VERSITY OF MIC
FALCONGAN.
THE
1817
VE
**LIBRARIES




MUSEUM LIBRARY
depen

JAN 2 3 1929
424
ARCTIC ZOOLOGY.
V O L.
I.
CLASS I.
QUADRUPE DS.
II.
BIRDS.
G Stall, Bel
LONDON:
PRINTED FOR ROBERT FAULDER, NEW BOND STREET.
M.DCC.XCII. .

Pennant, Thomas, 1726-1798
Museum
105
-P412
V.
Carm
ONN

museum
Gift
9-21-39
DIRECTIONS FOR PLACING THE PLATES.
VOLUME I.
Tab.
Page
TITLE PAGE. Head of the Elk not arrived at its
full Growth.
8
VII. Mulk Cow, with the Head of the Bull
VIII. A full-grown Elk or Mooſe, with the velvet or young
Horns, and a full grown Pair on the Ground; from a
Painting by Mr. Stubbs, communicated to me by that
liberal Character, the late Dr. HUNTER.
a
CLASS II.-BIRDS.
1
1
IX. St. John's Falcon. Nº 93
- 234
Chocolate-coloured, Nº 94.
X. Swallow-tail'd Falcon, Nº 103
- 245
XI. Red Owl, Nº 117.
Mottled Owl, Nº 118. Barred Owl, Nº 122 • 271
XII. M. and F. Baltimore Orioles, Nº 142, with the Neft 302
XIII. Ferruginous Woodpecker, Nº 159.
Nuthatch, Nº 170
- 330
-
.

autora

ARCTIC ZOOLOGY.
CLASS I. QUADRUPED S.
DI V. I. H 0 0 F E D.
H I S T
QU AD. GENUS II.
1. OX
American Ox, Hift. Quad. p. 19. H. Smellie, vi. 198.
1. Bison
а.
a
X. With ſhort, black, rounded horns; with a great ſpace
between their baſes : on the ſhoulders a vaſt bunch, com-
poſed of a fleſhy ſubſtance, much elevated : the fore part of the
body thick and ſtrong: the hind part ſlender and weak: tail a foot
long, naked to the end, which is tufted : the legs ſhort and thick.
The head and ſhoulders of the Bull are covered with very long
flocks of reddiſh woolly hair, falling over the eyes and horns, leav-
ing only the points of the latter to be ſeen : on the chin, and along
the dewlaps, is a great length of ſhaggy hairs: the reſt of the body
during ſummer is naked, in winter is cloathed equally in all parts.
The Cow is leſſer, and wants the ſhaggy coat, which gives the Bull
ſo tremendous an aſpect.
It grows to a great fize, even to the weight of fixteen hundred
or two thouſand four hundred pounds *. The ſtrongeſt man can-
not lift the hide of one of theſe animals from the ground t.
SIZE.
* Lawſon, 116.
+ Cateſby, ii. App.
Vol. I.
B
The

2
BI S O N.
WHERE
ANTIENTLY
FOUND.
The Biſon and Aurochs of Europe is certainly the ſame ſpecies with
this; the difference conſiſts in the former being leſs ſhaggy, and the
hair neither ſo ſoft nor woolly, nor the hind parts ſo weak. Both
European and American kinds ſcent of muſk.
In antient times they were found in different parts of the old
world, but went under different names; the Bonaſus of Ariſtotle, the
Urus of Cæſar, the Bos ferus of Strabo, the Biſon of Pliny, and the
Biſton of Oppion, ſo called from its being found among the Biſtones,
a people of Thrace. According to theſe authorities, it was found in
their days in Media and in Peonia, a province of Macedonia ; among
the Alps, and in the great Hercynian foreſt, which extended from
Germany even into Sarmatia*. In later days a white ſpecies was a
native of the Scottiſh mountains ; it is now extinct in its favage ſtate,
but the offspring, fufficiently wild, is ſtill to be ſeen in the parks of
Drumlanrig, in the South of Scotland, and of Chillingham Caſtle in
Northumberland T.
In theſe times it is found in very few places in a ſtate of nature;
it is, as far as we know, an inhabitant at preſent only of the foreſts
of Lithuania, and among the Carpathian mountains, within the ex-
tent of the great Hercynian wood I, its antient haunts; and in Afia,
among the vaſt mountains of Caucaſus.
It is difficult to ſay in what manner theſe animals migrated ori-
ginally from the old to the new world; it is moſt likely it was
from the north of Afia, which in very antient times might have been
ſtocked with them to its moſt extreme parts, notwithſtanding they
are now extinct. At that period there is a probability that the old
and the new continents might have been united in the narrow chan-
a
WHERE AT
PRESENT.
EUROPE.
ASIA.
Ariſtot. Hift. An. lib. ii. c. 1.-Cæſar Bell. Gall. lib. vi.---Plinii Hift. Nat. lib.
xv. C. 15.-Oppian Cyneg. i. Lin. 160.
+ Br. Zool.i. N° 3.-Voy. Hebrides, 124.--Tour Scotl. 1772, Part ii. p. 285.
# There is a very fine figure of the European Biſon in Mr. Ridinger's Fagbere Thiere.
nel
01

B I SO N.
3
3
nel between Tchutki nofs and the oppoſite headlands of America;
and the many iſlands off of that promontory, with the Aleutian or
New Fox Iſlands, ſomewhat more diftant, ſtretching very near to
America, may with great reaſon be ſuppoſed to be fragments of land
which joined the two continents, and formed into their inſular ſtate
by the mighty convulſion which divided Afia from America. Spain
was probably thus disjoined from Africa; Britain from France; Ice-
land from Greenland ; Spitzbergen from Lapland.
But that they paſſed from Aſia to America is far the more proba-
ble, than that they ſtocked the new world from the ſide of Europe,
not only on account of the preſent narrowneſs of the ſtreight between
the two continents, which gives a greater cauſe to ſuppoſe them to
have been once joined; but that we are now arrived at a certainty,
that theſe animals in antient days were natives of Sibiria : the ſculls,
with the horns affixed, of a fize far fuperior to any known at this
me, have been found foffil not only on the banks of the Ilga, which
falls into the Lena, but even in thoſe of the Anadyr, the moſt eaſtern
of the Sibirian rivers, and which diſembogues north of Kamtſchatka
into thoſe ſtreights: fimilar ſculls and horns have been diſcovered
near Dirſchau, in Poland, alſo of a gigantic magnitude; and in my
opinion of the ſame ſpecies with the modern Biſons
In America theſe animals are found in the countries fix hundred
miles weſt of Hudſon's Bay; this is their moſt northern reſidence.
From thence they are met with in great droves as low as Cibole t, in
lat. 33, a little north of California, and alſo in the province of Mi-
vera, in New Mexico $ ; the ſpecies inſtantly ceaſes ſouth of thoſe
a
AMERICA.
a
* Nov. Com. Petrop. xvii. 46o. tab. xi. xii.--I am ſorry to diffent from my
eſteemed friend Doctor Pallas, who thinks them to be the horns of Buffaloes; which
are longer, ſtraiter, and angular.
+ Purchas, iv. 1560, 1566. | Fernandez, Nov. Hifp. X. C. 30.--Hernandez, 58.
B 2
countries.

Β Ι S Ο Ν.
4
TIMID
CHASE.
countries. They inhabit Canada, to the weſt of the lakes; and in
greater abundance in the rich ſavannas which border the river Mis-
fifipi, and the great rivers which fall into it from the weſt, in the
upper Louiſana*. There they are ſeen feeding in herds innumera-
ble, promiſcuouſly with multitudes of ſtags and deer, during morn-
ing and evening; retiring in the ſultry heats into the ſhade of tall
reeds, which border the rivers of America.
They are exceedingly ſhy; and very fearful of man, unleſs they
are wounded, when they purſue their enemy, and become very
dangerous.
The chaſe of theſe animals is a favorite diverſion of the In-
dians: it is effected in two ways; firſt, by ſhooting; when the
markſman muſt take great care to go againſt the wind, for their
ſmell is ſo exquiſite that the moment they get ſcent of him they
inſtantly retire with the utmoſt precipitation f. He aims at their
ſhoulders, that they may drop at once, and not be irritated by an
ineffectual wound. Provided the wind does not favor the beaſts,
they may be approached very near, being blinded by the hair which
covers their eyes.
The other method is performed by a great
number of men, who divide and form a vaſt ſquare: each band
fets fire to the dry graſs of the ſavanna where the herds are feeding;
theſe animals have a great dread of fire, which they fee approach
on all fides ; they retire from it to the center of the ſquare ; the
bands cloſe, and kill them (preſſed together in heaps) without the
left hazard. It is pretended, that on every expedition of this nature,
they kill fifteen hundred or two thouſand beeves.
The hunting-grounds are preſcribed with great form, leaſt the
different bands ſhould meet, and interfere in the diverſion. Pe-
ANOTHER
METHOD.
3
+ Du Pratz, i. 49. ii. 227.
,
* Du Pratz, ii. 50. i. 116. 286.
*
I Charlevoix, N. France, v. 192.
nalties

B I SO 5
Ο N.
Ν
Uses.
SKIN.
nalties are enacted on ſuch who infringe the regulations, as well
as on thoſe who quit their poſts, and ſuffer the beaſts to eſcape
from the hollow ſquares; the puniſhments are, the ſtripping the
delinquents, the taking away their arms (which is the greateſt
diſgrace a ſavage can undergo), or laſtly, the demolition of their
cabins *
The uſes of theſe animals are various. The Indians often fix the
hoofs of Buffaloes to their own feet, to deceive their enemies and
avoid being tracked: and ſometimes uſe for the ſame purpoſe the
broad
paws of the bear t. Powder-flaſks are made of their horns.
The ſkins are very valuable; in old times the Indians made of
them the beſt targets 1. When dreſſed, they form an excellent
buff; the Indians dreſs them with the hair on, and cloath them-
ſelves with them; the Europeans of Louiſiana uſe them for blankets,
and find them light, warm, and ſoft. The fleſh is a conſiderable
article of food, and the bunch on the back is eſteemed a very great
delicacy. The Bulls become exceſſively fat, and yield great quan-
tity of tallow, a hundred and fifty pounds weight has been got from
a ſingle beaſt ||, which forms a conſiderable matter of commerce.
Theſe over-fed animals uſually become the prey of Wolves; for,
by reaſon of their great unwieldineſs, they cannot keep up with the
herd.
The Indians, by a very bad policy, prefer the fleſh of the Cows;
which in time will deſtroy the fpecies : they complain of the rank-
neſs of that of the Bulls; but Du Pratz thinks the laſt much more
tender, and that the rankneſs might be prevented, by cutting off
the teſticles as ſoon as the beaſt is killed.
The hair or wool is ſpun into cloth, gloves, ſtockings, and gar-
ters, which are very ſtrong, and look as well as thoſe made of the
TALLOW.
HAIR
* Charlevoix, v. 192.
+ Adair, 385.
I Purchas, iv, 1550.
. Du Pratz.
beſt

6.
BI S O N.
DEFENCE
AGAINST
WOLVES.
HARD TO BE
TAMED.
beſt ſheeps wool; Governor Pownall aſſures us, that the moſt luxu-
rious fabrick might be made of it*. The fleece of one of theſe
animals has been found to weigh eight pounds.
Their fagacity in defending themſelves againſt the attacks of
Wolves is admirable: when they ſcent the approach of a drove of
thoſe ravenous creatures, the herd flings itſelf into the form of a
circle: the weakeſt keep in the middle, the ſtrongeſt are ranged
on the outſide, preſenting to the enemy an impenetrable front of
horns : ſhould they be taken by ſurprize, and have recourſe to
flight, numbers of the fatteſt or the weakeſt are ſure to periſh t.
Attempts have been made to tame and domeſticate the wild, by
catching the calves and bringing them up with the common kind,
in hopes of improving the breed. It has not yet been found to
anſwer: notwithſtanding they had the appearance for a time of
having loſt their favage nature, yet they always grew impatient of
reſtraint, and, by reaſon of their great ſtrength, would break down
the ſtrongeſt incloſure, and entice the tame cattle into the corn-
fields. They have been known to engender together, and to breed;
but I cannot learn whether the ſpecies was meliorated I by the
intercourſe: probably perſeverance in continuing the croſſes is
only wanted to effect their thorough domeſtication; as it is no-
torious that the Biſons of the old world were the original ſtock of
all our tame cattle.
Theſe were the only animals which had any affinity to the Euro-
pean cattle on the firſt diſcovery of the new world: before that pe-
riod, it was in poſſeſſion of neither Horſe nor Afs, Cow nor
Sheep, Hog, Goat, nor yet that faithful animal the Dog. Man-
kind were here in a ſtate of nature; their own paſſions unſubdued,
they never thought of conquering thoſe of the brute creation,
Topog. Deſcr. N. Am. 8.
+ Du Pratz, i. 228.
Kalm, i. 207
and

B I SO N.
7
and rendering them fubfervient to their will. The few animals
which they had congenerous to thoſe mentioned, might poſſibly by
induſtry have been reclamed. This animal might have been
brought to all the uſes of the European Cow; the Pecari might
have been ſubſtituted for the Hog; the Fox or Wolf for the Dog:
but the natives, living wholly by chaſe, were at war with the
animal creation, and neglected the cultivation of any part, except
the laſt, which was imperfectly tamed.
Such is the caſe even to the preſent hour; for neither the ex-
ample of the Europeans, nor the viſible advantages which reſult
from an attention to that uſeful animal the Cow, can induce the
Indian to pay any reſpect to it. He contemns every ſpecies of
domeſtic labour, except what is neceſſary for forming a proviſion
of bread. Every wigwam or village has its plantation of Mayz,
or Indian corn, and on that is his great dependence, ſhould the
chaſe prove unſucceſsful.
Domeſticated cattle are capable of enduring very rigorous cli-
mates ; Cows are kept at Quickjock in Lecha Lapmark, not far from
the arctic circle ; but they do not breed there, the ſucceſſion being
preſerved by importation: yet in Iceland, a ſmall portion of which
,
is within the circle, cattle abound, and breed as in more ſouthern
latitudes : they are generally fed with hay, as in other places; but
where there is ſcarcity of fodder, they are fed with the fiſh called the
Sea-Wolf, and the heads and bones of Cod beaten ſmall, and mixed
with one quarter of chopped hay: the cattle are fond of it, and,
what is wonderful, yield a conſiderable quantity of milk. It need
not be ſaid that the milk is bad.
Kamtſchatka, like America, was in equal want of every domeſtic
animal, except a wolf-like Dog, till the Ruſpans of late years intro-
duced the Cow and Horſe. The colts and calves brought from the
north into the rich paſtures of Kamtſchatka, where the graſs is high,
LAPMARK
ICELAND
i
grow
KAMTSCHATKA.

M U S I K.
grow to ſuch a ſize, that no one would ever ſuſpect them to be de-
ſcended from the Ponies and Runts of the Lena*. The Argali,
the ſtock of the tame Sheep, abounds in the mountains, but even
to this time are only objects of chaſe. The natives are to this hour
as uncultivated as the good Evander deſcribes the primary natives
of Latium to have been, before the introduction of arts and ſci-
.
ences.
Queis neque mos, neque cultus erat, nec jungere tauros,
Aut componere opes norant, aut parcere parto :
Sed rami atque aſper victu venatus alebat.
No laws they know, no manners, nor the care
Of lab'ring Oxen, or the ſhining Share;
No arts of gain, nor what they gain?d to ſpare:
Their exerciſe the chaſe: the running flood
Supplied their thirſt; the trees ſupplied their food.
Dryden.
2. Musk
Muſk Ox, Hift. Quad. Nº 9.
Le Bauf muſque, de M. Jeremie, Voy. au Nord, iii. 314.-Charlevoix, N. France,
V. 194.-Lev. Mus.
BULL. With horns cloſely united at the baſe; bending in-
wards and downwards; turning outwards towards their ends,
which taper to a point, and are very ſharp: near the baſe are two
feet in girth; are only two feet long meaſured along the curva-
ture: weight of a pair, ſeparated from the head, ſometimes is ſixty
pounds t.
The hair is of a duſky red, extremely fine, and ſo long as to trail
on the ground, and render the beaſt a ſeeming ſhapeleſs maſs, with-
a
* Pallas, Sp. Zool. fafc. xi. 76.
+ M. Feremie, in Voyages au Nord, üi. 315.
out

ONICE
30
M
8
VII
>
TRUST THE
More Greffilter (k
PMarell sculp
Musk Bull & Con Ne
2


M U S K.
9
Size.
a
و
out diſtinction of head or tail *: the legs and tail very ſhort: the
ſhoulders riſe into a lump.
In fize lower than a Deer, but larger as to belly and quarters t.
I have only ſeen the head of this animal; the reſt of the deſcription
is taken from the authorities referred to : but by the friendſhip of
Samuel Wegg, Efq; I received laſt year a very complete ſkin of the
cow of this ſpecies, of the age of three years, which enables me to
give the following deſcription :
Cow. The noſtrils long and open: the two middle cutting
teeth broad, and ſharp-edged; the three on each ſide ſmall, and
truncated: under and upper lips covered with ſhort white hairs on
their fore part, and with pale brown on their fides : hair down the
middle of the forehead long and erect; on the cheeks ſmooth and
extremely long and pendulous, forming with that on the throat a
long beard: the hair along the neck, fides, and rump hangs in the
ſame manner, and almoſt touches the ground: from the hind part
of the head to the ſhoulders is a bed of very long ſoft hair, forming
an upright mane : in the old beaſts the ſpace between the ſhoulders
riſes into a hunch: the legs are very ſhort, covered with ſmooth
whitiſh hairs; thoſe which encircle the hoofs very long, and of a
pure white: hoofs ſhort, broad, and black: the falſe hoofs large in
proportion: tail only three inches long, a mere ſtump, covered
with very long hairs, ſo as to be undiſtinguiſhable to the fight. Of
the tail, the Eſkimaux of the north-weſt ſide of the bay make a cap
of a moſt horrible appearance; for the hairs fall all round their
head, and cover their faces; yet it is of fingular ſervice in keeping
off the Muſquetoes, which would otherwiſe be intolerable I.
Space between the horns nine inches: the horns are placed ex-
actly on the ſides of the head; are whitiſh; thirteen inches and a
Horns.
+ Drage's Voy. ii. 260.
* M. Jeremie, in Voyages au Nord. iii. 315.
I Ellis's Voy. 232.
Vol. I.
C
half

XO
M U S K.
a
EARS.
COLOR.
than any
HAIR.
half long; eight inches and a half round at the baſe; of the ſame
fort of curvature with thoſe of the Bull: the ears are three inches
long, quite erect; ſharp-pointed, but dilate much in the middle;
are thickly lined with hair of a duſky color, marked with a ſtripe
of white.
The color of the hair black, except on theſe parts: -- from the
baſe of one horn to that of the other, is a bed of white and light
ruft-colored hair: the mane is duſky, tinged with red, which is con-
tinued in a narrow form to the middle of the back; on which is a
large roundiſh bed of pure white, and the hairs in that ſpace ſhorter
of the reſt, not exceeding three inches in length, and of a
pale brown towards their roots.
The hairs are of two kinds, the longeſt meaſure ſeventeen inches;
are very fine and gloffy, and when examined appear quite flat: this
is the black part, which cloaths moſt part of the animal.
The bed of hair between the horns, and that which runs along
the top of the neck, is far finer and ſofter than any human hair, and
appears quite round. The white bed is ſtill finer, and approaches
to the nature of wool.
Beneath every part of the hair grows in great plenty, and often in
flocks, an aſh-colored wool, moſt exquiſitely fine, fuperior, I think,
to any I have ſeen, and which might be very uſeful in manufac-
tures if fufficient could be procured. I give full credit to M. Je-
remie, who ſays, that he brought ſome of the wool to France, and
got ſtockings made with it, more beautiful than thoſe of filk *.
The ſkin is thin.
The length of the whole hide, from noſe to tail, is about ſix feet
four inches: of the head alone fourteen inches. The legs could
not be well meaſured, but were little more than a foot long.
Wool.
SIZE.
Voy, au Nord, iii. 314.
The

M U S K.
IT
The ſituation of theſe animals is very local. They appear firſt in
the tract between Churchill river and that of Seals, on the weſt fide
of Hudſon's Bay. They are very numerous between the latitudes 66
and 73 north, which is as far as any tribes of Indians go. They
live in herds of twenty or thirty. Mr. Hearn * has ſeen in the high
latitudes ſeveral herds in one day's walk. They delight moſt in the
rocky and barren mountains, and feldom frequent the woody parts
of the country. They run nimbly, and are very active in climbing
the rocks. The fleſh taftes very ſtrong of Mulk, and the heart is
ſo ſtrongly infected as hardly to be eatable; but the former is very
wholeſome, having been found to reſtore ſpeedily to health the ſickly
crew who made it their food t.
They are ſhot by the Indians for the fake of the meat and ſkins,
the laſt from its warmth making excellent blankets. They are
brought down on fledges to the forts annually during winter, with
about three or four thouſand weight of the fleſh. Theſe are called
Churchill Buffaloes, to diſtinguiſh them from the laſt ſpecies, which
are in Hudſon's Bay called Inland Buffaloes, of which only the
tongues are brought as preſents I.
They are found alſo in the land of the Cris or Criſtinaux, and the
Affinibouels : again among the Attimofpiquay, a nation ſuppoſed to
inhabit about the head of the river of Seals $, probably not very re-
mote from the South Sea. They are continued from theſe coun-
tries fouthward, as low as the provinces of Quivera and Cibola ; for
Father Marco di Niça, and Gomara, plainly deſcribe both kinds 1.
* The gentleman who undertook, in 1770, 1771, 1772, the arduous journey to
the Icy Sea, from Prince of Wales's Fort, Hudſon's Bay. To him, through Mr. Wegg's
intereſt, I am indebted for the ſkin and this information.
+ Drage's Voy. ii. 260.
I Mr. Graham's MS.
$ Dobbs's Hudſon's Bay, 19, 25.
11 Purchas, iv. 1561. V.
8540
C 2
Some

M U S K.
Some of the ſkulls of this ſpecies have been diſcovered on the
mofly plains near the mouth of the Oby in Sibiria. It is not ſaid
how remote from the ſea; if far, they probably in ſome period
might have been common to the north of Aſia and of America; if
near the ſhore, it is poſſible that the carcaſes might have floated on
the ice from America to the places where the remains might have
been found *. Of this ſpecies was the head, and ſuch were the
means of conveyance, from the coaſt of Hudſon's or Baffin's, men-
tioned by Mr. Fabricius, and which he ſaw fo brought to Green-
land †; for it could not have been, as he conjectures, the head of
the grunting Ox, an animal found only in the very interior parts of
northern Afia.
و
* Pallas, in Nov. Com. Petrop. xvii. 601. tab. xvii.
† Faun. Groenl. 28.
SHEEP

S Η Ε Ε Ρ.
13
SHE E P. Hift. Quad. Genus III.
ARGALI: Wild Sheep, Hift. Quad. N° 11. H. p. 38. --Smellie, vi. 205.-
Lev. Mus.
THI
HE Sheep, in its wild ftate, inhabits the north-eaſt of Afia,
beyond lake Baikal, between the Onon and Argun, to the
height of latitude 60, on the eaſt of the Lena, and from thence to
Kamtſchatka, and perhaps the Kurile iſlands. I dare not pronounce
that they extend to the continent of America ; yet I have received
from Doctor Pallas a fringe of very fine twiſted wool, which had or-
namented a dreſs from the iſle of Kadjak ; and I have myſelf an-
other piece from the habit of the Americans in latitude 50. The
firſt was of a ſnowy whiteneſs, and of unparalleled fineneſs; the
other as fine, but of a pale brown color : the firſt appeared to be
the wool which grows intermixed with the hairs of the Argali ; the
laft, that which is found beneath thoſe of the Muſk Ox. Each of
theſe animals may exiſt on that ſide of the continent, notwithſtand-
ing they might have not fallen within the reach of the navigators in
their ſhort ſtay off the coaſt.
Certain quadrupeds of this genus were obſerved in California by
the miſſionaries in 1697; one as large as a Calf of one or two years
old,

14
S Η Ε Ε Ρ.
а.
CHASE IN
KAMTSCHATKA.
old, with a head like a Stag, and horns like a Ram: the tail and
hair ſpeckled, and ſhorter than a Stag's. A fecond kind was larger,
and varied in color ; ſome being white, others black, and furniſhed
with very good wool. The Fathers called both Sheep, from their
great reſemblance to them *. Either the Americans of latitude 50
are poffefſed of theſe animals, or may obtain the fleeces by com-
merce from the ſouthern Indians.
The Argali abound in Kamtſchatka ; they are the moſt uſeful of
their animals, for they contribute to food and cloathing. The
Kamtſchatkans cloath themſelves with the ſkins, and eſteem the fleſh,
eſpecially the fat, diet fit for the Gods. There is no labor which
they will not undergo in the chaſe. They abandon their habita-
tions, with all their family, in the ſpring, and continue the whole
ſummer in the employ, amidſt the rude mountains, fearleſs of the
dreadful precipices, or of the avelenches, which often overwhelm the
eager ſportſmen.
Theſe animals are ſhot with guns or with arrows; ſometimes
with croſs-bows, which are placed in the paths, and diſcharged
by means of a ſtring whenever the Argali happens to tread on it.
They are often chaſed with dogs, not that they are overtaken by
them; but when they are driven to the lofty fummits, they will
often ſtand and look as if it were with contempt on the dogs
below, which gives the hunter an opportunity of creeping
within reach while they are ſo engaged; for they are the ſhyeſt
of animals.
The Mongols and Tunguſi uſe a nobler ſpecies of chaſe: they
collect together a vaſt multitude of horſes and dogs, attempt-
ing to furround them on a ſudden; for ſuch is their ſwiftneſs and
cunning, that if they perceive, either by fight or ſmell, the ap-
IN MONGOLIA.
* Ph. Tranſ. abr. v. part ii. 195.
proach

S Η Ε Ε Ρ.
15
SHEEP IN
IceLAND.
proach of the chaſſeurs, they inſtantly take to flight, and ſecure
themſelves on the lofty and inacceſſible fummits.
Domeſticated Sheep will live even in the dreadful climate of
Greenland. Mr. Fabricius * ſays, they are kept in many places.
They are very numerous in Iceland. Before the epidemical diſeaſe
which raged among them from 1740 to 1750, it was not un-
common for a ſingle perſon to be poſſeſſed of a thouſand or twelve
hundred. They have upright ears, ſhort tails, and often four or
five horns t. They are ſometimes kept in ftables during winter,
but uſually left to take their chance abroad, when they commonly
hide themſelves in the caves of exhauſted vulcanoes I. They are
particularly fond of ſcurvy-graſs, with which they grow ſo fat as
to yield more than twenty pounds. The ewes give from two to
ſix quarts of milk a day, of which butter and cheeſe is made.
The wool is never fhorn, but left on till the end of May, when it
grows looſe, and is ſtripped entirely off in one fleece; and a fine,
ſhort, and new wool appears to have grown beneath; this con-
tinues growing all ſummer, becomes ſmooth and gloſſy like the
hair of Camels, but more ſhaggy I. With the wool the natives
manufacture their cloth; and the fleſh dried is an article of com-
.
In all parts of European Ruſſia are found the common Sheep.
Thoſe of the very north, and of the adjacent Finmark, have ſhort
tails and upright ears, and wool almoſt as rude as the hair of Goats;
but are ſeldom polyceratous. They ſometimes breed twice in a
year, and bring twins each time $.
In the Afiatic dominions of Ruſſia, from the borders of Ruſa
to thoſe of China, is a moft fingular variety of Sheep, deſtitute of
merce.
* Faun. Groenl. p. 29.
I Horrebow, 46.
+ Smellie, vi. 207, 219.
§ Leems, 228.
|| Troil's Voy. 138.
tails,

16
SHEEP.
a
a
tails, with rumps ſwelling into two great, naked, and ſmooth
hemiſpheres of fat, which ſometimes weigh forty pounds: their
noſes are arched: their ears pendulous: their throats wattled: their
heads horned, and ſometimes furniſhed with four horns. Theſe
are fo abundant throughout Tartary, that a hundred and fifty thou-
fand have been annually fold at the Orenburg fairs; and a far greater
number at the fort Troizkaja, from whence they are driven for
ſlaughter into different parts of Ruſſia*. Sheep do not thrive in
Kamtſchatka, by reaſon of the wetneſs of the country.
Sheep abound in New England and its iſlands: the wool is ſhort,
and much coarſer than that of Great Britain ; poſſibly proper at-
tention to the houſing of the Sheep may in time improve the
fleece; but the ſeverity of the climate will ever remain an obſtacle
to its perfection. Manufactures of cloth have been eſtabliſhed,
and a tolerable cloth has been produced, but in quantities in no
degree equal to the conſumption of the country. America likewiſe
wants downs; but by clearing the hills of trees, in a long ſeries
of years that defect may be alleviated. As we advance further
ſouth, the Sheep grow fcarcer, worſe, and the wool more
hairy.
* Pallas, Sp. Zool. faſc. xi. 63. tab. iv.
GOA T.

со Ат17
A
.
GO A T. Hift. Quad. GENUS IV.
IBE X, Hift Quad. No 13 *, is ſuppoſed to extend to the mountains of the
eaſtern part of Sibiria, beyond the Lena, and to be found within the go-
vernment of Kamtſchatka.-Lev. Mus.
ΤΗ
HE tame Goat inhabits northern Europe as high as Ward-
buys, in latitude 71, where it breeds, and runs out the whole
year, only during winter has the protection of a hovel: it lives
during that ſeaſon on moſs and bark of Fir-trees, and even of the
logs cut for fuel. They are ſo prolific as to bring two, and even
three, at a time. In Norway they thrive prodigiouſly, inſomuch
that 70 or 80,000 of raw ſkins are annually exported from Ber-
gen, beſides thouſands that are ſent abroad dreſſed.
Goats are alſo kept in Iceland, but not in numbers, by reaſon
of the want of ſhrubs and trees for them to brouze. They have
been introduced into Greenland, even to ſome advantage. Be-
fides vegetable food, they will eat the Aretic trouts dried; and
grow very fat t.
The climate of South America agrees ſo well with Goats, that
they multiply amazingly: but they ſucceed fo ill in Canada, that
it is neceſſary to have new ſupplies to keep up the race J.
Smellie, vi. 363,
+ Faun. Groenl. p. 29.
I De Buffon, ix. 71.
Vol. 1,
D
DEER

18
M O OS E.
DE E R. Hift. Quad. GENUS VII.
.
3. Moose.
Elk, Hift. Quad. No 42.Smellie, vi. 315.--Lev. Mus.
3
a
COLOR
EER. With horns with ſhort beams, ſpreading into a
D
broad palm, furniſhed on the outward fide with ſharp ſnags;
the inner fide plain: no brow antlers : ſmall eyes : long ſouching
afinine ears: noftrils large : upper lip ſquare, great, and hanging
far over the lower; has a deep furrow in the middle, ſo as to ap-
pear almoſt bifid: under the throat a ſmall excreſcence, with a long
tuft of coarſe black hair pendent from it: neck ſhorter than the
head; along the top an upright, ſhort, thick, mane: withers ele-
vated: tail ſhort: legs long; the hind legs the ſhorteſt: hoofs
much cloven.
Color of the mane a light brown; of the body in general a hoary
brown: tail duſky above; white beneath. The vaſt fize of the
head, the ſhortneſs of the neck, and the length of the ears, give
the beaſt a deformed and ftupid look.
The greateſt height of this animal, which I have heard of, is
feventeen hands; the greateſt weight 1229 pounds.
The largeſt horns I have feen are in the houſe of the Hudſon's
Bay Company; they weigh fifty-fix pounds: their length is thirty-
two inches; breadth of one of the palms thirteen inches and a half;
ſpace between point and point thirty-four.
The female is leſſer than the male, and wants horns.
Inhabits the iſle of Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, and the weſtern ſide
of the Bay of Fundy; Canada, and the country round the great
lakes, almoſt as far fouth as the river Ohio*. Theſe are its preſent
Size,
OF HORNS,
a
PLACE.
* Du Pratz, i. 301.
northern

2/4
VII
Solubles punx
Mazell Teulis
MOOSE DEER.


MOOSE.
19
Foou.
northern and ſouthern limits. In all ages it affected the cold and
wooded regions in Europe, Aſia, and America. They are found in
all the woody tracts of the temperate parts of Ruſſia, but not on the
Arctic flats, nor yet in Kamtſchatka. In Sibiria they are of a mon-
ſtrous fize, particularly among the mountains.
The Elk and the Mooſe are the ſame ſpecies; the laſt derived NAME.
from Muſu, which in the Algonkin language fignifies that animal *
The Engliſh uſed to call it the Black Mooſe, to diſtinguiſh it from
the Stag, which they named the Grey Mooſe t. The French call it
L’Original.
Theſe animals reſide amidſt foreſts, for the conveniency of brou- Residence AND
ſing the boughs of trees, becauſe they are prevented from grazing
with
any kind of eaſe, by reaſon of the ſhortneſs of their necks and
length of their legs. They often have recourſe to water-plants,
which they can readily get at by wading. M. Sarraſin fays, that they
fond of the anagyris fætida, or ſtinking bean trefoil, and
will uncover the ſnow with their feet in order to get at it.
In paſſing through the woods, they raiſe their heads to a hori-
zontal poſition, to prevent their horns from being entangled in the
branches.
They have a ſingular gait: their pace is a ſhambling trot, but GAIT.
they go with great ſwiftneſs. In their common walk they lift their
feet very high, and will without any difficulty ſtep over a gate five
are very
feet high.
They feed principally in the night. If they graze, it is always
againſt an aſcent; an advantage they uſe for the reaſon above af-
ſigned. They ruminate like the Ox.
They go to rut in autumn; are at that time very furious, ſeeking
the female by ſwimming from ille to iſle. They bring two young
RUMINATE.
YOUNG.
* Kalm, i. 298. ii. 204.
+ Mr. Dudley's Phil. Tranſ. Abridg. vii. 447.
D 2

20
E.
M O OS
FLESH
SKIN.
at a birth, in the month of April, which follow the dam a whole
year. During the ſummer they keep in families. In deep ſnows
they collect in numbers in the foreſts of pines, for protection from
the inclemency of the weather under the ſhelter of thoſe ever-
greens.
They are very inoffenſive, except in the rutting-feaſon; or except
they are wounded, when they will turn on the aſſailant, and attack
him with their horns, or trample him to death beneath their great
hoofs.
Their fleſh is extremely ſweet and nouriſhing. The Indians ſay,
that they can travel three times as far after a meal of Mooſe, as
after any other animal food. The tongues are excellent, but the
noſe is perfect marrow, and eſteemed the greateſt delicacy in all
Canada.
The ſkin makes excellent buff; is ſtrong, foft, and light. The
Indians dreſs the hide, and, after foaking it for ſome time, ſtretch
and render it fupple by a lather of the brains in hot water. They
not only make their ſnow-ſhoes of the ſkin, but after a chaſe form
the canoes with it: they few it neatly together, cover the ſeams
with an unctuous earth, and embark in them with their ſpoils to
return home *
The hair on the neck, withers, and hams of a full-grown Elk
is of much uſe in making mattraſſes and faddles; being by its
great length well adapted for thoſe purpoſes.
The palmated parts of the horns are farther excavated by the
ſavages, and converted into ladles, which will hold a pint.
It is not ſtrange that ſo uſeful an animal ſhould be a principal
object of chaſe. The favages perform it in different ways. The
firſt, and the more fimple, is before the lakes or rivers are frozen.
a
HAIR.
HORNS.
CAASE.
* Le Hontan, i. 59
.
Multitudes

M
21
O O SE.
a
a
Multitudes aſſemble in their canoes, and form with them a vaſt
creſcent, each horn touching the ſhore. Another party perform
their ſhare of the chaſe among the woods; they ſurround an ex-
tenſive tract, let looſe their dogs, and preſs towards the water with
loud cries. The animals, alarmed with the noiſe, fly before the
hunters, and plunge into the lake, where they are killed by the
perſons in the canoes, prepared for their reception, with lances or
clubs *
The other method is more artful. The ſavages incloſe a large
ſpace with ſtakes hedged with branches of trees, forming two
fides of a triangle: the bottom opens into a ſecond encloſure, com-
pletely triangular. At the opening are hung numbers of ſnares,
made of ſlips of raw hides. The Indians, as before, aſſemble in
great troops, and with all kinds of noiſes drive into the firſt en-
cloſure not only the Mooſes, but the other ſpecies of Deer which
abound in that country : fome, in forcing their way into the far-
theft triangle, are caught in the ſnares by the neck or horns; and
thoſe which eſcape the ſnares, and paſs the little opening, find
their fate from the arrows of the hunters, directed at them from all
quarters Ť.
They are often killed with the gun. When they are firſt unhar-
boured, they ſquat with their hind parts and make water, at which
inſtant the ſportſman fires; if he miſſes, the Mooſe ſets off in a
moſt rapid trot, making, like the Rein-deer, a prodigious rattling
with its hoofs, and will run for twenty or thirty miles before it
comes to bay or takes the water. But the uſual time for this di-
verſion is the winter. The hunters avoid entering on the chaſe
till the ſun is ſtrong enough to melt the frozen cruft with which
the ſnow is covered, otherwiſe the animal can run over the firm
# Charlevoix, y, 188.
+ Charlevoix, and Le Hontan, i. 65.
ſurface:

M O OS E.
ſurface : they wait till it becomes ſoft enough to impede the flight
of the Mooſe; which ſinks up to the ſhoulders, flounders, and
gets on with great difficulty. The ſportſman purſues at his eaſe
on his broad rackets, or ſnow-ſhoes, and makes a ready prey of
the diſtreffed animals :
a
As weak againſt the mountain heaps they puſh
Their beating breaſt in vain, and piteous bray,
He lays them quivering on th' enſanguin'd ſnows,
And with loud ſhouts rejoicing bears them home.
THOMSON.
SUPERSTITIONS
RELATING TO
THE MOOSE.
water.
The opinion of this animal's being ſubject to the epilepſy ſeems
to have been univerſal, as well as the cure it finds by ſcratching
its ear with the hind hoof till it draws blood. That hoof has been
uſed in Indian medicine for the falling-fickneſs; they apply it to
the heart of the afficted, make him hold it in his left hand, and
rub his ear with it. They uſe it alſo in the colick, pleuriſy, ver-
tigo, and purple fever; pulveriſing the hoof, and drinking it in
The Algonkins pretend that the fleſh imparts the diſeaſe;
but it is notorious that the hunters in a manner live on it with
impunity.
The favages eſteem the Mooſe a beaſt of good omen; and are
perſuaded that thoſe who dream often of it may Aatter themſelves
with long life *
Their wild fuperftition hath figured to them a Mooſe of enor-
mous ſize, which can wade with eaſe through eight feet depth of
ſnow; which is invulnerable, and has an arm growing out of its
ſhoulder, fubfervient to the purpoſes of the human: that it has a
court of other Mooſes, who at all times perform fuit and ſervice,
according to his royal will t.
* Charlevoix, v. 186.
+ The fame.
I lament

M O O SE.
23
FOSSIL HORNS
NOT BELONGING
TO THE MOOSE.
W
;
I lament that I am not able to diſcover the animal which owned
the vaſt horns fo often found in the bogs of Ireland, ſo long and ſo
confidently attributed to the Moofe. Theſe have been found to be
ſometimes eight feet long, fourteen between tip and tip *, furniſhed
with brow antlers, and weighing three hundred pounds: the whole
ſkeleton is frequently found with them.
The fables delivered by Joſſelyn, of the Mooſe being thirty-three
hands, or twelve feet, high; and by Le Hontan, of its horns weigh-
ing between three and four hundred pounds; occaſioned the natu-
raliſts of paſt times to call the foffil horns thoſe of the Moofe ; and
to flatter themſelves that they had diſcovered the animal they be-
longed to : but recent diſcoveries evince the error. I once enter-
tained hopes that the Waſkelje † of the Hudſon's Bay Indians was the
ſpecies; but by fome late information I received from Mr. Andrew
Graham, factor in the Bay, I find it to be no other than the com-
mon Mooſe.
The Elk has deſerted the ſouth of Sweden for a conſiderable
time ; ftill ſome are found in the foreſts near Stockholm, more or
fewer, according to the year, for they are a ſort of vagabond ani-
mals. The chaſe is entirely reſerved for the nobility or gentry ;
.
and even they are prohibited from killing them before the 24th of
August, under penalty of fifty rix-dollars, or uil. 135. 4d. The
inhabitants diſlike them greatly as neighbors, ſo much miſchief do
they do in the cultivated grounds. In May, June, and July, they
are ſo bold, that the people are obliged to drive them away with
blows of a ſtick: after that they are more difficult of approach.
In Jemtland, a province of Norland, their chaſe is free to every one.
The largeſt Elk Mr. Oedman ever heard of, weighed eleven hun-
dred and fixty pounds. A fawn of this ſpecies, taken very young,
* Wright's Louthiana, book iii. 20. tab. xxii.
+ Hift. Quad. 45
1s

24
R Ε Ι Ν.
is capable of being eaſily tamed, and may be made as familiar as a
dog; but the male becomes fierce when it is in heat, at leſt if it is
not caſtrated. It will drink greedily of wine, if given to it; and
when it gets drunk, it will ſnort it out of its noftrils. In a wild
ſtate, this animal feeds on the lichens, bark of the aſpen poplar, the
grey and the goat willows: when tame, it eats hay, and is
very
fond
of peas ſtraw; but the laſt muſt be given in ſmall quantity, as it is
apt to produce a fatal coſtiveneſs. When the female is cloſely pur-
ſued by the dogs, it will fling itſelf into the water with its fawn,
and will continue ſwimming with it for many hours. She rarely
brings more than one at a time. During winter, when the ground
is covered with ſnow, the hunter cloaths himſelf with white linen,
in order to render himſelf leſs viſible.
a
4. REIN.
Hift. Quad. Nº 43.-Smellie, vi. 316.--Hackluyt, iii. 114.---Lev. Mus.
a
DEER. With large but ſlender horns, bending forward; with
brow antlers broad and palmated, ſometimes three feet nine
inches long; two feet fix from tip to tip; weight, nine pounds
twelve ounces avoirdupoiſe. The body is thick and ſquare: the
legs ſhorter than thoſe of a Stag: the height of a full-grown Rein
four feet fix.
Color of the hair, at firſt ſhedding of the coat, of a browniſh
aſh; afterwards changes to a hoary whiteneſs. The animal is
admirably guarded againſt the rigor of the climate by the great
thickneſs of the hairs, which are ſo cloſely placed as totally to hide
the ſkin, even if they are put aſide with ever ſo much care.
Space round the eyes always black: noſe, tail, and belly white:
above the hoofs a white circle: hair along the lower ſide of the
neck very long: tail ſhort.
Hoofs,

REI N.
25
PLACE.
Hoofs, and falſe hoofs, long and black; the laſt looſely hung,
making a prodigious clatter when the animal runs.
The female is furniſhed with horns; but leſſer, broader, and
FEMALE
flatter, and with fewer branches than thoſe of the male. She has
fix teats, but two are fpurious and uſeleſs. They bring two young
at a time.
The habitation of this Deer is ſtill more limited than that of the
former, confined to thoſe parts where cold reigns with the utmoſt
ſeverity. Its moſt ſouthern reſidence is the northern parts of Ca-
nada, bordering on the territories of Hudſon's Bay. Charlevoix men-
HUDSON'S-BAY.
tions a ſingle inſtance of one wandering as far as the neighborhood
of Quebec *. Their true place is the vaſt tract which ſurrounds
the Bay. They are met with in Labrador, and again in New- LABRADOR.
NEWFOUNDLAND.
foundland, originally wafted thither acroſs the narrow ſtraits of
Belleiſle, on iſlands of ice.
They ſpread northerly into Greenland, particularly on the weſt- GREENLAND.
ern coaſt, about Diſko t. I can find no traces (even traditional) of
them in Iceland; which is the more ſurprizing, as that iſland lies
nearer to Greenland than Newfoundland does to the Labrador coaſt.
It is probable that they were deſtroyed in very early times, when
that iſland was ſo infinitely more populous than it is at preſent ;
and the farther migration of theſe animals prevented by the amaz-
ing aggregate of ice, which in later
ages blocked
up and even de-
populated the eaſtern ſide of Greenland. No vegetable, not even
moſs, is to be found on that extenſive coaſt to ſupport theſe hardy
animals. Their laſt migration was from the weſtern parts of
Greenland, over unknown regions and fields of ice, to the inhofpi-
table Alps of Spitzbergen. Theſe, with the Polar Bear and Arctic SPITZBERGEN,
Fox, form the ſhort catalogue of its quadrupeds. They reſide
* V. 191.
+ Egede, 59. Crantz, i. 70.--The Canadians call it Le Caril
E
there
Vol. I.

