximating them produce on that tendency. It is
purely a science of experiment, and is irreducible to calculation.

The theory of heat and that of electricity belong either to dynamics or
chemistry, according to the point of view in which they are considered.

VOL. i.

A

2

INTRODUCTION.

The ruling method in all the branches of general physics consists in
isolating bodies, reducing them to their greatest simplicity, in bringing
each of their properties separately into action, either by reflection or ex-
periment, and by observing or calculating the results ; and finally, in gene-
ralising and connecting the laws of these properties, so as to form codes,
and, if it were possible, to refer them to one single principle into which
they might all be resolved.

The object of Particular Physics , or of Natural History — for the terms
are synonymous — is, the special application of the laws recognised by the
various branches of general physics to the numerous and varied beings
which exist in nature, in order to explain the phenomena which each of
them presents.

Within this extensive range, Astronomy also would be included; but
that science, sufficiently elucidated by mechanics, and completely sub-
jected to its laws, employs methods, differing too widely from those re-
quired by natural history, to permit it to be cultivated by the students of
the latter.

Natural history, then, is confined to objects which do not allow of exact
calculation, nor of precise measurement in all their parts. Meteorology
also is subtracted from it and united to general physics ; so that, properly
speaking, it considers only inanimate bodies called minerals, and the dif-
ferent kinds of living beings, in all of which we may observe the effects,
more or less various, of the laws of motion and chemical attraction, and of
all the other causes analysed by general physics.

Natural history, in strictness, should employ similar methods with the
general sciences; and it does so, in fact, whenever the objects it examines
are sufficiently simple to allow it. This, however, is but very rarely the
case.

An essential difference between the general sciences and natural history
is, that, in the former, phenomena are examined, whose conditions are all
regulated by the examiner, in order, by their analysis, to arrive at general
laws ; whereas, in the latter, they take place under circumstances beyond
the control of him who studies them for the purpose of discovering, amid
the complication, the effects of known general laws. He is not, like the
experimenter, allowed to subtract them successively from each condition,
and to’ reduce the problem to its elements — he is compelled to take it in
its entireness, with all its conditions at once, and can perform the analysis
only in thought. Suppose, for example, we attempt to insulate the nu-
merous phenomena which compose the life of any of the higher orders of
animals ; a single one being suppressed, every vestige of life is annihi-
lated.

Dynamics have thus nearly become a science of pure calculation; che-

INTRODUCTION. 3

mistry is still a science of pure experiment ; and natural history, in a great
number of its branches, will long remain one of pure observation.

These three terms sufficiently designate the methods employed in the
three branches of the natural sciences ; hut in establishing between them
very different degrees of certitude, they indicate, at the same time, the
point to which they should incessantly tend, in order to attain nearer and
nearer to perfection.

Calculation, if we may so express it, thus commands nature, and deter-
mines her phenomena more exactly than observation can make them
known ; experiment compels her to unveil ; while observation pries into
her secrets when refractory, and endeavours to surprise her.

There is, however, a principle peculiar to natural history, which it uses
with advantage on many occasions ; it is that of the conditions of existence ,
commonly styled final causes. As nothing can exist without the re-union
of those conditions which render its existence possible, the component
parts of each being must be so arranged as to render possible the whole
being, not only with regard to itself but to its surrounding relations. The
analysis of these conditions frequently conducts us to general laws, as cer-
tain as those that are derived from calculation or experiment.

It is only when all the laws of general physics and those which result
from the conditions of existence are exhausted, that we are reduced to the
simple laws of observation.

The most effectual method of obtaining these, is that of comparison.
This consists in successively observing the same bodies in the different
positions in which nature places them, or in a mutual comparison of dif-
ferent bodies ; until we have ascertained invariable relations between their
structures and the phenomena they exhibit. These various bodies are
kinds of experiments ready prepared by nature, who adds to or deducts
from each of them different parts, just as we might wish to do in our labo-
ratories ; shewing us, herself, at the same time their various results.

In this way we finally succeed in establishing certain laws by which
these relations are governed, and which are employed like those that are
determined by the general sciences.

The incorporation of these laws of observation with the general laws,
either directly or by the principle of the conditions of existence, would
complete the system of the natural sciences, in rendering sensible in all
its parts the mutual influence of every being. To this end, should those
who cultivate these sciences direct all their efforts.

All researches of this nature, however, pre -suppose means of distin-
guishing clearly, and causing others to distinguish, the bodies they are
occupied with; otherwise we should be continually confounding them.
Natural history then should be based on what is called a system of nature —

a 2

4

INTRODUCTION.

or, a great catalogue, in which all created beings have suitable names, may
be recognised by distinctive characters, and be arranged in divisions and
subdivisions, themselves named and characterised, in which they may be
found.

In order that each being may be recognised in this catalogue, it must
be accompanied by its character : habits or properties, which are but mo-
mentary, cannot, then, furnish characters— -they must be drawn from the
conformation.

There is scarcely a single being which has a simple character, or can be
recognised by one single feature of its conformation ; a union of several of
these traits are almost always required to distinguish one being from those
that surround it, who also have some but not all of them, or who have them
combined with others of which the first is destitute. The more numerous
the beings to be distinguished, the greater should be the number of traits ;
so that to distinguish an individual being from all others, a complete de-
scription of it should enter into its character.

It is to avoid this inconvenience, that divisions and subdivisions have
been invented. A certain number only of neighbouring beings are com-
pared with each other, and their characters need only to express their dif-
ferences, which, by the supposition itself, are the least part of their con-
formation. Such a re-union is termed a genus.

The same inconvenience would be experienced in distinguishing genera
from each other, were it not for the repetition of the operation in uniting
the adjoining genera, so as to form an order , the orders to form a class , &c.
Intermediate subdivisions may also be established.

This scaffolding of divisions, the superior of which contain the inferior,
is called a method. It is in some respects a sort of dictionary, in which
we proceed from the properties of things to arrive at their names ; being
the reverse of the common ones, in which we proceed from the name to
arrive at the property.

When the method is good, it does more than teach us names. If the
subdivisions have not been established arbitrarily, but are based on the true
fundamental relations, on the essential resemblances of beings, the method
is the surest means of reducing the properties of beings to general rules, of
expressing them in the fewest words, and of stamping them on the memory.

To render it such, we employ an assiduous comparison of beings, di-
rected by the principle of the subordination of characters, which is itself
derived from that of the conditions of existence. The parts of a being pos-
sessing a mutual adaptation, some traits of character exclude others, while,
on the contrary, there are others that require them. When, therefore, we
perceive such or such traits in a being, we can calculate before hand those
that co-exist in it, or those that are incompatible with them. The parts,

INTRODUCTION.

5

the properties, or the traits of conformation, which have the greatest num-
ber of these relations of incompatibility or of co-existence with others, or,
in other words, that exercise the most marked influence upon the whole of
the being, are called the important characters , dominating characters; the
others are the subordinate characters, all varying in degree.

This influence of characters is sometimes determined rationally, by the
consideration of the nature of the organ. When this is impracticable, we
have recourse to simple observation ; and a sure mark by which we may
recognise the important characters, and one which is drawn from their own
nature, is their superior constancy, and that in a long series of different
beings, approximated according to their degrees of similitude, these cha-
racters are the last to vary. That they should be preferred for distin-
guishing the great divisions, and that, in proportion as we descend to the
inferior subdivisions, we can also descend to subordinate and variable char-
acters, is a rule resulting equally from their influence and constancy.

There can be but one perfect method, which is the natural method. We
thus name an arrangement in which beings of the same genus are placed
nearer to each other than to those of the other genera; the genera of the
same order nearer than those of the other orders, &c. &c. This method
is the ideal to which natural history should tend ; for it is evident that if
we can reach it, we shall have the exact and complete expression of all
nature. In fact, each being is determined by its resemblance to others,
and difference from them ; and all these relations would be fully given by
the arrangement in question. In a word, the natural method would be
the whole science, and every step towards it tends to advance the science
to perfection.

Life being the most important of all the properties of beings, and the
highest of all characters, it is not surprising that it has in all ages been
made the most general principle of distinction; and that natural beings
have always been separated into two immense divisions, the living and the
inanimate.

Of Living Beings , and Organization in general.

If, in order to obtain a correct idea of the essence of life, we consider it
in those beings in which its effects are the most simple, we quickly perceive
that it consists in the faculty possessed by certain corporeal combinations,
of continuing for a time and under a determinate form, by constantly at-
tracting into their composition a part of surrounding substances, and ren-
dering to. the elements portions of their own.

Life then is a vortex, more or less rapid, more or less complicated, the
direction of which is invariable, and which always carries along molecules of
similar kinds, but into which individual molecules are continually entering,

6

INTRODUCTION.

and from whicli they are continually departing ; so that the form of a living
body is more essential to it than its matter.

As long as this motion subsists, the body in which it takes place is
living — it lives. When it finally ceases, it dies. After death, the ele-
ments which compose it, abandoned to the ordinary chemical affinities,
soon separate, from which, more or less quickly, results the dissolution of
the once living body. It was then by the vital motion that its dissolution
was arrested, and its elements were held in a temporary union.

All living bodies die after a certain period, whose extreme limit is fixed
for each species, and death appears to be a necessary consequence of life,
which, by its own action, insensibly alters the structure of the body, so as
to render its continuance impossible.

In fact, the living body undergoes gradual, but continual changes, dur-
ing the whole term of its existence. At first, it increases in dimensions, ac-
cording to proportions, and within limits, fixed for each species and for each
one of its parts ; it then augments in density in the most of its parts — it is
this second kind of change that appears to be the cause of natural death.

If we examine the various living bodies more closely, we find they pos-
sess a common structure, which a little reflection soon causes us to per-
ceive is essential to a vortex, such as the vital motion.

Solids, it is plain, are necessary to these bodies, for the maintenance of
their forms ; and fluids for the conservation of motion in them. Their
tissue, accordingly, is composed of network and plates, or of fibres and so-
lid laminae, within whose interstices are contained the fluids ; it is in these
fluids that the motion is most continued and extended. Foreign substan-
ces penetrate the body and unite with them ; they nourish the solids by
the interposition of their molecules, and also detach from them those that
are superfluous. It is in a liquid or gaseous form that the matters to be
exhaled traverse the pores of the living body ; but in return, it is the so-
lids which contain the fluids, and by their contraction communicate to them
part of their motion.

This mutual action of the fluids and solids, this transition of molecules,
required considerable affinity in their chemical composition; and such is
the fact — the solids of organized bodies being mostly composed of ele-
ments easily convertible into fluids or gases.

The motion of the fluids needing also a constantly repeated action on
the parts of the solids, and communicating one to them, required in the
latter both flexibility and dilatibility ; and accordingly we find this charac-
ter nearly general in all organized solids.

This structure, common to all living bodies ; this areolar tissue, whose
more or less flexible fibres or laminae intercept fluids more or less abund-
ant; constitutes what is called the organization. As a consequence of

INTRODUCTION. 7

what we have said, it follows, that life can be enjoyed by organized bodies
only.

Organization, then, results from a great variety of arrangements, which
are all conditions of life ; and it is easy to conceive, that if its effect be to
alter either of these conditions, so as to arrest even one of the partial mo-
tions of which it is composed, the general movement of life must cease.

Every organized body, independently of the qualities common to its tis-
sue, has a form peculiar to itself, not merely general and external, but ex-
tending to the detail of the structure of each of its parts ; and it is upon
this form, which determines the particular direction of each of the partial
movements that take place in it, that depends the complication of the ge-
neral movement of its life — it constitutes its species and renders it what it

is. Each part co-operates in this general movement by a peculiar action,
and experiences from it particular effects, so that in every being life is a
whole, resulting from the mutual action and re-action of all its parts.

Life, then, in general, pre-supposes organization in general, and the life
proper to each individual being pre-supposes an organization peculiar to
that being, just as the movement of a clock pre-supposes the clock; and
accordingly we behold life only in beings that are organized and formed to
enjoy it, and all the efforts of philosophy have never been able to discover
matter in the act of organization, neither per se, nor by any external
cause. In fact, life exercising upon the elements which at every moment
form part of the living body, and upon those which it attracts to it, an ac-
tion contrary to that which, without it, would be produced by the usual che-
mical affinities, it seems impossible that it can be produced by these affini-
ties, and yet we know of no other power in nature capable of re-uniting
previously separated molecules.

The birth of organized beings is, therefore, the greatest mystery of the
organic economy and of all nature : we see them developed, but never be-
ing formed ; nay more, all those whose origin we can trace, have at first
been attached to a body similar in form to their own, but which was deve-
loped before them — in a word, to a parent. So long as the offspring has
no independent existence, but participates in that of its parent, it is called
a germ.

The place to which the germ is attached, and the cause which detaches

it, and gives it an independent life, vary ; but this primitive adhesion to a
similar being is a rule without exception. The separation of the germ is
called generation.

Every organized being reproduces others that are similar to itself, other-
wise, death being a necessary consequence of life, the species would be-
come extinct.

Organized beings have even the faculty of reproducing, in degrees vary-

INTRODUCTION.

8

ing with the species, particular parts of which they may have been de-
prived— this is called the power of reproduction .

The developement of organized beings is more or less rapid, and more
or less extended, as circumstances are more or less favourable. Heat, the
abundance and species of nutriment, with other causes, exercise great in-
fluence, and this influence may extend to the whole body in general, or to
certain organs in particular : thence arises the impossibility of a perfect
similitude between the offspring and parent.

Differences of this kind, between organized beings, form what are termed
varieties.

There is no proof, that all the differences, which now distinguish or-
ganized beings, are such as may have been produced by circumstances.
All that has been advanced upon this subject is hypothetical. Experi-
ence, on the contrary, appears to prove, that, in the actual state of the
globe, varieties are confined within rather narrow limits, and go back as
far as we may, we still find those limits the same.

We are thus compelled to admit of certain forms, which, from the origin
of things, have perpetuated themselves without exceeding these limits, and
every being appertaining to one or other of these forms constitutes what
is termed a species. Varieties are accidental subdivisions of species.

Generation being the only means of ascertaining the limits to which va-
rieties may extend, species should be defined — the re-union of individuals
descended one from the other , or from common parents , or from such as
resemble them as strongly as they resemble each other. But although
this definition is strict, it will be seen that its application to particular in-
dividuals may be very difficult, where the necessary experiments have not
been made.

Thus then it stands — absorption, assimilation, exhalation, developement,
and generation, are functions common to all living bodies ; birth and death
the universal limits of their existence ; an areolar, contractile tissue, con-
taining within its laminae fluids or gases in motion, the general essence of
its structure ; substances, almost all susceptible of conversion into fluids or
gases, and combinations capable of an easy and mutual transformation, the
basis of their chemical composition. Fixed forms that are perpetuated by
generation distinguish their species, determine the complication of the se-
condary functions proper to each of them, and assign to them the parts
they are to play on the great stage of the universe. These forms are nei-
ther produced nor changed by their own agency — life supposes their exist-
ence, its flame can only be kindled in an organization already prepared,
and the most profound meditation and lynx-eyed and delicate observation
can penetrate no farther than the mystery of the pre-existence of germs.

INTRODUCTION.

9

Division of Organized Beings into Animals and Vegetables.

Living or organized beings have always been subdivided into animate
beings , that is, such as are possessed of sense and motion ; and into inani-
mate beings , which are deprived of both these faculties, and are reduced
to the simple faculty of vegetating. Although the leaves of several plants
shrink from the touch, and the roots are steadily directed towards mois-
ture, the leaves to light and air, and though parts of vegetables appear to
oscillate without any apparent external cause, still these various motions
have too little similarity to those of animals, to enable us to find in them
any proofs of perception or will.

The spontaneity in the motions of animals required essential modifications
even in their purely vegetative organs. Their roots not penetrating the
earth, it was necessary they should be able to place within themselves a
supply of aliment, and to carry its reservoir along with them. Hence is
derived the first character of animals, or their alimentary canal, from which
their nutritive fluid penetrates all other parts through pores or vessels,
which are a kind of internal roots.

The organization of this cavity and its appurtenances required varying,
according to the nature of the aliment, and the operation it had to under-
go, before it could furnish juices fit for absorption; whilst the air and
earth present to vegetables nought but elaborated juices ready for ab-
sorption.

The animal, wdiose functions are more numerous and varied than those
of the plant, consequently necessitated an organization much more com-
plete ; besides this, its parts not being capable of preserving one fixed re-
lative position, there were no means by which external causes could pro-
duce the motion of their fluids, which required an exemption from, atmos-
pheric influence ; from this originates the second character of animals —
their circulating system , one less essential than that of digestion, since in
the more simple animals it is unnecessary. The animal functions required
organic systems not needed by vegetables — that of the muscles for volun-
tary motion, and nerves for sensibility ; and these two systems, like the
rest, acting only through the motions and transformations of the fluids, it
was necessary that these should be most numerous in animals, and that the
chemical composition of the animal body be more complex than that of the
plant ; and so it is, for one substance more (azote) enters into it as an es-
sential element, whilst in plants it is a mere accidental junction with the
three other general elements of organization — oxygen, hydrogen, and car-
bon. This then is the third character of animals.

From the sun and atmosphere, vegetables receive for their nutrition,
water, which is composed of oxygen and hydrogen ; air, which contains

10

INTRODUCTION.

oxygen and azote ; and carbonic acid, which is a combination of oxygen
and carbon. To extract their own composition from these aliments, it was
necessary they should retain the hydrogen and carbon, exhale the super-
fluous oxygen, and absorb little or no azote. Such, in fact, is vegetable
life, whose essential function is the exhalation of oxygen, which is effected
through the agency of light.

Animals also derive nourishment, directly or indirectly, from the vege-
table itself, in which hydrogen and carbon form the principal parts. To
assimilate them to their own composition, they must get rid of the su-
perabundant hydrogen and carbon in particular, and accumulate more
azote, which is performed through the medium of respiration, by which
the oxygen of the atmosphere combines with the hydrogen and carbon ot
their blood, and is exhaled with them in the form of water and carbonic
acid. The azote, whatever part of the body it may penetrate, seems al-
ways to remain there.

The relations of vegetables and animals to the surrounding atmosphere
are therefore in an inverse ratio — the former reject water and carbonic acid,
while the latter produce them. The essential function of the animal
body is respiration, it is that which in a manner animalizes it, and we
shall see that the animal functions are the more completely exercised in
proportion to the greatness of the powers of respiration possessed by the
animal. This difference of relations constitutes the fourth character of
animals.

Of the Forms 'peculiar to the Organic Elements of the Animal Body , and
of the principal Combinations of its Chemical Elements.

An areolar tissue and three chemical elements are essential to every
living body ; there is a fourth element peculiarly requisite to that of an
animal ; but this tissue is composed of variously formed meshes, and these
elements are variously combined.

There are three kinds of organic materials or forms of texture — the cel-
lular membrane , the muscular fibre, and the medullary matter; and to
each form belongs a peculiar combination of chemical elements, as well
as a particular function.

The cellular substance is composed of an infinity of small fibres and
laminae, fortuitously disposed, so as to form little cells that communicate
with each other. It is a kind of sponge, which has the same form as the
body, all other parts of which traverse or fill it, and contracting indefi-
nitely, on the removal of the causes of its tension. It is this power that
retains the body in a given form and with certain limits.

When condensed, this substance forms those laminae called membranes ;
the membranes rolled into cylinders, form those more or less ramified tubes

INTRODUCTION.

11

named vessels; tlie filaments, called fibres, are resolved into it; and bones
are nothing but the same thing indurated by the accumulation of earth-
ly particles.

The cellular substance consists of a combination well known as gelatine,
characterised by its solubility in boiling water, and forming, when cold, a
trembling jelly.

We have not yet been able to reduce the medullary matter to its or-
ganic molecules ; to the naked eye, it appears like a sort of soft bouillie,
consisting of excessively small globules ; it is not susceptible of any appa-
rent motion, but in it resides the admirable power of transmitting to the
me the impressions of the external senses, and conveying to the muscles
the orders of the will. It constitutes the greater portion of the brain and
the spinal marrow, and the neives which are distributed to all the sen-
tient organs are, essentially, mere fasciculi of its ramifications.

The fieshy, or muscular fibre, is a peculiar sort of filament, whose distinc-
tive property, during life, is that of contracting when touched or struck,
or when it experiences the action of the will through the medium of the
nerve.

The muscles, direct organs of voluntary motion, are mere bundles of
fleshy fibres. All vessels and membranes which have any kind of com-
pression to execute are armed with these fibres. They are always inti-
mately connected with nervous threads, but those which belong to the
purely vegetative functions contract, without the knowledge of the me, so
that, although the will is truly a means of causing the fibres to act, it is
neither general nor unique.

The fleshy fibre has for its base a particular substance called fibrine ,
which is insoluble in boiling water, and which seems naturally to assume
this filamentous disposition.

The nutritive fluid or the blood, such as we find it in the vessels of the
circulation, is not only mostly resolvable into the general elements of the
animal body, carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and azote, but it also contains fi-
brine and gelatine, almost prepared to contract and to assume the forms of
membranes or filaments peculiar to them, all that is ever wanted for their
manifestation being a little repose. The blood also contains another com-
bination, which is found in many animal fluids and solids, called albumen,
whose characteristic property is that of coagulating in boiling water. Be-
sides these, the blood contains almost every element which may enter into
the composition of the body of each animal, such as the lime and phospho-
rus which harden the bones of vertebrated animals, the iron from which it
and various other parts receive their colour, the fat or animal oil which is
deposited in the cellular substance to supple it, &c. All the fluids and
solids of the animal body are composed of chemical elements found in the

] C)

1m

INTRODUCTION.

blood, and it is only by possessing a few elements more or less, that each
of them is distinguished ; whence it is plain, that their formation entirely
depends on the subtraction of the whole or part of one or more elements
of the blood, and in some few cases, on the addition of some element from
elsewhere.

These operations, by which the blood nourishes the fluid or solid matter
of all parts of the body, may assume the general name of secretions. This
name, however, is often appropriated exclusively to the production of li-
quids ; while that of nutrition is more especially applied to the formation
and deposition of the matter necessary to the growth and conservation of
the solids.

The composition of every solid organ, of every fluid, is precisely such as
fits it for the part it is to play, and it preserves it as long as health re-
mains, because the blood renews it as fast it becomes changed. The blood
itself by this continued contribution is changed every moment, but is re-
stored by digestion, which renews its matter by respiration, which delivers
it from superfluous carbon and hydrogen, by perspiration and various other
excretions, that relieve it from other superabundant principles.

These perpetual changes of chemical composition form a part of the vi-
tal vortex, hot less essential than the visible movements and those of trans-
lation. The object of the latter is, in fact, but to produce the former.

Of the Forces which act in the Animal Body.

The muscular fibre is not the only organ of voluntary motion, for we
have just seen that it is also the most powerful of the agents employed by
nature to produce those transmutations so necessary to vegetative life.
Thus the fibres of the intestines produce the peristaltic motion, which
causes the alimentary matter therein contained to pass through them; the
fibres of the heart and arteries are the agents of the circulation, and through
it of all the secretions, &e.

Volition contracts the fibre through the medium of the nerve; and the
involuntary fibres, such as those we have mentioned, being also animated
by them, it is probable that these nerves are the cause of their con-
traction.

All contraction, and, generally speaking, every change of dimension in
nature, is produced by a change of chemical composition, though it con-
sist merely in the flowing or ebbing of an imponderable fluid, such as ca-
loric; thus also are produced the most violent movements known upon
earth, explosions, &c.

There is, consequently, good reason to suppose that the nerve acts
upon the fibre through the medium of an imponderable fluid, and the more
so, as it is proved that this action is not mechanical.

INTRODUCTION.

n

The medullary matter of the whole nervous system is homogeneous, and
must he able to exercise its peculiar functions wherever it is found; all its
ramifications are abundantly supplied with blood vessels.

All the animal fluids being drawn from the blood by secretion, we can
have no doubt that such is the case with the nervous fluid, and that the
medullary matter secretes it.

On the other hand, it is certain that the medullary matter is the sole
conductor of the nervous fluid ; all the other organic elements restrain and
arrest it, as glass arrests electricity.

The external causes which are capable of producing sensations or caus
ing contractions of the fibre are all chemical agents, capable of effecting
decompositions, such as light, caloric, , the salts, odorous vapours, percus-
sion, compression, &c. & c.

It would appear then that these causes act on the nervous fluid chemi-
cally, and by changing its composition ; this appears the more likely, as their
action becomes weakened by continuance, as if the nervous fluid needed
the resumption of its primitive composition to fit it for a fresh alteration.

The external organs of the senses may be compared to sieves, which
allow nothing to pass through to the nerve, except that species of agent
which should affect it in that. particular place, but which often accumulates
it so as to increase its effect. The tongue has its spongy papillae which
imbibe saline solutions ; the ear, a gelatinous pulp which is violently agi-
tated by sonorous vibrations ; the eye, transparent lenses which concen-
trate the rays of light, &c. &c.

It is probable, that what are styled irritants, or the agents which occa-
sion the contractions of the fibre, exert this action by producing on the
fibre, by the nerve, a similar effect to that produced on it by the will ; that
is, by altering the nervous fluid, in the way that is requisite to change the
dimensions of the fibre which it influences : but with this process the will
has nothing to do, and very often the me is entirely ignorant of it. The
muscles separated from the body preserve their susceptibility of irritation,
as long as the portion of the nerve that remains with them preserves the
power of acting on them — with this phenomenon the will has evidently no
connexion.

The nervous fluid is altered by muscular irritation, as well as by sen-
sibility and voluntary motion, and the same necessity exists for the re-
establishment of its primitive composition.

The transmutations necessary to vegetable life are occasioned by irri-
tants; the aliment irritates the intestine, the blood irritates the heart, &c.
These movements are all independent of the will, and generally (while in
health) take place without the knowledge of the me; in several parts, the

14 INTRODUCTION.

nerves that produce them are even differently arranged from those that
are appropriated to sensation, or dependent on the will, and the very object
of this difference appears to be the securing of this independence.

The nervous functions, that is, sensibility and muscular irritability, are
so much the stronger at every point, in proportion as their exciting cause
is abundant ; and as this cause, or the nervous fluid, is produced by secre-
tion, its abundance must be in proportion to the quantity of medullary or
secretory matter, and the amount of blood received by the latter.

In animals that have a circulating system, the blood is propelled through
the arteries which convey it to its destined parts, by means of their irrita-
bility and that of the heart. If these arteries be irritated, they act more
strongly, and propel a greater quantity of blood; the nervous fluid be-
comes more abundant and augments the local sensibility ; this, in its turn,
augments the irritability of the arteries, so that this mutual action may
sometimes be carried to a great extent. It is called orgasm , and when
it becomes painful and permanent, inflammation. The irritation may also
originate in the nerve when exposed to the influence of acute sensations.

This mutual influence of the nerves and fibres, either intestinal or ar-
terial, is the real spring of vegetative life in animals.

As each external sense is permeable only by such or such sensible sub-
stances, so each internal organ may be accessible only to this or that agent
of irritation. Thus, mercury irritates the salivary glands — cantharides
irritate the bladder, &c. These agents are called specifics.

The nervous system being homogeneous and continuous, local sensations
and irritation debilitate the whole, and each function, by excessive action,
may weaken the others. Excess of aliment weakens the power of thought,
while long continued meditation impairs that of digestion, &c.

Excessive local irritation will enfeeble the whole body, as if all the
powers of life were concentrated in one single point.

A second irritation produced at another part may diminish, or divert, as
it is termed, the first : such is the effect of blisters, purgatives, &c.

Brief as our sketch has been, it is sufficient to establish the possibility
of accounting for all the phenomena of physical life, from the properties it
presents, by the simple admission of a fluid such as we have defined.

Summary Idea of the Functions and Organs of the Bodies of Animals ,
and of their various Degrees of Complication.

After what we have stated respecting the organic elements of the body,
its chemical principles and acting powers, nothing remains but to give a
summary idea of the functions of which life is composed, and of their ap-
propriate organs.

INTRODUCTION.

15

The functions of the animal body are divided into two classes :

The animal functions, or those proper to animals, that is to say, sensi-
bility and voluntary motion.

The vital, vegetative functions, or those common to animals and vege-
tables, i. e., nutrition and generation.

Sensibility resides in the nervous system.

The most general external sense is that of touch ; it is seated in the
skin, a membrane that envelopes the whole body, which is traversed in
every direction by nerves whose extreme filaments expand on the surface
into papillae, and are protected by the epidermis and other insensible tegu-
ments, such as hairs, scales, &c. &c. Taste and smell are merely delicate
states of the sense of touch, for which the skin of the mouth and nostrils
is particularly organized : the first, by means of papillae more convex and
spongy; the second, by its extreme delicacy and the multiplication of its
ever humid surface. We have already spoken of the ear and the eye.
The organ of generation is endowed with a sixth sense, seated in its in-
ternal skin ; that of the stomach and intestines declares the state of those
viscera by peculiar sensations. In fine, sensations more or less painful
may originate in every part of the body through accident or disease.

Many animals have neither ears nor nostrils, several are without eyes,
and some are reduced to the single sense of touch, which is never absent.

The action received by the external organs is continued by the nerves
to the central masses of the nervous system, which, in the higher animals,
consists of the brain and spinal marrow. The more elevated the nature of
the animal, the more voluminous is the brain and the more is the sensitive
power concentrated there ; the lower the animal, the more the medullary
masses are dispersed, and in the most imperfect genera, the entire nervous
substance seems to melt into the general matter of the body.

That part of the body which contains the brain and principal organs of
sense, is called the head.

When the animal has received a sensation, and this has occasioned vo-
lition, it is by the nerves, also, that this volition is transmitted to the
muscles.

The muscles are bundles of fleshy fibres whose contractions produce all
the movements of the animal body. The extension of the limbs and every
elongation, as well as every flexion and abbreviation of parts, are the ef-
fects of muscular contraction. The muscles of every animal are arranged,
both as respects number and direction, according to the movements it has
to make; and when these motions require force, the muscles are inserted
into hard parts, articulated one over another, and may be considered as so
many levers. These parts are called bones in the vertebrated animals,
where they are internal, and are formed of a gelatinous mass, penetrated

16

INTRODUCTION.

by particles of phosphate of lime. In the Mollusca, the Crustacea, and
Insects, where they are external, and composed of a calcareous or horny
substance that exudes between the skin and epidermis, they are called
shells, crusts, and scales.

The fleshy fibres are attached to the hard parts by means of other
fibres of a gelatinous nature, which seem to be a continuation of the former,
constituting what are called tendons.

The configuration of the articulating surfaces of the hard parts limits
their motion, which are also restrained by cords or envelopes, attached to
the sides of the articulations, called ligaments.

It is from the various arrangements of this bony and muscular appara-
tus, and the form and proportion of the members therefrom resulting, that
animals are capable of executing the innumerable movements that enter
into walking and leaping, flight and natation.

The muscular fibres, appropriated to digestion and the circulation, are
independent of the will ; they receive nerves, however, but the chief of
them are subdivided and arranged in a manner which seems to have for its
object their independence of the me. It is only in paroxysms of the pas-
sions and other powerful affections of the soul, which break down these
barriers, that the empire of the me is perceptible, and even then it is al-
most always to disorder these vegetative functions. It is, also, in a state
of sickness only that these functions are accompanied with sensations : di-
gestion is usually performed unconsciously.

The aliment, divided by the jaws and teeth, or sucked up when liquids
constitute the food, is swallowed by the muscular movements of the hinder
parts of the mouth and throat, and deposited in the first portions of the ali-
mentary canal that are usually expanded into one or more stomachs ; there
it is penetrated with juices fitted to dissolve it. Passing thence through
the rest of the canal, it receives other juices destined to complete its pre-
paration. The parietes of the canal are pierced with pores which extract
from this alimentary mass its nutritious portion ; the useless residuum is
rejected as excrement.

The canal in which this first act of nutrition is performed, is a conti-
nuation of the skin, and is composed of similar layers ; even the fibres
that encircle it are analogous to those which adhere to the internal sur-
face of the skin, called the fleshy pannicle. Throughout the whole inte-
rior of this canal there is a transudation which has some connexion with
the cutaneous perspiration, and which becomes more abundant when the
latter is suppressed; the absorption of the skin is even very analogous to
that of the intestines. It is only in the lowest order of animals that the ex-
crements are rejected by the mouth, their intestines resembling a sac,
having but one opening.

INTRODUCTION.

17

Even among those where the intestinal canal has two orifices, there are
many in which the nutritive juices, being absorbed by the parietes of the
intestine, are immediately diffused throughout the whole spongy substance
of the body: such, it would appear, is the case with all Insects. But
from the Arachnides and Worms upwards, the nutritive fluid circulates in
a system of closed vessels, whose ultimate ramifications alone dispense its
molecules to the parts that are nourished by it; the vessels that convey it
are called arteries , those that bring it back to the centre of the circulation,
veins. The circulating vortex is here simple, and there double and even
triple (including that of the vena-portae ) ; the rapidity of. its motion is often
assisted by the contractions of a certain fleshy apparatus called a heart ,
which is placed at one or the other centres of circulation, and sometimes
at both of them.

In the red-blooded vertebrated animals, the nutritive fluid exudes from
the intestines white or transparent, and is then termed chyle; it is poured
into the veins, where it mingles with the blood, by a set of peculiar vessels
called lacteals. Vessels similar to these lacteals, and forming with them
an arrangement called the lymphatic system, also convey to the venous
blood the residue of the nutrition of the parts and the products of cutaneous
absorption.

Before the blood is fit to nourish the parts, it must experience from the
circumambient element the modification of which we have previously
spoken. In animals possessing a circulating system, one portion of the
vessels is destined to carry the blood into organs in which they spread it
over a great surface to obtain an increase of this elemental influence.
When that element is air, the surface is hollow, and is called lungs ; when
it is water, it is salient, and is termed branchiae. There is always an ar-
rangement of the organs of motion for the purpose of propelling the ele-
ment into, or upon, the organ of respiration.

In animals destitute of a circulating system, air is diffused through
every part of the body by elastic vessels called tracheae; or water acts
upon them, either by penetrating through vessels, or by simply bathing
the surface of the skin. The respired or purified blood is properly quali-
fied for restoring the composition of all the parts, and to effect what is pro-
perly called nutrition. This facility, which the blood possesses, of decom-
posing itself at every point, so as to leave there the precise kind of mole-
cule necessary, is indeed wonderful; but it is this wonder which consti-
tutes the whole vegetative life. For the nourishment of the solids we see
no other arrangement than a great subdivision of the extreme arterial ra-
mifications; but for the production of fluids the apparatus is more complex
and various. Sometimes the extremities of the vessels simply spread
themselves over large surfaces, whence the produced fluid exhales; at

VOL. i.

18

INTRODUCTION.

others it oozes from the bottom of little cavities. Before these arterial
extremities change into veins, they most commonly give rise to particular
vessels that convey this fluid, which appears to proceed from the exact
point ol union between the two kinds of vessels; in this case the blood
vessels and these latter form, by interlacing, particular bodies called con-
glomerate or secretory glands.

In animals that have no circulation, in insects particularly, the parts
are all bathed in the nutritive fluid: each of these parts draws from it
what it requires, and if the production of a liquid be necessary, proper ves-
sels floating in the fluid take up, by their pores, the constituent elements of
that liquid.

It is thus that the blood incessantly supports the composition of all the
parts, and repairs the injuries arising from those changes which are the
continual and necessary consequences of their functions. The general
ideas we form with respect to this process are tolerably clear, although we
have no distinct or detailed notion of what passes at each point ; and for
want of knowing the chemical composition of each part with sufficient
precision, we cannot render an exact account of the transmutations neces-
sary to effect it.

Besides the glands which separate from the blood those fluids that are
destined for the internal economy, there are some which detach others
from it that are to be totally ejected, either as superfluous — the urine, for
instance, which is produced by the kidneys ; or for some use to the animal — -
as the ink of the cuttle-fish, and the purple matter of various mol-
lusca, &c.

With respect to generation, there is a process or phenomenon, infinitely
more difficult to comprehend than that of the secretions — the production
of the germ. We have even seen that it is to be considered as almost in-
comprehensible ; but the existence of the germ being admitted, generation
presents no particular difficulties. As long as it adheres to the parent, it
is nourished as if it were one of its organs ; and when it detaches itself, it
possesses its own life, which is essentially similar to that of the adult.

The germ, the embryo, the foetus, and the new-born animal have never,
however, exactly the same form as the adult, and the difference is some-
times so great, that their assimilation has been termed a metamorphosis.
Thus, no one not previously aware of the fact, would suppose that the ca-
terpillar is to become a butterfly.

Every living being is more or less metamorphosed in the course of its
growth ; that is, it loses certain parts, and developes others. The anten-
nae, wings, and all the parts of the butterfly were inclosed beneath the skin
of the caterpillar ; this skin vanishes along with the jaws, feet, and other
organs, that do not remain with the butterfly. The feet of the frog are

INTRODUCTION.

19

inclosed by the skin of the tadpole ; and the tadpole, to become a frog,
parts with its tail, mouth, and branchiae. The child, at its birth, loses its
placenta and membranes ; at a certain period its thymus gland nearly dis-
appears, and it gradually acquires hair, teeth, and beard ; the relative size
of its organs is altered, and its body augments in a greater ratio than its
head, the head more than the internal ear, &c.

The place where these germs are found, and the germs themselves are
collectively styled the ovary ; the canal through which, when detached,
they are carried into the uterus, the oviduct; the cavity in which, in many
species, they are compelled to remain for a longer or shorter period pre-
vious to birth, the uterus; and the external orifice through which they
pass into the world, the vulva. Where there are sexes, the male impreg-
nates the germs appearing in the female. The fecundating liquor is
called semen; the glands that separate it from the blood, testes ; and when,
it is requisite it should be carried into the body of the female, the intro-
ductory organ is named a 'penis .

Of the Intellectual Functions of Animals.

The impression of external objects upon the me, the production of a
sensation or of an image, is a mystery into which the human understand-
ing cannot penetrate ; and materialism an hypothesis, so much the more
conjectural, as philosophy can furnish no direct proof of the actual exist-
ence of matter. The naturalist, however, should examine what appear to
be the material conditions of sensation, trace the ulterior operations of the
mind, ascertain to what point they reach in each being, and assure himself
whether they are not subject to conditions of perfection, dependent on the
organization of each species, or on the momentary state of each individual
body.

To enable the me to perceive, there must be an uninterrupted commu-
nication between the external sense and the central masses of the medul-
lary system. It is then the modification only experienced by these masses
that the me perceives : there may also be real sensations, without the ex-
ternal organ being affected, and which originate either in the nervous chain
of communication, or in the central mass itself; such are dreams and vi-
sions, or certain accidental sensations.

By central masses, we mean a part of the nervous system, that is so
much the more circumscribed, as the animal is more perfect. In man, it
consists exclusively of a limited portion of the brain ; but in reptiles, it
includes the brain and the whole of the medulla, and of each of their parks
taken separately, so that the absence of the entire brain does not prevent
sensation. In the inferior classes this extension is still greater.

The perception acquired by the me, produces the image of the sensation

20

INTRODUCTION.

experienced. We trace to without the cause of that sensation, and thus
acquire the idea of the object that has produced it. By a necessary law
of our intelligence, all ideas of material objects are in time and space.

The modifications experienced by the medullary masses leave impres-
sions there which are reproduced, and thus recall to the mind images and
ideas ; this is memory — a corporeal faculty that varies greatly, according to
the age and health of the animal.

Similar ideas, or such as have been acquired at the same time, recall
each other ; this is the association of ideas. The order, extent, and quick-
ness of this association constitute the perfection of memory.

Every object presents itself to the memory with all its qualities or with
all its accessary ideas.

Intelligence has the power of separating these accessary ideas of objects,
and of combining those that are alike in several different objects under a
general idea; the object of which no where really exists, nor presents it-
self per se — this is abstraction.

Every sensation being more or less agreeable or disagreeable, experience
and repeated essays soon shew what movements are required to procure the
one and avoid the other ; and with respect to this, the intelligence abstracts
itself from the general rules to direct the will.

An agreeable sensation being liable to consequences that are not so, and
vice versa , the subsequent sensations become associated with the idea of
the primitive one, and modify the general rules framed by intelligence —
this is prudence.

From the application of these rules to general ideas, result certain for-
mulas, which are afterwards easily adapted to particular cases — this is called
reasoning.

A lively remembrance of primitive and associated sensations, and of the
impressions of pleasure or pain that belong to them, constitutes imagination.

One privileged being, man, has the faculty of associating his general
ideas with particular images more or less arbitrary, easily impressed upon
the memory, and which serve to recall the general ideas they represent.
These associated images are styled signs; their assemblage is a language.
When the language is composed of images that relate to the sense of hear-
ing, or of sounds , it is termed speech , and when relative to that of sight,
hieroglyphics. Writing is a suite of images that relates to the sense of
sight, by which we represent the elementary sounds, and by combining
them, all the images relative to the sense of hearing of which speech is
composed; it is therefore only a mediate representation of ideas.

This faculty of representing general ideas by particular signs or images
associated with them, enables us to retain distinctly, and to remember
without embarrassment, an immense number ; and furnishes to the rea-

INTRODUCTION.

21

soning faculty and the imagination innumerable materials, and to indivi-
duals means of communication, which cause the whole species to participate
in the experience of each individual, so that no bounds seem to be placed
to the acquisition of knowledge — it is the distinguishing character of hu-
man intelligence.

Although, with respect to the intellectual faculties, the most perfect ani-
mals are infinitely beneath man, it is certain that their intelligence per-
forms operations of the same kind. They move in consequence of sensa-
tions received, are susceptible of durable affections, and acquire by expe-
rience a certain knowledge of things, by which they are governed inde-
pendently of actual pain or pleasure, and by the simple foresight of con-
sequences. When domesticated, they feel their subordination, know that
the being who punishes them may refrain from so doing if he will, and,
when sensible of having done wrong, or behold him angry, they assume a
suppliant and deprecating air. In the society of man they "become either
corrupted or improved, and are susceptible of emulation and jealousy ; they
have among themselves a natural language, which, it is true, is merely the
expression of their momentary sensations, but man teaches them to under-
stand another, much more complicated, by which he makes known to them
his will, and causes them to execute it.

To sum up all, we perceive in the higher animals a certain degree of rea-
son, with all its consequences, good and bad, and which appears to be about
the same as that of children ere they have learned to speak. The lower
we descend from man the weaker these faculties become, and at the bottom
of the scale we find them reduced to signs (at times equivocal) of sensibi-
lity, that is, to some few slight movements to escape from pain. Between
these two extremes the degrees are infinite.

In a great number of animals, however, there exists another kind of in-
telligence, called instinct. This induces them to certain actions necessary
to the preservation of the species, but very often altogether foreign to the
apparent wants of the individual ; often also very complicated, and which,
if attributed to intelligence, would suppose a foresight and knowledge in
the species that perform them, infinitely superior to what can possibly be
granted. These actions, the result of instinct, are not the effect of imita-
tion, for very frequently the individuals who execute them have never seen
them performed by others : they are not proportioned to ordinary intelli-
gence, but become more singular, more wise, more disinterested, in propor-
tion as the animals belong to less elevated classes, and in all the rest of
their actions are more dull and stupid. They are so entirely the property
of the species, that all its individuals perform them in the same way, with-
out ever improving them a particle.

The working bees, for instance, have always constructed very ingenious

22

INTRODUCTION.

edifices, agreeably to the rules of the highest geometry, and destined to
lodge and nourish a posterity not even their own. The solitary bee, and
the wasp also, form highly^complicated nests, in which to deposit their eggs.
From this egg comes a worm, which has never seen its parent, which is ig-
norant of the structure of the prison in which it is confined, but which, once
metamorphosed, constructs another precisely similar.

The only method of obtaining a clear idea of instinct is by admitting the
existence of innate and perpetual images or sensations in the sensorium,
which cause the animal to act in the same way as ordinary or accidental
sensations usually do. It is a kind of perpetual vision or dream that al-
ways pursues it, and it may be considered, in all that has relation to its
instinct, as a kind of somnambulism.

Instinct has been granted to animals as a supplement to intelligence, to
concur with it, and with strength and fecundity, in the preservation, to a
proper degree, of each species.

There is no visible mark of instinct in the conformation of the animal,
but, as well as it can be ascertained, the intelligence is always in propor-
tion to the relative size of the brain, and particularly of its hemispheres.

Of Method , as applied to the Animal Kingdom.

From what has been stated with respect to methods in general, we have
now to ascertain what are the essential characters in animals, on which
their primary divisions are to be founded. It is evident that they should
be those which are drawn from the animal functions, that is, from the sen-
sations and motions ; for both these not only make the being an animal,
but in a manner establish its degree of animality.

Observation confirms this position by shewing that their degrees of de-
velopement and complication accord with those of the organs of the vege-
tative functions.

The heart and the organs of the circulation form a kind of centre for the
vegetative functions, as the brain and the trunk of the nervous system do
for the animal ones. Now we see these two systems become imperfect
and disappear together. In the lowest class of animals, where the nerves
cease to be visible, the fibres are no longer distinct, and the organs of di-
gestion are simple excavations in the homogeneous mass of the body. In
insects the vascular system even disappears before the nervous one ; but,
in general, the dispersion of the medullary masses accompanies that of the
muscular agents : a spinal marrow, on which the knots or ganglions repre-
sent so many brains, corresponds to a body divided into numerous rings,
supported by pairs of limbs longitudinally distributed, &c.

This correspondence of general forms, which results from the arrange-
ment of the organs of motion, the distribution of the nervous masses, and

INTRODUCTION.

23

the energy of the circulating system, should then be the basis of the pri-
mary divisions of the animal kingdom. We will afterwards ascertain, in
each of these divisions, what characters should succeed immediately to those,
and form the basis of the primary subdivisions.

General Distribution of the Animal Kingdom into four great Divisions .

If, divesting ourselves of the prejudices founded on the divisions former-
ly admitted, we consider only the organization and nature of animals, with-
out regard to their size, utility, the greater or less knowledge we have of
them, and other accessary circumstances, we shall find there are four prin-
cipal forms — four general plans, if it may be so expressed, on which all ani-
mals seem to have been modelled, and whose ulterior divisions, whatever
be the titles with which naturalists have decorated them, are merely slight
modifications, founded on the developement or addition of certain parts,
which produce no essential change in the plan itself.

In the first of these forms, which is that of man, and of the animals most
nearly resembling him, the brain and principal trunk of the nervous system
are inclosed in a bony envelope, formed by the cranium and vertebrae ; to
the sides of this intermedial column are attached the ribs, and bones of the
limbs, which form the frame work of the body ; the muscles generally cover
the bones, whose motions they occasion, while the viscera are contained
within the head and trunk. Animals of this form we shall denominate

Animalia Vertebrata.

They have all red blood, a muscular heart, a mouth furnished with two
jaws situated either above or before each other, distinct organs of sight,
hearing, smell, and taste placed in the cavities of the face, never more than
four limbs, the sexes always separated, and a very similar distribution of
the medullary masses and the principal branches of the nervous system.

By a closer examination of each of the parts of this great series of ani-
mals, we always discover some analogy, even in species the most remote
from each other ; and may trace the gradations of one same plan from man
to the last of the fishes.

In the second form there is no skeleton ; the muscles are merely at-
tached to the skin, which constitutes a soft contractile envelope, in which,
in many species, are formed stony plates, called shells, whose position and
production are analogous to those of the mucous body. The nervous sys-
tem is contained within this general envelope along with the viscera, and is
composed of several scattered masses connected by nervous filaments;
the chief of these masses is placed on the oesophagus, and is called the brain.
Of the four senses, the organs of two only are observable, those of taste
and sight, the latter of which are even frequently wanting. One single

24

INTRODUCTION.

family alone presents organs of hearing. There is always, however, a
complete system of circulation, and particular organs for respiration.
Those of digestion and secretion are nearly as complex as in the verte-
brata. We will distinguish the animals of this second form by the ap-
pellation of

Animalia Moliusca.

Although, as respects the external configuration of the parts, the gene -
ral plan of their organization is not as uniform as that of the vertebrata ;
there is always an equal degree of resemblance between them in the struc-
ture and the functions.

The third form is that remarked in worms, insects, &c. Their nervous
system consists of two long cords, running longitudinally through the ab-
domen, dilated at intervals into knots or ganglions. The first of these
knots, placed over the oesophagus, and called brain, is scarcely any larger
than those that are along the abdomen, with which they communicate by
filaments that encircle the oesophagus like a necklace. The covering or
envelope of the body is divided by transverse folds into a certain number
of rings, whose teguments are sometimes soft, and sometimes hard ; the
muscles, however, being always situated internally. Articulated limbs are
frequently attached to the trunk; but very often there are none. We will
call these animals

Animalia Articulata ,

Or, articulated animals, in which is observed the transition from the cir-
culation in closed vessels to nutrition by imbibition, and the corresponding
one of respiration in circumscribed organs, to that effected by tracheae or
air vessels distributed throughout the body. In them, the organs of taste
and sight are the most distinct ; one single family alone presenting that of
hearing. Their jaws, when they have any, are always lateral.

The fourth form, which embraces all those animals known by the name
of zoophytes, may also properly be denominated

Animalia Radiata ,

Or, radiated animals. We have seen that the organs of sense and mo-
tion in all the preceding ones are symmetrically arranged on the two sides
of an axis. There is a posterior and anterior dissimilar face. In this
last division, they are disposed like rays round a centre ; and this is the
case even when they consist of but two series, for then the two faces are
similar. They approximate to the homogeneity of plants, having no very
distinct nervous system or particular organs of sense ; in some of them, it
is even difficult to discover a vestige of circulation ; their respiratory or-
gans are almost universally seated on the surface of the body, the intestine
in the greater number is a mere sac without issue, and the lowest of the

INTRODUCTION. 25

series are nothing but a sort of homogeneous pulp, endowed with motion
and sensibility*.

* Before my time, modern naturalists divided all invertebrated animals into two
classes, Insects and Worms. I was the first who attacked this method; and in a
memoir read before the Society of Natural History of Paris on the 10th of May, 1795,
and printed in the Decade Philosophique, I presented a new division, in which I
marked the characters and limits of the Mollusca, Crustacea, Insects and Worms,
Echinodermata and Zoophytes. In a memoir read before the Institute on the 31st
of December, 1801, I ascertained the red-blooded worms or Annelides. And finally,
in a memoir read before the Institute in July, 1812, and printed in the Annales du
Museum d’Histoire Naturelle, tome xix, I distributed these various classes in three
divisions, each of which is analogous to a branch of the vertebrata.

FIRST GREAT DIVISION

OF

THE ANIMAL KINGDOM.

ANXMALIA VERTEBRATA.

The bodies and limbs of vertebrated animals being supported by a frame-
work or skeleton, composed of connected pieces that are moveable upon each
other, they have more precision and vigour in their motions. The soli-
dity of this support enables them to attain considerable size, and it is
among them that the largest animals are found.

The great concentration of the nervous system, and the volume of its
central portions, give energy and stability to their sensations, whence re-
sult superior intelligence and perfectibility.

Their body always consists of a head, trunk, and members.

The head is formed by the cranium which contains the brain, and by
the face which is composed of two jaws, and of the receptacles of the or-
gans of the senses.

The trunk is supported by the spine and the ribs.

The spine is formed of vertebrae, the first of them supporting the head,
which move upon each other, and are perforated by an annular opening,
forming together a canal, in which is lodged that medullary production
from which arise the nerves, called the spinal marrow.

The spine, most commonly, is continued into a tail, extending beyond
the posterior members.

The ribs are a kind of semicircular hoops, which protect the sides of
the cavity of the trunk; they are articulated at one extremity with the
vertebrae, and most generally at the other with the sternum ; sometimes,
however, they do not encircle the trunk, and there are genera in which
they are hardly visible.

There are never more than two pairs of limbs, but sometimes one or
the other is wanting, or even both. Their forms vary according to the
movements they have to execute. The anterior limbs may be modified
into hands, feet, wings, or fins, and the posterior into feet or fins.

The blood is always red, and appears to be so composed as to sustain a

28

ANIMALIA YERTEBRATA.

peculiar energy of sentiment and muscular strength, but in various de-
grees, corresponding to their quality of respiration : from which originates
the subdivision of the Vertebrata into four classes.

The external senses are always five in number, and reside in two eyes,
two ears, two nostrils, the teguments of the tongue, and those of the body,
generally. In some species, however, the eyes are obliterated.

The nerves reach the medulla through the foramina of the vertebrae or
those of the cranium ; they all seem to unite with this medulla, which, af-
ter crossing its filaments, spreads out to form the various lobes of which
the brain is composed, and terminates in the two medullary arches called
hemispheres, whose volume is in proportion to the extent of the intelli-
gence.

There are always two jaws, the greatest motion is in the lower one,
which rises and falls ; the upper jaw is sometimes immoveable. Both of
these are almost always armed with teeth, excrescences of a peculiar na-
ture, which in their chemical composition are very similar to that of bone,
but which grow by layers and transudation; one whole class, however,
that of birds, has the jaws invested with horn, and the genus Testudo, in
the class of reptiles, is in the same case.

The intestinal canal traverses the body from the mouth to the anus, ex-
periencing various enlargements and contractions, having appendages and
receiving solvent fluids, one of which, the saliva, is discharged into the
mouth. The others, which are poured into the intestine only, have vari-
ous names : the two principal ones are — the juices of the gland called the
pancreas, and bile, a product of another very large gland named the liver.

While the digested aliment is traversing its canal, that portion of it
which is fitted for nutrition, called the chyle, is absorbed by particular ves-
sels styled lacteals, and carried into the veins ; the residue of the nourish-
ment of the parts is also carried into the veins by vessels analogous to
these lacteals, and forming with them one same system, called the lympha-
tic system.

The blood which has served to nourish the parts, and which has just
been renewed by the chyle and lymph, is returned to the heart by the
veins — but this blood is obliged, either wholly or in part, to pass into the
organ of respiration, in order to regain its arterial nature, previous to being
again sent through the system by the arteries. In the three first classes
this respiratory organ consists of lungs, that is, a collection of cells into
which air penetrates. In fish only, and in some reptiles, while young, it
consists of branchias or a series of laminae, between which water passes.

In all the Vertebrata, the blood which furnishes the liver with the mate-
rials of the bile is venous blood, which has circulated partly in the parietes
of the intestines, and partly in a peculiar body called the spleen , and

ANIMALIA VERTEBRATA. 29

which, after being united in a trunk called the vena-'portce , is again sub-
divided at the liver.

All these animals have a particular secretion ; the urine , which is pro-
duced in two large glands, attached to the sides of the spine of the back,
called kidneys — the liquid they secrete is most commonly poured into a
reservoir, named bladder .

The sexes are separate, and the female has always one or two ovaries,
from which the eggs are detached at the instant of conception. The male
fecundities them with the seminal fluid, but the mode varies greatly. In
most of the genera of the three first classes, it requires an intromission of
the fluid; in some reptiles, and in most of the fishes, it takes place after
the exit of the egg.

Subdivision of the Vertebrata into four Classes .

We have just seen how far vertebrated animals resemble each other,
they present, however, four great subdivisions or classes, characterised by
the kind or power of their motions, which depend themselves on the quan-
tity of their respiration, inasmuch as it is from this respiration that the
muscular fibres derive the strength of their irritability.

The quantity of respiration depends upon two agents : the first is the
relative amount of blood which is poured into the respiratory organ in a
given instant of time ; the second is the relative amount of oxygen which
enters into the composition of the surrounding fluid. The quantity of the
former depends upon the disposition of the organs of circulation and re-
spiration.

The organs of the circulation may be double, so that all the blood
which is brought back from the various parts of the body by the veins, is
forced to circulate through the respiratory organ, previous to resuming
its former course through the arteries ; or they may be simple, so that a
part only of the blood is obliged to pass through that organ, the remainder
returning directly to the body.

The latter is the case with reptiles. The quantity of their respiration,
and all their qualities which depend on it, vary with the amount of blood
thrown into the lungs at each pulsation.

Fishes have a double circulation, but their organ of respiration is formed
to execute its function through the medium of water; and their blood is
only acted on by the portion of oxygen it contains, so that the quantity of
their respiration is perhaps less than that of reptiles.

In the mammalia the circulation is double, and the aerial respiration
simple, that is, it is performed in the lungs only ; their quantity of respi-
ration is, consequently, superior to that of reptiles, on account of the form

ANIMALIA VERTEBRATA.

SO

of their respiratory organ, and to that of fishes, from the nature of their
surrounding element.

The quantity of respiration in birds is even superior to that of quadru-
peds, not only because they have a double circulation and an aerial respi-
ration, but also because they respire by many other cavities besides the
lungs, the air penetrating throughout their bodies, and bathing the
branches of the aorta, as well as those of the pulmonary artery.

Hence result the four different kinds of motion for which the four classes
of vertebrated animals are more particularly designed: quadrupeds, in
which the quantity of respiration is moderate, are generally formed to
walk and run, both motions being characterized by precision and vigour ;
birds, which have more of it, possess the muscular strength and lightness
requisite for flight ; reptiles, where it is diminished, are condemned to
creep, and many of them pass a portion of their lives in a kind of torpor ;
fishes, in fine, to execute their motions, require to be supported in a fluid
whose specific gravity is nearly as great as their own.

All the circumstances of organization peculiar to each of these four
classes, and those especially which regard motion and the external sensa-
tions, have a necessary relation with these essential characters.

The mammalia, however, have particular characters in their viviparous
mode of generation, in the manner by which the foetus is nourished in the
uterus through the medium of the placenta, and in the mammae by which
they suckle their young.

The other classes, on the contrary, are oviparous, and if we compare
them to the first, we shall find such numerous points of resemblance as
announce a peculiar system of organization in the great general plan of
the vertebrata.

MAMMALIA.

31

CLASS I.

MAMMALIA.

The mammalia are placed at the head of the animal kingdom, not only
because it is the class to which man himself belongs, hut also because it is
that which enjoys the most numerous faculties, the most delicate sensa-
tions, the most varied powers of motion, and in which all the different
qualities seem combined in order to produce a more perfect degree of in-
telligence, the one most fertile in resources, most susceptible of perfection,
and least the slave of instinct.

As their quantity of respiration is moderate, they are designed in gene-
ral for walking on the earth, but with vigorous and continued steps. The
forms of the articulations of their skeleton are, consequently, strictly de-
fined, which determines all their motions with the most rigorous pre-
cision.

Some of them, however, by means of limbs considerably elongated, and
extended membranes, raise themselves in the air; others have them so
shortened, that they can move with facility in water only, though this does
not deprive them of the general characters of the class.

The upper jaw, in all of these animals, is fixed to the cranium; the
lower is formed of two pieces only, articulated by a projecting condyle to
a fixed temporal bone : the neck consists of seven vertebras, one single
species excepted, which has nine ; the anterior ribs are attached before,
by cartilage, to a sternum consisting of several vertical pieces ; their'1' an-
terior extremity commences in a shoulder-blade that is not articulated,
but simply suspended in the flesh, often resting on the sternum by means
of an intermediate bone, called a clavicle. This extremity is continued by
an arm, a fore-arm, and a hand, the latter being composed of two ranges
of small bones, called the carpus, of another range called the metacarpus,
and of the fingers, each of which consists of two or three bones, termed
phalanges.

With the exception of the cetacea, the first part of the posterior extre-
mity, in all animals of this class, is fixed to the spine, forming a girdle or
pelvis, which, in youth, consists of three pairs of bones — the ilium which
is attached to the spine, the pubis which forms the anterior part of the
girdle, and the ischium, the posterior. At the point of union of these

82

MAMMALIA.

three bones is situated the cavity with which the thigh is articulated, to
which, in its turn, is attached the leg, formed of two bones, the tibia and
fibula ; this extremity is terminated by parts similar to those of the hand,
i. e. by a tarsus, metatarsus, and toes.

The head of the mammalia is always articulated by two condyles, with
the atlas, the first vertebra of the neck.

The brain is always composed of two hemispheres, united by a medul-
lary layer, called the corpus callosum, containing the ventricles, and en-
veloping fom pairs of tubercles, named the corpora striata, or striated
bodies, the thalami nervorum opticorum, or beds of the optic nerves, and
the nates and testes. Between the optic beds is a third ventricle, which
communicates with a fourth under the cerebellum, the crura of which al-
ways form a transverse prominence under the medulla oblongata , called
the pons Varolii, or bridge of Yarolius.

The eye, invariably lodged in its orbit, is protected by two lids and a
vestige of a third, and has its crystalline fixed by the ciliary processes —
its sclerotic is simply cellular.

The ear always contains a cavity called the tympanum, or drum, which
communicates with the mouth by the Eustachian tube; the cavity itself is
closed externally by a membrane called the membrana tympani, and con-
tains a chain of four little bones, named the incus or anvil, malleus or
hammer, the os orbiculare or circular bone, and the stapes or stirrup ; a
vestibule, on the entrance of which rests the stapes, and which communi-
cates with three semicircular canals ; and, finally, a cochlea, which ter-
minates by one canal in the vestibule, and by the other in the tympanum.

Their cranium is subdivided into three portions ; the anterior is formed
by the two frontal and ethmoidal bones, the middle by the two ossa parie-
talia and the os ethmoides, and the posterior by the os occipitis. Between
the ossa parietalia, the sphenoidalis and the os occipitis, are interposed the
twoHemporal bones, part of which belong properly to the face.

In the foetus, the occipital bone is divided into four parts : the sphenoi-
dal into two halves, which are again subdivided into three pairs of lateral
wings ; the temporal into three, one of which serves to complete the cra-
nium, the second to close the labyrinth of the ear, the third to form the
parietes of the tympanum, &c. These bony portions, still more numerous
in the earliest period of the foetal existence, are united more or less
promptly, according to the species, and the bones themselves finally be-
come consolidated in the adult.

Their face consists of the two maxillary bones, between which pass the
nostrils ; the two intermaxillaries are situated before, and the two ossa
palati behind them ; between these descends the vomer, a bony process of
the os ethmoides; at the entrance of the nasal canal are placed She ossa

MAMMALIA.

33

nasi ; to its external parietes adhere the inferior turbinated bones, the
superior ones which occupy its upper and posterior portion belonging to
the os ethmoides. The jugal or cheek bone unites the maxillary to the
temporal bone on each side, and frequently to the os frontis ; finally, the
os unguis, and pars plana of the ethmoid bone occupy the internal angle
of the orbit, and sometimes a part of the cheek. In the embryo state
these bones also are much more subdivided.

Their tongue is always fleshy, connected with a bone called the hyoides,
which is composed of several pieces, and suspended from the cranium by
ligaments.

Their lungs, two in number, divided into lobes, and composed of an
infinitude of cells, are always inclosed, without any adhesion, in a cavity
formed by the ribs and diaphragm and lined by the pleura ; the organ of
voice is always at the upper extremity of the trachea; a fleshy curtain,
called the velum palati, establishes a direct communication between then-
larynx and nasal canal.

Their residence on the surface of the earth rendering them less, exposed
to the alternations of cold and heat, their tegument, the hair, is but mo-
derately thick, and in such as inhabit warm climates, even that is rare.

The cetacea, which live exclusively in water, are the only ones that are
altogether deprived of it.

The abdominal cavity is lined with a membrane called the peritoneum ,
and the intestinal canal is suspended to a fold of it called the mesentery ,
which contains numerous conglobate glands in which the lacteals ramify :
another production of the peritoneum, styled the epiploon , hangs in front
of and under the intestines.

The urine, which is retained for a time in the bladder, finds an exit in
both sexes, with very few exceptions, by orifices in the organs of gene-
ration.

In all the mammalia, generation is essentially viviparous ; that is, the
foetus, directly after conception, descends into the uterus enveloped in its
membranes, the exterior of which is called chorion and the interior amnios;
it fixes itself to the parietes of this cavity by one plexus or more of ves-
sels called the placenta, which establishes a communication between it
and the mother, by which it receives its nourishment, and most probably
its oxygenation ; notwithstanding which, the foetus of the mammalia, at an
early period, has a vesicle analogous to that which contains the yolk in
the ovipara, receiving in like manner vessels from the mesentery. It has
also another external bladder named the allantoid , which communicates
with the urinary one by a canal called the urachus.

Conception always requires an effectual coitus, in which the semen
masculinum is thrown into the uterus of the female.

VOL. I.

D

34-

mammalia.

The young are nourished for some time after birth by a fluid (milk)
peculiar to animals of this class, which is produced by the mammae at the
time of parturition, and continues to be so as long as is necessary. It is
from the mammce that this class derives its name ; and being a character
peculiar to it, they distinguish it better than any other that is external*.

Division of the Mammalia into Orders.

The variable characters which form essential differences among the
Mammalia are taken from the organs of touch, on which depends their
degree of ability or address, and from the organs of manducation, which
determine the nature of their aliment, and are all closely connected, not
only with every thing relative to the function of digestion, but also with a
multitude of other differences relating even to their intelligence.

The degree of perfection of the organs of touch is estimated by the
numb.er and the pliability of the fingers, and from the greater or less ex-
tent to which their extremities are enveloped by the nail or the hoof.

A hoof, which completely envelopes the end of the toe, blunts its sensi-
bility, and renders the foot incapable of seizing.

The opposite extreme is when a nail, formed of one single lamina, covers
only one of the faces of the extremity of the finger, leaving the other pos-
sessed of all its delicacy.

The nature of the food is known by the grinders, to the form, of which
the articulation of the jaws universally corresponds.

To cut flesh, grinders are required as trenchant as a saw, and jaws
fitted like scissars, having no other motion than a vertical one.

For bruising roots or grains, flat-crowned grinders are necessary, and
jaws that have a lateral motion; in order that inequalities may always
exist on the crown of these teeth, it is also requisite that their substance
be composed of parts of unequal hardness, so that some may wear away
faster than others.

Hoofed animals are all necessarily herbivorous, and have flat-crowned
grinders, inasmuch as their feet preclude the possibility of their seizing a
living prey.

Animals with unguiculated fingers were susceptible of more variety;
their food is of all kinds ; and, independently of the form of their grinders,
they differ greatly from each other in the pliability and delicacy of their
fingers. There is one character with respect to this, which has immense
influence on their dexterity, and greatly multiplies its powers ; it is the
faculty of opposing the thumb to the finger for the purpose of seizing mi-

* We shall find, however, in the sequel some doubts on this subject, arising from
certain points in the family of the Monotremata.

MAMMALIA.

nute objects, constituting wliat is properly called a hand; a faculty which
is carried to its highest perfection in man, in whom the whole anterior ex-
tremity is free and capable of prehension.

These various combinations, which strictly determine the nature of the
different Mammalia, have given rise to the following orders : —

Among the unguiculated animals, the first is Man , who, in addition to
privileges of other descriptions, possesses hands at the anterior extremi-
ties only, the posterior being designed to support him in an erect position.

In the order next to man, that of the quadrumana, we find hands at
the four extremities.

In another order, that of the carnaria, the thumb is not free, and
cannot be opposed to the anterior extremities.

Each of these orders has the three sorts of teeth, grinders, canini, and
incisors or cutting teeth.

In a fourth order, that of the rodentia, the toes differ but little from
those of the Carnaria, but there are no canine teeth, and the incisors are
placed in front of the mouth, and adapted to a very peculiar sort of man-
ducation.

Then come those animals whose toes are much cramped, and deeply
sunk in large nails, which are generally curved ; they have no incisors,
and in some the canines disappear, while others have none of any descrip-
tion. We comprise them all under the title of the Edentata.

This distribution of the unguiculated animals would be perfect, and
form a very regular series, were it not that New Holland has lately fur-
nished us with a little collateral one, consisting of animals with pouches ,
the different genera of which are connected by a general similarity of or-
ganization ; some of them, however, in the teeth and nature of their diet
corresponding to the Carnaria, others to the Rodentia, and a third to the
Edentata.

The hoofed animals are less numerous, and have likewise fewer irregu-
larities.

The rttminantia, by their cloven foot, the absence of true incisors in
their upper jaw, and their four stomachs, form an order that is very
distinct.

The remaining hoofed animals may all be united in a single order,
which I shall call paciiydermata or jumenta, the elephant excepted,
which might constitute a separate one, and which is remotely connected
with that of the Rodentia.

. In the last place, we find those of the Mammalia which have no poste-
rior extremities, whose piscatory form and aquatic mode of life would in-
duce us to form them into a particular class, were it not that in every
thing else their economy is similar to that in which we leave them.

S6

MAMMALIA.

These are the hot-blooded fishes of the ancients, or the cetacea, which,
uniting to the vigour of the other Mammalia the advantage of being sus-
tained by the watery element, present to our wondering sight the most
gigantic of animals.

ORDER I.

BIMANA.

Man forms but one genus, and that genus the only one of its order.
As his history is the more directly interesting to ourselves, and forms the
point of comparison to which we refer that of other animals, we will speak
of it more in detail.

We will rapidly sketch every thing that is peculiar in each of his -or-
ganic systems, amidst all that he shares in common with other Mammalia;
we will examine the advantages he derives from these peculiarities over
other species ; we will describe the principal varieties of his race and their
distinguishing characters, and finally point out the natural order in which
his individual and social faculties are developed.

Peculiar Conformation of Man.

The foot of Man is very different from that of the Monkey ; it is large ;
the leg bears vertically upon it ; the heel is expanded beneath ; the toes
are shorty and but slightly flexible ; the great toe, longer and larger than
the rest, is placed on the same line with, and cannot be opposed to them.
This foot, then, is peculiarly well adapted to support the hody ; but cannot
be used for seizing or climbing, and as the hands are not calculated for
walking, Man is the only true bimanous and biped animal.

The whole body of Man is arranged with a view to a vertical position.
His feet, as just mentioned, furnish him with a base more extensive than
that of any other of the Mammalia. The muscles which extend the foot
and thigh are more vigorous, whence proceeds the projection of the calf
and buttock ; the flexors of the leg are inserted higher up, which allows
full extension of the knee, and renders the calf more apparent. The
pelvis is wider, hence a greater separation of the thighs and feet, and that
pyramidal form of the body so favourable to equilibrium. The necks of
the thigh bones form an angle with the body of the bone, which increases
still more the separation of the feet, and augments the basis of the body.
Finally, the head in this vertical position is in equilibrium on the body,
because its articulation is exactly under the middle of its mass.

Were he to desire it, Man could not, with convenience, walk on all
fours ; his short and nearly inflexible foot, and his long thigh, would bring
the knee to the ground ; his widely separated shoulders and his arms, too
far extended from the median line, would ill support the upper portion of

BIM ANA.

37

liis body. Tlie great indented muscle, which, in quadrupeds, suspends,
as in a girth, the body between the scapulae, is smaller in Man than in any
one among them. The head is also heavier, both from the magnitude of
the brain and the smallness of the sinuses or cavities of the bones ; and yet
the means of supporting it are weaker, for he has neither cervical ligament,
nor are his vertebrae so arranged as to prevent their flexure forwards ; the
result of this would be, that he could only keep his head in the same line
with the spine, and then his eyes and mouth being directed towards the
earth, he could not see before him; — in the erect position, on the con-
trary, the arrangement of these organs is every way perfect.

The arteries which are sent to his brain, not being subdivided as in
many quadrupeds, and the blood requisite for so voluminous an organ being
carried into it with too much violence, frequent apoplexies would be the
consequence of a horizontal position.

Man, then, is formed for an erect position only. He thus preserves the
entire use of his hands for the arts, while his organs of sense are most
favourably situated for observation.

These hands, which derive such advantages from their liberty, receive
as many more from their structure. The thumb, longer in proportion
than that of the Monkey, increases its facility of seizing small objects.
All the fingers, the annularis excepted, have separate movements, a fa-
culty possessed by no other animal, not even by the monkey. The nail,
covering one side only of the extremity of the finger, acts as a support to
the touch, without depriving it of an atom of its delicacy. The arms, to
which these hands are attached, are strongly and firmly connected by the
large scapula, the strong clavicle, &c.

Man, so highly favoured as to dexterity, is not at all so with respect to
force. His swiftness in running is greatly inferior to that of other animals
of his size. Having neither projecting jaws, nor salient canine teeth, nor
claws, he is destitute of offensive weapons; and the sides and upper parts
of his body being naked, unprovided even with hair, he is absolutely with-
out defensive ones. Of all animals, he is also the longest in attaining the
power necessary to provide for himself.

This very weakness, however, is but one advantage more — it compels
him to have recourse to that intelligence within, for which he is so emi-
nently conspicuous.

No quadruped approaches him in the magnitude and convolutions of tlie
hemispheres of the brain, that is, in the part of this organ which is the
principal instrument of the intellectual operations. The posterior portion
of the same organ extends backwards, so as to form a second covering to
the cerebellum; the very form of his cranium announces this magnitude
of the brain, while the smallness of his face shews how slightly that por-
tion of the nervous system which influences the external senses predomi-
nates in him.

These external sensations, moderate as they all are in Man, are never-
theless extremely delicate and well balanced.

His two eyes are directed forwards ; he does not see on two sides at
once, like many quadrupeds ; which produces more unity in the result of
his sight, and concentrates his attention more closely on sensations of this
kind. The ball and iris of his eye vary but little ; this restrains the ac-
tivity of his sight to a limited distance, and a determined degree of light.

38

MAMMALIA.

His external ear, possessing but little mobility or extent, does not increase
the intensity of sounds ; and yet, of all animals, he best distinguishes the
various degrees of intonation. His nostrils, more complicated than those
of the monkey, are less so than those of all other genera ; and yet he ap-
pears to be the only animal whose sense of smell is sufficiently delicate to
lie affected by unpleasant odours. Delicacy of smell must have some in-
fluence on that of taste ; and, independently of this, Man must have some
advantage in this respect over other animals, those, at least, whose tongues
are covered with scales. Lastly, the nicety of his tact results both from
the delicacy of his teguments and the absence of all insensible parts, as
well as from the form of his hand, which is better adapted than that of
any other animal for suiting itself to every little superficial inequality.

Man is pre-eminently distinguished in the organ of his voice ; of all the
Mammalia, he alone possesses the faculty of articulating sounds, its pro-
bable causes being the form of his mouth and the great mobility of his lips.
From this results his most invaluable mode of communication ; for, of all the
signs which can be conveniently employed for the transmission of ideas,
variations of sound are those which can be perceived at the greatest dis-
tance, and are the most extensive in their sphere of operation.

The whole of his structure, even to the heart and great vessels, appears
to have been framed with a view to a vertical position. The heart is placed
obliquely on the diaphragm, and its point inclines to the left, thereby
occasioning a distribution of the aorta, differing from that of most quad-
rupeds.

The natural food of man, judging from his structure, appears to consist
of the fruits, roots, and other succulent parts of vegetables : his hands of-
fer him every facility for gathering them ; his short, and but moderately
strong jaws on the one hand, and his canini being equal in length to the
remaining teeth, and his tubercular molares on the other, would allow him
neither to feed on grass nor to devour flesh, were these aliments not pre-
viously prepared by cooking. Once, however, possessed of fire, and those
arts by which he is aided in seizing animals or killing them at a distance,
every living being was rendered subservient to his nourishment, thereby
giving him the means of an infinite multiplication of his species.

His organs of digestion are in conformity with those of manducation ;
his stomach is simple, his intestinal canal of moderate length, the great in-
testines well marked, his caecum short and thick and augmented by a small
appendage, and his liver divided only into two large lobes and one small one ;
his epiploon hangs in front of the intestines, and extends into the pelvis.

To complete the hasty sketch of the anatomical structure of Man requisite
for this introduction, we will add, that he has thirty-two vertebrae, of which
seven belong to the neck, twelve to the back, five to the loins, five to the
sacrum, and three to the coccyx. Seven pairs of his ribs are united with
the sternum by elongated cartilages, and are called true ribs ; the five fol-
lowing pairs are denominated false ones. His adult cranium is formed of
eight bones; an occipitalis, two ossa temporis, two parietalia, and the
frontal, ethmoidal and sphenoidal bones. The bones of his face are four-
teen in number, two maxillaries, two ossa mala*, each of which joins the
temporal to the maxillary bone of its own side by a kind of handle called
the zygomatic arch ; two nasal bones, two ossa palati behind the palate, a
vomer between the nostrils, two turbinated bones of the nose in the nos-

BIMANA.

39

trils, two lachrymals (unguis) in the internal angles of the orbits and the
single bone of the lower jaw. Each jaw has sixteen teeth; four cutting
incisors in the middle, two pointed canines at the corners, and ten tuber -
culated molares, five on each side. At the extremity of the spine of his
scapula, is a tuberosity called the acromion, to which the clavicle is at-
tached, and over its articulation is a point called the coracoid process, with
which certain muscles are connected. The radius revolves upon the ulna,
owing to the mode of its articulation with the humerus. The carpus has
eight bones, four in each range; the tarsus has seven; those of the re-
maining parts of the hand and. foot may be easily counted by the number
of fingers and toes.

Enjoying uniform and regular supplies of nourishment, the fruit of his
industry, Man is at all times inclined to the “plaisirs d’amour,” without
ever experiencing that irresistible and violent impetus which marks the
passion in quadrupeds. His organ of generation is not upheld by a bony
axis; the prepuce does not tie it down to the abdomen, and it hangs
loosely in front of the pubis. Numerous and large veins which effect a
rapid transfer of the blood of his testes to the general circulation, appear
to contribute to the moderation of his desires.

The uterus of woman is a simple oval cavity; her mammae, only two in
number, are placed upon her breast, and correspond with the facility she
possesses of supporting her child upon her arm.

Physical and Moral Dev elopement of Man.

The term of gestation in the human species is nine months ; and but
one child is usually produced at a birth, as in five hundred cases of partu-
rition there is but one of twins ; more than the latter is extremely rare
The foetus, a month old, is generally about one inch in height ; when two
months, it is two inches and a half; when three, five inches; in the fifth
month, it is six or seven inches; in the seventh, it is eleven inches; in
the eighth, fourteen, and in the ninth, eighteen inches. Those which
are born prior to the seventh month usually die. The first or milk teeth
begin to appear in a few months, commencing with the incisors. The
number increases in two years to twenty, which, about the seventh year,
are successively shed to make room for others. Of the twelve posterior
molares which are permanent, there are four which make their appearance
at four years and a half, and four at nine ; the last four are frequently not
cut until the twentieth year. The growth of the foetus is proportionably
increased as it approaches the time of birth — that of the child, on the
contrary, is always less and less. It has more than the fourth of its
height when born ; it attains the half of it at two years and a half, and
the three-fourths at nine or ten years ; its growth is completed about the
eighteenth year. Man rarely exceeds the height of six feet, and as rarely
remains under five. Woman is usually some inches shorter.

Puberty is announced by external symptoms, from the tenth to the
twelfth year in girls, and from the twelfth to the sixteenth in boys ; it ar-
rives sooner in warm climates ; and neither sex (very rarely at least) is
productive before or after that manifestation.

Scarcely has the body gained the full period of its growth in height,
before it begins to increase in bulk ; fat accumulates in the cellular tissue,

40

MAMMALIA.

the different vessels become gradually obstructed, the solids become rigid,
and, after a life more or less long, more or less agitated, more or less
painful, old age arrives with decrepitude, decay, and death. Man rarely
lives beyond a hundred years, and most of the species, either from disease,
accident, or old age, perish long before that term.

The child needs the assistance of its mother much longer than her
milk ; from this it obtains an education both moral and physical, and a
mutual attachment is created that is fervent and durable. The nearly
equal number of the two sexes, the difficulty of supporting more than one
wife, when wealth does not supply the want of power, all go to prove that
monogamy is the mode of union most natural to our species; and as,
wherever this kind of tie exists, the father participates in the education of
his offspring, the length of time required for that education allows the
birth of others — hence the natural permanence of the conjugal state.
From the long period of infantile weakness springs domestic subordination,
and the order of society in general, as the young people which compose
the new families continue to preserve with their parents those tender re-
lations to which they have so long been accustomed. This disposition to
mutual assistance multiplies to an almost unlimited extent those advan-
tages previously derived by insulated man from his intelligence; it has
assisted him to tame or repulse other animals, to defend himself from
the effects of climate, and thus enabled him to cover the earth with his
species.

In other respects, man appears to possess nothing resembling instinct,
no regular habit of industry produced by innate ideas ; his knowledge is
the result of his sensations and of his observation, or of those of his prede-
cessors. Transmitted by speech, increased by meditation, and applied to
his necessities and his enjoyments, they have originated all the arts of
life. Language and letters, by preserving acquired knowledge, are a
source of indefinite perfection to his species. It is thus he has acquired
ideas, and made all nature contribute to his wants.

There are very different degrees of developement, however, in man.

The first hordes, compelled to live by fishing and hunting, or on wild
fruits, and being obliged to devote all their time to search for the means
of subsistence, and not being able to multiply greatly, because that would
have destroyed the game, advanced but slowly. Their arts were limited
to the construction of huts and canoes, to covering themselves with skins,
and the fabrication of arrows and nets. They observed such stars only as
directed them in their journeys, and some few natural objects whose pro-
perties were of use to them. They domesticated the dog, simply because
he had a natural inclination for their own kind of life. When they had
succeeded in taming the herbivorous animals, they found in the possession
of numerous flocks a never failing source of subsistence, and also some
leisure, which they employed in extending the sphere of their acquire-
ments. Some industry was then employed in the construction of dwell-
ings and the making of clothes : the idea of property was admitted, and
consequently that of barter, as well as wealth and difference of conditions,
those fruitful sources of the noblest emulation and the vilest passions : but
the necessity of searching for fresh pastures, and of obeying the changes
of the seasons, still doomed them to a wandering life, and limited their
improvement to a very narrow sphere.

BIM AN A.

41

The multiplication of the human species, and its improvement in the
arts and sciences, have only been carried to a high degree since the inven-
tion of agriculture and the division of the soil into hereditary possessions.
By means of agriculture, the manual labour of a portion of society is ade-
quate to the maintenance of the whole, and allows the remainder time for
less necessary occupations, at the same time that the hope of acquiring,
by industry, a comfortable existence for self and posterity, has given a new
spring to emulation. The discovery of a representative of property, or a
circulating medium, by facilitating exchanges and rendering fortunes more
independent and susceptible of being increased, has carried this emulation
to its highest degree ; but, by a necessary consequence, it has also equally
increased the vices of effeminacy and the furies of ambition.

The natural propensity to reduce every thing to general principles, and
to search for the causes of every phenomenon, has produced reflecting
men, in every stage of society, who have added new ideas to those already
obtained, nearly all of whom, while knowledge was confined to the few,
endeavoured to convert their intellectual superiority into the means of do-
mination, by exaggerating their own merit, and disguising the poverty of
their knowledge by the propagation of superstitious ideas.

An evil still more irremediable is the abuse of physical power: now
that man only can injure man, he is continually seeking to do so, and is
the only animal upon earth that is for ever at war with his own species.
Savages fight for a forest, and herdsmen for a pasture, and, as often as they
can, break in upon the cultivators of the earth to rob them of the fruits of
their long and painful labours. Even civilized nations, far from being
contented with their blessings, pour out each other’s blood for the prero-
gatives of pride, or the monopoly of trade. Hence, the necessity for go-
vernments to direct the national wars, and to repress or reduce to regular
forms the quarrels of individuals.

The social condition of man has been restrained, or advanced by circum-
stances more or less favourable.

The glacial climates of the north of both continents, and the impenetra-
ble forests of America, are still inhabited by the savage hunter or fisher-
man. The immense sandy and salt plains of Central Asia and Africa ai»e
covered with a pastoral people and innumerable herds. These half civi-
lized hordes assemble at the call of every enthusiastic chief, and rush like
a torrent on the cultivated countries that surround them, in which they es-
tablish themselves, but to be weakened by luxury, and in their turn to be-
come the prey of others. This is the true cause of that despotism which
has always crushed and destroyed the industry of Persia, India, and
China.

Mild climates, soils naturally irrigated and rich in vegetables, are the
natural cradles of agriculture and civilization ; and when so situated as to
be sheltered from the incursions of barbarians, every species of talent is
excited ; such were (the first in Europe) Greece and Italy, and such is, at
present, nearly all that happy portion of the earth.

There, are, however, certain intrinsic causes which seem to arrest the
progress of particular races, although situated amidst the most favourable
circumstances.

4 2

MAMMALIA,

Varieties of the Human Species (a).

Although the promiscuous intercourse of the human species, which pro-
duces individuals capable of propagation, would seem to demonstrate its

(a) Notwithstanding the high character of Cuvier, as a founder of classes, yet
the arrangement established by Blumenhach of the varieties of the human species
has been universally adopted. In this classification the varieties are five, viz. —

I. The Caucasian , which comprehends the ancient and modern inhabitants of
Europe, the Western Asiatics, or those of this side of the Caspian Sea, and of the
rivers Ohi and the Ganges, together with the Northern Africans. The characters of
this race are as follows: — The head is nearly the figure of a globe; the forehead is
high and expanded; the cheek hones are without prominences; the nose is narrow
and slightly aquiline; the face is oval and straight; the mouth small, with lips
slightly everted; the skin is white, and the cheeks florid; the hair is long, soft, and
shining, and varies in colour, from a nut-brown to the deepest black. — There are
thirty- eight crania of this variety in the Hunterian Museum, London College of
Surgeons. (See Plate I. Mammalia, Fig. 1. The portrait of Jusuf Aguiah
Efendi, a Turk, and once Ambassador from the Sublime Porte at the Court of
London).

II. The Mongolian, commonly called the Tartarian, takes in the Finnish tribes in-
habiting the colder parts of the north of Europe, such as the Laplanders and Esqui-
maux, and also the Asiatics not included in the Caucasian variety, so that it com-
prehends the Chinese, but not the Malays. The head approximates to a quadrilateral
figure; the face broad and flattened, so that the parts appear to run into each other;
the nose is small and flat, and the space between the eyes flat and broad; the cheek-
bones are rounded and projecting; the aperture made by the eye-lids is narrow, and
its line extends towards the temples, the internal angle of the eye being depressed
towards the nose, and the upper eye-lid being at that angle continued into the lower
one by a rounded sweep; the skin is pale olive, and the hair is thin, black, stiff*,
and straight. — There are nine crania of this variety in the Hunterian Museum.
(See Plate I. Mammalia, Fig. 2. The portrait of Feodor Iwanowitsch, a Cal-
muck, who was sent, when young, by the Empress of Russia to the Hereditary
Princess of Baden; was educated at Carlsruhe, and became a famous engraver at
Rome).

III. The ^Ethiopian, consists of all the Africans not included in the Caucasian divi-
sion, and these partake more or less of the negro character. The front of the head
is compressed laterally, and looks as if the forehead were removed, being, in this
respect, a perfect contrast with the globular form of the head of the Caucasian va-
riety. The entire cranium is contracted anteriorly, its cavity is considerably les-
sened; the foramen magnum, and the condyles at its circumference, are placed
farther hack towards the occipital region ; there is great developement of the face, and
great prominence of the jaws, particularly of their alveolar margins and teeth, the
upper incisors are oblique; the chin recedes, and the zygomatic arch projects to-
wards the front; the skin is brown, black, and sometimes yellow, and the hair is
deep black, crisp, and curly. — There are ten crania of this variety in the Hunterian
Museum. (See Plate I. Mammalia, Fig. 3. The portrait of J. J. E. Capitein.
a negro, who received holy orders in Holland).

IV. The American, includes all the inhabitants of the vast continent of North and
South America, excepting those of the northern part of the continent, and some of
the islands, particularly the Carihhee. The cheeks are broad, hut the malar hones
are more rounded and arched than in the Mongolian race; the forehead is small and
low ; the orbits of the eye are unusually deep, and the nasal cavity is very large.
The Carihs were in the habit of lowering the forehead by employing artificial pres-
sure on the head in early infancy; hence, in this community, the characteristic
feature of the American variety, the low forehead, is much more strikingly marked
than in any other class of Americans. — There are five crania of this variety in the
Hunterian Museum. (See Plate I. Mammalia, Fig. 4. The portrait of Thay
Endaneega, a chief of the Mohawks, or Six Nations).

V. The Malay, embraces the whole of the natives of the numerous Asiatic islands,
and of those of the Pacific Ocean, New Zealand, New Holland, &c. Their head is

BIMAN A. 43

unity, certain hereditary peculiarities of conformation are observed, which
constitute what are termed races.

Three of them in particular appear very distinct — the Caucasian or
white, the Mongolian or yellowr, and the Ethiopian or negro.

The Caucasian, to which we belong, is distinguished by the beauty of
the oval formed by his head, varying in complexion and the colour of
the hair. To this variety, the most highly civilized nations, and those
which hare generally held all others in subjection, are indebted for their
origin.

The Mongolian is known by his high cheek bones, flat visage, narrow
and oblique eyes, straight black hair, scanty beard and olive complexion.
Great empires have been established by this race in China and Japan, and
their conquests been extended to this side of the Great Desert. In civi-
lization, however, it has always remained stationary.

The Negro race is confined to the south of mount Atlas ; it is marked
by a black complexion, crisped or woolly hair, compressed cranium, and a
flat nose. The projection of the lower parts of the face, and the thick
lips, evidently approximate it to the monkey tribe : the hordes of which it
consists have always remained in the most complete state of utter bar-
barism.

The race from which we are descended has been called Caucasian , be-
cause tradition and the filiation of nations seem to refer its origin to that
group of mountains situated between the Caspian and Black seas, whence,
as from a centre, it has been extended like the radii of a circle. Various
nations in the vicinity of Caucasus, the Georgians and Circassians, are
still considered the handsomest on earth. The principal ramifications
of this race may be distinguished by the analogies of language. The Ar-
menian or Syrian branch, stretching to the south, produced the Assyrians,
the Chaldeans, the hitherto untameable Arabs, who, after Mahomet, were
near becoming masters of the world; the Phoenicians, Jews, and Abyssini-
ans, which were Arabian colonies ; and most probably the Egyptians. It
is from this branch, always inclined to mysticism, that have sprung the
most widely extended forms of religion — the arts and literature have some-
times flourished among its nations, but always enveloped in a strange dis-
guise and figurative style.

The Indian, German, and Pelasgic branch is much more extended, and
was much earlier divided : notwithstanding which, the most numerous affi-
nities may be observed between its four principal languages — the Sanscrit,
the present sacred language of the Hindoos, and the parent of the greater
number of the dialects of Hindostan ; the ancient language of the Pelasgi,
common mother of the Greek, Latin, many tongues that are extinct, and
of all those of the south of Europe; the Gothic or Teutonic, from which
are derived the languages of the north and north-west of Europe, such as
the German, Dutch, English, Danish, Swedish, and other dialects; and

moderately narrowed; the forehead is slightly arched; the face is large, and all its
parts are fully developed; the jaws are more or less prominent; the skin is tawny,
or clear mahogany or chesnut brown; the hair is black, soft, and curled. — There are
thirty-four crania of this variety in the Hunterian Museum. (See Plate I. Mam-
malia, Fig. 5. The portrait of Omai, a native of Ulieten, one of the Society
Islands, brought to England in 1 773, and carried back by Cook). — Eng. Ed.

41-

mammalia.

iinally, the Sclavonian, from which spring those of the north-east, the Rus-
sian, Polish, Bohemian, &c.

It is by this great and venerable branch of the Caucasian stock, that
philosophy, the arts, and the sciences have been carried to the greatest
perfection, and remained in the keeping of the nations which compose it
for more than three thousand years.

It was preceded in Europe by the Celts, who came from the north,
wdiose tribes, once very numerous, are now confined to its most eastern
extremity, and by the Cantabrians, who passed from Africa into Spain,
now confounded with the many nations whose posterity have intermingled
in that peninsula.

The ancient Persians originate from the same source as the Indians,
and their descendants to the present hour bear great marks of resemblance
to the people of Europe.

The predatory tribes of the Scythian and Tartar branch, extending at
first to the north and north-east, always wandering over the immense plains
of those countries, returned only to devastate the happier abodes of their
more civilized brethren. The Scythians, who, at so remote a period, made
irruptions into upper Asia ; the Parthians, who there destroyed the Greek
and Roman domination; the Turks, who there subverted that of the
Arabs, and subjugated in Europe the unfortunate remnant of the Grecian
people, all swarmed from this prolific branch. The Finlanders and Hun-
garians are tribes of the same division, which have strayed among the
Sclavonic and Teutonic nations. Their original country, to the north and
north-east of the Caspian sea still contains inhabitants who have the same
origin, and speak similar languages, but mingled with other petty nations,
variously descended, and of different languages. The Tartars remained
unmixed longer than the others in the country included between the mouth
of the Danube to beyond the Irtisch, from which they so long menaced
Russia, and where they have finally been subjugated by her. The Mon-
goles, however, have mingled their blood with that of those they con-
quered, many traces of which may still be found among the inhabitants of
lesser Tartary.

It is to the east of this Tartar branch of the Caucasian race that the
Mongolian race begins, whence it extends to the eastern ocean. Its
branches, the Calmucs, &c., still wandering shepherds, are constantly tra-
versing the desert. Thrice did their ancestors, under Attila, Genghis,
and Tamerlane, spread far the terror of their name. The Chinese are
the earliest and most civilized branch, not only of this race, to which they
belong, but of all the nations upon earth. A third branch, the Mant-
chures, recently conquered and still govern China. The Japanese, Co-
reans, and nearly all the hordes which extend to the north-east of Siberia,
subject to Russia, are also to be considered, in a great measure, as ori-
ginating from this race ; and such also is esteemed the fact, with regard to
the original inhabitants of various islands of that Archipelago. With the
exception of a few Chinese literati, the different nations of the Mongoles
are universally addicted to Buddism, or the religion of Fo.

The origin of this great race appears to have been in the mountains of
Atlai, but it is impossible to trace the filiation of its different branches
with the same certainty as we have done those of the Caucasian. The
history of these wandering nations is as fugitive as their establishments ;

B1MANA.

45

and that of the Chinese, confined exclusively to their own empire, gives
us nothing satisfactory with respect to their neighbours. The affinities of
their languages are also too little known to direct us in this labyrinth.

The languages of the north of the Peninsula beyond the Ganges, as well
as that of Thibet, are somewhat allied to the Chinese, at least in their
monosyllabic structure, and the people who speak them have features
somewhat resembling other Mongoles. The south of this Peninsula, how-
ever, is inhabited by Malays, whose forms approximate them much nearer
to the Indians, whose race and language are extended over all the coasts
of the islands of the Indian Archipelago. The innumerable little islands
of the southern ocean are also peopled by a handsome race, nearly allied
to the Indians, whose language is very similar to the Malay ; in the inte-
rior of the largest of these islands, particularly in the wilder portions of it,
is another race of men with black complexions, crisped hair, and negro
faces, called Alfourous. On the coast of New Guinea, and in the neigh-
bouring islands, we find other negroes, nearly similar to those of the east-
ern coast of Africa, named Papuas * ; to the latter, are generally referred
the people of Van-Diemen’s land, and those of New Holland to the
Alfourous.

These Malays, and these Papuas are not easily referable to either of
the three great races of which we have been speaking ; but, can the former
be clearly distinguished from their neighbours, the Caucasian Hindoos and
the Mongolian Chinese ? As for us, we confess we cannot discover any
sufficient characteristics in them for that purpose. Are the Papuas ne-
groes, which may formerly have strayed into the Indian ocean? We pos-
sess neither figures nor descriptions sufficiently precise to enable us to
answer this question.

The northern inhabitants of both continents, the Samoiedes, the Lap-
landers, and the Esquimaux, spring, according to some, from the Mongo-
lian race, while others assert that they are mere degenerate offsets from
the Scythian and Tartar branch of the Caucasian stock.

We have not yet been able to refer the Americans to any of the races
of the eastern continent ; still, they have no precise or constant character
which can entitle them to be considered as a particular one. Their cop-
per-coloured complexion is not sufficient ; their generally black hair and
scanty beard would induce us to refer them to the Mongoles, if their de-
fined features, projecting nose, large and open eye, did not oppose such a
theory, and correspond with the features of the European. Their lan-
guages are as numberless as their tribes, and no demonstrative analogy
has as yet been obtained, either with each other, or with those of the old
world •j'.

* With respect to the various nations of the Indian and Pacific oceans, see the
dissertation of Messrs. Lesson and Garnot in the Zoologie du Voyage de la Coquille,
p. 1 — 113. For the languages of the Asiatics and their affinities, consult the Asia
Polyglotta of M. Klaproth.

f See the Voyage de M. de Humboldt, and the dissertations of Vater and Mitchill.

MAMMALIA.

46

ORDER II.

QUADRUMANA.

Independently of the anatomical details which, distinguish it from man,
and which have been given, this family differs from our species in a very
remarkable way. All the animals belonging to it have the toes of the
hind feet free and opposable to the others, and the toes are all as long and
flexible as fingers. In consequence of this, the whole species climb trees
with the greatest facility, while it is only with pain and difficulty they can
stand and walk upright; their foot then resting on its outer edge only,
and their narrow pelvis being unfavourable to an equilibrium. They all
have intestines very similar to those of man; the e^es directed forwards,
the mammas on the breast, the penis pendent. The brain has three lobes
on each side, the posterior of which covers the cerebellum, and the tem-
poral fossae are separated from the orbits by a bony partition. In every
thing else, however, they gradually lessen in resemblance to him, by as-
suming a muzzle more and more elongated, and a tail and a gait more like
that of quadrupeds. Notwithstanding this, the freedom of their arms and
the complication of their hands allow them all to perform many of the ac-
tions of man as well as to imitate his gestures.

They have long been divided into two genera, the Monkeys and the
Lemurs , which, by the multiplication of secondary forms, have now be-
come two small families, between which we must place a third genus, that
of the Ouistitis , as it is not conveniently referable to the one or the
other.

SiMrA, Lin .

The monkeys are all quadrumana, which have four straight incisors in
each jaw, and flat nails on all the extremities; two characters which ap-
proximate them more nearly to man than the subsequent genera ; their
molares have also blunt tubercles like ours, and their food consists chiefly
of fruits. Their canine teeth, however, being longer than the rest, sup-
ply them with a weapon we do not possess, and which require a hollow in
the opposite jaw, to receive them when the mouth is closed.

They may be divided, from the number of their molar teeth, into two prin-
cipal subgenera, which are again subdivided into numerous groups*. The

* Buffon subdivided the monkeys into five tribes : the true monkeys, without tails ;
the baboons, with short tails; the guenons, with long tails and callous buttocks; the
sapajous, with long prehensile tails and no callus ; the sagouins, with long tails, not
prehensile and without callus. Erxleben, adopting this division, translated these
names by simia, papio, cercopitliecus, cebus, and callithrix. Thus it is, that the names

QUADRUMANA

47

Monkeys, properly so called ,

Or those of the eastern continent, have the same number of grinders as
Man, but otherwise differing from each other by characters, which have
formed the grounds of the following subdivisions : — The

Simia, Erxl. — Pithecus, Geoffr.

The Ourangs* * are the only monkeys of the ancient continent which
have no callus on the buttock ; their hyoid bone, liver, and caecum resem-
ble those of Man. Their nose is not prominent, they have no cheek-
pouches, nor a vestige of a tail. Some of them have arms long enough
to reach the ground when standing — their legs, on the contrary, are very
short.

S. satyrus, L. ; Audeb., pi. 2; Fr. Cuv. pi. 2. (The Ourang-
Outang'i'.) Of all animals, this Ourang is considered as approach-
ing most nearly to Man in the form of his head, height of forehead,
and volume of brain ; but the exaggerated description of some au-
thors respecting this resemblance, are partly to be attributed to the

cebus and callithrix , by which the antients designated monkeys of Africa and India,
have been transferred to those of America. The genus Papio, founded solely on the
shortness of the tail, could not be retained, as it violated natural affinities, and all
the others required subdividing. It was also necessary to abolish the genus Ouistitis,
which was comprised in that of the Sagouins, but which does not altogether corres-
pond with the common characters of the other monkeys.

* Orang (a) is a Malay word signifying reasonable being, which is applied to man,
the ourang- outang, and the elephant. Outang means wild, or of the woods; hence
Wild Man of the Woods.

f The only good figure of the Ourang- Outang we had for a long time was that of
Vosmaer, taken from a living specimen at the Hague. That of Buffon, Suppl. VIII.
pi. 1, is ever}' way erroneous; that of Allamand (Buff. d’Holl. XV. pi. 11,) is some-
what better — it was copied in Schreber, pi. 2, B. That of Camper, copied ib., pi. 2,
C., is tolerably exact, but is easily discovered to have been taken from the dead body.
Bontius, Med. Ind. 84, gives a completely ideal one, although Linnaeus took it for
the type of his Troglodyte (Amaen. Ac. VI, pi. 1, § 1). There are some good ones
in Griffith, and in Krusenstern’s Voyage, pi. 94 and 95, but all of them from young
subjects.

fldT (a) The species which constitute the sub-genus “Orangs” of Cuvier, are sepa-
rated into two sub-genera by Geoffroy, who makes the Simia Satyrus the type of his first
8ub-genus, Pithecus; and Simia Troglodytes that of his second sub-genus, Troglo-
dytes. Besides the distinctions between these two species, described by both Cuvier
and Geoffroy, there are two others, which may be easily ascertained on an examina-
tion of the skeletons of both. In the Pithecus, or Simia Satyrus, the ribs are of the
same number as those of the human body, namely, twelve on each side. But, in
the Simia Troglodytes, the ribs on each side are thirteen, the extra pair being arti-
culated with the first lumbar vertebra on each side. Between the sternum (breast-
bone) of the two apes, a striking difference also prevails. That of the Simia Satyrus
is much broader in proportion to its length; and the second, third, fourth, and fifth
bones which compose it, are divided longitudinally into two parallel rows, the sepa-
rate portions alternating with each other, leaving an indented suture between them,
which is peculiarly manifest in the young animal. Now, in the Simia Troglodytes,
the sternum is simply divided, in the ordinary way, into five separate portions which
arc entire; it is altogether much narrower or more compressed laterally than it is in
the former species. (See several specimens in the Museum of the College of Sur-
geons, in London. — See, also, specimens in the British Museum). — Eng. Ed.

48

MAMMALIA.

fact of their being drawn from young individuals only ; and there is
every reason to believe, that, with age, their muzzle becomes much
more prominent. The body is covered with coarse red hair, the face
blueish, and the hinder thumbs very short compared with the toes.
His lips are susceptible of a singular elongation, and possess great
mobility. His history has been much disfigured by mingling it with
that of the other great monkeys, that of the Chimpanse, in particu-
lar. After a strict and critical examination, I have ascertained that
the Ourang-Outang inhabits the most eastern countries only, such as
Malabar, Cochin China, and particularly the great island of Borneo,
whence he has been occasionally brought to Europe by the way of
Java. When young, and such as he appears to us in his captivity,
he is a mild and gentle animal, easily rendered tame and affection-
ate, which is enabled by his conformation to imitate many of our ac-
tions, but whose intelligence does not appear to be as great as is
reported, not much surpassing even that of the Dog. Camper dis-
covered, and has tvell described two membranous sacs in this animal
which communicate with the glottis, that produce a hoarseness of his
voice — he was mistaken, however, in imagining that the nails are
always wanting on his hinder thumbs.

There is a monkey in Borneo, hitherto known only by his skeleton,
called the Pongo *, which so closely resembles the Ourang-Outang in
the proportions of all his parts, and by the arrangement of the fora- „
mina and sutures of the head, that, notwithstanding the great pro-
minence of the muzzle, the smallness of the cranium, and the height
of the branches of the lower jaw, we are tempted to consider him an
adult — if not of the species of the Ourang-Outang, at least of one
very nearly allied to it. The length of the arms, that of the apo-
physes of the cervical vertebrae, and the tuberosity of his calcaneum,
may enable him to assume the vertical position, and walk upon two feet.
He is the largest monkey known, and in size is nearly equal to Man.

Mr. J. Harwood, in the Trans. Lin. Soc. XV. p. 471, describes
the feet of an ourang, fifteen English inches in length. This an-
nounces a very great stature in the animal to which they belonged,
and would have led him to the belief that the Pongo is the adult
Ourang-Outang, were it not that the skeleton of the Pongo in the
College of Surgeons, at London, has one lumbar vertebra more than
those of the Ourangs. This, however, is no objection — the same
variation is frequently observed in the human subject.

The arms of the remaining Ourangs reach only to the knee. They

* Audeb. Singes, pi. anat. 2. This name of Pongo , a corruption of Boggo, which
is given in Africa to the Chimpanse , or to the Mandrill, was applied by Buffon to a
pretended large species of Ourang-Outang — the mere imaginary product of his com-
binations. Wurmb, a naturalist of Batavia, has transferred it to this animal, which
he was the first to describe, and of which Buffon never had any idea. See Mem. of
the Soc. of Batavia, vol. ii. p. 245. The thought, that it might be an adult Ourang,
struck me on examining the head of an ordinary Ourang, whose muzzle projected
much more than those of the very young specimens hitherto described. T described
it in a memoir read before the Acad, des Sciences in 1818. Tilesius and Rudolphi
appear also to have had it. See the Mem. of the Acad, of Berlin, 1824, p. 131.

QUADRUMANA. 49

have no forehead, and the cranium retreats from the crest of the eye-brov .
The name of Ciiimpanses might be exclusively applied to them.

S, troglodytes , L. (The Chimpanse)* is covered with black or
brown hair. Could any reliance be placed on the accounts of tra-
vellers, this animal must be equal or superior to man in stature, but
no part of it hitherto seen in Europe indicates this extraordinary
size. It inhabits Guinea and Congo, lives in troops, constructs huts
of leaves and sticks, arms itself with clubs and stones, and thus re-
pulses men and elephants; pursues and abducts, as is said, negro
women, &c. Naturalists have generally confounded it with the
Ourang-Outang. When domesticated he soon learns to walk, sit,
and eat like a man. We now separate the Gibbons from the Ou-
rangs.

Hilobates, Illig.

The Gibbons have the long arms of the true Ourangs, and the low fore-
head of the Chimpanse, along with the callous buttocks of the Guenons,
differing however from the latter in having no tail or cheek-pouch. They
all inhabit the most remote parts of India.

S. lar. L, ; Buff. XIV. 2 ; Onko , Fred. Cuv. pi. 5 and 6, (the
Black Gibbon) is covered with coarse black hairs, and has a whitish
circle round his face.

H. agilis , Fred. Cuv. pi. 3 and 4; Petit Gibbon of Buffon, XIV. 3,
(the Brown Gibbon) is brown — the circle round the face is of a pale
red; the lower part of the back is of the same colour. The young
are of a uniform yellowish white — it is very agile, and lives in pairs
— its Malay name, Wouwou, is taken from its cry.

S. leucisca, Schreber, pi. 3, B, (the Cinereous Gibbon) is covered
with a soft and ash-coloured wool. The visage is black — lives among
the reeds, and climbs to the tops of the highest branches of the bam-
boos, where it balances itself by its long arms. We might separate
from the other Gibbons the Siamang.

S. syndactila , Raff., Fred. Cuv., pi. 2, (the Siamang) has the
second and third toes of the hind foot united by a narrow membrane,
the whole length of the first phalanx. It is black — the chin and
eyebrows red — lives in numerous troops, which are led by courageous
and vigilant chiefs, which, at sunrise and sunset, make the forest
ring with the most frightful cries. Their larynx has a membranous
sac connected with it.

All the ensuing monkeys of the eastern continent have the liver divided

* This is the Quojas moron , or the Satyr of Angola , of Tulpius, who gives a bad
figure of it, (Obs. Med., p. 271), and the Pygmy, much better represented by Tyson,
(Anat. of a Pygmy, pi. 1), copied by Schreber, pi. 1, 13. Scotia had given a toler-
able drawing of it, copied Amaen. Acad. VI. pi. 1, fig. 3, and Schreber, 1, C. An in-
dividual that lived with Buffon, and which is still preserved in the Museum, is repre-
sented, though badly, in the Hist. Nat. XIV. 1, where he is called Jocko. The same
specimen is much better in Lccat (Traits du Mouv. Muscl. pi. 1, fig. 1), under the
name Quimpesc. Audebert gives the same, but from the stuffed specimen only — he
calls it Pongo.

VOL. I.

Y

50

MAMMALIA.

Into several lobes; the caecum thick, short, and without any appendage;
the hyoid bone has the form of a shield.

Cercopithecus, Erxl., partim.

The long-tailed monkeys* have a moderately prominent muzzle (of 608) :
cheek-pouches ; tail ; callosities on the buttocks ; the last of the inferior
molares with four tubercles like the rest. Numerous species, of every
variety of size and colour, abound in Africa, live in troops, and do much
damage to the gardens and fields under cultivation. They are easily
tamed.

Simia rubra, Gm. ; Buff. XIV. 30 ; Fred. Cuv. 24. (The Pa-
tras). Red fawn colour above, whitish below, a black band over the
eyes, sometimes surmounted with white — from Senegal.

Simia cethiops, L. ; Buff. XIV. 32; Fred. Cuv. 25. (The Col-
lared Mangabey). A chocolate brown above ; below and the nape of
the neck, whitish ; on the head a cap or coif of a lively red ; eye-lids
white. Buffon says it is from Madagascar, and Hasselquist from
Senegal; and in fact Sonnerat declares, there are no monkeys in
Madagascar.

Simia fuliginosa, Geoff.; Buff. XIV. 32; Fred. Cuv. 25. (The
Mangabey). A chocolate brown, uniform above, fawn coloured be-
low; eye-lids white. Buffon says it is from Madagascar, and he
believes it to be a variety of the preceding.

Simia sabcea, Lin. ; Buffi. XIY. 37 ; Fred. Cuv. 19. (The Green
Monkey)'j'. ^ greenish above, whitish beneath ; face black ; the
tufts on the cheeks yellowish; tip of the tail yellow. From Senegal.

Simia faunus, Gm. ; Malbrouc , Buff. XIY. 29 ; Simia cynosorus ,
Scopol. ; Schr. pi. 14, C; Fred. Cuv. pi. 22, var. of the callithrix;,
Audeb. 4th fam. 2d sect. pi. 5 Greenish above ; limbs ash-co-
loured; face flesh-coloured; no yellow on the tail; one black, and
one white band over the eye-brows ; scrotum of a beautiful ultra-
marine.

Simia erytliropyga , Fred. Cuv. pi. 21. (The Yervet) differs from
the Malbrouc in the scrotum ; which is surrounded with white hairs,
the anus with red ones ; and from the Grivet (a S', grisea) Fred. Cuv.
21, by a green scrotum, encircled with fawn-coloured hairs.

Simia melarhina, Fred. Cuv. pi. 18; Buff. XIY. pi. 10. (The
Talapoin). Greenish above ; tufts of the cheek yellowish ; a black
nose in the middle of a flesh-coloured face.

Sim. mona and S. monacha, Schreb. ; Buff. XIY. 36 ; Fred. Cuv.
13. (The Mona). Body brown; limbs black; the breast; insides of
the arms, and circumference of the head whitish ; black band across
the forehead ; a white spot at each side of the root of the tail.

* Cercopithecus, i. e. tailed monkey, a name used by the Greeks,
f Callithrix, Pliny, 1. 8, c. 54, is the name of an Ethiopian monkey, furnished with
a heard and a tufted tail, probably the Ouanderou. Buffon arbitrarily applied it to
this species.

+ The Cercop. harhatus of Clusius, which Linn, cites as an example of his faunus,
is rather an Ouanderou than a Malbrouc.

QUADRUMANA.

51

Sim. diana, Lin; Fxquima, Marcgr.*; Audeb. 4tli fam. sec. 2,
pi. 6, and Buff. Supp. VII. 20. (The Roloway). Blackish, speck-
led with white above, beneath white ; crupper of a purplish red ; face
black, surrounded with white; a little white beard on the chin.

Sim. cephus, Lin.; Buff. XIV. 34; Fred. Cuv. 17. (The
Moustache). Ashy-brown; a yellow tuft before each ear; a clear
blue band, resembling a reversed chevron, on the upper lip.

S. petaurista, Gm. ; Audeb. ib. XIV; Fred. Cuv. 13. (The
White-nosed Monkey). Black or brown, speckled with white ; white
nose; face black; circumference of the lips and the eyes reddish.

These last five species, all small, beautifully variegated in colour,
and of a mild and gentle disposition, are very common in Guinea'!'.

Semnopitiiecus, Fred. Cuv.

Differs from the Long-tailed Monkeys, by having an additional smaii
tubercle on the last of the inferior molares. They inhabit eastern coun-
tries, and their long limbs and very long tail give them a very peculiar
appearance. Their muzzle projects very little more than that of the Gib-
bons, and, like them, they have callosities on the buttocks. They appear,
likewise, to have no cheek-pouches; their larynx is furnished with a sac.
The one longest known is the

Sim. nemceus , L. ; Buff. XIV. 41 ; Fred. Cuv. pi. 12. Remark-
able for its lively and varied colouring; body and arms grey; hands,
thighs, and fee t, black ; legs of a lively red ; the tail and a large tri-
angular spot upon the loins, white ; face orange ; he has a black and
red collar, and tufts of yellow hairs on the sides of the head ; inhabits
Cochin China J.

Another species is remarkable for the very extraordinary form of
the nose — it is the

S. nasica , Schr. ; Buff. Supp. VII. 11 and 12. (The Kahau).
Yellow tinted with red; nose extremely long and projecting, in the
form of a sloping spatula. This monkey inhabits Borneo, lives in
great troops, which assemble morning and evening, on the branches
of the great trees on the banks of the rivers — its cry kahau. It is
also said to be found in Cochin China.

S. entellus, Dufres.; Fred. Cuv. pi. 8 and 9. (The Entellus).
A light yellowish grey ; black hairs on the eye-brows and sides of the
head, directed forwards. From Upper Bengal. Is one of the spe-
cies held in veneration by the Brahmins.

* The iigurc annexed to the description of the E vquima in Marcgrave is that of
an Ouarine, and that of the Exquima is joined to the description of the Ouarine or
Ctuariba. This transposition lias pi’oduced many errors in synonymes.

t Pennant has described certain Guenons without thumbs, Sim. polyeomos and Sim.
ferruginea, from which llligcr has constructed his genus Colobus, but I have not yet
been able to sec them, and for this reason have not mentioned them. M. Temminck
assures us that their head and teeth resemble those of a Semnopitiiecus.

1 M. Diard having transmitted to the Museum several Doucs, from Cochin China,
it has been proved that they have callosities on the buttocks; a fact denied by Buf-
lon, on account of his having seen lint one specimen injured by stuffing. 'Hie genus
Lasinpyga of Illiger must be suppressed, as it is based on this error.

52

MAMMALIA.

S. melalophos, Raff. ; F. C. pi. 7. (The Simpai). Fur of a very-
lively red; beneath white; face blue; a crest of black hairs reach-
ing from one ear to the other.

aS* * * §. comata, Desm. ; S. cristata, Raff. ; Fr. Cuv. pi. 2. Presbitis
mitrata , Kotzeb. (The Croo). Fine ash colour below, and the tuft
of the tail white ; black crest on the eye-brows, and the hairs of the
top of the head long and turned up, forming a tuft.

S. maura, L. ; F. Cuv. pi. 10. (The Negro Monkey). All black,
the young of a brownish yellow. The three latter species are from
the straits of Sunda*.

MACACUS'f'.

All the animals of this denomination have a fifth tubercle on their last
molares, and callosities and cheek-pouches like a Guenon. The limbs
are shorter and thicker than in a Semnopithecus ; the muzzle more pro-
jecting, and the superciliary ridge more inflated than in either the one or
the other. Though docile when young, they become unmanageable when
old. They all have a sac which communicates with the larynx under the
thyroid cartilage, and which, when they cry out, becomes filled with air.
Their tail is pendent, and takes no part in their motions : they produce
early, but are not completely adult for four or five years. The period of
gestation is seven months — during the rutting season the labia pudendi,
&c. of the females are excessively distended J. They are generally brought
from India.

. a Sim. silenus and leonina, L. and Gm. ; Ouanderou, Buff. ; Audeb.
2d fam. sect. 1, pi. 3. (The Maned Macaque). Black; ash coloured
mane and whitish beard which surround the head. From Ceylon.

Sim. sinica, Gm. ; Buff. XIV. 30 ; Fr. Cuv. 30. (The Chinese
Monkey). A lively fawn-coloured brown above, white beneath;
flesh-coloured face ; the hairs on the top of the head arranged in
radii forming a sort of hat. From Bengal, Ceylon.

S. radiata , Geoff. ; Fr. Cuv. 29. (The Cape Monkey). Differ-
ing from the preceding in a greenish tint.

Sim. cynomolgus and cynocephalus, Lin. ; Macaque , Buff. XIV
20 ; Fr. Cuv. 26 and 27. (The Hare-lipped Monkey). Greenish
above, yellowish or whitish below; ears and hands black; face and
scrotum tawny§. The Aigrette , Sim. aygula , Lin., Buff. XIV. 21,
appears to be a mere variety of this one, differing by a longer tuft of
hair on the top of the head.

* There is some variation in their Malay names. Raffles, (Lin. Trans. XIII)
calls the S. conata, Chinkau; the S. maura, Lotong. Raffles calls the S.fascicularis,
the Kra.

f Macaco is the generic appellation of monkeys on the coast of Guinea, and among
the negroes transported to the colonies. Marcgrave mentions a species, which he
says has “ nares elatas hifidas” — and these vague words, copied from him only, have
remained in the character applied to the Macaque of Buff., although it has nothing
like it.

J Hence the observation of iElian, that monkeys are to be seen in India which
have a prolapsus uteri.

§ Add the Black-faced Macaque, Fr. Cuv. Mammif. 28, and the other species de-
scribed in the same work.

QUADRUMANA.

Some of the Macaques are distinguished by a short tail.

M. rhesus; Rhesus , Audeb. fam. ii; Patas a queue courte , ib.
pi. 4, and Buff. Supp. XIV. pi. 16, the first baboon figured by Buff.
XIY. pi. 19* * * §. (The Pig-tailed Baboon). Greyish; a fawn-co-
loured tinge on the head and crupper, sometimes on the back; face
flesh-colour; tail reaching below the hamstrings. From Bengal 'f.

Sim. menestrinus, L. ; Sim. platypigos, Schreb. ; Audeb. fam. ii,
sect. 1, pi. 2.; Fr. Cuv. Mammif. under the name of Singe a queue
de cochon . (The Brown Baboon). Deep brown above ; black band
beginning on the head, and fading as it extends along the back ; yel-
lowish round the head and limbs; tail thin and wrinkled J.

Inuus, Cuv.

Mere Macaques, which have a small tubercle in lieu of a tail.

S. silvanus, pithecus and inuus , Lin. ; Buff. XIY. 7, 8 ; Fr. Cuv.
Mammif. (The Barbary Ape). Completely covered with a light
grey-brown hair, and of all monkeys, is the one that suffers least
from our climate. He is originally from Barbary, but is said to
have become naturalised in the most inaccessible parts of the rock of
Gibraltar §.

Cynocephalus, C. ||

The Dog-headed Monkeys, together with the teeth, cheek-pouches and
callosities of the Inuus, Cuv., have an elongated muzzle truncated at the
end, in which the nostrils are pierced, giving it a greater resemblance to
that of a dog than of any other monkey ; their tail varies in length.
They are generally large, ferocious and dangerous animals, found mostly
in Africa.

* The two specimens used by Audebert are still in the Museum. I have exa-
mined them and find they are both of one species.

t The Macaque a queue courte of Buff. Supp. VII. pi. 13, (Sim. erylrlicea , Schr.)
appears to me to be a true Macaque (S. cynomolgus ), whose tail had been amputated.

X Add the Macaque de V Inde, and the Macaque a face rouge , Fr. Cuv. Mammif.

§ The Pitheque of Buff. Supp. VII. pi. 4 and 5, was a young Magot(a). His Lit-
tle Cynocephalus, ib. pi. 6, and the Great and Little Cynocephala of Prosper Alpin
are also of that species. n<0>jxof is the Greek term for monkeys in general, and the
one whose anatomy has been given by Galen was a Magot, although Camper thought it
was an Ourang-Outang. M. de Blainville perceived this mistake, and I have proved
it by comparing with these two species all that Galen has stated respecting the ana-
tomy of his pithecus.

|| Cynocephalus, dog’s head, a name well known to the ancients, especially as the
dog played a conspicuous part in the symbols of the Egyptians, in which it repre-
sented Tot or Mercury.

The Pigmy, or Barbary ape, of which species a male and female are in the
Surrey Zoological Gardens, is distinguished in India as an object of superstitious re-
verence, to which temples have been raised. In the confined state these animals will-
ingly received every sort of food, with the exception of that of animal; they scarcely
ever eat any portion, before they broke the whole. The male was capricious, and
sometimes ill tempered, and we have seen the female always acting in such a man-
ner that shewed fear as well as gentle submission; she usually approached the male
by proceeding around him in a circular walk, and with her eyes constantly upon him,
as if to watch the favourable moment for shortening the distance between them. The
jealousy shewn by him when a visitor took notice of the female, was instantly mani-
fested by repeated blows. — Eng. Ed.

54

MAMMALIA,

C. papio, Desra. ; Sim. sphynx , Lin. ; Papion, Buff. (The Gui-
nea Baboon). Yellow, verging more or less on a brown; tufts of
the cheeks fawn-coloured ; face black; tail long* * * §. They are found
of various sizes, owing probably to the dilference of age ; when full
grown, frightful from their ferocity and brutal lubricity. From
Guinea.

There is another neighbouring species with a shorter tail, a greener
fur, whiter cheek-tufts and a flesh-coloured face, S. cynocephalus ;
the Babouin, Fr. Cuv. Mem. du Mus. IY. pi. 19.

C.porcarius; Sim. porcaria, Bodd. ; S. ursina, Penn. ; S. sphyn-
giola, Herm. ; The l^ong-faced Guenon , Penn., and Buff*. Supp.
VII. pi. 15 ; Black Monhey of Vaillant'j- ; Chacma , Fr. Cuv. Mammif.
Black, with a green or yellowish glaze, particularly on the forehead;
tufts of the cheeks grey ; face and hands black ; his tail reaches his
heel, and ends in a tuft of hair. The adult has a large mane — in
every thing else, as to habits and form, he resembles the preceding.
From the Cape of Good Hope.

C. hamadryas ; Tartarin of Belon, Ois. fol. 101, or Papion d
perruque; Sim. hamadryas , L. ; Dog-faced Babocn. Penn. ; Singe
de Moco, Buff. Supp. VII. 10 J. A slightly blueish ash-colour;
hairs of the ruff, and particularly those of the sides of the head, very
long; face flesh-coloured. This great monkey is also among the
most libidinous and horribly ferocious of his kind — lives in Arabia
and Ethiopia.

There is another species, the Phillippines, which should be dis-
tinguished from other Cynocephala, which is totally black, and with-
out a tail — S. nigra , Cuv. ; but whose head resembles that of the
rest. The

Mandrills,

Of all the monkeys, have the longest muzzle (30°); their tail is very
short ; they are very brutal and ferocious ; nose as in the preceding.

Sim. maimon and mormon, Linn. ; Boggo, Choras, Buff. XIV.
XVI. XVII. et Supp. VII. 9. (The Mandrill). Greyish brown,
inclining to olive above; a small lemon-yellow-coloured beard on
the chin ; cheeks blue and furrowed. The nose in the adult male
becomes red, particularly at the end, where it is scarlet, which has
been the cause of its being deemed, erroneously, a distinct species §.

* Those which have been figured as having it short, as the Papions of Buffi XIV.
pi. 13 and 14, &c. had it cut off. M. Brongnard was the first who gave a good figure
of it, hut under the improper name of Sim. cynocephalus. His figure is copied by
Schreber, pi. 13, B. See the different Papios in the Mammif. Fred. Cuv.

f All these factitious species have been established on the good or bad condition
of individual specimens of the same species, or on their difference of age.

f Copied by Schreber, but badly coloured. There is now a good figure of it in
the Mammif. of Fred. Cuv.

§ We have seen, as well as M. Geoffroy, two or three Mandrills, or S. maimon ,
change to the Choras or S. mormon , in the menagerie of the Museum. The tuft of
hair, which is frequently given as a character of the mormon, is often also in the
maimon.

QUADRUMANA.

hi)

Tlie genital parts, and the circumference round the anus, are of the
same colour. The buttocks are of a beautiful violet. It is difficult
to imagine a more hideous or extraordinary animal. He nearly at-
tains the size of a man, and is a terror to the negroes of Guinea.
Many details of his history have been mixed up with that of the
Chimpanse, and consequently with that of the Ourang-Outang.

Sim. leuco'phcea , Fred. Cuv. Ann. du Mus. d’Hist. Nat. IX. pi. 37,
from a young specimen from India, and Hist, des Mammif. from the
adult. (The Drill). Yellowish grey; face black; tail very short
and thin ; in old ones the fur becomes darker, and the chin of a
brilliant red.

The Monkeys of the New Continent

Have four grinders more than the others — thirty-six in all; the tail
long ; no cheek-pouches ; buttocks hairy ; no callosities ; nostrils opening
on the sides of the nose, and not underneath. All the great Quadrumana
of America belong to this division. Their large intestines are less in-
flated, and the caecum longer and more slender than in those of the eastern
continent.

The tails of some of them are prehensile — that is, its extremity can
twist round bodies with sufficient force to seize them as with a hand.
They are more particularly designated by the name of Sapajous, Cebus ,
Erxleben*.

At their head may be placed the Alouattes (Mycetes, //%.), which
are distinguished by a pyramidal head, the upper jaw of which descends
much below the cranium, as the branches of the lower one ascend very
high for the purpose of lodging a bony drum, formed by a vesicular in-
flation of the hyoid bone, which communicates with the larynx, and gives
to their voice an astonishing volume, and a frightful sound. Hence their
name of Howling Monkeys. The prehensile portion of the tail is naked
beneath.

There are several species, whose distinguishing characters are not yet
well ascertained, for the colour of the fur on which they are established
varies with the age and the difference of sexes.

Simia seniculus , Buff. Supp. VII. 25. (Red Howling Monkey).
It is often sent to us from the forests of Guiana, where it lives in
troops ; size that of a large fox ; colour, a reddish chesnut, rather
deeper at the head and tail. The Allouatte ourson ( Stentor ursinus ,
Geoff.), llumb. Obs. Zool. I. pi. 30, must differ from it very slightly;
but it would appear that there are many others, some of which are
black or brown, others of a pale colour. In certain species this pale
tint is peculiar to the females -j\

* Cebus or Cepus , K>j7ro?, names of an Ethiopian monkey, which, from the de-
scription of iElian, lib. xxvii. c. 8, must have been the Patas.

t Marcgrave, Braz. 226, speaks of a black Guariba, with brown hands, that Spix
thought he had found in his Seniculus niger. Mem. de Munic, for 1813, p. 333.
Mycetes rvfimanus, Kuhl.

Marcgrave, 227, speaks of another species, all black and bearded, fig. p. 228, un-
der the wrong name of Exquima, which must have been, it is probable, the Mycetes

56

MAMMALIA.

The Common Sapajous have the head flat, and the muzzle slightly
prominent — facial angle 608.

In some of them, the anterior thumbs are either totally, or nearly so,
hidden under the skin, and the prehensile part of the tail naked beneath.
M. Geoff, has formed them into a genus by the name of Ateles*.

The first species, the Charnels , Ateles pentadactylus, Geoff., differs
again from the others in having a slight projection of the thumb,
though it is only of one phalanx, but without a nail; its fur is
black.

A second species, the Mikiri , At. hypoxanthus, Pr. Max.;
Brachyteles macrotarsus , Spix, pi. i., has also a very small thumb,
and sometimes even a nail. The fur is yellowish, ferruginous to-
wards the tail. These two species are separated by Spix under the
name Brachyteles. They connect the Ateles with Lagothrix.

The other Ateles, to which alone Spix restricts that name — Coaita ,
Buff. — have no apparent thumb whatever. Such are the following:

A. paniscus ; Simia panisc. L. ; Coaita, Buff. XV. 1. (The
Coaita). Completely covered with black hair, like the Chamek,
but without any visible thumb ; face, flesh-colour.

A. ater, Fr. Cuv. Mammif. (The Cayou). Face black, like the
rest of the body.

A. marginatus, Geoff. The Chuva, Humb. or the Coaita a face
bordee, Ann. Mus. XII. pi. 10. Black, with a border of white
hairs round the face.

A. belzebuth; Sim. beelzeb., Briss. The Marimonda, Humb. or
Coaita a ventre blanc , Geoff.; Ann. Mus. VII. pi. 16. Black
above ; white beneath ; circumference of the eyes flesh-coloured.

A. arachnoides, Geoff. Ann. Mus. XIII. pi. 9. (The Spider
Monkey). Grey, fawn-coloured or red; eyebrows black.

All these animals are natives of Guiana or Brazil ; their fore-feet
are very long and slender, and their gait remarkably slow'f’.

barbatus, Spix, pi. 32. The female, lb. pi. 33, is of a light yellowish grey. The
male must be the Mycetes niger of Kuhl and Prince Maximil. de Neuwied. The
Caraia of d’Azzara, which is black, breast and belly of a dark red, the female
brownish, may be referred to this species.

Pr. Max. has another Mycetes ursinus, which appears to be much browner than
the ursinus of M. Geoffroy, and to approximate nearer to the M. fuscus , or the M.
discolor of Spix, pi. 30 and 34. This latter rather appears to be the St. fuscus of
Geoffroy.

The Straw-coloured Alouatte, Stentor stramineus, Geoff, and the Myc. stramineus,
Spix, pi. 31, of a yellowish grey, appears from its cranium to be of a different spe-
cies, but it may merely be the female of a preceding one. It is easily seen, also, that
if their characters are so uncertain, their synonymes must be much more so.

Add the St. flavicaudatus, Geoff, of a black brown, with a yellow streak on each
side of the tail.

* Ann. du Museum, VII. 260, et seq.

f They exhibit some remarkable resemblances to man in their muscles. Of all
animals, they alone have the biceps of the thigh made like ours.

QUADRUMANA,

Lagothrix(g), Geoff. — Gastrim argus, Spin.

Head round, like the Ateles; a thumb developed like the Alouattes;
tail partly naked, like the one and the other. Such are the L. Humbol-
dii, Geoff. ; the Caparo , Humb. ; Gast. olivaceus, Spix, pi. 28 (the Cap-
paro); and the Grison, (ox Lag. canus, Geoff.); or Gastr. infumatus , Spix,
29. (The Silver-haired Monkey). Monkeys from the interior of South
America, said to be remarkable gluttons.

The other Sapajous (Cebus, Geoff.) have a round head, distinct thumbs,
and the tail hairy, though prehensile. The species are more numerous
than those of the Alouatte, and are characterized with nearly as much
difficulty.

Some of them have the hairs on the forehead of a uniform length, such
as the —

Sim. appella, L. (The Sajou); and the S. capucina , L. ; Buff.
XY. 4, 5, and 8, 9. (The Capuchin). Both of them of different
browns; in the first, the circumference of the face is blackish; in
the second it is whitish ; but the shade of colour in all the rest of
their bodies varies between a brownish black and a fawn-colour,
sometimes even a white. The shoulders and breast are however
generally lighter, and the calotte and hands darker*.

Others, again, have the hairs of the forehead so disposed as to form a
kind of aigrette, such as the

Sim. fatuellus, Gm. ; Buff. Supp. VI-1. 29. (The Horned Sajou).
This animal has a tuft of black hairs on each side of the forehead -f.

The disposition of these monkeys is mild and gentle, their motions
quick and light, and they are easily tamed. Their name of Weeping
Monkeys is derived from their soft plaintive voice.

* The Sajoas and the Sais vary so much from a brown to a yellow, that, were there
not intermediate varieties, we should be tempted to make many species of them.
Such Is the case with the Sim. trepida, syrichta, lugubris, flavia, L. and Schreb., as
well as some of those distinguished by M. Geoffroy, Ann. du Mus. XIX. Ill and 1 12.
Spix has recently, and in our opinion improperly, multiplied them still more.

We would refer to the Sajou {Sim. appella , Lin.) the Cebus robustus, Pr. Max.,
which appears to us to be an old one of that species. The Ceb. macrocephalus, Spix,
pi. 1, does not seem to differ from it, so far as regards the species. We refer to the
Sat (S. capucina, Lin.) the Sai a gorge blanche, Buff. (S. kypolencos); the Cebus libi -
dinosus, Spix, 2; the Ceb.xanthosternus, Pr. Max., or the Ceb. xanthocephalus, Spix, 3;
the Ceb. cucullalus, id. 6.

We should be more inclined to consider as distinct species, the Sajou a pieds dores,
Fred. Cuv., the Sajou brun, id. or Ceb. unicolor, Spix, pi. 4; the Sim. flavia, Schreber,
31, B, from which the Ceb. gracilis, Spix, pi. 5, seems to differ only in the stuffing
— but that we require numerous observations, made upon the spot which these ani-
mals inhabit, before we can hope to establish their species in any other than an arbi-
trary manner.

f Here should come the Cebus cirrhifer, Geoff, and the Ceb. of the same name,
of Pr. Max., but which is different. Ceb. cristatus, Fred. Cuv.

(J3^(«) The existence of this animal was not known until Humboldt discovered it in
South America: — He describes it under the name of Simia Lagothrica. A remark-
ably fine specimen was presented lately to the Surrey Zoological Gardens, which was
brought from Para, on the Iliver Amazon, in South America. Its habitation is now
considered to be the northern portion of South America, between the Equator and
five degrees of north latitude. — Enu. Ed.

58

MAMMALIA.

In the Saimiri the tail is depressed, and almost ceases to he prehen-
sile ; the head is very much flattened ; in the interorbitar partition of the
skeleton there is a membranous space. There is only one known ; the

Simia sciurea, Buff. XV. 10. (The Saimiri). Size of a squirrel;
of a yellowish grey ; fore-arms, legs, and the four extremities of a
yellowish fawn-colour ; end of the nose quite black.

Those of the American monkeys, whose tails are not at all prehensile,
are called Sakis*. Several of them have the tail long and tufted, whence
they have been also termed Fox-tailed Monkeys: their teeth project for-
wards more than those of the others. They are the Pithecia of Des-
marets and Illiger.

Simia pithecia, L. ; Buff. XV. 12; Pithecia inusta , Spix, pi. 10.
(The Yarke). Blackish; circumference of the face whitish.

Pith, hirsuta, Spix, pi. 8. (The Grey Sakis). Grey; with yel-
lowish hands.

Simia satanas, Hofmansegg; Humb. Obs. Zool. L. xxvii. (The
Black Saki). All black.

Pith. rujive7itris, Geoff.; Buff. Supp. VII. 31 ; Pith, capilla-
mentosa , Spix, pi. 11. (The Bed-bellied Saki). Brown, with a
red belly.

Spix distinguishes those species whose tails, although tufted, are shorter
than the body, by the name of Braciiiurus. His Br. Ouaraki , Sp.
pi. 8, has a fawn-coloured body ; head, neck, arms, and feet black. To
this should be referred, provided always it is another species, the Sim.
melanocephala , Humb. Obs. Zool. p. 29 ; yellow, with a black head.

In some, also, the Callithrix, Geoff, or Sagouins , Fr. Cuv. the tail
is slender, and the teeth do not project. The Saimiri were associated
with them for a long time, but the head of the Sagouins is higher, and
their canine teeth much shorter. Such are the

Call, personata, Geoff., Spix, pi. 12; Call, nigrifrons, id. 15. (The
Masked Monkey). A yellowish grey ; head and hands black.

Call, lugens; S. lugens , Humb. (The Mourning or Widow Mon-
* key). Blackish, with a large white gorget or neck-piece. The
Call, amicta , Geoff., Sp. pi. 13, and the Call, torquata, Hofmansegg,
can differ but little from this species j~.

Nocthorus, Fred. Cuv. — Nyctipithecus, Spix. Improperly called
Aotus by Illiger.

Only differs from the Sagouins in its great nocturnal eyes, and in the

* All the American monkeys, whose tails are not prehensile, together with the
Ouistitis, are termed by Buffon Sagouins (Callithrix, Erxl.) This name of
sagouin or cagui is in fact applied in Brazil to all the little Quadrumana, whose tails
are not prehensile.

N.B. — M. Geoff, Ann. Mus. XIX. 112, 113, gives to his Callithrix, which are
merely a division of those of Erxleben — Nocthoi-us and Pithecia, the common name
of Geopiihecus.

f Add Call.melanochir, Pr. Max. — C. cinerascens, Spix, pi. 14, is the young of the
same according to Temminck. — C. cuprea, Spix, pi. 17. — C. gigo, id. pi. 16. N B. — ■
This name of Gigo or Guigo is given by Pr. Max. to his Melanochir , so that we must
consider it generic.

QUADRUMANA. 59

ears, which are partly hidden under the hair. One species only is
known.

Nocth. trivirgata , Fred. Cuv., Mammif. ; Nyctipith. vociferans ,
Spix, pi. 18. (The Douroucouli). Ash-coloured above, fawn-co-
loured beneath; a black vertical line on the middle of the forehead,
and one on each temple. It is a nocturnal animal of South Ame-
rica*.

They are all from Guiana or Brazil.

Ouistitis («), — Hapale, Illig. — Arctopithecus, Geoff.

A small genus, similar to the Sakis, and for a long time confounded with
them in the great genus of monkeys. In fact, like the generality of the
American monkeys, they have the head round ; face flat ; nostrils lateral ;
buttocks hairy ; no cheek-pouches, and, like the Sakis in particular, the
tail not prehensile. They have only, however, twenty grinders, like the
monkeys of the ancient continent; all their nails are compressed and
pointed, those of the hind thumbs excepted, while their anterior ones are
so slightly separated from the fingers, that it is with hesitation we assign
to them the name of quadrumana. They are all pretty little creatures, of
agreeable forms, and easily tamed.

M. Geoffroy distinguishes the Ouistitis , properly so called, which he
names Jacciius, and whose peculiar characters are pointed inferior in-
cisors, arranged on a curved line, equal to the canines. Their tail is an-
nulated and well covered with hairs ; the ears generally ornamented with
a hairy brush.

Sim. jacchus, Lin. ; in Paraguay the Titi, Buff. XV. pi. 24.
(The Common Ouistiti). Tail tolerably well tufted, coloured by
rings of brown and white ; body greyish-brown ; two large tufts of
white hairs before the ears. From nearly every part of South
America^.

M. Geoffroy calls those species which have inferior trenchant incisors
placed nearly in a straight line, and less than the canines, Midas. Their
tail is also more slender and not annulated.

Sim. cedipus , L. ; Buff. XV. 17- (The Pinche). Grey, wraved
with brown ; long white hairs on the head which hang behind the
ears; tail slender and red. From the banks of the Amazon j.

* Add Nyctipithec.felinus, Spix, pi. 18.