26
REI N.
KAMTSCHATKA.
there throughout the year, and by wondrous inſtinct diſcover
their food, the lichen rangiferinus, beneath the ſnow, which they
remove to great depths by means of their broad and ſpade-like
antlers; and thus find fubfiftence thirteen degrees beyond the
Aretic circle *
To the weſtern ſide of Hudſon's Bay I trace the Rein as far as the
nation called Les Plat-coté des Chiens t, the remoteft we are ac-
quainted with in the parallel of that latitude. Beyond, are lands
unknown, till we arrive at that new-diſcovered chain of iſlands,
which extends to within a ſmall diſtance of Afe, or the northern
cape of Kamtſchatka, where I again recover theſe animals. There
is reaſon to imagine that they are continued acroſs the continent of
America, but not on the iſlands which intervene between it and
Afia I. But in the iſle of Kadjak, and others of the eaſternmoſt
Fox iſlands, the inhabitants have ſkins of them from the American
continent, and border their bonnets with the white hairs of the do-
meſtic Rein-deers, ſtained red. They are found again in the coun-
tries which border on the Icy ſea $; from which they retire, at
approach of winter, towards the woods, to feed on the moſs, not
only that which grows on the ground, but the ſpecies pendulous
from the trees. The whole north-eaſt of Sibiria abounds with
them. They alſo are yet found wild in the Urallian mountains ;
along the river Kama, as far as Kungus; and about ſome ſnowy
ſummits more fouth : and again on the high chain bordering on
Sibiria on the ſouth, and about lake Baikal. Towards the weſt they
are continued in the land of the Samoieds; and finally among the
well-known Laplanders. Wild Rein-Deer are very ſcarce in the
north of Sweden : the Wolves having almoſt extirpated this fine
3
SAMOI EDEA
* Marten's Spitzbergen, 99. Phipps's voy. 185. + Dobbs's Hudſon's Bay, 19.
I Muller's voyages from Afia to America, Preface xxv.
§ Barentz voy.
and

R E IN.
27
LAPLANDERS,
THEIR USES OF IT.
and uſeful animal. It is certain that horſes cannot bear the ſmell
of the Rein; they will, even on the firſt perception, become unma-
nageable, ſo that the riders cannot without difficulty keep them
from running away with them.-I here tranfgreſs the limits of my
plan, to give a ſlight comparative view of the progreſs of civiliza-
tion among the inhabitants of theſe frozen climes.
With the Laplanders this animal is the ſubſtitute to the Horſe,
the Cow, the Sheep, and the Goat. Thoſe moſt innocent of peo-
ple have, even under their rigorous ſky, ſome of the charms of a
paſtoral life. They have ſubdued theſe animals to various uſes,
and reclamed them from their wild ſtate. They attend their herds
of Rein-deer, during ſummer, to the ſummits of their alps; to
the ſides of their clear lakes and ſtreams, often bordered with na-
tive roſes. They know the arts of the dairy, milk theſe their cat-
tle, and make from it a rich cheeſe. They train them to the
Nedge, conſider them as their chief treaſure, and cheriſh them with
the utmoſt tenderneſs.
The brutiſh Samoied conſiders them in no other view than as
animals of draught, to convey them to the chaſe of the wild Reins ;
which they kill for the ſake of the ſkins, either to cloath them-
ſelves, or to cover their tents. They know not the cleanly deli-
cacy of the milk or cheeſe ; but prefer for their repaſt the inteſ-
tines of beaſts, or the half-putrid fleſh of a horſe, ox, or ſheep,
which they find dead on the high road *
The Koreki, a nation of Kamtſchatka, may be placed on a level
with the Samoieds : they keep immenfe herds of Reins; ſome of
the richeſt, to the amount of ten or twenty thouſand ; yet ſo ſordid
are they as to eat none except ſuch which they kill for the ſake of
the ſkins; an article of commerce with their neighbors the Kamtf-
SAMOIEDS.
KOREKI.
* Le Bruyn, i. 7, 8.
E2
chatkans :

28
Ε Ι Ν.
R
a
a
ESKIMAUX
AND
chatkans : otherwiſe they content themſelves with the fleſh of thofe
which die by diſeaſe or chance. They train them in the fledge,
but neglect them for every domeſtic purpoſe*. Their hiſtorian
ſays, they couple two to each carriage; and that the Deer will tra-
vel a hundred and fifty verſts in a day, that is, a hundred and twelve
Engliſh miles. They caſtrate the males by piercing the ſpermatic
arteries, and tying the ſcrotum tight with a thong.
The inhabitants about the river Kolyma make uſe of the ſoft ſkins
of the Rein-deer, dreſſed, for fails for a kind of boat called Schitiki,
caulked with moſs; and the boards as if fewed together with thongs;
and the cordage made of ſlices of the ſkin of the Elk +.
The ſavage and uninformed Eſkimaux and Greenlanders, who pof-
GREENLANDERS. ſeſs, amidſt their ſnows, theſe beautiful animals, neglect not only the
domeſtic uſes, but even are ignorant of their advantage in the
fledge. Their element is properly the water ; their game the Seals.
They ſeem to want powers to domeſticate any animals unleſs Dogs.
They are at enmity with all ; conſider them as an object of chaſe,
and of no utility till deprived of life. The fleſh of the Rein is the
moſt coveted part of their food; they eat it raw, dreſſed, and dried
,
and ſmoked with the ſnow lichen. The wearied hunters will drink
the raw blood; but it is uſually dreſſed with the berries of the
heath: they eagerly devour the contents of the ſtomach, but uſe the
inteſtines boiled. They are very fond of the fat, and will not loſe
the left bit $ The ſkin, ſometimes a part of their cloathing,
dreſſed with the hair on, is ſoft and pliant; it forms alſo the inner
lining of their tents, and moſt excellent blankets. The tendons are
their bow-ſtrings, and when ſplit are the threads with which they
ſew they jackets 9.
Hift. Kamtſchatka, 226, 227- The Koreki exchange their Deer with the neigh-
boring nations for rich furs. + Muller's Summary, & c. xviii.
I Faun.
Groenl.
p.
28.
§ Drage's Voy. i. 25.
The

R Ε Ι Ν.
29
.
MULTITUDES
IN
HUDSON'S BAY.
MIGRATION
The Greenlanders, before they acquired the knowledge of the gun, ,
caught them by what was called the clapper-hunt *. The women
and children ſurrounded a large ſpace, and, where people were
wanting, ſet up poles capped with a turf in certain intervals, to
terrify the animals; they then with great noiſe drove the Reins into
the narrow defiles, where the men lay in wait and killed them with
harpoons or darts. But they are now become very ſcarce. .
On the contrary, they are found in the neighborhood of Hudſon's
Bay in moſt amazing numbers, columns of eight or ten thouſand
are ſeen annually pafling from north to fouth in the months of
March and April t, driven out of the woods by the muſketoes,
ſeeking refreſhment on the ſhore, and a quiet place to drop their
young. They go to rut in September, and the males ſoon after ſhed
their horns; they are at that ſeaſon very fat, but fo rank and muſky
as not to be eatable. The females drop their young in June, in
the moſt fequeftered ſpots they can find; and then they likewiſe
loſe their horns. Beaſts of prey follow the herds: firſt, the Wolves,
who ſingle out the ftragglers (for they fear to attack the drove)
detach and hunt them down: the Foxes attend at a diſtance, to
pick up the offals left by the former. In autumn the Deer with the
Fawns re-migrate northward.
The Indians are very attentive to their motions; for the Rein
forms the chief part not only of their dreſs but food. They often
kill multitudes for the ſake of their tongues only; but generally they
ſeparate the fleſh from the bones, and preſerve it by drying it in
the ſmoke: they alſo ſave the fat, and ſell it to the Engliſh in
bladders, who uſe it in frying inſtead of butter. The ſkins are
alſo an article of commerce, and uſed in London by the Breeches-
makers.
USES.
* Crantz, i. 71.
+ Dobbs, 19, 22.
The

30
G.
S T A
CHASE.
The Indians ſhoot them in the winter. The Engliſh make
hedges, with ſtakes and boughs of trees, along the woods, for five
miles in length, leaving openings at proper intervals beſet with
ſnares, in which multitudes are taken.
The Indians alſo kill great numbers during the ſeaſons of migra-
tion, watching in their canoes, and ſpearing them while paffing
over the rivers of the country, or from iſland to iſland; for they
fwim moſt admirably well.
A benevolent governor of Iceland, about twenty years ago, in-
troduced the Rein Deer into that iſland ; and I am informed by
Mr. Stanley, that they increaſe and proſper greatly.
5. STAG.
Hift. Quad. N° 45.-Smellie, iv. 74.-Lev. Mus.
DEER. With long upright horns much branched : ſlender
and ſharp brow antlers : color a reddiſh brown: belly and
lower ſide of the tail white: the horns often fuperior in ſize to
thoſe of the European Stags, ſome being above four feet high, and
thirty pounds in weight.
Inhabits Canada, particularly the vaſt foreſts about the lakes;
are ſeen in great numbers grazing with the Buffaloes on the rich
ſavannas bordering on the Miſſiſipi, the Miſſouri, and other American
rivers; they are alſo found within our Colonies, but their numbers
decreaſe as population gains ground. An Indian living in 1748
had killed many Stags on the ſpot where Philadelphia now ſtands *.
They feed eagerly on the broad-leaved Kalmia ; yet that plant
is a poiſon to all other horned animals; their inteſtines are found
filled with it during winter. If their entrails are given to Dogs,
* Kalm, i. 336.
they

ST
31
T A G
they become ſtupified, and as if drunk, and often are ſo ill as hardly
to eſcape with life *.
Stags are alſo found in Mexico, where they are called Aculliame :
they differ not from thoſe of Spain in ſhape, ſize, or nature f. South
America is deftitute of theſe animals: they can bear the extremes
of heat but not of cold. They are found neither in Hudſon's Bay,
Kamtſchatka, nor in any country inhabited by the Rein -- a line in a
manner ſeparates them.
Their ſkins are an article of commerce imported | by the Hud-
Son's Bay company; but brought from the diſtant parts far inland
by the Indians, who bring them from the neighborhood of the lakes.
In moſt parts of North America they are called the Grey Mooſe,
and the Elk; this has given occaſion to the miſtaken notion of that
great animal being found in Virginia, and other ſouthern pro-
vinces.
The Stags of America grow very fat: their tallow is much ef-
teemed for making of candles. The Indians ſhoot them. As they
are very ſhy animals, the natives cover themſelves with a hide,
leaving the horns erect; under ſhelter of which they walk within
reach of the herd. De Brie, in the xxvth plate of the Hiſtory of
Florida, gives a very curious repreſentation of this artful method
of chaſe, when it was viſited by the French in 1564.
Stags are totally extirpated in Ruſia, but abound in the moun-
tanous ſouthern tract of Sibiria, where they grow to a fize far fu-
perior to what is known in Europe. The height of a grown Hind
is four feet nine inches and a half, its length eight feet; that of
its head one foot eight inches and a half.
It is poſitively ſaid by Stiernbook, in his treatiſe De jure Sueonum
vetufto, that in old time Stags were unknown in Sweden, and that
I In the ſale
* Kalm, i. 338.
+ Hernandez, Nov. Hifp. 325.
of 1764, 1,307 were entered,
they

32
VIRGINIAN DE ER.
they were introduced there but a little before the time of Guſtavus
Erickſon, who began his reign in 1521. Such Stags (ſays he, to
diſtinguiſh them from the Rein-deer), which are now found in
our ſouthern provinces. Let me add, that it is certain that they
have alſo long ſince reached Norway.
The fpecies ceaſes in the north-eaſtern parts of Sibiria, nor are
any found in Kamtſchatka.
6. VIRGINIAN.
Hift. Quad. Nº 46.Lev. Mus.
a
PLACE.
DEER. With round and ſlender horns, bending greatly for-
ward; numerous branches on the interior fides: deſtitute of
brow antlers : color of the body a cinereous brown: head of a deep
brown: belly, ſides, ſhoulders, and thighs, white, mottled with
brown: tail ten inches long, of a duſky color: feet of a yellowiſh
brown. Are not fo well haunched as the Engliſh Buck, and are
leſs active *.
Inhabits all the provinces ſouth of Canada, but in greateſt
abundance in the ſouthern; but eſpecially the vaſt favannas con-
tiguous to the Miſſiſipi, and the great rivers which flow into it.
They graze in herds innumerable, along with the Stags and Buf-
faloes. This ſpecies probably extends to Guiana, and is the Baieu
of that country, which is ſaid to be about the ſize of a European
Buck, with ſhort horns, bending at their ends t.
They are capable of being made tame; and when properly
trained, are uſed by the Indians to decoy the wild Deer (eſpecially
a
* The late ingenious Mr. Ellis fhewed me a Bezoar found in one of theſe Deer,
killed in Georgia. It was of a ſpheroid form, an inch and three quarters broad, half
an inch thick in the middle ; of a pale brown color; hard, ſmooth, and gloffy.
+ Bancroft.
in

VIRGINIANDE E R.
33
in the rutting ſeaſon) within ſhot. Both Bucks and Does herd
from September to March; after that they ſeparate, and the Does
fecrete themſelves to bring forth, and are found with difficulty.
The Bucks from this time keep feparate, till the amorous ſeaſon
of September revolves. The Deer begin to feed as ſoon as night
begins; and ſometimes, in the rainy ſeaſon, in the day: otherwiſe
they ſeldom or never quit their haunts. An old American ſportſ-
man has remarked, that the Bucks will keep in the thickets for a
year, or even two *.
Theſe animals are very reſtleſs, and always in motion, coming
and going continually t. Thoſe which live near the ſhores are
lean and bad, ſubject to worms in their heads and throats, gene-
rated from the eggs depoſited in thoſe parts I. Thoſe that frequent
the hills and ſavannas are in better caſe, but the veniſon is dry.
In hard winters they will feed on the long moſs which hangs from
the trees in the northern parts.
Theſe and other cloven-footed quadrupeds of America are very FOND OF SALT.
fond of ſalt, and reſort eagerly to the places impregnated with it.
They are always ſeen in great numbers in the ſpots where the
ground has been torn by torrents or other accidents, where they
are ſeen licking the earth. Such ſpots are called licking-places.
The huntſmen are fure of finding the game there; for, not-
withſtanding they are often diſturbed, the Buffaloes and Deer
are ſo paſſionately fond of the favory regale, as to bid defiance
to all danger, and return in droves to theſe favorite haunts.
The ſkins are a great article of commerce, 25,027 being im-
ported from New-York and Penſylvania in the ſale of 1764.
The Deer are of the firſt importance to the Savages. The
ſkins form the greateſt branch of their traffick, by which they pro-
* Doctor Garden.
+ Du Pratz, ii. 51.
I Lawſon, 124.
VOL. I.
F
cure

34
VIRGINIAN DE ER
و
cure from the coloniſts, by way of exchange, many of the articles
of life. To all of them it is the principal food throughout the
year; for by drying it over a gentle but clear fire, after cutting it
into ſmall pieces, it is not only capable of long preſervation, but is
very portable in their fudden excurſions, eſpecially when reduced
to powder, which is frequently done.
Hunting is more than an amuſement to theſe people. They
give themſelves up to it not only for the ſake of fubfiftence, but to
fit themſelves for war, by habituating themſelves to fatigue. A
good huntſman is an able warrior. Thoſe who fail in the ſports
of the field are never ſuppoſed to be capable of ſupporting the
hardſhips of a campaign; they are degraded to ignoble offices,
fuch as dreſſing the ſkins of Deer, and other employs allotted only
to ſlaves and women *.
When a large party meditates a hunting-match, which is uſually
at the beginning of winter, they agree on a place of rendezvous,
often five hundred miles diſtant from their homes, and a place,
perhaps, that many of them had never been at. They have no
other method of fixing on the ſpot than by pointing with their
finger. The preference is given to the eldeſt, as the moſt expe-
rienced t.
When this matter is fettled, they feparate into ſmall parties,
travel and hunt for ſubſiſtence all the day, and reſt at night; but
the women have no certain reſting-places. The Savages have
their particular hunting countries; but if they invade the limits of
thoſe belonging to other nations, feuds enſue, fatal as thoſe between
Percy and Douglas in the famed Chevy Chace.
As foon as they arrive on the borders of the hunting country,
(which they never fail doing to a man, be their reſpective routes
• Lawſon, 208.
+ Cateſby, App. xii.
ever

VIRGINIAN DE ER.
35
ever ſo diſtant or ſo various) the captain of the band delineates
on the bark of a tree his own figure, with a Rattleſnake twined
round him with diftended mouth; and in his hand a bloody toma-
hawk. By this he implies a deſtructive menace to any who are
bold enough to invade their territories, or to interrupt their di-
verſion *
The chaſe is carried on in different ways. Some ſurpriſe the
Deer by uſing the ſtale of the head, horns, and hide, in the man-
ner before mentioned: but the general method is performed by
the whole body. Several hundreds diſperſe in a line, encompaſ-
ſing a vaſt ſpace of country, fire the woods, and drive the animals
into ſome ſtrait or peninſula, where they become an eaſy prey.
The Deer alone are not the object; Foxes, Raccoons, Bears, and
all beaſts of fur, are thought worthy of attention, and articles of
commerce with the Europeans.
The number of Deer deſtroyed in ſome parts of America is in-
credible; as is pretended, from an abſurd idea which the Savages
have, that the more they deſtroy, the more they ſhall find in fuc-
ceeding years. Certain it is that multitudes are deſtroyed; the
tongues only preſerved, and the carcaſes left a prey to wild beaſts.
But the motive is much more political. The Savages well diſcern,
that ſhould they overſtock the market, they would certainly be
over-reached by the European dealers, who take care never to pro-
duce more goods than are barely fufficient for the demand of the
ſeaſon, eſtabliſhing their prices according to the quantity of furs
brought by the natives. The hunters live in their quarters with
the utmoſt feſtivity, and indulgence in all the luxuries of the coun-
try. The chaſe rouzes their appetites ; they are perpetually eating,
and will even riſe to obey, at midnight, the calls of hunger. Their
* Cateſby, App. ix.
F 2
viands

36
VIRGINIAN DE E R.
viands are exquiſite. Veniſon boiled with red peaſe; turkies bar-
becued and eaten with bears fat; fawns cut out of the does belly,
and boiled in the native bag; fiſh, and crayfiſh, taken in the next
ſtream; dried peaches, and other fruits, form the chief of their
good living *. Much of this food is carminative : they give looſe
to the effects, and (reverſe to the cuſtom of the delicate Arabs +)
laugh moſt heartily on the occaſion I.
They bring along with them their wives and miſtreſſes : not that
they pay any great reſpect to the fair. They make (like the Cath-
neſans) errant pack-horſes of them, loading them with proviſions,
or the ſkins of the chaſe; or making them provide fire-wood.
Love is not the paſſion of a Savage, at left it is as brief with them
as with the animals they purſue.
Mr. Hutchins was preſented, by the Weahipouk Indians, with a
Deer four feet eight inches long, and three feet two high. It was
entirely white, except the back, which was mottled with brown.
The fur was ſhort and fine, like that of the Ermine. The Indians,
in their manner of expreſſion, ſaid it came from a place where there
was little or no day,
7. MEXICAN.
Mexican Roe? Hift. Quad. N° 52.- Smellie, iv. 136.
a
DEER. With horns near nine inches long, meaſuring by the
curvature; and near nine inches between tip and tip, and two
inches diſtant between the baſes. About an inch and a half from
the bottom is one ſharp erect ſnag. This, and the lower parts
of the horns, are very rough, ſtrong, and ſcabrous.
parts bend forwards over the baſes; are ſmooth, flatted, and broad,
dividing into three ſharp ſnags. Color of the hair like the Eu-
The upper
# Lawſon, 207
+ D'Arvieux's travels, 147.
I Lawſon, 207
ropean

MEXICAN ROE.
37
ropean Roe; but while young are rayed with white. In fize fome-
what fuperior to the European Roe.
Inhabits Mexico * ; probably extends to the interior north-weſtern
parts of America, and may prove the Scenoontung or Squinaton, de-
ſcribed as being leſs than a Buck and larger than a Roe, but very
like it, and of an elegant formt
а
Hift. Quad. N° 51.-Smellie, iv. 120.--Lev. Mus.
7. Roe.
DEER. With upright, round, rugged horns, trifurcated: hairs
tawny at their ends, grey below: rump and under-ſide of the
tail white. Length near four feet: tail only an inch.
According to Charlevoix, they are found in great numbers in Ca-
nada. He ſays they differ not from the European kind: are eaſily
domeſticated. The Does will retreat into the woods to bring forth,
and return to their maſter with their young I. They extend far
weſt §. If Piſo's figure may be depended on, they are found in
Brazil ||; are frequent in Europe ; and inhabit as high as Sweden
and Norway 1 : is unknown in Ruſia.
Roes are at preſent found ſcarcely any where but in the foreſt of
Smaland, and that but rarely. The female brings only two at a
time: the buck will defend itſelf with courage againſt the dogs,
when driven to extremity. They never make a ring when they
are hunted, but run ſtrait forward, two or three Swediſh miles, or
twelve or eighteen Engliſ; and then return along their former
track; but fo fatigued as ſeldom to eſcape.
* Hernandez. + Dobbs's Hudſon's Bay, 24.
§ Dobbs's Hudſon's Bay, 24.
Norway, ii. 9.
I Hift. Nouv. France, v. 195
q Faun. Suec. Nº 43, and Pontop,
Il 97
TAIL-LESS

38
RO E.
A.
a
TAIL-Less Roe, Hift. Quad. p. 109.
In its ſtead is a larger variety: with horns like the laſt, and color
the ſame; only a great bed of white covers the rump, and extends
ſome way up the back: no tail, only a broad cutaneous excreſ-
cence around the anus.
Inhabits all the temperate parts of Ruſa and Sibiria, and extends
as far to the north as the Elk. Deſcends to the open plains in the
winter. The Tartars call it Saiga: the Ruſians Dikaja Roza.
B. FALLOW-DEER, Hift. Quad. Nº 44.
Are animals impatient of cold: are unknown in the Ruſan
empire, except by importation: and are preſerved in parks in
Sweden *. The Engliſh tranſlator of Pontoppidan mentions them
(perhaps erroneouſly) among the deer of Norway.
FALLOW-DEER feem not to have been natives of Sweden ; there
are none in the foreſts, but which have eſcaped out of the king's
parks: ſuch as thoſe near the capital ; in the iſle of Oeland; that
of Weſengore, in lake Wetter ; and at Omberg. Even Stags are rare
in a ſtate of nature, and thoſe only in the foreſts of Smaland.
a
* Du Pratz, ii, 54.
MUSK.

M U S K.
39
M U S K. Hift. Quad. GENU S. X.
A.
Tiber M. Hift. Quad. N° 54.-Moſchus, Pallas Sp. Zool. faſc. xiii. Lev. Mus.
MUS
a
USK. With very ſharp ſlender white tuſks on each ſide
of the upper jaw, hanging out far below the under jaw: ears
rather large : neck thick: hair on the whole body long, upright,
and thick ſet; each hair undulated; tips ferruginous; beneath
them black; the bottoms cinereous : on each fide of the front of
the neck is a white line edged with black, meeting at the cheft;
another croſſes that beneath the throat: limbs very ſender, and of
a full black: tail very ſhort, and ſcarcely viſible. The female
wants the tuſks and the muſk-bag.
The muſk-bag is placed on the belly, almoſt between the thighs.
A full-grown male will yield a drachm and a half of muſk; an old
one two drachms.
The length of the male is two feet eleven; of the female, two
feet three. The weight of a male from twenty-five to thirty
pounds, Troy weight: of an old female, from thirty to thirty-five;
but ſome young ones do not exceed eighteen.
Inhabits Afia, from lat. 20 to 60, or from the kingdoms of Laos
and Tong-King, between India and China, and through the kingdom
of Tibet * as high as Mangaſea. The river Jeneſei is its weſtern
*
boundary, and it extends eaſtward as far as lake Baikal, and about
the rivers Lena and Witim; but gradually narrows the extent of its
reſidence as it approaches the tropic. Lives on the higheſt and
rudeſt mountains, amidſt the ſnows, or in the fir-woods which lie
SIZE.
PLACE
• Correct in p. 113, Hift. Quad. 9. 44 or 45, read 20.
between

M
U S K.
between them: goes uſually ſolitary, except in autumn, when they
collect in flocks to change their place: are exceſſively active, and
take amazing leaps over the tremendous chaſms of their alps, or
from rock to rock: tread ſo light on the ſnow, with their true and
falſe hoofs extended, as ſcarcely to leave a mark; while the dogs
which purſue them fink in, and are forced to defift from the chaſe :
are ſo fond of liberty as never to be kept alive in captivity. They
feed on lichens, arbutus, rhododendron, and whortleberry-plants. Their
chaſe is moſt laborious: they are taken in ſnares; or ſhot by croſs-
bows placed in their tracks, with a ſtring from the trigger for
them to tread on and diſcharge. The Tunguſi ſhoot them with
bows and arrows.
The ſkins are uſed for bonnets and winter
dreſſes. The Ruſians often ſcrape off the hair, and have a way of
preparing them for ſummer cloathing, ſo as to become as ſoft and
ſhining as filk.
The two other hoofed animals of the north of Aſia, the Two-
bunched Camel, and the Wild Boar, do not reach as high as lat. 60:
the firſt is found in great troops about lake Baikal, as far as lat. 56
or 57; but if brought as high as Jakutſk, beyond lat. 60, periſh
with cold *. The Wild Boar is common in all the reedy marſhes
of Tartary and Sibiria, and the mountanous foreſts about lake
Baikal, almoſt to lat. 55; but none in the north-eaſtern extremity
of Sibiria.
CAMEL.
WILD BOAR.
* Zimmerman, 357-
he
nog
DI V.

DIV. II.
DIGITATED QUADRUPED S.
SECT. I. With CANINE TEETH.
VOL.I.
G

WOLF.
DIV. II. Digitated Quadrupeds.
SECT. I. With CANINE TEETH.
Rapacious, Carnivorous.
DOG
HIST. QUA D. GENUS XVII.
9. WOLF
Hift. Quad. Nº 137.-Smellie, iv. 196--Lev. Mus.
OG. With a long head : pointed noſe: ears ſharp and erect:
legs long : tail buſhy, bending down: hair pretty long,
Color uſually of a pale brown, mixed with dull yellow and black.
Inhabits the interior countries ſouth of Hudſon's Bay; and from
thence all America, as low as Florida. There are two varieties, a
greater and a leſſer. The firſt uſually confines itſelf to the colder
parts. The latter is not above fifteen inches high *. In the more
uninhabited parts of the country, they go in great droves, and
hunt the deer like a pack of hounds, and make a hideous noiſe.
They will attack the Buffalo; but only venture on the ftragglers.
In the unfrequented parts of America are very tame, and will come
near the few habitations in hopes of finding ſomething to eat.
They are often fo very poor and hungry, for want of prey, as to
go into a ſwamp and fill themſelves with mud, which they will dif-
gorge as ſoon as they can get any food. .
The Wolves towards Hudſon's Bay are of different colors; grey
and white; and ſome black and white, the black hairs being mixed
with the white chiefly along the back. In Canada they have been
COLOR,
و
* Du Pratz, ii. 54.
found

W OL F.
43
found entirely black *. They are taken in the northern parts in
log-traps, or by ſpring-guns; their ſkins being an article of com-
merce.
a
a
In the LEVERIAN muſeum is the head and fcull of a wolf:
duſky and brown, formed by the natives into a helmet. The pro-
tection of the head was the natural and firſt thought of mankind;
and the ſpoils of beaſts were the firſt things that offered. Hercules
ſeized on the ſkin of the Lion : the Americans, and ancient Latians
that of the Wolf.
Fulvoſque Lupi de pelle galeros
Tegmen habet capiti.
Wolves are now ſo rare in the populated parts of America, that
the inhabitants leave their ſheep the whole night unguarded : yet
the governments of Penſylvania and New Jerſey did ſome years ago
allow a reward of twenty ſhillings, and the laſt even thirty ſhillings,
for the killing of every Wolf. Tradition informed them what a
ſcourge thoſe animals had been to the colonies ; ſo they wiſely de-
termined to prevent the like evil. In their infant ſtate, wolves came
down in multitudes from the mountains, often attracted by the
ſmell of the corpſes of hundreds of Indians who died of the ſmall-
pox, brought among them by the Europeans : but the animals did
not confine their inſults to the dead, but even devoured in their
huts the ſick and dying Savages t.
The Wolf is capable of being in ſome degree tamed and do-
meſticated I. It was, at the firſt arrival of the Europeans, and is
ſtill in many places, the Dog of the Americans §. It ſtill betrays
its favage deſcent, by uttering only a howl inſtead of the ſignificant
bark of the genuine Dog. This half-reclamed breed wants the
DOGE
* Smellie, iv. 212.
-Lawſon, 119.
+ Kalm, i. 285,
I The ſame, 286.
Smith's Hift. Virginia, 27.-Crantz Greenland, i. 74.
G2
ſagacity

W OL F.
ſagacity of our faithful attendant ; and is of little farther uſe in
the chaſe, than in frightening the wild beaſts into the ſnares or
traps.
The Kamtſchatkans, Eſkimaux, and Greenlanders, ſtrangers to the
ſofter virtues, treat theſe poor animals with great neglect. The
former, during ſummer, the ſeaſon in which they are uſeleſs, turn
them looſe to provide for themſelves; and recall them in Oetober
into their uſual confinement and labor: from that time till ſpring
they are fed with fiſh-bones and opana, i. e. putrid fiſh preſerved
in pits, and ſerved up to them mixed with hot water. Thoſe uſed
for draught are caſtrated ; and four, yoked to the carriage, will
draw five poods, or a hundred and ninety Engliſh pounds, beſides
the driver; and thus loaden, will travel thirty verſts, or twenty
miles, a day; or if unloaden, on hardened ſnow, on ſliders of
bone, a hundred and fifty verſts, or a hundred Engliſh miles *.
It is pretty certain that the Kamtſchatkan Dogs are of wolfiſh de-
ſcent; for Wolves abound in that country, in all parts of Sibiria,
and even under the Aretic circle. If their maſter is flung out of
his fledge, they want the affectionate fidelity of the European kind,
and leave him to follow, never ſtopping till the fledge is overturn-
ed, or elſe ſtopped by ſome impediment f. I am alſo ſtrengthened
in my opinion by the ſtrong rage they have for the purſuit of
deer, if on the journey they croſs the ſcent; when the maſter
finds it very difficult to make them purſue their way.
The great traveller of the thirteenth century, Marco Polo, had
knowledge of this ſpecies of conveyance from the merchants who
went far north to traffic for the precious furs. He deſcribes the
Hiſt. Kamtſchatka, 107.197.
+ The ſame, 107.
# The ſame. There is a variety of black wolves in the Vekroturian mountains.
The ſhe-wolves have been ſucceſsfully coupled with dogs in ſome noblemen's parks
about Moſcow.
fledges
3

W OL F.
45
fledges ; adds, that they were drawn by ſix grear dogs; and that
they changed them and the fledges on the road, as we do at pre-
fent in going poſt *.
The Kamtſchatkans make uſe of the ſkins of dogs for cloathing,
and the long hair for ornament: fome nations are fond of them
as a food; and reckon a fat dog a great delicacy t. Both the
Afiatic and American Savages uſe theſe animals in facrifices to their
gods I, to beſpeak favor, or avert evil. When the Koreki dread
any infection, they kill a dog, wind the inteſtines round two poles,
and paſs between them.
The Greenlanders are not better maſters. They leave their dogs GREENLAND.
to feed on muffels or berries; unleſs in a great capture of ſeals,
when they treat them with the blood and garbage. Theſe people
alſo ſometimes eat their dogs : uſe the ſkins for coverlets, for
cloathing, or to border and ſeam their habits: and their beſt thread
is made of the guts.
The Dogs in general are large; and, in the frigid parts at left,
have the appearance of Wolves : are uſually white, with a black
face; ſometimes varied with black and white, ſometimes all white;
rarely brown, or all black : have ſharp noſes, thick hair, and ſhort
ears : and feldom bark; but ſet up a ſort of growl, or favage
howl. They ſleep abroad ; and make a lodge in the ſnow, lying
with only their noſes out. They ſwim moft excellently: and will
hunt, in packs, the ptarmigan, arctic fox, polar bear, and ſeals
lying on the ice. The natives ſometimes uſe them in the chaſe
of the bear. They are exceſſively fierce; and, like wolves, in-
ftantly fly on the few domeſtic animals introduced into Greenland.
They will fight among themſelves, even to death. Canine mad-
* In Bergeron, 160.
{ame, Drage, i. 216.
+ Hift. Kamtſchatka, 231.-The Americans do the
| Hift. Kamtſch. 226.-Drage, ii. 41.
neſs

46
WOLF.
ICELAND
:
a
neſs is unknown in Greenland *. They are to the natives in the
place of horſes: the Greenlanders faſten to their fledges from four
to ten; and thus make their viſits in favage ſtate, or bring home
the animals they have killed. Egede ſays that they will travel over
the ice fifteen German miles in a day, or fixty Englifh, with fledges
loaden with their maſters and five or fix large ſeals †.
Thoſe of the neighboring iſland of Iceland have a great reſem-
blance to them. As to thoſe of Newfoundland, it is not certain
that there is any diſtinct breed : moſt of them are curs, with a croſs
of the maſtiff: ſome will, and others will not, take the water, ab-
ſolutely refuſing to go in. The country was found uninhabited,
which makes it more probable that they were introduced by the
Europeans ; who uſe them, as the factory does in Hudſon's Bay, to
draw firing from the woods to the forts.
The Savages who trade to Hudſon's Bay make uſe of the wolfiſh
kind to draw their furs.
It is fingular, that the race of European Dogs ſhew as ſtrong an
antipathy to this American ſpecies, as they do to the Wolf itſelf.
They never meet with them, but they ſhew all poſſible ſigns of
diſlike, and will fall on and worry them; while the wolfiſh breed,
with every mark of timidity, puts its tail between its legs, and
runs from the rage of the others. This averfion to the Wolf is
natural to all genuine Dogs: for it is well known that a whelp,
which has never ſeen a wolf, will at firſt ſight tremble, and run to
its maſter for protection: an old dog will inſtantly attack it.
I ſhall conclude this article with an abſtract of a letter from Dr.
Pallas, dated O&tober 5th, 1781; in which he gives the following
confirmation of the mixed breed of theſe animals and Dogs.
“I have ſeen at Moſcow about twenty fpurious animals from
« dogs and black wolves. They are for the moſt part like wolves,
* Faun, Greenl. p. 19.
+ Egede, 63.-Crantz, i. 74.
.
66
except

W OL F.
47
C
a
e except that fome carry their tails higher, and have a kind of
s coarſe barking. They multiply among themſelves: and ſome
“ of the whelps are greyiſh, ruſty, or even of the whitiſh hue of
“ the Arctic wolves : and one of thoſe I ſaw, in ſhape, tail, and
“ hair, and even in barking, fo like a cur, that, was it not for his
“ head and ears, his ill-natured look, and fearfulneſs at the ap-
proach of man, I ſhould hardly have believed that it was of
" the ſame breed.”
In many parts of Sweden the number of Wolves has been con-
fiderably diminiſhed by placing poiſoned carcaſes in their way:
but in other places they are found in great multitudes. Hunger
ſometimes compels them to eat lichens ; thoſe vegetables were
found in the body of one killed by a ſoldier, but it was ſo weak,
that it could ſcarcely move. It probably had fed on the lichen
vulpinus, which is a known poiſon to theſe animals.
Madneſs, in certain years, is very apt to ſeize the Wolf. The
conſequences are often very melancholy. Mad Wolves will bite
Hogs and Dogs, and the laſt again, the human ſpecies. In a ſingle
pariſh fourteen perſons were victims to this dreadful malady. The
fymptoms are the ſame with thoſe attendant on the bite of a mad
dog. Fury ſparkles in their eyes; a glutinous faliva diſtils from
their mouths; they carry their tails low, and bite indifferently
men and beaſts. It is remarkable that this diſeaſe happens in the
depth of winter, ſo can never be attributed to the rage of the dog-
days.
Often, towards ſpring, Wolves get upon the ice of the ſea, to
prey on the young Seals, which they catch aſleep: but this repaſt
often proves fatal to them; for the ice, detached from the ſhore,
carries them to a great diſtance from land, before they are ſenſible
of it. In ſome years a large diſtrict is by this means delivered
from theſe pernicious beaſts; which are heard howling in a moſt
dreadful manner, far in the ſea.
When
a
a

A
ARCTIC FOX.
8
When Wolves come to make their attack on cattle, they never
fail attempting to frighten away the men by their cries; but the
ſound of the horn makes them fly like lightning.
10. ARCTIC
Arctic Fox, Hift. Quad. No
Lev. Mus.
*
DOG. With a ſharp noſe : ears almoſt hid in the fur, ſhort
and rounded : hair long, ſoft, and filky : legs ſhort: toes
covered above and below with very thick and ſoft fur: tail ſhorter
than that of the common Fox, and more buſhy.
Inferior in fize to the common Fox: color a blueiſh-grey,
and ſometimes white. The young, before they come to maturity,
duſky. The hair, as uſual in cold regions, grows much thicker
and longer in winter than ſummer.
Theſe animals are found only in the Arctic regions, a few de-
grees within and without the Polar circle. They inhabit Spitz-
bergen, Greenland, and Iceland * : are only migratory in Hudſon's
Bay, once in four or five years t: are found again in Bering's
and I Copper Iſe, next to it; but in none beyond : in Kamts-
chatka, and all the countries bordering on the frozen fea, which
ſeems their great reſidence; comprehending a woodleſs tract of
heath land, generally from 70 to 65 degrees lat. They abound
in Nova Zembla || : are found in Cherry iſland, midway between
Finmark and Spitzbergen , to which they muſt have been brought
on iſlands of ice; for it lies above four degrees north of the firſt,
and three ſouth of the laſt : and laſtly, in the bare mountains be-
tween Lapland and Norway. When the Arctic Fox has been in
purſuit of the wandering Lemmus, p. 136. Art. Zool. it ſometimes
loſes its way home, and has been taken in places far from its
I
* Egede, 62.-Marten's Spitzb. 100.--Horrebow's Iceland, 43. + Mr. Graham.
| Muller's Col. Voy. 53.
|| Heemſkirk's Voy. 34. $ Purchas, iii. 559
natural

ARCTIC
49
F O X.
natural haunts. The late Mr. Kalm has left an inſtance of one
being taken in Weſtrogothia. Profeſſor Retzius favored me with
an account of one ſhot near to Lund, in lat. 55. 42.
They are the hardieſt of animals, and even in Spitzbergen and
Nova Zembla prowl out for prey during the ſeverity of winter.
They live on the young wild geeſe, and all kind of water-fowl;
on their eggs; on hares, or any leſſer animals; and in Greenland,
(through neceſſity) on berries, ſhell-fiſh, or whatſoever the ſea
throws up. But in the north of Aſia, and in Lapland, their prin-
cipal food is the Lemings *. The Arctic foxes of thoſe countries
are as migratory as thoſe little animals; and when the laſt make
their great migrations, the latter purſue them in vaſt troops. But
ſuch removals are not only uncertain, but long : dependent on
thoſe of the Leming. The Foxes will at times deſert their native
countries for three or four years, probably as long as they can find
any prey. The people of Jeniſea imagine, that the wanderers from
their parts go to the banks of the Oby.
Thoſe found on Bering's and Copper Iſles were probably brought
from the Aſiatic fide on floating ice : Steller having ſeen in the re-
moter iſlands only the black and brown foxes : and the fame only
on the continent of America. They burrow in the earth, and form
koles many feet in length ; ftrewing the bottom with moſs. But
in Spitzbergen and Greenland, where the ground is eternally frozen,
they live in the cliffs of rocks : two or three inhabit the ſame hole.
They ſwim well, and often croſs from iſland to iſland in ſearch of
prey. They are in heat about Lady-day; and during that time
continue in the open air : after that, retreat to their earths. Like
ز
* Of which I apprehend there are two ſpecies--the Lapland, Hift. Quad. N°317
and the Mus Migratorius of Pallas, or Yaik Rat, Hift. Quad. N° 326. which inhabits
the country near the Waik.
VOL. I.
H
Н
dogs,

50
ARCTIC F O X.
3
:
dogs, continue united in copulation: bark like them: for which
reaſon the Ruſſians call them Peſzti. They couple in Greenland in
March, and again in May; and bring forth in April and in June *.
They are tame and inoffenſive animals; and ſo ſimple, that there
are inſtances of their ſtanding by when the trap was baiting, and
inſtantly after putting their heads into it. They are killed for the
fake of their ſkins, both in Aſia and Hudſon's Bay: the fur is light
and warm, but not durable. Mr. Graham informed me, that they
have appeared in ſuch numbers about the fort, that he has taken,
in different ways, four hundred from December to March. He
likewiſe aſſured me, that the tips of their tails are always black;
thoſe of the common foxes always white: and that he never could
trace the breeding-places of the former.
The Greenlanders take them either in pitfalls dug in the ſnow, and
baited with the Capelin fiſh; or in fprings made with whale-bone,
laid over a hole made in the ſnow, ſtrewed over at bottom with
the ſame kind of fiſh; or in traps made like little huts, with flat
ftones, with a broad one by way of door, which falls down (by
means of a ſtring baited on the inſide with a piece of fleſh) when-
ever the fox enters and pulls at it t. The Greenlanders preſerve
the ſkins for traffic; and in caſes of neceſſity eat the fleſh. They
alſo make buttons of the ſkins: and ſplit the tendons, and make
uſe of them inſtead of thread. The blue furs are much more
eſteemed than the white.
10 A.
The Sooty. D. with a duſky fur on every part; in ſize and
habit reſembling the former.
A diſtinct ſpecies. Inhabits Iceland in great numbers. Commu-
nicated to me by John Thomas Stanley, Efq; who, excited by his paf-
& Faun. Groenl. 20.
+ Crantz, i. 72.
fion

EUROPEAN FOX,
51
fion for ſcience, in 1789 made a voyage to Iceland; and returned
highly informed of the various inſtructive particulars reſpecting that
wondrous iſland.
30 B.
GREENLAND. D. above of a footy brown: ears rounded, white
within: a white bed extends from each to the lower part of the throat;
which, with the whole underſide, and inſide of the haunches, is white:
tail white below, brown above; in one ſpecimen the one half of the
tail wholly white: beneath each eye a white ſpot: feet furred
beneath. A
very
ſmall ſpecies.
Inhabits Greenland. Bought by Mr. Stanley, at Copenhagen.
European Fox, Hift. Quad. Nº 139.-Smellie, iv. 214.-Lev. Mus.
11. EUROPEAN
DOG. With a pointed noſe: pointed erect ears: body of a
tawny red, mixed with aſh-color: fore part of the legs black :
tail long and buſhy, tipt with white.
Inhabits the northern parts of North America, from Hudſon's Bay
probably acroſs the continent to the iſlands intermediate between
America and Kamtſchatka. Captain Bering ſaw there five quite
tame, being unuſed to the fight of man.
This ſpecies gradually decreaſes to the ſouthward, in numbers
and in fize: none are found lower than Penſylvania. They are
ſuppoſed not to have been originally natives of that country. The
Indians believe they came from the north of Europe in an exceſſive
hard winter, when the ſea was frozen. The truth ſeems to be,
that they were driven in ſome ſevere ſeaſon from the north of their
own country, and have continued there ever ſince. They abound
about Hudſon's Bay, the Labrador country, and in Newfoundland
and
H 2

52
В L A с к Fox.
and Canada; and are found in Iceland *. They burrow as the Eu-
ropean foxes do; and in Hudſon's Bay, during winter, run about the
woods in ſearch of prey, feeding on birds and leffer animals, para
ticularly mice.
New England is ſaid to have been early ſtocked with foxes by a
gentleman who imported them from England, for the pleaſure of
the chafe ; and that the preſent breed ſprung from the occaſion.
This ſpecies is reckoned among the pernicious animals, and, being
very
deſtructive to lambs, are proſcribed at the rate of two ſhillings
a head.
The variety of Britiſh fox, with a black tip to the tail, ſeems un-
known in America.
The ſkins are a great article of commerce : abundance are im-
ported annually from Hudſon's Bay and Newfoundland. The natives
of Hudſon's Bay eat the fleſh, rank as it is.
This ſpecies abounds in Kamtſchatka, and is the fineſt red fur of
any known: grows ſcarce within the Arctic circle of the Afatic
regions, and is found there often white.
a
E BLACK
ز
THIS variety is found very often entirely black, with a white
tip to the tail; and is far inferior in value and beauty to thoſe
of Kamtſchatka and Sibiria, where a ſingle ſkin ſells for four hundred
rubles.
The beſt in North America are found on the Labrador ſide of
Hudſon's Bay. They are alſo very common on the iſlands oppoſite
to Kamtſchatka. The American black foxes, which I have examined,
are frequently of a mixed color: from the hind part of the head to
a
* Olaffen, i. 31.
܂
+ Kalm, i. 283.
the

CROSS AND BRANT FOX.
53
the middle of the back is a broad black line: the tail, legs, and
belly, black: the hairs on the face, fides, and lower part of the
back, cinereous; their upper ends black; the tip white.
a
B CROSS
FOX. With a bed of black running along the top of the back,
croſſed by another paſſing down each ſhoulder; from whence
it took the name. The belly is black : the color of the reſt of the
body varies in different ſkins; but in all is a mixture of black, cine-
reous, and yellow: the fur in all very foft: and the tail very buſhy
and full of hair; for nature, in the rigorous climate of the North,
is ever careful to guard the extremities againſt the injury of cold.
This is likewiſe a very valuable variety. It is remarked, that
the more defireable the fur is, the more cunning and difficult to be
taken is the fox which owns it *. The Coſſacks quartered in Kamt-
ſchatka have attempted for two winters to catch a ſingle black fox.
The Croſs-fox, Vulpes crucigera of Geſner, and Kors-raef of the
Swedes t, is found in all the Polar countries.
In the new-diſcovered Fox iſlands theſe animals abound: one in
three or four are found entirely black, and larger than any in
Sibiria : the tail alſo is tipt with white. But as they live among
the rocks, there being no woods in thoſe iſlands, their hair is almoſt
as coarſe as that of the Wolf, and of little value compared to the
Sibirian.
Brant Fox, Hift. Quad. p. 235
7 BRANT
Fox. With a very ſharp and black noſe: ſpace round the
ears ferruginous : forehead, back, ſhoulders, fides, and thighs,
red, cinereous, and black: the aſh-color predominates, which
* Hift. Kamtſchatka, 95.
+ Gefner Quad. 967.-Faun. Suec. Nº
4:
gives

$4
CORSAK AND GREY FOX.
.
gives it a hoary look : belly yellowiſh: tail black above, cinereous
on the ſides, red beneath.
About half the ſize of the common fox. Deſcribed from one
.
Mr. Brooks received from Penſylvania, under the name of Brandt-
fox; but it had not that bright redneſs to merit the name of either
Brandt-fuchſe, or Brand-raef, given by Geſner and Linnæus.
• Corsak
Corſak Fox, Hift. Quad. p. 236.
Fox.
With upright ears: yellowiſh-green irides: throat
white: color, in fummer, pale tawny; in winter, cinereous :
middle of the tail cinereous; baſe and tip black; the whole
very full of hair: the fur is coarſer and ſhorter than that of the
common fox.
I diſcovered this ſpecies among the drawings of the late Taylor
White, Eſq; who informed me that it came from North America.
I imagine, from Hudſon's Bay.
This ſpecies is very common in the hilly and temperate parts
of Tartary, from the Don to the Amur ; but never is found in
woody places: it burrows deep beneath the ſurface. It is alſo
ſaid to inhabit the banks of the rivers Indigiſky and Anadyr, where
the hills grow bare. In the reſt of Sibiria it is only known beyond
lake Baikal; and from fkins brought by the Kirghiſian and Bu-
charian traders. In Ruſſia it is found in the defarts towards Cri-
mea and Aftracan, and alſo on the ſouthern end of the Urallian
mountains.
12. GREY.
Grey Fox, Hift. Quad. Nº 142.
Fox. With a harp noſe : long sharp upright ears : long
legs: color entirely grey, except a little redneſs about the
cars.
Inhabits

GREY AND SILVERY FOX.
55
rica;
Inhabits from New England to the ſouthern end of North Ame-
but are far more numerous in the ſouthern colonies. They
have not the rank ſmell of the red foxes. They are alſo leſs active,
and grow very fat*. They breed in hollow trees : give no di-
verſion to the ſportſmen, for after a mile's chaſe they run up a tree t.
They feed on birds; are deſtructive to poultry; but never deſtroy
lambs I. The ſkins are uſed to line clothes: the fur is in great
requeſt among the hatters. The greaſe is reckoned efficacious
in rheumatic diſorders.
a
Silvery Fox, Hift. Quad. Nº 143.
13. SILVERY.
a
Fox. With a fine and thick coat of a deep brown color, over-
ſpread with long ſilvery hairs of a moſt elegant appearance.
Inhabits Louiſiana, where their holes are ſeen in great abundance
on the woody heights. As they live in foreſts, which abound
in game, they never moleft the poultry, ſo are ſuffered to run at
large .
They differ ſpecifically from the former, more by their nature
in burrowing, than in colors.
Mr. Hutchins informed me of a whitiſh grey Fox, no larger than
a Hare, common among the Archithinue Indians : four thouſand of
their ſkins have been ſent in one year to the factories.
a
* Lawſon, 125.
+ Cateſby, ii. 78.-Joſelyn, 82.
$ Du Pratz, ii. 64--Charlevoix, v. 196.
I Kalm, i. 282
HIST

56
A.
PUMA.
CAT.
HIS T.
QU A D. GENUS XIX.
14. PUMA
Hift. Quad. Nº 160.-Smellie, v. 197. 200.-Lev. MUS.
a
CA
AT. With a ſmall head; large eyes : ears a little pointed :
chin white: back, neck, fides, and rump, of a pale browniſh
red, mixed with duſky hairs: breaſt, belly, and inſide of the legs,
cinereous : tail a mixture of duſky and ferruginous, the tip
black.
The teeth of a vaſt ſize: claws whitiſh; the outmoft claw of the
fore feet much larger than the reſt: the body very long: the legs
high and ſtrong. The length of that I examined was five feet
three from head to tail; of the tail, two feet eight.
Inhabits the continent of North America, from Canada to Florida ;
and the ſpecies is continued from thence low into South America,
through Mexico, Guiano, Braſil, and the province of Quito, in Peru,
where it is called Puma, and by the Europeans miſtaken for a Lion:
it is, by reaſon of its fierceneſs, the ſcourge of the country. The
different climate of North America ſeems to have ſubdued its rage,
and rendered it very fearful of mankind: the left cur, in company
with his maſter, will make it run up a tree *, which is the opportu-
nity of ſhooting it. It proves, if not killed outright, a dangerous
enemy; for it will deſcend, and attack either man or beaſt. The
fleſh is white, and reckoned very good. The Indians uſe the ſkin
for winter habits; and when dreſſed is made into ſhoes for women,
and gloves for ment.
• Cateſby, App. xxv.
+ Lawſon, 118.
It

PU M A. L Y N X.
57
It is called in North America the Panther, and is the moſt per-
nicious animal of that continent. Lives in the foreſts. Sometimes
purs, at other times makes a great howling. Is extremely de-
ſtructive to domeſtic animals, particularly to hogs. It preys alſo
upon the Mooſe, and other deer; falling on them from the tree it
lurks in, and never quits its hold *. The deer has no other way
of ſaving itſelf, but by plunging into the water, if there happens
to be any near; for the Panther, like the Cat, deteſts that element.
It will feed even on beaſts of prey. I have ſeen the ſkin of one
which was ſhot, juſt as it had killed a wolf. When it has ſatisfied
itſelf with eating, it carefully conceals the reſt of the carcaſe, cover-
ing it with leaves. If any other animal touches the reliques, it never
touches them again.
a
Hij. Quad. Nº 170. Smellie, V. 207. 217.--Lev. Mus.
15. Lynx
CAT. With pale yellow eyes : ears erect, tufted with black
long hair: body covered with ſoft and long fur, cinereous
tinged with tawny, and marked with duſky ſpots, more or leſs
viſible in different ſubjects, dependent on the age, or ſeaſon in which
the animal is killed: the legs ſtrong and thick: the claws large.
About three times the ſize of a common Cat: the tail only four
inches long, tipt with black.
Inhabits the vaſt foreſts of North America: is called in Canada,
Le Chat, ou Le Loup-cervier t, on account of its being ſo deſtructive
to deer; which it drops on from the trees, like the former, and,
* Charlevoix, v. 189, who by miſtake calls it Carcajou, and Kincajou ; two very
different animals.
+ Charlevoix, V. 195.
VOL. I.
1
fixing

58
B A Y LY N X.
fixing on the jugular vein, never quits its hold till the exhauſted
animal falls through loſs of blood *.
The Engliſh call it a Wild Cat. It is very deſtructive to their
young pigs, poultry, and all kind of game. The ſkins are in high
eſteem for the ſoftneſs and warmneſs of the fur; and great numbers
are annually imported into Europe.
The Lynx is the moſt formidable enemy which the Sheep has :
it is pretended that they only fuck the blood: but it is pretty
certain that they alſo devour the liver and lungs, for thoſe parts
are often found eaten. The little Kat-lo or Lynx is very ſcarce ;
its fur is eſteemed more valuable than that of the greater or Warglo.
It is ſuppoſed to be a particular ſpecies.--Mr. Oedman.
26. Bay.
Bay Lynx. Hift. Quad. Nº 171.
CAT. With yellow irides : ears like the former: color of the
head, body, and outſide of the legs and thighs, a bright bay,
obſcurely marked with duſky ſpots: the forehead marked with black
ſtripes from the head to the noſe : cheeks white, varied with three
or four incurvated lines of black : the upper and under lip, belly,
and inſides of the legs and thighs, white: the inſide of the upper
part of the fore legs croſſed with two black bars: the tail ſhort; the
upper part marked with duſky bars, and near the end with one of
black; the under fide white. In fize, about twice that of a com-
mon Cat; the fur ſhorter and ſmoother than that of the former.
This ſpecies is found in the internal parts of the province of New
York. I ſaw one living a few years ago in London. The black
bars on the legs and tail are ſpecific marks.
• Lawſon, 118.---Cateſby, App. xxv.
Hi

MOUNTAIN CAT.
59
17. MOUNTAIN
Hift. Quad. N° 168.
Cat-a-mountain ? Lawſon, 118.Du Pratz, ii. 64.
a
SIZE.
CAT. With upright pointed ears, marked with two brown bars :
head and upper part of the body of a reddiſh brown, with long
narrow ſtripes of black: the ſides and legs with ſmall round ſpots :
chin and throat of a clear white: belly of a dull white: tail eight
inches long, barred with black. Length from noſe to tail two feet
and a half.
Inhabits North America. Is ſaid to be a gentle animal, and to
grow very fat. Deſcribed originally in the Memoires de l'Academie ;
ſince which an account of another, taken in Carolina, was communi-
cated by the late Mr. Collinſon to the Count de Buffon *. The only
difference is in fize; for the laſt was only nineteen inches long:
the tail four ; but the ſame characteriſtic ſtripes, ſpots, and bars,
on the tail, were ſimilar in both.
There ſtill remain undeſcribed ſome animals of the Feline race,
which are found in North America, but too obſcurely mentioned by
travellers to be aſcertained. Such is the beaſt which Lawſon faw to
the weſtward of Carolina, and calls a Tiger. He ſays it was larger
than the Panther, i. e. Puma, and that it differed from the Tiger of
Aſia and Africa t. It poſſibly may be the Braſilian Panther, Hiſt.
Quad. N° 158, which may extend further north than we imagine.
It may likewiſe be the Cat-a-mount of Du Pratz I; which, he
ſays, is as high as the Tiger, i. e. Puma, and the ſkin extremely
beautiful.
The Pijoux of Louiſiana, mentioned by Charlevoix $, are alſo ob-
OBSCURE SPE-
Cies.
* Supplem. iii. 227.
+ Hift. Carolina, 119.
ii. 64.- I wiſh to ſuppreſs the ſynonym of Cat-a-mount, as applied to the Cayenne
Cat, as it ſeems applicable to a much larger ſpecies.
$ Hift. de le Nouv. France, vi. 158.
ſcure
I 2

60
DO MES TIC CA T.
ſcure animals. He ſays they are very like our Wild Cats, but
larger: that ſome have ſhorter tails, and others longer. The firſt
may be referred to one of the three laft fpecies; the laſt may be our
Cayenne Cat, Nº 163.
G
Domeſtic Cats are kept in Iceland and Norway *. Some of them
eſcape and relapſe to a ſavage ſtate. In Iceland thoſe are called Ur-
dakelter, becauſe they live under rocks and looſe ftones, where they
hide themſelves. They prey on ſmall birds. The moſt valuable
of their ſkins are ſold for twelve Daniſh ſkillings, or fix pence a-
piece. Linnæus, ſpeaking of the cats of Sweden, fays, they are of
exotic origint. They are not found wild either in that kingdom,
- or any part of the Ruſſian dominions. Unknown in America.
* Olaf. Iceland, i. Paragr. 80.-Pontop. i. 8.
+ Faun. Suec. Nº 9.
HIST.

POLAR BE A R.
HIST. QU AD. GENUS XX.
BEAR
Hift. Quad. Nº 175.---Lev. Mus.
18. POLAR
BEAR
EAR. With a long narrow head and neck: tip of the noſe
black: teeth of a tremendous magnitude : hair of a great
a
length, ſoft, and white, and in part tinged with yellow : limbs very
thick and ſtrong: ears ſhort and rounded.
Travellers vary about their fize. De Buffon quotes the authority
of Gerard le Ver * for the length of one of the ſkins, which, he ſays,
was twenty-three feet. This ſeems to be extremely miſrepreſented ;
for Gerard, who was a companion of the famous Barentz, and Heemſ-
kirk, a voyager of the firſt credit, killed ſeveral on Nova. Zembla,
the largeſt of which did not exceed thirteen feet in length t. They
ſeem ſmaller on Spitzbergen : one meaſured by order of a noble and
able navigator I, in his late voyage towards the Pole, was as follows:
I give all the meaſurements to aſcertain the proportions.
Feet. Inches.
Length from ſnout to tail
- 7
from fnout to ſhoulder-bone - 2
-
Height at the ſhoulder
Circumference near the fore legs
7
of the neck near the ear
Breadth of the fore-paw
Weight of the carcaſe without the head,
ſkin, or entrails
I
4
+ S
دو در ہ پر د
2
O
610lb.
* De Buffon, Suppl. iii. 200. + See Le Ver, p. 14. ed. 1606. Amſteld..
| The Honorable Conſtantine John Phipps, now Lord Mulgrave.
This

POLAR BEAR,
PLACE
This ſpecies, like the Rein and Arctic Fox, almoſt entirely fur-
rounds the neighborhood of the Polar circle. It is found within it,
far as navigators have penetrated; in the iſland of Spitzbergen, and
within Bafin's Bay; in Greenland and Hudſon's Bay ; in Terra di
Labrador * ; and, by accident, wafted from Greenland, on iſlands of
ice, to Iceland and Newfoundland. It perhaps attends the courſe of
the Arctic circle along the vaſt regions of America ; but it is un-
known in the groupes of iſlands between that continent and Aſia;
neither is it found on the Tchuktki Noſs, or the Great Cape, which
juts into the ſea north of Kamtſchatka t. None are ever ſeen in that
country. But they are frequent on all the coaſts of the Frozen
Ocean, from the mouth of the Obt, eaſtward; and abound moſt
about the eſtuaries of the feneſei and Lena. They appear about
thoſe ſavage tracts, and abound in the unfrequented iſlands of Nova
Zembla, Cherry, and Spitzbergen, where they find winter quarters
undiſturbed by mankind. The ſpecies is happily unknown along
the ſhores of the White ſea, and thoſe of Lapland and Norway. Pof-
fibly even thoſe rigorous climates may be too mild for animals that
affect the utmoſt ſeverity of the Arctic zone. They never are ſeen
farther ſouth in Sibiria than Mangaſea, nor wander into the woody
parts, unleſs by accident in great miſts.
They are ſometimes brought alive into England. One which I
ſaw was always in motion, reſtleſs, and furious, roaring in a loud and
hoarſe tone; and fo impatient of warmth, that the keeper was ob-
liged to pour on it frequently pailfuls of water. In a ſtate of nature,
and in places little viſited by mankind, they are of dreadful ferocity.
In Spitzbergen, and the other places annually frequented by the hu-
man race, they dread its power, having experienced its ſuperiority,
* Phil. Tranſ. lxiv. 377,
iii. 805
† Muller, Pref. xxv.
I Purchas's Pilgrims,
and

POLAR BEAR.
63
and fhun the conflict : yet even in thoſe countries prove tremen-
dous enemies, if attacked or provoked.
Barentz, in his voyages in ſearch of a north-eaſt paſſage to China,
had fatal proofs of their rage and intrepidity on the iſland of Nova
Zembla : his ſeamen were frequently attacked, and ſome of them
killed. Thoſe whom they ſeized on they took in their mouths, ran
away with the utmoſt eaſe, tore to pieces, and devoured at their
leiſure, even in ſight of the ſurviving comrades. One of theſe ani-
mals was ſhot preying on the mangled corpſe, yet would not quit
its hold; but continued ſtaggering away with the body in its mouth,
till diſpatched with many wounds *.
They will attack, and attempt to board, armed veſſels far diſtant
from ſhore; and have been with great difficulty repelled t. They
ſeem to give a preference to human blood; and will greedily dif-
inter the graves of the buried, to devour the cadaverous con-
tents I.
Their uſual food is fiſh, feals, and the carcaſes of whales. On
land, they prey on deer ş, hares, young birds, and eggs, and often
on whortleberries and crowberries. They are at conſtant enmity
with the Walrus, or Morſe: the laſt, by reaſon of its valt tuſks,
has generally the ſuperiority; but frequently both the combatants
periſh in the conflict 1.
They are frequently ſeen in Greenland, in lat. 76, in great droves;
where, allured by the ſcent of the fleſh of feals, they will ſurround
the habitations of the natives, and attempt to break in ; but are
ſoon driven away by the ſmell of burnt feathers ** If one of
them is by any accident killed, the ſurvivors will immediately eat
it tt.
FOOD
ز
* Heemſkirk's Voy. 14.
& Faun. Groenl. p. 23.
Groenl. p. 23:
+ The ſame, 18.
| Egede, 83.
tt Heemſkirk, 51.
I Marten's Spitzb. 102.
The ſame, 60.
** Faun.
They

64
POLAR BE A R.
They grow exceſſively fat; a hundred pounds of fat has been
taken out of a ſingle beaſt. Their fleſh is coarſe, but is eaten by
the ſeamen: it is white, and they fancy it taſtes like mutton. The
liver is very unwholeſome, as three of Heemſkirk's failors experienced,
who fell dangerouſly ill on eating ſome of it boiled *. The ſkin
is an article of commerce : many are imported, and uſed chiefly for
covers to coach-boxes. The Greenlanders feed on the fleſh and fat;
uſe the ſkins to ſit on, and make of it boots, ſhoes, and gloves; and
ſplit the tendons into thread for ſewing.
During ſummer they reſide chiefly on iſlands of ice, and paſs fre-
quently from one to the other. They ſwim moft excellently, and
ſometimes dive, but continue only a ſmall ſpace under water,
They have been ſeen on iſlands of ice eighty miles from any land,
preying and feeding as they float along. They lodge in dens form-
ed in the vaſt maſſes of ice, which are piled in a ſtupendous manner,
leaving great caverns beneath: here they breed, and bring one or
two at a time, and ſometimes, but very rarely, three. Great is the
affection between parent and young; they will ſooner die than de-
ſert one another t. They alſo follow their dams a very long time,
and are grown to a very large ſize before they quit them.
During winter they retire, and bed themſelves deep beneath,
forming ſpacious dens in the ſnow, ſupported by pillars of the fame,
or to the fixed ice beneath ſome eminence; where they paſs torpid
the long and diſmal night I, appearing only with the return of the
fun g. At their appearance the Aretic Foxes retire to other haunts.
The Polar Bear became part of the royal menagery as early as
* Heemſkirk, 45.
+ Marten’s Spitzb. 102.
| Egede, 60.--Martens ſays, that the fat is uſed in pains of the limbs, and that it
affifts parturition.
Heemſkirk's Voy. in Purchas, iii. 500, 501.
|| The ſame, 499.
the

BLACK BEAR.
65
the reign of Henry III. Mr. Walpole has proved how great a patron
that deſpiſed prince was of the Arts. It is not leſs evident that he
extended his protection to Natural Hiſtory. We find he had pro-
cured a White Bear from Norway, from whence it probably was
imported from Greenland, the Norwegians having poffeffed that
country for ſome centuries before that period. There are two writs
extant from that monarch, directing the ſheriffs of London to furniſh
fix pence a day to ſupport our White Bear in our Tower of London ;
and to provide a muzzle and iron chain to hold him when out of
the water; and a long and ſtrong rope to hold him, when he was
fiſhing in the Thames *. Fit proviſion was made at the ſame time
for the king's Elephant.
The ſkins of this ſpecies, in old times, were offered by the hunters
to the high altars of cathedrals, or other churches, that the prieſt
might ſtand on them, and not catch cold when he was celebrating
high maſs in extreme cold weather. Many ſuch were annually
offered at the cathedral at Drontheim in Norway; and alſo the ſkins
of wolves, which were ſold to purchaſe wax-lights to burn in honor
of the faints
Hift. Quad. Nº 174.-Smellie, v. 19.
19. BLACK
BEAR. With a long pointed noſe, and narrow forehead: the
cheeks and throat of a yellowiſh brown color: hair over the
whole body and limbs of a gloſſy black, ſmoother and ſhorter than
that of the European kind.
They are uſually ſmaller than thoſe of the old world; yet Mr.
Bartram gives an inſtance of an old he-bear killed in Florida, which
* Madox's Antiquities of the Exchequer, i. 376.
+ Olaus Magnus, lib. xviii. c. 20.
K
VOL. I.
was

66
BLACKBE A R.
was ſeven feet long, and, as he gueſſed, weighed four hundred
pounds *.
a
Theſe animals are found in all parts of North America, from Hud-
ſon's Bay to the ſouthern extremity; but in Louiſiana and the ſouth-
ern parts they appear only in the winter, migrating from the north
in ſearch of food. They ſpread acroſs the northern part of the
American continent to the Aſiatic iſles. They are found in the
Kurilſki iſlands, which intervene between Kamtſchatka and Japan to
Jefo Maſima, which lies north of Japan I, and probably Japan itſelf;
for Kæmpfer ſays, that a few ſmall bears are found in the northern
provinces S.
It is very certain that this ſpecies of bear feeds on vegetables.
Du Pratz, who is a faithful as well as intelligent writer, relates, that
in one ſevere winter, when theſe animals were forced in multitudes
from the woods, where there was abundance of animal food, they
rejected that, notwithſtanding they were ready to periſh with hunger;
and, migrating into the lower Louiſiana, would often break into the
courts of houſes. They never touched the butchers meat which
lay in their way, but fed voraciouſly on the corn or roots they met
Foop:
a
with l.
Neceſſity alone ſometimes compels them to attack and feed on
the ſwine they meet in the woods : but fleſh is to them an unnatu-
ral diet. They live on berries, fruits, and pulſe of all kinds, and
feed much on the black mulberry (; are remarkably fond of pota-
toes, which they very readily dig up with their great paws; make
great havock in the fields of maize; and are great lovers of milk and
honey. They feed much on herrings, which they catch in the ſeaſon
when thoſe fiſh come in ſhoals up the creeks, which gives their
* Journal of his travels into Eaſt Florida, 26.
1 Voy. au Nord. iv. 5; $ Hift. Japan, i. 126.
Adair, 360.
+ Hift. Kamtſch. iii. 287.
|| Du Pratz, ii. 57
feſh

BLACK BE A R.
67
fleſh a diſagreeable taſte; and the ſame effect is obſerved when
they eat the bitter berries of the Tupelo.
They are equally inoffenſive to mankind, provided they are not
irritated; but if wounded, they will turn on their aſſailant with
great fury, and, in caſe they can lay hold, never fail of hugging him
to death; for it has been obſerved they never make uſe, in their
rage, of either their teeth or claws. If they meet a man in a path
they will not go out of his way; but will not attack him. They
never ſeek combat. A ſmall dog will make them run up a tree.
.
The American bears do not lodge in caves or clefts of rocks, like
thoſe of Europe. The bears of Hudſon's Bay form their dens beneath
the ſnow, and ſuffer fome to drop at the mouth, to conceal their
retreat.
The naturaliſt's poet, with great truth and beauty, deſcribes the
retreat of this animal in the frozen climate of the north:
There through the piny foreſt half abſorpt,
Rough tenant of thoſe ſhades, the ſhapeleſs Bear,
With dangling ice all horrid, ftalks forlorn ;
Slow pac'd, and fourer as the ſtorms increaſe,
He makes his bed beneath th' inclement drift,
And with ſtern patience, ſcorning weak complaint,
Hardens his heart againſt affailing want.
Thoſe of the ſouthern parts dwell in the hollows of antient trees.
The hunter diſcovers them by ſtriking with an ax the tree he ſuſpects
they are lodged in, then ſuddenly conceals himſelf. The Bear is
immediately rouzed, looks out of the hollow to learn the cauſe of
the alarm ; ſeeing none, ſinks again into repoſe *. The hunter then
forces him out, by Ainging in fired reeds; and ſhoots him while he
deſcends the body of the tree, which, notwithſtanding his aukward
* Du Pratz, ii. 61.
K 2
appearance,

68
BLACK BEAR.
a
error.
appearance, he does with great agility; nor is he lefs nimble in
aſcending the tops of the higheſt trees in ſearch of berries and
fruits.
The long time which theſe animals ſubſiſt without food is amaz-
ing. They will continue in their retreat for ſix weeks without the
left proviſion, remaining either aſleep or totally inactive. It is pre-
tended that they live by fucking their paws; but that is a vulgar
The fact is, they retire immediately after autumn, when
they have fattened themſelves to an exceſſive degree by the abun-
dance of the fruits which they find at that ſeaſon. This enables
animals, which perſpire very little in a ſtate of reft, to endure an
abſtinence of uncommon length. But when this internal ſupport
is exhauſted, and they begin to feel the call of hunger, on the ap-
proach of the ſevere ſeaſon, they quit their dens in ſearch of food.
Multitudes then migrate into the lower parts of Louiſiana : they
arrive very lean; but foon fatten with the vegetables of that milder
climate *. They never wander far from the banks of the Miſſiſipi,
and in their march form a beaten path like the track of men.
Lawſon and Cateſby † relate a very ſurprizing thing in reſpect to
this animal, which is, that neither European or Indian ever killed a
Bear with young. In one winter were killed in Virginia five hun-
dred bears, and among them only two females; and thoſe not preg-
nant. The cauſe is, that the male has the ſame unnatural diſike
to its offspring as ſome other animals have: they will kill and de-
vour the cubs. The females therefore retire, before the time of par-
turition, into the depth of woods and rocks, to elude the ſearch of
their ſavage mates. It is faid that they do not make their appear-
ance with their young till March I.
+ Lawſon, 117.–Cateſby, App. xxvi.
• Du Pratz, ï. 60.
1 Joſſelyn's Voy. 91.
All

BLACK BE A R.
69
All who have taſted the fleſh of this animal ſay, that it is moſt
delicious eating: a young Bear, fattened with the autumnal fruits,
is a difh fit for the niceſt epicure. It is wholeſome and nouriſhing,
and reſembles pork more than any other meat. The tongue and
the paws are eſteemed the moſt exquiſite morfels; the hams are
alſo excellent, but apt to ruſt, if not very well preſerved.
Four inches depth of fat has been found on a ſingle Bear, and
fifteen or ſixteen gallons of pure oil melted from it *. The fat is
of a pure white, and has the ſingular quality of never lying heavy
on the ſtomach, notwithſtanding a perſon drank a quart of it f.
The Americans make great uſe of it for frying their fiſh. It is
beſides uſed medicinally, and has been found very efficacious in
rheumatic complaints, achs, and ſtrains.
The Indians of Louiſiana prepare it thus :-As ſoon as they have
killed the Bear, they ſhoot a Deer; cut off the head, and draw the
ſkin entire to the legs, which they cut off: they then ſtop up every
orifice, except that on the neck, into which they pour the melted
fat of the Bear; which is prepared by boiling the fat and felh to-
gether. This they call a Deer of oil, and ſell to the French for a
gun, or ſomething of equal value [.
Bears greaſe is in great repute in Europe for its ſuppoſed quality
of making the hair to grow on the human head. A great chymiſt
in the Haymarket in London uſed to fatten annually two or three
Bears for the ſake of their fat.
The ſkin is in uſe for all purpoſes which the coarſer forts of furs
are applied to: it ſerves in America, in diſtant journies, for cover-
lets; and the finer parts have been in ſome places uſed in the hat
manufacture 5.
The Indians of Canada daub their hands and face with the greaſe;
a
+ Lawſon, 116.
* Bartram's Journ. E. Florida, 26.
ii. 62,
$ Lawſon, 117
I Du Pratz, ,
to

90
BROWN BE A R.
to preſerve them from the bite of muſketoes : they alſo ſmear their
bodies with the oil after exceffive exerciſe *. They think, like the
Romans of old, that oil fupples their joints, and preſerves them in
full activity.
Black Bear, Hift. Quad. Nº 174.–Smellie, v. 19.
20. BROWN.
BEAR. With long ſhaggy hair, uſually duſky or black, with
brown points ; liable to vary, perhaps according to their age,
,
or ſome accident, which does not create a ſpecific difference.
A variety of a pale brown color, whoſe ſkins I have ſeen imported
from Hudſon's Bay. The ſame kind, I believe, is alſo found in
Europe. The cubs are of a jetty black, and their necks often en-
circled with white.
B.
y
Bears ſpotted with white.
Land Bears, entirely white. Such fometimes ſally from the lofty
mountains which border on Sibiria, and appear in a wandering
manner in the lower parts of the country t. Marco Polo relates,
that they were frequent in his time in the north of Tartary, and of a
very great fize.
d.
Grizzly Bears. Theſe are called by the Germans Silber-bar, or
the Silver-bear, from the mixture of white hairs. Theſe are found
in Europe, and the very northern parts of North America, as high as
lat. 70; where a hill is called after them, Grizzle Bear Hill, and
where they breed in caverns I. The ground in this neighborhood
is in all parts turned by them in ſearch of the hoards formed by the
Ground Squirrels for winter proviſion.
* Kalm, iii. 13.
+ Doctor Pallas.
| Mr. Samuel Hearne.
All

BROWN BE A R.
71
a
All theſe varieties form but one ſpecies. They are granivorous
and carnivorous, both in Europe and America; and I believe, accord-
ing to their reſpective palates or habits, one may be deemed a va-
riety which prefers the vegetable food; another may be diſtinguiſhed
from its preference of animal food. Mr. Graham affures me, that
the brown Bears, in the inland parts of Hudſon's Bay, make great
havock among the Buffaloes : are very large, and very dangerous
when they are attacked and wounded.
The Bears of Kamtſchatka are of a dun brown color: and feed
chiefly on fiſh, or berries. They are far from rejecting animal food;
even mankind becomes their prey when preſſed by hunger; and
they will hunt the natives, in ſuch caſes, by ſcent, and prowl out of
their uſual tracts for that purpoſe : at thoſe times, or when wounded
they are exceedingly fierce *. It is ſaid that they give chaſe to the
Argali with great addreſs. They know that they have no chance in
taking them by ſpeed; the Bears therefore climb up the rugged
mountains, and gain the heights above the ſpots where the wild
ſheep feed: they with their paws Aling down pieces of rock upon
the herd; and, if they happen to maim any, deſcend and make a
repaſt on the lamed animal t. When the Bears find plenty of food
they will not attack the human kind: yet if they find a Kamtſchadale
aſleep on the ground, they will through wanntonneſs bite him feverely,
and ſometimes tear a piece of flesh away. People thus injured are
called Dranki, or the flayed I.
In all ſavage nations the Bear has been an object of veneration. BEARS VENERATA
Among the Americans a feaſt is made in honor of each that is killed.
The head of the beaſt is painted with all colors, and placed on an
elevated place, where it receives the reſpects of all the gueſts, who
ED IN AMERICA,
+ Same 306.
* Captain King, in Cook's voy. iii. 305.
| Hift. Kamtſchatka, iii. 386.
celebrate

72
BROWN BEAR.
CHASE.
celebrate in ſongs the praiſes of the Bear. They cut the body in
pieces, and regale on it, and conclude the ceremony *.
The chaſe of theſe animals is a matter of the firſt importance,
and never undertaken without abundance of ceremony. A princi-
pal warrior firſt gives a general invitation to all the hunters. This
is followed by a moſt ſerious faft of eight days, a total abſtinence
from all kinds of food; notwithſtanding which, they paſs the day in
continual fong. This they do to invoke the ſpirits of the woods to
direct them to the place where there are abundance of Bears. They
even cut the fleſh in divers parts of their bodies, to render the
fpirits more propitious. They alſo addreſs themſelves to the manes
of the beaſts Nain in preceding chaſes, as if it were to direct
them in their dreams to plenty of game. One dreamer alone can-
not determine the place of chaſe, numbers muſt concur; but, as
they tell each other their dreams, they never fail to agree : whether
that
may ariſe from complaiſance, or by a real agreement in the
dreams from their thoughts being perpetually turned on the fame
thing
The chief of the hunt now gives a great feaſt, at which no one
dares to appear without firſt bathing. At this entertainment they
eat with great moderation, contrary to their uſual cuſtom. The
maſter of the feaſt alone touches nothing; but is employed in re-
lating to the gueſts antient tales of the wonderful feats in former
chaſes: and freſh invocations to the manes of the deceaſed Bears
conclude the whole. They then fally forth amidſt the acclama-
tions of the village, equipped as if for war, and painted black.
Every able hunter is on a level with a great warrior ; but he muſt
have killed his dozen great beaſts before his character is eſtabliſhed:
after which his alliance is as much courted as that of the moſt valiant
captain.
* Charlevoix, Nouv. Fr. v. 443.
They

BROWN BEAR
73
They now proceed on their way in a direct line: neither rivers,
marshes, or any other impediments, ſtop their courſe; driving
before them all the beaſts which they find in their way. When
they arrive in the hunting-ground, they ſurround as large a ſpace as
their company will admit, and then contract their circle; ſearching,
as they contract, every hollow tree, and every place fit for the
retreat of the bear, and continue the ſame practice till the time of
the chaſe is expired.
As ſoon as a bear is killed, a hunter puts into its mouth a lighted
pipe of tobacco, and, blowing into it, fills the throat with the
ſmoke, conjuring the ſpirit of the animal not to reſent what they
are going to do to its body; nor to render their future chaſes un-
ſucceſsful. As the beaſt makes no reply, they cut out the ſtring
of the tongue, and throw it into the fire: if it crackles and runs in
(which it is almoſt ſure to do) they accept it as a good omen;
if not, they conſider that the ſpirit of the beaſt is not appeaſed
and that the chaſe of the next year will be unfortunate.
The hunters live well during the chaſe, on proviſions which they
bring with them. They return home with great pride and ſelf-
ſufficiency; for to kill a bear forms the character of a complete
man. They again give a great entertainment, and now make a
point to leave nothing. The feaſt is dedicated to a certain genius,
perhaps that of Gluttony, whoſe reſentment they dread, if they do
not eat every morſel, and even fup up the very melted greaſe in
which the meat was dreſſed. They ſometimes eat till they burſt,
or bring on themſelves ſome violent diſorders. The firſt courſe is
the greateſt bear they have killed, without even taking out the en-
trails, or taking off the ſkin, contenting themſelves with fingeing
the ſkin, as is practiſed with hogs *.
Charlevoix, v. 169 to 174.
L
VOL. I.
The

74
BROWN BEAR.
IN KAMTSCHAT-
KA
The Kamtſchatkans, before their converſion to Chriſtianity, had al-
moſt ſimilar fuperftitions reſpecting bears and other wild beaſts :
they entreated the bears and wolves not to hurt them in the chaſe,
and whales and marine animals not to overturn their boats. They
never call the two former by their proper name, but by that of Si-
pang, or ill-luck.
At preſent the Kamtſchatkans kill the bear and other wild beaſts
with guns: formerly they had variety of inventions ; ſuch as filling the
entrance of its den with logs, and then digging down upon the ani-
mal and deſtroying it with ſpears *. In Sibiria it is taken by making
a trap-fall of a great piece of timber, which drops and cruſhes it to
death: or by forming a nooſe in a rope faſtened to a great log; the
bear runs its head into the nooſe, and, finding itſelf engaged, grows
furious, and either falls down ſome precipice and kills itſelf, or wea-
ries itſelf to death by its agitations.
The killing of a bear in fair battle is reckoned as great a piece of
heroiſm by the Kamtſchatkans as it is with the Americans. The
victor makes a feaſt on the occaſion, and feaſts his neighbors with
the beaſt; then hangs the head and thighs about his tent by way of
trophies.
Theſe people uſe the ſkins to lie on, and for coverlets; for bon-
nets, gloves, collars for their dogs, foles for their ſhoes, to prevent
them from ſlipping on the ice. Of the ſhoulder-blades they make
inſtruments to cut the graſs ; of the inteſtines, covers for their faces,
to protect them from the fun during ſpring; and the Coſſacks ex-
tend them over their windows inſtead of glaſs. The fleſh and fat
is among the chief dainties of the country t.
Superftitions, relative to this animal, did not confine themſelves
to America and Aſia, but ſpread equally over the north of Europe.
* Hift. Kamtſchatka, Fr. lii. 73.
+ The ſame, 390
The

BROWN BE A R.
75
The Laplanders held it in the greateſt veneration : they called it the
Dog of God, becauſe they eſteemed it to have the ſtrength of ten
and the ſenſe of twelve *. They never preſume to call it by
its proper name of Guouzhja, leaft it revenge the infult on their
flocks; but ſtyle it Moedda-aigia, or the old man in a furred
men,
cloak t.
.
The killing of a Bear was reckoned as great an exploit in Lap-
land as it was in America, and the hero was held in the higheſt
eſteem by both ſexes; and, by a ſingular cuſtom, was forbid all
commerce with his wife for three days, The Laplanders bring
home the ſlain beaſts in great triumph. They erect a new tent
near their former dwelling, but never enter it till they have flung off
the dreſs of the chaſe. They continue in it three entire days; and
the women keep at home the ſame ſpace. The men dreſs the fleſh
of the Bear in the new tent, and make their repaſt, giving part to
the females; but take great care never to beſtow on them a bit of
the rump. Neither will they deliver to them the meat through the
common entrance of the hut, but through a hole in another part.
In ſign of victory, the men ſprinkle themſelves with the blood of
the beaſt.
After they have finiſhed eating the fleſh, they bury the bones
with great folemnity, and place every bone in its proper place, from
a firm perſuaſion that the Bear will be reſtored, and re-animate a
new body
At the pulling off the ſkin, and cutting the body into pieces,
they were uſed to ſing a ſong, but without meaning or rhyme };
but the antient Fins had a ſong, which, if not highly embelliſhed by
the tranſlator, is far from inelegant.
* Leems Lapmark, Suppl. 64.
+ The fame, 502.
11 The fame, Suppl.
I 2
Beast!

76
WO I V EREN E,
prey !
Beaſt! of all foreſt beaſts ſubdued and flain,
Health to our huts and prey a hundred-fold
Reſtore; and o'er us keep a conſtant guard !
I thank the Gods who
gave
fo noble
When the great day-ſtar hides beyond the alps,
I hie me home; and joy, all clad in flowers,
For three long nights ſhall reign throughout my hut.
With tranſport ſhall I climb the mountain's ſide.
Joy op'd this day, joy ſhall attend its cloſe.
Thee I revere, from thee expect my prey :
Nor e'er forgot my carol to the BeAR *,
31. WOLVERENE,
Hift. Quad. No 176, 177. Syn. Quad.
Gulo, Pallas Spicil. Zool. Faſc. xiv. 25. tab. ii.---Lev. Mus.
BEAR. With ſhort rounded ears, almoſt concealed by the fur:
face ſharp, black, and pointed: back broad, and, while the
animal is in motion, much elevated, or arched; and the head car-
ried low: the legs ſhort and ſtrong: claws long and ſharp, white
at their ends.
The length from noſe to tail twenty-eight inches; of the trunk of
the tail feven inches. It is covered with thick long hairs, reddiſh
at the bottom, black at the end; ſome reach fix inches beyond the
tip.
The hairs on the head, back, and belly, are of the ſame colors,
but much finer and ſofter. Before they are examined, the animal
appears wholly black. The throat whitiſh, marked with black.
Along the ſides, from the houlders to the tail, is a broad band of a
ferruginous color: in ſeveral of the ſkins, brought from Hudſon's
Bay, I obſerved this band to be white. The legs are black; the
* Nichols's Rufian Nations, i. 50.
feet

W O L V EREN E.
77
PLACE.
WRITERS,
feet covered with hair on the bottom. On the fore feet of that
which I examined were ſome white ſpots. On each foot were five
toes, not greatly divided.
It hath much the action of a Bear; not only in the form of its
back, and the hanging down of its head, but alſo in reſting on the
hind part of the firſt joint of its legs.
This is one of the local animals of America. I trace it as far
north as the Copper river, and to the countries on the weſt and ſouth
of Hudſon's Bay, Canada, and the tract as far as the ſtraits of Michill-
makinac, between the lakes Huron and Superior.
I have reaſon to think that the Glutton of the old writers is the GLUTTON OF OLD
ſame with this animal; and that in my Hiſtory of Quadrupeds I
unneceſſarily ſeparated them. Since I have received the late publi-
cation of Dr. Pallas, I am fatisfied that it is common to the north
of America, Europe, and Aſia, even to Kamtſchatka ; inhabiting the
vaſt foreſts of the north, even within the Polar circle. The Kamt-
ſchatkans value them ſo highly as to ſay, that the heavenly beings
wear no other furs. The ſkins are the greateſt preſent they can
make their miſtreſſes; and the women ornament their heads with
the parts of the white banded variety. The Ruſſians call theſe ani-
mals Roffomak; the Kamtſchatkans, Tymi, or Tummi.
It is a beaſt of uncommon fierceneſs, the terror of the Wolf and
Bear; the former, which will devour any carrion, will not touch the
carcaſe of this animal, which ſmells more fetid than that of a Pole-
It has great ſtrength, and makes vaſt reſiſtance when taken;
will tear the traps often to pieces; or if wounded, will ſnap the
ftock from the barrel of the muſket; and often do more damage in
the capture than the fur is worth.
.
It preys indifferently on all animals which it can maſter. It feeds
by night, and, being flow of foot, follows the track of wolves and
foxes in the ſnow, in order to come in for ſhare of their prey. It
MANNERS
cat.
will

78
WOL V E R E N E.
will dig up the carcaſes of animals, and the proviſions concealed
by the huntſmen deep in the ſnow, which it will carry away to
other places to devour. About the Lena it will attack horſes, on
whoſe backs are often ſeen the marks of its teeth and claws. By a
wonderful fagacity it will afcend a tree, and fling from the boughs a
ſpecies of moſs which Elks and Reins are very fond of; and
when thoſe animals come beneath to feed on it, will fall on them
and deſtroy them: or, like the Lynx, it aſcends to the boughs of
trees, and falls on the Deer which caſually paſs beneath, and
adheres till they fall down with fatigue. It is a great enemy to the
Beaver *, and is on that account fometimes called the Beaver-eater.
It watches at the mouth of their holes, and catches them as they
come out. It ſearches the traps laid for taking other beaſts, and
devours thoſe which it finds taken. It breaks into the magazines
of the natives, and robs them of the proviſions; whether they are
covered with logs, bruſhwood, and built high between two or three
ſtanding trees +
It lodges in clefts of rocks, or in hollows of trees, and in Sibiria
often in the deſerted holes of Badgers ; never digging its own den,
nor having any certain habitation. It breeds once a year, bring-
ing from two to four at a litter I: Its fur is much uſed for muffs.
Notwithſtanding its great fierceneſs when wounded, or firſt ſeizure,
it is capable of being made very tame g.
The ſkins are frequently brought from Hudſon's Bay, and com-
monly uſed for muffs. In Sibiria the ſkin is moſt valued which is
black, and has left of the ferruginous band. Theſe are chiefly
found in the mountanous foreſts of Jakutſk, and uſed by the natives
to adorn their caps. Few of the Sibirian ſkins are ſent into Ruſſia,
but are chiefly ſold to the Mongals and Chineſe.
FUR.
* Dobbs, 40.
* Mr. Graham.
I The fame.
$ Edw. ii. 103.
The

RACCOON.
79
The relations of the exceffive gluttony of this animal; that it eats
till it is ready to burſt, and that it is obliged to unload itſelf by
ſqueezing its body between two trees ; are totally fabulous : like
other animals, they eat till they are ſatisfied, and then leave off *.
Hift. Quad. No 178.--Smellie, v. 46.-Lev. Mus.
22. RACCOON
a
3
BEAR. With upper jaw larger than the lower : face ſharp-
pointed, and fox-like: ears ſhort and rounded : eyes large, of
a yellowiſh green; the ſpace round them black : a duſky line ex-
tends from the forehead to the noſe; the reſt of the face, the cheeks,
and the throat, white: the hair univerſally long and ſoft; that on
the back tipt with black, white in the middle, and cinereous at the
roots : tail annulated with black and white, and very full of hair :
toes black, and quite divided : the fore-feet ferve the purpoſes of a
hand.
Theſe animals vary in color. I have ſeen ſome of a pale brown,
others white. Their ufual length, from nofe to tail, is two feet :
near the tail about one.
Raccoons inhabit only the temperate parts of North America, from
New England † to Florida I. They probably are continued in the
fame latitudes acroſs the continent, being, according to Dampier,
found in the iſles of Maria, in the South Sea, between the ſouth
point of California and Cape Corientes. It is alſo an inhabitant of
Mexico, where it is called Mapach §.
It lives in hollow trees, and is very expert at climbing. Like
other beaſts of prey, keeps much within during day, except it proves
dark and cloudy. In ſnowy and ſtormy weather it confines itſelf to
PLACE
MANNERS
* Hift. Kamtſch. 385.
$ Fernand. Nov. Hilp, i.
+ Joſelyn's Voy. 85. Account of Florida, 50.
its

80
RACCOON.
a
,
its hole for a week together. It feeds indifferently on fruits or feſh;
is extremely deſtructive to fields of mayz, and very injurious to all
kinds of fruits; loves ſtrong liquors, and will get exceſſively drunk.
It makes great havock among poultry, and is very fond of eggs.
Is itſelf often the prey of Snakes *.
Thoſe which inhabit places near the ſhore live much on ſhell-
filh, particularly oyſters. They will watch the opening of the ſhell,
dextrouſly put in its paw, and tear out the contents; ſometimes the
oyſter ſuddenly cloſes, catches the thief, and detains it till drowned
by the return of the tide. They likewife feed on crabs, both ſea
and land. It has all the cunning of the Fox. Lawſon † fays, that
it will ſtand on the ſide of a ſwamp, and hang its tail over into the
water: the crabs will lay hold, miftaking it for a bait; which, as
ſoon as the Raccoon feels, it pulls out with a ſudden jerk, and
makes a prey of the cheated crabs.
It is made tame with great eaſe, ſo as to follow its maſter along
the ſtreets; but never can be broke from its habit of ſtealing, or
killing of poultry I. It is fo fond of ſugar, or any ſweet things, as
to do infinite miſchief in a houſe, if care is not taken S.
It has many of the actions of a Monkey ; ſuch as feeding itſelf
with its fore feet, ſitting up to eat, being always in motion, being
very inquiſitive, and examining every thing it fees with its paws.
Notwithſtanding it is not fond of water, it dips into it all ſorts of
dry food which is given to it; and will waſh its face with its feet,
like a Cat.
It is ſought after on account of the fur. Some people eat it, and
eſteem it as very good meat.
The Swedes call it Siup, and Eſpan;
the Dutch, Heſpan; and the Iroqueſe, Afigbro. The hair makes the
beſt hats, next to that of the Beaver. The tail is worn round the
neck in winter, by way of preſervative againſt the cold ||.
a
+ 121.
* Kalm, i. 97. ii. 63.
11 Kalm, ii. 97
I Kalm, i. 208.
§ The ſame.
HIS T.

B A D G E R.
HIST. QUA D. Genus XXI.
BADGER.
American Badger, Hiſt. Quad. p. 298. B.--Smellie, iv. 226.-Lev. Mus.
23. COMMON.
BAR
ADGER. With rounded ears: forehead, and middle of the
cheeks, marked with a white line, extending to the beginning
of the back, bounded on each ſide by another of black : cheeks
white : fpace round the ears duſky : body covered with long coarſe
hair, cinereous and white.
The legs were wanting in the ſkin which I ſaw; but I fupply
that defect from M. de Buffon's deſcription. They were duſky,
and the toes furniſhed with claws, like the European kind. M. de
Buffon obſerved only four toes on the hind feet; but then he fuf-
pected that one was torn off from the dried ſkin he ſaw.
Theſe animals are rather ſcarce in America. They are found in
the neighborhood of Hudſon's Bay, and in Terra di Labrador; and
perhaps as low as Pennſylvania, where they are called Ground Hogs *.
They do not differ fpecifically from the European kind; but are
ſometimes found white in America +.
I do not diſcover them in northern Aſia, nearer than the banks of
the Yaik I. They are common in China, where they are frequently
brought to the ſhambles, being an eſteemed food 9. In northern
Europe, they are found in Norway and Sweden ||.
Le Comte de Buffon imagines this animal q to be the Carcajou of
the Americans, and not the Wolveren. The matter is uncertain :
PLACE.
+ Brillon Quad. 185. I Pallas.
|| Pontoppidan, ii. 28.--Faun. Suec. N° 20.
* Kalm, i. 189.
Travels, ii. 83
tom. iii. 242.
VOL. I.
@ Bell's
I Suppl.
M
yet

S2
B A D G E R.
yet I find that name beſtowed on the latter by La Hontan; by Dobbs,
who makes it fynonymous; and by Charlevoix, though the laſt
miſtakes the animal, yet not the manners of that which he aſcribes
On the other hand, Mr. Graham and Mr. Edwards omit
that title, and call it only Wolveren, or Queequehatch.
it to.
HIST.

O P O S SU M.
83
HIST. QU A D. GENUS XXII.
OPOSSUM.
Hift. Quad. Nº 181.
24. VIRGINIAN,
O
ز
POSSUM. With ten cutting teeth above, eight beneath :
eyes black, ſmall, and lively: ears large, naked, membrana-
ceous, and rounded : face long and pointed; whiſkers on each ſide
of the noſe, and tufts of long hairs over the eyes : legs are ſhort;
the thumb on the hind feet has a flat nail, the reſt of the toes have
on them ſharp talons: the body is ſhort, round, and thick: the
tail long; the baſe is covered with hair for three inches, the reſt is
covered with ſmall ſcales, and has the diſguſting reſemblance of a
Snake.
On the lower part of the belly of the female is a large pouch,
in which the teats are placed, and in which the young lodge as
foon as they are born. The body is cloathed with very long ſoft
hairs, lying uſually uneven : the color appears of a dirty white;
the lower parts of the hairs dulky: and above each eye is a whitiſh
ſpot: the belly tinged with yellow.
The length of one I examined was ſeventeen inches, of the tail
fourteen.
This ſpecies is found as far north as Canada *, where the French
call it Le Rat de bois ; from thence it extends fouthward, even to the
Braſils and Peru. The fingularity of the ventral pouch of the fe-
male, and the manner of its bringing up its young, places it among
the moſt wonderful animals of the new continent.
PLACE.
* Charlevoix, v. 197.
M 2
As

84
O P O S S U M.
3
3
As ſoon as the female finds herſelf near the time of bringing
forth, ſhe prepares a neſt of coarſe graſs, covered with long pieces
of ſticks, near four feet high and five in diameter, confuſedly put
together *. She brings forth from four to fix at a time. As ſoon
as they come into the world they retreat into the falſe belly, blind,
naked, and exactly reſembling little foetuſes. They faſten cloſely
to the teats, as if they grew to them ; which has given cauſe to the
vulgar error, that they were created fo. There they adhere as if
they were inanimate, till they arrive at a degree of perfection in
ſhape, and attain fight, ftrength, and hair : after which they undergo
a ſort of ſecond birth. From that time they run into the pouch as
an aſylum from danger. The female carries them about with the
utmoſt affection, and would rather be killed than permit this re-
ceptacle to be opened; for ſhe has the power of contracting or di-
lating the orifice by the help of ſome very ſtrong muſcles. If they
are furpriſed, and have not time to retreat into the pouch, they will
adhere to the tail of the parent, and eſcape with her t.
The Opoffum is both carnivorous and frugivorous. It is a
great enemy to poultry; and will fuck the blood and leave the fleſh
untouched I. It climbs trees very expertly, feeding on wild fruits,
and alſo on various roots. Its tail has the ſame prehenfile quality
as that of ſome ſpecies of Monkies. It will hang from the branches
by it, and by ſwinging its body, fling itſelf among the boughs of
the adjacent trees. It is a very ſluggiſh animal; has a very flow
pace, and makes ſcarcely any efforts to eſcape. When it finds it-
ſelf on the point of being taken, it counterfeits death; hardly any
torture will make it give ſigns of life §. If the perſon retires, it
will put itſelf in motion, and creep into fome neighboring buſh.
+ The fame.
I Du Pratz, ii. 65.
* Bartram's Journal E. Florida, 30.
$ The ſame, 66.
It

O POSSUM.
85
It is more tenacious of life than a Cat, and will ſuffer great vio-
lence before it is killed *
The old animals are eſteemed as delicate eating as a fucking pig;
yet the ſkin is very fetid. The Indian women of Louiſiana dye
the hair, and weave it into girdles and garters T.
• Lawſon, 120
+ Du Pratz, ii. 66.
HIST.