•}■ It is difficult to establish very specific limits between Ouistitis of different co
lours. The Jacch. penicillatus, Geoff, Spix, pi. 20, has a white spot on the forehead,
and the tufts of the ears brown or black. — His J. leucocephalus, Pr. Max., lib. 2, has
the same tufts, but the whole head and fore part of the neck are white. — His J.hn-
vierulijer has the breast, shoulders and arms white. — The J. albicollis, Spix, pi. 25,
lias the spot on the forehead, tufts of the ears and a large collar all white. In some
of them, on the contrary, all the white has disappeared. See Annal. du Mus., XIX.
p. 1 19 122.

f I suspect the Mid. bicolor,. Spix, pi. 24, is merely a variety of the Sim. cedipus ,
and his M my s tax of the M. labiatus.

»*(«)T he name of Ouistitis is given to the animals of this species from the peculiar
sound which they emit, and which is very closely imitated if we express separately
and at intervals the successive syllables which compose the word. — Eng. Ed.

60

MAMMALIA.

Mid. rujimanus, Geoff.; Sim. midas , L. ; Buff. XV. 13. (The
Tamarin). Black, the four hands yellowish. From Guiana,

Mid. ursulus , Geoff.; Buff. Supp. VIII. 32; Mid. fuscicollis,
Spix, pi. 20. (The Black Tamarin). All black; reddish wavings
on the back.

Mid. labiatus, Geoff.; M. nigricottis, Spix, 21. (The White-
lipped Tamarin). Black; crupper reddish; circumference of the
muzzle white*.

Sim. rosalia , L. ; Buff. XIV. 16. (Lion Monkey, or the Mari-
kina). Yellowish; the head surrounded with a golden gilt yellow
mane ; end of the tail brown. From Surinam.

Hapale chrysomelas, Pr. Max. lib. ii. (Black Marikina). Black ;
fore-arms and upper side of the tail and mane round the head of a
strong golden yellow.

Sim. argentata , L. ; Buff. XV. 18. (The Mico). Silver grey,
sometimes all white ; tail brown. From the Amazon.

Lemur (a), Lin.

The Lemurs, according to Linnaeus, comprehend all the Quadrumana
which have in either jaw incisors differing in number from four, or at least
differently directed from those of the Monkeys. This negative character
could not fail to embrace very different beings, while it did not even
unite those which should be combined. Geoffroy has established several
divisions in this genus which are much better characterized. The four
thumbs of these animals are well developed and opposable, and the first
hind finger is armed with a pointed, raised nail ; all the other nails are
flat. Their fur is woolly ; and their teeth begin to exhibit sharp tubercles
catching in each other as in the Insectivora.

Lemur. — Makis, properly so called.

Six incisors in the lower jaw compressed and slanting forwards, four in
the upper that are straight, the intermediate ones being separated from
each other; trenchant canines; six molares on each side above; six be-
low ; ears small. They are very active animals, which, from their pointed

* The S. leonina, Humb. Obs. I. pi. 5, is brown, with white lips and black face, like
this species ; hut it appears the hairs of the neck are more thickly set, forming a
mane like that of the Marikina. Add Mid. chrysopygus, Natterer.

fUT (a) Lemures was the word employed by the Romans to express ghosts which
walked by night, and because the animals now called Lemurs were remarkable for
their disposition to sleep during the greater portion of the day, whilst at night they
always became restless and hounded about with the greatest agility, Linnaeus gave
to them the above designation. Besides the peculiar characters of the Lemurs
mentioned in the text, there are others which may be seen in the specimens in the
London Zoological Gardens, namely, the elongated face, the round and prominent
eyes, the long curved nail on the index finger of the hinder hand; they possess
scarcely any external character in common with the monkey, save in the prehensile
power of the hands. There is reason to believe that the Lemurs are occasionally, or
partially, carnivorous, and the nature of their teeth fully justifies the opinion. —
Eng. Ed.

QUADRUMANA.

61

heads, have been called Fox-nosed Monkeys. Their food is fruit. Their
species are very numerous, and are only met with in the island of Mada-
gascar, where they appear to replace the monkeys, none of which, it is
said, are to be found there. Nearly all the difference that exists between
them is in the colour.

L. catta, L. ; Le Mococo, Buff. XIII. 22. Ashy-grey ; tail black,
and white rings.

L. macaco , L.; Le Vari, Buff. XIII. 27. Variegated with large
black and white spots.

L. ruber , Peron; Le Maki rouge , Fr. Cuv. Mammif. A lively
reddish chestnut ; head, four hands, tail, and belly black ; a white spot
on the nape of the neck, a red tuft to each ear.

L. mongos, L. ; Le Mongous, Buff. XIII. 26. All brown; face
and hands black ; and other neighbouring species or varieties, such as

L. albifrons , Geoff. ; Le Mongous a front blanc , Audeb., Makis,
pi. 3. Brown ; forehead white, &c.*

Indris. — Lichanotus, Illig .

Teeth like the preceding, except that there are only four in the lower

jaw.

One species only is known ; it has no tail ; is three feet high ;
black; face grey; posteriors white, (Lemur Indri), Sonnerat. Se-
cond Voy., pk 86. The inhabitants of Madagascar tame and train it
like a hound “f.

Loris. — Stenops, Illig.

The Sloth Monkeys have the teeth of the Makis, except that they have
sharper points to the grinders; the short muzzle of a mastiff; body slen-
der ; no tail ; eyes large and approximated ; tongue rough.

They feed on insects, occasionally on small birds or quadrupeds ; their
gait is excessively slow, and mode of life nocturnal. M. Carlisle has
found at the trunk of the arteries of the limbs the same state of ramifica-
tion as is found in the true Sloths. Two species only are known, both of
them from the East Indies.

Lem. tardigradus, L. (The Loris Sloth, or Sloth of Bengal).
Buff. Supp. VII. 36. Fawn-coloured grey, a brown streak along
the back; two of the upper incisors sometimes wanting J.

* Add the Black Maki, L. ; Niger , Edw. 218. — The Black-fronted Maki (L. nigri-
frons, Geoff.) — The Black-headed Makis (L. melanocephahis, Fr. Cuv.) — The Straw-
berry Maki, — The Red Maki, Audeb. pi. 2, &c. But it is not certain that many of
these species do not resolve themselves the one into the other. See Geoff, Ann.
Mus. XIX. p. 160.

f The Long-tailed Indri, ( Lemur laniger, Gem.) Sonnerat, Second Voy., pi. 87,
needs revision.

$ The slowness of its gait, which caused it to be mistaken for a Sloth, has in-
duced some authors to maintain, in opposition to Buffon and to truth, that the genus
of the Sloths exists also in Asia.

m

MAMMALIA,

Lem. gracilis (a), L. (The Slender Loris). Buff. XIII. 30, and
better, Seb. I. 47. Fawn-coloured grey; no dorsal stripe; a little
smaller than the preceding; nose more raised by a projection of the
intermaxillaries

Galago, Geoff. — Otolicnus, Illig.

Have the teeth and live on the insectivorous food of the preceding;
elongated tarsi which produce a disproportion in the dimensions of their
hind feet; a long tufted tail; large membranous ears and great eyes,
which imply a nocturnal life.

There are several species known, all from Africa -j”. It would ap-
pear that we should refer to these also an animal of that country
{Lemur potto, Gm.), the Bosman, Yoy. in Guin., p. 252, No. 4,
whose gait is said to be as slow as that of the Loris and Sloths.

Tarsius.

The Tarsiers have the tarsi elongated, and all the other peculiarities of
form belonging to the preceding division; but the space between their
grinders and incisors is occupied by several shorter teeth ; the middle su-
perior incisors are lengthened and resemble the canine. The muzzle is
very short, and the eyes still larger than those of all the preceding. They
are nocturnal animals, and feed on insects. From the Moluccas. Lemur
spectrum, Pall., Buff. XIII. 9 J.

* From this difference in the nose, M. Geoffroy makes of the first species the
genus Nycticebus, and of the second that of Loris.

f The great Galago, as large as a rabbit ( Galago crassicaudatus, Geoff.) The
middling one the size of a rat (Galago senegalensis, id.); Schreb. XXXVIII. Bb.
Audeb. Gal. pi. 1. — The small one a little less, Brown, 111. 44. — Compare also the
Galago of Demidorf, Fischer, Mem. des Nat. de Moscou, I. pi. 1.

X Compare the Tarsius fuscomanus, Fischer, Annat. des Makis, pi. 3, and the
Tarsius bancanus, Horsfield, Java.

Travellers should search for certain animals drawn by Commerson, and which
M. Geoffroy has had engraved, Ann. Mus. XIX. 10, under the name of Cheirogaleus.
These figures seem to announce a new genus or subgenus of the Quadrumana.

(a) In the examination of a specimen of this species which recently died in the
Zoological Gardens in Regent’s Park, the distribution of the arteries to the limbs was
found to be analogous to that very peculiar one which obtains in the Lemurs and
Sloths, except, that in the Loris the structure and distribution of the vessels supply-
ing the blood appeared to be destined more to the object of increasing the tenacity of
the animal’s grasp, and to allow to him to prolong the state of muscular contraction
with impunity. — Eng. Ed.

CARNARIA.

ORDER HI.

G

o

iJ

CARNARIA (a). — CARNIVOROUS ANIMALS.

This order consists of a considerable and varied assemblage of ungui-
culated quadrupeds, possessing, like Man and the Quadrumana, the three
sorts of teeth, but which have no opposable thumb to their fore-feet.
Their food is animal, and the more exclusively so, as their grinders are
the more trenchant. Those which have them, either wholly or in part
tuberculous, live more or less on vegetable substances, and those in which
they appear with conical points, live principally on insects. The articu-
lation of their lower jaw, having a cross-wise direction, and its parts being
combined on the principle of the hinge, is incapable of horizontal motion,
and possesses merely the faculty of opening and of closing.

Their brain has the usual depressions, but it has no third lobe, nor
does it lie upon the cerebellum in these animals any more than it does in
the families hereafter to be described; their orbit is not separated from
the temporal fossa in the skeleton, the cranium is narrowred and the zygo-
matic arches widened and raised, in order to give more strength and vo-
lume to the muscles of their jaws. Their predominant sense is that of
smell, and their pituitary membrane is generally spread over numerous
bony laminae. The fore-arm has the power of rotating in nearly all of
them, although with less facility than in the Quadrumana, and they never
have in the fore-feet thumbs opposable to the other toes. Their intes-
tines are less in volume in consequence of the substantial nature of their
food, and in order to prevent the putrefaction which flesh would necessa-
rily experience in being kept too long in a canal of great length.

Besides, their forms and minute portions of their organization vary
considerably, and are the source of analogous varieties in their habits, and
to a degree which makes it impossible to arrange their genera upon one
common scale, so that it becomes indispensable to form them into several
families, which are variously connected together by multiplied relations.

( a ) From some experiments recently performed in the Zoological Gardens in
Regent’s Park, it would appear that Carnivorous Mammalia fed with two meals a
day, are by no means in such good condition as those which have the same quantity
of flesh in one meal only. Two Leopards were chosen for the first experiment.
One, which weighed 91 lbs., was fed in the usual manner, on 4lbs. of beef every day
in one meal — the other, which weighed 1004 lbs., was supplied with the same quan-
tity of beef, but one-half was given in the morning and the other half in the even-
ing. After an interval of five weeks, during which the animals were fed in this way,
they were weighed; when it was found that, whilst the Leopard that had his food all
at once, gained lib. in weight; the other lost £lb., and his temper became very
much worse. Two Hyaenas were subjected to a similar experiment, which was at-
tended with pretty nearly the same results. — Eng. Ed.

64

MAMMALIA.

THE FIRST FAMILY OF CARNARIA.

THE CHEIROPTERA

Retain some affinities with the Quadrumana by the pendulous penis, and
by the mammae which are placed on the chest. Their distinguishing
character consists in a fold of skin, commencing at the sides of the neck,
and extending between the four members and fingers of the anterior
feet, supports them in the air, and even enables such of them to fly as
have their hands sufficiently developed for that purpose. This disposition
required strong clavicles and large scapulae to give the necessary solidity
to the shoulder, but it was incompatible with the rotation of the fore-arm,
which would have diminished the force of the effort requisite for flight.
They have all four great canines, but the number of their incisors varies.
They have long been divided into two genera, founded upon the extent of
their organs of flight ; but the first of these requires several subdivisions.

Vespertilio* Lin.

The Bats have the arms, fore-arms, and fingers excessively long, form-
ing, with the membrane that occupies their intervals, true wings, possess-
ing even a greater extent of surface than those of Birds — they conse •
quently fly very high, and with great rapidity. The thickness of then-
pectoral muscles is proportioned to the motions they have to execute, and
there is a ridge in the middle of the sternum like that of Birds, to which
they are attached. The thumb is short and armed with a claw, by which
they are enabled to creep and to suspend themselves. Their hind feet are
weak and are divided into five toes, almost always of equal length, armed
with trenchant and pointed nails. They have no caecum in their intes-
tines. Their eyes are excessively small, but their ears are frequently
very large, and together with the wings form an enormous membranous
surface, which is almost naked, and so extremely sensible, that the Bats
are conducted through all the sinuosities of their labyrinths, even after
their eyes have been plucked out, probably by the diversity of the im-
pressions of the air. They are nocturnal, and in our climate pass the
winter in a state of lethargy. During the day they suspend themselves
in obscure places. They generally produce two young ones at a birth,
which they keep fastened to their mammae, and whose size is consider-
able in proportion to that of the mother. This genus is very numerous,
and offers many subdivisions. We must begin by separating from it the

Pteropus, Briss.

The Bats called the Roussettes, have trenchant incisors in each jaw,
and grinders with flat crowns*; their food, consequently, consists chiefly

* The grinders have properly two longitudinal and parallel projections separated
by a groove, which wear away by attrition.

CARNaRIA.

65

of fruit, of which they destroy considerable quantities ; they know, how-
ever, how to pursue birds and small quadrupeds. They are the largest
Bats known, and their flesh is eaten. They inhabit the East Indies.

Their membrane is deeply notched between their legs ; they have no
tail, or nearly none ; the index finger, which is but half the length of the
medius, has a third phalanx, and a little nail which is wanting in the other
Bats ; each of the other fingers, however, has but two phalanges. The
muzzle is simple, the nostrils are widely separated, the ears are of a
middling size, but without a tragus (a), and the tongue is bristled with
points that curve backwards ; the stomach is an elongated sac, unequally
inflated. They have never been found, except in Southern Asia or the
Indian Archipelago.

I. The Roussettes without tails , with four incisors m each jaw * * * § .

P. edulis, Geoff. (The Black Roussette, or Edible Bat). Blackish
brown, deepest beneath, nearly four feet between the extremities of
the wings. From the Straits of Sunda and the Moluccas, where
they are found in great numbers during the day suspended to the
trees. To preserve fruit from their attacks, it is necessary to cover
it with nets. Their cry is loud and resembles that of the goose. The
Bat is taken by holding to him a bag fastened to the end of a rod ;
the flesh is esteemed a delicacy by the natives, but Europeans dislike
it on account of its musky scent "j'.

Pter. vulgaris , Geoff. ; Buff. X. 14. (The Common Roussette).
Brown, face and sides of the back fawn-coloured. From the Isle of
France and Bourbon, where it is found on the trees in the forests.
Its flesh has been compared to that of the hare and partridge.

Pter. rubicollis, Geoff.; Buff. X. 17. (The Red-collared Rous-
sette, the Roussette of Buffon). Greyish brown, the neck red.
From the same islands, where it lives in the hollows of trees and in
holes in rocks J.

II. With a small tail and four incisors in each jaw.

M. Geoffroy was the first who described the species of this sub-
division. One of them woolly and grey, Pter. vegypticus, is found
in the caves of Egypt. Another is reddish, and has a somewhat
longer tail, half involved by the membrane — Pter. amplexicaudus ,
Ann. du Mus. tom. XV. pi. 4. From the Indian Archipelago, &c. §.

* Linnaeus confounded them under his species Fespertilio vampirus.

f According to Zemminck, the Roussette of Edwarde Geoff., Edw. 108; it is
fawn-coloured, and deep brown in the back: it is only the young state of this species.

X Add Pter. medius; — Pter. phceops; — Pter. puliocephalus ; — Pter. dasymallus;
Temm., Mamin., pi. 10. — Pter. pallidus; — Pter. Keraudrenius, Quoy and Gaym.,
Voy. de Freycinet; — Pter. griseus, Geolf. Ann. Mus. pi. 3, XV. vi, cop. Temm.,
pi. 11: — Pter. personatus ; — Pter. melanocephalus , Temm. pi. 12.

§ Add Pter. stramineus; — Pter. marginatus, Geoff, loc. cit. pi. 5; — Pter. minimus
id. or the Kiodote, Fr. Cuv., or the Pter. rostratus, Horsf.

GSr( a) The Tragus is the small prominence of a triangular form, which, in the
external portion of the ear, projects over the anterior and outer part of the auditory
canal; it forms, in the human ear, the terminating portion of what is called the
antihelix. — Eng. Ed.

VOL. l.

MAMMALIA.

66

III. According to the characters of M. Geoffroy, we further separate
from the Roussettes the Cephalotes which have the same kind of
grinders, but whose index finger, short, and consisting of thre'e phalanges,
like that of the preceding, wants, however, the nail. The membranes
of their wings, instead of meeting at the flank, are joined to each other
on the middle of the back, to which they adhere by a vertical and longi-
tudinal partition. Very often they have but two incisors.

C. Peronii, Geoff. ; Ann. du Mus. XV. pi. 4. (The Ceplialote
of Peron). Brown or red. From Timor.

The Roussettes being withdrawn, we have the true Bats left, which
are all insectivorous, and have three grinders on each side in each jaw,
bristled with conical points, that are preceded by a variable number of
false molars. Their index finger never has a nail, and, one subgenus ex-
cepted, the membrane is always extended between the two legs.

They should be divided into two principal tribes. The first has three
ossified phalanges in the middle finger of the wing, but the remainder, in-
cluding the index itself, consists of but two.

To this tribe, which is almost exclusively foreign, belong the following
subgenera.

Molossus, Geoff. — Dysopes, Illig.

Has the muzzle simple ; ears large and short, arising near the angle of
the lips, and uniting with each other on the muzzle ; the tragus short,
and not enveloped by the conch (a). The tail occupies the whole length
of their inter-femoral membrane, and, more frequently, even extends
beyond it. They have almost always two incisors in each jaw, though,
according to M. Temminck, several of them have at first six below, of
which four are successively lost.

The Dinops of M. Savi belong to the Molossus with six inferior in-
cisors. There is one species in Italy — Dinops cestonii , Savi, Giorn. de
Letter., No. 21, p. 230.

M. Geoffroy calls those in which he has counted four inferior incisors
Nyctinomus*.

The Molossi, at first, were only found in America ■f'; at present, how-

* The Nyctinome of Egypt, Geoff, Eg. Mammif., pi. 11, f. 2, and Temm., Monog.
des Mammif. pi. 19; — the Nyctinome of Brazil, Isid. Geoff, Ann. des Sc. Nat., I.
pi. 22, or Mol. nasutus, Spix, pi. 35, f. 7; — the N. slender tenuis, (Horsfield, Java, N.
No. 5), and Temm. Monog. pi. 19, bis.

f Buffon has three of them confounded by Gmel., under the common name of
Vespertilio molossus ; M. longicaudatus, Buff. X. xix, 2 ; — M. fusciventer, lb. 1 ; — M.
guyanensis, Id. Supp. VII. lxxv. Since then they have been increased. M. rufus,
Geoff, Ann. Mus. VI. 155; — M. alecto, Temm., Monog., pi. xx; — M. abrasus, Temm.,
Ib., pi. xxi; — M.velox, Natterer, Temm., pi. xxii, 1; — M. obscurus, Geoff., Temm.,
Ib., pi. xxii, 2. These species, however, have not been sufficiently compared with
those of Buffon, nor with the M. ursinus , Spix, pi. xxxv, f. 4, and the M. fumarius.
Ib., f. 5 and 6.

§3T (a) The conch is a deep conical cavity, situated within the eminences of the
outer part of the ear; it is bounded above by a prominent curved margin, which is
called the antihelix; and the conch leads to the canal, through which the sound
passes into the interior of the ear. — Eng. Ed.

C AH N ARIA.

67

ever, we know several of both continents* * * §. Some of them have the
thumb of the hinder feet placed at a greater distance from the first finger
than the fingers are from each other, and endowed with a power of sepa-
rate motion, a character on which, in a species where it is very strongly
marked, M. Horsfield has established his genus Cheiromeles j~.

It is here, perhaps, that we should also place the Thiroptera of Spix,
which appear to have several characters of the Molossi, and whose thumb
has a little concave palette peculiar to them, and by which thev are ena-
bled to cling more closely

Noctilio, Lin., Ed. XII.

Has the muzzle short, inflated, and cleft, as in a double hair-lip, fur-
nished with warty tubercles and odd looking seams ; ears separate ; four
incisors above, and two below; tail short, and free above the inter-femoral
membrane.

The species best known is from America. It is of a uniform
fawn-colour — Vespert. leporinus, Gm. Schreb. LX. §.

Phyllostoma, Cuv. and Geoff.

In which the regular number of incisors is four to each jaw, but in
which a part of the lower ones frequently fall, being forced out by the
growth of the canines: they are moreover distinguished by a membrane
in the form of a leaf, which is reflected crosswise on the end of the nose.
The tragus of the ear resembles a small leaf, more or less indented. The
tongue, which is very extensible, terminates in papillae, which appear to
be so arranged as to form an organ of suction — the lips also are furnished
with tubercles, symmetrically arranged. They are all from America, run
along the ground with more facility than the other bats, and have a habit
of sucking the blood of animals.

1. The Phyllostomes without a tail. — Vampirus, Spix.

P. spectrum; V. spectrum , Lin.; the Andira-guaqu of the Bra-
zilians; Seb. LVIII; Geoff. Ann. Mus. XV. xii, 4. (The Vam-
pire). The nasal leaf wrought into a funnel ; colour a reddish brown ;
size, that of a magpie. From South America. It has been accused
of causing the death of men and animals by sucking their blood ; but
it does no more than inflict very small wounds which may sometimes
be affected by the poisonous influence of the climate ||.

* M.plicatus; Vespert. plicatus, Buchan.; Lin. Trans., V. pi. xiii; — Dysopes rup-
pelii, Temm., Monog., pi. xviii.

t Cheiromeles torqualus , Ilorsf., Jav. or Dysopes cheiropus, Temm., Monog., pi. xvii.

+ Thir. tricolor , Spix, 36, f. 9. It is with some hesitation that we have thus placed
this subgenus, its description being incomplete.

§ The N. dorsatus, Geoff., or the N.vittatus, Pr. Max., has a white stripe down the
back. — The N. albiventer, Spix, 35, 2 and 4, is fawn-coloured above, white beneath,
and rather smaller. Add N. rufus, Spix, 35, 1.

|| Add the Lunette; V esp. perspicillatus, L.j Bu<f., Supp. VII. lxxiv; and the three
species from D’Azara, by Geoff*., Ann. du Mus. VI. 181—182.

63

MAMMALIA.

2. The Phyllostomes with a tail involved in the inter-femoral membrane.

V. hastatus, L. Buff. XIII. xxxiii. (The Javelin Bat). Nasal
leaf in the form of a javelin, with entire borders*.

3. The Phyllostomes with the tail free above the membrane.

P. crenulatum, Geoff. Ann. du Mus. XV. pi. 10. (The Crenu-
lated or Indented Javelin Bat). The nasal leaf in the form of a
javelin notched in its border.

M. Geoffroy, Mem. du Mus. IV. p. 418, separates from the Phyllos-
tomes those species whose tongues are narrow, and extensible, and fur-
nished with papillae resembling hairs — he calls them Glossophaga.

All species are likewise from America •f.

In the second great tribe of Bats the index has only one bony phalanx,
while all the other fingers have two each.

This tribe is also divided into several subgenera.

Megaderma, Geoff. Ann. du Mus. XV.

Which have on the nose a leaf, more complicated than that of the Phyl-
lostomes ; the tragus large and most commonly bifurcated ; the conchs of
the ear very ample and united one with the other on the top of the head ;
tongue and lips smooth ; the inter-femoral membrane entire, and no tail.
They have four incisors below, but there are none above, and their inter •
maxillary bone remains cartilaginous.

They are all from the old continent, either from Africa, as the Leaf
from Senegal for instance, ( Meg . Frons., Geoff), with the nasal leaf
oval and nearly as large as the head ; or from the Indian Archipelago,
as the Spasma of Ternate, Vespert. Spasma, L., Seb. I. lvi. — La
Lyre , Geoff. Ann. Mus. XV. pi. 12. — Le Trejle de Java , Id. ib.,
&c. They are distinguished from each other by the figure of their
leaves, as in the Phyllostomes.

Rhinolophus, {Geoff, and Cuv .) commonly called The Horse- Shoe Bats.

Which have the nose furnished with very complex membranes and crests
laid upon the chanfrin, presenting the figure of a horse-shoe ; the tail is
long and placed in the inter-femoral membrane. There are four incisors
below, and two very small ones above in a cartilaginous inter-maxillary
bone.

There are two species of them in France which are very common,
discovered by Daubenton.

R. bifer, Geoff., Ann. Mus. XX. pi. 5 ; Vesp. ferrum equinum ,
L., (the Great Horse-Shoe Bat); and Vesp. hipposideros, Bechst.
(the Small Horse-Shoe Bat); Buff. VIII. xvn, 2 and 20; Geoff,
loc. cit., both of which inhabit quarries, remaining isolated there,

* Add Phiiost. elongatum, Geoff., Ann. Mus. XV. ix.

f Vespertilio soricinus , Pall. Spicil. Fascic. III. pi. 3 and 4, copied Buff. Supp.
III. pi. 53. — Glossoph. amplexicaudatus, Geoff. Mem. Mus. IV. pi. 18, F. C. — Cl.
caudifer, Id. ib. pi. 17, fig. A. and B.

CARN ARIA. 69

suspended by their feet, and enveloping themselves with their wings,
so that no other part of the body is visible* * * §.

Nycteris, Cuv. and Geoff.

The forehead furrowed by a longitudinal groove, which is even marked
upon the cranium, bordered by a fold of the skin which partially covers it;
nostrils simple ; four incisors without intervals above and six below ; ears
large and separated; tail involved in the inter-femoral membrane. They
are African species. Daubenton has described one by the name of the
Campagnol volant , Buff. X. pi. xx, fig. 1 and 2, the V. hispidus , Lin.,
Schreb. LVI. M. Geoffroy has found others in Egypt f.

Rhinopoma, Geoff.

The pit on the forehead less strongly marked; nostrils at the end of
the muzzle, and a little lamina above, somewhat resembling a currier’s
knife; ears united; tail extending far beyond the membrane. One is
known in Egypt, where it is principally found in the pyramids

Taphozous, Geoff.

A small round pit on the forehead, but no recurved leaf to the nostrils ;
head pyramidal ; only two incisors above, and very often none ; four trilo-
bate incisors below; ears wide apart, and the tail free above the mem-
brane. The males have a transverse cavity under the throat. A little
prolongation of the membrane of the wings forms a sort of sac near the
?arpus§(<z). One species was discovered in the catacombs of Egypt, by
M. Geoffroy j|.

Mormoops, Leach.

Four incisors in each jaw, the superior tolerably large, the inferior tri-
lobate ; cranium singularly raised like a pyramid above the muzzle ; on
each side of the nose is a triangular leaf which extends to the ear**.

Vespertilio, Cuv. and Geoff.

The common Bats, or Vespertilions, have the muzzle without leaf or
other distinguishing marks ; ears separate ; four incisors above, of which
the two middle ones are apart, and six trenchant incisors slightly denticu-

* Add the other four species figured Geoff. Ann. Mus. XX. pi. 5, of which one
is the Vesp. speoris, Schreb. LIX. B, and Peron, Voy. aux Terres, Aust. pi. 35.

+ The Thebaic Nycterus, 29, Mammif. I, 2, 2; and Ann. Mus. XX. pi. 1 — The
Javanese Nycterus , Geoff. Ann. Mus. XX. pi. 1.

t Rhinopome microphylle, Geoff; Vespertilio microphyllus, Schr.

§ It was this that caused Illiger to name the genus which contained the Taphiens
Saccopterix.

|| The Tapliicn filet, Eg. Mammif. I. 1, 1. — The Tapliicn perfore, Ih. III. l, which
does not appear to differ from the Flying Lerot, Lcrot Volant, Daub.; — T. senega-
Icnsis, G. — Add the Vesp. lepturus, Gm., Schr. LVI I. — The T. of India; V. brack -
nianus, G. — The T. of the Isle of France; T. mauritianus , G. — The T. rtf us, Wils.
Amer. Ornith. vol. VI. pi. 50, No. 4. — The T. longimanus, Hardw. Lin. Trans, vol.
and pi. XVII.

** The species — Mormoops Blainvillii, Leach, Lin. Trans. XIII — is from Java.

53T («) The carpus is the hand. — Eng. Ed.

70

MAMMALIA.

iated below, the tail involved in the membrane. This subgenus is the
most numerous of the whole, its species being found in every part of the
world. France alone has six or seven.

The tragus of some is shaped like an awl, and to this division belongs
the most commonly known species.

Vesp. murinus, L. ; V. myotis , Kuhl, Buff. VIII. xvi. (The
Common Bat). Oblong ears, the length of the head ; hair brown ;
maronne above, bright grey beneath ; the young of an ashy grey.

Some other smaller but neighbouring species have lately been ob-
served in Europe* * * §.

In others again the tragus is angular, such as the

Vesp. serotinus, L. ; Buff. VIII. xviii, 2. (The Serotine Bat).
A deep maronne ; wings and ears blackish ; the conch triangular and
shorter than the head. The female is paler than the male. Found
under the roofs of churches, and of other little frequented edifices,
&c.f.

A third kind has a crescent shaped tragus.

V. noctula, L. ; Buff. VIII. xviii, 1; V. proterus, Kuhl; V. la -
siopterus, Schreb., 58, B. (The Noctule Bat). Fawn coloured;
ears triangular, shorter than the head; tragus rounded, a little larger
than the preceding. Found in the hollows of old trees, &c.

V. pipistrellus , Gm. ; Buff. VIII. xix, 1. (The Pipistrille). The
smallest one in France; a blackish brown; ears triangular J.

M. Geoffroy separates still further from the Vespertilio, the
Plecotus, Geoff.

Oreillards, whose ears are larger than the head, and are united to each
other on the cranium, as in Megaderma, the Rhinopomes, &c. ; the tragus
large and lanceolate — and theie is an operculum on their auditory aper-
ture.

The common species — -Vesp. auritus, L. ; Buff. VIII. xvn, 1.
(The Long-eared Bat). Still more abundant in France than the Bat.
Its ears are nearly as large as the rest of the body. It lives in
houses, kitchens, &c. There is also another discovered by Dau-
benton — (the Barbastelle) — Vesp. barbastellus, Gm., Buff; VIII.
19, 2.! Brown, with much smaller ears§.

* The V. Bechsteinii, Leisler, Chauves. d’Allem., pi. 22. — The V. mystacinus, lb.
18. — V. Daubentoni, Leisler, Kuhl, pi. xxv, 2. — F. Nattereri, Kuhl, pi. 23, &c. — Add
foreign species, V. emarginatus, Geoff. Ann. Mus. VIII. pi. 46. — V. pictus, L. or the
Kirivoula of Java, Seb. I. pi. 56, f. 23. — V. polythrix, Isia. Geoff. Ann. des Sc. Nat.
III. p. 440. — F. levis, Id. ib. &c,

f Add F. carolinensis, Geoff. Ann. Mus. VIII. pi. 47. [ See Append. I. of Am. Ed.~\

X Add the Fespertilio of Kuhl, {F. Kuhlii, Natterer), Kuhl, Chauves. d’Allem.
p. 55.

§ Add the Plec. timoriensis, Geoff. — PL velatus, Isid. Geoff. — PI. maugei , Desm. —
Plec. cornutus, Fab. — Fesp. megalotis, Rafin. [ See Append. II. of Am. Ed.~\

N. B. — As our plan permits us to class those animals only whose characters we
have ascertained either from personal observation or from very complete descriptions
and figures, we have been compelled to omit several of the genera of MM. Leach,

CARNARIA.

71

Finally, the Nycticees (Rafinesque), have, along with moderate sized
ears and the simple muzzle of the Bats, two incisors only in the upper
jaw. The known species are from North America* *.

Galeopithecus, Pall .

The Galeopitheci differ generically from the Bats by the fingers of their
hands being furnished with trenchant nails, which are not longer than
those of the feet, so that the membrane which occupies the spaces between
them, and which is continued as far as the tail, cannot perform any other
functions than those of a parachute (a). The canini are denticulated and
short like the molars. There are two upper denticulated incisors widely
separated from each other ; below there are six, split into narrow strips,
like combs, a structure altogether peculiar to this genus. These animals
live on trees in the Indian Archipelago, among which they pursue insects,
and perhaps birds. If we can judge by the injury the teeth sustain when
they become old, they must use fruit also. Their caecum is very large.

One species only is well ascertained, the Flying Lemur of Linnaeus.
Audeb., Galaeop., pi. 1 and 2. Fur greyish red above, reddish be-
low ; spotted and striped with various shades of grey when young.
From the Moluccas and Sunda islands, &c.

All the other Carnaria have the mammae situated under the abdomen.

FAMILY II.

INSECTIYORA.— INSECT EATERS.

The animals of this family, like the Cheiroptera, have grinders studded
with conical points, and lead most commonly a nocturnal or subterraneous
life. Their principal food is Insects, and in cold climates many of them
pass the winter in a lethargic (b) state. Unlike the Bats, they have no

Rafinesque, &c. ; and while on this subject, we must observe that there is no family
which stands more in need of revision than that of the Bats — a revision from nature
and not by compilation.

* Vesperlilio lasiurus, Schreb., LXII. B. — V.noveboracensis, Penn. Quadr., pi. 31,
fig. 2. — Vesp. borbonicus, Geoff, Ann. Mus. VIII. pi. 46.

gglT (a) Parachute is a French word, which signifies an apparatus to prevent a fall.
It strictly applies to a well-known appendage of the air-balloon, which is formed like
an umbrella, and is employed by aerial navigators in their descent from the upper
regions to the earth, as it is capable, by the resistance which its expansion offers to
the atmosphere, of retarding the fall. — Eng. Ed.

63$" ( b ) The lethargy of these hybernating animals has lately received consider-
able scientific attention in this country. I)r. Marshall Hall, after various experiments
on Bats ( Vcspertilion.es ), the Hedgehog ( Eriuaceus Eur operas), and the Dormouse
( Myoxus Glis ), comes to tha conclusion that the winter lethargy of these animals is
merely a state in which the phenomena characterizing natural sleep only are pre-

72

MAMMALIA.

lateral membranes, although they always have clavicles. Their feet are
short, and their motions feeble ; the mammae are placed under the ab-
domen, and the penis in a sheath. None of them have a caecum, and in
walking they all place the whole sole of the foot on the ground.

They differ from each other by the relative position and proportions of
their incisors and canines.

Some have long incisors in front, followed by other incisors and canines,
all even shorter than the molares, a kind of dentition of which the Tar-
siers, among the Quadrumana, have already given us an example, and
which, to a small extent, approximates these animals to the Rodentia.
Others have large separated canines, between which are placed small in-
cisors, this being the most usual disposition among the Quadrumana and
the Carnaria; and these two dentary arrangements are found in genera,
otherwise very much resembling each other in their teguments, the shape
of their limbs, and mode of life.

Erinaceus, Lin .

The body of the Hedgehog is covered with bristles instead of hairs.
The skin of their back is furnished with muscles, such as the animal,
when bending his head and paws towards the abdomen, can shut himself
up within, as in a bag, and present his bristles on all sides to the enemy.
The tail is very short, and there are five toes to each foot. There are six
incisors in each jaw, the middle ones being the longest, and on each side

seated. In ordinary sleep, the Bat, Dormouse, or any other of the lethargic ani-
mals, experiences a certain well-marked loss of his respiratory powers ; he breathes
less, and the temperature of his body diminishes quite perceptibly, so that he can
bear with impunity the abstraction of atmospheric air. Now, in the state of hyber-
nation, all these symptoms are aggravated — the respiration scarcely goes on at all ;
and if an animal in this state is placed in a receptacle where the consumption of the
gas composing the air can be calculated, it is found that the amount which he ab-
sorbs is exceedingly small indeed. The learned gentleman, in these delicate expe-
riments, employs a mahogany box, with a glass lid, divided horizontally at its middle
part by a fold of strong ribbon. The dimensions of the receptacle should be such as
will merely contain the animal. The Bat or Dormouse, being in a state of hyber-
nation, should then be placed on the ribbon and inclosed by fixing the lid. A
thermometer, which has a cylindrical bulb, should next be passed through an orifice
made on purpose in the box, on a level with the ribbon, and should lie beneath and
in contact with the upper part of the abdomen of the animal. It should then be left
in this situation, and not disturbed; but should be so fixed as that the gas indica-
tions should be seen without any interruption of the lethargy; and then those indica-
tions, compared with another thermometer hung up in the same apartment, will give
the variations of each. In pursuing his investigations, Dr. H. found that the power
of animals in a state of hybernation to sustain the want of atmospheric air, enabled
a dormant Bat to preserve life for eleven minutes when immersed in water, whereas
a Hedgehog, not dormant, died in three minutes when put into the water. A prac-
tical distinction of some importance is stated by Dr. Hall between the torpor of ani-
mals and their hybernation. The former is an accidental occurrence, arising from a
benumbed state of the sentient nerves, and a stiffened condition of the muscles, pro-
ceeding directly from cold, and capable of affecting all animals, whilst a defined set
of the mammalia only is subject to hybernation, in which state the animal retains
its sensibility and power of motion unimpaired. — Eng. Ed.

CARNARIA. 7 3

three false molars, three molars bristling up ; and a small tuberculated
one*.

E. europceus, L. ; Buff. VIII. vi. (The Common Hedgehog),
has the ears short; common in the woods and hedges; passes the
winter in its burrow, whence it issues in the spring with its vesiculas
seminales(a) of an incredible size and complication. To insects,
which constitutes its ordinary food, it adds fruit, by which at a cer-
tain age its teeth become worn (b). The skin was formerly used to
dress hemp.

E. auritus , Pall.; Sclireb. CLXIII. (The Long-eared Hedge-
hog). Smaller than the preceding; ears as large as the two-thirds
of the head, otherwise similar to the europgeus in form and habits.
It is found from the north of the Caspian sea as far as Egypt in-
clusively.

The Tenrecs, Cuv . (Centenes, Illig).

The body of the Tenrec is covered with spines like the Hedgehog. It
does not however possess the faculty of rolling itself so completely into a

* Pallas has noted as an interesting fact, that the Hedgehog eats hundreds of
Cantharides without inconvenience, while a single one produces the most horrible
agony in the Dog and the Cat.

03T («) The vesiculae seminales are two membranous sacs, situated beneath the
bladder and opening into the urethra or urinary passage. They are receptacles
where the secretion, called the semen, is retained. — Eng. Ed.

O’ W The Hedgehog is very common in the woods, copses, orchards, and thick
hedges in England, and its favourite food is beetles, to destroy which it is kept in
kitchens. It appears from the account of this creature, given by White, of Selborne,
that it can also feed on vegetables: for he states, that he has seen them engaged in
the very curious process of devouring the root of a plantain. With the upper man-
dible, which is longer than the lower one, they bore under the plant and so eat the
root off upwards, leaving the tuft of leaves untouched. But a still more singular
fact respecting the food of the Hedgehog, was discovered after an experiment by
Professor Buckland, of the University of Oxford. This learned gentleman acciden-
tally came to the knowledge of certain circumstances which led him to suspect that
Hedgehogs preyed, occasionally at least, on snakes. In order to be satisfied of the
truth of his conjecture, he placed the common-ringed snake ( coluber natrix ), and a
hedgehog in a box together. The latter had been bred in an undomesticated state
for some time in the Botanical Garden at Oxford, where there was no probability of
its having been able to see snakes. At first, the Hedgehog, being rolled up, did not
see the snake, when the Professor laid the former on the body of the latter, and in
such a way as that the snake was in contact with that part of the ball where the head
and tail met. As soon as the snake began to move, the hedgehog started, and open-
ing himself up, gave the snake a vigorous bite, and instantly resumed his rolled
state, It speedily repeated the bite, and followed it up at the same interval as be-
fore with a third bite, by which the back of the snake was broken. The hedgehog
then standing by the snake’s side, took up and passed through its jaws the whole
body of the snake, cracking the bones audibly at every inch. This preparatory pro-
cess being completed, the Hedgehog commenced eating the serpent, beginning at the
tip ot the tail, and, proceeding without interruption, though slowly, consumed it, just
as one cats a radish, until about half the victim disappeared. The Hedgehog could
not go farther from mere repletion ; but it finished the rest of the serpent on the
following everting.

It is a melancholy fact, that, in many parishes in England, even at the present mo-
ment, a bounty is actually paid out of the parish rates for a dead Hedgehog, from the
supe^titious notion that it sucks the teats of animals. — Eng. Ed.

74-

mammalia,

ball: there is no tail; the muzzle is very pointed, and the teeth are very
different. There are four or six incisors, and two great canines in each
jaw. Behind the canines are one or two small teeth, and four triangular
and bristled molars. Three species are found in Madagascar, the first of
which has been naturalized in the Isle of France. It is a nocturnal ani-
mal, which passes three months of the year in a state of lethargy, although
inhabiting the torrid zone. Brugiere even assures us that it is during the
greatest heats that they sleep.

Erinaceus ecaudatus, L. ; Buff. XII. lvi. (The Tenrec). Co-
vered with stiff spines ; only four notched incisors below. It is the
largest of the three, and exceeds the common hedgehog in size.

Erinaceus setosus, L. ; Buff. XII. lvii. (The Tendrac). The
spines more flexible and setaceous ; six notched incisors in each jaw.

Erinaceus semi-spinosus. (The radiated Tenrec). Covered with
bristles and prickles blended; striped with yellow and black; its six
incisors and canines are all slender and hooked; size hardly that of
a mole*.

Cladobates, Fr. Cuv. — Tupaia, Raff.

These compose a genus newly established from the Indian Archipelago.
Their teeth would greatly resemble those of the hedgehog, were it not that
their middle upper incisors are shorter in proportion, that they have four
elongated ones in the lower jaw, and that they want the tubercular behind.
The animal is covered with hair, has a long shaggy tail, and, contrary to
the habits of other insectivora, climbs trees with the agility of a squirrel ;
the pointed muzzle, however, makes the animal easily distinguishable even
at a distance'f.

SoREX* Linn.

The shrews are generally small, and covered with hair. Under this,
and upon each flank, there is a small band of stiff, thickly set setae, from
between which, in the rutting season, oozes an odorous humour, the pro-
duct of a peculiar gland J (a). The two middle upper incisors are hooked

* Buff. Suppl. III. pi. 37, has mistaken it for a young Tenrec. Voy. a la Chine, II,
p. 146, gives a bad description of the teeth.

f The banxring; Cladob.javanica, Fr. Cuv.; Tupaiajavanica, Horsf. Jav. ; — Cl. tana,
Fr. Cuv.; Tup. tana, Horsf.; — Clad, ferruginea, Fr. Cuv. ; Tup. ferruginea, Raff. The
genus Gymnura of Vigors and Horsfield — Zoolog. Journ. III. pi. 8, appears to ap-
proximate to Cladobates by the teeth, and to the Shrew by its pointed snout and scaly
tail. There are five unguiculated toes to each foot, and tolerably stiff setae growing
among woolly hairs. It can only be properly classed when its anatomy is known.

J See Geoff. Mem. du Mus. vol. 1, p. 299.

OT ( a ) On each side of the body of this animal there are two sets of glands, one
set being destined to secrete milk, whilst the other is intended for very different pur-
poses. In the early life of the Shrew, this latter apparatus appears to be merely a
longitudinal projection, having no marked characters; but, when the period arrives
which exposes the animal to sexual excitement, the projection becomes considerably
enlarged, and dotted with innumerable caeca (or minute bladders), which are attached
to the body of the gland, and resemble a series of bristles in a brush. The caeca
open on the projection of the gland, which has only one duct towards the external
surface, and from this the mucus is secreted, whose powerful odour performs so re-
markable an agency in the bringing of the male and female together. — Eng. Ed.

CARNARIA,

75

and dental ed at their base, the lower ones slanting and elongated at their
base : five small teeth on each side follow the first, and two only the se-
cond. There are moreover in each jaw three bristled molars, and in the
upper one, the last is a small tuberculous tooth. The animals live in holes,
which they dig in the earth, and seldom leave it till evening; they live on
worms and insects, One species only was for a long time known in
France ; the

Sor. araneus, L. ; Buff. VIII. x, 1 . (The Common Shrew, or
Shrew Mouse). Grey above ; ash-coloured beneath ; tail square,
and not so long as the body by one-third ; teeth white ; ears naked
and exposed; common in fields, meadows, &c. This little animal
has been accused of producing a disease in horses by its bite ; the
imputation however is false, and arises, perhaps, from the fact, that
though cats kill the Shrew, they will not eat it on account of its
odour.

Daubenton has described the

a Sor. fodiens, Gm. ; S. Daubentonii, Biumenb.; Buff. VIII. xi.
(The Water Shrew). Rather larger sized than the common one ;
black above; white beneath; tail compressed at the end, and not
so long as the body by one-fourth ; the incisors red at the ends ; the
ear is surrounded with white, and to a great extent hidden in the hair,
and can close itself almost hermetically when the animal dives, while
l he stiff bristles which fringe its feet give it a facility in swimming,
in consequence of which it prefers the banks of rivulets.

Several Shrews have been observed in Europe, which differ in some
respects from the preceding ones ; but as in this genus the age and
season materially affect the colours of the fur, it is by no means cer-
tain that they are all constant species*

Other countries also have their own, the most remarkable of which
is the S. wyosorus, Pall., Act. Petrop. 1781, part II, pi. 4; Mus
musquee de VInde, Buff. Supp. VII. 71. (The Rat-tailed Shrew).
In its form and colour it resembles our common Shrew, and also has
its large naked ears ; but the tail is round, furnished only with hairs,
plainly scattered, and is almost as large as that of our long-tailed
field-mouse. It gives out a strong musky scent, which impregnates
every thing it touches. It is found throughout India, and part of
Africa, and is one of the animals the ancient Egyptians were in the
habit of embalming •j'.

* The S. teucodon, Schreb. 159, D, does not appear to me to differ from tne com-
mon Shrew. I strongly suspect the S. tetragonurus and constr ictus, Herm., Schreb.
159, B and C, or Geolf. Ann. Mus. XVII. pi. 3, f. 3, and pi. 3, f. 1, and even the S
remifer, Geoff. Ann. Mus. XVII. pi. 2, f. 1, to be aged Water-Shrews; the remifet
particularly, whose belly is sometimes white, sometimes black ; the S. lineatus, Geoff',
ib. 181, is an accidental variety of the tetragonurus arising from age. The Sor ex
minutus, Laxmann, Schreb. 161, B, is merely a mutilated specimen of the S. pig-
moeus, Pall.

Such is not the case however with the S. etruscus, Savi, which is but half the size
of our common species, is blackish, has naked ears, white muzzle and paws, round
tail, &c. It is a true and distinct species.

f I consider the S. myosurus Pall, and Geoff. Ann. du Mus. XVII. pi. 3, f. 2; the
S. capensis, Id. ib. pi. ii, f. 2; the S. indicus, Id. Mem. du Mus. I, pi. 15, f. 1, as old spe-

76

MAMMALIA.

Mygale, Cuv.

The Desmans differ from the shrews by two very small teeth placed be-
tween the two great incisors of the lower jaw, and in their two upper in-
cisors, which are triangular and flattened. Behind these incisors are six
or seven small teeth and four bristled molars. Their muscle is drawn out
into a little flexible proboscis, which they keep constantly in motion.
Their long tail, scaly, and flattened on the sides, and their five-fingered
feet all united by membranes, evidently proclaim them to be aquatic ani-
mals. Their eyes are very small, and they have no external ears.

Sorex moschatus , L. ; Buff. X. 1.; Pall. Act. Petrop. 1781, part
II, pi. 5. (The Russian Musk Rat). Nearly as large as a shrew;
above, blackish ; beneath, whitish ; tail not so long as the body by
one-fourth. Very common along the rivers and lakes of southern
Russia, where it lives on worms, the larvas of insects, and particularly
on leeches, which, by means of its flexible snout, it easily withdraws
from the mud. Its burrow, which is made in the beach, commences
under water, and ascends to such a height as to be above its level in
the greatest floods. This animal never comes voluntarily on shore,
but numbers of them are taken in the nets of the fishermen. Its
musky odour arises from a kind of pomatum that is secreted in small
follicles under the tail, and it is so powerful as to be communicated
to the flesh of the pike, which feeds on the musk rat.

A small species of this genus is found in the rivulets of the Pyre-
nees, whose tail is longer than its body, which M. Geoff, has made
known, Ann. du Mus. tom. XVII. pi. iv. f. 1, Myg. pyrenaica, H.

Chrysochloris, Lcicep .

Have, like the preceding genus, two incisors above, and four below; but
their grinders are long, distinct, and almost all shaped like triangular
prisms. Their muzzle is short, broad, and recurved, and their fore-feet
have only three nails, of which the external, being very large, extremely
arcuated and pointed, serves them as a powerful instrument for excavating
and piercing the earth ; the others regularly decrease in size. The hind
feet have five of an ordinary size. They are subterraneous animals, whose
mode of life is similar to that of moles. To enable them to dig the better,
their fore-arm is supported by a third bone placed under the cubitus.

C. asiaticus; Talpa asiatica, L. ; Schreb. CLVII; and better,
Brown, 111. XLY. (The Golden Mole). A little smaller than the
European mole ; no apparent tail ; is the only quadruped known that
presents any appearance of those splendid metallic tints which bright-

cimens or varieties of one and the same species, to which I also refer the S. giganteus,
Isid. Geoff. Mem. du Mus. XY. pi. 4, fig. 3; perhaps even the S.flavescens, Isid. Geoff,
ib. Seba figures it, Mus. I. pi. 31, f. 7 and 11 — pi. 63, fig. 5, and the white variety,
I. pi. 47, f. 4. — Add the S. murinus, Lin. of Java, of the size of a mouse; grey; ears
naked; tail round and nearly as long as the body. — The S. brevicaudus, Say, from
North America; blackish, ears concealed, tail one-fourth the length of the body. —
S, parvus, Id. with naked ears. — The S. suaveolens, Pall., and the other species pointed
out by him in his Zoography of Russia. This genus needs revision as much as that
of the Bats.

CARN ARIA.

77

en and adorn so many birds, fishes, and insects, its fur is a green,
changing to a copper or* bronze colour; there is no conch to the ear,
and no eyes can be discovered*.

Talpa, Lin,

The moles are universally known by their subterranean life, and by their
form, which is eminently fitted for their mode of existence. A very short
arm attached by a long scapula, supported by a powerful clavicle, furnish-
ed with enormous muscles, sustains an extremely large hand, the palm of
which is always directed either outwards or backwards ; the lower edge of
this hand is trenchant, the fingers are scarcely perceptible, but the nails
in which they terminate are long, flat, strong, and sharp. Such is the in-
strument employed by the mole to tear the earth, and throw it backward.
Its sternum, like that of birds and bats, has a process which gives to the
pectoral muscles the large size that is required for their functions. To
pierce and raise up the earth, it makes use of its long pointed head, whose
muzzle is armed at its extremity with a peculiar little bone, and its cervical
muscles are extremely powerful. There is even a special bone in the cer-
vical ligament. It has but little power behind, and moves as slowly above
ground as it advances rapidly under it. Its sense of hearing is very acute,
and the tympanum very large, although there is no external ear ; its eyes
are so small, and so hidden by the hair, that for a long time their exist-
ence was positively denied. In the genital organs there is this peculiarity
— the bones of the pubis are not united, a circumstance which permits it
to produce tolerably large young ones, notwithstanding the narrowness of
the pelvis. The urethra of the female passes through the clitoris. She
has six teats. The jaws are weak, and the food consists of worms, insects,
and some soft roots. There are six incisors above, and eight below. The
canines have two roots, which causes them to partake of the nature of false
molars; behind, there are four false molars above and three below, after
which are three bristled molars.

T. europcea, L. ; Buff. VIII. xii. (The Common Mole). Point-
ed muzzle ; fur thin and black ; individuals are found white, fawn-
coloured, and piebald. This is an animal which is found very incon-
venient by the havoc which he makes in gardens and other cultivated
places.

This species, according to Dr. Harlan, is also found in North
America (a).

* The Red Mole of America, Sebay, pi. xxxii. f. 1, ( Talpa rubra, Lin.) is most pro-
bably a Chryso asialicus , drawn from a dried specimen of that species, for then the fur
appears purple; the tucan of Fernandez, App. XXIV, which is considered as syno-
nymous with it.

We have the authority of Dr. H. M‘Murtrie against the existence of the
common Mole in America. That which obtains the name of the common Mole in
the United States is the Scalops Aqualicus, described in the succeeding page. —
15 no. Ed.

.«■ T he common Mole, at 'he period when it builds its nest, (about the beginning
of February), and brings forth its young, is an object peculiarly deserving the attention
of the naturalist. The nest is always in a cavity formed in the midst of the hillocks,
which arc so frequently to be met with in tire fields, and well known under the title

78

MAMMALIA.

M. Savi has found a Mole in the Apennines that is perfectly blind,
although otherwise similar to the common one; he calls it Talpa
caeca.

CoNDYLURA, Illig.

The Condylures seem to combine the two kinds of dentition of the insec-
tivora. In the upper jaw are two large triangular incisors, two extremely
small and slender ones, and on each side a strong canine. In the lower
one are four incisors slanting forwards, and a pointed but small canine.
The superior false molars are triangular, and separated, the inferior trench-
ant and denticulated.

In their feet and the whole of their exterior they resemble the Mole,
but their tail is longer, and what more particularly distinguishes them from
the former is, that their nostrils are surrounded with little moveable carti-
laginous points, which, when they separate, radiate like a kind of star.

One species particularly is found in North America — Sorex cris-
tatus, L*. (The Radiated Mole). Similar to the Mole of Europe,
the nose excepted, but having a tail more than double the length of
that of the latter.

SCALOPS, CUV.

The Scalops have the teeth very similar to those of the Desmans, except
that the small or false molars are less numerous ; the muzzle is simply
pointed, like that of the Shrews ; their hands are widened, armed with
strong nails fitted to excavate the earth, and exactly similar to those of
Moles : in fact, their mode of life is the same ; their eyes are equally as
small, and their ears quite as much hidden. The only species known is the
S. aquaticus; Sorex aquaticus, L. ; Schreb. CLVIII. (The Ca-
nadian Scalop). It appears to inhabit a great part of North America,
along rivers, &c. Its external resemblance to the common Mole of
Europe is so great, that it is easy to mistake the one for the other.

* This is the Condylura of Illiger, but the characters he indicates, taken from
the figure of La Faille, copied Buff. Supp. VI. xxxvi, 1, and on which he composed
the name of the genus, are false. M. Desmarets was the first who correctly described
the teeth of this animal.

Dr. Harlan describes a species, Cond. macroura, which has hut very short points
about the nostrils, and a scaly compressed tail. He associates with it, as a third spe-
cies, the Talp. longicaudata, Penn. Hist. No. 443, which he appears however not to
have seen.

of mole hills. Moss forms the principal lining of the nest. One of the most curious
phenomena presented by the Mole at this period is the process of skinning a worm.
The integument of the victim is stripped from end to end, and then the contents are
squeezed out by pressure on the part of the mole. The subterranean burrows formed
by these animals are mostly connected by avenues with the chamber where the nest
is made; and in going to or from this chamber, the mole passes through a series of
these avenues, where, it is supposed, that several means, known only to the contriver,
are employed for catching worms, beetles, grubs, &c. The inconvenience to which
Cuvier alludes, as being produced chiefly in cultivated places, consists, for the most
part, in the loosening of the earth round the roots of plants, which always attends
their operations in searching for food. — Eng. Ed.

CARNARIA.

70

FAMILY III.

CARNIVORA.

Although the term carnivorous (Carnassiers) is applicable to all un-
guiculated animals, not quaclrumanate, that have three sorts of teeth, inas-
much as they all feed more or less on animal aliment, there are, however,
many of them, the two preceding families especially, which are compelled
by weakness, and the conical tubercles of their grinders, to live almost en-
tirely on insects. It is in the present family that the sanguinary appetite
for flesh is joined to the force necessary to obtain it. There are always
four stout, long, and separated canines, between which are six incisors in
each jaw, the root of the second of the lower ones being placed a little
more inwards than the others. The molars are either wholly trenchant,
or blended merely with blunted tuberculous parts, but they are not bristled
with conical points.

These animals are so much the more exclusively carnivorous, as their
teeth are the more completely trenchant, and the proportions of their re-
gimen may be calculated from the extent of the tuberculous surface of their
teeth, as compared with that portion which is trenchant. The Bears,
which can live altogether on vegetables, have nearly all their teeth tuber-
culated.

The anterior molars are the most trenchant ; next comes a molar larger
than the others, usually furnished with a larger or smaller tuberculous
heel ; and behind it one or two small teeth, that are perfectly flat. It is
also with these small teeth in the back part of the mouth that the dog
chews the grass he sometimes swallows. We shall call, with M. Fr. Cu-
vier, this large upper molar, and its corresponding one below, lacerators
{carnassiers); the anterior pointed ones, false molars; and the posterior
blunted ones, tuberculous teeth.

It is easy to conceive that those genera which have the fewest false mo-
lars, and whose jaws are the shortest, are those best adapted for biting.

It is upon these differences that the genera can be most safely esta-
blished.

It is necessary, however, that the consideration of the hind foot should
be added to them.

Several genera, like those of the two preceding families, in walking, or
when they stand erect, place the whole sole of the foot on the ground, a
fact proved by the total want of hair on every part of the sole.

Others and by far the greater number, walk only on the ends of the
toes, by raising up at the same time the tarsus. They are much swifter ;

80

MAMMALIA.

and to this leading distinction are added many others in the habits, and
even in the internal conformation. In both the substitute for the clavicle
is a mere bony rudiment suspended in the flesh.

The Plantigrada

Form this first tribe, which walks on the whole sole of the foot, a cir-
cumstance which gives them a greater facility in balancing themselves
upon their hinder feet. They partake of the slowness and nocturnal life
of the Insectivora, and, like them, have no caecum : most of those that in-
habit cold countries pass the winter in a state of lethargy. They all have
five toes to each foot.

Ursur. Linn.

The Bears have three large molars on each side* in each jaw, altogether
tuberculous, and of which the posterior upper, and anterior upper, are the
longest. They are preceded by a tooth a little more trenchant, which is
one of the lacerators of this genus, and by a variable number of very small
false molars, which are sometimes shed at a very early period. This almost
frugivorous sort of dentition is the reason why, notwithstanding their great
strength, they seldom eat flesh, unless from necessity.

They are large stout-bodied animals, with thick limbs, and a very short
tail : the cartilage of the nose is elongated and moveable. They excavate
dens or construct huts, in which they pass the winter in a state of somno-
lency more or less profound, and without food. It is in these retreats
that the female brings forth.

The species are not easily distinguished by apparent characters. We
have the

U. arctos, L., Buff. VIII. xxxi. (The Brown or common Bear
of Europe). Forehead convex: fur brown, more or less woolly when
young, and growing smoother with age. Some of them are greyish,
others almost yellow, and a third kind is brown, with shades border-
ing on silver. The relative height of their legs is equally variable,
and all without any fixed relation to age or sex. They have most com-
monly, when young, a whitish collar, which, in some varieties, re-
mains for a longer or shorter period, and even for life. This animal
inhabits the lofty mountains, and great forests throughout Europe,
and of a great part of Asia; the coupling season is in June, and the
young are produced in January. It sometimes lodges very high up
in trees ; when young its flesh is esteemed a delicacy — the paws are
considered good at all ages.

It is thought that the Black Bear of Europe is a distinct species :
those which have been described as such had a flat forehead, and the
fur woolly and blackish ; their origin, however, does not appear to
us to be very authentic'!'.

* We shall hereafter omit the repetition of the words “ on each side,” &c., it be-
ing understood that we speak of the molars on one side only, those of the other being
the same.

t We are not yet satisfied that the Grisly Bear of North America differs specifi-
cally from the Brown Bear of Europe.

P. S. Since the above note was written, General La Fayette has presented a Grisly
Bear to the Menagerie du Jardin du Roi. In form and hair, some shades of colour -

CARNARIA.

81

XJ. americanus , Gm. ; Fr. Cuv. Mammif. ; Schreb. pi. 141, 13.
(The North American Black Bear). Avery distinct species, with a
flat forehead, smooth and black fur, and fawn-coloured muzzle. We
have always found the small teeth behind the canines more numerous
in this bear, than in the European species. Individuals have been
seen that were entirely fawn-coloured. Its usual food is wild fruits ;
it devastates the fields, and, where fish is abundant, proceeds to
the shores for the purpose of catching it. It is only for want of
other aliment that it attacks quadrupeds. The flesh is held in great
esteem. There is another Black Bear found in the Cordilleras, with
a white throat and muzzle, and large fawn-coloured eyebrows, that
unite on the forehead — U. ornatus, Fr. Cuv. Mammif.

The East Indies also produce several bears of a black colour, such
as the

U. malaianus , Horsf. Java. (The Malay Bear). From the Pe-
ninsula beyond the Ganges and the islands of the Straits of Sunda.
Smooth ; black ; fawn-coloured muzzle ; a heart-shaped spot of the
same colour on the breast. It is very injurious to the cocoa nut
trees, which it climbs in order to devour their tops and drink the
milk of the fruit.

U. thibetanus, Fr. Cuv. Mammif. (The Thibet Bear). Black ;
the under lip and a large mark in the form of a Y in white on the
breast; profile straighter and claws weaker. From the mountains
in the north of India.

But the most remarkable of these Bears of India is the

U. labiatus, Blain. ; V Ours jongleur, Fred. Cuv. Mammif.; U.
longirostris , Tied. (The Thick-lipped Bear). The cartilage of
the nose dilated; the tip of the under lip elongated, both being
moveable ; when old, very thick bushy hairs round the head. The
facility with which the incisors are lost, occasioned it for a long time
to be considered as a Sloth* *. It is black; the muzzle and tips of
the paws fawn-coloured or whitish, and a half collar or spot in the
form of a Y under the neck and breast. This animal is a favourite
with the Indian jugglers, which they lead about on account of its
deformity.

U. maritimus , L. ; Cuv. Menag. du Mus., 8vo., p. 68 ; copied,
Schreb. pi. clxi. (The Polar Bear). This is another species, very
distinguishable by its long and flattened head and its white and

ing excepted, it closely resembles the Brown Bear; its nails, however, are much
longer and more trenchant. It appears to be a distinct species.

M. Horsfield, Lin. Trans. XV. .'532, describes a bear from Nepaul, of a light bay
colour, whose nails are less trenchant than those of the other bears of India, and
i which appears to him a distinct species.

I have neglected stating in the text that we have recovered many fossil bones of
lost species of bears, the most remarkable of which are the U. s price us, Blumenb.,
with a rounded forehead, and of a very large size; and the U. cultridens , Cuv. See
the fourth vol. of my “ Ossemens Fossiles.”

* It is the Brady pus ursinus of Shaw, and the genus Prociiilus, Illig. See Jour.
| do Phys. of 1792, vol. xl. p. 136.
j, VOL. I.

$2

MAMMALIA.

smooth fur. It pursues seals and other marine animals. Exagger-
ated accounts of its ferocity have rendered it highly celebrated (a).

gdtr (a) In the Zoological Gardens, Regent’s Park, may be seen the following
Bears: —

Sloth Bears, XJrsus labiatus, Blain., male and female. They are the species usually
exhibited by the Indian jugglers, and have been found milder in their dispositions
than most of the other Bears. They are from India.

Malay Bear, or Malayan Sun Bear, XJrsus Malayanus, Horsfield. This bear was
brought from Sumatra, and is found only in places near the equator. It feeds chiefly
on vegetables, and is particularly fond of the young shoots of the cocoa nut tree. It
is likewise fond of honey, and the tongue, as may be seen, is elongated, so as to
adapt it admirably to the process of lapping.

Spectacled Bear, XJrsus orncitus of F. Cuvier. This Bear is a great curiosity; it is
a native of the mountains of South America, and has been but recently described;
this is the first of the species that has been seen in this country.

American Black Bear, XJrsus Americanus. This Bear is from North America, and
feeds on vegetable roots and fruits ; and, in its native state, resorts to the sea coasts
for the purpose of consuming fish. It appears to be smaller in size than the Euro-
pean hear.

Cinnamon Bears, called also Chocolate Bears, are considered only as varieties of
the Black Bears. The former, however, are distinguished from the latter by the
marked difference of their habitats ; for, whilst the Black Bears keep to close and woody
districts, the Cinnamon Bears live in the open and upland grounds ; the latter are
described also as more powerful and vicious than the others in the native state.

The European Brown Bear, XJrsus arctos, Linnaeus. This bear is from Siberia,
and its diet is altogether vegetable. The flesh of the young bears of this species is
eatable.

Siberian Bear, XJrsus collaris, F. Cuvier. This bear is particularly distinguished
by the white collar around his neck. But some naturalists doubt if the animal be
not a mere variety of the Brown Bear.

Grisly Bear, XJrsus ferox, Lewis and Clarke. This is an object of great curiosity,
inasmuch, as in all probability it is the largest and most powerful of the bear
tribe; it is certainly the most ferocious, and is described as possessing extraordinary
tenacity of life. This specimen was brought from the rocky mountains in North
America, about the year 1813, to England, and was placed in the menagerie of the
Tower. It formed part of the munificent present, made by his present Majesty on
his accession, to the Zoological Society.

White or Polar Bear, XJrsus mar itimus, Gmelin. This is a remarkable female spe-
cimen of the White Bear, which is found in no other part of the world except the
coldest of the northern regions. This Bear appeared formerly to be the largest; but
its size was greatly misrepresented by the older navigators. Captain Parry, in his
north-west expedition, has not met with one which exceeded seven or eight feet.
This bear preserves uniformly a white colour on every part of its external surface,
except on the naked end of the snout, the lips, and the margins of the eyelids and claws.
There is no doubt whatever, that the female Polar Bears, when pregnant, are subject to
undergo hybernation; and, it is probable, that the males merely suffer from the efiects
of torpidity, the nature of which will be found explained in a previousnote to the Hedge-
hog. The distinction pointed out in that note between hybernation and torpidity affords
a medium, whereby the contrary opinions of naturalists on this point may be recon-
ciled. This Bear is chiefly hunted for its hide and fur. The accounts which we pos-
sess of the Brown Bear, so common in the Scandinavian forests, are the result
of a persevering scientific study of the habits of these animals. They consist,
according to some, of two varieties of the XJrsus arctos, the large Bear, or Bear of
prey, in Swedish, Slag-Bjorn, which lives indiscriminately on animal and vegetable
substances, is one ; and a smaller species, in Swedish, Myr Bjorn, which subsists en-
tirely on ants or vegetable substances, forms the second. Other naturalists, however,
are of opinion that there is only one real species in Scandinavia, and that it is omni-
vorous, feeding on cattle indiscriminately, and on roots, leaves, small branches and
berries of all sorts. One remarkable habit of this beast is, that about October every
year he ceases to feed for the winter season; his stomach and intestines then become

CARNARIA.

88

Procyon, Storr.

The Ratons or Raccoons have three back tuberculous molars, the su-
perior of which are nearly square, and three pointed false molars in front,
forming a continuous series to the canines, which are straight and com-
pressed. Their tail is long, but the remainder of the exterior is that of a
bear in miniature. They rest the whole sole of the foot on the ground
only when they stand still ; when they walk they raise the heel.

P.lotor; Ursuslotor,~L.\ Mapach of the Mexicans ; Buff. VIII.
xliii. (The Raccoon). Greyish brown; muzzle white; a brown
streak across the eyes ; tail marked with brown and white rings.
This animal is about the size of a Badger, is easily tamed, and re-
markable for a. singular habit of eating nothing without having pre-
viously dipped it in water. From North America — lives on eggs,
birds, &c.

P. cancrivorus ; Ursus cancriv. L. ; Buff. Supp. VI. xxxii. (The
Raccoon Crab-eater). A uniform light ash-brown; the rings on the
tail less distinct. From South America.

Ailurus, Fred. Cuv.

The Panda appears to approximate to the Raccoon by its canines, and
what is known of its other teeth ; with this exception, that it has only one
false molar. The head is short ; tail long ; walk plantigrade ; five toes,
with half retractile nails*. One species only is known, the

A. refulgens, Fred. Cuv. Mammif. ; Hardwick, Linn. Trans. XV.
p. 161. (The Shining Panda). Size of a large cat ; fur soft and
thickly set ; above of the most brilliant cinnamon red ; behind more
fawn-coloured; beneath of a deep black. The head is whitish, and
the tail marked with brown rings. This most beautiful of all known
quadrupeds, and which inhabits the mountains of the north of India,
was sent to Europe by my son-in-law the late M. Alfred du Vaucel.

Ictides, Valenciennes .

The Benturong is somewhat related to the Raccoon by its teeth; but
the three upper back molars are much smaller and less tuberculous; and
this is especially the case in the last one in each jaw, which is very small

* General Hardwick lias described the upper teeth of the Panda, Lin. Trans. XV.
pi. ii. There are four square and tuberculous grinders, and one false trenchant mo-
lar in front, at a short distance from the canine.

quite empty, and collapse into a small compass within the abdomen, whilst the ex-
tremity of the last bowel is blocked up by a piece of hard wadding, called in Sweden
1 appen. In November, he retires to his den, which is usually prepared before-hand,
and here he undergoes the state of hybernation. About the middle of the following
April, tire bear quits his den, voids the tappen, and bounds with fresh vigour into the
lorest in search of food. The tappen , when chemically examined, has been found to
consist of the following ingredients : brown resin, green volatile oil, colouring matter
o| leaves, fat, starch, woody matter, with the acids and salts of trees in the Scandina-
vian forests. We are unable to find any account of the substance called Tappen in
the most complete systematic works on the subjects of comparative anatomy and ani-
mal secretions. We have carefully consulted the great work of Berzelius, himself a
Swede; but we can find no allusion to the substance amidst the vast details which he
gives of the secretions of the Mammalia. — Eno. Ed.

84*

MAMMALIA.

and nearly simple. It is covered with long hair, and has a tuft of it at
eacli ear. The tail is long, hairy, and has a propensity to curl, as if pre-
henslie.

This animal is also one of those from India, for the knowledge of which
we are indebted to the late M. du Vaucel. One species is the

let. albifrons j Fr. Cuv., Ann. des Sc. Nat. IY. pi. 1. Grey;
tail and sides of the muzzle black ; size that of a large cat. From
Bootan.

let . ater , Fr. Cuv. Mammif. Black; muzzle whitish; size that
of a stout dog. From Malacca*.

Nasua, Storr.

The Coatis, to the teeth, tail, nocturnal habit, and slow dragging gait of
the Raccoon, add a singularly elongated and flexible snout. The feet are
semi-palmate, notwithstanding which they climb trees. Their long nails
are used for digging. They inhabit the warm climates of America, and
their diet is nearly the same as that of the Marten of Europe.

Viverra nasua , L. ; Buff. VIII, xlviii. (The Red Coati). Red-
dish fawn colour; muzzle brown; tail with brown rings.

Viv. narica, L. ; Buff. VIII, xlviii. (The Brown Coati). Brown,
white spots over the eyn and snout.

This is, perhaps, the only proper place for the singular genus of the
Kinkajous or Potto, Cuv. — Cercoleptes, Illig. — which, to a planti-
grade walk, adds a long prehensile tail, like that of the Sapajous, a short
muzzle, a slendei and extensible tongue, two pointed grinders before, and
three tuberculous ones behind.

Only one species is known, Viverra caudivolvula, Gm. ; Buff.
Supp. III. 4; and better, Fr. Cuv. Mammif. From the warm parts
of America, and from some of the great Antilles, where it is called
Potto ; size of a Polecat; hair woolly, and of a grey or yellowish
brown ; habits nocturnal, of a mild disposition, and lives on fruit,
milk, honey, blood, &c.

Meles, Storr .

The Badgers, which Linnasus placed with the Raccoons, among the Bears,
have a very small tooth behind the canine, then two pointed molars, fol-
lowed in the upper jaw by one that we begin to recognise as a lacerator,
from the trenchant vestige it exhibits on its outer side ; behind this is a
square tuberculous one, the largest of all. Below, the penultimate begins
to shew a resemblance to the inferior carnivorous teeth; but, as there are
two tubercles on its internal border, as elevated as its trenchant edge, it
acts as a tuberculous one; the last below is very small.

These are animals with a rampant walk and nocturnal habits, like the
preceding, whose tail is short, fingers considerably enveloped in the skin,
and which are further conspicuously distinguished by a pouch situated be-
neath the tail, and from which a greasy and fetid secretion oozes out.
Their very elongated fore nails render them exceedingly dexterous in dig-
ging the ground.

M. europcea: Ursus meles, L. ; Buff. VII, vii. (The European
Badger). Greyish above, black beneath, a blackish band on each

* Add VIctide dore, Fred. Cuv.

CARNARIA. 85

side of the head. The American Badger {Mel. hudsonius ) is not
very different.

Gulo, Storr.

Linnaeus also placed the Gluttons among the bears ; but they approximate
much nearer to the weasels in their teeth as well as in their habits ; the
only relation they have to the former consisting in their plantigrade
movement. They have three false molars above, and four below; in
front, the carnivorous one, which is well characterized; and behind it, a
small tuberculous one — the upper being more broad than long. Their su-
perior carnivorous tooth has only one small tubercle on the inner side,
and, in fact, the whole dental system is nearly the same as that of the
weasels. The tail is of a middling size, with a plait or fold beneath, in
place of a sac, and the port of the animal is very similar to that of the
badger.

The most celebrated species is the Glutton of the north, the Ursus
gulo , L. ; Buff. Supp. Ill, xlviii. (The Common Glutton or Rosso-
mak of Russia). About the size of the Badger ; usually of a fine
deep maronne colour, with a disk on the back, of a darker brown ;
sometimes, however, the shades are lighter. It inhabits the most
glacial regions of the North, is considered very sanguinary and fe-
rocious, hunts during the night, does not become torpid during the
winter, and masters the largest animals by leaping upon them from
trees. Its voracity has been ridiculously exaggerated by some au-
thors. The Wolverene of North America ( Ursus luscus, Lin. Edw.
103) does not appear to differ from it in any constant character; its
colours, however, are generally lighter.

Hot climates produce some species which can only be placed near the
Gluttons, as they differ from them merely in having one false molar less
in each jaw, and in a long tail. Such are the animals termed by the in-
habitants of South America Ferrets , which, having the teeth of our Fer-
rets and Polecats, have, in fact, similar habits ; they are distinguished
from them, however, by their plantigrade movement.

Viverra vitlata, L. ; Buff. Supp. VIII, xxiii and xxv. (The Gri-
son). Black; top of the head and neck grey ; a white band, reach-
ing from the forehead to the shoulders.

Mustela barbara, L. ; Bulf. Supp. VII, lx. (The Taira). Brown ;
top of the head grey ; a large white spot under the throat.

These two animals are found in all the warm climates of America,
and smell strongly of musk. Their feet are somewhat palmated,
and it appears they have sometimes been taken for otters*.

Ratelus, F. C.

The Ratcls have a false molar in each jaw less than the Grison, and
their upper tuberculous tooth is but slightly developed, so that in the teeth

* It is supposed, by the description given by Marcgrave of bis cariqueibeiu, which
name Buffon has applied to his saricovicnnc, Vol. XIII. p. 319, that he meant to.
speak of tlie Taira.

86

MAMMALIA.

they approach the Cat, while their whole exterior is that of the Grison or
Badger. The legs are short;* feet plantigrade, and five toes to each;
nails very strong, &c. &c.

One species only is known, the Viverra mellivora , Sparm. ; and
Viv. capensis , Schreb. pi. 125. (The Ratel or Honey Weasel),
Size of the European Badger; grey above; black beneath, with a
white line between these two colours ; sometimes it is nearly all white
above. It inhabits the Cape of Good Hope, and digs up the earth
with its long fore-claws, in search of the honey-combs of the wild
bees. The

Digitigrada

form the second tribe of the Carnivora — that which walks on the ends
of the toes.

In the first subdivision there is only one tuberculous tooth behind the
upper carnivorous one; these animals, on account of the length of their
body, and the shortness of their feet, which permit them to pass through
the smallest openings, have been styled vermiform. Like the preceding
ones, they have no caecum, but do not fall into a lethargy during the
winter. Linnaeus placed them all in one genus, that of

Mustela, Lin .

Or the Weasels, which we will divide into four sub-genera.

Putorius, Cuv.

The Polecats are the most sanguinary of all; the lower carnivorous
tooth has no inner tubercle, and the superior tuberculous one is more
broad than long ; there are only two false molars above and three below.
These animals are externally recognised by their muzzle, which is shorter
and thicker than that of the Weasel. They all diffuse an infectious
odour.

Mustela putorius , L. ; Buff. VII. xxiii. (The Common Polecat).
Brown ; flanks yellowish ; white spots on the head ; the terror of
poultry-yards and warrens.

M. furo , L. ; Buff. VII . xxv. and xxvi. (The Ferret)-. Yellow-
ish, with rose-coloured eyes, and is perhaps a mere variety of the
Polecat. It is only found in France in a domesticated state, and is
employed to ferret out the rabbits from their holes, [t comes from
Spain and Barb ary.

M. sarmatica; The Perouasca; Pall. Spic. Zool. XIV. iv. 1;
Schreb. CXXXII. (The Sarmatian Weasel). Brown; everywhere
spotted with yellow and white. So beautifully is the skin mottled,
that it is in high request among furriers. It is found throughout
all southern Russia, Asia Minor, and the coast of the northern rivers
of the Caspian sea.

M. sibirica, Pall. Spic. Zool. XIV. iv. 2. (The Siberian Pole-
cat). A uniform light fawn colour ; nose and circumference of the
eyes brown; end of the muzzle and the under part of the lower jaw
white.

CARN ARIA. 87

It is also to this subdivision that we must refer two small Euro-
pean species —

M. vulgaris, L. ; Buff. VII, xxix, 1. (The Weasel). Of a uni-
form red ; and the

M. erminea, L. ; Buff. VII, xxix, 2, and xxxi, 1. (The Stoat or
Ermine). B ed in summer, white in winter ; end of the tail always
black. The winter skin is one of the best known furs.

We should also place near it the

M. lutreola, Pall. Spic. Zool. XI. 1; Leche, Stock. Mem. 1739,
pi. xi; Schreb, CXXVII. (The Mink or Norek, or Polecat). It
frequents the shores of rivers, &c., in the north and east of Europe
from the Arctic Ocean to the Black Sea, and lives on frogs and crabs.
The feet are slightly palmated at the base of the toes, but the teeth
and round tail approximate it nearer to the Polecat than the Otter.
It is of a reddish brown ; the circumference of the lips and the under
part of the jaw white ; it exhales a musky odour, and its fur is very
beautiful.

The above animal is considered by some to be the same as the
Polecat of the North American rivers, to which the name of Mink
has been transferred, whose feet are likewise semi-palmated ; but the
only white about it is on the point of the chin, and sometimes a nar-
row line under the throat — it is a different species*.

Warm climates also have their Polecats or Weasels.

Put. nudipes, Fred. Cuv. Mammif. (The Javanese Polecat).
Golden-yellow ; head and tip of the tail white.

Put. afrioanus, Desm. (The African Polecat). Reddish fawn
colour above; yellowish white below; a red band reaching longitu-
dinally along the middle of the belly from the fore to the hind legs.

Put. striatus , Cuv. (The Striated Madagascar Ferret). Size of
the European Weasel; reddish brown, with five longitudinal white
stripes; the under part and the tail nearly all white.

Put. zor ilia; Zorille, Buff. ; Viverra zorilla, Gm. ; Buff. XIII.
xl. 1 . (The Zorilla, or Cape Polecat). Irregularly striped with black
and white; an animal that has been so far confounded with the
mephitic weasels as to receive the name of Zorillo, or little Fox,
which the Spaniards have applied to those fetid American animals.
It approaches them in its claws, which are fitted for digging, but in
every thing else resembles the Polecats. They indicate a subter-
raneous habit, which might induce us to separate it from the other
species.

Mustela, Cuv.

The true Weasels differ from the Polecats in having an additional false
molar above and below, and in the existence of a small internal tubercle

* When this page was written, I had no other knowledge of the Norek, ol’ Mink
of Europe, than what the description of Pallas afforded me. Having since then
procured some specimens, I have ascertained that the white about the jaws is not
permanent, and that very freqm ntly the only white to be seen is at the end of the
lower jaw, as in the American Mink. I now think they are both one species.

88

MAMMALIA.

on their inferior carnivorous tooth, two characters which somewhat diminish
the cruelty of their nature.

There are two species in Europe closely allied to each other, the

M. martes, L. ; Buff. VII. xviii. (The Pine Marten). Brown ;
a yellow spot under the throat. Inhabits the woods.

M. foina, L, ; Buff. VII. xviii. (The Common Marten). Brown ;
the whole under part of the throat and neck white. Inhabits houses.
Both species are very destructive. Siberia produces the

M. zibellina , Pall. Spic. Zook XIV. iii. 2; Schreb. CXXXVI.
(The Sable). So celebrated for its rich fur; brown, spotted with
grey about the head, and distinguished from the preceding ones by
the extension of the hair to the under surface of the toes. It inha-
bits the coldest mountains, and the hunting to obtain it, in the midst
of winter and tremendous snows, is the most painful with which we
are acquainted. It is to the pursuit of this animal that we owe the
discovery of the eastern countries of Siberia (a).

North America also possesses several Martens indicated by na-
turalists and travellers, under the indefinite names of Pekan, Vison,
Mink, &c.

One of them, the White Vison of the furriers, Mus. leutreoce-
'phala, Hark, has as hairy feet and almost as soft a fur as the Sable,
but is of a light fawn colour, and almost white about the head.

That which we call the Pekan; Must, canadensis , Gm., and which
comes from Canada and the United States, is of a brownish colour,
mixed with white on the head, neck, shoulders and top of the back;
nose, crupper, tail and limbs blackish*".

Mephitis, Cuv.

The Skunk, like the Polecat, has two false molars aboye and three be-
low, but the superior tuberculous one is very large, and as long as it is
broad, and the inferior carnivorous has two tubercles on its internal side ;
circumstances which ally it to the Badger just as the Polecat approximates
to the Grison and Glutton. Independently of this, the anterior nails of
the Skunk, like those of the Badger, are long and fitted for digging;
they are moreover semi-plantigrade, and the resemblance extends even to
the distribution of their colours. Amongst this family so remarkable for
its stench, the Skunks are distinguished by a sort of stench far exceeding
that of the remaining species.

* It is the Pekan of Daubenton, but it has not always the white under the throat.
There are several other species of Polecats or of Martens indicated by MM. Molina,
Humboldt, and Harlan; but they require re-examination (b).

oglf («) The “ jminful ” task here alluded to was imposed exclusively, during the
nore barbarous periods of Russian tyranny, on the unhappy exiles who were trans-
ported on the most unjust pretences to the wilds of Siberia. These persons were
mder an obligation to furnish, within a given time, a defined number of sable furs.
— Eng. Ed.

( b ) A specimen of the Pekan or Fisher Marten may be seen in the Zoological
Gardens, Regent’s Park. Its name of Fisher is not appropriate, as it does not eat
fish, but pursues the same prey as the Pine Marten. — Eng. Ed.

CARN ARIA.

89

Skunks are generally striated with white stripes on a black ground,
but the number of stripes appears to vary in the same species. The
most common species of North America is the

M. putorius; Viverra putor, Gm. ; Catesb. Carol. II. lxii.
Schreb. CXXII. (The American Skunk — the Fitchet of Pennant).
Black, with stripes of white, larger or smaller, and more or less nu-
merous ; the tail is black, and the tip white. The odour it produces
resembles that of the polecat, mingled with a strong smell of garlic
— nothing is more nauseous.

It would seem that in South America the species most usually
encountered has a white tail. The stripes on the back sometimes
occupy its whole breadth ; it is the Viverra mephitis , Gm. ; Buff.
XIII. xxxix, or the Chinche*.

We may make a distinct subgenus of the Mydaus, Fred. Cuv.
whose teeth, feet, and even colours, are similar to those of the Skunk,
but whose truncated muzzle resembles a Hog’s snout ; the tail being
reduced to a small pencil. One species only is known, the

M. maliceps, Fred. Cuv., and Horsf. Java. (The Teledu).
Black; the nape of the neck, a stripe along the back, and the tail
white; the dorsal stripe sometimes interrupted in the middle ; not
surpassed in stench by any of the Skunks (a).

Lutra, Storr.

The Otters have three false molars in each jaw, a strong heel to the
superior lacerator, a tubercle on the inner side of the inferior one, and a
large tuberculous one above, nearly as long as it is broad. The head is
compressed,, and the tongue demi-asperate. They are otherwise distin-
guished from all the preceding subgenera by palmated feet, and a hori-
zontally flattened tail, two characters which render them aquatic. Their
food is fish.

L. vulgaris; Mustela lutra , L. ; Buff. VIII. xi. (The Common
or Greater Otter). Brown above, whitish round the lips, on the
cheeks and the whole inferior surface of the body. It is sometimes
found spotted and whitish. From the rivers of Europe.

Several Otters differ but little from the above. That of Carolina,

* It is better figured, Hist, des Mammif. of Fred, Cuv. The Chili Skunk, Buff.
Supp. VII. pi. Ivii, appears to he a mere badly preserved variety of the same. See
my Recherches, Sur. Ossemens Foss. IV. 469.

f&j" (a) All these animals possess an orifice situated below the anus, which is
connected with a peculiar gland: this gland secretes the unctuous matter from which
the overpowering stench is exhaled; and if we are to believe in the representations
of travellers, the secretions of these Skunks must be the most revolting of any fetid
exhalation which nature has yet produced. Dogs are instantly stopped in their pur-
suit by its emission, and if a man is so unfortunate as, when hunting them, to come
in contact with the least particle of the fluid, which, when hard pressed in the chase,
they arc able to discharge, the garment so infected can never be used again on ac-
count of the impossibility of purifying it from the horrible stench. Molina, speak-
ing of the Chinge of Chili, affirms that the smell of the animals proceeds from a
certain greenish oil ejected from a follicle or receptacle near the tail. — Eng. Ed.

o * *

90

MAMMALIA.

L. lataxina, Fr. Cuv., becomes a little larger, is sometimes more
deeply coloured, and has a brownish tint beneath ; very frequently,
however, there is no difference even in the shades of colour. In
Brazil there are ethers similar in every respect to those of Carolina.
That of the East Indies, the L. nair, Fr. Cuv., (the Pondicherry
Otter) appears a little smoother, and is somewhat pale about the
eye-brows, but it is scarcely perceptible. The Indians employ it for
fishing, as we do the dog for hunting. That of Java, L. leptonyx,
Horsf. (the Javanese Otter), has a whiter throat, and this whiteness
ascends on the sides of the head so as to surround the eye. In that
of the Cape, L. capensis, Fr. Cuv., the white on the throat, sides of
the head and neck, is purer and more extended; the end of the nose
is even marked with it : what particularly distinguishes it, however,
is that, at least at a certain age, it has no nails, a character on which

M. Lesson has founded his genus Aonyx. Young individuals how-
ever have been brought from the Cape that have nails ; it remains to
be ascertained whether or not they are of the same species.

Mustela lutra brasiliensis , Gm. (The American Otter). Brown
or fawn-coloured ; throat white or yellowish ; a little larger than the
European Otter; the body is also longer, and the hair shorter. It
is distinguished by the end of the nose, not being naked as in most
animals, but being covered with hair like the rest of the chanfrin.
From the rivers of both Americas.

Mustela lutris, L. ; Schreb. CXXVIII *. (The Sea-Otter).
Size, double that of the European species ; body much elongated ;
tail one-third the length of the body ; the hind feet very short. Its
blackish fur, with a marked velvety character, is the most valuable
of all the furs ; it is often whitish on the head. The English and
Russians go in search of this animal in the whole of the northern
portion of the Pacific Ocean, for the purpose of making a traffick
in its skin with China and Japan. It has no more than four incisor
teeth below, but its grinders resemble those of the other Otters.

The second subdivision of the Digitigrada has two flat tuberculous teeth
behind the superior lacerator, which is itself furnished with a large heel.
They are carnivorous, but do not exhibit a courage proportioned to their
strength, and frequently feed on carrion. The cascum is always small.

Can is, Lin,

Dogs have three false molars above, four below, and two tuberculous teeth
behind each of the carnivori ; the first of these upper tuberculous teeth is
very large. Their superior carnivorous has only a small inner tubercle,
but the posterior portion of the inferior is altogether tuberculous. The
tongue is soft ; the fore-feet have five toes, and the hind ones four.

* This figure, apparently drawn from a badly prepared specimen, presents an ex-
aggerated resemblance to the Seal, a circumstance by which some naturalists have
been induced to believe it should be placed near that genus — its whole organization,
however, is that of the Otter. See Ev. Home , Phil. Tram. 1796.

CARNARIA.

91

C. familiaris, L. (The Domestic Dog). Distinguished by his
recurved tail, otherwise varying infinitely, as to size, form, colour,
and quality of the hair. He is the most complete, singular, and use-
ful conquest ever made by man; the whole species has become his
property; each individual is devoted to his particular master, assumes
his manners, knows and defends his possessions, and remains his
true and faithful friend till death ; and all this, neither from con-
straint nor want, but solely from the purest gratitude and the truest
friendship. The swiftness, strength, and scent of the Dog have ren-
dered him man’s powerful ally against all other animals, and were
even, perhaps, necessary to the establishment of society. Of all
animals, he is the only one which has followed man through every
region of the globe.

Some naturalists think the Dog ig a Wolf, and others, that he is a
domesticated Jackall; and yet, those dogs which have become wild
again in desert islands resemble neither the one nor the other. The
wild dogs, and those that belong to savages, such as the inhabitants
of New Holland, have straight ears, which has occasioned a belief
that the European races which approach the most to the original
type, are the Shepherd Dog and Wolf Dog; but the comparison of
the crania indicates a closer affinity in the Mastiff and Danish Dog,
subsequently to which come the Hound , the Pointer , and the Ter-
rier, differing between themselves only in size and the proportions of
the limbs. The Greyhound is longer and more lank, its frontal si-
nuses are smaller, and its scent weaker. The Shepherd’s Dog and
the Wolf Dog resume the straight ears of the wild ones, but with a
greater cerebral developement, which continues to increase together
with the intelligence in the Barhet and the Spaniel. The Bull Dog ,
on the other hand, is remarkable for the shortness and strength of
his jaws. The small pet-dogs, the Pugs , Spaniels , Shocks, &c., are
the most degenerate productions, and exhibit ‘the most striking marks
of that power to which man subjects all nature*.

The dog is born with his eyes closed ; he opens them on the tenth
or twelfth day; his teeth commence changing in the fourth month,
and his full growth is attained at the expiration of the second year.
The period of gestation is sixty-tliree days, and from six to twelve
pups are produced at a birth. The dog is old at fifteen years, and
seldom lives beyond twenty. His vigilance, bark, singular mode of
copulation, and susceptibility of education, are well known to every
one.

C. lupus , L. ; Buff. VII. i. (The Wolf). A large species, with
a straight tail ; legs fawn-coloured, with a black stripe on the fore-
legs when adult'}' ; the most mischievous of all the carnaria of Eu-
rope. It is found from Egypt to Lapland, and appears to have pass-
ed into America. Towards the north, in winter, its fur becomes
white. It attacks all our animals, yet does not exhibit a courage
proportioned to its strength. It often feeds on carrion. Its habits
and physical developement are closely related to those of the dog.

* See Fr. Cuv. Ann. Mus. XVIII. p. 333, et scq.

t Tliis stripe is more or less strongly marked on the Jackall, Mexican Wolf, &c.

92

MAMMALIA.

C. lycaon , L.; Buff. IX, xli. (The Black Wolf). Also inha-
bits Europe, and is sometimes, though rarely, found in France'*'.
The fur is of a deep and uniform black, with a little white at the
end of the muzzle, and a small spot of the same colour under the
breast. It is said to be more ferocious than the common wolf.

C. mexicanus, L. (The Mexican Wolf). Reddish grey, mixed
with black ; circumference of the muzzle, under part of the body,
and the feet white; size that of the Common Wolff.

C.jubatus, Cuv. ; Agoura-Gouazou , Azzar. (The Red Wolf).
A fine cinnamon-red; a short black mane along the spine. From
the marshes of South America.

C. aureus , L.; Schreb. XCIY. (The Chacal or Jackal). Less
than the preceding ; the muzzle more pointed ; of a greyish brown ;
thighs and legs of a light fawn colour ; some red on the ear ; the
tail scarcely reaching further than the heel. It is a voracious ani-

* mal, which hunts like the dog, and in its conformation, and the faci-
lity with which it is tamed, resembles the latter more closely than
any other wild species. Jackals are found from the Indies and the

* environs of the Caspian sea, as far as and in Guinea ; it is not cer-
tain, however, that they are all of one species. Those of Senegal,
for instance, C. anthus, Fr. Cuv. Mammif., stand higher, appear to
have a sharper muzzle, and the tail a little longer.

Foxes may be distinguished from the Wolf and Dog by a longer and
more tufted tail, by a more pointed muzzle, by pupils, which, during the
day, form a vertical fissure, and by the upper incisors being less sloping.
They diffuse a fetid odour, dig burrows, and attack none but the weaker
animals. This subgenus is more numerous than the preceding one.

C. vulpes , L. ; Buff. VII. vi. (The Common Fox). More or
less red ; tip of the tail white ; found from Sweden to Egypt. Those
of the north have merely a more brilliant fur. There is no constant
difference to be observed between those of the Eastern continent
and those of North America. The Calopex, Schreb. XCL, or the
Collier , which has the end of the tail black, and is found in the same
countries as the common one ; the Renard croise, Id. XCI. A, or
the Cross Fox , which is only distinguished by a streak of black
along the spine and across the shoulders; the Fox the French fur-
riers call the Turk , which is of a yellowish grey, with the end of the
tail white, are, perhaps, mere varieties of the common one. The
following species, however, are very distinct. [See App. VII. of
Am. Ed.]

C. Azurce , Pr. Max ; Aguarachai , Azz. (The Brazil Fox). Grey ;

* We have seen four individuals taken and killed in France. It must not he con-
founded with the Black Fox, among whose synonymes Gmelin has placed it. [ See
Append. VI. of Am. Ed.~\

t This character is taken from a specimen brought from Mexico, and presented
to the Cabinet du Roi by M. de Humboldt. Those which have been drawn by au-
thors from the bad figure of Recchi, inserted in Hernandez, p. 479, must be reject-
ed. Messrs. Say and Harlan, Faun. Amer., mention two other species of wolves,
Can. latrans and Can. nubilus , which require to be examined and compared. [ See
Append, at sap. of Am. Ed.

CARNARIA. 93

sides of the neck reddish; a black line commencing on the nape of
the neck, and extending along the middle of the tail.

C. corsac, Gm. ; Buff. Supp. III. xvi, under the name of Adive.
(The Corsac). A pale yellowish grey ; a few blackish waves at the
base of the tail; tip of the tail black; jaw white. Common on the
vast heaths of central Asia, from the Volga to India. It has the
habits of the Fox, and never drinks. I suspect the Abouhossein of
Nubia — Cams pallidus, Ruppel, pi. xi — is the same animal.

There is also in the prairies of North America, a little Fox, C.
velox, Har. and Say; F. Am., 91, which lives in burrows, but which
appears to differ from the Corsac by the colours : a blackish tail, &c.

C. cinereo-argentens , Schreb. XCII. A. (The Tri-coloured Fox
of America). Ash-coloured above ; white beneath ; a cinnamon-red
band along the flanks. From all the warm and temperate parts of
the two Americas.

C. argentatus. (The Silver or Black Fox)* * * §. Black; tips of the
hairs white, except on the ears, shoulders, and tail, where they are
of a pure black. The end of the tail is all white. From North
America. Its fur is most beautiful, and very costly.

C. lagopus, L. ; Schreb. XCIII. (The Blue Fox or Isatis).
Deep ash-colour; the under surface of the toes hairy f; often white
in winter. From the north of both continents, particularly from
Norway and Siberia ; much esteemed for its fur.

C. mesomelas J, Schreb. XCV. (The Cape Fox). Fawn-coloured
on the flanks ; middle of the nose black, mixed with white, termi-
nating in a point behind ; the ears red as well as the feet ; the two
posterior thirds of the tail black, &c.

The interior of Africa produces Foxes remarkable for the size of their
ears, and the strength of the hairs of their mustachios; they are the
Megalotis of Illiger. There are two known, the

C. megalotis , Lalande; a Cape species, something smaller than
our common Fox, higher on its feet; yellowish grey above, whitish
beneath ; the feet, tail, and a dorsal line black.

C. zerda , Gm., or Fennec of Bruce; Buff. Supp. III. xix. Ears
still larger ; a small species of an almost white fawn colour, which
burrows in the sands of Nubia §; its hair is woolly, and extends un-
der the toes.

Finally, we may place after the Dogs, as a fourth subgenus, distin-
guished by the number of toes, which is four to each foot, the

Hycena venatica, Bursch. ; //. picta, Temm. ; An. Gen. des Sc.
Phys. III. (The Wild Dog of the Cape). It has the dental sys-

* Gmel. has confounded it with the Black Wolf, under the name of Cards lycaon.

f Several of the Foxes, and even the common one, have hair under their feet in
the north.

t (imelin has confounded it with the Adive of Buffon, which is a factitious species,
and does not differ from the Jackal.

§ Bruce’s figure, copied by Buffon, and subsequently by all his compilers, greatly
exaggerates the size of the ears. We have at last a good figure and exact descrip-
tion of this animal in the Voy. of Ruppel, Zoolog. pi. iii.

94

MAMMALIA.

tem of the Dog and not that of the Hyena ; a long and thin form ;
the fur mottled, with white and fawn colour, grey and black ; size of
the Wolf, large ears with black tips, &c. It is gregarious, and fre-
quently approaches Cape Town, devastating its environs.

VlVERRA.

The Civets have three false molars above and four below, the anterior
of which sometimes fall out; two tolerably large tuberculous teeth above,
one only below, and two tubercles projecting forwards on the inner side
of the inferior carnivorous, the rest of that tooth being more or less tuber-
culous. The tongue is bristled with sharp and rough papillae. Their
claws are more or less raised as they walk, and near the anus is a pouch
more or less deep, where an unctuous and frequently an odorous matter
oozes from peculiar glands. They are divided into four subgenera.

Viverra, Cuv.

In the true Civets the deep pouch situated between the anus and the
organ of generation, and divided into two sacs, is filled with an abundant
pommade of a strong musky odour, secreted by glands which surround the
pouch. This substance is an article of commerce, and is used by the per-
fumers. It was more employed when musk and ambergris were un-
known. The pupil of the eye remains round during the day, and their
claws are only semi-retractile.

V. civetta, L. ; Buff. IX, xxxiv. (The Civet). Ash-coloured,
irregularly barred and spotted with black; the tail less than the
body, black towards the end, with four or five rings near its base ;
two black bands encircling the throat, and one surrounding the face ;
a mane along the whole length of the spine and tail that bristles up
at the will of the animal. From the hottest parts of Africa.

V. zibetha , L. ; Buff. IX. xxxi. (The Zibet). Ash-coloured,
spotted with black ; black half-rings on the whole tail ; black bands
on the sides of the neck; no mane. From the East Indies.

Genetta, Cuv.

In the Genets the pouch is reduced to a slight depression formed by
the projection of the glands, and has scarcely any visible excretion, al-
though an odour is diffused from it that is very perceptible. In the light
the pupil forms a vertical fissure, and the nails are completely retractile,
as in the Cat.

V. genetta , L. (The Common Genet). Grey, spotted with brown
or black, the muzzle blackish ; white spots on the eye-brows, cheeks,
and each side of the end of the nose ; tail the length of the body,
annulated with black and white, the black rings being from nine to
eleven in number. Found from the south of France to the Cape of
Good Hope, differing in the size and number of the spots in the
bands along the shoulder and neck, as well as in the lines on the
nape of the neck, &cA It frequents the edges of brooks, near
springs, &c. The skin forms an important article of trade.

The best figure of a Genet is that given by Pennant, Synops. No. 172, Fast.

CARNARI A.

95

V. linsang , Hardwick, Lin. Trans. XIII. pi. xxiv; Felis gracilis,
Horsf. Java. (The Javanese Genet). Several irregular, brown,
transverse bands on the body, and seven rings round the tail.

V. fossa, Buff. XIII. xx. (The Fossane of Madagascar). Tail,
flanks, and all above, fawn colour; the legs and all beneath a yellow-
ish white ; reddish brown spots, those on the back forming four lon-
gitudinal bands; tail semi-annulated with red, and only half the
length of the body* *.

V. rasse, Horsf. Jav. (The Rasse). Legs brown; body greyish
brown, with small brown spots united on the crupper, and forming
five longitudinal lines. Tail shorter than the body, annulated with
black and white, the black rings six or seven in number f. The
hair is harsher than in the preceding species. The

Paradoxurus, Fr. Cuv.

has the teeth and most of the characters of the Genets, with which it was
a long time confounded; it is however more stout-limbed; the feet are
semi-palmate, and the walk nearly plantigrade ; but what particularly dis-
tinguishes it is the spiral inclination of the tail, which is not prehensile.
Only one species is known, the

P. typus, Fr. Cuv. (The Pougoune of India). A yellowish-
brown, with some spots of a deeper brown than the rest; the feet,
muzzle, and part of the tail blackish ; eye-brows white, and a white
spot under the eye. The French of Pondicherry call it the Palm
Martin or Marte des palmier s\.

Mangusta, Cuv. — Herpestes, Illig.

The pouch voluminous and simple ; the anus pierced in its depth. The
hairs are annulated with light and obscure tints, which determine their
general colour on the eye.

The Mangouste of Egypt, so celebrated among the ancients under
the name of Ichneumon; Viverra ichneumon, L. ; Buff. Supp. III.

No. 280, under the improper name of Fossane. It is the variety most frequently
brought from the Cape. There is another taken from a young specimen, Brown,
111. pi. xliii, still under the name of Fossane. It is distinguished by its whitish and
not brown legs, and we have seen a similar one from Senegal. That of Buff. IX.
xxxvi, has not the bands on the neck and shoulders sufficiently marked. The num-
ber of black rings on the tail varies from nine to eleven. The Civette de Malacca
of Sonncrat, Voy. II. pi. xxxix, which is the same as the Genette du Cap, Buff.
Supp, VII. pi. Iviii, and the Chat bisaam of Vosmaer, of which Gmelin has made as
many species, appear to be common Genets.

* Description taken from the original sent to Buffon by Poivre, and engraved,
Hist. Nat. XIII. pi. xx. The description of Daubenton is correct so far as regards
the distribution of the spots; but he calls them black, whereas they are reddish. Be-
sides, this animal can hardly be the /ossa of Flacourt, which that author states is the
size of the Badger. The Fossane has the same furrow as the Genet, notwithstand-
ing the assertion of Poivre to the contrary.

t It is probably l' animal du muse of La Peyronie, Acad, des Sc. 1728, pi. xxiv.
P. 464, which had been confounded with the Zibeth — but that animal is larger, and
has other colours. To this division we must refer the Viv. fasciata, Gm. ; Buff.
Supp. VII. Ivii.

t It is the pretended Genette de France of Buffon, Supp. III. pi. xlvii, the Civette
a bandeau of Geoff.

MAMMALIA.

9(j

xxvi. is grey, with a long tail, terminated with a black tuft ; it is
larger than our cat, and as slender as a marten. It chiefly hunts
for the eggs of the crocodile, but also feeds on all sorts of small ani-
mals ; brought up in houses, it hunts mice, reptiles, &c. By the
Europeans at Cairo it is called Pharaoh's Rat; by the natives, Nems.
The antient tradition of its jumping down the throat of the croco-
dile, to destroy it, is entirely fabulous.

The Mangouste of India; Viv. mungos, Lin.; Buff. XIII, xix;
and that of the Cape, Viv. cafra, Gm. ; Schreb. CXYI. B., are
smaller, both having a pointed tail, and a grey or brown fur, the lat-
ter being more of an ashy, and the former more of a fawn colour,
having, besides, some red about the cheeks and jaws.

The Mangouste of India is celebrated for its combats with the
most dangerous serpents, and for having led us to the knowledge of
the Ophiorkiza mongos , as an antidote to their poison.

There is also the Mangouste of Java — H. Javanicus , reddish
brown; cheeks of a chestnut-red; throat more fawn-coloured: a
large one, from the marshes of the Cape — H. paludinosus , of an al-
most uniform reddish-brown, merging to a black, a little lighter on
the chin : a third from the Cape — H. penicillatus , of a greyish fawn
colour, tip of the tail white: one from Senegal — H. albicaudus ,
grey, tail all white : it is difficult, however, to establish very specific
differences between these animals.

Ryzjena, Illig.

The Surikates have a strong resemblance to the Mangoustes, even to
the tints and transverse streaks of the hair, but are distinguished from
them, and from all the Carnivora of which we have hitherto spoken, by
having only four toes to each foot. They also are higher on their legs,
and they have not the small molar immediately behind the canine tooth.
Their pouch extends into the anus.

One species only is known, a native of Africa — Viv . tetradactyla ,
Gm. ; Buff. XIII, viii, a little less than the Mangouste of India*.

Grossarchus, Fred. Cuv.

The muzzle, teeth, pouch, and walk of the Surikates, the toes and ge-
nital organs of the Mangoustes.

One species only is known — Crossarchus obscurus , Fred. Cuv.,
from Sierra Leone, of the size of the Surikate; greyish brown;
cheeks a little paler, and a hairy tale.

We should here mention a singular animal from the south of
Africa, known only while young; which, to the five anterior toes,
and the four hind ones, and the slightly elongated head of the ci-
vets, adds the raised feet, the short hind ones, and the mane of the
hyena; it also singularly resembles the striped hyena in the colours
of its fur. The thumb of the fore foot is short and higher; it is the

* The Zenilc of Sonnerat, Voy. II. pi. xcii, appears to differ from the Surikate,
merely because it is roughly drawn.

CARNARIA. 97

Proleles Lalandii , Isid. Geoff. Mem. du Mus. XI. 354, pi. xx. In-
habits caverns.

The individual specimens that have been examined, and which
were all young, had but three small false molars, and one small tu-
berculous posterior molar. It seems as though their teeth had never
come to perfection, as often happens in the Genets*.

* See my Ossemens Fossiles, tom. IV. p. 388.

(a) In this second subdivision of the digitigrade animals, which is here con-
cluded, are found many species particularly recommended to our attention. As a
vast collection of dogs of different countries are now in the two Zoological Gardens, it
may be convenient to our readers to give the simple classification of these interesting
animals, as it has been recently established by M. F. Cuvier. He forms the whole
species of dogs into three groups : —

1. The Matins, characterized as follows — head elongated, sides of the cranium
approaching each other in the anterior direction, and the condyles of the inferior jaw
horizontally directed with respect to the position of the teeth in the upper jaw. The
specimens of this group are — the New Holland Dog, the French Matin, the Danish
Dog, the Greyhound, including all the varieties of the latter, and the Albanian Dog.

2. Spaniels, in which the head is elongated, but not to the same extent as in the
Matins, nor do the side bones of the head approximate each other, but they sepa-
rate more widely, swelling out in such a way as to increase the anterior part of the
cavity of the cranium, a circumstance that would admit of the supposition that these
animals owe their superior intelligence to the greater developement of the hemis-
pheres of the brain. This group includes the various spaniels, such as the King
Charles’s breed, the Water Spaniel, the Hound, Bloodhound, Foxhound, Harrier,
and the Beagle, which is a particular breed of the Harrier, the Pointer, Turnspit,
Shepherd’s Dog, Wolf, Siberian and Esquimaux Dogs, the Alpine and Newfoundland
Dog, the Setter, Terrier, and the Alco.

3. Dogues. In this third group the muzzle is shortened, the cranium is very
high, and smaller than in other dogs, and the sinuses between the walls of the frontal
bone vary considerably. It includes the Bull Dog, Mastiff, Pug Dog, Iceland Dog,
Little Danish, Bastard Pug, the Artois, the Barbary, and Dog of Andalusia.

Some Esquimaux, Australian, and other varieties of foreign Dogs, may be seen in
both the Zoological Gardens.

The Wolf Species, belonging to this subdivision, are found in various parts of
the continent of Europe at present, but they offer this remarkable peculiarity in then-
history, that their race, which was once exceedingly numerous and formidable in these
countries, has been wholly extirpated from them. The last native wolf which is re-
corded to have been seen here, was in 1710, in Ireland.

A male and female wolf, the one a native of France, the other of Russia, are in
the Zoological Gardens.

The property possessed by Civet Cats, the genus Viverra of this subdivision, of
secreting an odoriferous substance, which was once used in medicine, but is now ex-
clusively employed in perfumery, merits some allusion. A deep bag, situated be-
tween the anus and the organs of generation, is divided into two cavities, into
which two glands secrete the peculiar matter called civet. The substance is a thick,
unctuous matter, with an odour very much resembling that of amber. In the fresh
state it is white, but, after some time, becomes yellow, and acquires a very agreeable
odour. Chemical investigation has shewn that the odour depends on a volatile oil
mixed with some other ingredients, from which it may be separated by distillation
in water. The oil, when thus isolated, is of a clear yellow colour, has the strong
odour of civet, together with an acid and burning taste. We may add, in this place,
that the secretion from the Skunks (see p. 88), has been found, on analysis, to con-
sist of two oils, which may be separated from each other; the one is an oil resem-
bling lie amber in colour, giving out a most revolting garlic smell, so that in the
smallest possible quantity it is perfectly insupportable, and communicates its stench
even to water with which it is mixed. The thick oil, which is another of its ingre-
dients, has no flavour whatever. — Eng. Ed.

VOL. I.

II

98

MAMMALIA.

The last subdivision of the Digitigrada has no small teeth of any kind
behind the large molar of the lower jaw. The animals contained in it are
the most cruel and sanguinary of the class. They form two genera.

Hyaena, Storr.

The Hyenas have three false molars above and four below, all conical,
blunt, and singularly large ; their superior carnivorous tooth has a small
tubercle within and in front, but the inferior has none, presenting only two
stout trenchant points : with these powerful arms they are enabled to crush
the bones of the largest prey. The tongue is rough ; each foot, has four
toes like that of the Surikate ; and under the anus is a deep and glandular
pouch, which induced some of the ancients to consider them as hermaphro-
dites. So powerful are the muscles of the neck and jaw, that it is almost
impossible to wrest any thing from between their teeth that they have
once seized, and, among the Arabs, their name is the symbol of obstinacy.
It sometimes happens that an anchylosis of the cervical vertebras is the
consequence of these violent efforts, and this has caused it to be said that
they have only one single bone in the neck. They are nocturnal animals,
inhabiting caves ; are extremely voracious, and feed chiefly on dead bodies,
which they seek for even in the grave. A thousand superstitious tradi-
tions are connected with them. Three species are known, the

H. vulgaris, Buff. Supp. III. xlvi. (The Striped Hyena). Grey;
blackish or brown stripes crosswise ; a mane along the whole of the
nape of the neck, and black, that stands erect when the animal is
angry. It is found from India to Abyssinia and Senegal.

II. brunnea, Thumb., Acad, of Stockh. 1820, part I. pi. ii;
H. villosa, Smith. Lin. Trans. XV. pi. xix. (The Brown Hyena).
Of a deep greyish brown ; black stripes on the legs only. From the
south of Africa, where the inhabitants of the Cape call it le Loup du
rivage, or the Shore Wolf.

II. crocuta, Schreb. XCYI. B. (The Spotted Hyena). Grey or
reddish, sprinkled with black spots. It is likewise from the south
of Africa, and is the Tiger Wolf of the Cape.

There have lately been found in several caverns of France, Ger-
many, and England, many bones of a lost species of Hyena — II.
spelcea , which appears to have resided there, and to have left the
bones of many other animals, which bear evident marks of its teeth,
and even its own faeces*.

* See Buckland, Reliquiae Diluvianae, and Vol. IV. of my Oss. Foss. 2d ed.

r(a) The learned professor mentioned in the foregoing note, discovered, in
in Kirk dale cave, Yorkshire, beneath a muddy surface, a great quantity of
the bones of different animals, a remarkable proportion of which belonged to Hyaenas.
The conclusions to which this discovery led were as follows : — that this cavern was,
before the deluge, the retreat of Hyaenas, the species of which have been long ex-
tinct; that the teeth and fragments of the bones with which the remains of the Hyae-
nas were found blended, belonged to the elephant, rhinoceros, hippopotamus, horse,
ox, deer, fox, water-rat, and several birds, all these animals having been dragged
into the cave to be devoured by the Hyaenas. At least, this motive seems to have
been strongly indicated by the fact, that the fragments shewed proofs of having been

CARN ARIA.

99

Felis, Linn.

Of all the Carnaria the Cats are the most completely and powerfully
armed. Their short and round muzzle, short jaws, and particularly their
retractile nails, which, being raised perpendicularly, and hidden between
the toes, when at rest, by the action of elastic ligament, lose neither point
nor edge, render them most formidable animals, the larger species espe-
cially. They have two false molars above, and two below : their superior
carnivorous tooth has three lobes, and a blunted heel on the inner side,
the inferior, two pointed and trenchant lobes, without any heel : they have
but a very small tuberculous tooth above, without any thing to correspond
to it below. The species of this genus are very numerous and various
with regard to size and colour, though they are all similar with respect to
form. We can only subdivide them by referring to the difference of size
and the length of the hair, characters of but little importance.

At the head of the genus we find

F. leo , L. ; Buff. VIII. i. 11. (The Lion). Distinguished by
its uniform tawny colour, the tuft of hair at the end of the tail, and
the flowing mane which clothes the head, neck, and shoulders of the
male. Of all beasts of prey, this is the strongest and most coura-
geous. Formerly scattered through the three parts of the old world,
it seems at present to be confined to Africa and some of the neigh-
bouring parts of Asia. The head of the Lion is more square than
that of the following species.

Tigers are large, short-haired species, most commonly marked
with vivid spots.

F. tigris, Buff. VIII. ix. (The Royal Tiger). As large as the
Lion, but the body is longer, and the head rounder ; of a lively fawn
colour above; a pure white below, irregularly crossed with black
stripes; the most cruel of all quadrupeds, and the scourge of the
East Indies. Such are his strength and the velocity of his move-
ments, that during the march of armies he has been seen to seize a
soldier while on horseback, and bear him to the depths of the forest,
without affording a possibility of rescue.

F. onga, L. ; Azzar. pi. ix; Fred. Cuv. Mammif. (The Jaguar).
Nearly the size of the Royal Tiger, and almost as dangerous; a lively

gnawed, and even fractured by particular teeth. Amongst the remains were teeth
and excrements of the Hyaenas also, the existence of which has been explained on
the principle that it is the ascertained habit of Hyaenas to devour the dead bodies
of their own species, being, like wolves, gregarious, and hunting mostly in packs.
Similar fossil remains of supposed antediluvian Hyaenas have been found in France
and Germany, in caves; but the circumstances under which they have been disco-
vered lead to the conclusion that the bones either belong to animals that had fallen
through fissures opening into these caves, or were carried by water through subter-
ranean canals. The species, which is unknown as it existed previously to the deluge,
is called II. Spelaea, Cave llycena , and by means of that exact knowledge of the laws
of animal organization which he so eminently possessed, Cuvier has been able to
build up afresh the whole of the structure of this species, and has given the following
description of the unseen animal in another of his great works : — size larger by a
third proportion than the Hyaena rayce, Canis hyceuus; the muzzle, however, is
shorter, and the teeth must have been much larger, from the appearance of their
fragments, which consist but of stumps, than those of the existing races. — Eng. Ed.

100

MAMMALIA.

fawn colour above ; tlie flank longitudinally marked with four rows of
ocellated spots, that is, with rings more or less complete, having a
black point in the middle ; white beneath, transversely striped with
black. Sometimes individual specimens are found black, whose
rings, of a deeper hue, are only perceptible in a particular light.

F. pardus, L. ; the Pardalis of the ancients ; Cuv. Menag. du
Mus. 8vo. I. p. 212. (The Panther). Fawn coloured above ; white
beneath ; with six or seven rows of black spots, resembling roses,
that is, formed by the assemblage of five or six simple spots on each
flank ; the tail is the length of the body, minus that of the head.

This species is scattered throughout all Africa, the southern parts
of Asia, and the Indian Archipelago.

In some of them the ground of the fur is black, with spots of a
deeper black — F. melas, Per., but they are not a distinct species.
We have frequently seen black and fawn-coloured young ones suckled
by the same mother* * * §.

F.leopardus , L. (The Leopard). From Africa; similar to the
Panther, but has ten rows of smaller spots f*

These two species are smaller than the Jaguar. Travellers and
furriers designate them indiscriminately by the names of Leopard ,
Panther , African Tiger , &c.J.

There is a third, peculiar to the distant parts of the East Indies,
that is a little lower ; tail equal in length to the body and head ;
spots smaller and more numerous ; the F. chalyheata , Herm. ;
Schreb. CI.§.

F. discolor , L. ; Buff1. VIII. xix. (The Couguar or Puma).
Red, with small spots of a slightly deeper red which are not easily
perceived. From both Americas, where it preys on Deer, Sheep,
&c. ||.

Among the inferior species we should distinguish the Lynxes,

* Temminck calls this species Fells leopardus.

f The same naturalist considers our Leopard as a variety of our Panther, and
confounds them under his Fells leopardus.

X Buffon has mistaken the Jaguar, which he took for the Panther of the eastern
continent, and has not well distinguished the Panther and the Leopard, and for this
reason we cannot positively quote his pi. xi, xii, xiii and xiv. of Vol. VII I.

§ It is to this species that Temminck affixes the name of Panther, because he
thinks Linnaeus alluded to it, when speaking of his Fells pardus in the “ cauda elon-
gata.” There is one thing very certain, and that is, that the Panther, so well known
to the ancients, and which was so often produced at the Roman games, could not
possibly have been an animal from the extreme parts of oriental Asia.

The Ounce of Buff. IX. pi. xiii (Fells uncia, Gm.), differs from the Panthers and
Leopards by the inequality of the spots, which are more irregularly distributed, and
partly crenate or annulated, &c. It appears to be found in Persia. We only know
it by the figure of Buffon, and that which Mr. Hamilton Smith has inserted in the
work of Griffith, taken from a specimen that was living in London.

|| That this animal, our common Panther, does not always confine itself to sheep,
&c. is well known, and has lately been proved, January, 1830, by an unprovoked
attack upon an unfortunate woman in Pennsylvania. The ferocious brute seized
upon her as she was passing along the road, and killed her in an instant. See Griff.,
part V. p. 438 — An American trsnslation.

CARNARIA. 101

which are remarkable for the pencils of hair which ornament their
ears.

Four or five different kinds of them are known in commerce by
the name of Loups Cerviers, which have long been confounded by
naturalists ( Felis lynx , L.)., and whose specific limits are even not
yet perhaps well ascertained. They all have a very short tail, and a
skin more or less spotted.

The most beautiful, which are as large as a wolf — F. cervaria ,
Temm., come from Asia by the way of Russia, and have a slightly
reddish-grey fur, finely spotted with black.

Others from Canada and the north of Sweden — F. borealis , Temm.,
have the fur very much tufted, extending even under the feet; of an
ash-coloured grey, and with scarcely any spots.

The Lynx of the temperate parts of Europe — F. lynx, Temm.,
which has almost disappeared from its populous districts, but which
is still found in the Pyrenees, in the mountains of Naples, and, as it
is said, even in Africa; has a red fur, spotted with brown.

In these three species or varieties, the end of the tail is black. It
is thought there is a lynx of the south of Europe — Felis pardina ,
Oken, which may be considered distinct. It is smaller, not so hairy,
fur red, mottled with black, and the tail spotted like the body.

We find also in North America, the

F. rufa , Guld. Schreb. CIX. B ; F. montana, L. (The Bay
Lynx.) A reddish fawn or greyish colour, mottled with brown;
brown waves on the thighs ; tail annulated with black or brown ; ra-
ther smaller than the Lynx*.

F. chaus, Guld. ; Schreb. CX. (The Chaus, or Lynx of the
Marshes). Is of a yellowish grey-brown; the hind part of each leg
blackish ; tail reaches to the hamstrings, and is annulated at the ex-
tremity with black. Inhabits the Caucasian marshes, those of Persia
and of Egypt, pursues birds, &c.

It is now thought we should separate from the above species the
Booted Lynx — F. caliyata, Temm., Bruce, pi. xxx, which is some-
what smaller, and has a little longer tail ; the external surface of its
ears is red. It is, at least, a closely allied species, and has the same
habits.

F. caracal , L. ; Bulf. IX. xxiv., and Supp. III. xlv. (The Ca-
racal). Of an almost uniform vinous red. From Persia, Turkey,
&c. It is the true Lynx of the ancients.

The inferior species, which are deprived of the pencils on the ears,
arc more or less similar to our common cat ; such are

F. pardalis, L. ; Buff. XIII. pi. xxxv. and xxxvi. (The Ocelot).
Rather lower on its legs than most of the others ; grey, with large

* M. Rafinisquc also indicates a Lynx fascialus , a L. aureus, a L. florid anus, a
/-. montanus, and M. Temminck a Felis aurata, which must all belong; to this little
tribe.

102

MAMMALIA.

fawn coloured spots bordered with black, forming oblique bands on
the flank. From America.

F. mitis, Fr. Cuv. (The Chati). Marked with unconnected,
triangular, fawn coloured spots, edged with black.

F. cafra. (The Cat of Caffraria). Stands high on its legs ; grey,
transversely striped with black.

F. serval , Buff. XIII. xxxv. (The Serval). Yellowish, with ir-
regular black spots. From Africa.

F. jaguarondi, Azzara, Voy., pi. 9. (The Jaguarondi). Body
long ; and altogether of a blackish brown. From the forests of South
America.

F. catus, L. ; Buff. VI. i. et seq. (The Domestic Cat). Is ori-
ginally from the forests of Europe. In its wild state it is of a grey-
ish brown, with darker transverse undulations ; below pale ; the in-
sides of the thighs and of all the feet, yellowish; three bands on the
tail, its inferior third blackish. In a domestic state it varies, as is
well known, in colours, in the length and fineness of the hair, but
infinitely less so than the dog ; it is also much less submissive and
affectionate *.

We might also place in a separate subgenus, a species whose head
is rounder and shorter, and whose nails are not retractile, the Felis
jubata, Schreb. 105, and better, F el. guttata, Id. 105, b, (The Hunt-
ing Leopard), which is the size of the Leopard, but longer bodied,
and stands higher ; the tail long, annulated at the end ; the fur fawn
colour, mottled with small uniform black spots, a black streak reach-
ing from the eye to the angle of the mouth. The disposition of this
animal differs from that of the remainder of the genus in being ex-
tremely mild and docile. The

AMPHIBIA

Will form the third and last of the small tribes into which we divide the
Carnivora. Their feet are so short and so enveloped in the skin, that the
only service they can render them on land, is to enable them to crawl;
but as the intervals of the fingers are occupied by membranes, they are
excellent oars ; and, in fact, these animals pass the greater portion of their
time in the water ; never landing, except for the purpose of basking in the
sun, and suckling their young. Their elongated body ; their very move-
able spine, which is provided with muscles that strongly flex it ; their
narrow pelvis ; their short hair, that adheres closely to the skin, all unite

* The species, more or less allied to the cat, are very numerous in the two conti-
nents; but all those that are given in catalogues are very far from being authentic,
and sufficiently distinguished from each other. We may, however, consider as such,
those of which we have good figures. The Mar gay , Buff. ; Felis tigrina, Gm., Buff.
XIII.; Schreb. 106. — Felmacroura, Pr. Max., Brazil, pi. xi. — Felis sumatrana, Horsf.
— Fel. javanensis, Id. — Fel. torquata, Fred. Cuv. — Fel. colocolo, Fred. Cuv. Mammif.,
&c.

CARNARIA. 103

to render them good swimmers ; and all the details of their anatomy con-
firm these first indicia.

We have as yet distinguished two genera only, Phoca and Trichechus.
Phoca, Lin .

Seals have six or four incisors above, four or two below, pointed canini
and grinders to the number of twenty, twenty-two, or twenty-four, all
trenchant or conical, and without any tuberculous part whatever; five toes
to all the feet, the anterior ones regularly decreasing in length from, the
thumb to the little toe, while in the hinder feet the thumb and the little
toe are the longest, and the intermediate ones the shortest. The fore feet
are enveloped in the skin of the body as far as the tarsus, the hinder ones
almost to the heel. Between the latter is a short tail. The head of a
seal bears a resemblance to that of a dog, whose intelligence and soft ex-
pressive look it also possesses. It is easily tamed, and soon becomes at-
tached to its keeper, or those who feed it. The tongue is smooth, and
sloped at the end, the stomach simple, caecum short, and the intestinal
canal long, and tolerably regular. These animals live on fish ; always eat
in the water, and close their nostrils when they dive by a kind of valve.
As they remain a long time under water, it was supposed that the foramen
ovale remained open, as in the human foetus — but it is not so : there is,
however, a large venous sinus in the liver, which must assist them in
diving, by rendering respiration less necessary to the motion of the blood.
Their blood is very abundant and very black.

Phoca, properly so called, or, without external ears..

The true Pliocae have pointed incisors; all the toes enjoy a certain de-
gree of motion, and are terminated by pointed nails planted on the edge
of the membrane, which unites them.

They are subdivided from the number of their incisors. The Caloce-
p h ala, Fr. Cuv., have six above and four below; such is the

Phoca vitulina, L. ; Buff. XIII. xlv., and Supp. VI. xlvi; Ph.
liitorea , Thienem. pi. vi. (The Common Seal). From three to five
feet in length ; of a yellowish grey, more or less shaded and spotted
with brown, according to its age ; sometimes brownish, with small
yellow spots. When very old it becomes whitish. Common on the
coast of Europe in great herds. It is also found far to the north ;
we are even assured that it is this species which inhabits the Caspian
sea, and the great fresh water lakes of Russia and Siberia, but this
assertion does not appear to be founded on an exact comparison. In
fact, the European seas contain several Phoca?, which have long been
confounded, some of which are perhaps mere varieties of the others.

Thus, some of them have the back covered with small clouded,
confluent, brownish spots, on a yellowish ground — Ph. hispida ,
Schreb. 8G*. These are the most common ones of the northern
ocean. In others again the ground is dark, traversed with undulat-

* I sutpcct we should refer to it the Ph. scopuiicola, Thienem, pi. v.

104

MAMMALIA.

ing lines, which sometimes forms rings — Ph. amellata, Nils., Thie-
nem., pi. ix — xii; Ph. foetida, Fabr*., &c.

A species more easily recognised is the

Ph. groenlandica, and P. oceanica; Eged. Groenl. fig. A, p. 62;
Lepechin, Act. Petrop. I, part I. pi. vi — vii.; Thieneman, pi. xiv
— xxi. (The Harp Seal). Yellowish grey, spotted with brown when
young, afterwards marked by an oblique black or brown scarf on each
flank ; the head of the old male is black ; length five feet. From
the whole north of the globe.

Ph.barbata, Fabr.; Thienem., pi. i — iv. (The Bearded Seal).
From the north, and surpasses all the preceding ones in its size,
which is from seven to eight feet: it is grey; browner above, with a
longitudinal blackish line that forms a sort of cross upon the chanfrin.
Its mustachios are thicker and stronger than the others.

Ph. leucopla, Thienem., pi. xiii. (The White-nailed Seal). Is
of a yellowish grey.

Ph. lagura, Cuv. (The Hare-tailed Seal). Has the tail white
and woolly, &c.'j~.

Stenorhincus, Fred. Cuv.

Four incisors above, and four below, the molars deeply notched into
three points.

One species only is known, and that is from the Austral seas —
Ph. leptonix, Blain. Size of the barbata; greyish above; yellowish
beneath; nails small.

Pelagus, Fred. Cuv.

Four incisors also, above and below, but their grinders are obtuse cones,
with a slightly marked heel before and behind. There is one of them in
the Mediterranean.

Ph. monachus Gm. ; Buff. Supp. VI, pi. xiii j . (The Monk).
From ten to twelve feet in length, of a blackish brown, with a white
belly. It is particularly found among the Grecian and Adriatic
Islands, and is, most probably, the species best known to the antients.

Stemmatopus, Fred. Cuv.

Four superior incisors, and two inferior; grinders compressed, slightly
trilobate, supported by thick roots. Such is the

Ph. cristata, Gm. ; Phoca leonina, Fabr. ; Eged. Groenl., pi. vi. ;
Dekay, New York Lyc. I, pi. vii. (The Hooded Seal). Seven or
eight feet long ; a piece of loose skin on the head, which can be in-
flated at the pleasure of the animal, and is drawn over the eyes when

* It is one of those represented by Fr. Cuv. under the name of “ Phoque commun .”
f I only wish to mention those species which I consider sufficiently ascertained.
The long catalogues of the Phocae, recently published, seem to me to multiply them
a great deal too much.

X It is the same individual described by Hermann, Soc. des Nat. de Berl. IV. xii,
xiii, under the name of monarchies.

CARNAR1A. 105

it is menaced, at which times the nostrils also are inflated like blad-
ders. From the arctic ocean*.

Finally, the Macrorhinus, Fr. Cuv., has the incisors of the preceding,
obtuse conical molars, and the muzzle resembling a short moveable pro-
boscis or snout. The largest seal known is of this subgenus; the

Ph. leonina, L. ; Sea Lion of Anson; Sea Wolf of Pernetty, &c.
Peron’s Voy. I. xxxii. (The Elephant Seal) (a). From twenty to
twenty-five feet in length; brown, the muzzle of the male terminated
by a wrinkled snout, which becomes inflated when the animal is
angry. It is common in the southern latitudes of the Pacific Ocean,
at the Terra-del-Fuego, New Zealand, Chili, &c. It constitutes an
important object of the fisheries, on account of the oil in which it
abounds. The

Qtaries, Peron. Seals with external ears

Are worthy of being formed into a separate genus ; because, independently
of the projecting external ears, the four superior middle incisors have a
double cutting edge, a circumstance hitherto unknown in any animal ; • the
external ones are simple and smaller, and the four inferior bifurcated. All
the molars are simply conical, and the toes of the fore feet almost immov-
able ; the membrane of the hind feet is lengthened out into a slip beyond
each toe; all the nails are flat and slender.

Ph.jubata , Gm. ; Sea Lion of Steller, Pernetty, &c. ; Buff. Supp.
VII. xlviii. From fifteen to twenty feet, and more, in length; fawn
coloured; the neck of the male covered with hairs that are more
frizzled and thickly set than those on the rest of the body. It might
be said to be found in all the Pacific Ocean, were it not that those
from the straits of Magellan seem to differ from such as are taken at
the Aleutian islands.

Ph. ursina, Gm. ; Buff. Supp. VII. xlvii. (The Sea Bear). Eight
feet long, no mane, varying from brown to whitish. From the north
of the Pacific Ocean. Other seals are found in that sea which only
differ from the ursina in size and colour : such is the Petit phoque
noir of Buffon (Ph. pusilla), Buff. XIII. liii; the Yellow Seal of
Shaw, &c.

* The mechanism by which this inflation is effected is not yet well understood.
See Dekay and Ludlow, Annals of the New York Lyceum, Vol. I. pp. 94 and 99.

C3T (a) A much more full and interesting account of the Sea Elephant, under the
title of Plwca proboscidea, is given by two recent French travellers, Peron and Le
Sueur. This is the species of seal which forms the great material of the English
seal fishers ofi the islands in the neighbourhood of New South Wales. The fishery
is now carried on periodically, and its object is to obtain the Sea Elephant, not on
account of its flesh, but for the skin and oil which it is capable of yielding. The
flesh is insipid and black, but still is consumed by the natives ; the tongue alone is
preserved by the English seamen; for, when properly cured, it is sold as a precious
luxury. The fresh blubber of this animal is in the highest esteem amongst the
sailors, as an easy, speedy, and most successful local remedy in all sorts of wounds.
1 he travellers just mentioned were informed by the Englishmen engaged in this oc-
cupation at the island of King, that the animal, as soon as it has been killed, is
skinned and sliced into small cube-shaped pieces, which are boiled in cauldrons ar-

ir

106

MAMMALIA.

Trichechus, Lin.*

The Morse resembles the Seal in its limbs, and the general form of the
body, but differs widely from it in the teeth and head. There are no in-
cisors nor canini in the lower jaw, which is compressed anteriorly to pass
between two enormous canini or tusks, which issue from the upper one,
and which project downwards, being sometimes two feet long, and of a
proportionable thickness. The enormous size of the alveoli, requisite for
holding such tremendous canini, raises up the whole front of the upper jaw,
giving it the shape of a huge inflated jowl, the nostrils looking upwards,
and not terminating the muzzle. The molars are all short, obliquely
truncated cylinders; there are four of them on each side, above and be-
low, but, at a particular age, two of the upper ones fall out. Between the
canini are two incisors, similar to the molars, which most authors have not
recognised as such, although they are implanted in the intermaxillary bone.
Between these again, in the young animal, are two more small pointed
ones.

The stomach and intestines of the Morse are very similar to those of
the seal. It appears that the fucus constitutes part of its food, along with
animal matters. One species only is as yet ascertained, the

Trick, rosmarus, Lf.; Buff. XIII. liv. ; and better, Cook, Yoy.
III. (The Sea Cow). It inhabits the Arctic seas, surpasses the
largest ox in size, attains the length of twenty feet, and is covered
with a short yellowish hair. It is sought for on account of its oil
and tusks ; the ivory of which, although rough grained, is employed
in the arts. The skin makes excellent coach braces J.

ORDER IY.

MARSUPIALIA.

So many are the singularities in the economy of the Marsupialia, or
pouched animals, as they are termed, which we formerly placed at the end

* Trichechus, from Trix (hair), a name invented by Artedi for the sea cow.
f Shaw, however, suspects, that there may he two, distinguished by the greater or
less size of their trunks, and by their being more or less convergent.

X Previous to my arrangement, the Lamantins and Dugongs, much more nearly
allied to the Cetacea, were very properly united with the Morses.

ranged along the shores, and the oil is afterwards put into casks. The Frenchmen
state that the oil which they saw prepared by the English sailors was clear, and free
from that rancid odour which never can he removed almost from whale and fish oil,
and that it appeared to them particularly useful as a lamp oil, in consequence of
its sending forth no disagreeable smell, and also because a given quantity fed the
lamp for a longer period than the same amount of other oils used for the same pur-
pose. The Sea Elephants feed on cuttle fish and sea weed, and stones and gravel are
found in their stomachs; very commonly, too, huge calcareous concretions, which,
when seen by those who open them, excite astonishment as to the possibility of their
being contained within a cavity apparently so small. — Eng. Ed.

MARSUPIALIA.

107

of the Carnaria as a fourth family of that great order, that it appears to
us they should form a separate and distinct one, particularly as we observe
in them a kind of representation of three very different orders.

The first of all their peculiarities is the premature production of their
young, whose state of development at birth is scarcely comparable to that
of an ordinary foetus a few days after conception. Incapable of motion,
and hardly exhibiting the germs of limbs and other external organs, these
diminutive beings attach themselves to the mammae of the mother, and re-
main fixed there until they have acquired a degree of development simi-
lar to that in which other animals are born. The skin of the abdomen is
almost always so arranged about the mammae as to form a pouch in which
these imperfect little animals are preserved as in a second uterus ; and to
which, long after they can walk, they always fly for shelter at the approach
of danger. Two particular bones attached to the pubis, and interposed
between the muscles of the abdomen, support the pouch. These bones
are also found in the male, and even in those species in which the fold
that forms the pouch is scarcely visible.

The matrix of the animals of this family does not open by a single ori-
fice into the extreme end of the vagina, but communicates with this canal
by two lateral tubes resembling handles. The premature birth of the
young appears to depend upon this singular organization. The scrotum
of the male, contrary to what obtains in other quadrupeds, hangs before
the penis, which, when at rest, is directed backwards.

Another peculiarity of the Marsupialia is, that notwithstanding a general'
resemblance of the species to each other, so striking that for a long time
they were considered as one genus, they differ so much in the teeth, the
organs of digestion, and the feet, that if we rigorously adhered to these
characters, we should be compelled to separate them into several orders.
They carry us, by insensible gradations, from the Carnaria to the Roden-
tia, and there are even some animals which have the pelvis furnished with
similar bones ; but which, from the want of incisors, or of all kinds of
teeth, have been approximated to the Edentata, where, in fact, we shall
leave them, under the name of Monotremata.

In a word, we would say that the Marsupialia form a distinct class, pa-
rallel to that of quadrupeds, and divisible into similar orders : so that if
we were to arrange these two classes into two columns; the Sarigues,
the Dasyuri, and the Perameles would be opposite to the insectivorous
Carnaria with long canini, such as the Tenrecs and the Moles; the Pha-
langers and the Potoroos, opposite to the Hedgehogs and Shrews ; the
Kanguroo, properly so called, cannot be compared with any thing; but
the Phascolomys should be opposite to the Rodentia. Finally, if we
were to consider the bones of the pouch only, and regard as Marsupialia

MAMMALIA.

108

all the animals that possess them, the Ornithormci and the Echidnce
would form a group parallel to that of the Edentata.

Linnaeus arranged all the species he was acquainted with under his ge-
nus Didelphis, a word signifying double uterus. The pouch in some re-
spects is in fact a second one.

The first subdivision of the Marsupialia is marked by long canini, and
small incisors in both jaws, back molars bristled with points, and all the
characters in general of the insectivorous Carnaria ; the animals that com-
pose it are also perfectly similar to the latter in their regimen.

Didelphis, Lin.

The Opossums* *, which, of all the Marsupialia, have been the longest
known, form a genus peculiar to America. They have ten incisors above,
the middle ones being rather the longest, and eight below; three anterior
compressed grinders and four posterior bristled grinders, the superior ones
triangular, and the inferior oblong, which, with the four canini, make in
all fifty teeth, the greatest number hitherto observed in quadrupeds. Their
tongue is papillated, and their tail prehensile and partly naked. Their
hinder thumb is long, and very opposable to the other four toes, from
which circumstance these animals are sometimes styled Pedimana; they
have no nail. Their extremely wide mouth, and great naked ears, give
give them a very peculiar physiognomy. The glans penis is bifurcated.
They are fetid and nocturnal animals, whose gait is slow ; they remain on
trees, and there pursue birds, insects, &c., though not despising fruit.
Their stomach is simple and small, their caecum of a middling size, and
without any enlargements.