86
W E ES EL
WEESEL.
HIST. QU AD. Genus XXIII.
25. COMMON.
Hift. Quad. Nº 192.Smellie, iv. 257 --Lev. Mus.
W!
3
a
PLACE.
EESEL. With ſmall rounded ears: beneath each corner
of the mouth is a white ſpot: breaſt and belly white; reſt
of the body of a pale tawny brown. Its length, from the tip of the
noſe to the tail, is about ſeven inches; the tail two and a half.
Inhabits the country about Hudſon's Bay, Newfoundland, and as
far fouth as Carolina *. Mr. Graham fent fome over, both in their
ſummer coat, and others almoſt entirely white, the color they aſſume
in winter. We meet with them again in Kamtſchatka, and all over
Ruſia and Sibiria ; and in thoſe northern regions they regularly
turn white during winter. One, which was brought from Natka
Sound in North America, had between the ears and noſe a bed of
gloſſy black, which probably was its univerſal color before its
change. Dr. Irving faw on Moffen iſland, north of Spitzbergen,
lat. 8o. an animal, perhaps of this kind, ſpotted black and white f.
26. STOAT.
Hift. Quad. Nº 193.-Smellie, iv. 262.--Lev. Mus.
WEESEL. With ſhort ears, edged with white : head, back,
ſides, and legs, of a pale tawny brown: under ſide of the
body white : lower part of the tail brown, the end black.
In northern countries, changes in winter to a ſnowy whiteneſs,
* Cateſby, App:
+ Phipps's Voy. 58.
the

S TO A T.
87
PLACE.
the end of the tail excepted, which retains its black color: in this
ftate is called an Ermine.
Length, from noſe to tail, ten inches; the tail is five and a half.
Inhabits only Hudſon's Bay, Canada, and the northern parts of
North America. In Newfoundland it is ſo bold as to commit its
thefts in open view. Feeds on eggs, the young of birds, and on
the mice with which thoſe countries abound. They alſo prey on
Rabbits, and the White Grous. The ſkins are exported from Ca-
nada
among what the French call la menuë pelleterie, or ſmall furs *.
It is found again in plenty in Kamtſchatka t, the Kurili iſlands,
Sibiria, and in all the northern extremities of Europe. It is ſcarce
in Kamtſchatka ; and its chafe is not attended to, amidſt the quan-
tity of ſuperior furs. But in Sibiria and Norway they are a confi-
derable article of commerce. In the former, they are taken in
traps, baited with a bit of fleſh I; in the latter, either ſhot with
blunt arrows, or taken, as garden mice are in England, by a flat
ſtone propped by a baited ſtick, which falls down on the left touch,
and cruſhes them to death $. They are found in Sibiria in great
plenty in woods of birch, yet are never ſeen in thoſe of fir. Their
ſkins are ſold there on the ſpot from two to three pounds ſterling
per hundred Il.
They are not found on the Aretic flats. The inhabitants of the
Tſchuktſchi Nofs get them in exchange from the Americans, where
they are of a larger ſize than any in the Rufian dominions.
The exceſſive cold of certain winters has obliged even theſe hardy
animals to migrate, as was evident in the year 1730, and 1744 1.
CAPTURE.
3
* Charlevoix, v. 197.
+ Hift. Kamtſchatka, 99.
| Bell's Tra-
vels, i. 199 .
$ Pontoppidan, ii. 25. # Gmelin Rul. Samlung, 516.
4 Nov. Sp, an. 188.
Hift.

88
PIN E M A RT I N.
27. PINE
Hift. Quad. Nº 200.-Br. Zool.i. Nº 16.-Smellie, iv. 245.-Lev. Mus.
MARTIN,
PLACE.
MANNERS
WEESEL. With white cheeks and tips of ears ; yellow throat
and breaft; reſt of the fur of a fine deep cheſnut-color in
the male, paler in the female: tail buſhy, and of a deeper color
than the body.
Theſe animals inhabit, in great abundance, the northern parts of
America ; but I believe the ſpecies ceaſes before it arrives at the
temperate provinces. They appear again in the north of Europe,
extend acroſs the Urallian chain, but do not reach the Oby.
They inhabit foreſts, particularly thoſe of fir and pine, and make
their neſts in the trees. Breed once a year, and bring from two to
four at a litter. They feed principally upon mice; but deſtroy
alſo all kinds of birds which they can maſter. They are taken by
the natives of Hudſon's Bay in ſmall log-traps, baited, which fall on
and kill them. The natives eat the fleſh.
Their ſkins are among the more valuable furs, and make a moſt
important article of commerce. I obſerved, that in one of the
Hudſon's Bay Company's annual ſales, not fewer than 12,370 good
ſkins, and 2,360 damaged, were fold; and in that year (1743)
30,325 were imported by the French from Canada into the port of
Rochelle. They are found in great numbers in the midſt of the
woods of Canada ; and once in two or three years come out in
great multitudes, as if their retreats were overſtocked: this the
hunters look on as a forerunner of great ſnows, and a ſeaſon favor-
able to the chaſe *.
It is remarkable, that notwithſtanding this ſpecies extends acroſs
the continent of America, from Hudſon's Bay to the oppoſite ſide,
* Charlevoix, V. 197.
yet

Ρ Ε Κ Α Ν.
89
yet
is loft on the Aſiatic fide of the ſtraits of Tſchuktſchi ; nor is
it recovered till you reach Catherinebourg, a diſtrict of Sibiria weſt
of Tobolk, and twenty-five degrees weſt longitude diſtant from
America. The fineſt in the known world are taken about Ufa, and
in the mountains of Caucaſus *. It is known that the Tſchuktſchi +
procure the ſkins for cloathing themſelves from the Americans ;
their country being deſtitute of trees, and conſequently of the ani-
mals, inhabitants of foreſts, furniſhing thoſe uſeful articles.
The Houſe Martin, Hift. Quad. Nº 199, is found neither in Ame-
rica, or the Aretic countries.
Hift. Quad. Nº 204.--Smellie, vii. 307.-Lev. Mus.
.
28. PEKAN.
WEESEL. With ears a little pointed : body and head co-
vered with hair of a mixture of grey, cheſnut, and black,
and beneath protected by a cinereous down: the lower jaw encir-
cled with white : legs and tail black : on the breaſt, between the
fore-legs, a ſpot of white, and another on the belly between the
hind-legs : toes covered above and below with fur.
I ſaw this and the following animal at Paris, in the cabinet of
M. Aubry, Curé de St. Louis en L'Iſle. They were in glaſs caſes,
ſo I could get only an imperfect view of them. According to M.
de Buffon, the length of this was a foot and a half French meaſure ;
the tail ten inches I. The fur is fine; and the ſkins were often im-
ported by the French from Canada.
This ſeems to me to be very nearly allied to the European Mar-
tin, Nº 15. Br. Zool. vol. i. It agrees very much in dimenſions,
+ Muller, Pref. xxix.
Le Pekan, tom. xiii. 304.
* Doctor Pallas.
tab. xlii. xliii.
VOL. I.
N
and

90
V I S O N.
and in the white marks. It is alſo the animal which Mr. Graham
ſent to the Royal Society from Hudſon's Bay, under the name of
Jackaſh, which he ſays harbours about creeks, and lives on fish,
Brings from two to four young at a time. Is caught by the na-
tives, who eat the fleſh and barter the ſkins.
29. Vison,
Hift. Quad. N° 205.- Smellie, vii. 307,
a
WEESEL. With a long neck and body: ſhort legs : head
and body brown tinged with tawny: tail black: the down
of a bright aſh-color.
Length from head to tail one foot four inches, French ; tail ſeven
inches, or to the end of the hairs nine.
Inhabits Canada.
30. SABLE,
Hift. Quad. Nº 201, and p. 328.--Smellie, vii. 309.
Muſtela Zibellina, Pallas Sp. Zool. faſc. xiv. 54. tab.
a
WEESEL. With head and ears whitiſh: the ears broad, in-
clining to a triangular form, and rounded at top, in the
Afiatic fpecimens; in the American, rather pointed : whole body of
a light tawny: feet very large, hairy above and below: claws
white.
Length, from noſe to tail, twenty inches; of the trunk of the tail,
four inches; from the baſe to the end of the hairs eight: of a dulky
color.
This deſcription is taken from a ſkin fent from Canada : but it
extends acroſs the whole continent, being frequently found among
the furs which the Americans traffic with among the inhabitants of
the
PLACE.

S
91
A B L E.
the Tſchuktſchi Nofs *. The American ſpecimen, which I had op-
portunity of examining, was of the bleached, or worſt kind; pro-
bably others may equal in value thoſe of Aſia.
The great reſidence of theſe animals is in Aſia, beginning at the
Urallian chain, and growing more and more plentiful as they ad-
vance eaſtward, and more valuable as they advance more north.
None are found to the north-eaſt of the Anadir, nor in any parts
deſtitute of trees. They love vaft foreſts, eſpecially thoſe of fir, in
which thoſe of moſt exquiſite beauty are found. They are fre-
quent in Kamtſchatka, and are met with in the Kuril illes t. They
extend from about lat. 50 to lat. 58.
They are very eaſily made tame : will attach themſelves ſo to
their maſter, as to wander a conſiderable way, and return again to
their home. They abhor water : therefore the notion of their being
the Satherion of Ariſtotle is erroneous.
Another way of taking them, beſides thoſe which I before men-
tioned in my Hiſtory of Quadrupeds, is by placing a piece of
timber from tree to tree horizontally; near one end of this is
placed a bait: over the lower piece of wood is placed another, fuf-
pended obliquely, and reſting at one end on a poſt very ſlightly: a
rod extends from it to a nooſe, to which the bait is faſtened. As
ſoon as the Sable feizes the meat, the upper timber falls, and kills
the precious animal 1. The hunting ſeaſon always begins with the
firſt ſnows: but they are now become ſo very ſcarce, as to be con-
fined to the vaſt foreſts of the extreme parts of Sibiria, and to the
diſtant Kamtſchatka. Such has been the rage of luxury!
It was not till the later ages that the furs of beaſts became an
article of luxury. The more refined nations of antient times ne-
CAPTYRE
FURS WHEN
FIRST USED AS A
LUXURY
* Doctor Pallas.
+ Deſcr. Kamtſchatka, 275.
I Voyages de Pallas, ii. 319. tab. viii.--Decouvertes dans le Ruffe, &c. iv. 237.
tab. vi. vii.
yer
N 2

92
S A BL E.
;
ver made uſe of them : thoſe alone whom the former ſtigmatized
as barbarians, were cloathed in the ſkins of animals. Strabo de-
ſcribes the Indians covered with the ſkins of Lions, Panthers, and
Bears *; and Seneca t, the Scythians cloathed with the ſkins of Foxes,
and the lefſer quadrupeds. Virgil exhibits a picture of the favage
Hyperboreans, ſimilar to that which our late circumnavigators can
witneſs to in the cloathing of the wild Americans, unſeen before by
any poliſhed people.
Gens effræna virum Riphæo tunditur Euro;
Et pecudum fulvis velantur corpora fetis.
Moſt part of Europe was at this time in ſimilar circumſtances.
Caſar might be as much amazed with the ſkin-dreſſed heroes of
Britain, as our celebrated Cook was at thoſe of his new-diſcovered
regions. What time hath done to us, time, under humane con-
querors, may effect for them. Civilization may take place, and
thoſe ſpoils of animals, which are at preſent eſſential for cloathing,
become the mere objects of ornament and luxury.
I cannot find that the Greeks or old Romans ever made uſe of
furs. It originated in thoſe regions where they moſt abounded,
and where the ſeverity of the climate required that ſpecies of
cloathing. At firſt it conſiſted of the ſkins only, almoſt in the ſtate
in which they were torn from the body of the beaſt; but as ſoon as
civilization took place, and manufactures were introduced, furs
became the lining of the dreſs, and often the elegant facing of the
robes. It is probable, that the northern conquerors introduced the
faſhion into Europe. We find, that about the year 522, when
Totila, king of the Viſigoths, reigned in Italy, that the Suethons (a
people of modern Sweden) found means, by help of the commerce
of numberleſs intervening people, to tranſmit, for the uſe of the
* Strabo, lib. xvü. p. 1184.
+ Epift. Ep. xc.
Romans,

S
93
A B L E.
Romans, Saphilinas pelles, the precious ſkins of the Sables *. As
luxury advanced, furs, even of the moſt valuable ſpecies, were uſed
by princes as lining for their tents : thus Marco Polo, in 1252,
found thoſe of the Cham of Tartary lined with Ermines and Sa-
bles †. He calls the laſt Zibelines, and Zambolines. He ſays that
thoſe, and other precious furs, were brought from countries far
north; from the land of Darkneſs, and regions almoſt inacceſlible,
by reaſon of moraſſes and ice I. The Welſh ſet a high value on
furs, as early as the time of Howel Dda Ś, who began his reign
about 940. In the next
In the next age, furs became the faſhionable magnifi-
cence of Europe. When Godfrey of Boulogne, and his followers, ap-
peared before the emperor Alexis Comnene, on their way to the Holy
Land, he was ſtruck with the richneſs of their dreſſes, tam ex oſtro
quam aurifrigio et niveo opere harmelino et ex mardrino grifoque et
vario. How different was the advance of luxury in France, from
the time of their great monarch Charlemagne, who contented him-
ſelf with the plain fur of the Otter! Henry I. wore furs; yet in his
diſtreſs was obliged to change them for warm Welſh flannel ||. But
in the year 1337, the luxury had got to ſuch a head, that Ed-
ward III. enacted, that all perſons who could not ſpend a hundred
a year, ſhould abſolutely be prohibited the uſe of this ſpecies of
finery. Theſe, from their great expence, muſt have been foreign
furs, obtained from the Italian commercial ſtates, whoſe traffic was
at this period boundleſs. How ftrange is the revolution in the fur
trade ! The north of Aſia, at that time, ſupplied us with every va-
luable kind; at preſent we ſend, by means of the poffeffion of Hud-
ſon's Bay, furs, to immenſe amount, even to Turkey and the diſtant
China.
Jornandes de Rebus Geticis.
I 160, 161, 162.
Leges Wallicæ,
+ In Bergeron's Coll. 70.-- Purchas, ii. 86.
|| Barrington on the Statutes, 4th ed. 243.
Hif

94
F IS HER.
31. Fisher
Hift. Quad. No 202.Smellie, v. 207. Lev. Mus.
WEESEL. With ears broad, round, and duſky, edged with
white: head and ſides of the neck pale brown mixed with
aſh-color and black: hairs on the back, belly, legs, and tail, brown
at the baſe, and black at their ends : fides of the body brown.
The feet very large and broad, covered above and below thickly
with hair: on each foot are five toes, with white claws, ſharp,
ſtrong, and crooked: the fore legs ſhorter than thoſe behind: the
tail is full and buſhy, ſmalleſt at the end. Length, from noſe to
tail, is twenty-eight inches; of the tail ſeventeen.
This animal inhabits Hudſon's Bay, and is found in New England,
and as low as Penſylvania. About Hudſon's Bay they are called We-
jacks, and Woodſhocks. They harbour about creeks, feed upon fiſh,
and probably birds. They breed once a year, and have from two
to four at a birth. The natives catch them, and diſpoſe of the ſkins,
which are ſold in England for four or fix ſhillings apiece. Such is
the account I received from Mr. Graham.
The late worthy Mr. Peter Collinſon tranſmitted to me the fol-
lowing relation, which he received from Mr. Bartram :-* They
are found in Penſylvania; and, notwithſtanding they are not
amphibious, are called Fiſhers, and live on all kinds of leffer
quadrupeds." I do not know how to reconcile theſe accounts
of the fame animal (for ſuch it is) unleſs it preys indifferently on
fiſh and land animals, as is often the caſe with rapacious beaſts, and
that both Mr. Graham and Bartram may have overlooked that cir-
cumſtance.
Hift.

STRIA TED WEES EL.
95
Hift. Quad. Nº 207.--Smellie, v. 297.
32. STRIATED.
a
WEESEL. With ſmall and rounded ears: the ground color
of the whole animal black, marked on the back and fides
with five long parallel lines of white; one extending from the head
along the top of the back to the baſe of the tail; with two others
on each ſide, the higheſt of which reaches a little way up the tail :
the tail is long, and very buſhy towards the end.
This ſpecies varies in the diſpoſition of the ſtripes, and I ſuſpect
the male is entirely black, as deſcribed by M. Du Pratz*, who
ſays, that the female has rings of white intermixed. If that is the
caſe, the Coaſe, which M. de Buffon † received from Virginia, is of
this kind. It is of an uniform color; but what is a ſtronger proof
of their differing only in fex, is the agreement in number of toes
in the fore feet, there being four on each; an exception to the cha-
racter of this Genus.
In fize it is equal to an European Pole-cat, but carries its back
more elevated.
Theſe animals are found from Penſylvania as far as Louiſiana, where
they are known by the name of the Pole-cat I or Skunk; which
is given indifferently to both of theſe foetid beaſts.
Nature hath furniſhed this and the following a ſpecies of defence
ſuperior to the force either of teeth or claws. The French moſt
juſtly call theſe animals enfans du Diable, or children of the Devil,
and Bêtes puantes, or the ſtinking beaſts; as the Swedes beſtow on
them that of Fiſkatta. The peftiferous vapour which it emits from
behind, when it is either attacked, purſued, or frightened, is fo
• Vol. i. 67.
xxxviii. xl.
+ xiii. Coaſe, p. 288.--Le Conepute (the female) ibid. tab.
I Cateſby, ii. tab. 62.
ſuffocating

96
STRIATED WEES E L.
fuffocating and foetid, as at once to make the boldeſt aſſailant retire
with precipitation. A ſmall ſpace is often no means of ſecurity;
the animal either will turn its tail, and by a frequent crepitus pre-
vent all repetition of attempts on its liberty; or elſe ejaculate its
ſtifling urine to the diſtance of eighteen feet *. Its enemy is ftu-
pified with the abominable ſtench; or perhaps experiences a tem-
porary blindneſs, ſhould any of the liquid fall on his eyes. No
waſhing will free his cloaths from the ſmell: they muſt even be
buried in freſh foil, in order to be effectually purified.
Perſons who have juſt undergone this misfortune, naturally run to
the next houſe to try to free themſelves from it; but the rights of
hoſpitality are denied to them: the owner, dreading the infection,
is ſure to ſhut the door againſt them.
Profeſſor Kalm ran the danger of being ſuffocated by the ſtench
of one, which was purſued into a houſe where he was.
A maid-ſervant, who deſtroyed another in a room where meat
was kept, was ſo affected by the vapour as to continue ill for ſeveral
days; and the proviſions were fo infected, that the maſter of the
houſe was forced to fling them away t.
Travellers are often obliged, even in the midſt of foreſts, to hold
their noſes, to prevent the effects of its ſtench.
The brute creation are in like dread of its effluvia. Cattle will
roar with agony; and none but true-bred dogs will attack it: even
thoſe are often obliged to run their noſes into the ground before they
can return to complete its deſtruction. The ſmell of the dogs, after
a combat of this nature, remains for ſeveral days intolerable.
Notwithſtanding this horrible quality, the fleſh is eaten, and is
eſteemed as ſweet as that of a Pig. The bladder muſt be taken out,
and the ſkin flayed off, as ſoon as the animal is killed I.
* Kalm, i. 275.
+ The ſame, 277
| Lawſon, 119.- Kalm, i. 278.
I ſhould

STRIATED WEESEL. SKUNK.
97
I ſhould think it a very diſagreeable companion: yet it is often
tamed ſo as to follow its maſter like a Dog; for it never emits its
vapour unleſs terrified *. It ſurely ought to be treated with the
higheſt attention.
The ſkin is neglected by the Europeans, by reaſon of the coarſe-
neſs of the hair. The Indians make uſe of it for tobacco pouches,
which they carry before them like the Highlanders.
It climbs trees with great agility. It feeds on fruits † and inſects.
Is a great enemy to birds, deſtroying both their eggs and young.
It will alſo break into hen-roofts, and deſtroy all the poultry I. It
breeds in holes in the ground, and hollow trees, where it leaves its
young, while it is rambling in queſt of prey.
Hift. Quad. N° 218.- Smellie, v. 297.--Lev. Mus.
33. SKUNK.
WEESEL. With ſhort rounded ears : fides of the face white :
from the noſe to the back extends a bed of white; along the
top of the back, to the baſe of the tail, is another broad one of black,
bounded on each ſide by a white ſtripe: the belly, feet, and tail,
black. But the colors vary: that which is figured by M. de Buffon
has a white tail: the claws on all the feet very long, like thoſe of a
Badger: the tail very full of hair.
This inhabits the continent of America, from Hudſon's Bay § to
Peru ll. In the laſt it is called Chinche. It burrows like the former,
and has all the ſame qualities. It is alſo found in Mexico, where it
is called Conepatl, or Boy's little Fox (.
* Kalm. i. 278.
+ Cateſby, ii. tab. 62.
I Kalm, i. 274
from thence by Mr. Graham. || Feuillée Obf. Peru, 1714, p. 272,
nandez, Mex. 382.
Ś Sent
Her-
Vol. I.
O
Muſtela

98
S KUN K.
A. Muſtela nivalis.-Fennorum Nirpa Lumiko, Lumitirka, Nov. Act. Acad. Reg.
Scient. Suec. vi. 1785.p. 212.-Lappon. Seibbſh.Ruſis Laſka.
a
W. With large canine teeth: body in ſummer grey, with a
tincture of rufous: tail of the ſame color: belly white. Length
from the tip of the noſe to the baſe of the tail fix inches and a half:
tail an inch and a half. Shape of the Stoat.
Inhabits the north of Finland and Lapland. Lives during the
fummer in the foreſts; in winter frequents villages and houſes.
Feeds on mice, ſmall birds, their eggs and young; eats alſo frogs
Is itſelf the prey of rapacious birds, and of the Ermine or Stoat.
In winter changes to white, the whiſkers, and a few hairs in the
tail, excepted. Has not the fætid ſmell of the Weefel and Stoat.
Is taken in traps baited with a mouſe, or ſmall bird. The ſkin is
equal in price to that of the Ermine.--Profeffor Retzius.
HIST

Co Μ Μ Ο Ν Ο Τ Τ Ε R.
99
HIST. QUA D.
. QUAD. GENUS XXIV.
OTTER.
Hift. Quad. Nº 226.-Br. Zool. i. Nº 19.--Smellie, iv. 232. Lev. Mus.
34. COMMONS
O
TTER. With ſhort rounded ears: head flat and broad :
long whiſkers: aperture of the mouth ſmall: lips very muf-
cular, deſigned to cloſe the mouth firmly while in the action of
diving: eyes ſmall, and placed nearly above the corners of the
mouth: neck ſhort: body long: legs ſhort, broad, and thick: five
toes on each foot, each furniſhed with a ſtrong membrane or web:
tail depreſſed, and tapering to a point.
The fur fine; of a deep brown color, with exception of a white
ſpot on each ſide of the noſe, and another under the chin.
Theſe animals inhabit as far north as Hudſon's Bay, Terra di La-
brador, and Canada, and as low fouth as Carolina and Louiſiana *
but in the latter provinces are very ſcarce. The ſpecies ceaſes
farther fouth. Lawſon ſays that they are ſometimes found, to the
weſtward of Carolina, of a white color, inclining to yellow. Thoſe
of North America are larger than the European, and the furs of ſuch
which inhabit the colder parts are very valuable. Their food
is commonly fiſh; but they will alſo attack and devour the
Beaver t.
They are found again in Kamtſchatka, and in moſt parts of nor-
thern Europe and Aſia, but not on the Aretic flats: are grown
very ſcarce in Ruſſia. The Kamtſchatkans uſe their furs to face their
a
* Lawſon, 119, and Du Pratz, ii. 69.
02
+ Dobbs, 40.
garments,

100
LESSER OTTE R.
garments, or to lap round the ſkins of Sables, which are preſerved
better in Otter ſkins than any other way. They uſually hunt them
with dogs, in time of deep ſnow, when the Otters wander too far
from the banks of rivers *
The Americans round Hudſon's Bay ſhoot or trap them for the
fake of the ſkins, which are ſent to Europe. They alſo uſe the ſkins
for pouches, ornamented with bits of horn; and eat the fleſh.
Otters are probably continued along the Aretic parts of America,
weſtward; being found on the moſt eaſtern, or the greater Fox
Iſlands, which are ſuppoſed to be pretty near to that continent.
35. MINX.
Leffer Otter, Hift Quad. No 228.
a
Description. OTTER. With a white chin : rounded ears : top of the head
in ſome hoary, in others tawny: the body covered with ſhort
tawny hairs, and longer of a duſky color: the feet broad, webbed,
and covered with hair: the tail duſky, ending in a point. This
animal is of the ſhape of the common Otter, but much ſmaller : its
length being only twenty inches from head to tail; of the tail only
four.
It inhabits the middle provinces of North America, from Nere
Jerſey to the Carolinas. I did not diſcover it among the ſkins fent
by Mr. Graham from Hudſon's Bay; the animal deſcribed as one of
this ſpecies differing from the many I have ſeen from the more
ſouthern colonies : yet poſſibly it may be found in a more northern
latitude than that which I have given it, if the Foutereaux, an am-
phibious fort of little Polecats mentioned by La Hontan, be the
AMERICA.
j
ſamet.
Hift. Kamtſ. 115, 116.
+ i. 62.
It

LESSER OTTER.
IOI
It frequents the banks of rivers, inhabiting hollow trees, or holes
which it forms near the water*. It has, like the Skunks, when pro-
voked, a moſt exceſſively fætid ſmell. It lives much upon fiſh, frogs,
and aquatic inſects; dives admirably, and will continue longer under
water than the Muſk-beaver t : yet at times it will deſert its watery
haunts, and make great havoke in the poultry yards, biting off the
heads of the fowls, and fucking the blood. At times it lurks amidſt
the docks and bridges of towns, where it proves a uſeful enemy to
rats I.
It is beſides very deſtructive to the Tortoiſe ; whoſe eggs it
ſcrapes out of the fand and devours : and eats the freſh-water
muſcles; whoſe ſhells are found in great abundance at the mouth
of their holes. It is capable of being made tame, and domeſti-
cated s.
The ſpecies is ſpread in Afia, along the banks of the raik, in the
Orenburg government ||. None are ſeen in Sibiria ; but appear
again near the rivers which run into the Amur. Its fur is in thoſe
parts very valuable, and eſteemed as next in beauty to the Sable.
It is either hunted with dogs or taken in traps. In Europe it is
found in Poland and Lithuania, where it is named Nurek; and the
Germans call it Nurtz. It is alſo an inhabitant of Finland: the
natives call it Tichuri; the Swedes, Mænk (, a name carried into
America by fome Swediſh coloniſt, and with a ſlight variation is ſtill
retained.
ASIA,
EUROPE
* Kalm, ii. 62.
$ Lawſon, 122.
† Letter from Mr. Peter Collinſon. I Kalm, ii. 61
|| Dr. Pallas.
Fauna Suec. N° 13.
Hift.

SE A O T T E R.
36. Sea.
Hift. Quad. Nº 230.
Lutra Marina, Kalan. Nov. Com. Petrop. ii. 367. tab. xvi.
Caſtor Marin, Hif. Kamtſchatka, 444.
Sea Otter, Muller, 57, 58*.-Lev. Mus.
DESCRIPTION.
a
OTTER. With hazel irides : upper jaw long, and broader
than the lower: noſe black: ears erect, conic, ſmall: whiſkers
long and white: in the upper jaw fix, in the lower four, cutting
teeth: grinders broad: fore legs thick; on each four toes, covered
with hair, and webbed: the hind feet reſemble exactly thoſe of a
Seal: the toes divided by a ſtrong ſhagreened membrane, with a
ſkin ſkirting the external fide of the outmoſt toe, in the manner of
fome water fowl.
The ſkin is extremely thick, covered cloſely with long hair, re-
markably black and gloſſy; and beneath that is a ſoft down. The
hair fometimes varies to filvery. The hair of the young is foft and
brown.
The length, from noſe to tail, is about three feet; that of the
tail thirteen inches and a half. The tail is depreſſed, full of hair
in the middle, and ſharp-pointed. The weight of the biggeſt, le-
venty or eighty pounds.
Theſe are the moſt local animals of any we are acquainted
with, being entirely confined between lat. 49 and 60, and weſt
longitude 126 to 150 eaſt from London, in the coaſt and ſeas on
the north-eaſt parts of America ; and again only between the Kamt-
Size.
PLACE.
* I here inſert the ſynonyms ; for in the Synopſis of Quadrupeds, follow-
ing Linnæus and Biſon, I confound the Braſilian Otter of Marcgrave with this
animal.
Schatkan

S E A O T T E R.
103
ſchatkan ſhores and the iſles which intervene between them and
America. They land alſo on the Kuril iſlands; but never are
ſeen in the channel between the north-eaſt part of Sibiria and
America.
They are moſt extremely harmleſs, and moſt fingularly af-
fectionate to their young. They will never deſert them, and
will even pine to death on being robbed of them, and ſtrive to
breathe their laſt on the ſpot where they experienced the misfor-
MANNERS.
tune.
It is ſuppoſed that they bring but one at a time. They go be-
tween eight and nine months with young, and fuckle it almoſt the
whole year. The young never quits its dam till it takes a mate.
.
They are monogamous, and very conſtant.
They bring forth on land: often carry the young between
their teeth, fondle them, and frequently fling them up and
catch them again in their paws. Before the young can ſwim, the
old ones will take them in their fore feet, and ſwim about upon
their backs.
They run very ſwiftly : ſwim ſometimes on their fides, on their
backs, and often in a perpendicular direction. They are very ſpor-
tive, embrace each other, and kiſs.
They never make any reſiſtance; but endeavour, when attacked,
to ſave themſelves by flight: when they have eſcaped to fome dif-
tance, they will turn back, and hold one of their fore feet over their
eyes, to gaze, as men do their hands to ſee more clearly in a funny
day; for they are very dull-fighted, but remarkably quick-
ſcented.
They are fond of thoſe parts of the ſea which abound moſt with
weeds, where they feed on fiſh, ſepiæ, lobſters, and ſhell-fiſh, which
they comminute with their flat grinders.
They
و

104
SE A T T E R.
CAPTURES
They are taken different ways: in the ſummer, by placing nets
among the ſea-plants, where theſe animals retire in the frequent
ſtorms of this tempeſtuous coaſt.
They are killed with clubs or ſpears, either while they lie aſleep
on the rocks, or in the ſea floating on their backs.
Thirdly, they are purſued by two boats till they are tired, for
they cannot endure to be long at a time under water.
During winter they are brought in great numbers to the Kurilian
iſlands, by the eaſtern winds, from the American ſhore.
The hunter goes with a dog, who points them. He knocks it
on the head, and flays it, while the dog is beating about for
another.
They are called in the Kamtſchatkan tongue Kalan, in the plural
Kalani.
Their fleſh is preferred to that of Seals by the natives; but the
unfortunate crew who were ſhipwrecked in the expedition in 1741,
under Captain Bering, found it to be inſipid, hard, and tough as
leather; ſo that they were obliged to cut it in ſmall pieces be-
fore they could eat it. Others pretend, that the fleſh of the
young is very delicate, and ſcarcely to be diſtinguiſhed from young
lamb.
But the valuable part of them is their ſkin. Few are brought
into Europe ; but great quantities are ſold to the Chineſe, at vaſt
prices, from ſeventy to a hundred rubles apiece, or 14 or 251.
ſterling each. What a profitable trade might not a colony carry
on, was it poſſible to penetrate to theſe parts of North America
by means of the rivers and lakes! The acceſs to Pekin would
be then eafy, by failing up the gulph of Petcheli.
At preſent,
theſe valuable furs are carried by land above three thouſand miles
to the frontiers of China, where they are delivered to the mer-
chants.
Theſe
FUR.
a

S Ε Α Ο Τ Τ Ε R.
105
Theſe animals partake very much of the nature of Seals, in their
almoſt conſtant reſidence in the water, their manner of ſwimming,
fin-like legs, and number of fore teeth. In their ears they
greatly reſemble the little Seal of my Hiſtory of Quadrupeds,
N° 386, and ſeem the animals which connect the genera of Otters
and Seals.
They are ſeen very remote from land, ſometimes even at the diſ-
tance of a hundred leagues,
VOL. I.
P
DI V


DI V. II. SECT. II.
DIGITATED QUADRUPEDS.
Without CANINE TEETH: and with two CUTTING TEETH
only in each jaw.
P 2

108
V A RYING HAR E.
DIV. II. SECT. II. Digitated Quadrupeds.
Without CANINE TEETH: and with two CUTTING TEETH
only in each jaw.
Generally Herbivorous, or Frugivorous.
HARE
HIS T. QU A D. GENUS XXVI.
37. VARYING
Hift. Quad. Nº 242.-Alpine Hare, Br. Zool. i. N° 21.-Lev. Mus.
HA
a
ARE. With the edges of the ears and tips black: the colors,
in fummer, cinereous, mixed with black and tawny: tail
always white.
Mr. Graham fays, that thoſe of Hudſon's Bay are of the ſame fize
with the common; but thoſe which I have examined in Scotland
are much leſs, weighing only fix pounds and a half: the common
Hare weighs upwards of eight.
This ſpecies inhabits Greenland, where alone they continue white
throughout the year*; and are very numerous amidſt the ſnowy
mountains. They are uſually fat; and feed on graſs, and the
white moſs of the country. They are found about the rocks at
Churchill, and the ſtreights of Hudſon's Bay; but are not common.
They breed once a year, and bring two at a time t. They change
their color to white at approach of winter. They are met with in
ز
* Crantz, i. 70.--Egede, 62.
+ Mr. Graham
Canada

AMERICAN HAR E.
109
Canada and Newfoundland; after which the ſpecies ceaſes to the
ſouthward, or at left I have no authority for its being continued ;
the Hare of New England ſeeming, by Joſſelyn's account, to be the
following ſpecies.
The Greenlanders eat the fleſh dreſſed, and the contents of the
ſtomach raw. They uſe the excrements for wick for their lamps ;
and cloath their children with the ſoft and warm ſkins.
This ſpecies abounds from Livonia to the north-eaſt part of Sibi-
ria and Kamtſchatka ; and from Archangel to Saratof, on the banks
of the Wolga, in eaſt lat. 49. 52, and even farther into the Orenburg
government. In Sibiria they quit the lofty mountains, the ſouthern
boundaries of that country, and, collecting in flocks innumerable,
at approach of winter migrate to the plains, and northern wooded
parts, where vegetation and food abound. Mr. Bell met with them
daily in their progreſs * Multitudes of them are taken in toils by
the country people, not for the ſake of the fleſh, but the ſkins ;
which are ſent to Peterſburg, and from thence exported to various
parts.
American Hare, Ph. Tranſ. lxii. 4. 376.----Hift. Quad. Nº 243.
38. AMERICAN
HARE. With ears tipt with grey: neck and body ruſty, cine-
reous, and black: legs pale ruft-color: belly white: tail black
above, white beneath.
The diſtinctions between this and the common Hares and vary-
ing Hares are theſe :- They are leſs, weighing only from three
pounds eight ounces to four pounds and a half: the length to the
ſetting-on of the tail only nineteen inches. The hind legs are longer
in proportion than thoſe of the common Hare or varying Hare ;
a
SIZE,
* Travels, octavo ed. i. 246,
the

MIO
AMERICAN HAR E.
SIZE OF A
VARYING HARE.
a
the length of this, from the noſe to the tip of the hind legs, extend-
ed, being two feet five: of a varying Hare, meaſured at the ſame
time, in Hudſon's Bay, only two feet feven and a half; but from the
noſe to the tail was two feet: its weight ſeven pounds fix ounces.
Theſe animals are found from Hudſon's Bay to the extremity of
North America ; but ſwarm in countries bordering on the former.
In the time of M. Jeremie, who reſided in Hudſon's Bay from 1708
to 1714, twenty-five thouſand were taken in one ſeaſon*. At pre-
ſent they are a principal winter food to our reſidents there. They
are taken in wire ſnares, placed at certain intervals in ſmall open-
ings made in a long extent of low hedging formed for that purpoſe;
the animals never attempting to jump over, but always ſeek the
gaps. Theſe hedges are removed, on the falling of the ſnows, to
other places, when the Rabbets ſeek new tracks t. Their fleſh is
very good; but almoſt brown, like that of the Engliſh Hare.
From Hudſon's Bay, as low as New England, theſe animals, at ap-
proach of winter, receive a new coat, which conſiſts of a multitude
of long white hairs, twice as long as the ſummer fur, which ſtill re-
mains beneath. About the middle of April they begin to ſhed their
winter covering.
From New England ſouthward they retain their brown color the
In both warm and cold climates they retain the ſame
nature of never burrowing; but lodge in the hollow of fome de-
cayed tree, to which they run in caſe they are purſued. In the cul-
tivated
parts of America, they make great havoke among the fields
of cabbage, or turnips I. In Carolina, they frequent meadows and
marſhy places; and are very ſubject to have maggots breed in the
íkin g. In that province they breed very often, and even in the
whole year.
+ Drage, i. 176.
| Kalm, ii. 46.
* Voyages au Nord, iii. 344.
$ Lawſon, 122
winter

ALPINE HAR E.
III
.
winter months, and bring from two to fix at a time; but uſually
two or four *
I know of no uſe that is made of the ſkins, excepting that the
natives of Hudſon's Bay wrap them round the limbs of their children,
to preſerve them againſt the cold.
** Without a tail.
Hift. Quad. N° 248.-Blackb. Muf.
39. ALPINE
HARE. With ſhort, broad, rounded ears : long head, and
whiſkers : fur duſky at the roots; of a bright bay near the
ends; tips white: intermixed are divers long duſky hairs.
Length nine inches.
Found from the Altaic chain to lake Baikal, and from thence to
Kamtſchatka. They dwell amidſt the ſnows of the loftieſt and moſt
dreadful rocky mountains, and never deſcend to the plains. They
alſo are ſaid to inhabit the fartheft Fox or Aleutian iſlands: there-
fore poſſibly may be met with in America.
The manners are ſo amply deſcribed in my Hiſtory of Quadruc
peds, that I ſhall not repeat an account of them.
* Doctor Garden.
European,

112
ALPIN E HAR E.
A. European, Br. Zool. i. No.-Hift. Quad. ii. No
The common Engliſh Hare is found in Sweden, and is perhaps
the only kind in the ſouthern part. Profeffor Retzius is of opi-
nion, that it does not differ in fpecies from the Varying, N° 37. I
have given my reaſons, in the Tour to Scotland, and my Hiſtory of
Quadrupeds, vol. II. p. 370, for differing from his reſpectable
opinion.
In Sweden the common Hare is in ſummer of a duſky brown: in
winter becomes cinereous. In that ſtate, I have ſeen a brace fent
over to England. In Scania they are twice as large as they are in
the northern parts of Sweden, i, e. as thoſe I call the Varying.
a
HIST.

C A S T O R.
113
HIST. QU AD. GENUS XXVII.
BEAVER.
Hift. Quad. N°251.Smellie, v. 21.-Lev. Mus.
40. Castor,
EAVER. With a blunt noſe : ears ſhort, rounded, and hid Description.
Bi
deep cheſnut brown: fore feet ſmall, and the toes divided : hind
feet large, and the toes webbed : the tail eleven inches long, and
three broad; almoſt oval; flat, and covered with thin ſcales.
The uſual length, from nofe to tail, is about two feet four; but I
have meaſured the ſkin of one, which was near three feet long.
Beavers vary in color. They are ſometimes found of a deep
black, eſpecially in the north. In Sir Aſhton Lever's muſeum is a
ſpecimen quite white. As they advance ſouthward, the beauty of
their fur decreaſes. Among the Illinois they are tawny, and even
as pale as ſtraw color *.
In North America theſe animals are found in great plenty all
round Hudſon's Bay, and as low as Carolina † and Louiſiana I. They
are not known in Eaſt Florida ş. The ſpecies alſo ceaſes before it
arrives in South America. To ſpeak with preciſion, it commences
in lat. 60, or about the river of Seals, in Hudſon's Bay; and is loft
in lat. 30, in Louiſiana.
From Hudſon's Bay and Canada, I can trace them weſtward to
I 20 degrees of longitude, as far as the tract weſt of Lac Rouge, or
the Red lake 1. The want of diſcovery prevents us from know-
PLACE
j
+ Lawſon.
I Du Pratz, ii. 69.
§ Account
• Charlevoix, v. 140.
of Eaſt Florida, 50.
VOL. I.
|| Dobbs, 35.
Q
ing

114
C A S T O R.
ing whether they are continued to the weſtern extremity of this
great continent oppoſite to Aſia: probably they are, for the Ruſſian
adventurers got ſome of their ſkins on the iſle of Kadjak, which the
natives muſt have had from America. They certainly are not found
in the iſlands of the new Archipelago; nor yet in Kamtſchatka *, by
reaſon of the interruption of woods, beyond the river Konyma.
From thence I doubt whether they are met with aſſociated, or in a
civilized ſtate, nearer than the banks of the river Feneſei, or the
Konda, and other rivers which run into the Oby: but they are found
ſcattered in the woody parts of independent Tartary; alſo in Cafan,
and about the Yaik, in the Orenburg government. In the ſame
unfociable ſtate they inhabit Europe, and are found in Ruſia, in
Lapland, Norway, and Sweden. The Beaver is extremely ſcarce in
the lower part of Sweden. Mr. Oedman recollects but one in-
ſtance, and that was in Weſtrogothia. It was ſo little known there,
that the common people regarded it as a prodigy.
Theſe are the moſt fagacious and induſtrious of animals. They
live in ſociety, and unite in their labors, for the good of the com-
monwealth they form. They erect edifices, fuperior in contrivanee
to the human beings. They uſually live near, and ſhew a dexterity
in their ceconomy unequalled by the four-footed race.
In order to form a habitation, they ſelect a level piece of ground,
with a ſmall rivulet running in the midſt. To effect their works, a
community of two or three hundred aſſembles: every individual
bears his ſhare in the laborious preparation. Some fall trees of
great fize, by gnawing them afunder with their teeth, in order to
form beams or piles; others are employed in rolling the pieces to
the water; others dive, and ſcrape holes with their feet in order to
fix them; and another ſet exert their efforts to rear them in their
SAGACITY.
DWELLINGS.
a
a
a
LABORS
و
* The Sea Beaver (as it is called) Sp. of this work, muſt not be confounded with
this
proper

C A S T O R.
115
DAMS,
proper places. A fifth party is buſied in collecting twigs to wai-
tle the piles. A ſixth, in collecting earth, ſtones, and clay; others
carry it on their broad tails to proper places, and with their feet
beat and temper the earth into mortar, or ram it between the piles,
or plaifter the inſide of the houſes.
All theſe preparations are to form their dwellings within an arti-
ficial piece of water or pond, which they make by raiſing a dam
acroſs the level ſpot they had pitched on. This is done, firſt by
driving into the ground ſtakes, five or fix feet long, placed in rows,
and ſecuring each row by wattling it with twigs, and filling the
interſtices with clay, ramming it down cloſe. The fide next to the
water is floped, the other perpendicular. The bottom is from ten
to twelve feet thick; the thickneſs gradually diminiſhes to the top,
which is about two or three. The centre of the dam forms a ſeg-
ment of a circle; from which extends, on each ſide, a ſtrait wing:
in the midſt of the centre is uſually a gutter left for the waſte water
to diſcharge itſelf. Theſe dams are often a hundred feet long, and
nicely covered with turf.
The houſes theſe wiſe animals make, are placed in the water col-
lected by means of the dam, and are ſeated near the ſhore. They
are built upon piles, and are ſometimes round, ſometimes oval;
the tops are vaulted, ſo that their inſide reſembles an oven, their
outſide a dome. The walls are made of earth, ſtones, and ſticks,
and uſually two feet thick. They are commonly about eight feet
high above the ſurface of the water *, and are very neatly and
cloſely plaiſtered on the inſide. The floor is a foot higher than the
The houſe, ſometimes, has only one floor, which is ſtrewed
with leaves or moſs, on which each Beaver lies in its proper place;
at other times there are three apartments; one to lodge, another to
Houses.
a
water.
* Clerk, i. 142.
Qa
eat

116
CA S T O R.
MAGAZINES,
Food.
eat in, and a third to dung in *: for they are very cleanly, and
inſtantly cauſe the filth to be carried off by the inferior Beavers.
M. Du Pratz † fays, that thoſe of Louiſiana form numbers of cells,
and that each animal, or more probably each pair, poſſeſs one. He
fays, that he has ſeen no leſs than fifteen of theſe cells furrounding
the centre of one houſe. He alſo acquaints us, that the Beavers of
Louiſiana are a third leſs than the brown fort; are covered with a ci-
nereous down, which is covered with long ſilvery hairs.
In each houſe are two openings; one towards the land, the other
is within, and communicates with the water, for the conveniency of
getting to their magazine of proviſion in froſty weather. This ori-
fice is formed ſo as to be beyond the thickneſs of the ice; for they
lodge their proviſions under the water, and dive and bring it into
their houſe according as they want it.
Their food is laid in before winter by the tenants of each houſe;
it conſiſts of the bark and boughs of trees. Lawſon ſays that they
are fondeſt of the faſſafras, aſh, and ſweet gum. In ſummer they
live on leaves, fruits, and ſometimes crabs and cray-fiſh; but they
are not fond of fiſh.
The number of houſes in each pond is from ten to twenty-five :
the number of animals in each, from two to thirty. They are fup-
poſed to aſſociate in pairs; are therefore monogamous: another
proof of their advances towards civilization.
I think I have heard that every family conſiſts of an even number.
Sometimes the community, within the precinct of a dam, conſiſts of
four hundred; but I prefume this muſt be in places little frequented
by mankind.
They begin to build their houſes, when they form a new ſettle-
ment, in the fummer; and it coſts them a whole feaſon to finiſh
their work, and lay in their proviſions.
NUMBER OF
HOUSES;
OF INHABITANTS.
Mr. Graham.--Cateſby, App. XXX.
+ i. 241.
They

CA S T O R.
117
a
OVERSEERS.
They are very attentive to their ſafety; and on any noiſe take to
the water for their further ſecurity. They form vaults or burrows
in the banks of the creek formed by the dam, into which they re-
treat in caſe of imminent danger.
They ſeem to be among quadrupeds, what Bees are among
inſects. They have a chief, or fuperintendant, in their works, who
directs the whole. The utmoſt attention is paid to him by the
whole community. Every individual has his taſk allotted, which
they undertake with the utmoſt alacrity. The overſeer gives a
ſignal by a certain number of ſmart ſlaps with his tail, expreſſive of
his orders. The moment the artificers hear it, they haſten to the
place thus pointed out, and perform the allotted labor, whether
it is to carry wood, or draw the clay, or repair any accidental
breach.
They have alſo their centinels, who, by the ſame kind of ſignal,
CENTINELS
give notice of any apprehended danger.
They are faid to have a ſort of ſlaviſh Beaver among them (analo-
gous to the Drone) which they employ in fervile works, and the
domeſtic drudgery *
I have mentioned before their fagacity in laying in the winter
proviſion. They cut the wood they prefer into certain lengths ; THEIR WOOD HOW
pile them in heaps beneath the water, to keep them moiſt; and,
when they want food, bite the wood into ſmall pieces, and bring it
into their houfes. The Indians obſerve the quantity which the
Beavers lay in their magazine at approach of winter. It is the
Almanack of the Savages; who judge, from the greater or leſs
ſtock, the mildneſs or ſeverity of the approaching ſeaſon f.
The expedition with which they cut down trees, for the forming
their dams, is amazing. A number ſurrounds the body, and will
a
SLAVES.
CUT.
* Mr. Graham.
+ Charlevoix, V. 151.
in

118
CA S T O R.
a
ز
in a few minutes gnaw through a tree of three feet in circum-
ference; and always contrive to make it fall towards the ſpot they
wiſh *
Beavers have in America variety of lakes and waters in which
they might fix their ſeats; but their fagacity informs them of the
precarious tenure of ſuch dwellings, which are liable to be over-
thrown by every flood. This induces them to undertake their
mighty and marvellous labors. They therefore ſelect places where
no ſuch inconveniences can be felt. They form a dam to ſupport
a reſervoir, fed only by a ſmall rill; and provide for the overflow
of the waſte water by a ſuitable channel in the middle of their
bank. They have nothing to fear but from land floods, or the
fudden melting of the ſnows. Theſe ſometimes make breaches, or
damage their houſes; but the defects are inſtantly repaired.
During the winter they never ftir out, except to their magazines
of proviſion; and in that ſeaſon grow exceſſively fat.
They are ſtrongly attached to certain haunts, there being places
which they will not quit, notwithſtanding they are frequently dif-
turbed. There is, ſays Charlevoix, a ſtrong inſtance on the road
between Montreal and lake Huron, which travellers, through wan-
tonneſs, annually moleft; yet is always repaired by the induſtrious
inhabitants.
In violent inundations they are ſometimes overpowered in their
attempts to divert the fury of the water. In thoſe caſes they fly
into the woods: the females return as ſoon as the water abates ;
the males continue abſent till July, when they come back to repair
the ravages made in their houſes t.
Beavers breed once a year, and bring forth the latter end of
winter; and have two or three young at a birth.
.
* Cateſby, App. 30.
+ Charlevoix, v. 151.
There

CA S T O R.
119
TERRIER
BEAVERS.
а
a
3
There is a variety of the Beaver kind, which wants either the fa-
gacity or the induſtry of the others, in forming dams and houſes.
Theſe are called Terriers. They burrow in the banks of rivers,
and make their holes beneath the freezing depth of the water,
and work upwards for a great number of feet. Theſe alſo form
their winter magazines of proviſion. Beavers which eſcape the
deſtruction of a community, are ſuppoſed often to become Ter-
riers.
Strange animal ſeen by Mr. Phipps and others in Newfoundland,
of a ſhining black : bigger than a Fox: ſhaped like an Italian gre.
hound: legs long: tail long and taper. One gentleman faw five
ſitting on a rock with their young, at the mouth of a river ; often
leapt in and dived, and brought up trouts, which they gave to their
young
When he ſhewed himſelf, they all leapt into the water,
and ſwam a little way from ſhore, put their heads out of the
water and looked at him. An old furrier faid, he remembered a
ſkin of one ſold for five guineas. The French often ſee them in
Hare Bay.
Beavers have, beſides man, two enemies; the Otter, and the
Wolverene; which watch their appearance, and deſtroy them. The
laft is on that account called, in ſome parts of America, the Beaver-
eater. They are very eaſily overcome; for they make no reſiſtance :
and have no fecurity but in flight.
It is not wonderful that ſuch fociable animals ſhould be very af-
fectionate. Two young Beavers, which were taken alive and
brought to a neighbouring factory in Hudſon's Bay, were preſerved
for fome time; and throve very faſt, till one of them was killed by
an accident. The furvivor inſtantly felt the loſs, began to moan,
and abſtained from food till it died *.
a
THEIR ENEMIES.
Drage's Voy. i. 151,
They

120
C A S T O R.
How TAKEN
They are taken ſeveral ways: ſometimes in log-traps, baited
with poplar ſticks, laid in a path near the water. The Indians
always waſh their hands before they bait the traps, otherwiſe the fa-
gacious animal is ſure to ſhun the ſnare.
Sometimes they are ſhot, either while they are at work, or at
food, or in ſwimming acroſs the rivers. But theſe methods are
uſed only in fummer, and not much practiſed; for the ſkins in
that feafon are far leſs valuable than in the winter. At that time
they are taken in nets placed above and below their houſes, acroſs
the creeks, on ftakes. If the water is frozen, the ice is cut from
ſhore to ſhore, in order to put down the ſtakes. When the net is
ſet, the Indians ſend their women to the Beaver-houſes to diſturb
the animals; who dart into the water, and are uſually taken in the
net, which is inſtantly hauled
up;
and put down again with all ex-
pedition. If the Beaver miſſes the net, it ſometimes returns to its
houſe, but oftener into the vaults on the ſides of the banks; but the
poor creature ſeldom eſcapes, being purſued into all his retreats,
the houſes being broke open, and the vaults ſearched by digging
along the ſhores.
The value of the fur of theſe animals, in the manufacture of hats,
is well known. It began to be in uſe in England in the reign of
Charles I *, when the manufacture was regulated, in 1638, by pro-
clamation; in which is an expreſs prohibition of ufing any mate-
rials except Beaver ſtuff, or Beaver wool; and the hats called demi-
caſtors were forbidden to be made, unleſs for exportation.
This cauſed a vaſt encreaſe of demand for the ſkins of the
Beavers. The Indians, on the diſcovery of America, ſeem to have
paid very little attention to them, amidſt the vaſt variety of beaſts
they at that time poſſeſſed, both for food and cloathing. But
* Rymer's Federa, xx. 230.
about

CA S T O R.
12%
about the period of the faſhion of hats, they became an article of
commerce, and object of chaſe. The ſouthern colonies foon be-
came exhauſted of their Beavers; and of later years the traffic has
been much confined to Canada and Hudſon's Bay. The importance
of this trade, and the ravages made among the animal creation in
thoſe parts, will appear by the following ſtate of the imports into
the ports of London and Rochelle in 1743. I take that year, as I
have no other comparative ſtate :
Hudſon's Bay company ſale, begun November 17th 1743.
26,750 Beaver ſkins.
14,730 Martins.
590 Otters.
1,110 Cats, i, e. Lynx.
320 Fox.
600 Wolverenes.
320 Black Bears.
1,850 Wolves.
40 Woodſhocks, or Fiſhers.
10 Minx.
5 Raccoon.
I 20 Squirrels.
130 Elks, i. e. Stags.
440 Deer.
Imported into Rochelle in the ſame year.
127,080 Beavers.
16,512 Bears.
110,000 Raccoon.
30,325 Martins.
12,428 Otters and Fiſhers.
1,700 Minx.
1,220 Cats.
R
1,267 Wolves
Vol. 1.

I 22
M U S K.
1,267 Wolves.
92 Wolverenes.
10,280 Grey Foxes and Cats,
451 Red Foxes.
This great balance in favor of the French ariſes not only from
their fuperior honeſty in their dealings with the ignorant Indians,
but the advantageous ſituation of Canada for the fur trade. They
had both ſides of the river St. Lawrence; the country round the
five great lakes; and the countries bordering on the rivers flowing
into them; and finally, the fine fur countries bordering on the
Hudſon's Bay company, many of whoſe waters falling into the St.
Lawrence, gave an eaſy conveyance of thoſe commodities to Mont-
real; where a fair is annually kept, with all the ſavage circum-
ſtances attendant on Indian concourſe.
The traffic carried on in Hudſon's Bay is chiefly brought from the
chain of lakes and rivers that empty themſelves into the bay at
Nelſon's river, running foutherly from lat. 56 to lat. 45. Lake
Pachegoia is the moſt northerly: there the Indians rendezvous in
March, to make their canoes for the tranſportation of the furs; for
at that ſeaſon the bark of the birch-tree ſeparates very eaſily from
the wood.
41. Musk
Hift. Quad. Nº 252.--Smellie, v. 260.
a
BEAVER. With a thick noſe, blunt at the end : ears ſhort,
hid in the fur: eyes large: body thick, and in form quite re-
ſembles that of the Beaver; its color, and that of the head, a red-
diſh brown: breaſt and belly cinereous, tinged with ruft-color: the
fur is very ſoft and fine.
The

M U S K.
123
The toes on every foot are diſtinct and divided : thoſe of the
hind feet fringed on both ſides with ſtiff hairs or briſtles, cloſely ſet
together: tail compreſſed, and thin at the edges, covered with ſmall
ſcales, with a few hairs intermixed.
Length, from noſe to tail, one foot: of the tail nine inches.
Theſe animals are in ſome parts of America called the Little
Beaver, on account of its form, and ſome parts of its ceconomy.
From its ſcent it is ſtyled the Muſk Rat, and Mufquaſh. The
Hurons call it Ondathra; from which M. de Buffon gives it the name
of Ondatra *
It is found from Hudſon's Bay to as low at left as Carolina t.
Like the Beaver, it forms its houſe of a round ſhape, covered with a
dome, and conſtructed with herbs and reeds cemented with clay.
At the bottom and fides are ſeveral pipes, through which they paſs
in ſearch of food; for they do not lay in a ſtock of proviſion, like
the former. They alſo form fubterraneous paſſages, into which
they retreat whenever their houſes are attacked.
Theſe houſes are only intended for winter habitations: are deſerted,
and rebuilt annually. During ſummer, they live in pairs, and bring
forth their young from three to fix at a time. At approach of win-
ter, they conſtruct their houſes and retire into them, in order to be
protected from the inclemency of the ſeaſon. Several families oc-
cupy the ſame dwelling, which is oft-times covered many feet
with ſnow and ice; but they creep out and feed on the roots which
lie beneath. They are very fond of the Acorus Verus, or Calamus
Aromaticus I. This perhaps gives them that ſtrong muſky ſmell
theſe animals are ſo remarkable for; which they loſe during winter,
probably when this ſpecies of plant is not to be got. They alſo
feed on the freſh-water Muffels. They feed too on fruit; for Kalın
X. I 2.
t Lawſon, 120.
I The fame.
R 2
ſays,

I 24
M U S K.
ſays, that apples are the baits uſed for them in traps. We may
add, that in winter they eat the roots of nettles, and in fummer,
ſtrawberries and raſberries *, during which time it is rare to ſee the
male and female ſeparate.
The fleſh is ſometimes eaten. The fur is made uſe of in the ma-
nufacture of hats. The Mulk-bag is ſometimes put among cloths,
to preſerve them from worms or inſects.
Theſe animals, as well as the Beaver, ſeem to have their Terriers,
or ſome which do not give themſelves the trouble of building houſes,
but burrow, like Water-rats, in banks adjacent to lakes, rivers, and
ditches t, and often do much damage, by admitting the water
through the embankments of meadows. They continue in their
holes, except when they are in the water in ſearch of food. They
make their neſts with ſticks, placing a lining of fome foft materials
within I. Charlevoix § adds, that they ſometimes make uſe of a
hollow tree for their reſidence.
When taken young, they are capable of being tamed; are very
playful and inoffenſive, and never bite.
+ Kalm, ii, 56, and Charlevoix.
I Kalm, ii. 58.
* Charlevoix, v. 158.
§ v. 158.
HIST.

CANADA PORCUPIN E.
125
HIST. QU AD. GENUS XXVIII.
PORCUPINE. .
Hift. Quad. Nº 257.-Lev. Mus.
42. CANADA.
PORCUPINE. With fhort ears, hid in the fur : hair on the
3
head, body, legs, and upper part of the tail, long, ſoft, and of
a dark brown color; but ſometimes found white : on the upper part
of the head, body, and tail, are numbers of ſtrong ſharp quils; the
longeſt, which are thoſe on the back, are three inches long; the
ſhorteſt are towards the head and on the ſides, and concealed in the
hair; mixed with them are certain ſtiff ftraggling hairs, at left three
inches longer than the others, tipt with dirty white: the under fide
of the tail is white.
On each fore foot are four toes; on the hind five; all armed with
long claws, hollowed on the under fide.
The fize of one, which Sir JOSEPH Banks brought from New-
foundland, was about that of a Hare, but more compactly made;
the back arched; and the whole form reſembling that of the Beaver:
the tail is fix inches long, which, in walking, is carried a little bent
upwards.
This ſpecies inhabits America, from Hudſon's Bay to Canada *,
Newfoundland, New England, and, but rarely, as far fouth as Virginia †.
Lawſon makes no mention of it among the animals of Carolina. Du
Pratz [ ſays, it loves the cold, and is found on the banks of the
Illinois. It may therefore be ranked among the local northen ani-
mals.
a
• Charlevoix, v. 198,
+ Cateſby, App. xxx.
I ii. 68.
They

1 26
CANADA PORCUPIN E.
They are found in great plenty about Hudſon's Bay, where the
trading Indians depend much on them for food. They are reck-
oned excellent eating, even by the Europeans, taſting, when roaſted,
like fucking-pig. The bones, during winter, are of a greeniſh yel-
low, owing, as is ſuppoſed, to their feeding during that ſeaſon on
the bark of the pine. It is obſerved, that the bones of animals
ſometimes take a tincture from their diet ; for example, thoſe of
beaſts which feed on madder become red *. The Caqua, or Ca-
nada Porcupine, feeds much on the bark of pines or juniper : it is
their food the greateſt part of the year, and the buds of willows
their chief fupport the reſt. In walking it drags its tail along the
ground. Indians diſcover them by the track they make, but
chiefly by the unbarked trees. In ſummer, they live on the wild
fruits, and lap water, but will not go into it. In winter, take ſnow
by way of beverage.
They neſtle under the roots of great trees, and will alſo, in queſt
of fruits, aſcend the boughs. When the Indians diſcover one
in a tree, they cut it down, and kill the animal by a blow on the
noſe.
They defend themſelves with their quils. They fly from their
purſuer ; but when they cannot eſcape, will fidle towards their ene-
my, in order to puſh their quils into him : they are but weak in-
ſtruments of offence; for a ſmall ſtroke with the hand againſt the
grain will bring them from the ſkin, leaving them ſticking ſlightly
in the fleſh. The Indians uſe them to make holes in their noſes and
ears, for the placing their noſe and ear-rings, and other finery t.
They alſo trim the edges of their deer-ſkin habits with fringes
of dyed quils I, or make pretty linings with them for the bark
boxes.
. Phil. Tranſ. lxii. 374.
† Drage's Voy, i. 177.
I The fame, 191.
They

CANADA PORCUPIN E.
127
They are very indolent animals, ſleep much, and ſeldom travel a
mile from their haunts *
M. de Buffon gives two figures of this beaſt, under the name of
Le Coendou and L’Urſon. The firſt he makes an inhabitant of
Brafil: the laſt, of Hudſon's Bay: but the Coendou is a very differ-
ent animal t. The two figures he has exhibited are of our Porcu-
pine in the winter and ſummer dreſs, the hair growing thinner as
the warm ſeaſon approaches I. His Coendou ſhews it in the firſt
ſtate, his Urſon in the ſecond ş.
They are ſaid to copulate in September, and to bring only one
young, the firſt week in April; another, which it brings forth, be-
ing always dead l.
I Edw. Hift. Birds, i. 52.
• Mr. Graham.
+ See Syn. Quad. Nº
$ Hift. Nat. xü. tab. liv.lv,
|| Mr. Graham.
HIS T.

I 28
QUEBEC AND MARYLAND MARMOT.
MARMOT.
HIS T. QU AD. GENUS XXIX.
43. QUEBEC
Hift. Quad. N° 259.
Mus empetra, PALLAS, Nov. Sp. Quad. faſc. i. 75.
MA
ARMOT. With ſhort rounded ears: blunt noſe: cheeks
ſwelled, and of a cinereous color: end of the noſe black :
top of the head cheſnut : the hair on the back grey at the bottom,
black in the middle, and the tips whitiſh : the belly and legs of a
deep orange, or a bright ferruginous color.
Toes black, naked, and quite divided : four toes, with the rudi-
ments of another, on the fore feet, five on the hind feet : tail ſhort,
duſky, and full of hair.
The ſpecimen which I ſaw formerly at Mr. Brook's, alive, ap-
peared larger than a Rabbet ; but the ſpecimen in the Royal So-
ciety's Muſeum was only eleven inches long from nofe to the
tail, and the tail three inches. This probably was a young one.
The Wenuſk, or Quebec Marmot, feeds on coarſe graſs. It bur-
rows in the earth in a perpendicular manner. The Indians take it
by pouring water into the holes, which forces it out.
*
44. MARYLAND.
Hift. Quad. Nº 260.-Smellie, iv. 346.
MARMOT. With prominent dark eyes : ſhort rounded ears :
noſe ſharper-pointed than that of the laſt, and of a cinereous
color: head and body of a brown color, which is lighter on the
а.
* Phil. Tranf, lxii. 378.
fides,

HO ARY MARMO T.
129
fides, and ſtill more fo on the belly: the legs and feet duſky: toes
long, and divided : claws long, and ſharp: tail duſky, and buſhy;
half the length of the body: a ſpecific diſtinction from the other
kinds.
Size of a Rabbet.
Inhabits the temperate and warm parts of North America, from
Penſylvania to the Bahama Iſlands. It feeds on fruits, berries, and
vegetables. In the provinces it inhabits the hollows of trees, or
burrows under ground, ſleeping for a month together. The Eu-
ropean ſpecies continues dormant half the year: whether it takes a
long ſleep in the warm climate of the Bahamas I am uncertain. It
dwells there among the rocks, and makes its retreat into the holes
on the approach of the hunters. In thoſe iNands it is very fond of
the berries of the Ehretia Bourreria, called there Strong Back. The
fleſh is reckoned very good, but reſembles more that of a Pig than
a Rabbet *.
It is called there the Bahama Coney. By Mr. Edwards, who
figures one from Maryland, the Monax, or Marmot of America t.
Hift. Quad. N° 261.-Lev. Mus.
45. HOARY.
;
MARMOT. With the tip of the noſe black : ears ſhort, and
oval: cheeks whitiſh: crown duſky and tawny: hair in all
parts rude and long; on the back; fides, and belly, cinereous at the
bottoms, black in the middle, and tipped with white, ſo as to ſpread
a hoarineſs over the whole : legs black: claws dulky: tail full of
hair, black and ferruginous.
Size of the preceding.
Inhabits the northern parts of North America.
+ Hift. Birds, ii. 104.
Cateſby Carol. ii. 79. App. xxviii,
VOL. I.
S
45. Black

130
TAIL-LESS AND EAR-LESS MARMOT.
A. 45
BLACK MARMOT. With the tip of the noſe whitiſh: face,
brown and hoary : tail, fix inches long: hair on the body ſhort;
and of a full black : palms naked beneath. Size of a Rabbet.
Deſcribed from a ſkin in the Hudſon's Bay houſe. Inhabits the
interior parts of the country, and ſaid to be rare.
a
46. TAIL-LESS
Hiff. Quad. No. Lev. Mus.
MARMOT. With ſhort ears : color of the head and body a
cinereous brown: the extremities of the hairs white: two
cutting teeth above, four below: no tail.
About the ſize of the common Marmot.
Inhabits Hudſon's Bay.
47. EAR-LESS.
Hift. Quad. N° 263.--Smellie, viii. 234
a
MARMOT. Without ears : face cinereous : back, and hind
part of the head, of a light yellowiſh brown; ſometimes
ſpotted diſtinctly with white, at others undulated with grey: belly
and legs of a yellowiſh white: tail about four inches and a half long.
Length, from nofe to tail, about nine and a half. But there is a
pygmy variety wholly yellow, and with a ſhort tail, frequent near
the ſalt lakes, between the mouths of the Yaik and the Jemba.
Inhabits Bohemia, Auſtria, and Hungary, and in the Ruſſian empire;
begins to be common about the Occa, eaſt of Moscow ; extends over
all the temperate and open parts of Sibiria, and about Jakutſk, and
in Kamtſchatka. It is alſo on the iſland of Kadjak, and was ſeen in
great numbers by Steller on Schamagin's iſles, almoſt clofe on the
fhore of North America, which give it place in this part of the
work,
They
فر

EAR-LESS MARMOT.
131
MANNERS.
They burrow, and ſink the pipes to their retreats obliquely, and
then winding; and at the end is an arched oblong chamber, a foot
in diameter, ſtrewed with dried graſs. The entrances, or pipes, of
the males are of greater, and thoſe of the females of lefſer, diame-
ters. Towards winter they make a new pipe to their neſt, but
that only reaches to the turf; and with the earth which is taken
out they fill up the ſummer pipe.
They live entirely in a ſtate of ſolitude, unleſs in the amorous
ſeaſon, when the females are found in the ſame burrows with the
males; but they bring forth in their own burrows, and by that
means prevent the males from deſtroying the young, as they cannot
enter by reaſon of the narrowneſs of the pipes, the males being
fuperior in ſize to their mates. They ſleep all night; but in the
morning quit their holes, eſpecially in fine weather, and feed and.
ſport till approach of night. If the males approach one another,
they fight ſharply. The females often ſet up a very ſharp whiſtle ;
the males are, for the moſt part, filent. At the fight of a man,
they inſtantly run into their burrows; and are often ſeen ſtanding
upright, and looking about them, as if on the watch: and if they
ſpy any body, give a loud whiſtle, and diſappear.
They are very eaſily tamed, and become very ſportive and amuſ-
ing; and are very fond of being ſtroked and cheriſhed. In this
itate they will eat grain, and many ſorts of herbs. In a wild ftate
they prey on mice, and ſmall birds, as well as vegetables. Gmelin
ſays, that in Sibiria they inhabit granaries ; but I do not find it con-
firmed by Doctor Pallas. Gmelin adds, that thoſe who frequent
granaries, ſeek for prey during the whole winter *: as to the others,
they certainly remain torpid all the ſevere ſeaſon, and revive on the
melting of the ſnows.
Voyage en Sibirie, i. 378.
S 2
They

132
M A R M 0 T.
They bring forth from three to eight at a time. The young
grow very quick, and deſert the maternal burrows in the ſum-
mer.
Their enemies are all ſorts of Weefels, which dig them out of
their holes. More males than females periſh, as the latter are
fiercer, and defend themſelves much better. During day they are
ſnatched up by hawks and hungry crows.
In ſome places they are taken in fnares, for the ſake of their
fkins, which are uſually ſent to China. The Kamtſchatkans make
moſt elegant garments and hoods of them ; ſpecimens of the latter
are preſerved in the Leverian Muſeum. In Sibiria their fleſh is
eſteemed a great delicacy, eſpecially in autumn, when they are
a lump of fat.
The Ruſjans call them Suſlik; the Sibirians, Jevraſcha, and Jemi-
ranka ; the Kamtſchatkans, Syræth.
A. BOBAK, Hift. Qued. Nº 262.--Smellie, vii. 198.
MA ARMOT. With ſhort oval thick ears : ſmall eyes : upper
part of the body greyiſh, mixed with long black and duſky
hairs, tipt with grey: throat ruft-colored : reſt of the body and
inſide of the limbs yellowiſh ruft: four claws on the fore feet, and
a ſhort

M A R M O T.
133
a ſhort thumb furniſhed with a ſtrong claw: five toes behind : tail
ſhort, ſlender, and full of hair. Length ſixteen inches: of the tail
five.
Inhabits in great plenty Kamtſchatka, Sibiria, Tartary, the Ukraine,
and Poland.
Its manners moſt amply deſcribed in the Hiſtory of Qua-
drupeds.
HIST

1 34
HUDSON SQUIRRE L.
SQUIRREL.
HIS T. QU AD. GENUS XXX.
N. B. The ears of the American Squirrels have no tufts.
4.8. HUDSON
Hudſon's Bay Squirrel, Hift. Quad. Nº 274.-Lev. Mus.
SQUIRREL.
,
Of a ferruginous color, marked along the top
of the back with a line of a deeper hue: belly of a pale aſh-co-
lor, mottled with black, and divided from the ſides by a duſky line :
tail ſhorter and leſs bulhy than that of the European kind; of a ruſt-
color, barred, and ſometimes edged with black.
Inhabits the pine-foreſts of Hudſon's Bay and Labrador: live upon
the cones: keep in their neſts the whole winter. Are found as high
as the Copper river ; yet do not change their colors by the ſeverity
of the winter, like the Petits gris of northern Europe and Apa, from
which they form a diſtinct fpecies. I know of only one excep-
tion in change of color in thoſe of America, Sir Aſhton Lever being
poſſeſſed of a ſpecimen of a milky whiteneſs; but he did not know
from what part of the continent it came.
ژ
Oli
Carolina*. With the head, back, and fides, grey, white, and fer-
ruginous, intermixed : belly white : the color divided from that of
the ſides by a ruſt-coloured line: lower part of the legs red: tail
brown, mixed with black, and edged with white.
Both theſe are rather leſs than the European Squirrels.
Leffer Grey Squirrel, Hift. Quad. p.
Hif.

GREY SQUIRREL.
135
Hift. Quad. N° 272.- Smellie, v. 321.-Lev. Mus.
49. Grey.
a
ز
SQUIRREL. With hair of a dull grey color, intermixed
with black, and frequently tinged with dull yellow: belly white.
But they vary, the body being ſometimes of a fine uniform grey.
This is the largeſt of the genus, and grows to half the ſize of a
Rabbet.
In America I do not diſcover this animal farther north than New
England* from whence they are found in vaſt numbers as far ſouth
as Louiſiana t. Theſe, and the other ſpecies of Squirrels, are the
greateſt peſts to the farmers of North America. They ſwarm in ſe-
veral of the provinces, and often deſcend in troops from the back
ſettlements, and join the reſt in their ravages on the plantations of
mayz, and the various nuts and malt which that fertile country
produces.
Thoſe which migrate from the mountains generally arrive in au-
tumn; inſtantly clear the ground of the fallen acorns, nuts, and
maſt, and form with them magazines for their winter proviſions, in
holes which they dig under ground for that purpoſe. They are
often robbed of their hoards; for the coloniſts take great pains to
find them out; and oft-times the hogs, which rove about the woods,
root up and devour their magazines. It is from theſe that they
ſupply themſelves, from time to time, with proviſions, quitting their
nefts, and returning with a fufficient ftock to laſt them for ſome
ſpace; it being obſerved, that during winter they do not care to quit
their warm retreat, unleſs on a viſit to their ſtorehouſes; therefore,
whenever they are obſerved to run about the woods in greater
Foſelyn's Voy. 86.
+ Boſſu, i. 361.
numbers

136
GREY SQUIRREL.
a
a
numbers than uſual, it is a certain ſign of the near approach of ſevere
cold; for inſtinct directs them to lay in a greater ſtock than uſual,
leaſt the inclemency of the weather ſhould deprive them of acceſs
to their fubterraneous magazines.
The damage which they do to the poor planters, by deſtroying
the mayz, is incredible. They come by hundreds into the fields,
climb
up
the ſtalks, and eat the ſweet corn wrapt up in the heads,
and will deſtroy a whole plantation in a night. For this reaſon
they were proſcribed. In ſome places the inhabitants were, each,
obliged annually to bring in four Squirrels heads. In others, a fum
was given, about three pence, for every one that was killed. This
proved ſuch an encouragement, as to ſet all the idle people in the
province in purſuit of them. Penſylvania paid, from January 1749
to January 1750, 80ool. currency: but on complaint being made
by the deputies, that their treaſuries were exhauſted by theſe re-
wards, they were reduced to one half. How improved muſt the
ſtate of the Americans then be, in thirty-five years, to wage an ex-
penſive and ſucceſsful war againſt its parent country, which before
could not bear the charges of clearing the provinces from the
ravages of theſe inſignificant animals !
It has been obſerved, that the Squirrels are greatly multiplied
within theſe few years, and that in proportion to the encreaſe of the
fields of mayz, which attract them from all parts; I mean not only
the grey ſpecies, but all the others.
They are eaten by ſome people, and are eſteemed very delicate.
Their ſkins, in America, are uſed for ladies ſhoes; and are often
imported into England, for lining or facing for cloaks.
They make their neſts in hollow trees, with moſs, ſtraw, wool,
and other warm materials. They chiefly inhabit trees of the deci-
duous kind; but ſometimes in pines, whoſe cones are an article of
their proviſion. They keep their neſts for ſeveral days together,
feldom

GREY SQUIRRE L.
137
.
ſeldom ſtirring out, except for a freſh ſupply of food. Should a
deep ſnow prevent them from getting to their ſtorehouſes, multi-
tudes periſh with hunger.
When they are ſitting on a bough, and perceive a man, they in-
ftantly move their tails backward and forward, and gnaſh their
teeth with a very conſiderable noiſe. This makes them deteſted
by the ſportſmen, who loſe their game by the alarm they give.
The Grey Squirrel is a difficult animal to kill: it fits on the
higheſt trees, and often between the boughs, and changes its place
with ſuch expedition that the quickeſt markſman can ſcarcely find
time to level his piece; and if it can once get into a hole, or into
any old neſt, nothing can provoke it to get out of its afylum. They
run up and down the bodies of trees, but very rarely leap from
one to the other.
They are eaſily made tame; will even be brought to play with
cats and dogs, which in a ſtate of domeſticity will not hurt them.
They will alſo attach themſelves ſo far as to follow children to and
from the woods.
They agree in their manner of feeding with the European kinds;
and have all the ſame fort of attitudes.
3
B. Car.
SQUIRREL. With coarſe fur, mixed with dirty white and
black: the throat, and inſide of the legs and thighs, black: the tail
is much ſhorter than is uſual with Squirrels, and of a dull yellow,
mixed with black: in ſize equal to that of the Grey.
Inhabits Virginia. Mr. Knaphan, in whoſe collection I found it,
informed me, that the planters called it the Cat Squirrel.
I ſuſpect that this animal is only a variety. Lawſon * fays,
.
that he has ſeen the Grey ſpecies pied, reddiſh, and black; but this
* Hif. Cerol. 124-
T
Vol. I.
point

138
BLACK SQUIRRE L.
point muſt be determined by natives of the countries which they
inhabit, who, from obſervation, may decide by their manners, or
their colors, in different ſeaſons, or periods of life.
50. BLACK
Hift. Quad. N° 273.- Brown's Zoology, tab. xlvii.-Lev. Mus.
SQUIRREL. With white ears, noſe, and feet: the body totally
black: the tail black, tipt with white: in fize equal to the
former.
Theſe ſometimes vary: there being examples of individuals
which are wholly deftitute of any white marks. The beautiful
figure of one of theſe animals from Eaſt Florida, in Mr. Brown's
Zoology, has ears edged with white, and a much longer tail than
uſual.
Inhabits neither Hudſon's Bay nor Canada, but is found in moſt
other parts of America, as far as Mexico *. It is equally numerous,
and as deſtructive to the mayz as the Grey Squirrel, but breeds and
aſſociates in troops ſeparate from that ſpecies †; yet makes its neſt
in the ſame manner, and like it forms magazines of proviſion
againſt the ſevere ſeaſon.
In Mexico, and probably in other parts of America, they eat the
cones of pine-trees; and lodge in the hollows of the trees.
• Is the Quauhtechallotliltic, or Tlilacotequillin, of the Mexicans. Fernandez, 8.
+ Cateſby, ii. 73
A. With

FLYING SQUIRRE L.
139
A. With membranes from leg to leg.
Hift. Quad. No 283.--Smellie, v. 307.-Lev. Mus.
51. FLYING.
SQUIRREL. With large black eyes : round and naked ears :
a membrane, covered with hair, extending from the fore to the
hind legs : the hairs on the tail diſpoſed flatways on each fide: are
long in the middle, ſhort towards the end, which tapers to a point:
that and the body of a browniſh cinereous: the belly white, tinged
with yellow.
Inhabits all parts of North America, and as low as Mexico, where
it is called Quimichpatlan *. The natives of Virginia named it Aſſa-
panic †
They live in hollow trees. Like the Dormouſe, they ſleep the
whole day, but towards night creep out, and are very lively and
active. They are gregarious, numbers being found in one tree.
By means of the lateral membranes, they take prodigious leaps,
improperly called flying; and can ſpring ten yards at an effort.
When they would leap, they extend the hind legs, and ſtretch out
the intervening ſkin, which producing a larger ſurface, makes the
animals fpecifically lighter than they would otherwiſe be: even with
all this advantage, they cannot keep in a ſtrait line, but are urged
downward with their weight. Senſible of this, they mount the tree
in proportion to the diſtance of the leap they propoſe to take, leaſt
they ſhould fall to the ground before they had reached a place of
fecurity
* Fernand. Nov. Hifp. 8.
† Smith's Virginia, 27,
T 2
They

140
HOODED SQUIRRE L.
They never willingly quit the trees, or run upon the ground, bes
ing conftant reſidents of the branches. They go in troops of ten or
twelve, and feem in their leaps, to people unaccuſtomed to them,
like leaves blown off by the wind.
They bring three or four young at a time. They uſe the ſame
food, and form their hoards like other Squirrels.
They are very eaſily tamed, and ſoon grow very familiar. They
feem of a tender nature, and to love warmth, being very fond of
creeping to the ſleeve or pocket of the owner. If they are fung
down, they ſhew their diſlike to the ground, by inſtantly running up
and ſheltering themſelves in his cloaths.
52. Hooded.
Hift. Quad. Nº 284.
SQUIRREL. With the lateral ſkins beginning at the ears,
uniting under the chin, and extending, like thoſe of the former,
from fore leg to hind leg: the ears naked, and rather long: the hairs
on the tail diſpoſed horizontally.
The color of the upper part of the body reddiſh: the lower part
cinereous, tinged with yellow.
This fpecies, according to Seba, who is the only perſon who has
deſcribed or figured it, came from Virginia *. Linnæus is very
confuſed in his fynonyms of this and the former kind; that of
Mr. Edwards refers to the other ſpecies; and that of Seba, in his
article of Sciurus Volans, to both t.
3
• Seb. Muf. i. tab. xliv. p. 72.
+ Syft. Nat. 85, where he calls it Mus Volans; and p. 88, where he ftyles it
Sciurus.
It

SEVERN RIVER SQUIRREL.
141
It is fingular that there ſhould be only one ſpecimen ever
brought of this ſpecies, from a country we have had ſuch great
intercourſe with. It may perhaps be a monſtrous variety, by the
extent of the ſkin into a ſort of hood. As to color, that is
an accidental difference, which happens to numbers of other
animals.
Hift. Quad. N° 282.
Greater Flying Squirrel, Ph. Tr. Ixii. 379.
53. SEVERN
River,
a
SQUIRREL. With the hair on the body and ſides of a deep
cinereous color at the bottom; the ends ferruginous: breaſt
and belly of a yellowiſh white: the whole coat long and full: the
tail thick of long hairs, diſpoſed in a leſs flatted manner than thoſe of
the European kind; brown on the upper fide, darkeſt at the end;
the lower part of the ſame color with the belly: the lateral ſkin,
the inſtrument of flight, diſpoſed from leg to leg, in the fame man-
ner as in the firſt ſpecies, Nº 51.
In fize it is far fuperior to the common Flying Squirrel, being
at left equal to the Engliſh kind.
This ſpecies is found in the ſouthern parts of Hudſon's Bay,
in the foreſts of the country bordering on Severn river in James's
bay.
Сомиак,

COMMON SQUIRREL. 10
A.
COMMON, Hift. Quad. No 266.-Smellie, iv. 268.LEV. Mus.
SQUIRREL. With tufted ears : head, body, and legs, ferru-
ginous: breaſt and belly white: tail reddiſh brown.
This ſpecies inhabits the northern world, as high as Lapmark; is
continued through all the Arctic countries, whereſoever wood is
found; abounds throughout Sibiria, except in the north-eaſt parts,
and in Kamtſchatka, where it ceaſes, by reaſon of the ceſſation of
foreſts.
In all theſe countries they are red in ſummer, but at approach
of winter change to various and elegant greys. Their furs are of
exquiſite foftneſs, and are the forts known to us by the name of
Petit Gris. In the more foutherly parts of theſe cold climates,
they retain a tinge of the ſummer red, and are leſs valuable. The
change of color is effected gradually, as is its return in ſpring to its
ferruginous coat.
It is very fingular, that the alteration is not only performed in
the ſeverity of the open air, but even in the warmth of a ftove. Dr.
Pallas made the experiment on one which was brought to him on
the 12th of September, and was at that time entirely red. About
the 4th of OEtober many parts of the body began to grow hoary ;
and at the time it happened to die, which was on the 4th of No-
vember,
a

COMMON SQUIRREL.
143
a
a
vember, the whole body had attained a grey color, and the legs, and
a ſmall part of the face, had alone the reddiſh tinge *.
The varieties are as follow:--A blackiſh one, with the fur footy
tipt with red, and full black gloſſy tail, are common about lake
Baikal, and the whole courſe of the Lena. Sir Aſhton Lever is in
poſſeſſion of one of a jetty blackneſs, with a white belly: its ears,
as well as thoſe of all the Petit Gris, are adorned with very long
tufts. Theſe change in winter to a lead-color, and are taken in
the thick Alpine foreſts, where the Pinus Cembra, or Stone
Pines, abound. The ſkins of theſe are neglected by the Chineſe,
but greatly eſteemed in Europe, eſpecially the tails, for facings of
dreffes.
This variety is obſerved fometimes to migrate in amazing num-
bers from their lofty alpine abodes, compelled to it whenever there
happens to be a ſcarcity of proviſion f. Swarms have appeared
even in the town of Tomſk, in deſerted houſes, and in the towers of
the fortifications; where numbers are taken alive, and of great ſize,
by the children of the place.
A beautiful and large variety, about the Baraba, called the Teleu-
tian, is in great eſteem for its beautiful grey color, like a Gull's
back, with a ſilvery gloſs, and finely undulated. Their ſummer
color is uſually duſky red, and the fides and feet black. Theſe are
highly eſteemed by the Chineſe, and ſell at the rate of 6 or 71. ſterling
per thouſand I.
A ſmall variety of this, leſſer even than the common kind, is met
with about the neighbourhood of the Kaſym and Iſet.
A variety is alſo met with which change to a white color, and
others again retain a white color both in winter and ſummer,
a
† Nov. Sp. an. 188.
* Nov. Sp. Quad. 373.
t Mem. Ruſ. Afiat. vii. 124.
The

144
EUROPEAN FLYING SQUIRREL.
The late navigators to the Icy ſea brought home with them from
Pulo Condor, a knot of iſlands in north lat. 8. 40. on the coaſt of
Cambodia, a Squirrel totally black.
B. EUROPEAN FLYING SQUIRREL, Hift. Quad. N° 285.- Smellie, v. 307.-Lev. Mus.
a
a
SQUIRREL. With naked ears: flying membranes extending
from the middle of the hind legs to the baſe of the fore feet,
and ſpreading there in a rounded fail : tail full of hair, and round
at the end: color of the upper part of the body a fine grey, like
that of a Gull's back: the lower part white.
Length to the tail four inches and a quarter ; of the tail, five.
Inhabits the birch-woods of Finmark, Lapland, Finland, Lithuania,
and Livonia. Is found in Aſia, in the woods of the Urallian chain,
and from thence to the river Kolyma. Neſtles in the hollows of
trees remote from the ground, where it makes its neſt of the ſofteſt
mofles. Is always folitary, except in the breeding-ſeaſon, and
never appears in the day-time. Lives on the buds and catkins of
the birch, and on the ſhoots and buds of pines, which give its juices
a ſtrong reſinous ſmell; and its excrements will burn ſtrongly with
a pitchy ſcent. The laſt are always found at the root of the tree,
as if the animal deſcended to eaſe nature. It ſeldom comes out in
bad weather ; but certainly does not remain torpid during winter ;
for it is often taken in the traps laid for the Grey Squirrels. The
ſkins are often put up in the bundles with the latter, ſo that the
purchaſer is defrauded, as their fur is of no value. They leap at
vaſt diſtances from tree to tree, and never deſcend but for the pur-
poſe before mentioned. By reaſon of fimilitude of color between
them and the birch bark, they are ſeen with great difficulty, which
preſerves them from the attacks of rapacious birds.
They

EUROPEAN FLYING SQUIRREL.
145
They bring forth two, three, and rarely four, young at a
time. When the parent goes out for food, ſhe laps them care-
fully up in the moſs. They are very difficult to be preſerved, and
ſeldom can be kept alive, by reaſon of want of proper food.
They are born blind, and continue ſo fourteen days. The
mother pays them great attention; broods over them, and covers
them with its flying membrane. The Ruſſians call them Ljetaga,
or the Flying
VOL. I.
HIST.