The females of certain species have a deep pouch in which are the
mammae, and in which they can enclose their young.

Did. virginiana, Penn. Hist. Quadr. 302 j~. (The Opossum).
Almost the size of a cat; fur, a mixture of black and white; ears,
one side black, and the other white ; head nearly ail white. Inhabits
all America ; steals at night into villages ; attacks fowls, eats their
eggs, &c. The young ones at birth, sometimes sixteen in number,
weigh only a grain each. Although blind and nearly shapeless, they
find the mammas by instinct, and adhere to them until they have at-
tained the size of a mouse, which happens about the fiftieth day, at
which epoch they open their eyes. They continue to return to the
pouch till they are as large as rats. The term of gestation in the
uterus is but twenty-six days*.

Did. Azzarce , Temm. (The Gamba, or the Great Opossum of
of Paraguay and Brazil). Differs from the preceding in the black

* Carigueia, according to Marcgrave, is their Brazilian name, whence we have
Sariguoi, Cerigon, Sarigue. They are called Micoure in Paraguay; Manicou in the
islands; Opossum in the United States; Thlaqualzin in Mexico.

f It is the Sarigue des Illinois , and the Sarigue a longs poils; Buff. Supp. VII.
p. xxxiii and xxxiv; Did. marsupialis , Schreb. pi. clxv.

* See the letter of Dr. B. S. Barton to M. Roume on the gestation of the Opossum.

M ARSUP1 ALIA. 109

wnich marks the muzzle and nearly the whole of the ears; the tail
is also longer.

Did. marsupialis, and Did. cancrivora, L.*; Buff. Supp. III. liv.
(The Crab-eating Opossum). Size of the preceding; yellowish,
mixed with brown, with brown hairs ; a brown streak on the chanfrin.
It frequents the marshes of the sea coast, where it feeds chiefly on
crabs*.

Did. opossum , Z. ; Buff*. X. xlv, vlvi. (The Four-eyed Opossum).
Chestnut above, wrhite below, a white or pale yellow spot over each
eye ; posterior third of the tail white ; larger than a large rat.

Other species possess no pouch, having a mere vestige of it in a fold
of the skin on each side of the abdomen. They usually carry their young
on their backs, the tails of the latter being entwined around that of the
mother.

Did. nudicauda , Geoff. ; D. myosuros , Temm. (The Bare-tailed
Opossum). Fawn-coloured: tail very long, and naked even at its
base; two whitish spots over each eye, one beneath.

Did. cayopollinf, Did. philander, and Did. dorsigera, L. ; Buff.
X. lv. (The Cayopollin). A greyish fawn colour ; the circumfer-
ence of the eyes and a longitudinal band on the chanfrin brown ; tail
marked with black; size that of the Norway rat. The superior third
of the tail furnished with hairs.

Did. cinerea, Temm. (The Cinereous Didelphis). A light ash
colour, with blackish reflections ; some red on the breast ; the pos-
terior half of the tail white ; of the same size as the preceding. From
Brazil.

Did. murina, L. ; Buff. X. lii, liii. (The Marmose)J. Fawn-
coloured grey ; a brown stripe, in the middle of which is the eye ; tail
immaculate : less than a rat.

Did. brachyura , Pall., Buff. Supp. VII. lxi. (The Touan). Black,
blackish ; flanks of a vivid red ; belly white ; tail shorter than the
body. Less than a rat. The three latter species are from South
America.

Finally, there is one known with palmated feet, which must be
aquatic ; it is not ascertained whether or not it has a pouch — it is the

* 1 1 is the pretended Great Oriental Philander of Seba, of which Linnaeus has made
his Did.marsupialus. Buffon, who has. described the male, Supp. III. pi. liii', erro-
neously thought the female had no pouch, which was the cause of the improper esta-
blishment of a second species, Did. cancrivora. Gm., carcinophaga, Bodd. The Crab-
eater i3 called at Cayenne plan or puant.

f Cayopollin , the name of a species that inhabits the mountains of Mexico; it has,
somewhat arbitrarily, been applied to this species in particular.

X Marmose , a name adopted by Buffon from a typographical error in the French
translation of Seba, who assures us in the text that it is called Marmot in Brazil.
The truth is, that the Dutch, in the time of Marcgrave, called it IVood-Rat, and the
Brazilians Taibi; Rat-de-bois is also its name among the French at Cayenne. Seba
must have rendered Boscli-ratte by Marmot.

N. B. There has been found, in the plaster quarries near Paris, the fossil skeleton
ota Didelphis allied to the Marmose.

110

MAMMALIA.

Chironectes, Illig*.

Did. palmata, Geoff. ; Lutra memina, Bodd. ; La petite Loutre de
la Guiane, Buff. Supp. III. xxii. Brown above, with three trans-
verse grey bands, interrupted in the middle, and white below ; larger
than a Norway rat.

All the other Marsupialia inhabit eastern countries, New Holland par-
ticularly, a land whose animal population seems chiefly to belong to this
family.

Thyl acinus, Temm\.

The Thylacini are the largest of this first division. They are distin-
guished from the Opossums by the hind feet having no thumb ; a hairy,
non-prehensile tail, and two incisors less in each jaw; their molars are of
the same number. They consequently have forty-six teeth ; but the ex-
ternal edge of the three large ones is projecting and trenchant, almost like
the carnivorous tooth of a dog; their ears are hairy, and of a medium size.
One species only is known, the

Did. cynocephala , Harris, Linn. Trans. IX. pi. xix, 1, and Ency.
Method., Mammif. Supp. pi. vii, f. 3. Size that of a wolf, but stands
lower ; grey ; transverse black stripes on the crupper. It is very
carnivorous, and pursues all small quadrupeds. From Van Dieman’s
Land.

Phascogale, Temm.

The same number of teeth as the Thylacini, but the middle incisors are
longer than the others, and the back molars more bristled, circumstances
which approximate them more closely to the Sarigues. They are also
allied to them by their small size ; their tail, however, is not prehensile ;
their hind thumb, though very short, is still very apparent.

Did. penicillata, Shaw, Gen. Zool. I. ii, pi. 113; Schreb. CLII.
B. L. Ash-coloured; tail furnished with long black hairs; size
that of the Norway rat: lives on the trees in New Holland, and pur-
sues insects.

Dasyurus minimus , Geoff., Schreb. pi. 152, B. C. (The Dwarf
Phascogalis), Scarcely larger than a mouse ; fur soft and reddish.
From the south of Van Diemen’s Land.

Dasyurus, Geoff%.

Two incisors and four grinders in each jaw less than the Opossums, so
that they have only forty-two teeth ; their tail, every where covered with
long hairs, is not prehensile. The thumb of the hind foot is reduced to a
tubercle, or has even totally disappeared. They are from New Holland,
where they feed on insects and dead bodies ; they penetrate into houses,

* Chironectes, i. e. swimming with hands.

f Thylacinus, from Thulacos, purse. A species of Thylacinus has also been found
in the plaster quarries of Paris.

X Dasyurus, hairy tail. See Mem. de M. Geoff., Ann. du Mus. III. p. 353, and
XY. p. 301.

MARSUPIALI A.

Hi

where their voracity is very inconvenient, &c. Their mouth is not so
wide, their muzzle not so pointed as those^ of the Opossums; their hairy
ears are also shorter. They do not climb trees.

Did. ursina, Harr. Linn. Trans. IX. xix, f. 2, and Encycl., Supp.
f. 6. (The Ursine Opossum). Long rough black hairs, with some
irregularly placed white spots ; the tail half as long as the body, al-
most naked underneath. Inhabits the north of Van Dieman’s Land,
and is nearly the size of the badger.

Das. macrourus, Geoff., Peron. Voy. pi. xxxiii, Schreb. CLII,
B, a. (The Long-tailed Dasyurus). Size of a cat; tail as long as
the body ; fur brown, spotted with white, both on the body and tail.
The tubercle of the thumb is still well marked in this species, but in
the following ones it can no more be seen.

Das. Maugei , Geoff., Voy. de Freycin. Zool. pi. iv, Schreb. CLII.
B, b. (A kind of olive colour, spotted with white ; no spot on the
tail ; a little smaller than the preceding.

Did. viverrina , Shaw, Gen. Zool. CXI ; White, Bot. Bay, App.
285; Schreb. CLII, B, c. Black, spotted with white; no spots
on the tail ; a third less than the first.

Perameles, Geoff*. — Thylacis, Illig.

The thumb of the hind foot short, like the first Dasyuri, and the two
following toes united by the membrane as far as the nails ; the thumb and
the little toe of their fore feet are simple tubercles, so that there seem to
be but three toes. They have ten incisors above, the external ones sepa-
rate and pointed, and only six below; but their molars are the same as in
the Opossums, so that they have forty-eight teeth. Their tail is hairy,
and not prehensile. The great claws of their fore feet announce their
habit of digging in the earth ; and the tolerable length of their hind ones,
a swiftness of gait.

P. nasutus, G., Ann. du Mus. IV. The muzzle much elongated;
ears pointed ; fur a greyish brown. At the first glance it resembles
a Tenrec J.

The species belonging to the second subdivision of the Marsupialia
have two broad and long incisors in the lower jaw with pointed and trench-
ant edges sloping forwards, and six corresponding ones in the upper jaw.
Their superior canini are also long and pointed, but all their inferior ones
consist of teeth so small that they are frequently hidden by the gum ; they
are sometimes altogether wanting in the lower jaw of the last subgenus.

Their regimen is chiefly frugivorous ; consequently, their intestines, the
caecum particularly, are longer than in the Opossum. The thumb is very
large in all of them, and so widely separated from the toes that it seems
to slant backwards almost like that of birds. It has no nail, and the two

* Peru , purse, Melcs, Badger. Sec Mem. Geoff., Ann. du Mus. tom. IV.
f The Peramele Bougainville of Quoy and Gaynard does not differ specifically from
the nasutus. The Peram obesula, Geoff., is not so authentic.

MAMMALIA.

112

following toes are united by the skin as far as the last phalanx. It is
from this circumstance that these animals have received the name of Pha-
langers*.

Phalangista.

Phalangista, Cuv. — Balantia, Ittig'f.

The true Phalangers have not the skin of the flank extended ; four back
molars in each jaw, with four points in two rows; in front a large one,
conical and compressed, and between it and the superior canine are two
small and pointed ones, to which correspond the three very small lower
ones, of which we have just spoken. Their tail is always prehensile.

The tail in some of them is in a great measure scaly. They live on
trees in the Moluccas, on which they seek insects and fruit. At the sight
of a man they suspend themselves by their tail ; and if he gaze at them
steadily for some time, he causes them to fall through lassitude. They
diffuse a very unpleasant odour, notwithstanding which their flesh is eaten.

There are several of them known, of various sizes and colours, all
of which are embraced under the Didelphis orientalis of Linnaeus.
M. Temminck thinks he can separate them into species as follows:
Ph. ursina, T. (The Ursine Phalanger). Nearly the size of the
civet ; fur close, and of a blackish-brown ; the young ones a fawn-
coloured brown. From the woods of the island of Macassar.

Ph. chrysorrhous, T. (The Golden- cruppered Phalanger). Size
of a large cat ; fur of an ash brown ; white beneath ; a golden fawn
colour on the croup. From the Moluccas.

Ph. maculata, T. ; Buff. XIII. pi. ii; Yoy.de Freycin, pi. vii;
Voy. du Duperr. pi. iv. (The Spotted Phalanger). Size of a cat;
whitish, irregularly spotted or marbled with brown.

Ph. cavifrons, T. ; Buff. pi. x, the female ; and Voy. de Duperrey,
the male. (The Hollow-fronted Phalanger). The male white ; the
female fawn-coloured, with a brown stripe along the back. To these
we must add

Ph. Quoy , Yoy. de Freycin., pi. vi. (The Quoy Phalanger). A
greyish-brown ; a blackish-brown longitudinal band on the croup ;
top of the head a cinnamon-red; cheeks, throat, and breasts white J.

In others, which have hitherto been found in New Holland only, the
tail is hairy to the tip.

Ph.vulpina; Did. lemurina and vulpina, Shaw; Bruno of Vicq.
d’Az.; White, Yoy. 278. (The Fox-like Phalanger). Size of a
stout cat; greyish-brown, paler beneath; tail nearly all black.

* The name of Phalanger was given by Buffon to two individuals he had observed,
on account of the union of the two toes of the foot. That of Philander is not, as
might be thought, derived from the Greek, but from the Malay word Pelandor, which
means Rabbit, applied by the inhabitants of Amboyna to a species of Kanguroo.
Seba and Brisson have used it indiscriminately for all the pouched animals. The
Phalangers, in the Moluccas, are called Couscous or Coussous. The earlier travellers
not having properly distinguished them from the Sarigues, gave cause to believe that
this last genus was common to the two continents,
f Balantia, from Balantion, purse or pouch.

X A very distinct species.

MARSUPIA LTA.

ns

Ph. Coohii , Cook’s last Voy., pi. viii. (The Phalanger of Cook).
Less than a cat; brown above, white underneath; head and flanks
red; posterior third of the tail white.

Ph. Bougainvillii. (The Phalanger of Bougainville). Size of a
squirrel ; ash-coloured above, white underneath ; the posterior half
of the tail black; posterior half of the ear white.*

Petaurus, Sliaw. — Phalangista, Illig.

The Flying Phalangers have the skin of the flanks more or less ex-
tended between the legs, like the Flying Squirrels among the Rodentia,
which enables them to sustain themselves for a few moments in the air,
and make greater leaps. They also are only found in New Holland.

Some of the species have inferior canines, but they are very small.
Their superior canines, and their three first molars, above and below, are
very pointed; each of their back molars has four points. "f*

Ph. pygmcea; Did. pygmcea, Shaw, Gen. Zool. pi. 114; Schreb.
CLXIY, A. (The Flying Dwarf Phalanger). Of the colour and
nearly the size of a mouse ; the hairs of the tail regularly arranged
on its two sides like the barbs of a quill.

Other species have no inferior canini, while the superior ones are very
small. Their four back molars present four points, but they are slightly
curved into a crescent, which is very nearly the form of those of the Ru-
minantia. In the front there are two above and one below, less compli-
cated. By this structure they are rendered still more frugiverous than all
the preceding species.

Ph. petaurus, Shaw, Gen. Zool., pi. cxii; White, Voy. 4288. (The
Great Flying Phalanger). Resembles the Taguan and the Galeo-
pithicus in size ; its fur is soft and close ; its tail long and flattened ;
brownish-black above, white beneath. They are - of various shades
of brown ; some are variegated, and others perfectly white.

Ph. sciurea , Shaw, pi. cxiii, 3. (The Bordered Flying Phalan-
ger). Size of the brown rat; ash-coloured above, white beneath ; a
brown line commencing on the chanfrin and running along the
back; edges of the lateral membrane brown; tail tufted, and of the
length of the body; its posterior portion black. From the islands
near New Guinea.

P. peronii, Desm. (The Hairy-footed Flying Phalanger). A
reddish-grey ; front of the ears and under part of the body whitish ;
toes very hairy and brown ; tail black, longer than the body, and
white at the end.

Ph. macroura , Shaw, pi. cxiii, f, 2. (The Long-tailed Flying
Phalanger). A deep brown above, white beneath ; size of the brown
rat ; tail slender, about half as long again as the body.

Our third subdivision has the incisors and superior canines and the two

* A new species brought to France by M. de Bougainville from his last expedition,
f It is of this first division that Desmarets has made his genus Acrobate.

vol. i. I

114

MAMMALIA.

toes united to tlie hind feet of the second; hut the posterior thumbs and
inferior canini are wanting. It contains but a single genus.

Hypsiprymnus, Illig ■.*

The Potoroos are the last animals of this family which retain any trait
of the general characters of the Carnaria. Their teeth are nearly the
same as those of the Phalangers, and they still have pointed canines
above. The two superior middle incisors are pointed, and longer than
the others; the inferior ones are but two, and project forwards. In front
they have a long trenchant denticulated molar, followed by four others,
bristling with four blunt tubercles. What particularly distinguishes these
animals is their hind legs, which are much larger in proportion than the
fore ones, that have no thumbs, and the two first toes united as far as the
nail; so that, at a first glance, it seems as though there were but three
toes, of which the inner one has two nails. They frequently walk upon
two feet, at which times they employ their long and strong tail to support
themselves. They have then the form and habits of the Kanguroos, from
which they only differ in their superior canine tooth. They are frugivo-
rous; their stomach is large, divided into two sacs, and has several infla-
tions ; but their caecum is rounded, and of a middling size.

Hyps, minor ; Macropus minor , Shaw; White, Bot. Bay, 286;
Voy. de Freycin. pi. 10. (The Kanguroo Rat.) Size of a small
rabbit; of a mouse-grey. From New Holland, where it is called Po-
toroo. It is the only species known.

The fourth subdivision only differs from the third in the absence of all
canines whatsoever. These are —

Macropus, Shaw — Halmaturus, Illig. f

The Kanguroos, which present all the characters we have just assigned
to the preceding genus, except that the superior canine is wanting, and
that their middle incisors do not project beyond the others. The inequa-
lity of their legs is still greater, so that on all fours they can only walk
slowly and with difficulty; they make vigorous leaps, however, on their
hind feet, the great middle nail of which (almost in the shape of a hoof)
also serves them for purposes of defence : for, by supporting themselves
on one foot and their enormous tail, they can inflict a severe blow with
the foot which is at liberty. They are very gentle herbivorous animals,
their grinders presenting mere transverse ridges. They have five teeth
in all, the front ones being more or less trenchant, and falling out with
age ; so that in old kanguroos we frequently find but three. Their sto-
mach consists of two long sacs, that are inflated at several places, like a
colon. The cascum, also, is large, and has inflations. The radius al-
lows a complete rotation of the fore-arm.

In these two genera the penis is not bifurcated, but the female organs
of generation are similar to those of other Marsupialia.

Tpsiprumnos ; i. e. raised behind.

f Halmaturus , tail fit for leaping.

MARSUPI ALIA.

115

M. major , Shaw; ■ Didelphis gigantea, Gm. ; Schreb. CLIII.
(The Greater Kanguroo). Sometimes six feet in height. It is the
largest of the New Holland animals, was discovered by Cook, in
1779, and is now bred in Europe. Its flesh is said to resemble ve-
nison. The young ones, which at birth are only an inch long, pass
into the maternal pouch, even when they are old enough to graze,
which they effect by stretching out their necks from their pouch,
while the mother herself is feeding. These animals live in troops,
conducted by the old males. They make enormous leaps. It ap-
pears that we have hitherto confounded, under this name, several
species of New Holland and its neighbouring countries, whose fur,
more or less grey, only varies by a trifling difference of shade.*
There is another species much more anciently known

M. Brunii; Did. Brunii, Gm. ; Schreb. CLIII. ; called Pelan -
dor Aroe, or the Aroe Rabbit , by the Malays of Amboyna. (The
Kanguroo of Aroe). Larger than a hare ; brown above, fawn-co-
loured beneath. Found in the islands near Banda, and in those of
Solor. European naturalists had not paid sufficient attention to the
descriptions of the above species given by Valentine and Le Bruyn.

M. elegans; Halma. elegans, Per. Voy. t. xxvii. (The Elegant
Kanguroo). Size of a large hare ; transversely striped with brown
on a greyish-white ground. Found at the island of St. Peter (a).

The fifth subdivision has two long incisors, without canines, in the
lower jaw; in the upper, two long incisors in the middle, a few small ones
on the sides, and two small canines. It comprehends but one genus.

* M. Geoff, distinguishes the Kanguroo enfume, in which the grey is deeper; the
Kanguroo a Moustaches, which has some white on the front of the upper lip; the Kan-
guroo a cou roux, a little less than the others, with some red on the nape of the neck.
Messrs. Lesson and Garnot also describe a brown kanguroo, which they call Ouala-
bate,\ oy. de Freycin. pi. ix. We shall also probably be obliged to make new spe-
cies of the Kanguroo roux-cannelle, ( K . laniger, Quoy and Gaym.) Voy. de Freycin.
pi. ix., and of the Kanguroo cendre-bleuatre ; but all these quadrupeds require to be
examined at various ages; and we must ascertain the influence of age and sex upon
their colours, previous to a final establishment of the species.

O* («) This kanguroo is stiled by the traveller mentioned in the text (Peron),
Maropus Fascia tus, the Fasicated Kanguroo. He gives a most interesting account
of the intelligence and affections of the females, as displayed towards the offspring,
which in early life occupy so peculiar a position externally, to the body of the mother,
j The young of the opossumus have to undergo a similar process with that of the kan-
j guroos, and are received, at an early period of gestation, into the external pouch.

>1 The time at which the transfer takes place to the pouch is not yet ascertained; but
j the naturalists, who have carefully examined this subject, have found, that, when the
young is seen first attached to the nipple, there is no face, and the nipple seems only
to adhere to a round hole in the muzzle of the imperfect offspring. After this, the
lips and jaws grow upon the nipple; until at length, about half an inch of it remains
in the young creature’s mouth. A keeper of a kanguroo in France, in the employ-
j mont. of an ex- French princess, made notes of the gestation of a kanguroo, from
which it appeared that the period had continued from the Gth of May to the 6th of
October; and the young kanguroo did not finally quit the pouch till the following
January. Several kanguroos have thrived and bred readily in the Zoological Gar-
dens, where they arc fed on grain, various common vegetables, and hay. — Eng. Ed.

116

MAMMALIA .

Koala, Cnv. — Lipurus, Gold . — Phascolarctos, Blain.

The Koalae have a short, stout hotly, short legs, and no tail. The toes
of their fore feet, five in number, when about to seize any object, separate
into two groups ; the thumb and index on one side, and the remaining
three on the other. The thumb is wanting on the hind foot ; the two
first toes of which are united, like those of the Phalangers and the Kan-
guroos. One species only is known: —

K. cinerea; Lipurus cinereus, Gold.; Schreb. CLV, A, a. (The
Koala). Ash-coloured; passes one part of its life on trees, and the
other in burrows, which it excavates at their foot. The mother car-
ries her young one for a long time on her back.

Finally, our sixth division of the Marsupialia, or the
Phascolomys, Geoff*

Consists of animals which are true Rodentia, as respects the teeth and
intestines, their only relation to the Carnaria consisting in the articula-
tion of their lower jaw; and, in a rigorously exact system, it would be ne-
cessary to class them with the Rodentia. We should even have placed
them there, had we not been led to them by a regular uninterrupted series,
from the Opossums to the Phalangers, from the latter to the Kanguroos,
and from the Kanguroos to the Phascolomys; and, finally, were it not
that the organs of generation are every way exactly similar to those of the
Marsupialia.

They are sluggish animals, with large, flat heads, short legs, and bodies
that look as if they had been crushed, without a tail ; have five nails on
each of the fore feet, and four, with a small tubercle in place of a thumb,
on each of the hind ones, all very long and fit for digging. Their gait is
excessively slow. They have two long incisors in each jaw, almost simi-
lar to those of the Rodentia ; and each of their grinders has two trans-
verse ridges.

They feed on grass ; their stomach is pyriform, and their caecum short
and wide, furnished, like that of man, and of the ourang-outang, with a
vermiform appendage. The penis is bifurcated, like that of the opossums.
One species only is known, the

Plias. ursinus; Didelphis ursina, Shaw; Peron. Yoy. pi. xxxviii,
and called by naturalists the Wombat. Size of a Badger; fur abun-
dant, of a more or less yellowish brown. It is found in King’s Island,
to the smith of New Holland, where it lives in its burrow, and multi-
plies with facility in Europe. Its flesh is said to be excellent. f

* Phascolomys , a pouched rat, from phaskolon and mus.

f M. Bass has described an animal, externally similar to the Phascolomys, and to
which he also gives the name of Wombat , but which has six incisors, two canines,
and sixteen molars in each jaw. If there is no erroneous combination of the two dif-
ferent descriptions, it will form an additional subgenus, to place near the Perameles.
Illiger has already established it under the name of Amblotis, from amblotus, abortus.
See Petersb. Mem, 1803 — 1806, p.444, and the Bulletin des Sc. No 72, An. XL

RODENTIA.

117

ORDER V,

RODENTIA.

We have just seen, in the Phalangers, canini so very small, that we
cannot consider them as such. The nutriment of these animals, accord-
ingly, is chiefly derived from the vegetable kingdom. Their intestines
are long, and their caecum ample ; and the kanguroos, which have no ca-
nini whatever, subsist upon vegetables only. The Phascolomys might
stand first in that series of animals of which we are about to speak, and
which have a system of mastication still less complete.

Two large incisors in each jaw, separated from the molars by an empty
space, cannot seize a living prey nor tear flesh ; they cannot even cut the
food, but they serve to file, and, by continued labour, to reduce it into se-
parate molecules — in a word, to gnaw it ; hence the term Rodentia , or
Gnavjers, which is applied to animals of this order. It is thus that they
successfully attack the hardest substances, frequently feeding on wood and
the bark of trees. The more easily to accomplish this object, the incisors
have no thick enamel except in front, so that their posterior edges wear-
ing away faster than the anterior, they are always naturally sloped. Their
prismatic form causes them to grow from the root as fast as they wear
away at the edge ; and this tendency to increase in length is so powerful,
that if one of them be lost or broken, its antagonist in the other jaw, hav-
ing nothing to oppose or comminute, becomes developed to a most mon-
strous extent. The lower jaw is articulated by a longitudinal condyle, in
such a way as to allow of no horizontal motion except from back to front,
and vice versa , as is requisite for the action of gnawing. The molars also
have flat crowns, whose enamelled eminences are always transverse, so as
to be in opposition to the horizontal motion of the jaw, and to serve the
better in trituration.

The genera in which these eminences are simple lines, and the crown
is very flat, are more exclusively frugiverous ; those in which the emi-
nences of the teeth are divided into blunt tubercles are omnivorous ; while
the small number of such as have no points more readily attack other ani-
mals, and approximate somewhat to the Carnaria.

The form of the body in the Rodentia is generally such, that the hinder
parts of it exceed those of the front; so tliat they rather leap than walk.
In some of them this disproportion is even as excessive as it is in the
Kanguroos.

The intestines of the Rodentia are very long ; their stomach simple, or

118

MAMMALIA.

but little divided ; and their caecum is often very voluminous, even more
so than the stomach. In the subgenus Myoxus, however, this intestine
is wanting.

In the whole of this class the brain is almost smooth and without con-
volutions; the orbits are not separated from the temporal fossae, which
have but little depth, and the eyes are altogether directed laterally. The
zygomatic arches, thin and curved below, indicate the weakness of the
jaws ; the fore-arms have nearly lost the power of rotation, and their two
bones are often united ; in a word, the inferiority of these animals is visi-
ble in most of the details of their organization. Those genera, however,
which possess stronger clavicles, have a certain degree of dexterity, and
use their fore feet to convey their food to the mouth.

Some of them even climb trees with facility; such are the

Sciurus, Lin .

The Squirrels, which are distinguished by their strongly compressed
inferior incisors, and by their long tail furnished with hairs. They have
four toes before and five behind. The thumb of the fore foot is sometimes
marked by a tubercle. They have in all four grinders, variously tuber-
culated, and a very small additional one above in front, that falls at an
early period. The head is large, and the eyes projecting and lively.
They are light and active animals, living on trees, and feeding on fruits.

Sciurus, Cuv.

In the Squirrel, properly so called, the hairs of the tail are arranged on
the sides, so as to resemble a large feather. There are a great many
species in the two continents.

Sc. vulgaris, Buff. VII. xxxii, Schreb., pi. 212. (The Common
Squirrel). The back of a lively red; belly white; ears terminated
by a tuft of hair. Those of the north become of a beautiful ash-blue
colour on the back during winter, and at this period supply the fur
known by the name of Petit-Gris (miniver), when stripped from the
back, and vair when the white part of the belly is attached to the
portion from the back.

The American species have no pencils to their ears. Such are

Sc. cinereus, L. ; Petit-Gris of Buff. X. xxv. (The Grey Squir-
rel of Carolina). Larger than that of Europe ; ash-coloured, with a
white belly (a).

Sc. capistratus, Bose. Sc. cinereus, Schreb. CCXIII, B. (The
Masked Squirrel). Ash-coloured; head black; muzzle, ears, and
belly white. Both these species vary in being more or less brown
- — they are sometimes entirely black.

(a) There is an error in this description. The Sc. cinereus is the cat sqirrel,
which is cinereous above; white beneath; with a tail less distichous than that of other
species, longer than the body, and striped with black; inhabits the northern and
middle states of America. The animal described by Cuvier as S. cinerius is the
S. Carolmensis, the Little Grey Squirrel. — Eng. Ed.

RODENTIA.

119

The greater number of the species belonging to the eastern con-
tinent are also destitute of these pencils. One of the most beautiful
is the

Sc. maximus and macrourus, Gm. Buff. Supp. VII. lxxii. (The
Large Squirrel of India). Nearly the size of a cat; above black;
the flanks and top of the head of a beautiful bright maronne ; the
head, and all the under parts of the body, and the inside of the limbs
pale yellow ; a maronne-coloured band behind the cheek. It inhabits
the palms, and is extravagantly fond of the milk of the cocoa-nut.

There are, also, several Squirrels in warm climates, that are re-
markable for the longitudinal bands which vary their fur. Such
are the

Sc. getulus, L. ; Buff. X. xxvi. (The Barbaresque). The bands
of which extend to the tail, and even on it.

Sc. palmarum, L. : Buff. X. xxvi. (The Palmist). On which
the stripes are confined to the back.

It is probable that we shall have to separate from the squirrels certain
species which have cheek-pouches, like the Hamsters, and pass their lives
in subterraneous holes, the T amice of llliger. For instance the

Sc. striatus, L. ; Buff. X. xxviii. (The Ground Squirrel). Which
is found throughout all the north of Asia and America, particularly in
the pine forests. The tail is more scantily supplied with hairs than
that of the European Squirrel; the ears smooth, and skin brown,
with five black stripes and two white ones.

We ought, also, most probably, to distinguish the Guerlinguets, a spe-
cies with a long and almost round tail, and an enormous pendant scrotum.
They are found in both continents f.

The following have been separated already.

Pteromys, Cuv\.

Or the Flying Squirrels, to which the skin of the flank, extending be-
tween the fore and hind legs, imparts the faculty of supporting themselves
for some moments in the air, and of making very great leaps. There are
long bony appendages to their feet, which support a part of this lateral
membrane.

There is a species in Poland, Russia, and Siberia.

Sc. volans , L. ; Schreb. CCXXIII. (The Flying Squirrel). Asli-
coloured, grey above ; white underneath ; size of a rat ; the tail only
half the length of the body. It lives solitarily in the forests.

One from North America.

Sc. voluccella, L. ; Buff. X. xxi. (The American Flying Squir-
rel). Reddish-grey above; white beneath: size less than that of

* A comparison of the figure of Pennant with that of Sonnerat is sufficient to
prove that they represent the same animal.

t We have found, however, in the Tamice and Guerlinguets, the same kind of teeth
as in the Squirrels and Pteromys.
t Pteromys , Winged Rat.

m

MAMMALIA.

the preceding ; tail three-fourths as long as the body. It lives in
troops in the prairies of the temperate regions of North America.

There is one found in the Indian Archipelago, that is nearly the
size of a cat ; the male is of a fine lively maronne above, and red
underneath ; the female brown above, and whitish underneath. It
is the

Sc. petaurista, L. ; Buff. Supp. III. xxi, and VII. Ixvii. (The
Taguan). The same Archipelago produces another small one, the

Sc. sagitta, L. A deep brown above; white beneath; distin-
guished from other species, the small ones especially, by its mem-
brane, which, as in the Taguan, forms an extremely acute projecting
angle behind the tarsus.

M. Geoffroy has very properly separated from this genus the
Cheiromys, Cuv .*

Or the Aye-Ayes, whose inferior incisors, much more compressed, and,
in an especial manner, more extended from front to back, resemble plough-
shares. Each foot has five toes, of which four of the anterior are exces-
sively elongated, the medius being more slender than the others ; in the
hind feet the thumb is opposable to the other toes ; so that they are in
this respect among the Rodentia, what the Opossums are among the Car-
naria. The structure of their head is otherwise very different from that
of the other Rodentia, and is related to the Quodrumana in more points
than one.

There is only one species of the Aye-Aye known. It was disco-
vered at Madagascar by Sonnerat. It is the Cheir. Madagascarien-
sis; Sc. Madagascar. , Gm. ; Buff. Supp. VII. lxviii. (The Aye-
Aye). Size of a hare, of a brown colour, mixed with yellow; tail
long and thick, with stout black bristles ; ears large and naked. It
is a nocturnal animal, to which motion seems painful; it burrows
under ground, and uses its slender toe to convey food to its mouth.

Linnaeas and Pallas united in one single group, under the name of

Mus. Lin .

All the Rodentia furnished with clavicles, which they could not distin-
guish by some very sensible external character, such as the tail of the
squirrel or that of the beaver, from which resulted the utter impossibility
of assigning to them any common character; the greater number had
merely pointed lower incisors, but even this was subject to exceptions.

Gmelin has already separated from them the marmots, dormice, and the
jerboas; but we carry their subdivision much further, from considerations
founded on the form of their grinders.

ARCTOMYS,f Gm.

The Marmots, it is true, have the inferior incisors pointed like those of
the greater number of animals comprehended in the great genus Mus;

Cheiromys , a rat with hands.

f Arctomys , Bear Rat.

RODENTIA.

121

but their grinders, like those of the squirrel, amount to five on each side
above, and four below, all bristled with points ; accordingly, some species
are inclined to eat flesh, and feed upon insects, as well as grass. There
are four toes and a tubercle in place of a thumb to the fore feet, and five
toes to the hind ones. In other respects these animals are nearly the
direct reverse of the squirrels, being heavy, having short legs, a middle-
sized or short hairy tail, and a large flat head, passing the winter in a
state of torpor, and shut up in deep holes, the entrance of which they close
with a heap of grass. They live in societies, and are easily tamed. Two
species are known in the eastern continent.

Arct. alpinus; Mus. alpinus, L. ; Buff. VIII. xxviii. (The Al-
pine Marmot). Large as a hare; tail short; fur yellowish-grey,
with ash-coloured tints about the head. It lives in high mountains,
.immediately below the region of perpetual snow.

Arc. bobac; M. bobac , L. ; Pall. Glir. V ; Schreb. CCIX. (The
Bobac). Size of the preceding; of a yellowish-grey, tinted with
red about the head. Inhabits low mountains and hills, from Poland
to Kamschatka, and frequently digs its burrow in the hardest soil.*

America also produces some species.

Arct. monax, Buff. Supp. III. xxviii. (The Maryland Marmot).
Grey ; tail blackish, as well as the top of the head.

Arct. empetra , Pall.; Schreb. CX. Less than the preceding;
grey ; red beneath.

Spermophilus, Fred. Cuv,

We apply this name to those Marmots that have cheek pouches. The
superior lightness of their structure has caused them to be called Ground
Squirrels. Eastern Europe produces one species.

M. citillus, L. ; Buff. Supp. III. xxxi. (The Souslik or Zizel).
A pretty little animal, of a greyish brown, watered or mottled with
white, the spots very small, which is found from Bohemia to Siberia.
It has a peculiar fondness for flesh, and does not spare even its own
species.

North America has several species of them, one of which is re-
markable by the thirteen fawn-coloured stripes which extend along
the back on a blackish ground. It is the Thirteen-strip ed Souslik,
Arct. 13 -lineatus, Harl.; or Sciurus lS-lineatus, Mitchell; ox Arct.
Hoodii, Sabine, Lin. Trans. XIII. pi. xxixf'.

There is one of the Rodentia which it appears we must approximate to
the Marmots, that is remarkable for living in large troops in immense
burrows, which have even been styled villages. It is called the Prairie
Dog, or Barking Sguirrel, the latter appellation arising from its voice,

• Russian travellers in Bucharia mention some other Marmots, Arct. fulvus, Arct.
lepto-dactylus, Arct. musogaricus, which are not yet perhaps sufficiently distinguished
from the Boubak or from the Souslik.

f Add Arct. Parrii, Richards. App. Parry’s Voy. — Several of the Marmots an-
nounced in the travels of Lewis and Clarke, Parry, Franklin, & c. Arct. Franklinii,
Richardsonii, prtiinosa, seem to belong to this subgenus. See Sabine, Lin. Trans.
XIII. pi. xxvii, xxviii, &c.

122

MAMMALIA.

which resembles the bark of a small dog. It is the Arct. ludovicianus
of Say, Jour, to the Rocky Mountains, I. 451. M. Rafinesque, who states
it has five toes to each foot, makes it the type of his genus Cynomys.

Myoxus, Gm .* * * §

The Dormice have pointed lower incisors, and four grinders, the crown
of each of which is divided by enamelled lines.

They are pretty little animals, with soft fur, a hairy and even tufted
tail, and a lively eye, which live on trees like squirrels, and feed on fruit.
Of the numerous order of the Rodentia, this is the only subgenus in which
there is no cascum. They become torpid in winter like the Marmots, and
pass through it in the most profound lethargy "I”.

M. glis , L. ; Buff. VIII. xxiv. (The Fat Dormouse) (a). Size of
of a rat; ashy grey-brown above, whitish underneath; df a deeper
brown around the eyes; tail very hairy the whole of its length, and
disposed somewhat like that of a squirrel, and frequently a little
forked at the extremity. It inhabits the south of Europe, and nestles
in the hollows of trees and fissures of rocks. It sometimes attacks
small birds. This is probably the rat fattened by the ancients,
among whom it was considered a delicacy of the very highest de-
scription J.

M. nitela, Gm. ; Buff. VIII. xxv. (The Garden Dormouse).
Somewhat less than the preceding ; greyish-brown above ; white un-
derneath ; black round the eye, which extends to the shoulder ; tail
tufted and black, tuft white. Common in the gardens of Europe,
where it shelters itself in holes about the walls, and does much in-
jury to trees.

M. avellanarius, L. ; Buff. VIII. xxvi. (The Common Dor-
mouse). Size of a mouse ; cinnamon-red above ; white beneath ;
hairs of the tail somewhat disposed like a feather. From the forests
of all Europe. It constructs its nest of grass on low branches, to
bring up its young ; the rest of the time, and particularly during
winter, it remains in the hollows of trees. §

* Myoxus , Rat with a pointed nose.

f So natural is this to them, that a dormouse from Senegal (M. Coupeii ), which
had never experienced it in its native country, fell into a profound sleep in Europe
the moment it was exposed to the cold.

J The M. dryas of some authors (Schreb. 220, B) does not appear to me to differ
from the Fat Dormouse.

§ Add Myoxus Coupeii , Fred. Cuv. Mammif.

§ggf° (a) The instinct of the dormouse in providing for itself a proper retreat dur-
ing the period of hybernation (see note, p. 7 1 of this volume) is often displayed with
a prescience and circumspection which are scarcely credible in an animal usually
rated at the lowest possible estimate in the scale of intelligence. A French natu-
ralist has placed on record, in the Bibliotheque Universelle, an anecdote relating to
a dormouse, which is at once curious and instructive. He placed four of these ani-
mals in a cold temperature, which soon brought them into a state of lethargy, with
the exception of one, which escaped secretly from the apartment. Some time after-
wards, it was found in a deep cellar in the same house, where it had dug up the earth,
and scraped the neighbouring wall, in order to heap up the mould and plaster, so as
to form a mound of two feet in size. This mound was raised near a situation where

RODENTIA.

1 23

We should place near the Dormice, the

Echimys, Geoff. — Loncheres, Illig .

Four grinders also, but formed in a peculiar way; the upper ones con-
sisting of two blades, bent into the shape of a V, and the under ones of
one blade only that is bent, and of another that is simple. The fur of
several species is very rough, and intermixed with flattened spines or
prickles, like sword blades. From America. One of them,

Ech. chrysuros; Hystrix chrysuros, Schreb. CLXX, B; Lerot a
queue doree , Buff. Supp. VII. 72. (The Golden-tailed Echimys).
More than twice the size of the brown rat; it is a beautiful animal,
of a chestnut-brown colour ; white belly ; an elongated crest of hairs,
and a white longitudinal band on the head ; the tail is long and black ;
its posterior half is yellow. From Guiana.

Ech. rufus; Rat epineux , Azzara, Yoy. pi. xiii. (The Red Echi-
mys). Size of a rat, and of a reddish grey ; tail shorter than the
body. It is found in Guiana, Brazil, and Paraguay. It excavates
long subterraneous galleries.

Others, again, have merely the ordinary kind of hair, more or less
rough. The most remarkable is the

Ech. dactylicus, Geoff. (The Long-toed Echimys). Which is
still larger than the golden-tailed one, and has the two middle toes
of the fore feet double the length of the lateral ones. Its scaly tail
is longer than the body ; its fur is a yellowish grey, and the hairs on
its nose form a crest directed in front.*

Hyrdomys, Geoff.

The Hydromys have many external points of relation to the Echimys,
but they are distinguished from all other rats by their hind feet, two thirds
of which are palmated ; their two molars have also a peculiar character in
the crown, which is divided into obliquely quadrangular lobes, whose sum-
mits are hollowed out like the bowl of a spoon. They are aquatic.

* Add the Echimys of Cayenne, the Silky Echimys. I suspect the Mus. para-
doxus, Thomas, Lin. Trans. XI. (Heteromys, Lesson,) differs from the Echimys in
its cheek-pouches only. However, not having seen its teeth, I cannot arrange it.

a door admitted, between its lower edge and the floor, a current of air; and, in order
to get rid of the inconvenience, the dormouse had previously fixed up a piece of
board, which it absolutely detached from a shelf, and placed against the door. But
this was not all. The dormouse, it was found, had untied a straw rope which encir-
cled some bottles that lay in the cellar; of this it made a bed, which it lastly sur-
Tounded with a rampart curiously and ingeniously constructed; for this wall of se-
curity was composed of the fragments of the bottles literally broken for the purpose
of being placed as a wall of separation between the bed of the dormouse and the rats
that might chance to invade it. The dormice are found in great numbers, in bur-
rows, on the highest of the rocks of the Alpine mountains. They come out in wet
weather, and generally announce the approach of rain by a shrill, and very peculiar
whistle. The inhabitants of the Alps regard their appearance abroad as faithful
indications of the weather. Dr. M. Hall, in the paper on hybernation already alluded
to, atatcs, that dormice, supplied with cotton wool, make themselves nests, and be-
come lethargic. — Eng. Ed.

m

MAMMALIA.

Several of these animals have been sent to Europe from Van
Dieman’s land, some of which have the belly white, and others fawn-
coloured, but all of a deep brown above, with a long tail, which is
black at the base, and the posterior half white. They are sometimes
double the size of the brown rat. Hydromys leucogaster, and Hyd.
chrysog aster, Geoff. An. Mus. VI. pi. xxxvi.

Capromys, Desmar.

The Houtias have four molars every where with flat crowns, the enamel
of which is folded inwards so that it forms three angles on the external
edge, and a single one on the internal edge of the upper teeth, and the
inverse in the lower ones. The tail is round and scantily philose ; they
have, like the rats, five toes to the hind foot, and four, with the rudiment
of a thumb, to the fore feet ; their form is that of a rat ; as large as a
rabbit or hare. Two species are known.

Cap. fournieri Desmar., Mem. de la Soc. d’Hist. Nat. de Par. I.
1823. (The Congo Houtia)*. Muzzle brown; the under part of
the neck whitish ; tail brown, but half the length of the body.

Cap. preJiensilis, Poessig. ; Houtia Carvalli. Less than the pre-
ceding ; brown, with a whitish throat ; tail red, as long as the body,
and partly naked at the end. Both species inhabit the island of
Cuba, and, together with the Agoutis , at the time of the discovery,
constituted the principal game of the inhabitants.

Mus. Cuv.

The Rats, properly so called, have three molars, of which the anterior
is the largest; its crown is divided into blunt tubercles, which, by being
worn, give it the shape of a disk, sloped in various directions ; the tail is
long and scaly. These animals are very injurious, from their fecundity,
and the voracity with which they gnaw and devour substances of whatever
kind. There are three species which have become quite common in our
houses, viz.

M. musculus, L. ; Buff. VII, xxxix. (The Common Mouse).
Known in all times and at all places.

M. rattus , L. ; Buff. VII, xxxvi. (The Black Rat). Of which
no mention is made by the ancients, and which appears to have en-
tered Europe in the middle ages. It is more than double the size of
the mouse, in all its dimensions. The fur is blackish. Several in-
dividuals have been occasionally found connected by the interlacing
of their tails; constituting what the Germans style the King of
Rats.'

M. decumanus , Pall. ; Buff. VIII, xxvii. (The Surmulot, or
Common Norway or Brown Rat). Which did not pass into Europe
till the eighteenth century, and is now more common in Paris and
other large cities than the Black Rat itself. It is larger than the

* This is the Isodon pilorides, Say. Zool. Journ. No. 2, p. 229.
f See Bellerman on the King of the Rats (in German), Berlin, 1820.

RODENTIA. 125

latter by one-fourth, and differs from it also by its reddish-brown
hair.*

These two large species appear to have originated in the East, and
have been transported in ships, together with the mouse, to all parts
of the globe.

Eastern Tartary and China have a Rat equal to the Surmulot.

M. caraco , Pallas, Glir. XXIII ; Schreb. clxxvii. (The Caraco
Rat). Of a light colour ; tail a little shorter than the preceding,
and the jaws stronger.

There is another in India, one-fourth larger than the Brown Rat,
the Rat perched, Buff. Supp. VII. lxix, which is of a reddish brown.
There is a large one in the Indian Archipelago, the

M. setifer, Horsf. Jav. Of a blackish brown. These last two
species are set with rough bristles, which extend beyond the hairs.

One of the largest and most mischievous rats known is the

M. pilorides, Pall, and Gm. (The Musk-Rat of the Antilles).
Fifteen inches in length, without the tail, which is still longer than
the body; hair coarse, of a deep black above, and whitish beneath.']'

Fewer species have been observed of the size of the mouse.

M. cahirinus , Geoff., Descr. de l’Eg. Mammif. (The Cairo
Mouse). Spines on the back, in place of hairs; it is noticed by
Aristotle.

There is scarcely known in France more than one species which
lives remote from houses — the M. sylvaticus. (The long-tailed
Field-Mouse). The Mulot of Buff. VII, xli, which is hardly larger
than the mouse, and is distinguished from it by its red fur. It does
much injury to trees, and sometimes penetrates into gardens.

It seems, however, that in some of the provinces there is a smaller
and grey species, which lias also been observed in England, ( M .
messorius , Shaw, Vol. II. Part 1, Frontisp.), and a third still more
diminutive — the Dwarf Field-Mouse, (M. pumilus, Fr. Cuv. Mam-
mif). It remains for me to observe, that there are still numerous
discoveries to be made in our country respecting the species of these
very diminutive quadrupeds. J

* It appears to belong to Persia, where it lives in burrows. It was not till 1727,
that, after an earthquake, it arrived at Astracan, by swimming across the Volga.

f Pallas and Gmelin erroneously describe it as being entirely white. The earlier
historians of the colonies attribute to it the above colours, which are precisely such
as we have seen on the animal.

X To this division, most probably, belong the M. agrarius, M. minutus , M. sorici-
nus, M. vagus , M. betulinus, M. striatus, M. barbarus, Schreb.

Here, also, should come the enormous Mus giganteus, Hardw. Linn. Trans. VII.
xxviii.

There should be likewise added the Radiated Rat of the Cape, M. pumilio, Sparm.
the M. cyanus , the Grey-Blue Rat of North America, Molina, and several other spe-
cies, some of which are not even mentioned by authors, and others which are de-
scribed with too little reference to other species. This is the reason why most of the
rats of Azzara cannot be properly classed until they are re-examined. The same ob-
servation applies to a great many of the Rodentia of M. Rafinesque. Their descrip-
tions are too short to be of any use.

126

MAMMALIA,

Warm climates produce rats similar in every particular to those of
which we have just spoken, except that their tails are more hairy * (a).

Gerbillus, Desm. — Meriones, Tllig.

The Gerbils have molars that differ very little from those of rats,
merely becoming sooner worn, so as to form transverse elevations. Their
superior incisors are furrowed with a groove ; their hind feet are some-
what longer in proportion than those of rats in general, and their thumb
and little toe slightly separated. Their tail is long and hairy. The
sandy and warm parts of the eastern continent produce several species.

G. indicus; Dipus indicus, Hardw., Linn. Trans. VIII, pi. vii ;
Herine , Fred. Cuv. Mammif. (The India Gerbil). Size of the fat
Dormouse ; fawn coloured above, whitish beneath ; tail longer than

* Hypudams variegatus, Lichtenst. var. flava. — Meriones syenenses, Id.; to which
must be added the Arvicola messor, Le Comte, Arv. hortensis , HarL, or Sygmodon,
Say; distinguished, however, by hairy ears, like the Otomys.

Another group, with hairy tails also, but whose teeth wear away faster, will include
the Hypudceus obesus, Lichtenst., the Mus ruficauditus, Id. His Meriones sericeus
should form a third, characterized by the projecting ridges of the molars, which al-
ternately catch in each other.

We then have to group the Neotoma floridanum of Say, or the Arvicola floridanus of
Harlan, and the Arvicola gossypina of Le Comte, two rats which, size excepted, are
very similar even in their colours, whose teeth, provided with roots, if worn a little,
have crowns formed like those of the Arvicola.

These animals, however, previous to a definite classification, require to be com-
pletely examined and compared, internally as well as without

(«) Amongst the specimens of this genus in the Zoological Gardens in Lon-
don, are the Mus Rattus, a species so long known in this country as to he considered
aboriginal to it. This rat was formerly very abundant, but for many years has been
almost wholly displaced by the Surmulot, M. decumanus. Very lately, however, the
M. rat us and very unaccountably re-appeared in several places in London. A spe-
cies not described by Cuvier is to he seen in the gardens in Regent’s Park; it is the
Gigantie Rat, M. giganteus, and was sent from Bombay by that great patron of sci-
ence, the Earl of Clare. Here, also, are to be seen some Barhary mice, the M. bar-
barus of Linnaeus; since whose time the species entirely eluded all observation, until
it was recently recovered by the Zoological Society. It is a species common in Bar-
bary. The Long- tailed Field-Mouse, M. sylvaticus, will also be found in the above
collection. The singular nest of the Harvest-Mouse, M. messorius, has been ren-
dered too interesting an object of contemplation, by White of Selborne, to be passed
over. He found it suspended upon the head of a thistle, in a wheat-field. The nest
was of the size of a cricket-ball, was perfectly round, and was composed of blades of
wheat, which were platted together with wonderful art. What was most curious was
the absence of any aperture in the ball, for exit or entrance; and yet, the particular
nest which Mr. White examined contained eight young, which so completely occu-
pied the cavity, that it was apparently impossible for the creatures to turn themselves,
in order to seize the mother’s teat; and still more was it difficult for the mother to
find room in the nest. These nests, observes the author of the “ British Naturalist,”
vary in shape, being round, oval, or pear-shaped, with a long neck, and are to be
distinguished from those of any other mouse, by being generally suspended on some
growing vegetable — a thistle, a bean-stalk, or some adjoining stems of wheat, with
which it rocks and waves in the wind; but, to prevent the young from being dis-
lodged by any violent agitation of the plant, the parent closes up the entrance so
uniformly with the whole fabric, that the real opening is with difficulty found. —
Eng. Ed.

RODENTIA. 127

the body, and blackish towards the end. To this species should be
approximated the

G. mcridianus; D» meridianus, Schreb. 231. (The Torrid or
Sand Gerbil). Which is about the same colour, but a little smaller.

G. tamaricinus ; D. tamaricinus, Schreb. 232. (The Tamarisk
Gerbil). The tail is annulated with brown.

G. pyramidum ; D. pyramidum , Oliv. (The Gerbil of the Pyra-
mids). The hind feet more elevated; size of the Garden Dormouse;
its fur is red above, whitish beneath.

There is one in Senegal of a livelier red and a purer white.

Another at the Cape, a little larger, reddish, and the tail less
hairy at the end.

A third in Nubia, nearly half the size, of a light red above, and a
beautiful white beneath. The

Meriones, Fred. Cun.

The Meriones, which we separate from the other Gerbils, have the
hind feet still longer, the tail nearly naked, and a very small tooth fronts
the superior molars ; characters which approximate them to the Jerboas
Their upper incisors are grooved, like those of the Gerbils, and their toes
also are similar. There is a small species in North America, the

Mus canadensis , Penn.; Dipus canadensis, Sh. II, Part 1, pk
161; Dipus americanus, Barton. Size of a mouse; fawn-coloured
grey ; tail longer than the body. An animal of the greatest agility,

1 that shuts itself up in the earth, and passes the winter in a state of
lethargy.*

Cricetus, Cuv.

The Hamsters have nearly the same kind of teeth as rats, but their tail
is short and hairy, and the two sides of their mouth are hollowed, as in
certain of the species of Simiae, into sacs or cheek pouches ( a ), in which
they transport the grain they collect to their subterraneous abodes.

C. vulgaris; M. cricetus , L. ; Marmotte d' Allemagne, fyc.; Buff.
XIII, xiv. (The Common Hamster, or German Dormouse). It is
larger than the rat ; of a reddish-grey above, black at the flanks and
underneath, with three whitish spots on each side. The four feet
are white, as are also a spot under the throat, and another under the'
breast; some individuals are all black. This animal, so pleasingly
diversified in its colours, is yet one of the most destructive that lives,
on account of the quantity of corn which he collects, and with which
he fills his burrow — a receptacle sometimes no less than seven feet
deep. It is common in all the sandy regions that extend from the
north of Germany to Siberia.

* Add Gerbillus labradorius, Hail., or M. labrad ., Sabine, Frankl. Voy. p. 661.

B&T («) The cheek-pouches are bags situated between the cheeks and the jaws
of several genera of animals belonging to the Quadrumana, as well as that now un-
der consideration. These pouches, which are particularly formed in the Hamsters,
are destined to be receptacles for the food which the animals take in, and ultimately
chew at their leisure. — Eng. Ed.

I

128

MAMMALIA.

This last country produces several small species of Hamsters, de-
scribed by Pallas.®

Arvicola, Lacey.

The Campagnoles, like the rats, have always three grinders, out with-
out roots, each one being formed of triangular prisms, placed alternately
on two lines. They may be subdivided into several groups, viz. —

Fiber, Cuv.

The Ondatras or Field Rats, with semi-palmated hind feet, a long,
scaly, and compressed tail, of which one species only is well known.

F. vulgaris; Castor zibeticus, L.; Mus zibeticus, Gm. ; Buff. X,
i. (The Canadian Musk-Rat or Ondatra). As large as a rabbit,
of a reddish-grey. In winter they construct, on the ice, a hut of
earth, in which several of them reside together, passing through a
hole in the bottom, for the roots of the acorus ( a ), on which they
feed. When the frost shuts up this hole, the musk rats are under
the necessity of eating one another. It is this habit of building
which has induced some authors to refer the Ondatra to the genus
Castor. The second subdivision is that of

Arvicola, Cuv. — HypumEus, Illig.

Our common Field Rats, or ordinary Campagnoles, which have a hairy
tail, about the length of the body, and without palmated feet.

A. vulgaris; Mus amphibius, L. ; Buff, VII, xliii. (The Water
Rat). A little larger than the common rat, of a deep greyish-
brown ; tail the length of the body. Inhabits the banks of rivers,
and digs in marshy places in pursuit of roots ; but it swims and
dives badly (b).

A. terrestris; Mus terrestris, Lin. (The Schermaus, or Bigger
Rat of the Americans). Seems to differ from the Water Rat only
in being somewhat smaller ; its tail, also, is shorter. It lives under
ground, like the mole, but especially in the meadows of high grounds.
It excavates galleries, and transports the earth which it raises from
its hole to some distance from the opening. Its magazines, which
are principally filled with the roots of the wild carrot, cut into two-
inch pieces, are frequently two feet in diameter.

* M. accedula. — M. arenarius. — M. phceus. — M. songarus. — M. furunculm. See
Pall. Glir. and Sch.

(«) This is the plant called Sweet Flag, and was considered by Linnseus to
be the only aromatic one which grew in the northern regions. Notwithstanding the
certainty of Cuvier’s account, yet, it is laid down in Loudon’s elaborate work entitled
the “ Encyclopsedia of Plants,” that no cattle whatever eat this plant. — Eng. Ed.

(6) It would appear that the species called the Short-tailed Water-Rat is grega-
rious, and that troops of them habitually migrate to places where suitable food maybe
obtained. They have been known to be particularly partial to spots where the Equi-
setum limosum (Smooth Horse-Tail) is abundant. How such large companies as
have been frequently observed, can change their localities without being seen in their
transits, is a mystery which still remains unsolved.— Eng. Ed.

RODENT IA.

129

A . arvalis; Mus arvalis, L. ; Buff. VII, xlvii. (The Campag-
nol, or Little Field-Mouse, called also Mulot in some provinces, but
improperly). Size of a mouse; of a reddish-ash colour; tail not so
long as the body. It inhabits holes which it excavates in the earth,
where it collects corn for the winter. The multiplication of this
animal is sometimes so excessive as to cause much injury.

A. ceconomicus, Mus ceconomicus, Pall. Glir. XIV, A. ; Schreb.
cxc. (The Meadow Campagnol). A little darker coloured, and
the tail somewhat shorter. It lives in a sort of oven-shaped cham-
ber, dug under the turf, from which several narrow and ramifying ca-
nals run in various directions ; other canals communicate with a se-
cond cavity, where it accumulates its provisions. From all Siberia.
It is thought to have been found in Switzerland and in the south of
France, particularly, as we are assured, in the potato fields.*

Georychus, Illig.

Or the Lemmings, Cuv., have very short ears and tail, and the toes of
the fore feet peculiarly well formed for digging.

The two first species have five very distinct nails to each of the
fore feet, like the rat-moles and the jumping-hares.

G. lemmus; Mus lemmus, L. ; Pall. Glir. XII, A. B. Schreb.
cxcv. (The Lemming). A northern species, as large as a rat, with
a fur varied with black and yellow ; very celebrated in consequence
of the migrations which it makes from time to time, at periods alto-
gether unsettled, and in bodies infinite in their number. It is said,
that, on such occasions, they proceed in a straight line, without any
river, mountain, or other obstacle impeding them, and that they de-
stroy every thing on their route. Their usual residence appears to
be the shores of the Arctic Ocean.

G. vulgaris; Mus aspalax, Gm., Pall. Glir. X, Schreb. CCV.
(The Zocor). Reddish-grey; the three middle nails of the fore
feet long, arcuate, compressed, and trenchant, for cutting earth and
roots. The limbs are short; there is scarcely any tail; and the
eyes are excessively small. From Siberia; where it always lives
under ground, like the mole and rat-mole. It feeds principally on
the bulbs of different liliaceas (plants of the lily tribe). The third
species, like the other animals comprised in the great genus of rats,
has merely the rudiment of a thumb on the fore feet.

G. hudsonius; Mus hudsonius, Gm., Schreb. CXCVI. (The
Lemming of Hudson’s Bay). A light pearly-ash colour ; without
tail or external ears ; the two middle toes of the fore foot of the male
seem to have double nails, because the skin of the end of the toe is

* Here, most probably, would come the M. saxatilis , alliarus , rulilus, gregalis, and
socialis, Pall. Glir. But the M. lagurus and forquatus come nearer to the Lemmings.
There are several field-rats, or campagnols, in North America, such as the Arvicola
xantliogvotha , Leach, Miscel. I, pi. xxvi. — Arvicola pennsylvanica , Wilson, Amer.
Ornith. VI, pi. 1, F. 3. — Arc, palustris, Ilarl. &c. Better figures, and new and com-
parative descriptions of the preceding species, are much wanted.

Vol. I. K

ISO

MAMMALIA,

callous, and forms a projection under the point of the nail a struc-

ture which has not been met with, except in this animal. It is the
size of a rat, and lives under ground, in North America.

Otomys, Fred. Cuv.

The Otomys are nearly allied to the field rats, and have also three
grinders, but they are composed of slightly arcuated laminae, arranged in
file.* * * § Their incisors are grooved with a longitudinal furrow, and the tail
is hairy., as well as the ears, which are very large.

The species known is 0. capensis, Fred. Cuv. (The Cape Oto-
mys). Inhabits Africa. Size of a rat; fur annulate d with black
and fawn colours; tail a third shorter than the body.f

Dxpus, Gm.

The Jerboas J have nearly the same kind of teeth as the true rats, ex-
cept that there is sometimes a very small one immediately before the up-
per molars. The tail is long and tufted at the end; the head large; the
eyes large and prominent; but their principal character consists in their
posterior extremities, which, in comparison with the anterior, are of a
most immoderate length, and above all, in the metatarsus of the three
middle toes, which is formed of one single bone, resembling what is called
the tarsus in birds. It is from this disproportion of the limbs that they
were named by the antients Biped Rats ; and in fact they seldom move
otherwise than by great leaps on their hind feet. There are five toes to
each of the fore feet; and, in certain species, besides the three great toes
to the hind feet, there are small lateral ones. They live in burrows, and
fall into a deep lethargy during the winter.

D. sagitta; M. sagiita , L. ; Buff. Supp. VI. xxxix and xl. The
Jerbao has only three toes, and is the size of a rat; a light fawn co-
lour above; white beneath; tuft of the tail black, the tip white., Is
found from Barbary to the north of the Caspian sea.

D. hirtipes, Lichtenstein. (The Hairy-footed Jerboa). The head
more compressed than in the others ; only three toes to the hind feet,
as in the Jerboa, but they are more hairy. From Africa. §

D. joculus; M. jaculus, Pall. Glir.’xX. Schreb. CCXXVIII.
(The Alactaga). Two small lateral toes; ears longer than those of
the Jerboa, but has nearly the same colours. Pallas has observed
them of three sizes, from that of a rabbit to that of a rat : they are

* They are exact models, in miniature, of the grinders of the elephant.

f It is the same animal described and represented in the essay on the genus of
rats, by M. Brantz, Berlin, 1827, under the name of Euryotis irrorata.

J There has lately appeared an excellent paper on the Jerboas, by M. Lichten-
stein, in which that learned naturalist describes and figures ten species. I can only
refer my readers to the paper itself. It is inserted in the Journal of the Acad, of
Berlin.

§ Add the Dip. telum, D. plat-urus, and D. lagopus of Eversman, Voy. de Mayen-
dorf en Bouearie, p. 3S0.

RODENTIA. 131

probably as many species.^ One or the other is found from Bar-
bary to the Eastern Ocean, and as far as the north of India.

Helamys, F. Cuv . — Pedetes, Illig. f

We separate from the other Jerboas, and the whole of the genus Rats,
the Jumping Hares, which, like the Jerboas, have a large head, and great
eyes, a long tail, and the anterior part of the body extremely small in
comparison to the posterior, although the disproportion is much less than
in the true Jerboas. The peculiar characters of the Helamys are four
grinders everywhere, each one composed of two laminee ; five toes to the
fore feet, armed with long and pointed nails, and four to their great hind
ones, all separate, even to the bones of the metatarsus, and terminated by
large nails, almost resembling hoofs. This number of toes is the inverse
of that most common among the rats. Their inferior incisors are trun-
cated, and not pointed like those of the true Jerboas, and of the greater
part of the animals comprised under the genus of rats. One species only
is known, the

II. caffer.; Mus caffer., Pall.; Dipus coffer., Gm., Buff. Supp.VI.
xli, and better, Fred. Cuv. Mammif. It is the size of a hare, of a
light fawn colour, and has a long tufted tail, with a black tip. In-
habits deep burrows at the Cape of Good Hope.

Spalax, Giildenstedt.

The Rat-Moles have also been very properly separated from the Rats,
although their grinders are three in number, and tuberculous, as in the
true rats, and the hamsters, and are merely a little less unequal. Their
incisors, however, are too large to be covered by the lips, and the extre-
mity of the lower ones is in a sharp edge, and not pointed. Their legs
are very short ; each foot has five short toes, and as many flat and slender
nails. Their tail is very short, or rather there is none ; the same ob-
servation applies to their external ear. They live under ground like the
moles, raising up the earth like them, although provided with much in-
ferior means for dividing it ; but they subsist on roots only.

S. typhus; M. typhus , Pall. Glir. pi. viii, Schreb. 206. (The
Zemni Slepez or Blind Rat-Mole). A singular animal, whose as-
pect is utterly misshapen by its bulky head, which is angular on its
sides, by its short feet, by the entire absence of a tail ; but, above
all, by its possessing no eye which can be seen externally, it having
merely under the skin a small black point, which would seem or-
ganized for an eye, without being able however to minister to vision,
inasmuch as the skin passes over it without either opening or be-
coming thinner, and not having in this spot less hair than any other
part. It is rather larger than our rat; its fur is smooth, and of an
ash colour, bordering on a red. This is the animal, in the opinion
of Olivier, to which the ancients alluded when they spoke of the
mole as being perfectly blind.

• Pallas has latterly distinguished the small Alactagasby the name of Dip. acontion,
t I'udetcs, Jumper, Helamys , Jumping- Rat.

K 2

132

MAMMALIA.

The islands in the straits of Sunda produce a rat-mole as large as
a rabbit, of a deep grey colour, with a white longitudinal stripe on
the head, the Spalax jav anus.

From the rat-moles themselves should have been separated the

Bathyergus, lllig. — Orycteres, Fr. Cuv.

The Orycteres, which, with the general form, feet, and truncated inci-
sors of that genus, have four grinders throughout. Their eye, though
small, is visible, and they have a short tail.

B . maritimus ; Mus maritimus, Gm. ; Taupe des dames , Buff.
Supp. VI. xxxviii. (The Maritime Rat-Mole). Nearly the size of
a rabbit ; the superior incisors furrowed with a groove, and the hair
of a whitish grey.

B. capensis; M. capensis, Gm. ; Taupe du Cap., Buff. Supp. VI.
xxxvi. (The Rat-Mole of the Cape). Hardly as large as the
guinea-pig ; brown, with a spot round the ear, another round the eye,
and a third on the vertex; the end of the muzzle white. The inci- ‘
sors are smooth.

B. hottentottus, Less, and Garn., Voy. de la Coquille, pi. ii. (The
Hottentot Rat-Mole). Smaller; grey; incisors smooth; hardly as
large as a rat. We must approximate to the Rat-Moles (Spalax
and Bathiergus).

Geomys, Rafin. — Pseudostoma, Say. — Ascomys, Lichten.

The Geomys, which have four molars in compressed prisms throughout ;
the first double, the remaining three simple ; the upper incisors furrowed with
a doable groove in front ; five toes to each foot ; the three middle anterior
nails, that of the medius particularly, very long, crooked, and trenchant.
They are low animals, and have very deep cheek-pouches, which open ex-
ternally, enlarging the sides of the head and neck in a singular manner.
One species only is known.

G. bursarius; Mus bursarius, Shaw.* (The Canada Hamster).
Size of a rat ; fur of a reddish-grey ; tail naked, and but half the
length of the body. Inhabits deep burrows in the interior of North
America.

Diplostoma, Rafin.

The Diplostomse are in every respect similar to the Geomys, except
that they have no tail. 'f*

These animals are also from North America. The species before
us is reddish, and ten inches in length.

We now pass to larger Rodentiae than those of which we have hitherto

* The figures of this animal, first published Trans. Lin. Soc. Vol. V. pi. viii, and
Shaw, Vol. II. part 1, pi. 138, represent it with the internal skin ofthe cheek-pouches
turned inside out, as though it had two sacs to the sides of the head. There is no-
thing like it in nature. It is well represented, Acad. Berlin, 1822 and 1823, pi. ii;

f M. Rafinesque describes them as having only four toes to each foot. The Eu-
ropean species has five, like the Geomys.

RODENTIA, 133

s'poken, but of which several still have well developed clavicles. Of this
number is the

Castor, Lin .

The Beavers are distinguished from all other Rodentia by their hori-
zontally flattened tail, which is nearly of an oval form, and covered with
scales. They have five toes to each foot : those of the hinder ones are
connected by membranes, and that next to the thumb has a double and
oblique nail. Their grinders, to the number of four throughout, and
with flat crowns, appear as if formed of a bony ribbon reflected on itself,
so as to shew one sloping edge at the internal border and three at the ex-
ternal one of the upper row; in the lower ones it is exactly the reverse.

Beavers are large animals, whose life is completely aquatic; their feet
and tail aid them equally well in swimming. As their chief food is bark,
and other hard substances, their incisors are very powerful, and grow as
rapidly from the root as they are worn away at the point. With these
teeth they cut trees of every description.

Large glandular pouches which terminate on the prepuce produce a
highly odorous oily substance, employed in medicine under the name of
Castor {a). The organs of generation in both sexes terminate in the ex-
tremity of the rectum, so that there is but a single external opening.

C. fiber , Buff. YIII. xxxvi. (The Beaver). Larger than the
badger, and of all quadrupeds the most industrious in constructing a
dwelling, to effect which these animals act in concert in the most
solitary parts of North America.

Beavers choose water of sufficient depth to be frozen to the bot-
tom, and as far as possible, running streams, in order that the wood
which they cut above may be carried downwards by the current to
the spot where it is to be used. They keep the water at an equal
height, by dams composed of all sorts of branches, mixed with clay

(a) The pouches of the heaver here alluded to are found in both sexes, being
situated in the male behind the prepuce, and in the female at the upper edge of the
orifice of the vagina, where they open. They are composed of dense cellular tissue,
forming several folds, between which the castor is inclosed, and to which it adheres.
The two pouches lie parallel with each other beneath the skin; they hang together,
and separate a little at one of the extremities, which is larger and more rounded than
the other. Their outer surface is smooth, of a dark brown colour, and free from
hairs. The castor completely fills the pouches, but has a cavity in the centre, which
is a distinguishing character that shews the genuine from the artificial article. When
examined in the animal, the secretion is soft, being of a consistence somewhat in-
termediate between wax and honey; but, when taken out, it dries, hut does not be-
come hard. The best castor used to come from Russia, in roundish, solid pods,
smooth on the outside, and, when cut, presenting an orange- coloured surface. At
present, the chief portion imported into this country is from Canada; it is brought in
thin oblong pods, which are corrugated on the outside, and the castor contained in
them is more deeply coloured than the Russian. Castor has a very peculiar, strong,
and disagreeable odour; its taste is bitter, acrid, and slightly aromatic. Chemistry
has discovered in castor a variety of substances, of which castorine is the principal.
Castor is employed in medicine as a powerful antispasmodic in hysteric cases, and
its effect is described by physiologists as being specifically applied to what are called
the cerebro-spinal nerves, or those which have a mixed origin from the brain and
spinal marrow. When taken, even to a small extent, it manifests its influence in
the urine by its very peculiar flavour; but its efficacy as a remedy has considerably
fallen in credit. — Eng. Ed.

MAMMALIA.

134

and stones, the strength of which is annually increased, and which
finally, by the progress of vegetation, becomes converted into a hedge.
Each hut serves for two or three families, and consists of two stories ;
the upper is dry for the residence of the animals, and the lower un-
der water for their stores of bark, &c. The latter alone is open,
and the entrance is under water, having no communication with the
land. The huts are a kind of rude wicker-work, being made of in-
terwoven branches and twigs of trees plastered with mud. There
are always several burrows along the bank, in which they seek for
shelter when their huts are attacked. They only reside in these
habitations during the winter; in the summer they separate, and
live solitarily. The beaver may be easily tamed, and accustomed to
feed on flesh. It is of a uniform reddish-brown colour, andthe fur,
as is well known, is in great demand for hatters. It is sometimes
found flaxen coloured, at others black, or even white.

Notwithstanding we have carefully compared the beavers which
burrow along the banks of the Rhone, the Danube, the Weser, and
other rivers, with those of North America, we are unable to deter-
mine whether the former are distinct species, or are prevented from
building by the vicinity of man.

Myopotamus, Commer .

The Couias resemble the Beaver in size, in their four molars being
compressed nearly alike, in their powerful yellow-tinted incisors, and in
their five-toed feet, the hinder ones of which are palmated; but their tail
is round and elongated. They are aquatic animals also. One only is
known, the

M. coif us; Mus corpus, Molin., Geoff. Ann. Mus. VI. pi. xxxv.
(The Couia.) Which lives in burrows along the hanks of rivers
throughout a great part of South America. The fur, which is
of a yellowish grey, mixed with down at the root, is employed by
hatters, like that of the Beaver, and is consequently an important
article of commerce. Thousands of their skins are imported into
Europe

Hystrix, Lin,

The Porcupines are known at the first glance, by the stiff and pointed
prickles, or quills, with which they are armed, like the Hedgehogs among
the Carnaria. Their grinders are four throughout, with fiat crowns,
varioiisly modified by plates of enamel, between which are depressed in-
tervals. Their tongue is bristled with spiny scales, and their clavicles
are too small to rest upon the sternum and scapula, being merely sus-
pended by ligaments. They live in burrows, and have many of the habits
of Rabbits. To their grunting voice, and thick truncated muzzle, are
they indebted for being compared to the Pig, and for their corresponding
French appellation of pord-epic. *

Porcupines, properly so called,

Have the head more or less convex or vaulted, by the development of

RODENTIA. 135

the hones of the nose. They have four toes before, and five behind, all
armed with stout nails.

H. cristata, L. ; Buff. XII., pi. li and lii. (The Common Por-
cupine). Inhabits the south of Italy, Spain, and Sicily ; it is also
found in Barbary. The spines are very long, and annulated with
black and white ; a mane composed of long hairs occupies the head
and neck. The tail is short, and furnished with hollow truncated
tubes, suspended to slender pedicles, which make a noise when
shaken by the animal. The cbanfrin of the bony head is ex-
tremely convex. There are other species not very different, but
with a less convex head, in India and in Africa.

We separate from the true Porcupines the

Atherubus, Cuv.

Where neither the head nor the muzzle is inflated, and in which we
observe a long non-prehensile tail ; the toes are like those of the true
Porcupines.

Hyst. fascieulaia, L. ; Buff. VII. 77; Sclireb. 170.* (The
Pencil-tailed Porcupine). The upper part of the spines on the
back grooved, and the tail terminated by a bundle of flattened
horny slips, constricted from space to space.

Eretison, F. Cuv.

The Ursons have a flat cranium; the muzzle short, and not convex;
the tail of a middle size, and the spines short, and half hidden in the
hair. One species only is known, the

Hystrix dorsata, L. ; Buff. XII. Iv. (The Urson.) From
North America, f

Synetiieres, F. Cuv.

The muzzle short and thick ; the head vaulted in front, and the spines
short; the tail long, naked at the extremity, and prehensile, like that
of an Opossum or Sapajou. There are only four toes, all armed with
claws; they climb trees.

Hyst. prehensilis, L. ; Cuendu, Mar eg., Hoitztlaquatzin, Her-
nand.J (The Prehensile-tailed Porcupine, or Coendou) («). Hair of
a brownish -black ; spines black and white.

* This figure, copied from Seba, I, 52, i, is too short. That of Buff, is better,
but the slips at the end of the tail are not represented with sufficient distinctness.
We can conjecture no reason by which Do Blainville and Desmarets refer this spe-
cies to the genus of Rats; it has the teeth and other characters of the Porcupines,
external as well as internal.

f The protended Coendou of Buffon is also an Urson, but a disfigured specimen
that had lost its hair. Sec Buff. XII, 54.

X This word, in the Mexican language, means Spiny Opossum. It is the long
tailed Coendou of Buff Supp. VII, 78; but the muzzle in the figure is too short.
The figure of Hernandez conveys a much better idea of the animal.

3* («) The chief peculiarity of the Coendou is, that, with the chief peculiarities
of the Hodcntia, it possesses also a locomotive organ, of which all other species of
Rodentia have no trace. This is the prehensile tail, like some of the Simia, which,

MAMMALIA.

136

Hystrix insidiosa , Liclitenst. ; the Couiy of Azzara; Pr. Max.
Brazil. America possesses one smaller, of which the spines are
partly red or yellow, and hidden during a part of the year under its
long greyish-brown hair.

Lepus, Lin,

Hares have a very distinctive character in their superior incisors,
which are double, that is, each of them has a smaller one behind it *
Their molars, five every where, are individually formed of two vertical
laminae soldered together, and in the upper jaw there is a sixth, simple
and very small. They have five toes before and four behind; an enormous
caecum, five or six times the size of the stomach, furnished internally
with a spiral fillet, which traverses its length. The inside of their mouth
and the under part of the feet are lined with hairs like the rest of the
body.

Lepus, Cuv,

Or the true Hares, have long ears ; a short tail ; the hind feet much
longer than the fofe ones; imperfect clavicles, and the infra-orbitary
spaces in the skeleton reticulated. The species are numerous, and so
like each other that it is difficult to characterize them.

L. timidus, L. ; Buff. VII, xxxviii. (The Common Hare). Of
a yellowish grey; the ears one-tenth longer than the head; ash
coloured behind; black at the tips; tail the length of the thigh y
white, with a black line above.

Every one knows this animal, whose black flesh is agreeable food,
and whose fur is useful. It lives solitarily, never burrows, sleeps
on the open ground) when hunted describes large circles in the fields,
and has never yet been domesticated.

however, seems to be of little service to it, since it is heavy and ungraceful in its
movements. Besides, the tail has this great peculiarity, which is found in no other
animal, that the prehensile surface is above , instead of being as it uniformly is in all
other animals with a prehensile tail; so that, when employed by the Coendou, it Will
be seen to curve in a direction exactly the reverse of that which takes place in the
tails of the Simia. But the whole of its structure indicates its destiny to live in
the woods and on trees; to select its permanent residence on the tops of trees,
where it brings forth its young, because immediate nourishment is best attained in
such a position. The spines, which almost wholly compose the external coat of the
Coendou, adhere to the skin oy a very narrow pedicle ; they are therefore very easily
detached from the body. They are generally of a yellowish white colour at the root,
black in the middle, and at the extremity white. The length of the body of the
Coendou is about two feet, of the head four inches, of the tail a foot and three
inches, and the height of the middle of the body twelve inches. The movements of
the creature are slow, and it is like the Lemurs in taking exercise in the night only.
1 1 raises itself, as the Kanguroo does, on its hind feet, and with the fore feet grasps
and carries food to its mouth. The species of Porcupines are numerous — they are
found in Italy and Spain, having been originally brought to these kingdoms, as it is
said, from Africa; they are common on the Mediterranean coast of Africa, in
Guinea, and at the Cape of Good Hope; also in Asia Minor, South and North
America. A Crested Porcupine may be seen in the Zoological Gardens, Regent’s
Park, which is a native of Northern Africa, and had been naturalized in Italy. When
irritated, the Porcupine erects the spines on its body, and rattles those on its tail. — •
Eng. Ed.

* There is even a period, when they are shedding their teeth, during which they
appear to have three incisors, one behind the other, six in all.

RODENTIA.

137

L. variabilis, Pall., Schreb. CCXXXV, B. (The Variable
Hare), Somewhat larger than the Common Hare, with rather
shorter ears and tail, the latter white at all seasons; the rest of the
fur is grey in summer, and white in winter. This animal, which is
found in the north, and on the high mountains of the south of
Europe, has the habits of the common Hare, but its flesh is insipid.

L. cuniculus, L. ; Buff. VI, 1. (The Rabbit). Less than the
Hare; the ears somewhat shorter than the head; tail not so long as
the thigh; fur of a yellowish grey; some red on the neck; throat
and belly whitish ; ears grey, without any black ; some brown on
the tail. This animal, said to be originally from Spain, is now
spread throughout Europe. It lives in troops, in burrows, where it
takes refuge as soon as it is pursued. Its flesh, which is white and
agreeable, differs considerably from that of the Hare. In a domestic
state the Rabbit multiplies prodigiously, and varies as to colour and
fur.

Other countries furnish several species which can only be distin-
guished from that of Europe by the closest attention. Such are the
L. tolai , Gm., Schreb. CCXXXIV. The Siberian Rabbit).
Which is intermediate between the Hare and Rabbit as to propor-
tions, and which occasionally surpasses the former in size. It
makes no burrows, but seeks shelter in the clefts of rocks or other
cavities.

L. Americanus and Braziliensis, Gm. ; Lepus nanus, Schreb.
CCXXXIV, B. (The American Rabbit). Nearly similar in size
and colour to the European species; feet reddish; no black on either
ears or tail. Nestles in the trunks of trees, and frequently goes up
in their hollows as far as their branches; its flesh soft and insipid.*

L.capensis, Gm; Geoff., Quadr. d’Egypte. (The African Hare.)
Has ears a fifth longer than the head; size and colour nearly those
of the European species; the feet, however, are a little longer and
somewhat reddish. It appears to be found from one extremity of
Africa to the other; at least the one from Egypt does not differ
from that of the Cape.

Lagomys, Cuv.\

Have moderate ears; legs nearly alike: the infra-orbital hole simple;
clavicles nearly perfect, and no tail ; they often utter a very acute cry.
They have hitherto been found in Siberia only, and it is Pallas (Glir. p, 1
et seq.) who has described them.

Lepus pusillus, Pall. Glir. I, Schreb. ccxxxvii. (The Dwarf
Lagomys). Of a greyish-brown ; the size of a Water-Rat. Lives
in small burrows, in fertile countries, on fruit and buds.J

* Add the Black-necked Rabbit of India, &c.
f Lagomys , i. e. Rat- Hare.

| Pallas describes another still smaller species from the north-eastern extremity
of Asia, Lepus hyper boreus, Zoog. Russ. I, 152.

138

MAMMALIA,

Lepus ogotonna, Pall. Glir. Ill, Schreb. ccxxxix. (The Grey
Lagomys). A very light grey, with yellowish feet; a little larger
than the preceding ; nestles among heaps of stones, in the fissures
of rocks, &c., where it collects hay for the winter.

Lepus alpinus , Pall. Glir. II, Schreb. ccxxxviii. (The Lago-
mys Pica). Size of a Guinea-Pig, and of a yellowish red. Inha-
bits the loftiest eminences of mountains, where it passes the summer
in selecting and drying the plants of which it makes its provision for
the winter. Its hay-stacks, which are sometimes six or seven feet
high, are a valuable resource for the horses of the sable hunters.

The fossil bones of an unknown species of Lagomys have been
discovered in the concretions or osseous breccia of Corsica. Cuv.
Oss. Foss. IV, p. 199.

After the two genera of Porcupines and Hares, come the Rodentia,
united by Linnaeus and Pallas, under the name of Cavia ; but in which it
is impossible to find any other common and positive character than that
of their imperfect clavicles, although the species of which they are com-
posed are not deficient in analogy between them, as respects the structure
of their body and their habits. They are all from the new continent.

Hydrgchcerus, Erxleb.

The Cabiais have four toes before and three behind, all armed with
large nails, and united by membranes ; four grinders throughout, of which
the posterior are the longest, and composed of numerous, simple, and
parallel laminae ; the anterior laminae forked towards the external edge in
the upper, and towards the internal one in the lower teeth. Only one
species is known, the

II . capybara; Cavia capybara, L. ; Capybara, Marcg. ; Capiy-
goua, Azzar. ; Cabaia, Buff. XII, xlix. (The Capybara). Size of
Siam Pig; the muzzle very thick; limbs short; hair coarse, and of
a yellowish brown ; no tail. Inhabits the rivers of Guiana and the
Amazon, where it lives in troops. It is excellent game, and the
largest of the Rodentia. The Beaver only approaches it in size.

Cavia, Illig. — Ancema, Fr. Cuv .

The Cobayes, vulgarly called Guinea-Pigs, are miniature representa-
tions of the Cabiais; but their toes are separated, and each of their
molars has only one simple lamina, and one that is forked on the outside
in the upper ones, and on the inside in the lower. The species best
known,

C. cobaia, Pall.; Mus porcellus, L. ; Buff. VIII. i. (The Gui-
nea Pig) is now very much multiplied in Europe, where it is brought
up in houses, because its odour is thought to drive away rats. Like
all domesticated animals, it varies in colour. There is reason for
believing it to proceed from an American animal called Aperea ,
which is of the same size and form, but with a uniform reddish-grey
fur. It is found in the woods of Brazil and Paraguay.

RODENTIA.

139

Kerodon, Fred. Cuv.

The Mocos have rather simpler grinders than the Cobayes, each being
formed of two triangular prisms.

The only species known is also from Brazil, somewhat surpasses
the Guinea-Pig in size, and is of an olive-grey.

Chloromys, Fr. Cuv. — Dasyprgcta, Illig .

The Agoutis have four toes before and three behind; four grinders
throughout, almost equal, with flat crowns irregularly furrowed, rounded
borders, notched on the internal edge in the upper jaw, and on the exter-
nal one in the lower. In disposition, and in the nature of their flesh,
they resemble Hares and Rabbits, which they may be said to replace in
the Antilles and tropical portions of America.

C.acuti; Cavia acuii , L.; Buff. VIII. 1. 1, (The Common
Agouti). The tail reduced to a simple tubercle ; fur brown. The
male fawn coloured on the croup ; as large as a Hare.

C. acuchi ; Cavia acuchi , Gm. ; Buff. Supp. III. xxxvi. (The
Acouchi). Six or seven vertebrae in the tail; brown above, fawn
coloured beneath ; size of a Hare.

C. patagonicus ; Cavia patagonica, Penn, and Schreb. ; the
Pampas Hare of the Creoles of Buenos Ayres. This animal
appears to be a species of Agouti, with longer ears, and a very
short naked tail ; but its molars are not known.

CtELOGENYS, Fr, Cuv .*•

The Pacas, in addition to teeth very like those of the Agoutis, have a
very small additional toe on the internal edge of the fore foot, and one on
each side, equally small, on their hinder one, making five toes every
where. Besides this, there is a cavity formed in their cheek which dips
under the border formed by a very large and projecting zygomatic arch,'j'
which gives a very extraordinary aspect to the bony head. Their flesh
is said to be very good.

There is one species or variety fawn coloured, and another brown,
both of which are spotted with white, the Cavia paca, L. ; Buff. X,
xliii. ; Suppc III. xxxv.

Finally, there remains an animal perhaps nearly allied to the Cavias,
and possibly more so to the Lagomys, or the Rats, which we are unable
dispose of, on account of our ignorance of its teeth : this is the Chin-
chilla, whose skins arrive in such abundance for furriers, but of which
we have never yet been able to procure the entire body. It is the size of
a Guinea-Pig or small Rabbit ; is covered with long and close hair of the

* Ancc.ma , without strength; Chloromys , yellow rat; Dasyprocla, hairy buttock;
Coeloyciiys, hollow check; llydrochccrus, water-pig.

f Dr. Harlan (Faun. Americ. p. 12G) has made a new genus from a head pre-
served in the Philadelphia Museum, which he names Ostc opera ; but, from the de-
scription, it appears to us to be nothing more than that of the Paca. Desmarets has
already made the same observation.

140

MAMMALIA.

finest description, and the softest that is known among the furs of com-
merce. The ears are large and half naked; the tail, one-third the
length of the body, is furnished with stiffer hairs, so arranged as to give
it the appearance of being laterally compressed. The fore feet have
four toes with a vestige of a thumb; the hinder ones have only three.
This quadruped inhabits the mountains of South America.

The Viscache, as described by Azzara (Q,uadr. du Parag., French
Trans. II, p. 41), and such as we have seen it figured, can hardly be
any other than a large species of Chinchilla , with shorter and coarser
fur.* (a.)

ORDER VI.

EDENTATA.

The Edentata, or quadrupeds without teeth in the front of their jaws,
will form our last order of unguiculated animals. Although united by a
negative character alone, they have, nevertheless, some positive mutual
relations, and particularly large nails, which embrace the extremities of
the toes, approaching more or less to the nature of hoofs : and further, a
slowness, a want of agility, arising from the disposition of their limbs,
which is easily to be seen : but these relations still leave certain gaps be-
tween them, which are of sufficient importance to require that this order
should be divided into three tribes.

TARDIGRADA. *

The Tardigrades form the first: they have a short face. Their name
originates from their excessive slowness, the consequence of a construc-
tion truly heteroclite, in which nature seems to have amused herself by
producing something imperfect and grotesque. The only genus yet in
existence is

* The figures were communicated to us by M. Hamilton Smith and M. Brookes.
It is the animal described under the name of Gerboise geante, by De Blainville, in
Desmarets’ Mammal. 315, and Nouv. Diet. d’Hist. Nat. XIII., 117, and figured in
the English translation of the present work, under that of Marmot Diana.

(a) Several Chinchillas have been presented to the Zoological Gardens in
London. As these were natives of the Alpine valleys of Chili, an early specimen
was treated in winter with artificial warmth, and even a piece of flannel was placed
in its apartment; but this it shewed a disposition uniformly to reject. These
animals have proved to be tranquil, and capable of being easily tamed. Their food
consisted of dry herbage, various grains, and succulent roots. On one occasion, one
Chinchilla, recently presented, was placed in the same cage with another which had
been some time in the possession of the Society. The latter immediately flew upon
the new comer, who would have fallen a victim to jealousy, had not the keeper inter-
fered, and separated the combatants. This fact is in direct opposition to the descrip-
tion of Molina, who says that the Chinchillas are gregarious. — Eng. Ed.

EDENTATA.

141

Bradypus, Lin .

The Sloths have cylindrical molars, and sharp canines longer than
those molars, two mammas on the breast, and fingers united by the skin,
and only marked externally by enormous compressed and crooked nails,
which, when at rest, are always bent towards the palm of the hand, or
the sole of the foot. The hind feet are obliquely articulated on the leg,
and rest only upon their outer edge; the phalanges of the toes are
articulated by a close ginglymus (a)\ and the first, at a certain age,
become soldered to the bones of the metacarpus or metatarsus, which
also, in time, for want of use, experience the same fate. To this incon-
venience in the organization of the extremities is added another, not less
great, in their proportions. The arm and fore-arm are much longer than
the thigh and leg, so that., when these animals walk, they are compelled to
drag themselves along on their elbows. The pelvis is so large, and their
thighs so much inclined to the sides, that they cannot approximate their
knees. Their gait is the necessary effect of such a disproportioned
structure.* They live on trees, and never remove from the one they are-
on until they have stripped it of every leaf, so painful to them is the
requisite exertion to reach another. It is even asserted that to avoid the
trouble of a regular descent, they let themselves fall from a branch. The
female produces but a single young one at a birth, which she carries on
her back.

The viscera of these animals are not less singular than the rest of
their conformation. The stomach is divided into four sacks, analogous
to the four stomachs of the Ruminantia, but without leaflets or other
internally salient parts, while the intestinal canal is short and without
a caecum.

M. Fr. Cuvier applies the name of Acheus to those species that have
three nails to the fore feet; they have a very short tail.

Bradypus tridactylus, L. ; Buff. XIII. v and vi. (The Ai)(6). A
species in which sluggishness and all the details of the organiza-
tion which produce it are carried to the highest degree. The thumb

* M. Carlisle has observed that the arteries of the limbs commence by splitting
into an infinitude of ramifications, which afterwards unite in one trunk, from which
the usual branches proceed. This structure being met with in the Loris, whose gait
is almost equally sluggish, it is possible that it may exert some influence on this
slowness of motion. Independently of this, the Loris, the Ourang-Outang, the
Coaita, all very slow animals, are remarkable for the length of their arms.

(a) Ginglymus is a form of joint which resembles a hinge, and exists
amongst animals under two forms. In the first one of the bones has a pulley like
surface into which the other bone completing the joint is received. This is the
state of the knee and elbow joints in the human body, and it has received the name
of the angular ginglymus. The lateral or rotatory ginglymus is constituted by such
a union as admits of the convex eud or process of one bone in a hollow of another.
— Eng. Ed.

0SjgT (&) The name of Ai is given to the animal, because the plaintive sound
which it emits is exactly imitated by pronouncing the vowels n and ?. In falling
from the branch, as is described above, this animal first rolls itself into a round ball;
and, previously to its fall, it may be taken whilst it is attached to the branch, so
great is its apathy. — Eng. Ed.

M2

MAMMALIA.

and the little toe, reduced to small rudiments, are hidden under the
skin, and soldered to the metatarsus and metacarpus ; the clavicle,
also reduced to a rudiment, is firmly united in the acromion. The
arms are double the length of the legs ; the hair on the head, back,
and limbs, is long, coarse, and inelastic, something like dried hay,
which gives it a hideous aspect. . Its colour is grey, the back being
frequently spotted with white and brown. It is as large as a Cat,
and is the only mammiferous animal known which has nine cervical
vertebras.

There is an Ai called the Burned Back Ai, from the circumstance
of having between the shoulders a black spot, surrounded with fawn
colour; but, according to Temminck, it is only a variety; the ap-
pearance alluded to resulting from the wearing away of the long hair
on the shoulder. The Black Collared Ai , however, — Brad, tor-
quatus, Geoff. Ann. Mus., Schreb. LXXIY, A, is a species that is
very distinct, even in the bony structure of the head.

M. Fr. Cuvier applies the name of Bradypus to those species only
which have two nails to the fore feet, the CnoLiEPus, Illig. Their ca-
nines are larger and more pointed, and they are wholly destitute of a tail.
There is but one known.

B. didactylus, L. ; Buff. XIII, i. (The Unau). Vfhich is
somewhat less unfortunately organized than the Ai. Its arms are
not so long, and its clavicles are complete ; there are fewer bones of
the feet and hands which become soldered together ; the muzzle is
more elongated, &c. It is larger than the Ai by one half, and is of
a uniform greyish-brown, which sometimes assumes a reddish tint.

These two animals are natives of the hot parts of America, and,
long ere this, would probably have been destroyed by the numerous
Carnivora of that country, had they not possessed some means of de-
fence in their nails.*

Fossil skeletons of two animals of the order Edentata, of great size, have
been discovered in America, one of which, the Megatherium (<z), Cuv.
Oss. Foss. Tom. v. Parti, p. 174, has a head very similar to that of the
sloths, but is deficient in the canines, and approaches, in the remainder

* It is singular that the B. dydactylus was not known before the time of Seba, and
that for a long time naturalists obstinately persisted in referring it, on the authority
of that ignorant collector, to Ceylon. Erxleben has maintained its African origin,
having mistaken it for the Poto of Bosmann, which is a Galago. (See this last ge-
nus). It is a fact that the Unau is only found in South America.

Shaw, Gen. Zool., under the name of Brad, ursinus, has described an animal of
which Illiger has made his genus Prochylus. M. Buchanan, Trav. in the Mysore,
Yol. II. p. 198, has shewn it to be a true bear; and in fact we have satisfied our-
selves, by inspecting the cranium of the very individual described by Shaw, that it
was a bear of the species termed thick-lipped, which had lost its incisors. See Ursus ,
&c.

(5gr (a) The Megatherium is described as of the size of the Rhinoceros, uniting
part of the structure of the Armadillo with that of the Sloth, and having claws of
vast length. The Megalonix was an animal of the same description, but somewhat
smaller. — Eng. Ed.

EDENTATA.

143

of tlie skeleton, partly the sloths, and partly the ant-eaters. It is twelve
feet long, and six or seven high. The other, the Megalonyx, lb. p.
1G0, is rather smaller, and the toes are the only parts of it that are well
known, but they strongly resemble those of the preceding.

The second tribe comprehends the

EDENTATA ORDINARXA,

Or the Ordinary Edentata, with a pointed muzzle. Individuals amongst
them still have molars. They form two genera.

Dasypus, Lin.

The Armadillos, or Tatous,* are very remarkable among all the Mam-
malia, by the scaly and hard shell, formed of compartments resembling
little paving-stones, which covers their head and body, and frequently
their tail. This substance forms a shield over the forehead, another very
large and convex over the shoulders, a third on the croup, similar to the
second, and between the two latter, several parallel and moveable bands,
which allow the body to bend. The tail is at one time furnished with
successive rings, and at another, like the legs, merely with several tuber-
cles. These animals have large ears, and sometimes four, and at others
five great nails before, but always five behind. The muzzle is pointed,
the grinders are cylindrical, seven or eight in number throughout, separ-
ated from each other, and without enamel on the inside. The tongue is
smooth, and but slightly extensible, and there are a few scattered hairs
between their scales, or on those parts of the body not covered by the
shell. They dig for themselves burrows, and live partly on vegetables,
and partly on insects and dead bodies ; their stomach is simple, and there
is no caecum. They all belong to the hot, or at least to the temperate
parts of America.

They may be divided into subgenera according to the structure of their
fore feet and the number of their teeth. Most of them have only four
toes to the anterior feet, the two middle ones of which are the longest.
In this number some

Cachicamus, Cuv.

Cachicames have only seven teeth on each side, and in each jaw.
The muzzle is pointed; the tail long, and encircled with bony rings;
such is

Dasypis novemeinctus, L. ; Cachicliame , Buff. X, xxxvii; Tatou
a longue queue , Id. Supp. Ill, lviii; Tatuete , Schreb. lxxiii ; Taiu-
peba, Margr. (The Nine-banded, or Black Armadillo). With
nine, sometimes eight intermediate bands, generally blackish; the
body fifteen inches in length, and the tail the same.

Das. 7-cinctvs; Schreb. LNXII; Tatou mulct , Azzar. (The

* Tatou is their Brazilian name. The Spaniards called them Armadillo, from
their armour; the Portuguese, Encuberto , for the same reason. They are also called
Quirquincho. Dasypus (hairy feet) was one of the Grecian appellatives of the hare

or rabbit.

1U

MAMMALIA.

Seven-banded Armadillo). Has only seven bands, and is smaller ;
its tail, also, is proportionably shorter.

Apara, Cuv.

Tbe Apars have the toes of the Cachicames, and nine or ten teeth
throughout.

Das tricinctus, L. ; Tatou Apara, Margr. ; Apar, Buff. ; Mataco ,
Azzar. ; Schreb. LXXI, A. (The Three-banded Armadillo). Has
three intermediate bands ; tail very short, and the compartments re-
gularly tuberculated. By enclosing its head and feet between its
plates, it possesses the faculty of rolling itself into a complete ball,
like certain species of Oniscus. It is from Paraguay and Brazil,
and is one of those found farthest to the south. Size middling.
Other Tatous, as the Encouberts,

Encoubertus, Cuv.,

Have five toes to the fore feet, the three middle of which are the longest.
The greater part of their tail is covered with scales, arranged in quincunx.
There are nine or ten teeth throughout. In this subdivision is

Dasyp. sexcynctus and octodecimcinctus, L. : Encoubert and Cir-
quinson, Buff. ;* Tatou poyou, Azzar. ; Buff. X. xlii, and Supp. III.
xlii. The Six-banded Armadillo, or Encoubert (a), is distinguished

* The Weasel-headed Tatou of Grew; Cirquinson of Buff. ; Das. octodecimcinctus, L.,
is the Encoubert, or Six-banded Armadillo; but Grew considered the rows of scales on
the croup as movable. If we count them we shall find hut sixteen, and his own
figure exhibits no more.

gggr (a) This is the Weasel-headed Armadillo, D. mustelinus, called Poyou (Yel-
low-handed), and Encoubert by the French. One of these Armadilloes was recently
in the Zoological Gardens, Regent’s Park, the habits of which, as carefully observed,
very much resemble those of an Encoubert, in the Jardin des Plantes of Paris,
which have been very well described by M. Fred. Cuvier. Before giving the descrip-
tion of this naturalist, we may observe, that the specimen in our Zoological Gardens
bred young ones there without the slightest inconvenience. This is an animal, per-
haps, the most easy of all to transport from its native climate of South America, and
it may be useful to captains of vessels plying on that station to be informed that a
little food (it is not much matter if it be animal or vegetable), with milk, will satisfy
this animal, and it can also endure, without any loss of health, very close confine-
ment. M. F. Cuvier, in his able history of the Mammalia, gives the fullowing ac-
count of the specimen to which we have just alluded: — “ Were we to judge of the
intellectual faculties of the species by the individual now under consideration, wc
should conclude the Encoubert possesses them in a very limited degree. When he
is set at liberty, he goes running to the right and to the left, digging in one corner,
and then suddenly stopping to run and scratch in another. A sudden noise startles
him; he stops to listen, but he does not seem to perceive the presence of a new oh.
ject, nor to distinguish a person from a stone; when he runs, he goes indiscrimi-
nately against every thing in his way, and passes over it, or by the side of it, with
equal indifference, whether the obstacle be a piece of wood, or an animal. His in-
difference in this respect is such, that I should be inclined to attribute it only to his
inexperience, to the contiuual slavery in which he had lived, and to the habit he had
contracted, of being touched and carried about in the hand from one place to another.
But he never learnt to distinguish the hand that fed him, and remained as unfamiliar
with the person who had the care of him as with any other individual. In this re-
spect I cannot compare him better, than to the animals of the lower classes; yet.

EDENTATA.

145

from all the rest of the genus by having a tooth on each side in the
intermaxillary bone. The shell has six or seven bands ; its com-
partments are smooth, large, and angular ; the tail is of a middling
length, and annulated only at the base ; there are five toes to each
foot. The Pichiy , D’Azzara, would resemble the Encoubert, only
that its intermaxillary bone has no teeth, that its posterior shield is
denticulated, and that the parts not defended by the shell are fur-
nished with longer and more thickly set hairs than the others. A
neighbouring species is the Hairy Tatou of Azzara. A third subdi-
vision of the Tatous, or the

Cabassous, Cuv .,

\

Has five toes to the fore feet, but directed obliquely, so that the' thumb
and index are slender, and the latter the longest ; the middle one has an
enormous trenchant nail ; the following one has also a nail, but a shorter
one, and the last toe is the shortest of all. This form of the fore foot
enables these animals to divide the earth, and burrow into it with rapidity,
or at any rate to cling to it with such tenacity that it is extremely difficult
to tear them from it. They have but eight or nine teeth on each side,
and in each jaw.

Das. unicinctus, L. ; Le Cabas-sou propre, Buff. ; Tatouay , Azz.
(The Tatouay of D’Azzara). Has twelve intermediate bands ; the
tail long and tuberculous ; the compartments of the bands and shields
square, broader than long ; five toes every where, of which the four
anterior have enormous nails with trenchant external edges. It at-
tains a great size.

Priodontes, Fr. Cuv.

These, with toes still more unequal, and with nails more enormous than
those of the Cabassous, have throughout as many as twenty-two or twen-
ty-four small teeth — ninety -four or ninety-six in all. Such is the

Dasypus yigas, Cuv.; Tatou geant, Geoff. ; Great Tatou, Azzar.
Deuxieme Cabassou , Buffi X. xlv. (The Giant Armadillo). Twelve
or thirteen intermediate bands ; the tail long, and covered with tiled
scales ; the compartments square, more broad than long. It is the
largest of the Tatous, being sometimes more than three feet in length,
exclusive of the tail.

Finally, we should place after the other Tatous, as a very distinct sub-
genus, the Clamyphores.

Clamyphorus, Harl.,

Which have ten teeth throughout, and five toes to each foot ; the nails of
the fore feet very large, crooked, and compressed, furnishing, as in the
Cabassous, a powerfully trenchant instrument. The back is covered with
a suite of transverse rows of scaly plates, without any solid shell before or
behind, forming a sort of cuira which is only attached to the body along
the spine. The hinder part of the body is truncated, and their curved

there aro even among the insects, some which seem to have received the faculty of
judging and of discriminating in a higher degree than this animal. — Eng. Ed.

VOL. I. I,

146

MAMMALIA,

tail partially attached to the under part of the body.* * * § One species only
is known, the

C. trudcatus , Harl.,f which is five or six inches in length, and is
found in the interior of Chili, where it passes the most of its time
under ground.

It appears that the fossil bones of a Tatou of gigantic size, being ten
feet long exclusive of the tail, have been found in America. See Cuv.
Oss. Foss. V. part 1, p. 191, note.

Orycteropus,:]: Geoff.

The Orycteropes were for a long time confounded with the Ant-Eaters,
because they consumed the same kind of food, had the same form of head,
and a tongue somewhat extensible ; but they are distinguished from them
by being furnished with grinders and flat nails, formed for digging, and
not trenchant. The structure of their teeth differs from that of all other
quadrupeds ; they are solid cylinders traversed like reeds, in a longitudi-
nal direction, with an infinitude of little canals. Their stomach is simple,
and muscular near the pylorus, their caecum small and obtuse. There is
only one species known.

Gryct. capensis ; Myrmecophega capensis, Pall.; Buff. Supp. VI.
xxxi. (The Cape Orycteropus). Called by the Dutch of that co-
lony, the Earth Pig. It is an animal about the size of the badger,
or larger ; stands low ; has short hair, and is of a brownish-grey.
The tail is not so long as the body, and is covered with equally short
hairs. It has four toes before, and five behind. Inhabits holes,
which it excavates with great facility. The flesh is eaten.

The other ordinary Edentata have no grinders, and, consequently, no
teeth of any description. They also form two genera.

Myrmecophaga, Lin .

The Ant-Eaters are hairy animals, with a long muzzle terminated by a
small toothless mouth, from which is protruded a filiform tongue suscep-
tible of considerable elongation, and which they insinuate into Ant-hills
and the nests of the Termites, whence these insects are withdrawn by be-
ing entangled in the viscid saliva that covers it. The nails of the fore
feet, strong and trenchant, and varying in number according to the species,
serve to tear up the nests of the termites, and afford a good means of de-
fence. When at rest these nails are always half bent inwards, corre-
sponding to a callosity of the tarsus ; hence the animal can only bring the
side of the foot to the ground. The stomach of the ant-eater is simple
and muscular towards its pylorus ; their intestinal canal moderate, and
without a caecum. §

* We only know this animal by the description of Dr. Harlan, Ann. of the New
York Lyc. I. p. 235, and pi. xxi.

f Its osteology, as given by M. Yarael (Zool. Journ. No. 12), is closely allied to
that of the Cabassous. Over each eye-brow there is a singular ridge.

X Orycteropus, which has the feet fitted for digging.

§ Daubenton has discovered in the M. didactyla two very small appendages, which,
in strictness, may be considered as caeca. I have ascertained that there are none
in the Tamandua.

EDENTATA.

147

They all inhabit the hot and temperate parts of the new world, and pro-
duce but a single young one at birth, which they carry on their back (a).

M.jubata , Buff. X. xxxix, and Supp. III. Iv. (The Tamanoir).
More than four feet long, with four nails before and five behind; the
tail is furnished with long hairs vertically directed, both above and
beneath ; the fur is of a greyish-brown, with an oblique black band
edged with white on each shoulder. It is the largest of the ant-
eaters ; and it is asserted that it even defends itself against the ja-
guar. It inhabits low places, never climbs trees, and moves slowly.

M. tamandua, Cuv. ; M. tetradactyla , and M. tridactyla, L. ;
Schreb. LXVI. (The Tamandua). Has the form and feet of th$
preceding, but less than half its size ; the tail, on which the hair is
short, is prehensile and naked at the end, and enables the animal to
suspend itself to the branches of trees. Some of them are of a yel-
lowish-grey, with an oblique band on the shoulder that is only visible
by a reflected light ; others are fawn-coloured with a black band;
some are fawn-coloured and striped, with the croup .and belly black ;
and, finally, some are entirely blackish. Whether these differences
belong to species or not is as yet unknown.

M. didactyla, L. ; Buff. X. xxx. (The Two-toed Ant-eater).
The size of a rat, with woolly hair, fawn-coloured ; a red line along
the back : the tail is prehensile, and naked at the end ; only two
nails before, one of which is very large ; four behind.*

Manis, Lin .

The Pangolins,,f commonly called the Scaly Ant-eaters, are destitute
of teeth, have a very extensible tongue, and live on ants and termites like
true ant-eaters ; but their body, limbs, and tail, are clothed with large
trenchant scales arranged like tiles, which they elevate in rolling them-
selves into a ball when they wish to defend themselves from an enemy.
There are five toes to each foot. Their stomach is slightly divided in the
middle, and there is no cascum. They are confined to the old continent.

M. pentadactyla, L. ; M. brachyura , Erxl, ; Buff. X. xxxiv.
(The Short-tailed Pangolin). Three or four feet long; the tail
shorter than the body. From the East Indies. It is the Phattagen
of jElian, lib. xvi. cap. vi.

M. tetradactyla , L. ; M. macroura, Erxl. ; Phatagin , Buff. X.

* The Myrme. tridactyla, L. ; Seba, pi. F., is only a Tamandua badly drawn. The
M. striata, Shaw, Fuff. Supp. III. pi. Ivi, is a coati, disfigured by the stuffer.

t Pangoeling, according to Seba, in the language of Java, signifies an animal that
rolls itself into a ball. In Bengal it is called Badgarkita or Stone Reptile; it is also
called the Land Carp. The Dutch sailors called it the Devil of Formosa.

E3F* (a) The great Ant-eater commences his task by scratching with his long
claws the ant-hill, and then with the filiform tongue, which is mentioned by Cuvier,
and which may be elongated to an extent of more than two feet, and wet with saliva,
lie receives the ants: they quickly and completely cover the tongue, which he then
withdraws, swallowing myriads in a single gulp. This process is repeated until no
more ants arc to be found. The ant-eater climbs trees also for woodlice and wild
honey.— Eng. Ed.

148

MAMMALIA.

xxxiv. (The Long-tailed Pangolin). Three or four feet in length ;
the tail double that of the body, and the scales armed with points.
From Senegal, Guinea, &C.*

The third tribe of the Edentata comprehends those animals, designated
by M. Geoffroy, under the name of

Monotremata.

So called, because they have only one external opening for the seminal
fluid, urine, and other excrements. Their organs of generation present
extraordinary anomalies ; for though they have no pouch under the belly,
their pubis is furnished with the same supernumerary bones as the Mar-
supialia; the vasa deferentia terminate in the urethra which opens into
cloaca; the penis, when at rest, is drawn into a sheath, which opens by a
hole near the bottom of the cloaca. The only matrix consists of two
canals or trunks, each of which opens separately and by a double orifice
into the urethra, which is very large, and terminates in the cloaca. As
naturalists have not yet agreed as to the existence of their mammae, f
whether they are oviparous or viviparous remains to be ascertained. J
The singularities of their skeleton are not less remarkable; a sort of
clavicule especially, which is common to both shoulders, placed before the
ordinary clavicle, and analogous to the fourchette in birds. Finally, be-
sides their five nails to each foot, the males have a peculiar spur on the
hinder ones, perforated by a canal, which transmits the liquid secreted by
a gland situated on the inner surface of the thigh. It is asserted,
that the wounds it inflicts are envenomed. These animals have no ex-
ternal conch to their ears, and their eyes are very small.

The Monotremata are only found in New Holland, and have only been
discovered since the settlement of the English. Two genera of them are
known.

Echidna, Cuv . — Tachyglossus, lllig .

The elongated slender muzzle of the Spiny Ant-eaters, terminated by

* We have verified the habitat of the Long-tailed Pangolin, by the statement of
M. Adanson and other travellers.

f M. Meckel considers as such, two glandular masses he found greatly developed
in a female Ornithorhynchus. M. Geoffroy thinks they are rather glands, analogous
to those on the flanks of the Shrews.

X Travellers have lately asserted, that it has been ascertained that these animals
produce eggs. Should this prove to be the case, the Monotremata must, in some
sort, be considered as a separate class of animals; but it is to be wished that some
able anatomist would exactly describe these eggs, their internal origin, and their
development after being produced. We must expect it from some one among the
numerous physicians who daily visit the colony of Port Jackson. As to the anatomy
of the Ornithorhynchus, see the detailed monography on that subject, published by
M. Meckel, also the Memoirs of Sir Ev. Home, my Lessons of Comparative
Anatomy, Yol. V., and the Memoirs of Geoffroy St. Hilaire, Mem. du Mus.
tome XV.

EDENTATA.

149

a small mouth, contains an extensible tongue similar to that of the Ant-
Eaters and Pangolins, and like these, they feed on Ants. They have no
teeth, but their palate is furnished with several rows of small recurved
spines. Their short feet have each five very long and stout nails fitted
for digging; and the whole upper surface of the body is covered with
spines like that of the Hedgehog. It appears, that when in danger, they
also possess the faculty of rolling themselves into a ball. Their tail is
very short; their stomach ample and almost globular, and their caecum
moderate; the penis is terminated by four tubercles. There are two
species.

E. hystrix; Ornithorkynchus hystrix, Home; Myrmecophaga
aculeata, Shaw. (The Spiny Echidna). Completely covered with
large spines.

E. setosa ; Ornithor. setosus, Home. (The Bristly Echidna).
Is covered with hair, among which the spines are half hidden.
Some naturalists consider it as a mere variety from age.

i

Ornithorhynchus, Blumemb. — Platypus, Shaw .

The elongated, and at the same time singularly enlarged and flattened
muzzle of the Ornithorhynchi presents the closest external resemblance
to the bill of a duck, and the more so as its edges are similarly furnished
with a small transverse laminae. They have no teeth except at the bot-
tom of the mouth, where there are two throughout, without roots, with
flat crowns, and composed like those of the Orycteropus, of little vertical
tubes. There is a membrane to the fore feet, which not only unites the
toes, but extends far beyond the nails; in the hind feet the membrane
terminates at the root of the nails; two characters, which, with the flat-
tened tail, make them aquatic animals. Their tongue is in a manner
double : one in the bill bristled with villosities ; and a second on the base
of the first, which is thicker, and furnished anteriorly with two little
fleshy points. The stomach is small, oblong, and has the pylorus near
the cardia. The caecum is small ; and many salient and parallel laminae
are visible in the intestines. The penis has only two tubercles. The
Ornithorhynchi inhabit the rivers and marshes of New Holland, in the
neighbourhood of Port Jackson.

Two species only are known, one with smooth, thin, reddish fur,
the Ornithorhyncus paradoxus (a), Blumemb., and the other with
blackish-brown, flat and frizzled hair. Probably these are only
varieties of age. Voy. de Peron. I. pi. xxxiv.

Igsgr (a) The problem which is here alluded to remains up to the present time
unsolved ; at least, the state of the controversy is this — that whilst several naturalists,
those who examined the animal formerly, and in our own day, agree that it belongs
to the Mammalia, it is contended by one, the most experienced of them all, we al-
lude to Geoffroy St. Hilaire, that there is nothing in its anatomy to justify such a
decision. The very recent investigations of Mr. Richard Owen, of the Royal Col-
lege of Surgeons, have led him to bear testimony to the existence of the milk glands
for supporting the young. In five instances he has seen these glands under different
degrees of development, and describes an areola on the external surface of the skin
on the glands, consisting of minute orifices, from which, in one instance, he was
able by pressure to extract drops of oil, and which he found by injection to be con-
tinuous with minute passages through the lobules constituting the gland. The

150

MAMMALIA.

ORDER VII.

PACHYDERMATA.

The Edentata terminate the species of unguiculated animals, and we
have just seen that there are some of them whose nails are so large, and
so envelope the extremities of the toes, as to approximate them, in a cer-
tain degree, to the hoofed animals. They still, however, possess the
faculty of bending these toes round various objects, and of seizing with
more or less force. The total deficiency of this faculty characterizes the
hoofed animals. Using their feet merely as supporters, they are never
furnished with clavicles; their fore-arm is always in a state of pronation,
and they are reduced to the necessity of feeding on vegetables. Their
forms, like their habits, present much less variety than those of the Un~
guiculata, and they can hardly be divided into more than two orders,
those which ruminate, and those which do not; but these latter, which W3
designate collectively by the term Pachydermata, admit of a subdivision
into families.

The first is that of the Pachydermata, which have a proboscis and
tusks.

FAMILY I.

PRQBOSCXDIANA*

The Proboscidians have five toes to each foot, very complete in the
skeleton, but so encrusted by the callous skin which surrounds the foot,
that their only external appearance is in the nails attached to the edge of
this species of hoof. They have no canines or incisors, properly so called,
but in their incisive bone are implanted two tusks, which project from the
mouth, and frequently attain to an enormous size. The magnitude re-

* The Proboscidians have various affinities with certain Rodentia; 1, their great
incisors; 2, their grinders frequently composed of parallel laminae; 3, the form, of
several of their bones, &c.

absence of a nipple has been offered as a reason against the supposition that the
young of this creature are fed from the mother’s breast; but anatomical examinations
have demonstrated that such appendages are by no means indispensable to such a
process, and the manner in which the breast of the Ornithorhyncus is formed justi-
fies the belief, that by muscular pressure against the ribs alone, the milk, or what-
ever be the nature of the fluid, may flow out in sufficient quantity for the wants of
the young. A warm controversy is still carried on between M. Geoffroy and Mr.
Owen, but all the new facts which are now in course of being collected respecting
this animal, seem to strengthen the opinion of its being mammiferous. — Eng. Ed.

PACIIYDERMATA.

151

quisite for the alveoli of these tusks renders the upper jaw so high, and so
shortens the hones of the nose ; that tne nostrils in the skeleton are
placed near the top of the face ; but in the living animal they are con-
tinued out into a cylindrical trunk, or proboscis, composed of several
thousands of small muscles, variously interlaced, extremely flexible, en-
dowed with the most exquisite sensibility, and terminated by an appendage
resembling a finger. This trunk gives to the Elephant almost as much
skill as the perfect state of his hand confers on the Monkey. With it he
seizes every thing he wishes to convey to his mouth, and pumps up his
drink, which he instantly jerks into his gullet, curving this admirable
organ in it, and in this manner supplies the necessity of a long neck,
which would be utterly unable to support his vast head and heavy tusks.
Within the parietes of the cranium, however, are several great cavities,
which render the head lighter; the lower jaw has no incisors whatever ;
the intestines are very voluminous, the stomach simple, caecum enormous,
and the mammae, two in number, placed under the chest. The young
suck with the mouth, and not with the trunk.

But one living genus of the Prohoscidiana is known, that of

Elephas, Lin .

Or the Elephant,* which comprehends the largest of the terrestrial
Mammalia. The astonishing nature of his trunk, an instrument at once
agile and powerful, the organ of touch as well as of smell, forms a singu-
lar contrast with his clumsy aspect and heavy proportions ; and as this is
joined to a very imposing physiognomy, it has contributed to give exag-

* The ancient history, as given by Cuvier, is extremely curious. “ Homer speaks
frequently of ivory, but knew not the animal whence it was derived. The first of
the Greeks who saw the elephant, were Alexander and his soldiers, when they fought
with Porus; and they must have observed them well, for Aristotle gives a complete
history of this animal, and much truer in its details than those of our moderns.
After the death of Alexander, Antigonus possessed the greatest number of elephants.
Pyrrhus first brought them into Italy 472 years after the foundation of Rome: they
were disembarked at Tarentum. The Romans, to whom these animals were entirely
strange, gave them the name of Leucanian Bulls. Curius Dentatus, who captured
four of these animals from Pyrrhus, brought them to Rome for the ceremony of his
triumph. These were the first which were there exhibited, but afterwards they be-
came in some measure common. Metellus having vanquished the Carthaginians in
Sicily, conducted their elephants to Rome on rafts, to the number of a hundred and
twenty according to Seneca, of a hundred and forty -two according to Pliny. Clau-
dius Pulcher had combats of the elephant in the circus in 655; and similar combats,
either of elephant against elephant, of the elephant against the rhinoceros, the bull,
or the gladiator, were exhibited by Lucullus, Pompey, Caesar, Claudius, and Nero.
Pompey harnessed them to his car during his triumph for Africa. Germanicus ex-
hibited some which danced in a rude fashion. In the reign of Nero they were seen
to dance on a rope, carrying at the same time a Roman knight. One may read in
./Elian the extraordinary feats they were brought to execute. It is true they were
trained to them from their earliest age, and ./Elian says even, expressly, that these
dancing elephants were brought forth at Rome. This assertion, with the confirma-
tion it has received in our own day from the experiments of Mr. Corse, leads us to
hope it will be possible to multiply this useful animal in a state of domestication.'*

152

MAMMALIA.

gerated notions of the intelligence of these animals. After studying
them for a long time, we have not found it to surpass that of the Dog, or
of many other carnivorous animals. Naturally of a mild disposition,
Elephants live in herds, which are conducted by old males. Their food
is strictly vegetable.

Their distinctive character consists in the grinders, the bodies of which
are composed of a certain number of vertical laminae, each one being
formed of a bony substance, enveloped with enamel, and cemented toge-
ther by a third substance, called cortical ; in a word, similar to those we
have already seen to exist in the Cabiais and other Rodentia. These
grinders succeed each other, not vertically, or as our permanent teeth
succeed the milk ones, but from behind forwards, so that as fast as one
tooth becomes worn, it is pushed forward by that which comes after it ;
hence it happens that the Elephant has sometimes one, sometimes two
grinders on each side, or four or eight in all, according to his time of
life. The first of these teeth are always composed of fewer laminae
than those which replace them. It is asserted that certain Elephants
thus shed their teeth eight times — their tusks, however, are changed but
once.

The Elephants of the present day, clothed with a rough skin nearly
destitute of hair, are only found in the torrid zone of the eastern conti-
nent, where hitherto only two species have been ascertained.

E. indicus, Cuv. ; Buff. XI. i, and Supp. III. lix. (The Ele-
phant of India). An oblong head, with a concave forehead; the
crown of the grinders presenting transverse undulating fillets, these
being sections of the laminae that compose them, and being worn by
trituration. This species has rather smaller ears than the next one,
and has four nails to the hind foot. It is found from the Indus to
the Eastern ocean, and in large islands in the south of India. They
have been used from the earliest ages as beasts of draught and bur-
den, but it has hitherto been found impossible to make them propa-
gate in a domestic state, although the assertion respecting their
modesty and repugnance to copulate before witnesses is wholly with-
out foundation. The females have very short tusks, and in this
respect, many of the males resemble them.

E. africanus, Cuv. ; Perrault, Mem. pour l’Hist. des An., and
F. Cuv. Mammif. (The African Elephant). A round head; con-
vex forehead; large ears; the crowns of the grinders divided into
lozenges ; it appears very frequently to have but three nails to the
hind foot. Found from Senegal to the Cape of Good Hope.
Whether they ascend the eastern coast of Africa, or whether they
are replaced there by the preceding species, is not known. The
tusks of the female are as large as those of the male, and the weapon
itself, generally speaking, is larger than in the Indian species. The
African Elephant is not now tamed, though it appears that the Car-
thaginians employed it in the same way that the inhabitants of India
do theirs.

In nearly every part of the two continents, are found, under
ground, the bones of a species of Elephant allied to that of India,
but with narrower and straighter coronal fillets, the alveoli for lodg-

PACHYDERMATA.

153

ing the tusks much longer in proportion, and the lower jaw more
obtuse. A specimen recently taken from the ice on the coast of Si-
beria, by Mr. Adams, appears to have been thickly covered with
hairs of two kinds, so that it is possible this species may have lived
in cold climates. It has long disappeared from the face of the
earth (a). See Cuv. Oss. Foss. tom. I.

The second genus of the Proboscidiana, or the

i Mastodon, Cuv .

Has been completely destroyed, nor is there a single individual living.
It had the feet, tusks, trunk, and many other details of conformation in
common with the Elephant; but differed from it in the grinders, the
crown of which, from above the gum, being bristled with large conical
points, presented, in proportion to their detrition, larger or smaller disks,
which represented sections of those points.* These teeth, which suc-
ceed each other from behind, like those of the Elephant, presented also
so many more pairs of points as the animal was the more advanced in age.

M. giganteum , Cuv. loc. cit. The great Mastodon, in which the
sections of the points are lozenge-shaped, is the most celebrated
species. It equalled the Elephant in size, but with still heavier
proportions. Its remains are found in a wonderful state of preserva-
tion, and in great abundance throughout all parts of North America.
They are infinitely more rare in the old continent.

M. angustidens, Cuv. loc. cit., or the Narrow- toothed Mastodon,
whose grinders, narrower than those of the preceding species, when
worn down formed trefoil-shaped disks, and have thereby been con-
founded by some authors with the teeth of the hippopotamus, was a
third less than the great mastodon, and much lower on its legs. Its
remains are found throughout the greater part of Europe and of
South America. In certain places, the teeth, tinged with iron, be-
come of a beautiful blue when heated, forming what is called the
oriental turquoise (b).^

* This conformation, common to the Mastodon, Hippopotamus, Hog, &c., has
occasioned the erroneous idea of the first being carnivorous.

f Other less widely dispersed species have been discovered; see Oss. Foss.: and
very lately some remarkable ones have been brought from the Burmese empire, a
description of which we are expecting from M. Buckland, Mast, latidens, M. elephan -
toidesy &c.

(a) Bishop Heber described an Elephant which he saw in the Himalayan
mountains, about the size of an Ox, and as “ shaggy as a poodle-dog.” On the
Oyster banks off Hasburgh, on the coast of Norfolk, many hundreds of the grind-
ing teeth of Elephants have been found, nor is there a county in England in which
such teeth have not at some time or another been detected. — Eng. Ed.

( b ) Fragments of the teeth of this animal have been found in Norfolk crag,
the only instance yet known in Great Britain. The Indians of North America are
persuaded that the Great Mastodon exists in the living state in the unexplored re-
gions of that country. — Eng. Ed.

VOL. I.

M

154

MAMMALIA.

FAMILY II.

PACHYDERMATA ORDINARXA,

Or the ordinary Pachydermata, which have either four, or three, or two
toes.

Those in which the toes make even numbers have feet somewhat cleftr
and approximate to the Ruminantia in many respects by the skeleton, and
even by the complication of the stomach. They are usually divided into
two genera.

Hippopotamus, Lin.

Four nearly equal toes, terminated by little hoofs to each foot; six
grinders throughout, of which the three anterior are conical; the three
posterior bristled with two pairs of points, which, when worn, assume a
trefoil shape; four incisors to each jaw, the superior of which are short,
conical, and recurved, the inferior cylindrical, long, pointed, and sloping
forwards; a canine tooth on each side above and below, the superior
straight, and the inferior very large and curved, the two wearing ea*ch other
by constant attrition.

These animals have a very massive body without hairs ; very short
legs ; the belly reaching nearly to the ground ; an enormous head, termi-
nated by a large inflated muzzle, which incloses the apparatus of their
large front teeth; the tail short; the ears and eyes small. Their sto-
mach is divided into several sacs. They live in rivers, upon roots and
other vegetable substances, and exhibit much ferocity and stupidity. One
species only is known.

II. amphibius, L. ; Buff. Supp. III. 4 and 5. (The Hippopota-
mus). Now confined to the rivers of the middle and south of Africa.
It formerly found its way into Egypt by the Nile, but has long dis-
appeared from that country (a).

The bones of a species of Hippopotamus very similar to that of
Africa, and those of two or three other successively smaller ones,
have been found in Europe. See my Rech. sur les Oss. Foss. tom. 1.

Sus, Lin .

The Pigs, or Hogs, have, on all their feet, two large middle toes armed
with strong hoofs, and two much shorter lateral ones that hardly reach the
ground; there is a variable number of incisors, the inferior of which al-
ways slant forwards; the canines project from the mouth, and curve up-

jgggT (a) The hippopotami were found to be quite formidable, as enemies, m the ri-
vers of South Africa, by the late British expedition, which sailed under the command
of Captain Owen. These animals cast their young in November, and at certain pe-
riods of their growth are used as food by the Indians. — Eng. Ed.

PACHYDERM AT A. 155

wards ; the muzzle terminates by a sort of truncated button fitted for
turning up the earth ; the stomach is but slightly divided.

Hogs, properly so called, have twenty-four or twenty-eight grinders, of
which the posterior are oblong with tuberculous crowns,^ and the anterior
more or less compressed, and six incisors in each jaw.

S. scropha , L. ; Buff. V. xiv. and xviii. The Wild Boar, which
is the parent stock of our domestic Hog and its varieties, has pris-
matic tusks that curve outwards and slightly upwards; the body
short and thick; straight ears; the hair bristled and black; the
young ones called Macassines are striped black and white. It does
great injury to fields in the vicinity of forests, by tearing up the
ground in search of roots.

The Domestic Hog varies in size, in the height of its legs, in the
direction of its ears, and in colour, being sometimes white, and at
others black, red, or varied. Every one is acquainted with the great
utility of this animal, from the facility with which it is fed, the agree-
able flavour of its flesh, the length of time it can be preserved by
means of salt, and finally, from its fecundity, which greatly surpasses
that of any other animal of its size, the female frequently producing
as many as fourteen at a litter. The period of gestation is four
months, and they produce twice a year. The hog continues to in-
crease in size for five or six years, begins to be prolific at one, and
sometimes lives for twenty. Although naturally savage, the wild
boars and hogs are social animals, and know how to defend them-
selves against wolves by forming a circle, and shewing a front to the
enemy in every direction. Voracious and clamorous, they do not
even spare their own young. This species is spread throughout the
globe; and none but Jews and Mahometans refuse to eat its flesh.

S. larvatus , Fr. Cuv. ; S. africanus, Schreb. CCCXXVII;
Sanglier de Madagascar, Daub. MDCCCLXXXV ; Samuel Daniels,
Afric. Sceneay, pi. xxi. (The Masked Wild Boar.) Tusks like
the common Hog ; but on each side of the snout, near the tusks, is
a large tubercle, nearly similar to the mamma of a woman, supported
by a bony prominence, which gives the animal a very singular ap-
pearance. It inhabits Madagascar and the south of Africa.

S. babirussa, Buff. Sjipp. III. xii. (The Babiroussa.) Higher
and lighter on the legs than the others ; the tusks 'are long, slender,
and turned vertically upwards; the upper ones inclining spirally
backwards. From some of the islands in the Indian Archipelago.
We may separate from the Hogs the

Phacociia:rus, Fred. Cuv.*

The wart-bearing Hogs have the grinders composed of cylinders, ce-
mented together by a kind of cortical substance, very similar to the
transverse laminae of those of the Elephant, and like them succeeding
each other from behind. The cranium is remarkably large; the rounded
tusks, inclined laterally upwards, are of a frightful magnitude; and on

* Phaco cheer us, llog with a wart.

156

MAMMALIA.

each of their cheeks hangs a thick fleshy lobe, which completes the
hideousness of their figure. They have only two incisors above, and six
below.

Those brought from Cape Yerd generally have the incisors very com-
plete— S. africanus, Gm. : in such as are from the Cape of Good Hope —
S. cethiopicus, Gm. : Buff. Supp. III. xi, they are scarcely visible, some
vestiges however exist under the gum. This difference may arise from
age, which may have worn them away in the latter, or it may indicate a
different species, more especially as the head of those from the Cape of
Good Hope is somewhat larger and shorter.

With still more propriety do we separate from the Hogs the

Dicotyles, Cuv .*

Or the Pecaries, which have, it is true, grinders and incisors very
similar to those of the Hog properly so called, but whose canines, directed
like those of animals in general, do not project from the mouth, they have
no external toe to their hind foot. There is no tail, and upon the loins is
a glandular opening from which a fetid humour is excreted. The metatar-
sal and metacarpal bones of their two great toes are soldered together into
a sort of cannon bone, like those of the Ruminantia, with which their
stomach, divided into several sacs, gives them also a remarkable relation.
It is singular that the aorta of these animals is often found very much
enlarged, but without there being any fixed situation for the enlargement,
as though they were subject to a kind of aneurism.

Only two species are known, both from South America, which
were ascertained by Azzara: Linnaeus confounds them under the
name of Sus tajassu.

Die torquatus, Cuv. ; Buff. X. iii. and iv. (The coloured Pecari,
or Patira.) Hair annulated with grey and brown ; a whitish collar,
stretching obliquely from the angle of the lower jaw over the shoul-
der; half the size of the Wild Boar.

Die. labiatus , Cuv. ; the Tagnicati , Taitetoc, Tajassou , &c. ;
larger, brown, and with white lips.

Here may be placed a genus now unknown in the living creation, which
we have discovered, and named

*1

Anoplotherium,

It presents the most singular affinities with the various tribes of the
Pachydermata, and approximates in some respects to the order of the
Ruminantia. Six incisors to each jaw, four canines almost like the in-
cisors, and not projecting beyond them, and seven molars throughout,
form a continuous series without any intervening space, a diposition of
the teeth seen in Man only. The four posterior molars of each side are
similar to those of the Rhinoceros, the Daman, and the Palaeotherium ;
that is, they are square above, and form double or triple crescents below.
Their feet, terminated by two great toes, as in the Ruminantia, differ in
this — the bones of the metatarsus and metacarpus always remain separate,

* Dicotyle, double navel, from the opening on the back.

PACHYDERMATA. 157

or without being soldered together as a cannon bone. The composition
of their tarsus is the. same as in the Camel.

The bones of this genus have hitherto only been found in the
gypsum quarries near Paris. We have already ascertained five
species : one the size of a small Ass, with the low form and long
tail of the Otter — A. commune , Cuv., to the internal edge of whose
fore foot was affixed a small accessary toe : another of the size and
light carriage of the Gazelle — A. medium : a third of the size, and
about the proportions of the Hare, with two small accessory toes to
the sides of the hind feet, &c. See Cuv. Rech. Oss. Fos. tom. III.

The ordinary Pachydermata which have not cloven feet, comprehend, in
the first place, three genera, very similar to each other in their grinders^
having seven upper ones on each side, with a square crown and various
salient lines, and seven lower ones, the crown of which forms a double
crescent, and the last of all a triple one ; but their incisors vary.

Rhinoceros, Lin.

The species of this genus, in this particular, even vary among themselves.
They are large animals; each foot is divided into three toes, and the bones
of the nose, which are very thick, and moulded into a sort of arch, sup-
port a solid horn which adheres to the skin, and is composed of a fibrous
and horny substance, resembling agglutinated hairs. They are naturally
stupid and ferocious, frequent moist places, and feed on herbs and branches
of trees. Their stomach is simple, intestines very long, and the caecum
extremely large.

Rh. indicus, Cuv.; Buff. XI. vii. (The Rhinoceros of India.)
Has, in addition to its twenty-eight grinders, two strong incisors in
each jaw, two other small ones between the lower, and two still
smaller again outside of the upper ones. It has but one horn, and
the skin is remarkable for the deep folds into which it is thrown be-
hind and across the shoulders, and before and across the thighs. It
inhabits the East Indies, and chiefly beyond the Ganges.

Rh. javanus, Cuv. ; Fr. Cuv. Mammif. (The Rhinoceros of
Java.) With the large incisors and single horn of the preceding,
has not so many folds in the skin, though one of them on the neck is
larger; but what is most remarkable, is, that the whole skin is
covered with small compact angular tubercles. It has hitherto been
found in Java only.

Rh. sumatrensis, Cuv.; Bell. Philos. Trans. 1793; F. Cuv.
Mammif. (The Rhinoceros of Sumatra.) The same four great
incisors as the preceding, but there are scarcely any folds of the skin,
which moreover is hairy, it has a second horn behind the common one.

Rh. africanus, Cuv. ; Buff, Supp. VI. vi. (The Rhinoceros of
Africa.) Furnished with two horns, like the preceding; has no fold
of the skin, nor any incisor teeth, its molars occupying nearly the
whole length of ti e jaw. This deficiency of incisors might warrant
its separation from its congeners.

158

MAMMALIA.

There have been found under ground, in Siberia, and in different
parts of Germany, the bones of a two-horned Rhinoceros, the
cranium of which, besides being much more elongated than that of
any living species, is also distinguished by a bony vertical partition
that supported the bones of the nose. It is a lost species ; and a
nearly entire body, which was taken from the ice on the banks of the
Vilhoui in Siberia, showed that it was covered with tolerably thick
hair. It is possible then that its habitat was to the north, like that
of the fossil Elephant.

In Tuscany, and in Lombardy, there have been disinterred, still
more recently, other Rhinoceros bones, which seem to approximate
much nearer to that of Africa.

Some have been found in Germany with incisors like the Asiatic
species; and lastly, some of their bones have been discovered in
France, which announce a size hardly superior to that of the Hog. (a)

Hyrax, Hermann .

The Damans, as they are termed, have long been placed among the Ro-
dentia, on account of their very small size ; if, however, we examine them
closely, we shall find, with the exception of the horn, they are Rhinoce-
roses in miniature, at least they have exactly similar molars ; but their
upper jaw is furnished with two strong incisors curved downwards, and at
an early age with two very small canines ; the lower one has four incisors,
but no canines. All of them having a sort of very small hoof, thin and
rounded, with the exception of the inner toe of the hind foot, which is
armed with a hooked and crooked nail. The muzzle and the ears are
short ; they are covered with hair, and have a tubercle in lieu of a tail.
Their stomach is divided into two sacs, and besides a large caecum and
several dilations of the colon, there are two appendages about the middle
of the latter analogous to the two caeca of birds.

There is one species known which is as large as a Rabbit, of a
greyish colour, and tolerably common among the rocks of all Africa,
where it frequently becomes the victim of birds of prey, and which
also appears to inhabit some parts of Asia; at least we cannot per-
ceive any certain difference between the Hyrax capensis and the
H . syriacus , Buff. Supp. VI. xlii, xliii, and VII. Ixxix.* The

FaLjEOTHERIUM, Cuv.,

Is also a lost genus, with the same grinders as the two preceding, six in-
cisors, and two canines in each jaw, like the Tapirs, and three visible toes

(*) I have strong doubts of the authenticity of the Hyrax kudsonius, Bewick 407,
and Schreb. CCXL. c. It has only been seen in a Museum.

(a) The teeth of the fossil Rhinoceros have been found in England, and Dr.
Buckland gives a section of one in his Relig. Diluv., which was taken out of Kirkdale
cave. All these remains belong to diluvial deposits, or to those changes which were
effected by the deluge. It is remarkable that the circumstances under which the
bones of the Rhinoceros are found, serve to justify the conclusion, that these animals
lived in troops with the Elephant. — Eng. Ed.

PACI-IYDERMATA.

159

to each foot ; they had also, like the Tapirs, a short fleshy proboscis, for
the muscles of which instrument the bones of the nose were shortened,
leaving a deep notch underneath. We discovered the bones of this genus
mixed with those of the Anoplotherium in the gypsum quarries (a) near
Paris. They also exist in many other parts of France.

Eleven or twelve species are known already. At Paris alone we
find them the size of a Horse, of a Tapir, and of a small Sheep,
while near Orleans are found the bones of a species that must have
been as large as the Rhinoceros. These animals appear to have
frequented the shores of lakes and marshes, for the rocks which con-
ceal their bones also contain fresh water shells. See my Oss. Foss,
tom. III. The

Lophiodon, Cuv .,

Is another lost genus, which appears to be closely allied to the preceding
one; its inferior grinders, however, have transverse ridges. Ten or twelve
species have been extracted from our old fresh water formations, the same
in which the Pal^otherium is found. See my Oss. Foss., tom. III.