146
STRIPED DORM OUS E.
DORMOUSE.
HIST. QU AD. GENUS XXXI.
54. STRIPED.
Ground Squirrel, Hift. Quad. No 286.- Smellie, v. 329.-Lev. Mus.
Dº
a
a
Size,
a
ORMOUSE. With naked rounded ears: the eyes full
and black; about them a whitiſh ſpace : the head, body,
and tail, of a reddiſh brown, deepeſt on the laſt: from neck to tail
a black line extends along the top of the back: on each ſide run
two others, parallel to the former, including between them another
of a yellowiſh white: breaſt and belly white: the toes almoſt naked,
and of a fleſh-color; long, ſlender, and very diſtinct; four, with
the rudiment of a fifth, on the fore feet; five perfect toes on the
hind.
The length is about five inches and a half; of the tail, to the
end of the hairs, rather longer.
Inhabits all parts of North America, I think, from Hudſon's
Bay to Louiſiana ; certainly from Canada, where the French call
them Les Suiſſes, from their ſkins being rayed with black and
white, like the breeches of the Switzers who form the Pope's
guard *.
They are extremely numerous : live in woods, yet never run
up trees, except when purſued, and find no other means of
eſcape. They live under ground, burrow, and form their habi-
tations with two entrances, that they may ſecure a retreat through
* Charlevoix, v. 198.
the

STRIPED DORMOUS E.
147
the one, in caſe the other ſhould be ſtopped. Theſe little animals
form their fubterraneous dwellings with great ſkill, working them
into the form of long galleries, with branches on each fide,
every one terminating in an enlarged apartment, in which they
hoard their ſtock of winter proviſion * Their acorns are lodged
in one, in a ſecond the mayz, in a third the hickery-nuts, and
in the laſt their moſt favorite food, the Chinquaquin, or cheſnut.
Nature has given to them, as to the Hamſter t, a fine conve-
niency for collecting its provifions, having furniſhed them with
pouches within their cheeks, which they fill with mayz, and
other articles of food, and ſo convey them to their maga-
zines.
Thoſe of Sibiria live chiefly on feeds, and particularly on the
kernels of the Cembra, or Stone Pine; and theſe they hoard up in
ſuch quantities, that ten or fifteen pounds of the moſt choice have
been found in a ſingle magazine .
They paſs the whole winter either in ſleep or in eating. During
the fevere ſeaſon, they very rarely ftir out, at left as long as their
proviſions laſt; but if by an unexpected continuance of bad wea-
ther their proviſions fail, they will then fally out, and dig under
ground in cellars where apples are kept, or into barns where mayz
is ſtored, and make great devaſtations. They will even enter
houſes, and eat undiſmayed, before the inhabitants, any corn they
chance to meet with $. The Cat makes great havock among
them, being at all ſeaſons as great an enemy to them as to dom
meſtic Mice. It is hunger alone that tames them. They are
naturally of a very wild nature, will bite moſt ſeverely, and cannot
by any means be rendered familiar.
I Pallas, Nov. Sp. an.
* Kalm, i. 322. 325.
379.-Voy, de Pallas, ii, 292.
+ Hift. Quad. N° 324-
ſ Du Pratz, ii. 68.
U 2
They

148
STRIPED DORMOUS E.
They are remarkably nice in the choice of their food, when the
variety of autumnal proviſions gives opportunity. They have been
obſerved, after having ſtuffed their pouches with the grains of rye,
to fing it out when they meet with wheat, and to replace the rye
with the more delicious corn.
Their ſkins form a trifling article of commerce, being brought
over among le menue pelliterie, the ſmall furs, and uſed for the lining
of ladies cloaks.
In Sibiria they are killed with blunt arrows, or caught in fall-
traps. About the Lena, the boys go out in the amorous ſeaſon of
theſe little animals, and, ſtanding behind a tree, mimic the noiſe
of the females, which brings the males within reach of their ſticks,
with which they kill them. The ſkins are ſold to the Chineſe mer-
chants. About the Lena, a thouſand of their ſkins are not valued
at more than fix or eight rubles *.
Theſe animals are found in great numbers in Aſia, beginning
about the river Kama †, and from thence growing more and more
frequent in the wooded parts of Sibiria; but there, and all the ſpecies
of Squirrel, ceaſe towards the north-eaſt extremity of the country,
by reaſon of the interruption of woods, which cuts them off from
Kamtſchatka.
.
• Pallas, Nov. Sp. an. 380.
+ A river falling into the Wolga about forty miles below Caſan.
Dormouſe,

ENGLISH DORMOUS E.
149
Dormouſe, Br. Zool. i. N° 234.-Hift. Quad. N° 289.-Smellie, iv. 334.-Lev. Mus.
55. ENGLISH:
Mr. Lawſon ſays that the Engliſh Dormouſe is found in Carolina ;
but it has not as yet been tranſmitted to Great Britain. In order
to aſcertain the ſpecies, I add a brief deſcription.
a
a
DORMOUSE. With full black eyes : broad, thin, ſemi-tranſ-
parent ears: throat white : reſt of the body and the tail of a
tawny red. Size of the common Mouſe; but the body of a plum-
per form, and the noſe more blunt: tail two inches and a half long,
covered on every ſide with hair.
In Europe, inhabits thickets; forms its neft at the bottom of a
tree or ſhrub; forms magazines of nuts for winter food; ſits up to
eat, like the Squirrel; lies torpid moſt of the winter, in its retreat,
rolled up into the ſhape of a ball; retires to its neſt at approach of
cold weather.
HIST,

190
BLACK RA T.
RAT.
HIS T. QU AD. GENUS XXXIII.
56. BLACK
Br. Zool. i. N° 25.-Hift. Quad. N° 297.-Smellie, iv. 275.-Lev. Mus.
RA
a
a
;
AT. With head and body of a very deep iron grey, nearly
black : belly aſh-colored : legs almoſt naked, and duſky: a
claw inſtead of a fifth thumb on the fore feet. Length, from noſe
to tail, ſeven inches; tail near eight.
Inhabits North America, not only the ſettled parts, but even the
rocks of the Blue mountains *, remote from all human dwellings.
There they live among the ſtones, and in the fubterraneous grottos
frequent in thoſe hills. They lie clofe during day, but at night
come out, and make a moſt horrible noiſe amidſt theſe American
alps. In violent froſts they lie torpid; and in the inhabited parts
of the country they are obſerved to redouble their ſcreaks before
ſevere weather, as if they had ſome preſage from their conſtitu-
tions.
By Mr. Bartram's obſervations it appears very certain, that
theſe animals are natives of America. They are found even at pre-
ſent in the moſt deſolate places, as well as in the houſes and barns
of the inhabited parts. It is unknown in Europe, that either the
common Rat or Mouſe ever deſerted the haunts of mankind, for
rocks and deſerts : they therefore have been there from the earlieſt
times. It is likely, that if ever the Blue mountains become inha-
bited, the wild Rats will quit their rocks, and reſort to thoſe places
* Bartram, as quoted by Mr. Kalm, ii. 47.
where

BROWN AND AMERICAN RAT. .
151
where they find harveſted food, and will quickly become perni-
ciouſly domeftic.
We are poſitively told, that South America was free from theſe
troubleſome animals, till they were introduced there from Europe,
by the means of ſhips, in 1544 *.
We find none of the ſpecies in Kamtſchatka, nor any where to the
eaſt of the Urallian chain. America muſt therefore have been ſtock-
ed with them from the ſide of Europe. They are very common
in Ruſſia. Towards Aſtracan they are very ſmall, but of the fame
color with the others.
Br. Zool. i. N° 26.- Hift. Quad. N° 298.- Smellie, iv. 336.-Lev. Mus.
57. Brown.
a
RAT. Above, light brown mixed with tawny, duſky, and cine-
reous: below, of a dirty white : four toes before, and a claw
inſtead of a fifth toe.
I have no authority for giving this ſpecies a place here: but muſt
fuppoſe that the new world could not poſſibly eſcape the peft, as it is
univerſally become a moſt deſtructive inhabitant of European ſhips.
a
58, AMERICAN
Hift. Quad. N° 299.
Characho, Jike Cholqomac, or Great Mouſe of the Monguls.--Lev. Mus.
RAT. With the upper jaw extending very far beyond the lower :
ears large and naked : tail rather ſhorter, in proportion, than
that of the Black, to which it is rather fuperior in ſize: color a duſky
brown.
The fpecimen, from which this deſcription is taken, was ſent
• Garcilaſo de la Vega, 384,
from

152
WAT ER RAT AND MOUSE.
from North America to Sir Aſhton Lever ; but I am not informed,
whether it only frequented the deſerts, or infeſted houſes.
59. WATER
Br. Zool. N° 300.-Hift. Quad. N° 300.-Smellie, iv. 290.-Lev. Mus.
a
RAT. With ſmall eyes : ears covered with the fur: teeth yel-
low: body covered with long hairs, black mixed with a few
of a ruft-color: belly of a deep grey.
Length of the head and body ſeven inches; tail five, covered with
ſhort black hairs. Weight nine ounces.
Inhabits North America, from Canada to Carolina *. In the firſt,
varies to tawny and to white +: feeds on the fry of fiſh, infects,
ſhell-fiſh, frogs, and roots; burrows on the banks of ponds and
and dives and ſwims as well as an Otter, notwithſtanding it
is not web-footed.
In northern Europe and Aſia it is extremely common; from Pe-
terſburgh to Kamtſchatka in Sibiria, they are twice as large as in other
places. They are found alſo from Lapland to the Caſpian ſea, and
alſo in Perſia; and are one of the animals which endure the cold of
the Arctic circle.
rivers
60. MOUSE
Br. Zool. i. N° 30.--Hift. Quad. N° 301.Smellie, iv. 282.---Lev. Mus.
THIS common animal needs no deſcription. It is very abun-
dant in the inhabited parts of America I, and is to be found
from Peterſburgh perhaps as far as Kamtſchatka.
Kalm imagines them to be natives of America; for he aſſures us
* Lawſon Carolina, 122.
+ De Buffon, xiv. 401.
1 Kalm, ii. 46.
that

153
FIELD, VIRGINIAN, AND LABRADOR, RAT.
that he has killed them in the crevices of the rocks in deſert places,
far from the haunt of man *.
Hift. Quad. N° 302. a. AMERICAN.Smellie, iv. 285.-Lev. Mus.
61. FIELD.
RAT. With great, naked, and open ears : cheeks, ſpace below
the ears, and fides quite to the tail, orange-colored : back
duſky and ruft-colored, marked along the top, from head to tail,
with a dark line : throat, breaſt, and belly, of a pure white: tail
duſky above, white beneath: feet white : hind legs longer than
thoſe of the Engliſh kind.
Length about four inches and a half; of the tail, four inches.
Inhabits Hudſon's Bay and New York.
Hift. Quad. N° 307.
62. VIRGINIAN,
RAT. With a black noſe : fur ſhort, and in all parts white:
limbs ſlender : tail very thick at the baſe, tapering to a point,
and cloathed with long hair.
Seba alone, vol. i. p. 76. tab. xlvii. fig. 4, deſcribes this ſpecies.
,
Hift. Quad. N° 295)
63. LABRADOR,
RAT. With a blunt noſe: mouth placed far below: upper lip
bifid: ears large, naked, rounded : fore legs ſhort, furniſhed
with four toes, and a tubercle inſtead of a thumb: HIND LEGs long
and naked, like ſome of the Jerboas : toes long, nender, and dif-
tind; the exterior toe the ſhorteſt: thumb ſhort.
a
Kalm, ii. 47
X
VOL. I.
The

354
HUDSON'S AND MEADOW RAT.
Size.
COLORS.
The whole length of the animal is eight inches, of which the tail
is four and three quarters.
Color above a deep brown, beneath white, ſeparated on each ſide
by a yellow line.
Inhabits Hudſon's Bay and Labrador. Sent over by Mr. Graham.
* * With ſhort tails.
64. HUDSON'S
Hift. Quad. N° 319.---Lev. Mus.
RAT. With ſoft long hair, duſky at the bottom, whitiſh brown
at the points : along the middle of the back, from head to tail,
runs a duſky line: fides yellowiſh : belly and inſide of the thighs of
a dirty white.
Legs very ſhort : on the toes of the fore feet of the male only are
four very large and ſharp claws, tuberculated beneath ; in the fe-
male ſmaller and weaker : on the hind feet five toes with flender
claws.
Tail not three quarters of an inch long, terminating with long
ftiff hairs; it is ſcarcely viſible, being almoſt loſt in the fur.
Deſcribed from a ſkin which Doctor Pallas favored me with,
which he received from the Labrador coaſt.
This is nearly a-kin to the Lemmus.
65. MEADOW?
Short-tailed Field Mouſe? Br. Zool. i. N° 31.-Hift. Quad. Nº 322 ? --Smellie,
iv. 293.-Lev. Mus,
RAT. With a blunt noſe: great head: prominent eyes : ears
buried in the fur: head and upper part of the body of a fer-
ruginous brown mixed with black: belly of a deep aſh-color.
Length,

HARE-TAILED AND ECONOMIC RAT.
155
a
Length, from head to tail, fix inches; tail only one and a half,
with a ſmall tuft at the end.
Inhabits Hudſon's Bay and Newfoundland, in the laſt very nume-
rous, and does vaft damage in the gardens; refides under ground.
Hift. Quad. N° 320.
66. HARE-
TAILED
RAT. With ſmall and rounded ears: head broad; color duſky
and tawny brown: the belly of a dirty white: a duſky line
paſſes from between the eyes, and extends obſcurely along the
back. Larger than the common Mouſe. Deſcribed from ſo mu-
tilated a ſpecimen, ſent to the Royal Society from Hudſon's Bay *,
that it was impoſſible to determine the ſpecies; only, by the dark
line along the back, it ſeemed likeſt the HARE-TAILED, an inha-
bitant of Sibirin, whoſe manners are deſcribed in the Hiſtory of
Quadrupeds.
A. ECONOMIC, Hift. Quad. N° 373.Deſcr. Kamtſchatka, Fr. ed. 397.
RAT. With naked ears, uſually hid in the fur: finall eyes :
teeth tawny: limbs ſtrong: color, an intermixture of black
and yellow, darkeſt on the back: under fide hoary.
* Ph. Tr, lxii, 379. Sp. I5
X 2
Length

156
ECONOMIC RA T.
a
trances.
Length four inches and a quarter, to the tail; the tail one inch.
Inhabits in vaſt abundance Sibiria, from the eaſt ſide of the Ural-
lian chain, even within the Arctic circle, and quite to Kamtſchatka.
It is the noted Tegultſchitch of that country, diſtinguiſhed by its cu-
rious æconomy and by its vaft migrations.
They make their burrows with the greateſt ſkill, immediately
-below the furface of the ſoft turfy foil. They form a chamber of a
filattiſh arched form, of a ſmall height, and about a foot in diameter,
to which they fometimes add as many as thirty ſmall pipes or en-
Near the chamber they often form other caverns, in
which they lodge their winter ſtores: theſe conſiſt of various kinds
of plants, even ſome of ſpecies poiſonous to mankind. They ga-
ther them in ſummer, harveſt them, and even at times bring them
out of the cells to give them a more thorough drying in the fun.
The chief labor reſts on the females. The males, during ſummer,
go about folitary, and inhabit fome old neſts; and in that ſeaſon
never touch their hoards, but live on berries. They are mono-
gamous, and the male and female at other times found in the ſame
neſt. The female brings two or three young at a time, and breeds
often in the year.
No little animals are ſo reſpected by the Kamtſchatkans as theſe,
for to them they owe a delicious food; and with great joy, about
autumn, rob the hoards, and leave there many ridiculous preſents
by way of amends: they alſo never take the whole of their provi-
fions, and leave beſides a little dried ovaries of fish for their fup-
port.
But the migrations of theſe Mice, in certain years, is as extraor-
dinary a fact as any in natural hiſtory : I will only mention thoſe of
Kamtſchatka. The cauſe is unknown. Doctor Pallas thinks it may
ariſe from the ſenſations of internal fire in that vulcanic tract, or a
preſcience of ſome unuſual and bad ſeaſon. They gather together
j
MIGRATIONS
in

R E DR AT.
157
in the ſpring in amazing numbers, except the few that are conver-
ſant about villages, where they can pick up ſome ſubſiſtance. This
makes it probable that the country is over-ſtocked, and they quit
it for want of food. The mighty hoſt proceeds in a direct courſe
weſtward, and with the utmoſt intrepidity ſwims over rivers, lakes,
and even arms of the ſea : many are drowned, many deſtroyed by
water-fowl, or rapacious filh ; thoſe which eſcape reſt awhile, to
baſk, dry their fur, and refreſh themſelves. If the inhabitants find
them in that ſituation, they treat them with the utmoſt tenderneſs,
and endeavour to bring them to life and vigor. As ſoon as they
have croſſed the river Penſchim, at the head of the gulph of the
ſame name, they turn ſouthward, and reach the rivers Judoma and
Ochot by the middle of July. The ſpace is moſt ſurpriſing, on con-
ſulting the map of the country. The flocks are alſo ſo numerous,
.
that an obſerver has waited two hours to ſee them all paſs. Their
return into Kamtſchatka, in O&tober, is attended with the utmoſt fef-
tivity and welcome. The natives conſider it as a fure prognoſtic
of a ſucceſsful chaſe and fiſhery: the firſt is certain, as the Mice
are always followed by multitudes of beaſts of prey. They equally
lament their migration, as the ſeaſon is certainly filled with rains
and tempeſts.
a
B. Red, Hift. Quad. No. 384
RAT. With briſtly noſe and face : ears oval, rifing above the
hair, naked, only tipt with fur: color, from forehead to rump,
a bright red : fides light grey and yellow: belly whitiſh: tail duſky
above, light below.
Length not four inches; tail more than one.
Grow

158
L E M M U S RA T.
a
Grow very common beyond the Ob, and live ſcattered over all
Sibiria, in woods and mountains, and about villages; extend even
to the Arctic circle. It is the Tſchetonauftſchu, or Red Mouse of the
Kamtſchatkans. It is a fort of drone : makes no proviſion for it-
felf, but robs the hoards of the laſt ſpecies *. Lives under logs of
trees; frequents houſes; dares the ſevereſt weather, and is abroad
amidſt the ſnows; feeds on any thing, and is often caught in the
traps ſet for Ermines, in attempting to devour the bait.
C. LEMMUS, Hift. Quad. N° 317.-Godde Saeppan, Leems, 224.
very thin.
RAT. With ſmall eyes and mouth : upper lip divided : ears
ſmall, placed far backwards : four ſlender toes on the fore feet,
and a ſharp claw, like a cock's fpur, in place of a thumb: ſkin
Color of the head black and tawny, of the belly
yellow.
Length of thoſe of Scandinavian Lapland, above five inches; thoſe
of the Ruſian dominions not four.
The manners and wonderful migrations of the Lemmi of Europe,
have been fully treated of in my Hiſtory of Quadrupeds.
They abound in the countries from the White Sea to the gulph
of the Oby, and in the northern end of the Urallian chain; but differ
in fize and color from thoſe of Europe. Like them, they migrate
at certain periods; and tend from the Urallian mountains, fome-
times towards Jeneſei, ſometimes towards Petzorah, and at thoſe
times rejoice the Samoieds with a rich chaſe of the animals which
purſue the wanderers. The Samoieds affert, that the Rein-Deer
will greedily devour them; perhaps they take them medicinally, as
Sheep are known as greedily to ſeek and ſwallow Spiders.
* Defcr. Kamtſchatka, 392.
D. LENA,

LENA AND RINGED RAT.
159
D.LENA, Mus Gmelini, Pallas, Nov. Sp. an. 195.
RAT. With ſhort round ears: white whiſkers: thick broad
body, in all parts nearly of equal breadth : tail ſhort, thickly
covered with rude hairs: five toes on the fore feet, with claws very
ſtrong and white: four on the hind feet, with claws much weaker:
the fur pretty long; three parts of its length, from the roots, cine-
reous, the reſt white; ſo that the animal appears entirely white,
except the cheeks, which are aſh-colored, and the chin, which is
duſky.
The length is three inches one-fifth, the tail four-fifths of an
inch,
They are ſeen in great numbers in autumn, on the borders of the
Icy Sea, and about the parts of the Lena that fall into it. They
appear ſuddenly, and depart as expeditiouſly. They feed on the
roots of moſſes, and are themſelves the food of Aretic Foxes. Per-
haps they extend to the Jeneſei : for it is ſaid that there are two ſorts
of Mice found there; one wholly white; the other black, yellow,
and white, which perhaps is the Lemmus *
E. RINGED, Hift. Quad. N° 205.
RA AT. With a blunt noſe : ears hid in the fur: hair very fine :
claws ſtrong and hooked: color of the upper part, ſometimes
ferruginous, ſometimes light grey undulated with deep ruft-color:
a creſcent of white extends on each, from the hind part of the head
towards the throat, bounded on each ſide by a bed of ruft-color.
• Nav. Sp, an. 1970
Length

160
TCH E L A G R A T.
Length to the tail little more than three inches; tail one, ter-
minated by a briſtly tuft.
Found in the Aretic neighborhood of the Oby. Makes its neſt
with rein-deer and ſnowy liver-worts, juſt beneath the turfy ſurface,
Are ſaid to migrate, like the Lemmus.
F. TCHELAG, Defcr. Kamtſchatka, 392.
THE author of the deſcription of that great peninſula ſays no
more than that it is a very ſmall ſpecies ; frequents houſes ;
and will go out and eat boldly any thing it has ſtolen. The natives
call it Tchelagat chitch.
HIST.

F E T ID S H R E W.
161
HIST. QUAD. GENUS XXXIX.
SHREW.
Br. Zool. i. N° 32.--Hift. Quad. N° 341.--Smellie, iv. 305.
67. Foetid?
SHI
;
HREW. With the head and upper part of the body duſky :
fides of a browniſh ruft-color: eyes very ſmall, almoſt hid in
the fur: ears ſhort: noſe very long and ſender : upper mandible
extends far beyond the lower.
Inhabits Hudſon's Bay, and probably Carolina, as Lawſon mentions
a Mouſe found there which poiſons Cats * if they eat it. It is a
notion in England that they are venomous; it is notorious that our
Cats will kill, but not feed on them; probably thoſe of America
have the ſame inſtinct: ſo that their deaths in the new world muſt
ariſe from ſome other cauſe, and be falſely attributed to theſe ani-
mals.
Mr. Graham fent over two other ſpecimens, beſides that de-
ſcribed. They were of a duſky grey above, and of a yellowiſh
white beneath : their fize, rather leſs than the Engliſh kind; one
being only two inches and a quarter long, the other only two inches;
but they ſeemed not to differ ſpecifically from the other.
The common Shrew is found in Ruſſia; in all parts of Sibiria,
even in the Aretic flats; and in Kamtſchatka.
• Hift. Carolina, 125.
VOL. 1.
Y
H IS T.

162
LONG-TAILED AND RADIATED MOLE.
MOLE,
HIST. QUA D. Genus XXXV.
68. LONG-TAIL-
ED,
Hift. Quad. N° 352.-Lev. Mus.
MOLE
OLE. With two cutting teeth in each jaw, and two ſharp
fender canine : the grinders ſmall and ſharp: noſe long,
the end radiated with ſhort tendrils : fore feet not ſo broad as thoſe
of the Engliſh Mole, furniſhed with very long white claws: toes on
the hind feet quite ſeparated: body not ſo thick and full as that of
the common fpecies: hair long, ſoft, and of a ruſty brown: tail co-
vered with ſhort hair.
Length of the body four inches two-tenths; of the tail, two and
a half.
Inhabits North America. Received from New York.
69. RADIATED.
Hift. Quad. N° 351.- Smellie, iv. 316. Lev. Mus.
MOLE. With a long noſe, radiated like the former: the body
fhorter, and more full: hair duſky, very long, fine, and com-
pact: fore feet reſembling thoſe of the preceding ; but the toes of
the hind feet are cloſely connected.
Length to the tail three inches three quarters: the tail ſlender,
round, and taper, one inch three-tenths long.
Received from New York.
This

BROWN MOLE.
(63
MANNERS.
a
This ſpecies forms ſubterraneous paſſages in the fields, running
in various directions, and very ſhallow. Their courſe may be
traced by the elevation of the earth on the ſurface, in form of a little
bank, two inches high, and as broad as a man's hand. Theſe holes
are unable to ſupport any weight, ſo that walkers find it very trouble-
ſome to go over places where theſe animals inhabit, the ground per-
petually breaking under their feet *.
Theſe Moles have all the ſtrength in their legs as thoſe of Europe,
and work in the ſame manner. They feed on roots, are very iraf-
cible, and will bite very feverely.
Hift. Quad. No 353.-Lev. Mus.
70. Brown.
PLACE.
MOLE. With a long and very ſender noſe: two broad cutting
teeth in the upper, four ſharp and ſlender in the lower, jaw;
the two middlemoſt ſhort: the grinders very numerous, ſtrong,
ſharp, and ſeparate : the fore feet very broad, thoſe and the hind
feet exactly like thoſe of the European kind.
Length about ſix inches; tail one.
I received two ſpecimens of this animal from New York. The
hair in both ſoft, filky, and gloffy: the hair in each duſky at the
bottom; but in one, the ends were of a yellowiſh brown: in the
other, brown: the feet and tail of both were white. I ſuſpect that
they were varieties of the kind deſcribed by Seba t, which he got
from Virginia : it was totally black, gloſſed over with a moſt re-
fplendent purple. I may here note, the Tail-leſs Mole, figured by
Seba in the ſame plate, is not a native of Sibiria, as he makes it; but
is an inhabitant of the Cape of Good Hope.
a
* Kalm, i, 190.
+ P. 51. tab. xxxii.
Y a
Theſe

164
Ν
EUROPEAN MOL E.
Theſe three ſpecies agree pretty nearly with the Shrew in the fore
teeth; for which reaſon Linnæus claſſes the two he deſcribes among
the Sorices. I call them Moles from their ſhape, which differs not
from the European kind; but thoſe who chuſe to be very ſyſtematic,
may divide the genus of Shrews, and ſtyle theſe Sorices Talpa-
formes.
A.
EUROPEAN, Hift Quad. ii. No
Br. Zool. i.
PLACE
MOLE. With fix cutting teeth in the upper; eight in the
lower jaw; and two canine teeth in each : color of the fur
black.
Inhabits Sweden; but does not extend farther than the fouth of
Norway, where it is called Vond. Is frequent in the temperate parts
of Ruſſia, and even in Sibiria, as far as the Lena. In Sibiria it is
twice as big as thoſe of Europe. Is found there milk-white, but
more uſually ſo in the Verchoturian mountains.
HEDGE-

H EDGE - HO G.
165
HEDGE-HO G, Hift. Quad. Genus XXXVI.
B. COMMON, Hift. Quad. ü. N° 355.--Br. Zool. i. Nº
HE
:
EDGE-HOG. With noftrils bounded on each ſide by a
looſe fap: ears rounded : back covered with prickles, white,
barred with black: face, fides, and rump, with ſtrong coarſe hair:
tail an inch long.
Is found in Sweden. In the dioceſe of Aggerhuys; and in that of
Bergen in Norway *. It is called, in the Norwegian tongue, Buf-
tedyvel. Is common in Ruſſia, except in the extreme northern and
ſouthern parts. None in Sibiria, or very ſcarce at left.
PLACE.
• Leems, 229.---Pontoppidan, ii. 28.
DI V.


D I V. III.
PINNATED QUADRUPEDS;
Or, with FIN-LIKE FEET.

168
ARCTIC W A L R U S.
DI V. III. Pinnated Quadrupeds ;
Or, with FIN-LIKE FEET.
WALRUS.
HIS T. QU A D. GENUS XLI.
71. ARCTIC
Hift. Quad. Nº 373.-Phipps's Voy. 184.
Rofmarus, Zimmerman, 330.
Le Tricheque, Schreber, ii. 82. tab. lxxix.
Cheval Marin, Hift. Kamtſchatka, 427.-Smellie, vii. 354.Lev. Mus.
DISCRIPTION.
a
W
ALRUS. With a round head; ſhort neck; ſmall and
fiery eyes, funk a finger's depth in the ſockets, and retractile
from external injuries * : mouth very ſmall; lips very thick, beſet
above and below with great whiſkers, compoſed of briſtles, tranſ-
parent, and thick as a ſtraw: inſtead of ears are two minute orifices,
placed in the moſt diſtant part of the head.
Body is very thick in the middle, leſſening gradually towards the
tail. The ſkin in general is an inch thick, and two about the
neck t, and much wrinkled about the joints : it is covered with
ſhort hair, of a mouſe-color; ſome with reddiſh, others with grey;
others are almoſt bare, as if they were mangy, and full of ſcars I.
The legs are very ſhort; on each foot are five toes, connected by
webs, with a ſmall blunt nail to each. The hind feet, like thoſe of
# Crantz, i. 126.
+ The fame, 125
Marten's Spiizberg.
Seals,

ARCTIC WALRU S.
169
Size.
Seals, are very broad: the tail is very ſhort: the penis two feet long,
and of a bony ſubſtance.
In the upper jaw are two very long tuſks, bending downwards. TEETH.
No cutting teeth; but in each jaw, above and below, four grinders,
flat at top, and the ſurfaces of thoſe which I examined much worn.
The length of the largeſt tuſk I have heard of, was two feet three
inches, Engliſh meaſure, the circumference at the lower end, eight
and a half; the greateſt weight of a ſingle tuſk twenty pounds :
but ſuch are rarely found, and only on the coaſts of the Icy ſea,
where they are ſeldom moleſted, and of courſe permitted to attain
their full growth *
The Walrus is ſometimes found of the length of eighteen feet,
and the circumference, in the thickeſt part, ten or twelve. The
weight from fifteen hundred to two thouſand pounds.
Inhabits, in preſent times, the coaſts of the Magdalene iſlands, in PLACE.
the gulph of St. Laurence, between latitude 47 and 48, their moſt AMERICA
ſoutherly reſidence in any part of the globe. They are not found
on the ſeas of Labradore. The Eſkimaux purchaſe the teeth, for
the heading their Seal-darts, from the Indians of Nuckvank, about
lat. 60; who ſay, that they are annually viſited in the winter by
multitudes of theſe animals t. They are found in Davis's Streights,
and within Hudſon's Bay I, in lat. 62. They alſo inhabit the coaſt
of Greenland. I am uncertain whether they frequent Iceland; but
they are found in great numbers near the iſlands of Spitzbergen, and Spitzbergen.
on all the floating ice from thence to Cherry Iſle, a ſolitary ſpot inter- CHERRY Isle.
mediate between the laſt and the moſt northerly point of Norway.
In 1608, they were found there in ſuch numbers, huddled on one
another, like hogs, that a ſhip's crew killed above nine hundred in
feven hours time s.
+ Ph. Tranſ. lxiv, 378.
| Ellis's Voy. 80.
* Hift. Kamtſchatka, 120.
Martens Spitzberg. 182.
VOL.I.
z
If

170
ARCTIC WALRU S.
NORWAY
If they are found in the ſeas of Norway, it is very rare * in theſe
days. Leems, p. 316, ſays that they ſometimes frequent the ſea
about Finmark; but about the year 980, they ſeemed to have been
ſo numerous in the northern parts, as to become objects of chaſe and
commerce. The famous other the Norwegian, a native of Helge-
land in the dioceſe of Drontheim, incited by a moft laudable curioſity
and thirſt of diſcovery, failed to the north of his country, doubled
the North Cape, and in three days from his departure arrived at the
fartheſt place, frequented by the Horſe-whale fiſhers. From thence
he proceeded a voyage of three days more, and perhaps got into the
White Sea. On his return he viſited England, probably incited by
the fame of King Alfred's abilities, and the great encouragement he
gave to men of diſtinguiſhed character in every profeſſion. The
traveller, as a proof of the authenticity of his relation, preſented the
Saxon monarch with ſome of the teeth of theſe animals, then a ſub-
ſtitute of ivory, and valued at a high price. In his account of his
voyage, he alſo added that their ſkins were uſed in the ſhips inſtead
of ropest
They are found again on the coaſts of Nova Zembla, and on the
headlands which ſtretch moſt towards the north pole; and as far as
the Tſchutki point, and the iſles off that promontory. They ſcarcely
extend lower than the neighborhood of the country of the Anadyr,
but are ſeen in great abundance about cape Newnham, on the coaſt of
America. The natives of the iſlands off the Tchutki Nofs ornament
themſelves with pieces of the Walrus ſtuck through their lips or
noſes; for which reaſon they are called by their neighbors Zoobatee,
or large-teethed I. The natives about Unalaſcha, Sandwich Sound,
and Turn-again river, obſerve the ſame faſhion. I entertain doubts
whether theſe animals are of the ſame ſpecies with thoſe of the
Nova ZEMBLA,
AND ICY SEA.
* Pontoppidan, ii. 157.
+ Hackluyt, i. 5.
I Hift. Kamtſchatka, 47.
Gulph

ARCTIC WALRUS.
171
Gulph of St. Laurence. The tuſks of thoſe of the Frozen Sea are
much longer, more ſlender, and have a twiſt and inward curva-
ture.
MANNERS
They are gregarious, and ſometimes have been found together in
thouſands; are very ſhy, and avoid the haunts of mankind. They
uſually are ſeen on the floating ice, preferring that for their re-
ſidence, as their bodies require cooling, by reaſon of the heat which
ariſes from their exceffive fatneſs *.
They are monogamous; couple in June, and bring forth in the
earlieſt ſpring t. They bring one I, or very rarely two young at a
time; feed on fea-plants, fiſh, and ſhells, which they either dig out
of the ſand, or force from the rocks with their great teeth. They
make uſe alſo of their teeth to aſcend the iſlands of ice, by faſtening
them in the cracks, and by that means draw up their bodies.
They ſeep both on the ice and in the water, and ſnore exceſſively
ز
loud S.
They are harmleſs, unleſs provoked; but when wounded, or at-
tacked, grow very fierce, and are very vindictive. When ſurpriſed
upon the ice, the females firſt provide for the ſafety of the young, by
flinging it into the ſea, and itſelf after it, carrying it to a ſecure
diſtance, then returning with great rage to revenge the injury.
They will ſometimes attempt to faſten their teeth on the boats, with
an intent to fink them, or riſe in numbers under them to overſet
them; at the ſame time they ſhew all marks of rage, by roaring in a
dreadful manner, and gnaſhing their teeth with great violence; if
once thoroughly irritated, the whole herd will follow the boats till
they loſe fight of them. They are ſtrongly attached to each other,
and will make every effort in their power, even to death, to ſet at
liberty their harpooned companions ||-
1 Barentz, 4.
* Now. Com. Petrop. ii. 291.
+ Faun, Greenl. 4.
Martens, 109. || The ſame, 110.
Z 2
A wounded

172
ARCTIC WALRU S.
USES.
a
3
A wounded Walrus has been known to ſink to the bottom, riſe
ſuddenly again, and bring up with it multitudes of others, who united
in an attack on the boat from which the infult came *.
They fing the water out of their noſtrils, as the Whale does
out of its head. When chaſed hard, they commonly vomit,
and fing up ſmall ſtones. Their dung is like that of a Horſe,
and exceſſively fetid, eſpecially where they are found in large com-
panies.
The tongue, which is about the ſize of a Cow's, may be eaten if
boiled freſh; but if kept, foon runs into oil. The teeth uſed to be
applied to all the purpoſes of ivory; but the animals are now killed
only for the ſake of the oil. Seamen make rings of the briſtles of
the whiſkers, which they wear as preſervatives againſt the cramp.
The French coach-makers have made traces for coaches of the ſkins,
which are ſaid to be ſtrong and elaſtic . The Ruſians formerly
uſed the bone of the penis pulveriſed, as a remedy againſt the
ftone I. Bartholinus § recommends it, infuſed in ale, in fits of the
ftrangury. The Greenlanders eat the fleih and lard, and uſe the laſt
in their lamps. Of the ſkin they make ſtraps. They ſplit the
tendons into thread ; and uſe the teeth to head their darts, or to
make pegs in their boats.
Their only enemies, beſides mankind, are the Polar Bears, with
whom they have dreadful conflicts. Their feuds probably ariſe
from the occupancy of the ſame piece of ice. The Walrus is uſually
victorious, through the fuperior advantage of its vaſt teeth ||. The
effects of the battle are very evident; for it is not often that the
hunters find a beaſt with two entire tuſks T.
ز
* Phipps's Voy. 57
+ De Buffon.
I Worm. Muf. 290.
As quoted in Muſeum Regium Hafniæ, &c. pars i. ſect. iii. 9.
Crantz, i. 126.
Egede, 83.
« The

ARCTIC WALRUS.
173
3
« The Walrus, or Sea Cow, as it is called by the Americans,"
ſays Lord Shuldham *
« is a native of the Magdalene iſlands, St.
“ John's, and Anticoſti, in the gulph of St. Laurence. They reſort,
very early in the ſpring, to the former of theſe places, which
« feems by nature particularly adapted to the nature of the animals,
“ abounding with clams (eſcallops) of a very large ſize ; and the
“ moſt convenient landing-places, called Echoueries. Here they
« crawl up in great numbers, and remain ſometimes for fourteen
days together without food, when the weather is fair; but on the
“ firſt appearance of rain, they retreat to the water with great pre-
“cipitation. They are, when out of the water, very unwieldy,
“ and move with great difficulty. They weigh from fifteen hun-
« dred to two thouſand pounds, producing, according to their fize,
«s from one to two barrels of oil, which is boiled out of the fat be-
tween the ſkin and the fleſh. Immediately on their arrival, the
“ females. calve, and engender again in two months after ; fo that
they carry their young about nine months. They never have
more than two at a time, and ſeldom more than one.
“ The Echoueries † are formed principally by nature, being a
gradual ſlope of ſoft rock, with which the Magdalene iſlands
abound, about eighty or a hundred yards wide at the water-fide,
• and ſpreading ſo as to contain, near the ſummit, a very large
“ number of theſe animals. Here they are ſuffered to come on
« ſhore, and amuſe themſelves for a conſiderable time, till they
acquire a degree of boldneſs, being at their firft landing fo ex-
06
a
* Phil. Tranſ. lxv. part i. 249.-The French call them Vaches Marines. Charlea.
voix, V. 216. That voyager ſays, that the Engliſh had once a fiſhery of theſe ani-
mals on the Iſle de Sable, a ſmall iſland ſouth of Cape Breton ; but it turned out to no
advantage.
+ This word is derived from Echouer, to land, or run on fhore,
« ceedingly

174
A RCTIC WALRUS.
«
66
a
ceedingly timid as to make it impoſſible for any perſon to ap-
proach them.
" In a few weeks they affemble in great multitudes : formerly,
o when undiſturbed by the Americans, to the amount of ſeven or
eight thouſand. The form of the Echouerie not allowing them
to remain contiguous to the water, the foremoſt are inſenſibly
puſhed above the Nope. When they are arrived at a conve-
“nient diſtance, the hunters, being provided with a ſpear ſharp on
" one ſide, like a knife, with which they cut their throats, take
advantage of a fide wind, or a breeze blowing obliquely upon the
< fhore, to prevent the animals from ſmelling them, becauſe they
“ have that ſenſe in great perfection. Having landed, the hunters,
“s with the aſſiſtance of good dogs, trained for that purpoſe, in the
night-time endeavour to ſeparate thoſe which are moſt advanced
" from the others, driving them different ways. This they call
making a cut; it is generally looked upon to be a moſt dangerous
s proceſs, it being impoſſible to drive them in any particular di-
" rection, and difficult to avoid them; but as the Walruſes, which
are advanced above the ſlope of the Echouerie, are deprived by
" the darkneſs of the night from every direction to the water, they
are left wandering about, and killed at leiſure, thoſe that are
“ neareſt the ſhore being the firſt victims. In this manner have
been killed fifteen or fixteen hundred at a cut.
“ The people then ikin them, and take off a coat of fat which
« always ſurrounds them, and diſſolve it into oil. The ſkin is cut
“ into ſlices of two or three inches wide, and exported to America
“ for carriage traces, and into England for glue. The teeth make
an inferior ſort of ivory, and is manufactured for that purpoſe ;
“ but very ſoon turns yellow."
a
60
HIST.

C O M M ON SE A L.
175
HIST. QUAD. GENUS XLII.
SEAL
Br. Zool. i. N° 71.--Hift. Quad. N° 375.--Smellie.
Kafligiak, Faun. Greenl. N° 6.--Lev. Mus.
72. COMMON
SEAT
EAL. With a flat head and noſe : large black eyes : large
whiſkers: fix cutting teeth in the upper jaw; four in the lower :
two canine teeth in each jaw: no external ears: hair on all parts
ſhort and thick: five toes on each foot, furniſhed with ſtrong ſharp
claws, and ſtrongly webbed : tail ſhort and flat.
Uſual length of this ſpecies, from five to fix feet. Their color
differs ; duſky, brinded, or ſpotted with white and yellow.
Inhabits all the European feas, even to the extreme north; and
is found far within the Arctic circle, in both European and Afratic
ſeas. It is continued to thoſe of Kamtſchatka *.
Theſe animals may be called the flocks of the Greenlanders, and
many other of the Arctic people. I cannot deſcribe the uſes of them
to the former more expreſſively than in the very words of Mr. Crantz,
a gentleman very long reſident in their chilly country.
“ Seals are more needful to them than Sheep are to us, though
" they furniſh us with food and raiment; or than the cocoa-tree is
" to the Indians, although that preſents them not only with meat
to eat, and covering for their bodies, but alſo houſes to dwell in,
« and boats to fail in, ſo that in caſe of neceſſity they could live
ſolely from it. The Seals fleſh (together with the Rein-deer,
" which is already grown pretty ſcarce) fupplies the natives with
THEIR GREAT
USE TO THE
GREENLANDERS.
* Steller, in Nov. Com. Petrop, . 290.
46 their

176
COMMON SE A L.
ز
" their moſt palatable and fubftantial food. Their fat furniſhes
" them with oil for lamp-light, chamber and kitchen fire; and
<< whoever fees their habitations, preſently finds, that if they even
« had a ſuperfluity of wood, it would not do, they can uſe nothing
« but train in them. They alſo mollify their dry food, moſtly fish,
« in the train; and finally, they barter it for all kinds of neceſſaries
« with the factor. They can few better with fibres of the Seals
“ finews than with thread or ſilk. Of the ſkins of the entrails they
« make their windows, curtains for their tents, ſhirts, and part of
" the bladders they uſe at their harpoons; and they make train
« bottles of the maw. Formerly, for want of iron, they made all
manner of inſtruments and working-tools of their bones. Nei-
" ther is the blood waſted, but boiled with other ingredients, and
eaten as ſoup. Of the ſkin of the Seal they ſtand in the greateſt
“ need; for, fuppofing the ſkins of Rein-deer and birds would
“ furniſh them with competent cloathing for their bodies, and co-
verings for their beds; and their fleſh, together with fiſh, with
« fufficient food ; and provided they could dreſs their meat with
“ wood, and alſo new model their houſe-keeping, ſo as to have
light, and keep themſelves warm with it too; yet without the
“ Seals ſkins they would not be in a capacity of acquiring theſe
“ fame Rein-deer, fowls, fiſhes, and wood; becauſe they muſt
cover over with Seal-ſkin both their large and ſmall boats, in
“ which they travel and ſeek their proviſion. They muſt alſo cut
" their thongs or ſtraps out of them, make the bladders for their
harpoons, and cover their tents with them ; without which they
« could not ſubſiſt in ſummer.
“ Therefore no man can paſs for a right Greenlander who cannot
“ catch Seals. This is the ultimate end they aſpire at, in all their
“ device and labor from their childhood up. It is the only art
(and in truth a difficult and dangerous one it is) to which they
CC
66
66 are

COMMON SEA L.
177
و
MANNER OF
TAKING
are trained from their infancy; by which they maintain them-
« ſelves, make themſelves agreeable to others, and become benefi-
« cial members of the community *.
“ The Greenlanders have three ways of catching Seals: either
“ fingly, with the bladder ; or in company, by the clapper-hunt ;
or in the winter on the ice: whereto may be added the ſhooting
« them with a gun.
“ The principal and moſt common way is the taking them with
<< the bladder. When the Greenlander ſets out equipped according
to the 7th Section, and ſpies a Seal, he tries to ſurpriſe it una-
wares, with the wind and ſun in his back, that he may not be
« heard or ſeen by it. He tries to conceal himſelf behind a wave,
« and makes haſtily, but ſoftly, up to it, till he comes within four,
“ five, or fix fathom of it; mean while he takes the utmoſt care
“ that the harpoon, line, and bladder, lie in proper order. Then
“ he takes hold of the oar with his left hand, and the harpoon with
“ his right by the hand-board, and ſo away he throws it at the
Seal, in ſuch a manner that the whole dart flies from the hand-
« board and leaves that in his hand. If the harpoon hits the mark,
« and buries itſelf deeper than the barbs, it will directly diſengage
« itſelf from the bone-joint, and that from the ſhaft; and alſo un-
« wind the ſtring from its lodge on the kajak. The moment the
“ Seal is pierced, the Greenlander muſt throw the bladder, tied to
" the end of the ſtring, into the water, on the ſame fide as the Seal
runs and dives; for that he does inſtantly, like a dart. Then
“ the Greenlander goes and takes up the ſhaft ſwimming on the
water, and lays it in its place. The Seal often drags the bladder
“ with it under water, though 'tis a conſiderable impediment, on
account of its great bigneſs; but it ſo wearies itſelf out with it,
* Hift. Greenl. i. 130.
VOL. I.
Аа
" that

178
COMMON SE A L.
(6
3
*** that it muſt come up again in about a quarter of an hour to take
« breath. The Greenlander haſtens to the ſpot where he ſees the
s bladder riſe up, and fmites the Seal, as ſoon as it appears, with
of the great lance deſcribed in the 6th Section * This lance al-
ways comes out of its body again; but he throws it at the crea-
ture afreſh every time it comes up, till 'tis quite ſpent. Then
« he runs the little lance into it, and kills it outright, but ſtops up
of the wound directly to preſerve the blood; and laſtly, he blows
« it up, like a bladder, betwixt ſkin and fleſh, to put it into a
" better capacity of ſwimming after him; for which purpoſe he
«« faſtens it to the left-ſide of his kajak, or boat t.
« In this exerciſe the Greenlander is expoſed to the moſt and
“ greateſt danger of his life; which is probably the reaſon that they
es call this hunt, or fiſhery, kamavock, i. e. the Extinction, viz. of
« life. For if the line ſhould entangle itſelf, as it eaſily may, in its
a ſudden and violent motion; or if it ſhould catch hold of the
kajak, or ſhould wind itſelf round the oar, or the hand, or even
" the neck, as it ſometimes does in windy weather; or if the Seal
“ fhould turn ſuddenly to the other ſide of the boat ; it cannot be
« otherwiſe than that the kajak muſt be overturned by the ſtring,
" and drawn down under water. On ſuch deſperate occaſions the
poor Greenlander ſtands in need of all the arts deſcribed in the
« former Section, to diſentangle himſelf from the ſtring, and to
« raiſe himſelf up from under the water ſeveral times ſucceſſively;
« for he wil continually be overturning till he has quite diſengaged
« himſelf from the line. Nay, when he imagines himſelf to be
out of all danger, and comes too near the dying Seal, it may ſtill
« bite him in the face or hand; and a female Seal that has young,
* inſtead of flying the field, will ſometimes fly at the Greenlander in
3
# See the Sections referred to, and tab. v.
+ See vol. i. 150. tab. viii.
the

CO M M ON SEAL
179
te the moſt vehement rage, and do him a miſchief, or bite a hole in
« his kajak that he muſt fink.
« In this way, fingly, they can kill none but the careleſs ſtupid
« Seal, called Attarfoak *. Several in company muſt purſue the
“ cautious Kaligiak † by the clapper-hunt. In the ſame manner
they alſo furround and kill the Attarſoit I in great numbers at
“ certain ſeaſons of the year ; for in autumn they retire into the
“ creeks or inlets in ſtormy weather, as in the Nepiſet ſound in
“ Ball's river, between the main land and the iſland Kangek, which
• is full two leagues long, but very narrow. There the Green-
“ landers cut off their retreat, and frighten them under water by
ſhouting, clapping, and throwing ſtones ; but, as they muſt come
up again continually to draw breath, then they perſecute them
again till they are tired, and at laſt are obliged to ſtay ſo long
« above water, that they ſurround them, and kill them with the
« fourth kind of dart, deſcribed in the 6th Section. During this
« hunt we have a fine opportunity to ſee the agility of the Greena
« landers, or, if I may call it ſo, their huſſar-like manæuvres.
6 When the Seal riſes out of the water, they all fly upon it, as if
« they had wings, with a deſperate noiſe; the poor creature is
“ forced to dive again directly, and the moment he does, they dif-
perfe again as faſt as they came, and every one gives heed to his
“poſt, to ſee where it will ſtart up again; which is an uncertain
" thing, and is commonly three quarters of a mile from the former
ſpot. If a Seal has a good broad water, three or four leagues
s each way, it can keep the ſportſmen in play for a couple of
“ hours, before 'tis ſo ſpent that they can ſurround and kill it.
" If the Seal, in its fright, betakes itſelf to the land for a retreat,
66 'tis welcomed with ſticks and ſtones by the women and children,
a
* See N°77. of this work,
+ Ditto, Nº 72,
I Ditto, a variety
of N° 77
A a 2
and

180
COMMON SE A L.
60
а
“ and preſently pierced by the men in the rear. This is a very
lively and a very profitable diverſion for the Grenlanders, for
many times one man will have eight or ten Seals for his ſhare.
“ The third method of killing Seals upon the ice, is moſtly
practiſed in Diſko, where the bays are frozen over in the winter.
“ There are ſeveral ways of proceeding. The Seals themſelves
“ make ſometimes holes in the ice, where they come and draw
« breath ; near ſuch a hole a Greenlander ſeats himſelf on a ſtool,
putting his feet on a lower one to keep them from the cold.
“ Now when the Seal comes and puts its noſe to the hole, he
pierces it inſtantly with his harpoon; then breaks the hole larger,
" and draws it out and kills it quite. Or a Greenlander lays him-
“ ſelf upon his belly, on a kind of a ſledge, near other holes, where
“ the Seals come out upon the ice to baſk themſelves in the fun.
~ Near this great hole they make a little one, and another Green-
“ lander puts a harpoon into it with a very long ſhaft or pole. He
“that lies upon the ice looks into the great hole, till he ſees a Seal
“ coming under the harpoon; then he gives the other the ſignal,
« who runs the Seal through with all his might.
“ If the Greenlander fees a Seal lying near its hole upon the ice,
« he ſides along upon his belly towards it, wags his head, and
grunts like a Seal; and the poor Seal, thinking 'tis one of its
« innocent companions, lets him come near enough to pierce it
« with his long dart.
“ When the current wears a great hole in the ice in the ſpring,
" the Greenlanders plant themſelves all round it, till the Seals come
« in droves to the brim to fetch breath, and then they kill them
« with their harpoons. Many alſo are killed on the ice while they
" lie fleeping and ſnoring in the fun *.”
a
a
pp. 353, 4, 5, 6, 7,
Nature

COMMON SE A L.
181
SCHATKA.
Nature has been ſo niggardly in providing variety of proviſion Uses IN KAMT-
for the Greenlanders, that they are neceſſitated to have recourſe to
ſuch which is offered to them with a liberal hand. The Kamt-
Schatkan nations, which enjoy ſeveral animals, as well as a great and
abundant choice of fiſh, are ſo enamoured with the taſte of the fat
of Seals, that they can make no feaſt without making it one of the
diſhes. Of that both Ruſſians and Kamtſchatkans make their can-
dles. The latter eat the fleſh boiled, or elſe dried in the fun. If
they have a great quantity, they preſerve it in the following man-
ner:
a
CUSTOM.
They dig a pit of a requiſite depth, and pave it with ſtones; then
fill it with wood, and ſet it on fire ſo as to heat the pit to the
warmth of a ſtove. They then collect all the cinders into a heap.
They ſtrew the bottom with the green wood of alder, on which
they place ſeparately the fleſh and the fat, and put between every
layer branches of the ſame tree; when the pit is filled they cover it
with fods, ſo that the vapour cannot eſcape. After ſome hours
they take out both fat and Aeſh, and keep it for winter's proviſions,
and they may be preſerved a whole year without ſpoiling.
The Kamtſchatkans have a moft fingular ceremony. After they SUPERSTITIOU's
take the fleſh from the heads of the Seals, they bring a veſſel in
form of a canoe, and fing into it all the ſculls, crowned with certain
herbs, and place them on the ground. A certain perſon enters the
habitation with a fack filled with Tonchitche, ſweet herbs, and a little
of the bark of willow. Two of the natives then roll a great ſtone
towards the door, and cover it with pebbles; two others take the
ſweet herbs and diſpoſe them, tied in little packets. The great
ſtone is to fignify the ſea-ſhore, the pebbles the waves, and the
packets Seals. They then bring three diſhes of a halh, called Tol-
koucha; of this they make little balls, in the middle of which they
ſtick the packets of herbs : of the willow-bark they make a little
canoe,
a