To these genera should succeed the genus

Tapir, Lin,

The Tapirs, in which the twenty-seven molars, before they are worn,
all present two transverse and rectilinear prominences ; in front, there are,
in each jaw, six incisors and two canines, separated from the molars by an
empty space. The nose resembles a small fleshy proboscis; there are
four toes to the fore feet, and three to the hind ones. For a long time
but a single species was known,

T. americanus, L. ; Buff. Supp. VI. i. (The American Tapir).
Size of a small Ass ; skin brown and nearly naked : tail moderate ;
neck fleshy, forming a sort of crest on the nape. Common in wet
places, and along the rivers in the warm parts of South America.
The young ones are spotted with white like the fawn. The flesh is
eaten.

Within a few years a second species has been discovered in the
old continent.

T. indicus, Farkharie, Sot. Asait., tom. XIV.; Horsfield, Jav.
Miaba , Fr. Cuv. Mammif. (The Tapir of India). Larger than
that of America, of a black-brown ; the back of a whitish grey. It
inhabits the forests of Malacca, island of Sumatra, &c.

(S3T (a) These quarries occur in detached hills, along the course of the Marne
j and Seine, near Paris, and they consist of alternating beds of gypsum and argillace-
| ous with calcareous marl. The animal alluded to, is of the size of the horse, is
i supposed by Cuvier to have inhabited marshy ground, and to have fed on the roots
I and stems of succulent plants. Another animal is mentioned by Cuvier, as re-
i scmbling in its size, and light figure, the Antelope; this species he considers to have
hrowxed on aromatic plants, or on the buds of young trees; it was probably, con-
! tinues Cuvier, a timid animal, with large moveable ears, like those of the deer,
which could be sensible to the slightest sound that indicated danger. — Eng. Ed.

160

MAMMALIA.

Fossil Tapirs are also scattered throughout Europe; and among
others is a gigantic species, which in size must have nearly equalled
the Elephant (a). Tap. giganteus , Cuv. Oss. Foss., tom. II.*

FAMILY III.

SOLIPEDES.

The Solipedes are quadrupeds which have only one apparent toe, and a
single hoof to each foot, although under the skin, on each side of their
metatarsus and metacarpus, there are spurs representing two lateral toes.
One genus only is known, that of

Equus, Lin.

The Horse has six incisors in each jaw, the crowns of which, at an
early age, are marked with a fossula, and six molars throughout, with a
square crown, marked by laminas of enamel which dip into them, with
four crescents, and in the upper ones, with a small disk on the inner edge.
The male has also two small additional canines in the upper jaw, and
sometimes in both, which are almost always wanting in the female.
Between these canines and the first molar is that unoccupied space which
corresponds to the angle of the lips where the bit is placed, by which
alone Man has been enabled to subdue these powerful animals. The
stomach Is simple and moderate, but the intestines are very long, and the
caecum enormous. The mammae are between the thighs.

E. caballus, L. ; Buff. IV. i. (The Horse). This noble asso-
ciate of Man, in the chase, in war, and in the works of agriculture,
the arts, and commerce, is the most important and carefully attended
of all the animals which we have subdued. It does not seem to
exist any longer in a wild state, except in those places where Horses
formerly domesticated have been set at liberty, as in Tartary and
America ; there they live in troops, each of which is led and defended
by an old male. The young males, forcibly expelled as soon as they
become adults, follow the troop at a distance, until they are able to
attract some of the younger mares.

The domestic colt sucks six or seven months, and the sexes are

* Dr. Roulin has lately discovered in the Cordilleras a new species of Tapir, black
and covered with hair; the bones of its nose are more elongated, which somewhat
approximates it to the Palaeotherium.

M. Schleyermacher has obtained a lower jaw bone of the great fossil animal that
was supposed to be a gigantic Tapir. It turns out that it is possessed of enormous
canines, which must have projected from the mouth; consequently, it must form a
separate genus. Its size may have been greater than that of the Hippopotamus by
one half.

(a) There is a model in most museums of a tooth of this animal, which was
found in a perfectly fresh state in Grenoble. The tooth itself is in the collection of
Mr. Bakewell, the distinguished geologist.-— Eng, Ed.

PACIIYDERMATA.

161

separated at- two years; at three they are broken in, and it is now
until they are fout that they are rode, at which time also they can
propagate without injury to themselves. The period of gestation is
eleven months.

A Horse’s age is known by the incisors (a). Themilk teeth begin
to grow about fifteen days after the colt is foaled; at two years and
a half the middle ones are replaced; at three and a half the two
following ones ; at four and a half the outermost or the corners. All
these teeth, with an originally indented crown, gradually lose that
mark by detrition. When seven or eight years old they are entirely
effaced, and the Horse is no longer marked.

The lower canines are produced at three years and a half, the
upper ones at four ; they remain pointed till six ; at ten they begin
to peel off.

The life of the Horse seldom extends beyond thirty years.

Every one knows how much this animal varies in size and colour.
The principal races even exhibit sensible differences in the form of
the head, in their proportion, and in their fitness for the various uses
to which they are applied.

The most beautiful and swift is the Arab, which has been instru-
mental in improving the Spanish race, and along with the latter has
contributed to form the English; the largest and strongest are from
the coasts of the North sea; the smallest from the north of Sweden
and Corsica. Wild Horses have a large head, frizzled hair, and un-
graceful proportions.

E. hemionus, Pall., Schreb. (The Dzigguetai). A species which,
as to its proportions, is intermediate between the Horse and the Ass,
and lives in troops in the sandy deserts of central Asia. It is of an
Isabella or light bay colour, with a black mane, and a dorsal line of
the same colour ; the tail is terminated by a black tuft. It is pro-
bably the Wild Mule of the ancients.

E. asinus, L. ; Buff. IV. xi. (The Ass). Known by its long
ears, the tuft which terminates the tail, and the black cross on the
shoulders, which is the first indication of the stripes that distinguish
the following species. Originally from the great deserts of central
Asia, it is still to be found there in a wild state, and in innumerable
troops, ranging from north to south according to the season; hence
it thrives but poorly in the more northern climates. Every one is
acquainted with its patience, sobriety, robust temperament, and the
services it renders to the peasantry. The hoarseness of its voice,
or bray, depends upon two small peculiar cavities situated at the bot-
tom of the larynx.

E. zebra , L. ; Buff. XII. i. (The Zebra). Nearly the same form
as the Ass ; the whole animal being perfectly regularly marked with
black and white transverse stripes : it is originally from the whole

(a) These we call nippers in England; the term being certainly more in ac-
cordance with the browsing action of the animal, than the name of incisors. A plate
of the state of these teeth in different stages, will be found amongst the illustrations
to the present volume. — Eng. Ed.

VOL. I.

N

162

MAMMALIA.

south of Africa. We have seen a female Zebra successively pro-
duce with the Horse and the Ass.

E. quaccha , Gm. Buff. Supp. VII. vii. (The Couagga). Re-
sembles the Horse more than the Zebra, but comes from the same
country. The hair on the neck and shoulders is brown, with whitish
transverse stripes; the croup is of a reddish-grey; tail and legs
whitish. The name is expressive of its voice, which resembles the
barking of a Hog.

E. montanus, Burchell; the Onagga or Dauiu, Fred. Cuv.
Mammif. (The Onagga). An African species, smaller than the
Ass, but having the beautiful form of the Couagga; its colour is
isabella, with black stripes, alternately wider and narrower, on the
head, neck, and body. Those behind slant obliquely forwards; legs
and tail white.

ORDER VIIL

RUMINANTIA.*

This order is perhaps the most natural and best determined of the class,
for nearly all the animals which compose it have the appearance of being
constructed on the same model, the Camels alone presenting some trifling
exceptions to the general characters.

The first of these characters is the absence of incisors, except in the
lower jaw, where they are nearly always eight in number. A callous pad
is substituted for them above. Between the incisors and the molars is a
vacant space, where, in some genera only, are found one or two canines.
The molars, almost always six throughout, have their crown marked with
two double crescents, the convexity of which is turned inwards in the
upper, and outwards in the lower ones.

The four feet are terminated by two toes and two hoofs which face each
other by a flat surface presenting the appearance of a single hoof which
has been cleft, whence the name of cloven-footed, bifurcated, &c., which
is applied to these animals.

Behind the hoof are sometimes found two small spurs, the vestiges of
lateral toes. The two bones of the metatarsus and metacarpus are united
into one called the cannon («), but in certain species there are also ves-
tiges of lateral metatarsal and metacarpal bones.

* The Pecora, Lin.

(a) The cannon bone, it is well known, of the horse, is the shank-bone of the
leg, and, when fitted with the pastern, the two constitute a perfect hinge, destined to
be a medium of extension and of flexion of the limb, whilst no lateral motion is ad-
mitted by them. — Eng. Ed.

RUMINANTIA.

163

The term Ruminantia indicates the singular faculty possessed by these
animals of masticating their food a second time, by bringing it back to the
mouth after a first deglutition, a faculty depending upon the structure of
their stomachs. Of these they always have four, the three first being so
disposed that the food may enter into either of them, the oesophagus ter-
minating at the point of communication.

The first and largest is called the paunch (a) ; it receives a large quan-
tity of vegetable matters coarsely bruised by a first mastication. From
this it passes into the second, called the honeycomb or bonnet , the parietes
of which are laminated like a honeycomb. This second stomach, very
small and globular, seizes the food, moistens and compresses it into little
pellets, which afterwards successively ascend to the mouth to be re-
chewed. The animal remains at rest during this operation, which lasts
until all the food first taken into the paunch has been submitted to it. The
aliment thus re-masticated descends directly into the third stomach, called
the leaflet ( feuillet ), on account of its parietes being longitudinally lami-
nated, or like the leaves of a book ; and thence to the fourth or the cail-
lette, the sides of which are wrinkled, and which is the true organ of di-
gestion, analogous to the simple stomach of animals in general. In the
young Ruminantia, or so long as they subsist on the milk of the mother,
the caillette is the largest of the four. The paunch is only developed by
receiving increased quantities of grass, which finally give it an enormous
volume. The intestinal canal is very long, though there are but few en-
largements in the great intestines. The caecum is likewise long and to-
lerably smooth. The fat of ruminating animals hardens more by cooling
than that of other quadrupeds, and even becomes brittle. It is called tal-
low. Their mammae are placed between the thighs.

( a ) The paunch is in latin called rumen, or ingluvies; in this hag the food is
macerated after very slight mastication; it is divided externally into two saccular
portions, and its inner coat is covered with a vast number of papillae: it is in this
cavity that all those morbid concretions are found, of which naturalists give us the
descriptions, such as the hairy balls of the cow, the spongy balls of the chamois, the
Bezoar stones of the wild goats, &c. The second stomach is called the honey-comb
bug, or Icing’s hood, and in latin reticulum, which is smaller than the other, and has
its internal coat arranged into small cells. From the reticulum the food is passed
back into the mouth, by means of an anti-peristaltic motion of this second stomach,
through the oesophagus. But this latter process is effected slowly, and during the
time that the animal is at its ease. After being the second time masticated, the food
is once more swallowed, that is to say, it is passed through the aesophagus from the
mouth. Now, as this latter tube communicates with three of the stomachs, the
contents of the mouth may be sent into any of the three, at the discretion of the
animal; and, after the second mastication, it is always passed into the third stomach,
which is usually termed the omasum, or many plies: this stomach is the smallest sto-
mach, and resembles a rolled-up hedgehog; its internal coat has broad duplicatures.
Here the food undergoes some change, whilst it remains only a short time, and is
then finally passed into the fourth stomach, the abomasum, which, in its structure,
and particularly in respect of its villous lining membrane, and in its function, exact-
ly corresponding with the same organ in man and the other mammalia. — Eng. Ed.

MAMMALIA,

364

Of all animals, the Ruminantia are the most useful to man. He can
eat it all, and it is from that he procures all the flesh which constitutes
his aliment. Some serve him as beasts of burden, others with their milk,
their tallow, leather, horns, and other substances. The two first genera
have no horns.

Camelus, Linn,

The camels approximate to the preceding order rather more than the
others. They not only always have canines in both jaws, but they also
have two pointed teeth implanted in the incisive bone, six inferior incisors,
and from eighteen to twenty molars only ; peculiarities which, of all the
Ruminantia, they alone possess, as well as that of having the scaphoid
and cuboid bones of the tarsus separate. Instead of the large hoof flat-
tened on its internal side, which envelopes the whole inferior portion of
each toe, and which determines the figure of the common cloven foot, they
have but one small one, which only adheres to the last phalanx, and is
symmetrically formed like the hoofs of the pachydermata. Their tumid
and cleft lip, their long neck, prominent orbits, weakness of the crupper,
and the disagreeable proportions of their legs and feet, render them some-
what deformed, but their extreme sobriety, and the faculty they possess
of passing several days without drinking, make them of the highest im
portance.

The faculty just mentioned probably results from the large masses of
cells which cover the sides of their paunch, in which water is constantly
retained or produced. The other Ruminantia have nothing of the kind.

The camel urinates backwards, but the direction of the penis changes
in coitu, which is effected with much difficulty, and while the female lies
down. In the rutting season a fetid humour oozes from their head.

Camelus, Cuv.

Camels, properly so called, have the two toes united below nearly to
the point by a common sole, and the back furnished with lumps of fat.
They are large animals of the old continent, of which two species are
known, both completely reduced to a domestic state.*

C. bactrianus , E. ; Buff. XI. xxii. (The Two-Humped Camel).
Originally from central Asia, and which is found much less southerly
than the

C. dromedarius, L. ; Buff. XI. ix. (The One-Humped Camel).
Which has spread from Arabia into all the north of Africa, a great
part of Syria, Persia, &c.

The first is the only one employed in Turkistan, Thibet, &c. ; it
is sometimes led as far as lake Baical. The second is well known
for crossing the desert, and as the only means of communication
between the countries which border on it.

* Pallas, on the authority of the Buchares and Tartars, states, that in the deserts
of central Asia, wild camels are still to he found; we must recollect, however, that
the Kaimucs are in the habit of giving freedom to all sorts of animals from a reli-
gious principle.

RUMINANTIA,

165

The two-humped Camel walks with less difficulty than the other
in humid grounds; it is also larger and stronger. At the regular
period it sheds the whole of its hair. It is the single-humped Camel
that is the most abstemious. The Dromedary , properly speaking,
is a lighter variety of it, and better calculated for journies.

The flesh and milk of the Camel serve as food, and its hair for
garments, to the people who possess it. In stony countries both
species are useless (a).

Auchenia, Tllig .

In the Lamas the two toes are separate, and are deficient in the humps.
But two distinct species are known, both from the western continent, and
much smaller than the two preceding ones.

Camelus llacma, L. ; Guanaco, Buffi Supp. VI. xxvii. (The
Lama). As large as a Stag; the hair coarse and of a chestnut
colour, but varying when domesticated. It was the only beast of
burden in Peru as the time of the conquest. It can carry a hundred
and fifty pounds, but makes short journeys. The Alpaca is a va-
riety with long woolly hair.

Cam . vicunna , L. ; Buff. Supp. VI. xxviii. (The Paco, or Vi-
cugna). The size of a Sheep, covered with fawn coloured wool,
extremely soft and fine, of which valuable stuffs are manufactured.

Moschus, Lin.

The Chevrotains, or Musks, are much less anomalous than the Camels,
differing from the ordinary Ruminantia only in the absence of horns, in
having a long canine tooth on each side of the upper jaw, which in the

g'ggT (a) The formation of the Camel’s foot prevents it from being capable of tra-
velling over a stony or rough road, or any ground that is moist. Its feet are adapted
solely to the nature of the way which it traverses, and it is by this peculiarity of
adaptation that naturalists are enabled at once to explain why it is that up to this
hour the camel still continues an exclusive inhabitant of the desert, whilst every
other animal has left the same aboriginal seat in central Asia to accompany man in
his migrations. But the still more wonderful peculiarity of the camel, is the struc-
ture of its stomach, or rather the first of the stomachs, called the paunch, in which
the cells described by Cuvier receive and retain a great quantity of water, at least as
much as is sufficient to supply the animal for several days. A large camel carries
from seven to twelve hundred weight on his back, at the rate of more than ten
leagues on an average every day; they feed in their journeys, to a great extent, on
thorny plants, but they are supplied usually with dates by their leaders. In the ab-
sence of such aliment, they patiently continue their course. The privation of nutri-
tious food leads to the absorption of the boss upon their backs. Th-ir sense of
smelling is so extremely acute, in reference to their immediate wants, that they never
fail to distinguish, at a considerable distance, the existence of fresh water. The
camel is easily taught to lie down in such a manner as that its burden is easily at-
tached to it; but, if after having received the destined freight it finds that it cannot
endure the weight witli facility, it abstains from rising in the erect posture, and will
not do so until a portion of the load is taken off. Travellers tell us, that if the dri-
ver sings a merry tunc the camel undergoes the fatigues of the journey with much
greater readiness and case. We may add that, in modern acceptation, the name of
Dwmedary (or courier) is applied to all the varieties of the Arabian camels, or those
with only one hump. — Eng. Ed.

166

MAMMALIA,

male issues from the mouth, and finally in having in their skeleton a
slender peronaeus, which is not found even in the Camel. These are
animals which are quite delightful by their lightness and elegance.

M. Moschiferus ( a), L. : Buff. Supp. VI. xxix. (The Musk Ox).

: This is the most celebrated species, and the size of a Goat, has

scarcely any tail, and is completely covered with hairs, so coarse and
brittle, that they might be termed spines. What particularly distin-
guishes it, however, is the pouch situated before the prepuce of the
male which produces that odorous substance so well known by the
name of Musk. This species appears to belong to that rugged and
rocky region from which descend most of the Asiatic rivers, and which
is spread out between Siberia, China, and Thibet. Its habits are so-
litary and nocturnal, its timidity is extreme. It is in Thibet and
Tunkin that it yields the best musk ; in the north it is almost in-
odorous.

The other Musks have no musk-pouch, and inhabit the warm parts
of the old continent;* they are the smallest and the most elegant of
ail the Ruminantia.''j~

All the rest of the Ruminantia, the males at least, have two horns, that
is to say, two prominences of the frontal bones which are not found in
any other family of animals.

In some, these prominences are covered with an elastic sheath com-
posed as if with agglutinated hairs, which increases by layers and during
life ; the name of horn is applied to the substance of this sheath, and the
sheath itself is called the corn creuse, or hollow horn. The prominence
it envelopes grows with it, and never falls. Such are the horns of Oxen,
Sheep, Goats, and Antelopes.

In others, the prominences are only covered with a hairy skin, conti-
nuous with that of the head; nor do the prominences fall, those of the
Giraffe excepted.

Finally, in the genus of the Stags, the prominences covered for a time
with a hairy skin, similar to that on the rest of the head, have at their
base a ring of bony tubercles, which, as they enlarge, compress and obli-
terate the vessels of that skin. It becomes dry and is thrown off; the

* The moschus americanus established from Seba, is merely the young or the
female of one of the Guiana Deer. The same may he said of the M. delicatulus of
Shaw, Schreb. 245, D. It is the fawn of an American Deer.

f Moschus pygmceus, Buff. XII. xiii. — Moschus memina, Schreb. CCLX. iii. —
Moschus juvanicus, Buff. Supp. VI. xxx.

(a) This is the Musk Ox, from which the musk of commerce is taken, and
the bag or pouch which contains it is peculiar to the male. The situation of this
pouch has been already described in the above account; with respect to its structure
it consists of several membranes laid upon each other, and covered by skin and hairs.
Internally a number of little cells are found, into which the musk is secreted. It is
employed but on the continent at present, more than in these countries, as a power-
ful anti-spasmodic: it is needless to add, that its chief employment is in perfumery.
“—Eng. Ed.

RUMINANTIA.

167

bony prominence being laid bare, at the expiration of a certain period
separates from the cranium to which it was attached, falls, and the animal
remains defenceless. Others, however, are re-produced generally larger
than before and destined to undergo the same revolutions. These horns,
purely osseous, and subject to periodical changes, are styled antlers.

Cervus, Lin .

The Stags are the whole of the Ruminantia which have heads armed
with antlers; the females, however, the Rein-Deer alone excepted, are
always without them. The substance of these antlers, when completely
developed, is that of a very cllnse bone without pores or sinus. Their
figure varies greatly according to the species, and even in each species at
different ages. These animals are excessively fleet, live commonly in the
forest, and feed on herbs, leaves, buds of trees, &c.

We distinguish in the first place those species whose antlers are either
wholly or partially flattened, viz.

C. alces, L. ; Elk or Elend , in the north of Europe ; Moose-
Deer of the Americans; Original of the Canadians; Buff. Supp.
VII. lxxx. (The Moose). . As large as a Horse, and sometimes
larger; stands very high; the muzzle cartilaginous and inflated; a
sort of goitre, or pendulous swelling, variously shaped, under the
throat ; hair always very stiff, and of a more or less deep ash-colour.
The antlers of the male at first simple ( en dague ), and then divided
into narrow slips, assume, in the fifth year, the form of a triangular
blade, denticulated on the external edge, and mounted on a pedicle.
They increase with age, so as to weigh fifty or sixty pounds, and to
have fourteen branches to each horn. The Moose lives in small
troops, and inhabits the marshy forests of the north of both conti-
nents. Its skin is valuable for the Shamoy manufactures.

C. tarandus, L. ; Buff. Supp. III. xviii., bis. (The Rein-Deer).
Size of a Stag, but has shorter and stouter legs ; both sexes have
antlers, divided into several branches, at first slender and pointed,
and terminating by age in broad denticulated palms ; the hair, which
is brown in summer, becomes white in winter.* The Rein-Deer is
confined to the glacial countries of both continents, and is the animal
so highly celebrated for the services it renders the Laplanders, who
have numerous herds of them, which in the summer they lead to the
mountains, and in winter bring back to the plains. They are their
only beasts of burden and draught; their flesh and milk serve them
for food, their skins for clothing, &c.

C. dama, L ., Buff. VI. xxvii andxxviii. (The Daim or Fallow-
Deer.) Less than the Stag; in winter of a blackish brown, in sum-
mer fawn coloured, spotted with white ; the buttocks always white,
bordered on each side with a black stripe ; tail longer than the Stag’s,
black above, white underneath. The horn of the male has a round

* It is probably owing to this change that the ancients were induced to believe
that the tarandus could assume any colour it wished.

168

MAMMALIA.

base, with a pointed antler, and throughout the rest of its length it is
flattened, with the outer edge denticulated. After a certain age it
shrinks, and splits irregularly into several slips. This species, which
is the Platiteros of the ancients, has become very common in all
Europe, although it seems to be originally from Barbary*. A
black variety without spots is sometimes to be found. Those species
which have round antlers are more numerous ; such as inhabit tern-
perate climes also change their colour, more or less, during the
winter.

C. elaphus , L. ; Buff. VI. ix. x. xii. (The Common Stag) ( a ). A
fawn coloured brown in summer, with a blackish line along the spine,
and on each side a range of small light yellow spots ; in winter of a
uniform greyish brown ; the crupper and tail always of a pale yellow.
It is a native of the forests of all Europe, and of the temperate
parts of Asia. The antlers of the male are round, and appear in
the second year, at first simple, and then with tines or branches on
their inner face, which increase in number as they advance in age,
forming a kind of palm with many small points. When very old the
Stag becomes blackish, and the hairs on the neck lengthen and stand
erect. The horns are shed in the spring, the old ones losing them
first; they are reproduced in the summer, during the whole of which
period they live separately. When they are grown again, the rutting
season commences, which lasts three months, and during which
period the males become furious. Both sexes unite in large herds to
pass the winter. The hind carries eight months, and brings forth in
May. The fawn is spotted with white.

The Stag-hunt, which is regarded as the noblest of sports, is
become the subject of an art, which has its theory and its voluminous
nomenclature, in which the most familiar objects are expressed in
the most strange terms, or entirely altered from their usual import.

C. canadensis , Gm. ; C. strongyloceros , Schreb. 246, A. 247,
F. G; Wapiti , &c. (The Elk.) A fourth larger than the Elk of
Europe, and nearly of the some colour, but the disk of the crupper
broader and paler ; the antlers equally round, but more developed,
and without a palm. Inhabits all the temperate parts of North
America.

C. virginianus , Gm. ; Schreb. CCXLVII. H. (The Virginia, or

* Since the publication of the second ed. of my Oss. Foss., we have received a
wild C. dama , killed in the woods to the south of Tunis.

gggr (a) The antler of the Stag is a real bone; it falls off every year and is re-
newed. It is so united to the bone of the forehead that it ought to be regarded as a
portion of it, yet it is separated every season, in consequence of the absorption of
the substance at its bottom which unites it to the bone of the forehead. The suc-
ceeding antler is at first no more than a piece of cartilege, which gradually becomes
bone. Castration impedes the growth, and either alters the appearance or stops al-
together the renewal of the horn. The shavings of the horn of the Stag, commonly
called Hartshorn, are used in medicine: it consists of the raspings of the internal
part of the horn, one hundred parts of which yield twenty-seven parts of gelatine.
An alkaline salt is obtained from the horns, and from that again the volatile liquid
is obtained, called spirit of hartshorn. —Eng. Ed.

RUMINANTIA.

169

Louisiana Deer). Less than the Fallow Deer of Europe, and of a
more graceful figure; the muzzle more pointed; of a light fawn
colour in summer, reddish-grey in winter; the under part of the
throat and tail white at all times ; inferior third of the tail black with
a white tip. The horns of the male; shorter than in the European
species, are round, smooth, whitish, they bend outwards, forming an
arc of a circle inwards and forwards ; the tines are inserted into their
posterior face, that at the base excepted ; they sometimes amount to
five or six*.

The species inhabiting warm climates do not change their colour.
There are several of these in South America, of which we have as
yet no complete account, nor sufficiently comparative characters.
Such are

C. paludosus, Desm. ; Gamou-Pouco, or Great Red Stag , Azz.
It appears to have straighter horns than the preceding; skin of a
bright bay, with a black stripe on the forehead, and black rings round
the point of the feet. It prefers marshy grounds.

C. campestris , Fr. Cuv. ; Guazouti, Azz. Antlers short and
straight, with tines front and back, which become numerous (Oss.
Foss. IV. pi. iii. f. 46 — 48); fawn coloured; belly, inner sides of
the thighs, buttocks and tip of the tail, white.'}’

There are also several in the East Indies.

C. axis, L. ; Buffi XI. xxxviii, xxix. (The Indian Stag or Axis.)
Fawn coloured at all times, spotted with pure white ; under part of
the throat and that of the tail white ; tail fawn coloured, edged above
with white; round antlers, which become very large with age, but
which never have more than one tine near the base, and the point
forked. Originally from Bengal, but propagating easily in Europe.
It was known to the Romans.

Several other Stags with two tines like the Axis are found in
India, which have been distinguished but lately. There is one of
them,

C. Aristotelis, Cuv. ; which has long hairs on the neck and throat,
and which, inhabiting the north of India, must correspond with the
Hippelaphus of AristotleJ.

C. capreolus , L. ; Buffi VI. xxxii, xxxiii. (The Roebuck of
Europe.) With but two tines to its antlers ; of a fawn coloured
grey ; buttocks white ; without lachrymal sinuses, and scarcely any
, tail. Some individuals are of a very vivid red, and others black-
ish. This species lives in couples; inhabits the high mountains
of the temperate parts of Europe ; sheds its antlers towards the
close of autumn, reproduces them during the winter; copulates in
November, and is gravid five months and a half. The flesh is held

* See my Oss. Foss. IV. pi. v. f. 1 — 17. The Cervus mexicanus. Penn, and Oss.
Foss. pi. v. f. 23, may have been a very old Virginia Stag.

f Add Cervus nemoralis , Ham. Smith. Also Cerv. macrotis, Say.
j Add the C. hippelaphus ; C. iValUchii; C. Mariannus ; C. Lechenaultl ; C. Pe-
rntiii ; C. equinus ; and with respect to these species, sec my Oss. Foss. tom. IV. and
the figure of Hamilton Smith in the work of Griffith.

VOL. I.

170

MAMMALIA.

in much more esteem than that of the Deer. There are none in
Russia.

C. pygargus, Pall., Schreb. CCLII. (The Roebuck of Tartary).
Similar to that of Europe, but the horns are more spinous at the
base; the hair is longer; and it is almost as large as the Deer. It
inhabits the high grounds beyond the Volga.

It appears that there are some Roebucks in America, whose antlers
always remain simple or without tines.

C. rufus , F, C. ; Gouazoupita, Azz. Hair red; lips, hinder part
of the belly, and under part of the tail, white. Canines in both
jaws. Inhabits the forest.'*

We might, separate from the other Roebucks certain small species of
India, which have sharp canines, and antlers supported by pedicles which
are covered by hairs on the forehead. Such is

C. muntjac , Gm. ; Buff. Supp. VII. xxvi. (The Kijang, or Indian
Roebuck.) Smaller than that of Europe. Found in small herds at
Ceylon and Java.f

Camelopardalis, Lin. ; Buff. Supp. VII. Ixxxi.

The Camelopardalis is characterized in both sexes by conical horns, always
covered with a hairy skin, and which are never shed. Their bony nucleus,
when young, is articulated with the os frontis by a suture. On the mid-
dle of the chanfrin is a tubercle or third horn, broader and much shorter,
but likewise articulated by a suture. It is moreover one of the most re-
markable animals in existence, from the length of its neck and the dis-
proportioned height of its fore legs. Only one species is known,

C. girafa, F. Cuv. Mammif. (The Giraffe). Which is confined
to the deserts of Africa, and has short grey hair sprinkled with fawn
coloured angular spots, and a small fawn coloured and grey mane.
It is the tallest of all animals, for its head is frequently elevated
eighteen feet from the ground. Its disposition is gentle, and it
feeds on leaves. The Romans had Giraffes in their games. He io-
dorus gives a good description of it, and one or two were brought into
Italy in the middle century. Several have lately been sent to
Europe from Egypt. J The

RUMINANTIA WITH HOLLOW HORNS

Are more numerous than the others, and we have been compelled* to
divide them into genera from characters of but little importance, drawn
from the form of their horns and the proportions of their different parts.

* Add the Gouazou-Bira ( C. nemorivagus, F. Cuv.); the Nouazou-Apara (C. sim -
plicicornis, Ham. Smith)

f Add C. philippinus, Ham. Sm. — C. moschatus, Id. &c.

£ M. Geoffroy Saint Hilaire, from some differences in the spots, and in the cur-
vature of the cranium of the few individuals in Europe, thinks that the Giraffe of
Nubia and Ayssinia is not of the same species as that from the C ape.

ruminantia. 171

To these M. Geoffroy has advantageously added those afforded by the
substance of the frontal prominence or the bony nucleus of the horn.

ANTILOPE*.

The substance of the bony nucleus of the horns of the Antilopes is solid,
and without pores or sinus, like the antlers of the Stag. They resemble
the Stags moreover by their carmiers, by the lightness of their figure, and
their swiftness. It is a very numerous genus, which it has been found
necessary to divide, and principally according to the form of the horns.

a. Horns annulated, with a double curvature directed forwards, inwards ,

or upwards.

A. dorcas, L. ; Buff. XII. xxiii. (The Gazelle). Round, large
and black horns, and the size and graceful shape of the Roebuck ;
light fawn colour above ; white beneath ; a brown band along each
flank ; a tuft of hair on each knee, and a deep pouch in each groin.
It inhabits the north of Africa, and lives in large herds, which form
a circle when they are attacked, presenting their horns at all points.
It is the usual prey of the Lion and Panther. The soft expression
of its eye furnishes numerous images to the Arabian poets.

A. corinna, Gm. ; Buff. XII. xxvii. (The Corinna). Only
differs in the horns, which are much more slender. It is perhaps a
mere variety of sex.

A. hevella, Gm. ; Buff. XII. cclxxv. (The Kevel). Also very
similar ; but its horns are compressed at the base, and have a greater
number of rings. The only mark in which it is even pretended that
it differs from the Ahu of Kasmpfer, or the Tseyrain of the Persians
and Turks ( A. subyutturosa , Gm.), is a slight swelling under the
throat of the latter.

A. gutturosa, Pall. ; the Dseren of the Montgoles ; Hoang Yang ,
or Yellow Goat of the Chinese; Schreb. CCLXXV. Nearly
similar colours, and the same kind of horns as the Gazelle properly
so called ; but it is nearly as large as the C. dama, and there is a
considerable protuberance in the male produced by the larynx, and a
large pouch under the belly. The female has no horns. This
species lives in herds, in the barren plains of central Asia, and
avoids both the forest and water.

A. eucliorc, Forster; the Pouched Gazelle; Buff. Supp. VI. pi.
xxi. (The Springbock). The south of Africa is filled with herds
of this species. It is larger than the Gazelle, but of the same form
and colour ; it is distinguished by a fold of the skin of the croup
covered with white hairs, which opens and enlarges at every bound
the animal makes.

* This name is not antient; it is a corruption of Antholops , a word found in
Eustathius, who wrote in the time of Constantine, and which seems to refer to the
beautiful eyes of the animal. The common Gazelle was well described by /Elian
under the name of Dorcas, which is properly that of the Roebuck. lie calls it the
Dorcas of Lylua. Gazel is an Arabic word.

172

MAMMALIA.

A. saiga , Pall. ; the Coins of Strabo ; Schreb. CCLXXVI. (The
Saiga). Which inhabits the heaths of the south of Poland and
Russia, has horns similar to the Gazelle, but yellowish and transpa-
rent. It is as large as the Deer, fawn coloured in summer, and of a
whitish grey in winter ; its cartilaginous, thick and vaulted muzzle,
with very expanded nostrils, compels it to retrograde in feeding.
The herd sometimes consists of more than ten thousand individuals.

A. dama, Pall., Acad, of Berl. 1824, pi. iii. and iv. (The Nan-
guer). Size of the C. dama ; white ; the forehead, neck and part
of the back red; horns small and slender. From Nubia and
Senegal*.

b. Horns annulated, and with a triple curve .

A. cervicapra , Pall., Buff. Supp. YI. xviii and xix. (The An-
telope of India). Is also very like the Gazelle, but its horns have
a triple flexure. They are used in India as weapons, formed by
uniting them pair to pair, with the points opposed. They are de-
ficient in the female.

A. addax, Lichtenstf. Acad. Berl. 1824, pi. xi, and Ruppel.
pi. vii. (The Antelope of Nubia). Also three curves in its horns,
which are longer and more slender than those of the preceding ; its
body is whitish, tinged with grey on the back, and has a large brown
spot on the forehead.

c. Horns annulated, with a double curve, butbending in an opposite direction
to those of the preceding ones, the points directed backwards. — The
Damalis of Smith, in part.

A. bubalis, L. ; Bubalis of the antients; Buff. Supp. VI. xiv;
vulg. the Barbary Cow. (The Bubalis, of the antients). More
heavily formed than the others ; the head long and thick ; as large
as the Stag; fawn coloured, except at the end of the tail which is
terminated with a black tuft. Common in Barbary.

A. caama , Cuv. ; vulg. Cape Stag of the Dutch ; Buff. Supp.
YI. pi. xv. (The Caama). Similar to the preceding, but the curves
of the horns more angular ; the circumference of their base, a band
on the bottom of the forehead, a line on the neck, a longitudinal
stripe on each leg, and the tip of the tail black. Common at the
Cape.

* The only specimen known to Buffbn (tom. XII. pi. xxxiv) was a young one
with horns curved simply forwards, which induced him to believe it was the Dama of
Pliny.

f M. Lichtenstein gave it this name, under the idea that it is the same as the
Addax or Strepsiceros of Pliny. It is seen on several of the antient monuments of
Egypt.

To this subdivision also belong the Kevil gris, F. Cuv. Mammif. — The Purple
Antelope or Bonte-Bock of the Hollanders (A pygarga), Schreb. CCLXXIII. — The
Black footed Antelope or Pallah, Sam. Daniels, Afric. Seen. pi. ix ( A melampus, Lich.);
Schr. 274. — The Cola ( A. senegalensis), of which we have nothing but the horns,
Buff. XII. pi. xxxii, 2, unless it he the same as the Pallah. — The A. suturosa. — The
A. mytilopes, H. Smith, and perhaps the Kob of Buff, which is probably the A. aden-
ota, Ham. Smith.

RUMINANTIA.

17S

d. Small , straight, or hut slightly curved horns , less than the head — in
the greater number of species found only on the male.

A. lanata , Desmar. ; Reebock or Roebuck of the Dutch of the
Cape. (The Woolly Antelope). Somewhat smaller than the Deer;
hair woolly ; grey above, white beneath ; some black on the external
face of the limbs, and at the extremity of the lower jaw.

A. mergens , Blainv. ; Duiker-Bock of the Dutch. (The Plung-
ing Antelope). A light fawn coloured brown ; some white beneath
the under jaw; a black line on the external face of the limbs. It
derives its name from the manner in which it plunges into the bushes
when pursued.

A. oreotragus, Forst. ; the Klip-Springer of the Dutch: Buff.
Supp. VI. pi. xxii; Sclir. 259. (The Rock-Springer). Distin-
guished by its stiff brittle hair, which is of a greenish yellow.* * * §

The smallest antelopes are comprehended in this division.

A. grimmia , L. ; F. Cuv. Mammif. (The Grimme). Fawn-co-
loured grey ; the forehead blackish ; a small tuft of hair on the top
of the head.

A. pygmcea , Pall. ; F. Cuv. Mammif. f (The Guevei). Ash-
coloured; a pale line along each side of the forehead, which is
blackish.

e. Annulated horns with a simple curve , the points directed forwards.

The ReduncjE of Smith.

A. redunca , Buff1. XII. pi. xlvi; Schreb, 265. (The Nagor).
Reddish-brown. From Senegal. J

/. Horns annulated , straight or but slightly curved , and longer than the
head. The Oryx of Smith, in part.

A. Oryx, Pall., erroneously termed Pasan by Buff. Supp. VI.
pi. xvii; Cape Chamois of the Dutch. § (The Oryx, or Long-
horned Antelope). As large as a stag, with slender horns two or
three feet long, straight, pointed, round, the lower third obliquely
annulated, and smaller in the female ; hair ash-coloured ; head white,
barred with black ; a black band on the spine and one on each flank :
a deep chestnut spot on the shoulder, and one on the thighs ; tail
long and blackish, and the hairs of the spine directed towards the
neck. It is found to the north of the Cape, and in the interior of
Africa. The length of its hoofs, which is greater than in the other

* Add A. qnadriscopa , Ham. Smith.

f The figure of Schreb. 260, B, is too red; in that of Shaw, Gen. Zool. Vol. II.
Part II. pi. clxxxviii. the horns are too large.

t Add the Ritbock (A. eleotragus). — The Clurebi (A. scoparia). It is very neces-
sary to observe that many antelopes, while young, have horns of this form bent for-
wards.

§ M. Lichtenstein has remarked, that as this antelope with long straight horns is
only found in the south of Africa, it is not probable it is the Oryx. It is rather the
following species.

174

MAMMALIA.

species, enables it to climb rocks, and it prefers mountainous dis-
tricts.* * * §

A. gazella, L.; Ant. leucoryx, Licht., Acad. Berl. 1824, pi. i.
(The Algazel). Horns long, slender, and slightly curved into an
arc of a circle ; hair whitish, variously tinged with a fawn or reddish
colour. Found in North Africa, from Nubia to Senegal. It is
often sculptured on the monuments of Egypt and Nubia; and M.
Lichtenstein thinks it is the true Oryx of the antients.-f*

g. Horns annulated with a simple curve , the points directed backwards.

A. leucophcea, Gm. ; improperly called Tseiran, Buff. Supp. VI.
pi. xx. (The Blue Antelope). A little larger than the stag, of a
bluish ash-colour ; large horns in both sexes, uniformly curved, and
with upwards of twenty rings.

A. equina , Geoff. (The Equine Antelope). J As large as a
horse; of a reddish-grey; brown head; a white spot before each
eye ; a mane on the neck ; large horns, &c.

A. sumatrensis, Shaw; Cambing-Outang , or Goat of the Woods of
the Malays, Fr. Cuv. Mammif. ; and Marsden, Sumat., 2d ed. pi. x.
(The Antelope of Sumatra). Size of a large goat; black; a white
mane on the neck and withers; the horns pointed and small.§

h. Horns encircled with a spiral ridge.

A. oreas, Pall. ; Elk of the Cape of the Dutch ; improperly called
Coudous by Buff. Supp. VI. pi. xii. (The Canna or Impooko). As
large as the largest horse ; large, conical, straight horns, surrounded
by a spiral ride ; hair greyish ; a small mane along the spine ; a kind
of dewlap under the neck; the tail terminated by a tuft. It lives in
troops in the mountains north of the Cape.||

A. strepciseros, Pall. ; improperly called Condoma by Buff. Supp.
IV. pi. xiii, Schreb. 267. (The Codous). Size of a stag; brown-

* The A. leucoryx, Schr. CCLVI. B. or the White Antelope of Penn, taken from a
drawing made in Persia in 1717, appears to be a mere variety of the Oryx, or, per-
haps, of an Algazel viewed in front.

f The English speak of an antelope with almost straight horns, stiff hairs woolly
at their base, which sometimes loses one of its horns, from the mountains of Thibet,
which was pointed out to them as corresponding with the Unicorn, which is one of
the supporters of their coat of arms. It is called Chiru. M. Ham. Smith thinks it
may he the Kemas of iElian, I. xiv, c. 14.

J We have definitively ascertained that it is the Equine Antelope which is now
called the Koha in Senegal. The A. redunca, or Nagor of Buff, is there called the
Mibill.

§ Add the A. goral, Hardw. Lin. Trans. XIV. pi. xiv, and in the Mammif. F. Cuv.
under the name of Boui/uetin de Nepaul; the A. sylvicultrix. There should, also,
probably, he added the American woolly species, with long hair and very small horns
(A. lanigera, Smith), Lin. Trans. XIII. pi. iv, and perhaps the one Seba represents,
I. pi. xliii, x, iii, and which M. Ham. Smith calls A. mazama. There is nothing,
however, to prove that the Mazames of Hernandez are not the stags and roebucks of
America, as is observed by that author, who compares them to the stags and roe-
bucks of Spain.

|| Near the Canna should be placed the Guib {A. scripta), Buff. XII. pi. xl. — The
Sosch-Bock (A. sylvatica ), Buff. Supp. VI. xxv.

RUMINANTIA.

175

ish-grey stripes crossed with white ones; large horns, which are pe-
culiar to the male; they are smooth, with a triple flexure, with a
single longitudinal ridge slightly spiral; a small beard beneath the
chin ; a mane along the spine : it lives isolated to the north of the
Cape.

i. Horns bifurcated. Antilocaprje of Ord. — Dicranoceros of Ham.

Smith.

Of all the forms of hollow horns this is the most singular ; a compres-
sed fork is given off from their base or trunk, almost like the tine or ant-
ler of a deer ; the pointed tips curve backwards. The most known spe-
cies is,

A. furcifera , Ham. Smith, Lin. Trans. XIII. pi. ii ; the Cabril
of the Canadians. It inhabits the vast prairies of the middle and
western parts of North America, where it roams in large herds. Its
size is about that of the roebuck ; hair thick, undulated, and reddish ;
the tine of the horns is about the middle of the height.*

h. Four horns. — Tetracera, Leach.

This subdivision, lately discovered in India, was not unknown to the
antients. iElian speaks of it, 1. XV. c. xiv, by the name of the Four-
horned Oryx; the anterior pair are before the eyes, the posterior com-
pletely behind the frontal.

A. chicarra , Hardw. ; Lin. Trans. XI Y. pi. xv; and F. Cuv.
Mammif.'j' (The Tchicarra). About the size of a roebuck, and of
an almost uniform fawn colour. The female has no horns. Found
in the forests of Hindostan. J

l. Two smooth horns.

A. picta, and trago-camelus , Gm. ; Buff. Supp. VI. pi. x and xi.
(The Nylgau). As large as a stag, or larger; the horns short and
bent forwards ; a beard under the middle of the neck ; hair greyish ;
double, black and white, strongly marked rings on all the feet just
above the hoof. The female have no horns. This species is from
India.

A. rupicapra, L. ; Buff. XII. pi. xvi ; Ysard in the Pyrenees.
(The Chamois). The only ruminating animal in the west of Europe

* The A.palmata, Smith, lb. pi. iii, is only known to me by its horns, which have
the antlers close to the base; perhaps they had been cut off. Some authors have
considered these antelopes also as the Mazames of Hernandez.

f I should remark here, in relation to the observations at page 523, Lin. Trans.,
tom. XIV, that it was not the fault of the late M. du Vaucel, that the figure and de-
scription of the Tchicarra were attributed to him in the Hist, des Mammif. His
consignments were not always complete ; a drawing frequently arrived without any
description or explanation, and his premature death prevented him from supplying
what was deficient in his memoirs.

X The A. 4-corns, Blainv., is only known to me by a cranium, the anterior horns
of which are proportionally larger, Jour.de Phys. Aout 1815. Perhaps it is merely
a difference arising from age.

176

MAMMALIA.

that can be compared with the antelope, having, however, peculiar
characters: its straight horns are bent suddenly backward like a
hook ; behind each ear, under the skin, is a sac, whose only external
opening is a small orifice.* Its size is that of a large goat. The
hair is of a deep brown, with a black band descending from the eye
towards the muzzle. The swiftness of its course among rocks and
precipices is wonderful, and it remains in small herds in the middle
region of the highest mountains.

M. Smith separates from the antelopes, under the generic name of Ca-
toblepas, the

A. gnu , Gm. ; Buff. Supp. VI. pi. viii and ix. (The Gnou or
Niou). A very extraordinary animal, which, at the first glance,
seems to be a monster composed of parts of different animals. It
has the body and croup of a small horse, covered with brown hairs;
the tail furnished with long white hairs, like that of the horse, and
on the neck a beautiful straight mane, the hairs of which are white
at the base and black at the tip. The horns, approximated and en-
larged at the base like those of the Cape Buffalo, descend outwardly,
and turn up at the point ; its muzzle is large, flat, and surrounded
with a circle of projecting hairs; under the throat and dewlap is an-
other black mane; the feet have all the lightness of the stag’s.
Horns in both sexes. Inhabits the mountains to the north of the
Cape, where it is rather rare, although the antients appear to have
had some knowledge of it.j'

The three remaining genera have the bony core of the horns principally
occupied with cells, which communicate with the frontal sinuses. The
direction of their horns furnishes the characters of the divisions.

Capra, Lin.

The Goats have the horns directed upwards and backwards; the chin
generally furnished with a long beard, and the chanfrin almost always
concave.

C. cegragus, Gm ; Cuv. Menag. du Mus. 8vo. II. 177. (The
JEgagrus or Wild Goat). Appears to be the stock of all the va-
rieties of our domestic goat. It is distinguished by its horns, trench-
ant in front, very large in the male ; short, or altogether wanting in
the female, which is also sometimes the case in the two species of
Ibex. It lives in herds on the mountains of Persia (where it is
known by the name of paseng ), and perhaps on those of other coun-

* It was, perhaps, a mistaken idea respecting the indication of this orifice which
led the antients to say, that, according to Empedocles, goats breathed through the
ears.

f This species most probably gave rise to the catoblepas. See Pliny, lib. VIII.
cxxxii, and iElian, lib. VIII. c. v.

The most complete work on the subject of the antelopes is that of M. Ham. Smith,
inserted in the work of Griffith, and I regret that the want of sufficient objects for
observation have prevented me from giving all its details.

RUMINANTIA. 177

tries, even in the Alps. The oriental bezoar (a) is a concretion
found in its intestines.

The Goats, and our domestic species ( Capra hircus, L.) vary in-
finitely in size, colour, and in the length and fineness of the hair ; in
the size of the horns, and even in their number. The Angora Goats
in Cappadocia have the softest and most silky hair. Those of Thibet
are renowned for the admirably fine wool which grows among their
hair, with which the celebrated Cachemires are manufactured. There
is a race in upper Egypt with short hair, convex chanfrin, and pro-
jecting lower jaw, which, possibly, is hybrid. The Goats of Guinea,
called Mambrines , and of Juida, are very small, the horns inclining
backwards. All these animals are stout, capricious, and fond of
wandering ; sensible of their mountain origin, they prefer dry and
wild places, feeding on coarse grass, and shoots of young -trees.
They do much injury to the forests. The kid only is eaten, but their
milk is useful in several diseases (b). The female can produce at
seven months ; her period of gestation is five, and she generally has
two kids at a birth.

C. ibex , L.; Buff. XII. pi. xiii; Schreb. CCLXXXI. (The
Ibex). Large horns, square in front, marked with transverse and
prominent knots. It inhabits the most elevated summits of the
highest ranges of mountains in the whole of the old continent.

C. caucasica, Guldenst., Act. Petrop. 1779, II. pi. xvi, xvii; Schr.
CCLXXXI. B. (The Caucasian Ibex). Distinguished by its large
triangular horns, obtuse, but not square in front, and knotty like
those of the preceding. The two species mix with the domestic
goat.*

Ovis, Lin.

Sheep have their horns directed backwards, and then incline spirally,
more or less forwards ; the chanfrin is generally convex, and there is no
beard. They are so slightly entitled to a generic separation from the
goats, that with the latter they produce mongrels capable of reproduction.
As in the goats, there are several wild races or species very nearly allied.
Ov. ammon, L. ; Pall. Spic. XI. i ; Schr. CCLXXXVIH. (The
Argali of Siberia). The male of which has very large horns, with

* Add the Bouquetin d’Ethiopie, F. Cuv. Mammif. — The African Maned Ibex ,
Tackhaitse, S. Daniels, Afric. Scenery, pi. xxiv.

(a) The oriental bezoar is a greenish- black concretion, formed of concentri-
cal strata, and is generally found to be a deposit surrounding a small bit of rice-
straw as its nucleus. The bezoar, called the western, is found in the stomach of a
South American species of camel. Bezoar stones were formerly in vast repute as
antidotes against poisons, and were objects of superstitious veneration. — Eng. Ed.

( b ) Goats’ milk owes its peculiar odour to an acid, which is blended with it,
and its great repute as nourishing food for children and weakly persons, to the large
proportion of caseous matter which it contains. The colour of the goat’s hair ap-
pears to be connected with the flavour of the milk, for, in the milk of those that are
of a deep colour, the flavour is much stronger than in that of goats with lighter hair.
— Eno. Ed.

vol. i.

r

178

MAMMALIA.

the base triangular, angles rounded, flattened in front, and striated
transversely; those of the female are compressed and falciform. In
summer the hair is short, and of a fawn-coloured grey ; in winter it
is thick, rigid, and of a reddish-grey, with some white about the
muzzle, throat, and under the belly. There is always, as in the stag,
a yellow space about the tail, wdiich is very short. This animal in-
habits the mountains of all Asia, and attains to the size of the fallow
deer.

Ov. musimon, Pall.; Mufione of Sardinia; Muffoli de Corse;
Buff. XI. pi. xxix ; Schreb. CCLXXXVIII. A. (The Mouflon or
Mufion of Sardinia). Appears to differ from it only in its inferior
size, and in the deficiency or smallness of the horns in the female.
It is said to be also found in Crete. There are some varieties to-
tally or partially black, and others more or less white. It is pro-
bable that the

Ov. montana, Geoff., Ann. Mus. II. pi. lx; Schr. CCXCIV. D.
(The Mouflon of America) is a species of Argali, which may have
crossed the sea on the ice. Its horns are very stout, and are more
perfectly spiral than those of the common species.*

Ov. tragelaphus, Cuv. ; Penn. XII; Shaw, pi. ccii, 2; Schr.
CCLXXXVIII. B. (The Mouflon of Africa). Soft and reddish
hair, with a long mane hanging under the neck and another at each
ankle ; the tail is short ; it appears to be a distinct species. It in-
habits the rocky districts of all Barbary; and M. Geoffroy has ob-
served it in Egypt.

It is from the Mouflon or the Argali that we are supposed to de-
rive the innumerable races of our woolly animals, which, next to the
dog, are most subject to vary. We have some of them in Europe
with common and fine wool ; large and small ; with large or little
horns, wanting in the females, or in both sexes, &c. &c. The most
interesting varieties are those of Spain (a), which have a fine curly
fleece, with large spiral horns on the male, now beginning to be dif-
fused throughout Europe, and that of England, whose wool is fine
and long.

The most common variety in southern Russia has a very long tail.

* This is identical with the Ouis ammon , L.

jgggT (a) The principal of these is the Merino breed, which, up to 1786, were pecu-
liar to Spain. In that year a flock was brought into France, and was placed on the
national farm of Rambouillet, where they still remain. George the Third adopted
the plan, after the example of France, of importing Merino sheep, and presenting
them to private agrtculturists. In 1792, Lord Auckland, our ambassador at Spain,
obtained, by order of his Majesty, forty of the best Spauish sheep, in exchange for
eight English coach horses; they were placed in Oatlands, and superintended by Sir
Joseph Banks. But the results of this and similar experiments, so far as England is
concerned, must be regarded as failures : in this country the wool was always coarser
on the Merino than the article which came from Spain, whereas, the wool of the
Merino imported into Germany was the finest and best of all. The wool from our
colonies of New South Wales bids fair to be the most superior that has hitherto been
employed in England. — Eng. Ed.

RUMINANTIA.

179

Those of India and of Guinea, which also have long tails, are dis-
tinguished by their long legs, very convex foreheads, pendent ears,
want of horns, and short hair.

The north of Europe and of Asia has almost every where a breed
of small sheep with a very short tail. In the race of Persia, Tar-
tary, and China, the tail is transformed into a double globe of fat ;
in that of Syria and Barbary it is long, but loaded with an immense
mass of the same substance. In both, the ears are pendent, the
horns of the males large, those of the females moderate, and the
wool is mixed with hair.

Sheep are valuable for their flesh, suet, milk, skin, wool, and
dung; well managed flocks carry fertility every where. Lambs are
weaned at two months, are castrated at six months, and shed their
milk teeth between the first and third year. The ewe can bear at a
year, and produce from ten to twelve lambs. The period of gestation
is five months, and two lambs are produced at a birth. The ram is
mature at eighteen months, and is let out to thirty ewes — he is fat-
tened at eight years.

Bos, Lin. *

Oxen have the horns directed laterally, inclining upwards or forwards,
in the form of crescents; they are large animals, with a broad muzzle,
short and thick body, and stout legs.

B. taurus , L. ; Buff. IV. xvi. (The Common Ox). Its specific
characters are a flat forehead, longer than broad, and round horns,
placed at the extremities of the salient line or ridge which separates
the forehead from the occiput. In the fossil crania, which appear to
have belonged to this species in a wild state (the Ur us of the an-
tients), the horns curve forwards and downwards ; but in the num-
berless domestic varieties, they have very different directions and
sizes — sometimes they are even totally wanting. The common races
of the torrid zone have, all, a lump of fat upon the shoulders, and
some of thorn are not larger than the Hog. The utility of these
animals for labour, and the value of their flesh, fat, milk, and hide,
are known to every one : even their horns are used in the arts. The
period of gestation is nine months. The cow can bear at eighteen
months — the bull is mature at two years ; he is cut at two and fat-
tened at eight years.

B. urus , Gm. ; Urus or Bison of the ancients ; Zubr of the Po-
landers; Gesn. CLVII. (The Aurochs). Generally, but errone-
ously, considered as the wild stock of our horned cattle. It is
distinguished from them by its convex forehead, which is wider than
it is high, by the insertion of its horns below the occipital crest, by
the length of its legs, by an additional pair of ribs, by a sort of curly
wool, which covers the head and neck of the bull, forming a short
beard under the throat, and by its grunting voice. It is a savage
animal that has now taken refuge in the great marshy forests of
Lithuania, of the Krapacs, and of Caucasus, but which formerly

180

MAMMALIA,

inhabited all the temperate parts of Europe. It is the largest
quadruped proper to Europe.

B. bison , L. ; B. americanus, Gm. ; Buff. Supp. III. v. ; F. Cuv.
Mammif. (The Bison of America, or Buffalo of the Anglo-Ame-
cans). The bony head very similar to that of the Aurochs, and
covered like it, the neck and shoulders also, with frizzled wool,
which becomes very long in winter; but its legs, and particularly its
tail, are shorter. Inhabits all the temperate parts of North America.
Crosses with cows.

B. bubalus , L. ; Buff. XI. xxv. ; Wild Ox of Arachosia of Aris-
totle. (The Buffalo). Originally from India, and brought into
Egypt, Greece, and Italy, during the middle century; has a convex
forehead, higher than wide, the horns directed sideways, and marked
in front by a longitudinal ridge. This animal is subdued with diffi-
culty, but is extremely powerful, and prefers the/marshy grounds and
coarse plants on which the Ox could not live. Its milk is good, and
the hide very strong, but the flesh is not esteemed.

There is a race of them in India, whose horns include a space of
ten feet from tip to tip: it is called Ami in Hindostan, and is the
Bos ami of Shaw.

B. frontalis , Lambert, Linn. Trans. VII. pi. 4; and F. Cuv.
Mammif. (The Gy all or Jengle Ox). Resembles the domestic Ox
in the greater part of its characters, but its horns are flattened from
before backwards, and are without angular ridges. They are di-
rected sideways and more or less upwards, but not backwards. The
hair is short and black, except on the forehead, and on a line along
the back, where it is grey or fawn-coloured, and on the legs, where
it is white. It is a domestic race in the mountain districts of the
north-west of India, and which is perhaps descended from a cross
between the Buffalo and the common species.

B. grunniens, Pall. ; Grunting Cow of Tartary , &c. ; Sch.
CCXCIX. A. B. (The Yack, or Horse-tailed Buffalo). A small
species, with the tail completely covered with long hairs like that of
the Horse, and a long mane on the back. Its head appears to re-
semble that of the Buffalo, but the horns have not been sufficiently
described. This animal, of which iElian has spoken, is originally
from the mountains of Thibet. Its tail constitutes the standards
still used by the Turks to distinguish the superior officers.

B. caffer, Sparm. ; Schr. CCCI. (The Cape Buffalo). Very
large horns, directed sideways and downwards, ascending from the
point, flattened, and so wide at their base that they nearly cover the
forehead, merely leaving between them a triangular space, the apex
of which is above. It is a very large animal, of an excessively
ferocious disposition, inhabiting the woods of Caffraria.

B. moschatus, Gm. ; Schr. CCCII. ; La Tete , Buff. Supp. VI.
iii. (The Musk Ox of America). The horns approximated and
directed as the preceding, but meeting on the forehead in a straight
line ; those of the female are smaller and more widely separated ;

CETACEA.

181

the forehead is convex, and the end of the muzzle furnished with
hairs. It stands low, and is covered with tufted hair that reaches to
the ground. The tail is extremely short. It diffuses more strongly
than any other species the musky odour common to all the genus.
It is only to be met with in the coldest parts of North America,
though it seems that its cranium and bones have been carried by the
ice to Siberia. The Esquimaux make caps of the tail, the hairs of
which, falling over their face, defend them from the Musquitoes.

ORDER IX.

CETACEA.

The Whales are mammiferous animals without hind feet; their trunk is
continuous, with a thick tail, terminating in an horizontal, cartilaginous
fin, and their head is united to the trunk by a neck, so thick and short,
that no contraction of it can be perceived; it is composed of a very slen-
der cervical vertebras, which are partly cemented to one another. The
first bones of the anterior extremities are shortened, and the succeeding
ones flattened and enveloped in a tendinous membrane, which reduces
them to true fins. Their external form is altogether that of fishes, the
tail fin excepted, which in the latter is vertical. They always therefore
remain in the water ; but as they respire by lungs, they are compelled to
return frequently to its surface to take in fresh supplies of air. Inde-
pendently of this, their warm blood, their ears, with external, though
small, openings, their viviparous generation, the mammas through the
medium of which they suckle their young, and all the details of their
anatomy sufficiently distinguish them from fishes.

Their brain is large, and its hemispheres well developed; the petrous
bone, or that portion of the cranium which contains the internal ear, is
separated from the rest of the head, and only adheres to it by means of
ligaments. There are no external ears, nor hairs upon the body.

The form of their tail compels them to flex it from above downwards
to produce a progressive motion ; it also greatly aids them in rising in the
water.

To the genera hitherto described of the Whales, we add others formerly
confounded with the Morses.

182

MAMMALIA.

FAMILY I.

HERBIVOROUS WHALES.

Tiieir teeth have a flat crown, which determines their mode of life, and
this induces them to leave the water frequently, to come on and crawl
and pasture on the shore. They have two mammae on the chest, and
mustachio-like hairs; two circumstances which, when observed from a
distance as they raise the anterior part of the body vertically above the
water, may give them some resemblance to woman or man, and have
probably occasioned those fabulous accounts of Tritons and Sirens which
some travellers pretend to have seen. Although in the cranium the bony
nostrils open towards the top, the orifices in the skin are pierced at the
end of the muzzle. Their stomach is divided into four sacs, of which
two are lateral, and they have a large caecum.

Manatus, Guv.

The Lamantins, or rather the Manati or Cow-whales, have an oblong
body, terminated by an elongated oval fin ; the grinders, eight in number
throughout, have a square crown, marked with two transverse elevations ;
there are neither incisors nor canines in the adult; but when very young,
we find two very small pointed teeth in the intermixillary bones, which
soon disappear. Vestiges of nails are discoverable on the edges of their
fins, which they employ with tolerable dexterity in creeping and carrying
their young ; hence the comparison of these organs with hands, and the
name of Manatus applied to this animal, of which Lamantin is a corrup-
tion. From their manner of living, they are also called Sea-Ox , or Sea-
Cow, and from their mammae, Mermaid , &c. — Trichechus manatus (a),
Lin. ; Buff. XIII. lvii.

They are found near the mouths of rivers in the hottest parts of
the Atlantic Ocean, and it appears that those of the American rivers
are specifically different from those of Africa.* They grow to the
length of fifteen feet. Their flesh is used as food ( b ).

Halicore, lllig. f — Dugong, Lacep.

The Dugongs have grinders composed each of two cones laterally

* See Oss. Foss., tom. first part. f Halicore, Maid of the Sea.

$£fT ( a ) This is the Trichecus Manatus of Linnaeus, a species belonging to the
genus Trichecus, which he placed in his order Bruta. — Eng. Ed.

(b) At Table Bay, in the Cape of Good Hope, a British establishment is sta-
tioned for the Whale fishery, the principal species taken being called the Cow-
Whales. These animals are annually accustomed to go into the hays on the above
coast for the purpose of obtaining a medium of still water and sand, which is said
to be essential to the parturition of all the black Whales.— Eng, Ed.

CETACEA.

183

united; the teeth implanted in the incisive bone are permanent, and grow
to such a size as to become true pointed tusks, but of which the greater
portion remain covered by thick fleshy lips, bristled, and with mustachios.
The body is elongated, and the tail terminated by a crescent-shaped fin.
One species only is known, the

Hal. dugong; Siren; Sea-Cow, &c. ; Renard, Poiss. des Indes,
pi. xxxiv, f. 180; Home, Phil. Trans, and F. Cuv. Mammif. (The
Dugong). It inhabits the Indian Ocean, and is frequently con-
founded by travellers with the Manatus.

Stellerus, Cuv . — Rytina,# lllig.

The Stelleri appear to have but a single compound grinder on each
side, with a flat crown, and bristled with plates of enamel. Their fins
have not even the little nails observed on those of the Manatus. Accord-
ing to Steller, the first, and hitherto the only one who has described them,
their stomach also is much more simple.

One species only is known, which is confined to the northern part
of the Pacific Ocean, ■f

FAMILY II.

CETACEA ORDINARIA,

The Ordinary Whales are distinguished from the preceding by the
singular apparatus from which they have received the name of Blowers.
(Souffleurs). As a large quantity of water passes into their huge mouths
along with their prey, some way was necessary by which they could get
rid of it; accordingly, it passes through the nostrils by means of a peculiar
disposition of the velum palati, and is accumulated in a sac situated at the
external orifice of the cavity of the nose, whence, by the compression of
powerful muscles, it is violently expelled through a narrow opening on the
top of the head. It is in this way they produce those jets d’eau observed
by navigators at so great a distance. Their nostrils, continually bathed
by waves of salt water, could not be lined with a membrane sufficiently
delicate to enable them to detect odours, and accordingly, they have none
of those projecting laminae found in the nasal cavities of other animals;
the olfactory nerve is absent in several, and if there be any which enjoy
the sense of smell, they must have this nerve mostly in an obliterated
state. Their larynx, of a pyramidal form, penetrates into the posterior
nares to receive air and conduct it to the lungs, without compelling the

* Ih/tina, wrinkled.

t Nov. Comm. Petrop. II., 294, et seq. It has never been figured.

184

MAMMALIA.

animal to raise its head and throat above the water for that purpose : there
are no salient laminae in the glottis, and the voice is reduced to a simple
lowing. They have no vestige of hairs, but their whole body is covered
with a smooth skin, under which is that thick layer of blubber abounding
in oil, the principal object for which they are pursued. Their mammas are
near the anus, and their fins are incapable of grasping.

Their stomach is divided into five and sometimes into seven distinct
sacs ; instead of one single spleen, they have several, small and globular ;
those which are possessed of teeth, have them all conical and alike ; they
do not chew their food, but swallow it rapidly.

Two small bones suspended in the flesh, near the anus, are the only
vestiges of posterior extremities which remain in them.

Several have a vertical fin on the back, composed of a tendinous sub-
stance, but unsupported by bone. Their eyes, flattened in front, have a
thick and solid sclerotica ; (a) the teguments of the tongue are soft and
smooth.

These may be once more subdivided into two small tribes : those in
which the head bears the usual proportion to the body, and those in which
it is immoderately large. The first comprehends the Dolphins and the
Narwhals.

Dolphinus, Lin.

The Dolphins have teeth in both jaws, all simple, and almost always
conical. They are the most carnivorous, and, in proportion to their size,
the most cruel of their order. They have no caecum.*

Delphinus, Cuv.

The Dolphins, properly so called, have a convex forehead, and the
muzzle forming a kind of bill, in front of the head, more slender than
the rest.

D. delphis, L. ; Lacep. Cet. pi. xiii. f. 1. (The Common Dol-
phin). The snout depressed and armed on each side of the jaw with
from forty-two to forty-seven teeth, slender, arcuate, and pointed;
black above, white beneath ; from eight to ten feet in length. This
animal, found in numerous bodies in every sea, and celebrated for the
velocity of its motion, which sometimes precipitates it on the decks
of vessels, appears really to have been the Dolphins of the antients.
The entire organization of the brain seems to indicate the docility
they attributed to it.

* There is no family of the Mammalia more difficult to observe, of which we have
more imperfect descriptions, and whose synonymes are more fluctuating than that
of the Cetacea. I have endeavoured to select authentic species.

gdf\(a) This is the next covering of the eye after the outer one which we see; it
is the hardest envelope of the eye. — Eng. Ed.

CETACEA.

185

D. tursio, Bonnaterre; vulg. le Soujfleur ; Lacep. XV. f. 2. (The
Great Dolphin). Snout short, broad, and depressed ; from twenty -
one to twenty-four teeth throughout, conical, and often blunted. In-
dividuals have been seen fifteen feet in length, and it appears that
they are found in the Mediterranean as well as in the Ocean.* * * §

D. dubius, Cuv. Only thirty-six or thirty-seven teeth through-
out, but as fine and pointed as those of the Common Dolphin, which
it also resembles in its colours,

D. frontalis , Duss. Very similar to the preceding, but coloured
somewhat differently, and has thirty-four teeth throughout. Dis-
covered by M. Dussumier, at the Cape de Verd Islands.

D. frontatus , Cuv. But twenty-one teeth throughout, larger
than those of the preceding; the muzzle is also longer and more
compressed; its origin is not known. *

D. ylumbeus , Dussum. The muzzle with the same compressed
form, but armed throughout with thirty-seven teeth. From Mala-
bar.■j*

D. velox, Dussum. A somewhat longer muzzle, and forty-one
teeth throughout. From Ceylon.

D. longirostris, Dussum. Surpasses even the Common Dolphin
in the number of its teeth, having from fifty-five to sixty throughout.

'From the coast of Malabar. J

M. de Blainville separates from this first division of Dolphins, under
the name of Delphinorhynchus, those species in which the snout,
though long and slender, is not separated from the forehead by a decided
furrow. One of them,

D. micropterus, Cuv., was thrown upon the coast of France ; it is
remarkable for its dorsal fin, which is also placed very far back.
It grows to the length of fifteen feet, and loses all its teeth at
an early age. §

D. rostratus , Cuv. A slender muzzle, and externally all of a
piece with the head; twenty-one teeth throughout. Its dorsal fin
is of the usual size. 1 1

* The Whale or Capidolio of Belon, and the Orca, of the same author, which very
probably is that of the antients, belong also to the division of the Dolphins with
snouts, and are much larger than the above mentioned species; but their characters
are not sufficiently determined. The Dauphin feres of Bonnaterre is probable re-
ferrable to one of the two.

f I suspect this D. plumbeus to be the same as the D. malaianus of MM. Lesson
and Gamier, Voy. de la Coq. pi. ix. f. 5.

X We cannot, in this work, give a place to species which have been only seen at a
distance, and of which no part has been produced; we therefore mention, merely as
indications, the D. albigena , Quoy and Gaym., Voy. de Freyc. pi. xi. or D. super -
ciliosus, Lesson and Gam., Voy. de la Coq. pi. ix. f. 2. — The D. cruciger, Quoy and
Gaym. Ib. f. 3 and 4, which is at least closely allied to the D. bivittatus , Less, and
Gam. f. 3. — The D. lunatus , Less, and Gam. f. 4. — Still less can we admit species
which have not even been figured.

§ Blainville, Nouv. Bullet, des Sc. IV. p. 139, and Fr. Cuv. Mammif. under the
improper name of D. de Dale, which belongs to the Hyperoodm.

N. B. The D. rostratus of Shaw is the gangcticus.

|| Add the Dauphin couronnc, Freminville, Nouv. Bullet, des Sc. III. No. 56,
pi. l,f. 2.

VOL. I.

Q

186

MAMMALIA.

D. gangeticus, Roxburg (The Dolphin of the Ganges), should be
distinguished from this first group. Its spiracle is longitudinal, and
the jaws slender and inflated at the end. It ascends the Ganges to a
great distance, and is probably the Platanista of Pliny.

Phocjena, Cuv.

Marsouins or Porpoises* * * § have no rostrum, but a short, and uniformly
convex muzzle.

D. phoccena, L. ; Lacep. XIII. f. 2. (The Common Marsouin
or Porpoise, of the English). The teeth compressed, trenchant and
rounded, from twenty- two to twenty-flve on each side in each jaw ;
blackish above, white beneath. It is the smallest of the Cetacea,
seldom exceeding four or five in length; very common in all our
seas, where it is found in large troops.

D. capensis, Dussumrem. (The Cape Porpoise). Similar to the
preceding, but has twenty-eight teeth throughout, cylindrical, slightly
pointed, and not compressed like those of the common species. From
the Cape seas.

D. orca and D. gladiator ; Buts-Jcopf and Scliwerd-fisch of the
Dutch and Germans; Lacep. XV. 1, and not so well, V. 3. (The
Grampus). Teeth, thick, conical, and slightly hooked, eleven every
where ; the posterior ones flattened transversely ; the body black
above, white underneath ; a white spot on the eye in the form of a
crescent ; the dorsal fin elevated and pointed. It is the largest of
Dolphins, being frequently found from twenty to twenty-five feet in
length, and is the most relentless enemy of the Whale. They attack
it in troops and torment it until it opens its mouth, when they devour
the tongue.

D. aries, Risso ; Ann. Mus. XIX. pi. i. fig. 4. A smaller spe-
cies sometimes seen upon the coast of France, which at an early
period loses the upper teeth and preserves only a few of the lower
ones. Its dorsal fin is lower and further back than that of the
Grampus, J

D. globiceps , Cuv.§ Ann. Mus. XIX. pi. i. fig. 2 and 3 ; D. de-
duct or, Scoresby. (The Round-headed Grampus). Has the top of
the head so arched as to be globular ; long, pointed, pectoral fins ;
it is more than twenty feet in length ; black, with a white stripe from
the throat to the anus. It lives in troops of several hundreds, led

* Porpoise, from porcus piscis, hog-fish.

f Grampus, a corruption of the French words grand poisson. Buts kopf, or rather >
Boots kopf, signifies that its head is made like a long-boat. Schwerd fisch, Sword-fish, i
from its dorsal fin.

X The Epaulard ventru of Bonnaterre, Lacep. XV. 3, copied from Hunter, Phil. ||
Trans, presents a similar form; but Hunter’s specimen was eighteen feet long, and j
ours never exceeds ten.

The D. griseus, Ann. Mus., XIX. pi. i. f. I. is merely a bad drawing of this D. ji
aries, lb. f. 4. The true aries of the antients is the Grampus.

§ It is the head of the D. globiceps deprived of its teeth, which is engraved in
Bonnaterre, Cetol. pi. vi. f. 2: and in Lacep. pi. ix. f. 2, under the name of Cachalot
swinewal; and in Camper, Get. pi. xxxii, xxxiii, and xxiv, under that of the Toothless ;
Narwhal, ]

CETACEA,

187

by the old males, and is sometimes thrown upon the coasts of
Europe. It has from nine to thirteen teeth throughout, but loses
them all with age.

Delphinapterus, Lace]).

Only differs from the Porpoises in having no dorsal fin.

D. leucas, Gm. ; D. albicans , Fabr. ; Huid fish of the Danes;
Scoresby, Arct. Reg. II. pi. xiv. (The Beluga, or White Grampus).
Nine teeth throughout, thick and blunt at the end; skin of a
yellowish white ; head, externally convex, like that of a Porpoise ; as
large as the Grampus. Found in the Frozen Ocean, whence it often
ascends rivers to some distance.* * * §

D. leucoramphus , Peron. ; Voy. de la Coq. pi. ix.'f' Inhabits the
South seas; the head is convex and pointed; the muzzle, a part of
the pectoral fins, and the whole under part of the body of a beautiful
white. The back is blue, and it has from thirty-eight to forty-two
teeth throughout. The

D. phoccenoides is a species of this subgenus, discovered by M.
Dussumier at the Cape it has the round head, and the compressed
and obtuse teeth of the Porpoise. J

Hyperoodon, Lacep.%

The Hyperoodons have the body and muzzle very similar externally to
those of the Dolphin properly so called ; but the cranium is elevated at
its edges by vertical bony partitions ; they are generally found to have but
two small teeth in front of the lower jaw, which do not always appear ex-
ternally ; their palate is studded with small tubercles.

One species only is known, which attains a length of from twenty
to twenty-five feet, and perhaps more. It is taken in the British
Channel and the North Sea, and is often called the Baleine a
bee. 1 1

* Rondelet, under the name of peis-mular and of senedette, represents a Cetaceous
animal very similar to the Beluga; but he does not say it is white. He also applies
to it the Italian name of capidolio. It would be one Delphinapterus more, if the
figure were not ideal; but 1 fear such is the case, and the more so as this. name of
mular and that of capidolio belong properly to the Cachalot. Besides this, the Beluga
has occasioned the formation of a little white Cachalot, from the circumstance of so
soon losing its upper teeth. See its head, Voy. de Pallas, Atl. pi. Ixxix.

f The muzzle in this figure is too pointed. The White Dolphin with black ex-
tremities of Commerson must be nearly allied to it.

X M. Rafinesque speaks of a Dolphin with two dorsal fins, and MM. Quoy and
Gaymard saw one they have named D. rhinoceros, Voy. de Freycinet, II. f. 1; but
they saw it at a distance, and half merged in the waves, so that there may have been
some optical illusion.

§ Hyperoodon, teeth in the palate.

|| This animal, described by Baussard, Jour, de Phys. March 17S9. (Delph. eden-
1 tulus , Schr.) to which Bonnaterre has transferred the name of buts-kopf, which be-
I longs to the Grampus, is the same as the Two-toothed Dolphin of Hunter; Bausard
, expressly mentions its two teeth. It is also the Balcena rostrata of Klein and of
; Chemnitz, Besch. der Berl. ges. IV. p. 183; of Pennant, Brit. Zool. No. V; of Pon-
I toppidan, Nor. 11.120; the Bottle-head of Dale, &c. Chemnitz found one of the
teeth. See Oss. Foss, tom, V. p. 1. f. 324.

188

MAMMALIA.

Monodon, Lin .

The Narwhals have no teeth properly speaking, but mere long, straight
and pointed tusks, implanted in the intermaxillary hone, and directed in
the line of the axis of the body. The form of their body and that of
their head greatly resemble that of the Porpoises. One species only is
well known, the

M. monoceros, L. ; Scoresby, Arct. Reg. pi. xv.* * * § (The Nar-
whal). Whose tusk is spirally furrowed and sometimes ten feet in
length, was for a long time called the horn of the Unicorn. («) This
animal has, it is true, the germs of two tusks, but it is very seldom
that both become equally developed. That of the left side usually
attains its full growth, while the other remains hidden in its alveolus.'f
According to the description of the Narwhal, it is hardly more than
twice or thrice the length of its tusk; the skin is marbled with
brown and a kind of white; the muzzle is arched; mouth small;
spiracle on the top of the head, and no dorsal fin, but merely a salient
crest along the whole length of the spine. The tusks are some-
times found perfectly smooth. J

The other Cetacea have the head so large as to constitute one third or
one half of the length of the whole body) but neither the cranium nor
the brain participate in this disproportion, which is altogether owing to an
enormous development of the bones of the face.

Physeter, Lin.

The Cachalots,§ or Spermaceti Whales, are Cetacea with a very vo-
luminous head, excessively enlarged, particularly in front, in whose upper

* The Narval microcephale, Lacep. pi. v. f. 2, is nothing more than a common
Narwhal, not quite so badly figured as in pi. iv. f. 3, which is copied from a had
drawing of Klein, Pise, per Pulm. Resp. pi. ii. fig. c, from an individual captured in
the Elbe in 1736, afterwards stuffed and exhibited in Dresden. Anderson gives a
rather better figure of the same individual. Fr. Tr. II. p. 108.

f We have found this small tusk in several crania, and verified the statements of
Anderson on this subject. It is prevented from being developed by its internal cavity
becoming too rapidly filled with the matter of the ivory, which thus obliterates its
gelatinous core.

X The Monodon spurius of Fabricius, or Anarkdk of Greenland, ( Ancylodon Illi-
ger) which has but two small curved teeth in the upper jaw and a dorsal fin, cannot
be far removed from the Hyperoodon. Val, wale, in all the languages derived from
the Teutonic, signifies Whale, and is often employed for the Cetacea in general ;
nar, in the language of the Icelanders, means cadaver, or dead body, and it is
pretended that such is the food of this genus.

§ Physeter as well as physalus, signifies blower. Cachalot is the name used by the
Biscayans; from cachau, which in the Cantabrian dialect means tooth.

IgSgT (a) Our sailors still call the Narwhal the Sea Unicorn; it yields merely
three tuns of oil, and is not pursued on this account. — Eng. Ed.

|ggf° (a) The Cachalots are with the Greenland Whales {B. mysticetus), the only
Whales which are pursued by the Whale-fishers: they are gregarious, and live in
groups of no less than two hundred, consisting of females guided by a male. The
quantity of oil yielded by the Cachalot is as small as three tuns, and would be
deemed unworthy of the trouble required in catching it, were it not in the first place

CETACEA.

189

jaw there is neither whalebone nor tooth, or if any, very small, and not
projecting; the lower jaw, narrow, elongated, and corresponding to a fur-
row in the upper one, is armed on each side with a range of cylindrical
or conical teeth, wdiich, when the mouth is closed, enter into correspond-
ing cavities in the upper jaw. The superior portion of their enormous
head consists almost entirely of large cavities, separated and covered by
cartilages, and filled with an oil which becomes fixed as it cools, well
known in commerce under the very singular name of spermaceti, a sub-
stance for which they are principally sought; the body not having much
blubber. These cavities, however, are very much distinct from the true
cranium, which is rather small, is placed under their posterior portion,
and contains the brain as usual. It appears that canals, filled with this
spermaceti, or white of the whale, or adipocire as it is called, are distri-
buted to several parts of the body, communicating with the cavities which
fill the mass of the head; they even ramify through the blubber that is
found beneath the whole of the skin.

The odorous substance, so well known under the name of ambergris ,
appears to be a concretion formed in the intestines of the Cachalot, parti-
cularly during certain states of disease, and it is said, chiefly in the
caecum.

The species of the Cachalots are far from being well ascertained.
That which appears to be the most common, the macrocephalus of
Shaw and Bonnaterre, (Lacep. X.)* in lieu of a dorsal fin, has a
mere callous prominence. There are from twenty to twenty-three
teeth on each side of the lower jaw, and some small conical ones
hidden beneath the gum in the upper one. Its spiracle is single,
and not double as in the greater part of the other Cetacea ; neither
is it symmetrical, but is directed towards the left, and terminates on
that side, on the front of the muzzle, which is truncated.'f In ad-
dition to this, it is said that the left eye is much smaller than the
other, and that the whalers always endeavour to attack the animal on
that side. If this species alone furnishes, as is asserted, all the
spermaceti and ambergris of commerce, it must be very widely dif-
fused, for these articles are drawn from the North and the South.
Cachalots, without dorsal fins, have been taken even in the Adriatic. J
The

* It is not the macrocephalus of Linnaeus.

t We have verified on two crania this want of symmetry in the spiracle, announced
by Dudley, by Anderson, and by Swediauer, which inclines us to credit the inequality
of the eyes mentioned by Egede.

{ We perceive no real difference between this Cachalot, of which we have good
figures and several parts of the skeleton, and that of Roberson, Phil. Trans. Vol. LX.
of which Bonnaterre has made a species under the name of trumpo , which is applied,
at Bermuda, to a Cachalot, without any more precise indication.

As to the Little Cachalot, P. catodon, Lin., no other difference is mentioned be-

for the spermaceti, which is a well known principal ingredient in the soothing oint-
ments, and is sometimes employed inwardly to alleviate a cough, and next, for the
ambergris, which is a sort of Bczoar concretion, commonly evacuated by the Cacha-
lot, and being of a light specific gravity, is found floating on the surface of the sea,
which the animal habitually frequents. It was formerly employed in medicine, as
;m excitant of the nerves, and was used in numberless officinal preparations. —
Eng. Ed.

190

MAMMALIA.

Physeter, Lacep.

Is a Cachalot with a dorsal fin. Two species only are distinguished
among them, microps, and tursio or mular, and those, from the very
equivocal character of teeth, arcuated or straight, sharp or blunt.* *

They are found in the Mediterranean as well as in the Arctic
Ocean. Those of the latter are said to be the most inveterate enemies
of the Seals.

Baljena, Lin.

The Whales are equal in size to the Cachalots, and in the proportional
magnitude of the head, although the latter is not so much enlarged in
front; but they have no teeth. The two sides of their upper jaw, which
is keel-shaped, or like a roof reversed, are furnished with thin, compact,
transverse laminae, called whalebone, formed of a kind of fibrous horn,
fringed at the edges, which serve to retain the little animals on which
these enormous Cetacea feed. Their lower jaw, supported by two osseous
branches arched externally and towards the summit, and completely un-
armed, lodges a very thick and fleshy tongue, and when the mouth is
closed, envelopes the internal part of the upper jaw, and the whalebone
with which it is invested. These organs do not allow whales to feed on
such large animals as their size might induce us to imagine. They live
on fish, but principally on Worms, Mollusca, and Zoophytes, selecting, it
is said, the very smallest, which become entangled in the filaments of the
whalebone. Their nostrils, better organised for the sense of smell than
those of the Dolphins, are furnished with some ethmoidal plates, and ap-
pear to receive some small filaments from the olfactory nerve. Their
caecum is short.

Bal. mysticetus,-\ L. ; Lacep. Cet. pi. 2 and 3, under the name of
Nord-Caper, and Scoresby, Arcf. Beg. II. pi. 12. (The Great

sides that of size, than that the teeth are sharper, a circumstance that may depend
upon age. It is not even certain that those which have been produced are not those
of some large Dolphin.

The Physeter macrocephalus of Linnaeus, Cach. cylindrique of Bonnaterre, (genus
Physalus of Lacep.) would have a good character in the distant location of its spi-
racle ; but this species merely rests on a had figure of Anderson, and no one has ever
seen anything like it.

The albicans of Brisson, huid-fisk of Egede and Anderson, converted by Gmelin
into a variety of the macrocephalus, is the beluga dolphin, which sheds its teeth at a
very early age, a fact we have ascertained.

* The only one tolerably well ascertained, is from a had figure of Bayer, Act.
Nat. Cur. III. pi. 1, taken from an animal thrown on shore at Nice. The name
mular has been very vaguely applied to it; the mular of Nieremberg is a Cachalot, it
is true ; hut there is nothing to prove it is one species more than another.

As to the different indications of the Cachalots of authors, see my Oss. Foss,
tom. V. p. 328, et seq. Add to them the figure given in the Journ. des Voyages, of
February, 1826, and that in the Voy. de Freycinet, pi. xii. With respect to the Ca-
chalots described by M. de Lacepede, Mem. du Museum, tom. IV. from Japanese
drawings, the very nature of the document on which they rest forbids me from giv-
ing them a place here.

f The phalaina of Aristotle and JEiian, which was an enemy of the Dolphin, ap-
pears to have been a large cetaceous animal armed with teeth; the only true Whale
known to Aristotle was his mysticetus, which had, says he, setae in the mouth in place
of teeth; most probably the Whale, with the wrinkled throat, of the Mediterranean.

CETACEA.

191

Greenland («), or Common Whale).* * It lias long been considered
the largest of all animals ; but from the late observations of Captain
Scoresby, it appears that it scarcely ever exceeds seventy feet, a
length frequently surpassed by the wrinkle-bellied whales. It has
no dorsal fin. To procure its fat or blubber, which is sometimes
several feet in thickness, and contains immense quantities of oil,
whole fleets are annually equipped. Formerly sufficiently bold to
venture into our seas, it has gradually retired to the extreme North,
where the number is daily diminishing. Besides oil, it produces for
the market black and flexible whalebone, eight or ten feet in length,
each individual having from eight to nine hundred strips on each
side of the palate. One hundred and twenty tuns of oil are obtained

It is thought, however, that Juvenal alludes to the common Whale in the following
line,

“ Quanto delphinis halsena britannica major,”
but the Latins applied the term Balaena, in a general way, to all the great Cetacea,
just as the people of the North do that of the Whale, or Wall, and its derivatives, a
remark essentially requisite to those who study their writings.

* The old figure of Martens, re-copied Lacep. I. pi. 1, and in all other authors,
represents the head too long,

gg|?° (a) The Mysticetus and the Cachalots are the only species of Whale pur-
sued by the Whale shipping expeditions to the Arctic regions, from this and other
countries. The Whale ships from Great Britain are generally vessels of from three
to four hundred tons. They collect usually in April, at the Shetland Islands, from
which they advance northwards, and gain the fishing station in about a month. This
is the common practice, but some vessels start before April, and others again proceed
to the fishing stations every month from April to October. Whale ships formerly
anchored on the east coast of Greenland, but that station having been deserted by
the Whales, the ships now resort to the great inland sea called Biffin’s Bay, which
they reach by passing through Davis’s Straits, quite on the other side of Greenland.
Hull is the principal port of the Whale fishery: Peterhead, in Scotland, is the next.
At first, the sole object in view in the taking of Whales, was their flesh; but now
their value chiefly consists in the blubber and the whalebone which it yields. With
respect to the latter, it is the peculiar substance found in a series of laminae or blades
in the jaws where the teeth should have been. The number of these blades in each
jaw is about three hundred. The blubber, ox oleaginous substance, which consti-
tutes the most valuable portion of the animal, is situated under the skin, and may
be described as a wrapper around the whole of the body, of the thickness of from
eight to twenty inches: its colour is represented by Captain Scoresby as of a yellow-
ish white, yellow, or red. In the very young animal it is always yellowish-white.
In some old animals it resembles the colour of the salmon. It swims in water. Its
thickness all round the body is eight, or ten, or twenty inches, varying in different
parts, as well as in different individuals. The lips are composed almost entirely of
blubber, and yield from one to two tuns of pure oil each. The tongue is chiefly com-
posed of a soft kind of fat, that affords less oil than any other blubber. The blubber,
in its fresh state, is without any unpleasant smell; and it is not until after the ter-
mination of the voyage, when the cargo is unstowed, that a Greenland ship becomes
disagreeable.

With respect to the method of killing the animal, it is well known that this is ac-
complished by the harpoon. This is flung from the ships or boats, and the fish, in
almost every instance, remains about half an hour, but sometimes a good deal longer,
underwater, after being struck; and then it often rises at a considerable distance
from the spot from which it had made its descent. Immediately after it re-appears,
the assisting boats make for the place with their utmost speed, and as they reach it,
each harpooner plunges his harpoon into its back, to the amount of three, four, or
more, according to the size of- the whale and the nature of the situation. Most fre-
quently, however, it descends for a few minutes after receiving the second harpoon,

192

MAMMALIA.

from a single whale. Shell-fish attach themselves to its skin, and
multiply there as on a rock, and some of the Balanus family even
penetrate into it. It is asserted that these enormous animals feed
exclusively on very small Mollusca, which swarm, it is true, in the
seas they inhabit. Their excrement is of a beautiful red colour,
and affords a tolerable die for linen.*

Other species (Baljenoptera, Lacep.) have a dorsal fin: they are also
again subdivided into such as have a smooth belly, and those in which it
is wrinkled. The

Baltenoptera, with a smooth belly .

Are closely allied to the whales, properly so called. One only is cited,
the

Balcena phy salus , Finnfisch of the Dutch ; copied from Martens,
by Anderson, Bonnaterre, and others; Lacep. I. fig. ii. (Razor-
back of British sailors, or Giblar.) As long as the common whale,

* It is from an erroneous interpretation of certain passages of Martens and Zorg-
drager, that naturalists have made a peculiar species of the Nord-Caper, which
should be a northern whale more slender than the common one; but in the Antarc-
tic Seas there is a species very similar to the Common Whale, which the Hollanders
of the Cape also call Nord-Caper. See Oss. Foss. p. 361, 363.

and obliges the other boats to await its return to the surface, before any further at-
tack can be made. It is afterwards actively plied with lances, which are thrust into
its body, aiming at its vitals. At length, when exhausted by numerous wounds and
the loss of blood which flows from the huge animal in copious streams, it indicates
the approach of its dissolution by discharging from its blow-holes a mixture of blood
along with the air and mucus which it usually expires, and finally jets of blood alone.
The sea to a great extent around is dyed with its blood, and the ice, boats, and men,
are sometimes drenched with the same. Its track is likewise marked by a broad pel-
licle of oil, which exudes from its wounds, and appears on the surface of the sea.
Its final capture is sometimes preceded by a convulsive and energetic struggle, in
which its tail, reared, whirled, and violently jerked in the air, resounds to the dis-
tance of miles. In dying, it turns on its hack or on its side; which joyful circum-
stance is announced by the capturers with the striking of their flags, accompanied
with three lively huzzas. Whenever a whale lies on the surface of the water, un-
conscious of the approach of its enemies, the hardy fisher rows directly upon it, and
an instant before the boat touches it, buries his harpoon in its back. The wounded
whale, in the surprise and agony of the moment, makes a convulsive effort to escape.
Then is the moment of danger. The boat is subjected to the most violent blows
from its head, or its fins, but particularly from its ponderous tail, which sometimes
sweeps the air with such tremendous fury, that both boat and men are exposed to
one common destruction. The whale on being struck, immediately dives down into
the water with great velocity. It appears, from the line which it draws out, that it
goes down at the rate of eight or ten miles an hour. The moment that the wounded
whale disappears or leaves the boat, a jack or flag, elevated on a staff, is displayed,
on sight of which, those on watch in the ship give the alarm, by stamping on the
deck, accompanied by a simultaneous and continued shout of ‘ a fall.’ At the sound
of this the sleeping crew are roused, jump from their beds, rush upon deck, with
their clothes tied by a string in their hands, and crowd into the boats. With a tem-
perature at zero, should a fall occur, the crew would appear on deck, shielded only
by their drawers, stockings, and shirts, or other habiliments in which they sleep.
The alarm of ‘ a fall ’ has a singular effect on the feelings of a sleeping person, un-
accustomed to the whale-fishing business. It has often been mistaken as a cry of
distress. A landsman, in a Hull ship, seeing the crew, on an occasion of a ‘ fall,’
rush upon deck, with their clothes in their hands, and leap into the boats, when
there was no appearance of danger, thought the men were all mad.

CETACEA.

193

but more slender; very common in the same latitudes, but shunned
by the fishermen on account of its extreme ferocity, and the paucity
of its blubber («) ; to capture it is a difficult, and for small vessels a
dangerous undertaking, on account of the violence of its motions
when attacked. It is far from certain that it is not a Jubarta , and
ignorantly described, whose name has been corrupted. The

Bal.®noptera, with a wrinkled belli/, or the Rorquals.*

Have the skin of the underpart of the throat and chest folded longitudi-
nally into plicas, forming very deep wrinkles, and consequently suscepti-
ble of very great dilatation, the use of which in their economy is unknown.
It appears that the seas of Europe contain two species.

Bal. boops, L. ; Jubarte of the Biscayans ; Lacep. I. f. 3. — IV.
f. 1 and2.: — V. f. 1, and VIII. 1 and 2. (The Jubarta or Finner).
Superior in length to the common whale, but has all the dangerous
propensities which are attributed to the razor-back.

Bal. musculus, Lin. ; Lacep. pi. vi. and vii. (The Rorqual of the
Mediterranean). Which only differs from the Jubarta in some of
the details of its proportions (6).“f

* Rorqual , whale with tubes, from its plicae.

f The Balcena rostrata of Hunter, of Fabricius and of Bonnaterre, or the Boops,
is very different from that of Pennant and of Pontoppidan, which is the Hy-

PEROODON.

The Balcena gibbosa and the gibbosa B. or nodosa of Bonnaterre, should he better
determined; but they are only known through Dudley, Phil. Trans. 387, and we are
not sure they were precisely in their natural state. See Oss. Fos. loc. cit

K|ggr (a) The Razorback is considered by our sailors as a dangerous sort of whale
to attack, as, when struck with the harpoon, it is so swift in its flight, that it runs off
from the ship at the rate of nearly four hundred and eighty fathoms an hour, so that
he very often breaks the line attached to the harpoon, or obliges the crew to cut the
line, lest the boat should be sunk. The quantity of oil which this whale yields is no
more than from ten to twelve tuns; the oil is, besides, of inferior quality. For these
reasons the Razorback is not pursued by the whale catchers, except by mistake, a
misfortune which is by no means of rare occurrence. The broad-nosed whale, B.
musculus , the beaked whale, B . rostrata , the finner, B. boops, are only varieties of the
Razorback. — Eng. Ed.

gggT ( b ) At this point, where the description of the mammalia terminates, it is
proper for us to notice the recent attempts which have been made in this country to
establish a new principle of classification amongst the mammalia. The most im-
portant, and, as some believe, the most profound of those arrangements, is that of
the learned entomologist, William M‘Leay, esq., who, in his singular work, entitled
1 force Entomologicce, presents us with its details. The bases of his system are; —

1. That all natural groups, whether kingdoms or any subdivision of them, return
into themselves; a distribution which he expresses by circles.

2. That each of these circles is formed precisely of five groups, each of which is
resolvable into five other smaller groups, and so on.

3. That proximate circles or larger groups are connected by the intervention of
lesser groups, which he denominates osculant.

4. That there are relations of analogy between the corresponding points of conti-
guous circles.

But the most interesting portion of Mr. Mac Leay’s speculations on the mammalia
is that which discusses the analogies subsisting, according to him, between the prin-
cipal groups of mammalia, and those into which the class of birds is resolvable. We
give the statement of the author —

* Every mammiferous animal may be reduced to these five orders; that is, may

VOL. I. R

191-

mammalia,

be assimilated in a greater or less degree, to one or otner of tne following typical
forms; viz. Man, the Lion, the Horse, the Whale, and the Mouse. I shall shew
hereafter how these five orders form a continued series returning into itself, so as to
be a natural group. In the mean time I must recall to the attention of the reader
the orders of birds, as defined and arranged by Mr. Vigors ; and to which definitions
and arrangement I have just applied so severe a test, only to corroborate their ac-
curacy, and to make them display additional harmony.

‘ When we have heard the Parrot, or Mainate, speaking; when we have witnessed
the former feeding itself as it were with a hand; when, in short, we have reflected on
the remarkable intelligence and development of brain throughout the whole order of
Insessores, to which both birds belong, there has been no one, perhaps, dull enough
not to compare them to Primates. I allow, indeed, that it is difficult to follow the
opinion of the great naturalist of France, who, ignorant of the true nature of rela-
tions of analogy, imagined that the Psittaceous tribe of birds ought to occupy the
first step in the scale of nature below man ; but we cannot help adopting the notion
of Linnaeus, in the ‘ Systema Naturae,’ that, although not near him in construction,
they are yet analogous to him in various important respects. And, adopting this
notion, we must place the whole order of Insessores, to which Psittacus belongs, op-
posite to the Primates, of which Man forms the type.

‘ The analogies existing between birds of prey and carniverous quadrupeds having
been noticed by Aristotle, who called both groups Gampsonucha, were enlarged upon
by Plutarch. Among a host of moderns, who have been struck with the resem-
blance, I may particularly mention Linnaeus, who, in his ‘Systema Naturae,’ has
expressly called his Accipitres ‘Feris analogi;’ and Buffon, who has treated the
subject at length, and with his usual eloquence. I conceive, therefore, that no one
can object to the propriety of my placing the Ferae opposite to the Raptores.

‘ The analogy between aquatic birds and aquatic mammalia scarcely requires the
mention of the authority of Linnaeus to make it be granted. It is indeed so evident,
that Hermann, according to his custom, takes it for a relation of affinity. In both
orders the anterior appendages of the vertebral axis dwindling into fins, and the two
undivided posterior appendages being placed so far behind on the axis as to shew
that both were intended for motion in the water rather than on land, are circum-
stances of themselves sufficient to authorize the placing of the Cetacea opposite to
the Natatores.

‘ Two orders still remain in each class to be considered: the Glires and Ungulata
among the mammalia; and among birds, the Rasores and Grallatores. The relations
of analogy pointed out by Linnaeus between mammalia and birds are, as Hermann
has observed, not always correct: and his errors have arisen from the misfortune of
his not detecting the natural group of Aristotle and Ray, which the latter has called
Ungulata. Having only been able to seize Aristotle’s subdivision of this group, he
lost the parallelism of analogy, and fell, as I shall hereafter shew, into very glaring
mistakes. In the ‘ Systema Naturae,’ however, he has mentioned that very striking
analogy which appears between his groups of Grallae and Bruta: that is, according
to the parallelish of analogy between the orders of Grallatores and Ungulata, since
the Bruta, as we have seen, do not form an order, but only a natural subdivision of
the Ungulata. That this analogy is demonstrably true, I deduce from the following
facts. Of their respective classes, the orders of Ungulata and Grallatores contain
examples of the longest legs in proportion to the body — witness Camelopardalis and
Haemantopus. Both orders present us, in groups not exactly aquatic, with instancss
of the toes soldered together, as in the horse ; or connected together by a web, as in
the Flamingo. Both orders present us with the greatest elongation of muzzle or fa-
cies— witness Myrmecophaga, or Antilope (particularly A. bubalus, L.), and Scolopax;
and also with the most depressed form of muzzle — witness Hippopotamus and Pla-
teala, which genera also afford us the truest specimens of Wading Vertebra ta. In
both orders we have the most elongated claws — witness Megalonyx and Parra. Both
orders afford us the swiftest animals in running — as the Horse and Tachydromus;
and the most pugnacious on account of love — as the Bull and Machetes. The Bull,
moreover, and the Butor (or Bostaurus, for hence comes the bird’s name), afford
us the loudest and hoarsest voice of their respective orders: where wre have also the
most remarkable instances of the upper and under mandibles touching each other
merely at their base and point; as Myrmecophaga, or the whole of the ta men ouk
amphodonta of Aristotle, and Anastomus, Illig. Both orders exhibit ornamental ap-
pendages to the head — as the antlers of the stag and the crown of the crane; and

CETACEA.

195

both orders afford us the only instances of true horns — as Bos or Rhinoceros, and
Palamedea, L. To see a hundred instances of resemblance, it is only necessary to
walk into a museum. I shall, therefore, only further say, that both orders contain
polygamous animals, are generally gregarious, and more graminivorous than grani-
vorous, being essentially inhabitants of marshes and savannahs. Thus, then, with
Linnaeus, J place the Bruta, or rather the whole order of Ungulata to which they
belong, opposite to the Grallatores.

‘ Four orders in each class being now disposed of, it follows by parallelism of ana-
logy, that the Glires ought to be placed opposite to the Rasores. But, setting this
theory aside, is this position true in fact?*

‘ Linnaeus, from the above-mentioned error in his series of affinity, considered the
Rasores to be analogous to his group of Pecora, But this group, according to Aris-
totle and Ray, is only a subdivision of Ungulata, which have, I consider, been now
proved to be analogous to the Grallatores, If, therefore, Linnaeus be right in mak-
ing his Bruta analogous to the order of Wading Birds, it follows that his Pecora
must be so also.

‘ The analogy of the Rasores to the ruminating animals was first, I believe, men-
tioned by Linnaeus in the ‘ Systema Naturae.’ It has since his days been copied
and copied, until now it almost becomes a sort of heresy to inquire into its accuracy.
I am not, however, aware that any reason for this analogy has ever been assigned,
beyond the fact, that one order affords the principal part of those birds which are do-
mesticated by man for purposes of food; and the other, the principal part of quadru-
peds which are destined to the same purpose. Now, granting even this domestica-
tion not to be the work of art, but to be an analogy really existing in nature, I would
observe, setting the whole family of Anatidae aside, that the Glires afford us many
eatable or domesticated animals, such as the Capromys and rabbit: and the Gralla-
tores afford us similar instances in the Snipe and Psophia. If some Rasores be said,
like the Pecora, to have ornamental appendages to the head, so it must be remem-
bered has the crowned cane; whereas no rasorial bird is truly horned, like the Pala-
medea. But it may be worth while to take into consideration successively the grand
characteristics of the Rasores, as given by ornithologists to distinguish them from all
other birds.

‘ The Rasores are, properly speaking, frugivorous birds ; by which I do not mean
eating fruits only, but all manner of seeds or grain. Now, this character of being
frugivorous applies much more to the Glires than the Ungulata, which are truly
herbivorous, and only feed on grain in an artificial or domesticated state. To begin,
then, with the rasorial or scratching powers of gallinaceous fowls; these are certainly
the most burrowing of frugivorous birds: now the most burrowing of frugivorous
quadrupeds are certainly not the Ungulata, but the Glires. These birds are charac-
terized by the shortness of their wings and the weakness of their pectoral muscles.
Now, if we inquire whether it is among the Glires or Ungulata that we find the cor-
responding appendages of the vertebral axis, that is, the fore feet most shortened,
the answer will be, certainly not among the Ungulata! where, on the contrary, the
Giraffe has them extraordinarily lengthened: but among the Glires we have the
J erboa, in this respect almost a bird. In general, moreover, this latter order is distin-
guished, like the Rasores, by the strength of those muscles of the two posterior ap-
pendages of the vertebral axis or hind feet, that contribute to locomotion. Grega-
rious habits distinguish the most of the Rasores ; so they do in a still more extra-
ordinary manner the Glires. Many are insectivorous in both orders, and some are
omnivorous. The muzzle or facies of Glires is short and round, very like that of
Ferae, there being a direct relation between these two orders. The facies of Rasores is
also short and round, very like that of Ilaptores (the order analogous to that of Ferae) :
and there is also a direct relation between these two orders. Many Rasores perch
and nestle on trees ; so do many of the Glires. The Rasores generally feed on hard
grain, which they pick up with their hooked beak, and masticate in a triturating
gizzard: the Glires feed also on hard substances, which they gnaw with their strong
hooked incisors, and masticate with their grinders. In both orders the thumb is

* ‘ The antient name of Struthio Camelus, as well as the form and habits of the
ostrich, show indeed a relation of analogy to the camel ; but then we are to recollect,
in the first place, that the ostrich is at the osculant point, or confines of the orders of
Grallae and Rasores; and secondly, that such slight variations of the parellelism of
analogy often appear, although I think it possible that even these arc subject to rule.’

196

MAMMALIA.

very often rudimentary. In both orders the tail varies from an extraordinary length,
as in the squirrel and pheasant, to being very short, as in the hare and partridge.
No orders in their respective classes present the tail so spread out and flattened as
the Glires and Rasores — witness the beaver and peacock. In both orders the sense
of hearing is much developed. In both orders we find animals, such as squirrels
and pigeons, with their toes perfectly free; and others, as Hydromys and Phasianus,
which have them united at the base by a membrane. Castor is an aquatic animal,
having some relation to Cetacea; Struthio is a terrestrial animal, approaching to
Notatores. And so on, relation comes so fast upon relation, that I know not how
we can for a moment hesitate to place the Glires opposite to the Rasores.

‘ I conceive it now to be demonstrated, that, so far as relates to the analogies ex-
isting in nature between the orders of Mammalia and Aves, we ought to place them
thus:—

Animals typically.

1. Ferae carnivorous 1. Ratobes.

2. Primates omnivorous 2. Insessores.

3. Glires frugivorous 3. Rasores.

4. Ungulata frequenting the vicinity of water .... 4. Grallatores.

5. Cetacea aquatic 5. Natatores.

J-

London,! ut

bushaiy^Lp,'d‘ri

, Ttt df&tre- Sill, hi

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH

OF

JOHN JAMES AUDUBON.

Probably there never has been a great naturalist who did not love
his particular pursuit, for its own sake, with a passionate enthusiasm,
without regard to profit or fame. Audubon is an illustrious example
of this. Indeed, nothing short of an absorbing devotion to ornitholo-
gy could have supported him amid the difficulties and toils which he
has had to encounter in his career. In an autobiographical memoir
prefixed to the descriptive letter-press of his celebrated work, The
Birds of America , he declares that in his childhood he made the pro-
ductions of nature around him his very playmates, and that he soon
formed such an intercourse with them as savoured more of frenzy
than of mere friendship. This is language that might seem to con-
tain fully as much of exaggeration as of truth, were it not that the
whole of his after career bears ample testimony to its accuracy. The
power of his early impressions has never slackened. He has for
years continued to expose himself to all weather and climates, in fur-
therance of his pursuit ; and when he has at any time gained an object
which he thinks worthy of being described and exhibited, he sits
down to study and to draw it, with an intenseness of application,
which is even more exhausting than his active exertions. Like his
forerunner, Wilson, he has explored the forests, mountains, and shores
of America, snatching the fearful joy of wandering beyond the limits
of civilization, with no other companions than dog and gun ; his fires
have lighted up woods, and shone in waters, which never before felt
the presence of cultivated man — where the Rose-breast sung him to
repose at night, and the Wood-thrush waked him with its native
strains. But the few particulars which we are about to state of his
history — these being chiefly gathered from his own account of him-
self— will afford a more striking idea of his inextinguishable and un-
ceasing devotion to the study of the feathered creation.

Audubon declares, that during his early years, none but aerial com-
panions suited his fancy ; and that when removed from the woods,
the prairies, and the brooks, or shut up from the view of the wide
Atlantic, he experienced none of those pleasures most congenial to
his mind. No roof seemed so secure to him as that formed of the
dense foliage under which the feathered tribes were seen to resort,
or the caves and fissures of the many rocks to which the dark-winged
cormorant and the curlew retired to rest, or to protect themselves from
the fury of the tempest. His father, it appears, possessed a kindred fan-
cy, and was to the boy a valuable preceptor. He often accompanied the
vol. i. r

198*

MEMOIR OF JOHN JAMES AUDUBON.

young naturalist, procured birds, and pointed out tbe beauty and soft-
ness of their plumage, the manifestations of their pleasure or sense of
danger, and their always perfect forms as well as splendid attire. And
then their habits, their haunts, their change of livery, and everything
connected with their history, were appropriately made themes for
fixing the student’s mind upon the Great Creator. Indeed our orni-
thologist, on proper occasions, never fails to express happily a be-
coming religious feeling.

Audubon continues to say, that a vivid pleasure shone upon the
days of his early youth, attended with a calmness of feeling, that seldom
failed to rivet his attention for hours, whilst he gazed upon the pearly
and shining eggs, as they lay imbedded in the softestdown, or among
dried leaves and twigs, or were exposed upon the burning sand or
■Weather-beaten rocks of the Atlantic shores. He looked upon them
as flowers yet in the bud. He watched their opening, to see how
Nature had provided each different species with eyes, either open at
birth, or closed ; to trace the slow progress of the young toward per-
fection, or admire the celerity with which some them, while yet un-
fledged, removed themselves from danger to security. In all this
minute detail, and love to dwell upon the particulars of the history of
the feathered creation, we see the enthusiast and the origin of great
contributions to science ; for there could be nothing more natural than
that his passion should increase with his age.

For a number of years, however, our young ornithologist was far
from being gratified with his acquisitions; nor is it probable that such
an ardent enthusiast and expanding capacity for contemplating na-
ture, will ever be satisfied, since the wider and higher the domain of
nature is traversed, its beauties and wonders, according to a rapid
ratio, increase. We like him, when speaking of these early years, and
confessing, that the moment a bird was killed for the sake of forward-
ing his researches, however beautiful it had been in life, the pleasure
arising from the possession of it became blunted, for he felt that its
vesture was sullied, and that it no longer was fresh from the hands of
its Maker. He wished to obtain all the productions of Nature, but
be wished life with them. To the present day, we find him speaking
of the necessity of resorting to deadly means to secure the objects of
bis study, as costing him pain ; and this tender feeling is even more
apparent from the affecting manner in which he describes the speci-
men than from any direct attestation. For example, in one of his late
Volumes, when describing the means be adopted to take the life of a noble
Golden Eagle, viz. with the fumes of charcoal, to avoid injuring his
plumage, and to spare it unnecessary pain, he adds, that he entered
the little apartment in -which the experiment had been made, and found
the eagle, after having been exposed to its effects for hours, “with
his bright, unflinching eye turned towards him as lively and vigorous
as ever evidently by the manner of description showing how it went
to his heart to have been obliged thus to treat his precious victim.

But the very circumstance of his pleasure being blunted when con-
templating a dead creature, and its plumage appearing thereafter
sullied and abused, was the occasion of his becoming, as a delineator
of birds, the most successful and finished that ever existed. Cuvier
said, that it was not only as a philosopher, but ass an artist, that AudU-

MEMOIR OF JOHN JAMES AUDUBON.

199*

bon was distinguished. In fact, as a draughtsman of the feathered
tribes he never had an equal ; for his works in this department breathe
all the freshness, character, and vigour of Nature. His own account
of his first attempts and his progress in this way is interesting.

Desirous to possess every one of the feathered creation, together
with her other productions, but desiring life with them, he turned to
his father and made known to him this anxiety. His father brought
forward a book of illustrations ; and although what the young natural-
ist saw was not what he longed for, it infused into him a newiife and
hope ; it suggested and created the ambition to copy Nature. To
Nature accordingly he went, and he strove to imitate her, as in the
days of his childhood he had at first tried to raise himself from the
ground and stand erect, before he possessed the strength necessary for
the success of such an undertaking. Nothing but disappointments
attended the efforts of his pencil for many years. His productions
were even worse than those which he regarded as imperfect in the
book given him by his father. He gave birth, to use his own words,
to a family of cripples. So maimed were mostof the figures, that they re-
sembled the mangled bodies on a field of battle, compared with the in-
tegrity of living men. But still, such was the ardour and firmness of
his ingenuous spirit, that though irritated by disappointments and the
difficulties attending his efforts, he never for a moment relinquished
the desire of obtaining perfect representations of nature. The worse
his drawings were, the more beautiful did the originals appear to him,
and the more passionate his ambition to accomplish his object. His
time was entirely occupied in this way; hundreds of rude sketches
were annually produced by him, and for a long time, they made bon-
fires on the anniversaries of his birth-day.

Audubon’s conduct throughout his noviciate, so to express his
early progress as an ornithologist, and an artist, is worthy of univer-
sal imitation. He never desponded amid difficulties, but received
new impulses from every obstacle with which he was beset: and if
any reflecting and enlightened person at that period watched narrow-
ly his proceedings and feelings, it is impossible that they should not
have predicted most favourably of his future career. He possessed
all the genius and all the qualifications for a first-rate explorer of the
treasures and beauties of creation, and for expatiating upon these, to
the delight and improvement of mankind. We cannot suppose that
his father was not such such a considerate spectator, but we shall soon
see that there were not many of his friends that possessed an encou-
raging taste or judgment on the subject.

Patiently, and with great industry, did the young ornithologist ap-
ply himself to his pencil. Many plans were successfully adopted to
forward his efforts; many masters guided his hand. At the age of
seventeen, he returned from France, whither he had gone to receive
the rudiments of his education, and by this time his drawings had
assumed a form which, we may presume, though modestly alluded to
by himself, approached near to perfection, when we learn that David,
the most celebrated historical painter of his day in France, had guided
his hand. The skill which the youth had acquired in drawing the
“ eyes and noses belonging to giants, and heads of horses represented
in ancient sculpture,” as lie describes the models which David gave

200*

MEMOIR OF JOHN JAMES AUDUBON.

him to copy, was, on his return to the woods of the New World, trans-
ferred to his favourite pursuit. He accordingly commenced a col-
lection of drawings, which he afterwards published — viz. “ Illustra-
tions of The Birds of America.”

It would appear, although we have not any particular information
on the subject, that Audubon’s family were in the enjoyment of a
competency such as to enable him to pursue his studies much more
exclusively than falls to the lot of many aspiring youths. His father,
he tells us, gave him what the Americans call a beautiful “ plantation”
in Pennsylvania, which was refreshed during the summer heats by the
waters of the Schuylkil River, and very favourably situated for the
encouragement of his pursuits. There he set himself to work with as
little concern about the future as if the world had been made for him.
His rambles invariably commenced at day-break; and to return wet
with dew, and bearing a feathered prize, was, and ever will be, the
highest enjoyment of his life. He was not, however, incapable of
cherishing the ordinary sentiments of humanity, and accordingly he
took to himself a partner for life. But it is not matter of wonder
that he should have had worldly difficulties to combat, whatever may
have been his patrimony. For a period of twenty years, a succession
of vicissitudes attended his career. He tried various branches of com-
merce, but they all proved unprofitable, doubtless because his whole
mind was devoted to rambling in search of subjects connected with
natural history. He had also to struggle against the will of all who
at that period called themselves his friends, excepting his wife and
children. At length he became so irritated by taunts and remon-
strances, that he broke through all bonds, and gave himself entirely
up to his loved pursuits. He undertook long and tedious journeys,
ransacked the wroods, the lakes, the prairies, and the shores of the
ocean. Years were spent away from his family. Yet, he declares,
he had all this while no other object in view than simply to enjoy the
sight of Nature ; to become in any degree useful to mankind had
never occurred to him, indeed, until he accidentally formed an ac-
quaintance with Lucian Bonaparte, another eminent ornithologist, at
Philadelphia, to which place Audubon had proceeded, with the design
of advancing farther along the coast.

Up to this period Audubon appears to have had no instructor, and
indeed no naturalist as a friend or adviser on the subject of ornitholo-
gy. Lucian Bonaparte, however, it must be presumed, did not with-
hold his best advice and directions. He also introduced the enthusiast
to the Natural History Society of Philadelphia. But the patronage he
most needed, he soon found was to be sought elsewhere. He therefore
visited New York, where he was received with a kindness well calcu-
lated to elevate his depressed spirits. He afterwards ascended the
Hudson, glided over many a broad lake, and sought the wildest soli-
tudes of the pathless forests.

In these forests, he first contemplated a visit to Europe again, and
to fancy his drawings under the multiplying efforts of the graver.
His days and nights were filled with happy dreams and pleasing
visions. He read over the catalogue of his drawings, and began to
suppose it possible that an unaided and unconnected individual like him-
self might be able to accomplish such a grand scheme. Chance alone

MEMOIR OF JOHN JAMES AUDUBON.

201*

had divided the productions of his pencil into three different classes,
depending upon the magnitude of the objects which they represented.
He arranged these as well as he could into parcels of five, each of which
now forms a Number of his Illustrations. He continued to improve
the whole as much as was in his power, daily retiring farther from
the haunts of man, determined to leave nothing undone, which his
labour, time, and purse could reach. Eighteen months elapsed, while
he was thus ardently and arduously engaged. He then returned to
his family, at the time living in Louisiana, and after having explored
every portion of the vast woods around, sailed for the Old World.
But before following him to England, let us observe, what he him-
self has told about his mode executing the original drawings from
which the Illustrations have been taken.

“ Merely to say,” he thus proceeds, “ that each object of my Illus-
trations is of the size of Nature, were too vague, for, to many it might
only convey the idea that they are so, more or less, according as the
eye of the delineator may have been more or less correct in measure-
ment, simply obtained through that medium ; and of avoiding error
in this respect, I am particularly desirous. Not only is every object,
as a whole, of the natural size, but also every portion of each object.
The compass aided mein its delineation, regulated, and corrected each
part, even to the very fore shortening, which now and then may be seen
in the figures. The bill, the feet, the legs, the claws, the very feathers,
as they project one beyond another, have been accurately measured.
The birds, almost all of them, were killed by myself, after I had ex-
amined their motions and habits, as much as the case admitted, and
were regularly drawn on or near the spot where I procured them.
The positions may, perhaps, in some instances, appear outre ; but
such supposed exaggerations can afford subject of criticism only to
persons unacquainted with the feathered tribes; for believe me,
nothing can be more transient or varied than the attitudes or positions
of birds. The Heron, when warming himself in the sun, will some-
times drop its wings several inches, as if they were dislocated. The
Swan may often be seen floating, with one foot extended from the
body ;• and some Pigeons, you well know, turn quite over when play-
ing in the air. The flowers, plants, or portions of trees which are
attached to the principal objects, have been chosen from amongst those
in the vicinity of which the birds were found, and are not, as some
persons thought, the trees or plants upon which they always feed or
perch.” It is this extreme fidelity in the minutest points, and asso-
ciations, together with his exquisite colouring, that renders Audubon’s
delineations of the feathered tribes unsurpassed and unmatched.

The admirer of the most fascinating works of man can never con-
ceive, without being particularly told (and this is impossible), how
much anxiety or whatdisheartening occurrences have been experienced
in the course of the labour, by him who produced them. Audubon
mentions one accident, which we must recount to the reader, as
an example of the sort of obstacles which such enthusiasts encounter ;
and surely nothing but a passion, which to tamer minds is unintelli-
gible, could meet and overcome similar annoyances and drawbacks.
Our naturalist had left a particular place situated on the banks of the
Ohio, to proceed to Philadelphia on business. He looked to his draw-

202*

MEMOIR OF JOHN JAMES AUDUBON.

ings before departing, placed them in a wooden box, and gave them
in charge to a relative, with injunctions to see that no injury should
happen to them. He was absent for several months; but when he
returned, it was not long, as may be presumed, ere he looked after
his treasure. The box was produced and opened : and “ reader,” he
says, “ feel for me.” A pair of Norway rats had taken possession of
the whole, and had reared a family amongst the gnawed bits of paper,
which, but a few months before, represented nearly a thousand in-
habitants of the air ! The catastrophe nearly overcame him ; but
after several sleepless nights and miserable days, his spirits rallied.
He took up his gun, his note-book, his pencils again ; he went once
more forth into the woods as gaily as if nothing had happened ; nay, he
declares how he felt pleased to think, that he might now make much
better drawings than before ; and ere a period not exceeding three
years had elapsed, he had his portfolio filled again.

Having in vain tried to publish his Illustrations in America, Au-
dubon sailed for England. He arrived at Liverpool, and from the
letters which he brought over with him soon procured a host of
friends there, and afterwards in Manchester and Edinburgh. In the
latter city several Philosophical Societies, and others belonging to the
fine arts, spontaneously and gratuitously enrolled him as a member.
He also commenced in Edinburgh, the publication of his Illustrations,
and afterwards carried it on in London. To Britain, he acknowledges
that he owes nearly all his success. It was that country that first fully
appreciated and encouraged his efforts. She furnished the artists
through whom his productions were presented to the world ; she
granted him the highest patronage and honour ; and to Britain he
ever will bear the deepest gratitude. France too, was not insensible
to his merits. In 1828, when he visited that country, Baron Cuvier
read a highly laudatory report of the “Birds of America,” before the
Institute, and there he also received a number of subscribers to his
magnificent work. On returning to his native land, he found a kind
and encouraging reception. There, where he is still pursuing his
wonted studies, or at intervals giving to the world his Illustrations,
and his Biography of the illustrated birds, he has acknowledged
that a support now equal to what he received in Europe is afforded
him. It is believed that he had earned a moderate competency some
years ago. His fame as an enthusiastic, penetrating, and scientific
observer is established beyond all cavil. That fame is on the in-
crease ; wherever he goes the sympathy and good wishes of many go
with him ; the consciousness of which cannot but be a sweet reward
to a genius and a cheerful disposition, such as Audubon is known to
possess in an eminent degree.

Audubon is now a man beyond the meridian of human life ; but he
scruples not to penetrate still the trackless and immeasurable woods
Of America, encountering dangers and privations which few are ca-
pable of conceiving, who have not witnessed the awful grandeur of
an American wilderness, where the deep silence is only disturbed, by
day, by the scream of the Vulture, the Eagle, or the Raven, and by
night, the dreary hootings of the great-eared Owl and his congeners,
while at every step he is liable to tread on the poisonous Rattlesnake,
or other noxious reptiles. The mountains and rocks, the rivers, lakes,

MEMOIR OF JOHN JAMES AUDUBON.

203*

and ocean, are also the varying scenes of his researches and discovered
treasures. It is not long since we heard of him from the icy regions
of Labrador, and again from the burning sands of Florida — countries
sufficiently distant from each other in reality, but standing side by
side in the history of this unwearied traveller, who seems to have sur-
rendered his soul to one pursuit. The wild sort of delight which the
sight of Nature in her happiest aspects awakens in his bosom, is wor-
thy of being marked by the reader of his works. In one of his late
volumes, he speaks of the cheering trills of the winter Wren, of the
clear notes of the Robin, and the rolling melody of the Rose-breast,
filling him with such emotions that he burned with the thirst of
knowledge, and longed to learn from their own lips what every one
could teach of the wondrous works of Heaven. When he saw the
water birds, towering on firm and graceful wing, away to regions
where none have followed, he longed to “ take the wings of the morn-
ing” and pursue them to the lands where the presence of man has
never disturbed their quiet abodes. It is curious to observe what an
ornithological aspect his favourite taste gives to most of his descrip-
tions. In the second volume of his Biography of Birds, there are
such passages as the following : — “ The prudent Raven spread her
pinions, launched from the crag, and flew away before us; the golden
Eagle, soaring aloft, moved majestically in wide circles; the Guillemots
set on their eggs on the shelvy precipices, or plunging in the water,
dived and rose again at a great distance ; the broad-breasted Eider-
duck covered her eggs among the grassy tufts.” “ Far away stood the
bold shores of Nova Scotia, gradually fading in the distance, of which
the grey tints beautifully relieved the wing-like sails of many a fishing
bark.” At one place he found the nests of Gulls on almost every tree
of a wood that covered several acres ; and he exclaims, “ What a
treat, reader, was it, to find birds of this kind, lodged in fir-trees and
sitting comfortably on their eggs !” He gives an account of the
breeding habits of the tree and the fox-coloured Sparrows, two beau-
tiful way-farers so well known in the United States of America, but
which remain only a short season there, indulging in little more of song
than a plaintive farewell ; yet in the northern regions they are over-
flowing with melody. Of the latter species, Audubon says — “ Would
that I could convey to your mind the effect which it produced on my
feelings, when wandering on the desolate shores of Labrador ! That,
I could intelligibly tell you, of the cheerful notes of its unaffected
warble, as it sat perched on the branch of some stunted fir ! There
for hours together, was continued the delightful serenade, which kept
me lingering near the spot. The brilliancy and clearness of each
note, as it flowed through the air, were so enchanting, the expression
and emphasis of the song so powerful, that I never tired of listening.”

Audubon has of late years introduced to the notice of his readers,
several birds which were never known before to visit the United
States. He has also added much to what was known of certain spe-
cies previously described. The architecture of the feathered tribes
has much engaged his attention ; and, as in every other branch of his
pursuit, he has here given many new as well as highly satisfactory and
interesting particulars. Indeed, from what has been stated above re-
garding his ardour, and from the quotations inserted, there cannot

204*

MEMOIR OF JOHN JAMES AUDUBON.

remain a doubt in any mind, of his eminence in ornithological science,
delineation, and description.

Before concluding this Biographical Sketch, it is proper to refer to
one sort of charge that has by some been very industriously made, to
the disadvantage of Mr. Audubon. His veracity has been assailed.
It has been presumed by those who had no means of forming a de-
cided opinion for themselves, that he has frequently given way to a
practice, which travellers, and American wonder-tellers, as much as
any, are supposed to indulge in. On some points there has been
something like a paper war, where our ornithologist’s name had to
stand in the breach between the hostile parties. It is believed, indeed,
that he himself does not evince extreme solicitude about this attack —
a system of conduct which not only intimates that he is a man of su-
perior prudence, but which is strongly presumptive of his honour and
credibility.

It is unphilosophical, it is unmanly, to found such serious allegations
as now alluded to, upon ignorance, or in the absence of evidence on
the subject of dispute. At the same time, any assailants are very likely
to be covered with shame, in the case of random accusations. For
example, it seems that Audubon had long suspected that birds, which,
like the Black Vulture, feed on carrion, were guided to their ban-
quet by the sense of sight and not of smell ; in fact, that the latter
sense was wanting, or defective ; a defect, considering the diet of such
creatures, which would be rather a blessing than a privation. It had
been before remarked that birds in India, of the kinds concerned,
move directly to their prey, though the wind bears the fragrance in an
opposite direction. The experiments instituted by our naturalist con-
firmed him in his former supposition, which he disclosed in the Edin-
burgh Philosophical Journal. Hence a warfare between the eyes
and the nose took its rise — the advocates of the latter charging Audu-
bon with a want of veracity, merely because the conclusions which
he drew from what he considered to be facts, were contrary to their con-
clusions. The question, however, was at length completely set at rest
by some of his friends, who instituted a series of observations and ex-
periments which have fully established that the vultures do not de-
pend upon the sense of smell in searching for their food ; and in op-
position to those who considered these birds epicures, it has been
shewn, that it was a matter of indifference to them whether their meal
was fresh, or in the early or latter stages of decay.

It is pleasant to know that it has not been thought beneath the
dignity of scientific inquiry, to have for its object the removal of a
calumny against a good man’s reputation ; and while we wish that he
may long enjoy life and health, to the extendsion of the boundaries of
science, we confidently hope and believe that his name will descend
to posterity, as that of one of the most illustrious naturalists of the
present day, without a stain upon it.

SECOND GREAT DIVISION

OF

THE ANIMAL KINGDOM.

— ♦ —

OF THE OVIPAROUS VERTEBRATA IN GENERAL.

Although the three classes of the Oviparous Vertebrata differ greatly
from each other in their quantum of respiration, and in all that relates to
it, that is to say, the power of motion and the energy of the senses, they
present several common characters when opposed to the Mammalia, or
Viviparous Vertebrata.

The hemispheres of their brain are very slender, and are not united by
a corpus callosum ; the crura of the cerebellum do not form that protube-
rance called the pons Varolii; the tubercles, called nates — at least in two of
these classes — become greatly developed, contain a ventricle, and are not
covered by the hemispheres, but are visible below, or on the sides of the cere-
brum ; their nostrils are less complex ; the ear has not so many small bones,
and in several these bones are totally wanting ; the cochlea, when it exists,
which is only the case in birds, is much more simple, &c. Their lower
jaw, always composed of numerous species, is attached by a concave facet
to a salient process, which belongs to the temporal bone, but separated
from its petrous portion ; the bones of their cranium are more subdivided,
although they occupy the same relative places, and fulfil similar functions ;
thus the os frontis is composed of five or six pieces, &c. The orbits are
merely separated by an osseous lamina of the sphenoidal bone, or by a
membrane. When these animals have anterior extremities, besides the
clavicle, which is frequently united to its fellow on the opposite side, and
is then called fourchette, the scapula also rests upon the sternum, by a
very broad and long coracoid apophysis. The larynx is more simple, and
has no epiglottis ; the lungs are not separated from the abdomen by a per-
fect diaphragm, &c. To render all these affinities sensible, however, it
would be necessary to enter into anatomical details, which would be quite
inconvenient in this first part of our work. It will suffice, that we have
here pointed out the mutual analogy of the Ovipera, which, as regards the

VOL. i. R*

198

OVJPARA,

plan on which they are constructed, is greater than that of any one of
them with the Mammalia.

Oviparous generation essentiallyconsists in this circumstance — that the
young animal is not attached through the medium of a placenta to the pa-
rietes of the uterus, or of the oviduct, hut remains separated from it by
its most external envelope. Its aliment is prepared before hand, and en-
closed in a sac attached to its intestinal canal ; this is what is called the
vitellus, or yolk of egg, of which the young animal is a sort of appendage,
at first imperceptible, which is nourished and augmented by absorbing the
fluid of that yolk (a). Such of the Ovipara as breathe with lungs have,

IgSgr (a) It is from the inner surface of the membrane of this vitellus, that a nou-
rishing fluid is absorbed, this fluid being transmitted by a peculiar^duct to the intes-
tinal canal. The following facts regarding the eggs of birds have been collected by
Dr. Burns of Glasgow, whose researches we have, in several instances, repeated, and
found to be correct. As the following account embraces the various species of eggs,
it may be convenient for us to remind the reader that the three classes of Oviparous
Vertebrata animals consist of — 1. The Birds; 2. The Reptiles; and 3. The Fishes.

‘ In the eggs of fowls, we observe the following circumstances. Upon removing
the porous shell, we find the albumen enclosed in a membrane, consisting of two
layers, and called sacciform by LaviellA These are separated from each other at
the large end of the shell, so as to form a small sac, called the folliculus aeres. The
albumen is divided into three strata; the first, or cortical, is most liquid; the second
or middle, is more abundant, and thicker than the first, but less so than the third or
central. The middle and central strata are enclosed in a delicate membrane, called
leucilyme by Levielle, which separates them from the cortical. Within the albumen
we have the vitellus or yolk, which is enclosed in a vascular membrane, called chlo-
rilyme, or membrana vitelli, which again is enveloped by a membrane common to it
and the intestines of the chick, called entro-chlorilyme. To each end of the vitellus,
wre have connected a portion of the central albumen, called chalaza ; and in each of
these a membranous substance is discovered, attached to the membrane of the
vitellus, and a vascular structure, which can absorb the albumen into the vitellus, to
contribute to the nutrition of the chick. Upon the vitellus, we observe the cicatri-
cula, or small sac, called by Harvey the eye of the egg, and which was supposed to
contain the foetus, the rudiments of which are allowed by Malpighi, Haller, and
Spallanzani, to be pre-existent to fecundation. This cicatricula was considered as
analogous to the amnion, and supposed to contain a transparent fluid, called by
Harvey colliquamentum candidum, or liquor amnii. More modern observations
ascertain that the embryo is not formed in the cicatricula, but very near it on the
vitellus, and that the amnion enclosing it can at first scarcely be distinguished from
the embryo. The cicatricula soon disappears. Harvey’s account must therefore be
transferred to the amnion. During incubation, the vitellus becomes specifically
lighter than the albumen, and rises towards the folliculus aeris. Two arteries and
two veins go from the meseraic and hypogastric vessels of the foetus, to the mem-
brane of the yolk, and are supposed to absorb the vitellus, which therefore is carried
to the vena portae of the chick, and nourishes the foetus. There is also a connexion
betwixt the intestines and the vitelline membrane, by means of a ligamentous sub-
stance, which was supposed by Haller and Vicq. D’Azyr to be a tube, and called
vitello -intestinal canal, for it is said that air has been passed through it. It was
supposed to absorb the yolk, by many villi on the inner surface of the vitelline mem-
brane ; but these are said by Levielle not to be vessels, but soft lamellated plates.
At the end of the second day, red blood is observed on the membrana vitelli. A
series of dots are formed, which are converted first into grooves, and then into ves-
sels, which go to the foetus. This appearance has been called figura venosa, and the
marginal vessel, vena terminal is. The vitello intestinal ligament, and these vessels,
form an umbilical cord. But besides these, we find, after the fourth day, a vascular
membrane at the umbilicus, called membrana umbilicalis, which rapidly increases,

OVIPARAi

199

in addition, in tlie egg, a highly vascular membrane, which appears to be
subservient to respiration ; it is connected with the bladder, and is analo-

and comes presently to cover the inner surface of the membrane of the shell. It is
the chorion, and has numerous vessels ramifying on it, like the chorion of the sow,
and connected in like manner with the foetus. The blood of the umbilical artery is
dark coloured, that of the vein bright. As incubation advances, the amnion enlarges,
and comes in contact every where with the chorion. The albumen is all consumed,
being taken into the vitellus, which is in a great measure absorbed; and what re-
mains is taken, together with the sac, into the abdomen of the chick, and the parie-
tes close over it. On the 21st day, the chick breaks the shell and escapes. By in-
creasing or diminishing the temperature within a certain extent, the process may be
somewhat accelerated or retarded. The eggs of large birds require a longer time to
be hatched; those of the ostrich, for example, take six weeks.

‘ Hence it appears, that the vitellus and albumen contribute to the increment of
the foetus, whilst the exterior membranes act as lungs, the air being transmitted
through the pores of the shell.

‘ Sir Everard Home has lately investigated more minutely, by means of the
microscope, the structure of the egg. The yolk is enclosed in two layers of mem-
brane, the outermost very thin and delicate ; the internal one, on the contrary, thick
and spongy, with a small aperture, or deficiency, at one spot. Here the gelatinous
molecule, from which the embryo is to be formed, is found placed on the surface of
the yolk. It is not quite so large as the opening in the membrane, and, therefore,
seems to be surrounded by a margin, or an areola. In its passage along the oviduct,
the yolk comes to be surrounded by the albumen, which presently is covered with a
very fine membrane. During this descent are also formed the chalazes, which ter-
minate in that double membrane which is added when the egg has reached the lower
end of the oviduct, and which is distinct from, and exterior to the fine membrane
already noticed. In four hours after the commencement of incubation, the outer
edge of the areola had become enlarged, and that part next the molecule darker.
One end of the molecule appeared like a white line, which is the rudiment of the
embryo. In eight hours the white line had extended, and rudiments of the brain
and spinal marrow could be discerned, surrounded by a membrane which afterwards
becomes the amnion. The areola had extended, and the surface beyond the line
which had formed its boundary had acquired the consistence of a membrane, and
was circumscribed by a distinct line. This he calls the outer areola. In thirty-six
hours, a vesicle had begun to protrude under the inner areola, apparently at the ter-
mination of the spinal marrow. In sixty hours, auricles and ventricles were seen,
the former filled with red blood; a trunk from the left ventricle gives off two large
vessels which send branches over the whole areolar membrane. The vesicle some-
what enlarged. In three days, the vesicle, still more enlarged, had forced its way
through the external covering of the yolk, whereby a part of the albumen was ad-
mitted to mix with the yolk. In four days, the vesicle was still larger, and its vessels
contained red blood. On the fifth, it was of great size, very vascular, and its cavity
contained a fluid. On the sixth, it had expanded, like a double nightcap, over the
yolk, and its coverings were beginning to enclose the embryo. This vesicle, Sir
Everard, in another place, compares to the bag which, in the human subject, and in
quadrupeds, is to become the urinary bladder. This increases with such rapidity
that it bursts the amnion, and the arteries lying on its two sides are carried directly to
the chorion, and there the placenta is formed in the empty space between the two
edges of the chorion. Phil. Trans. 1823, Part II. p. 339. Vide also a paper by
Dutrochet on the envelopes of the foetus, in the Bull, de la Soc. de Med. 1819, No.
8. And Mem. de la Societe d’ Emulation. Tom. VIII. pp. 3, 7G0.

‘ The eggs of fishes have a general resemblance to those of fowls, and consist of
a vitellus and albumen, with their membranes; but in place of being furnished with
a shell they have a tough, or sometimes a horny covering; and some, as those of the
shark, torpedo, &c. are quadrangular in shape. The yolk is connected to the intes-
tines of the foetus, and its membrane is very vascular. As in fowls, so in fishes, it
is ultimately enclosed within the abdomen of the young. In the skate, numerous
blood vessels are formed in the albumen, which supply the place of gills, and are
supposed by Dr. Monro, to be afterwards covered and converted into gills. The two
functions of a placenta, then, arc still more distinctly fulfilled here than even in

200

OV1PARA.

gous to the allantoid of the Mammalia. It is neither found in fishes nor
in the batrachiaiis, which latter, when young, respire, like fishes, by
branchise.

fowls, for the apparatus for nutrition and respiration has different or distinct termi-
nations ; whereas in fowls and quadrupeds, all the vessels enter at one place. A
similar fact is observed in the ova of frogs, for the umbilical cord in the tadpole
goes to the head.

‘ The egg of the serpent is nearly the same with that of the fish, and is enclosed
in a flexible membrane. The foetus is coiled up spirally within it, and the chorion
is vascular, as in the egg of the fowl.

‘ The adder is a viviparous animal ; its uterus is membranous, and divided, I find,
into eight or nine cells, each of which, in September, contains an ovum as large as
a chesnut. This consists of an exterior membrane, which encloses a foetus about
six inches long, and coiled up. About an inch from the tail, the umbilical cord
passes out, which consists of vessels that go to ramify on the exterior membrane,
which resembles the chorion of the sow. There is also a connexion with a vitellus,
which is as large as a hazel nut.

‘ The coluber natrix is said, by Valmont-Bomare, to have a placenta and cord
within the egg, but this is contrary to the general structure of eggs ; most likely the
chorion has been taken for the placenta. The eggs of reptiles are often deposited in
packets, the eggs being glued together.

‘ The egg of the turtle is as large as a hen’s, and is enclosed in a covering like
parchment. It is deposited in the sand, and is hatched in about twenty-four days.
The egg of the alligator is similar in structure to that of the turtle : it is rather
larger than a goose’s egg, and covered with a thin skin, so transparent, however, that
the foetus may be seen through it.

‘ Those animals which are called oviparous, hatch their eggs out of the body,
either by sitting on them, as we see in fowls, or by exposing them to the heat of the
sun, as the turtle, crocodile, and many serpents. Oviparous fishes, which compre-
hend all those called osseous, expel their ova into the water, where they are fecun-
dated by the male, but without copulation. Many fishes leave the sea, and come up
the rivers to spawn. Others remain in the ocean; and the eggs, specifically lighter
than the water float on the surface. Many fishes attach them to marine plants, and
in some cases the ova are fixed to the body of the parent. The ova are covered
with a kind of mucus, which has been supposed to defend them from the water.

‘ The ova of frogs, &c. are likewise fecundated and hatched out of the body. They
are enveloped in a glairy matter, which, perhaps, contributes to their increase; for
during incubation, the egg both enlarges and changes its shape.

‘ Those animals which hatch their eggs within the body, are called ovo-viviparous,
such as cartilaginous fishes, as the shark, skate, torpedo, &c. The scorpion and
venomous serpents also belong to this class. Ovo-viviparous animals expel the
young fully formed, and therefore have been sometimes considered as having uteri
like quadrupeds, and a cord attached directly to it. Spallanzani at first supposed
that the foetus of the torpedo was attached directly to the uterus, but afterwards
found that it was contained in a distinct ovum. Experiences, p. 294. See also
Cuvier Legons d’Anat. Comparee, Tom. Y. p. 132. The shark is said to have an
uterus like the bitch, and Belon says he saw a female delivered of eleven young at-
tached by a cord. Its mode of gestation most likely is similar to the torpedo. This
class expel their young often very quickly. A female syngnatus hyppocampus was
observed to expel at least a hundred in a very short time.

‘ Analogous to ovo-viviparous animals, are those which receive the ova into cells
on the surface of the body, where they are hatched. This is well seen in the pipa,
a species of toad. Even the tadpoles are said to be metamorphosed in these cells.
The oppossum tribe has a modification of this gestation; for in them the foetus,
when very small, is expelled into a bag situated on the belly, and immediately at-
taches itself to a nipple. The utero- gestation of the oppossum of North America
lasts only from twenty to twenty-six days, and the embryo, when expelled, does not
exceed a grain. It remains in the sac about fifty days, and acquires the size ot a
mouse. In other animals, as for instance the bat, the young, after birth, attach
themselves to the nipple, partly for the convenience of being transported or carried
about.

OVIPAIIA.

201

Many of the cold-blooded Ovipara do not bring forth their young until
they are developed and extricated from their shell, or other membranes,
which separated them from the mother. These are called false Ovipara.

‘ In plants we find likewise a placenta or structure, intended for the nourishment
and respiration of the foetus. To take the kidney bean for an example, we find
within the membranous covering two parenchymatous lobes, or cotyledons; and at
the margin betwixt these, there is the corculum or cicatricula. During incubation,
we find that this sends up a small shoot called the plumula, and down a radical into
the earth. But to support the plant until the root and leaves are capable of main-
taining it, we find the cotyledons rise up out of the earth, on each side of the plu-
mula, forming what are called seed leaves. These both serve for the respiratory
organs, and also supply pabulum, which is absorbed by proper vessels, and in con-
sequence thereof they presently are destroyed. When there are more lobes than
two in the seed, there are a corresponding number of seed leaves. In many cases
these cotyledons do not rise out of the ground, but the plumula alone appears. This
is the case with the garden pea, but the cotyledons still perform the functions below
the ground, and exist till the foliage of the plant, or adult organs, be formed. The
greatest part, then, of a vegetable seed or ovum, consists, like the eggs of fowls,
of an apparatus intended for the nutriment and respiration of the foetus, whilst the
embryo itself is very small. The cotyledon consists, in many cases, of a fari-
naceous substance. In other seeds it is oily and farinaceous, and in some is almost
all oily.

‘ Vegetable ova sometimes are contained in a dry pericarpium, and are shed into
the earth when it bursts. But others have an apparatus provided, not only for their
present growth, but also for accelerating their incubation in the earth. In stone
fruit and nuts, we find that vessels pierce the shell at the bottom, and pass on toward
the top, and reach the kernel or lobes, which are contained within the shell, envelop-
ed in a soft membrane. They are inserted very near the embryo. Now, for the
farther support of these parts, we find that stone fruits are covered with a quantity
of nutritious matter. The almond, for example, has its ligneous nut covered with a
substance about an inch thick, enclosed in a proper membrane. The rhamnus lotus
has the stone surrounded with farinaceous matter, which tastes like gingerbread.
Other seeds are contained in a parenchymatous or succulent substance, as the apple
or pear; or in a firm white substance, like cream or marrow, or in a mucilaginous
matter as the gooseberry, or in an organized pulp as the orange and garcinia man-
gostona. Some are deposited in a luscious fluid at first, which ultimately becomes
farinaceous, as the plantain.’

202

BIRDS.

CLASS II.

BIRDS (AYES).

Birds are Oviparous Vertebrata, with double systems of circulation and
respiration, organized for flight.

Their lungs, undivided and attached to the ribs, are enveloped by a
membrane pierced with large holes, which allow the air to pass into several
cavities of the chest, lower part of the abdomen, arm-pits, and even into
the interior of the bones, so that not only is the surface of the pulmonary
vessels bathed in the external fluid, but that also of an infinitude of ves-
sels in other parts of the body. Thus, in certain respects, Birds respire
by the branches of the aorta, as well as by those of their pulmonary
artery, and the energy of their irritability is in proportion to their quan-
tum of respiration.* The whole body is so constructed as to profit by
this energy.

Their anterior extremities, destined to sustain them in flight, could
serve them neither for standing, nor for prehension ; they are therefore
bipeds, and pick up objects from the earth with their mouth; their body,
consequently, must necessarily be inclined before their feet, the thighs
directed forwards, and the toes elongated, to form a sufficient base for it.
The pelvis is very much extended in length, in order to furnish points of
attachment to those muscles which support the trunk upon the thighs.
There is even a series of muscles reaching from the pelvis to the toes,
passing over the knee and heel, in such a way as that the simple weight
of the bird flexes the toes ; it is thus that they are enabled to sleep in
security, while perched on one foot. The ischia, and particularly the ossa
pubis are lengthened out behind, and the interval between them is widen-
ed, in order to allow the necessary space for the development of the eggs.

The neck and the bill are elongated to reach the ground, but the former
has the requisite flexibility for bending backwards when at rest, — con-
sequently, it has many vertebrae. The trunk, on the contrary, which
serves as a point d’appui to the wings, must need have but little mobility ;
the sternum, particularly, to which are attached the muscles for depressing
the wings in flight, is of great extent, and has its surface still more

* Two common Swallows consume as much pure air as a Guinea-Pig. Lavoi-
sier, Memsires de Chimie, I. 119.

BIRDS.

203

enlarged by a salient process in its middle. It is originally composed of
five pieces : a middle one, of which this salient lamina makes a part ; two
triangular, anterior, lateral ones, for the articulations of the ribs, and two
posterior, which are lateral and bifurcated, to increase its surface. The
greater or less degree of the ossification of the notches of these last, and
the interval they leave between them and the principal bone, determine
more or less the flight in birds. The diurnal Birds of prey, the Swallows
and the Humming-birds, lose, as they grow old, all traces of these un-
ossified spaces.

The fourchette produced by the junction of the two clavicles, and the
two powerful stretchers formed by the coracoid apophyses, keep the
shoulders apart, notwithstanding the efforts requisite for flight, that act
in an opposite direction ; the greater the power of flight, the more open
and vigorous is the fourchette. The wing, supported by the humerus,
fore-arm, and by the hand, which is elongated, and has one finger and the
vestiges of two others, is furnished throughout its length with a range of
elastic quills, which greatly extends the surface that resists the air. Those
quills which belong to the hand are termed primaries , and there are always
ten of them; those attached to the fore-arm are called secondaries , but
their number varies ; weaker feathers appended to the humerus are called
scapulars ; the bone, which is analogous to the thumb, is also furnished
with what are termed bastard quills. Along the base of the quills is a
range of feathers named coverts.

The bony tail is very short, but has a range of large quills, which,
when spread out, assist in supporting the bird ; they are generally twelve
in number, sometimes fourteen, and in the Gallinacae eighteen.

The legs have a femur, a tibia, and a fibula, which are connected with
the femur by an articulation with a spring, which keeps up the extension
without any effort on the part of the muscles. The tarsus and metatarsus
are represented by one single bone, terminating below in three pullies.

Most commonly there are three toes before, and a thumb behind; the
latter being sometimes deficient. In the Martins it is directed forwards.
In the Climbers, on the contrary, the external toe and the thumb are
directed backwards. The number of articulations increases in each toe,
commencing with the thumb, which has two, and ending with the external
toe, which has five.

Birds are generally covered with feathers, a kind of tegument best
adapted for defending them from the rapid variations of temperature to
which their movements expose them. The air cavities which occupy the
interior of their body, and hold in the bones, the place of the marrow,
increase their specific lightness. The sternal, as well as the vertebral
portion of the ribs is ossified, in order to give more power to the dilatation

204

BIRDS.

of the chest. To each rib is annexed a small bone, which soon becomes
soldered to it, and is directed obliquely towards the next one, thereby
giving additional solidity to the thorax.

The eye is so constructed, in Birds, as to enable them to distinguish,
with equal facility, objects at a distance, or near them; a vascular and
plaited membrane, which stretches from the bottom of the globe to the
edge of the crystallinelens, probably assists in effecting this, by displacing
that lens. The anterior surface of the ball is- also strengthened by a
circle of bony pieces, and besides the two ordinary eye-lids, there is always
a third one placed at the internal angle, which, by a remarkable muscular
apparatus, can be drawn over the eye like a curtain. The cornea is very
convex, but the crystalline is very flat, and the vitreous humour small.

The ear has but a single small bone, formed of one branch that adheres
to the tympanum, and of another terminating in a plate that rests upon
the fenestra ovalis ; the cochlea is a slightly arcuated cone ; but the semi-
circular canals are large, and lodged in a part of the cranium where
they are completely surrounded by air cavities, which communicate with
the area. Nocturnal Birds alone have a long external conch, which, how-
ever, does not project like that of Quadrupeds. The external meatus is
generally covered with feathers, whose barbs are more fringed than the
others.

The organ of smell, concealed in the base of the bill, usually has but
three cartilaginous ossa turbinata, which vary in complication ; although
there are no sinuses in the wall of the cranium, yet it is extremely sen-
sible. The breadth of the osseous openings of the nostrils determines
the strength of the beak; and the cartilages, membranes, feathers and
other teguments which narrow down those apertures, influence the power
of smell, and the nature of the food.

There is but little muscular substance in the tongue, which is support-
ed by a bone articulated with the hyoid; in most Birds this organ is not
very delicate.

The feathers, as well as the quills, which only differ in size, are com-
posed of a stem, hollow at base, and of barbs, which are themselves
furnished with smaller ones; their tissue, lustre, strength, and general
form vary infinitely. The touch must be feeble in all such parts as are
covered with them, and as the bill is almost always corneous, and has but
little sensibility, and the toes are invested with scales above, and a callous
skin underneath, that sense can have but little activity in this class of
animals.

Birds moult twice a year. In certain species, the winter plumage
differs in its colours from that of summer ; in the greater number, the
female differs from the male in an inferior vividness of tints, and when

BIRDS.

205

this is the case, the young of both sexes resemble the female. When
the adult male and female are of the same colour, the young ones have a
livery peculiar to them.

The brain of Birds has the same general character as that of other
Oviparous Vertebrata, but it is distinguished by its very great propor-
tionate size, which often surpasses even that of this organ in the Mamma-
lia. This volume principally arises from tubercles, which are analogous
to the corpora striata, and not upon the hemispheres, which are narrow
and without convolutions. The cerebellum is tolerably large, and almost
without lateral lobes, being chiefly constituted by the vermiform process.

The rings of the trachea in Birds are entire ; there is a glottis at its
bifurcation most commonly furnished with peculiar muscles, which is called
the inferior larynx ; this is the point where the voice of birds is pro-
duced; the immense volume of air contained in the air sacs contribute to
its strength, and the trachea, by its various forms and motions, to its mo-
difications. The superior larynx, which is extremely simple, enters the
inferior, but has little to do with the voice.

The face, or upper mandible of Birds, consisting chiefly’ of their inter-
maxillaries, is lengthened out behind into two arches, the internal of
which is composed of the pterygoid and palatine bones, and the external
of the maxillaries and jugals, both of which rest on a movable tympanic
bone, commonly called the square bone, analogous to that of the drum of
ear ; above, this same mandible is articulated with the cranium, or united
to it by elastic laminas, a kind of union which always allows the parts
some degree of motion.

The horny substance which invests the two mandibles, performs the
office of teeth, and is sometimes so jagged as to resemble them; its form,
as well as that of the mandibles which support it, varies extremely, and
according to the kind of food used by each species.

The digestion of Birds is in proportion to the activity of their life, and
the force of their respiration. The stomach is composed of three parts:
the crop, which is an enlargement of the oesophagus ; a membranous sto-
mach, in the thickness of whose parietes are a multitude of glands whose
juices moisten the food; and finally, the gizzard, armed with two power-
ful muscles, and united by two radiated tendons, which are lined inter-
nally with a cartilaginous kind of velvet. The food is the more easily
ground there, as birds constantly swallow small stones, in order to increase
their triturative power.

In the greater part of the species which feed exclusively on flesh or
fish, the muscles and villous coat of the gizzard are greatly attenuated;
and it seems to make but a single sac with the membranous stomach.

The dilatation of the crop is also sometimes wanting.

206

BIRDS.

The liver pours its bile into the intestine by two ducts, which alternate
with the two or three through which the pancreatic fluid passes. The
pancreas of birds is large, but their spleen is small; the omentum is
wanting ; its functions, however, are partly fulfilled by the partitions of
the air cavities ; two blind appendages are situated near the origin of the
rectum, and at a short distance from the anus ; they are longer or shorter,
according to the regimen of the genus. In the Herons it is short; in
other genera, that of the Woodpeckers for instance, it is totally deficient.

The claoca is a pouch, in which the rectum, ureters, spermatic ducts,
and in the female the oviduct, terminate ; it opens externally, by the anus.
Strictly speaking, Birds do not urinate, as that excretion mingles with
their solid excrement. In the Ostriches alone, is the cloaca sufficiently
dilated to allow of an accumulation of the urine.

In most genera, coition is effected by the simple juxta-position of the
anus of both; the Ostriches, and several of the Palmipedes, however,
have a penis furrowed with a groove, through which the semen passes.
The testes are situated internally above, in the loins, and near the lungs ;
only one oviduct is developed; the other is reduced to a small sac.

The egg, detached from the ovary, where it consists merely of yolk,
imbibes that external fluid, called the white, in the upper part of the ovi-
duct, and becomes invested with its shell at the bottom of the same canal.
The chick contained within it is developed by incubation, unless the heat
of the climate suffices for that purpose, as is the case with the egg of the
Ostrich. The young bird has a little horny point at the extremity of the
bill, with which it splits open the shell, and which falls off* a few days
after it is hatched.

The industry and skill exhibited by birds in their variously constructed
nests, and their tenderness and care in protecting their eggs and young,
are known to every one ; it is the principal part of their instinct. Be-
sides their rapid transitions through different regions of the air, and the
vivid and continual action of that element upon them, enable them to an-
ticipate atmospheric changes, to an extent of which we can form no idea,
and caused the antients, in their superstition, to attribute to them the
power of divination. It is unquestionably on this faculty, that depends
the instinct which acts upon birds of passage, prompting them to seek the
south on the approach of winter, and the north on the return of spring.
They do not want either memory, or even imagination — for they dream;
and all the world knows that they are easily tamed, that they may be
taught to render various services, and retain the air and words of songs.

BIRDS.

207

DIVISION OF THE CLASS OF BIRDS INTO ORDERS.

Of all classes of animals, that of Birds is the most strongly characterized,
that in which the species have the greatest mutual resemblance, and
which is separated from all others by the greatest interval; circumstances
which, at the same time, render its subdivision the more difficult.

Their distribution is founded, like that of the Mammalia, on the organs
of manducation or the bill, and on those of prehension, that is, still on
the bill, and more particularly on the feet.

The first that arrest our attention are the palmated feet , or those in
which the toes are connected by membranes — such distinguish all Swim-
ming Birds. The position of these feet behind; the length of the ster-
num ; the neck, often longer than the legs, to enable it to reach below ;
the dense, polished plumage, impermeable to water, all concur with the
feet in making good navigators of the Palmipedes.

In other birds, which most commonly are partially web-footed, at least
between the external toes, we observe elevated tarsi; legs divested of
feathers at their lower extremities ; a long, thin shape, and in fine, all the
requisites for wading along the shores .of rivers to seek their food. Such,
in fact, is the regimen of the greater number ; and although some of them
inhabit dry grounds, they are called Shore-Birds , or Waders.

Among the true land birds, the Gallinacece , like our domestic Cock,
have a heavy carriage, a limited power of flying, a moderate bill, the
upper mandible of which is arched; the nostrils partly covered by a soft
and inflated scale; the toes almost always indented on the edges, and
short membranes between the bases of the anterior ones. They fly hea-
vily, and but a short distance at a time. Their chief food is grain.

Birds of yprey have a hooked bill, the point of which is sharp, and
curved downwards ; the nostrils pierced in a membrane which invests the
whole base of that bill, and feet armed with vigorous talons. They live
on flesh, pursue other birds, and are consequently, for the most part,
vigorous in flight. The greater number have still a slight web between
the external toes.

The Basserince comprise many more species than all the other families ;
but their organization presents so many analogies that they cannot be
separated, although varying greatly in size and strength. Their two ex-
ternal toes are united at the base, and sometimes for a part of their
length.

Finally, the name of Scansorice, or Climbers, has been given to those
birds whose external toe, like the thumb, is directed backwards, because

208

BIRDS.

the greater number profit, by a conformation so favourable to a vertical
position, to climb trees.*

Each of these orders is subdivided into families and genera, and prin-
cipally from the conformation of the beak. But these different groups
frequently pass into each other by almost imperceptible gradations, so that
there is no other class* in which the genera and sub-genera are so diffi-
cult to limit.

ORDER I.

ACCIPITRES, Lin.

Birds of prey are known by their hooked bill and talons, powerful wea-
pons, by means of which they pursue other birds, and even the weaker
quadrupeds and reptiles. They are among birds what the carnivora are
among quadrupeds. The muscles of their thighs and legs indicate the
strength of their claws ; their tarsi are rarely elongated ; they have, all,
four toes; the nail of the thumb and that of the internal toe are the
strongest.

They form two families, the diurnal and the nocturnal.

The eyes of the diurnal birds of prey are directed sideways ; they have
a membrane called the cera , covering the base of the bill, in which the
nostrils are pierced; three toes before, one behind, without feathers, the
two external ones almost always united at their base by a short membrane ;
the plumage dense, the quills strong, and great power on the wing. Their
stomach is nearly altogether membranous, their intestines of but small ex-
tent, their caecum very short, their sternum broad and completely ossified
in order to give more extended attachments to the muscles of the wings,
and their fourchette semicircular and widely separated, the better to resist
the violent motions of the humerus necessary to a rapid flight.

Linnaeus comprehended them all under two genera, which are so many
natural divisions, the Vultures and the Falcons.

Vultur, Lin.

The Vultures have eyes even with the head, and reticulated tarsi, that
is, covered with small scales : an elongated bill, curved only at the end,
and a greater or less portion of the head, or even of the neck, divested of

* From my first Tableau Elementaire, in 1798, 1 was obliged to suppress the Lin-
nsean order of the Picse, which has no- one determined character. Illiger and the
greater number of recent ornithologists have assented to this suppression.

ACCIPITRES.

209

feathers. The strength of their talons does not correspond with their size,
and they make more use of their bill than of their claws. Their wings
are so long, that in walking they keep them in a state of semi-extension.
They are a cowardly genus, feeding oftener on carrion than on a living
prey ; when they have fed, their crop forms a great protuberance above
the fourchette, a fetid humour flows from their nostrils, and they are al-
most reduced to a state of stupid insensibility.

Vultur, Cuv.

The Vultures, properly so called, have a large and strong bill, the nos-
trils pierced transversely at its base ; the head and neck without feathers
or caruncles, and a collar of long feathers, or of down, at the root of the
neck. They have hitherto been found only in the eastern continent.

V.fulvus, Gmel. ; V. trencalos, Bechstein; Le Percnoptere, Buff.
Enl. 326, and Le Grand Vautour, Id. Hist, des Ois. I. in 4to. pl.V ;* * * §
The Vulture , Albinus, III. i; Nauman, pi. 2. (The Fulvous Vul-
ture). Grey, or of a brown verging upon fulvous ; the down on the
head and neck cinereous ; collar white, sometimes mixed with brown ;
quills of the wing and tail brown ; bill and feet lead-coloured ; belly
of the adult white. It is the most universally diffused species, and
is found on the mountains of the whole of the eastern continent. Its
body surpasses in size that of the swan.'f-

V. cinereus, Gmel. Col. 425; Nauman, pi. v; Vieillot, Gall. pi. i;
Arrian of La Perouse ; Black Vulture , Cinereous Vulture , &c. (The
Brown Vulture). A blackish-brown; the collar mounting obliquely
towards the occiput, which is furnished with a tuft of feathers ; the
feet and the membrane of the base of the bill of a bluish violet. It
is equally common with the preceding, and is still larger, frequently
attacking living animals. J

V. auricularis, Daud. ; Vaill. Afr. pi. ix. (The Oricou). Black-
ish ; a longitudinal fleshy crest on each side of the neck, above the
ear. From Africa. §

America produces Vultures remarkable for the caruncles which sur-
mount the membrane of the base of their bill : the latter is as large as in
the preceding species, but the nostrils are oval and longitudinal. They
constitute the Sarcoramphus of Dumeril.||

* The history of the Grand Vautour of Buffon belongs to the following species,
hut the figure is that of th efulvus.

f The Vautour des Indes, Lath, and Sonnerat, Tem. PI. Col. 26, is at least a closely
allied species, as well as the Chassefiente, Vaill. Affr. pi. 10. Add V.cegypius , Tem.
Col. 407. — V. imperialism lb. 426.

N. B. The Fawn-coloured Vulture is the genus Gyps of Savigny. The Brown Vul-
ture is the type of his genus AEgypius.

t The V.monachus , Edw. 290; Vaill. 12 and Col. 13, only differs from the Brown
V ulture in the bill, which is somewhat shorter. The Crested Vulture ( V . crislatust
Gm.) is only known to me by a bad figure of Gesner, probably taken from some
species of eagle. The V. bar barns is the same as the Ltcmer-Geyer , Falco barbatus.

§ The Pondicherry Vulture, Sonnerat, pi. cv. or V. pontecirianus, PI. Col. 2, is
nearly allied to the Oricou. Its lateral crests do not ascend so high, and its bill is
not so strong.

|| M. Vieillot has changed this name into Zoppilota or Gypagus.

VOL. I. T

210

BIRDS.

Vult. papa, L.; Enl. 428; Vieillot, Gal. 3; Irubi Cha. Azz.
(The King of the Vultures). As large as a goose; blackish when
young (Spix, pi. 1), then becomes variegated with black and fawn-co-
lour (Vaill. Afric. 13), and finally, in the fourth year, has a fawn-
coloured mantle, and black quills and collar. The naked parts of
the head and neck are vividly tinged, and the caruncle is denticulat-
ed like the comb of a cock. It inhabits the plains and other hot
parts of South America. Its name is derived from the circumstance
of the Urubus retiring, through fear, when he stoops upon a body
which they have already begun to devour.

Vult. gryplius , L. ; Humb. Obs. Zool., pi. viii, and Tern. PI. Col.
133 and 408. (The Condor, or Great Vulture of the Andes). Black-
ish ; a great part of the wing ash-coloured ; collar silky and white ;
the male, in addition to his superior caruncle, which is large and
entire, has another under the bill, like the cock. While young, it
is of a cinereous brown, and without a collar. The caruncles are
deficient in the female, which is of a brownish-grey. This species
has been rendered famous by exaggerated reports of its size ; it is,
however, but a little larger than the Lcemmer-Geyer , to which it assi-
milates in habits. It is found in the most elevated mountains of the
Andes in South America, and flies higher than any other bird. The

Cathartes, Cuv. — Gallinazes, or Catharistes, Vieillot.

Plave the bill of the Sarcoramphus, that is, large, and with oval and
longitudinal nostrils, but no fleshy crest; their head and neck are without
feathers.

V. californianus Sh. ; Tern. Col. 31. (The Vulture of California).
Approaches the condor in size, but its wings are proportionably
longer ; the plumage is entirely brown.

V. aura , L., Enl. 187; Vieillot, Am. Sept. 2 and Galer. 4. (The
Turkey Buzzard). Black ; tail tapering ; as large as a cock.*

Percnopterus, ■j' Cuv. — Gypaetos, Bechstein. — Neophron, Saviy.

The Percnopteri have a slender, long bill, slightly inflated above its
curvature ; the nostrils oval and longitudinal, and the head, but not the
neck, divested of feathers. They are birds of a moderate size, very far
removed, as to strength, from the true Vultures; thus they are more
eager for carrion and every species of filth, which attract them from afar;
they do not even disdain to feed upon excrement. They were compre-
hended by Illiger , along with the preceding, among his Cathartes.

* Dr. M‘Murtrie adds the following description of this bird: —

Cathartes aura (Turkey Buzzard.) Black, with a bluish gloss; neck feathered
equally all round; head red, hill white. The other species, Cathartes iota , Vieill.,
which by our author is arranged in the genus Percnopterus, undoubtedly belongs to
the same genus with the C. aura. Its vulgar name is the Carrion Crow. Its colour
is black, neck more feathered above than beneath; head black; bill horn colour.
Both these species are common in the warm parts of our country; the first, however,
ranges more to the north than the other; it is sometimes seen at New York. They
prey upon carrion and excrementitious matters, but never attack living animals, ex-
cept they perceive them helpless or unable to defend themselves.

f Percnopterus , black wings, the name of the Egyptian species among the antients.

ACCIPlTltES.

211

Vult. per cnoptenus, L. ; V. leucocephalus and V.fuscus , Gm. Enl.
407 and 429; Vieillot, Galer. 2; Naum. pi. 3; Vult. de Gingi ,
Sonn. and Daud. ; Origour ap, Vaill. Afr. 14; Rachamah, Bruce ;
Pharaoh's Bird , in Egypt. As large as a crow ; throat and cheeks
naked ; the adult male white, quills of the wings black ; the young
and the female brown. This bird is found throughout the whole of
the eastern continent, and is particularly common in warm countries,
where it is an excellent scavenger, purifying them from carrion, &c.
It follows the caravans in the desert to devour all that dies. The
antient Egyptians held it in respect on account of the services it
renders to the country, and frequently sculptured it on their monu-
ments. Even at the present day it is exempt from injury, and pious
Mussulmen sometimes bequeath sums of money for the maintenance
of a certain number.

V. jota, Bonap. : Vieillot, Am. Sept. pi. 1. (The Urubu.) Of
the size and form of the preceding; the bill stronger; the whole
body of a brilliant black ; the entire head naked. Common in all
the hot and temperate parts of America, where it renders similar
services as the Percnopterus in the old continent; flocking round
dead bodies, and consuming every kind of filth.*

GyrAETOs, Storr. — Phene, Savigny,

The Griffins, placed by Gmelin in the genus Falco, are more nearly
allied to the Vultures in their habits and conformation; their eyes are
even with the head ; their talons proportionably weak ; wings half extend-
ed when at rest; the crop, when full, projecting at the bottom of the
neck; but their head is completely covered with feathers. Their dis-
tinguishing characters consist in a very strong, straight bill, hooked at
the end, and inflated on the curve ; nostrils covered by stiff hairs, directed
forwards, and in a pencil of similar hairs under the beak; their tarsi short
and feathered to the toes ; their wings long,- the third quill being the
longest.

Vult. barbarus and Falco barbatus , Gm. PI. Col. 431; Edw.
106; Vieillot, Gal. pi. 8; Nauman, pi. 4 and 5; Nisser of Bruce,
Abyss, pi. 31. ( The Lcemmer-geyer , or the Lambs’ Vulture), The
largest bird of prey belonging to the eastern continent, inhabiting
the high chains of mountains, but not very common. It builds its
nest on inaccessible acclivities, attacks lambs, goats, the chamois,
and, as it is said, even man, when it finds him asleep; it is as-
serted that children have been carried away by it. Its usual mode
of attack is to force its prey from some precipice, which it then
devours, being killed and mangled by the fall. It does not, how-
ever, reject dead bodies. Its length is nearly four feet, the distance
from the tip of one wing to that of the other being from nine to ten.
The mantle is blackish, with a white line on the middle of each
feather; the neck, and all the under part of the body are of a light
and brilliant fawn-colour ; a black band surrounds the head. The

* This bird lias been confounded for a long time with the aura , but its bill is much
more slender. Add the Cathartc moine, PI. Col. 222.

BIRDS.

212

neck and breast of the young, until the fourth year inclusive, are of
a brown colour, more or less deep. This bird is the Phene of the
Greeks, and the Ossifraga of the Latins.*

Falco, Lin.

The Falcons form the second, and by far most numerous division of
the diurnal birds of prey. Their head and neck are covered with
feathers; their eye-brows project, which occasions the eye to appear
sunk, and gives to their physiognomy a character very different from
that of the Vultures: the greater number prey on living animals, but
they differ much from one another in the courage with which they pursue
it. Their first plumage is often very differently coloured from that of
the adult, which is only assumed in their third or fourth year, a circum-
stance which has occasioned a great multiplication of species by natural-
ists. The female is generally one-third larger than the male, which, on
this account, is styled a tarsel, or tiercel. We shall, first of all, subdivide
this genus into two great sections.

NOBLE BIRDS OF PREY.

Falco, Bechst. Falcons, properly so called.

The true Falcons constitute the first, and, in proportion to their size,
are the most courageous, a quality which is derived from the power of
their arms and wings ; their bill, curved from its base, has a sharp tooth
on each side of its point, and the second quill of their wings is the longest,
the first nearly equalling it, which renders the whole wing longer and
more pointed. From this, also, result peculiar habits; the length of the
quills and of their wings diminishes their vertical power, and compels them,
in a calm state of the atmosphere, to fly very obliquely forwards, so that
when they wish to rise directly upwards, they are obliged to fly against
the wind. These birds are the most docile and the most serviceable of
all those employed by falconers, who teach them to pursue game, and to
return at their call. Their wings are longer than their tails.

F. communis, Gm.-f (The Common Falcon). As large as a
hen, and distinguished by a triangular, black moustache on the cheek,
larger than that of any other species of the genus; it varies as to
colours nearly in the following manner : when young, it is brown
above, the feathers edged with reddish ; underneath whitish, with
longitudinal brown spots. As it increases in age, the spots on the
belly and thighs have a tendency to form transverse blackish lines,
and the white increases on the throat and root of the neck; the
plumage on the back, at the same time, becomes more uniform, and

* Savigny, Ois. d’Egyp. et de Syrie, p. 18, in the great work on Egypt, was the
first who firmly established this synonyme.

f We must take especial care not to refer to this species the pretended varieties
of the Falco communis given by Gmelin. Thus the var. a, Frisch. 74, is a Buzzard;
d, Id. 75, is a Booted Buzzard; e, Id. 80, the Falco py gar gus, L.; th, Id. 76, a Buz-
zard somewhat paler than usual; k, Aldrov. 494, a very distinct species, &c. On
the contrary, the F. islandicus, barbarus , and peregrinus may all be the Common Fal-
con at different periods of moulting.

ACC1PITRES.

213

is of a brown transversely striped with a blackish ash colour ; the
tail is brown above, with pairs of reddish spots, and beneath with
pale bands which diminish in width with age ; the throat is always
white; the feet and the cera of the bill are sometimes blue and
sometimes yellow. These variations may be followed, Enl. 470,
the young; 421, the old female; 450, the old male; * Nauman, pi.
24 and 25, and Wils. Am. IX. pi. lxxvi.

Those called Faucons pelerins, Enl. 469, and Wils. Amer. IX.
pi. 76 — F. stellaris , F. peregrinus, Gm., appear to be young ones
rather blacker than the rest.

It is this celebrated species which has given its^ name to that kind
of hunting in which birds of prey are used. It inhabits the whole
north of the earth, and builds in the most elevated and inaccessible
cliffs. Such is the velocity of its flight, that there is scarcely a spot
on the globe it does not visit. The Falcon stoops vertically on its
prey, as though it fell from the clouds, and consequently can only
capture birds while on the wing, otherwise it would dash itself against
the ground. The male is used for taking Pies and other small
birds ; the female against Pheasants, and even Hares.

F. lanarius, L. ; F. sacer, Naum. pi. 23. (The Lanner). A
somewhat larger species, which appears to come from the East rather
than the North. Its plumage is nearly the same as that of the young
falcon, except that its moustache is narrower, and less marked, and
that its throat is mottled; it approaches the Gerfalcon in the tail,
which is longer than the wings : it is principally taken in Hungary.

Europe produces also six smaller species, three of which have the form
and qualities of the true falcon on a reduced scale.

F. subbuteo , L. ; Enl. 432 ; Naum. 26. (The Hobby). Brown
above ; whitish, spotted longitudinally with brown beneath ; thighs
and lower part of the abdomen red ; a brown streak on the cheek.

F. cesalon , L. ; Enl. 468 ; Naum. 27. (The Merlin). Brown
above ; whitish beneath ; longitudinally spotted with brown, even on
the thighs; the smallest of the European birds of prey. The Ro-
ckier, Cuv. ; F. lithofalco, L. ; Enl. 447; ash-coloured above ; red-
dish white, spotted longitudinally with pale brown underneath, is
merely an old male of the same species. Builds among rocks.

The toes of the three remaining species are shorter, and their tubercles
less salient. Their flight is not so rapid, and they pursue Mice, Insects,
and seize Birds upon the perch. The most common is

F. tinnunculus, L. ; Enl. 401 and 471 ; Naum. 30. (The Kes-
trel). Red ; spotted with black above ; white longitudinally, spotted
with pale brown beneath ; the head and tail of the male ash-coloured.
The name is derived from its shrill cry : builds in old towers and
ruins.

F. cenchris , Frisch and Naum. : F. tinnunculoides, Schintz and
Temm.; Naum. 29; Frisch. 89. (The Little Kestrel). The male

* Frisch only gives a young falcon, pi. lxxxiii. Edw. ; the old female, pi. iii. : the
young, pi. iv.

BIRDS.

214

immaculate above; otherwise similar to the Kestrel; wings rather
longer, and talons white. This species, long confounded with the
preceding, prefers the south of Europe.

F. rujipes, Beseke; F. vespertinus, Gm. ; Enl. 431; Naum. 28.
(The Grey Kestrel). The male is of a deep ash colour; the thighs
and inferior part of the abdomen red; the back of the female ash
coloured, spotted with black ; the head, and all the under part, more
or less red. Still smaller than the preceding; most common in
eastern Europe ; common, also, in Siberia — rare in Germany and
France.* * * §

Hierofalco, Cuv. ■f*

The Gerfalcons have wing quills similar to those of the other noble
birds, which they perfectly resemble in disposition ; but their bill has
only an emargination like that of the ignoble ones;J their long and ex-
panded tails extend considerably beyond their wings, although the latter
are very long ; the superior third of their tarsi, which are short and reti-
culated, is furnished with feathers. Only one species is well known.

F. candicans and F. islandicus, Gm. ; Buff. Enl. 210, 456, 462;
Naum. 21, 22. (The Gerfalcon). One fourth larger than the
Falcon, and the most highly esteemed by falconers. It is chiefly
obtained from the north ; its usual plumage is brown above, with an
edging of paler points on each feather, and transverse lines on the
coverts and quills; whitish below, with longitudinal brown spots,
which, with age, are changed on the thighs into transverse lines ; the
tail is striped brown and greyish ; but it so varies in the proportion
of the brown and white, that the body of some of them is altogether
white, and all that remains of the brown is a spot on the middle of
each feather of the mantle ; the feet and the membrane of the bill
are sometimes yellow, sometimes blue.§

* Of foreign species add, 1st, allied to the Kestrel: Le Montagnard, Vaill. 35,
( F . capensis, Sh.) — F. sparverius, Enl. 465, Wils. II. xvi. 1, and IV. xxxii. 2, and
two or three species, whose wings, otherwise similar to the noble birds of prey, as to
the relative proportion of the feathers, are shorter than the tail; such as the F. punc-
tatus, Cuv. Col. 45. — F. columbarius, Wils. II. xv. 3.

2d. Allied to the Hobby: F. ccerulescens, Edw. 108, Vieill. Gal. 18, and Col. 97,
hardly larger than a swallow; F. aurantius, Lath., rufogularis, Ejd., thoracicus, Illig.
Col. 348; — F. bidyntatus, Lath., or Bidens rufiventer, Spix. VI., which is distinguished
by a double tooth in its bill, Col. 38, and the young, Col. 358, or Bid. albiventer,
Spix. VII., but with wings too short; — F. diodon, Col. 198; — F. femoralis, Temm.
Col. 121 and 343, and Spix. VIII.; — F. Aldovandii, Reinw. Col. 128.

3d. Allied to the true Falcon: the Chiquera, Vaill. Afric. 30 (F. chiquera, Sh.) ;
F. biarrmcus, T. Col. 324; — the F. happe (F. frontalis, Daud., F. galericulatus, Sh.),
Vaill. Afric. 28; — the F. huppart, T. (F. lophotes, Cuv.) Enl. 10; — the F. a calotte
noire , Vaill. 29, (F. tibialis, Sh.)

f Hierax, Hierofalco, Sacred Falcon, & c., names connected with the superstitions
of the Egyptians respecting certain birds of prey. Gerfalcon is a corruption of
Hiero-falco.

+ Nauman, I., p. 278, asserts that it is the falconers who round the tooth of the
bill in the Gerfalcons. In that case, and with the bare exception of their long tail,
they wrould re-enter the catalogue of the other Falcons, and the Banner should be
associated with them.

§ Add as a foreign species, the Cinereous Gerfalcon, (F. atricapillus,) Wils. VI.
lii. 3, of which the Cinereous Buzzard , Edw. 53, (F. cinereus, Gm.) ; is possibly a
young specimen.

ACCIPITRES.

215

The second section of the great genus Falco is that of the

IGNOBLE BIRDS OF PREY.

So called, because they cannot be easily employed in falconry ; a tribe
much more numerous than that of the Nobles, and which it is also neces-
sary to subdivide considerably. The fourth quill of their wings is almost
always the longest, and the first is very short, which produces the same
effect as if their wing had been obliquely truncated at the tip, whence,
coeteris paribus, result diminished powers of flight; their bill also is not
so well armed, there being no lateral tooth near its point, but a mere slight
emargination about the middle of its length.

Aquila, Briss.

The Eagles, which constitute the first tribe, have a very stong bill,
straight at the base, and only curved towards the point. Among them we
find the largest species of the genus, and the most powerful of all the
birds of prey.

Aquila, Cuv.

Eagles, properly so called, have the tarsi feathered down to the root of
the toes; they inhabit mountains, and pursue birds and quadrupeds;
their wings are as long as the tail, their flight as high as it is swift, and
their courage superior to that of all other birds.

F. fulvus , F. melanaetos, F. niger, Gm. ; * Enl. 409 ; Naum,
pi. 8 and 9; Wils. VII. lv. 1. (The Common Eagle). More or
less brown ; the occiput fawn coloured ; the superior half of the tail
white, and the remainder black. The most common species in all
mountainous countries.

F. clirysaetos , Enl. 410. (The Ring-tail, or Royal Eagle).
Only differs from the preceding in its blackish tail, marked with irre-
gular ash coloured bands. We are assured that it is the Common
Eagle, with its perfect plumage,

F. imperialis, Bechst. ; F. moyilnik , Gm. ; Aquila heliaca , Savig.
Eg. Ois. pi. xiii. ; Vieillot, Gal. 9; Naum. pi. 6 and 7, Tern. Col.
16 and 152. (The Imperial Eagle). Still longer wings; a large
whitish spot on the scapulars ; nostrils transverse ; tail black ; the supe-
rior portion undulated with grey. The female fawn coloured, with
brown spots. Its port is heavier than that of the Common Eagle,
and it is a still more fearful object to other birds. It inhabits the
high mountains of the south of Europe, and is the true subject of
the exaggerated tale,, propagated by the antients, relating to the
power, courage, and magnanimity of their Golden Eagle.

* The real species is well represented, Enl. 409; it is Falc. fulvus. At certain
stages of moulting, the white at the base of the feathers may he seen; it then forms
the F. fulvus canadensis, Edw. I. As to the F. melanaetos , it is merely based upon
some vague indications of the antients, and the same only is quoted in pi. Enl. 409.
Finally, the F. Niger, or Black-baclced Eagle of Brown; is merely a slight difference
of age.

f Temm. Man. d’Ornith. I. p. 39.

216

BIRDS.

F. ncevius and F. maculatus, Gm. ; Naum. pi. 10 and 11; Aq.
melanaetos, Savig. Eg. Ois. pi. 1, and pi. 2, f. 1. (The Smaller or
Spotted Eagle). A third less than the two others ; tarsi more slender ;
plumage brown ; tail blackish, with paler bands ; pale fawn coloured
spots form a band on the small coverts ; one at the tips of the large
ones which mounts to the scapulars, and one at the tips of the se-
condary quills. The superior part of the wing is sprinkled with
fawn colour. The old birds become all brown. This species is
common in the Appennines, and other mountains of the south of
Europe ; but is rarely seen in the north : it attacks the weaker ani-
mals only. It has been found sufficiently docile to be employed
in falconry, but is said to fly from and be vanquished by the Spar-
row-hawk.

It has been thought proper to place among the Eagles a bird of
Eastern Europe — Falco pennatus, Gm. ; Col. 33 ; Briss., Suppl.
pi. 1, which scarcely resembles them in any thing except the plumed
tarsi and pointed feathers of the vertex, but which is not as large as
the Buzzard, and has a bill almost as much curved; its plumage is
fawn coloured spotted with brownV^ts feet blue. Very rare in
France and Germany.*

New Holland produces Eagles similar in form to those of Europe,
the tail excepted, which is cuneiform (etagee).f

Halostus, Savig. — The Fisher Eagles, Cuv.

The Fisher Eagles have the same wings as the preceding, but only the
upper half of their tarsi invested with feathers, the remainder being semi-
scutellated. They frequent the shores of rivers and of the sea, and feed
chiefly on fish.

F. Ossifragus, F. albicilla, and F. albicaudus, Gm. (The Ossi-
fragus and Pygargus). Form but one species, which in its first
years has a black bill; tail blackish, spotted with white, and the
plumage brownish, with a deep brown streak on the middle of each
feather, (Enl. 112 and 415; Naum. 14; the F. ossifragus ,) and
which, when older, becomes of a uniform brownish grey, paler on
the head and neck, with an entirely white tail, and the bill of a pale
yellow. (Frisch, lxx. ; Naum. 12 and 13 — the F. albicilla). J It
generally attacks fish, and is found in the whole north of the globe.

F. leucocephalus , L. ; Enl. 411; Wilson IV. xxxvi., and VII.,
lv. 2. (The Bald Eagle). A uniform deep brown ; head and tail

* A living specimen, however, was taken near Paris, in 1828. M. Temm. makes
an European species of the Aigle Bonnelli , Col. 288; but we have not got it in all its
states.

Add the Griffard , Vaill. Afric, I. (F. armiger , Sh.); — the Malay Eagle , (F. ma-
laiensis, Reinw.) Col. 117; the Petit Aigle de Senegal, (F. Senegallus, Cuv.) similar
to the Spotted, or Little Eagle of Europe; the nostrils not so round, numerous small
grey bands underneath the tail of the young. — The Petit Aigle du Cap, ( F.ncevioides ,
Cuv.) variegated with brown fawn colour and blackish.

f F.foscosus, Col. 32.

I This change has been verified more than once in the menagerie of the Museum.
As to the Little Pygargus, F. Albicaudus, it is merely the male of the great one,
F. albicilla.

ACC1PITRES.

217

white ; bill yellowish, and almost as large as the Common Eagle of
Europe. It inhabits North America, and is continually occupied in
fishing. It appears occasionally in the north of Europe. When
young, the head and body are of a cinereous brown. It must not be
confounded, however, with the old White-Headed Pygargus.

We remark, among the Foreign Fishing Eagles,

F. pontic erianus, Gm. ; Enl. 416; Vieillot, Gal. 10. (The Ga-
ruda). Less than a kite; of a fine lively chestnut red; head, neck,
and breast, white, or pearl grey. It is from India, and is the Ga-
ruda Eagle , which, in the religion of the Bramins, is sacred to
Vishnu*.

Pandion, Savigny.

The Ospreys have the bill and feet of the Fisher Eagles; but their
claws are round underneath, while in other birds of prey these are grooved
or channelled; their tarsi are reticulated, and the second quill of their
wings is the longest.

Only one species is known, which is found along the shores of fresh
waters in almost every part of the globe, varying but little in plumage ; it
is the

Falco halicetus , L. ; Enl. 414; and better, Catesby, II; Wils. V.
xxxvii; Vieillot, Gal. ii; Naum. 16. (The Osprey). A third
smaller than the Ossifragus : white, with a brown mantle ; a brown
band descending from the angle of the bill towards the back ; brown
spots on the head and back of the neck, also a few on the breast ;
the cera and feet, sometimes yellow, and sometimes blue. The
species of the genus,

Circa etus, Vieillot ,

Are constituted in a manner intermediate between the Fisher-Eagles, the
Ospreys, and the Buzzards. They have the wings of the Eagle and Buz-
zard, and the reticulated tarsi of the Osprey ; as

F. gallicus, Gm. ; F. leucopsis , Bechst. ; F. brachydactylus,
Tern.; Enl. 413; Naum. 15; Jean le Blanc. Superior in size to
the Osprey; the curvature of its bill is more sudden than in the
other Eagles, and the toes are shorter in proportion. It is brown
above, white beneath, with pale brown spots ; three light bands on
the tail. Its carriage is rather that of a Buzzard than of an Eagle,
and it feeds chiefly on Frogs and Serpents.

F. ecaudatus, Sh. ; Le Bateleur, Vaill. Afric. 7 and 8. (The
Mountebank). An African species, remarkable for the extreme

* Here should come the Blagre, Vaill. Afric. 5, ( Falc . blagrus, Sh.) which is pro-
bably the F. leucogaster, Lath., or Aigle oceanique , Col. 49; — the vocifer, Vaill. Af. 4,
(F. vocifer, Sh.); — the Caff re, Vaill. Afr. 6 (F. vultuiinus, Sh.); — the Aigle de Mace
of Bengal, ( F.macei , Cuv.) Col. 8 and 223; — the Aigle aguia, (F. aguia, T.) Col. 302;
— the F. iclitycetus, llorsf. Jav. ; — the Mileage oehrocephalus , Sp. I. or Chimachima,
Azz., or F. degener, lllig. We should also remember that the transition from the
Eagles to the Buzzards is effected by insensible gradations.

VOL. I. U

218

BIRDS.

shortness of its tail, and its beautifully variegated plumage. The
cera of its bill is red* * * §.

America produces Eagles with long wings, like the preceding ones, and
naked scutellated tarsi, in which a more or less considerable portion of
the sides of the head, and sometimes of the throat, is destitute of feathers.
They have received the common name of Caracara^.

F. braziliensis, Gm. ; Polyborus vulgaris , Vieillot, Galer. pi. 7 ;
the young, Spix, I. (The Common Caracara). Large as an Os-
prey ; striped transversely with white and black ; feathers long and
slender, and white on the throat; a black calotte slightly elongated
into a crest ; the wing covers, thighs, and tip of the tail, blackish.
The most common bird of prey in Paraguay and BrazilJ.

F. aquilinus, Gm. ; Enl. 417; Ibycter leucogaster, Vieillot, Ga-
ler. 6. (The little Throat-bare Eagle). Black ; the abdomen and
inferior coverts of the tail white ; throat, naked and red. The

Harpyia, CW.§

Or Fisher-Eagles with short wings, are also American Eagles, whose
tarsi are very thick, strong, reticulated, and half covered with feathers, like
those of the true Fisher Eagles, from which they only differ in the short-
ness of their wings ; their bill and claws are even stronger than those of
any other tribe.

The Great Harpy of America; Aigle destructeur of Daudin;
Grand Aigle de la Guiane of Mauduit, and probably the Falco har-
pyia and the F. cristatus, Lin. ; F. Harpyia and imperialis, Sh.
Col. 14 1|. Of all birds, this possesses the most terrific bill and
claws ; it is superior in size to the common eagle ; the plumage is
ash coloured on the head and neck; but on the mantle and the sides
of the breast, it is of a blackish brown ; whitish above, and striped
with brown on the thighs : it has a black tuft on the back of the head,
formed of long feathers, and when it erects them and removes those on
the cheeks, its physiognomy greatly resembles that of the Strix ulula>
Gm. Its external toe is also very frequently directed backwards, like

* Add the Crowned Eagle, Azz. (F. coronatus, Temm.) Col. 234; — the Circaete
du Senegal, ( C . cinereus), Vieill. Gal. des Ois. pi. xii. : — le Caracara funebre (F. Novce
Zelandice, Lat.) Col. 192 and 224.

f Azzara, Voy. iii. p. 30 et seq.

J It is really the Caracara of Marcgrave, though it could never he recognised
from the description. A better one may he found in Azzara. Our own is taken
from nature. The F. cheriway, Jacq. Beyt. p. 15, No. 11, may easily he a variety
from age. Add the Black Caracara, ( F . aterrimus, Tern.) Col. 37 and 342, or Dap-
trius ater, Vieill. Gal. pi. v; — Gymnops fasciatus, Spix, IV. His Gymnops strigilatus
is the young of the same.

N.B. It is from my Caracaras that Vieillot has made his genera Daptrius, Ibyc-
ter and Polyborus, according to the greater or less extent of the bare spot on the
head.

§ Vieillot has adopted this genus and name.

|| It is most certainly the Yzquautzli of Fernandez; but that author greatly ex-
aggerates its size in comparing it to a sheep. It is also the F. cristatus of Jacq.,
and consequently the Falc. Jacquini of Gmelin.

ACCIPITRES.

219

the thumb. Such, it is said, are its powers, that it has cleft a man’s
skull with its bill; its ordinary food is the sloth, and it frequently
carries off fawns.

Morphnus, Cuv.* * * §

The Morphni, or Goshawk Eagles, like the preceding, have wings
shorter than the tail; but their elevated and slender tarsi and weak toes
compel us to separate them.

Some of them have naked and scutellated tarsi.

F. guianensis, Baud. ; Petit Aigle de la Guiane , Maud. Encyc.
It has a singular resemblance in colour and crest to the Great Fisher
Eagle of the same country; but it is not so large, and its naked
and scutellated tarsi sufficiently distinguish it ; the mantle is black-
ish, sometimes variegated with a deep grey; abdomen white, undu-
lated more or less strongly with fawn colour ; head and neck some-
times grey, and sometimes white ; the occipital tuft, long and
blackish.

F. urubitinga, L. ; Spix, I. Black; no crest; rump and base of
the tail, white. When young, brown above; fawn coloured, sprin-
kled with brown beneath (Col, 55). This beautiful bird hunts on
inundated grounds f.

Others have elevated tarsi feathered throughout the whole of their length.

F. occipitalis, Daud.; Huppart, Vaill. Afr. I. ii; Bruce, Abyss,
pi. xxxii. As large as a crow ; black ; a long crest or tuft pendent
from the occiput; the tarsi, borders of the wings, as well as of the
bands under the tail, whitish. Throughout all Africa.

F. ornatus, Daud. J ; F. superbus and coronatus , Sh. ; Crested
Goshawk , Vaill. Afric. I. xxvi; Spizaetus ornatus, Vieillot, Galer.
21; Aigle moyen de la Guiane, Maud. Encyclop. ; Booted Spar-
rowhawk, Azz. Calotte and crests black; sides of the neck of a
bright red; mantle black, variegated with grey, undulated with
white ; above white ; flanks, thighs, and tarsi striped with black ;
tail, black, with four grey bands. A beautiful bird of South Ame-
rica, varying from black and white to a deep brown §.

Finally, America produces birds with bills similar to the preceding
ones; very short reticulated tarsi half covered with feathers in front;
wings shorter than the tail, and whose most distinguishing character con-
sists in their almost closed nostrils, which resemble fissures. We may

* Morphnus, the Greek name for an undetermined bird of prey. It is from my
Morphnus that Vieillot has made his Spizaetes.

f The Filol longipes, Illig. ; the Aq. picta, Spix, I. appear to me to he only young
Urubitingae. — Add the Aigle-autour mouchete {Aq. maculosa), Vieill. Amer. pi. iii. bis;
— the Panema ( Aq . milvoides ) Spix, Id.

X This is certainly the TJrutaurana of Margrave; hut that author describes it as
being of the size of an Eagle, which is at least one-third too large. The Ilarpyia
hraccata, Spix, III. is the young bird of the same species.

§ Add here, of crested species, th e blanchard, Vaill. Afr. 3. ( F . albescens, Sh.);
— Ij Autour tyran {F. tyrannus , Pr. Max.), Col. 73; L' Autour cristatelle, Temm. Col.
285: of species without crests, V Autour neigeux, Temm. Col. 127; — I'Aut. incolore,
Id.ib. 134, or Falco lineatus, Horsf. Java.

u 2

220

BIRDS.

form them into a small tribe under the name of Cymindis, Cuv.* * * §
Such is

F. Cayennensis, Gm. ; Le Petit Autour de Cayenne , Buff. Enl.
473; Spix, VIII. It has another peculiar character in a small
tooth at the spot where the bill curves. The adult is white, with a
bluish-black mantle, cinereous head, and four white bands on the
tail ; in the young bird the mantle is variegated with brown and red,
and the head is white, with some black spots'}".

Astur, Bechst. — Daedelion, Savigny.

The Goshawks, which form the second division of the Ignobles, like
the last three tribes of Eagles, have wings shorter than their tail; but
their bill is curved from its base, as in all those which are to follow. We
particularly designate as Goshawks those which have rather short and
scutellated tarsi.

F. palumbarius, L. ; Enl. 418 and 461 ; and the young, F.galli-
narius, Gm. Enl. 425; and Frisch, LXXII; Naum. 17 and 18 j.
(The Common Goshawk). The only species in France; brown
above, with white eye-brows : white beneath ; the adult transversely
striped with brown; longitudinally sprinkled when young; five
browner bands on the tail. It equals the Gerfalcon in size, but not
in courage ; always stooping obliquely upon its prey. Falconers,
however, sometimes use it for the weaker kinds of game. Common
in hills and low mountains.

Among foreign Goshawks, we may remark that of New Holland,
Falco Novce Hollandice , White, Voy. p. 250, which is very often
entirely of a snow white ; but it seems that it is a variety of a bird
of the same country, which is ash coloured above, white beneath,
with vestiges of grey undulations §.

We may also approximate to the Goshawks some American birds with
short wings and tarsi ; the latter, however, reticulated.

* Cymindis, the Greek name for an undetermined bird of prey.

f I am not sure whether it is not a young Cymindis that is represented in the
Buse mantelee (F. pailiatus, Tern.), Col. 204, very different from that which has the
same French name, Col. 437.

Add the Hooked Bill Cymindis, F. hamatus, Illig. Col. 61 and 231, F, leucopygus ,
Spix, II. the Crooked Bill Cymindis, F. uncinatus , Id. Col. 103, 104, 105. These
birds vary greatly in colour with age.

N.B. The Gottingen Eagle (F. glaucopis, Merrem. Beytr. II.pl. vii.), is a Common
Buzzard. The White Eagle ( F . albus, Sh. ; John White, Voy.) is a Goshawk.

X Also, probably, F. gyrfalco, F. gentilis, Gm. ; — so badly determined were the birds
of prey at the period at which we published our first edition.

§ Other foreign Goshawks: F. poliogaster, Tern. Col. 264 and 295; — F. trivirgatus,
Tern. Col. 303; — F. leucauchen, Tern. Col. 306; — F. radiatus, Lath. Col. 123, V Aut.
poliosome, Quoy and Gaym. Voy. de Freycin. pi. xiv; — F. leucorrhous, lb. pi. xiii; —
F. unicinctus, Tern. Col. 313. These three last, in shape, closely resemble the
urubitinga. The F. pennsylvanicus, Wils. IV. liv. 1 ; — the F. borealis, L. Vieill.
Am. pi. xiv. bis; Wils. li. 1; — F. leverianus, Wils. lii. 2; — F. striolatus, T. Col. 87
and 294, or Asturine cendree, Vieill. Gal. 20; — F. monogrammicus, T. Col. 314; —
F. Dussumieri, T. Col. 308 and 386. The latter lead insensibly to the Sparrowhawks.

N.B. The F. ccerulescens forms the genus Hierax of Vigors: the species with two
teeth, as the bidentatus , &c. or the Bidens of Spix, are the Harpagus of the same
gentleman.

ACCIPiTRES.

221

F. cachinnans, L. ; Nacagua of Azz. ; Vieill. Gal. 19; Spix, III.
(The Laughing Falcon). So called from its cry ; white ; the mantle
and a band, which extends from the circumference of the eye to the
neck, where it joins a corresponding one on the opposite side, brown ;
brown and white bands on the tail. From the marshes of South
America, where it feeds on reptiles and fish*.

The name of Sparrowhawk (Nisus, Cuv.), is generally appropriated
to those whose tarsi are scutellated and higher ; but the transitions from
one division to the other are almost insensible.

F. nisus, L. ; The Ejpervier Commun of the French, Enl. 412
and 467; Naum. 19, 20. (The Common Sparrowhawk). Coloured
like the Goshawk, but its legs are longer, and it is a third less in
size. It is employed however by falconers. The spots beneath on
the young bird red and arrow-shaped, or like red and elongated
tears — the feathers of its mantle are also edged with red.

There are foreign species still smallerj'; but there are some also
much larger.

F. musicus, Daud. ; Faucon chanteur, Vaill. Afric. xxvii. (The
Singing Sparrowhawk). As large as the Goshawk ; cinereous above ;
beneath, and the rump, white, streaked with brown ; brown, varied
with red, when young. Found in Africa, where it pursues par-
tridges and hares, and builds on trees. The only bird of prey known
that sings agreeably^.

Milvus, Bechstein.

The Kites have short tarsi, and weak toes and nails, which, added to a
bill equally disproportioned to their size, render them the most cowardly
species of the whole genus; they are distinguished by their excessively
long wings, and their forked tail, which give them the most rapid and easy
flight.

* Here comes the F. melanops, Lath. Col. 105. It is from this subdivision that
Vieillot has made his Herpethotheres.

f As the Gabar, Vaill. Afr. 33. (F. Gabar, Sh.) Col. 122 and 140;— the Minule,
Id. 34, (F. minullus, Sh.)

+ Other Sparrowhawks foreign to Europe: The Mixed Lead-coloured Buzzard,
Azz. No. 67, or Short-toed Sparrowhawk, (F. hemidactilus, T.) Col. 3 and 91; Falc.
magnirostris, Enlum. 460, Col. 86; — Falco columbarius, Catesb. 4, Vieill. Am. pi. 2
and Wils. II. xv. 3; — the Ep. tachiro, Vaill. Afr. 24 (F. tachiro, Daud.). Col. 377 and
420; — F. cuculoides, Temm. Col. 110 and 129; — F. xanthothorax, T. Col. 92; F. vir-
gatus, T. Col. 109; — F. brachipterus, T. Col. 14 and 116, or F . concentricus , Illig. ; —
F. pileatus, Pr. Max. Col. 205; — F. gymnngenys, Col. 307; F. pennsylvanicus (a),
Wils. VI. xlvi. 1; very different from the Goshawk so called, Id. pi. liv. and the
young, Col. 67; — F. velox , Wils. VI. xlv. 1, is the young female of it, according to
Charles Bonap. ; — F. lineatus, Wils. VI. liii. 3; — F. hiemalis, Wils. IV. xxxv. 1; — F.
striatus, Vieill. Am. pi. 14; — F. niger, Vieill. Gal. 22.

C3T (a) Dr. M'Murtrie says, that the species cited from F. pennsylvanicus to F.
hiemalis, inclusively, are wrong, and that for them the following should be substituted:
F. pennsylvanicus, Wils. VI. pi. liv. f. 1 ; — F. velox (Slate-coloured Hawk), Wils. VI.
pi. xlvi. f. 1 ; — F. dubius, Gin. These three birds are considered (Syn. Am. Birds of
Ch. Bonap.) as the same, and as identical with the F. fuscus of Gmel.

»««■ BIRDS.

Some of them have very short tarsi, which are reticulated and half in-
vested with feathers above, like the last small tribe of Eagles (the Ela-
nus, Savginy). Such are

F. melanopterus, Baud. ; Le Blac , Sav. Eg. Ois. pi. 2, f. 2 ; Yaill.
Afr. xxxvi and xxxvii; Ch.Bonap. Am. II. xi. 1. As large as a Spar-
rowhawk; plumage soft and silky ; tail but slightly forked; cinereous
above ; white beneath ; the small coverts of the wings blackish ; the
young is brown, varied with fawn colour. This bird is common
from Egypt to the Cape, and appears to be found in India, and even
in America (a). Insects are almost its only game.

F , furcatus, L. ; The forJc-tailed Kite, Catesb. iv; Wils. li. 2;
Vieillot, Am. 10. (The Kite of Carolina). White; wings and tail
black ; the two external quills of the latter very long ; larger than
the preceding. It attacks also reptiles*.

Kites, properly so called.

Have tarsi scutellated and stronger.

F. milvus, L. ; Milan commun, Enl. 422; Naum. 31, f. 1. (The
Common Kite). Fawn coloured; quills of the wings, black; tail,
red : of all the birds of Europe this remains longest and most tran-
quilly on the wing. It scarcely attacks any thing but reptiles'j'.

Pernis, Cuv.%

The Honey-Buzzards, with the weak bill of the Kites, have a very
peculiar character, inasmuch as the space between the eye and the bill,
which, in all the rest of the genus Falco, is naked, and merely furnished
with a few hairs, is, in these, covered with a dense plumage, the feathers
of which are cut like scales ; their tarsi are half feathered above, and re-
ticulated: their tail is equal, wings long, and their bill curved from its
base like all those which follow. There is but one species in Europe.

F. apivorus ; la Bondree Commune, Enl. 420 ; Naum. 35, 36.
(The Common Honey-Buzzard). Somewhat smaller than the Buz-
zard; brown above; variously undulated with brown, and whitish,
beneath; the head of the male ash coloured at a certain age. It
pursues insects, and, principally, wasps and bees.

There are some others in foreign countries.

* Add the F. riocourii, Vieill. Col. 85; — the Irregular -tailed Kite (F. dispar, Tem.),
Col. 319.

f Add the Parasite, Vaill. Afr. 22, or the Milan noir, Enl. 472. Naum. 31, f. 2;
Savigny, Eg. Ois. pi. iii. f. 1, is the F. ater, F. JEgyptius, and the F. Forskahlii,
Gmel., the F. parasiticus, Lath, and Shaw; — F. Mississipiensis, Wils. III. xxxv. 1, or
the Ictinie ophiophage, Vieill. Galer. pi. 17.

N.B. The Falc. austriacus, Gmel., is the young of the Common Kite.

X Pernis or pernes, according to Aristotle, the name of some bird of prey.

N.B. The F. riocourii forms the genus Nauclerus of Vigors.

IgSgT (a) This is considered a mistake of the author. The bird alluded to has
been ascertained by Temminck to be a distinct species, and is called by him F. dis-
par.— Eng. Ed.

ACC1PITRES.

223

F. cristata, Cuv. (The Crested Honey-Buzzard of Java). All
brown ; head, ash coloured, like that of Europe ; but it has a black
tail, with a whitish band on the middle; a brown crest on the occi-
put. Brought from Java by M. Leschenault* * * §.

Buteo, Bechstein.

The Buzzards have long wings; the tail equal; the bill curved from its
base; the space between it and the eyes naked; the feet strong.

The tarsi of some of them are feathered down to the toes. They are
distinguished from the Eagles by the curving of their bill from the base,
and from the Goshawks, or Goshawk Eagles, with feathered tarsi, by
their long wings. We have only one species.

F. lagopus Gm.-f'; the Booted Buzzard, Frisch, lxxv; Vaill. Afr.
xviii; Wilson, IV. xxxiii. 1; Naum. 34. Irregularly variegated
with a darker or lighter brown, and a more or less yellowish- white.
It is one of the most universally diffused birds ; it is found every
where, and has almost always been considered as a variety of some
other birdj.

But the greater number of Buzzards have naked and scutellated tarsi.
The only one in Europe is,

F. buteo, L. ; la Buse Commune, Enl. 419 ; Naum. 33. (The
Common Buzzard). Brown ; belly and throat more or less undu-
lated with white ; the most noxious and common bird of prey in Eu-
rope. It remains the whole year in the forests, darts upon its prey
from the top of a tree ora hillock, and destroys much game§.

Some species are crested.

Le Bacha, Vaill. Afric. pi. xv. Size of the preceding; brown;
small, white, round spots on the sides of the breast, and on the ab-
domen ; a black and white crest ; a broad white band on the middle
of the tail. A very savage bird of Africa, which preys chiefly on the
Hyraces ||.

* M. Temminck has figured this bird (Col. 44), under the name of Buse ptil-
orinque.

f It is the Falco lagopus , Brit. Zool. Ap. vol. i; the Falco communist leucoceplia-
lus, Frisch, 75; the Falco Sancti Johannis , Arct. Zool. pi. ix; the Falc. communis fus-
cus, F. variegatus, F. albidus , F. versicolor, Gm., are merely different states of the
Common Buzzard.

X Add the Buse a calotte noire ( F . atricapillus, Cuv.), Col. 79, or the Buteo mela-
noleucos, Vieill. Caler. 14; — the Blaclc Buzzard (F. niger), Wils. VI. liii. 1 and 2,
which M. Ch. Bonap. thinks is the F. Sancti Johannis of Pennant.

§ Add the Rou-noir, Vaill. Afr. 16 (F. jackal, Daud. and Sh.); — the Tachard, Id.
19 (F. tachardus, Sh.); — the Buseray , Id. 20 (F. bursarellus, Sh.) ; — the Grey-cheeked
Buzzard (F. polygenis, Tern.), Col. 325. — the Brown Buzzard ( F.fuscus ), Vieill. Am.5 ;
— the Tachiro, Vaill. 24 (F. tachiro, Sh.) — the Milan Cresserelle, Vieill. Am. 10, bis,
and the young female, Col. 180; a, species of which, the F. plumbeus, Spix, VIII. is
perhaps the adult, and in which the lateral festoon, in some individuals, is sharpened
into a tooth, although the quills are those of the Ignobles. — The Long-winged Buz ■
znrd (F. pterocles, Tem.), Col. 56 and 139. — The Buse a dos tachete (F. prccilonotos,
Cuv.), Col. 9. — La Buse mantelee (F. lacernulatus, T.), Col. 427. — La buse pale (F.
liventer , T.), Col. 438. — La Buse a queue f err ugineuse (But. ferruginicaudus), Vieill.
Am. 6. Also, F. borealis, Wils. pi. lii. f. 1.

|| Add the White -crested Buzzard of India (F. albidus, T.), Col. 19.

N. B. The Buse roussatre, Tem. Col. 25, somewhat approaches to the harrier by

224;

BIRDS.

Circus, Bechstein.

The Harriers differ from the Buzzards in their elevated tarsi, and in a
kind of collar on each side of their neck, formed by the tips of the feathers
which cover their ears.

There are three species in France, which, from the variety in their
plumage, have been multiplied by the nomenclators.

F. pygargus , L. ; La Soubuse, Enl. 443 and 480 ; Naum, xxxviii.
2, and 39, 1 and 2. Brown above; underneath fawn-coloured,
longitudinally spotted with brown ; the rump white. The Hen Har-
rier— Falco cyaneus and F. albicans* *, Enl. 450; Naum, xxxix. 1 ;
cinereous, with black wing quills, is merely the male in its second
year. This species builds on the ground, keeps constantly in the
fields, flies near the earth, and towards night hunts rats, young par-
tridges, &c.

F. cineraceus, Montag.; Le Busard Cendre, Naum. 40; Yieill.
Galer, pi. 13. More slender than the Soubuse, and with longer
wings; the old male is cinereous; its primary quills, and a band on
the secondary ones, are black ; both male and female, in the second
year, are brown above, white beneath, with brownish streaks on the
breast ; the whole under-part of the young bird is red. Its habits
are much like those of the preceding species.

F. rufus, L.; La Harpaye, Enl. 470; Naum. 37, 1. Brownish
and reddish; the tail, and primary quills of the wings, cinereous.
The Busard du marais, the Marsh Buzzard — Falco oeruginosus,
Enl. 424; Naum. 38, brown, with a light fawn colour on the head
and breast, is considered as the same bird at a more advanced age ;
but some observers pretend it is a different species. Both of them
keep themselves by preference within reach of water, in order to
hunt reptiles'f'. Finally, the

Serpentarius, Cuv. — Gypogeranus, Illig.%

The Messenger, or Secretary, is an African bird of prey, whose
tarsi are at least double the length of those of the preceding ones,
which caused some naturalists to place it among the Grallatorias, or

its elevated tarsi, but is deficient in the collar; the transitions between these two di-
visions, also, are almost insensible.

* It is also the F. communis , F. albus, Frisch, pi. lxxv, the F. montanus, B., the F.
griseus, Gm., and also his F. bohemicus.

N. B. The M. cresserelle of Vieillot has become his genus Ictinia.

f Add the Acoli, Vaill. Afr. 31 ( F . acoli, Sh.); — the Tchoug, Id. 32, and Sonnerat,
II. 182 (F. melanoleucos ). — F. palustris, Pr. Max. Col. 22. — The Frogeater , Vaill. Afr.
28 (F. ranivorus , Sh. — The Busard roux , Vieill. Amer. pi. ix, which this author con-
siders as identical with the F. hudsonius, Edw. 107. — The Busard d’hiver ( Circus hye-
malls'), Vieill. Amer. 71, which does not appear to be the F. hiemalis, Wils. IV. xxxv.
1 ( a ). — The Busard a croupion blanc. ( Circ . europogistus ), Vieill. Amer. 8. — Probably,
also, the F. uliginosus, Edw. 291, belongs to this subgenus; but, until the changes of
plumage produced by age are ascertained, it will be very difficult to determine its
species. M. Ch. Bonaparte says that the F. uliginosus is a young female of the
cyaneus.

J M. Vieillot has changed these names into Ophiotheres, Gal. pi. 260.

iHF (a) The bird figured by Wilson, Vol. IV, pi. xxxv, fig. 1, is the true Falco
hy emails, Gm. — Eng. Edit.

ACCi PITRES.

225

Waders; but its legs completely invested with feathers, its hooked
and cleft bill, projecting eye-lids, and all its anatomical details, place
it in the present order. The tarsus is scutellated, its toes short in
proportion, and the circumference of the eye devoid of feathers ; it
has a long stiff crest on the occiput, and the two intermediate quills
of the tail extend much beyond the others. It inhabits the dry and
open grounds in the vicinity of the Cape, where it hunts reptiles on
foot ; its nails thus become worn by the effect of this exercise. Its
chief strength lies in the foot. It is the Falco serpentarius of Gmel.
Enl. 721 ; Vieill. Galer. 260. The inhabitants of Martinique have
endeavoured to multiply the breed, for there it does great service in
destroying the Lance-headed Viper with which that island is infested.

THE NOCTURNAL BIRDS OF PREY,

Have a large head ; very large eyes, directed forwards, surrounded by a
circle of fringed feathers, the anterior of which cover the cera of the bill,
and the posterior the opening of the ear. Their enormous pupil permits
the entrance of so many rays of light, that they are dazzled by the full
light of the day. Their cranium, which is thick, but formed of a light
substance, is excavated by large sinuses, which communicate with the ear,
and which probably assist in strengthening the sense of hearing; but the
apparatus connected with flight possesses no great strength; their four-
chette is weak in its power of resistance ; their feathers being soft, and
covered with a fine down, make no noise in flying. They have the power
of directing their external toe either forwards or backwards. These birds
are chiefly on the wing during twilight, and when the moon shines. When
attacked in the day time, or struck by some fresh object, they do not fly
off1, but stand more erect, assume odd postures, and make ludicrous gestures.

Their gizzard is tolerably muscular, although their prey is wholly ani-
mal, consisting of mice, small birds, and insects; but it is preceded by a
large crop ; their caeca are long and wide at bottom, &c. Small birds
have a natural antipathy to them, and frequently assemble from all quar-
ters to attack them ; a circumstance which causes them to be employed as
baits, to attract these nocturnal birds to nets. They form but one genus.

Strix, Lin.

The Owls may be divided according to their tufts, the size of their ears,
the extent of the circle of feathers which surrounds their eyes, and some
other characters.

Those species which have a large and complete disk of fringed feathers
round the eyes, itself encircled by a ring or small collar of scaly feathers,
between which is a large opening for the ear, are removed, as to form and
habits, from the diurnal birds of prey, further still than those in which the
car is small, oval, and covered by fringed feathers, which spring only from
under the eye. Traces of these differences may be seen even on the ske-
leton. Among the first species we shall particularize —

226

BIRDS.

Otus, Cuv.

The Horned Owls, or those which have two tufts of feathers on the
forehead, which they can erect at pleasure ; the conch of whose ear ex-
tends in a semicircle from the bill to the top of the head, and is fur-
nished in front with a membranous operculum. Their feet are feathered
down to the nails. Such in Europe are the

Str. ascalaphus, Savig. Eg. Brit. Zool. tab. B. 3. (The Great
Horned Owl), with short tufts. A fourth larger than the common
one, and like it, fulvous spotted with brown, and vermiculated on the
wings and back; but the belly transversely striped with narrow lines,
and the crests or tufts very short. It properly belongs to Africa,
but is sometimes seen in Europe*.

Str. otus, L. ; Moyen Due , Buff.; Frisch, xeix; Brit. Zool.
tab. B. iv. f. 1 ; Naum. 45, 1. (The Common Owl). Fawn-colour-
ed, with longitudinal brown spots on the body and underneath ; wings
and back vermiculated with brown; horns half the length of the
head; eight or nine bands on the tail.

Str. ulula and Str. brachyotos, Gm. ; La Chouette, or Moyen Due
a huppes courtes, Enl. 438; Frisch, c; Naum. 45, 2; Brit. Zool.
tab. B. iv. f. 2; Wils. IY. xxxiii. 3. As to colouring, nearly simi-
lar to the preceding; back not reticulated, but narrow longitudinal
lines on the belly, and four or five brown bands on the tail. The
tufts or horns are only found on the male, and are so small and so
seldom erected, that they have scarcely ever been remarked, and this
bird was for a long time left among the species without tufts, and
even formed two species. Found almost everywhere'!'.

We may reserve the name of

Ulula, Cuv.

Or the Howlers, for those species which have the bill and ears of the
Otus, but not the horns. There are none of these to be found in France
but they are to be found in the north of both continents, viz.

Str. laponica, Gm. (The Great Grey Owlet of Lapland). Al-
most as large as the Grand Due of France ; above, grey and brown
mixed, whitish; longitudinal brown grey spots beneath. Inhabits
the mountains in the north of SwedenJ.

* Witness the one represented in Brit. Zool., whose figure has so much embar-
rassed the naturalists.

f Add the American Owl (Str. mexicana), Gm., or Str. clamator, Vieill. Am. 20, or
Str. longirostris, Spix, IX, which only differs from our Common Owl in the greater
blackness of the spots. — The Hibou tachete du Cap (Str. africana, T.), Col, 56, or
Str. maculosa, Vieill. Gal. 23.— The Hibou a gros bee (Str. macrorhynchos, T.), Col. 62.
— The Hibou d joues blanches (Str. leucotis, T.), Col. 6. — The Yellow -cheeked Owl
(Str. Otus), Wils. VI. li. 3, differs from the Otus of Europe. — The Spotted Owl of
America (Str. ncevia, Lath.), Wils. III. xix. 1, of which the Str. asio, Id. IV. xlii. 1,
is probably the young bird, or the female. — The Rabbit Owl (Str. cunicularia, Ch.
Bonap.), Am. I. vii. 2.

X Add the Chouette grise du Canada (Str. nebulosa, Gm.), Vieill. 17, Wils. IV.
xxxiii. 2.

ACCIPITKES.

227

Strix, Savigny .

The Screech Owls have the ear as large as in Otus, furnished with a
still larger operculum ; but the elongated bill is only curved near the end,
while in all the other subgenera it is arcuated from the point. They have
no horns ; their tarsi are feathered, but they have only hairs on the toes.
The mask formed by the fringed feathers, which surround the eyes, has a
greater extent, and renders their physiognomy more singular than that of
any other nocturnal bird.

The species common in France, Str. flammea , L. ; Enl. 440 ;
Frisch, xcvii. Naum. 47, 2, appears to be.Tliffused over the whole
globe. The back is shaded with a fawn and an ash colour, or brown,
prettily picked in with white points, each of which is inclosed by two
black ones ; the belly is sometimes white, sometimes fawn-coloured,
with or without brown spots. It builds in steeples, towers, &c., and
is particularly considered by the vulgar as a bird of ill omen*.

SyrniUm, Savigny.

Have the mask and collerette of the preceding; but their conch is reduced
to an oval cavity, which does not extend to half the height of the cranium;
they have no tufts, and the feet are feathered down to the nails.

Str. aluco and stridula, L. ; Chat-huant de la France , Hulotte
Chouette des bois, tyc.; Enl. 441, 437 ; Frisch, xciv, xcv, xcvi; Naum.
46 and 47, 1. Somewhat larger than the common owl; covered with
longitudinal brown spots, transversely denticulated on the sides ; white
spots on the scapulars, and towards the anterior edge of the wing.
The ground of the plumage in the male is greyish, in the female
reddish, from which circumstance they were considered, for a long
time, as two species')". They build in the woods, frequently lay
their eggs in other birds’ nests, and keep themselves in the hollows
of old treesj.

We reserve the name of

Bubo, Cuv.

Or Dues, for those species, which, with as small a conch as that of the
Syrnii, and the disk of feathers less strongly marked, are furnished with
tufts. Those which are known have large feet feathered to the nails ;
such is,

Str. bubo; The Grand Due of naturalists: Enl. 434; Frisch,
xciii; Naum. 44. The largest of the nocturnal birds; fawn-colour-
ed, with a brown streak, and lateral points on each feather; the

* Add Str. badia, T. Col. 54. — N. B. The Chouette a queue four chue du Bresil, Col.
432, does not appear to differ from the Str. flammea, except in the variation caused

by stuffing.

f The Str. sylvestris, rufa, noctua alba of Scopoli, and the Str. soloniensis, which
Gmelin has intercalated in his system, are too undetermined to be considered other
than varieties, and probably of the Syrnium. It is well to know that in the whole of
this genus the females are redder than the males — by not attending to this, the spe-
cies have been improperly multiplied.

J Add the Sir. pagodarum, Tern. Col. 220.

228

BIRDS.

brown predominates above ; fawn-coloured underneath ; tufts almost
entirely black*.

The Tufted Chouetes, Vail. Jfr. xliii.

Are mere Dues, whose tufts, more widely separate and placed farther back,
can scarcely be elevated above a horizontal line. They are found in both
hemispheres f.

Noctua, Savigny.

Have neither tufts, nor an open nor deeply set conch of the ear ; open-
ing of the ear oval, and hardly any larger than in other birds ; the disk of
fringed feathers is smaller, and less perfect than in the Bubo, Cuv.
Their relations to the diurnal birds of prey are very evident, even in their
habits.

Some of them are remarkable for a long, cuneiform tail, and have the
toes thickly clothed with feathers; they are the Surnia, Dumer. It ap-
pears that there exist in all the North some closely allied species or va-
rieties, but improperly distinguished under the names of Str. funerea ,
hudsonia, uralensis, accipitrina , &c.

The best known species, Str. nisoria, Wolf.; Enl. 473; Naum.
42, 2, from the whole north of the globe, is about the size of the
Sparrowhawk ; blackish brown above, with small white spots on the
head, which form transverse bars on the scapulars ; transversely ra-
diated with brown and white beneath, with ten transverse white lines
on the tail. It hunts more during the day than the night.

The species from the Ural mountains, Str. uralensis , Pall.
Naum. 42, 1, is nearly as large as the Harfang ; brown, with white
spots, above; white, with long brown spots, beneath; five trans-
verse grey bands on the tail. It also hunts during the day, and is
sometimes seen in Germany. It is probably the Hybris or Ptynx
of Aristotle, 1. ix, c. 12.

The species, called of Acadia, Str. acadica, Naum. 43, f. 1 and
2; Wils. Am. IV. xxxiv. 1, is also sometimes found there, but it
belongs equally to the whole north of the globe. It is the smallest
of the Ululse, and is hardly larger than the common finch. It does
not fear the light. of day; but Vaillant has described one of these
Surnise from Africa, ( Choucou , No. xxxviii,) all white beneath, with
fourteen or fifteen lines on the tail, and which, according to his ac-
count, is more nocturnal than the other Ululae.

There are other Noctuse which have a short tail and feathered toes.
The largest, and in fact the largest of all the nocturnal birds without
tufts, is

* We cannot admit the Str. scandiaca, L., whose only foundation is a figure of
Rudbeck, probably taken from a variety of the Grand Due. Add Str. magellanica,
Enl. 585, from which the Str. virginiana, Daud. II. 13, and Wils. Am. VI. 1, 1, or
Str. pinicola, Vieill. Am. 19, only differs in being of a more reddish tint. — Str. lactea ,
T. Col. 4.

f Str. griseata, Sh. ; Vaill. Afr. 43, of Guiana. — Str. strepitans , T. CoL 174 and 229
of Batavia (a).

ligir (a) Add Str. cinerea , Gm., Bonap. Am. Orn. pl.-xxiii, f. 2. — Eng. Ed.

ACCIPITRES.

229

Str. nyctea, L. ; Le Harfang, Enl. 458; Wils. IV. xxxii. 1;
Naum. 41. (The Snowy Owl). This bird almost equals the Grand
Due in size. Its snow-white plumage is marked with transverse
brown spots, which disappear in proportion to its age. It inhabits
the north of both continents, builds upon high rocks, and pursues
Hares, Grouse, &c.*

There are some species much smaller, such as

Str. tengmalmi, Gm. ; Str. dasypus , Bechst. ; Naum. 48, f. 2
and 3. Back brown, sprinkled with white spots; underneath paler,
with larger white spots ; four white lines across the tail ; lives in the
woods. The Str. passerina, Meyer and Wolf, is its female.

The greater number, however, of these small species have only a few
scattered hairs on the toes, such as

Str. passerina, Gm. ; Str. pygmcea , Bechst. Enl. 439 ; Naum.
48, 1. Somewhat smaller than the preceding, but with nearly the
same plumage. The tail a little shorter, and with five larger pale
bars ; it often builds in old walls. There are several closely allied
species in America, the Indies, &c.'f

Some of these naked-toed Noctuas are nearly as large as the Hulotte.
Cayenne produces several beautiful species, and particularly the three fol-
lowing:—

Str. cayennensis, Gm. ; Enl. 442. A fawn-coloured ground,
irregularly, transversely, and finely striped with brown.

Str. lineata, Sh. ; the Huhul , Vaill. Afr. XLI; Str. lineata , Sh. ;
Str. albomarginata, Spix, X. a. Transversely striped with white on
a black ground ; four white lines on the tail. So little does it fear
the light, that it is styled the Day Chouette. The size of these two
species is that of the common chouette of France.

Str. torquata, Daud. ; Vaill. Afr. XLII. Brown above; whitish
beneath ; circumference of the eyes and a band on the breast, brown ;
the throat and eye-brows white. It is larger than the Str. aluco , L.,
and is the Nacurutu without tufts of Azzara.

There are others again in America, whose tarsi are naked as well as
their toes, as the Cheveche nudipede for instance — Str. nudipes, Daud.
Vieill. Amer. XVI. Finally, we have

Scops, Savigny.

Which, in addition to the prominent ears, imperfect disk and naked
toes of the preceding, have tufts similar to those of the Bubo and Otus.

There is one of them in France, Str. scops , Enl. 436; Naum.

* The Chouette blanche, Vaill. Afric. 45, is only an old Harfang. The alleged
difference in the proportions depends upon the stuffing.

f Str. brama, T. Col. G8, which scarcely differs from the passerina. — Str. Sonnerati,
T. Col. 1. — Str. urucurea, Id. of which the Str. grallaria, Id. Col. 136, is the female. —
Sir. eastanoptera, Iloff. or Str. spadicea, Reinw. Col. 98. — Str. pumilu, Illig., or ca-
boure of Azz. Col. 39, of which the Str. passerinoides, Col. 344, is probably the male.
; — Strferruginea, Pr. Max. Col. 199. — Str. hirsuta, T. Col. 289. — Str. occipitalis. —
The Str. mangel, Col. 46, is already tolerably large.

230

BIRDS.

43, 3, hardly as large as a thrush, with cinereous plumage, more
or less shaded with fawn colour ; prettily variegated with, little nar-
row longitudinal black streaks, and with transverse vermicular grey
lines; a suite of white spots on the scapulars, and six or eight
feathers in each tuft ; a beautiful little bird*.

Certain foreign species, of large size, have the legs naked as well
as the toes'j'.

ORDER II.

PASSERINE.

This order is the most numerous of the whole class. Its character, at
first, seems purely negative, for it embraces all birds which are neither
swimmers, waders, climbers, rapacious, nor gallinaceous. By comparing
them with each other, however, we soon perceive a great mutual simila-
rity of structure, and particularly such insensible transitions from one
genus to another, that it is extremely difficult to separate them into sub-
divisions.

They neither have the violence of the birds of prey, nor the fixed re-
gimen of the gallinaceae, nor of the water-birds ; insects, fruit, and grain
constitute their food, which consists the more exclusively of grain, in
proportion to the largeness of their bill, and of insects, as it is the more
slender. Those indeed which have strong bills pursue the smaller birds.

Their stomach is a muscular gizzard. They have, generally, two very
small caeca. Among them we find the singing birds, and the most com-
plicated inferior larynx.

The proportional length of their wings, and their power of flight, are
as various as their habits.

The adult sternum usually has but one notch on each side of its lower
edge. There are two, however, in Coracias, Alcedo, and Merops, and it
is totally wanting in Cypselus and Trochilus.

Our first division is founded upon the feet ; we then have recourse to
the bill.

The first and most numerous division comprehends those genera in
which the external toe is united to the inner by one or two phalanges only.

* We can find no difference between the Str. zorca of Cetti, the Str. carniolica of
Scopoli, the Str. pulchella of Pallas, and the Scops; these gentlemen must have con-
sidered their birds as distinct, because Linnaeus described the tuft of his as consisting
of a single feather. Add the St. nudipede, (Bub. nudipedes ), Vieill. Amer. 22. — The
Str. atricapilla, T. Col. 45, or Str. crucigera, Spix, IX. — The Str. noctula, T. Col. 99.

f The Str. ketupa, T. Col. 74, and the Str. Leschenauldi, Id. Col. 20, will be found
at most to form but one species.

PASSERINE,

231

FAMILY I.

DENTIROSTRES.

In this family the bill is notched on the sides of the point. It is in this
family that we find the greatest number of insectivorous birds, though
almost all of them likewise feed on berries and other soft fruits.

The genera are determined by the general form of the bill, which is
strong and compressed in Lanius and in Turdus, depressed in Muscicapa,
round and thick in Tanagra, slender and pointed in Motacilla ; but the
transition from one of these forms to the other is so gradual, that it is an
extremely difficult matter to fix the limits of the genera.

Lanius, Lin .

The bill conical or compressed, and more or less hooked at the point.

Lanius, properly so called.

The true Shrikes have a bill triangular at base, and compressed on the
sides.

Shrikes live in families, and fly irregularly and precipitately, uttering
shrill cries ; they build on trees with great neatness, lay five or six eggs,
and take great care of their young. They have a habit of instantly imi-
tating a part of the songs of such birds as live in their vicinity. The
under part of the females, and of the young, is marked with fine trans-
verse lines.

Some of them have the upper mandible arcuated; those in which its
point is strong and much curved, and in which the notch forms a small
tooth on its sides, are so courageous and cruel, that many naturalists have
thereby been induced to place them among the birds of prey. In fact,
they pursue small birds, and successfully defend themselves against the
larger ones, even attacking the latter when it is necessary to remove them
from their nests*.

There are four or five species of this subdivision in France.

Lanius excubitor , L. ; Enl. 445 ; Naum. 49. (The Great Butcher
Bird, or Shrike). As large as a Thrush ; ash coloured above ; white
beneath ; wings, tail, and a band round the eye, black ; some white
on the scapulars, the base of the wing-quills, and on the external
edge of the lateral quills of the tail. It remains in France the whole
year.

In the south of Europe there is a race, or perhaps a species, of a
deeper colour, with a vinous tint underneath — Lan. meridionalis , Temm.
There are others in America still more closely allied to it^.

* It is from this first subdivision that M. Vieillot has made his genus Lanius ,
Gal. pi. cxxxv.

f Lan. carolinensis, Wils. III. xxii. 5, and his Lan. excubitor, I. v. 1, which he
considers as the same. M. Ch. Bonaparte makes two species of them, and refers

232

BIRDS.

Lan. excubitor minor, Gm. ; Enl. 32, 1; Lan. minor, Naum. 50,
said to be from Italy. (The Little or Gray Shrike). Somewhat
smaller than the Common Shrike, the bill shorter and thicker, wings
and tail similar) cinereous above ; reddish on the belly ; the black
bands of the eyes united, on the forehead, in a large bandeau. A
very distinct species.

Lan. colluriorufus, and Lan. pomeranus, Gm. : Enl. 9, 2 ; Lan.
rutilus, Lath.; Lan. ruficollis, Sh. ; Lan. rufus, Naum. 51. (The
Red-backed Shrike). The bandeau, wings, and tail of the preced-
ing; not quite so large ; top of the head and neck, a vivid red; back
black; the scapulars, belly, and rump, white.

Lan. collurio, Gm. ; Enl. 31 ; Naum. 52. (The Flayer or Butcher
Bird). Still smaller; top of the head and rump ash coloured; back
and wings fawn coloured; whitish below; a blackband over the eye;
wing-quills black, edged with fawn colour, those of the tail black, the
lateral ones white at base. It destroys small birds, young frogs,
and great numbers of insects, which it sticks upon the thorns of
bushes, in order to devour them at leisure, or to find them again
when wanted.

The last three species leave France during the winter.

Other countries have several of these Shrikes with arcuated bills, the
points of which latter diminish, and become weak, according to the species,
so gradually, that it is impossible to fix a limit between this subgenus and
the Thrushes* *.

There are other Shrikes, whose superior mandible is straight, and only

them to the Lan. ludovicianus, and Lan. septentrionalis of Gm. ; or to the Lan. arde-
siacus and borealis of Vieillot, Am. 51 and 50; we must confess, however, that there
is but little resemblance between these different figures.

* The species with the strongest bills are, for instance: the Cape Shrike , {Lan.
collaris, Gm.); Enl. 477, 1; Vaill. Afric. pi. lxi, lxii. — The Boubou, Vaill. 68 {Lan.
boulboul, Sh.). — The Brubru, Vaill. 71 {Lan. capensis, Sh.). — La Petite Pie- gr. de
Madag. {Lan. madagascariensis, Gm.); Enl. 299. — La Petite Pie-gr. bleue {Lan.
bicolor, Gm.); Enl. 298. — La Pie-gr. de la Louisiane, {Lan. americanus ), Enl. 397.
— The Sourciroux, Vaill. 76, 2, or the Tangara verderoux of Buff. {Tanagra guianen-
sis, Gm.) — The Black-headed Shrike of the Sandwich Islands, {Lan. melanocephalus ,
Gm.) Lath. Syn. I. 165, — La Pie-gr. a queue pointue, {Lan. pyrrhonotos), Vieill.
Gal. 135.

The genus Lanio of Vieill. is founded on an arcuate-billed Shrike; the edges of
whose upper mandible are somewhat angular. It is the Tangara mordore of Buff,
Enl. 809, 2, {Lan. atricapilla, Gm.)

Among the species most nearly allied to the Thrushes, we may admit the Mus-
cicapa tamnophiloides, Spix, 26, 1. — L' Oliva of Vaill. 75 and 76, 1, {Lan. olivaceus,
Sh.). — The Gonolec, {Lan. barbarus, Gm.); Enl. 56, Vaill. 169. — The Lan. gutluralis,
Daud. Ann. Mus. III. 144, pi. xv; or the Pie-gr. Perrin, Vaill. 286. — Le Merle d
plastron noir {Turdus zeilonus, Gm.); Enl. 272, or the Bacbakiri, Vaill. 67 {Lan. bac-
balciri, Sh.). — La Cravatte blanche, Vaill. 115 {Motac. dubia, Sh.). — The Turdus crassi-
rostris, Gm.; Lath. Syn. II. 34, which is the same as the Tanagra capensis, Sparm.
Carls, pi. xlv, and several others quite as equivocal. It is from this subdivision,
with weak bills, that Vieill. has established his genus Laniarius, Galer. 143.

His Vireo only differs from it in the bill being a little shorter and more slender,
Vir. flavifrons, Vieill. Am. 54, or Muscic. sylvicola, Wils. I. vii. 3. — V. musicus,
Vieill. 52, or Music cantatrix, Wils. II. xviii. 6, or Muscic. none boracensis, Gm. — V.
olivaceus, Ch. Bonap., or Muscic. oliv., Wils. II. xii. 3, or tamnophilus agilis, Spix, 34,
1. — V. gilvus, Ch. Bonap., or Muse, melodia, Wils. V. xlii. 2. They lead us almost
directly to the true Fauvets.

PASSERINE. 233

hooked at the tip. They are also foreign, and their form passes by in-
sensible gradations to that of the Fauvets and other Motacillae* * * §.

In some of these straight-billed Shrikes that organ is very stout, and
its lower mandible much inflated'!'.

Others, whose bill is straight and slender, are remarkable for vertical
tufts of feathers

Around these Shrikes, properly so called, some other subgenera, which
differ from them more or less, form natural groups. Such are the

Vang a, Buff.

Which have a large bill, very much compressed throughout, its tip
much hooked, and that of the inferior mandible bent upwards[|.

Ocypterus§, Cuv.

The bill, conical, rounded, without a ridge, slightly arcuated towards
the end, with a very fine point slightly notched on each side; the feet
rather short, and the wings as long as the tail, and even longer ; from
which circumstance their flight is rendered similar to that of the Swallow ;
but they have the courage of the Shrikes, and do not fear to attack even
the Crow**.

* Le Blanchot, Vaill. Afr. 285, ( Lan . icterus , Cuv.) or Tamnophilus, Vieill. Galer.
139. — The Grand battara, Azz., or Tamnophilus magnus, Pr. Max., or Th. albiventer ,
Spix, 32. — The tchagra, Vaill. 70, (Lan. senegalensis, Spix, Lan. collurio melanoce-
phalus, Gm.) Enl. 479, 1, and 279, 1.— The Fourmilier huppe, Buff. (Turdus cirrha-
tus, Gm.) The Fie-gr. a huppe rousse d’Amerique, (Lan. canadensis, Gm.) Enl. 479, 2,
is the female. — The Tachet, Vaill. 77, (Lan. punctatus, Sh.). — The Fie-gr. rayee de
Cayenne (Lan. doliatus ) Enl. 297, 2, or radiatus, Spix, 35, 2. — The Fie-gr. bridee ,
(Lan. virgatus, Tern.) Col. 256, 1. — The Fie-gr. masquee, (Lan. personatus, Id., or
Lan. nubicus, Licht.) Col. 256, 2. — The Thamnophilus lineatus, Spix, 33. — Th. strigi-
lalus, Id. 36, 2. — Th. melanoceph. Id. 39, 1. — Th. leuconotos, lb. 2.

The Fie-gr. rousse de Madag. (Lan. rffus, Gm.) Enl. 298.

It is also among these straight- billed Shrikes that must be placed the Geai longup.
Vaill. 42, (Lan. galericulatus, Cuv.), but it leads to the Vanga.

I also place here that bird which has been so bandied about by naturalists, the
Merle de Mindanao of Buff. Enl. 627, Turdus mindanensis, Lath, and Gm. the same
as their Gracula saularis, Little Pie of the Indies, or Dial-Bird, Albin. III. 17 and
18, Edw. 181, Vaill. Afr. 109, (Sturnus solans, Daud.) — and even the Terat boulan
(Turdus orientalis), Enl. 273, II., might be approximated to it, but is also very
closely allied to the Turdoides.

The genus Tamnophilus or Battara of Vieillot is formed by one of these
straight- billed Shrikes, but is so badly determined that other authors have referred
to it, Vireos, &c.

t Lanius lineatus, Leach, Zool. Miscell. pi. vi. — Thamnopldhis guttatus, Spix, 35.

I The Geoffroy, Vaill. Afr. 80 and 81, and Vieill. Gal. 142 (Lan. plumatus, Sh.),
of which Vieill. has made his genus Prionops, or Bogadais, Galer. 142, and the
Manicup. Buff. Enl. 707 (Fipra albifrons, Gm.), which has nothing more in common
with the Pipra than a somewhat unusual prolongation of the union between the two
external toes. Vieill. has made his genus Pithys, Galer. 129, from it.

|| The Vanga, Enl. 228, (Lan. curvirostris , Gm.) and new species, such as the V.
destructeur, Cuv. Col. 273. — The V. strie huppe, Voy. de Freyc. pi. xviii and xix, or
Thamnophilus Vigorsii, Zool. Journ. Supp. VII. and VIII.

§ Ocypterus or oxyplerus — rapid wings, pointed wings — the Greek name of an un-
known bird, very applicable to these. It is from my genus that Vieill. has made
his genus Art am us.

** Sonnerat, First Voy. p. 56.

VOL. I.

X

23 4

BIRDS.

Numerous species inhabit the coast and islands of the Indian
Ocean, where they are constantly and rapidly flying about in pursuit
of Insects* * * §.

Barita,'!' Cuv. — Cassicans, Buff.

A large conical bill, straight and round at its base, which scallops out a
circular notch in the feathers on the forehead; round back, compressed
sides, hooked point, and notched laterally. The nostrils, small and
linear, are not surrounded by a membranous space.

They are large birds of New Holland and its neighbouring
islands, which have been arbitrarily placed in several genera. They
are said to be very noisy and clamorous. They pursue small birdsj.

Chalybjeus, Cuv.

A bill similar to that of the Baritas, but somewhat smaller at the base,
and the nostrils pierced in a large membranous space. The species known
are from New Guinea, and are remarkable for their beautiful tints, which
resemble browned steel.

C. paradisceus, N. ; Paradiscea viridis, Gm. ; Enl. 634. The
feathers on the head and neck like curled velvet, — which, added to
the lustre of its hues, has caused it to be placed among the Birds of
Paradise.

C. cornutus, Cuv.; Barita Keraudrenii , Less, and Garn. Voy.
de Duperr. pi. 13. Two pointed tufts of feathers on the occiput;
its trachea forms three circles before it reaches the lungs.

Psaris, § Cuv. — -Becardes, Buff.

The bill conical, very stout and round at the base, but does not scallop
out the feathers on the forehead; the point slightly compressed and hooked.
From South America. The best known species is the

Lanius cay anus, Gm. ; Enl. 304 and 307; Vieill. Galer. 134;
Spix, 44, 1. Cinereous; head, wings, and tail, black. Its habits
are those of the Shrikes ||.

* H ere come Ism. leucorhynchos, Gm. ; Enl. 9, 1, the same as Lan. dominicanus ,
Sonnerat, Yoy. I. pi. xxv. — Lan. viridis, Enl. 32, 1. — Ocyp. cinereus, Val. — Ocypterus
fuscatus. — Ocyp. rufiventer. Consult the monography of M. Valenciennes on this
genus, published in the Mem. du Mus. tom. VII. p. 20, pi. 7, 8, 9.

f Barita, the Greek name of an unknown bird. M. Vieillot has given to my
Baritce the name of Cracticus.

X We place here the Cassican, Buff. ( Coracias varia, Gm. ; Gracula varia, Sli.)
Enl. 628. — Le fluteur, ( Coracias tibicen, Lath, second suppl. ; Gracula tibicen, Sh.)
Voy. de Freycin. pi. xx. — Corvus graculinus, J. White; Coracias strepera, Lath. Ind.
Ornith. ; Gracula strepera, Shaw; Reveilleur de V Isle de Norfolk, Daud. ; Gr. calybe,
Vaill. Ois. de Par. 67; Vieill. Galer. 109, and one species with a tapering tail, Bar.
anaphoresis, Temm.

§ Psaris, the Greek name of an unknown bird. Vieill. has changed it into Ti-
tyra, Galer. 134, 1; Spix, into Pachyrhynchus, Av. Brasil, 44.

|| Buffon has improperly extended the name of Becarde (Psaris, C.) to a Tyrant
bird (Lan. sulfuratus ), and to a Shrike closely allied to the Thrushes (Lan. barbarus).
Add Pachyrhynchus semifasciatus, Spix, 44, 2, which is the Psaris Cuvieri, Swains. —

PASSERINE.

235

Graucalus* * * * §, Cuv. — Choucaris, Buff.

The bill less compressed than in the Shrikes ; the upper ridge is sharp
pointed, and equally arcuated in its whole length, the commissure slightly
so. The feathers, which sometimes cover their nostrils, have caused them
to be referred to the Ravens, but the emargination of their bill removes
them from that genus. They come, as well as the Cassicans, from the
remotest parts of the Indian Ocean f.

To the Choucaris should be referred one of the most beautiful birds
recently discovered in these regions, the coracias puella, Lath. ; irena pu-
ella, Horsfield; drongo azure, Tern., a bird of Java, of a velvet black,
whose back is the most beautiful deep sea blue that can be imagined.

Bethylus,J Cuv.

The bill stout, short, arched every where, slightly compressed near the
point.

One species only is known, which, as to shape and colour, is a
miniature resemblance of the common European Magpie §.

Falcunculus, Vieill.

The bill Compressed, nearly as high as it is long; the upper ridge
arcuated.

The species known — Lanius frontatus, Lath. ; Second Suppl.
Col. 77; Vieill. Galer. 137, is of the size of the Finch, and colour-
ed nearly like the Parus major. The feathers on the head of the
male form a tuft. From New Holland.

Pardalotus, Vieill.

The bill short, but slightly compressed; upper ridge sharp-pointed,
and arcuated; the point emarginate. Very small birds, with a short
tail.

The best known species, Pipra punctata, Sh. Zool. Misc. Ill ;

the Psaris erythrogenis, Selby, Zool. Jour. I. p. 484. — The Pachyrhynclius, niger,
Cuvieri, cinerascens , rufescens, Spix, 45 and 46, have a smaller bill but the same
form.

* Graucalus, the Greek name of an ash-coloured bird, three out of four of these
being of this colour. Vieillot confounds them with his Coracina, which comprise
the Gijmnoderus and Gymnocephalus, of which we shall speak hereafter.

f Corvus papuensis, Gm. ; Enl. 630; Vieill. Galer. 113. — Corvus nova Guinea,
Enl. 629. — Corvus melanops, Lath. — Rollier a masque noir, Vaill., Ois. de Par., & c. 86.
— Another, entirely of a brilliant violet of browned steel, the female greenish, which
forms the genus Piroll of Temm., or Ptilonoriiynchus of Kuhl, founded on
the head feathers being more like velvet. The genus Sphecothere of Vieill.,
Galer. 147, Choucari vert of the Voy. du Freycinet, pi. xxi, only differs from tire
others in being a little more naked about the eye.

X Betliylus, the Greek name of an unknown bird: Vieillot has changed it into that
of Pillurion or Cissopis.

§ It is the Pie-grieche, Vaill. Afr. 60, and Vieill. Galer. 140. Lanius leverianus,
Sh.; Lanius picatus, Lath. Illigcr makes a Tangara of it. We may approximate it
to the Lan. corvinus, Sh. ; Vaill. Afr. 78; the bill of which, however, is more com-
pressed.

x 2

236

BIRDS.

Col. 78; Vieill. Gal. pi. 73, is partly sprinkled with white, like a
Senegalli. From New Holland* * * §.

Muscicapa, Lin.

The Fly-Catchers have a horizontally depressed bill, furnished with
hairs at its base, and the point more or less hooked and emarginated.
Their habits are, in general, those of the Shrikes, and they live on small
birds or insects, according to their size. The weakest of them gradu-
ally approach the form of the wagtails. We divide them as follows:

Tyrannus,'}' Cuv.

The Tyrants have a very stout, long, straight bill ; the upper ridge
blunt; the point curved suddenly into a hook. They are American birds,
as large as the European Shrikes, and equally courageous. They defend
their young even from the eagle, and drive all birds of prey from their
nest. The larger species feed on small birds, and do not always despise
carrion J.

Muscipeta, Cuv.

The bill long, much compressed, its height double its breadth, even at
its base ; the ridge very obtuse, sometimes however very acute ; the edges
slightly curved; the point and emargination weak; long setae or musta-
chios at its base.

They are all foreign, they are too powerless to capture any thing but
insects, and several of them are ornamented with long tail feathers,
or beautiful crests on the head, or at least with a plumage of brilliant
colours. The greater number inhabit Africa and the Indies §.

* Add Par dal. ornatus, Temm., Col. 394, 1 — P. percussus, Id. 394, 2. The par-
dalotes lead us to the first subdivision of the Tangara.

f Vieillot has adopted this name and genus, Galer. 133.

J The bentaveo, or Spoon-billed Tyrant of Brazil, Enl. 212 ( Lanius pitangua, Gm.).
— Le Tyran a ventre jaune { Lan . sulfufac'eus, Gm.) Enl. 296, the same as the Garlu
or Geai a ventre jaune, de Cayenne { Corvusfiavus , Gm.) Enl. 249. — The Muse, velata,
Spix, 22. — Muse, polyglotta, Id., 24. — Muse, similis, Id., 25, of which his Muse, ntfina,
lb. 131, is the young. — The Muse, cinerea, Spix, 26, 2. — Le Tyran a ventre blanc.
{Lan. tyrannus, Gm.) Enl. 537 and 676, Vieill. Galer. 133. — Muse, cinerascens, Spix,
22. — Le Tyran d queue rousse {Muse, audax, Gm.), Enl. 453, 2; Wils. Am. II. xiii.
1. — Le Petit tyran {Muse, ferox, Gm.), Enl. 571, 1, or Muse, furcata, Spix, 19. The
Muse, vetula, Spix, 18. — Le Tyran d queue fourchue de Cayenne {Muse, tyrannus,
Gm.),Enl. 471, 2. — Le tyran. a q.f. du Mexique {Muse, forficata, Gm.), Enl. 677. The
Fork-Tailed Tyrant of Brazil {Muse, longicauda, Spix, 17), Zool. Journ. II. pi. iv. —
Le Tyran a huppts verte {Muse, crinita, Gm.), Enl. 569; Wils. Am. II. xiii. 2? (a)

§ We should first of all distinguish the Roi des Gobe mouches, Buff. ( Todus regius ,
Gm.) Enl. 289. Then we have the crested species, and which have long feathers in
the tail, such as the Moucherolle de paradis ( Muse, paradisi and Todus paradisiacus,
Gm.), Enl. 234. N.B. All these figures represent females; the tail of the males is
much longer. — Le Petit Moucherolle Paradis or Schet of Madagascar (Muse, mutata).
Two birds which Buffon describes elsewhere under the name of Vardiole or Pie de
Paradis. — Then follow those species without crests, whose tail feathers are somewhat
elongated; the Moucher, Yetapa {Muse, psalura, T.), Col. 286 and 296, or Muse,
risora, Vieill. 131; Le Moucher d queue de coq ; Gallita of Azz. ; Muse, alector, P.
Max.; Col. 155, Vieill. 132. — Plathyrh. filicauda, Spix, 14.

Some species are distinguished by a membranous circle round the eye: Muse, me-

|§Sgr («) Add also Muse, verticalis, Am. Orn. Bonap. I. pi. ii. f. 2.— Eng. Ed,

PASSERINE. 237

Some species, allied to tlie Muscipetse (Platyrhynchus), are dis-
tinguished by a still broader and more depressed bill* *.

Others, whose bill is also broad and depressed, are remarkable for
their long legs and short tail. Two or three only are known, all from
America; they feed on ants, which caused them to be united to the little
tribe of Thrushes called Ant-catchers^.

Muscicapa, Cuv.

The Fly-catchers, properly so called, have shorter mustachios and a
narrower bill than the Muscipetas ; it is still, however, depressed with an
acute ridge above, straight edges, and a slightly hooked point.

Two species of this subgenus are found in France during the
summer, and lead a melancholy life on high trees. The mast com-
mon is,

M. grisola, Gm. Enl. 565, 1. (The Grey Fly-catcher). Grey
above, whitish underneath, with a few greyish spots on the breast.
In some countries it is kept in houses to' destroy flies. The other,

M. albicollis, Tern. ; Gobe-mouche a collier , Enl. 563, 2 and 3 ;
and better, Hist, des Ois. tom. IV. in 4to. pi. 25, f. 2, the male in
wedding plumage ; Naum. 65, in its different states. (The Col-
lared Fly-catcher). Very remarkable for the changes of the male’s
plumage. Similar in winter to the female ; that is, grey, with a
white band on the wing. In the pairing season it becomes agree-
ably variegated with pure black and white ; calotte, back, wings, and
tail, black ; the forehead, collar, and all the upper part of the body,

lanoptera, Gm.; Enl. 567, 3. — M. telescophtlialma, Less, and Garn., Voy. de Duperr.,
Zool., pi. xviii.

Others are remarkable for a long, flat, and obtuse bill, similar to that of the Todies;
but with a notch, which is wanting in the true Todies, whose feet also are differently
formed. T. cinerens, Desmar. or T. melanocephalus, Spix, ix. 2. The young is T.
cinereus, Spix, x. 1, and T. maculatus, Desm. — T. griseus, Dcsm.

Finally, a multitude of other species, as the mantele, Vaill. 151, or Muse, borbonica,
Enl. 573, 1. — M. cristata, Enl. 573, 2, and Tchitrec, Vaill. Afr. III. 142, 1. — Muse,
ccerulea, Enl. 666, 1. — Todus leucocephalus, Pall., Sp., VI. pi. iii. f. 2, or Muse, doniini-
cana, Spix, 29, 2. M. albiventer, Id. 30, is its female. — T. sylvia, Desm. — Platyrliin -
chus chrysoceps, Spix, XI. 2. — Plat, rufieauda, lb. 1. — Plat, hirundinaceus, Spix, 13,
1. — Plat, cinereus , lb. 2. — Muse, barbata, Enl. 830, 1, of which M. xanthopygus, Spix,
IX. 1, appears to be the female. — Muse, coronata, Enl. 675, 1. — .The molenar, Vaill.
160, 1,2, or M. pistrinaria, Vieill. — The G. m. a lunettes , lb. 152, 1. — M. flammiceps,
Tern. Col. 144, 3. — M. mystax, Spix, 31. — M. murantia, Enl. 331, 1. — M. querula ,
Vieill. Am. 39, from which the Plat, cinereus , Spix, XIII. 2, scarcely differs. — M.
cucullata, Lath., &c.

N.13. The Mus. barbata has become the genus Tyrannula, Swainson; and the
M. querula the Myiagra of Vigors and Iiorsfield.

* It is from this division that M. Vieillot has made his genus Plalyrhynchos, Gal.
126. Such are Muse, aurantia, Enl. 831, 1. — T'odus macrorhynchos, Lath. Syn. I.
pi. xxx. or Todus rostratus, Lath., Desmar. and particularly Todus platyrhynchos,
Pall., Spic., VI. pi. iii. c. We see that many of the Muscipetae have been placed
among the Todies, and although Pallas has set us the example of doing so, the notch
in the bill, and the separation of the external toe forbid it. Add, Plat, olivaceus, T.
Col. XII. 1, or sulfurescens, Spix, XII. — Plat, cancromxts , Id. Ib. 2.

f Here come Turdus auritus, Gm., Enl. 822, and Vieill. Gal. 127, the same as
Pipra leucotis, but which is neither a Thrush nor a Pipra, and Pipra neevia, Enl. 823,
f. 2. It is upon this distinction that Vieill. has founded his genus Conopopiiaga,
Galer. 127.

238

BIRDS.

a large spot on the wing, a smaller one in front, and the external
edge of the tail, white. It builds on the trunks of trees

A species subject to the same changes has lately been discovered;
the back of the neck of the male, however, in the pairing season,
being as black as the back, and wanting the little white spot on the
edge of the wing. It is the

M. luctuosa, Tern.; Naum. 64; Edw. 30, 1. The female, Enl.
668, 1. Which is found farther north than the preceding.

A small reddish species has lately been discovered in Germany.
M. parva, Bechst. ; Naum. 65, 3.

The bill of the Fly-catchers becomes more and more slender, and finally
approaches that of several species of Regulus'j'.

Some species, in which the ridge is somewhat higher, and arched to-
wards the point, lead to the forms of the Saxicolse J.

Various genera or subgenera of birds are closely allied to certain links
in the series of Fly-catchers, although they greatly exceed them in
size, viz.

* The antients knew this bird by the names of Sycalis and Ficedula, in its ordi-
nary plumage, and by that of Melancorhynchos and Atricapilla, in its beautiful livery;
but as the name of Bec-figue (Becca-fico ), which corresponds to ficedula, is given in
the south, and in Italy, to various species of Fauvet and Anthus, naturalists have ap-
plied the united attributes of these birds to a certain state of this Fly -catcher, and
formed the imaginary species presented by this same name of Bec-figue in Buffon,
and in those who have followed him. It is very certainly the M. albicollis, and not
the M. luctuosa, that is the Becca-fico of Aldrovandus, Ornith. II. 758 and 759.

f We also refer to the true Fly-catchers, the Gillit {Muse, bicolor), Enl. 675, 1. —
Le Pririt, Vaill. 161; Enl. 567, 1 and 2 {M. senegalensis, Gm.). — M. albicapilla,
Vieill. Am. 37. — -M. armillata, lb. 4, 2. — M. diops, Tern. 144, 1. — M. eximia, lb. 2.
— M. ventralis, Id. Col. 275, 2. — M. virescens, lb. 3. — M. obsoleta, lb. 1. — M. flabel-
lifera, lb., Gmel. Lath. Syn. II. part I. pi. 49. — M. scrita,V aill. Afr. 154. — M. ruti-
cilla, Gm. Enl. 556: Vieill. Am. 35 and 36; Wils. I. vi. 6. — Platyr. paganus, Spix. —
PI. marinus, Id. 2. — Pipra elata, Id. VIII. 2. — {a)

’J Such are the Oranor , Vaill. IV. 155, and several neighbouring species, similar
to the Muse, ruticilla, so far as regards the distribution of colours, but differing in the
bill, such as Muse, miniata, Tern, or Turdus speciosus, Lath. Col. 156. — M. flam-
uiea, Forst. Zool. Ind. 25 and Tern. Col. 263, or Pams malabaricus, Lath. — M. hya-
cinthina, Col. 30. — The Azuroux {M. azurea), Vaill. Afr. 158, 2. — M. nigerrima,Y ieill.
Diet. Spix, 18, 1. — M. galeata, Spix, 17, a different species. — M. stellata, Vieill.,
Vaill. 157, 2. M. longipes, or the Miro-Miro of New Zealand, Less, and Garn. Voy.
de Duper. Zool. pi. 19, 1. M. clxrysomelas, Ib.pl. 18. — M. nivea , Spix, 29, 1. M.
icterophis, Vieill., Diet. — M. mirundinacea, Tern. Col. 119. — The Muse, multicolor,
Gm. Lath. Syn. 2, L., is so intermediate between the Fly-catchers and the Mot. phoeni-
curus, that we hesitate to assign its position.

The species of this type which have the strongest bills appear to constitute the
Drimophyles of M. Temminck.

N.B. The Mus flabellifera has become the genus Ripidura of Vig. and Horsf.
and the M. ruticilla, the Setophaga of Swainson. The M. sternura, T. Col. 167, 3,
is the Sternura of Swains.: and the species whose head is enlarged by feathers,
such as the M. australis, White, p. 239, his genus, Pachicephala. The neigh-
bouring genus, Seisura, is formed from the Turdus volitans, Lath.

Hgr (a) Here should come the genus Vireo, Vieill. (Muscicapa, L., &c.)
These have a bill like the Muscicapa, but it is shorter, not so much depressed, but
rather compressed; bristly at base; upper mandible curved at the tip; tongue bifid at
the tip. The colour of all the species is olive, more or less inclining to yellow. —
Eng. Ed.

PASSERINE.

239

Gymnocephalus, Geoff.

Or tlie Bald Tyrants. They have a bill similar to that of the Tyrants,
except that its ridge is somewhat more arcuated; a great part of their
face is destitute of feathers.

One species only is known, which is the size of a rook, and the
colour of Spanish snuff. From Cayenne*.

Cephalopterus, Geoff.

In this subgenus, on the contrary, the base of the bill is furnished
with feathers which open at top, and form a large panache resembling a
parasol.

One species only is known; it is as large as a jay, and black;
the feathers at the bottom of the breast form a sort of pendent dew-
lap. From the banks of the Amazon; Cephalopterus ornatus ,
Geoff., Ann. du Mus. XIII. pi. xv; Coracina cephaloptera, Vieill.
Galer. 114; Temm. Col. 255 ; Corac ornata, Spix, LIX.

Ampelis, Lin.

The Crown-Birds have the depressed bill of the Fly-catchers in general,
but it is somewhat shorter in proportion, tolerably broad, and slightly
arcuated.

Those in which it is the most pointed and strong, have still a decidedly
insectivorous regimen: they are called Piauhau, from their note — the
Querula, Vieill. They inhabit America, where they pursue insects, in
flocks, in the woods j~.

The Common Crown-Birds,

Whose bill is rather weaker, besides insects, feed on berries and tender
fruits. They inhabit the moist grounds of America, most of the males
being remarkable, at the pairing season, for the brilliancy of their purple
and azure plumage. During the rest of the year both sexes are grey or
brown.

A. carnifex, L. ; LOuette, Enl. 378; Spix, V. The calotte,
rump, and belly scarlet; the rest brownish red; fourth quill of the
wing narrowed, shortened, and tough, or something like horn.

A. pompadora, L. ; Le Pompadour , Enl. 279. A fine light
purple ; wing-quills white ; the barbs of the great coverts are stiff
and arranged on two planes in an acute angle, like a roof.

* It is the Choucas chauve, Buff., Enl. 521 ( Corvus calvus, Gm.), the Oiseau mon
pere of the negroes of Cayenne, Vaill., Ois. d’Am. et des Indes, pi. xxix.

f Here comes the Common Piauhau ; black, with a purple throat (Muse, rubricollis,
Gm.), Enl. 381; Vieill. Gal. 115, and the Great Piauhau, entirely purple ( Colin get
rouge, Vail., Ois. do l’Afr. et des Indes, pi. xxv andxxvi, Coracias militaris, Shaw).
La Cotinga gris (Amp. citierea), Enl. G99, is more nearly allied to the Piauhaus than
the common Crown-birds.

The Piauhau a gorge aurorc (Coracias scutala, Lath, or Coracina scutata, T.), Col.
40, has a narrower bill, and approaches more to Cephalopterus.

BIRDS.

240

A. cotinga , L. , Le Cordon bleu , Enl. 186 and 188. Of the most
beautiful ultramarine, with a violet breast, frequently traversed by
a large blue band and spotted with dark yellow* * * §.

Tersina, Vieill.

This subgenus consists of crown-birds whose bills are a little wider at
their basef.

CeblepyrisJ, Cuv.

Has, in addition to the bill of the crown-birds, a singular character, which
consists in the somewhat prolonged, stiff, and spiny stems of their rump
feathers. They are found in India and Africa, where they feed upon ca-
terpillars which they collect upon the highest trees, but they have nothing
of the lustre of the true crown birds. Their tail, somewhat forked in the
middle, is sloped on the sides §.

We may also separate from them,

Bombycilla, Briss.

The Chatterers, in which the head is ornamented with a toupet of fea-
thers somewhat longer than the rest, possess, moreover, another singu-
lar character in the secondary quills of the wing,' — the ends of the stems
being enlarged into an oval, smooth, and red disk. There is one in Eu-
rope named, we know not why,

A. garrulus, L. Enl. 261. (The Bohemian Chatterer). Some-
what larger than a finch; plumage of a vinous grey; throat black;
tail black, edged with yellow at the tip ; wings black, variegated with
white. This bird visits Europe in flocks, at long intervals, and
without regularity, from which circumstance, its presence, for a long
time, was considered as an evil omen. It is very stupid, is easily
captured and brought up ; eats of every thing, and a great quantity.
It is thought to build its nest in the extreme north. The flesh is
esteemed a great delicacy.

There is another species in America, extremely similar, but rather
smaller, Ampelis garrulus , b, Lin. ; Amp. Americana, Wils. I. vii. 1 ;
Bombycilla car olinensis, Wils.; Bomb, cedrorum, Vieill., Gal. 118;
Vaill. Ois. de Par., I. pi. 50,

There is also one in Japan, B. phoenicoptera, Tern.; Col. 450,
which has no appendages to the wings, and the tips of whose tail and
little wing-coverts are red.

* Add A. cayana , Enl. 624. — A. maynana, Enl. 299. — A. cucullata , t., Col. 363,
Swains. Zool. 111. 37. — A. caprea, Merremic, Av., 1, 2, appears to be a variety of the
carnifex.

f A. tersa, Gm., La Tersine, Buff., Vieill. 119, or Procne tersine, Tem. Col. 5, or
Procnias hirundinacea, Swains. Zool. 111. 21.

X The Greek name of an unknown bird. Vieillot has since given to this genus
the name of Campephaga.

§ Such are the Muse, cana, Gm., Enl. 541, or the Echenilleur cendre, Vaill. Afr.,
pi. clxii. Vieill., Galer. 130; the Echenilleur noir, Vaill. lxiv. His Ech.jaune pl.lxiii.
is the young of the Turdus phcenicopterus, Tem., Col. 71.-— Add Ceb fimbriatus, Tem.,
Col. 249, 250.

PASSERINE.

241

Hofmansegg and Illiger, with equal propriety, separate from the crown-
birds

Procnias, Hofman.

The commissure of whose bill, which is weaker and more depressed,
extends under the eye. They inhabit America, and feed on insects.

We may subdivide them still more.

The Procnias, properly so called, have the throat furnished with fea-
thers.

One species, Ampelis carunculata , Gm., Enl. 793, is distinguish-
ed by a long, soft caruncle on the base of the bill. In the perfect
state it is white, at all other times greenish.

The Averanos (Casmarhynchos, Tern.) are Procnise with a naked
throat.

In one species, the naked portion of the male’s throat is covered
with fleshy caruncles. It is the Averano of Buff. IV. p. 457 ; Amy),
variegata , Lin.; Col. 51.

Another, Procn. araponga, Pr. Max. Col. 368, and 383, or Cas-
mar ecarunculatus, Spix, 4, only has some very small, thinly scatter-
ed feathers in that place. These birds are white in their perfect
state ; the young male and the female are greenish.

Finally, directly after the crown-birds should come

Gymnoderus, Geoff.

In which the bill is only a very little stronger ; but the neck is partly naked,
and the head covered with velvet feathers. The species known is also from
South America. It is mostly frugivorous, is of the size of a pigeon, black,
with bluish wings ; it is the Gracula nudicollis, Sh. ; the Corvus nudus
and the Gracula fetida , Gm. Enl. 609 *.

EDOLIUsf, Cuv.

Belong also to the great series of the Fly-catchers; the bill is depressed
and emarginate at the end ; its upper ridge is acute ; but what distin-
guishes it is, that both mandibles are slightly arcuated throughout their
length ; the nostrils are covered with feathers, and there are, besides, long
hairs forming mustachios.

The species are numerous in the countries bordering on the In-
dian Ocean. They are generally of a black hue, have a forked tail,
and live on insects; some of them, it is said, sing as sweetly as the
Nightingalej;.

* The species of Vaill., Ois. de l’Ameriq. et des Indes, pi. xlv. and xlvi. is, per-
haps, different.

N. B. Vieillot unites Graculus , Gymnoderus , and Cephalopterus, in his genus Co-

RACINA.

t Vieillot has preferred the name of Dicrurus.

X Species. Lanius forjicatus , Gm., Enl. 189, Vaill. A fr. IV. 16G, and Vieill. Gal.
I'll. — Lanius malabaricus , Shaw, Vaill. IV. 175, Sonnerat, Voy. aux Indes et a la
Chine, pi. xcvii, which is also the Cuculus paradiseus, Briss. IV. pi. xiv. A 1. — La-
nius carulescens, Gm., Edw., pi. xlvi. Vaill. Afr. IV. 172. — Corvus balicassius, Gm.,

242

BIRDS.

Phibalura, Vieill.

The ridge of the bill arcuated as in Edolius, but the bill itself is one
half shorter than the head.

The species known (Ph. flavirostris), Vieill. Gal. 74; Tem. Col.
118; Ph. cristata, Goains. Zool. 111. pi. 31, is from Brazil. The
tail is much forked ; the plumage is spotted with black and yellow ;
the feathers of the head with red, recalling to our minds certain Ty-
rants and Fly-catchers.

Tanagra, Lin.

The Tanagers have a conical bill, triangular at its base, slightly arcuated
at its ridge, emarginate near the end; wings and flight short. They re-
semble the finches in habits, and feed on grain as well as on berries and
insects. The greater number become remarkable in museums from their
bright colours. We subdivide them as follows* * * * §:

Bullfinch Tanagers.

A short bill, when viewed vertically, shewing an enlargement on each
side of its base; the tail proportionably shorter f.

Grossbeak Tanagers.

The bill conical, thick, convex, as broad as it is high, the back of the
upper mandible rounded J.

Tanagers, 'properly so called.

A conical bill, shorter than the head, as broad as it is high, the upper
mandible arcuated, somewhat pointed §.

Enl. 603. — The Drongolon, Vaill. IV. 171. — The Drongo bronze, Id. 176, and several
new species.

N. B. The Bec-de-fer of Vaill. Afric. 79, from which Illiger has made his genus
Sparactes, and which is copied in Vieill. Gal., pi. cxli, having been examined by
Temminck, is found to be a Pogonias, to which other feet had been added, together
with a crest. This was done by a dealer, in joke, to impose upon the late M. Raie
de Breukelewaerd, a rich Dutch amateur.

* For this genus, and those of Pipra and Todus, see the work of M. Desmarest
and of Miss Pauline de Courcelles, now Madame Knip.

f Tanag. violacea, Enl. 114, 1, 2. — T. cayennensis, lb. 3. — Pipra musica, Enl. 809, 1.
— Tan. diademata , Natterer, Col. 243, or Lindo bleu of Azz., or Bouvreuil azure, Vieill.
Gal. 54. — The Lindo bleudore of Azz. {Tan. chrysogaster, Cuv.). — Tan. viridis, Vieill.
Col. 36, 3.

J Tan. magna, Enl. 205. — Tan. atra, Enl. 714, 2. — Coracias cayennensis, Enl. 616.
— Tan. flammiceps, Pr. Max. Col. 177. — Tan. superciliosa, Spix, 57, 1. — Tan. psitta-
cina, lb. 2. — Tan. atricollis, Id. 56, 2. It is on this division that Vieillot has found-
ed his genus Habia.

§ Tan. talao, Enl. 127, 2. — tricolor, Enl. 33. — mexlcana, Enl. 290, 2, and 155, 1. —
gyrola , Enl. 133, 2. — Cayana , Enl. 201, 2, and 290, l.—episcopus, Enl. 178.—
coelestis, Spix, 55, 1. — varia, Desm. ( Motacilla velia, L.), Enl. 669, 3, of which the T.
Schrankii, Spix, 51, is probably the young. — T. punctata and siaca, Enl. 133, L. —
T. multicolor, Vieill. Gal. 76, or Fring. zena , L. Catesby, I, 42. — T. thoracica, Tem.
Col. 42, 1. — T. citrinella, lb. 2. — T. vittata, lb. 48. — T. penicillata, Spix, 49. T.
auricapilla, Id. 52. — T. vittata, T. Col. 48. — T. leucoptera, or Oriolus leucopterus, Lath.
Syn.

PASSERINE.

243

Oriole Tanagers.

The bill conical, arcuated, pointed, and notched at the end* * * §.

Cardinal Tanagers.

Bill conical, somewhat vaulted, an obtuse salient tooth on the side'f.

Ramphoceline Tanagers J.

A conical bill, the branches of whose lower mandible are enlarged
behind §.

Turdus, Lin .

The Thrushes have a compressed and arcuated bill, but its point is not
hooked, and its emarginations do not form such deep notches as in the
Shrikes ; as we have already stated, however, there are gradual transitions
from one genus to the other.

Their regimen is more frugivorous, generally feeding on berries. Their
habits are solitary.

The term Thrush is more particularly reserved for those species in
which the colours are uniform, or are distributed in large masses. The
most widely disseminated is,

T. merula , L., Naum. 71. (The European Blackbird). The
male (Enl. 2), is entirely black, with a yellow bill ; the female (Enl.
555), is brown above; reddish brown beneath; the breast spotted
with brown. It is a very mistrustful bird, but is easily tamed, and
can be taught to sing well, and even to speak. It remains in Europe
during the whole year.

A neighbouring species, which, however, is a bird of passage, and
prefers the mountains, is,

T. torquatus, L. : Le Merle a 'plastron blanc; Enl. 168 and 182 ;

* The T. gularis, Enl. 156 — pileata, 720, 2, and speculifera, Spix, 36, 1, approach
the Motacillce by their more slender bill. T. nigricollis, 720, 1, is a true motacilla,
a sort of Regulus with a rather large bill.

f T. cristata, Enl. 7, 2, and 301, 2, of which the T. brunnea, Spix, 49, 2, is the
young. — nigerrima, Enl. 179, 2, and 711. — olivacea. — archiepiscopus, Desm. Spix, 56,
2. — Tan. rufiventer, Spix, 50, 1. — rufigularis , Id., 56, 5. — Saira, Id. 48, 1. — viridis,
lb. 2. This division has been named Taciiyphonus, by Vieillot, Gal. 82.

But we should also refer to it his genus Pyranga, which is solely founded on an
individual deformity. We shall name his species Tan. cyanictera.

The Palmiste, Buff. Enl. 509, 1 (Turd, palmarum, Gm.), Vieill. Am. II. 69, also
belongs to it; its notch is scarcely sensible, and it almost wholly disappears in a
neighbouring species, of which Vieillot has made his genus Icteria, let. dtmicola,
Vieill., Am. and Gal. pi. Ixxxv, or Pipra polyglotta, Wils. I. vi. 2. This species leads
to Ploceus. Tanagra mississipiensis, Enl. 742, or T. (estiva, Wils. Am. VI. 3, 4. —
T. rubra, 156, 1. — T. ludoviciana, Wils. 111. xx. 1.

N. B. Swainson separates the T. tatao, and some others, from the Tanagers, under
the name of Agi.aia, and makes a genus of my Tanagers a bee fin, called Spermagra.

+ From this Vieill. has made his Jacapa, or Ramphocei.es, Galer. 79.

§ Tanagra jacapa, Enl. 128. — T. brasilia, Enl. 127, 1. — T. nigrogularis, Spix, 47.

N. B. The Tanagra atricapilla, 809, 2, and the guyannensis are Shrikes. The T.
cristatclla, Spix, or Fringilla cristata, Gmel., T. graminea and T. rujicollis, Spix, 53,
are Buntings.

2A4

BIRDS,

Naum. 70. (The Ring Ouzel). Feathers black, partly edged with
white ; the breast marked with a shield of the same colour.

The high mountains in the south of Europe contain two species,
the Merle de Roche; T. saxatilis, L. ; EnL 562; Naum. 73; and
the Merle bleu; T. cyanus, L. ; Enl. 250; Naum. 72, from which
the Merle solitaire; T. solitarius , L., does not differ* * * §. The
first, which is most frequently found in the North, is the best
known; it builds on inaccessible cliffs, in ruins, and sings well.
The head and neck of the male are of a blue ash colour, the back
brown, rump white; beneath, and the tail, orange

The name of Grives is given, in France, to those species, whose plum-
age is what is termed in that country grivele , that is to say, marked with
small black or brown spots. There are four of them in Europe, all with
brown backs and spotted breasts ; they are singing birds, which live on
insects and berries, migrate in large flocks, and whose flesh is an agree-
able food.

T. viscivorus , L. ; La Drenne. (The Misle Thrush). Enl. 489;
Frisch, xxv; Naum. 66, 1. Is the largest; the underpart of its
wings is white ; it is extremely fond of the misletoe, and contributes
to the dissemination of that parasitical plant.

T. pilaris , L. ; La Litorne , Enl. 490; Frisch, xxvi; Naum. 67,
2. Which is chiefly distinguished from the Viscivorus by the ash
colour on the top of its head and neck.

T. musicus , L. ; La Grive, properly so called, Enl. 406 ; Frisch,
xxvii; Naum. 66, 2. Underpart of the wings yellow; the best
songster of the four, and the one most commonly eaten.

T. iliacus, L. ; Le Mauvis, Enl. 51, Frisch, xxviii; Naum. 67,
1. (The Mavis.) The smallest of the whole number; under part
of the wings and flanks red J.

The species of the genus Thrush, foreign to Europe, are very nu-
merous. We will particularly notice

T.polyglottus, L.; Catesb. xxvi. (The Mocking-Bird). From
North America; ash-coloured above, paler beneath, with a white
band on the wing. It is celebrated for the astonishing facility with
which it imitates, on the instant, the notes of other birds, and even all
kinds of sounds §.

* Observation of Bonnelli.

f It is possible, as is observed by Shaw, that it was by confounding it with the
Siberian Jay, that Linnaeus attributed to it the habits of a Harpy, and at one time
calls it Corvus, and at another, Lanius infaustus.

We may approximate to the saxatilis the Rocar, Vaill. Afr. 101 and 102 — the Es-
pionneur, Id. 103.

The foreign species, allied to the Solitary Thrushes by their speckled plumage,
are, Turdus manillensis, Enl. 636; probably the same as T.violaceus, Sonnerat, 2d
Voy., pi. cviii. — T. eremita, Enl. 339. — T. varius, Horsf. — Myiothera Andromeda,
Tern. Col. 392.

X Two additional species have been taken, though very rarely, in Germany; the
Thrush , with the hack and flank spotted with red ( T . naumanni ), Naum. 68, and that
with a black breast and throat (T. Bechsteinii ), Naum. 69.

§ The Little Mocking Bird ( T. Orpheus), Edw. 78; Le Moqueur de St. Domingue
{T. dominicus), Enl. 558, 1, are very closely allied to it, as well as the T. gilvus,
Vieill. Am. 68.

PASSERINE,

24 5

Some of these birds appear to approach the Shrikes in habits, although
there is nothing in the form of their bill which can distinguish them from
other Thrushes* * * * §.

There are no sensible characters by which we can distinguish certain
African Thrushes, which live in flocks, as numerous and noisy as Star-
lings; feed on insects, and do much mischief in gardens. Several of
them are remarkable for the brilliant tints of their plumage, which is of
a browned steel colour'}', and one of the former, for its cuneiform tail,
which is one-third longer than the body

We consider it proper to approximate to it the Thrush of New
Guinea , whose tail is three times the length of the body, and has a
double tuft on the head, which has been considered a Bird of Para-
dise— Paradiscea gularis, Lath, and Shaw; Par. nigra , Gmel. ;
Vaill. Ois. de Par. 20 and 21 ; Vieill. Ois. de Par. pi. viii. and
Galer. 107, but only on account of the singularity and the incom-
parable magnificence of its plumage§.

Add, of species foreign to Eurbpe, with the breast or under part of the body spot-
ted: T. rufus. Gm., Enl. 645, and Vieill. Am. 59. — T.fuscatus, Vieill. Am. 57, bis. —
T. minor , Gm., or T. mustelinus, Wils., or Gr. tannee, or Gr. solitaire , Vieill. Am. 62
and 63. — T. interpres, Kuhl., Col. 458.

With the throat only spotted, at least in the adult, T. migratorius, L. Enl. 556;
Catesb. 29; Vieill. Am. 60, 61. — T. ocrocephalus, Col. 136. — T. plumbeus, Enl. 560,
Vieill. Am. 58. — T. Falclandice , T. — T. olivaceus, Gm. — The grivron, Vaill. Afr. 98.
■ — T. campestris , Pr. Max.

With the flanks only spotted, T. punctatus, Sh. Zool. N. Holl. I. pi. ix, which is the
genus CincIjOSOma, Vig. and Horsf., Lin- Trans. XV. p. 219.

Of those foreign birds not spotted underneath, T. brasiliensis, Lath. — T. perspicil-
latus. — T. melanotis, or Reclameur of Vaill., or T. vociferans, Zool. 111. 179. — T.
ncevius, Vieill. Am. 66. — T. lividus, or Chatbird of Wils. 14, 2. — T. citrinus , Tern.
Col. 445. — T. rubripes, Id. 409. — T. leucogaster, Enl. 648, 1. — T. madagascariensis,
Enl. 557, 1, — T. australasice, Sh. Nat. Miscel. 1013. — Malurus frenatus, Tern., Col.
385. — T. pectoralis , Enl. 644, 1. — T. cinnamomeus, Enl. 560, 2. — T. rufifrons, Enl.
644, 10. These last three species have been improperly referred by Buffon to the
Ant-catchers.

N. B. Turdus aurocapillus, Lath., Enl. 398, 2, and Vieill. Am. 64 ( Motac . aurocap.,
L.), is a true Motacilla, and must be placed with the Fauvets. — Turdus calliope
(Lath. Syn. Supplement, fig. of the title), should go with the Redbreasts. — Turdus
cayanus, Enl. 515, is a female Ampelis. — T. guyanensis, Enl. 398, fig. 1, is a female
of the Tanagra dominica, Enl. 156, 2, of which Vieill. has made his Dulus palmarum,
Gal. 146.

* We have already spoken, while on the Shrikes, of some species usually placed
among the Thrushes, such as Turdus zeilonus, Enl. 272. It seems, we might also
approximate to it the T. cafer, Enl. 563, Vaill. 107, which differs very little even in
colouring from the Lanius jocosus, Enl. 508. These two species would also take
along with them the T. capensis, Enl. 317, Vaill. 105, and the 1\ chrysorrhoeus, Tern.,
Vaill. 107.

On the other hand, it would be difficult to separate from the zeilonus, the Ilausse-
col noir, Vaill. Afr. 1 10, and the Cravate noir, Id. 115.

f Particularly Turdus aural us, Enl. 540 ( Nabirop , Vaill. Afr. 89), and Turdus
nidens, Enl. 561, ( Couigniop , Vaill. 90.)

Here also come the Oranvert (T. chrysogaster, Gm. Enl. 358); the Spreo
bicolor, Gm.), Vaill. Afr. 88; the jaunoir ( T. morio ), Enl. 199, Vaill. Afr. 83, or the
Corvus rufipennis, Sh. ; and probably the Eclatant, Vaill. 85, and the Choucador, Id.
86, ( Corvus splendidus, Sh.)

+ Turdus ceneus, Enl. 220 ( Vert dorc, Vaill. 87).

§ Vieillot has given to this bird the generic name of Astratia.