382
COMMON SE AL.
canoe, and fill it with Tolkoucha, and cover it with the fack. After
ſome time, the two Kamtſchatkans who had put the mimic Seals into
the Tolkoucha, take the balls, and a veſſel reſembling a canoe, and
draw it along the fand, as if it was on the ſea, to convince the real
Seals how agreeable it would be to them to come among the Kamt-
Schatkans, who have a ſea in their very jurts, or dwellings. And
this they imagine will induce the Seals to ſuffer themſelves to be
taken in great numbers. Various other ceremonies, equally ridi-
culous, are practiſed; in one of which they invoke the winds, which
drive the Seals on their ſhores, to be propitious *.
Beſides the uſes which are made of the fleſh and fat of Seals, the
ſkins of the largeſt are cut into ſoles for ſhoes. The women make
their ſummer boots of the undreſſed ſkins, and wear them with the
hair outmoſt. In a country which abounds ſo greatly in furs, very
little more uſe is made of the ſkins of Seals in the article of dreſs
than what has been mentioned t. But the Koriaks, the Oloutores,
and Tchutſchi, form with the ſkins canoes and veſſels of different
fizes, ſome large enough to carry thirty people.
Seals ſwarm on all the coaſts of Kamtſchatka, and will go up the
rivers eighty verſts in purſuit of fiſh. They couple on the ice in
April, and ſometimes on the rocks, and even in the ſea in calm
weather. The Tunguſ give the milk of theſe animals to their chil-
dren inſtead of phyſic.
The Seals in this country are killed by harpooning, by ſhooting,
by watching the holes in the ice and knocking them on the head as
they riſe; or by placing two or three ſtrong nets acroſs one of the
rivers which theſe animals frequent: fifty or more people aſſemble
in canoes on each ſide of the nets, while others row up and down,
and with great cries frighten the Seals into them. As ſoon as any
CAPTURE.
* Deſcr. Kamtſchatka, 425.
+ The ſame, 41, 42, 424.
are

COMMON SE AL.
183
a
MASSAGETÆ
CLOATHED IN
SEAL-SKINS.
are entangled, the people kill them with pikes or clubs, and drag
them on ſhore, and divide them equally among the hunters; ſome-
times a hundred are taken at a time in this manner.
The navigators obſerved abundance of Seals about Bering's
iſland, but that they decreaſed in numbers as they advanced towards
the ſtraits; for where the Walruſes abounded, the Seals grew more
and more ſcarce.
I did not obſerve any Seal-ſkin garments among thoſe brought
over by the navigators, ſuch as one might have expected among
the Eſquimaux of the high latitudes they viſited, and which are ſo
much in uſe with thoſe of Hudſon's Bay and Labrador. That fpecies
of dreſs doubtleſsly was worn in the earlieſt times. Theſe people
wanted their hiſtorians; but we are aſſured that the Maſſagetæ *
cloathed themſelves in the ſkins of Seals. They, according to D'anville,
inhabited the country to the eaſt of the Caſpian ſea, and the lake
Aral; both of which waters abound with Seals.
Seals are now become a great article of commerce. The oil
from the vaſt Whales is no longer equal to the demand for fup-
plying the magnificent profuſion of lamps in and round our capital.
The chaſe of theſe animals is redoubled for that purpoſe; and the
ſkins, properly tanned, are in conſiderable uſe in the manufactory
of boots and ſhoes.
Five varieties of Seals are found in the Baltic. It is made a
doubt whether they are not even diſtinct fpecies.
The firſt is the Grey Seal, Grå Sial, which when juft born is
wholly yellow: but that color foon grows obfcure, and the ſkin
becomes varied with ſpots or waved lines. This variety is the large
of thoſe which inhabit the Swediſh ſeas,
The ſecond is the Hautſkål. This, when juſt dropped, is more
* Strabo, lib. xi. 781.
white

184
SE A L S.
white, and never changes, unleſs to a tinge of pearl color, when it
has ceaſed growing. It never attains the ſize of the former, lives
ſeparate from it, and is more timid.
Theſe two varieties live on the high ſeas, and feed on herrings,
medufæ, and blennies. During winter they retire under the ice,
through which they form holes by blowing on it, let the thickneſs
be ever ſo great. In ſummer they mount on the ſand-banks to
ſleep.
The Seal called the Wikare gris, and Wikare noir, are two
varieties, which ſleep on ſhore. The two preceding ſometimes
Neep in the ſea, keeping their heads above water; they feep ſo
found that the hunters can reach and harpoon them in that ſitua-
tion. The Wikare feeds chiefly on the gaſteroſteus aculeatus, Lin.
three-ſpined ſtickleback, Br. Zool. III. No. 129. and becomes ſo
fat, that when killed it cannot fink to the bottom. The young of
the Black Wikare are conſtantly black; thoſe of the Grey Wikare
always grey.
Fifthly. The Morunge is always ſtriped (tigré). This ſpecies
is of late years ſo diminished, that for ten years paſt there has not
been ſeen one in all the Swediſh archipelago.
If theſe five are varieties, they are certainly varieties which live
always ſeparated, and never mingle with one another.
The chace of the Seals in the gulph of Bothnia, is as remarkable
as that of the Greenlanders. In the ſpring, when the rivers of Lap-
land force with their ſtream, into the ſea, vaſt maſſes of ice, the
Grey Seals and Hautſkåls retire upon them. The hunters never
neglect the opportunity of taking them: they find out theſe floating
mountains, which, according to Mr. Hjarne, are twelve or fourteen
fathoms in thickneſs below water, and of a great extent. The
hunters lay in proviſions for fix weeks, and a hearth to dreſs their
They then moor their boat to one of theſe mountanous
a
meat on,
pieces

GREAT SEA L.
185
1
ز
pieces of ice, the hollows of which are filled with Seals. They
cloath themſelves in white, to render themſelves leſs ſuſpected by
thoſe animals. They alſo whiten their boats with lime; and ſleep
in them during night, and thus paſs ten or twelve days among the
ice, till they diſcover the Seals. When they hear a certain crack-
ling, they conſider it as a ſign that the piece of ice is about to fall
to pieces; they guard againſt the conſequences, and ſeek ano-
ther; and fo continue rowing from one piece of ice to another,
in ſearch of the Seals, till they have exhauſted every object of the
chace.
73. GREAT.
Hift. Quad. N° 382.
Phoca Barbata, Faun. Greenl. N° 9.-Urkſuk. Greenl,
Lakktak, Hift. Kamtſchatka, 420,-Lev. Mus.
a
SEAL. With long pellucid white whiſkers with curled points :
back arched: black hairs, very deciduous, and thinly diſperſed
over a thick ſkin, which in ſummer is almoſt naked: teeth like the
common Seal: fore feet like the human hand; middle toe the
longeſt; thumb ſhort: length more than twelve feet.
The Greenlanders cut out of the ſkin of this ſpecies thongs and
lines, a finger thick, for the Seal-fiſhery. Its feſh is white as veal,
and eſteemed the moſt delicate of any: has plenty of lard, but does
not yield much oil. The ſkins of the young are ſometimes uſed to
lie on.
It inhabits the high ſea about Greenland ; is a timid ſpecies, and
uſually reſts on the floating ice, and very feldom the fixed. Breeds
in the earlieſt ſpring, or about the month of March, and brings forth
a ſingle young on the ice, uſually among the iſlands; for at that
VOL. I.
Bb
ſeaſon

286
GREAT SE A L.
feafon it approaches a little nearer to the land. The great old ones
ſwim very ſlowly.
In the feas of the north of Scotland is found a Seal twelve feet
long. A gentleman of my acquaintance ſhot one of that fize on
the coaſt of Sutherland; but made no particular remarks on it.
A young one, ſeven feet and half long, was ſhewn in London
fome years ago, which had not arrived at maturity enough even
to have ſcarcely any teeth *: yet the common Seals have them
complete before they attain the fize of fix feet, their utmoſt
growth.
A ſpecies larger than an Ox, found in the Kamtſchatkan ſeas from
56 to 64 north latitude, called by the natives Lachtak t. They
weighed eight hundred pounds: were eaten by Bering's crew; but
their fleſh was found to be very loathſome I. The cubs are quite
black.
STELLER has left behind him accounts of other Seals found in
thoſe wild feas; but his deſcriptions are fo imperfect as to render
it impoſſible to aſcertain the ſpecies. He ſpeaks in his MSS. of
a middle-ſized kind, univerſally and moſt elegantly ſpotted ;
another, black with brown ſpots, and the belly of a yellowiſh
white, and as large as a yearling Ox; a third ſpecies, black, and
with a particular formation of the hinder legs, and a fourth, of
a yellowiſh color, with a great circle on it of the color of cher-
3
ries g.
* Ph. Tranſ. Abr. ix. 74. tab. v. xlvii. 120.
. .
+ Nov. Com. Petrop. ii. 290.
Muller's Voy, 60. § Dr. Pallas, and Deſcr. Kamtſchatka, 420.
Hift.

ROUGH SEAL.
187
Hift. Quad. N° 383.
Phoca Fætida, Faun. Greenl. N° 8.--Neitſeck Greenl. Crantz, i.
74. ROUGH
a
ز
SEAL. With a ſhort noſe, and ſhort round head: teeth like the
common Seal: body almoſt of an elliptical form, covered with
lard almoſt to the hind feet: hairs cloſely ſet together, foft, long,
and ſomewhat erect, with curled wool intermixed : color duſky,
ſtreaked with white; ſometimes varies to white, with a duſky dorſal
line.
Does not exceed four feet in length.
Never frequents the high ſeas, but keeps on the fixed ice in the
remote bays near the frozen land; and when old never forſakes its
haunts. Couples in June ; brings forth in January, on the fixed ice,
which is its proper element. In that it has a hole for the benefit of
fiſhing ; near that it remains uſually ſolitary, rarely in pairs. Is
very incautious, and often Neeps on the ſurface of the water, yielding
itſelf a prey to the Eagle. Feeds on ſmall fiſh, ſhrimps, and the
like. The uſes of the ſkin, tendons, and lard, the fame with thoſe
of other Seals. The fleſh is red, and fætid, eſpecially that of the
males, which is nauſeated by even the Greenlanders.
The Seal-hunters in Newfoundland have a large kind, which they
call the Square Phipper, and ſay weighs five hundred pounds. Its
coat is like that of a Water-dog; ſo that it ſeems by the length of
hair to be allied to this, but the vaſt difference in ſize forbids us
from pronouncing it to be the ſame ſpecies.
a
B b 2
Hiff

188
LEPORINE SEA L.
25. LEPORINE
Hift. Quad. Nº 381.
Phoca Leporina, Lepechin, A. Acad. Petrop. pars. i. 264. tab. viii. ix.-
Hift. Quad. Nº 381.
-
:
SIZE.
SEAL. With hair of an uniform dirty white color, with a tinge
of yellow, but never ſpotted; hairs erect, and interwoven; ſoft
as that of a Hare, eſpecially the young: head long: upper lip ſwell-
ing and thick: whiſkers very ſtrong and thick, ranged in fifteen
rows, covering the whole front of the lip, ſo as to make it appear
bearded: eyes blue, pupil black: teeth ſtrong; four cutting teeth
above, the fame below*: fore feet ſhort, and ending abrupt: the
membranes of the hind feet even, and not waved: tail ſhort and
thick; its length four inches two lines.
Length of this ſpecies, from noſe to tip of the tail, is fix feet
fix; its greateſt circumference five feet two. The cubs are milk
white,
This kind inhabits the White Sea during ſummer, and aſcends
and defcends the mouths of rivers † with the tide in queſt of prey.
It is alſo found on the coaſts of Iceland, and within the Polar circle
from Spitzbergen to Tchutki Noſs, and from thence ſouthward about
Kamtſchatka.
Like the others, it is killed for its fat and ſkin. The laſt is cut
into pieces, and uſed for ſtraps and reins. The ſkins of the young,
which are remarkably white, are dyed with black, and uſed to face
caps, in imitation of Beavers ſkins; but the hairs are much ſtiffer,
and do not foon drop off.
* Mr. Lepechin compares the number of the teeth to that of another kind (our
Herp Seal) which, he fays, has only four teeth in the lower jaw.
+ The ſame.
Hif.

HOODED SEAL.
189
Hift. Quad. N° 384.
Phoca Leonina, Faun. Greenl. No 5.
76. HOODED.
a
0
SEAL. With four cutting teeth above, four below: fore feet
like the human ; the thumb long: the membranes on the hind
feet extend beyond the claws: on the forehead of the male is a thick
folded ſkin, ridged half the way up, which it can inflate and draw
down like a cap, to defend its eyes againſt ſtorms, waves, ſtones,
and fand. The females and young have only the rudiment of this
guard. It has two ſpecies of hair; the longeſt white, the ſhorteſt
thick, black, and woolly, which gives it a beautiful grey color.
It grows to the length of eight feet. The Greenlanders call it
Neitſek-foak *, or the Great Neitſek. It inhabits only the ſouthern
parts of their country, where it inhabits the high ſeas; but in April,
May, and June, comes nearer to the land. Is polygamous; copu-
lates with its body erect. Brings forth in April one young upon
the ice. Keeps much on the great fragments, where it ſleeps in an
unguarded way. Bites hard: barks, and whines: grows very fierce
on being wounded; but will weep on being ſurprized by the hunter.
Fight among themſelves, and inflict deep wounds. Feed on all
kinds of greater fiſh. The ſkins of the young form the moſt ele-
gant
dreſſes for the women. The men cover their great boats with
thoſe of the old; they alſo cover their houſes with them, and when
they grow old convert them into ſacks. They uſe the teeth to head
hunting-fpears. Of the gullet and inteftines they make the fea-
dreſſes. The ſtomach is made into a fiſhing-buoy.
* Crantz, i. 25.
It

190
HARP SE A L.
3
It is alſo found in Newfoundland. Our Seal-hunters name it the
Hooded Seal, and pretend they cannot kill it till they remove that
integument. The Germans call it Klap-Mutz, from its covering its
face as if with a cap.
The moſt dreaded enemy which this ſpecies has in Greenland is
the Phyſeter Microps; on the very fight of which it takes to the ice,
and quietly expects its fate *. The Greenlanders therefore deteft
this ſpecies of Whale, not only on account of the havock it makes
among the Seals, but becauſe it frightens them away from the
bays t.
It is entirely different from the LEONINE SEAL, or from that of
the South-ſea, called the BOTTLE-NOSE.
77. HARP.
Hift. Quad. N° 385-
Phoca Oceanica, Krylatca Ruſſis, Lepechin, Act. Acad. Petrop. pars. i. 259. tab.
vi. vii.
Phoca Greenlandica, Faun. Greenl. N° 7.--Atak Greenl. Atarſoak, Crantz, i.
124
i
SEAL. With a round head: high forehead: noſe ſhort: large
black eyes : whiſkers diſpoſed in ten rows of hairs: four cutting
teeth in the upper jaw, the two middlemoſt the longeſt; four alſo in
the lower, leſs ſharp than the others : two canine teeth in each jaw:
fix grinders in each jaw, each three-pointed: hairs ſhort : ſkin thick
and ſtrong
Head, noſe, and chin, of a deep cheſnut color, nearly black;
reſt of the body of a dirty white, or light grey: on the top of the
ſhoulders is a large mark of the ſame color; with the head bifur-
* Faun. Greenl. p. 9.
† The ſame, p. 45.
cated,

HARP SE A L.
191
a
ز
;
cated, each fork extending downwards along the ſides half
way
the
length of the body. This mark is always conſtant; but there are
beſides a few irregular ſpots incidental to the old ones.
The female has only two, retractile, teats ; and brings only one
young at a time. The cub, the firſt year, is of a bright afh-color,
whitiſh beneath, and marked in all parts with multitudes of ſmall
black ſpots, at which period they are called by the Rufrans White
Seals. In the next year they begin to be ſpotted; from that period
the females continue unchanged in color. The malės at full age,
which Mr. Crantz ſays is their fifth year, attain their diſtinguiſhing
ſpot, and are called by the Greenlanders Attarſoak *; by the Ruſians,
Krylatka, or winged.
This inhabits the ſame countries with the Rough and Leporine
Seal; but loves the coldeſt parts of the coaſt. Continues on the
looſe ice of Nova Zembla the whole year; and is ſeen only in the
winter in the White Sea, on the floating ice carried from the nor-
hern ſeas. It brings forth its young about the end of April, and
after fuckling it a fufficient time departs with the firſt ice into the
Frozen Ocean. The young remains behind for ſome time, then
follows its parent with the ice which is looſed from the ſhore t.
It abounds in Greenland and about Spitzbergen, eſpecially in the
bottoms of the deep bays. Migrates in Greenland twice in the
year: in March, and returns in May; in June, and returns in Sep-
tember. Couples in July, and brings forth towards the end of March
or beginning of April: has one young, rarely two, which it fuckles
on fragments of ice far from land. It never aſcends the fixed ice;
but lives and feeps on the floating iſlands in great herds. Swims
in great numbers, having one for a leader, which ſeems to watch
for the ſecurity of the whole. Eats its prey with its head above
* Crantz, i. 124
+ Aat. Acad. Petrop. pars
263.
water.

192
HARP SE A L.
water.
Swims in various ways; on its belly, back, and fide, and
often whirls about as if in frolick. Frequently ſleeps on the ſurface
of the water. Is very incautious. Has great dread of the Phyſeter
Microps, which forces it towards the ſhore. It is often ſurrounded
by troops of hunters, who compel it even to land, where it is eaſily
killed.
It is found alſo about Kamtſchatka, being the third ſpecies men-
tioned by Steller.
It grows to the length of nine feet. The meaſurements of one
deſcribed by Mr. Lepechin are as follow :-The length, from the
noſe to the tip of the tail, was ſix feet: the length of the tail five
inches three lines : the girth of the thickeſt part of the body four
SIZE
feet eight.
USES.
The ſkin is uſed to cover trunks; that of the young, taken in the
iſle of Solovki, on the weſt ſide of the White Sea, is made into boots,
and is excellent for keeping out water. The Greenlanders, in dreſ-
ſing the ſkins, curry off the hair, and leave ſome fat on the inſide
to render them thicker. With theſe they cover their boats, and
with the undreſſed ſkins their tents; and, when they can get no
other, make uſe of them for cloathing.
The oil extracted from the blubber of this Seal is far the moſt
valuable, being ſweet, and ſo free from greaves as to yield a greater
quantity than any other ſpecies. The fleſh is black.
.
The Newfoundland Seal-hunters call it the Harp, or Heart Seal,
and name the marks on the ſides the ſaddle. They ſpeak too of a
brown fort, which they call Bedlemer, and believe to be the young of
the former.
Hip

RUBBON AND URSINE SEAL.
193
Hift. Quad. N° 380. fig, at p. 513.
78. RUBBON.
SEAL. With very ſhort briſtly hair, of an uniform gloffy color,
almoſt black: the whole back and fides comprehended within
a narrow regular ſtripe of pale yellow.
It is to Dr. Pallas I owe the knowledge of this ſpecies. He re-
ceived only part of the ſkin, which ſeemed to have been the back
and ſides. The length was four feet, the breadth two feet three;
ſo it muſt have belonged to a large ſpecies. It was taken off the
Kuril iſlands.
79. URSINE.
Hift. Quad. N° 387.
Kot Ruſis Gentilibus ad Sinum Penchinicum, Tarlatſchega, Nov. Com. Petrop. ii.
331. tab. xv.
Sea Wolf *, Pernety, Engl. Tr. 187. tab. xvi. Ulloa's Voy. i. 226.
Chat Marin, Hift. Kamtſchatka, 433.
SEAL. With a high forehead: noſe projecting like that of a
dog: black irides: ſmaragdine pupil : whiſkers compoſed of
triangular hairs, thinly ſcattered: noftrils oval, divided by a ſeptum :
lips thick; their inſide red, and ſerrated.
In the upper jaw four bifurcated cutting teeth; on each ſide of
theſe a very ſharp canine tooth bending inwards; beyond theſe ano-
ther, which, in battle, the animal ſtrikes with, as Boars do with
TEETH
* The French generic name for the Seal is Loup Marin, and the Spaniſh, Lobo
Marino.
VOL.I.
Сс
their

194
URSIN E SE A L.
TONGUE, EARS.
FORE LEGS.
HIND LEGS.
their tuſks. Inſtead of grinders, in each upper jaw are fix ſharp
teeth reſembling canine, and very ſlightly exerted. In the lower
jaw four cutting teeth, and canine like thoſe in the upper ; and on
each ſide ten others in the place of grinders. When the mouth is
cloſed all the teeth lock into each other.
The tongue rough and bifid: the ears ſhort, ſmall, and ſharp-
pointed, hairy on the outſide, ſmooth and poliſhed within.
Fore legs two feet long, not immerſed in the body, like thoſe
of other Seals, but reſemble thoſe of common quadrupeds. The
feet are furniſhed with five toes, with the rudiments of nails; but
theſe are ſo entirely covered with a naked ſkin, as to be as much
concealed as a hand is with a mitten. The animal ſtands on theſe
legs with the utmoſt firmneſs; yet the feet ſeem but a ſhapeleſs
maſs.
The hind legs are twenty-two inches long, and ſituated like thoſe
of Seals; but are capable of being brought forward, ſo that the
animal makes uſe of them to ſcratch its head: on each are five toes,
connected by a large web; and are a foot broad. The tail is only
two inches long
The body is of a conoid ſhape. The length of a large one
is about eight feet; the circumference near the ſhoulders is five
feet, near the tail twenty inches. The weight eight hundred
pounds.
The female is far inferior in ſize to the male: it has two teats,
placed far behind.
The whole animal is covered with long and rough hair, of a
blackiſh color ; that of the old is tipt with grey; and on the neck
of the males is a little longer and erect: beneath the hair is a ſoft
fur of a bay color. The females are cinereous. The ſkin is thick
and ſtrong
Theſe
TAIL
BODY.
FEMALE.
COLOR.

URSINE SEA L.
195
3
MIGRATORY.
Theſe animals are found in amazing multitudes on the iſlands PLACE.
between Kamtſchatka and America *; but are ſcarcely known to
land on the Aſiatic ſhore: nor are they ever taken except in the
three Kurilian iſlands, and from thence in the Bobrowoie More, or
Beaver Sea, as far as the Kronoſki headland, off the river Kamtſchatka,
which comprehends only from 50 to 56 north latitude. It is ob-
ſervable that they never double the ſouthern cape of the peninſula,
or are found on the weſtern fide in the Penſchinſka ſea: but their
great reſort has been obſerved to be to Bering's iſlands. They are
as regularly migratory as birds of paſſage. They firſt appear off the
three Kurili iſlands and Kamtſchatka in the earlieſt ſpring. They
arrive exceſſively fat ; and there is not one female which does not
come pregnant. Such which are then taken are opened, the young
taken out and ſkinned. They are found in Bering's iſland only on
the weſtern ſhore, being the part oppoſite to Afa, where they firſt
appear on their migration from the ſouth. They continue on ſhore
three months, during which time the females bring forth. Except-
ing their employ of ſuckling their young, they paſs their time in
total inactivity. The males fink into the moſt profound indolence, LONG SLEEP AND
and deep ſleep; nor are they ever rouſed, except by ſome great pro-
vocation, ariſing from an invaſion of their place, or a jealouſy of
their females. During the whole time they neither eat nor drink.
Steller diffected numbers, without finding the left appearance of
food in their ſtomachs.
They live in families. Every male is ſurrounded by a ſeraglio Live IN FAMI
of from eight to fifty miſtreſſes; theſe he guards with the jealouſy
of an eaſtern monarch. Each family keeps ſeparate from the others,
FASTING
LIES.
* They ſay that the Sea-Cat, or Siwutche, is found in thoſe iſlands; but Siwutcha
is the name given by the Kamtſchatkans and Kurilians to the Leonine Seal only.
Northern Archipelago, &c. by Von Stæhlen. Printed for Heydinger, 1774, p. 34.
Сс2
notwithſtanding

196
URSINE SE AL
AFFECTION
TOWARDS THEIR
YOUNG
3
notwithſtanding they lie by thouſands on the ſhore. Every family,
with the unmarried and the young, amount to about a hundred and
twenty. They alſo ſwim in tribes when they take to the ſea.
The males ſhew great affection towards their young, and equal
tyranny towards the females. The former are fierce in the protec-
tion of their offspring; and ſhould any one attempt to take their
cub, will ſtand on the defenſive, while the female carries it
away
in
her mouth. Should ſhe happen to drop it, the male inſtantly quits
its enemy, falls on her, and beats her againſt the ſtones till he
leaves her for dead. As ſoon as ſhe recovers, ſhe crawls to his feet
in the moſt fuppliant manner, and waſhes them with her tears; he
at the ſame time brutally inſults her miſery, ſtalking about in the
moſt infolent manner. But if the young is entirely carried off, he
melts into the greateſt affliction, likewiſe ſheds tears, and ſhews
every mark of deep ſorrow. It is probable that as the female
brings only one, or at moſt two cubs, he feels his misfortune the
more ſenſibly.
Thoſe animals which are deſtitute of females, through age or
impotence, or are deſerted by them, withdraw themſelves from fo-
ciety, and grow exceſſively fplenetic, peeviſh, and quarrelſome;
are very furious, and ſo attached to their antient ſtations, as to pre-
fer death to the loſs of them. They are enormouſly fat, and emit
a moft nauſeous and rank ſmell. If they perceive another animal
approach its ſeat, they are inſtantly rouſed from their indolence,
înap at the encroacher, and give battle. During the fight they in-
ſenſibly intrude on the ſtation of their neighbor. This creates new
offence; fo that at length the civil diſcord ſpreads through the
whole ſhore, attended with hideous growls, their note of war. They
are very tenacious of life, and will live a fortnight after receiving
ſuch wounds as would ſoon deſtroy any other animal.
The particular cauſes of diſputes among theſe iraſcible beaſts are
the
3
CONFLICTS;
CAUSES OF THEM.

U R SIN E SE A L.
197
a
a
NINE SEAL
the following :-The firſt and greateſt is, when an attempt is made
to ſeduce any of their miſtreſſes, or a young female of the family: a
battle is the immediate conſequence of the infult. The unhappy
vanquiſhed inſtantly loſes his whole ſeraglio, who deſert him for the
victorious hero.
The invaſion of the ſtation of another, gives riſe to freſh conflicts;
and the third cauſe is the interfering in the diſputes of others. The
battles they wage are very tremendous; the wounds they inflict very
deep, like the cut of a ſabre. At the concluſion of an engagement
they fling themſelves into the ſea to waſh off the blood.
Beſides their notes of war, they have ſeveral others. When they NOTES
lie on ſhore, and are diverting themſelves, they low like a Cow.
After victory they chirp like a Cricket. On a defeat, or after re-
ceiving a wound, mew like a Cat.
Common Seals, and Sea Otters, ſtand in great awe of theſe ani- DREAD THE LEO-
mals, and ſhun their haunts. They again are in equal awe of the
Leonine Seals, and do not care to begin a quarrel in their ſight,
dreading the intervention of ſuch formidable arbitrators; who like-
wife poffefs the firſt place on the ſhore,
The great and old animals are in no fear of mankind, unleſs they Fear nor MAN-
are ſuddenly furprized by a loud fhout, when they will hurry by
thouſands into the ſea, fwim about, and ſtare at the novelty of their
difturbers.
When they come out of the water, they ſhake themſelves, and
ſmooth their hair with their hind feet: apply their lips to thoſe of
the females, as if they meant to kiſs them: lie down and balk in the
fun with their hind legs up, which they wag as a Dog does its tail.
Sometimes they lie on their back, ſometimes roll themſelves up
into a ball, and fall aſleep. Their ſleep is never fo found but they
are awoke by the left alarm; for their ſenſe of hearing, and alſo
that of ſmelling, is moſt exquiſite.
They
KIND.

198
URSINE SE A L.
COPULATION.
GESTATION
و
a
SWIFT SWIM-
MERS.
CAPTURE
They copulate, more humano, in July, and bring forth in the June
following ; ſo they go with young eleven months. The cubs are
as ſportive as puppies; have mock fights, and tumble one another
on the ground. The male parent looks on with a ſort of compla-
cency, parts them, licks and kiſſes them, and ſeems to take a greater
affection to the victor than to the others.
They ſwim with amazing ſwiftneſs and ſtrength, even at the rate
of ſeven or eight miles an hour, and often on their back. They
dive well, and continue a great while under water. If wounded
in that element, they will ſeize on the boat, carry it with them with
great impetuoſity, and often will fink it.
When they wiſh to aſcend the rocks, they fix their fore feet on
them, arch their backs, and then draw themſelves up.
The Kamtſchatkans take them by harpooning, for they never land
on their ſhore. To the harpoon is faftened a long line, by which
they draw the animal to the boat after it is ſpent with fatigue; but
in the chaſe, the hunters are very fearful of too near an approach,
leaſt the animal ſhould faſten on and ſink their vefſel.
The uſes of them are not great. The fleſh of the old males is
rank and nauſeous; that of the females is ſaid to reſemble lamb;
of the young ones roaſted, a fucking pig. The ſkins of the young,
cut out of the bellies of the dams, are eſteemed for cloathing, and
are ſold for about three ſhillings and four pence each; thoſe of the
old for only four ſhillings.
Their re-migration is in the month of September, when they de-
part exceſſively lean, and take their young with them. On their
return, they again paſs near the ſame parts of Kamtſchatka which
they did in the ſpring. Their winter retreats are quite unknown;
it is probable that they are the iſlands between the Kurili and Japan,
of which we have fome brief accounts, under the name of Compagnie
Land, States Land, and Jeſo Gaſima, which were diſcovered by Mar-
Uses.
RE-MIGRATION.
2

URSINE SEA L.
199
tin Uriel in 1642*. It is certain that by his account the natives
employ themſelves in the capture of Seals t. Sailors do not give
themſelves the trouble of obſerving the nice diſtinction of ſpecific
marks, we are therefore at liberty to conjecture thoſe which he faw
to be our animals, eſpecially as we can fix on no more convenient
place for their winter quarters. They arrive along the ſhores of the
Kurili iſlands, and part of thoſe of Kamtſchatka, from the ſouth.
They land and inhabit only the weſtern ſide of Bering's iſle, which
faces Kamtſchatka ; and when they return in September, their route is
due ſouth, pointing towards the diſcoveries of Uriel. Had they
migrated from the ſouth-eaſt as well as the ſouth-weſt, every iſle,
and every ſide of every iſle, would have been filled with them ; nor
ſhould we have found (as we do) ſuch a conſtant and local reſi-
dence.
Before I quit this article I muſt obſerve, that there ſeems to be
in the ſeas of Jeſo Gaſimo another ſpecies of Seal, perhaps our Little
Seal, Nº 386. Hift. Quad. The account indeed is but obſcure,
which I muſt give as related by Charlevoix in his compilations re-
ſpecting that iſand. " The natives,” ſays he, “ make uſe of an
«
“ oil to drink, drawn from a fort of fiſh, a ſmall hairy creature
<< with four feet.” If this account is true, it ſerves to point out the
fartheſt known reſidence of this genus, on this ſide of the northern
hemiſphere.
Finally, the Urfine Seals are found in the ſouthern hemiſphere,
even from under the line, in the iſle of Gallipagos I, to New Georgia §,
a
URSINE SEAL
IN THE SOUTH.
ERN HEMI-
SPHERE
iv. 1.
* He failed from the eaſt fide of Japan in the ſhip Caftricom, viſited the iſle of
Jeſo, and diſcovered the iſlands which he called States Land and Company Land, the
laſt not very remote from the moſt ſouthern Kurili iſland. Recueil de Voy. au Nord,
+ The ſame, 12.
| Woodes Rogers's Voy. 265.--He ſays that they are neither fo numerous there, nor
is their fur ſo fine as thoſe on Juan Fernandez, which is ſaid to be extremely ſoft and
delicate.
$ Cook's Voy.ü, 213.
in

LEONINE SEA L.
in ſouth latitude 54. 15. and weſt longitude 37.15. In the inter-
mediate parts, they are met with in New Zeland *, in the iſle of
Juan Fernandez, and its neighbor Maſſa Fuera, and probably along
the coaſts of Chili to Terra del Fuego, and Staten Land. In Juan
Fernandez, Staten Land, and New Georgia t, they ſwarm; as they do
at the northern extremity of this vaft ocean. Thoſe of the ſouth-
ern hemiſphere have alſo their ſeaſons of migration. Alexander
Selkirk, who paſſed three lonely years on the iſle of Juan Fernandez,
remarks that they come aſhore in June, and ſtay till September I.
Captain Cook found them again, in their place of re-migration, in
equal abundance, on Staten Land and New Georgia, in the months
of December and January $; and Don Pernety | found them on the
Falkland iſlands, in the month of February.
According to the Greenlanders, this ſpecies inhabits the ſouthern
parts of their country. They call it Auvekæjak. That it is very
fierce, and tears to pieces whatſoever it meets; that it lives on land
as well as in water, ſwims moſt impetuouſly, and is dreaded by the
hunters T.
80. LEONINE.
Hift. Quad. N° 389.
Beftia Marina, Kurillis, Kamtſchadalis et Ruſis, Kurillico nomine Siwutſchal
dicta. Nov. Com. Petrop. i. 360.
Lion Marin, Hift. Kamtſchatka, 428.
ز
SEAL. With a large head: noſe turning up like that of a pug
Dog: eyes large; pupil ſmaragdine : the greater angle of each
as if ſtained with cinnabar color. In the upper jaw four ſmall cut-
ting teeth; the exterior on each ſide remote, and at ſome diſtance
* Cook, i. 72. 86.--Forſter's Obf. 189.
† Anſon's Voy. 122.--Cook, ii.
194. 213
Selkirk's account in W. Rogers's Voy. 136. § ii. 194. 213.
|| His voyage, Eng. Tr. 187.
Faun, Greenl. p. 6.
from

LEO NI NE SE A L.
201
from theſe are two large canine teeth : in the lower jaw four ſmall
cutting teeth, and the canine : the grinders ſmall and obtufe ; four
on each fide above, and five below : ears conic and erect : feet ex-
actly like thoſe of the Urfine Seal.
Along the neck of the male is a mane of ſtiff curled hair; and
the whole neck is covered with long waved hairs, ſuch as diſtin-
guiſh a Lion; the reſt of the animal cloathed with ſhort reddiſh
hairs : thoſe of the female are of the color of ochre; the young of
a much deeper. The old animals grow grey with age.
The weight of a large male beaſt is ſixteen hundred pounds.
Length of the males is ſometimes fourteen, or even eighteen feet *
The females are very diſproportionably leſſer, not exceeding eight
feet.
Inhabits the eaſtern coaſts of Kamtſchatka, from cape Kronozki as
low as cape Lapatka and the Kurili iſlands, and even as far as
Matſmai, which probably is the fame with Jeſo Gaſima. Near Matſ-
mai Captain Spanberg obſerved a certain iſland of a moſt pictureſque
form, bordered with rocks reſembling buildings, and ſwarming with
theſe animals, to which he gave the name of the Palace of the Sea
Lions t. Like the Urſine Seals, they are not found on the weſtern
ſide of the peninſula. They abound, in the months of June, July,
Auguſt, and September, on Bering's iſland, which they inhabit for the
fake of quiet parturition and ſuckling their young. Steller alſo
faw them in abundance in July on the coaſts of America.
They do not migrate like the former ; but only change the place
of reſidence, having winter and ſummer ſtations I. They live
a
a
* Narborough, 31.-Penroſe Falkland Iſles, 28.--Pernetti, Voy. Malouines, 240.---By
his confounding the names of this and the Bottle-noſe Seal, Nº 288. Hift. Quad. he
led me into a miſtake about the length of this.
+ Deſcr. Kamtſchatka, 433. I Nov. Com. Petrop. ii. 365.
VoL, I.
Dd
chiefly

202
LEO NI NE SE A L.
a
chiefly on rocky ſhores, or lofty rocks in the ſea, which ſeem to
have been torn away from the land by the violence of ſome
earthquake *. Theſe they climb, and by their dreadful roaring
are of uſe in foggy weather to warn navigators to avoid deſtruc-
tion.
They copulate in the months of Auguſt and September ; go ten
months, and bring only one at a time. The parents ſhew them
little affection, often tread them to death through careleſſneſs, and
will ſuffer them to be killed before them without concern or refent-
ment. The cubs are not ſportive, like other young animals, but
are almoſt always aſleep. Both male and female take them to ſea
to learn them to ſwim ; when wearied, they will climb on the back
of their dam ; but the male often puſhes them off, to habituate
them to the exerciſe. The Rufians were wont to fling the cubs
into the water, and they always ſwam back to ſhore.
The males treat the females with great reſpect, and are very
fond of their careffes. They are polygamous, but content them-
felves with fewer wives than the former, having only from two to
four apiece.
The males have a terrible aſpect, yet they take to flight on the
firſt appearance of a human creature ; and if they are diſturbed
from their ſleep, ſeem ſeized with great horrors, figh deeply in their
attempts to go away, fall into vaft confuſion, tumble down, and
tremble in fuch a manner as ſcarcely to be able to uſe their limbs.
But if they are reduced to a ſtrait, ſo as not poſſibly to effect an
eſcape, they grow deſperate, turn on their enemy with great fury
and noiſe, and even put the moſt valiant to flight.
By uſe they loſe their fear of men. Steller once lived for ſix days
in a hovel amidſt their chief quarters, and found them ſoon recon-
FEAR MANKIND;
UNLESS HABITU-
ATED
a
* Muller's Voy. 60.
ciled

LEONINE SEA L.
203
a
NOTES.
Foop.
ciled to the ſight of him. They would obſerve what he was doing
with great calmneſs, lie down oppoſite to him, and ſuffer him to
ſeize on their cubs. He had an opportunity of ſeeing their con-
flicts about their females; and once ſaw a duel between two males,
which laſted three days, and one of them received above a hundred
wounds. The Urſine Seals never interfered, but got out of the
way as faſt as poſſible. They even ſuffered the cubs of the former
to ſport with them without offering them the left injury.
This ſpecies has many of the ſame actions with the former, in
ſwimming, walking, lying, and ſcratching itſelf. The old bel-
low like Bulls; the young bleat like Sheep. Steller ſays, that
from their notes he ſeemed like a ruſtic amidſt his herds. The
males had a ſtrong ſmell, but were not near fo fetid as the Urſine
fort.
Their food is fiſh, the leſſer Seals, Sea Otters, and other marine
animals. During the months of June and July the old males al-
moſt entirely abſtain from eating, indulge in indolence and ſleep,
and become exceſſively emaciated.
The voyagers made uſe of them to fubfift on, and thought the
fleſh of the young very favoury. The feet turned into jelly on be-
ing dreſſed, and in their ſituation were eſteemed great delicacies.
The fat was not oily; that of the young reſembled the fuet of
mutton, and was as delicious as marrow.
,
The ſkin was uſeful for
ſtraps, ſhoes, and boots.
The Kamtſchatkans eſteem the chaſe of theſe animals a generous
diverſion, and hold the man in higheſt honor, in proportion to the
number he has killed. Even theſe heroes are very cautious when
they attack one of the animals on ſhore: they watch an opportu-
nity when they find it aſleep, approach it againſt the wind, ſtrike
their harpoon, faſtened to a long thong, into its breaft, while their
USES.
D d 2
comrades
CHASE.

204
LEO NINE SE A L.
comrades faſten one end to a ſtake, and that done, he takes to his
heels with the utmoſt precipitation. They effect his deſtruction at
a diſtance, by ſhooting him with arrows, or flinging their lances
into him ; and when exhauſted, they venture to come near enough
to knock him on the head with clubs.
When they diſcover one on the lonely rocks in the ſea, they
fhoot it with poiſoned arrows: unable to endure the pain of the
wound, heightened by the falt-water, which it plunges into on
the firſt receiving it, it ſwims on ſhore in the greateſt agony.
If they find a good opportunity, they transfix it with their
weapons ;
if not, they leave it to die of the poiſon, which
it infallibly does in twenty-four hours, and in the moſt dreadful
agony *.
They eſteem it a great diſgrace to leave any of their game be-
hind: and this point of honor they often obſerve, even to their own
deſtruction ; for it happens that when they go in ſearch of theſe
animals to the iſle of Alait, which lies fome miles ſouth-weſt of
Lapatka promontory, they obſerve this principle fo religiouſly, as
to overload their boats ſo much, as to ſend them and their booty to
the bottom; for they ſcorn to ſave themſelves, at the expence of
throwing overboard any part t.
This fpecies has been diſcovered very low in the ſouthern hemi-
ſphere; but, I believe, not on the weſtern ſide. Sir John Narbo-
.
rough I met with them on an iſland off Port Deſire, in lat. 47. 48.
Sir Richard Hawkins § found them on Pinguin iſle, within the ſe-
cond Narrow of the ſtreights of Magellan. They abound in the
Falkland Iſlands ||; and were again diſcovered by Captain Cook on
I Voy. 31.
• Defcr. Kamtſchatka, 377.
+ Nov. Com. Petrop. ii, 302.
& Voy. 75.
|| Pernety's Voy. 188. tab. xvi.
the

LEONINE SEA L.
205
the New Year's Iſlands, off the weſt coaſt of Staten Land *. In thoſe
ſouthern latitudes they bring forth their young in the middle of our
winter, the ſeaſon in which our late circumnavigators † viſited thoſe
diftant parts.
* Cook, ii. 194. 203._-The months in which theſe animals were obſerved by the
navigators, were January and February ; but by Sir J. Narborough, in the ſtreights
of Magellan, about the 4th of March, O.S.
+ Forſter's Voy. ii. 514.
HIST.

206
WHALE-TAILED MANATI.
MANATI,
HIST. QU A D. GENUS XLIII.
81. WHALE
TAILED.
Hift. Quad. N° 390.
Morſkaia Korowa, Rufforum. Nov. Com. Petrop. ii. 294.
Vaches Marines, Defcr. Kamtſchatka, 446.
MA
ANATI. With a ſmall oblong ſquariſh head, hanging
down: mouth ſmall : lips doubled, forming an outward and
inward lip: about the junction of the jaws a ſet of white tubular
briſtles, as thick as a pigeon's quil, which ſerve as ſtrainers to per-
mit the running out of the water, and to retain the food: the lips
covered with ſtrong briſtles, which ſerve inſtead of teeth to crop the
ſtrong roots of marine plants: no teeth, but in each jaw a flat white
oblong bone with an undulated ſurface, which being placed above
and below, performs the uſe of grinders to comminute the food.
Noſtrils placed at the end of the noſe, and lined with briſtles :
no ears, only in their place a ſmall orifice.
Eyes very ſmall, not larger than thoſe of a Sheep, hardly viſible
through the little round holes in the ſkin; the irides black; the
pupil livid: tongue pointed and ſmall.
The whole animal is of great deformity : the neck thick, and
its union with the head ſcarcely diſcernible: the two feet, or rather
fins, are fixed near the ſhoulders ; are only twenty-ſix inches long;
are deſtitute of toes, or nails, but terminate in a ſort of hoof, con-
cave beneath, lined with briſtles, and fitted for digging in ſand.
The outward ſkin is black, rugged, and knotty, like the bark of
an aged oak: without any hair; an inch thick, and ſo hard as
ſcarcely
a

WHALE-TAILED MANATI.
207
TAIL
ſcarcely to be cut with an ax; and when cut, appears in the inſide
like ebony. From the nape to the tail it is marked with circular
wrinkles riſing into knots, and ſharp points on the ſide. This ſkin
covers the whole body like a cruſt, and is of fingular uſe to the
animal during winter, in protecting it againſt the ice, under which
it often feeds, or againſt the ſharp-pointed rocks, againſt which it
is often daſhed by the wintry ſtorms. It is alſo an equal guard
againſt the ſummer heats ; for this animal does not, like moſt
other marine creatures, feed at the bottom, but with part of the
body expoſed, as well to the rays of the fun as to the piercing cold
of the froſt. In fact, this integument is ſo eſſential to its preſerva-
tion, that Steller has obſerved ſeveral dead on the ſhore, which he
believes were killed by the accidental privation of it. The color
of this ſkin, when wet, is duſky, when dried, quite black.
The tail is horizontally fat; black, and ending in a ſtiff fin,
compoſed of laminæ like whale-bone, terminating with fibres near
nine inches long. It is Nightly forked; but both ends are of equal
lengths, like the tail of a Whale.
It has two teats placed exactly on the breaſt. The milk is
thick and ſweet, not unlike that of a Ewe. Theſe animals copu-
late more humano, and in the ſeaſon of courtſhip ſport long in the
ſea; the female feigning to ſhun the embraces of the male, who
purſues her through all the mazes of her flight.
The body, from the ſhoulders to the navel, is very thick; from
thence to the tail grows gradually more ſlender. The belly is very
large; and, by reaſon of the quantity of entrails, very tumid.
Theſe animals, grow to the length of twenty-eight feet. The
meaſurements of one ſomewhat lefſer, as given by Mr. Steller, are
as follow :
The length, from the noſe to the end of the tail, twenty-four
feet and a half: from the noſe to the ſhoulders, or ſetting-on of the
a
SIZE.
fins,

208
WHALE-TAILED MANATI.
a
WEIGHT
PLACE.
a
fins, four feet four. The circumference of the head, above the
noftrils, two feet ſeven ; above the ears, four feet : at the nape of
the neck, near feven feet : at the ſhoulders, twelve : about the
belly, above twenty: near the tail, only four feet eight: the extent
of the tail, from point to point, fix feet and a half.
The weight of a large one is eight thouſand pounds.
Inhabits the ſhores of Bering's and the other iſlands which inter-
vene between the two continents. They never appear off Kamt-
Schatka, unleſs blown aſhore by tempefts, as they ſometimes are
about the bay of Awatſcha. The natives ſtyle them Kapuſtnik, or
cabbage-eaters, from their food. This genus has not been diſco-
vered in any other part of the northern hemiſphere. That which
inhabits the eaſtern ſide of South America, and ſome part of Africa,
is of a different ſpecies. For the latter I can teſtify, from having
ſeen one from Senegal. Its body was quite ſmooth ; its tail ſwelled
out in the middle, and ſloped towards the end, which was rounded *.
To ſupport my other opinion, I can call in the faithful Dampier ;
who deſcribes the body as perfectly ſmooth t: had it that ſtriking
integument which the ſpecies in queſtion has, it could not have ef-
caped his notice. Let me alſo add, that the ſize of thoſe which
that able ſeaman obſerved, did not exceed ten or twelve feet; nor
the weight of the largeſt reach that of twelve hundred pounds I.
I ſuſpect that this ſpecies extends to Mindanao, for one kind is
certainly found there §. It is met with much farther ſouth; for I
diſcover, in the collection of Sir Joseph BANKS, a ſketch of one
taken near Diego Rodriguez, vulgarly called Diego Rais, an iſle to
the eaſt of Mauritius ; and it may poſſibly have found its way
through ſome northern inlet to the ſeas of Greenland; for Mr. Fa-
* A figure of this ſpecies is given in De Buffon, xii. tab. lvii. and in Schreber, ii.
tab. lxxx.
+ Voy. i. 33.
§ Dampier, i. 321.
bricius
I Ibid.
xhundred?