N . 11. 1 think it is proper to approximate to the Thrushes, which are allied to the
Shrikes, the Muscicapa carinata, Swains. Zool. 111. 147, of which Vigors and llors-
field make their genus Monarch a.

246

BIRDS.

Other Thrushes, with brilliant plumage, have the feathers of the occi-
put pointed like the Starling; they are the Stournes or Lamprotornis
of Temminck* * * §.

Some of them have so slender a bill, that they approach the Saxicolae —
(the Turdoides, or Ixos, Temm.'f); others, again, have a slender but
strong and straight bill, and among them are some with a widely forked
tail (Enicures), T.J

There are some of them also, distinguished by the height of their legs,
which gives them the appearance of waders; they are the Grallines
of Yieill. Galer. 150; or the Tanypus of Oppel. Mem. de l’Acad. de
Munich, 1812, pi. viii.

The Criniger, Temm., comprehends those Thrushes which have
very strong setas on the bill, and whose feathers on the back of the neck
sometimes have a setaceous termination. Such is the Criniger barbatus,
Col. 88.

Buffon has very properly separated from the Thrushes, the
Myothera,|| Illig.

The Ant-catchers are known by their long legs and short tail. They
live on insects, and chiefly on ants. They are found in both continents.

Those of the eastern world, however, are remarkable for the bril-
liant colours of their plumage : they are the Breves of Buffon § —
Corvus brachyurus , Gm., Enl. 257 and 258.; Edw. 324, to which
have been lately added several other beautiful species ^[. We must
also add the Azurin — Turdus cyanurus, Lath, and Gmel. ; Corvus
cyanurus, Shaw, Enl. 355**, which only differs in the tail being
somewhat pointed.

* Turdus mauritianus, Gm., Enl. 648, 2, and Col. 149. — T. cantor , Sonnerat, Voy.

1. pi. lxxiii. — Lamprotornis metallicus , Tem. Col. 266. We should distinguish the
Lampr. erythrophris, on account of its beautiful red eye-brows formed of cartilagi-
nous feathers.

f Such are the Podobe ( T . erythroplerus, Gm.), Enl. 334. — The Janfredic, Vaill.
Afr. Ill; the Grivetin, Id. 118; the Coudor, Id. 119; the Turdus trichas, Enl. 709,

2. The Terat-boulan ( Turdus orientalis , Gm. Enl. 273, 2) approximates this group
to the straight-billed Shrikes.

Add Ixos chalcocephalus, Tem. Col. 453, 1 ; — I. squammatus, lb. 2 ; — R. atriceps, Col.
137 ; and particularly T. dispar , Col. 137, which has red cartilaginous feathers under
the throat, similar to the appendages of the wing of the Chatterer.

J JEnicurus coronatus, Tem. Col. 113, or Turd. Leschenaultii, Vieill. Gal. 145, or
Motacilla speciosa, Horsf. ; JEnic. velatus, Tem. Col. 160. There is quite as much
reason for approximating them to the straight-hilled Shrikes.

|| Vieill. has changed this name into Myrmothera.

§ Vieillot has given to these birds the name of Pitta.

<jf Such as the Pitta erythrogaster, Cuv., Enl. 212; — P.gigas, Tem. Col. 217; —
P. cyanoptera, Id. Ib., 218; — P. superciliosa, C. — P. strepitans, Leadbeater, Col. 333.

N.B. The Breve des Philippines, Enl. 89, is not, as Vaillant says, that of Angola,
Edw. 324, with the head of a Thrush artificially attached to it; we have a natural
specimen of the same.

** The Azurin is not from Cayenne, as Buffon declares it to be, but from the East
Indies. It is the Pitta cyanura, Vieill. 153. Add Myiothera affinis, Horsf., and even
his Turdus cyaneus, which is the Brdve-bleuet, Tem. Col. 194, but which leads to the
straight-billed Shrikes.

The Pitta thoracica, Tem. Col. 76, which Messrs. Horsf. and Vigors make the type

PASSERINE.

247

The species belonging to the new continent are much more nume-
rous, their tints are of a deeper brown, and they vary as to strength, and
the length of the bill. They obtain their living from the enormous ant-
hills which abound in the woods and deserts of this part of the world;
the females are larger than the males. These birds seldom fly, and have
a sonorous cry, which, in some species, is even extraordinary.

Among those with a thick and arcuated bill, we remark,

M. rex; Turdus rex , Gm. ; Corvus grallarius, Shaw, Enl. 702.
(King of the Ant-catchers). The largest of all, and stands the
highest: its tail, on the other hand, is the shortest, and at the first
glance it might be taken for a wader ; it is about the size of a quail,
and its grey plumage is agreeably chequered. It is more solitary
than the others* *.

The species with a straighter, but still tolerably strong bill, are allied
to the Shrikes with a similar one'f.

Others have a slender, sharp bill, which, with their striated tail, ap-
proximates them to the WrenJ.

The Orthonyx, Tern., may be approximated to the Ant-catchers.
They have the bill of a Thrush, but it is short and slender ; their legs
are long, the nails almost straight, and the quills of the tail terminate in
a point like those of the creepers.

We must also separate from the Thrushes:

of their genus Thimalia, is but a little removed from the azurin, if we except its
sombre hues and its bill, which latter diminishes more regularly in front, and thereby
approaches the Tanagers.

* M. Vieillot has taken his genus Graelaria, Galer. 154, from this bird.

Add the Grand beffroi ( Turdus tinmens), Enl. 706, 1, of which Vieill. makes his
genus Myotiiera: its hill is smaller; — Myrmotliera guttata, Vieill. Gal. 155.

f Such are the Tetema ( Turdus-colma , B.), Enl. 821; — the Palicour (T. formici-
vorus), Enl. 700, 1; — the Petit beffroi ( Turdus lineatus), Enl. 823, 1; — the Thamno-
philus stellaris, Spix, 39; — Thamn. myotherinus, Id. 42. The M, leucophris, Tem. Col.
448, although from Java, seems to approach this group. The Brachypteryx montana,
Horsf. Jav. also approximates to it in the height of its legs, hut its tail is longer in
proportion, and the bill is somewhat allied to that of the Saxicolae.

X Such are the Bambla {Turd, bambla), Enl. 703; — the Arada (T. cantans ), Enl.
706, 2. Here comes the genus Rhampiiocene, Vieill. 9, 128.

We are compelled, however, to replace among the Thrushes, several species which
Buffon arranged with the Ant-catchers, on account of some relative similarity of
colour, viz. the Carillonneur (T. tintinnabulatus), Enl. 700,2; — the Merle a cravate
( T . cinnamoneus, Enl. 560, 2; — those of the pi. Enl. 644, 1 and 2, which, contrary
to all appearances, he considers as varieties of the formicivorus. I place in the same
class the Thamnophilus griseus, Spix, 41, 1, and 48, 2; — striatus, Id., 40, 2; — melano-
gaster, Id. 43, 1. The Myothera capistrata melanothorax, Tem. Col. 185, [and M.
obsoleta, Bonap. I. p. 1, 2.] We must also send back to the Thrushes, notwith-
standing their smallness, the long-tailed species, called by Buffon Fourmilliers ros-
signols (T. coroya and T. alapi, Gm.), Enl. 701, as well as the Myiothera malura,
Natterer, Col. 353, and the M. ferruginea and rufimarginata, Col. 132, which arc
even closely allied to the T. punctatus and grammiceps ; — the M. gularis and pyrrho-
geiiis, Tem. 442, 448.

The Myiothera mentalis and strictotliorax , Natterer, Col. 179, as it appears to me,
should be placed among the Shrikes. There is no group which has been more overload-
ed with species foreign to it than that of the Ant-catchers. We must confess, how-
ever, that it is not more rigorously limited than the other groups of the Dentirostres.

248

BIRDS.

Cinclus,* * * § Bechst.

Or the Water-Thrushes, which have a compressed, straight bill, with
mandibles of an equal height, nearly linear, and becoming sharp near the
point ; the upper one hardly arcuated. There is but one in Europe.

Sturnus cinclus, L. ; Turdus cinclus, Lath. ; Enl. 940 ; Vieilh
Gal. 152. (The Water-Thrush). Legs rather long, and a rather
short tail, which approximate it to the Ant-catchers. It is brown,
with a white throat and breast, and has the singular habit of de-
scending into the water, not swimming, but walking about on the
bottom in search of the little animals which constitute its food.

Africa, and the countries bordering on the Indian Ocean, produce a
genus of birds neighbours of the Thrushes, which I shall call

PHILEDONf.

Their bill is compressed, slightly arcuated throughout its length, and
emarginate near the point ; nostrils large, and covered by a cartilaginous
scale ; their tongue terminated by a pencil of hairs.

The species generally remarkable for some singularity of conformation,
have been bandied about by authors in all kinds of genera.

Some of them have fleshy bobs at the base of the bill J.

In others, portions of the skin on the cheeks are divested of feathers||.

Even in those which are completely feathered, we still observe, at
times, a singular disposition of the plumage§.

* Vieillot lias changed this name into that of Hydrobata.

f Commerson had an idea of thus naming the Polochion ( Merops moluccensis, Gra.),
which is of this genus. See Buff. Hist, des Ois. VI., 4to. p. 477. Vieillot places
the greater number of these birds in his genus Polochion , and in Latin he prefers
calling it Philemon rather than Philedon, Gal. 189. The genus Meliphaga of
Lewin also is comprised in it.

X Here comes the New Holland bird called, by Daudin, Ornith. II. pi. xvi, Pie
a pendeloques, or Corvus paradoxus, Vieill. Gal. 94, the same as the Merops caruncu-
latus of Phillip., of Latham, and of Shaw, hut which has not the feet of a Merops,
and whose bill is notched, the tongue pencillated, and nostrils without feathers.
The Sturnus carunculatus, Lath, and Gm., or Gracula carunculata, Daud. and Shaw,
(Lath. Syn. Ill, pi. xxxvi), and the Certhia carunculata, Lath, and Gm. (Vieill.
Ois. Dor. II, pi. lxix), also appear to me to belong to it. The latter bird, it is said,
sings delightfully, and belongs to the Friendly Islands. It is from this sub-division
that Vieillot has taken his genus Creadion, Gal. 94.

|| The Merops phrygius of Shaw, Gen. Zool. VIII, pi. xx; — the Goruclc, Vieill,
Ois. Dor. II, pi. lxxxviii. (C. goruclc, Sh.); — the Fuscalbin, Id. Ib. pi. lxi. (C. luna-
ta)\ — the Grcicule, Id. Ib. pi. Ixxxvii. (C. graculina) ; — the Polochion of Buff. {Me-
rops moluccensis, Gm.); — the Ph. a oreilles jaunes, Less. Voy. de Duperrey, pi. 21,
bis, and some new species belong to this division.

§ Particularly in the Merops Novce Hollandice, Gm. and Brown, 111. ix., or Merle
a cravate frisee, Vaill. Afr., or Merops circinnatus, Lath, and Shaw, Gen. Zool. VIII.
pi. xxii. They are the feathers of the ears which become frizzled, as they descend
almost in front of the breast.— Melliph. auricornis , Swains. Zool. 111. p. 43.

Add Certh. auriculata, Vieill. Ois. Dor. 85. — C. Novce Hollandice, Ib. 7.

The species of this genus which have none of these singularities, are the Certhia xan-
totus, Sh. Vieill. Ois. Dor. II, pi. 84. — C. australasiana, Ib. 55. — C. mellivora, Ib. 86.—
C. ccerulea, Ib. 83.— C. seniculus, Ib. 50. I am even of opinion that the Cap noir,
Vieill. pi. 60, ( Certhia cucullata, Sh.) belongs to them, notwithstanding the length

PASSERINES.

219

Eulabes, Cuv .

The Mainates are closely allied to those of the preceding one. Their
bill is nearly that of a thrush ; their nostrils are round and smooth. Their
distinguishing mark consists in broad strips of naked skin on each side of
the occiput, and a bald spot on the cheek.

Linnaeus has confounded two species of them under the name of Gra-
cula religiosa* *.

E. indicus , Enl. 268, the species of India, is the size of a
thrush; black, with a white spot near the base of the great feathers
of the wing : the feet, bill, and bald parts of the head, yellow.

The Java species, E. javanicus, Vieill. Gal. 95, has a broader
bill, the commissure extending higher up, more hooked at the end,
and without a notch — consequently, it should come after Colaris,
Cuv. ; but in every thing else it is precisely similar to the other, and
particularly in the strips of bare skin about the headi1. Of all birds,
this one is said to imitate most completely the language of man.

Gracula J, Cuv.

The Martins form another genus allied to the thrushes. The species
inhabit Africa and the countries bordering on the Indian Ocean. Their
bill is compressed, very little arcuated, and slightly emarginate ; its com-
missure forms an angle like that of the Starling. The feathers on the
head are almost always narrow, and there is a naked space round the eye.
They have the habits of Starlings; and, like them, pursue insects in
flocks.

One species is occasionally seen in Europe ; it is the

Turdus roseus , L. ; Pastor roseus, Meyer; Merula rosea , Naum.
63; Enl. 251; Vaill. Afr. (The Rose-coloured Thrush). A bril-
liant black ; back, rump, scapulars, and breast of a pale rose ; fea-

of its bill. — Merops niger, Gm., or fasciculatus, Lath., or Gracula nobilis, Merrem.
Beytr. Fasc. I, pi. ii, is still more likely to be one of them — at all events it is no
Merops. I also place in this genus the Verdin de la Cochinchine, Enl. 643, which is
the second Turdus malabaricus , No. 125 of Gm. — for the first, No. 51, is a Gracula,
Cuv.; — and the Certh. cocincinica, Sh. Vieill. 77 and 78. — Add the P Idled, cap niigre,
Tern. (Certhia atricapilla. Lath.), Col. 335, 1. — Philed. moustac. ( Melliph . mystacalis,
Tern ), lb. 2. — the Philed. grivele ( Melliph . maculata, T.), Col. 29, 1. — the Phil, reti-
cule ( Melliph . reticulata ), lb. 2. — the Ph. djoues blanches (M. leucotis), Col 435. —
the Phil. Dumerilii, Voy. de Duperr. pi. xxi., and perhaps the White-headed Ixos ,
Kuppel, Av. 4.

N.B. The Creadion, or Pie d pendeloques is the genus Anthoch^ra of Swain-
son, to which he joins the Merops phrygius , &c. The long and slender-billed Phile-
dons, such as the Certhia cucullata, Vieill. form the genus Myzomela of Swainson.

* This appellation of religious was only given to it on account of a peculiar trait
in its character, related by Bontius (Med. Ind. Or. p. 67), and foreign to its natural
habits. I have made it my generic name by translating it into Greek.

f Nothing can possibly be more perplexing to classifiers, than this difference be-
tween the bills of two such similar birds.

I Vieillot has changed this name into that of Ckidotheres, Galer. 148.

VOL. I. Y

250

BIRDS.

thers of the head narrow, and lengthened out into a tuft. It is of
great use in warm climates, by destroying Grasshoppers'*'.

Another species, ( Paradiscea tristis, Gm.; Gracula tristris, Lath,
and Shaw; Gracula gryllivora, Baud.) Enl. 219, has become ce-
lebrated for similar services rendered to the Isle of France. It
feeds, however, on every thing, builds on the Palms, and is very
easily tamed and trained. Its size is that of a Thrush; brown,
blackish about the head; a spot near the tip of the wing; the
lower part of the abdomen and the tips of the lateral tail quills are
whitef .

Manorhina, V kill.

The bill much compressed, but little arcuated, and slightly sloped;
large nostrils, almost entirely closed by a membrane, which reduces the
opening to a narrow slit ; the neck is short. The feathers on the fore-
head, which are as soft as those of young birds, grow partly on the
nostrils J.

* Since my first edition was published, I have satisfied myself of the certainty of
the generic affinity of this species with the Gracula, Cuv.

f It is difficult to imagine how Linnaeus was induced to make it a Bird of Para-
dise. To this genus also belong the Gracula cristatella, Enl. 507, and Edw. 19, which
can hardly be considered a variety of the common one; — the Porte-lambeaux, Vaill.
Afr. pi. xciii and xciv, which is the Gr. carunculata, Gm., or the Gr. larvata, Shaw,
or the Sturnus gallinaceus, Daud. ; — the Martin-brame, Turdus pagodarum, Vaill. Afr.
95, and Vieill. Gal. 148. The first T. malabaricus, the T. ginginianus, the T. domini-
canus, Enl. 627, 2; the Martin gris de Fer, Vaill. Afr. 95, 1, and the Sturnus sericeus ,
Gm., also belong fo it, as well as some new species. I also refer to it, conjecturally,
the Turdus ochrocephalus, Lath. (Sturn. ceylanicus, Gm.), Brown, 111. xxii.

N.B. We cannot ascertain what type was taken by Linnaeus and his followers for
their genus Gracula. Linnaeus first formed it, in his tenth edition, of seven very
discordant species, viz.: 1, religiosa, Eulabes, C.; 2 ,fetida, which I suspect to be
the Col nu, that is to say, allied to Ampelis; 3, barita; and 4, quiscula, which belong
to Cassicus; 5, cristatella, which is a Gracula, Cuv.; 6, saularis, or rather Solaris,
which is a straight-billed Shrike, and the same bird as T. mindanensis, Enl. 627, 1 ;
finally, 7, Atthis, which is a Thrush.

In the 12th ed. he added the Goulin gracula calva, and placed the common gracula,
Cuv. among the birds of Paradise.

Gmelin, in imitation of Pallas, added a xanthornus (Gr. longirostra)*. He also
placed there the Martin porte-lambeaux ( Gr . carunculata ), still leaving the common
one among the Birds of Paradise ; finally, he placed there the Gr. cayennensis, which
is a Creeper. M. Latham has transferred to it the Gr. tristis, the Col nu {Gr. nuda)
and one of my Philedons {Gr. icterops) f. Daudin has placed some species after
the said Gracula, which in fact resemble it, and two of which Gmelin had left among
the Thrushes {Turdus pagodarum and malabaricus). Finally, Shaw has put the
finishing touch to the matter, by transferring to the genus in question three Baritce ,
(his Gr. strepera, varia, and tibicen ,) and adding to them the Talapiot, which is a
Creeper or a Nuthatch {Gr. picoides ). Genera, thus formed, certainly excuse, if
they do not justify, the ill humour of the enemies of systems. See the Mem. of
M. Lichtenstein, Acad, of Berlin, 1817.

X Manorhina viridis, Vieill. Gal. 149. — Merops albifrons, Shaw.

* I do not know the Gracula sturnina of Pallas.

f Neither do I know the Grac. melanocephala and viridis of Latham; but I suspect
they also belong to my Philedons.

PASSERINE.

251

Pyrrhocorax*, Cuv.

The Chocards have the compressed, arcuated, and sloped bill of the
Thrushes ; but their nostrils are covered with feathers, as in the Crows,
with which they were, for a long time, united. There is one in Europe
about the size of the Corv. monedula.

Corvus pgrrhocorax, L. ; Chocard des Alpes, Enl. 531; Vieill.
Galer. 106; Naum. 57, 1. All black; the bill yellow; feet brown
at first, then yellow, and in the adult, red ; it builds in the rocky fis-
sures of the highest mountains, whence, in the winter, it descends into
the valleys in large flocks. It feeds on insects, snails, grain, and
fruit, and does not despise carrion.

There is another in India,

Pyrr hexanemus, Cuv.; the Sicrin, Vaill. Afr. pi. lxxxii. Dis-
tinguished by three barbless stalks as long as the body ; they grow
on each side among the feathers which cover the ear.

1 can find no character sufficient to warrant their removal from the
Thrushes,

Oriolus, Lin.

Or the Orioles, whose bill, similar to that of the Thrushes, and is merely
a little stronger ; the feet a little shorter, and the wings a little longer,
in proportion. Linnaeus, and most of his followers, improperly united
Cassici with them, to which they have no other resemblance than that of
colours.

0. galbula, L. ; Le loriot d ’ Europe , Enl. 26 ; Golden Thrush ,
Yellow Thrush of the Germans, &c. Somewhat larger than the
Thrush ; the male is of a fine yellow ; wings, tail, and a spot be-
tween the eye and the bill, black; tip of the tail yellow. During
its two first years, however, the yellow is replaced by an olive, and
the black by a brown, which is always the state of the female.
This bird suspends its skilfully wrought nest to branches of trees,
feeds on cherries, and other fruits, and, in the spring, on insects. It
is very shy, remains in France but a little time during the summer,
and travels in pairs, or by threes.

India produces some species tolerably similar to the preceding -j',
but we must particularly distinguish from among that number the
Oriolus regens , Col. 320 — Sericula regens, Less, which is of the
finest silky black, with beautiful orange yellow, velvet feathers on
the head and neck, and a large spot of the same colour on the
wing J.

Gymnops, Cuv .

The same strong bill as the Orioles; the nostrils round, without scales

* Vieill. has adopted this name and genus.

t Oriolus chinensis, Enl. 570; — Or. melanocephalus, Enl. 79, or Loriot rieur, Vaill.
j Air. 203; (he Loriot d'or , Vaill., 200; Vieill. Gal. 83; — the Cotulougnan, Vaill. 2,
r 01; the Oriolus xanthonotus, Horsf. Jav.

J M. Lesson (Voy. Duperr., pi. xx.) gives as its female, a Thrush-coloured bird
which differs considerably in its proportions.

252

BIRDS,

or surrounding membrane; a great part of the head divested of fea-
thers*.

Some of them have prominences on the billf. In these the tongue is
pencillated as in Philedon.

JVLenura, Shaw .

The Lyres, whose size has induced some authors to refer them to
the Gallinaceas, evidently belong, by the separation of their toes, (the
first joint of the external and middle ones excepted), to the order of the
Passerinae, and approach the Thrushes in their bill, which is triangular
at the base, elongated, slightly compressed, and emarginate near the point.
The membranous nostrils are large, and partly covered over by feathers,
as in the Jays. They are distinguished by the great tail of the male,
which is very remarkable for the three sorts of feathers which compose it,
viz. the twelve common ones v-ery long, with very fine and widely sepa-
rated barbs ; two more in the middle, only one side of which is furnished
with thickly set barbs, and two external ones curved into the figure of an
S, or like the arms of a lyre, whose internal barbs, large and thickly set,
form a kind of broad riband, while those that are external are very short,
becoming longer only near the tip. The female has only twelve quills of
ordinary structure.

This singular species, Mcenura lyra, Vieill. Ois. de Par. pi. xiv.
xv. and Gal. 192, Sh. Nat. Misc. 577, inhabits the rocky districts
of New Holland; its size is somewhat less than that of the Phea-
sant.

Motacilla, Lin.

The Warblers form an excessively numerous family, known by the bill,
which is straight, slender, and similar to a bodkin. When slightly de-
pressed at its base, it approaches that of the Flycatchers ; when it is com-
pressed, and its point curved a little, it approximates to the straight billed
Shrikes. An endeavour has been made to divide them as follows : —

SaxicolaJ, Bechst.

The Mill- clappers have the bill a little depressed, and rather broad at ]
the base, which particularly allies these birds to the last small tribe of
the Flycatchers. They are lively, and stand tolerably high. The French
species build on the ground, or under it, and feed exclusively on insects.
There are three species in France.

Motacilla rubicola , L. ; he Traquet , Enl. 678; Naum. 90, 3,

1, 5. (The Mill-clapper). A small brown bird, with a red breast,

* The Goulin gris ( Gracula calva, Gm,),' Enl. 200; — the Goulin vert ( Mino Du-
montii, Less.), Voy. de Duperr., pi. xxv; — the Goulin olive ( Gracula cyanotis, Lath.;
Merops cyanotis, Shaw).

f The Corbicalao, Vail!., Ois. d’Am. et des Indes, pi. xxiv. ( Merops corniculatus,
Lath, and Shaw), and a neighbouring species, whose larger tubercle is directed to-
wards the front ( Mer . monachus, Lath.) These two New Holland, birds are neither
Horn-hills nor Bee-eaters, for their external toes are not more united than those of
the most common Passerinae.

N. B. The Or. regens is the Melliphaga regia of Lewin, and the Sericulus chryso-
cephalus of Swainson.

The Corbicalao forms the genus Tropidorhynchus of Swainson.

| Vieill. has changed this name to Motteux (jEnanthe).

PASSEIiiN/E.

253

black throat, and some white on the sides of the neck, on the wing,
and on the rump. It is constantly flitting about the bushes, and its
weak note resemblse the tick-tack of a mill, whence its name.

Mot. rubetra; Le Tarier , Enl. ib. 2; Naum. 89, 3, 4. Closely
resembles the preceding; but the black is on the cheek instead of
being under the throat. It is somewhat larger, and keeps more on
the ground.

Mot.cenanthe ; Le Motteux, or cul-blanc, 'Enl. 554 ; Naum. 89, 1, 2.
(The Wheat-Ear). The rump, and the half of the lateral tail feathers,
white. The male is ash coloured above, reddish-white beneath; the
wing, and a band over the eye, black. In the female, all is brown-
ish above, and reddish beneath. It is found in the ploughed fields,
where it feeds on the worms turned up with the furrow.

We should distinguish from them,

Saxicola strap asina, T. ; M. roux, Buff. ; Naum. 90, 1, 2. A
species from the south of Europe that sometimes visits France.
There is a bird in the south of France that should be placed near
this species, which is black, the rump, and the two superior thirds
of the tail, white, and which has been referred to the Thrushes. It
is the Turdus leucurus , Lath., Synops. II. pi. 38*; or the Saxicola
cachinnans, Tem.

Sylvia Wolf and Meyer. — Ficedula, Bechst.

The bill a very little narrower at the base than in the preceding. They
are solitary birds, generally building in holes, and feeding on insects, worms,
and berries. There are four species in France.

Mot. rubecula, L. ; Rouge-gorge , Enl. 361, 1; Naum. 75, 1, 2.
(The Stonechat). A brown-grey above; throat and breast red;
belly white ; builds near the ground in the woods, is prying and
familiar. Some of them remain during the winter, and seek for
refuge from the extreme cold in houses, where they soon become
tamed.

Mot. succica , L. ; Gorge-bleue , Enl. 361, 2; Naum. 75, 3, 4, 5.
Brown above, blue throat, red breast, white belly; rarer than the
preceding; builds on the edge of woods and marshes.

Mot. phoenicurus, L. ; Rossignol de muraille, Enl. 351; Naum.

* Add to the Saxicolae, Mot. capatra, Enl. 235; — M. fulicata, Enl. 185, 1; — M.
philippenais, lb. 2; — the patre, Vaill. Afr. p. 180.

And to the Wheat-ear, M. leucothoa, Enl. 583, 2; — the imitateur, Vaill., Afr. 181,
Id.; — th efamilier, Id. 1 83 j — the montagnard, Id. 184; — the fourmillier, 186; — Mot.
leucomela, Falc. Voy. Ill, xxx, and Col. 257, 3. Add, Saxic. aurita , t., Col. 257, 1 ;
— S. monaclia, Col. 350, 1; — S. deserti, Ib. 2

The Mot. cyanea , Gin., Lath., Syn. II. pi. liii. has the bill of a Saxicola, and only
differs from it in having a rather longer tail. Vieill. Gal. 163, has placed it in his
genus Merion or Malurus, afterwards converted into a receptacle for all kinds of
birds with elongated and cuneiform tails, such as the Merion bride, Tem. Col. 385,
which is a Thrush; — the M. natte and the M. leucoptcre, Quoy and Gaym. V oy. de
Freycin. pi. 23, which approach the Coly; the fldteur of Vaill. (4/. africana ), Afr.
1 12, which is closely allied to the Synallaxes, &c.
f Rnbiellc, name of the Red-throat in some provinces of France.

25 I

BIRDS.

79, 1, 2. Brown above; throat black; breasts, rump, and lateral
quills of the tail, light red; it builds in old walls, and has a soft song,
with something of the modulations of the Nightingale.

Mot. erithacus, tytys, gibraltariensis, atrata, Gm. ; Edw. 29 :
Naum. 79, 3, 4. Differs from the preceding, and principally in the
breast, which, as well as the throat, is black. It is much more un-
common*.

Curruca, Bechst.

A straight bill, slender throughout, slightly compressed before ; the
upper mandible a little curved near the point. The most celebrated of
this subgenus is,

Mot . luscinia, L. ; Enl. 615, 2; Naum. 74, 2. (The Nightin-
gale). A reddish brown above; whitish grey beneath; the tail
somewhat redder. Every one knows this songster of the night,
and the varied melody with which it fills the woods. It builds on
trees, and does not begin to sing until the young ones are hatched.
The male, then, as well as the female, is occupied in providing them
with food.

The eastern part of Europe produces a Nightingale, which is a
little larger, and whose breast is slightly variegated with greyish
tints. Mot. philomela, Bechst. ; Naum. 74,1.

The remaining species have the common name of Fauvettes; they are,
nearly all, good singers, lively and gay in their habits; they are con-
stantly flitting about in pursuit of insects, and build nests in bushes, mostly
in the vicinity of water, among reeds, &c.

I place a species at the head of the list, which is so large that it
has been almost always classed with the Thrushes!- • i s >

Turdus arundinaceus, L. ; Sylvia turdoides, Enl. 515; Naum.
81,1. (River Nightingale). Reddish-brown above ; yellowish be-
neath ; throat white ; a pale streak over the eye ; a little less than
the Mavis, ( Turd . iliacus, L.) and the bill almost as much arcuated.

It builds among the reeds, and feeds almost exclusively on aquatic
insects.

Mot. arundinacea, Gm. ; La Petite Rouserolle, Naum. 81, 2.
Similar to the preceding in habits and colour, but not so large by a
third.

Mot. salicaria , Gm. ; La fauvette de Roseaux , Enl. 581,2. Still
smaller than the last, and the bill proportionably shorter; an olive- ■

* Add the blue bird of Amer. Mot. sialis, Enl. 590; Mot. Calliope, Lath. Syn.
Supp. I, front., and a great number of other species described by Wilson. —
f There are, in foreign countries, some intermediate Fauvettes between the Mot.
arundinacea, Gm., and the Turd, arundinaceus, L., and between the former and the
Mot. salicaria, Gm., so that, in my opinion, it is impossible to separate the latter
from the Fauvettes, although I acknowledge the result is an almost insensible tran-
sition between the Thrushes and the Motacillae, just as there is between the latter
and the straight- billed Shrikes, and between the Thrushes and the Shrikes with ar-
cuated bills. All these genera are closely allied.

PASSE HIN^E. 955

grey above; very pale yellow beneath; a yellowish streak between
the eye and the bill.

There are also several small Spotted Fauvettes, inhabiting marshes,
&c., which were long confounded under that general name, (Mot.
ncevia, Gm.) and which are not yet satisfactorily distinguished*.

Of the above, we will merely notice the F. cysticole — (F. cysticola ,
Tern.) Col. 6, 3, with a fawn-coloured back, spotted with black, a
light fawn colour beneath ; the tail cuneiform, each feather of which
has a black spot on its inferior surface. This species is from the
south of Europe, and makes its nest by approximating the leaves of
a tuft of grass or carex, which it sews together by means of the fila-
ments of various seeds 'j~:

Among the species which prefer the dry grounds, we observe first,

Mot. atricapilla, L. ; Fauvette ci tSte noire, Enl. 580, 1 and 2;
Naum. 77, 2, 3; Roux, 205, bis. Brown above; whitish beneath;
a black calotte on the male, a red one on the female.

Mot. orphea, Tern. ; La Fauvette , Enl. 579, 1 ; Naum. 76, 3, 4;
S. grisea, Roux, 213. One of the largest; ashy brown above,
whitish beneath ; some white on the tip of the wing ; two-thirds of
the external quills of the tail white, the succeeding one marked with
a spot at the end, and the rest with a selvege. There have been
distinguished within the last few years,

Sylvia nisoria, Bechst. ; Fauvette rayee, Naum. 76, 1,2; Roux,
222. Which has much less white on the tail, the abdomen of the
female being transversely undulated with grey ; the largest of the
European species.

Mot. curruca, L. ; Brit. Zool. pi. v. No. 4 ; Frisch. 21; Naum.
77, 1; Roux, 216. (The White Throat of the English). Smaller
than the preceding ones, and the bill more slender, but the same white
on a great part of the first quill of the tail. The head is ash coloured,
back brownish.

Mot. sylvia, Gm. ; S. cinerea; Fauvette roussdtre , Naum. 78, 1,
2; Riet-vink , Nosem. II, pi. 97; Enl. 579, 3; Roux, 220. Red-
dish brown-grey above, white beneath ; the white on the tail as in
the two preceding ones; the quills and coverts of the wings edged
with red.

Mot. salicaria, L. ; Sylv. hortensis, Bechst. ; La petite Fauvette,
Naum. 78, 3; Nosem. 72; Enl. 579, 2; Roux, 221. Has no

* See the S. phragmitis, Naum. 82, 1; — S. cariceti , Id. 2, 3; — S. aquatica, Id. 4
and 5; — S.fluviatilis, Id. 83, 1; — S. locustella, Id. 84, 2, 3. Compare them with the
S. locustella, Roux, 229; — S. Schcenobenus, Id. 230; — S. paludicola, Id. 231; — S.
cysticola, Id. 232 ; as well as the figures of Buff., Brisson, Bechstein, &c. There is
no genus among Birds which stands more in need of a monography and an approxi-
mation of the synonymcs of different authors, than this.

Add to the aquatic Fauvettes of Europe, Sylv. galactodes, T. Col. 251, 1; — S.
luscinioides, Savi. Egypt. Ois. XIII, A; — S. cetti , Marmora or la Bouscarle, Enl. 6,
55, 2; Roux, 212; — S. melanopogon, Tern. Col. 245, 2.

f See Notizia sul nido del licccaviorchino ( Sylvia cysticola, Tern.) by M. Paul Savi.
Pisa, 1823.

256

BIRDS.

white on the tail, and is of a brownish grey, or olive above, and of a
yellowish white beneath* * * §.

Bechstein has separated from the other Fanvettes his Accentor, which
is the Fauvette des Alpes , Buff. — Mot. alpina, Gm. ; Enl. 668, or the
Pegot , Vieill. Gal. 156 ; Naum. 92, 1 'j' (2) ; because the edges of its slen-
der bill, which is more exactly conical than that of the other Motacillae,
are slightly depressed.

It is an ash-coloured bird, with a white throat, sprinkled with
black ; two rows of white spots on the wing ; some bright red on the
flanks. It is found in the pastures of the upper Alps, where it feeds
on insects, and whence, in winter, it descends into the villages in
search of grain, &c.

I think I have observed the same bill in the Fauvette d'hiver.

Mot. modular is, L.; Traine-buissons , &c. ; Enl. 615, 1; Naum.
92, 3, 4j. The only species that remains in France during the
winter, and that in some measure relieves the dreariness of the sea-
son by its delightful notes. It is of a fawn colour, spotted with
black above, and a slaty ash colour beneath. It builds twice a year,
and in the summer proceeds to the North, and seeks the mountain
forests. During the winter, when insects are not to be had, it is
contented with grain.

The gizzard of these two birds is more fleshy than that of the
other Fauvettes §. We may add to them,

Ace. montanellus, Tern.; Naum. 92. A bird from the south-east
of Europe, which does not visit France.

We may also distinguish some long and cuneiform tailed foreign
Motacillse, which have been long left among the Fauvettes |j.

Some of the species are very skilful in the construction of their

* The descriptions of the Fauvettes are so vague, and the greater part of their
figures— those of Nauman excepted — are so had, that it is almost impossible to de-
termine their species. Each author arranges them differently. Our descriptions,
therefore, may be confidently depended upon, hut our synonymes not so much so ;
we think, however, we agree with Mess. Nauman and Roux.

To the species abovemention ed, must he added: Sylv. ruscicola, Roux; — S. passe-
rina, Col. 24, 1; — S. sarda, lb. 2; — S. Nattereri, lb. 3; — S. subalpina , Bonnelli, or
Leucopogon, Meyer, Col. 6, 2 and 251, 2 and 3, Roux, 218.

N. B. According to Savi, the S. passerina, Tem. Col. 29, 4, is the young male of
the S. subalpina — The Pitchou (S. ferruginea), Enl. 635, 1; Roux, 219. The small
species lead to Regulus.

f It is also the Sturnus montanus, and the S. collaris of Gmelin.

X I see this approximation has been adopted by Mess. Temm. and Nauman.

§ Nitsch., ap. Naum., II, p. 939.

|| Mot. fuscata, Gm. Enl. 584, 1; — Motacilla macroura, Gm. Enl. 752, 2; or the
Capolier, Vaill. 129, 130, 1; — Malurus galactodes, T., Col. 65, 1; — Mai. marginalis,
T. Ib. 2; — Mai. clamans, Ruppel. pi. 2; — Mai. squamiceps, Id. xii. — Mot. subflava,
Gm. Enl. 584, 2, probably the same as the Citrin, Vaill., Afr., 127; — the Double
sourcil, Id. 128. It is partly from this subdivision that Mess. Vieill. and Temm.
have taken their genus Merion or Malurus; I should not, however, like the former,
place it in the Mot. cyanea, Gm. which has the hill of a Saxicola.

N. B. The Malurus galactodes, Tem. has become the genus Megarurus of Vi-
gors and Horsfield.

PASSERINE. 257

nests, with cotton or other filaments, which they arrange with much
art* * * §.

Regulus, Cuv.

The bill slender, forming an exceedingly perfect and very sharp point-
ed cone; when viewed from above, its sides appear slightly concave.
They are small birds, which live among trees and pursue Gnats. There
is in France,

Mot. regulus , L. ; the Roitelet, Enl. 651, 3; Naum. 93, 1, 2, 3.
The smallest of the European birds; an olive colour above, a yel-
lowish white beneath; head of the male marked with a beautiful
spot of a golden yellow, edged with black, the feathers of which are
erectile. It constructs on trees a globular nest, with a lateral open-
ing, suspends itself to the branches in every position like a Parus,
and keeps near our houses in winter'!'.

A still smaller species has lately been observed, the yellow of
which inclines more to orange, and which has a black streak before
and behind the eye. — Regulus ignicajpillus , Naum. 93, 4, 5, 6.

Motac. trochilus, L. ; Le Pouillot , Enl. 651, 1; Naum. 80, 3.
Somewhat larger than the Roitelet, of the same colour, but without
the crown ; its habits are similar, but it has a more agreeable song,
and disappears in winter.

Motac. hypolais; Le grand Pouillot , Bechst. Ill, xxiv; Enl.
581, 2 ; Naum. 81, 1. Is still a little larger, and the abdomen more
of a silvery appearance J.

The species foreign to Europe are extremely numerous, and are
very often agreeably coloured §.

Troglodytes, Cuv.

The only difference between the Wrens and the present subgenus is,
that in the latter the bill is still a little more slender and slightly arcuated.
But one species is found in Europe.

Mot. troglodytes , L.; Roitelet , Enl. 651,2; Naum. 83, 4. (The
European Wren). Brown, transversely striated with black; some
white on the throat and the edge of the wing ; a turned-up and short

* Certain Fauvettes, European as well as foreign, such as the S. sarda, have a
little circle round the eye. They form the genus Zosterops of Vigors and Hors-
field.

f Add the Roitelet omnicolor, Vieill. Galer. 166.

+ Add of European species: Mot. sibilatrix, Col. 245, 3; Naum. 80, 2; — M. fittis,
Naum. 80, 3; — M. rufa, Naum. 80, 4.

§ Such are the Tscheric, Vaill. Ill, 121; — the Cou-jaune (Mot. pensilis ), Enl. 685,
5; — Mot. (estiva, Enl. 58, 2; — the Mot. ludoviciana, Enl. 731, 2; — the Fig. a poitrine
jaune (Mot. mystacea ), Enl. 709, 2, Edw. 237, 2; — the Fig. cendre du Canada (M.
Canadensis ), Enl. 685, 2; —the Fig. de Visle de France (M. mauritiand), Enl. 705, 1;
— the Plastron noir, Vaill. Ill, 123; — Sylvia venusta, Tern. Col. 293, 1; — S. speciosa,
lb. 2; — S. palbebrosa, lb., &c. &c. Those whose bill is somewhat broad at the base,
are closely allied to the narrow-billed Flycatchers. For the catalogue of species in
the United States, see the Catalogue of Species by M. Ch. Bonaparte, Lyc. New, York,
July 11, 1826. p. 76, ct seq.

258

BIRDS.

tail. It builds on the ground, and cheers us with its pleasing song
even in the middle of winter (a).

Motacilla, Bechst.

The Wagtails, to a still slenderer bill than that of the Fauvettes, add a
long tail which they are continually raising and depressing, long legs, and
scapular feathers sufficiently extended to cover the tip of the folded wing,
which gives them an affinity with the greater number of Waders.

Motacilla, Cuv.

The true Wagtails still have the nail of the thumb curved like the rest
of the group. They live along the shores of water courses.

That of France (Mot. alba and cmerea, L.), Enl. 652, is ash-
coloured above, white beneath; a calotte on the occiput; throat and
breast, black.

The south of Europe produces one which, when old, has a black
back, but resembling the preceding when young. It is the Mot.
lugubris , Roux, 194.

Budytes *, Cuv.

In addition to the other characters of the true Wagtails, the nail of the
thumb is here elongated and but slightly arcuated, which approximates
these birds to the Larks. They generally remain in pastures, and pursue
insects among the cattle. The most common is,

Mot. fiava; Bergeronnette de printems; Enl. 674, 2. Ash-co-
loured above, olive on the back, yellow beneath ; the eyebrow and
two-thirds of the lateral quills of the tail white ■f.

Anthus, Bechst.

The Meadow Larks were long united to the Larks (. Alauda ), on ac-
count of the long nail of their thumb; but their slender and emarginated
bill approximates them to the other warblers, at the same time that their
secondary quills and coverts, which are as short as usual, will not allow
them to be confounded with budytes. Those which still have the nail
somewhat arcuated are in the habit of perching.

A. arbor eus, Bechst. ; Alauda trivialis and minor , Gm. ; the Pipi ,
Enl. 660, lj; Naum. 84, 2, Roux. Olive-brown above, reddish-

* Budytes, from its being seen among cattle,
f Add the Mot. boarula, L. Edw., 259, and Vieill. Gal. 162.

X Under the false name of Farlouse; the Pivote ortolane, Buff. Enl. 642, 2 ( Mota-
cilla maculata, Gm.), is the young bird. See Roux, 288.

IT (a) The Wrens foreign to Europe are allied to the Ant-catchers on the one
hand, and to the Creepers on the other. Add the Thriotore a long bee ( Thr. longi-
rostris, Vieill. Gal. 168, or Kampylorhynchus scolopaceus, Spix, 79). [Add Trog.
aedon, Wils. I, pi. iii, f. 3; — Trog. palustris ( Thyothorus arundinaceus, Vieill.), Wils.
II, pi. xii, f. 4; — Trog. ludovicianus ( Sylvia ludoviciana , Lath.), Wils. II, pi. xii,
f. v.— Eng. Ed.]

PASSERINE. 259

grey beneath; breast spotted with black; two pale, transverse bands
on the wing.

The thumb nail of others is exactly that of an alauda, and they gene-
rally remain on the ground.

A. pratensis, Bechst. ; Alauda pratensis, G m. ; Alouette de pre,
Enl. 661, 2*; Naum. 84, 3 and 85, 1. Olive-brown above, whitish
beneath ; brown spots on the breast and flanks ; whitish eyebrows ;
edges of the external quills of the tail white. It prefers low or in-
undated meadows, and builds among reeds and tufts of grass. It
becomes excessively fat in autumn by feeding on grapes, and is sought
for at that period in France by the name of Bec-jigue and Vinette'f.

We shall terminate this family of the Dentirostres with some birds
distinguished from all preceding ones by their two external toes, which
are united at their base for about a third of their length, a circumstance
which approximates them to the family of the Syndactyli.

Pifra, Lin.

The Manakins have a compressed bill, higher than it is broad, and
emarginated; large nasal fossae. Their feet and tail are short; the ge-
neral proportions of their form have long caused them to be considered as
very similar to the titmouse. At their head, but in a separate group,
should be placed,

Rupicola, Briss.

The Rock Manakins, or Cocks of the Rock, which are large birds, and
have a double vertical crest on the head, formed of feathers arranged like
a fan. The adult males of the two American species, Pipra rupicola , Gm.
£nl. 39 and 747 ; Vieill. Gal. 189, and Pip. peruviana, Lath. Enl. 745,
are of a most splendid orange colour; the young of an obscure brown.
They live on fruit, scratch the ground like the common hen, and construct
their nests with pieces of dry wood, in the depths of rocky caverns. The
female lays two eggs.

Calyptomenes, Horsfield.

Only differs from the preceding by the feathers on the head not being dis-
posed like a fan ; this same character, in a minor degree, may be observed
in the Pip. peruviana.

There is a species found in the archipelago of India of the most
beautiful emerald green — Cal. viridis, Horsf. Jav., which is not larger
than a thrush.

* Improperly called Alouette pipi; Nauman refers this figure to his An thus aqua-
ticus, of which he thinks it is the young male. We may observe, that the synonymes
of this subgenus are not less obscure than those of the Fauvettes.

f Add the Anthus aquaticus, Naum. 85, 2, 34; — La Rousseline ( Antli . Campestris ),
Enl. 661, 1; Naum. 84, 1 ; or Alauda mosellana, Lath., of which the young is called
Fist in Provence, Enl. 654, 1 ( Motac . massiliensis, Gm.) See Roux, p. 292; — the Antli.
Ilir.hardi, Vieill. Id. 101, and Roux, 189, 190. Among those foreign to Europe place
the Alauda capensis, Enl. 50 1, 2; Al.ruja , lb. 238, 1; probably the rubra, Edw.
297; — Anthus rufulus, Vieill. Gal. 161.

GOO

BIRDS.

PlPRA, CUV.

The Manakins, properly so called, are small, and remarkable in general
for their lively colours*. They live in small flocks, in forests, on low
grounds.

Eurylaimus, Florsf.

Toes similar to those of the Manakins and the Rock Manakins ; but
the bill, as strong as that of the Tyrants, is enormously broad and depress-
ed, the base even surpassing the width of the forehead. The point is a
little hooked, and slightly emarginate on each side ; the ridge is blunt.

These birds inhabit the archipelago of India. The ground of their
plumage is black, variegated with patches of bright colours, and they have
something of the air of the Bucco, a genus of a very different order. They
live near the water, and feed on insects (a) y.

FAMILY II.

FXSSIROSTRES.

The Fissirostres form a family, numerically small, but very distinct
from all others in the bill, which is short, broad, horizontally flattened,
slightly hooked, unemarginate, and with an extended commissure, so that
the opening of the mouth is very large, which enables them to swalloty
with ease the insects they capture while on the wing.

They are most nearly allied to the Flycatchers, and to the Procniae in
particular, whose bill only differs from theirs in being emarginate.

Their decidedly insectivorous regimen eminently qualifies them for birds
of passage, which leave us in the winter.

* Pipra militaris, Sh. Nat. Misc. 849; — Pipra caudata, Sh. Nat. Misc. 153, Spix. 6;
■ — Pipra filicauda, Spix, 8; — Pipra pareola, Enl. 637, 2, and 303, 2; — superba, Pallas,
Sp. 1, pi. iii, f. 1 ; — erytlirocephala, Enl. 34, 1 ; — aureola, 34, 3, and 302; — rubrocapilla,
Col. 54, 3, or cornuta, Spix, 7, 2; — coronata, Sp. 7, 1, 2; — serena, Enl. 324, 2, and
Vieill. Gal. 72; — gutturalis, 324, 1; leucocapilla, 34, 2; manacus, 302, 1, and 303, 1;
strigilata, Pr. Max. Col. 54, 1 , 2.

f Todus macrorhynchos, Gm., Lath., Syn.rII, pi. xxx, and Col. 154, under the
name of Euryl. nasutus ; — Euryl. javanus, Horsf., and Col. 130 and 131, under the
name of Euryl. Horsfieldii ; — Eur. cucullatus, Tern. Col. 261 ; — Eur. Blainvillii, Less,
and Garn. Voy. de la Coquille, pi. xix, f. 2. The character of the bill is excessively
developed in the Eur. corydon, Tern. Col. 297.

( a ) Yieillot's genus Icteria properly comes in this place. It is characterised
as follows: — Bill strong, convex, curved, compressed, nearly entire, and bristly at its
base; mandibles nearly equal, the edges being somewhat inverted; nostrils round,
and half covered by a membrane; tongue slightly bifid at the tip. One species only
is known, and it is described by Wilson as the Pipra polyglotta. — Eng. Ed.

PASSERINE. 261

They are separated, like the birds of prey, into two divisions, the diur-
nal and the nocturnal. The genus

Hi run do, Lin .

Or the Swallow, comprehends the diurnal species, all of which are re-
markable for their dense plumage, extreme length of wing, and velocity
of flight. Among them we distinguish

Cypselus, Illiyer.

The Martinets have, of all birds, the longest wings in proportion to their
size, and the greatest powers of flight. Their tail is forked; their ex-
tremely short feet have this very peculiar character, that the thumb is di-
rected forward almost as much as the other toes, and the middle and ex-
ternal ones consist each of only three phalanges like the internal one.

The shortness of their humerus, the breadth of its apophyses, their oval
fourchette, their sternum not emarginate beneath, — all indicate, even in the
skeleton, their fitness for vigorous flight ; but the shortness of their feet,
together with the length of their wings, prevents them, when on the ground,
from rising, and consequently, they pass their lives, if I may so express
it, in the air, pursuing in flocks, and with loud cries, their insect prey
through the highest regions of the atmosphere. They build in holes of
walls, or fissures in rocks, and climb along the smoothest surfaces with
great rapidity.

The common species, Hirundo apus , L., Enl. 541, 1, is black,
with a white throat.

That from high mountains, Hirundo melba , L.; Edw. 27 ; Vaill.
Afr. 243; Vieill. Gal. 121, is larger, brown above, and white be-
neath, with a brown collar under the neck (A).

Hirundo, Cuv.

The Swallows, properly so called, have the toes and sternum disposed
like those of the Passerinae generally. In some of them the feet are in-
vested with feathers down to the nails ; the thumb still exhibits a dispo-
sition to incline forward; the tail is forked, and of a moderate size.

11. urbica, L.; Hirondelle de fenetre, Enl. 542, 2. (The Mar-
tin). Black above; underneath, and the rump, white. The sub-
stantial nest it constructs of earth, at the angles of windows, under
eaves of houses, &c. is well known to every one*.

Others have naked toes, and the forks of the tail very often extremely
long.

* Add Hirundo cayennensis , Enl. 725, 2; — Hir. iudoviciana, Nob. Enl. 725, 1, and
Catesby, 1, 51 — Hir. montana; — the same as the rupestris.

jSgs° (a) Add Hir. sinensis ; — the Martinet h croupe blanche , Vaill. Afr. 244, 1? —
the Martinet velocifere , Id. Ib. 241, 2? — the Martinet a moustaches (Cyps. mystaceus,
Less, and Gam.), Voy. de la Coquille, No. 122; — the M. Coiffe (C. comatus, T.), Col.
2(38; — the M. longipcnne (Hir. longipennis, T. , Col. 83, 1. [Add Cyps. pelagicus,
Wils. V. pi. xxxix. f. 1. — Eng. Ed.]

262

BIRDS.

H. rustica, Enl. 543, 1. (The Chimney Swallow). Black above;
forehead, eyebrows, and throat, red, all the remaining under part
white. The name is derived from its usual place of residence.

H. rijp aria ; Hirondelle de rivage; Enl. 453, 2. (The Sand
Martin). Brown above, and on the breast; the throat, and under-
neath^ white. It lays in holes along the banks of rivers. That it
becomes torpid during the winter, and even passes that season under
water in the bottom of marshes, appears to be certain.

Among the Swallows foreign to Europe, we should remark,

Hir. esculenta , L. (The Salanganes). A very small species
from the Archipelago of India, with a forked tail ; brown above ; be-
neath, and the tip of the tail, whitish ; celebrated for its nest, com-
posed of a whitish gelatinous substance, arranged in layers, and con-
structed with a particular species of fucus, with slender and whitish
stalks, which it previously grinds and macerates. The renovating
qualities attributed to these nests in China have rendered them an
important article in the commerce of that country* * * §. They are dress-
ed like mushrooms.

There are some swallows in foreign countries, in which the tail is
nearly squaref, and others where it is short, square, and the quills ter-
minating in a point J.

Caprymulgus§, Lin .

The Goatsuckers have the same light, soft plumage, shaded with grey
and brown, that characterizes the nocturnal birds. Their eyes are large ;
the bill with a commissure extending still higher up than that of the swal-
low, and furnished with stiff mustachios, is capable of engulphing the
largest insects, which are retained there by a glutinous saliva ; the nos-
trils, formed like small tubes, are at its base. Their wings are long;
their feet short, with feathered tarsi, and their toes united at their base
by a short membrane.. The thumb itself is thus united to the internal
toe, and can direct itself forwards ; the middle nail is often dentated on its

* Here come: Hir. americana, Wils. Y, xxxviii, 1, 2, or rufa, Vieill. Am. 3; — an-
other, Hir. rufa , Enl. 724, 1 ; — Hir.fulva, Vieill. Am. 32; — Hir. fasciata, Enl. 724, 2;
— Hir. violacea, Enl. 722, or H. purpurea, Wils. V, xxxix, 1, 2; — Hir. chalyboea, Enl.
545, 2; — Hir. senegalensis, Enl. 310; — Hir. capensis , Enl. 723, 2; — Hir. indica, Lath.
Syn. II, pi. lvi; — Hir. panayana, Sonner, Voy. I, pi. lxxxvi; — Hir. subis, Edw. 120;
— Hir. ambrosiaca, Briss. II, pi. xiv. fig. 4; — Hir. tapera, lb., fig. 3; — Hir. nigra , Id.,
pi. xlvi, fig. 3; — Hir. daurica; — Hirondelle a front roux, Vaill. Afr. 245, 2; — Hir. de
marais, Id. Ib. 246, 2; — Hir. Kuppee, Id. Ib. 247 ; — Cyps. senex. T. 397 ; — Hir. fucata,
Tern. Col. 161, 1; — Hir. jugularis, Pr. Max., Col. ib. 2; — Hir. javaniea, Lath. Col.
83, 2; — Hir. melanoleuca, Pr. Max., Col. 209, 2; — Hir. minuta, Pr. Max., Col. Ib. 1;
— Hir. bicolor, Vieill. Am. 31, or H. viridis, Wils. V, xxxviii, 3.

f Hir. dominicensis, Enl. 545, 1; — Hir. torquata, Enl. 723, 1; — Hir. leucoptera,
Enl. 546, 1; — Hir. francica, Enl. 544, 2; — Hir. borbonica ;~H. americana; — Hir.
fauve, Vaill. Af. 246, 1.

X Hir. acuta, Enl. 544, 1 ; — Hir. pelasgia, Enl. 726, 1 and 2, and Wils. V, xxxix, 1 ;
— Cypselus giganteus, Tern. Col. 364; — Hir. albicollis, Vieill., Galer. 120, or Cyps. col -
laris, Pr. Max., Col. 195.

§ Caprimulgus, Goatsucker, JEgothelas, names which derive their origin from the
whimsical idea entertained by the vulgar, of their sucking goats, and even cows.

N. B. M. Vigors and Horsfield make a genus (^gotheles) of the Caprimulgus
Novae -Hollands, Philip., Bot. B. 270.

PASSERINE.

263

inner edge, and the external toe has but four phalanges, a conformation
very rare among birds. Goatsuckers live solitarily, and never venture
abroad, except at twilight, and in the night during fine weather. They
hunt Phalenas and other nocturnal insects, and lay a small number of eggs
on the bare ground, without taking any pains in the construction of a
nest. The rushing of the air into their immense mouth, whjle on the
wing, produces a very peculiar humming sound. There is but one spe-
cies in Europe,

Capr. europceus, L.; Enl. 193. (European Goatsucker). Size
of a thrush ; of an undulated greyish-brown, mottled with blackish
brown ; a whitish band reaching from the bill to the back of the neck.
It builds in the furze or long grass, and lays only two eggs.

America produces several of these birds with a round or square
tail, one of which is as large as an owl, Caprim. grandis, Enl. 325 ;
and another, C. vociferus, Wils. V, xli, celebrated on account of
its loud and peculiar cries in the spring of the year* * * §. One of them
is found in New Holland.

There are some also in Africavj~, part of which have a pointed
tail and others, whose forked one affords an additional indication
of the affinity between this genus and that of the swallows§. There
is even one in America, the forks of whose tail are longer than the
body 1 1 ; the middle nail of these fork-tailed species is not dentated.

One species, likewise from Africa, but with a round tail, is very
remarkable for a feather twice the length of the body, which arises
from near the carpus of each wing, and is barbed only near the end:
the Caprim longipennis , Shaw, Nat. Miscell. 265.

PoDARGUS, CuV.

The Podarges have the form, colour, and habits of the Goatsuckers ;
but the bill is stouter, and there are neither membranes between the toes,
nor is the middle nail dentated**.

P. Cuvieri; P. cendre; Vieill. Galer. 123. Variegated with
ash, whitish and blackish colours; size of a Rook.

P. javanensis, Horsf. Jav. Red, varied with brown; a white
band along the scapulars.

P. cornutus , T., Col. 159. Red, varied with white; large tufts
of feathers at the ears.

* Add Capr. virginianus, Edw. 63, or americanus, Wils. V, xl, 1, 2, which appears to
me at any rate very nearly allied to the guyanensis, Enl. 733; it has been confounded
with the vociferus; — Capr. carolinensis, Catesb. 8, Wils. VI, liv. 2, a species very closely
allied to that of Europe; — C.jamaicensis , Lath., Syn. Tl, pi. lvii; — C.rufus, Enl. 735 ;
— C. senator quat us, Enl. 734; — C. cayennensis, Enl. 760; — C. acutus, Enl. 752; — C
Nattereri, Col. 107; — C.diurnus , Pr. Max., Col. 182; — C. mystacalis, Tem.

t C. infuscatus, Ruppel., pi. vi; — C. isabeliinus, T. Col. 379; — C. eximius, Ruppel. ,
Col. 398.

X C. climacurus, Vieill. Galer. 122.

§ Capr.furcatus , Cuv. Vaill. Afr. 47 ; — C.pectoralis, Id. Ib. 94.

|| C. psalurus , Tem. Col. 117, 151.

** M. Vigors considers this subgenus as connecting Caprimulgus with Ulula .

£64

BIRDS.

FAMILY III.

CONIROSTRES.

The Conirostres comprehend genera with a strong bill, more or less
conical, and unemarginate ; the stronger and thicker their bill, the more
exclusively is grain their food. The first genus to be distinguished is,

Alauda, Lin.

The Larks are known by the nail of their thumb, which is straight,
strong, and much longer than the others*. They are granivorous birds,
and pulverators. They build on the ground, and generally keep there.

The bill of the greater number is straight, moderately stout and
pointed.

Al. arvensis ; Alouette des champs, Enl. 368, 1; Naum. 100, 1.
(The Sky Lark). Universally known by its perpendicular mode of
soaring, accompanied by its varied and powerful song, and by the
abundance with, which it is procured for our tables. It is brown
above ; whitish underneath ; spotted throughout, with a deeper
shade of brown ; the two external quills of the tail white outside.

Al. cristata; Le Cochevis, Enl. 503, 1; Naum. 99, 1. (The
Crested Lark). Nearly the same size and plumage; but it has the
power of erecting the feathers on its head into a tuft ; not so common
as the preceding, and frequents the vicinity of villages and copses.

Al. arborea ; Al. nemorosa ; Cujelier ; Enl. 503, 2; Naum.
100, 2. (The Wood Lark). Has a small, but not so strongly mark-
ed tuft; it is smaller, and is otherwise distinguished by a whitish
streak round the head, and a white line on the little coverts, it prefers
the heaths in the interior of the forests')". We sometimes see in Europe,
Al. alpestris, Al.fiava, and Al. sibirica, Gm. ; Alouette a hausse-
col noir, Enl. 652, 2; Naum. 99, 2, 3; Wils. I. v. 4. From Si-
beria and North America; forehead, cheeks, and throat, yellow,
with black streaks; a large, black, transverse spot on the top of the
breast; a small pointed tuft behind each ear of the male.

Some of them have so stout a bill, that, with respect to it, we might
approximate them to the Sparrows. Such are

Al. calandra ; La Calandre ; Enl. 363, 2; Naum. 98, 1. The
largest of the European species; brown above; white beneath; a

* This character is more or less marked in Budytes, Alauda, Anthus, of
which we have already spoken, and in the Emberiza nivalis, which we have yet to
mention.

f Add, of European species, the Girole {Al. italica)-, — the Coquillade {Al. undata),
Enl. 662; the Short-toed Larlc, Al. brachydactyla, Naum. 98, 2. Species foreign to
Europe, the Bateleuse, Vaill. Afr. 194; — the Dos roux, Id. 197; — the Calotte rousse,
Id. 198.

N. B. The Al. magna, Catesb. I, 33, is merely the Sturnus ludoviciavus.

PASSERINE. 265

large blackisli spot on the breast of the male. From the south of
Europe, and the deserts of Asia. But especially,

Al. tartarica, and mutabilis, and Tanagra sibirica, Gm. — Alouette
de Tartarie, Sparm. Mus. Carls, pi. xix. ; Vieill. Galer. 160. The
plumage of the adult black, undulated above with grey. It occa-
sionally wanders into Europe *.

In others, the bill is elongated, slightly compressed, and arcuated,
which connects them with Upupa and Promerops. Such is

Al. africana, Gm. ; Le Sirli, Enl. 712; Vieill. Galer. 159.
Common in all the sandy plains of Africa; its plumage scarcely
differs from that of the Arvensis'f.

Parus, Lin.

The Titmouse has a slender, short, conical and straight bill, furnished
with little hairs at the base, and the nostrils concealed among the feathers.
It is a genus of very active little birds, which are continually flitting and
climbing from branch to branch, suspending themselves therefrom in all
sorts of positions, rending apart the seeds on which they feed, devouring
insects wherever they see them, and not sparing even small birds when
they happened to find them sick, and are able to put an end to them. They
lay up stores of seeds, build in the holes of old trees, and lay more eggs
than any of the Passerinae. There are six species of Parus, properly so
called, in France.

P. major, L. ; La Charbonniere,'En\. 3. 1; Naum. 94, 1. (The
Great Titmouse). An olive colour above; yellow beneath; the
head, as well as a longitudinal band on the breast, black: a white
triangle on each cheek. Very common in copses and gardens.

P. ater , L. ; La petite charbonniere, Frisch, I. pi. xiii. 2; Naum.
94, 2. Smaller than the preceding ; an ash colour in place of the
olive, and whitish instead of the yellow. Prefers the great pine
forests.

P. palustris, L.; La Nonnette; Enl. 3, 3; Naum. 94, 4. (The
Marsh Titmouse). Ash- coloured above; whitish beneath; a black
calotte.

P. cceruleus , L. ; La Mesange a tete bleue; Enl. 3, 2 ; Naum. 95,
1, 2. (The Blue-headed Titmouse). Olive above ; yellowish beneath;
top of the head a fine blue ; the cheek white, surrounded with black ;
forehead white. A pretty little bird, very common in the underwood.

P. cristatus, L. ; Le M. huppee, Enl. 502, 2. (The Crested Tit-
mouse). Brownish above ; whitish beneath ; throat and circumfer-
ence of the cheek, black; a little tuft mottled with black and white.

P. caudatus, L. ; Le M. a longue queue , Enl. 502, 3 ; Naum. 95,
4, 5, 6. (The long-tailed Titmouse). Black above ; wing coverts,

J * Add, the Tracal, Vaill. Afr. pi. cxci; — the Al. gros bee, Id., pi. cxciii.
t Add, Al. bifasciata, Rupp. pi. 5; Col. 393.

N.R. Swainson separates from A lauda the Batclcur of Vaill. pi. 194, under the
name of Brachonyx; his Sevtinel/e, 195, under that of Macronyx; and of my
division with long beaks he makes his Certhilauda.

VOL. 1. Z

!

I

266

BIRDS,

brown ; upper part of the head and all beneath, white : tail longer
than the body. It builds its nest on the branches of small trees, and
roofs it over*. The

Bearded Titmouse

Differs from the true ones in the upper mandible of the bill, the end of
which is slightly bent upon the other. There is but one in France.

Par. biarmicus, L. ; La Moustache , Enl. 618, 1 and 2; Vieill.
69; Naum. 96. (The Bearded Titmouse). Fawn coloured; head
of the male cinereous, with a black band which surrounds the eye,
terminating in a point behind. It builds among the thickest rushes,
and is found, though rarely, throughout the whole of the eastern
continent.

Remiz.

The bill more slender and pointed than that of the common Titmouse,
and there is generally more art displayed in the construction of its nest.
There is but one found in France.

Par. pendulinus; Le Remiz; Enl. 618, 3; Vieill. 70; Naum.
79. Cinereous; wings and tail brown; a black band on the fore-
head, which, in the male, is continued to behind the eyes. This little
bird, inhabiting the south and east of Europe, is celebrated for the
pretty, purse-shaped nest, formed of the down from the poplar and
willow, and lined with feathers, which it suspends to the flexible
branches of aquatic trees vj“.

Emberiza, Lin.

The Buntings have a very distinct character in their conical, short, and
straight bill, the upper mandible of which is narrow, sinks into the lower, |
and has a projecting, hard tubercle on the palate. They are granivorous, !
and unsuspicious birds, which run into every snare that is laid for them. j
E. citrinella , L. ; Bruant commun; Enl. 30, 1; Naum. 102, 1,2. j
(The Yellow Bunting). Fawn-coloured back, spotted with black;
head, and all the under part of the body, yellow; the inner edge of ■
the two external quills of the tail, white. It builds in hedges, and

* Several species of the European Titmouse are also represented in the work ot
M. Roux, pi. cxvii — cxxiv. Add, Parus bicolor (Catesb. I, 57); — P. cyanus (Nov.
Comm. Petrop. xiv, pi. xiii, fig. I, and 23, fig. 2), and P. scelbyensis (Sparm. M.
Carls., pi. xxv), which appear to Bechstein to he the two sexes of one and the same
species. Vieill. Gal. 68; Naum. 95, 6; — P. atricapillus (Briss. iii, pi. xxix, fig. 1);
— P.sibiricus (Enl. 708, fig. 3), and P. palustris, B. (Enl. 502, 1), which are three
varieties, or very closely allied species; — P. atriceps, Horsf.; Col. 287, 2.

The Parus malabaricus (Sonner. Voy. II, pi. cx, 1), and the coccineus , (Sparm.
Mus. Carls. 48, 49), P.furcatus, Col. 287, 1, areSaxicolse or Flycatchers, neighbours
to the Oranor, Vaill., or Mot. ruticilla , L., or Turdus speciosus, Lath. It may be ob-
served, that in every instance where the characters of a bird are not well defined,
it has been bandied about from one genus to another.

f Parus narbonensis (Enl. 708, 1), appears to be the female of the pendulinus;
add, the Parus capensis, (Sonner. Voy. II. pi. cxii.), whose nest, made of cotton, and
shaped like a bottle, has a kind of spout on the edge of the neck for the male to
perch on.

PASSERINE. 267

approaches our dwellings in winter, in numberless flocks, along with
the Finches, &c., when the snow covers the ground.

E. cia, L. ; Bruant fou ; Enl. 30, 2; Naum. 104, 1, 2. (The
Foolish Bunting). Differs from the preceding, in being reddish-
grey beneath, and having the sides of the head whitish, surrounded
by black lines, forming a triangle. From mountainous districts*.

E. cirlus,Yi . ; Bruant des haies; Enl. 653; Naum. 102, 3, 4.
(The Hedge Bunting). Throat black; sides of the head yellow.
Builds in the underwood on the borders of fields f.

E. schceniclus , L. ; B. de roseaux; Enl. 247j 2; Naum. 105.
(The Reed Bunting). A black calotte on the head; spots of the
same colour on the breast ; back red. Builds at the foot of a bush
on the brink of a stream, &c. J The largest species in France is,

E. miliaria, L. ; LeProyer; Enl. 233; Naum. 101, 1. (The
Common Bunting). Brownish-grey, every where spotted with a
deeper brown. Builds in grass, among grain, &c. The most cele-
brated for the flavour of its flesh is,

E. hortulana, L. ; Enl. 247, 1 ; Naum. 103. (The Ortolan).
The back olive-brown; throat yellowish; the inner side of the two
external feathers of the tail white. Builds in hedges: is very fat,
and common in autumn ||.

E. melanocephala, Scop.; Naum. 101, 2; Fring. crocea, Vieill.,
Ois. Tab. 27. (The Black-headed Bunting). Fawn-colour above;
yellow underneath ; black head. Is sometimes seen in the south of
Europe. Also,

E. pithyornis, Pall.; Naum. 104, 3. (The Pine Bunting).
The throat, and a streak on the side of the head, red chesnut colour.
M. Meyer distinguishes those Buntings which have the nail of the
thumb elongated, like that of the Lark, by the name of Plectrophanes.
Such is

* The Emb. lotharingica, Enl. 511, 1, is the same.

f The Emb. passerina is also referred to it; and perhaps the Emb. provincialise
Enl. 656, 1, and lesbia, lb. 2, are only accidental varieties of the same. See Roux,
p. 176 and 178.

+ M. Wolf thinks that the Emb. chlorocephala , and the Emb. badensis, should he
united with it.

|| The Emb. melbensis, Sparm. Mus. Carls., 1, 21, is merely a young Ortolan.

Notwithstanding all the synonymes we have pointed out, we are still compelled to
remove from this genus the Emb. brumalis, which is the same bird as the Fringill.
citrinella, Enl. 658, 2; — E. rubra, the same as Fring. erythrocephala, Enl. 665, 1, 2;
— all the widows, as I shall hereafter remark; — Emb. quadricolor, Enl. 101,2; — Emb.
cyanopis, Briss. III. pi. viii, fig. 4; — Emb. ccerulea, Id. Ib. xiv, 2, the same as cya~
nella, Sparm. Carls. II, 42, 43, which arc three cross-bills; — Emb. quelea, Enl. 223,
1; — Emb. capensis , Enl. 158 and 564; — Emb. borbonica , Enl. 321, 2; — Emb. brasilien-
sis, Ib. I, which are four Finches; — Emb. ciris , Enl. 158, which is a Linnet; — and,
finally, Emb. oryzivora, Enl. 388, which has the bill of a Linnet, independently of the
species I have not been able to examine. But we must certainly place in the genus
Emberiza, the Emb. gubernator, T., Col. 63, the same as the Emb. cristatclla, Vieill.
Gal. 67; — Emb. striolata , Ruppel. Av., pi. 10, a; — Emb. casia, Id. Ib. b; — The Ta-
nagra cristatclla, graminea, rujficollis, Spix, 53, are also Buntings.

The EMnnuizoinES, Tern., Col. 114, appear to he long and taper-tailed ( etagee )
buntings, whose bill approaches somewhat to that of the finches.

268

BIRDS.

Emb. nivalis , L. ; Bruant de neige; Enl. 511; Naum. 106 and
107. (The Snow Bunting). Known by abroad longitudinal white
band on the wing. A northern bird, which becomes nearly all white
in winter*. To this we should add,

Fring. laponica, Gm., or calcarata, Pall. Fr. Tr. III., pi. 1, 1;
Grand Montain of Buff.; Naum. 108. (The Lapland Bunting).
Spotted with black, on a fawn-coloured ground, the throat and upper
part of the breast of the male, black. Inhabits the same countries
as the preceding; is sometimes, but rarely, seen in France during
the winter.

Fringilla, Lin .

The Sparrows have a conical bill, more or less thick at base ; but its
commissure is not angular. They feed generally on grain, and are, for the
most part, voracious and noxious. We subdivide them as follows: —

Ploceus^, Cuv.

The Weavers are provided with such a large bill, that they have been
partly classed with the Cassici ; but its straight commissure distinguishes
them from the latter. The upper mandible is moreover slightly convex.
They are found in both worlds, and most of those in the eastern con-
tinent are very skilful in the construction of their nest, which they form
of intertwined blades of grass, from which circumstances they receive
their name. Such is

Loxia philippini, L.; Toucnam-Courvi des Philippines ; Enl. 135.
Yellow, spotted with brown; black throat. Its nest, which is a sus-
pended sphere, is pierced by a vertical canal, opening underneath,
and communicating with a cavity on the side in which the young ones
are lodged J.

Some of them form a single mass of a great number of individual nests,
which contains several distinct apartments. Such is

Loxia socia, Lath.; Paters. Yoy. pi. xix. (The Republican), j
An olive brown; yellowish beneath; head and quills brown or j
blackish.

Among those of the western continent, we may remark,

Oriolus niger, Or. oryzivorus, Corvus surinamensis, Gm. ; Man-

* The Emb. montana, and the Emb. mustelina, are merely different states of the
Snow Bunting.

f Plokus, Weaver, — Vieill. has adopted this name and genus, Gal. pi. Ixxxiv.

N. B. The Emberizoides of Temm. have become the Tardivola of Swainson,
and the Emb. oryzivora forms the genus Dolichonyx of the same naturalist.

X Add, the Capmore, Buff. (Oriolus textor, Gm.), Enl. 375 and 376; — Fringilla ery- j

throcephala, Enl. 665, Vieill. Ois. eh. 28; — the pretended Tangara de malimbe, Daud. I
An. Mus. I, p. 148 pi. x, or Malimbe huppe, Vieill. Ois. ch. 42 and 43; — the Malimbe ;!
orange , Id. 44; — Malimbe a gorge noir, Id. 45; — the Tisserin a front d’or (Ploc. auri-
frons, Tern. Col. 175, 176); — the Baglafecht (Lox. abyssinica) ; — the Nelicourvi ( Lox .
pensilis ), Sonn. Voy. II, pi. cix; — -the Worabee (Fring. abyssinica, Gm.), Vieill. Ois.
eh. 28; — Fring. erythrocephala, Gm.; Vieill. Ib. 28. We might distinguish the Ploc.
alecto, Tern. Col. 446, which has an inflation at the base of the hill.

PASSERINE,

269

geur de riz; Cassique noir , &c. ; Enl. 534; Brown, 111. X; Wils.
Ann. Ill, xxi, 4, (the Rice-Eater), which, in immense flocks, de-
vastates the fields of several of the warmer portions of America. Its
colour is a changeable black, reflecting all the magnificent tints of
burnished steel*.

PYRGITAf, Cuv.

In the Sparrows proper the bill is shorter than in the preceding birds,
conical, and merely a little convex near the point.

Fringilla domestica, Enl. 6, 1; Naum. 115. (The Common
Sparrow). Builds in holes of walls, and infests inhabited places by
its audacity and voracity. Brown, spotted with black above, grey
underneath ; a whitish band on the wing ; sides of the calotte red in
the male ; his throat black.

There is a species, or a variety, in Italy, of which the male’s head
is entirely chesnut colour — Fr. cisaljpina, Tern.; Fr. Italice, Vieill.
Galer. 63. The black on the throat sometimes extends to the
breast; it is then the Fr. hispaniolensis.

Fr. montana; Le Friquet; Enl. 267, 1; Naum. 116, 1, 2. The
Mountain Linnet remains further from our habitations. It has two
white bands on the wing, a red calotte, and the side of the head white,
with a black spot J.

* Nomenclators have not yet succeeded in putting in order the black birds of
America, more or less nearly allied to the Cassici, for the want of sufficiently de-
tailed descriptions. We think it right to indicate the principal ones here, and at the
same time to point out such of their synonymes as appear to be the most clearly as-
certained.

1. The Cassique noir a mantelet, as above.

2. The bird mentioned above, well drawn, but painted without its reflected tints,
Enl. 534, and quoted under Oriolus niger. The Oriolus ludovicianus, Enl. 646, is only
an albino variety of the same. It is evidently the Corvus surinamensis, Brown, III,
pi. x. The Little Choucas of Jamaica, Sloane, Jam. II. 299, pi. cclvii, 1, quoted by
Pennant as Gracula barita, and as quiscala, is the same bird again. On the other
hand, it is impossible to doubt that Latham had it before him when he described his
Oriolus oryzivorous.

3. The true Carouge noir, with purple changes, bill rather short, but very straight,
given as a Tanager, Enl. 710, and from which the Tan. bonariensis has been made;
but this figure really represents the Oriolus minor. The fig. 2, Enl. 606, is given,
but erroneously, for the female, which has a very different appearance.

4. A true Icterus, of a deep black, with violet reflections, sharp-pointed and some-
what arcuated bill, whose tail is hollowed out like a boat. It is the Boat-tailed
Gralcle of Penn, and Latham, which both those gentlemen consider as synonymous
with the Gracula barita, and yet it certainly is the bird of Catesb. pi. 12, of which
Lin. made his Gracula quiscala; but Catesby has given a bad drawing of the bill.

5. A black bird, witli violet and green reflections, somewhat cuneiform ( etagee )
tail, and the bill of an Icterus, but more arcuated near the point, &c. (a).

f Pyrgila, the Greek name for the Domestic Finch.

X The Ilambouvreux, Buff'. ( Loxia hambicrgia, Gm.), is merely the Friquet , disfi-
gured by Albin., Ois. Ill, pi. 24.

We should add to the ordinary Sparrows, the birds that have been scattered about
by naturalists as follows, viz., Fringilla arcuata, Enl. 230, fig. 1, where it is much too
red; its true tints are those of the Sparrows; — Fr. crucigera, Tern. 269; — Emberiza

(a) The bird quoted from Wils. Ill, xxi, 4, is not a Ploceus. It is the Quis-
calus versicolor, Bonap., or the Gracula quiscala, L. — Eng. Ed.

270

BIRDS.

Fringilla, Cuv.

The bill of the Finches is somewhat less arcuated than that of the
Sparrows, a little stronger and longer than in the Linnets. Their man-
ners are more lively, and their song more varied than those of the former.
There are three species in France :

Fring. ccelebs , L. ; [Pinion ordinaire , Enl. 54,1; Naum. 118.
(The Chaffinch). Brown above ; beneath, a vinous-red in the male,
greyish in the female ; two white bands on the wing ; some white on
the sides of the tail. Feeds on all sorts of grain, and builds indis-
criminately on all kinds of trees. No bird contributes more to en-
liven the country.

Fring. montifringilla, L. ; Pinion de montagne; Enl. 54, 2;
Naum. 119. (The Mountain Finch). Black, mottled with fawn
colour above; fawn-coloured breast; under part of the wing of a
beautiful lemon. This bird, which varies greatly, builds in the
thickest forests, and never visits the plains till winter.

Fring. nivalis , L. ; Niverolle , Briss. Ill, xv, 1; Naum. 117.
(The Snow Finch). Brown, mottled with a paler tint of the same
colour above; whitish beneath; head ash coloured; coverts of the
wings, and nearly all the secondary quills, white. The throat of the
male black. It builds among the rocks of the upper Alps, where it
only descends in the middle of winter to the lower mountains ( a ).

Carduelis, Cuv.

The Linnets and Goldfinches have an exactly conical bill', without the
least convex protuberance at any point. They live on grain. Those
which have a little longer and more pointed bill, are styled Goldfinches.

Fring. carduelis , L. ; Enl. 4; Naum. 124, 1, 2. (The Common
Goldfinch). One of the prettiest birds in Europe. Brown above,
whitish beneath ; the mask of a beautiful red ; a fine yellow spot on
the wing, &c. It is also very docile, quickly learns to sing and to
play all kinds of tricks. It prefers the seeds of thistle, eryngium,
&c.* *(b).

Linaria, Bechst.

The Linnets also have an exactly conical bill, but it is shorter and more

capensis, c, Enl. 389, 2, and g, Enl. 664, 2; — Tanagra silens, Enl. 742, of which
Vieill. has made his genus Arremon, Gal. 78; — Fring. elegans , Enl. 205, 1, Vieill.
Gal. 64; — Le pape, Emberiza ciris, Enl. 159, which forms the genus Passerina,
Vieill. Gal. 66; — Loxia oryx , Enl. 6, 2; — Lox. ignicolor, Vieill. Ois. Chant. 59; —
Loxia dominicana, Enl. 55, 2, and the other species, Enl. 103; — Fringilla cristata,
Enl. 181; — the Dioch ( Emb . quelea ), Vieill. Ois. Chant. 23;-— the Dioch rose. Id. 24;
— Lox. capensis. The latter begins to approach the Grosbeaks (a).

* Add, Fr. psittacea, Lath. Syn. II, p. 48; — Fr. melba , Edw. 128 and 272; — Fr.
coccinea, Vieill. Ois. ch. pi. xxxi; — Fr. leucocephala , Lath. Id. 26;— Fr. magellanica ,
Id. 30.

(a) Several American species are described by Wilson.— Eng. Ed.

HgT (b) Add, Pyr. or ythr ophthalmia, Wils. II, pi. x, f. 5; — P. iliaca, Wils. Ill,
p. xxii, f. xiv. — Eng. Ed.

PASSERINE. 271

obtuse than in the GoldJfinches. They feed on seeds of plants ; those of
flax and hemp in particular, and are easily kept imprisoned.

There are some species in Europe, brown, tinted with red, which are
more peculiarly styled Linnets. The quantity of red in the young birds
and females is very various, and sometimes is totally wanting. The bill
of the first is almost as pointed as that of the Goldfinch. It is,

Fr. linaria, L. ; The Siserin; Enl. 485, 2; Vieill. Gal. 65 ; Naum.
126. (The Redpoll). Brown, spotted with black above; two white
bands across the wing ; black throat ; top of the head, as well as the
breast of the adult male, red; the rump is sometimes of the same
colour. A northern bird, of which it is supposed two races have
lately been detected, a large and a small one*.

Fr. cannabina , L. ; Enl. 485,1; Naum. 121. (The Linnet).
Back, fawn-coloured brown ; quills of the wing and tail, black, edged
with white ; whitish underneath ; a fine red on the head and breast
of the old male ; bill grey. Builds among vines, bushes, &c.

An intermediate species, most nearly allied however to the second,
Fring. montium , Gm., Naum. 122, is occasionally seen from the
North. Its bill is yellow, and there is some red on the rump of the
male.

There are other species more or less greenish, which are called by the
French Serins or Tar ins. The

Fring. spinus, L. ; Tarin commun, Enl. 485, 3; Naum. 125.
(The Siskin). Also has a bill more like that of the Goldfinch, and
is even similar in many points to the Redpoll. It is of an olive co-
lour above ; yellow beneath ; calotte, wings and tail, black ; two yel-
low bands on the wing. It builds on the very summits of the tallest
pines.

The other species have the shorter bill of the Linnet.

Fring. citrinella, L. ; Le Venturon, Enl. 658, 2; Vieill. Gal. 62;
Naum. 124, 3, 4. Olive above; yellowish beneath; back of the
head and neck ash coloured.

Fring. serinus, L. ; Le Cini, Enl. 658, 1; Naum. 123. Olive
above; yellowish beneath; spotted with brown; a yellow band on
the wing. Two birds from the mountains of the south of Europe,
about the size of the Fr. spinus.

Fring. canaria, L. ; Enl. 202, 1. (The Canary Bird). Is larger,
and the facility with which it breeds, in a state of confinement, toge-
ther with its melodious and powerful song, have disseminated it every
where, and caused it to vary so much in colour, that it is difficult to
ascertain its original hue. It mixes with most of the other species
of this genus, and often produces hybrids with them, which are more
or less fruitful f.

* See the Mem. dc M. Vieillot, Acad, de Turin, tom. xxiii, p. 198, et seq.
t Among the birds foreign to Europe, which cannot be distinguished from the
Linnets by any generic character, we place, Fring. lepida s—Fr. tristis, Enl.. 202, 2;
— Fr. ictera, Enl. 364; — Fr. nitens , Enl. 224 ; — F. scnegalla, Vaill. Ois. ch. pi. ix; —
F. amandaixi, Enl. 115, 2 and 3; — F. gvanatina , Enl. 109, 3; — F. bcngalus; — F. ango -

272

BIRDS.

Vidua* *, Cuv.

The Widows, as they are termed, are birds of Africa and India, which
have the bill of a Linnet, sometimes a little more inflated at the base, and
distinguished by having some of the quills of the tail, or of its upper co-
verts, excessively elongated in the males ■f.

There is a gradual transition, and without any assignable interval, from
the Linnets to J,

COCCOTHRAUSTES, CUV.

Or the Grosbeaks, whose exactly conical bill is only distinguished by
its excessive size.

Loxia coccothraustes, L. ; Enl. 99 and 100; Naum. 114. (The
Common Grosbeak). Is one of those that are most truly worthy of
the name. Its enormous bill is yellowish; back and calotte brown;
rest of the plumage greyish; throat and quills of the wings, black;
a white band on the wings. It inhabits the mountain forests, builds

lensis, Enl. 115, 1; — Carduelis cucullata, Swains. Zool. 111. There are other species
also, called astrils, bengalis and senegallis, in the work of Vieillot, entitled Ois. chant,
de la zone torride, such as the Fr. bicolor , pi. ix; — Fr. tricolor , pi. xx\—cinerea, 6; —
ccerulescens, 8; — melpoda, 7; — viridis, 4; — erythronotos, 14; — quinticolor, 15; — rubri -
ventris, 13; — -frontalis or Lox. frontalis , L. 16; — F. guttata, 3; — add Fring. melanotis,
Temm. Col. 151, 1; — Fr. sanguinolenta, lb. 2; — Fr. poly zona, lb. 3; — Fr. otoleucus,
Tem. Col. 269, 2, 3; — Fr. simplex, Lichtenst. Col. 358; — Fr. lutea, Col. 365; — Fr.
ornata, Pr. Max. Col. 208. The pretended Emberiza oryzivora, Enl. 388, has also
the same bill ; but the stiff and pointed quills of the tail distinguish it.

Numerous Finches are described by M. Ch. Bonaparte, Ann. of New York Lyc.
II. December, 1826, p. 106, et seq.

* It is not easy to see why Linnaeus and Gmelin arranged them with the Bunt-
ings, by the names of Emberiza regia, (Enl. 8, 1); — Emh. serena, (lb. 2); — Emb.
paradisea, (Enl. 194); — Emb. panayensis, (Enl. 647); — Emb. longicauda, (Enl. 635).
Add, Fringilla superciliosa, Vieill. Gal. 61. If we do not leave the Widows with the
Linnets, there is no other place for them except among the Grosbeaks.

f In the Veuve a epaulettes ( V '. longicauda), the coverts only are elongated; in the
others, it is the quills. N. B. The Emb. principalis, (Edw. 270), and the Emb. vidua,
(Aldrow. Orni. II, 565), appear to me to be the same bird in different states of
plumage. The Emb. psittacea, Seb. I, pi. lxvi, fig. 5, is not very authentic. The
angolensis, Salem. Orni. 277; the Veuve chrysoptere, Vieill. Ois. ch. pi. xli, and the
Lox. macroura, Enl. 283, 1, which, perhaps, do not differ from it, are not Widows,
but common Grosbeaks.

X This transition is effected, in the species I have been able to examine, in the fol-
lowing order, the bill always increasing in size: Loxia quadricolor, (Embr.,Lin.) 101,
2, the same as the Gros bee longicone, Tem. Col. ;— L. sanguinirostris, Enl. 183, 2; — L.
molucca, Enl. 139, 2; — L. variegata, Vieill. 51; — L. punctulata, lb. 1; — L. maja,
Enl. 109, 1; — L. striata, Enl. 153, 1; — L. nitida, Vieill. 50; — L. malacca, Enl. 139,
3; — L. astrild., Enl. 157, 2; — L. bella, Vieill. 55; — L. cantans, Id. 57 ; — L. oryzivora,
Enl. 152, 1; — L.fuscata, Vieill. pi. Ixii; — L.cyanea, Id. 64; — L. atricapilla, Id. 53;
— L. nigra, Catesb. 1, 68; Vieill. Gal. 57; — L. brasiliana, Enl. 309, 1; — L. Ludovi-
ciana, Enl. 153, 2; Vieill. Gal. 58; — L. petronia (Fring. petronia, L.), Enl. 255; —
L. chloris, Enl. 267, 2; — L. hcematina, Vieill. pi. lxvii, where the bill is too slender;
L. guttata, Id. 68, is a variety of the same; — L. quinticolor, Id. 54; — L. fasciata,
Brown, 111. xxvii; — L. madagascariensis, Enl. 143, 2; — L. cverulea; — L. cardinalis,
Enl. 37; — L. melanura; — L. coccothraustes, Enl. 89 and 100; — L. ostrina, Vieill. Ois.
ch. 48, Gal. 60;— L. rosea, Vieill., pi. lxiii.

(ggir Add, L. vespertina, Bonap. II, pi. xiv, f. 1; — L. ludoviciana, Wils. II, pi. xvii,
f. 1; — L. ccerulea, Wils. Ill, pi. xxiv, f. vi; — L. purpurea, Wils. I, pi. vii, f. 4. —
Eng. Ed.

PASSERINE. 273

upon the beech, and fruit trees, and eats almonds and all sorts of
fruits.

There are two species with smaller bills in Europe.

Loxia chloris , L. ; Le Verdier, Enl. 672, 2; Naum. 120. (The
Green Grosbeak). Greenish above; yellowish beneath; external
edge of the tail, yellow. Inhabits the underwood, &c., and eats all
sorts of seeds.

Fring. petronia, L. ; La Soulcie, Enl. 225; Naum. 116, 3, 4.
(The Ring Finch). Which is commonly classed with the Finches,
whose colours it bears ; but independently of its great bill, a whitish
line round the head, and a yellowish spot on the breast, afford evident
marks of distinction* * * §.

There are some species that should be distinguished from the
Grosbeaks.

Pitylus, Cuv.

The bill quite as large, slightly compressed, arcuated above, and some-
times a salient angle on the middle of the edge of the upper jawf .

Naturalists have long separated from them,

Pyrrhula.

The Bullfinches, which have a rounded, inflated bill, arched in every
direction. There is one in France.

Loxia jpyrrhula , L. ; Enl. 145; Vieill. Gal. 56; Naum. 111.
(The Common Bullfinch). Cinerous above; red beneath; calotte
black ; reddish grey superseding the red in the female ; builds on
various trees, and among the bushes along the road. It is naturally
a sweet songster, is easily tamed, and may be taught to speak.
There is a race of them known, a third larger £.

Loxia §, Briss.

The Crossbills have a compressed bill, and the two mandibles so strongly
curved, that their points cross each other, sometimes on one side, some-
times on the other, according to the individuals. This singular bill ena-
bles them to tear out the seeds from under the scales of the pine-cones.

The European species is very common wherever there are large
woods of evergreens ; it is,

Loxia curvirostra, L. ; Enl. 218. (The Crossbill). The plumage
of the young male is of a vivid red, with brown wings ; that of the
adult, and of the female, is greenish above, yellowish beneath. Two

* It is very evident, that the petronia is not less a Grosbeak than the chloris.

f Such are Lox. grossa. Enl. 154; — L. canadanensis, Enl. 152, 2; — L. erytromelas,
Lath. II, pi. xlvii, and Vieill. Gal. 59; — L. portoricensis, Daud. Ornitli. II, pi. xxix,
or Pyrrhula auranticollis, Vieill. Gal. 55.

X Add, Lox. lineola, Enl. 319, 1; — M. minuta, lb. 2; — L. collaria , Enl. 393, 3; —
L. sibirica, Falk. Voy. Ill, pi. xxviii; — Pyr. cinereola , Tem. Col. II, 1: — P. falci-
rostris , lb. 2; — P. orlhaginca , T. Col. 400; — P. mysia, Vieill. Ois. ch. pi. xlvi, and
the pl.lix and lx of Spix. [Add, P. frontalis, Bon. I, p. vi, f. 1, 2. — Eng. Ed.

§ Loxia, from the Gr. loxos, (curve), the name invented for this bird by Conrad
Gcsncr. Linnaeus applied it to the Grosbeaks generally.

274

BIRDS.

races of them, also, are known, which differ as to size, and even, as
it is said, in their notes, and in the form of the bill, Lox. curviros-
tra, Naum. 110, and Lox. pytiopsittacus, Bechst., Naum. 109* * * §.

We cannot remove from the Bullfinches and the Crossbills.

CoRYTHUsf, CuV.

The point of whose completely arched bill curves over the lower mandible.
The most known species,

Loxia enucleator, L. ; Enl. 135, 1; or better, Edw. 123, 124;
Yieill. Gal. 53; Naum. 112. The Pine Grosbeak inhabits the
north of both continents, and lives in the same way as the Crossbill.
It is red, or reddish, the feathers of the tail and wings black, edged
with white

The north of the globe produces neighbouring species of equal
beauty as to colour, individuals of which sometimes find their way
into Germany §.

Colius ||, Gm.

The Colies also approximate considerably to the preceding birds. Their
bill is short, thick, conical, and somewhat compressed, its two mandibles
being arcuated, but without extending beyond each other ; the quills of
their tail are cuneiform, and very long ; their thumb, as in Cypselus, is
capable of being directed forwards like the other toes; their fine and
silky feathers are generally cinereous. They inhabit Africa and India,
climb something in the manner of Parrots, live in flocks, build many of
their nests on the same bush, and sleep suspended to its branches in
crowds, with the head downwards. They feed on fruit**.

Here also come the

Buphaga, Briss.

The Beef-eaters form a small genus in which the bill is of a moderate
length, cylindrical at the beginning, and inflated (both mandibles) near
the end, which terminates in a blunt point. They use it to compress the
skin of cattle in order to force out the larvas of the CEstrus lodged in it,
on which they feed.

One species only is known, and that is from Africa; brownish,

* Add, Lox. leucoptera, Lath. Vieill.GalL 53, and Wils. Am. Ornith.

f Corythus, Greek name of an unknown bird. Vieillot has changed this name
into that of Strobiliphaga.

J Loxia flamengo, (Sparm. Mus. Carl. pi. xvii), appears to me to be a mere albino
variety of the enucleator. The Lox. psittacea of the Sandwich Islands, Lath. Syn.
II, pi. xlii, or Psittacirostra icterocephala, Temm. Col. 457, appears to differ
from Corythus only in a little greater prolongation of the curved point of the bill.

§ Lox. erytlirina, Pall, or Fringilla flammea , L., Naurn. 113, 1, 2; — Lox. rosea,
Pall. Naum. 113, 3; — Fr. purpurea, Wils. I, vii, 4.

|| Koloios, the Greek name of a small species of Crow.

** Col. capensis, Enl. 282, 1; Vaill. 258, and the young, 256. This latter is the
C. striatus, and the C. panayensis ; — Col. erythropus, Gm.; leuconotus, Lath. Vaill.
257; — Col. gularis, Vaill. 259.

I place near the Colies the birds called Merion natte ( Malurus textilis, Less.), and
Merion leucoptere (M. leucopterus, Id.), Voy. de Freycin, pi. 23.

PASSERINE. 275

with a moderate sized cuneiform tail ; as large as a Thrush. Buphaga
africana, Enl. 293; Vaill. Afr. pi. 97; Vieill. Gal.

Cassicus, Cuv.

The Cassiques have a large and exactly conical bill, thick at base, and
very sharp at the point; small round nostrils, pierced on the sides; the
commissure of the mandibles forms a broken line, or is angular like that
of the Starlings. They are American birds, whose manners are similar
to those of the last-mentioned ones, living like them in flocks, frequently
constructing their nests close together, and sometimes with much art.
They feed on grain and insects, and do great injury to cultivated grounds.
Their flesh is bad. We subdivide them as follows:

Cassicus* * * §, properly so styled.

The base of the bill mounts on the forehead, encroaching on the
plumage, and forming a semicircular notch in it. The largest species
belong to this subgenus -j~.

Icterus J.

The bill arcuated throughout its length, and only forming a small acute
notch in the feathers on the forehead §.

Xanthornus||

Only differs from the preceding in the perfect straightness of the bill**.

* Vieill. has adopted this name and genus.

f Cassicus bifasciatus, Spix, LXI, a; — Cassic. angustifrons , Id. LXII; — Cass, niger-
rimus, Id. LXII I, 1; — Oriolus cristatus, Enl. 344; — y 328; — liemorrhous, 482; — per-
sicus, 184. — A black species, with metallic reflections, the plumes of whose neck are
erectile, and form a kind of mantle. It is the Grand troupiale of Azz. Voy. Ill,
p. 167.

I Vieillot has changed the French term of the above subdivision, Troupiale, into
Carouge, which I had adopted for the following subgenus. He translates Carouge
by Pendulinus, Galer. pi. 186.

§ Oriolus varius, Enl. 607, 1; — Or. cayanus, 535, 2; — Or* capensis, Enl. 607.
(N. B. It is from Louisiana, and not from the Cape) ; — Or. chrysoceplnalus, Merr.
Beytr. I, pi. iii, Vieill. Gal. 86; — Or. dominicensis, Enl. 5, 1; — and a species of a
changeable black, whose tail assumes all kinds of shapes, according to the direction
of its lateral feathers, which are sometimes in the same plane with the rest, and at
others turned up, &c. ( Quiscalus versicolor ), Vieill. Gal. 108; Wils. Ill, xvi, 3. It
appears to be both the Gracula quiscala, L., Catesb. pi. xii, and the Gracula barita,
Lath. I, pi. xviii, or the Pie de la Jamaique: it is found in all the Antilles, Carolina,
&c. It has been confounded with the Rice Eater ( Ploceus niger).

We should separate the Icterus sulcirostris , Spix, LXIV, the lower jaw of whose
much larger bill is obliquely furrowed at base.

|| M. Vieill. calls these birds, Baltimore and YphanteSy Galer. pi. lxxxvii. He se-
parates some of them, which he names more particularly Troupiales, or Agelaius,
pi. lxxxviii.

** Oriolus icterus, Enl. 532; — Oriolus minor and Tanagra bonariensis , Enl. 710;
the same bird; — Oriolus citrinus , Spix, 76; — Le Car. gasquet. Quoy and Gaym. Voy.
de Freycin. pi. xxiv; — Oriolus phccniceus, Enl. 402; — Or. americanus, 236,2; — Or.
IcucopteruSy Lath. Syn. I, lrontisp. ; — Or. banana, Enl. 535, 1;-— Or. cayenensis , lb. 2;
— Or. icterocephalus, 342; — Or. xanthocephalus, Ch. Bonap. I, IV, 1,2; — Or. mexi-
cajius, Enl. 533; — Or. xantliornus, 5, 1; — Or. baltimore, 506, 1; Vieill. Galer. 87, and
Wils. I, 1, 3; — Or. spurius , Enl. 2, and Wils. I, iv, 1 — 4; — Or. ■melancholicus, Enl.
448, of which Or. guyancnsis, Enl. 536; Vieill. Galer. pi. 88, is the adult.

Add, Or. agripcnnis, Bonap. (Enl. oryzivora, of others), the common Reed Bird in
America.— Eng. Ed.

276

BIRDS,

We should distinguish among the number a species with a some-
what shorter bill, which therein approaches the Fringilla, Cuv.

Icterus pecoris, Tern. ; Emberiza pecoris, Wils. II, xviii. 1, 2, and
Enl. 606, 1. (The Cow Bunting). A violet black ; head and neck
a brown-grey. Lives in flocks among the cattle; but the most pe-
culiar trait in its habits is that, like the cuckoo, it lays its eggs in
other birds’ nests *.

[Oxyrynchus, Tem.

The conical and pointed bill of Xanthornus, but it is shorter than the
head.

The species known, Oxyr. flammiceps , T. ; O. cristatus , Swains.
111. Ill, 49 ; Col. 125, has a partly red tuft on the head, like several
of the Tyrants. The

Dacnis, Cuv. — Pit-Pits, Buff.

Resemble Xanthorni in miniature in their conical and short beak. They
connect that subgenus with Regulus. The species known, Mot. cayana,
L. ; Enl. 669; Vieill. Gal. 165, is a small blue and black bird.

Sturnus, Lin .

The Starlings only differ from the Xanthorni in having a bill that is
depressed, especially near the point.

S. vulgaris , L. ; Enl. 75 ; Naum. 62. (The Common Starling).
Black, with violet and green reflections, every where spotted with
white or fawn colour. The young male is of a brown grey. It is
found in great numbers throughout the whole of the eastern continent,
feeds on insects, and is of use to cattle by relieving them from their
attacks. It flies in large and crowded flocks, is easily tamed, and
may be taught to sing and even to speak. It leaves France in win-
ter. Its flesh is disagreeable f .

We can find no sufficient character to enable us to distinguish from the

* Gmel. cites fig. 606, 1, of the PI. Enl., as Oriolus minor ; it is a mistake.

f Add the Sturnus unicolor of the south of Europe, Tem. Col. 3; Vieill. Gal., pi.
xci; — St. capensis, Enl. 280, from which the St. contra , Albin. Ill, 21, does not differ,
hut which is from the Indies, and not from the Cape; — St. militaris, Enl. 113; — St.
ludovicianus, Enl. 256, the same as the Alauda magna, Gm. Catesb. 1, 33, or the
Stournelle a collier , Vieill. Gal. pi, xc, and Wils. Ill, xix, 2; — the Etourneau a camail
rouge ( Oriolus ruber, Gm.), Sonner. Nouv. g. pi. lxviii, or Amblyramphus tricolor,
Leach, Zool. MisceL, pi. xxxvi; a beautiful species from the steppes of Buenos
Ayres, and not from India, as stated by Sonnerat.

N. B. The St. cinclus forms, as we have seen, a genus allied to the Thrushes ; the
S. sericeus, Brown, III, 21, is rather a Gracula, Cuv.; the St. collaris is the same as
the Fauvette of the Alps {accentor). The St. carunculatus should, I think, go along
with Philedon.

The species of Oshec, Hernandez, &c. are not well authenticated; as to those of
Pallas, it is to be regretted that we have no figures of them. The Stournes of Daudin
must be replaced with the Thrushes, or the Philedons, and his Quiscales, partly with
the Graculse, Cuv. and partly with Cassicus. Daudin, generally speaking, completed
the confusion of this genus, sufficiently entangled by his predecessors.

PASSERINE.

277

Conirostres, with certainty and precision, the different genera of the family
of the Crows, all of which have a similar internal structure and external
organs, only differing in a (generally) greater size, which sometimes ena-
bles them to hunt small birds : their strong bill is most commonly com-
pressed on the sides.

These genera are three in number, the Crows, Birds of Paradise, and
the Rollers.

Corvus, Lin .

The Crows have a strong bill, more or less laterally flattened, nostrils co-
vered with stiff feathers, which incline forwards. They are very cunning,
their sense of smell is extremely acute, and they have, generally, a habit
of purloining articles totally useless to them, such as pieces of money, &c.,
and even of hiding them.

We more particularly call Crows or Ravens the large species, whose
bills are the strongest in proportion, and in which the ridge of the upper
mandible is the most arcuated. Their tail is either round or square.

C. corax , L. ; Naum. 53, 1 ; Vaill. Afr. pi. 51*. (The Raven).
Is the largest of the Passerines which inhabit Europe. Its size is
equal to that of the Cock. Its plumage is entirely black, the tail is
rounded, and the back of the upper mandible arcuated near the point.

' It is a more solitary bird than the other species, flies well and high,
scents carrion at the distance of a league, and feeds also on all kinds
of fruit and small animals. It sometimes carries off poultry, builds
on the tops of high trees or rocky cliffs, is easily tamed, and may be
taught to speak tolerably well. It appears to be found in every part
of the globe. In the north its plumage is frequently varied by a
mixture of white (Ascan. Ic. Nat. pi. viii) ; it is then the Corvus leu -
cophceus, Temm., Vieill. Gal. 100.

C. corone, L. ; La Corneille , Enl. 495; Naum. 53, (The

Carrion Crow). A fourth smaller than the Raven ; the tail more
square, and the bill less arcuated above.

C. frugilegus, L. ; LeFreux, Enl. 484; Naum. 55. (The Rook).
Still smaller than the preceding, with a straighter and more pointed
bill. The circumference of the base of the latter, except when very
young, is divested of feathers, which is probably occasioned by its
habit of thrusting it into the ground in search of food.

These two species live in large flocks, numbers of them building
together. They feed as much on grain as on insects, and are found
throughout all Europe ; remaining in the winter, however, only in
the warmer districts.

C. cornix, L. ; Corneille mantelee , Enl. 76; Naum. 54. (The

* N. B. Enl. 495 appears to be nothing more than a C. corone, and 483 a young
Rook. M. Temminck thinks that the quoted fig. of Le Vaillant is a particular spe-
cies peculiar to Africa, which he names C.montanus.

t M. Temminck thinks there is a difference between the Crow of Europe and
that of the Cape (Vaill. 52), which he calls C. segetum.

278

BIRDS.

Royston Crow). Cinereous ; head, wings, and tail, black. It is less
frugivorous, frequents the sea shore, and feeds upon shell fish, &c.
Nauman assures us that it often couples with the Black Crow, and
that the offspring reproduces.

C. monedula, L. ; Le Choucas , &c., Enl. 525; Naum. 56, 1.
(The Jackdaw). A fourth smaller than the preceding ones; about
the size of a pigeon : of a less intense black, which, around the neck
and under the belly even, verges on cinereous ; sometimes all black.
It builds in steeples, old towers, &c., lives in flocks, feeds on the
same substances as the Crows, and is frequently found with them.
Birds of prey have no enemy more vigilant than the Jackdaw*.

Pica, Cuv .

The Pies are less than the Cornix; the upper mandible is also more
arcuated than the other, and the tail long and cuneiform,

Corvus pica, L. ; Enl. 488 ; Naum, 56, 2. (The Magpie of Eu-
rope). A beautiful bird, of a silky black colour, with purple, blue,
and gold reflections ; the belly is white, and there is a large spot of
the same colour on the wing. Its eternal chattering has rendered it
notorious. It prefers living in inhabited places, where it feeds on all
sorts of materials, sometimes attacking the smaller birds of the poul-
try yards'f.

Garrulus, Cuv,

The two mandibles of the J ays are but little elongated, terminating in
a sudden, and nearly equal curve ; when the tail is cuneiform it is not very
long, and the loose and slender feathers of the forehead stand more or less
erect when the bird is angry.

Corvus glandarius, L.; Enl. 481; Naum. 58, 1. (The Jay of
Europe). Is a fine bird of a vinous grey, with mustachios, and the
quills of the tail, black ; particularly remarkable for a large spot of
dazzling blue, striped with a deep shade of the same colour, which
marks a part of the wing coverts. It feeds chiefly on the acorn, and
of all birds shews the greatest penchant for imitating all kinds of

* The Jackdaw terminates the tribes of the true Crows, because its upper mandible is
hardly more arcuated than the lower one. Add to this tribe the Corvus jamaicensis, or
Corneille a duvet blanc\ — Le C. dauricus, Enl. 327 ; the C. scapulatus, Daud. Vaill. 53,
which M. Temm. thinks differs from the preceding; the albicollis , Lath., or Corbivau ,
which, from its high, compressed, trenchant-backed bill, might constitute a separate
subgenus, Vaill. 50; — the C. splendens of India, Vieill. Col. 425, remarkable for the
instinct which prompts it to search for lice among the feathers of the Vulture (the
Chagoun ), who willingly permits it; — the C. columbianus, Wils. Ill, xx, fig. 2; — the
C. nasicus, Tern. Col. 413; — the C. ossifragus , Wils. V, xxxviii, f. 2, if it really differ
from the cornix.

f Add the Corvus senegalensis, Enl. 538; — C. ventralis, Sh.; Vaill. Afr. 58; — C.
eryihrorhynchos, Enl. 622, and better, Vaill. Afr. 57 ; — C. cayams, Enl. 378; — C, pe~
ruvianus, Enl. 625; — C. cyaneus, Pall. Vaill. Afr. 58, 2; — C. rufus, Vaill. Afr. 59; —
the Acalie, Azz. (Corvus pileatus, Illig.), Col. 58, or Pica chrysops, Vieill. Gal. 101; —
the G. gubernatrix, Tern. Col. 436; — the Corv. azureus, T. Col. 168; — the Pie geng.
(C, cyanopogon, P. Max.), Col. 169.

PASSERINE. 279

sounds. It builds in the woods of Europe, and lives in pairs or in
small flocks* * * §.

CARYOCATACTEsf, CuV.

The Nutcrackers have the two mandibles straight, equally pointed, and
without any curve. There is only one species known.

Corvus caryocatactes , L.; Enl. 50; Naum. 58,2; Vieill. Gal.
105. (The Common Nutcracker). Brown; the whole body spot-
ted with white. It builds in the hollows of trees, in dense mountain
forests, climbs trees and perforates their bark like the Woodpeckers,
feeds on all kinds of fruit, insects, and small birds. Flocks of them
sometimes descend into the plains, but at very irregular intervals.
It is celebrated for its confidence J.

Temia§, Vaill.

The tail and carriage of the Pies, with an elevated bill, whose upper
mandible is arched, the base furnished with velvet feathers, almost like
the Birds of Paradise.

The most anciently known, Corvus varians, Lath. ; Vaill. Afr. 56 ;
Vieill. Gal. 106, is of a bronze green. It is found in Africa and in
India||.

Glaucopis**, Forster .

The same bill and carriage, but there are two fleshy caruncles under
the base of the former.

The species known, Glaucopis cinerea , Lath. Syn. I, pi. xiv, is
from New Holland, and is the size of a Pie ; blackish, with a cunei-
form tail. It feeds on insects and berries, and perches but seldom.
Its flesh is highly esteemed.

* Add, Corvus cristatus, Enl. 529, Vieill. Gal. 102; Corv. Stelleri, Vaill. Ois. de
Par. &c. 1, 44; — Corv. sibiricus , Enl. 608; — C. canadensis, Enl. 530, and a variety,
Vieill. 48 \—C. cristatellus, or C. cyanoleucos, P. Max; Col. 193; — C. ultramarinus, T„
Col. 439; — C. torquatus, T. Col. 44; — C.fioridanus, Ch. Bonap. I, xiii, 1.

f Vieill. has changed this name into Nucifraga.

t N.B. The Corvus hottentottus, 226, appears to us to be allied to the Tyrants; —
C. balicassius, 603, is a Drongo; — C. calvus, Enl. 521, a Gymnocephalus ; C. Novce
Guinea ?, Enl. 629, and C. papuensis, Enl. 639, belong to Graucalus, Cuv.; — C. specio-
sus of Sh. is the Rollier de la Chine, Enl. 620, and belongs to the Deniirostres. Tem.
makes a Pyroll of it, Col. Enl. 401 ; — C.flaviventris, Enl. 249, is a Tyrant; — C. mexi-
canus is probably a Cassicus or a Weaver, and C. argirophtalmus, Brown, 111. 10, is
certainly one; — C. rufipennis, Enl. 199, is a Thrush, the same as Turdus morio ; — C.
cyanurus, Enl. 355, C. brachyurus, Enl. 257 and 258, and C.grallarius, of Shaw, Enl.
702, are Ant-catchers*; — C. carunculatus, Daud., a Philedon.

We have approximated C. pyrrhocorax, Enl. 531, to the Thrushes, and C. graculus,
Enl. 255, to Upupa. We are of opinion that C. eremita does not exist. The C. ca-
riboeus, Aldrov. 788, is a Bee-eater, the account of which has been stolen by Duter-
tre to describe an object of which he had no recollection: finally, C. gymnocephalus,
Tem. Col. 327, appears to us to belong to the family of the Dentirostrcs.

§ Vieillot has changed this name into Crypsirina, Gal. 106; Horsfield into that
of Phrenotrix. Tcmminck unites Temia with Glaucopis.

|| Add Glaucopis leucoptera , Tem. Col. 285; — Gl.temnura, Id. Col. 337.

** Bechstein substitutes the term Callccas for that of Glaucopis.

280

BIRDS.

Coracias* * * §, Lin.

The Rollers have a strong bill, compressed near the point, which is a
little hooked. The nostrils are oblong, placed at the edge of the feathers,
but without being covered by them; the feet short and stout. They be-
long to the eastern continent, and are like the J ays in their habits, and in
the loose feathers on the forehead. Their colours are vivid, but rarely
harmonious. Some peculiarities of their anatomy approximate them to
the Kingfishers and Pies, such as two emarginations in their sternum, a
single pair of muscles to their inferior larynx, and a membranous stomach 'f\

The Rollers, 'properly so called ,

Have a straight bill, every where higher than wide. There is one in
Europe.

Coracias garrula, L. ; Enl. 486. (The Common Roller). Sea-
green; back and scapulars fawn-coloured; pure blue on the tip of
the wing; about the size of the Jay. It is a very wild bird, although
sociable enough with its fellows, noisy, builds in the hollows of trees,
and migrates in winter. It feeds on worms, insects, and small frogs.

There are some Rollers foreign to Europe, which have a square
tail ^ ; the external quills in that of the European species, however,
are somewhat elongated in the male, the first indication of their great
length in several others §.

Colaris ||, Cuv.

Differs from Coracias in a shorter and more arcuated bill, and particu-
larly in the enlargement of its base, which is more broad than high**.

Paradise a, Lin.

The Birds of Paradise, like the Crows, have a strong, straight, com-
pressed bill, without any emarginations, and with covered nostrils; but
the influence of the climate they inhabit, an influence extended to birds

* This name, consecrated by the authority of Linnaeus, has been changed by
Vieillot into that of Galgalus, which, among the ancient Latins, belonged to the
Oriole.

f Nitsch, ap. Nauman, II., p. 156.

\ Coracias bengalensis, Enl. 285, is evidently the same as the indica, Edw. 326,
and as the fig. of Albin, 1, 17, quoted under caudata; — Coracias viridis, Nob.; Vaill.
1, 31; Vieill. Gal. 110; — C. Teminckii, Vaill., pi. G.

§ Coracias abyssinica, Enl. 626, and its variety C. senegala, Enl. 326, Edw. 327.
C. caudata is merely an individual of the same species, disfigured by the addition of
the head of a bengalensis (Vaill. loc. cit., p. 105). — Cor. cyanogaster, Nob., Vaill.,
loc. cit. pi. xxvi.

N. B. Cor. caffra, where Shaw quotes Edw. 320, can only be a Thrush ( Turdus
nitens ) ; — C. sinensis , Enl. 620, by its emarginated beak also approaches either the
Thrushes or the Shrikes. M. Shaw thinks that C. viridis , Lath, is an Alcedo. — C.
strepera and C. varia, Lath, are Cassicans; C. militaris and C. scutata, Shaw,
Piauhaus; — C. mexicana, Seb. 1, pi. lxiv, £ 5, is the Jay of Canada; — C.cayana,
Enl. 616, a Tanager.

|| Colaris is the Greek name of an unknown bird. — Vieillot has changed it into
that of Eurystomus,

** Coracias orientalis, Enl. 619; — Cor. madagascariensis, Enl. 501; — Cor. afra,
Lath. Vaill. loc. cit., pi. xxxv.

PASSERINE.

281

of several other genera, gives a velvet tissue to the feathers which cover
these nostrils, and frequently a metallic lustre, at the same time that it
singularly developes the feathers which cover several parts of the body.
They are natives of New Guinea and of the adjoining islands; and as it
is difficult to obtain them except from the savage inhabitants of those
countries, who prepare them for the purpose of plumes by cutting off the
wings and feet, it was thought for some time that the first species was
really destitute of those members, and lived constantly in air, supporting
itself there by its long feathers. Some travellers, however, having suc-
ceeded in obtaining perfect individuals of certain species, it is now known
that their feet and wings indicate their claim to the place we have assigned
to them. They are said to live on fruits, and to be particularly fond of
aromatics.

The feathers on the flanks of some of them are silky, and singularly
extended into bunches longer than the body, which give such a hold to
the wind that they are very often swept away by it. There are also two
bearded filaments adhering to the rump, which are as long, and even
longer than the feathers on the flanks*

P. apoda , L. ; Enl. 254; Vaill. Ois. de Par. pi. 1; Vieill. Ois.
de Par. pi. 1. (The Emerald Bird of Paradise, the most anciently
celebrated). Size of a thrush ; maronne ; top of the head and neck
yellow; circumference of the bill and throat of an emerald green.
It is the male of this species which is ornamented with those long
bundles of yellowish feathers, employed by the ladies as plumes.
There is a somewhat smaller race.

P. rubra , Vaill. pi. 6; Vieill. pi. 3. The fascicles'of flank fea-
thers of a beautiful red, and the filaments broader and concave on
one side.

In others we still find the filaments, but the feathers on the flanks,
although somewhat elongated, do not extend beyond the tail.

P. regia, Enl. 496; Vaill. 7; Vieill. 5, and Galer. 96. (The
Manucode(a).) Size of a finch; a fine purple maronne; white belly;
a band across the breast, the tips of the flank-feathers, and the barbs
which widen the extremities of the two long filaments, emerald-
green f.

P. magnijica; Sonnerat, 98; Enl. 631; Vaill. 9; Vieill. 4.
Maronne above; green beneath and on the flanks: quills of the
wings yellow ; a fascicle of straw-coloured feathers on each side of
the neck, another of a deeper yellow opposite to the fold of the wing.

Some have the slender feathers on the flanks, but they are short, and
the filaments on the rump are wanting.

P. aurea , Gm. ; P. sexsetacea, Shaw ; Sonnerat, pi. 97; Enl.
635; Vaill. 12; Vieill. 6, and Galer. 97. Size of a Thrush ; black ;

* M. Vieillot has made a genus of my first division, which he calls Samalia.
I Vieillot makes his genus Cincinnurus of this species.

ISST (a) Manucodervata signifies, it is said, at the Moluccas, bird of God. This
title is common to all the birds of Paradise.

VOL. I.

A A

282

BIRDS.

a golden-green spot on the throat ; three feathers from each ear ex-
tended into long filaments, terminated by a small disk of barbs of
the same colour as the spot on the throat*.

Others again have no filaments, nor are the feathers of the flanks elon-
gated. In

P. superba, Sonnerat, 96; Enl. 632; Vaill. 14; Vieill. 7; Ga-
ler. 98 f, the feathers of the scapulars are prolonged, however, into
a kind of mantlet which can be laid so as to cover the wings, and
those of the breast like a sort of pendent and forked coat-of-arms.
With the exception of this latter, which is of a brilliant burnished
steel-green, the whole of the plumage is black.

P.aurea, Sh. ; Oriolus aureus , Gm. ; Edw. 112; Vaill. 18;
Vieill. 11, has none of the preceding extraordinary developments of
plumage, and is only distinguishable by the velvet feathers which
cover its nostrils. The male is of the brightest orange ; the throat,
and primary quills of the wings, black ; in the female, a brown takes
place of the orange

FAMILY IV.

TENUIROSTRES.

This family comprehends the remaining birds of the first division;
those in which the bill is slender, elongated, sometimes straight, and
sometimes more or less arcuated, and without any emargination. They
are to the Conirostres nearly what the Motacillae are to the other Den-
tirostres.

Sitta, Lin.

The Nuthatches have a straight, prismatic, pointed bill, compressed near
the point, which they employ like the Woodpeckers to perforate the bark
of trees, and in withdrawing the larvae contained in it ; but their tongue
is not extensible, and, although they climb in every direction, they have
but one toe behind, which, it is true, is a strong one. The tail is of no
use in supporting them, as is the case with the Woodpeckers and True
Creepers. There is but one in France.

S. europcea , L. ; Enl. 623, 1 ; Naum. 139. (The European Nut-

* This species constitutes the genus Parotia, Vieill. Gal. 97.
f This species forms the genus Lophorina, Vieill. Gal. 98.

X I refer the Parad. gularis, Lath., or nigra, Gm. ; Vaill. 20 and 21; Vieill. 8, 9,
and the leucoptera , Lath, to the Thrushes; — the Par. Chalyboea, Enl. 633; Sonn. 97;
Vaill. 23; Vieill. 10, to the Cassicans; — the cirrhata, Aldrov. 814, is too much muti-
lated to he characterized, and the fureata, Lath., appears to be an imperfect spe-
cimen of the superba.

PASSERINE. 283

hatch). Bluish ash colour above ; reddish beneath ; a blackish band
descending behind the eye; size of a Bouge-gorge

It has been thought necessary to separate from the Sittae, the

Xenops f, Illig.

Which only differs from them in the bill being rather more compressed,
and the inferior ridge more convex J.

Anabates, Temrn.

In which, on the contrary, the superior ridge of the bill is somewhat
convex, almost like the bill of a thrush which has no emargination. The
tail, in some, is long and cuneiform, and occasionally worn, a proof that
it supports them in climbing||.

Synallaxis, Vieill,

A straight bill, but little elongated; very much compressed, slender,
and pointed; the tail generally long and pointed§.

There are even some of them in which the stems of the tail-quills are
very stout, and project beyond the barbs ^f.

Those birds which have received the name of

Certhia, Lin.

Or the Creepers, have an arcuated bill, but that is almost the only com-
mon character they possess.

We separate from them, in the first place,

Certhia, Cuv.

The True Creepers, so called from their habit of climbing trees, like
Woodpeckers, in doing which they make use of their tail as a prop or sup-
porter ; they are known by the quills of the tail, which are worn, and ter-
minate in a stiff point, like those of the same birds.

There is one found in Europe,

C. familiar is, L. ; Enl. 681, 1; Naum. 140. (The European

• Add the S. & sourcil blanc ( S . canadensis, Briss.) Enl. 623, 2; — the Black-
headed N. (S. melanocephala, L.), Catesb. I, xxii; Vieill. Gal. 171 ; — S. frontalis, Swains.
Zool. 111. 2, or S. velata, Tern. Col. 72, 3, or Orthorynchus frontalis , Horsf Jav. ; —
S. chrysoptera, Lath., 3dSupp. 327; — S. pusilla, Id.

f Vieillot has changed this name into Neops.

X Xenops rutilus, Licht., Col. 72, 2, or Neops ruficauda, Vieill. Gal. 170; — Xenops
Hofmanseggii, Col. 150, 1, Vaill. Prom. 31, 2; — Xenops anabatoides, Col. 150, 2.

|| Anabates cr /status, Spix, 84; — An. rufifrons, Id. 85, 1; — Philydor ruficollis, Id.
75; — Phil, albogularis, Id. 74; — Phil, super ciliar is, Id. 73; perhaps the same as the
Anabates amaurotis, Tern. Col. 238, 2; — Sphenura striolata, Spix, 83, 2, or Anabates
striolatus, Tern. Col. 23, 1.

§ Synallaxis ruficapilla, Vieill. Gal. 174, or Parulus ruficeps, Spix, 86, from which
the Syn. albescens, Tern. Col. 227, 2, and the cinerascens, lb. 3, do not appear to me
to differ specifically ; — Syn. rutilans, Col. 227, 1; — Syn. tessellata, Col. 311, 1; — Syn.
setaria, lb. 2; — Prinia familiar is, Horsf. Jav.? — The Fluteur, Vaill. Afr. 112, or Ma-
lurus africanus, Swains. 111. 170, merely has a somewhat higher bill.

11 Dendrocolaples sylviellus, Tcnun. Col. 72, 1. Vaill. Prom. 31, 2.

284

BIRDS.

Creeper). A small bird with whitish plumage, spotted with brown
above ; rump and tail tinged with red. It makes its nest in the hol-
lows of trees, and climbs with great rapidity, searching for insects
and larvas in the cracks of the bark, under mosses, &c.* * * § **

America produces several True Creepers of a large size, called,

Dendrocolaptes’)', Herm.— -Grimpars, Vaill.

Whose tail is the same, but their bill is much stronger and wider J.

There is even one of them which approaches the Nuthatches in
its straight and compressed bill ; it might be taken for a Sitta with a
worn tail §.

The bill of another, twice as long as the head, is only arcuated at
the end||."

That of a third is long, slender, and as much arcuated as in Me-
lithreptus ^[.

Tichodroma •*, Illig.

In the Wall Creepers the tail is not worn, although they climb along
walls and rocks just as the common Creepers do upon trees; but they
cling to them with their great claws. The bill is triangular and depressed
at base, very long and very slender.

One species only is known, which inhabits the south of Europe,
Certhia muraria , L. ; Enl. 372; Naum. 141. It is a pretty bird
of a light ash colour, the coverts and edges of a part of the wing-
quills bright red. The throat of the male is black ■ff.

Nectarinia, IUig .

Tail not worn, nor are these birds climbers, but their moderately long,
arcuated, pointed and compressed bill, resembles that of the Creepers.
They are all foreign to Europe.

* Add, C. cinnamomea, Vieill. Ois. Dor. 62, and Galer. 173; — Molacilla spinicauda,
Lath. Syn. II, pi. 52?

f Dendrocolaptes, the Greek name of the Woodpecker. Vieillot has changed it
into Dendrocopus, Gal. 175, and applied it to another division.

J The Picucule, Buff. ( Gracula cayennensis, Gm. ; Grac. scandens, Lath, and Sh.).
Enl. 621, and Vieill. Ois. Dor. 76, to which the Dendroc. decumanus, Spix, 87, and
falcirostris, 88, are at least closely allied. Add, the Grand Grimpart, Vaill. 42; —
Dendrec . tenuirostris, Spix, 91, 2; — D. bivittatus, 90, 1; — D. Wagleri, 90, 2; — the Gr.
maille, Vaill. 29, 2; — the Grimpart flambe , Vaill. Prom. 30, or Bend, platyrostris ,
Spix, 89; — the Gr. enfume , Vaill. 28.

N. B. The Fluteur of Vaill. Afr. 112, is the genus Dasyornis of Swainson. The
Dendrocolaptes Sylviellus, Tern, is his genus Sittasomus and the Certhia maculata of
Wils. Ill, xix, 3, his genus Oxyglossus.

The Dendrocolaptes procurvus, Tem., is the genus Xiphorhynchus, Swains., and
the Talapiot, his genus Dendroplex.

§ The Talapiot , Buff. ; Oriolus picus, Gm. and Lath. ; Gracula picoides, Sh., Enl.
605, or Dendrocolaptes guttatus , Spix, 91, 1.

j| The Nasican, Vaill,, Prom., etc., 24.

The Grimpart promerops {Dendrocolaptes procurvus), Tem. Col. 28, ox Dendroco-
pus falcularius, Vieill. Gal. 175.

** These birds are called Echelettes in some of the French provinces. Vieillot
has changed this name into Picchion, and that of Illiger into Petrodroma.

ff Certh. fusca, Lath. Vieill. 65, appears to me to belong to this subgenus.

FASSERINiE.

285

The name of Guitguits is more particularly applied to certain
small species, the males of which are ornamented with lively colours.
Their tongue is filamentous and bifid* * * §.

We may separate from them the largest and least beautiful species,
whose tongue is short and cartilaginous.

Merops rufus, Gm. ; Enl. 739; Figulus albogularis, Spix, 78.
A bird from South America, the size of a Kingfisher, reddish above,
with a whitish throat, which constructs a nest with earth upon shrubs,
arched over like an ovenf .

Dictum Cuv.

The tail not worn, neither do they climb ; their sharp pointed, arcuated
bill, which is not longer than the head, is depressed and widened at base.
They inhabit the East Indies, are very small, and generally have some
scarlet in their plumage.

Melithreptus, Vieill.

In the Heorotaires the tail is not worn ; bill extremely long, and curved
almost into a semicircle. From the South Sea Islands. One of them,

Certhia vestiara, Sh. ; Vieill. Ois. Dor. II. pi. 52, and Gal. 181,
is covered with scarlet feathers used by the Sandwich islanders in the
manufacture of the beautiful mantles of that colour, which they so
highly prize§.

Cinnyris ||, Cuv.

In the Soui-mangas the tail is not worn ; edges of the two mandibles of

* Certh. cyanea , Enl. 83, 2; Vieill. 41, 42, 43, and Gal. 178; — ccerulea, Edw. 21,
Vieill. 44, 45, 46, two American species, to which we must probably add some from
the East, most of which are red, as C. sanguined, Vieill. 66; — C. cardinalis, Id. 54,
58; — C. borbonica , Enl. 681, 2; — Vieill. Gal. 167, has given to these birds the name
Of COEREBA.

N. B. C. armillata, Sparm. 36; — C. cayana , 682, 2, &c., are mere varieties of the
cyanea , or of the ccerulea.

f This bird is the type of the genus Ophie or Opetiorhynchos of Tern.; Fur-
narius, Vieill. Gal. 182. The genus Figulus, Spix, does not differ from it. Add
the Picchion-baillon, Vieill. Gal. 172; — Pomatorhinos montanus , Horsf. Jav. ;— Po-
mat. turdinus, T. Col. 441 — Pom. trivirgatus, T. Col. 443; — Climacteris picumnus ,
Tern. Col. 281, 1; — Clim. scandens, lb. 2; — Certhia flaveola, Edw. 122, 362, Vieill.
51; — C. varia {Mot. varia, L.), Edw. 30, 2; Vieill. 74, which is the Mniotille varie,
Id. Gal. 169; — C. semitorquata, Vieill. 56; — the Promerops olivdtre, Vaill. Huppes et
Prom. pi. v. {Mer. olivaceus, Sh.) — Here, also, is the place, I suspect, for the C. vi~
rens, Vieill. 57 and 58, and sannio, Id. 64, which I have not seen, but which are dis-
tinguished by their slightly forked tails.

X The name of a very small bird in the Indies, according to Allian. To this sub-
genus belong, Certh. erylhronotos, Vieill. II, 35. The C. cruentata , Edw. 81, is
probably a different age of the same; — C. rubra, Vieill. pi. liv, of which the C. ery-
thropygia, Lath. 2d supp., is probably the female ; — the Nectarinia rubicosa, Tern.
Col. f. 2 and 3, does not appear to differ from it; — C. tceniata, Sonner. II, Voy. pi.
evii, fig. 3; — C. canlillans, lb. Id. 2; — Motacillahirundinacea, Sh. Nat. Misc. No. 114.

§ Add, Certh. obscura, Vieill. Ois. Dor. II, pi. liii; — C. pacifica, Id. pi. lxiii; the
other species of this naturalist belong to very different genera, chiefly to the Phile-
dons, &c.

|| The Greek name of some very small unknown bird. The natives of Madagas-
car call them Soui-mangat , i. e. eat -sugar. Vieillot has adopted the above name und
genus, Gal. 177.

286

BIRDS.

the long and very slender bill, finely serrate ; the tongue, which is sus-
ceptible of protrusion, terminates in a little fork. They are small birds,
the males of which, during the pairing season, are ornamented with me-
tallic colours, approaching in lustre to those of the Humming-bird, of
which, in this respect, they are the representatives in the eastern conti-
nent, they being principally found in Africa and the Archipelago of India.
They live on the nectar of flowers, which they suck up with their bills ;
their disposition is lively, and their notes very agreeable. The beauty of
their plumage has made them a common ornament of our cabinets, but as
it is very different in both sexes during the winter, &c., it becomes an ex-
tremely difficult matter to characterize the species.

The tail, in most of them, is equal* * * §.

In some, the two middle feathers are the longest in the male-j\

We may also distinguish those which have a straight bill, or one
that is nearly so J.

Arachnothera, Temm.

The long and arcuated bill of the Cinnyris, but stronger, and without
emargination ; the tongue short and cartilaginous ; they are only found in
the Archipelago of India, and feed on spiders§.

Trochilus, Lin.

The Colibris, or Humming-birds, so celebrated for the metallic lustre
of their plumage, and chiefly for those plates, brilliant as precious stones,
which are formed by scaly feathers of a peculiar structure, on their throat
or head, have a long slender bill, enclosing a tongue, which they can pro-

* Certh. splendida, Sh. Vieill. 82; — C. caffra, Edw. 347; — C. superba. Vieill- 22: —

C. lotenia , Enl. 575, 2, 3, Vieill. 34; — ametystina, Vieill. 5 and 6; — chalybcea, Enl. j
246, 3, Vieill. 10, 13, 18, 24, 34, 80: — omnicolor, Seb. I, 69, 5; — cuprea, Vieill. 23; — I
purpurata, Edw. 265, Vieill. 11; — cyanocephala, Vieill. 7; — Z. zeilonica, Enl. 576, 4,
Vieill. 29, 30; — dubia, Vieill. 81; — senegalensis, Vieill. 8; — sperata, Enl. 246, 1, 2; !
Vieill. 16, 32, of which the lepida of Sparm. 35, is the female; — Madagascar iensis, j
Vieill. 18; — currucaria, Enl. 576, 3, Vieill. 31; — rubro-fusca, Vieill. 27; — -fuliginosa, !
Vieill. 20; — maculata , Vieill. 21; — venusta, Vieill. 79; — gutturalis, 578, 9; — Nectari-
nia Solaris, Tem. Col. 341, 3; — eximia , Tern. Col. 138, 1, 2; — pectoralis, Id. Col. 138, |
3; — lepida, Lath. Col. 126, 1, and Vieill. Gal. 177, 2; — Hasselti, T. Col. 376, 3; — |
coccinogaster, Tem. Col. 388, 3; — Cinn. eques, Less, and Garn. Voy. de la Coq. pi. I
xxxi, f. 1 ; — javanica, Zool. 111. 121; some of which birds are probably mere varieties j
of the others.

f Certhia famosa, L., Enl. 83, 1; — C^pulchella, Enl. 670, 1; — C. violacea, 670, 2;
the Sucrier cardinal , Vaill. Ap. 291;-— the Sucrier figuier, Id. 293, f. 2; — Nectarinia
metallica, Licht. Ruppel. pi. vii, and Col. 347, 1; — Nect. mystacalis, T. Col. 126, 3; —
N. Kuhlii, T. Col. 376, 1, 2.

J Cinnyris elegans, Vieill. Gal. 177, or Certh. rectirostris, Id. Ois. Dor. II, pi. j;
lxxv.

§ Arachnothera longirostra, Tem. Col. 84, 1; — A. inornata, Id. Ib. 2.

N. B. After all these distinctions, we have still to remove from the great genus
Certhia, the C. lunata , Vieill. 61; — C. Novce-Hollandice, J. White, New S. W. pi. 1}
xvi andlxv; Vieill. 57 and 71; — C. australasiana, Vieill. 55; — C. carunculata, Vieill.
69, 70; — C. auriculata, Vieill. 85; — C. cocincinica, Enl. 642; Vieill. 77, 78; — C. spiza,
Enl. 578, 2, Edw. 25; — C. seniculus, Vieill. 50; — C. graculina, Vieill. 87; — C. goruch,
Vieill. 88;— C. ccerulea, Vieill. 83; — C. xanthotis, Vieill. 84;— C. mellivora , Vieill. 86;
which, by their emarginated bill and pencil-like tongue, are all Philedons.

PASSERINE.

287

trude at will, like that of the Woodpeckers (and by the same mechanism), and
which is split almost to its base, forming two filaments, employed, as is
asserted, in taking up the nectar from flowers. They also, however, feed
on small insects, for we have found their stomach filled with them. Their
very small feet, broad tail, excessively long and narrow wings, short hu-
merus and large sternum, which is without emargination, all contribute to
form a system adapted for great power of flight, similar to that of the
Swallows. The narrowness of their wing is caused by the rapid abbre-
viation of its quills. By these means, they balance themselves in air
with nearly as much facility as certain flies, and it is thus that they hum
about flowers, and fly with more proportionate rapidity than any other
bird. Their gizzard is very small, and they have no csecum, an additional
mark of their affinity with the Woodpeckers. They live singly, defend
their nests with courage, and fight desperately with each other.

The name of Trochilus, Lac., is especially reserved for such as have
the bill arcuated; some of them are distinguished by the prolongation of
the intermediate quills of their tail. We will mention one of the largest
and most beautiful.

Troch. pella; Colibri Topaze, Enl. 596. Purple-maronne ; head,
black; throat of the most brilliant topaz-yellow, changing into green,
surrounded by black* * * §.

The lateral quills of the tail are very long in othersj- ; several have
tails moderately forked J; in the greater number it is round or square§.
We call,

Orthorhynchus (j Fly-Birds), Lacep.

Such as have a straight bill; some of them have tufted heads||.

Others have tufts or elongated feathers on the sides of the head% and
among them are found some with a pointed and very long tail**.

* Add, Tr. super ciliosus, Enl. 600, 3; Vieill. 17, 18, 19; — Tr. leucurus, Enl. 600,
3; — Tr. squalidus, Natterer, Col. 120, f. 1; — Tr. brasiliensis , Lath. Col. 120, f. 2.

f Tr. forficatus, Edw. 33, Vieill. 30-,—polithmus, Edw. 34, Vieill. 67, and particu-
larly the magnificent Peruvian species, with the refulgent gold tail, Tr. clirysurus ,

Cuv.

J Tr. elegans, Vieill. 14.

§ Tr. mango , L., Enl. I, 680, 2 and 3, Vieill. 7 ; — Tr. ncevius, Dumont, Col. 120,
f. 3; — Tr. gutturalis, Enl. 671; — Tr. taumantias , Enl. 600, 1; — Tr. violaceus, Enl.
600, 2; — Tr. cinereus, Vieill. 5; — Tr. melanogaster, Vieill. 75; — Tr. jugularis, Sh.
Edw. 266, 1, Vieill. 4; — Tr. holo-sericeus, Sh., Vieill. 6 and 65; — Tr. punctatus , Sh.,
Vieill. 8; — Tr. pectoralis, Sh. 9 and 70; — Tr. aurulentus, Sh., Vieill,, 12; — Tr. aureo-
viridis, Sh., Vieill. 15; — Tr. hirsutus , Gm,, or brasiliensis, Sh., Vieill. 20; — Tr. albus,
Vieill. II; — Tr. viridis, Vieill. 15; — Tr. margaritaccus, Enl. 680, 1, Vieill. 16; — Tr.
multicolor, Gm., or Harlequin Hummingbird, Lath. Supp. pi. cxi, Vieill. 79; — Tr. la-
zulus, Vieill. Gal. 179.

|| Tr. cristatus, Edw. 37; Enl. 227, 1; Vieill. 47, 48; — Tr. pileatus, ( puniceus ,
Gm.) Vieill. 63; — Tr. Lalandii, Vieill. 18, f. 1 and 2; — Orthor. stephanioides, Less,
and Garn. Voy. de la Coquille, pi. xxxi, No. 2.

*[[ Tr. ornaius, Enl. 640, 3; Vieill. 49, 50; — Tr. clialybeus, Vieill. 66, f. 2; — Tr.
petasophorus, P. Max. Col. 203, 3; — Tr. scutatus, Natter., Col. 299, 3; — Tr. magnifi-
es, Illig. Col. 299, 2; — Tr. mesoleucos, Tern. Col. 317.

** Tr. bilophus, Temm.

N. B. M. Swainson has named those Hummingbirds, the middle quills of whose
tail are elongated, Piiajtounis; those with a round or square tail, Lampornis; the
straight-billed ones, in which the quills of the wings are inflated, Campylopterus;
and those with a forked tail, Cynanthus.

288

BIRDS.

The stems of the primary wing-quills are singularly widened in some of
them* * * §, and among those which have none of these ornaments, we may
still distinguish the fork-tailed species f , some of which have their very
long lateral quills widened at the end J.

Among those which have a square or slightly emarginated tail,
there is one worthy of notice from its extreme smallness, the

Troch. minimus, Enl. 276, 1; Edw. 105; Vieill. 64. It is of a
violet-grey colour, and about the size of a Bee.

Another, on the contrary, because it is the largest of the whole
genus, the

Troch. gigas, (the Gigantic Fly-Bird), Vieill., Gal. 180, which is
almost equal in size to the Hirundo apus§.

Upupa (The Puets), Lin.

In this genus we will first place,

Fregilus|| (The Cranes), Cuv.

Where the nostrils are covered with feathers directed forwards, from
which circumstance several authors have placed these birds with the Crows,
which they also somewhat resemble in their manners ; their bill is a little
longer than the head.

Corvus graculus, L. ; Le crave d' Europe, Enl. 255; Naum. 57,
2; Vieill. Galer. 163. (The European Crow). The size of a
Crow; black; red feet and bill; wings reaching to the end of the
tail or extending beyond it. It inhabits the highest ridges of the
Alps and Pyrenees, building there among the cliffs or in the fissures
of the rocks like the Chocard ; it is less common, however, and does
not so often unite in flocks. It feeds both on fruit and insects, and
when it descends into the valleys, snow or bad weather may be ex-
pected**.

* Tr. latipennis, Enl. 672, 2; Vieill. 21; — Tr. ensipennis, Swains. Zool. 111. 107; —
Tr. falcatus , lb. 82.

f Tr. mellivorus, Enl. 640; Edw. 35, Vieill. 23> 24; — Tr. amethystinus, Gm. Enl.
672, 1; — Tr. furcatus, Enl. 509, 2; Vieill. 34; — Tr. forficatus, Vieill. 60; — Tr. sma-
ragdo-saphirinus, Vieill. 36, 40; — Tr. colubris, Edw. 38; Catesb. 65; Vieill. 31, 32, 33;
— Tr. Maugeanus, Vieill. 37, 38; — Tr. Langsdorfii , Vieill. 66, 1; — Tr. enicurus, Vieill.
66, 3; — Tr. mediastinus, Tem. Col. 317; — Orthor. cora , Less, and Garn. 34, 4.

X Tr. platurus, Vieill. 52.

§ Other species with square, or but slightly emarginated tails: Tr. mosquitus, L.;
Enl. 227, 2; — Tr. carbunculus, Vieill. 54; — Tr. ourissia, Enl. 227, 3; — Tr. mellisugus,
L. ; Enl. 640, 2; — Tr. rubineus, Gm. Enl. 276, 4, Vieill. 27; — Tr. auritus, Sh. Vieill.
25; — Tr. collaris, Vieill. 61, 62; — Tr. superbus, Sh. ; longirostris, Vieill. 59; Col. 299,
1; — Tr. mellivorus, I, Enl. 640, 2; — Tr. leucogaster, Gm. Vieill. 43; — Tr. imbricatus,
Gm. Vieill. 221; — Tr. albirostris, Vieill. 45; — Tr. viridis, Vieill. 41; — Tr. maculatus ,
Vieill. 44; — Tr. saphyrinus, Sh. Vieill. 35 and 57, 2; — Tr. squamosus, Tem. Col.
203, 1; — Tr. albicollis, I, Col. 203, 2; — Orthor. Amasili, Less, and Garn. Voy. de la
Coq. 31, 3.

|| Vieillot has changed this name for Coracias, which, according to Linnaeus, is
that of the Rollers.

** It is impossible to say what combination of the history of this bird with im-
perfect figures, perhaps of some Curlew, gave birth to the ideal species of the Crave
huppe or Sonneur ( Corvus eremita, L.), a pretended bird of Switzerland, which has
never been seen by any one since Gesner. But the Corv. affinis, Lath., appears to
be a true Fregilus, and we have a totally black species from New Holland.

PASSERINES.

289

Upupa (The Puets, properly so styled).

The Puets, or Hoopoes, have an ornament on the head formed of a
double range of long feathers, which they can erect at will. There is
one in Europe,

U. epops, L. ; Enl. 52; Naum. 142. (The Hoopoe). A vinous-
red; wings and tail black; two transverse, white bands on the co-
verts of the wings, and four on the quills of the wing. It seeks in-
sects in humid earth, lays its eggs in holes of trees or of walls, and
leaves France in winter* * * §.

U. capensisy Enl. 697. (The Cape Hoopoe). More particularly
allied to Fregilus by the anterior, short, and immovable feathers of
its tuft, which incline forwards and cover the nostrils.

Promerops, Briss.

No crest on the head, and a very long tail; the tongue, extensible and
forked, enables it, as is affirmed, to live on the nectar of flowers, like the
Cinnyris and the Humming-birds f.

EpimachusJ, Cuv.

The bill of the Upupa and Promerops, along with scaly or velvet fea-
thers, which partially cover the nostrils, as in the Birds of Paradise ; they
are natives of the same countries, and their plumage equally brilliant.
The flank-feathers of the male are also more or less elongated.

Upupa magna, Grn. ; U. superba , Lath. ; L' epimaque a pare, frises ,
Enl. 669; Vaill. Prom. 13. Black; tail tapered, thrice the length
of the body; the feathers on the flanks elongated, turned up, friz-
zled; the edges of a burnished steel blue, which also glisten on the
head and belly §.

Naturalists have distinguished the square-tailed species, Ptiloris of
Swainson, such as,

Ep. albus; Paradis, alba , Blumen. Abb. 96; Vaill. Ois. de Par.
pi. 16 and 17, and better Promer. 17; Vieill. pi. 13, and better

* Add the African species, Upupa minor , Vieill. Prom. pi. ii, and Gal. pi. 184;
Vaill. Prom. 23.

f Vieill. Galer. pi. clxxxv, has changed Promerops into Falcinellus. The only one
well known is the Upupa promerops or Merops coffer, Enl. 637, which is the Sucrier
du protea , Vaill. Afr. 139. M. Vaill. is of opinion that the Up. fusca, Gm., or papu-
ensis. Lath. Enl. 638, is the female of the Epimaque a pavements frises, Enl. 639. —
The Up. paradiscea , Seb. i, pi. xxx, 8, is the Muscicapa paradisi , with an ill-drawn
bill. The Up. aurantia , Seb. 1, lxvi, 3, according to all appearance a Cassicus. The
mexicana, Seb. I, xlv, 3, is not from Mexico as Seba makes it out, by applying to it
a passage of Nieremberg, lib. x, c. 44, in which he merely speaks of a Duck. I am
in doxibt whether to place here the Promerops cceruleus, Shaw; Prom, bleu, Vieill.;
Upupa Indica, Lath., or to approximate it to the Up. erythrorhynchos.

J Epimachus, the Greek name of a very beautiful East- Indian bird, of undeter-
mined species.

§ I hardly know whether I should place the Promcrar, Vaill. 8 and 9; — the Pro-
merup, Vaill. 11 and 12, and his Promerops siffleur , 10, here, or near the Up. erythro-
rhynchos. These beautiful birds of New Guinea, which arc very rare in our collec-
tions, are usually deprived of their feet, which renders it impossible to class them
with certainty.

VOL. I.

B B

290

BIRDS*

Gal. 185, (the Epimaque, with twelve filaments), which, for a long
time, was placed among the Birds of Paradise, on account of the
long hunches of wdiite plumes which decorate its flanks, the stems
of these plumes being continued out, forming six filaments on each
side. The body is usually of a violet black, and the feathers on the
bottom of the breast have an edging or border of emerald green. It
appears, however, that there are varieties with an entirely white body.
The primaries of the wing are short, and much less numerous than
in birds generally.

Efim, magnificus, Cuv.; Epimaque promejil, Vaill., Prom. 16.
Velvet-black ; tail, slightly forked; head and breast of a most bril-
liant steel-blue ; feathers on the flanks long, fringed, and black.

Epim. regius, Less, and Garn., Voy. de Duperr. pi. 28; Ptiloris
paradisceus, Swains. A purple black; top of the head and upper
part of the breast of a fine brilliant green; feathers on the flanks
rounded and edged with green.

The second and smallest division of the Passerinse comprehends those
in which the external toe, which is nearly as long as the middle one, is
united to it as far as the penultimate articulation. We make but a single
group of them, the

SYNDACTYLY,

Which has long been divided into five genera, an arrangement to which
we adhere.

Mergps, Lin .

The Bee-eaters have an elongated bill, triangular at base, slightly arcu-
ated and terminating in a sharp point. There is a double emargination
on each side of the hind part of the sternum. Their long, pointed wings,
and short feet, render their flight similar to that of Swallows. They pur-
sue insects in great flocks, especially bees, wasps, and hornets ; and it is
remarkable, they are never stung by them.

There is a species, common in the south of Europe, but rare in
our latitude, the M. apiaster, L. ; Guepier commun, Enl. 938 ;
Naum. 143 ; Vaill., Guep., 1 and 2. (The Common Bee-eater).
A beautiful bird with a fawn-coloured back; front and belly of a sea-
green blue ; throat yellow, surrounded with black. It builds in
holes excavated by itself along the banks of streams, which are from
four to five feet in depth. The young birds remain a long time in
this retreat with their parents, which induced the ancients to believe
that the former supported the latter when worn out with age.

The two middle quills of its tail are somewhat lengthened, the first
indication of a much greater elongation in the greater part of the
species foreign to Europe*.

* Such are, Mer. viridis, 740, Vaill. 4 ; — ornatus, Lath. ; superbus , Nat, Misc. 78 ;
— senegalensis, Enl. 314, and badius, 252, Vaill. 12, 13 ; super ciliosus, 2 59, Vaill. 19.

M. nubicus, Vaill. 5, Enl. 649 ; this individual had been deprived of its long quills.
' M. Savignii, Vaill. 6. — M. Cuvieri , Vaill. 9, and Swains. 111. 76, under the name
of Savignii. — M. Lexmark, Vaill. 10.

PASSERINE,

291

The tail of several species, however, is nearly square* * * § or slightly
forked']', though this sometimes depends upon their condition when
killed.

We should approximate to the Bee-eaters certain long-tailed birds, with
metallic-coloured plumage, hitherto classed with Promerops, but whose two
external toes are almost as extensively united as those of the former J.

There appears to be none of this genus in America, where they are re-
presented in some respects by the

Prionites, Illig.

The Motmots have the feet and carriage of the Bee-eaters, but differ in
the bill, which is stronger, the edges of both mandibles being serrated,
and in their tongue, which, like that of the Toucans, is barbed. They
are beautiful birds, as large as the Magpie ; the plumage on the head,
loose as in the Jays, and a long cuneiform tail; the stems of the two mid-
dle quills being stripped of their barbs (in the adult) for a short distance
near the extremities, gives to the whole a singular appearance. They
fly badly, are solitary, build in holes, feed on insects, and even on small
birds §.

Alcedo, Lin .

The Kingfishers have shorter feet than the Bee-eaters, and the bill,
which is straight, angular, and pointed, much longer ; the tongue and tail
are very short. There are two emarginations in their sternum, as in
those of the Bee-eaters and the Rollers. They feed on small fish which
they capture by precipitating themselves into the water from some branch
where they have remained perched, watching for their prey. Their sto-
mach is a membranous sac. They nestle like Bee-eaters in holes on the

* Merops philippinus, Enl. 57 ; — M. cayennensis , 454. (N. B. That it is not from
Cayenne). — M. nubicus, 649; — M. erytropterus, 3 1 S ; — M. malimbicus, Sh. or bicolor ,
Daud. Ann. du Mus. I, Ixii, and Vaill. 5, Vieill. Gal. 186; — M. gularis, Nat. Misc.
387; — M. amictus, T. Col. 310; — M. Daudin, Vaill. 14. — M. coromandus, Lath. Son-
nerat, Voy. 2, 105, or G. cytrin, Vaill. 11; — M. quinticolor, Vaill. 15; — M. minulus,
Vaill. 17;— M. Lechenaud, Vaill. 18;— M. Bullock, Vaill. 20.

f M. taiva, Vaill. 8. — M. urica, Swains. Zool. 111. 8. N. B. The Merops ccngener,
Aldr. I, 876, is not very authentic; — the cafer, Gm., is the TJ pupa promerops; — the
brasiliensis, Seb. I, lxvi, 1, is most probably an Icterus; — the M. monachus, cornicu -
latus, cyanops, are Gymnops; — the Mer. plirugius, cincimatus , cucullalus, cyanops, gar -
rulits, fasciculatus, carunculatus, of Lath., appear to us to be Pliiledons; we have even
ascertained this to be the fact with respect to most of them; — the M. cinereus, Seb.
XXXI, 10, is a long- tailed Cinnyris or Soui-manga.

I The Promerops moqueur, Vaill. Prom. 1, 2, and 4 ( TJpupa erylhrorhynchos, Lath.)
The young bird has a black bill. — The Prom, namaquois, Vaill. 5 and 6, or Falcin.
cyanomelas, Vieill.

§ The Blue-headed Molmot, or the Houtou of Guyana, Guira, guaynumbi of the
Brazilians, according to Marcgrave ( Rhamphastos momota, Gm.), or Pr. brasiliensis,
Illig. Enl. 370; Vaill. Ois. de Par. &c. 1, pi. xxxvii and xxxviii; — the Motmot a t8tc
rousse, or of Peru; Motmot dombey, Vaill. loc. cit. pi. xxxix, and Vieill. Gal. pi. cxc;
— Pr. Marcii , Spix, 9; — the Tutrc of Paraguay, Azz. No. 52, are, to say the least,
closely allied to it.

Motmot, according to Fernandez, is the Mexican name of the first. Prionitis, from
prion, saw, a name given by Illiger. M. Vicillot has changed it into Bariphonus.

lil!2

292

BIRDS.

banks of streams, and are found in both continents. The European
species,

A. ispida , Enl. 77 ; Naum. 144. The size of a Finch; greenish,
waved with black above ; underneath, and a band on each side of the
neck, reddish ; a wide band of the most beautiful aquamarina blue
along the back.

The species foreign to Europe have almost all also a smooth
plumage variegated with different shades of blue and green.

They may be distinguished among themselves by the bill, which
in some is simply straight and pointed as in the common species* * * §,
and, in others, has an inflated lower mandible f.

Of those found in New Holland and its neighbouring countries,
some have a mandible hooked at the point J. The greyish and dull
plumage of several of the latter is an indication of their not visiting
the water; and, in fact, they feed on insects, whence they have been
called King-hunters.

Ceyx, Lacep.

King-fishers with the usual bill, but in which the internal toe is defi
cient. Three species are found in India §.

Tobus, Lin.

The Todies are small birds of America, resembling the King-fishers in
their general form, as well as in their feet and elongated bill; but the
latter is horizontally flattened, and obtuse at the point. The tarsus also
is higher, and the tail not so short. They feed on flies, and build on the
ground j J .

We terminate the history of this order with the most singular of its ge~

* Ale. ( afra , Sh.) maxima , Enl. 679; — alcyon, 715 and 593, and Wils., Am. HI,
xxxiii, 1; — torquata , 284; — rudis, 62 and 716; — bicolor, 592; — americana, 591 ; — ben-
gal ensis, Edw. II ; — cceruleo-cephala, Enl. 356, 2 \—cristata, 756, 1 ; — madagascariensis ,
778, 1; — purpurea, 778, 2; — superciliosa, 756, 1 and 2; — cinerifrons, Vieill. Gal. 187;
—Biru, Horsf. Jav., and T. Col. 289, 1; — semi-torquala, Swains. 111. 154: — asiatica,
lb. 50.

f Al. capemis, 599; — atricapilla , 673; — smirnensis, 232 and 894, one of the two
species distinguished by Aristotle; — dea, 116, of which Vigors makes his genus Ta-
nysiptera ; — chlorocephala, 783, 2; — eoromanda, Somer. 218; — leucocephala ( java -
nica, Sh.) , 757; — senegalensis, 594 and 356; — cancrophaga, Sh. 334; — melanorhynca ,
T. Col. 391; — omnicolor, T. Col. 135; — diops, Id. Col. 212; — Dacelo eoncreta, Id. Col.
316; — Dacelo cinnamominus, Swains. 111. 67. It is from this division that M. Leach
has made his genus Dacelo.

N.B. In several of the fig. Enl. the hills are not sufficiently inflated.

J Alcedofusca (gigantea, Sh.), Enl. 663; Vieill. Gal. 188; — Dacelo pulchella, Horsf.
Jav. and T. Col. 262; — Dac. Gaudichojid, Quoy and Gaym. Voy. de Freycin. pi. xxv.

N. B. M. Lesson separates the species with denticulated bills from the King-fishers,
by the name of Syma; and by that of Todiramphes, those whose bill is a little de-
pressed and without a ridge, such as Alcedo sacra, Lath. See his Mem. among those
of the Soc. d’Hist. Nat. tom. Ill, pi. xi and xii.

§ Alcedo trydactyla, Pall, and Gm. ; Pall. Spic. VI, pi. 11, f. 2; Sonner, pi. xxxii;
— Ale. tribraclxys, Sh. Nat. Misc. XVI, pi. 681 ; — Ale. meninting, Horsf., C >1. 239, 2.

'll Todus viridis , Enl. 585, 1 and 2, and Vieill. Gal. 124; — T. coernletis, E il. 783, 1.

Authors have very improperly placed among the Todies, true Muscipetse, with an

PASSERINE.

29 3

nera, a genus which has not as much resemblance to the other Syndacty-
ly as they have to each other, and one which may very properly be made
to form a particular family. It is the

Buceros, Lin.

The Hornbills are large birds of Africa and India, whose enormous
dentated bill is studded with excrescences, which sometimes equal in size
the bill itself, and which are always of considerable extent above. This
renders them very remarkable, and allies them to the Toucans, while, at
the same time, their carriage and habits approximate them to the Crows,
and their feet to the Bee-eaters and the King-fishers. The shape of these
excrescences on the bill varies with age, and in the very young bird they
are not even visible ; the interior is generally cellular. The sternum is
slightly emarginated behind on both sides. The tongue is small, and
placed at the bottom of the throat; they live on all sorts of food, eat soft
fruits, hunt mice, small birds, reptiles, and do not even despise carrion* *.

emarginated bill and the external toe free, such as the Todus regius, Enl. 289; — para-
disccus, lb. 234; — leucoceplialus, Pall. Spic. VI, iii, 2; — the two Platyrhinci of Des-
marets, which are the Tod. rostratus and nasutus of Shaw, or Tod. platyrbynchos and
macrorhynchos, Gm. Vieill. gives the first, Gal. 126.

* Hornbills with excrescences. Buc. rhinoceros , Enl. 934, Vaill. Callaos,

1 and 2; B. africanus , Vaill., pi. 17, f. 2, may be a mere variety from age; niger,
Vaill. 13, according to Tern, is a badly preserved specimen of the same; — monoceros,
Sh. Enl. 873; Vaill. 9, 10, 11, 12; — cassidix, Temm. Col. 210; — malaharicus , Lath.
VI, ii, or albirostris, Sh.; Vaill. Col. 14; — buccinator, T. Col. 284; — gingianus, Sonn.
Voy. II, pi. cxxi; Vaill. 15; — bicornis , Vaill. 7, the adult female; cavatus, Id. 4, is the
I male at a middle age. The pi. 3 and 5 are altered specimens of the same — B. hydro-
I corax, Enl. 282, the young bird; Col. 283, the adult; — violaceus, Id. 19; — abyssinicus ,
Enl. 779, the middle age; Vaill. Afr. 230, 231, the adult; Vieill. Gal. 191; — sulcatus ,
T. Col. 69; — panaycnsis, Enl. 780, the female, and 781, the old male; Vaill. Col. 16,
17, and 18; manillensis, Enl. 891, should be the young bir(i;~-fasciatus, Vaill. Afr.
233; — exaratus , T. Col. 211.

Hornbills without excrescences. B. javanicus, Vaill, Cal. 22, the young
j. male; Afr. 239, the old male, same as the Cal. de Waidjiou, Labill. Voy., B. undulatus ,

] Vaill. Cal. 20 and 21, are females of the same; B. erythrorhynchos, Enl. 260; Vaill.
Afr. 238, the young one; — hastatus, Cuv. ! Enl. 890, Vaill. 236, 237;. — coronatus,
Vaill. Afr. 234, 235; — bengalensis, Cal. 23.

N.B. The B. galeatus, of which we only have the head, Enl. 933, and which Vail-
lant erroneously considers as an aquatic bird, is a true Hornbill, but whose excres-
cence on the beak is invested with an excessively thick horn, the anterior portion of
it particularly.

See the general article on the Hornbills, by Temminck, in the text of the Planches
Coloriees. P. S. It is to General Hardwick that we are at length indebted for a know-
I ledge of the B. galeatus, which proves to be, in fact, a true Hornbill, with a long cu-
V, neiforin tail; black; white belly; the tail yellowish, with a black band near the end.
I Lin. Tr. X I V, pi. xx viii.

I

BIRDS.

29i

ORDER III.

[SCANSQRIiE (a). — CLIMBERS.

This order is composed of those birds whose external toe is directed back-
wards, like the thumb, by which conformation they are the better enabled
to support the weight of their bodies, and of which some of the genera
take advantage in clinging to the trunks of trees, and climbing them. It
is from this that they have received the common name of Climbers, which,
in strictness, is not applicable to all of them, as there are many which are
true Climbers, yet which, by the disposition of their toes, cannot belong
to this order, as we have already seen in the Creeper and Nuthatch.

The birds of this order usually build their nests in the hollows of old
trees; their powers of flight are middling; their food, like that of the
Passerinse, consists of insects or fruit, in proportion as their bill is more
or less stout; some of them, the Woodpeckers for instance, have peculiar
means for obtaining it.

The hind part of the sternum, in most of the genera, has a double
emargination ; but, in the Parrots, there is merely a hole, and very often
that is completely filled up.

Galbula, Briss .

The Jacamars are closely allied to the King-fishers by their elongated
sharp -pointed bill, the upper ridge of which is angular, and by their short
feet, the anterior toes of which are almost wholly united ; these toes, how-
ever, are not precisely the same as those of the Kingfishers ; their plum-
age, moreover, is not so smooth, and always has a metallic lustre. They
are solitary birds, that live in wet forests, feed on insects, and build on
low branches.

The American species have a longer and perfectly straight bill*.

There are some species in the Archipelago of India, whose shorter,
stouter, and slightly arcuated bill, approximates them to the Bee- /■
eaters. Their anterior toes are more separate. They constitute the
Jacamerops of Vaillantf , who even gives a figure of one that has
no ridge above J.

* Alcedo paradiscea ( Galbula paradiscea, Lath.), Enl. 271; — Alcedo galbula, L.

( Galb . viridis , Lath.), Enl. 238 ; — Galb. ruficauda, Noh. Vaill. Ois. de Par. &c. II, pl.l ;
or G. macraura, Vieill. Gal. 29; — Galb. albirostris, Lath. Vaill. pi. li; Vieill. Ois. Dor.

I, pi. iv; Galb. albiventris, Vaill. xlvi.

f Alcedo grandis, Gm. ; Galbula grandis , Lath. Vaill. pi. liv.

J The Grand Jacamar, Vaill. I, cit. pi. liii.

Jacamaciri is the Brazilian name of these birds, according to Marcgrave. Galbula,
among the Latins, appears to have indicated the Oriole, it was Mcehring who transfer-
red it to the J ac m> -xrs.

|iggp° (a) Fron ' tf le Latin verb scando, to climb.

CLIMBERS. 295

Finally, there are others — the Jacamar-Alcyon , which have only
three toes. They inhabit Brazil*'.

Picusf , Lin.

The Woodpeckers are well characterized by their long, straight, angular
bill, the end of which is compressed into a wedge, and fitted for splitting
the bark of trees ; by their slender tongue, armed near the tip with spines
that curve backwards, which, by the action of the elastic horns of the
hyoid bone, can be thrust far out of the bill, and by their tail, composed
of ten quills J with stiff and elastic stems, which acts as a prop in support-
ing them while they aje climbing. They are Climbers par excellence :
they wander over trees in every direction, striking the bark off with their
bills, and insinuating their long tongue into its cracks and crevices to ob-
tain the larvae of insects, on which they feed. This tongue, besides its
armour, is constantly moistened with a viscid fluid, secreted by large sa-
livary glands : it is drawn back into the bill by two muscles, which are
wound round the trachea like ribands ; in this state of retraction, the horns
of the hyoid bone ascend under the skin and round the head, as far as the
superior base of the bill, and the sheath of the tongue is doubled into folds
in the bottom of the throat. Their stomach is nearly membranous, and
they have no caeca, still they also eat fruit. Fearful and wary, they pass
most of their time in a solitary manner ; but during the pairing season
they may frequently be heard summoning their females by loud and rapid
tapping on a dry branch. They build their nests once a year in holes of
trees, and each sex alternately broods upon the eggs. There are six or
seven species in Europe.

P. martins, L. ; Grand Pic noir, Enl. 596; Naum. 131. (The
Great Black Woodpecker). Almost as large as a crow, and entirely
black ; a beautiful red forms a calotte in the male, but a mere spot
on the occiput in the female. It prefers the pine forests of the
north.

P. viridis ; Pic vert, Enl. 371; Naum. 132. (The Green Wood-
pecker). Size of a turtle-dove; green above; whitish beneath ; the
calotte red; rump yellow; one of the most beautiful birds of Europe.
The young are marked with black spots beneath, and with white
ones on the mantle. It prefers inhabiting the woodland plains, and
is partial to the beech and elm. It also seeks food on the ground.

P. canus , Gm.; Edw. 65; Naum. 133. A species closely allied
to the preceding, but smaller, more of an ash colour, the bill more
slender, and with a black moustache. The only red about the male
is on the top of the head, and there is none on the female. It is not
found far to the south, and is more rarely seen in France than the
preceding, of whose habits it partakes. Its favourite food consists
of ants.

* Vaill. Jac. Sup. f. 1, and Spix, 57, 2, by the name of Alcyon tridactyla.
t Picas, the Latin name for these birds, given to them, it Ls said, by a king of
Latium.

t Strictly speaking, they are twelve; but the lateral ones, which are vcvv small,
are not counted.

296

BIRDS.

P. major; V Epeiche , Enl. 196; the male, 595, the female,
Naum. 134. (The Great Spotted Woodpecker). Size of a Thrush,
varied with black and white above ‘ black back and rump ; white be-
neath ; red about the anus ; a spot of the same colour on the occiput
of the male. The calotte of the young bird is almost wholly red ; it
prefers evergreen trees, frequently approaches our dwellings, but
scarcely ever lights on the ground.

P. medius; Moyen Epeiche , Enl. 611; Naum. 136, f. 1 and 2.
Somewhat less ; the whole calotte red in both sexes ; rump black ;
under part of the tail reddish. Inhabits temperate and southern
Europe.

P. minor; Petit Epeiche , Enl. 598 ; Naum. 136, f. 2 and 3. (The
Little Spotted Woodpecker). Size of a finch ; variegated with black
and white above; greyish-white beneath; some red on the head of
the male only. From the north and middle of Europe. It is assert-
ed that it searches for ants on foot, whence it has been called Grass-
pecker; but Naumann assures ns that such is not the fact.

P. leuconotos , Bechst. ; Naum. 135. A spotted Woodpecker from
the north-east of Europe, somewhat larger than the major , and very
similar to it ; but the lower part of the back and rump are always
white, and the calotte of the male red. It sometimes wanders as far
as Germany.

The species foreign to Europe are very numerous, and have a
great mutual resemblance, which even extends to certain distributions
of colour; the red on the head for instance*.

* Species analogous to the Black Woodpecker: P.pileatus, L. Enl. 718; — P. linea-
tus, L. Enl. 717; — P. principalis , L. Enl. 690; — P. galeatus, Natter. Col. 171, four
closely allied species, to one of which probably belongs the P. mclanoleucos, Gm. ;
Lath. Syn. I, 2, t. xxv; — P. rubricollis , Gm. Enl. 612; — P. robustus, Spix, 44 ; — P. albi-
rnstris, Id. 45; — P. validus , T. Col. 378, and the female, 402; — P. eryihrocephalus , L.
Enl. 117; — P.pulverulentus , T. Col. 389;— P. concretus , Reirrw. Col. 90;- — P. chilensis,
Voy. de la Coq. 32; — P. forquatus, Wils. Am. Ill, xx, 3; — P. dominicanus, Spix, 50.

Species analogous to the Green W oodpecker: P. percussus, T. Col. 390 and 424, the
female; — P. bengalensis, L. Enl. 695, of which P. aunmiius, Gm. Briss. IV, pi. vi, f. 1,
is probably a mere variety; — P. goensis, Gm. Enl. 696; — P. aurulentus , Illig. Col. 59,
fig. 1. or macrocephalus, Spix, 53, 2; — P. puniceus, Horsf. Col. 423; — P. pentalls, Col.
384; — P. ceylonus, N. Nat. Forsch. 14, pi. 1; — P. goerian, Gm. Enl. 320; — P. manil-
lensis, Gm.; Sonner, pi. xxxvi; — P. senegalensis, Gm. Enl. 345, f. 2; — P. passerinus,
Gm.; Briss. IV, t. iv, f. 2; — P. luzonicus, Nob. Sonn. pi. xxxvii; — P.miniatus, Gm.
Ind. Zool. t. VI; — P. chlorocephalus, Gm. Enl. 784; — P. exalbidus, Gm. Enl. 509; —
P. cinnamomeus, Gm. Enl. 524; — P. palalaca , Nob. Enl. 691; — P. jumanay Spix, po-
chraceus andflavicans, Id. 51.

Species analogous to the Spotted Woodpeckers: P. rubriventris, Vieill. Gal. 27 ; —
P. hirundinaceusy L. Enl. 694; — P. varius, Gm. Enl. 785; — P. villosus, Gm. Enl. 754;
Wils. I, ix, 3; — P. undosus, N. Enl, 533; — P. pubescens, Gm. Catesb. 31, 11; Wils. I,
ix, 4.

Species with a transversely striped bill: P. molucc.ensis , Gm. Enl. 748, f. 2; — P. bi-
color, lb. f. 1; — P.rufus, Gm. Enl. 694, f. 1, closely allied to the P.undatus , Gm.;
Edw. 332; — P. carolinns, Gm. Enl. 597 and 692; — P. cayennensis , Gm. Enl. 613; —
P. melanochhrisy Gm. Enl. 719; — P. slriatus, Gm. Enl. 281 and 614; — P. super ciliar is,
T. Col. 443;— P. flavescens, Gm.; Brown, II, pi. xii, and Spix, 49; — P. cardinalis,
Sonn., pi. xxxv; — P. querulus, Wils. Am. II, xv, 1; — P. campestris, Spix, 46; — P.
maceiy T. Col. 59, 2.

We should observe, that these distinctions of analogy, particularly when taken from

CLIMB ERS.

297

There are certain species of Woodpeckers called by Lacepede Picoides,
in which the external toe is wanting; having, consequently, but two be-
fore, and one behind; but, in all other respects, they are similar to the
common ones. There is one of them in the north and east of Europe.

P . tridactylus , Edw. 114; Naum. 137. Intermediate, as to size,
between the Great and Little Spotted Woodpecker; black, spotted
with white above; calotte of the male orange; that of the female
white.

We might also make a subgenus of those species whose slightly arcu-
ated bill begins to approach the cuckoos* * * * §. One of them always seeks
its food while walking on the ground, although its tail is similar to the
others -j-.

Yun-xJ, Lin.

The Torcols or Wrynecks have the extensible tongue of the Wood-
peckers, which is also moved by the same kind of mechanism, but the
spines are wanting; their straight and pointed bill is nearly round, and
without any angles ; the quills of their tail are like those of birds in ge-
neral. Their mode of life is that of the Woodpeckers, except that they
climb but seldom. There is one of them in Europe.

Y. torquitta, L. ; Enl. 698; Naum. 138. (The Common Wry-
neck). The size of a lark; brown above, prettily vermiculated with
small blackish waves, and longitudinal fawn-coloured and black
streaks; whitish, transversely striped with black beneath. It de-
rives its name from its singular habit, when surprised, of twisting its
head and neck in opposite directions.

The Picumni, Temm., can scarcely be said to differ from the Wry-
necks, except in their very short tail. They are very small birds §, some
of which have but three toes, like the Picoides |[.

Cuculus**, Lin .

The Cuckoos have a middling, well-cleft, compressed, and slightly ar-
cuated bill; the tail long. They live on insects, and are birds of passage.
We subdivide this numerous genus as follows: —

colours, are but of little importance, and that it is very possible that among the above
species, several may be found to constitute but one (a).

* Such as the Picus auratus ( Cuculus auratus of the 10th Ed.), Enl. 695, and Wils.
I, iii; — Picus cafer, Lath., or promeipic, Vaill. Prom. 32 i — P. poicilophos, T. Col. 198,

f. 1.

f Picus arntnr, Nob., Vaill. Afr. pi. cclv. and cclvi.

The only additional abstraction that we make from the genus Picus, is the P. tni-
nutus, Lath. {Yunx minutissimus, Gm. Enl. 786, 1; Vieill. Gal. 28), which in fact is a
Wryneck.

J Xunx, the Greek name of this bird, Torquilla the Latin one.

§ P. minule, T. ( Yunx minutissima), Gm. Enl. 786, 1; — P. a toupet ( Picumnus cir-
rhatus, T.), Col. 371, 1 ; Vieill. Gal. 28; — P. niignon (P. exilis, T.); Col. 571, 2.

|| P. abnormis, T., Col. 371, 3.

** Kokkux , cuculus, cuckoo, expresses the cry of the European species.

(«) The Picus auratus has become the genus Colaptes of Swainson. —
Eno. Ed.

298

BIRDS.

The True Cuckoos

Have a moderately strong bill, short tarsi, and ten quills in the tail.
They are celebrated for the singular habit of laying their eggs in the nests
of other insectivorous birds, and, what is not less extraordinary, these
latter, which are often a considerably smaller species, become the parents
of, and take as much care of, the young Cuckoo as of their own true off-
spring, and that too, even when its introduction has been preceded, which
often happens, by the destruction of their eggs. The cause of this phe-
nomenon, which is unique in the history of birds, is unknown. Heris-
sant has attributed it to the position of the gizzard, which, in fact, is
placed much farther back in the abdomen, and is less protected by the
sternum than in other birds. The caeca are long, and the lower larynx
has but a single muscle proper. There is one of them very generally
found throughout Europe.

C. canorus, L. ; Enl. 811. (The Common Cuckoo). An ash-
coloured grey : white belly, striped transversely with black ; sides of
the tail spotted with white ; a red takes the place of the grey in the
young bird. But another species,

C. glandarius, Edw. 57; Naum. 130, the male; Col. 414, the fe-
male* * * §, which is sometimes seen in Europe, has a more sonorous
note, and is crested and spotted.

The warm countries of both hemispheres produce several others f.

Africa, in particular, has several beautiful species, of a green co-
lour, more or less gilded ; their bill is rather more depressed than
that of the common Cuckoo %.

In others, most of whom have a spotted plumage, the bill is ver-
tically higher §. The

Couas, Vaill.

Only differ from the Cuckoos in their elevated tarsi (| . They build in

* Cuculus pisanus, Gm., is the young.

f Cuculus capensis, Vaill. Afr., pi. 200, which is probably nothing more than a va-
riety of the common one; — solitarius, Nob., Vaill. 20 6; — radiatus, Sonner. Voy. 1,
pi. 79; — clamosus, Nob. Vaill. 204, 205; — edolius , Nob. Vaill. 207, 208. N.B. Cue.
ssrratus, Spann. Mus. Carls. 3, is the male; melanoleucos, Enl. 272, the female; — co~
romandus, Enl. 274, 2, and a var., Vaill. 213; — americanus, Enl. 816, or carolinensis ,
Wils. Ill, cxviii, 1; — erythropktalmus , lb. 2? — flavus, Enl. 814.

N.B. The C. mindanensis, Enl. 277, and its male, C. orientalise Enl. 274, 1, are se-
parated from them by M. Vigors and Horsf. under the generic name of Eudynamys.

J Cue. auratus , Enl. 657, Vaill. 211; classii, Vaill. 210; — lucidus, Lath. Syn. I, pi.
xxiii, and Col. 102, f. 1; — capreus, Id. Supp. 134, and Vieili. Gal- 42; — chalcites, T.
Col. 102, f. 2, the female.

§ Cue. punctatus, Enl. 771, and scolopaceus, 586, and perhaps even maculatus, 764,
are varieties; — honoratus, Enl. 294, Vaill. 216; — taitentis, Sparm. Mus. Carls. 32; —
mindanensis, Enl. 277 ; — gaira, Vieili. Gal. 44; Freycin. Voy. Zool. 26. Why Vieillot
makes an Anis of it, it is impossible to say.

|| From this division Vieillot makes his genus Coccyzus, Gal. 41. It is the
Macropus of Spix, Cue. madagascariensis, Enl. 825; — C. Lalandii, T. Col. 440; —
cristatus, Enl. 589; Vaill. 217; — cceruleus, 295, 2; Vaill. 218; — neevius, Enl. 812; —
cay anus , Enl. 211; — C. brachypterus, T. or Macropus caixana, Spix, 43; — C. seniculus,
Enl. 813; — Macropus phasianellus, Spix, 42.

CLIMBERS.

29 9

hollow trees, and do not lay their eggs in strange nests ; a fact, so far as
regards those species whose mode of breeding is known, that cannot be
denied.

We may separate from them an American species with a long bill, that
is only curved near the tip* * * §.

M. Le Vaillant has already, and very properly, separated from the other
Cuckoos, the

Centropus, Illig.

Or the Coucals'j~, species of Africa and India, in which the thumb nail
is long, straight, and pointed, as in the Larks. Those which are known
belong to the eastern continent. They also build in hollow trees J.

We should also distinguish with that naturalist, the

Gourdes §, or Vouroudrious of Madagascar.

In whose thick, pointed, straight and compressed bill, which is but
slightly arcuated at the point of its upper mandible, the nostrils are pierced
obliquely in the middle of each side. Their tail is composed of twelve
puills. They live in the woods, and build like the preceding birds.
They are said to be mostly frugivorous ||.

Indicator, Vaill. *

The Indicators are also inhabitants of Africa, and, as they feed on
honey, have become celebrated for guiding the natives to the retreats of
the wild bees, which they seek with loud cries. Their bill is short, high,
and nearly conical, like that of the Finch. Their tail of twelve quills is
at once slightly cuneiform, and partly forked. Their singularly hard skin
shields them from the stings of the bees, which, being continually perse-
cuted, sometimes kill them by attacking their eyes**. The

Barbacous Vaill.

Have a conical, elongated bill, but little compressed, and slightly arcu-
ated at the end, whose base is furnished with slender feathers or stiff
hairs, which ally them to the Barbets^J.

*' Cuc.vetula , Enl. 772. It is upon this distinction that Vieill. has founded his
genus Saurothera, Galer. 38.

f Coucal, compounded of Cuckoo and Lark (Coc. and Alouette) ; centropus, feet
with spurs. Vieill. has changed it into Corydonie, and Leach into Podophilus.

+ Cuculus agypt-ius and senegalensis, Enl. 332; Vaill. Afr. 219; — philippensis, Nob.
Enl. 824, or C. bubutus, Horsf. Jav. ; — nigro-rufus, Nob. Vaill. Afr. 220; — tola, Enl.
295; Vaill. 219; — bengalensis, Brown, 111. XIII; — rufinus, Nob. Vaill. 221; — t ethiops ,
Nob. Vaill. 222; — gigas , Nob. Vaill. 223; — atralbus, Voy. de la Coq. Zool. 34.

§ Courol, from Cuckoo and Roller. From this division Vieill. has made his genus
Leptosomus, Gal. 29.

|| Cuculus ctfer, Enl. 387, the male, whose bill is badly drawn, and 58S, the female,
where it is better, Vaill. 226, 227.

** Cuculus indicator, Vaill. Afr. 241; — minor, Nob. Id. 24; — albirostris, T. Col.
367. Vieill. has adopted this name and genus, Gal. 45.

ft JBarlxicou, composed of barbel and cuckoo. From it Vieill. has made his genus
Mon asia, Gal. 36.

J+ Cuculus tranquillus, Enl. 512; Spix, 41, 2; — C. tcnchrosus, Enl. 505, and Col.
323, 2; — C. rufalbinus, T. Col. 323; — Monasa per sonata, Vieill. Gal. 36, or Bttcco albi-
frens, Spix. 41.

N. I>. We should also observe, that the C.'c. paradisaus, Bliss. IV, pi. viv, A, 1,
is the Drongo de Paradis (Lanins malabar tens), and that the Cue . sinensis, Id. Ib. A, 2,

300

BIRDS.

Malcoha* * * * § ** * * §§, Vaill.

The Malcohas have a very stout bill, round at base, and arcuated near
the point, with a large naked space about the eyes. The nostrils of
some-j* are round, and placed near the base of the bill, in others they are
narrow and situated near its edgej. They are natives of Ceylon, and
as it is said, live chiefly on fruit.

It is probably also necessary to distinguish those species in which the
bill is not so stout, and which have scarcely any of the naked space about
the eyes§.

Scythkops, Lath.

The bill still longer and stouter than that of the Malcoha, and grooved
on each side with two shallow longitudinal furrows; circumference of the
eyes naked; nostrils round. These birds approach the Toucans in their
beak; but their simple tongue, which is not ciliated, separates them.
One species only is known, which is as large as a Crow, whitish, with a
grey mantle; found in New Holland ||.

Bucco Lin.

The Barbets have a thick conical bill, inflated on the sides of its base,
and furnished with five bundles of stiff* hairs directed forwards; one be-
hind the nostril, one on each side of the base of the lower jaw, and the
fifth under its symphysis. The wings are short, and their proportions are
heavy, as is also their flight. They live on insects, and will attack small
birds; they also eat fruit. They build in the hollows of trees. We may
divide them into three subgenera:

The Barbicans j~f, Buff. — Pogonias, Tllig. *■

Have one or two strong teeth on each side of the upper mandible, the
ridge of which is blunt and arcuated; the hairs on the beak are remark-
ably rigid. They are more frugivorous than the other species, and are
found in India and Africa

Bucco §§, Cuv.

In the true Barbets, the bill is simply conical and slightly compressed,

is the Corvus erythrorhynchos. These two remarks are from Le Vaillant, who has
done more to elucidate the history of the Cuckoos than any other naturalist,

* Vieill. calls the Malcoha , Phcenicoph^eus, Gal. 37.

f The Malcoha Rouver din, Vaill. Afr. 223.

j The Malcoha , Id. 224; or Cue. pyrrocephalus , Forster, 3. Vieill. Gal. 37.

§ The Malcoha a bee peint ( Phoenicophceus calyorhynchus , T.), Col. 349;— Phceni.
javanicus. Horsf. Jav.

|| Scythrops novce-hollandice, Lath., or Scylh. australasice, Sh., Philip, 165, and John
White, p. 142; two bad figures. Those are better in Col. 290, and Vieill. Gal. 39.

** Bucco, the name given to this genus by Brisson, on account of the inflation
of the mandible at its ‘base, from bucca (cheek).

ff Barbicans, because they are connected with both the Barbets and the Tou-
cans: Pogo-nias, from pogon (beard) ; but the latter has long been applied to a genus
of fishes by Lacepede.

++ Bucco dubius, Gm. ( Pogonias sulcirostris ), Leach, Zool. Misc. II, 76, Enl. 602;
Vaill., Ois. de par. etc. II, pi. xix; — Pog. erythromelas, Vieill. Gal. 32; — P. levirostris,
Leach, 77; Vaill., pi. K; Le barb, a ventre rose, Vaill. loc. cit. pi. A, is its young; —
P. personatus, T. Col. 201;— P. niger, Enl. 688, 1; Vaill. 29, 30, 31;- — P. rubicon,
Vaill. pi. D.

§§ Viellot has changed this name into Capito.

CLIMBERS.

SOI

with a blunt ridge, somewhat raised in the middle. They are found in
both continents, and several of them are ornamented with bright colours.
During the pairing season they fly in pairs, and the remainder of the year
in small flocks*.

TAMATIAj-, Cuv.

In the Tamatias, the extremity of the upper mandible of the bill, which
is somewhat more elongated and compressed, is curved downwards. The
large head, short tail, and great bill of these birds, give them a stupid ap-
pearance. All the known species are from America, and live on insects.
Their natural disposition is sad and solitary J.

Trogon §, Lin.

The Couroucoui, along with the hairy fasciculi of the Barbets, have a
short bill, which is more broad than high, and curved from the base, its
upper ridge arcuated and blunt. Their small feet, feathered nearly down
to the toes, long broad tail, fine light and dense plumage, give them quite
a different air. There is very often some part of their plumage which
usually shines with a metallic lustre, the remainder being coloured more
or less vividly. They build nests in the hollows of trees, live on insects,
and remain in a solitary and quiet mood on low branches in the centre of
marshy forests, and are never on the wing, except in the morning and
evening. They are found in both continents.

The edges of the mandibles, in the American species, are den-
tated 1 1. In those of the eastern world, they are more entire**.

* Bucco grandis, Enl. 871; — viridis, Enl. 870; — flavifrons, Nob. Vaill. I, cit. 55;
— cyanops , Nob. Id. Ib. 21, or Copito cyanocollis, Vieill. Gal. 35; — Lathami, Lath.,
Syn. I, pi. xxii ; — philippensis, Enl. 333; — rubricapillus, Brown, 111. xiv; — rubricollis,
Nob. Vaill. 35, should they not prove to be three varieties; torquatus, N., Vaill. 37 ;
— roseus, N., Vaill. 33; — niger, Enl. 688, 1; Vieill. Gal. 33; — mayamiensis, Lath.; — ■
elegans, Gm., Enl. 618; — barbiculus, N., Vaill. 56; — parvus, Mas., Vaill. 32, female,
Enl. 746, 2; — eryihronotos, Nob. Vaill. 57; — zeylanicus , Brown, III, XV; — cayanen-
sis, Enl. 206; — peruvianus, Nob. Vaill. 27; — nigrolhoiax, T., Vaill. 28, which may
also prove three varieties; — fuscus, Vaill. 43; — armillaris, T., Col. 89, 1; — gularis,
Id. Ih. 2 ; — chrysopogon, T., Col. 285; — versicolor, T., Col. 309; — Mystacophanes, T.,
Col. 315, Vaili. pi. C; — auro-virens, T., Vaill, pi. E.

f Tam ati A, the Brazilian name of one of these birds, according to Marcgrave.
In Paraguay, Azzara says, they are called Chacurus. It is to them that Temminck
applies the term Capiti.

I Bucco macrorhynchos, Enl. 689; — melanoleucos, Enl. 688, 2; — collaris , Enl. 395;
— tamatia , Enl. 746, 1; Vieill. Gal. 34 ( Tamatia maculata, Nob.); — Cap. melanotisr
T., Col. 94; — Cyphos macrodactylus, Spix, 39, 2.

§ Ctiroucou expresses their cry, and is their Brazilian name; that of Trogon was
conferred on them by Mochring.

|| In America: Trogon curucui , Enl. 452, Vaill , courouc, 1, 2; — TV. rosalba, Vaill.
6, or variegatus, Spix, 38; — viridis, Enl. 195; Vaill. 3, 4; Spix, 36; — violaceus, Nov.
Comm. Petr. XI, pi. xvi, f. 8; — strigilatus, Enl. 765; — rujus, Enl. 736; Vaill. 9; —
Tr. atricollis, Vieill. Gal. 31, or oravga, Vaill. 7, 8, 15, or sulfuraceus, Spix, 38; — Tr.
domicellus, Vaill. 13; — TV. albiventer, Vaill. 5.

** In Asia: Trogon fasciatus, lnd. Zool. pi. v; — T. orcsldos, T. Col. 181; — T.
Reinwardii, T. Col. 121; — /'. Duvaucelii, T. Col. 291, Vaill. 14; — T. condea, T. Col.
321; — T. Tcmminchii, Vaill. 12. In Africa: Tr. narina, Vaill. Afr. 228, 229, and
Cour. 10 and 1 1.

We may be allowed to doubt if the Trogon maculattis, Brown, 111. XIII, be a true
Couroucou.

BIRDS,

fm

One of them is remarkable for the figure of its tail; Tr. temnu -
rus, T., Col. 326; and another for the length of the tail coverts,
which nearly equals that of the body, Tr. pavonius, T,, Col. 372;
Spix, 35. It is celebrated in the mythology of the Mexicans, and
much in request among them for ornamental purposes.

Crotophaga, Lin.

The Ani* are known by their bill, which is thick, compressed, arcu-
ated, entire, elevated, and surmounted with a vertical and trenchant crest.

Two species are known, both from the hot and low districts of
America. Their tarsi are strong and" elevated, the tail long and
rounded, and the plumage black. Crotophaga major , and Crolo.
ani, Enl. 102, fig. 1 and 2, Vieill. Gal. 43.

These birds feed on insects and grain, and fly in flocks, several
couples laying their eggs, and even brooding over them in the same
nest, which, together with the branches that support it, is of a size
proportioned to the number of couples that have constructed it.
They are easily tamed, and may be even taught to speak, but their
flesh has a disagreeable odour,

RAMPHASTOSf, Lin.

The Toucans are distinguished from all other birds by their enormous
bill, which is almost as thick and as long as their body, light and cellular
internally, arcuated near the end, and irregularly indented along its edges ;
and by their long and narrow tongue, fringed on both sides with barbs
like a quill. They are confined to the hot climates of America, where
they live in small flocks, feeding on fruit and insects ; they also devour
other birds’ eggs during the season of laying, and their newly-hatched
young. The structure of their bill compels them to swallow their food
without mastication. When they have seized it, they toss it into the air
to swallow it with more facility. Their feet are short, and their wings
have but little extent; their tail is tolerably long. They build in the
hollows of trees.

The Toucans, properly so called ,

Have a bill larger than their head; they are generally black, with
lively colours on the throat, breast, and rump. These parts of their
plumage were employed, formerly, in a kind of embroidery J.

* Ani , Anno, names cf these birds in Guiana and Brazil. Crotophagus was
formed by Brown (Nat. Hist. Jamaic.), from the circumstance of the Ani in that
island flying on the cattle in pursuit of the Tabanus and the Tick. Kroton ( musca

canina).

f Toucan from their Brazilian name Tuca; Rhamphastos, a name invented by Lin-
nseus, from ramphos (bill), on account of the enormous size of that organ.

X Ramphastos toco, Enl. 82, Vaill. 2; — carinatus, Wagler, Edw. 329; — tucanus,
Enl. 307; — piscivorus, L., or Callorhynchus, Wagler, Edw. 64; — maximus, Nob. Vaill.
Touc. pi. vi; — pectoralis, Sh. or Tucdi, Lich. Enl. 269; — Aldrovandi, Sh. Alb. II, 25;
— eryt.hrorhynchos, Sh. Enl. 262, Vaill. 3; — Vallantii, Wagler, Vaill.T; — Tocard, Id.
Vaill. 9; — vitelTmus, Id. Vaill. 17, Swains. Zool. 111. 56 j — dicolorus , Wagler, or
chlororhynchos , Temm. Vaill. 8.

CLIMBERS.

303

Pteroglossus, Illig. — Aracari, Buff.

The bill not so thick as the head, and invested with a more solid horn ;
their size is less, and the ground of their plumage green with some red
or yellow on the throat and breast*.

Psittacus, Lin.

The Parrots have a stout, hard, solid bill, rounded on all sides and en-
veloped at base by a membrane in which the nostrils are pierced, and a
thick fleshy and rounded tongue ; two circumstances which give them the
greatest facility in imitating the human voice. Their inferior larynx,
which is complicated and furnished on each side with its three muscles,
also contributes to this facility. Their vigorous jaws are set in motion
by a greater number of muscles than is found in other birds. Their in-
testines are very long, and they have no cascum. They feed on all sorts
of fruit, climb among the branches of trees by the aid of their bill and
claws, and build their nests in the cavities of trees. Their voice is natu-
rally harsh and disagreeable, and they are almost universally ornamented
with the brightest colours, hardly any of them being found beyond the
torrid zone. They exist however in both continents, the species of
course differing in each. Every large island even has its peculiar species,
the short wings of these birds not allowing them to cross any great extent
of water. The Parrots, consequently, are very numerous; they are sub-
divided by the forms of their tails and some other characters,

Among those which have a long cuneiform tail, we first distinguish

Ara, Kuhl.

The Aras, or Maccaws, whose cheeks are divested of feathers. They
are American species, most commonly very large, and their plumage
extremely brilliant, on account of which many of them are sent alive to
Europe'j'.

The other long-tailed Parrots have the common name of
Cornu rus, Kuhl ,

Or Paroquets. Le Vaillant divides them into the
Ara-Paroquets,

Which have a naked space round the eye; they inhabit Amerisa like the
AraJ: and into the

* Ramph. viridis, Enl. 727, 728, Vaill. 16, 17; — aracari , Enl. 166, Vaill. 10, 11,
Vieill. Galer. 30; — pipe.rivorus , L., or Culik. Wagler, Enl. 577, 729, Vaill. 13 and 14;
— Pterogl. sulcatus, Swains. Zool. 111. 44, Col. 356; — picatvs, Albin. II, 25; — Az-
zara, Vaill. Suppl. A; — inscriptus, Swains. Zool. 111.90; — bailloni, Vaill. 18; — maculi-
roslris , Vaill. 15, and Suppl. A A.

f j Psitt. viacan , L., Vaill. 1; — Ps. aracanga , Enl. 12, Vaill. 2; — Ps. tricolor, Vaill.
5; — Ps. hyacinthinus, Lath., or Anodorhynchus Maximiliani, Spix, XI; — Ps. ararauna,
Enl. 36; — Ps. militaris , Vaill. 4; — Ps. severus, Vaill. S, 9, 10; — Ps. macawuanna, Enl.
864, Vaill, 7; — Arara purpureo- dorsalis, Spix, XXIV.

X Ps. guyannensis, Enl. 167, 407; Vaill. 14, 15; — Ps. squamosus, Shaw, Miscell.
1061; — Ps. vitlatus, Vaill. 17; — Ps. versicolor, Enl. 144, Vaill. 16; — Ps. solstitialis,
Vaill. 16 — 19; or Aratinga chryso-cephalus, Spix, XIV. His Aratinga luleus is a
variety.

304

BIRDS.

Arrow-tailed Paroquets,

Where the two middle quills extend far beyond the others®.

Such is the first species known in Europe, where it was brought
by Alexander; Psittacus Alexandria L., Enl. 642. It is of a fine
green, with a red collar on the neck, and a black spot under the
throat. The third subdivision of Le Vaillant is the

Paroquets, with a tail widened near the end\.

And the fourth, that of the Common Paroquets, whose tail is almost
equally cuneiform^. To these may be added, those species whose tail is
square ; the two middle quills of which are elongated, the lengthened part,
however, being without barbs, except at the tips ||.

Among the short and equal-tailed Paroquets, we distinguish the

Cockatoos ^f.

Marked by a crest formed of long and narrow feathers, placed on two

* It is this division which furnished MM. Vigors and Horsfield with their genus
Pal/EORNIS. We should place in it,

Ps. torquatus, Briss., Enl. 551; — Ps. Alexandria L., Enl. 642, Vaill. 30; Edw. 292,
the young of which, according to Kuhl, is Ps. eupatria, L., Vaill. 73, Enl. 239; — Ps.
annulatus, Bechst., Vaill. 75, 76; — Ps. erythrocephalus, L., gingianus, Lath., Vaill.
45, Edw. 233; — Ps. malaccensis, Gmel. ; — Ps. barrabandi. Swains. Ill, 59, or barbu-
lafus, Bechst., Enl. 888, Vaill. 72; — Ps. bengalensis, Gm., Enl. 888, Vaill. 74; — ■
Ps. papuensis, Sonner. Nouv. Guin. Ill; — Ps. rufirostris, Enl. 580; — Ps. harnatodus,
Enl. 61, or cyanocephalus, Enl. 192, or moluccanus, Enl. 743, or cyanogaster, Shaw,
Gen. Zool. VIII, pi. lix, and J. White, p. 140, all varieties of age. MM. Vigors
and Horsfield having observed in this last certain setae under the tip of the tongue,
erected it into a genus by the name of Trichoglossus. It would be a matter of
some interest to ascertain if many other Paroquets do not possess this same cha-
racter.

f Ps. niger, Enl. 500, Edw. 5; — Ps. vasa, Vaill. 51; — Ps. mascarinus, 3, Enl. 5,
Vaill. 139; — Ps. erythropeterus , Shaw, Nat. Miscell., 653; — Ps. eximius, Vaill. 28,29,
Sh. Misc. 93;— Ps. Pennanti, Lath., J. White, p. 174 and 75, or elegans, Gm., Vaill.
78, 79, or gloriosus, Shaw, 53; — Ps. Brownii , Kuhl, Vaill. 80; — Ps. scapulatus,
Bechst. Vaill. 55, 56, Enl. 240; — Ps. tabuensis, Lath., or atropurpureus, Sh., Lev.,
Mus., 34; — Ps. amboinensis, Gm., Enl. 240, and J. White, p. 168, 169.

It is from this division that MM. Vigors and Horsfield have made their genus
Platycercus.

X Ps. guaruba, Kuhl, or luteus , Lath., Vaill. 20, or Aratinga Carolina, Spix, xii; —
Ps. guyanensis, Gm., or macrognathos, Spix, xxv; — Ps. ludovicianus , Enl. 499, or caro-
linensis , Wils. Ill, xxvi, 1; — Ps. pertinax, Enl. 528, Vaill. 34, 37; — Ps. aureus , L.,
Vaill. 41, Edw. 235; — Ps. canicularis, Enl. 767, Vaill. 40; — Ps. aruginosus , Edw.
177; — Ps. buccalis, Vaill. 67; — Ps. virescens, Enl. 395, Vaill. 59; — Ps. sosova, Enl.
456, 2, Vaill. 58, 59, and Ps. tovi, Enl. 190, 1; — Ps. marinus, Enl. 768, Vaill. 38; —
Ps. ponticerianus, Enl. 517, Vaill. 31; — Ps. xanthosomus, Bechst., Vaill. 61; — Ps.
capistratus, Bechst., Edw. 232, Vaill. 47; — Ps. ornatus , Enl. 552, Vaill. 52, Edw.
174; — Ps. marginatus, Vaill. 60, or olivaceus, Enl. 287; — Ps. macrorhynchus, Enl.
713, or Vaill. 83; — Ps. grandis, Enl. 518 and 683; better, Vaill. 126, 127, 128; —
Pe. incarnatus, Vaill. 46; — Ps. borneus, Vaill. 44; — Ps. Nova-Guinea, Vaill. 49; — •
Ps. concinnus, Vaill. 48; — Ps. pusillus, Vaill. 63; — Ps. humeralis, Vaill. 50; — Ps.
discolor , V. 62; — Ps undulatus, Sh. 673; — Ps. chrysostomus, Kuhl, pi. 1; — Ps. pul-
chellus, Vaill. 68; — Ps. zonarius, Sh. 657.

|| Ps. setarius, Tem. Col. 15.

5 Vieillot has named this division Pltctolophus.

CLIMBERS.

SO 5

lines, which can he raised or depressed at the will of the bird. They in-
habit the most remote parts of India; the plumage of the greater num-
ber is white, and of all the different species they are the most docile.
They prefer marshy grounds* * * §.

There are some species lately discovered in New Holland, whose tufts
are more simple, less mobile, and composed of broad feathers of a mode-
rate length. They live chiefly on rootsf.

In others, the crest merely consists of a few pendent feathers, furnished
with slender barbs near the tips only, which form a kmd of tufted bunch J.

But in the greater number, there is no ornament whatever on the head.
The species best known for its aptness in learning to speak is,

Psitt. erythacus; Jaco ; Enl. 311; Edw. 163; Vaill. 99 — 103.

(The Grey Parrot). Cinereous, with a red tail. From Africa.

The species with the green plumage are the most numerousj|.

The name of Loris has been applied to those species, the ground of
whose plumage is red, which have a tail somewhat wedge-shaped, and
which closely approach certain Paroquets. They are only found in the
East Indies §. There are some small species with a very short tail,
Psittaculus, Kuhl, which are also, but improperly, called Paroquets **.

All this variety of size and colours can hardly authorize any generic
distinctions. There are only the

* Ps. cristatus, Enl. 265; — Ps. philippinarum, Enl. 191; — Ps. malaccensis, Enl.
498; — Ps. sulfur eus , Enl. 14; — Ps. galeritus, White, 237; — Ps. nasicus, T. Col. 331.

f Ps. Banfcsii, Lath. Syn. Supp. 109, Shaw, Misc. 50; — Ps. fun evens, Shaw, Misc.
186; — Ps CooJdi, Tem., or Leachii, Kuhl, pi. iii; — Ps. roseus, Kuhl, Col. 81.

This division has become the genus Calyptorhynchus of MM. Vigors and Hors-
field.

I Ps. galeatus , Lath., Suppl.

|| Ps. melanocephalus, Enl. 527; Vaill. 119, 120; — Ps. signatus, Vaill. 105; — Ps.
menstruus, Enl. 384; Vaill. 114, or flavirostris, Spix, xxxi; — Ps. purpureus, Enl. 408;
Vaill. 115; — Ps. sordidus, Vaill. 104; — Ps. amazonicus, Enl. 13, 120, 312; Vaill. 98,
99; — Ps. cestivus, Enl. 547, 879; Vaill. 110 and 110 bis ; — Ps. ccerulifrons, Sh., Edw.
230; Vaill. 135;— Ps. cyanotis, Tem., or brasiliensis, Lin., Edw\ 1 6 i ; Vaill. 106; — -
Ps. dominicensis, Enl. 792, or vinaceus, Pr. Max., or columbinus, Spix, xxvii; — Ps.
Dufresnianus, Kuhl, Vaill. 91; — Ps. autumnulis, Edw. 164; Vaill. Ill;— Ps. hava-
riensis, Enl. 360; Vaill. 122; — Ps. leucocephalus, L., Enl. 335, 548, 549; Vaill. 107,
108, 108 bis, 109; — Ps. albifrons, Mus. Carls. 52' — Ps. pulverulentus, Enl. 861;
Vaill. 92; — Ps. festivus, Enl. 840; Vaill. 129; — Ps. accipitrinus, Enl. 520, and Spix,
xxxii, a; — Ps. senegallus , Enl. 288; Vaill. 116, 118; — Ps. Levaillantii, Lath., or in-
fuscatus, Sh. ; Vaill. 130, 131; — Ps. grimnneus, Enl. 862; Vaill. 121; — Ps. sinensis ,
Edw. 231, Enl. 514, Vaill. 132; — Ps. Geoffroii, Vaill. 112, 113, or Ps. personaius, Sh. ;
—Ps. xanthops, Spix, xxvi; — Ps. mitratus, Pr. Max., Col. 207, or mditaca , Spix,
xxix and xxx; — Ps. diadema, Spix, xxxii.

§ Ps. unicolor, Vaill. 125; — Ps. domicella, Enl. 119; Vaill. 94, 95; — Ps. h ri,
Enl. 158; Vaill. 123, 124; — Ps. garrulus, Enl. 216; Vaill. 96; — Ps. cyanuius, Sh. ;
Vaill. 97.

** Ps. passerinus, Enl. 455, 1; Shaw., Misc. 893, and Spix, xxxiii; — Ps. tui, Enl.
456, 1; Vaill. 70; — Ps. melanopterus, Enl. 591, 1; Vaill. 69; Sh. 132; — Ps. pileatus,
Enl. 744; Vaill. 135; — Ps. Barrahandi, Vaill. 134; — Ps. conus, Enl. 791, 2; Sh.
425; — Ps. swindernianus, Kuhl, pi. ii; — Ps. galgulus, Enl. 190, 2; — Ps. philippensis,
Enl. 520; — Ps. vernnlis, Mus. Carls. 29; — Ps. indicus, Edw 6; — Ps. torqualus,
Sonner., N. Guin., 393; — Ps simplex, Kuhl, Sonner., Ib. 38, 1; — Ps. pullaris, Enl.
60; — Ps. micropterus , Sonner. 41; — Ps. tai tianus , Gm. Enl. 455, 2; Vaill. 65, or Ps.
porphyrus, Sh. Misc. 7; — Ps. sparmanni, Mus. Carls. 27; Vaill. 66; — Ps. fringillaceus,
Vaill. 71, or porph rocephalus, Sh. Misc. 1; — Ps. phigy, Vaill. 04; — Ps. xanthopterin
gills, Spix, xxxiv, 12; — Ps. grcgarius, Spix, xxxiv, 3, 4
VOL, I. C C

306

BIRDS.

Paroquets a trompe, Vaill.

Which possess characters sufficiently well marked to be taken from the
others. Their short, square tail, and their tuft composed of long and
narrow feathers, assimilate them to the Cockatoos. Their cheeks are
naked as in the Ara, but their enormous upper mandible, and the very
short lower one, which cannot be made to close completely, their cylindri-
cal tongue, terminated hy a small horny knob, split at the apex, and sus-
ceptible of being greatly protruded beyond the bill, their legs, naked a
little above the heel, and finally, their short and flat tarsi on which they
often rest in walking, distinguish them from all other Parrots. But two
species are known, both natives of the East Indies*. A subgenus might
also perhaps be made of the

Pezoporus, Illig. — Perruches, Ingambes, Vaill .

Which have a weaker bill, more elevated tarsi, and straighter nails than
the other Parrots. They walk about on the ground, and seek their food
among the grass'!'.

There are two African birds, closely allied to each other, and generally
placed among the Scansorias, which appear to me to have some analogy
with the Gallinacese, and especially with the Hoceos.

They have the tail and wings of the Hoccos, and, like them, perch on
trees ; the bill is short, and the upper mandible gibbous ; there is a short
membrane between the fore-toes, but the external one, it is true, is often
directed backwards like that of the Ululae. Their nostrils, also, are simply
pierced in the horn of the bill, the edges of the mandibles are dentated,
and the sternum (at least that of the Touraco) has not those large ernar-
ginations so common in the Gallinaceae. There are two genera of these
birds : the first is,

CORYTHAIXJ, Illig.

Or the Touracos, in which the bill does not mount on the forehead, and
the head is furnished with an erectile tuft. The most common species,
Cuculus persa, L. ; Enl. 601; Vaill., Prom., &c., 16 and 17, is
found in the vicinity of the Cape of Good Hope. It is a beautiful
green, with part of the quills of the wings crimson. It builds in
hollow trees, and feeds on fruit ||. The second is the

* Psittacus aterrimus, Gm., or Ps. gigas, Lath., Edw. 316: — Ps. goliath, Kuhl, or
V Ara noir a trompe, Vaill. per I, pi. xii and xiii ; — L' Ara gris a trompe, Id. Ib. pL
ii, is perhaps a variety of the same. The name of trompe is not exactly correct.
The tongue is not hollow, and in fact all that can he properly styled tongue, is the
little horny piece which invests the extremity of the cylinder. See Geoff. Saint Hill,
Ap. VI, Gal. 4.

From this subdivision M. Vieillot has made his genus Microglossus, Galer.
pi. 1.

f Ps. formosus, Vaill. I, 32; Sh. Misc. 228; — Ps. Novee-Zelandice, Lath., Mus.
Carls. 28; — Ps. cornutus, Lath., Syn. Supp. Ill, pi. viii.

X Vieillot has changed this name into Opa:thus.

|| Add the Touraco-geant, Vieill. Prom, and Guep. pi. 19;— the Touraco Pauline,

G ALLIN ACEiE.

807

Musophaga, Isert.

Or the Plantain-eaters, so called, because their principal food is the fruit
of the banana. They are characterised by the base of the bill forming a
disk, which partly covers the forehead. The species known is

M. violacea, Vieill. Galer. 47; Touraco violet, Vaill., Promer.,
&c., pi. 18. Circumference of the eyes naked and red; violet-
coloured plumage ; occiput and primary quills of the wings crimson ;
a white line passes below the naked space round the eye. Inhabits
Guinea and Senegal.

ORDER IV.

GALLINACEiE. — Gallinte (a), Lin.

These birds are so called from their affinity with the Domestic Cock,
and, like it, generally have the upper mandible arched, the nostrils pierced
in a broad membranous space at the base of the bill, and covered by a car-
tilaginous scale ; the heavy carriage, short wings, and the bony sternum
diminished by two emarginations, so wide and deep, that they occupy
nearly the whole of its sides, its crest being truncated obliquely forwards,
so that the sharp point of the fourchette is only joined to it by a liga-
ment,— these various circumstances, by greatly impairing the strength of
the pectoral muscles, render it difficult for them to fly. Their tail gene-
rally consists of fourteen quills, and sometimes of eighteen. The lower
larynx is very simple, and consequently there are none of them that sing
agreeably. They have an extremely large crop, and a very vigorous giz-
zard. With the exception of the Hocco, they all lay and hatch their
eggs on the ground, on a few carelessly arranged blades of straw or grass.
Each male usually has several females, and takes no sort of trouble
either with the nest or the young ones, which, commonly, are very nu-
merous, and most usually able to run as soon as they have left the shell.

This order is chiefly composed of one very natural family, remarkable
for having furnished us with most of our domestic poultry, and abundance
of excellent game ; in it the anterior toes are united at their base by a
short membrane, and indented along the edges : these it is impossible to
divide into genera, except by means of very unimportant characters,

Temm., Col. 23, or Opeethus crythrolophiis, Vieill. Galer. 49; — the Touraco brun
( Phasianus africanus, Lath.) Vaill. 20, or Musophage varie, Vieill. Galer. 4S.

(a) Gallus, the cock. — Eng. Ed.

c c 2

308

BIRDS.

drawn from some of the appendages of the head. In order, however, to
avoid an excessive multiplication of beings, we shall associate certain ge-
nera with them, whose feet are deficient in that membrane, some of
which, the Pigeons , connect the Gallinacese with the Passerinse, while the
others, the Hoazins, Buff., somewhat approximate to the Touracos.

A lector* * * §, Merr.

The Hoccos are large Gallinacese of America, which resemble Turkeys,
with a broad, rounded tail, formed of large and stiff quills. There is a
singular conformation in the trachea of several of them. They live in
the woods, feed on buds and fruit, perch and build on trees, are very
social, and easily domesticated. Gmelin and Latham have divided them
into Hoccos and Yacous, but upon very undetermined characters. We
subdivide them in the following manner :

The Hoccos, properly so called , Buff. — Mitous, of Brazil, &c.™

Crax, Lin.

Have a strong bill, its base surrounded with a skin, which is sometimes
highly coloured, in which the nostrils are pierced; on the head is a tuft of
long, narrow, erect feathers, curled at the tips. They are the size of
Turkeys, and, like them, fly up into trees. They are bred by the Ame-
ricans; and individuals are sometimes sent to Europe, so variously co-
loured, that we are at a loss how to characterize their species. The most
common, or

Crax alector , L. ; Mitou-Poranga, Marcgr. ; Buff. Ois. II, pi.
xiii; Yieill. Galer. 199. Black; the lower part of the belly white;
cera of the bill, yellow. The trachea makes but one slight curve
before it enters the thorax. Some of these birds, such as

Crax globicera, L., Enl. 86; Edw. 295, 1, have a larger or
smaller globular tubercle on the base of the bill. Among both of
these species individuals are to be found in which the body is irre-
gularly striped with white or fawn colour. Albin. II. 32-j~. The
whole upper part is sometimes fawn-coloured^. Those of Peru,
Crax rubra , L., Enl. 125, are all of a vivid chestnut colour above,
the head and neck being variegated with black and white | },

Ourax, Cuv.

The Pauxi § have a shorter and thicker bill, the membrane of its base
as well as the greater part of their head being covered with a short and
dense plumage resembling velvet. The most common species,

* Alector is the Greek name of the cock,
f This appears to be the true Mexican Hoazin of Hernandez.

J Such is the female described by Azzara, Voy. IV. p. 169. From the accounts
of other travellers, it appears that the females, also, are fawn-coloured.

|| See also Crax fasciolata , Spix, LXII, a; — C. Blumenbachii, Id. LXIV. Add,
Crax globulosa, Id. LXV and LXVI; — C. rubirostris, Id. LXVII.

§ Pauxi is the name by which Hernandez designates them. Ourax, the Athenian
name for the Heath-Cock.

GALLINACE®.

309

Crax pauxi, L. ; Pierre, &c. ; Enl. 78; Yieill. Galer. 200,
(the Stone Bird), has an oval tubercle on the base of its bill, of a light
blue colour and a stony hardness, almost as large as its head. This
bird is black ; the lower part of the belly and the tip of the tail
white. It lays its eggs on the ground. Its original habitat is not
exactly known. The trachea descends externally along the right
side to behind the sternum, where it inclines to the left, and ascends
to enter the thorax, through the fourchette. All its rings are com-
pressed.

There is another species, which, instead of the tubercle on the
bill, has a red salient crest. The belly and tip of the tail are chest-
nut colour. It is the true Mittu of Marcgrave; Ourax mittu, Tem.
Col. 153; Crax galeata, Lath.; Crax tomentosa, Spix, lxiii*.

Penelope, Merr.

The Guans or Yacous-f" have a slenderer bill than the Hoccos; the
circumference of the eyes is naked, as well as the under part of the throat,
which is generally susceptible of being inflated.

Several varieties of colour are found also among these birds, be-
tween which it is very difficult to establish specific limits. Those
which have a tuft are sometimes of various shades of brown or
bronze— Penelope jacupema, Mer. II, xi; sometimes spotted on
the breast — Penelope cristata, L., Edw. 13 J; sometimes black,
with the same spots, and more or less white on the tuft and coverts
of the wings — Penelope leucolophos, Mer. II, xii, or Pen. cuma-
nensis, Gm. ; Jacq. Beytr. pi. 10; Bajon, Cay. pi. 5, or Pen. jacu-
tinga, Spix, pi. lxx. Some of them are intermediate between these
two extremes, — Pen. pipile , Jacq. Beytr. pi. xi.

The trachea, at least in the first, descends under the skin far be-
hind the posterior edge of the sternum, ascends, is again flexed, and
then continues its course towards the fourchette, through which, as
usual, it gains access to the lungs. A species almost without crest,

Pen. marail , Enl. 338, Yieill. Gal. 198, greenish-black, with a
fawn-coloured belly, appears very distinct. Its trachea, in both
sexes, forms a curve at the upper part of the sternum, just before it
dips into the thorax.

Ortalida, Merr .

Or the Parraquas, only differ from the Yacous by having but little of the
naked space on the throat, and about the eyes.

* Add, Crax tnberosa, Sp. LXVII, a; — Cr. uramutum , Id. LXII. N.B. The
Chacamel, Buff'. ( Crax vociferans), founded on a vague indication of Hernandez, cap.
XL I, is not authentic. Sonnini even thinks it may be the Falco vulturinus. The
Caracara of Buff and Dutertre is the Agami (Psophia).

f Gouan and Yacou are the names of these birds in Guiana and Brazil. That of
Penelope, given to them by Merrcm, designated among the Greeks a species of duck,
which, according to them, had saved the wife of Ulysses from drowning, when a
child.

X The P.jamaxa, jacucaca, jacupeba, jacubemba, guttata, and arra cuan, of Spix,
LXVI II — LXXV, closely approach the P. cristata, if they are not mere varieties of
it. The P. marail , Vieill. Gal. 198, corresponds most with the jacupeba.

310

BIRDS®

Only one species is known ; of a bronze-brown above, whitish-
grey beneath ; top of the head red — Catraca , Buff. ; Phasianus mot-
mot , Gm., and Phas. parr aqua, Lath., Enl. 146*; Bajon, Cay. pi. 1.
The cry of this bird is very loud, and articulates its name. The
trachea descends under the skin as low as the abdomen, and then
ascends to enter the thorax.

With these different Hoccos naturalists usually associate the

Opisthocomus, Hoffmanseg . — HoAziN'j", Buff.

The Hoazin, an American bird of similar carriage, with a short and
thick bill, the nostrils pierced in the horn, and destitute of membrane ;
the head ornamented with a tuft of long and very narrow and slender fea-
thers, which is distinguished from all the true Gallinaceae by having no
membrane between the base of the toes. It is the Phasianus cristatus,
L. ; Enl. 337 ; Yieill. Galer. 193 ; greenish-brown, variegated with white
above ; front of the neck and (tip of the tail fawn-coloured ; the belly
chestnut. It is found perching along the margin of inundated places in
Guiana, where it feeds on leaves and the seeds of a species of Arum. Its
flesh smells strongly of castor, and is only employed as a bait for particu-
lar fishes.

Pavo, Lin.

The Peacocks, so called from their cry, are characterised by an aigrette
or crest on the head, and by the coverts of the tail of the male being
larger than its quills, and capable of being erected so as to form a circle.
The shining, lax, and silky barbs of these feathers, and the ocellated spots
that decorate their extremities, are well known in the

P. cristatus , L.; Paon domestique, Enl. 433 and 434. (The
Common Peacock). A species in which the head is ornamented
with an aigrette of vertical feathers widened at the tip. This su-
perb bird, originally from the north of India, was introduced into
Europe by Alexander. Its magnificent plumage is even surpassed
in brilliancy by that of the wild ones. A rich blue supersedes the
gold-green specks along their back and on their wings; their tail
also is more plentifully furnished with feathers.

The Pavo spiciferus , improperly styled , by Linnasus P . muticus ,
for it also has spurs, is a distinct species. The feathers of its ai-
grette are long and narrow; its neck is not blue, but green, watered
and gilt; the tail almost as magnificent as that of the common spe-
cies J. Vieill. Galer. 202 ; Shaw, Nat. Misc. 641. Another species.

* N.B. The fig. in the Pl, Enl. is bad, inasmuch as it represents the tail pointed.

f This term was applied to the above bird by Buffon, without any proof, from an
indication of Hernandez, Mex. 320, ch. 10.

Yieill. Galer. 193, calls it Sasa cristata, and improperly represents the bill as
notched near its commissure. It forms a genus very distinct from that of any other
of the Gallinaceae, and when its anatomy is known, may become the type of a parti-
cular family.

J It was only known, for a long time, by a bad drawing from Japan, in the six-
teenth century (Aldrov. II, av. 33, 34), but Messrs. Duvaucel and Diard having sent
several of the birds from Sumatra to France, M. Vieillot has given his figure from
them.

GALLINACEjE.

311

P. bicalcaratus and thibetanus, Gm. ; L’Eperonnier, Enl. 492 and
493 ; Yieill. Galer. pi. 203 (The Chinquis), is much smaller, and
has a short thick tuft on the head; each of the tarsi of the male is
armed with two spurs ; the coverts of the tail, which are not so long,
are marked with double spots, and those of the scapulars with simple
ones, presenting a dappled appearance*. A neighbouring species
Polypi, albocellatum, T., is marked with simple blue spots, sur-
rounded by a whitish circle. A third, Pol. chalcurum, T., has blue
quills, but its coverts are only marked with fawn-coloured and black
stripes.

Lophophorus, Tern.

The head surmounted with an aigrette similar to that of the Peacock,
and a flat tail, the coverts of which are not prolonged, otherwise resem-
bling the preceding birds in the lustre of the metallic colours of the male.
The circumference of the eye, and even the cheeks, are naked as in the
Pheasants, and the tarsi are armed with strong spurs. A species is
known from the mountains of the north of India.

L. refulgens, T. ; Phasianus impeyanus, Lath. Syn. Supp. pi. 114;
Monaul, Sonnin. ; Yieill. Gal. 208. Black ; size of a Turkey ; the
aigrette and dorsal feathers of changeable colours, reflecting tints of
gold, copper, sapphire, and emerald; quills of the tail red. The
young and the female are brown, dashed with grey and fawn colour f.

Meleagris J, Lin .

The Turkeys have their head and upper part of the neck invested with
a plumeless and papillated skin; an appendage under the throat, which
hangs along the neck, and another conical one on the forehead, which, in
the male, when excited by passion, becomes so inflated and long, as to
hang over the point of the beak. From the lower part of the neck of the
adult male hangs a tuft or tassel of stiff* hairs; the coverts of the tail
shorter and stiffer than in the Peacock can be erected and displayed in
the same way. The tarsi of the male are armed with weak spurs. But
one species was known for a long time.

Meleagris gallo-pavo> L. ; Enl. 97. (The Common Turkey).
Introduced into Europe from America in the sixteenth century. The
size of this noble bird, and the goodness of its flesh, have rendered
it extremely common. The Wild Turkey of America, Yieill. Gal.
201, is of a greenish-brown, with a copper gloss. A second spe-
cies, however,

M. ocellata , Cuv. Mem. Mus. VI, pi. 1 ; Col. 112, has lately been

* M.Temminck makes a genus of it by the name of Polyplectrum; Vieillot
has changed it into Diplectron.

f Alian appears to have previously known and described it, Hist, anno L. XVI,
c. 2. Add the lophophare , Cuv., Tern. Col. pi. 1, with a pendent crest, black body,
and the edges of the dorsal feathers white; discovered by M. Duvaucel. It is, per-
haps, the Phasianus leucomelanos of Lath. The female is brown, edges of the feathers
on the breast whitish.

X Meleagris is the Greek name of the Guinea-Hen, erroneously applied by Lin-
naeus to the Turkey.

312

BIRDS.

described almost equal to the Peacock in tbe brilliancy of its colours,
and particularly in tbe sapphire-coloured spots, surrounded with cir-
cles of gold and ruby, which decorate the tail, which, as to shape,
resembles that of the Common Turkey. It was captured in the bay
of Honduras.

Numida*, Lin.

The Guinea-fowls, or Pintados, have a naked head, fleshy wattles at
the bottom of the cheeks, a short tail, and the cranium generally sur-
mounted with a callous crest. Their feet are without spurs ; their short,
pendent tail, and the quantity of feathers on the rump, give a spherical air
to the body. The common species,

N. meleagris, L. ; Enl. 108, (The Common Guinea-Hen), ori-
ginally from Africa, has a slate-coloured plumage, every where
sprinkled with small, white, round spots. Its noisy and quarrelsome
disposition render it a very unwelcome guest in poultry-yards, al-
though its flesh is excellent. In a wild state they live in large
flocks, and prefer the vicinity of marshes. There are also two
species,

N. cristata and N. mitrata, Pall., Spic. IV, pi. ii and iii, fig. 1 ;
Vieill. Galer., pi. ccix, in the first of which the head is ornamented
with a plumed crest, and in the second with a conical helmet. A
third has lately been discovered in which the helmet is very small,
and which has a small tuft on the base of the bill, composed of
short stems, almost without barbs. N. ptylorhyncha , Licht. The
great genus,

Phasianus, Lin.

Or that of the Pheasants, is characterized by the cheeks being partly des-
titute of feathers, and covered with a red skin, and by the tectiform tail,
in which the feathers are variously disposed. We first distinguish

Gallus,

The Cock, in which the head is surmounted with a vertical and fleshy crest,
and each side of the lower mandible furnished with fleshy wattles. The
quills of the tail, fourteen in number, are elevated on two vertical planes,
placed back to back ; the coverts of that of the male are extended into an
arch over the tail proper. The species so common in our barn yards.

Phas. gallus, L. ; Enl. 1 and 49, (The Common Cock and Plen)
varies infinitely as to colour, and even greatly as to size ; in some
races the crest is replaced by a tuft of feathers, or a top-knot; in
others the tarsi, and even the toes, are feathered; in one race the
crest, wattles, and periosteum of the whole skeleton, are black, and
in others, by a kind of monstrosity, we find five, and even six toes,
for several generations.

* These birds were called Meleagrides by the ancient Greeks, who supposed them
to have sprung from the metamorphosis of Meleager’s sisters. They looked upon
the spots on the feathers as traces of tears. The Romans called them African hens,
&C. They have been found nowhere by the moderns except in Guinea.

GALLINACEjE.

3 IS

Several species of Wild Cocks are known. The first,

Gallus Sonneratii, Tem. Col. 232 and 233, (The Jungle Cock),
was described by Sonnerat, Voy. II, Atl. 117, 118, and is very re-
markable for the feathers on the neck of the male, the stems of
which widen at the bottom into three successive disks of a horny
nature. The crest is denticulate. It is found in the ghauts of
Hindostan.

Two others have been brought from Java by M. Lechenaud, one
of which, Gall. Bankiva , Tem., has a denticulated crest like the
preceding; all the feathers of the neck being long, pendent, and of
the most beautiful golden red; it appears to me to bear the greatest
resemblance to our Domestic Cock. The other, Phas. varius , Shaw,
Nat. Misc. 353 ; Ajamalas; Gall, fur catus, Tem. Col. 374, is black,
with a cupreous-green neck, speckled with black; the crest entire,
and a small kind of dewlap, without lateral wattles.

Pheasants, properly so called,

Have a long cuneiform tail, each of its quills being inclined on two
planes, and covering each other like tiles. The most common,

P. colchicus, L. ; Enl. 121 and 122, (The Common Pheasant of
Europe), was brought into Europe by the Argonauts, as it is said,
from the banks of the Phasis. It is now spread throughout all
temperate Europe, where it requires, however, a great deal of care.
The head and neck of the male are of a deep green, with two small
tufts on the occiput; the rest of the plumage is of a golden fawn co-
lour, speckled with green. The female is brownish, speckled and
variegated with a darker brown.

China has lately furnished us with three other species, which, with the
Peacock, form the ornaments of our aviaries, viz.

Ph. torquatus , which scarcely differs from the common one, ex-
cept in having a brilliant white spot on each side of the neck.

Ph. nycthemerus, L. (The Silver Pheasant). White, with very
fine blackish lines on each feather, and the belly entirely black.

Ph. pictus, 1j.; Enl. 217. (The Golden Pheasant). So remark-
able for its magnificent plumage; the belly is of a bright red; a
beautiful crest of a golden colour hangs from the head; the neck is
clothed with a collerette of orange, speckled with black; the upper
part of the back is green, the lower part and the rump yellow; the
wings red, with a beautiful blue spot; the tail very long, brown,
spotted with grey, &c. It appears to me that Pliny’s description of
the Phoenix, lib. x, cap. 2, was taken from this beautiful bird.

The females of all these species have shorter tails than the males,
and the plumage variously marked with different shades of grey or
brown*.

One of the most singular of all birds is,

* Add, the Faisan versicolor, — Phas. Diardi, Tem., discovered by Messrs. Diard
and Duvaucel, Vicill. Gal. pi. ccv.

314

BIRDS.

Ph. Argus , L. ; V Argus, Vieill. Galer., pi. cciii. (The Argus).
A large Pheasant from the south of Asia, whose head and neck are
nearly naked. The tarsi are without spurs ; a very long tail to the
male; the secondary quills of the wings excessively elongated,
widened, and covered throughout with ocellated spots, which, when
spread, give to the bird a most extraordinary aspect. It inhabits
the mountains of Sumatra, and of some other countries of the south
east of Asia. It forms the genus Argus, Tern., Gallin.

There is reason to believe that a bird exists in the interior of
China, the feathers of whose tail are still more elongated, attaining
a length of four feet, whitish, changing to red on the edges, with
numerous transverse black or chestnut lines. It is thought to be
figured on some of the Chinese paper hangings. M. Temminck
calls it Phasianus superbus ; Gall. II, p.336. The

Houppiferes, Tern .,

Have the naked cheeks common to all this genus, the vertical tail and
arched coverts peculiar to the Cock, and feathers on their head which
they can erect, forming an aigrette similar to that of the Peacock. The
inferior edge of the naked skin on the cheeks, which is salient, supplies
the place of wattles. The tarsi are armed with strong spurs.

Only one species is known ; it is from the straits of Sunda, is the
size of a Cock, of a brilliant black, with a golden red rump ; the
two superior tail-coverts yellowish or whitish, the flanks spotted with
white or fawn-colour; Phas. ignitus, Sh. Nat. Misc., 321 ; Vieill.,
Galer., pi. ccvii. The female is brown, finely striped with black
above, and dashed with white beneath. She has also a crest.

Tragopan, Cuv .

The head of the male is more fantastically ornamented than any other
bird; it is almost naked, and behind each eye is a small slender horn; a
wattle under the throat susceptible of inflation; the tarsi of both sexes
armed with short spurs.

Only one species is known, a native of the north of India, the
Nepaul or Faisan cornu , Buff. ; Penelope satyr a, Gm. ; Meleagris
satyrus, Lath. Edw. 118; Vieill., Galer. 206. As large as a Cock;
of a brilliant red, sprinkled with small white tears. The female
and the young are of different shades of brown *.

We should separate from the Pheasants, the

CRYPTONYxf, Tem.

In which the nakedness of the head is confined to the circumference of
the eye ; the tail is moderate and plane, and the tarsi without spurs ; the
principal character, however, consists in the absence of the thumb nail.

There is only one species well known, the male of which has a

* The Tragopan of Pliny, lib. x, c. 49, was probably imagined from this bird,
f Vieillot has changed this name into Liponyx.

There is a species of Cryptonyx at Malacca, mentioned by Dussumier, which is
black, crestless, and without the papillated space about the eye.

GALLINACEiE.

315

long tuft of slender red feathers, and long upright filaments, without
barbs on each eye-brow. It is the Rouloul de Malacca , Sonner.
Voy. II, pi. 100; Cript. coronatus, Tem., Col 350 and 351; Co-
lumba cristata, Gm. and Lath. ; Phasianus cristatus, Sparm.r Mus.
Carls. Ill, 64. Green; somewhat larger than a Quail. The fe-
male, which merely has a vestige of a tuft, is the Tetrao viridis ,
Lath., Syn. II, pi. 67*.

Tetrao, Lin.

The Grous also is a great genus, characterized by a naked aud most
generally red band, which occupies the place of the eye-brow. It is di-
vided into subgenera as follows : —

Tetrao, Lath.

The feet of Grous are covered with feathers, and are without spurs.
Those to which this name is more particularly applied have a round or
forked tail and naked toes. There are two large species of them in
France.

T. urogallus, L. ; Grand Coq de Bruyeres; Enl. 73 and 74.
(The Great Heath-Cock, or Cock of the Woods, or Caper-Cailzie).
The largest of all the Gallinaceae, and superior in size to the Turkey.
Its plumage is slate-coloured, transversely and finely striped with
black ; the female is fawn-coloured, the cross lines brown or blackish.
Found in the heart of mountain forests, builds among the heath-
grass, or in newly cleared grounds, and feeds on berries and buds.
Its trachea makes two curves before it dips into the lungs. The
flesh is delicious.

T. tetrix, L. ; Coq de Bouleau; Enl. 172 and 173; Frisch. 109;
Naum. 1st Ed., 18, f. 37 and 38. (The Black Cock). The male
is more or less black, with some white on the coverts of the wings
and under the tail, the two forks of which diverge laterally. The
female is fawn-coloured, with black and white stripes crossing it.
Their size is that of the Cock, and they are found in mountain
forests.

An intermediate species appears to exist in the north of Europe,
— T . intermedins , Langsdorf, Mem. de Petersb., tom. Ill, pi. xiv;
Sparm. M. Carls., pi. xv, which is larger than the preceding, with
the tail less forked, and the breast spotted with white. Found in
the marshy districts of Courland, Ingria, &c.'j'

In the woods of temperate Europe we find,

T. honasia , L. ; La Gelinotte; Poule des Coudriers\; Enl. 474
and 475; Frisch. 112; Naum. 20, f. 39, (the Hazel Grous),

* The Columba cristata , B., Gm., Lath., Syn. II, pi. Iviii, appears closely allied to
it.; but the figure represents it as having a large nail to the thumb. This is perhaps
an error, as in the Galer. Vieill., tom. 11, pi. ccx.

f It appears to be at once the Tetras d plumage variable , and the Tetras a queue
pleine, of Buffon.

X Bonasia, or Bonasa, name of the Gelinotte in Albertus Magnus and other au-
thors of the middle ages.

316

BIRDS.

which is but a little larger than the Partridge, and is prettily varie-
gated with brown and white, grey and red ; a large black band near
the tip of the tail; throat of the male black, and his head slightly
tufted* * * §.

America produces some neighbouring species, such as

Tet. canadensis and canace , L. ; Gelinotte noire d' Amer., Enl.
131 and 132; Edw. 118 and 71. Brown, verging more or less on
a black; tip of the tail red.

In some, the feathers on each side of the neck of the males are
turned up like a mantle, or two scrolls : their habits have an affinity
with those of the Turkey. Such are,

Tetr. umbellus and togatus , Gm. ; Coq. de Bruy, a fraise, Enl.
104; Edw. 248; Wils. pi. xlix; called Partridge in New England,
and Pheasant in Pennsylvania. Variegated with red, grey, and
black ; a large black spot at the bottom of the neck, on each side ;
a black band edged with white on the tip of the tail; lower part of
the tarsi naked. Found in the mountain forests; the voice of the
male in the nuptial season resembles the roll of a drum.

Tetr. cupido, Gm., Catesb. Suppl. 1; Wils., pi. xxvii; Vieill.
Galer. 219. (The Pinnated Grous). Variegated with brown and
fawn colour ; tail brown ; tarsi feathered down to the toes ; the fea-
thers on the bottom of the male’s neck turn up into two pointed
scrolls, beneath which is a naked skin, which, in the genial season,
he intlates like a bladder; his voice sounds like a trumpet. Found
on extensive plains, and is such delicious food that laws have been
passed to preserve the breed 'j\ The name of

Lagopus.

The Lagopede, Snow-Partridge, or Ptarmigan, is more particularly
applied to those species which have a round or square tail; whose toes
are feathered as well as the legs. The most common become white in
winter.

Tetr. lagopus , L. ; Lagopede ordinaire J, Enl. 120 and 494;
Brit. Zool. pi. M, 3, M, 4; Naum. 1st Ed. Supp. 61, f. 115, 116.
(The Ptarmigan or White Grous, or Partridge of the Pyrennees).
Its summer plumage is fawn coloured, marked with small black
lines §. From high mountains, where it remains during the winter,
in holes which it forms under the snow.

* The Attagas of Buff., Attagen of Aldrov., Ornith., II, p. 75; Gelinotte huppee,
Brissf appears to me after much research, even in Italy, to be nothing more than a
young or female Gelinotte. It is the same individual painted by Frisch., pi. cxii.
The Tetrao canus, Gm. (Sparm. Mus. Carls., p. 16) is only an albino variety of the
Gelinotte. Neither have I any confidence in the authenticity of the Tetr. nemes-
sianus, nor in that of the Tetr. betulinus of Scopoli. They are females, or the young
of the Tetr. tetrix, or disfigured Gelinottes.

f Add, Tet. urophasianus, Bonap. Ill, pi. xxi, f. 2; — Tet. obscurus , Bonap. Ill,
pi. xviii.

J Lagopus — hare’s foot, hairy foot — is the ancient name of this bird.

§ In this summer livery it is the Tetr. rupestris , Lath.

GALL1NACE2E.

317

Tetr. albus , Gm., called of Hudson’s Bay; T. saliceti, Tem.,
Edw. 72; Frisch. 110,111. (The White Ptarmigan). From the
whole north ; is larger, and its summer plumage more red ; its belly
remains white* * * §.

There is a Ptarmigan in Scotland, however, which does not change its
plumage in winter; it is,

Tetr. scoticus, Lath.; Poule de marais ; Grous, &c. ; Albin. 1,
23, 24; Brit. Zool. pi. M. 3; Vieill. Galer. 221. (The Red Ptar-
migan, or Water Fowl). Above, variegated with fawn colour, brown
and black ; a deep red, striped with blackish beneath ; legs cine-
reous, and but few feathers on the toes.

We may separate by the name of

Ganga or ATTAGENf. — Pterocles, Tem.

Those species which have a pointed tail and naked toes. The circum-
ference of their eyes only is naked, but it is not of a red colour; their
thumb is very small.

Tetr. alchata , L. ; Ganga, Enl. 105 and 106; Edw. 249
The size of a Partridge ; the plumage scalloped with fawn colour
and brown; the two middle quills of the tail much elongated and
terminating in a point; throat of the male, black. Found in the
south of France, and all round the Mediterranean §.

Perdix, Briss .

The Partridges have the tarsi naked like the toes. Among them the
Francolinus, Tem.

Is distinguished by a longer and stronger bill ; a larger tail, and, gene-
rally speaking, by stout spurs. The south of Europe produces one,

Tetr ao francolinus, L.||; Enl. 147, 148; Edw. 246. With red
feet; neck and belly of the male, black, with round white spots; a
bright red collar**.

* The summer plumage forms the Tetr. lapponicus, Lath.

f Atlagen , the Greek name of a heavy bird, somewhat larger than the Partridge,
with the plumage of a W oodcock, probably designated the Ganga.

X Ganga is its Catalonian name; Alcliata, or rather Chata, its name among the
Arabs.

§ Add of those species which have filaments to the tail, Tetr. senegahis , or Pterocles
gultatus, Tem , Enl. 130, and the female 345; — Pterocles exustus , Tem. Coll. 354
and 360: — Of those whose tail is simply pointed, Tetr. arenarius, Pall., Nov. Com.
Petrop. XIX, pi. viii, or Pterocles arenarius, Col. 52 and 53, the same as the Perdix
arragonica , Lath.; — Pterocles Lichtensteinii, T. Col. 355 and 361. The male 355 is
at all events closely allied to the Tetr. indicus, Lath.; Sonner. II, 96; — Pterocles co-
ronatus, Tem. Col. 339 and 340; — Pterocles quadricinctus, Tem. or Oetias bicinctus,
Vieill. Galer. 220; — finally, the largest species, the Tetr. fasianellus, Gm., or Long-
tailed Gelinotte of Hudson’s Bay, Edw. 117.

|| Francolino, the name of the blind made for the purpose of killing the bird whose
appellation it bears, is applied in Italy to several species, such as the Gelinotte and
this one.

** Add the Telrao ponticerianus, Sonner. Voy. II, 11, 165; Tem. Col. 213; — per-
latus, Briss., pi. xxviii, A, fig. 1 ; Vieill. Galer. 213; the same as the madagascarieusis,
Sonn. II, 166, pi. xcvii.

218

BIRDS.

Some of these birds, foreign to Europe, are remarkable for a
double spur* * * §, or for the naked skin of their throat f. In others
these characters are united J, and in certain large billed species
the spurs are altogether wanting §. The

Common Partridges

Have a somewhat weaker bill ; the spurs of the males are either short,
or mere simple tubercles ; they are deficient in the female.

Tetrao cinereus, L. ; Enl. 27; Frisch. 114; Naum. 1st ed. pi.
3, f. 3. (The Grey Partridge). Bill and feet, ash-coloured ; head,
fawn-coloured; the plumage of various shades of grey; a maronne
spot on the breast of the male. This common bird, which consti-
tutes so important an item in the luxuries of the tables of Euro-
peans, lives and builds in their fields.

Tetr. rufus , L. ; Enl. 150. (The Red Partridge). Bill and feet
red ; brown above ; flanks speckled with red and cinereous ; throat
white, surrounded with black; prefers the hills and rising grounds.
The flesh is white and dry. The south of France produces

Perdix grazed, Briss. ; Per. saxatilis, Meyer; La Bartavelle ,
Enl, 231; Frisch, 116. "Which only differs from the Red Partridge
in its superior size and more ash-coloured plumage. It is found
along the great mountain ranges] |.

Coturnix.

Quails are smaller than Partridges, with a slenderer bill and shorter
tail: no red eye-brow nor spurs. Every one knows

Tetrao coturnix, L. ; Enl. 170; Frisch, 117; Naum. 4, f. 4.
(The Common Quail). Back brown, waved with black ; a pointed
white stripe on each feather; throat brown; eye-brows whitish.
Found in the fields of Europe, and celebrated for its migrations;
during which this heavy bird finds means to cross the Mediterra-
nean^.

* Tetrao bicalcar atus, L. ; Enl. 137; — Perdix Clappertoni, Rupp., pi. ix, can hardly
be said to differ from it; — spadiceus, Sonn. IJ, 169; — zeilonensis, Ind. Zool. pi. xiv.
• — The Perdix cruenta, Tem. Col. 322, has three and even four spurs, and bright co-
lours foreign to the rest of the genus.

f Tetrao rubicollis, Enl. 180.

% Tetrao nudicollis .

§ Tetrao javanicus, Brown, 111., xvii, (a had figure) ; there is a better one, Col. 148,
under the name of Perdrix ajanham, Temm.

|| Add the Red Partridge of Barbary , a very distinct species {Tetr. petrosus, Gm.),
Edw. 70; — the Perdrix de montaigne {Tetrao montanus ), Enl. 136, Frisch- 114, B, is
only, according to Bonnelli, a variety of the Grey Partridge; — the Perdrix de haye,
Tem. Col. 328 and 329; — Perd. per sonata, Horsf. Jav. ; — Perd. a gorge rousse {Perd.
gularis , T.); — Perd. oculea, Id.; — Perd. fusca, Vieill. Gal. 212.

Add the petite Caille de la Chine {Tetr. chinensis, L.), Enl. 126, F, 2, of which
the Tetr. manillensis, Gm., Sonner. Voy. I, pi. xxiv, is the female; — the Caille australe
{Perd. australis, T.), Vieill. Galer. 215; — the Caille nattee {Perd. textilis Tem.), Col.
35; — the Tetr. coromandelicus, Sonner. II, 172; — T. striatus, Sonner. II, pi. xcxviii,
and Temm. Col. 82, very different from that of Lath. Syn. II, pi. lxvi; — the Perdrix
de gingi {Tetr. gingicus), Sonner. II, p. 167, also appears to belong to this subgenus.

GALLINACEA2.

319

The Colins, Partridges, and Quails of America,

Have a stouter, shorter, and more convex bill; the tail is somewhat
larger*. They perch on bushes, and even on trees, when they are pur-
sued. Several of them migrate like the Quails of Europe.

It is impossible to avoid separating from the whole genus Tetrao the

Tridactyles, Lacep. — Hemipodius, Tem .,

In which the thumb is wanting, and whose compressed bill forms a little
projection under the lower mandible. They cannot, however, be properly
classed until their anatomy is better known. They are polygamous, and
inhabit sandy districts. Some of them, the

Turnix, Bonnat. — Ortygis, Illig.

Have still all the appearance of Quails ; their toes are completely sepa-
rated down to the very base, and are without the small membranes.

The natives of Java preserve one species for fighting, as Cocks in
England; it is the Hemip, pugnax , T. Col. 602-i. Others, such as the

Syrrhaptes, Illig.

Are so far removed from the general type of the Gallinaceae, that we are
tempted to doubt the propriety of placing them in this order. Their
short tarsi are covered with feathers as well as the toes, which are also
very short and united partially in their length ; their wings are extremely
long and pointed.

One species only is known, and that is from the deserts of central
Asia — Tetrao paradoxus , Pall. Voy., Fr. Trans. 8vo, tom. III. pi.
1, page 18; Yieill. Galer. pi. 222; the Heteroclite, Tem. Col.
pi. 95.

It is equally necessary to separate from Tetrao, the

* Among the species, the size of the Partridge, we may remark the Tocro, or
Perdrix de la Guiane, Buff. ( Tetr. guyanensis, Gm.), or Perd. dentata, Tem., or Odon-
tophorus rufus, Vieill. Galer. pi. ccxi, which is not a Tinamou, as Gmelin asserts.
Among those the size of the Quail: Tetrao mexicamis, Enl. 149, Frisch. II, the same
as marylandicus, Albin. I, xxviii, and as virginianus, or Perdix borealis , Vieill. Galer.
214; — Tetr. Fallclandicus, Enl. 222; — Tetr. crislatus, Enl. 116, f. 1; — the Colin Son-
nini (Perd. Sonnini, T.), Col. 75, and Jour, de Phys. II, 217, and pi. 2; — the Colin d
aigrette de Californie, Tetr. californius, Sh., Nat. Misc. IX, pi. 345, and Atl. Voy. de
la Perouse, pi. xxxvi; — the Perd. rousse-gorge (Perd. cambeyensis, Tem.), Col. 447; —
Perd. australis , Vieill. Gal. 215.

t Add Tetrao nigricollis, Enl. 171; — Tetr. andalusicus , Lath. Syn. IT, part 2, fig. of
the title page; — Tetr. lazoniensis , Sonn. Voy. I, pl.xxiii;— Hemipodius nigrifrons, Tem.
Ill, 610, and Vieill. Gal. 218; — Hemip. thoracicus, Torn. Ill, 622, or Turnix macn -
latus, Vieill. Gal. pi. 217; — Hemip. Mciffrenii , T. Col. 60, 1, of which Vieill. Gal.
300, makes his genus Torticelle, and places it among the Waders, inasmuch as the
lower part of the tibia is without feathers; — the Hemip. nivosus, Swains. Zool. 111.
163, must also belong to it; — the Tetr. suscitalor, or Reveil-matin of Java is also a
Turnix. See Bontius, Med. Ind. p. 65.

320

BIRDS.

Tinamus, Lath — Crypturus, Illig — Ynambus*, Azz.

The Tinamoos constitute a genus of American birds very remarkable
for a slender and long neck (although their tarsi are short), covered with
feathers, the tips of whose barbs are slender and slightly curled, which
gives a very peculiar air to that part of their plumage. The bill is long,
slender, and blunt at the end; somewhat arched, with a little groove on
each side ; the nostrils are pierced in the middle of each side, and pene-
trate obliquely backwards. Their wings are short, and they have scarcely
any tail. The membrane between the base of the toes is very short.
Their thumb, reduced to a spar, cannot reach the ground. The circum-
ference of the eye is partly naked. They either perch on low branches
of trees, or hide among tall grass; they feed on fruit and insects, and
their flesh is good. Their size varies from that of the Pheasant down to
that of the Quail, some of them are even still smaller.

One portion of them, — the Pezus of Spix, — is furnished with a small
tail concealed under the feathers of the rump-j'.

In the other, — the Tinamoos of Spix, there is no vestige of a tail
Their nostrils are placed a little farther back.

We should distinguish the Rynchotus, Spix, whose bill, which is
stronger, has no groove, and is slightly arcuated and depressed; the nos-
trils are pierced near the base ||.

Columba, Lin,

The Pigeons may be considered as forming a slight transition from the
Gallinaceae to the Passerinae. Like the former, their bill is vaulted, the
nostrils perforated in a broad membranous space, and covered with a carti-
laginous scale, which even forms a bulge at the base of the bill ; the bony
sternum is deeply and doubly emarginated, although in a direction some-
what differently ; the crop extremely dilated, and the lower larynx furnished
with but a single proper muscle; but there is no other membrane be-
tween the base of their toes than that which results from the continuity
of the edges. Their tail is composed of twelve quills. They fly well,
live in a state of monogamy, build on trees, or in the crevices of rocks,
and lay but few eggs at a time, generally two ; it is true they lay fre-

* Except his Choro , which is a Gallinula, and his Uru, which is the Tocro already
spoken of among the Partridges.

f Tetr. major, Gm., or Tin. brasiliensis, Lath., or the Tin. magoua, Tern.; Buff.
Enl. 476, and much better, Hist, des Ois. IY, 4to, pi. xxiv; it is the Pezus serratus,
Spix; — Tetr. cinereus ; — Tetr. variegatus, Enl. 328, from which the Tin. undulatus,
T., or Cryptura sylvicola, Vieill. Gal. 216, can differ but little; — Tin. apequia ( T . obso-
letus, Tem.), Col. 196; — Tin. tataupa , Swains. 111. 19, or T. plumbeus, T. Col. 196, or
Pezus mamba, Spix, 78, a; — Tinamus noctivagus, Pr. Max., or Pezus zabele, Sp. 77; —
Tin. macaco, or vermicule (T. adspersus, T.), Col. 369, or Pezus vapura, Sp. 78; — Tetr.
sovi, Gm., or Tin. sovi, Lath. Buff, Enl. 829.

J Tin. inambui, Azz. (T. maculosus, I.), or T. major, Sp. 80; — T. medius, Spix, 81;
• — T. boraquira, Sp. 79; — T. carape ( T . pavoninus, T.), of which the Tinam. minor, Sp.
81, appears to be the female. These three species are very similar.

|| The Tinamou isabelle {T. rufescens, T.), Col. 412; or Rhinchotus fasciatus, Spix,
76.

GALL1TS ACE/E.

321

quently. The male hatches as well as the female. They nourish their
young by disgorging macerated grain into their crop. They form but one
genus, which naturalists have attempted to divide into three sobgenera,
from the greater or less strength of the bill, and the proportions of the
feet. The

Columbi-Gallines, Vaill.

Approximate more nearly than the other subgenera to the ordinary
Gallinaceae, by their more elevated tarsi and their habit of living in flocks,
seeking their food on the ground, and never perching. Their bill is
thin and flexible.

One species is even allied to the Gallinaceas by the caruncles and
naked portions of skin that distinguish its head; it is the Columba
carunculata, Tem. pi. 11; Columbi-galline , Vaill. 278.

A second is, at all events, connected with them by its size, which
about equals that of the Turkey; it is the Crowned Pigeon of the
Archipelago of India; Coura, Tem.; Colombihocco , Vaill.; Col.
coronata, Gm.; Sonn. 104; Enl. 118; Tem., Pigeons, pi. 1;
Vieill. Galer. 197. Altogether of a slate-blue, with some chesnut
and white on the wing; the head ornamented with a vertical tuft of
long slender feathers. It is bred in the poultry yards at Java, &c.,
but does not propagate in Europe'*'.

A third claims an alliance with them, from the long pendent fea-
thers which ornament its neck, like that of the Cock. It is the
Pigeon de Nincombar; Col. nincobarica,!^.; Enl. 491 ; and is of
the most brilliant golden-green, with a white tail. Found in several
parts of India'f. The

Columba:,

Or Common Pigeons, have shorter feet than the preceding birds, but the
same thin and flexible bill. Four wild species are found in Europe.

Col. palumbus, L. ; Le Ramier, Enl. 316. (The Cushat). Is
the largest, and inhabits the forests, preferring those with green
trees. It is ash-coloured, more or less blue ; breast of a vinous
red, and is distinguished by white spots on the sides of the neck and
•on the wing.

Col. cenas , L. ; Le Colombin; Frisch, 139. (The Stock Dove,
or Lesser Cushat). A slate-grey, the breast vinous; sides of the

* This large Crowned Pigeon constitutes the genus goura, or Lopiiyrus of Vieill.
Galer. pi. 197.

f Species placed in this genus which are not, perhaps, sufficiently determined:
Columba cyanocephala, Enl. 174; Vaill. 281; Tem. 3; — Col. montana, Edw. 119; Tem.
4; — Col. marlinica, Enl. 141, 162; Vaill. 282; Tem. 5 and 6; — Col. erythrothorax,
Tem. 7;— Col. cruenia, Sonn. 20, 21; Tem. 8 and 9; — Col. jamaicensis , Tem. 10; —
Col. talpacoti , Tem. 12; — C<>1. passerina, Enl. 243, 2, Catesby, 26; — Col. minuta, Enl.
243, 1; — Col. hottentotta, Tem. ; Vaill. 283; — Col. cobocola, and Col. griseola , Spix,
LXXV, 2(a).

(a) The C. passerina and squamosa form the genus Cii amaspelia of Swain-
son; the C. cinerea , T., the genus Peristf.ra, and the C. migratoria , the genus
Eotopistes.

VOL. I.

V D

322

BIRDS.

neck a~changeable green ; somewhat smaller than the preceding, but
has similar habits.

Col. livia , Bliss. ; Biset, or Pigeon de roche ; Enl. 510. (The
Biset, or Rock Dove). Slate-grey; circumference of the neck a
changeable green; a double black band on the wing; rump white.
This species is the parent stock of our Common Pigeon, and most
probably of all our innumerable domestic races, in whose production
the mixture of some neighbouring species may also have had some
influence.

Col. turtur, L. ; Tourterelle; Enl. 394. (The Turtle Dove). A
fawn-coloured mantle spotted with brown; neck bluish, with a spot
on each side speckled with white and black. The smallest of the
wild European species. It inhabits the woods like the Cushat.

Col. risoria, L. ; Rieuse; Enl. 244; Frisch, 44; Tern. 44. (The
Ring Dove). Appears to be originally from Africa. It is of a
flaxen colour, paler beneath; a black collar round the neck*.

The species of this division are numerous, and may be still more sub-
divided, according as their tarsi are covered with feathers or not, and from
the naked space found round the eyes of some of them'}'.

Some have even caruncles, and other naked parts on the head.
Such is the Col. auricou; Col. auricularis, Tern. 21.

* Other Columbae with a square or round tail, Col. spadicea, Tem. 1 ; — Col. cenea,
Enl. 164; Tem. 3 and 4; Voy. de Freycin. 29, of which, according to Temminck,
Col. pacifica is the male: — the Col. oceanique, Less, and Garn., Voy. de Duperre 41, is
a neighbouring species; — Col. arcuatrix, Vaill. Afr.; Tem. 5; — C. armillaris, Tem. 6;

— C. littoralis, Sonn. 103; Tem. 17; — C. chalcoptera, Tem. 8; — C. cristata, Tem. 9;
— C. caribaa, Tem. 10; — C. leucocephala, Catesb. 65; Tem. 13; — C. speciosa, Enl.
213; Tem. 14; — C. corensis, Tem. 15; — C. guinea , Edw. 75; Vaill. Afr. 265; Tem.
16; — C. madagascariensis, Enl. II; Vaill. Afr. 266; Tem. 17; — C. gymnophthalmos,
Tem. 18; — C. Francice , Sonner. 101; Tem. 19; — C. rubri-capilla, Sonner. 57; Tem.
20; — C. elegans, Tem. 22; — C. cincta, Tem. 23; — C. rufina, Tem. 24; — C. leucoptera ,
Edw. 76; Tem. 25; — C. javaniea, Enl. 177; Tem. 26; Sonner. 66; — C.jamboo, Tem.
27 and 28; — C. violacea, Tem. 29; — C. melanocepliala, Enl. 214; Tem. 30; — C. lar-
vata, Vaill. Afr. 269; Tem. 31; — C. holosericea, Tem. 32; — C. sinica, Albin. Ill, 46;
— C. viridis, Enl. 142; — C. erythroptera, Temm. 55; — C. mystacea, T. 56; — C. superba,
T. 33: — C. tympanistria, Vaill. 272; Tem. 36; — C. ccerulea, T. 37; — C. afra , Enl.
160; Vaill. 271; Tem. 38 and 39;-^-C. Geoffroy, T. 57; — C. cinerea, T. 58, and the
female, Col. 260; — C. bitorquata, T. 40; — C. vinacea, T. 41 ; — C. tigrina, Sonner. 102;

— C. cambayensis, Vaill. 270; T. 45; — C. malabarica, or the Col. brame, T. ; — C. alba,
Tem. 46; — C. squamosa, T. 59; — C. malaccensis, Mus. Carls. 67; Edw. 16; Tem. 47;
— C.macroura, Enl. 329; — C. porphyrea, Tem. Col. 106; — C. dilopha, T. Col. 162; —
C. magnified, T. Col. 163; — C. locutrix, Pr. Max. Col. 166; — C. leucomela, T. Col.
186; — C. scripta, T. Col. 187 ; — C. Dussumieri, T. Col. 188; — C. leucotis, T. Col. 189;

— C. xanthura, Cuv.; Col. 190; — C. picturata, T. Col. 242; — C. perspicillata, Col.
246; — C. luctuosa, Reinw.; Col. 247;- — C. hyogastra, R.; Col. 252; — C. monacha, R.;
Col. 253; — C. humilis, T. Col. 258; — C. pinon, Quoy and Gaym., Voy. Freychin. 28;
C. pampusan, lb. 30; — C. araucana , Less, and Garn., Voy. de Duperr. 40; — C. cya-
novirevs, lb. 42; — C. Zoce, Jb. 29 (a).

f M. Swains, calls Ptilinopus those species which have feathered tarsi, such as
the C. purpurata, T. Col. 34, &c.

IglT (a) Add, Col. fasciata, Ronap. I, pi. lxxvii, f. 3; — Col. zenaida, Bonap. II,
pi. xv, f. 2. — Eng. Ed.

GRALLATORIiE,

321

We can also separate some species with pointed tails* * * §.

But the best of all the divisions that have been made among the
Pigeons, is that of,

VlNAGO, CuV. CoLOMBARsf, Vaill.

Known by the bill, which is thicker, formed of a solid substance, and
compressed on the sides ; the tarsi are short, the feet wide and well bor-
dered. They all feed on fruit, and inhabit forests. But few species are
known, all of which are from the torrid zone of the eastern continent J.
Some of them have a pointed tail §.

ORDER V.

GRALLATOIlliE. — Gralla:, Lin.

The birds of this order derive their name from their habits, and from
the conformation which produces these habits. We may know them by
the nudity of the lower part of their legs, and, more frequently, by the
height of their tarsi — two circumstances which enable them to enter the
water to a certain depth without wetting their feathers, and to wade
through it and seize fish by means of their neck and bill, the length of
which is usually proportioned to that of the legs. Those which are fur-
nished with a strong bill feed on fish and reptiles: those with a weak one
on worms and insects. A very few feed partially on grain and herbs,
and they alone live at a distance from the water. The external toe is
most commonly united at its base with that of the middle one, by means
of a short membrane ; sometimes there are two similar membranes, and, at
other times, these are entirely wanting, and the toes are completely sepa-
rated; it sometimes also happens, though rarely, that they are bordered all
along, or palmated to the very end; in fine, the thumb is deficient in se-
veral genera — circumstances, all of which have an influence on their mode

* Col. migraloria, Enl. 17(5; Frisch, 142; Tem. 48 and 49; — Col. carolinensis, lb.
175; Tem. 50; Caitesb. 24; Edw. 15; — Col. Reinwartii , Tem. Col. 248; — C. hume-
ralis, lb. 191; — C. amboinensis, lb. 100; — S. lophotes, lb. 142; — C. venusta, lb. 341,
1, or Col. strepitans , Spix, lxxv, 1; — Col. dominicensis, lb. 487 ; Tern. 51; — Col. ca-
pensis, lb. 140, &c. ; Vaill. 273, 274; Tem. 53, 54; — C. Maugci, Tem. 52; — Col.
macquaria, Quoy and Gaym. Voy. de Freyc. 31.

f Vinago , the Latin name of the C. anas — Vieill. has changed it into Treron.

X Col. abyssinica, or Wallia of Bruce, Vaill. 270, 277 ; Tem. 8 and 9 ; — Col. aus-
tralis, Enl. 3; Tem. 3 ; — Col. aromatica, Enl. 103; Tem. 57 ; Brown, Zool. 111. 20;
Col. remans, Enl. 158 ; Tem. 10 and 11 ; Col. niilitaris, Tem. 1 and 2; — C. psitta-
cea, Tem. 4 ; — C. calva, Tem. 7 ; — C. olax, T. Col. 211 ; — C. Capellei, lb. 143.

§ Col. oxyura, T., Col. 140.

n i> 2

BIRDS.

321

of life, and this is more or less aquatic. Almost all these birds, the Os-
triches and Cassowaries excepted, have long wings, and fly well ; during
this action they extend their legs backwards, differing in this from all
others, which fold them under the belly.

In this order we establish five principal families, and some insulated
genera.

FAMILY I.

BREVIPENNES.

These birds, although similar in general to the other Grallatorise, differ
from them greatly in one point — the shortness of the wings, which ren-
ders flight impossible. The bill and regimen give them, in other respects,
numerous affinities with the Gallinaceae.

It seems that the muscular powers which nature distributes would be
altogether inadequate to the task of putting in motion wings so vast as a
bird of this bulk would require to sustain it in the air. The sternum is
a simple buckler, and is deficient in that ridge which is found in all other
birds. The pectoral muscles are very thin, but the posterior extremities
regain the powers which the wings have lost — the muscles of the thighs,
and of the legs in particular, being enormously thick and stout.

The thumb is always deficient*'. They form two genera.

Struthio, Lin.

The Ostriches have wings furnished with loose and flexible feathers,
but still sufficiently long to increase their speed in running. Every one
knows the elegance of these slender-stemmed plumes, the barbs of which,
although furnished with little hooks, always remain separate, contrary to
what takes place in most other birds. Their bill is horizontally depress-
ed, of a moderate length, and blunt at the end; their tongue short, and
rounded like a crescent, their eye large, and the lid fringed with lashes;
their legs and tarsi very long. They have an enormous crop, a large
stomach between the crop and gizzard, voluminous intestines, long caeca,
and a vast reservoir in which the urine accumulates as in a bladder, — be-
ing the only birds which can be said to urinate. The penis is very large,
and frequently exposed f.

* The number of the phalanges is as follows, commencing with the internal toe :
Ostrich, 4, 5 :

Nandou and Cassowary, 3, 4, 5.

Which amounts to the numbers common among birds,
f For the genito-urinary organs of birds, and those of the Ostrich in particular,
consult the Mem. of Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, Mem. du Mus., tom. XV.

GRALLATORLE.

325

But two species are known, which might constitute two genera.

Struthio camelus, L. ; Enl. 457* * * §. (The Ostrich of the Eastern
Continent). The feet have but two toes, the external of which is
one half shorter than its fellow, and has no nail. This bird, so
highly celebrated from the earliest ages, abounds in the sandy de-
serts of Arabia and Africa. It attains the height of six or eight feet,
lives in great troops, lays eggs, each weighing nearly three pounds,
which, in very hot climates, it is contented with exposing in the sand
to the warmth of the sun; but over which, either on one side or the
other of the tropics, it broods with great care, defending them cou-
rageously every where. The Ostrich feeds on grass, grain, &c.,
and so obtuse is its sense of taste that it swallows pebbles, pieces of
iron, copper, &c. When pursued it dashes stones behind it with
great violence. No animal can overtake it in the race.

Struth. rhea 'j', L.; Nandou, Churi, &c., Hammer. An. Mus. XII,
xxxix; Vieill. Galer, 224. (The American Ostrich). Is about one
half smaller, with more thinly furnished feathers, of a uniform grey
colour, and particularly distinguished by its three toes all having
nails. Its plumage is greyish, browner on the back: a black line
along the back of the neck in the male. It is as common in the
southern parts of South America, as the preceding one is in Africa.
Its quills are used only in brooms. When taken young it is easily
tamed. Several females, it is said, lay, in the same nest, or rather,
the same hole, yellowish eggs, which are hatched by the male. It
is only eaten when very young.

Casuarius, Briss.

The Cassowaries have wings still shorter than those of the Ostrich, and
which are totally useless for running. There are three toes to all the
feet, each furnished with a nail ; the barbs of their feathers are so poorly
provided with barbulae, that at a distance they resemble pendent hairs.
Two species are known, each of which might also constitute a genus.

Struthio casuarius, L. ; Emeu J, Enl. 313, and better, Frisch,
105 §. (The Emeu or Cassowary). The bill laterally compressed;
head surmounted by a bony prominence, covered with a horny sub-
stance; skin of the head and top of the neck naked, of an azure-blue
and a fiery red colour, with pendent caruncles like those of the Tur-
key. The wing has some stems without barbs, which serve the bird
as weapons in combat; nail of the internal toe much the strongest.
It is the largest of all birds, next to the Ostrich, and differs conside-

* See also the beautiful figure drawn by Marechal in the Menag. du Mus. of La-
cep. and Cuvier, copied Vieill. Galer. pi. 223.

f Brisson and Buffon, following Barrfire, have improperly applied to it the name
of Touyou , or rather of Touiouiou, which belongs to the Jabiru. It is the genus Rhea
of Brisson. The Portuguese of Brazil have transferred to it the name of Emeu,
which properly belongs to the Cassowary.

I Cassuwaris, the Malay name of this bird. According to Clusius, Erne, or Emeu,
is its peculiar appellation in Banda.

§ There is also an excellent figure of it by Marechal in the Menag. du Mus., co-
pied Viell. Galer. pi. 22f>.

826

BIRDS.

rably from it in its anatomy, for its intestines are short, and the
caeca small; the intermediate stomach between the crop and gizzard
is wanting, and its cloaca is not larger in proportion than that of
other birds. It feeds on fruit and eggs, but not grain. The female
lays a small number of green eggs, which, like the Ostrich, she
abandons to the solar heat. Found in different islands of the Archi-
pelago of India.

Cas. Novce-Hollandice, Lath.; Voy. de Peron, Atl. part 1, pi.
xxxvi; Vieill. Galer. pi. 226*. (The Cassowary of New Holland).
A depressed bill ; no helmet on the head ; a little naked skin about
the ear; plumage brown and better supplied; more barbs to the
feathers ; no caruncles or spurs on the wing ; nails of the toes about
equal. Its flesh resembles beef. Its speed is greater than that of
the swiftest greyhound. The young ones are striped with brown
and black f.

FAMILY II.

PRESSIROSTRES.

This family comprises genera with long legs, without a thumb, or in
which the thumb is too short to reach the ground. The bill is moderate,
but strong enough to penetrate the earth in search of worms ; hence we
find those species in which it is weakest frequenting meadows and newly-
ploughed grounds to obtain that sort of food with more facility. Such as
have stronger bills also feed on herbs, grain, &c.

* * This constitutes the genus Emou, or Dromaius of Vieillot.

N.B. I cannot place here species so little known, and even so badly authenti-
cated, as those which form the genus Didus of Linnasus.

. The first, or the Didus ineptus, is only known from a description drawn up by the
first Dutch navigators, and given by Clusius, Exot., p. 99, and from an oil painting
of the same period, copied by Edwards, pi. 294; for the description of Herbert is
puerile, and all others are copied from Clusius and Edwards. It seems that the spe-
cies has completely disappeared, nothing remaining of it at the present day hut a foot
preserved in the British Museum (Shaw, Nat. Misc. pi. 143), and a head in very had
condition in the Ashmolean Museum of Oxford (Id. Ib. pi. 166). The bill hears some
resemblance to that of the Penguins, and the foot, if it were palmated, would he like
that of the Aptenodytes.

The second species, Didus solitarius, rests on the hare testimony of Leguat, Voy. I,
p. 98, a man who has disfigured the very best known animals, such as the Hippopo-
tamus and the Lamantin.

The third, Didus ncizaremus, is only known from the account of Francois Cauche,
who considers it to be the same as the D. ineptus , giving it however but three toes,
while all the others allow the former to possess four. No one has been able to obtain
a sight of any of these birds since the time of the above-named travellers.

Of all birds, that which has its wings the most completely reduced to a simple vestige,
is the Apteryx, represented by Shaw, Nat. Misc. 1055 and 1057. Its general figure is
that of an Aptenodytes, its size that of a Goose. The feet would be those of the
former, were they not described as wanting the web. The bill is very long, slender,
marked with a longitudinal groove on each side, and having a membrane at base.
The wing is reduced to a little stump, terminated by a hook. From New Holland.

GRALLAT0R1®.

327

Otis, Lin.

The Bustards, in addition to the massive carriage of the Gallinaceee,
have a long neck and legs, with a moderate bill; their superior mandible is
slightly arcuated and arched, which, as well as the very small membranes
between the base of the toes, again recal the idea of the Gallinaceae. But
the nakedness of the lower part of their legs, their whole anatomy, and
even the flavour of their flesh, place them among the Grallatoriae, and as
they have no thumb, the smaller species approximate closely to the Plo-
vers. Their tarsi are reticulated, and their wings short; they fly but
seldom, hardly ever using their wings, except, like the Ostriches, to as-
sist themselves in running. They feed indifferently on grain and herbs,
worms and insects.

0. tarda , L. ; Enl. 245. (The Great Bustard). Has the plumage
on its back of a bright fawn-colour, crossed with numerous black
streaks, the remainder greyish. The feathers of the ears of the
male, which is the largest bird in Europe, are lengthened out on
both sides, forming a kind of large mustachios. This species, which
is considered as being among the best game of that continent, fre-
quents its extensive plains, building on the ground among the corn.

0. tetrax, L. ; Enl. 25 and 10. (The Little Bustard). More
than a half smaller, and much less common than the tarda; brown
above, sprinkled with black; whitish beneath; neck of the male
black, with two white collars.

The bill of most species foreign to Europe, is more slender than that
of the Little Bustards which belong to it. Among the former we
may remark,

O. houbara , Gm. ; Le Houbara, Desfontaines, Acad, des Sc.,
1787, pi. x; Vieill. Galer. pi. ccxxvii. (The Houbara). So
called on account of the ruff of elongated feathers which ornaments
both sides of its neck. From Africa and Arabia*.

CHARADRIUSf, Lin.

The Plovers, also, have no thumb; the bill is moderate, compressed,
and enlarged at the point.

They may be divided into two subgenera: viz.

CEdicnemusJ, Tem.

In which the end of the bill is inflated above as well as beneath, and
the fossae of the nostrils only extend half its length. They are larger
species which prefer dry and stony places, and feed on snails, insects, &c.
They have some affinity with the smaller species of Bustards. Their

* I leave among the Bustards all Latham’s species, such as the A fra, Lath. Syn.
II, pi. lxxix; — the benghalensis, Edw. 250; — the Arabs, Id. 12; — but I withdraw the
(Edicnemus, which, on account of its compressed bill, enlarged at the end, begins the
following genus: — Add, Otis nuba, ltupp. pi. 1; — Ot. denhami ; — Ot. torquata, Cuv., a
new species from the Cape.

f Charadrius, the Greek name of a nocturnal aquatic bird, comes from Charadra.
Gaza translates it by Ilialicula.

t t Edicnemus (swelled leg), a name invented by Belon for the Thick-knee.

828

BIRDS.

feet are reticulated, and there is a short membrane between each of their
three toes.

Charadrius cedicnemus , L. ; CEdic . crepitans , Tem. ; Courlis dc
terre ; Enl. 919; Frisch, 215; Naum. Ed. I, 9, f. 13. (The Thick-
knee). Size of a Woodcock; a fawn-coloured grey, with a brown
streak on the middle of each feather; white belly; a brown streak
under the eye*.

Charadrius, Cuv.

The bill of the True Plovers is only inflated above, and has two-thirds
of its length on both sides occupied by the nasal fossas, a peculiarity
which renders it weaker. They live in large flocks, and frequent marshy
bottoms, where they strike the earth with their feet, in order to set in
motion the worms on which they feed.

The species of France are only birds of passage, during the
autumn, and in the spring : near the sea coast, some of them remain
until the beginning of winter. Their flesh is excellent, and, with
various other species, they form a tribe with reticulated legs, the
most remarkable of which are :

Char, pluvialis, L., Enl. 904; Frisch, 216; Naum. 1, c. 10,
f. 14; Wils. Am. VII, lix, 5. (The Golden Plover). Blackish;
the edges of its feathers dotted with yellow ; white belly. It is the
most common of all, and is found throughout the whole globe. The
north produces one which scarcely differs from it, except in its black
throat; it is the Char, apricarius, Edw. 140; Naum. 11, f. 15;
Wils. Am. VII, lvii, 4. Some authors assert it is the young of
the other.

Char, morinellus, L. ; Le Guignard , Enl. 832; Naum. 12, f.
16, 67. (The Dotterel). Grey or blackish; feathers edged with
fulvous-grey ; a white streak over the eye ; breast and upper part of
the belly of a bright red; lower part of the belly white.

Char, hiaticula, L. ; Pluvier a collier, Enl. 920; Frisch, 214;
Brit. Zool. pi. P ; Wils. Am. V, xxxvii, 2. (The Ring Plover).
Grey above ; white beneath ; a black collar round the lower part of
the neck, very broad in front ; the head variegated with black and
white; bill yellow and black. Three or four species or races are
found in France, differing in size, and in the distribution of the
colours on the head-f. This same distribution, with but little va-
riation, is found in several species foreign to Europe^.

* Add the (Edicneme tachard {(Ed. maculosus, Cuv.), Col. 292; — the (Ed. a longs
pieds {(Ed. longipes, Geoff.), Vieill. Gal. 228, or (Ed. echasse, Tem. Col. 386; — the
(Ed. a gros bee {(Ed. magnirostris, Geoff), Col, 387, might, from the form of if" bill,
he placed at the head of a particular series to which would belong a closely allied
species with a slightly recurved upper mandible; (Ed. recurvirostris , Cuv.; — Char,
crassirostris, Spix, 94.

f Ch. minor, Meyer, Enl. 921; Wils. VII, lix, 3; Naum. 15, f. 19, or Ch. curonicus,
Lath., with an entirely black bill; — Ch. cantianus, Lath., or albifrons, Meyer, of
which the Ch. agyptius may possibly be the female. Its collar is interrupted.

X Char, vociferus, Enl. 286; Wils. VII, lix, 6; — Char, indicus, Lath.; — Char. Axa-
rai, T. Col. 184 \~~Chojr. melanops. Vieill. Gal. 235, or Ch. nigrifrons , CtY., Am. Col.

GRALLATORLE.

329

Many Plovers have scutellated legs ; they form a small division, most
of its species having spines to their wings, or fleshy wattles on the head;
some of them have both these characters* *.

Vanellus, Bechst. — Tringa f, Lin .

The Lapwings have the same kind of bill as the Plover, and are only
distinguished from them by the presence of a thumb ; but it is so small
that it cannot reach the ground.

In the first tribe, that of the Lapwing-Plovers (Squatarola, Cuv.),
it is even scarcely visible. It is distinguished by the bill, which is inflated
underneath, and its nasal fossae being short like that of an (Edicnemus.
The feet are reticulated: ail those uf France have the tail striped with
white and black, forming, as is asserted, but one species, whose great di-
versity of plumage has occasioned its multiplication. It is always found
with the Plovers.

Tringa squatarola ; Le Vanneau gris, Enl. 854. (The Grey
Lapwing). Greyish above, whitish with greyish spots beneath, is
the young bird before it has moulted. The Variegated Lapwing
( Tringa varia ;), Enl. 923, white, spotted with greyish, blackish
mantle dotted with white, comprises the two sexes in their winter
plumage. The Vanneau suisse ( Tringa Helvetica , Enl. 853, Naum.
Ed. I, 62, f. 117), black and white spots above, black beneath from
the throat to the thighs, and is the male in his wedding livery.

Vanellus, Cuv.

The true Lapwings have a rather more decidedly marked thumb, the
tarsi scutellated, at least partially so, and the nasal fossae extending two-
thirds the length of the bill. They are equally as industrious in the pur-
suit of worms as the Plovers, procuring them in the same manner.

The European species, Tringa vanellus , L. ; Enl. 240; Frisch,
213; Naum. 14, f. 18, is a pretty bird, as large as a Pigeon, of a
bronze-black, with a long and slender crest. It arrives in France in

47, 1; — Char. IVilsonii, Wils. IX, lxiii, 5. — Add, of closely allied species, although
without collars, Ch. pecuarius, T. Col. 183; — Ch. nivifrons, Cuv.; — Char, ruficapil-
lus, T. Col. 47, 2; — Ch. monachus, Tern.; — Ch. griseus, Lath. (a).

* Species with unarmed, scutellated feet: Ch. coronatus, Enl. 800; — Ch. melano-
cephalus, Enl. 919; Savigny, Egypt., Ois., pi. vi, f. 4; of which Vieillot makes his
genus Pluvianijs, Cal. pi. xxiii — its bill is somewhat stouter than the others.
Armed species: Char, spinosus, Enl. 801; — Ch. cayanus , Enl. 833. Species with
wattles: Char, pilealns, Enl. 834; — Ch. bilobus, Enl. 880.

The Char, cristatus, Edw. 47, appears to be the same as the spinosus.
f Tringa , or rather Tryvga, the Greek name of a bird the size of a Thrush,
which frequents the shores of rivers, and is constantly moving its tail, Arist. It
was Linnaeus who applied it thus; but he placed many other birds in his genus
Tringa , besides the Lapwings, the Sandpipers, ( Calibris , Cuv.) especially.

(a) Add, Ch. srmipahnatus, Wils. VIII, pi. lix, f. 3; — Ch. melodus, Wils. V,
pi. xxvii, f. 3. — Eng. Ed.

330

BIRDS.

the spring, lives in the fields and meadows, builds there, and departs
in autumn. The eggs are considered a great delicacy*.

Warm climates, also, have some species of this bird, whose wings
are armed writh one or two spurs, and others which have caruncles
or wattles at the base of the bill : their tarsi are scutellated. They
are very noisy animals, screaming out at every sound they hear. They
live in the fields, and defend themselves against birds of prey with
much courage'f.

Hematopus, Lin.

The Oyster-catchers have a somewhat longer bill than the Plovers or
the Lapwings ; it is straight, pointed, compressed into a wedge, and suffi-
ciently strong to enable them to force open the bivalve shells of the ani-
mals on which they feed. They also seek for worms in the earth. The
nasal fossas, which are very deep, are only half the length of the bill, the
nostrils resembling a small slit in the middle. Their legs are of a mode-
rate length, their tarsi reticulated, and their feet divided into three toes.

Hcematop. ostralegus, L.; Enl. 929; Brit. Zool., pi. D; Catesb.
1, 85, is the European species, also called Pie de mer on account of
its black plumage ; the belly, throat, base of the wings and tail being
of a fine white. The white on the throat disappears in summer. It
is about the size of a duck ; bill and feet red.

There is a species in Brazil with a longer bill, and no white un-
der the throat, the Hcem. palliatus, Tem., which Wils. VIII, lxiv, 2,
confounds with the common one ; another in the Malouines, where
the black extends farther down on the breast, the Hcem . luctuosus ,
Cuv. ; and a third in the antarctic hemisphere, which is entirely black,
the Hcem. niger, Cuv. ; Hcem. ater, Vieill. Gal. 230 ; Quoy and
Gaymard, Yoy. de Freycinet, pi. xxxiv.

It is impossible to avoid placing near the Plovers and Oyster-catchers,
the

Cursorius, Lac . — Tachydromus, Illig.

Whose bill, more slender, but equally conical, is arcuated, has no groove,
and is moderately cleft ; the wings are shorter, and their legs, which are
longer, are terminated by three toes without membranes, and without a
thumb.

There has been seen both in France and England, although very

* Add the Vanneau a ecliarpe (Vann, cinctus ), Less, and Garn. Voy. Duperr. pi.
xliii; — Le V. a pieds jaunes (Vann, flavipes), Savigny, Egypte, Ois. pi. 6, f. 3.

f They are the first nine species of Parra, Gmel., particularly Parra cayennen-
sis , Enl. 836; — P. goensis, Enl. 807; — P. senegalla, Enl. 362; — or better, Vanellus
albicapillus, YieiW., Gal. 236; — P. ludoviciana, Enl. 835, from which Vann, gallina-
ceus, Tem., does not perhaps specifically differ, &c.; their habits, legs, bill, form,
and even the distribution of their colours, resemble those of the Lapwings and
Plovers, and there can be no possible reason for placing them among the Jacanas,
whose characters differ on almost every point.

Add, Tr. macroptera , a new species from Java; grey head and belly black; armed,
and with caruncles; tlm wings extending considerably beyond the tail.

GRALLATORLE.

33 l

rarely, a species belonging to the north of Africa, of a light fawn
colour, with a whitish belly, the Charadrius gallicus, Gm. ; Curso-
rius isabellinus, Meyer, Enl. 795 ; and another has been brought
from India of a brownish-grey, with a red breast, the Ch. coroman -
delicus, Curs, asiaticus, Lath. Yieill. Gal. 232; Enl. 892. Each of
them has a black streak and a white one behind the eye. Their
name is derived from the swiftness with which they run. Nothing
is known with respect to their habits*.

As far as we can judge from their exterior, it is here that we can most
conveniently place the

Cariama, Briss. — Microdactylus, Geoff.— DiCHOLOPnusf,

Illig.

Whose bill is longer and more hooked, the commissure extending under
the eye, which gives them somewhat of the physiognomy and disposition
of birds of prey, and approximates them somewhat to the Herons. Their
extremely long and scutellated legs are terminated by very short toes,
slightly palmated at the base, and by a thumb which cannot reach the
ground.

One species only is known, and that is from South America, the
Micro cristatus, Geoff. ; Palamedea cristata , Gm. ; Saria, Azzar. ;
Ann. du Mus. d'Hist. Nat. XIII, pi. xxvi; Col. 237, and Yieill.
Gal. 259. It is larger than the Heron, and feeds on lizards and in-
sects, which it hunts for on high grounds, and along the edges of
forests. Its plumage is a fawn-coloured grey, waved with brown ;
some slender feathers on the base of the bill form a light tuft which
inclines forwards. It flies but seldom, and then badly; its loud
voice resembles that of a young Turkey. As its flesh is much es-
teemed, it has been domesticated in several places.

FAMILY III.

CULTRIROSTRES.

This family is recognised by the thick, long, and strong bill, which is
most generally trenchant and pointed, and is almost wholly composed of
the birds comprised in the genus Audea of Linnaeus. In a great num-
ber of species, the trachea of the male forms various curves ; their caeca
are short, and even the true Herons have but one.

• Add the Coure-vite a ailes violettes (Curs. Chalcopterus , T.), Col. 298; — the C. a
double collier (C. bicinctus, T.), Man. Orn. ; — Curs. Temwclcii , Swains. Zool. 111. 1 0(».

f Microdactylus , short-finger. Dicliolophus, crest in two rows. Hcnnatopus, blood-
coloured feet. M. Vieillot has preferred the barbarous name of Cariama , which must
be pronounced qariama.

332

BIRDS.

We subdivide it into three tribes, the Cranes, the true Herons, and the
Swans. The first tribe forms but one great genus.

Grus, Lin.

^The Cranes have a straight bill, but slightly cleft; the membranous
fo ssae of the nostrils, which are large and concave, occupy nearly one half
of its length. Their legs are scutellated, and the toes moderate ; the ex-
ternal ones but slightly palmate, and the thumb hardly reaching to the
ground. A more or less considerable portion of the head and neck is
destitute of feathers in nearly all of them. Their habits are more terres-
trial, and their food more vegetable than those of the following genera:
consequently, they have a muscular gizzard, and long caeca. Their lower
larynx has but one muscle on each side. At the head of this genus we
place with Pallas*,

Psophia, Lin.

Or the Trumpeters, which have a shorter bill than the other species; the
head and neck are merely invested with down, and the circumference of
the eye is naked. They live in the woods, and feed on grain and fruit.

The species best known is from South America, and is called the
Trumpeter (. Psophia crepitans, L.), Enl. 169, from its faculty of
producing a low deep sound, which at first seems to proceed from
the anus. It is the size of a capon ; the plumage is blackish, which,
on the breast, reflects a brilliant violet hue ; the mantle is ash-co-
loured, shaded above with fawn colour. It is a very grateful bird,
and as susceptible of attachment to man as a dog. It is even said
to be so docile as to take the command of the poultry yard. It flies
badly, but runs fast, and builds on the ground at the foot of a tree.
Its flesh is eaten f.

Certain Cranes, foreign to Europe, with a shorter bill than is found in
those that belong to it, should come next.

Ardea pavonia, L. ; Grue couronne , Enl. 265, and the young,
Vieill. 257. (The Crowned Crane). Figure, light and graceful ;
four feet in height; ash-coloured, black belly, fawn-coloured rump,
and white wings ; its naked cheeks are tinged with white, and a
bright rose-colour, and its head is crowned with a bundle of yellow,
slender feathers, which it opens and displays at pleasure. This
beautiful bird, whose voice resembles the clang of a trumpet, in-
habits the western coast of Africa, where it is frequently kept in the
huts, and fed on grain. In a wild state it frequents inundated places,
and preys on small fish.

Ardea virgo; Demoiselle de Numidie, Enl. 246. (The Numi-

* Spicil. Zool. IV, 3.

| At Cayenne, according to BarrSre, it is called Agami; Caracara in the Antilles,
according to Dutertre. As the name of Trumpeter is also given in Africa to a Calao ,
Fermin (Descrip, de Surin.) absurdly transfers to the Agami the character of both
bills at once. The Agami was for a long while confounded with the Macucagua of
Marcgrave, which is a Tinarnou. ' Psophia is a name coined by Barrere from the
Greek Psopheo, to make a noise.

A.dd, Psophia viridis, Spix, 83, and Ps. leucoptera, Id. 84.

GRALLATORGE.

333

dian Crane). Similar to the preceding in form, and almost in size ;
ash-coloured; a black neck with two beautiful whitish aigrettes,
formed by the prolongation of the slender feathers which cover the
ears. Those which have been observed in a state of captivity were
remarkable for their fantastic and affected gestures* * * §.

The Common Cranes have a bill as long as the head or longer.

Ardea grus, L. ; Grus cinerea, Bechst, Enl. 769; Frisch, 194;
Naum. Ed. I, 2, f. 2. (The Common Crane). Four feet and up-
wards in height; ash- coloured; black throat; top of the head, red
and naked; the rump ornamented with long, recurved and frizzled
feathers, partly black. This bird has been celebrated from the ear-
liest ages for its regular migrations from north to south in the au-
tumn, and vice versa in the spring, which it effects in immense and
well-ordered bodies. It feeds on grain, but prefers the worms and
insects of marshy grounds. This species is often mentioned by the
ancient writers, because the course of its migrations seems to be
through Greece and Asia Minor f.

Between the Cranes and Plerons, we must place

Ard. scolopacea , Gm. ; Le Courlan , or Courliri , Enl. 848 J,
whose bill, thinner and more cleft than that of the Cranes, is in-
flated near the last third of its length, and whose toes, all tolerably
long, are without any intervening membrane whatever. It has the
habits, and is the size of a Heron ; the plumage is browrn, with two
white pencils on the neck.

Ard. helias, L. ; Le Caurale (Eurypyga, Illig.§) ; Oiseau du soleil,
&c., Enl. 702. (The Sun-Bird). The commissure of its bill,
which is more slender than that of the Cranes, but furnished with
similar nasal fossae, extends to beneath the eyes, like that of the
Herons, but the bill itself is destitute of the naked skin at its base.
It is about the size of a Partridge, and its long slender neck, broad
and open tail, and rather short legs, give it a very different appear-
ance from that of any other Wader. Its plumage, shaded in bands
and lines with brown, fawn-colour, red, grey and black, recalls to
our minds the colouring of the most beautiful of the nocturnal Lepi-
doptera. It is found on the banks of the rivers in Guiana.

The second tribe is more carnivorous, and is known by its stronger bill
and larger toes : we may place at its head,

* The anatomists of the Institute had applied to this bird, on account of its ges-
tures, the names of Scops, Otus, and Asio, by which the ancients designated the
Dues of Europe (Bubo). Bufl'on, who had so well refuted this error as regarded
the Dues, falls into it himself, from forgetfulness, when speaking of the Ard. virga.

t To this genus also belong Ard. canadensis, Edw. 133; the Grue d collier, Enl,
865, and the Crane of India, Edw. 45, {Ard. antigone) Vieill. , Gal. 256; — the Grue
blanche, Enl. 889, ( Ard . americava ) and the Ard. gigantea, Pall., It., II, No. 30, t. I,
which does not appear to us to differ in the least from the white one; — finally, the
Ard. carunculata, which is not a Heron, as supposed by Gmelin.

I Vieillot has made his genus Aramus, Gal. p. 252, from this bird; Spix, pi. 91,
calls it Rallus ardeoides.

§ Vieillot has changed this name into that of Helias.

834

BIRDS.

Cancroma, Linn.

The Boat-bills, which would closely approach the Herons in the strength
of their bill and in the regimen resulting therefrom, but for the extraor-
dinary form of that organ, which we shall find, however, by close examin-
ation, to be nothing more than the bill of a Heron or Bittern, very much
flattened. In fact, it is very wide from right to left, and is formed like
two spoons, the concave sides of which are placed in contact. The man-
dibles are strong and trenchant, the upper one having a sharp tooth on
each side of its point ; the nostrils, situated near its base, are continued
on in two parallel grooves to near the point. There are four toes to the
feet, long, and almost without membranes, and accordingly we find that
these birds perch upon trees on the banks of rivers, whence they preci-
pitate themselves upon the fish, which constitute their customary food.
Their gait is slow, and, in their attitudes, they resemble the Herons. The
species known is,

Cancr. cochlearia , L. ; Enl. 38 and 369; Yieill. Gal. pi. 249.
(The Boat-bill). Size of a hen; whitish; grey or brown back; red
belly ; a white forehead, followed by a black calotte, which, in the
adult male, is changed into a long tuft : inhabits the hot and marshy
parts of South America.

Then comes,

Ardea, Cuv.

Or the Herons, the cleft of whose bill extends to beneath the eyes; a
small nasal fossa continuing on in a groove close to its point. They are
also distinguished by the internal edge of the nail of the middle toe, which
is trenchant and denticulated. Their legs are scutellated ; the thumb and
toes tolerably long, the external web considerable, and the eyes placed in
a naked skin which extends to the bill. Their stomach is a very large,
but slightly muscular sac, and they have but a very small caecum.
They are melancholy birds, which build and perch on the banks of rivers,
where they destroy great numbers of fish. Their dung burns the trees.
There are many species in both continents, which can only be divided by
a reference to some details of plumage.

The true Herons have a very slender neck, ornamented below with
long pendent feathers.

Ard. major and Ard. cinerea, L. ; Enl. 755 and 787 ; Frisch, 198,
199; Naum. Ed. I. 25, f. 33, 34. (The common Heron.) Bluish
ash colour; a black tuft on the occiput; forepart of the neck white,
sprinkled with black tears ; a large bird, whose depredations on the
fish, in the rivers of Europe, render it highly prejudicial. It was
formerly much celebrated for the sport it afforded to falconers.

Ard. purpurea, Enl. 788; Naum. Ed. I. Supp. 45, f. 89, 90*.

* The Ard. purpurea, purpurata, rufa , Gm., and the africona, Lath., according to
Meyer, are mere varieties of the purple Heron.

Add, A. herodias, Gm.; Wils. VJII, Ixv, 2, the young of which is, perhaps, Enl.
858; — A. cocoi , Lath.; Spix, XC, under the false name of Ard. maquari; — A. sibila-

GRALLATORIAE. 335

(The purple Heron.) Grey and red, or purple; belongs also to
’ Europe.

The name of Crab-eaters, ( Crabiers ,) has been applied to the
smallest Herons, with shorter feet. The species most common in
France, and found in its mountain districts, is,

Ard. minuta and danubialis, Gm. ; Le Blongios; Enl. 323;
Frisch, 207 ; Naum. Ed. I, 28, f. 37. Fawn coloured; calotte, back,
and quills black. It is hardly larger than a Rallus, and frequents
the vicinity of ponds.

The Onores, to the form of the Crabeaters, add the size of the true
Heron, and the colour of the bitterns* *.

The Egrets are Herons whose feathers, on the lower part of the
back, at a certain period become long and attenuated.

The most beautiful species, whose feathers are employed for the pur-
pose which the name of these birds indicates, are:

Ard. garzetta, Enl. 901. (The little Egret.) But half the size
of the Heron. It is all white, and its slender feathers do not ex-
tend beyond the tail.

Ard. alba , Enl. 886. (The Great Egret.) This one is also en-
tirely white, but larger. Both these species are found in Europe ;
there is a third, whose tarsi are shorter, and whose attenuated fea-
thers extend considerably beyond the tail; it is the Ard. egretta,.
Enl. 925 f.

We have also thought it proper to approximate to the Egrets the

Ard. comata, Gm. ; Enl. 348 ; Naum. Ed. I, 22, f. 45. (The
Crab-eater of Mahon.) A bird of southern Europe, with a reddish-
brown back, and wings, belly, and tail, white. The adult has a
yellowish neck, and a long tuft on the occiput

The feathers on the neck of the Bitterns are loose and separated,
which increases its apparent size. They are usually spotted or striped.

trix, T. Col. 271; — A. ludoviciana, Gm. Enl. 909, from which the A. virescens does
not specifically differ; — A. Novce-Guirue, Lath. Enl. 92G, approaches somewhat to the
A. scolopacea, Gm. in the hill.

* A. lineata, Gm. Enl. 860; — A. tigrina, Id. Enl. 790, which appears to he the
young of A. flava, Gm.

f Termninck thinks that the A. alba is the young of the A. egretta, and that the
pi. Enl. 901, does not represent the Little Egret of Europe, hut that of America.

\ From the exact observations of Meyer, the A. castanea, Gm. or the rallo'ides,
Scopol.; — A. squaiotta; — A. Marsiglii; — A. pumila, and even A. erythropus, and A. ma-
laccensis , Gm. Enl. 911, are all mere varieties, or different ages of the Crab-eater of
Mahon, or A. comata. The A. senegalensis, Enl. 815, is also a young offspring of the
same bird. It is perhaps the true Crane of the Balearic Islands of Pliny, XI, 37.

Add, A. candidissima, Wils. LX 1 1 1, 4; — the Garde boeuf, A. bubulcus, Savign. Eg.
Ois., pi. viii; — A. leucocephala, Gm. Enl. 910; — A. jugularis, Forster, or gularis,
Bose., Act. de la Soc. d’Hist. Nat. fol. pi. ii. or albicollis, Vieill. Galer. 253; — A.
cceridea, Enl. 349, of which the A. cequinoctialis, Catesb. may probably be the young,
notwithstanding the difference of colour; — A.rufescens , Gm. Enl. 902; — A. leucogaster,
Enl. 350; — A. agami, Enl. 859 («).

(a) Add A. PealU , Bonap. and It. ludoviciana , Wils. VIII, pi. lxiv* f. 1.
-Eno. Ed.]

336

BIRDS.

Ard. stellaris , Enl. 789; Frisch, 205; Naum. Ed. I, 27, f. 86.
(The European Bittern.) A golden fawn-colour, spotted and dotted
with black ; bill and feet greenish ; is found among the reeds, whence
it sends forth that terrific voice which has entitled it to the name of
Bos-taurus. Its attitude, when at rest, is singular; the bill being
raised towards the heavens*.

The adult Night-Heron, with the port of the Bitterns and a bill
proportionably thicker, has a few slender feathers on the occiput.

There is but one species found in France,

Ard. nycticorax, L. ; Bihoreau d' Europe^, Enl. 758; Frisch,
203; Naum, Ed. I, 26, f. 35. (The Night-Heron). The male is
white; back and calotte black; the young bird, Enl. 759, grey, with
a brown mantle and a blackish calotte J.

We must observe, however, that these various subdivisions of the
Herons are of but little importance, and are by no means well marked.

The third tribe, besides having a thicker and smoother bill than is
found in the second, has tolerably strong and almost equal membranes
between the base of its toes.

ClCONIA, CuV .

The Storks have a thick bill, moderately cleft; neither fossae nor
grooves; the nostrils pierced towards the back and near the base; and
the bottom of which is occupied by an extremely short tongue. Their
legs are reticulated, and the anterior toes strongly palmated at base, par-
ticularly the external ones. The light and broad mandibles of their bill,
by striking against each other, produce a clash which is almost the only
sound that proceeds from these birds. Their gizzard is but slightly mus-
cular, and their caeca so small that they are scarcely perceptible. Their
lower larynx has no proper muscle ; their broncliise are longer than com-
mon, and composed of rings more complete than usual. There are two
species in France,

Ardea ciconia, L., Enl. 866; Frisch, 196; Naum. Ed. I, 22, f.
31. (The White Stork.) White; quills of the wings black; feet
and bill red. A large bird, held in great veneration by the people,
a distinction arising from the fact that it destroys snakes and other

• Add, A. minor , Wils. VIII, lxv, 3, or A. stellaris, B. Gm.; Edw., 136; A.

undulata, Gm. Enl. 768; — A . philippensis, Gm. Enl. 908(a).

t According to Meyer, the results of whose labours we still follow, the Ard.
grisea, A. maculata , and the A. badia of Gmel. are different states of the A. nycti-
corax.

J Add, A. pileata, Lath, or A. alba, B.; Gm., Enl. 907; — A. caledonica, Lath.;

A. cayennensis, Enl. 899, or violacea, Wils. VIII, lxv, 1, of which A. jama'icensis,
Gm. is the young; — A. sibilatrix, T. Col. 271. — The Pouacre, Buff. (Ard. Gar deni ,
Gm.) Enl. 309, appears to be the young of an ash-coloured Night Heron, with a
bronze-black calotte and black. It is the same as the A. maculata , Frisch, 202.

(a) IHSF Add, also, A. violacea, Wils. VIII, pi. lxv, f. 1; — A. ceerulea, Wils. VII,
pi. lxii, f. 3; — A. virescens , Wils. VII, lxi, f. 1; A.exilis, Wils. VIII, pi. lxv, f 4.
—Eng. Ed.

GR ALLATOR IAS.

337

noxious reptiles. It prefers building its nest on towers, on the tops
of steeples, &c. ; and, after having once constructed it, returns to
the same spot every spring to build again, passing the winter in se-
veral countries of Africa.

Ard. nigra , L.; Enl. 399; and the young, Frisch, 197; Naum.
23, f. 32. (The Black Stork). Blackish, with purple reflections;
belly white. Haunts solitary marshes, and builds in forests* * * §.

Among the foreign species we may distinguish,

The Bare-necked Storks,

Which have a thicker bill than the others, but one composed of a light
substance; and among them

The Pouched Storks , Ard. dubia, Gm. — Ard. algala, Lat.

Which have an appendage under the middle of the throat, resembling
a thick sausage, and from under whose wings are procured the feathers
forming those light plumes called by the French, Marabous. They are
the largest birds of the genus; their belly is white, and their mantle a
bronze-black. There are two species,

Cic. marabou , Tem., Col. 300, from Senegal, with a uniform
mantle, and Cic. argala, Tem., Col. 301, from India, whose wing-
coverts are edged with white. By means of their broad bill, they
are enabled to capture birds on the wing-j\

MycteriaJ, Lin .

The Jabirus, separated from Ardea by Linnaeus, are closely allied to
the Storks, and much more so than the latter are to the true Herons ;
the moderate opening of their bill, the nostrils, the reticulated envelope
•of the tarsi, and the extent of the membranes between the toes are the
same as in the Storks; their mode of life is also similar. Their peculiar
character consists in a bill slightly curved upwards near the extremity.

Myct. americana , L.§; Enl. 817, (The American Jabiru), is
the most known species. It is very large; white; head and neck
naked, and invested with a black skin, the lower part of which is
red ; a few white feathers on the occiput only ; bill and feet black.
Found along the borders of ponds and marshes in South America,
where it preys upon reptiles and fish^[.

* To this genus also belongs the Mcguari, or American Stork, ( A . maguari) Vieill.
Galer. 254, and Spix, LXXXIX, under the wrong name of Ciconia jubura, which,
with the exception of its ash-coloured bill, differs but little from our White Stork;—
the little C. noire de Nubie (Cic. Abdtmii , Lichtenst.) Ruppel. 8; — the C. violette (C.
leucocephala , Gm.) Enl. 906.

f Add the Cigogve chevelue (C. capillata, T.), Col. 312.

J Mycteria, a name derived by Linnaeus from mukter , a Greek word, signifying
nose, proboscis, on account of its large hill.

§ Touyouyou in Cayenne; A'iaiai in Paraguay; Collier rouge, & c. Barrere has con-
founded it with the American Ostrich, which has caused the name of Touyouyou , or
2’ouyou, to be transferred to that bird by Brisson and by Buffon.

^1 Add, Myc. senegalemis , Lath., V ail 1. Gal. 255, from which the Ciconia ephippir-
hyncha, Rupp. Av. 3, only differs in being drawn from the recent specimen, and
showing two tufts or bobs at the base of the bill.

VOL. I. E K

83S

BIRDS*

Scopus*, Briss.

The Umbres are only distinguished from the Storks by a compressed
bill, whose trenchant ridge is inflated near the base, and whose nostrils
are continued by a groove, which runs parallel with the ridge to its end,
the latter being slightly hooked. Only one species is known,

Scop, umbretia , Enl. 796; Viell. Galer. 250, (The IJmbre),
which is the size of a Crow, and of an umber colour. The occiput
of the male is tufted. Found throughout Africa.

Hi a ns, Lacep . — Anastomus, lllig.

These birds are only separable from the Storks by a character of about
equal consequence with that of the Jabirus. Their two mandibles only
come in contact at the base and points, leaving an interval between the
middle of their edges. Still this space seems to be the result of detrition,
for the fibres of the horny substance of the bill, which appear to have
been worn away, are very visible.

They are from the East Indies. One is whitish, Ardea pontice -
riana, Gm., Enl. 932; and Vieill. Gal. 251, and the other a brown-
grey, — Ardelia coromandeliana, Sonner. It., II, 219. The quills
of the wings and tail are black in both. Perhaps the last one may
be the young of the first. A third, of an iris black, Bec-ouvert a
lames; An. lamelliger , Tern., Col. 236, is remarkable because the
stem of each of its feathers terminates in a narrow horny plate
which extends beyond the barbs. The

Dromas, Payhull.

The Dromes strongly resemble the preceding birds, having the same
feet and carriage, but their compressed bill, the under part of which is
somewhat inflated at the base, is perforated by oval nostrils, and its edges
join closely.

Dromas ardeola, Payk., Stockh. Mem., 1805; pi. 8; Col. 3G2.
The only species known. Its plumage is white ; part of the mantle
and wings black. From the shores of the Red Sea, and of the Se-
negal river f.

Tantalus, Lin.

The Wood Pelicans have the feet, nostrils and bill of the Stork; but
the back of the bill is rounded, its point curved downwards, and slightly
emarginated on each side : a part of their head and sometimes of the neck
is destitute of feathers.

T. loculator, L. ; Enl. 868; Wils. VIII, lxvi, 1. (The Wood
Pelican of America). Is the size of a Stork, but more slender;
white ; quills of the wings and tail black ; bill and feet, as well as

* Scopus , from scopos, sentinel.

f Dupont, Ann. des Sc. Nat. tom. IX, pi. xlv. It is the Erodia amphiknsis, Salt.,
Voy. in Abyss., Atl, pi. xxxi.

GRALLATOJtUE.

339

the naked skin of the head and neck, blackish. It inhabits both
Americas, arriving in each country about the rainy season, and fre-
quenting muddy waters, where it chiefly hunts for eels. It is a
stupid bird, whose gait is very slow.

T. ibis , Lc ; Enl. 339. (The Wood-Pelican of Africa). White,
lightly shaded with purple on the wings ; bill yellow ; skin of the
face red and naked. This is the bird which has long been consi-
dered by naturalists as the Ibis of the ancient Egyptians, but recent
researches have proved that the Ibis is a much smaller bird, of which
we shall speak hereafter. This Tantalus is not even usually found
in Egypt; the specimens we possess are brought from Senegal.

T.leucocephalus; Tantale de Ceylan , Encyc. Method. Orn. pi.
66, fig. 1 ; Vieill. Gal. 247, (The Wood-Pelican of Ceylon), is the
largest of all, and has the stoutest bill. This bill, and the skin of
the face are yellow ; plumage white, with black quills ; a black cinc-
ture round the breast; long rose-coloured feathers on the rump,
which are shed during the rainy season*.

PLATALEAf, Lin,

The Spoonbills approximate to the Storks in the whole of their struc-
ture ; but their bill, whence they derive their name, is long, flat, broad
throughout, becoming widened and flattened, particularly at the end, so as
to form a spatula-like disk ; two shallow grooves, originating at its base,
extend almost to the end, but without being parallel to its edges. The nos-
trils are oval, and situated at a short distance from the origin of each groove.
Their small tongue, reticulated legs, the extent of the membranes of their
feet, their two very small caeca, their but slightly muscular gizzard, and
their lower larynx destitute of peculiar muscles, are the same as in the
Storks, but the expansion of their bill deprives it of all its strength, and
renders it fit for nothing but turning up mud, or capturing small fish or
aquatic insects.

P. leucorodia , Gm. ; Enl. 405 ; Naum. Supp. 44, f. 87. (The
White Spoonbill). All white, and a crest on the occiput ; it is found
throughout the eastern continent, where it builds on high trees.
The “ Spatule blanche sans huppe ,” Buff. Hist, des Ois. tom. VII,
pi. 54, according to Bail, is but the young of this species. Besides
the absence of the crest, it is distinguished by the quills of the wings
having a black edge.

P. aiaia; La Spatule rose , Enl. 165; Vieill. Gal. 248. (The
Roseate Spoonbill). The face is naked, and the plumage tinged
with various shades of a bright rose-colour, which becomes more in-
tense with age. It is peculiar to South America.

* Add the T. lacteus, T. Col. 352.

f Platalea, or Platea , Latin names, sometimes used as synonymous with Pelicanus.

£ E 2

340

BIRDS.

FAMILY IY.

LONGIROSTRES.

This family is composed of a multitude of Waders, most of which were
included in the genus Scolopax of Linnaeus, and the remainder confound-
ed in that of his Tringa, though partly in opposition to the character of
this genus, which consists in a thumb too short to reach the ground. A
small number were placed among the Plovers on account of the total ab-
sence of a thumb. All these birds have nearly the same form, the same
habits, and frequently even the same distribution of colours, which ren-
der them very difficult of being distinguished one from another. Their
general character is a long, slender, and weak bill, the use of which is
restricted to searching in the mud for worms and insects ; the different
gradations in the form of this bill serve to divide them into genera and
subgenera.

According to his own principles, Linnieus should have united most of
these birds in the great genus

S colo pax, Lin.

Which we shall divide as follows, according to the variation in the form
of the bill*. The

Ibis, Cuv.

The Ibis, which have been separated by us from the Tantalus of
Gmelin, because their bill, though arcuated like that of Tantalus, is much
weaker, and has no emargination near its point; the nostrils also, perfo-
rated near the back of its base, are severally prolonged in a groove, which
extends to the end. Besides, this bill is tolerably thick and almost square
at the base, and some part of the head or even of the neck is always des-
titute of feathers. The external toes are considerably palmated at the
base, and the thumb is sufficiently large to bear upon the ground.

Some of them have short and reticulated legs ; they are usually
the stoutest, and have the largest bill.

Ibis religiosa , Nob. ; Abou-Hannes, Bruce, It., pi. 35; Tantalus
< vthiopicus , Lath. ; L’adulta , Cuv., Oss. Foss. tom. I, and the young,
Savign. Descript, de l’Egypte, Hist. Nat. des Ois., pi. 7, (The Sacred
Ibis), is the most celebrated species. It was reared in the temples
of ancient Egypt, with a degree of respect bordering on adoration ;

* This is another of these distinctions and names borrowed by Vieill. (Gal. 246)
without any acknowledgment, although my memoir upon the Ibis, in which I esta-
blish it, is dated fifteen years prior to any of his writings upon birds.

GRALLAT0RI2E,

Si 1

and, when dead, it was embalmed, because, according to some, it
devoured serpents, which otherwise might have been dangerous to
the country; according to others, because it bore some relation
in its plumage to one of the phases of the moon; while a third
class of authors were of opinion that its appearance announced the
overflow of the Nile *. The Tantalus of Africa was for a long time
considered as the Ibis of the Egyptians ; it is now known to be a
bird of the present genus, as large as a hen, with white plumage,
the tips of the wing-quills excepted, which are black ; the barbs of
the last coverts are slender, and of a black colour, with violet reflec-
tions, and cover the tips of the wings and the tail. The bill and
feet, as well as the naked part of the head and neck, are black ; this
part, at an early age, is covered with small blackish feathers, or, at
all events, its upper surface is thus furnished. Found throughout
Africa "j\

Others have scutellated legs ; their bill, most commonly, is more slender.

Ib . rubra ; Scol. rubra , L. ; Tantal. ruber , Gm. ; Enl. 80 and 81 ;
Wils. VIII, lxvi, 2. (The Red Ibis). A bird found in all the hot
parts of America, remarkable for its bright red colour ; the tips of
the wing-quills are black. The young ones, at first covered with a
blackish down, become cinereous, and, when ready to fly, whitish;
in two years the red makes its appearance, and continues to increase
in lustre with age. This species does not migrate, and lives in flocks
in marshy spots in the vicinity of estuaries. It is easily domesti-
cated.

Scol. falcinellus, L. ; Courlis vert, Enl. 819; Naum. Ed. I, Supp.
28, Savig. Eg. Ois. pi. vii, f. 2. (The Green Ibis). A purple
brown-red; mantle of a deep green ; the head, and neck of the young
marked with whitish dots. It is a beautiful bird of southern Europe,
and of northern Africa, and most probably the species denominated
by the ancients the Black Ibis\.

Numenius§, Cuv.

The Curlews have the bill arcuated like that of the Ibis, but it is more
slender, and round throughout its length ; the tip of the upper mandible

* Savigny, Mem. sur 1* Ibis.

f There is a neighbouring species in the Moluccas, which has a longer bill, the
coverts less slender, and partly varied with white; long and pointed feathers on the
upper part of the breast {Ibis molucca, Cuv.), and another in Bengal, with but slightly
attenuated ash-coloured coverts {Ibis bengala, Cuv.).

Add, Ib. papillosa, T. Col. 304; — Tunt. calvus, Gm., Enl. 867 ; — Ibis nudifrons , Spix,
86; — lb. oxycercus, Id. 87; — T. albico/lis, Gm., or Curicaca of Margr., Enl. 976; —
Taut, cayennensis , Gm., Enl. 820, — Ibis plumbeus , T. Col. 235 ; — Tant. melanopis, Gm.,
Lath. Ill, pi. lxxix; — Ib. clialcoptera, Vieill. Gal. 246, or Taut. hogedasli, Lath.

J Add, Tantalus albus and T. coco , Gm.; Enl. 915; T. cristatus, Id.; Enl. 841, —
Ibis leucopygus , Spix, 88, if it should not prove to be the young of the ruber; — Tunt.
leucocephalus, Lath. Ill, pi. Ixxx, 2 (o).

§ Numenius , derived from niomenie, new moon, on account of its crescent-sh ped

bill.

( a ) The T. fuscus of Gm. is the young of the T. albus, Id. — End. Ed.

342

BIRDS.

extends beyond the end of the lower one, and projects a little downwards
in front of it. The toes are palmated at their base.

Scol. arcuata, L. ; Enl. 818; Frisch, 224; Naum. 5, f. 5. (The
Curlew of Europe). Is the size of a Capon ; brown ; the edges of
all the feathers whitish ; rump white ; tail striped with white and
brown. It is eaten as game, of a tolerably good taste. Common
along the coast of Europe, and in transitu in the interior. Its name
is derived from its cry* * * §.

Scol. Phceopus , L. ; Petit Courlis ; Enl. 142; Edw. 307; Frisch,
225; Naum. 10, f. 10f. (The Whimbrel). Half the size of the
preceding, but has nearly the same plumage

SCOLOPAX {{, Guv .

The Woodcocks, or Snipes, have a straight bill, the nasal furrows ex-
tending to near its point, which is a little inflated externally, to reach be-
yond the lower mandible, and on the middle of which there is a simple
groove ; this point is soft and very sensible, and when dried, after death,
assumes a punctured appearance. Their feet are not palmated. A pe-
culiar character of these birds consists in their compressed head, and
large eyes placed very far back, which gives them a singularly stupid air,
an indication which they do not contradict by their habits.

Scol. rusticola, L. ; La Becasse ; Enl. 885; Frisch, 126, 227;
Naum. Ed. I, I, f. 1. (The Woodcock). The well-known plumage
of this bird is variegated above with grey, red, and black spots and
bands; grey beneath, with transverse blackish lines. Its distin-
guishing character consists of four broad, transverse, black bands ;
which succeed each other on the back part of the head. During
the summer it inhabits lofty mountains, and descends into the woods
in the month of October. It lives either singly or in pairs, particu-
larly in bad weather, and feeds on worms and insects. Few of them
remain on the plains during summer §.

Scol. gallinagOy L. ; La Becassine, Enl. 883 ; Frisch, 229,
Naum. 3, f. 3. (The Common Snipe). Smaller than the preceding,
but with a longer bill; is distinguished by two broad, longitudinal
black bands on the head, by the neck spotted with brown and fawn-
colour, by a blackish mantle with two longitudinal fawn-coloured
bands, by its brown wings watered with grey, by a whitish belly, the

* Add the Courlis a meches etroites of the Cape ( Nunn . rirgatus , C.), Enl. 198; —
the C. a m. et. of India {N. lineatus ); Le C. a long bee d' Amenque ; — the Num. longi-
rostris , Wils. of America, Am. Orn. II, xxiv, 4; — Num. borealis , Id. vii, Ivi, 1.

f Phceopus (ash-coloured foot), a name composed by Gesner.

X Add the Num. tenuirostris, Ch. Bonap. ; — the Num. rufus, Vieill. Gal. 245; — the
Courlis demi-bec {Num. brevirostris, T.), Col. 381.

N. B. In this genus, and almost in the whole of this family, the bill becomes
lengthened by age.

|| Scolcpax, the Greek name of the Woodcock, from scolops, stake, on account of
its straight and pointed bill. Vieillot has changed it into Rusticola.

§ Add a closely allied species of North America {Scol. minor, Gm.), Arct. Zool.
IT, pi. xix; Vieill. Gal. 242; Wils. VI, xlviii, 2; — Scol. sabtni, Vig., Lin. Trans.
XIV, pi. xxi, if a true species.

GRALLATORLE.

343

flanks watered with brown, &c. It frequents marshes, edges of ri-
vulets, &c., and ascends out of sight, pouring out its piercing note
from a great distance, which sounds like the bleating of a goat. It
is found in nearly the same state in all parts of the globe.

Scol. major , Gm. ; La double Becassine ; Frisch, 228; Naum.
2, f. 2. (The Great Snipe). Is distinguished from the preceding
by being a third larger, and by the grey or fawn-coloured undula-
tions above being smaller, and the brown ones beneath larger and
more numerous.

Scol. gallinula , Gm.; La Sourde ; Enl. 884; Frisch, 231;
Naum. 4, f. 4. (The Jack Snipe). Nearly one half smaller than
the Scol. gallinago; has but one black band on the head; the
ground of the mantle reflects a bronze-green ; a grey demi-collar on
the neck ; the flanks spotted like the breast with brown ; it remains
nearly the whole year in the marshes of Europe* * * §. We should dis-
tinguish from all others, the

Sc. grisea, Gm. ; Wils. VII, lviii, 1 ; Sc. Paykullii, Nils. Orn.
Suec. II, pi. 2, and in summer plumage, Scol. Noveboracensis, Lath.
(The Red-breasted Snipe), which differs in the external toes being
semi-palmated. It is more ash-coloured in winter, and more red-
dish in summer, the rump always white, spotted with black. If is
also seen in Europe f.

RhynchtEaJ, Cuv «

Birds of Africa and India, whose nearly equal mandibles are slightly
arcuated at the end, and in which the nasal fossae extend to the tip of the
upper one, which has no third groove. Their feet are not palmated. To
the port of Snipes they add more lively colours, and are particularly re-
markable for the ocellated spots which decorate the quills of both wings
and tail.

These birds are found of various colours, and Gmelin, consider-
ing them as varieties, unites them under the name of Scol. capensis,
M. Temminck also considers them as different ages of one bird §.

* Add the Becassine muette of Eur., Scol. Brehmii, Kaup., Isis., 1823; — Scol. pa-
ludosa, Gm. Enl. 895, which is the Sc. gallinago , Wils. VI, xlvii, 1; — Scol. gigantea,
Tem. Col. 403.

The Brunette of Buffon, Scol. pusilla ( Dunlin , of the English), is only the Tringa
alpina , Gm.

t It appears that Vieillot restricts the name of Scolopax to this subdivision, that
is, if, as I think, his pi. 241 represents this bird; it is not, however, exact. M. Leach
makes his genus Macroramphus of it.

X Vieillot has adopted this name and genus, Gal. pi. 240.

§ Scol. capensis , d, Gm. Enl. 922, should be the adult; Scol. capensis, g, Enl. 881,
or Rynchcea variegata, Vieill. Galer. 240, the young, and Enl. 270, an intermediate
age. The Chevalier vert, Briss. and Buff. ( Rallus bcnghalensis , Gm.), Albin, III, 90,
is also of this genus, and does not even appear to differ from the variety represented,
Enl. 922. N. B. This last plate is the only one that gives a correct representation
of the bill peculiar to this little subgenus. Add, a very distinct species from Brazil,
Rhynchaa hilarea, Val., Bullet, des Sc. de Ferussao, c. 2.

344

BIRDS.

Limosa*, Bechst.

The Godwits have a straight bill, longer than that of the Snipes, and
sometimes even slightly arcuated near the top. The nasal groove ex-
tends close to the tip, which is blunt and somewhat depressed; no third
groove or punctation on its surface. The external toes are palmated at
the base. Their form is more slender, and their legs longer than those
of Snipes ; they frequent salt marshes and the sea-shore.

Scol. leucophcea, Lath., and laponica, Gm. ; Barge aboyeuse ; the
young, Brit. Zool. pi. xiii; Briss. Y, pi. xxiv, f. 2; the adult in
summer plumage, Enl. 900 f . (The Common Godwit). In winter,
a deep browrn-grey, the feathers edged with white; the breast, a
brown-grey; whitish above; rump white, striped with brown, &c.
In summer it is red, with a brown back. The tail is always striped
with white and black.

Scol. cegocephala and belgica , Gm.; Limosa melanura, Leisler;
in winter plumage, Enl. 874; in that of summer, lb. 916. (The
Black-tailed Godwit). In winter a cinereous grey, browner on the
back; white belly; in summer, head, neck, and breast, red; the
mantle, brown spotted with red ; beneath, striped with brown, red
and white bands ; tail always black, edged with white at the tip.
These two birds are double the size of the Woodcock, and their
changes of plumage have occasioned various multiplications of the
species. The last, during the summer, covers the plains of northern
Holland. Its cry is very shrill, and resembles that of a goat

Caljdris||, Cuv. — Tringa, Temm.

The bill of the Sandpipers is depressed at the end, and the nasal fossae
are very long, as in the Godwits, but this bill is not usually longer than
the head; their slightly bordered toes have no membranes at their base,
and their thumb can hardly reach the ground ; their moderately long legs
and short figure give them a heavier carriage than that of the Godwits.
They are also much smaller.

Tringa grisea , TV. cinerea , and TV. canutus, Gm. ; La Mttubeche ,
Enl. 366; Edw. 276; Wils. VII, Ivii, 2; the Sandpiper and
Canute of the English. Winter plumage, ash-coloured above, white
beneath, with blackish spots on the front of the neck and breast.
In its summer livery, Tr. isl-andica , Gm., or Tr. rufa, Wils. VII,

* Vieillothas changed this name into Limicula, Gal. 243.

1 Gmelin has made the young of this bird a variety of the following species, and
quotes the fig. of Brisson, by the name of Sc<l. glottis, which is a Ruff. The adult
is his Scol. laponica. The Limosa Me peri, Leisl. and Temm., is this species in its
winter livery, and Lim. rufa , the same in its summer plumage.

X Add, Scol. fedoa, L.; Wils. VII, pi. lvi, 4, or the Barge marbree , Limicula mar -
morata , Vieill. Galer. 243. We might distinguish the Scol. terek, or Sc. cinerea, Gm.;
Guldenst., Nov. Act. Petrop. XIX, pi. xix, whose hill is curved upwards, and whose
feet are semi-palmated. It leads to the Recur irosfres.

|| Calidris, “ an ash-coloured and spotted bird, frequenting rivers and woods,”
Aristotle. Brisson has applied it to the Great Sandpiper.

GRALLATORLE.

345

Ivii, 5, it is spotted above, fawn-colour and blackisb; underneath red.
The Tr. ncevia , Enl. 395, is an intermediate state. The coverts
of the tail are always white striped with black, and its quills grey.
Nearly as large as a Snipe.

Tr. maritima, Brun. ; Tr. nigricans, Montag., Lin. Trans. IV,
pi. 11, f. 2; Brit. Zool. in fol., pi. c. 2, f. 1. (The Purple Sand-
piper). Somewhat less than the preceding; grey; the mantle black-
ish ; wings undulated with whitish ; whitish belly. It is common
on the coast of Holland, rare in France. Always settles on
stones*.

Arenaria, Bechst. — Calidris, Vigors.

The Sanderlings resemble the Sandpipers in every point but one, viz.
they have no thumb, as is the case with the Plovers.

The species known, Charadrius calidris, Gm. Briss. V. pi. xx,
§ 2; Vieill. Gal. 234, is, in winter, greyish above; front and un-
derneath white; blackish wings, varied with white; Wils. VII, lix,
A. In summer, its back is spotted with fawn-colour and black, and
its breast dotted with blackish, — Char, rubidus , Wils. VII, lxiii, 3f .

Pelidna, Cuv.

The Sea-Larks are merely small Sandpipers, with a bill somewhat
longer than the head. The borders of their feet are insensible.

Tringa cinclus and alpina ; Alouette de mer (the Sea-Lark, or
Small Sandpiper), is a third smaller than the Great Sandpiper, and
like it, in winter, is ash-coloured above, white beneath, and the
breast shaded with grey ; in summer its plumage is fawn-coloured
above, spotted with black, small black spots front of the neck and
breast, and a black patch under the belly. It is then the Tr. alpina,
Gm., or Tr. cinclus, B. Enl. 852; Wils. VII, lvi, 2. The Tr.
cinclus , L., Enl. 851, is an intermediate state J.

The Cocorli only differ from the Sea-larks by their bill being slightly
arcuated.

The species known, Scolopax subarcuata, Gm.; Numenius afri -
canus, Lath.; Naum. 21, f. 28 and 20; f. 27 (Red Sandpiper), is,
in winter, blackish above, undulated with grey and whitish beneath;
in summer the back is spotted with black and fawn-colour, the wings
are grey, and the head and under part of the body red. It is found
everywhere, though very rarely. The

* Add, of European species: Tr. Temminckii , Leisler, Col. 41, 4; — Tr. minuta ,
Leisl. Naum. 21, f. 50. Of species foreign to that continent: Tr. leucoptera, G m.f
Lath. Syn. Ill, pi. lxxxii; — Tr. albescens, Tem. Col. 41, 1; — Tr. maculosa, Vieill.
Diet.; — Tr. pusilla, Wils. pi. xxxvii, 4. Add, Tr. islandica, L., Wils. VIII, p. Ivii,
f. 2, 5.— Eno. Ed.

f It has been confounded with the Small Sandpiper, in its winter plumage, or Tr.
arenaria. Brisson, in particular, gives the figure of the one, and the description of
the other. The Calidris tringoides, Vieill. Gal. 234, seems to be a bad figure of this
bird in its summer livery.

I This is most probably the place for the Tringa macroptera, Spix, XCII (a).

R5V (°) Add, Am. Spec. Tr. Schinzii, Brehm. ; — Tr. pectoralis , Bonap.; — Tr.
platyrhinca, Tern. — Eng. E-d.

BIRDS.

846

Falcinellus®.

Falcinelles have a bill somewhat more arcuated than that of the Co-
corli; the thumb, moreover, is deficient.

One species only is known, Scol. pygmcea, L,, a native of Africa,
but which has sometimes been seen in Europe,

Machetes f, CW«

The Ruffs are true Sandpipers in their bill and carriage ; the mem-
brane between their external toes, however, is nearly as extensive as in
Totanus, Limosa, &c.

One species only is known, the Tringa pugnax, L.f Enl. 305,
306. (The Ruff.) It is somewhat smaller than a snipe, and cele-
brated for the furious combats which take place among the males in
the nuptial season. At this period the head is partly covered with
red papillae, the neck is surrounded with a thick collar of feathers,
so variously arranged and coloured, and projecting in such fantastic
positions, that no two individuals can be found alike ; even before
this epoch there is so much diversity in their plumage, that many
imaginary species have been described by naturalists J. Their feet
are always yellowish, which, with their bill and their semi-palmated
external toes, furnish a mark which may assist us to recognize them.
This bird, common to the whole north of Europe, is also found on
the coast of France, particularly in the spring, but it does not build
there (a).

There are some small birds in America resembling the Sandpipers,
whose feet are semi-palmated anteriorly (the Hemipalama, Bonap.) ;
Tringa semi-palmata , Wils., VII, Ixiii, 4; Tringa hrevirostrist
Spix, xciii.

It appears that it is near the Sandpipers we must place the
Eurinorhynchus, Wilson .

Which is distinguished from them by its depressed bill, widened at
the end almost like that of the Spoonbill, the only known species of
which,

Platalea pygmcea, L. ; Eurinorhynchus griseus , Wils., Thunb.,
Acad., Suec., pi. VI, is one of the rarest in existence, for only a
single individual has been found: it is grey above, white beneath,
and hardly as large as a Pelidna.

• Vieillot has changed this name into Erolia. It is not, as has been asserted,
destitute of a thumb.

f Greek, Machetes , pugnator. Greek, Pelidnos, fuscus.

X The Chevalier vane , Buff., Sp. IV; Briss. V, pi. xvii, 2, ( Tringa littorea, L.;
Tringa ochropus, B.; littorea, Gm.). The Chevalier, properly so called, Buff. Esp.
II, Briss. V, pi. xvii, fig. 1, quoted by Gmel. under Scot, calidris; the true Sand-
piper, Briss. V, pi. xx, fig. 1, ( Tringa calidris, Gm.): the birds of Frisch, pi. 238, are
all ruffs in different states of plumage, many other varieties of which might still be
represented.

According to Meyer, the Tringa grenovicensis, Lath, is also a young Ruff.

- («) SHUT A true Rq#' was .shot on Long Island in May 1830.

GRALLATORI^E.

347

Phaiasopus®, Briss.

Small birds, whose bill, though flatter than that of the Sandpipers, is
similarly proportioned, and has the same grooves ; the toes also are bor-
dered with wide membranes like those of Fulica. The species known,

Phal, fulicarius , Bonap. ; Tringa labata and Tr . fulicaria, L. f ,
has a very large bill for a member of this family. In winter, it is
ash-coloured above ; beneath, and the head, whitish; a black band
on the neck: it is then the Tr, lobata, Edw. 308. In summer it
becomes black, streaked with fawn colour above, and reddish be-
neath; there is at all times a white band on the wing, which is
blackish: it is then the Phalaropus rufus, (Red Phalarope), Bechsfc.
and Meyer; Tringa fulicaria, L., Edw. 142 Crymophile rovx,
Vieill. Gal. 270. This bird is rare in Europe.

Strepsilas §, Tllig .

The Turn-stones stand rather low; the bill is short, and the toes are
without membranes, like those of the true Sandpipers ; but this bill is
conical, pointed, without any depression, compression, or inflation, and
the nasal fossae do not extend to more than half its length. The thumb
barely reaches the ground. Their bill, which is stronger and stiffer in
proportion than that of the preceding birds, enables them to overturn
stones, beneath which they find worms.

The mantle of one species is varied with black and red ; head and
belly white; cheeks and breast, black: it is disseminated through-
out both continents, and is the Tringa interpres, L., Enl. 856.
There is also one varied with "grey and brown, which is perhaps but
the same species at a different age — Enl. 340 and 857 ; Vieill. Gal,
237 1|.

Totanus% Cuv .

The bill of these birds is slender, round, pointed and solid; the nasal
foss33 do not extend beyond the half of its length, and the upper mandible is
slightly arcuated near the end. Their form is light and their legs long;
but a small part of their thumb rests on the ground ; their external web
is well marked. Each of the species is found throughout almost the
whole of the globe.

Scol. glottis , L. ; Chevalier aux pied verts; Albin. II, 69; Al-
drov. Orn. Ill, 535; Brit. Zool. pi. c. 1? As large as a Limosa,

* Vicillot has changed this name into Crymophile, Gal., pi. 270.

f Meyer improperly confounds this bird, Edw. 308, with the Tringa hyperborea
and the Tringa fusca, which have the bill of a Totanus, and of which we make our
Lobipes.

I Gmelin has increased the confusion by quoting this bird as a variety of the
hyperborea.

§ Vieillot has changed this name into that of Arenaria, Gal. pi. 237.

|| See Edw. 141; Naum. Suppl. 62, f. 118; Wils. VII, lvii, 2. The Chevalier
varie, Enl. 300, referred by Meyer to Strepsilas, is merely a Ruff.

*|[ Totano, tho Venetian name of a Limosa or Totanus.

BIROS.

848

bill thick and strong, a brown ash colour above and on the sides;
edges of the feathers dotted with brown ; white rump and belly ; tail
marked with narrow and irregular grey and white stripes ; the feet
green. In summer the neck and breast are spotted with brown; in
winter the whole under part of the body is white. It is the largest
of all the European species.

Scol. fusca, L. ; Cheval noir; Barge brune; Buff. Enl. 875;
Frisch, 236*, has the graceful form of the Godwit, and in summer
is a blackish brown above and slate-coloured beneath ; the feathers
bordered or dotted on the edge with whitish ; the rump white, and
the tail striped with brown and white, two characters which exist
more or less in all the species of Europe ; feet of a reddish brown.
In winter the belly and breast become white, when it is almost ash-
coloured above, with red feet. It is then Le Grand Chevalier d
pieds rouges , Scol. calidris, L., Enl. 8764.

Tringa, gambetta , Gm. ; Le Chevalier aux pieds rouges, or Gam-
bette; Enl. 845; Frisch, 240, Naum. 9, f. 9. In summer, brown
above, with black spots, and some few white ones, on the edges of
the feathers ; white beneath with brown spots, particularly on the
breast and neck; red feet; numerous brown and white stripes on the
tail. In winter its spots are nearly effaced, and the mantle is of an
almost uniform grey; in this state it is the fig. Enl. 827. Its size
is a fourth less.

Totanus stagnatilis, Bechst. ; Chevalier a longs pieds, Bonelli.
Something smaller than the preceding, but has longer and more
slender legs : in summer its back is brown, with irregular black spots ;
its belly white, and brown spots mark the neck and breast. In
winter the mantle becomes of a uniform grey, and the under part of
the body white. The stripes on the tail are irregular and parallel
to its edges.

Tringa ochropus, L. ; Le Becasseau; Enl. 843. A bronze-black
above, the edges of the feathers dotted with whitish; white beneath,
spotted with grey on the forepart of the neck and on the sides; only
three black bands on the lower half of the tail; feet greenish; still
smaller than either of the two preceding ones. It is much esteemed
as game, and is common along the banks of rivulets in Europe, al-
though it is rather a solitary bird.

Tringa glareola, Gm. ; Beccasseau des bois, chiefly differs from
the preceding in having from seven to eight blackish stripes along
the whole length of the tail. The pale spots on its back are broader.
The spots on the neck and breast almost totally disappear in winter.

Tringa hypoleucos, L. ; Tot. macularius, Wils. VII, lix, 1, 2? (a);
La guignette, Enl. 850. The smallest of the European species,

* According to Meyer, the Scol. curonica and cantabrigiensis, and the Tringa atra,
Gm. should be referred to this bird. The two first are the young ones,
f Under the wrong name of Barge grise.

( a ) miT This mark of doubt may be removed: it is not the Tot. macularius, Wils.
—Eng. Ed.

GRALLATORLE.

349

being about as large as a Pelidna (TV. alpina , Gm.); a bronzed
greenish-brown, with transverse, fawn coloured and black marks on
the wings ; beneath and in front, white ; rump, and the middle quills
of the tail, colour of the back, the lateral ones only being striped
with black and white as in the other species. The feathers of the
bill as well as the small wing-coverts, when young, have a light
fawn coloured edging. Its habits are the same as those of the pre-
ceding.

Among the species foreign to Europe, we should particularly no-
tice that of North America, with the large bill and semi-palmated.
feet, Scolopax semipalmata, L. ; Ency. Method. PL Ornith., pi.
ixxi, fig. 1; Wils. VII, Ivi, 3, which is nearly as large as the one
first named, with a shorter and thicker bill, plumage brown-grey
above, whitish beneath; brownish spots on the neck and breast;
toes well bordered with equal and considerable membranes* * * §. The

LoBiPEsf, Cuv.

The Lobipedes, we think, require to be separated from the Phalaropes,
because, although the feet are similar, the bill is that of a Totanus;
such is,

Tringa hyperborea , L. ; Lobipede d hausse-col ; Enl. 766, of
which the Tringa fusca, Edw. 46, is probably the female or the
young. This little bird, which is grey above, white beneath, and
has its scapulars tinged with red, has a broad red gorget round its
white throat J.

Himantopus ||, Briss.

The bill round, slender, and pointed, even more so than that of a To-
tanus, and the usual nasal grooves occupy but half its length. The exces-
sive length and tenuity of the legs, which are reticulated and destitute of a
thumb, and the weakness of their bones, which is so extreme as to ren-

* It is on this character that M. Ch. Bonaparte founds his subgenus Catoptro-
phorus. Add to the common species, Tot. speculiferus, which resembles the semi-
palmalus, hut stands higher, and has a longer bill, with the usual feet; — Tot. vonje-
rus , Wils. VII, lviii, 5, or Tot. melonoleucos, Ord. Ib, ; — Tot. flavipes, Wils. LVIII,
4; — Tot. solitarius (Tot. glareolus, Wils.), Wils. VII, lviii, 3. The Tot. Bartramius,
Wils. VII, lix, 2, has a proportionally shorter bill than the other species, although
in everything else its characters are the same. N.B. This genus, mixed up by
Buffon, with several varieties of Ruffs, has been distributed by Linnaeus, without
any reason, among his two genera Scolopax and Tringa. This confusion is not yet
dissipated, as I had no opportunity of observing all the foreign species. It is easy
to see, however, that I could not retain the genus Atites of llliger. 1 should also
observe, that the most exact descriptions will not suffice for distinguishing the spe-
cies with certainty, until those of my Totanus are separated from my Sandpipers
and Godwits, according to the forms of the bill, as above mentioned. It is this
which has prevented me from giving all the synonymes of Beclistein and Meyer.

f M. Vieillot, to have the air of producing a change, retains here the name of
Phalaropus.

X Add, the Phal. frenatns, Vieill. Gal. pi. 271, or Phal. lisere , T. Col. 270; Wils.
IX, pi. lxiii, f. 3? It is the subgenus Holopodius of Ch. Bonap.

§ Himantopus, feet like a string (alluding to their weakness), is the name given to
this bird in Pliny.

350

BIRDS.

der walking painful to them, are what principally distinguish the species
of this subgenus, and give rise to their name.

One species only is known in Europe, — Charadrius himantopus ,
L„, EnL 878, which is white, with a black calotte and mantle, and
long red feet ; it is a rare bird, whose habits are but imperfectly
known *.

This is perhaps the only place for the

Recurvirostra, Lin.

Or the Avosets, although their feet, which are webbed nearly to the ends
of the toes, almost entitle them to a situation among the Palmipedes, yet
their high tarsi and half naked legs, their long, slender, pointed, smooth,
and elastic bill, together with their mode of life resulting from this con-
formation, equally approximate them to the Snipes. What particularly
characterizes, and even distinguishes them from all other birds, is the
strong upward curve of their bill. Their legs are reticulated, and their
thumb much too short to reach the ground.

The European species, — Recurv. avocetta, L., Enl, 353, is white;
a black calotte and three bands on the wing of the same hue ; feet
lead-coloured ; it is a pretty bird of a graceful form, found in winter
on the sea-shore. The American species,- — R. americana , Wils.
VII, Ixiii, 2; Leach, Zool, Misc., pi. 101, differs from it in a red
hood.

The coasts of the Indian seas produce a third, which is white,
with black wings and red feet, the R. orientalis , Cuv.f

FAMILY V.

MACRODACTYLI.

This family is furnished with very long toes, fitted for walking on the
grass of marshes, and even for swimming, in those numerous species
especially, in which they are bordered. There are no membranes, how-
ever, between the bases of their toes, not even between the external ones.
The bill, more or less compressed on the sides, is lengthened or shortened
according to the genus, never, however, becoming as slender or as weak
as that of the preceding family. The body of these birds is also singu-
larly compressed, a circumstance which is owing to the narrowness of the
sternum ; their wings are moderate or short, and their flight feeble. They
all have a long thumb.

® Add, Him. nigricollis , Wils. VII, pi. Iviii, 2, and Vieill. Gal. pi. 229.
f Yieillot has changed this name into Rc-curvir . kucocephula, Gal. pi. 272.

GRALLATORLE.

851

They have been divided into two tribes, according to the armature or
non-armature of their wings ; but this character is liable to exceptions.

Jacanas*, Briss.— ParraJ, Lin .

The Jacanas are greatly distinguished from the other Grallatorise, by
having four very long toes, separated down to their root, the nails of
which, that of the thumb in particular, are also extremely long and pointed,
from which peculiarity they have received their vulgar name of Surgeons.
The bill is similar to that of the Lapwings, in its moderate length, and in
the slight inflation of its end. Their wing is armed with a spur. They
are noisy and quarrelsome birds, which inhabit marshes of hot climates,
where they walk with great facility on the grass, by means of their long
toes.

America produces some species, in which the base of the bill is covered
by a flat, naked membrane, which extends to part of the forehead.

P. jacana , L., Enl. 322. (The Common Jacana). Black, with a
red mantle ; the primary wing-quills green ; fleshy wattles under the
bill; very sharp-pointed spurs. It is the most common species in
all the hot climates of America J.

Some of the same description are also found in Asia,

P. cenea || ; P. superciliosa , Horsf. (the Bronzed Jacana birds), with
a black body reflecting blue and violet tints; mantle bronze-green;
rump and tail blood-red; anterior quills of the wing green; a white
streak behind the eye. Its spurs are blunt and small.

Others have been discovered in the east, in which this membrane is de-
ficient, and which are otherwise remarkable for some singular differences
in the proportions of their quills.

P. chinensis; Jacana a longue queue ; Encycl. Method, Orm, pL
61, f. 1; Yieill. Gal. 265. (The Long-tailed Jacana). .Brown;
head, throat, front of the neck, and coverts of the wings, white;
back of the neck furnished with silky feathers of a golden yellow ; a
small pediculated appendage to the end of some of the wing- quills ;
four quills of the tail black, and longer than the body. The Chi-
rurgien de Luqon of Sonnerat (P. luzionensis ), is the young of the
same: independently of some difference in the colours, it has not
yet acquired its long tail.

* Jacana, or Jahana, is properly, in Brazil, the name of the Gallitiula. The Sur-
geons are there called Aquapuazos, because they walk over the aquatic plants called
Aquape (Azzar.). It is possibly through an error of transcription that one of them
in Marcgrave is named Aguapeccaca.

t Parra is the Latin name of some unknown bird.

X Tlie J. varie ( P . variabilis ), Enl. 846, is only the common species at an early
age. The P. brasiliensis, and the P. nigra, exist only on the somewhat equivocal
authority of Marcgrave. The P. viridis, which also rests on the description of
Mai'cgrave, appears to me, from the description itself, to be a Porphyrio. The P.
africana, Lath., scarcely differs. As for the P. chavaria, see the following article on
the Palamedeae.

|| Vieillot has changed this specific name into me lunch lot is, Gal. 264. It is also
the P. superciliosa, -Horsf. Jav.

BIRDS.

*xKO

Ou/v

The East produces others, which are tufted, and in which the spur on
the wing is deficient, P. gallinacea , Tem. 464.

Palamedea, Lin.

The Kamichi represent, in many respects, the Jacanas, but on a very
large scale, in the two strong spurs of each of their wings, in their long
toes and strong nails, that of the thumb in particular, which is long and
straight as in the Larks ; but their bill, whose aperture is small, is but
slightly compressed,- and is not inflated; the upper mandible, also, is
somewhat arcuated. Their legs are reticulated. The species known,

P. cornuta, L., Enl. 451; Yieill. Gal. 261; Anhima in Brazil;
Camouche at Cayenne, &c., is larger than the Goose, blackish, with
a red spot on the shoulder, and a singular appendage on the top of
the head, consisting of a long, slender, mobile and horny stem.
There are no membranes between the toes. This bird is found in
the inundated places of South America, and has a very loud cry.
They live in pairs wdth great fidelity. It has been said that it hunts
reptiles, but though its stomach is but slightly muscular, it rarely
feeds on any thing but aquatic plants and seeds *.

A distinct genus has been made of another,

Chauna ■j' , Blig.

Parra chavaria, L. ; Cha'ia of Paraguay, Azzar. ; Col. 219;
Yieill. Gal. 267, which has no horn on the vertex, and whose occi-
put is ornamented with a circle of erectile feathers. The head and
upper part of the neck are only covered with down, and it has a
black collar. The rest of its plumage is lead-coloured, and black-
ish with a white spot on the tip of the wing, and a second over
the base of some of the large quills. The external toes are con-
siderably palmated. It chiefly feeds on aquatic plants, and the
Indians of Carthagena always keep some of them among their
geese and chickens, as it is sufficiently courageous, according to
them, to repulse even the Yulture. A singular circumstance at-
tending this bird is, that air is every where interposed between
the skin and muscles, even on the legs, in such a quantity as
causes it to crackle under the finger.

Although there is scarcely any part of the leg naked in J

Megapodius,

We still think it should be placed near Palamedea. It is a genus lately
discovered in New Guinea, in which the bill is arched and slightly com-
pressed, the membranous nostrils occupying about the one half; the legs
are strong, high, and scutellated; the thumb and toes long, and termi-
nated by large nails somewhat flattened; the tail is short, the circumfe-
rence of the eye partly naked, and there is a small tubercle on the carpus,

* Bajon., Mem. sur Cayenne, II, 284.
f Vieillot lias changed this name into Opistolophus.

; There is scarcely any part of the leg naked in the Rallus Crex.

GR ALLATORIyE.

353

tlie first and slight vestige of the spur of the Palamedeas. The membrane
between the external toes is very short; between the internal ones it is
somewhat larger. The eggs are very disproportionate in size to that of
the bird.

One species is tufted almost like the Chavaria, — the Megap. Du~
perrey , Less, and Garn., Voy. de Duperr. Zool., pi. 37. Two others,
the M. de Freycinet and M. de Lapeyrouse , Q,uoy and Gaym. Voy.
de Freycin, pi. 28 and 27, and Col. 220, are destitute of the tuft*.
A fourth, which is smaller, the Alecteliede Durville, Voy. de Dup.,
pi. 38, appears to have no tail.

Of the tribe whose wings have no armature, Linnaeus comprises in his
genus Fulica such as have their bill prolonged into a sort of shield,
which partly covers the forehead; and, in his genus Rallus , those in
which this peculiarity does not exist.

Rallus, Lin .

The Rails, which, in other respects, have a strong, mutual resemblance,
present bills of very different proportions.

Among the species in which it is longest, the Rallus, Bechst., is
placed

Ral. aquations, L. ; Rale d'eau d' Europe, Enl. 749; Naum. 20,
f. 41. (The Water Rail). A fawn-coloured brown, spotted with
blackish above; bluish ash colour beneath; the flanks striped with
white and black ; it swims very well in ponds and rivulets, and runs
lightly over the leaves of aquatic plants ; it feeds on small shrimps,
and its flesh has a marshy odour f.

Other species have a shorter bill, Crex, Bechst., among which we
find

Ral. crex, L.; Le Rale de genets, Enl. 750; Frisch, 212, B;
Naum. 5, f. 5. Fawn-coloured brown, spotted with black above;
greyish beneath : flanks streaked with black ; red wings. It lives
and builds in the fields, running through the grass with great cele-
rity. Its name, Crex, expresses the sound of its note. It has been
called the Quail-King, because it arrives and departs with those
birds, and leads a solitary life on the same grounds, from which arose
the conjecture that it was their leader. It feeds on grain, as well as
on worms and insects.

Ral. porzana, L. ; La Marouette, Enl. 751 ; Frisch, 211 ; Naum.

* The Megap. Duperrey is called Tnvon in Manilla. Although hardly as large as
a partridge, it lays an egg equal in size to that of a goose. Add the Megap. a pieds
rouges , Col. 41 1.

f There is a variety or species at the Cape, Rallus ceerulescens, Cuv., the black and
white stripes of whose abdomen are merely a little more extended. Add, of the
Water Rails: Ral. virginianus, Edw. 729; Wils. LX 1 1, 1; — crepitans, Tb. 2; — longi-
rostris, Enl. 849; — variegatus, Enl. 7 7 A ; — philippensis, Enl. 774; — torquatus; — siria-
tus; — the Fulica cayenncnsis (which is a true Rail), Enl. 352, as well as the Gallinula
gigas, Spix,xcix ; — sarracura , Id. XCV III ; — mangle, Id. XCV 1 1 ; — ruficeps, Id. XCVI,
and cccria, Id. XCV. — The Ral.fuscus, Enl. 773, begins to have a shorter bill.

VOL. I. F F

354

BIRDS.

31, f. 42. (The Little Spotted Rail). A deep brown dotted with
white ; flanks marked with whitish stripes ; found in the vicinity of
ponds; it constructs a nest with reeds, that has the form of a
wherry, which it fastens to the stem of some one of those plants ; it
is a good swimmer and diver, and does not leave France till the
middle of winter*.

Fulica, Lin .

The Coots may be divided as follows, from the form of the bill and the
appliances of the feet.

Gallinula, Briss. and Lath .

Or the Water-hens, have the bill very similar to that of the Ground-
Rail, from which these birds are distinguished by the shield on the fore-
head, and by very long toes, furnished with a very narrow border.

Fulica chloropus, L. ; La Poule d’Eau commune , Enl. 877;
Frisch, 209; Naum. 29 and 38. (The Water-Hen). A deep
brown above; slate-grey beneath, with some white on the thighs,
along the middle of the lower part of the abdomen, and on the ex-
ternal edge of the wing. The young, Fulica fusca, Gm., Poulette
d'eau , Buff*., are more lightly coloured, and have a larger frontal
escutcheon f.

Porphyrio, Briss.

The bill higher in proportion to its length ; very long toes, without any
very sensible border ; the frontal shield large, rounded in some, and square
above in others. These birds stand on one foot, using the other to con-
vey their food to the bill. Their colours are usually fine shades of blue,
violet, and aqua-marina. Such is,

Fulica porphyrio , L. ; Poule Sultane Ordinaire; Edw. 87, a beau-
tiful African bird, now naturalized in several islands and coasts of
the Mediterranean J. Its beauty would render it an ornament to
our pleasure grounds.

* There are two other Rails in Europe with short hills, smaller than the porzana,
R. Baillioni, Vieill. Diet., and R. pusillus, Naum. 32, f. 43. Among these short-
hilled Rails maybe placed the Ral. cayennensis, Enl. 753 and 368; — minutus, Enl.
847 ;—jamaicensis, Edw. 278; — noveboracensis, Vieill. Gal. 266; — nigro- lateralis, Lich-
ten. ; — carolinus, Edw. 144; Wils. 48, 2; — Gallinula curizona, T. Col. 417; — G. rubigi-
nosa, Id. Col. 387.

The Ral. bengalensis, Gm., is a Rhynchcea.

| The Poule d'eau ardoisee de I’Inde, Vieill. Gal. 268, hardly differs from the com-
mon one; — the P. d’eau tachetee, or the Grinette, F. ncevia, Alb. II, 73, is only a young
Ral. crex. Add, P. d'eau des Indes, Ral. phcenicurus, Enl. 896 (a).

J The Ful. maculata, flavipes and fistulans, originally rest only on some had figures
of Gesner, from drawings which had been sent to him. But the Ful. martinica and
flavirostris are true Rhynchseas. The martinica is in Vieill. Gal. 267. Add the Ta-
leve d manteau verd ( Porph . smaragnotus, T.), Enl. 910; — the T. a, manteau noir ( Porph .

|gg|r (a) Add, Gal. martinica , Gm.; Wils. IX, pi. Ixxiii, f. 2. — Eng. Ed.

GRALLATORI^E,

355

Fulica, Briss.

’The true Coots, in addition to a short bill and a large frontal shield,
kave their toes much widened b.y a festooned border that renders them
excellent swimmers, in consequence of which their lives are passed in
ponds and marshes-. Their polished plumage is not less adapted to this
kind of life than their conformation, and these birds establish an evident
link between the order of the Grallatorise and that of the Palmipedes.
There is but one in Europe.

F. atra , F. aterrkna , and F. cethiops , Gm. ; La Foulque , Enl.
197, Frisch, 208; Naum. 30, f. 40. (The Coot). The shield of
a deep slate colour ; edge of the wings whitish ; in the nuptial season
the shield becomes red: found wherever there is a pond*.

We shall terminate this sketch of the Grallatoriae with three genera,
which it is difficult to associate with any other, and which may be consi-
dered as forming separately so many small families.

Chionis, Foster . — Vaginalis, Lath .

Or the Sheath-Bills. Their legs are short, almost like those of the Gal-
linaceae ; their tarsi scutellated, their bill stout and conical, having a hard
substance enveloping its base, which, it appears, the bird, has the power
of raising and depressing.

Only one species is known, and that is from New Holland, Vag*
Chionis , Lath. Ill, pi. -89, Chionis necrophaga, Vieill. Gal. 258. It
is the size of a Partridge, with entirely white plumage. It haunts
the sea-coast, where it feeds on the dead animals thrown up by the
waves.

Glareola.

The bill of the Pratincoles or Sea Partridges is short, conical, arcuated
throughout, has a large opening, and resembles that of the Gallinaceae.
Their excessively long and pointed wings remind us of the Swallows')', or
of the Palmipedes of the high seas ; their legs are of a moderate length,
their tarsi scutellated, and their external toes somewhat palmated; their
thumb touches the ground. Aquatic worms and insects constitute their
food. The European species,

Glar. austriaca, Enl. 882 ; Glar. pratincola , Leach, Lin. Trans.
XIII, pi. xii; Naum. 29, f. 59, is brown above, white beneath and
on the rump; a black circle round the throat; feet and base of the

melanolos , T.); — the T. meunier ( P . pulverulent us, T.), Col. 405; — the T. emeraudine
(P. smaragdinus, T.), Col. 421; the T. blanche {P. albus, L.), Philip., Voy. to Bot.
Bay, p.273; J. White, p.238.

* Add the Coot of Madagascar {Fid. cristata, Gm.), Enl. 797; Vieill. Gal. 269 (a),
f Linnaeus (Edit. XII) even plaoed the common species in the genus Hirund®,
under the name of Ilir. pratincola.

■gjigsr (a) Add also F. americana, Gm.; Wils. IX, pi. lxxiii, f. 1. — Eng. Eiv

356

BIRDS.

bill reddish. It appears to be found in all the north of the eastern
continent*.

Our last genus will be that of

Phcenicopterus, Lin .

The Flammant or Flamingos, one of the most extraordinary and the
most isolated of all birds. Its legs are excessively long; the three an-
terior toes are palmated to their ends, and that of the hind one is ex-
tremely short; the neck, quite as long and slender as the legs, and its
small head furnished with a bill whose lower mandible is an oval longitu-
dinally bent into a semi-cylindrical canal, while the upper one, oblong and
flat, is bent crosswise in its middle, so as to join the other exactly. The
membranous fossae of the nostrils occupy nearly all the side of the part
which is behind the transverse fold, and the nostrils themselves are lon-
gitudinal slits in the base of the fossae. The edges of the two mandibles
are furnished with small, and very delicate transverse laminae, which,
with the fleshy thickness of the tongue, creates some affinity between
them and the ducks. Were it not for the length of their tarsi, and the
nudity of their legs, we might even place them among the Palmipedes.
They feed on shell-fish, insects and the spawn of fishes, which they
capture by means of their long neck, turning the head on one side to give
more effect to the hook of the upper mandible. They construct in marshes
their nest of earth, heaped up, placing themselves astride of it to hatch
their eggs, a position to which they are forced to resort, by the length of
their legs. The common species,

Ph. ruber, Enl. 68 (The Red Flamingo), is from three to four
feet in height; ash coloured, with brown streaks, during the first
year ; in the second there is a rosy hue on the wings, and in the
third it acquires a permanent purple-red on the back, with rose-co-
loured wings. The quills of the wing are black; the bill yellow,
with a black tip, and the feet brown.

This species is found in all parts of the eastern continent below
forty degrees. Numerous flocks are seen on the southern coast of
France, and they sometimes ascend as far as the Rhine.

M. Temminck thinks that the American Flamingo, which is altogether
of a bright red, Wils. VIII, 66, and Catesb. 73, is a different species
from that of Europe (&).

* Glareola ncevia, Gm., is the young of the common species. See Leach, Lin*
Trans. XIII, pi. xii, f. 2. Add Glar. australis, Leach, loc. cit. pi. xiv, or Glar. Isa-
bella, Vieill. Gal. 263;-— -Glar. arientalis, Leach, XIII; — Glar. lactea, Tem. Col. 399.

(a) I*1- Murtrie, an American Naturalist, observes, that Temminck

has positively ascertained that the Flamingo of America is different from that of
Europe. The latter he calls Phan, antiquorum, but the American species Ph. ruber.
— Eng. Ed.

PALMIPEDES.

357

ORDER VL

THE PALMIPEDES.

The feet, endowed with an adaptation for swimming, that is to say,
situated posteriorly in relation to the body, sustained on a series of tarsi
which are short and compressed, and palmated between the toes — these
peculiarities characterize the order. With a plumage dense and glossy,
whilst it is ever moistened with an oily excretion, and furnished near the skin
with a thickly-set down, they are protected against the water, the element
on which they live. Further, they are the only birds in which the neck
exceeds — and in some cases this excess is considerable— -the length of the
feet, because in swimming on the surface they have often to search deeply
beneath it. Their sternum is unusually long, and it affords an ample se-
curity to the greater portion of their yiscera, as it has on either side
merely one emargination or oval foramen furnished with membranes.
Their gizzard is usually muscular, the ,casca long, and the inferior larynx
simple; in one family, however, the latter is so inflated as to form carti-
laginous capsules.

This order admits of a tolerably precise division into four families,
and we commence with

FAMILY I.

THE PLONGEURS, OR BRACHYPTERES.

The Divers, of which a portion bears some external resemblance with
those of the Gallinulae : their legs being placed more posteriorly than they
are in all other birds renders their walking a painful process, and re-
quires of them, when on land, to stand in a vertical position. Besides, as
most of them are very indifferent flyers, and as several are unable to fly
at all, in consequence of the extreme shortness of their wings, we are
forced to regard them as almost exclusively attached to the surface of the
water: and hence is it that their plumage is so dense, and that it pre-
sents a surface very smooth and with a silvery polish. They swim be-
neath the waters, with the assistance of the wings, which serve as so
many fins. Their gizzard is muscular, and the ccecum is moderate : they
have a distinct muscle on each side on the inferior larynx. Amongst these
birds the genus

358

BIRDS.

Colymbus*, Lin.

Or Divers, have for their peculiar character only a smooth, straight, com-
pressed and pointed hill, and linear nostrils ; but the differences in the
feet have caused them to be subdivided.

Podiceps, Lath. — Colymbus, Briss. and Illig.

Tile toes of the Grebes, instead of being regularly palmated, are
widened like those of the Coots, the anterior ones only being united at
the base by membranes. The middle nail is flattened, and the tarsus
strongly compressed. The semi-metallic lustre of their plumage has
caused it to be frequently employed as fur. Their tibia, as well as that
of the succeeding subgenera, is prolonged above into a point which gives
more efficient insertions to the extensors of the leg.

These birds live on lakes and ponds, and build among the rushes. In
certain circumstances, it appears that they carry their young ones under
their wings. Their size and plumage are so much changed by age, as to
have caused an improper multiplication of species. M. Meyer reduces
those of Europe to four.

Col. cristatus, Gm., Enl. 400 and 944; Frisch, 183; Naum. 69,
F. 106; Col. urinat&r, Gm., Enl. 941; Edw. 36, (The Crested
Grebe), is the size of a duck; blackish-brown above, silver-white
beneath ; a white band on the wing ; it acquires with age a double
black tuft, and the adults have in addition a broad red collarette on
the upper part of the neck, edged with black.

Col. cornutus , Enl. 404, 2 ; Col. obscurus, Enl. 942 ; and Col.
easpicus, Gm. Vieill. Gal. 281: Edw. 145, (The Horned Grebe),
resembles the preceding in form, but the collarette of the adult is
black ; its tufts and the front of its neck red. It is much smaller.

Col. sub cristatus ; and the young, parotis and rubricollis , Enl.
931; Lath. Supp. I, 118; Naum. 70, f. 107, (The Grey-cheeked
Grebe), also has the front of its neck red, but the tufts of the
adult are small and black, and its collarette very short and grey.
Intermediate, as to size, between the two last.

Col. minor , Gm., Enl. 905, (The Little Grebe), is as large as a
Quail, and has neither crest nor collarette ; its plumage is brown,
more or less shaded with red, the breast and belly excepted, where
it is a silver-grey. The throat of the young bird is white

Heliornis, Bonnaterre. — Poboa, Illig. — Grebifoulques, Buff.

Have feet lobulate as in the Coots and Grebes, but the tail more de-
veloped than in either of the two; the nails also are sharper

* Colymbus , the Greek name of these birds.

f Add the Gr. de la Caroline {Pod. carolinensis, Latli.), Catesb. 41, 91 ; Enl. 93; —
the Gr. aux belles joues {Pod. Jcalipareus, Less, and Garn.), Voy. de la Coq., Zool. No.
45; — the Gr. Holland {Pod. Rollandi), Quoy and Gaym., Voy. de Freycin., Zool.
f)I. xxx vi.

X Plotus surinamensis, Gmel., Enl. 893; — Heliornis senegalensis , Vieill. Gal. 280.

PALMIPEDES.

359

Mergus*, Briss. — Colymbus, Lath. — Eudytes, Illig.

The true Divers have the feet of ordinary Palmipedes, along with all
the forms of the Grebes, that is, the anterior toes are united to their ends
by membranes, and are terminated by pointed nails. They are northern
birds, which rarely breed in France, where they arrive in winter; at that
season they are occasionally seen on the coast.

Col. glacialis, L.; Enl. 952; Col. immer , Gm., Wils. Am. IX,
lxxiv, 3; Naum. 66, f. 103. (The Great Northern Diver). The
adult is two feet six inches in length, its head and neck black, chang-
ing to a green with a whitish collar ; back, a blackish-brown dotted
with whitish ; white beneath ; the lower mandible, which has a slight
curve upwards, is marked by a groove beneath. The young birds,
Col. immer , Gm., Briss. VI, x, 1, which more frequently visit the
fresh waters, differ considerably as to the extent of the black on the
neck, and of the grey or brown on the back, which, added to their
diminished size, has occasioned a multiplication of the number of
species. We distinguish

Col. arcticus , L, ; Edw. 146; Naum. Supp. 30, f. 60; and the
young, Enl. 914, Le Lumme (The Black-throated Diver), which is
somewhat smaller ; the back of the neck ash-coloured, and the lower
mandible straight, and without a groove. The young resemble those
of the preceding.

Col. septentrionalis, Enl. 308 ; Edw. 97 ; Naum. 67, f. 94; Vieill.
Gal. 282; Col. stellatus, Gm. ; Buff. VIII, xxi ; Enl. 992; Naum.
Supp. 31, f. 62. (The Red- throated Diver). The adult male is
brown above, white beneath ; face and sides of the neck ash-coloured ;
front of the neck red. The female and the young are brown, dotted
with white above, and all white beneath.

URiA-j~, Briss. et Illig.

The Guillemots have a bill which, though of the general form of the
preceding, is covered with feathers down to the nostrils ; there is also an
emargination at the point which is somewhat arcuated. Their chief cha-
racter, however, consists in the absence of the thumb. Their wings,
much shorter than those of the Divers, scarcely enable them to flutter.
They feed on fish, crabs, &c., and are found among rocky precipices
where they breed.

The large species, called the Great Guillemot , Colymbus troile , L.,
Enl. 903; Brit. Zool., pi. H; Edw. 359, 1; Frisch, 185, is the
size of a Duck, the head and neck brown, back and wings blackish,
and a white belly; there is a white line upon the wing formed by

M. Ch. Bonap., as well as Gmelin, thinks that this genus should be approximated to
that of Anhinga.

* Mergus (diver), the Latin name of some sea-bird difficult to determine. Lin-
nasus, following Gesner, has applied it to the Merganser. Eudytes , a Greek word
composed by llliger, has the same meaning.

f Uria, Ihe Greek, or rather Latin'name of an aquatic bird which appears to have
been either a Diver or a Grebe. Guillemot , the English name, would seem to indi-
cate its stupidity.

BIRDS.

sm

the tips of the secondary quills. It inhabits the extreme north, al-
though it breeds on the rocky coasts of England and Scotland. In
very hard winters it is seen on those of France.

There is a smaller species which is black, with the upper part of
the wing white, Col . grylle, L. ; Vieill. Gal. 294; Choris., Voy. aut.
du M., Isles Aleut, pi. xxii; sometimes mottled throughout with
white, C.marmoratus, Frisch, Suppl. B., pi. 185, Edw. 50 and Penn.,
Arct. Zool. II, xxii, 2. Individuals are sometimes seen all white,
C. lacteolus , Pall.*

We may also separate from the Guillemots the

CEPHUsf.

Vulgarly called Greenland Divers, which have a shorter bill with a more
arcuated back, but without any emargination. The symphysis of the
lower mandible is extremely short. Their wings are larger, and the mem-
branes of their feet well indented.

The species most known, called the Little Guillemot or Greenland
Dove, Colymbus minor, Gm. ; Enl. 917; Mergulus Alle, Vieill.
Gal. 295 ; Brit. Zool. pi. H, 4, f. 1 ; Edw. 91 ; Naum. Ed. I, 65,
f. 102, is the size of a large pigeon, black above, white beneath, with
a white line on the wing, as in the Guillemot. Its bill is black, and
feet red. Inhabits all the northern coasts, and builds under ground.
It is sometimes seen on the French coast in winter.

Alga, Lin .

The Auks are known by the very much compressed, vertically raised
bill, which has a trenchant back, and is usually grooved transversely ; and
by the feet which are completely palmated, and have no thumb like those
of the Guillemot. All these birds inhabit the northern seas. We may
divide the genus into two subgenera.

Fratercula, Briss. — Mormon, Illig.

Or the Puffins, whose bill, shorter than the head, is as high and higher
at its base than it is long, which gives it a very extraordinary form ; a
folded skin usually covers its base. The nostrils placed near the edge
are merely narrow slits. Their small wings can" just sustain them for a
moment; they live upon the ocean, like the Guillemots, and build their
nests on the rocks.

The most common species, Alca arctica, L., and labradoria, Gm.;
Mormon fratercula, Tern., Enl. 275 ; Brit. Zool., pi. H ; Edw. 358,

1 ; Frisch, 192; Naum. 65, f. 101, is the size of a pigeon, and has

* Add the G. h gros bee ( Uria Brunnichii , Sabine), Choris., Voy. aut. du M. pl.xxi:
— Uria lacrymans, Lapil., lb. XXIII — consult the article inserted there on this genus
by M. Valenciennes.

f Cephus, the name of some sea birds often mentioned by the Greek writers, which
appear to have been species of Petrel or Gull. Moehring, and subsequently Pallas,
applied the term to the Divers and Guillemots. Vieillot has changed it into
Mergulus , Gal. 295.

palmipedes.

36 i

a black calotte and mantle; white beneath. It sometimes builds its
nests among the cliffs on the English coast, and is very common on
those of France during the winter*.

M. Temminck distinguishes, under the name of Staryques (Phaleris),
those species which have a less elevated bill'f".

AlcaJ, Cuv.

The true Auks have a more elongated bill, resembling in form the blade
of a knife ; it is covered with feathers as far as the nostrils. Their wings
are decidedly too small to support them, and therefore they never attempt
to fly. They are sometimes seen in France and on its coasts during winter.

Alca torda and pica, Gm. ; Pingouin commun, Enl. 1004, the
adult, 1003, in summer plumage, Edw. 358, 2, Briss. YI, VIII, 2,
Brit. Zool. pi. H, 1. (The Common Auk). Black above, white
beneath ; a white line on the wing and one or two on the bill. The
throat of the male is black, and there is a white line reaching from the
eye to the bill. Its size is about the same as a duck’s.

Alca impennis, L. ; Le Grand Pingouin , Buff. IX, xxix; Enl.
367 ; Edw. 147. (The Great Auk). Nearly as large as a goose,
the colours very similar to those of the preceding species ; but the
bill is entirely black and marked with eight or ten grooves, and there
is a white oval spot between the bill and the eye : its wings are shorter
in proportion than those of any other species of this genus. It is said
to lay but one large egg, spotted with purple. a

Aptenodytes, Forst.

The Penguins are even less capable of flying than the Auks. Their
little wings are covered with mere vestiges "of feathers, which, at the first
glance, resemble scales; their feet, placed farther behind than those of
any other bird, only support them by bearing on the tarsus, which is wi-
dened like the sole of the foot of a quadruped, and in which are found three
bones soldered together at their extremities. They have a small thumb
directed inwards, and their three anterior toes are united by an entire mem-
brane. They are only found in the Antarctic Seas, never going on shore
except to build their nests. They can only reach their nests by drawing
themselves painfully along on their bellies. The difference in their bill
authorizes their division into three subgenera.

Aptenodytes, Cuv .

The Penguins, properly so called, have a long, slender, and pointed
bill ; the upper mandible a little arcuated near the end; covered with fea-

* Add, A. cirrhata , Pall. Spic. V, pi. 1 ; Vieill. Gal. 299.

f Alca cristatella , Vieill. Gal. 297, or Staryque crystatelle , T. Col. 200, and Pall.,
Spic. Zool. V, pi. 1, of which A. pygmaa is the young; — A. psittacula , Pall., Spic. V,
pi. 2, of which A. tctracula, lb., pi. 4, is the young.

X Alca, Aik, Auk, the name of these birds in the Fero Islands, and in the north
of Scotland. That of Penguin , first given to the Aptenodytes of the south by the
Dutch, indicates the oily nature of their fat. See Clusius, Kxot, 101. It was 13uf-
fon who transferred this name exclusively to the northern Auks.

BIRDS.

362

thers^ to one third of its length where the nostril is placed, from which a
groove extends to the point.

Apt. patagonica , Gm. ; Le Grand Manchot, Enl. 975. (The
Great Penguin). Is the size of a goose, slate-coloured above, white
beneath ; a black mask, surrounded with a lemon-coloured cravatte.
Found in large troops near the straits of Magellan, and as far as New
Guinea. The flesh, though black, is eatable.

Catarrhactes, Briss.

The Gorfus* have the bill stout, but little compressed, pointed, round-
ed on the back, and its point somewhat arcuated ; the groove which arises
from the nostril terminates obliquely on the inferior third of its edge.

Apt.chrysocoma, Gm. ; Le Gorfou sauteur, Enl. 984; Vieill. Gal.
298. (The Jumping Gorfu). As large as a stout duck, black
above, white beneath, and has a white or yellow tuft on each side of
its occiput. Found in the vicinity of the Falkland Islands and of
New Holland, It sometimes leaps out of the water while swimming,
and lays its eggs in a hole on the shore ')'.

SpheniscusJ, Briss .

A compressed and straight bill, irregularly furrowed at the base ; end of
the upper mandible hooked, that of the lower one truncated; the nostrils
exposed and placed in the middle.

Apt. demersa , Gm. ; Sphenisque du Cap , Enl. 382 and 1005.
Black above, white beneath ; the bill brown with a white band on the
middle ; the male has in addition a white eyebrow, black throat and
a black line on the breast, which continues along each flank. Found
near the Cape, where it breeds among the rocks § .

FAMILY II.

LONGIPENNES, or GREAT SAILS.

Comprises those birds of the high seas, which, by means of their great
power of flight, are spread in every part of the world, and are met in every

* ' Gorfu, a corruption of goir fugel, the name of the Great Auk in the Fero
Islands. See Clusius, Exot. 367. Catarrhactes is the Greek name of a very different
bird, which could fly well, and precipitated itself from a height on its prey. It was
most probably a species of Gull.

f Add, dpt. catarrhactes, Edw. 49; — A. papua, Sonner. Voy. I, pi. 115, and Vieill.
Gal. 299; — A. minor, Lath. Syn. Ill, pi. 103.

+ Spheniscus, a name given by Moehring to the Oidemia, and by Brisson to the
Penguins; from the Greek word Sphen (wedge).

§ Aptenod. torquat/a, Sonner. Voy. I, 114, appears to be the female of the Apt. de-
mersa.

PALMIPEDES. 363

region by sailors. They are recognized either by the complete absence of
the thumb, oFby having an exceedingly small one ; by their very long wings ;
by their bill, which, instead of being notched, is hooked at its extremity in
the first of the genera, and is but simply pointed in those comprising the
remaining genera. Their inferior larynx has but one peculiar muscle on
each side, their gizzard is muscular, and their caeca short.

Procellaria, Lin.

The Petrels have a bill hooked at the end, the extremity of which
seems to consist of a distinct piece articulated to the remainder. Their
nostrils are united and form a tube which lies on the back of the upper
mandible : there is a nail planted in the heel, instead of a thumb. Of all
the Palmipedes, these remain most constantly at a distance from land, and
when a tempest supervenes, they are forced to seek shelter on reefs and
ships, from which circumstance they derive their name of Storm Birds:
that of Petrel — Little Peter — has been given to them on account of their
habit of walking on the water, which they effect by the aid of their wings.
They make their nests in holes of rocks, and eject on those who attack
them an oily fluid, with which it would appear that their stomachs must
be always filled. The greater number of species inhabit the Antarctic
Seas.

Those species are more particularly called Petrels — Procellaria —
whose lower mandible is truncated.

Proc. gigantea, Gm. ; Petrel g^ant; Quebranta huessos, or Bri-
seur d'os; Lath. Syn. Ill, pi. 100 (the Giant Petrel), is only
found in the South _Seas. Tt surpasses the Goose in size. Its
plumage is blackish, though there are some varieties in which it is
more or less white.

In the same seas are found,

Proc. capensis ; Petrel du Cap ; Le Damier ; Pintado, &c. ;
Enl. 964, (the Cape Petrel), is the size of a small Duck, white
above, spotted black and white beneath. It is frequently spoken of
by navigators *.

We see, sometimes, on the coast of France,

Proc. glacialis ; Petrel gris-blanc, or Fulmar ; Petrel de Saint -
Kilda, Enl. 59; Brit. Zool. pi. M, f. 1. (The Fulmar). White*
with an ash-coloured mantle ; bill and feet yellow; size of a stout
duck. It breeds among the cliffs on the coasts of the British
islands, and of the whole north "j".

Certain small species, with a somewhat shorter bill, and rather
longer legs and black plumage, the Tiialassidroma, Vigors, are
particularly designated by sailors under the name of Storm Birds J.

The most common, Proc. pelagica, Briss. VI, xiii, 1 ; Wils. VII,

* Better known to mariners as the Cape Pigeon. — Eng. Ed.
f Add the Petrel hartie , Temm., Col. 416; — the Petrel berard , Freycinet, 37; —
Proc. cincrea, Lath.; — Proc. desolata, Id.; — Proc. turtur , Forst.

X The “ Mother Carey's Chickens" of the English and American seamen. — Eng. Ed.

BIRDS.

tm

lix, 6 ; Edw. 90, is scarcely larger than a Lark ; stands high ; all
brown except the rump, which is white, and a white line on the end
of the great wing- coverts. When it seeks shelter on a vessel, it
may be considered as the forerunner of a hurricane •.

We separate, with Brisson, under the name of

Puffinus,

Or Puffins, those in which the end of the lower mandible is curved down-
wards along with that of the upper one, and in which the nostrils, al-
though tubular, do not open by one common orifice, but by two distinct
holes. Their bill also is proportionally longer.

Proc. puffinus , Gm. ; Puffin cendre , Enl. 962. Cinereous above ;
whitish beneath ; wings and tail blackish ; the young is darker. Its
size is that of a Crow. Very common in almost every sea ■f.

There is a species, long confounded with the preceding one,
which is not larger than a Woodcock, and which breeds in immense
numbers on the northern coasts of Scotland and the neighbouring
islands, whose inhabitants salt them for their winter provision. It
is black above and white underneath, the Procellaria Anglorum ,
Tern. Edw. 359.

Navigators occasionally speak of some birds of the Antarctic seas by
the name of Petrels, which may constitute two separate genera. They
are the

Pelecanoides, Lackp. — Halodroma, Illig.,

Which have the bill and figure of the Petrels, with a dilatable throat like
that of the Cormorant, and are without the vestige of a thumb like the
Albatross. Such are the Procellaria urinatrix , Gm., and

Pachyptila, Elig.

Or the Prions, Lacep., which, similar in other respects to the Petrels,
have separate nostrils like a Puffin, the bill widened at the base, and its
edges furnished internally with very delicate, vertical and pointed laminae,
analogous to those of ducks. Such are the Blue Petrels, Proc. vittata
and ccerulea , Forst.

Diomedea{, Lin.

The Albatrosses are the most massive of all aquatic birds. Their large,

* The fig. Enl. 933, is a closely allied species of the South Seas {Proc. oceanica,
Forst.). — Add, Proc. Leachii, Tem. Act. de Phil. VI, pi. 9, f. 1; — Proc. Wilsonii, Ch.
Bonap.; Wils. VII, lxx, 6; Id. Act. de Phil. VI, pi. 9, f. 2; — Proc. fregatta, Lath.,
Rochef., Antill. p. 152; — Proc. marina , Vieill. Gal. 292.

f Add, Proc. obscura,V ieill. Gal. 301; and Proc. pacifica, or fuliginosa, White,
252, which perhaps does not differ from the Proc. cequinoclialis, Edw. 89.

J Diomedea, the ancient name of certain birds of the Island of Diomedes, near
Tarentum, which were said to receive the Greeks favourably, and to attack the barba-
rians. As to the word Albatross , I find that the early Portuguese navigators called
the Boobies and other oceanic birds Alcatros, or Alcatrass. Dampier applied this
name to the present genus, Grew changed it into Albitross, and Edwards into Alba-
tross.

PALMIPEDES.

365

strong, and trenchant bill is marked with sutures, and is terminated by a
stout hook, which seems to be articulated to it. The nostrils resemble
short rolls laid on the sides of the bill ; there is no thumb, not even the
small nail that is observed in the Petrels. They inhabit all the South
seas, and feed on the spawn of fish, mollusca, &c.

D. exulans, L., Enl. 237 ; Vieill. Gal. 293, is the species best
known to navigators, who, on account of its size, white plumage,
and black wings, and because it is particularly common beyond the
tropic of Capricorn, have called it The Cape Sheep. The English
also style it the Man of War Bird , &c. It is the great enemy of
the Flying-fish. It constructs a raised-up nest of earth, and lays a
number of eggs, which are considered good food. The cry of this
bird is said to be as powerful as that of the Ass *.

Various Albatrosses, more or less brown or blackish, have been
observed; but whether they form varieties of the exulans, or are
distinct species, has not yet been ascertained f.

LarusJ, Lin .

The Gulls have a compressed, elongated, pointed bill, the superior
mandible arcuated near the end, and the inferior forming a salient angle
beneath. The nostrils, placed near its middle, are long, narrow, and
bored quite through; their tail is full, their legs tolerably long, and their
thumb short. They are cowardly and voracious birds, which swarm along
the sea coasts, feeding on fish, the flesh of dead bodies, &c. They
build nests in the sand, or in clefts of rock, laying but few eggs. When
they fly into the interior of a country bad weather may be expected.
Several species are found on the coast of France, and, as their plumage
is greatly changed by age, the number has been still more increased.
When young, they are usually spotted with grey. Buffon calls

Goelands||,

The large species whose size exceeds that of a Duck. One of the
largest is

Lar. marinus and ncevius, Gm. ; Goeland a manteau noir , Enl.
990 and 266 (the Great Black-backed Gull), which, at first, spotted
with white and grey, afterwards becomes all wh4te, with a black
mantle ; the bill is yellow, with a red spot underneath ; feet reddish.

Lar. glaucus, Gm. ; Burgomestre; Naum. Ed. I, 36, is nearly

* Dr. M'Murtrie observes, that the cry of the Albatross has been quite as much
exaggerated as its size. He has repeatedly heard it when within a hundred yards of
the bird, and from various individuals, some of large size, and consequently adults;
and he describes it as a piping kind of clang, deeper than that of a Goose, but some-
thing like it. — Eng. Ed.

f Such is the Diom. spadicea. — Add, 7). bracliyura, Tem., Enl. 963; — D. melano-
phris, T. Col. 456; — 1). chlororhynchos , Lath. V, pi. xciv, Col. 468; — D. fuliginosa ,
Col. 469.

J Larus, tho Greek name of these birds, Gavia in Latin, whence Gabian in Pro-
vence; they are called Mauves, or Mouettes, in French, from their German name
Maivo.

|| Goeland, a corruption of Gull, Gull-ent.

366

BIRDS.

as large, and only differs from it in the mantle, which is a light ash*
colour. Its young also are spotted *. The

Mauves or Mouettes
Are the smallest species.

Lar. fuscus, L. ; Lar. flavipes, Meyer, Frisch, 218; Naum.
Ed. I, f. 51, B. (The Silver Gull). Is all white, the mantle ex*
cepted, which is black; the feet are yellow.

Lar. eburneus , Gm. ; Mouette blanche , Enl. 994. (The Ivory
Gull). All white, with black feet. From Spitzbergen and Green-
land: sometimes wanders into Europe.

Lar. cyanorhynchus , Meyer ; Mouette a pieds bleus , Enl. 977,
Briss. VI, xvi, 2. (The Common Gull). When old, of a beauti*
ful white, with a light ash-coloured mantle ; the primary quills of
the wing partly black, with white spots at the tips, the feet and bill
lead coloured. Feeds chiefly on shell-fish.

Lar. ridibundus, L. ; L. hybernus, and L. erythropus, Gm. ; La
Mouette a pieds rouges , Enl. 969 and 970; Briss. YI, xvii, 1. Is
very similar to the preceding, except that when young the tip of the
tail is black, and that there are some black and brown on the wing':
in spring the head of the adult becomes brown, and remains so dur*
ing the summer — Enl. 970; the feet and bill are more or less red*
It has been called, from its note, the Laughing Gullf.

Lar. tridactylus , and Lar. rissa, Gm. ; La M. a trois doigts -,
Briss. VI, xvi, 1, and xvii, 2, is also very similar to the preceding
species, but may be distinguished by its very short and imperfect
thumb. W7hen young it is more or less spotted with black or brown,
Enl. 387.

Distinguished from The Goelands and Mouettes are The Sterco-
raires, Briss. — Lestris J, Illig. — Labbes, Buff.

They have the membranous nostrils larger than those of the latter,
open nearer to the point and edge of the bill; their tail is pointed. They
pursue the small Gulls with singular ferocity to rob them of their food,
and, as it is said, to devour their excrement. Hence their name.

Lar. parasiticus , Gm. ; Labbe a longue queue, Enl. 762; Edw.
148. (The Arctic Gull). A deep brown above, white beneath:

* M. Temminck distinguishes the Lar. argentatus , Lath. Enl. 253. — Add, the
Goeland leucomele, Vieill. 61, and the Go'el. a tete noire du Bengale (a).

t Add, Lar. atricilla, Pal]. Nov. Com. Petr. XV, xxii, 2; Catesb. I, 89; Wils. IX,
Ixxiv, 4, by the name of ridibundus; — Lar. leucopterus ; — L. cirrhocephalus, Vieill.
Gal. 289, or poliocephalus, Licht. ; — L. leucopthalmus, Licht. Col. 366; — L. Sabini ,
Leach.; — L. minutus, Falk. Voy. Ill, xxiv; — L. melanurus, T. Col. 459, and Tiles,
Voy. de Krusenst. pi. lvii.

J Lestris , thief, the name of these birds among the Swedish fishermen. Vieillot
has changed these names to Stercoreus.

Igggr (a) Add, It. capistratus, Temm. ; — L. canus, L., Enl. 977; — L. argentatus ,
Brunn., Enl. 253; — L. argentatoides, Brelim. — Eng. Ed.

PALMIPEDES.

367

the two middle quills of the tail are double the length of the others.
It is very rare in France. When young it is all brown, and is then
the Lar. crepidatus, Gm. ; Enl. 991, or better, Edw. 149*.

The arctic regions produce a species of the size of a Goeland,
which is brown, with the base of the wing-quills white, Lar. cata -
ractes, Gm., Brit. Zool. pi. L, 6; and another the size of a Mouette,
brown above, white underneath, with a brown collar on the breast,
the Lestris pomarinus, Tem.f

Sterna J, Lin.

The Terns, or Sea-Swallows, derive this latter appellation from their
excessively long and pointed wings and from their forked tail, which ren-
der their flight and carriage analogous to those of Swallows. Their bill
is pointed, compressed, and straight, without curve or projection; the
nostrils, towards the base, are oblong and pierced quite through; the
membranes which unite their toes are deeply emarginate, consequently
they swim but seldom. They fly over the waves in every direction and
with great rapidity, uttering loud cries, and skilfully raising from the sur-
face of the water the mollusca and small fish on which they feed. They
also penetrate to the lakes and rivers of the interior. The most common
species that is found on the fresh waters of France in the spring is,

St. hirundo, L, ; Pierre- Garin, or Hirondelle de mer a bee rouge ,
&c., Enl. 987; Frisch, 219; Naum. 37, f. 52; Wils. VII, lx, 1.
(The Common Tern). In the adult state white, with a light ash-
coloured mantle, black calotte, red feet, and red bill with a black
point. It is about one foot long, and two feet from the tip of one
wing to that of the other.

St. minuta, L. ; Petit Hir. de mer, Enl. 996; Wils. V, lx, 2;
Naum. 38, f. 55. (The Small Tern). Only differs from the pre-
ceding by being a third smaller, and having a white forehead.

St. eantiaca, Albin. II, lxxxviii; Hir. de mer a bee noir, is larger
than S. hirundo ; the bill is black, with a yellow point: the St. striata,
Gm., Lath. VI, pi. 98, is its young.

St. caspia, Pall. Sparm., Mus. Carls., lxii; Meyer, Ois. d’Al-
lem., II, vi; Sav., Egypt., Ois. pi. ix, F. 1. (The Caspian Tern).
The largest of the European species; white, with an ash-coloured
mantle; occiput, black and white mixed; red bill and black feet.

St. nigra, jissipes and ncevia ; Hir . de mer noire, Enl. 338 and
924; Frisch, 220. (The Black Tern). The tail less forked;
when young, its mantle is spotted with black ; the adult is almost
entirely of a blackish ash-colour.

Among the species foreign to Europe, we should notice the Hir.

* The L. crepidatus, Brehm. is identical with the L. Buffonii , Boie, Enl. 7G2. —
Eng. Ed.

t I cannot affirm the identity of the Lestris eatarractcs, Freycin. 38, and of the
Slercoreus pomarinus, Vieill. Gal. 288, with the above species.

+ Stern, or Tern, is their English name, latinized as above by Turner, and ad-
mitted by Gcsner.

368

BIRDS.

de mer a aigrettes , St. inca, Less, and Garn., from the coast of
Peru, Voy. de la Coq., Zoo!, pi. 47, which is black; red bill and
feet; a band on the cheek, and the feathers of the ear pendent and
white *.

We may also distinguish from the other Terns,

The Noddies,

Whose tail is not forked, and is nearly as long as the wings. There is a
slight projection under their bill, the first indication of that in the Mauves.
But one species is known,

St. stolida, L. ; Noddi noir, Enl. 997, (The Noddy), which is
a blackish brown, top of the head whitish. Celebrated amongst
navigators for the blundering manner in which it throws itself on
vessels f.

Rhynchops, Lin .

The Skimmers, or Scissor Bills, resemble the Terns in their small feet,
long wings and forked tail, but are not distinguished from all birds by
their extraordinary bill, the upper mandible of which is shorter than the
other, both being flattened so as to form simple blades, which meet with-
out clasping. Their only mode of feeding is by skimming their aliment
from the surface of the water with the lower mandible, which they effect
while on the wing. One species,

Rhym. nigra , L., Enl. 357, (The Black Skimmer), is white,
with a black mantle and calotte ; a white band on the wing ; outside
of the external quills of the tail white; bill and feet red; hardly as
large as a pigeon. It inhabits the seas near the Antilles J.

— -

FAMILY III.

THE TOPIPALMATiE.

This family is characterized by a remarkable peculiarity, that of
having their thumb united with the other toes by means of a single mem-
brane, and yet, despite this organization, which renders their feet most
perfect oars — the only birds amongst the Palmipedes possessing the pecu-

* Add of Europ. Spec.: St. Dougalii, Montag.; Vieill., Gal. 290; — St. anglica, Id.,
or aranea, Wils. VIII, lxxii, 6; — St. arctica, Tem. ; — St. leucopareia, Natter.; — St.
leucoptera, Tem., Schinz. Ois. de Suisse, frontisp.

Of spec, foreign to Europe: St. cayana, Enl. 998; — St. melanauchen, Tem. Col. 427 ;
— St. melanogastcr, Id. Col. 434; — St. fuliginosa, Wils.

f The St. phillippensis, (Sonner. Voy. I, pi. lxxxv), does not appear to differ from
the stolida; — the St. fuscata, Lath., Briss., VI, pi. xxi, 1, also seems to belong to this
subgenus, as well as the St. tenuirostris, T. Col. 202.

■ . % Add Rhyn. flavvrostris, Vieill. Gal. 291; — Rh. cinerascens, Spix, Cl I; — R. brevi -
rostris, Id. CIII.

PALMIPEDES.

369

liarity — they are able to perch on trees. They all tly well and have short
feet. Linnaeus separated them into three genera, the first of which it
was necessary to subdivide.

Pelecanus, Lin.

The Pelicans comprise all those in which the base of the bill is found
to have some part destitute of feathers. Their nostrils are fissures,' the
apertures of which are scarcely perceptible. The skin of their throat is
more or less extensible, and their tongue very small. Their thin gizzard,
with their other stomachs, forms a large sac. Their casca are moderate
or small.

Pelecanus*, Illig. — Onocrotalus, Briss.

The bill of the true Pelicans is very remarkable for its extreme
length, its straight, very broad and horizontally flattened form, for the
hook which terminates it, and for the lower mandible whose flexible
branches sustain a naked membrane, susceptible of being dilated into a
large sac. Two grooves extend along its length, in which the nostrils
are concealed. The circumference of the eye is naked, and the tail
round.

P. onocrotalus, L. ; Enl, 87; Edw. 92; Frisch, 186. (The
Common Pelican). As large as a Swan, entirely white ; slightly
tinged with flesh colour; the hook of the bill of a cherry-red; is
more or less disseminated throughout the eastern continent, builds
in marshes, and feeds exclusively on living fish. It is said to
transport both food and water in its sac. The different changes this
bird undergoes from age are not sufficiently ascertained to render
certain the species of its genus that are enumerated ”j\

Phalacrocorax, Briss. — Carbo, Meyer.— Halieus, Illig.

The Cormorants J have an elongated and compressed bill, the end of
the upper mandible hooked, and that of the lower one truncated; the
tongue is very small, and the skin of the throat less dilatable ; the nos-
trils resemble a small unpierced line, and the nail of the middle toe is
notched like a saw.

The True Cormorants have a round tail composed of fourteen quills.

* Pelecanus and Onocrotalus are two Greek names of this bird latinized,
f I see no difference between the Common Pelican and the Pelec. roseas, Sonner.
Prem. Voy. pi. liv. As to the Pelec. manillensis, Id. LIII, Sonnerat himself says he
thinks it is the young of the roseus. Neither can I find any difference between the
fuscus, Edw. 9.‘J, and that of the PI. Enl. 965, called roseus , but which is much more
like the manillensis. Temminck thinks this figure represents the young of the com-
mon species. The philippensis, Briss., VI, pi. lvi, is the same specimen from which
the PI. Enl. 965 was taken, so that both are the young of the onocrotalus. That of
pi. 957, also called fuscus, appears to be really a species identical with that of Vieill.
Gall. 276. — Add the Pel. d lunettes , (P. perspicillatus, T.) Col. 276.

X Cormorant, from Cormorav, a corruption of Corbeau marin, on account of its
black colour. It is in fact the Aquatic Crow of Aristotle, Phalacrocorax ( Bald Crow )
is the Greek name of this bird, indicated by Pliny, but is not employed by Aristotle.
That of Carbo is only used by Albert, who perhaps derived it from the German name
Scharb. To all these names Vicillot. has added that of Ifydrocorax , Gal. 275.

VOL. T. G G

370

BIRDS.

Pel. carbo, L. ; Enl. 927; the young, Frisch, 187 and 188; and
Brit. Zool., pi. L, 1. (The ^Cormorant). Black-brown, undu-
lated with jet black on the back, and mixed with white near the end
of the bill and front of the neck; circumference of the throat and the
cheeks white in the male, which also has a tuft on the occiput. Its
size is that of the goose. It breeds in holes among the rocks or upon
trees, and lays three or four eggs.

Pel. graculus, Gm.; Enl. 974, the young. (The Little Cormo-
rant). Is somewhat smaller, of a deeper black and more bronzed;
no white on the front of the neck; the feathers on the back more
pointed; not so common as the preceding species*.

Tachypetes, Vieill.

The Frigate Birds differ from the Cormorants in their forked tail and
short feet, the membranes of which are deeply emarginated; in an exces-
sive length of wing, and in a bill both of whose mandibles are curved at
the point. So powerful are their wings, that they fly to an immense dis-
tance from all land, principally between the tropics, darting upon the Fly-
ing Fish and striking the Boobies to make them disgorge their prey.

One species only is well known, the Pelecanus aquilus , L. ; Enl.
961 ; Vieill. Gal., pi. 274, whose plumage is black, the under part
of the throat and neck more or less varied with white, and the bill
red. Its wings, when expanded, are said to measure from ten to
twelve feetf.

Sula, Briss. — Dysporus, Illig.

The Boobies J have a straight, slightly compressed, pointed bill, the
point slightly arcuated; its edges are serrated, the teeth inclining back-
wards ; the nostrils are prolonged by a line which extends to near the
point. The throat is naked as well as the circumference of the eye, the
former not being susceptible of much dilatation; the nail of the middle
toe is serrated, the wings much smaller than those of the Frigates, and
the tail somewhat wedge-shaped. They are called Boobies on account of
the excessive stupidity with which they permit themselves to be attacked
by men and birds, the Frigate Birds particularly, which, as already stated,
force them to yield up the fish which they have captured. The most
common is,

Pelecanus bassanus, L. ; Enl.. 278; Vieill.; Brit. Zool. pi. L;
Naum. Sup. 56, f, 106. Le Fou de Bassan. (The Common Booby).
White ; the primary quills of the wings and the feet black ; the bill
greenish; nearly as large as the goose. It is called the Bassan

* Add the Cormoran longup ., Tem. (Pel. cristatus, Olafs.), Voy. en Isl., tr. fr. pi.
xliv, Col. 322, and Vieill. Gal. 276; — Pel. africanus, Lath. Sparm. Mus. Carls. 1,
10; — Pelec. pygmceus, Pall. Voy. App., pi. 1.

f Naturalists have, somewhat gratuitously, raised to the rank of species the Pelec.
minor , Edw. 309, and leucocephalus, Buff. Ois. VIII, pi. xxx, and perhaps even the
P. Palmerstoni, Lath.

J Sula is the name of the common species at the Fero Islands, Hoyer, Clusius,
Exot. 36. Booby, their English name, from their stupidity, ut sup.

PALMIPEDES.

371

Booby , from a small island in the gulf of Edinburgh, where it is very
abundant, although it lays but a single egg. It is frequently seen
on the coast of France during the winter. The young is brown,
spotted with white, Enl. 986. The remaining species of the Boobies
are not yet sufficiently ascertained* * * §.

Plotus, Lin .

The Darters have a body and feet very similar to those of a Cormorant,
carry a long neck and small head, with a straight, slender, pointed bill,
whose edges are denticulated; the eyes and nudity of the face are also the
same as in the Pelicans, with whose habits theirs are similar, perching
like them on trees.

Several species or varieties are known from the hot climates of
both continents. They are not larger than the duck, but they have
a longer neckj.

Phaeton, Lin.

The Straw-tailed or Tropical Birds are known by two very long and nar-
row feathers that flow from their tail, which at a distance resemble so
many straws. There is no naked part about the head. Their bill is
straight, pointed, denticulated, and tolerably strong; their feet short and
their wings long: their powers of flight on the high seas are consequently
great, and, as they rarely quit the torrid zone, their presence announces
to the mariner his vicinity to the tropics. On land, where they seldom
resort except to build their nests, they perch on trees.

A few species or varieties only are known, whose white plumage
is more or less varied with blackish, and which are not larger than
[. pigeons §.

FAMILY IV.

LAMELLIROSTRES.

The birds of this family have a thick bill, invested with a soft skin
rather than with true horn ; its edges are furnished with laminae or little
teeth ; the tongue is broad and fleshy, the edges notched. Their wings
are of a moderate length. They pass more of their time on fresh water
than at sea. The trachea of the male, in the greater number, is inflated

* Add the Fou bran ( Pclc.c sula , L.), Enl. 973, Catesb. I, 87; Vieill. Gal. 277.

f Plotus, or plaulus, signifies, in Latin, flat-foot. Klein has employed it for one
of his families of the Palmipedes. Linnaeus applied it to the Darters.

I Plot, melanogasler , Enl. 959 and 9(50; Vieill. Gal. 278; Wils. IX, lxxiv, 1, 2; —
Enl. 107; — Lath. Syn. VI, pi. 96; — Anhinga Levaillant, T. Col. 380.

§ Pluect. ditherius, Enl. 369 and 998; — Ph. fkanicurtu, Enl. 979, Vieill. Gal.
pi. 279.

312

BIRDS,

near its bifurcation into capsules of various forms. The gizzard is large,
and very muscular, the caeca long. The great genus,

Anas, Lin.

Comprises those Palmipedes, the edges of whose large and broad bill are
furnished with a range of thin salient laminae, placed transversely, which
appear destined to allow the water to pass off when the bird has seized its
prey. They are divided into three subgenera, whose limits, however, are
not very precise.

Cygnus, Meyer.

The Swans have the bill of an equal breadth throughout, higher at its
base than it is wide ; the nostrils about the middle of its length ; the neck
is very long. They are the largest birds of the genus, and feed chiefly
on the seeds and roots of aquatic plants. Their intestines and caeca in
particular are consequently very long. There is no inflation of the trachea.
Two species are found in Europe.

Anas olor , Gm. ; Cigne a bee rouge , Enl. 913, (The Red-billed
or Domestic Swan). Bill red, edged with black, surmounted at the
base by a rounded protuberance; the plumage snow-white. When
young the bill is lead-coloured and the plumage grey. This is the
species, when domesticated, that forms the ornament of our ponds
and grounds. The gentleness of its motions, the elegance of its
form, the brilliant whiteness of its plumage, contribute to make it
the emblem of beauty and innocence. It lives indifferently on fish
and vegetables, flies at a great elevation, and with considerable ra-
pidity, and swims swiftly, availing itself of the wind by means of its
wings, which further serve it as a powerful weapon to strike the enemy
by whom it is attacked.

All. cygnus, Gm. ; Edw. 150; Brit. Zool. pi. 1; Naum., Ed, I,
t. 13, f. 27. Cigne a bee noir. (The Black-billed Swan). Bill
black, with a yellow base ; the body white tinged with a yellowish-
grey — when young, all grey. This species, which is very similar
externally to the preceding one, differs essentially from it internally,
in the trachea, which is bent over and penetrates to a considerable
extent in a cavity of the keel of the sternum, a peculiarity common to
both sexes, which does not exist in the domestic Swan. The latter
is also erroneously called the Wild Swan, and the Singing Swan.
The story of its singing on the approach of death is a fable.

An. plutonia, Sh.; A. atrata, Lath.; Cigne noir; Nat. Misc. pi.
108 ; Vieill. Gal. 286 (The Black Swan), has been lately discovered
in New Holland; it is the size of the common species, but its car-
riage is less graceful and elegant ; it is all black, the primary quills
excepted, which are white, and the bill with the naked skin on its
base, which is red*.

It is impossible to separate from the swans, certain species, much less

* The Oie a cravatte {An. canadensis, L.), Enl. 346, Wils. LXVII, 4, appears to me
to be a true swan.

PALMIPEDES.

elegant, it is true, but which have the same kind of bill. Several have a
tubercle at its base. The most common,

An. cygnoides, L. ; Oi de Guinee , Enl. 357, is bred in poultry-
yards, where it mixes with the geese. It is a whitish-grey with a
brown-grey mantle ; the male is recognised by a feathered appendage
which hangs under his bill, and by a large tubercle which surmounts
its base. Another species, much rarer, called by its first describers
An. gambensis , L. ; Oi de Gamble , Lath. Syn. Ill, p. 2, pi. 102,
is remarkable for its size, long legs, tubercle on the forehead, and
for two large spurs with which its wing is armed. Its plumage is a
purple black, the throat, and under part of the body and wings,
white*.

Anser, Briss.

Geese have a moderate or short bill, narrower before than behind, and
higher than wide at the base ; their legs, being longer than those of the
ducks, and placed nearer the centre of the body, increase their facility in
walking. Several of them feed on seeds and plants. There is no in-
flation at the root of the trachea, nor is there any curve in that organ in
any of the species known.

Geese, properly so called ,

Have a bill as long as their head; the ends of the lamellae extend to its
edges, appearing like pointed teeth.

An. anser, L. (the Common Goose), which has acquired all sorts
of colours in our poultry-yards, originates from a wild species that is
grey, with a brown mantle undulated with grey and an orange-
coloured bill, the Ans. cinereus, Meyer; Albin. 90; Naum. Ed. I,
pi. 41, f. 60. There is another species, however, which arrives
late in the fall, and which may be known by its wings being longer
than the tail, and by some white spots on the forehead; its bill is
orange, with black base and point. Ans. segetum, Meyer, Enl.
985; Frisch, 155; Naum. I, c. 42, f. 61. We have often seen,
in winter,

Anus albifrons, Gm. ; L'Oie rieuse ; Edw. 153; Naum. Ed. I,
43, f. 62. (The White-fronted Goose). It is grey, with a black
belly and white forehead.

The north of both continents produces a fourth species.

An. hyperborea, Gm. ; Wils. VIII, xlviii, 5 ; and the young
Ixix, 5, Naum. Ed. 1, Sup. pi. 23, f. 46. (The Snow-Goose).
White; feet and bill red; tips of the wing-quills black. It some-
times wanders into the temperate parts of Europe during the preva-
lence of heavy gales in winter. The young bird is more or less
grey. It is the An. ccerulescens , Gm., Edw. 152. The

* Huff, lias confounded this goose with a variety of the Oie d’ Egypt e , Enl. 982.
The figure of Latham is defective, inasmuch as it shews but one spur; the helmet
also is not salient.

This is also the place lor (he 0,ic bronze a crete stir le bee , Ipccati apoa, of Marcgr.
{Am. melanotos), Enl. 937, Vieill. 285.

374

BIRDS.

Barnacles *

Are distinguished from the Common Geese by a shorter and slenderer
bill, the edges of which conceal the extremities of the laminae.

France is sometimes visited during the winter by that species
from the north of Europe, which is so celebrated by the fabulous
story of its growing on trees like fruit — Anas erythropus , Gm., or
better, An. leucopsis, Bechst., Enl. 885; Frisch, 189; Naum. 1,
c. 39, f. 77. Its mantle is ash-coloured, its neck black; cheeks,
throat, belly, and forehead white ; the bill black, and the feet grey.

An. bernicla, Gm. ; Le Cravant\, 342; and better, Frisch, 156;
Naum. I, c. 39, f. 78; Wils. VIII, lxxii, 1 (the Brant), is from
the same country. The head, neck, and quills of the wings are
black; the mantle a brown grey; a spot on each side of the upper
part of the neck, and the under part of the tail, white ; the bill
black, and feet brown.

An. cegyptiaca , Gm. ; Le Bernache armee; Oie d' Afrique, du
Cap, d'Egypte, &c., &c., Enl. 379, 982, 983 (the Egyptian Goose),
remarkable for the lustre of its colours and the small spur attached
to its wing, also belongs to this subgenus ; it is sometimes domesti-
cated, but always retains a propensity to return to its wild state. It
is the Chenalopex or Fox Goose , held in veneration among the an-
cient Egyptians, on account of its attachment to its young j. The

Cereopsis, Lath.

Is a New Holland bird, very similar to the Barnacles, with a still smaller
bill, the membrane of which is much broader, and extends a little upon
the forehead.

Cer. cinereus , Lath., Col. 206; Vieill. Gal. 284, is the only one
known. It is the size of a Goose, and of a grey colour.

Anas, Meyer.

The Ducks, properly so called, have the bill broader at its base than it
is high, and wider at the end than towards the head, and the nostrils
nearer to its back and base. Their legs being shorter than those of
Geese, and placed farther back, renders walking more difficult to them
than to the latter. Their neck also is shorter ; the trachea is inflated at
its bifurcation into cartilaginous capsules, the left of which is usually the
largest.

The species of the first division, or those whose thumb is bordered
with a membrane, have a larger head, a shorter neck, the feet placed

* Barnacle is the Scotch name of Anser leucopsis , or the true Barnacle; Klake in
this language signifies a goose.

f Cravant, a corruption of grau-enl, grey Duck.

X Geoff. St. Hilaire, Menag. du Mus. d'Hist. Nat. art. Oie d’Egypte.

Add, the An. magellanicq, jtril. 1006; — An. antarctica, which is closely allied to it,
Mus. Carls. 37, and Voy. de la Coq. Zool. 50; — An. leucoptera, Brown., 111. 40; —
A. ruficollis and torquata, Pall. Spicil. VI, pi. iv, which is said to penetrate as far as
Germany; — An. coromandelica , Enl. 949, 950; — An. madagascariensis, Enl. 770.

PALMIPEDES.

375

farther back, smaller wings, a stiffer tail, more compressed tarsi, longer
toes, and the membrane of the feet more entire. They walk with more
difficulty, feed more exclusively on fish and insects, and dive more fre-
quently*. Among them we may distinguish the

Oidemia, or the Macreuses or Sea-Ducks (a), Fleming ,

By the breadth and inflation of the bill.

Anas nigra , L. ; La Macreuse commune , Enl. 972; Naum.
Supp. 14, f. 28 and 29; Brit. Zool. pi. Q,; Wils. VIII, lxxii, 2,
(the Scoter), is all black, greyish when young; the hill very broad,
with a protuberance on its base. It is found in large flocks on the
coast of France, where it feeds chiefly on muscles. The An. cine-
raceus , Naum. I, c. 60, f. 91, 92, is the young female.

An fusca, L.; La double Macreuse, Enl. 956; Frisch, 165;
Naum. 1, c. Supp. f. 15 and 16; Wils. LXXII, 3 (the Velvet
Duck), differs in its superior size, a white spot on the wing, and a
white streak under the eye. There is a circular vertically flattened
inflation in the middle of its trachea.

An. perspicillata, L. ; Enl. 995; Edw. 155; Wils. VIII, lxvii,
1. (The Black Duck). Some white on the occiput and behind the
neck; the naked and yellow skin of the base of the bill also sur-
rounds the eyes.

New Holland produces a speckled species, remarkable for a large
fleshy appendage that hangs under its bill, An. lobata, Nat. Misc.,
VIII, pi. 255, and Col. 406 ’f.

We may also separate

Clangula, Leach.

In which the hill is short and narrower towards the end; and place first
on the list those species the middle quills of whose tail are the longest,
which renders it pointed. Such are

An. glacialis , L., Enl. 1008; Edw. 280; Naum. 52, f. 76;
Wils. VIII, Ixx, 1, 2; the young male, Enl. 999; Naum. 52, f.
76, B; the adult in wedding livery, Edw. 156. (The Sarcelle
Duck). White ; a fawn-coloured spot on the cheek and side of the
neck ; breast, back, tail, and part of the wing, black. Of all the
European Ducks, this has the shortest bill. Its trachea, ossified
near the root, has on one side five square membranous spaces re-
sembling so many panes of glass, above which it is inflated into an
osseous capsule.

An. histrionic a, L, ; Enl. 798; Wils. VIII, lxxii, 4; Edw. 99;

* This division constitutes the genus Platypus, Brehm. ; or IIydrobates, Tcm.;
or Filigula, Ch. Bonap.

f Add, the Anas mersa and leucoccphala, Voy. de Pall. fr. tr.. pi. v and vi; Naum.
Sup. 40, f. 79, 80; — the An. brachyptera , Lath., Voy. de Freycin. pi. xxxix.

(a) This genus is denominated by Cuvier Les Macreuses, a title which arises,
he states, from the notion of the birds belonging to it being small eaters. — Eng. Ed.

37 6

BIRDS*

Naum. I, c. 52, f. 77; and the female, An. minuta, 799; Edw.
197. (The Harlequin Duck). Ash-coloured; the male fantasti-
cally streaked with white ; eyebrows and flanks red. Each of the
preceding species is occasionally seen in France, but at very long
intervals.

Then come the Garrots, the common species with a round or square tail.

An. clangula, L. ; Le Garrot proprement dit, Enl. 802; the
young, An. glaucion , L.*, Frisch, 181, 182; Naum. I, c. 55, f. 81,
82; Wils. VIII, lxvii, 6. (The Golden-Eye). White; head,
back, and tail, black ; a small spot before the eye, and two bands on the
wing, white; the bill blackish. The female is ash-coloured, with a
brown head. The middle of the trachea is considerably dilated, the
two arches of the sac, however, preserving their flexibility. It be-
comes singularly widened near the bifurcation "j~.

Somateria, Leach .

The Eider Ducks have a longer bill than that of the preceding sub-
genus, and ascending more on the forehead, where it is emarginated by
an angle of feathers, but still narrower before than at its base.

An. mollissima ; E Eider, Enl. 208, 209, the adults of both
sexes, Mus. Carls. 39; the three years’ old young male. Add, Edw.
98; Wils. VIII, xci, 2, 3; Naum. 64, f. 79, 80. (The Eider
Duck). Whitish ; calotte, beily, and tail, black ; the female grey,
speckled with brown. Celebrated for furnishing us with that va-
luable article called eider down J.

After all these distinctions, there remains the

Fuligula, Leach.

The Millouins, whose bill is broad and flat, but presents no other pecu-
liarity. Several species are found in France, in which all the trachea
terminates in nearly similar inflations, forming on the left a partially mem-
branous capsule, supported by a frame and ramifications of bone.

An. ferina, L., and A. rufa, Gm. ; Millouin commun, Enl. 803;
Naum. I, c. 58, f. 87, 88; Wils. VIII, xc. 6. (The Red-head).
Ash-coloured, finely striated with black; head and top of the neck
red ; lower part of the neck and the breast brown ; the bill a light
lead-colour. Sometimes breeds among the reeds in the ponds of
France. Its trachea is of an equal diameter.

An. rufina , L. ; Mill, huppe , Enl. 928; Naum. I, c. 32, f. 63,
64. (The Pochard Duck). Black; the back brown; some white
on the wing and flank ; the head red, the feathers on its summit
turned up into a tuft; red bill. From the borders of the Caspian
Sea, and occasionally driven by the winds as far as France. There

* Glaucion, the Greek name of a Duck, so called on account of the colour of its

eyes.

f Add, An. albeola, Enl. 948, the same as An. bucephala, Catesb. I, 95; — An. bra-
cliyptera, Voy. de Freycin. pi. xxxix.

X Add, An. spectabilis, Sparin. Mus. Carls. II, pi. xxxvi; Edw. 154; Naum. 40,
f. 58, 59.

PALMIPEDES.

are two successive inflations of its trachea, besides the capsule of
the bifurcation.

An. marila , L. ; Le Millouinan, Enl. 1002; Brit. Zool. Q,; Wils.
VIII, lxix, 3; Naum. 59, f. 90; the female, An. frcenata , Mus.
Carls. 38; Naum. 59, f. 90, B. (The Scaup Duck). Ash-coloured,
striated with black ; head and neck black, changing to green ; black
rump and tail ; the belly and spots on the wing white ; the bill lead-
coloured; arrive in small flocks in France during the winter from
the remote parts of Siberia. Its trachea is very wide at the com-
mencement, and then narrow.

An. nyroca, Gm. ; A. leucopthalmos, Bechst. ; the female, A.
africana , Gm. ; Le Petit Millouin, Enl. 1000 ; Naum. I, c. 39, f. 89.
Brown ; head and neck red ; a white spot on the wing ; belly whitish ;
a brown collar on the bottom of the male’s neck. Breeds in the
north of Germany, and is rarely seen in France. Its trachea is very
much inflated about the middle.

An. fuligula, L. ; Le Morillon, Enl. 1001 ; Frisch, 171; Naum.
I, c. 56, f. 83,84; Wils. VIII, lxvii, 5; the young, Enl. 1007;
An. scandiaca , Frisch, VI, xxxvi, 1. 2, (The Tufted Duck). Black;
the feathers of the occiput lengthened out into a tuft; the belly and
a spot on the wing white; bill lead-coloured. Arrives in France
every winter pretty regularly, from the North*.

The Ducks of the second division 'j', whose thumb is not bordered with
a membrane, have a more slender head, narrower feet, longer neck, the
bill more equal, and not so thick a body ; they walk better, and feed on
aquatic plants and seeds as much as on fish, and other animals. The in-
flations of their trachea consist of a bony and cartilaginous substance
which is homogeneous.

Rhynchapsis, Leach.

The Souchets are very remarkable for a long bill, the upper mandible
of which, forming the exact half of a perfect cylinder, is widened at the
end. Its lamellae are so long and delicate that they resemble hairs.
These birds feed on small worms, which they obtain from the mud on the
edge of brooks.

An. clypeata, L. ; Souchet commun, Enl. 971, 972; Frisch, 161,
162, 163; Wils, VIII, lxvii, 7; Naum. 49, f. 70, 71. (The Sliove-
ler). A beautiful duck, with a green head and neck, white breast,
red belly, and brown back ; the wings are variegated with white, ash
colour, green, brown, &c. It visits France in the spring, and its
flesh is excellent. The lower part of its trachea is but slightly in-
flated. It is the Chenerotes of Pliny.

An. fasciata, Sli., Nat. Misc. pi. 697, is another species found in

* Adel of species foreign to Europe: An. spinosa. Enl. 967, 968; — An. StvUeri ,
Pall. Spic., VI, pi. v; — An. labradora, Wils. VI I, lxix, 6; — An. valisncria , lb. LXX,
5; — An. rubida , lb. LXX I, 5, 6, of which, on account of its pointed tail, M. Ch.
Bonap. makes his genus Oxyuka.

f It is to this second division that M. Ch. Bonap. particularly applies the name of
Anas.

VOL. 1.

It 11

378

BIRDS.

New Holland, The edges of its upper mandible are extended on
each side into a membranous appendage.

Tadorna*.

The bill very much flattened towards the end, and bulging into a
salient lump at its base.

An. tadorna, L. ; Enl. 53; Frisch, 166; Naum. I, c. 55, f. 103
and 104. (The Shieldrake). The most highly coloured of all the
European Ducks: white; the head green; a cinnamon-coloured
cincture round the breast; the wing varied with black, white, red,
and green. Common on the shores of the North Sea, and of the
Baltic, where it builds its nest in the downs, and frequently in holes
abandoned by rabbits. Its bifurcation is inflated into two nearly
similar osseous capsules.

Some Ducks of this second division have some naked parts about the
head, and very often a lump on the base of the bill.

An. moschata, L ., Enl. 989, commonly but improperly called
The Muscovy Duck ( Le Canard de Barharie ); originally from South
America, where it is still found in its wild state, and where it perches
on trees ; is now very common in our poultry yards, where it mixes
with the Common Duck. Its capsule is very large, circular, verti-
cally flattened, and all on the left side.

Some of them have pointed tails.

An. acuta , L.; Le Pilet, Enl. 954; Wils. VIII, lxviii; Frisch,
160 and 168; Naum. 51, f. 74 and 75. (The Pintail). Ash-co-
loured above and on the flanks, finely striped with black ; white be-
neath; the head tawny, &c. The capsule of the trachea is small.

The males of others have some of the feathers of the tail recurved.
An. boschas, L.'j-; Enl. 776, 777; Wils. VIII, lxx, 7; Frisch,
158 and 159. (The Mallard). Is known by its pale yellow feet,
yellow bill, the beautiful changeable green of the head, and rump of
the male, &c. In our poultry-yards it varies in colour, like all
other domestic animals. The wild breed is common in the marshes ;
it builds among the reeds, in the hollow trunks of willows, and
sometimes upon trees. Its trachea terminates below, in a large
osseous capsule.

A singular variety is found in the Hook-billed Duck, the An.
adunca , L.

Some of them have a crested head, and a bill somewhat more narrow
at the end, which, though foreign, are reared in all the aviaries of Europe.
Such are,

An. galericulata,lL.; Enl. 980 and 981; Vieill. Gal. 287. (The
Chinese Duck). The female of which has the wing feathers widened,
turned up vertically.

* Tadorne, the name of this bird in Belon. Buffon, following Turner, mistook it
for the Chenalopex of the ancients. — See above, the Oie d’Egypte.
f Boscas, Greek name of the Mallard.

PALMIPEDES. 379

An. sponsa, L. ; Enl. 980 and 981 ; Wils. VIII, lxxviii, 3. Their
capsules are of a medium size, and are rounded.

There are other species, also foreign, which to the bill of a Duck add
legs, even longer than those of a Goose; they build and perch on trees * * * §.
Some of this number have but semi-palmated feet'f. Finally among
those which have no peculiar mark is the

An. strepera , L. ; Le Chipeau , or Ridenne , Enl. 958; Naum. I,
c. 45, f. 65; Wils. VIII, lxxi, 1. (The Gadwal). Reticulated and
finely striped with black ; wings, red with a green spot and a white
one. The capsule of the trachea is small.

An. Penelope , L. ; Le Siffleur , Enl. 835; Frisch, 164 and 169;
Naum. f. 72 and 73 J. (The Whistler). Finely striped with black;
vinous-coloured breast; red head; pale forehead; the wing white,
green, and black. The capsule of the trachea is rounded, mode-
rate, and very bony§.

There are several small species designated by the general name of
Teal.

An. querquedula , L. ; La Sarcelle ordinaire , Enl. 946, and the
old male, An. circia, Frisch, 176; Naum. 47, f. 66 and 67. (The
Garganey Duck). A grey ground, reticulated with black ; a white
line round, and at the end of the eye, &c. Common on ponds,
marshes, & c. Its capsule is a pyriform bony enlargement.

An. crecca , L. ; La petite Sarcelle , Enl. 947; Frisch, 174;
Naum. 48, f. 68, 69; Wils. VIII, lxx, 4; Brit. Zool. pi. Q,. (The
Common Teal). Finely striped with blackish; the head red; a
green band at the corner of the eye edged with two white lines, &c.
The capsule resembles a pea j | .

Mergus, Lin.

The genus of the Harles or Mergansers comprehends those species in
which the bill, thinner and more cylindrical than that of the Ducks, is
armed along its edges with small pointed teeth resembling those of a saw
and directed backwards ; the tip of the upper mandible is hooked. Their
carriage and even plumage are those of Ducks, properly so called; but
their gizzard is less muscular, and their intestines and caeca shorter.
The inflation of the lower larynx in the males is enormous, and partly
membranous. They live on lakes and ponds, where they are very de-
structive to fish.

* An. arborea, Enl. 804; — autumn alls, 826; — viduata, 808.

t An. semipalmata, Lath.; Cuv. Mem. du Mus.

X Penelope, the Greek name of a red-headed Duck, cither the present species or
the ferina, L.

§ Add, An. rutila, Pall. Nov. Com. Petrop., XIV, xxii; — An. can a and casarca ,
Brown, 111. 44 and 42; — An. ptecilorhyncha, Indian Zool. pi. xiv; — the Jensen (An.
americana), Enl. 9 55, Wils. VI II, Ixix, 4;— the Marcc (An. hah amen sis), Catcsb. 93;
— An. ohscura, Wils. VIII, lxxii, 5; — An. arcuata, Cm,, or paturi, Spix, C.

|| Add, An. discors, Enl. 966 and 403; — An. mqnillensis, Sonner. Voy. I, pi. lv.
Sarcelle comes from querquedula, which itself is only an imitation of the cry of the
bird.

380

BIRDS*

Three species appear in France during the winter; their varia-
tions of plumage have induced some naturalists to increase the num-
ber. It is said that they breed in the North among the rocks or
reeds, and lay a great many eggs.

Merg. merganser, L. ; Le Harle vulgaire, Enl. 951 ; Naum. I,
c. 61, f. 93, Brit. Zool. pi. N. ; Frisch, 190; Wils. VIII, Ixviii, 1.
(The Goosander). Is the size of a Duck, and has red feet and a bill
of the same hue. The head of the old male is of a deep green, the
feathers on its summit forming a sort of toupee ; the mantle is black,
with a white spot over the wing ; underneath and the neck, white,
slightly tinged with rose-colour. The young and the females —
Merg. castor , Enl. 953 ; Frisch, 191 ; Naum. 61, f. 93, B, are grey
with a red head.

Merg. serrator, L. ; Harle huppee, Enl. 207 ; Edw. 95 ; Naum.
I, c. 61, f. 90; Wils. VIII, lxix, 2. (The Bed-breasted Mergan-
ser). Bill and feet red; the body variegated with black, white, and
brown ; head of a black-green ; a pendent tuft on the occiput. The
young and the females — Harles noirs, H. a manteau noir, Naum.
62, f. 95, have a brown head.

M. albellus, L. ; La Piette , nonnette, petit harle, Enl. 449;
Frisch, 172; Naum. 63, f. 97; Brit. Zool. pi. N, 1; Wils. VIII,
xci, 9. (The Smew). Bill and feet blue ; body white, varied with
black oil the mantle; a black spot near the eye, and one on the
occiput. The young males and the females — Merg , minutus, mus-
telinus, &c., Enl. 450; Brit. Zool. pi. N, 2; Naum. 63, f. 98, are
grey with a red head*.

* Among the Mergansers foreign to Europe, the only ones well ascertained are the
M. cucullatus of Carolina, Enl. 935 and 936, and the M. brasiliensis, Vieill. Gal. 283.

END OF VOL. I.

LONDON:

W. M ‘LOW AL L, PRINTJSJtj FKMBJSRTON BOW,
GOUGH SQUAU Ji.