WHALE-TAILED MANATI.
209
MANNERS.
bricius once diſcovered in that country the head of one, half con-
fumed, with teeth exactly agreeing with thoſe of this ſpecies *.
Theſe animals frequent the ſhallow and ſandy parts of the ſhores,
and near the mouths of the ſmall rivers of the iſland of Bering, ſeem-
ingly pleaſed with the ſweet water. They go in herds: the old
keep behind and drive their young before them: and ſome keep
on their ſides, by way of protection. On the riſing of the tide they
approach the ſhores, and are ſo tame as to ſuffer themſelves to be
ſtroked: if they are roughly treated, they move towards the ſea :
but ſoon forget the injury, and return.
They live in families near one another: each conſiſts of a male
and female, a half-grown young, and a new-born one. The fami-
lies often unite, ſo as to form vaſt droves. They are monogamous.
They bring forth a ſingle young, but have no particular time of
parturition ; but chiefly, as Steller imagines, about autumn.
They are moſt innocent and harmleſs in their manners, and moſt
ſtrongly attached to one another. When one is hooked, the whole
herd will attempt its reſcue: fome will ſtrive to overſet the boat, by
going beneath it; others will Aing themſelves on the rope of the
hook and preſs it down, in order to break it; and others again
will make the utmoft efforts to force the inſtrument out of its
wounded companion.
Their conjugal affection is moſt exemplary: a male, after uſing
all its endeavours to releaſe its mate which had been ſtruck, pur-
fued it to the very edge of the water; no blows could force it
away. As long as the deceaſed female continued in the water, he
perſiſted in his attendance; and even for three days after ſhe was
drawn on ſhore, and even cut up and carried away, was obſerved to
remain, as if in expectation of her return,
& Faun, Greenl. p. 6.
Е е
VOL. I.
They

210
WHALE-TAILED MANATI.
CAPTURE.
They are moſt voracious creatures, and feed with their head
under water, quite inattentive of the boats, or any thing that paſſes
about them; moving and ſwimming gently after one another,
with much of their back above water. A ſpecies of louſe har-
bours in the roughneſs of their coats, which the Gulls pick out,
fitting on them as Crows do on Hogs and Sheep. Every now
and then they lift their noſe out of the water to take breath, and
make a noiſe like the ſnorting of Horſes. When the tide retires,
they ſwim away along with it; but ſometimes the young are left
aſhore till the return of the water : otherwiſe they never quit that
element: ſo that in nature, as well as form, they approach the
cetaceous animals, and are the link between Seals and them.
They were taken on Bering's iſle by a great hook faſtened to
a long rope. Four or five people took it with them in a boat,
and rowed amidſt a herd. The ſtrongeſt man took the inftru-
ment, ftruck it into the neareſt animal ; which done, thirty peo-
ple on ſhore ſeized the rope, and with great difficulty drew it on
fhore. The poor creature makes the ſtrongeſt reſiſtance, aſſiſted
by its faithful companions. It will cling with its feet to the rocks
till it leaves the ſkin behind ; and often great fragments of the
cruſty integument fly off before it can be landed. It is an animal
full of blood; ſo that it ſpouts in amazing quantities from the ori-
fice of the wound.
They have no voice ; only, when wounded, emit a deep figh.
They have the ſenſes of fight and hearing very imperfect; or at
left neglect the uſe of them.
They are not migratory; for they were ſeen about Bering's iſland
the whole of the fad ten months which Mr. Steller paſſed there after
his ſhipwreck.
In the ſummer they were very fat; in the winter ſo lean that the
ribs might be counted.
The
و

S E A APE.
211
Uses.
THE FAT.
The ſkin is uſed, by the inhabitants about the promontory Tchukta
chi, to cover their boats. The fat, which covers the whole body
like a thick blubber, was thought to be as good and ſweet as May-
butter: that of the young, like hogs-lard. The fleſh of the old,
when well boiled, reſembled beef: that of the young, veal. The
fleſh will not refuſe falt. The crew preſerved ſeveral caſks full,
which was found of excellent ſervice in their eſcape from their hor-
rible confinement *.
LEAN.
SEA APE.
a
To this article muſt be added an imperfect deſcription of a ma-
rine animal ſeen by Mr. Steller on the coaſt of America, which he
calls a Sea Ape. The head appeared like that of a Dog, with ſharp
and upright ears, large eyes, and with both lips bearded: the body
round and conoid; the thickeſt part near the head: the tail forked;
the upper lobe the longeſt: the body covered with thick hair,
grey on the back, reddiſh on the belly. It ſeemed deſtitute of
feet.
It was extremely wanton, and played a multitude of monkey-
tricks. It ſometimes ſwam on one ſide, ſometimes on the other
ſide of the ſhip, and gazed at it with great admiration. It made fo
near an approach to the veſſel, as almoſt to be touched with a pole;
but if any body moved, it inſtantly retired. It would often ſtand
erect for a conſiderable ſpace, with one-third of its body above
water ; then dart beneath the ſhip, and appear on the other fide;
and repeat the ſame thirty times together. It would frequently
ariſe with a fea-plant, not unlike the Bottle-gourd, toſs it up,
and
catch it in its mouth, playing with it numberleſs fantaſtic tricks t.
On animals of this ſpecies the fable of the Sirens might very well
be founded.
* Muller's Voy. 62.--Nov. Com. Petrop. ii. 329.
Ee 2
# Hift. Kamtſchatka. 136.
I ſhall

212
S E A B E L U G A.
SEA
BELUGA.
I ſhall conclude this article with a recantation of what I ſay in the
357th page of my Synopſis, relating to the Beluga; which I now
find was collected, by the author I cite, from the reports of Coſſacks,
and ignorant fiſhermen. The animal proves at laſt to be one of
the cetaceous tribe, of the genus of Dolphin, and of a ſpecies called
by the Germans Wit-Fiſch, and by the Ruffans Beluga *; both ſig-
nifying White fish: but to this the laſt add Morſkaia, or of the ſea,
by way of diſtinguiſhing it from a ſpecies of Sturgeon ſo named.
It is common in all the Ar Etic ſeas; and forms an article of com-
merce, being taken on account of its blubber. They are nume-
rous in the gulph of St. Lawrence; and go with the tide as high
as Quebec. There are fiſheries for them, and the common Porpelle,
in that river. A conſiderable quantity of oil is extracted; and of
their ſkins is made a ſort of Morocco leather, thin, yet ſtrong enough
to reſiſt a muſquet-ball +. They are frequent in the Dwina and
the Oby; and go in ſmall families from five to ten, and advance
pretty
far
up the rivers in purſuit of fish. They are uſually caught
in nets; but are ſometimes harpooned. They bring only one young
at a time, which is duſky; but grow white as they advance in age;
the change firſt commencing on the belly. They are apt to follow
boats, as if they were tamed; and appear extremely beautiful, by
reaſon of their reſplendent whiteneſs I.
It being a ſpecies very little known, and never well engraven, I
ſhall give a brief deſcription, and adjoin an engraving taken from
an excellent drawing communicated to me by Dr. Pallas.
The head is ſhort: noſe blunt: ſpiracle ſmall, of the form of a
creſcent: eyes very minute : mouth ſmall: in each ſide of each jaw
are nine teeth, hort, and rather blunt; thoſe of the upper jaw are
DESCRIPTION
• Pallas, Itin. iii. 84. tab. iv. Crantz Greenl. i. 114. Purchas's Pilgrims, iii. 549.
+ Charlevoix, V. 217.
I Faun, Greenl. 51.
bent,

SE A B E L U G A.
213
SIZE.
bent, and hollowed, fitted to receive the teeth of the lower jaw when
the mouth is cloſed: pectoral fins nearly of an oval form: beneath
the ſkin may be felt the bones of five fingers, which terminate at
the edge of the fin in five very ſenſible projections. This brings it
into the next of rank in the order of beings with the Manati. The
tail is divided into two lobes, which lie horizontally, but do not
fork, except a little at their baſe. The body is oblong, and rather
ſender, tapering from the back (which is a little elevated) to the
tail. It is quite deſtitute of the dorſal fin.
Its length is from twelve to eighteen feet. It makes great uſe of
its tail in ſwimming; for it bends that part under it, as a Lobſter
does its tail, and works it with ſuch force as to dart along with the
rapidity of an arrow.
A full account of the fish of the Whale kind, ſeen by the Reverend
Dr. Borlaſe * between the Land's End and the Scilly iſlands, is a
defideratum in the Britiſ Natural Hiſtory. He deſcribes them as
being from twelve to fifteen feet long; ſome were milk-white, others
brown, others ſpotted. They are called Thornbacks, from a ſharp
and broad fin on the back. This deſtroys my ſuſpicion of their
being of the above fpecies.
06. Scilly Iſlands, 3
IV. WINGED.

214
NEW YORK AND LONG-HAIRED BAT.
IV. WINGED.
BAT
HIS T. QUA D. GENUS XLIV.
82. NEW YORK.
Hift. Quad. N° 403.-Lev. Mus.
a
AT. With the head like that of a Mouſe: top of the noſe a
little bifid: ears broad, ſhort, and rounded: in each jaw
two canine teeth: no cutting teeth: tail very long, incloſed in the
membrane, which is of a triangular form : the wings thin, naked,
and duſky: bones of the hind legs very flender.
Head, body, and upper part of the membrane incloſing the tail,
covered with very long hair of a bright tawny color, paleft on the
head, beginning of the back, and the belly: at the baſe of each
wing is a white ſpot.
Length from noſe to tail two inches and a half; tail, one inch
eight-tenths: extent of the wings, ten inches and a half.
Inhabits the province of New York; and diſcovered by Dr. For-
Ster * in New Zealand, in the South Seas.
a
a
a
Sz. Long-
HAIRED.
Mr. Clayton, in Ph. Tranſ. Abridg. iii. 594.
BAT. With long ſtraggling hairs, and great ears.
The above is all the account we have of this ſpecies; which
is ſaid to be an inhabitant of Virginia.
Mr. Lawſon ſays, that the common Bat is found in Carolina t.
& Obfervations, &c. 189.
+ Hift. Carolina. 125.
Hift.

NOCTULE AND COMMON BAT.
215
Hift. Quad. N° 407.-Great Bat, Br. Zool. i. N° 38.
84. NOCTULE!
a
BAT. With the noſe ſlightly bilobated : ears ſmall and rounded :
on the chin a ſmall wart: body of a cinereous red.
Extent of wings fifteen inches: body between two and three in
length: tail, one inch ſeven-tenths.
Brought from Hudſon's Bay in ſpirits. I ſaw it only in the bottle ;
but it appeared to be this ſpecies.
A. COMMON BAT, Hift. Quad. Nº 411.-Br. Zool.i. No 41.---Lev. Mus.
THIS ſpecies is found in Iceland, as I was informed by the late
Mr. Fleiſcher, which is the moſt northernly reſidence of this
genus. In Aſa I can trace them no farther eaſtward than about the
river Argun, beyond lake Baikal.
CLASS


CLASS II. BIRDS,
VOL. 1.

218
CLASS II. BIR D S.
D I V. I. L AND BIRDS.
II. WATER BIRDS.
DI V. I. ORDER I. RAPACIOUS-
Genus.
I. ULTURE. .
II. FALCON
III. OWL.
Vu
II. P I E S
IV. SHRIKE.
V. PARROT
VI. Crow.
* Roller.
VII. ORIOLE.
VIII. GRAKLE.
IX. CUCKOO.
Wryneck.
X. WOODPECKER,
XI. KINGFISHER.
XII. NUTHATCH,
XIII. Topy.
Hoopoe.
* The Genera which have not the number prefixed, are not found in America.
XIV. CREEPER.

219
Genus.
XIV. CREEPER.
XV. HONEY-SUCKER.
III. GALLINACEOUS.
XVI. TURKEY.
XVII. GROUS.
XVIII. PARTRIDGE.
XIX. BUSTARD.
IV. COLUMBINE.
XX. PIGEON.
V. PASSERRINE.
XXI. STARE.
XXII. THRUSH.
XXIII. CHATTERER.
XXIV. GROSBEAK.
XXV. BUNTING.
XXVI. TANAGRE.
XXVII. FINCH.
XXVIII. FLYCATCHER.
XXIX. LARK.
Wagtail.
XXX. WARBLERS.
XXXI. TITMOUSE.
XXXII. SWALLOW.
XXXIII. GOATSUCKER.
DI V. II. W A T E R BIRDS.
VI. CLOVEN-FOOTED.
XXXIV. SPOONBILL.
XXXV. HERON.
F £2
XXXVI. IBIS.

220
Genus.
XXXVI. Ibis.
XXXVII. CURLEW.
XXXVIII. SNIPE.
XXXIX. SANDPIPER.
XL. PLOVER.
XLI. OYSTER-CATCHER.
XLII. RAIL.
XLIII. GALLINULE.
VII, P IN NATED FE E T.
XLIV. PHALAROPE.
XLV. Coor.
XLVI. GREBE.
VIII. WEB-FOOTED.
XLVII. AVOSET.
XLVIII. FLAMMANT.
XLIX. ALBATROSS.
L. Auk.
LI. GUILLEMOT.
LII. DIVER,
LIII. SKIMMER.
LIV. TERN.
LV. GULL.
LVI. PETREL.
LVII. MERGANSER.
LVIII. Duck,
LIX. PELECAN.
CLASS

CARRION VULTUR E.
221
CLASS II. BIRD S.
DI V. 1. LAND BIRDS.
ORDER I. RAPACIOUS.
1. VULTURE, Gen. Birds I.
86. CARRION,
Urubu, Aura Tzopilotl, Mexic. Margrave, 207, 208.-Wil. Orn. 68.-Raii Syn.
Av. 18o.
Carrion Crow, Sloane Jam. ii. 294.--Brown Jam. 471.
Corvus Sylvaticus, Barrere, 129.
Gallinazo, Ulloa Voy. i. 60. 201.
Turkey Buzzard, Joſelyn.---Lawſon, 138.Cateſby, i. 6.--Bancroft, 152. Du
Pratz, ii. 77.
Vultur Aura, Lin. Syft. 122.--De Buffon, i. 175. Pl. Enl. N° 187.
Le Vautour du Braſil, Briſſon, i. 468.--Latham, i, 9. N° 5.--Lev. Mus.
WI
EIGHT four pounds and an half. Head ſmall, covered DESCRIPTION.
with a naked wrinkled red ſkin, beſet with black briſtles.
This gives it ſome reſemblance to a Turkey; from which it derives
one of the names. The noſtrils are very large, and pervious: the
whole plumage is duſky, daſhed with purple and green: legs of a
dirty fleſh-color: claws black.
Theſe birds are common from Nova Scotia to Terra del Fuego ; PLACE.
but fwarm in the hotter parts of America; and are found in the
iſlands, where they are ſaid to be far inferior in fize to thoſe of
North America.
In

CARRION VULTURE.
MANNERS,
In the warm climates they keep in vaſt flocks. Perch at night
on rocks or trees; ſitting with diſhevelled wings to purify their
bodies, which are moſt offenſively fetid. Towards morning they
take flight, ſoaring at a vaſt height, with the gentle motion of a
kite; expecting notice of their banquet by the tainted effluvia of
carrion, excrements, or any filth. They have moſt ſagacious nof-
trils, and ſmell their prey at a vaſt diſtance; to which they reſort
from all quarters, wheeling about, and making a gradual deſcent
till they reach the ground. They do not confine themſelves to
dead animals, but feed on Snakes, and ſometimes on Lambs. They
are very tame, and, while they are at their meals, will ſuffer a very
near approach.
In the torrid zone, particularly about Carthagena, they haunt in-
habited places, and are ſeen in numbers fitting on the roofs of the
houſes, or walking along the ſtreets with a ſluggiſh pace. In thoſe
parts they are uſeful, as the Ibis in Egypt, devouring the noiſome
fubjects, which would otherwiſe, by the intolerable ſtench, render
the climate ftill more unwholeſome than it is.
When theſe birds find no food in the cities, they are driven by
hunger among the cattle of the neighboring paſtures. If they ſee
a beaſt with a fore on the back, they inſtantly alight on it, and at-
tack the part affected. The poor animal attempts in vain to free
itſelf from the devourers, rolling on the ground with hideous cries :
but in vain; for the Vultures never quit hold, till they have effected
its deſtruction. Sometimes an Eagle preſides at the banquet, and
keeps theſe cowardly birds at a diſtance, until it has finiſhed its re-
paft.
Miſchievous as they are in a few inſtances, yet, by the wife and
beneficent diſpenſations of Providence, they make in the hot climates
full recompence, by leſſening the number of thoſe deſtructive ani-
mals the Alligators, which would otherwiſe become intolerable by
3
their
USES.

CARRION VULTUR E.
223
their multitudes. During the ſeaſon in which theſe reptiles lay
their
eggs in the ſand, the Vultures will fit hid in the leaves of the
trees, watching the coming of the female Alligator to depoſit its
eggs, who then covers them with fand, to ſecure them, as ſhe ima-
gines, from all danger : but no ſooner does ſhe retire into the water,
than the birds dart on the ſpot, and with claws, wings, and
beak, tear away the ſand, and devour the whole contents of the
depoſitory
No birds of this genus are found in northern regions of Europe
or Aſia, at left in thoſe latitudes which might give them a pretence
of appearing here. I cannot find them in our quarter of the globe
higher than the Griſon Alps *, or Sileſia †; or at fartheſt Kaliſh, in
Great Poland I. Certainly the Count De Buffon was miſinformed
as to the habitation of the ſpecies, which he aſcribes to Norway 1.
In the Ruſian dominions, the Bearded Vulture of Mr. Edwards, iii.
tab. 106. breeds on the high rocks of the great Altaic chain, and
beyond lake Baikal $; which may give it in Europe a latitude of 52.
20. in Aſia of 55.
* Wil. Orn. 67. † Schwenckfeldt av. Sileſia, 375. I Rzaczynſki, Hift.
Nat. Polon. 298. || Hift D'Oiſ. i. 164.--Pl. Enl. 449.
§ Dr. PALLAS's Catalogue of the Birds of the Ruſſian empire, which he favored me
with in MS. my fureft clue to the Arctic birds.
II. FALCON,

224
S E A E A G L E.
II. FALCON, Gen. Birds II.
86. A.SEA EAGLE.
Br. Zool.i. No 44
Falco Olifragus, Lin. Syft. 124_Latham, i. 30,-Pl. Enl. 12. 415.
Grey Eagle, Lawſon, 137.
Land Oern, Leems, 230.
L'Orfraie, De Buffon, i. 112. pl. 3.- Lev. Mus.
a
V
PLACE
ARIES a little from the Britiſh ſpecies, and is much fupe-
rior in fize. The length three feet three inches; of wing,
twenty-five inches.
Feathers on head, neck, and back, brown, edged with dirty
white: chin white: breaſt and belly brown, ſpotted with white :
coverts of wings brown, clouded; primaries black : tail duſky; the
middle mottled with white: legs feathered half down.
Very common in the northern parts of America, and endures its
fevereſt winters, even as high as Newfoundland. Theſe birds prey
on ſea fowls, as well as land, and on young Seals, which they ſeize
floating, and carry out of the water.
Eagles, and all ſorts of birds of prey, abound in America, where
ſuch quantity of game is found. Multitudes are always ſeen below
the falls of Niagara, invited by the carcaſes of Deer, Bears, and
other animals, which are fo frequently hurried down in attempting
to croſs the river above this ftupendous cataract.
This ſpecies is very frequent in Kamtſchatka ; and is found during
fummer even on the Arctic coaſt: is very common in Ruſia and
Sibiria ; nor is it more rare about the Caſpian ſea, where they breed
on the loftieft trees.
F. With

GOLDEN AND WHITE-BELLIED EAGLES.
225
86. B. GOLDEN
EAGLE.
F. With the forehead brown : crown and hind part of the neck
ſtriped with brown, white, and ruſty yellow : lower part of
the neck, breaſt, and belly, of a deep brown : coverts of the wings,
back, and ſecondaries and fcapulars, of the ſame color; the two
laſt white near the bottoms, mottled with brown; primaries black:
middle feathers of the tail brown, croſſed with two or three cine-
reous bands; the exterior, brown blotched with cinereous : legs
cloathed to the toes with pale brown feathers : toes yellow. Length,
three feet. BR. Mus.
Inhabits Hudſon's Bay, and ſeems a variety of the Falco Chryſaetos,
Lin. Syft. 125. Faun. Suec. N° 54. Le grand Aigle de Buffon, i.
76. Pl. Enl. 410; and the Golden Eagle, Br. Zool. i. N° 42.
Latham, i. 31. The chief difference conſiſts in the color of the tail,
which in the European kind is of a deep brown blotched with ob-
ſcure afh.
Europe it inhabits moſt parts, even as high as Norway; is found
in Afia, about the ſouthern parts of the Urallian mountains, and
thoſe which border the ſouthern part of Sibiria ; but grows ſcarcer
towards the eaſt.
PLACE.
Latham, 33. x. N°7. a. Lev. Mus.
86. C. WHITE-
BELLIED EAGLE.
F.
With a large bill, of a browniſh yellow color: head, neck,
breaſt, belly, thighs, and vent, white : back, wings, and tail,
deep brown, three inches of the end of the tail excepted, which is
white: the legs yellow, and very ſtrong. Length, two feet nine
inches.
Obſerved by Captain Cook, in Kaye iſland, off the coaſt of Ame-
rica, lat. 59. 49. north, in company with the White-headed Eagle.
PLACE,
Vol. I.
GS
F. With

226
YELLOW-HEADED AND BLACK EAGLES.
86. D. YELLOW-
PLACE.
A E ADED EAGLE. F. With duſky bill
, cere, and irides : head and neck of a dirty
yellow: back of a deep brown, each feather tipt with dirty
yellow
Appears in Hudſon's Bay, in April : builds its neſt in trees, with
ſticks and grafs : lays only one egg. It preys on the young of
Deer, on Rabbets and birds. Retires ſouthward in OEtober. Is called
by the Indians, Etheneſue mickefue.
The above was deſcribed from a ſpecimen, in very bad condition,
ſent from Hudſon's Bay. It was an Eagle of the middle fize.
87. BLACK
EAGLE
Br. Zool. i. Nº 43
Falco Fulvus, Lin. Syft. 125.-Latham, i. 32. N° 6.
White-tailed Eagle, Edw. i. 1.-Lev. Mus.
L'Aigle commun, De Buffon, i. 86.--Pl. Enl. 409.--Lev. Mus.
THE whole plumage is of a duſky-brown: the breaſt marked
with triangular ſpots of white; in which it varies from the
Britiſh kind: the tail white, tipt with black; but in young birds
duſky, blotched with white: legs covered to the toes with ſoft ruft-
colored feathers : vent feathers of the ſame color.
Inhabits Hudſon's Bay, and northern Europe as far as Drontheim *.
Is found on the higheſt rocks of the Urallian chain, where it is
not covered with wood † ; but is moſt frequent on the Sibirian,
where it makes its neft on the loftieft rocks. It is rather inferior in
fize to the Sea Eagle ; but is a generous, ſpirited, and docile bird.
The independent Tartars train it for the chace of Hares, Foxes,
Antelopes, and even Wolves. The uſe is of conſiderable anti-
quity; for Marco Polo, the great traveller of 1269, obſerved and
PLACE.
j
Eſpecially in the winter, Leems, 233.
+ Dr. Pallas.
admired

BLACK-CHEEKED EAGLE.
227
admired the diverſion of the great Cham of Tartary; who had fe-
veral Eagles, which were applied to the fame purpoſes as they are
at preſent *. I muſt add, that the Tartars eſteem the feathers of
the tail as the beſt they have for pluming their arrows.
The Kalmucs uſe, beſides this ſpecies of Eagle, that which the
French call Jean le Blanc †, and alſo the Lanner ; all which breed
among them: but people of rank, who are curious in their Fal-
cons, procure from the Baſchkirians the Gyrfalcon and the Pe-
regrine, which inhabit the lofty mountains of the country I.
The Falco Melanæetos, and the F. Fulvus of LINNÆUS, or my
Black Eagle, are the ſame; the F. fulvus being only the young of
the firſt. It is a ſcarce ſpecies in Sweden.-Mr. Oedman.
88. BLACK
F. With a duſky and blue bill; yellow cere: head, neck, and
breaſt, of a deep aſh-color: each cheek marked with a broad CHEEKED EAGLE.
black bar paſſing from the corner of the mouth beyond the eyes :
back, belly, wings, and tail, black: legs yellow, feathered below
the knees.
Is about the ſize of the laſt. Communicated to me by the late SIZE, AND PLACE.
Taylor White, Eſq; who informed me that it came from North
America. Is deſcribed by Mr. Latham, i. 35. N° 10; and ſeems
to be the ſpecies engraven by M. Robert, among the birds in the
menagery of Louis XIV.
* M. Polo, in Purchas, iii. 85. in Bergeron, 74-
+ De Buffon.
# Extracts, iii. 303. A name by which I quote an abridgement of the travels of
PALLAS, GMELIN, LEPECHIN, and others, publiſhed by the Societe Typo-
GRAPHIQUE, at Berne, under the title of Histoire des Decouvertes, faites
par
divers favans voyageurs dans pluſieurs contrées de la Ruſſie et de la Perſe, 4 vols. 8vo.
Gg 2
Falco

228
WHITE-HEADED EAGLE.
89. WHITE-
HEADED EAGLE.
Falco Leucocephalus, Lin. Syft. 124.
Bald Eagle, Larſon, 137.-Cateſby, i. 1.-Brickell, 173.-Latham, i. 29.--
LEV. MUS.
Le Pygargue a tête blanche, De Buffon, i. 99.---Pl. Enl. 411.-Lev. Mus.
i
a
a
MANNERS
BILL, cere, and feet, pale yellow: head, neck, and tail, of a
pure white: body and wings of a chocolate-color. It does not
acquire its white head till the ſecond year.
This Eagle is leſſer than the foregoing ſpecies, but of great fpirit:
preys on Fawns, Pigs, Lambs, and fiſh: is the terror of the OP-
prey, whoſe motions it watches. The moment the latter has ſeized
a fiſh, the former purſues till the Oſprey drops its prey; which,
with amazing dexterity, it catches before it falls to the ground, be
the diſtance ever ſo great. This is matter of great amuſement to
the inhabitants of North America, who often watch their aerial con-
teſts. This ſpecies frequently attends the ſportſman, and ſnatches
up the game he has ſhot, before he can reach it.
Theſe birds build in vaſt decayed cypreſſes t, or pines, impend-
ing over the ſea, or ſome great river, in company with Oſpreys,
Herons, and other birds : and their neſts are ſo numerous, as to re-
femble a rookery. The neſts are very large, and very fetid by
reaſon of the reliques of their prey. Lawſon ſays, they breed very
often, laying again under their callow young; whoſe warmth
hatches the eggs. In Bering's ifle they make their neſts on the
cliffs, near fix feet wide, and one thick; and lay two eggs in the
beginning of July.
* Le Pygargue a tête blanche, De Buffon, i. 99.-Pl. Enl. 411..
# Cateſby.
THIS

WHITE E A G L E.
229
90. WHITE
EAGLE.
3
CALUMET
a
;
THIS moſt beautiful and ſcarce ſpecies is entirely white, except
the tips of the wings, which are black. We know nothing of
this bird, but what is collected from Du Pratz*. The natives of
Louiſiana fet a high value on the feathers, and give a large price for
thoſe of the wings ; with them they adorn the Calumet, or pipe
of peace. Different nations make uſe of the wings, or feathers of
different birds; but, according to Hennepin, always decorate it with
the moſt beautiful.
The Calumet is an inſtrument of the firſt importance among
the Americans. It is nothing more than a pipe, whoſe bowl is ge-
nerally made of a ſoft red marble t; the tube of a very long reed,
ornamented with the wings and feathers of birds. No affair of
conſequence is tranſacted without the Calumet. It ever appears in
meetings of commerce, or exchanges; in congreſſes for determin-
ing of peace or war; and even in the very fury of a battle. The
acceptance of the Calumet is a mark of concurrence with the terms
propoſed; as the refuſal is a certain mark of rejection. Even in
the rage of a conflict this pipe is ſometimes offered ; and if accept-
ed, the weapons of deſtruction inſtantly drop from their hands,
and a truce enſues. It ſeems the facrament of the Savages; for no
compact is ever violated, which is confirmed by a whiff from this
holy reed. The Dance of the Calumet is a ſolemn rite which always
confirms a peace, or precedes a war. It is divided into three
parts: the firſt, appears an act of devotion, danced in meaſured
time: the ſecond, is a true repreſentation of the Pyrrhic dance I:
the third, is attended with fongs expreſſive of the victories they had
obtained, the nations they had conquered, and the captives they had
made.
.
a
a
+ Du Pratz, i. 298.Kalm, iii. 230.
* Du Pratz, ii. 75.-Latham, i. 36.
I Strabo, lib. x. p. 736. edit. Amftel. 1707,
From

230
WHITE E AGL E.
i
From the winged ornaments of the Calumet, and its conciliating
uſes, writers compare it to the Caduceus of Mercury, which was
carried by the Caduceatores, or meſſengers of peace, with terms to
the hoſtile ſtates. It is fingular, that the moſt remote nations,
and the moſt oppoſite in their other cuſtoms and manners, ſhould
in fome things have, as it were, a certain conſent of thought. The
Greeks and the Americans had the ſame idea, in the invention of the
Caduceus of the one, and the Calumet of the other. Some authors
imagine, that among the Greeks the wings were meant as a ſymbol
of eloquence. I rather think that the twiſted Serpents expreſſed
that infinuating faculty; and that the emblem was originally taken
from the fatal effect the rhetoric of Satan had on our great mother,
when he aſſumed the form of that reptile, which the higheſt autho-
rity repreſents as more fubtile than any beaſt of the field. On this the
heathen mythology formed their tale of Jupiter taking the figure of
a Serpent, to inſinuate himſelf into the good graces of Olympias ;
who, like Eve, fell a victim to his perſuaſive tongue. As to the
wings, it is moſt probable that they were to ſhew the flight of dif-
cord; which the reconciled parties gave, with all the horrors of
war, to the air, and ſport of the winds.
The Oole, or Eagle, is a ſacred bird among the Americans. In
caſe of ſickneſs, they invoke this bird to deſcend from heaven
(which in its exalted flight it approaches nearer than any other)
and bring down refreſhing things; as it can dart down on its rapid
wing quick as a flaſh of lightning *
. Adair's Hift. Am. Indians, 179.
Fiſhing

O S P R E Y.
231
91. OSPREY.
Fiſhing Hawk, Cateſby, i. 2.Lawſon, 137.-Brickell, 173.
Oſprey, Joſſelyn's Rarities, ii.-Br. Zool. i. Nº 46.-Latham, i. 45.
.
Le Balbuzard, De Buffon, i. 103. pl. 2.
Falco Haliætus. Blafot. Fiſk-orn, Faun. Suec. N° 63.
Fiſk Gjoe, Leems, 234.–Pl. Enl. 414.-Lev. Mus.
MANNERS
F. With blue cere, and feet: head, and lower part of the body,
white : upper part brown: two middle feathers of the tail
plain brown; the reſt barred with white and brown.
This, in all reſpects, reſembles the European kind. Notwith-
ſtanding it is ſo perfecuted by the Bald Eagle, yet it always keeps
near its haunts. It is a ſpecies of vaſt quickneſs of fight; and will
ſee a fiſh near the ſurface from a great diſtance *: deſcend with
prodigious rapidity, and carry the prey with an exulting ſcream
high into the air. The Eagle hears the note, and inſtantly attacks
the Oſprey ; who drops the fiſh, which the former catches before it
can reach the ground, or water. It ſometimes happens that the
Oſprey periſhes in taking its prey; for if it chances to fix its talons
in an over-grown fiſh, it is drawn under water before it can diſen-
gage itſelf, and is drowned.
It is very frequent in Kamtſchatka; and in ſummer, even under
the Aretic zone of Europe and Afia. Is very common in Sibiria,
and ſpreads far north; probably common to the north of America,
and Aſia. Is rare in Ruſia. It is likewiſe very frequent as low on
the Wolga as the tract between Syſran and Saratof, where they are
ſaid to be the ſupport of the Ern Eagle, as they are of the White-
tailed Eagle in America, each living by the labors of the Oſprey.
PLACE,
• That agreeable traveller, the Reverend Dr. Burnaby, adds, that it is often ſeen
reſting on the wing for ſome minutes, without any viſible change of place, before it
deſcends. Travels in America, 2d ed. p. 48.
The

232
G YR F A L CON.
a
The Tartars have a fuperftition, that a wound from its claws is
mortal, either to man or fiſh, and conſequently dread its attack *.
The Oſprey returns into Sweden later than the Kite. Mr. Oed-
man flings new light on the hiſtory of this bird: he ſays that it
breeds on the tops of the higheſt trees, and makes its neft, with won-
derful art, of the twigs of the fir-tree, and lines the bottom with
polypodies. It lays three eggs, of the ſize of thoſe of a Hen, mar-
bled with ruft-color. It brings fiſh and ſerpents to feed its young;
and even eels of a vaſt fize: this makes its neft very foetid. It
does not prey on birds, but on fiſh only. It defends its neſt with
great fpirit.
a
91* .GYRFALCON. Br. Zool. Nº 47. tab. xix.-Latham, i. 71. No 50, A. and No 50, B. ift paragr. and
83. N° 69.
Falco Iſlandus, Taun. Greenl. 58. N° 35.-Brunnich, Nris 7, 8.-Crantz, i. 78.--
Egede, 64.--Horrebow, 58.Lev. Mus.
F. With a yellow cere: bluiſh bill, greatly hooked : eye dark
, :
blue : the throat of a pure white : the whole body, wings,
and tail, of the fame color, moſt elegantly marked with dulky
bars, lines, or ſpots, leaving the white the far prevaling color.
There are inſtances, but rare, of its being found entirely white.
In ſome, the whole tail is croſſed by remote bars of black or
brown; in others, they appear only very faintly on the middle fea-
thers: the feathers of the thighs are very long, and unſpotted: the
iegs ſtrong, and of a light blue.
Its weight forty-five ounces Troy: length near two feet: extent four
feet two. Of the ſame manners and haunts with the Greenland Falcon.
Is very frequent in Iceland; is found in Lapmark t, and Norway Is
Size.
PLACE.
* Extraets, i. 479.
7 Leems, 235.
1 Strom
and

ROUGH-LEGGED FALCON.
233
VERY HARDX.
and rarely in the Orknies, and North Britain. In Afia, it dwells in
the higheſt points of the Urallian and other Sibirian mountains, and
dares the coldeſt climates throughout the year. It is kept, in the
latitude of Peterſburg, uninjured in the open air during the ſevereſt
winters, when the Peregrine Falcon, Nº 97, loſes its claws by the
froſt.
Mr. Hutchins * has often obſerved it about Albany fort, where it
appears in May, and retires before winter. It feeds on the white,
and other Grous.
This ſpecies is pre-eminent in courage as well as beauty, and is
the terror of other Hawks. It was flown at all kinds of fowl, how
great foever they were ; but its chief game uſed to be Herons and
Cranes.
Falco Lagopus, Brunnich, Nº 15.-Leems Lapm. 236.
Rough-legged Falcon, Br. Zool. ii. App. 529.---Latham, i. 75.-Lev. Mus.
92. ROUGH
LEGGED.
a
F. With a yellow cere, and feet : head, neck, and breaſt, of a
yellowiſh white, marked with a few oblong brown ſpots : belly
of a deep brown: thighs white, ſtriped with brown: fcapulars
blotched with yellowiſh white and brown : coverts of the wings
edged with ruft-color; primaries black : tail, little longer than the
wings; the part next to the rump white; the end marked with a
black bar ; the tips white : legs feathered to the toes: feet yellow.
Length two feet two inches.
SIZE.
* At the time this ſheet was printing, I had the good fortune to meet with Mr.
Hutchins, ſurgeon, a gentleman many years reſident in Hudſon's Bay; who, with the
utmoſt liberality, communicated to me his MS. obſervations, in a large folio volume:
in every page of which his extenſive knowledge appears. The benefit which this
work will, from the preſent page, receive, is here once for all gratefully acknow-
leged.
VOL. I.
Hh
Inhabits

234
ST. JOHN'S AND CHOCOLATE FALCON.
PLACE.
Inhabits England, Norway, Lapmark, and North America, Was
fhot in Connecticut.
93. ST. JOHN's.
Latham, i. 77. N° 58.
a
F. With a ſhort duſky bill : head of a deep brown: hind part
of the neck, back, fcapulars, and coverts of the tail, marked
with bars of black, and dull white, pointing obliquely: coverts of
the wings deep brown; the greater ſpotted on their inner fides with
white; the primaries duſky, the lower part white, barred with deep
afh-color and black: the under ſide of the body brown, marked
{paringly with white and yellowiſh ſpots : tail ſhorter than the ex-
tremity of the wings; the end white; beneath that is a bar of
black, fucceeded by two or three black and cinereous bands; the
reſt of the tail marked with broad bars of white, and narrower of
afh-color: the legs are cloathed with feathers to the toes, which are
yellow, and very ſhort.
Length, one foot nine inches.
Inhabits Hudſon's Bay and Newfoundland. Bl. Mus.
Size.
PLACE
94. CHOCOLATE-
COLORED.
Latham, i. 54, Nº 34. A; 76. N° 57.
Nº
F. With a fhort and black bill, and yellow cere. The whole
plumage of a deep bay or chocolate-color, in parts tinged with
ferruginous : primaries black; the lower exterior fides of a pure
white, forming a conſpicuous ſpot or fpeculum: the wings reach
to the end of the tail : the exterior fides of the five outmoſt feathers
of the tail duſky, their inner fides blotched with black and white;
the two middle, black and cinereous: the legs and toes feathered ;
the laſt remarkably ſhort. LENGTH one foot ten inches.
Inhabits

IX
200
>
M.Griffiths del
I Mall. Sunt
S John's Falcon N.93
Chocolate Colored Falcon N: 94
Bics


NEWFOUNDLAND AND SACRE FALCON.
235
PLACE,
Inhabits Hudſon's Bay and Newfoundland. Preys much on
Ducks. Sits on a rock and watches their rifing, when it inſtantly
ſtrikes at them.
Latham, i. 79. N° 60.
95. NewfOUND-
LAND.
F. With a yellow cere : deep yellow irides : hind part of the
head ferruginous : crown, back, fcapulars, and coverts of
wings, brown, edged with a paler color: belly ruft-colored, blotch-
ed with deeper ſhades: thighs of a mottled aſh, marked with round
duſky ſpots, and on the lower parts with four large dark blotches :
the tail croſſed by four bars of deeper and lighter brown: legs yel-
low, ſtrong, and feathered half way down. LENGTH twenty inches.
The deſcription borrowed from Mr. Latham.
Inhabits Newfoundland.
PLACE.
Belon, Hift. des Oif. 108.-Buffon, i. 246.
Speckled Partridge Hawk of Hudſon's Bay, Phil. Tranſ. lxii. 383.-Latham, i. 78.
96. SACRE.
Noa 58, 59
F. With a duſky bill; upper mandible toothed : irides yellow:
cere and legs bluiſh. Head, and upper part of the body, of a
duſky brown: hind part of the head mottled with white : whole
under ſide of the body, from chin to vent, white; the middle of
each feather marked with a duſky ſpot : wings reach almoſt to the
end of the tail : coverts, ſcapulars, and primaries, of a deep brown,
elegantly barred tranſverſely with white : tail brown, marked on
each ſide with oval tranſverſe ſpots of red: feathers on the thighs
very long, brown ſpotted with white : the fore part of the legs co-
Hh 2
vered

236
STREAKED AND PEREGRINE FALCON.
PLACE.
vered with feathers almoſt to the feet. LENGTH two feet. Weight
two pounds and an half.
Inhabits Hudſon's Bay and Newfoundland : found alſo in Tertary,
and is a ſpecies celebrated there for the ſport of falconry. It is a
hardy ſpecies; for it never quits the rigorous climate of Hudſon's
Bay. Preys on the White Grous, which it will ſeize even while the
fowler is driving them into his nets. It breeds in April and May,
in defert places. The young fly in the middle of June. The fe-
males are ſaid to lay only two eggs.
STREAKED
FALCON.
F. With a very ſharp bill, furniſhed with a large and pointed
proceſs in the upper mandible: cere yellowiſh: head, front
of the neck, breaſt, and belly, white; each feather marked along
the ſhaft with a ſtreak of brown; the narroweſt are on the head:
back and coverts of the wings of a dirty bluiſh aſh-color; edges of
the feathers whitiſh, and many of them tipt with the ſame: pri-
maries duſky; exterior webs blotched with white, interior barred
with the fame: tail of the fame color with the back, and barred
with white; the bars do not reach the ſhafts, and, like thoſe in the
Iceland Falcon, oppoſe the dark bars on the adverſe fide: legs
bluiſh. Length two feet two inches.
The fine ſpecies inhabits Hudſon's Bay.
97. PEREGRINE.
Br. Zool.i. Nº 48.- Latham, i. 68, Nº 49; 73. N° 52.
Spotted Hawk, or Falcon; and Black Falcon, Edw. i. 3, 4.
Le Faucon, De Buffon, i. 249. pl. 16.-Lev. Mus.
F. With a ſhort ſtrong bill, toothed on the upper mandible, of
a bluiſh color: cere yellow : irides hazel: forehead whitiſh:
crown, and hind part of the head, dulky: the back, fcapulars, and
coverts

G EN T I L F AL CON.
237
a
а
coverts of wings, elegantly barred with deep blue and black: the
primaries duſky, with tranſverſe oval white ſpots: the throat, chin,
and breaſt, of a pure white, the laſt marked with a few duſky lines
pointing down: the belly white, croſſed with numerous dulky bars,
pointed in the middle: legs yellow: toes very long.
The American ſpecies is larger than the European. They are ſub-
ject to vary. The Black Falcon, and the Spotted Falcon of Mr.
Edwards, are of this kind; each -preſerve a ſpecific mark, in the
black ſtroke which drops from beneath the eyes, down towards the
neck. The differences in the marks in the tail may poſſibly pro-
ceed from the different ages of the birds; for few kinds differ ſo
much in the ſeveral periods of life as the Rapacious.
Inhabits different parts of North America, from Hudſon's Bay as
low as Carolina. In Afia, is found on the higheſt parts of the Urallian
and Sibirian chain. Wanders in ſummer to the very Arctic
circle. Is common in Kamtſchatka.
PLACE
98. GENTILE
Gentil Falcon, Br. Zool. i. Nº 50.
F. Gentilis. Falk. Faun. Suec. N° 58.-Latham, i. 64. LEV. Mus.
F. With a duſky bill: yellow cere, irides, and legs: head and
upper ſide of the neck ferruginous, ſtreaked with black: under
fide, from chin to tail, white, marked with dulky heart-ſhaped ſpots :
back, coverts of wings, and fcapulars, brown, edged with ruft-color:
primaries duſky, barred on the exterior ſide with black : wings reach
only half the length of the tail: tail long, barred with four or five
broad bands of black cinereous; each of the firſt bounded by a nar-
row line of dirty white.
In

238
GOSHA W K FALCON.
SIZE
PLACE.
In ſize fuperior to the European kind, being two feet two inches
long Shot in the province of New York. Is found in northern
Europe, as far as Finmark *.
99. GOSHAWK.
Br. Zool. i. N° 52.
F. Palumbarius, Faun. Suec. Nº 67.--De Buffon, i. 230.—Latham, i. 58.-Lev.
Mus.
a
PLACE.
F. With a bluiſh bill, black at the tip : yellowish green cere :
a
yellow legs: head brown; hind part mottled with white :
over each eye extends a long whitiſh line: hind part of the neck,
back, and wings, of a deep brown color: breaſt and belly white,
croſſed with numerous undulated lines of brown: tail of a cinere-
ous brown, croſſed by four or five bars of black : wings ſhorter
than the tail.
That which I ſaw in the Leverian Muſeum, was ſuperior in ſize
to the European. Mr. Lawſon ſays, they abound in Carolina : are
ſpirited birds, but leſſer than thoſe of Muſcovy. Is common in that
country, and Sibiria. Dr. Pallas adds, that there is a large white
variety on the Urallian mountains, mottled with brown and yellow.
Theſe are yet more frequent in the eaſt part of Sibiria ; and in
Kamtſchatka they are entirely white. Theſe are the beſt of all Hawks
for falconry. They extend to the river Amur; and are uſed by
the emperor of China in his ſporting progreſſes t, attended by his
grand falconer, and a thouſand of the fubordinate. Every bird has
a ſilver plate faſtened to its foot, with the name of the falconer who
had the charge of it; that in caſe it ſhould be loft, it might be
brought to the proper perſon: but if he could not be found, the
A WHITE VA-
RIETY
3
EXCELLENT FOR
FALCONRY.
a
* Leems, 337.--Strom. 224.
+ Bell. ii. 87.
bird

GOSHAWK FA L C O N.
239
bird is delivered to another officer, called the Guardian of lojt birds;
who keeps it till it is demanded by the falconer to whom it belong-
ed. That this great officer may the more readily be found, among
the army of hunters, who attend the emperor, he erects a ſtandard
in the moſt conſpicuous place *
The emperor often carries a Hawk on his hand, to let fly at any
game which preſents itſelf; which are uſually Pheaſants, Partridges,
Quails, or Cranes. Marco Polo faw this diverſion about the year
I 2697; a proof of its antiquity in theſe parts, when it formed fo
regular and princely an eſtabliſhment in the ſtate of this great eaſtern
monarch ; the origin of which might have been in ſome long pre-
ceding age. The cuſtom of carrying a Falcon extended to many
countries, and was eſteemed a diſtinction of a man of rank. The
Welſh had a ſaying, that you may know a gentleman by his Hawk,
Horſe, and Grehound. In fact, a perſon of rank feldom went with
out one on his hand. Harold, afterwards king of England, is painted
going on a moſt important embaſſy, with a Hawk on his hand, and
a Dog under his arm I. Henry VI. is repreſented at his nuptials,
attended by a nobleman and his Falcon 9. Even the ladies were
not without them in earlier times; for in an antient ſculpture in
the church of Milton Abbas, in Dorſetſhire, appears the confort of
King Athelſtan with a Falcon on her royal fiſt || tearing a bird : and,
perhaps to indulge his queen in her paſſion for the diverſion, he de-
manded of my countrymen (beſides an immenſe tribute) ſome of
their moſt excellent Hounds, and of their beſt Hawks : which
proves the high eſteem in which our Dogs and Falcons were held
in thoſe early days .
a
a
i. 372.
ii. 443.
Bergeron, 75, 76. + The ſame. | Monumens de la Monarchie Françoiſe,
§ Mr. Walpole's Anecdotes of Painting, i. 33.
.
|| Hutchins's Dorſetſhires
Malmſbury, lib. ii. c. 6.
Julius

240
RED-TAILED AND LEVERIAN FALCON.
Julius Firmicus, a celebrated writer in aſtrology, who dedicated
his books to Mavortius Lollianus, conſul in 354, affirms, that who-
ſoever were born under the influence of Mercury and Virgo, would
be ſtrong and induſtrious, and be well ſkilled in breeding fine horſes,
and in training Hawks and Falcons, and other birds uſeful in bird-
catching, &c. By this it appears, that actual falconry was in uſe
long before the time I imagined.
100.RED-TAILED.
American Buzzard, Latham, i. 50.-Lev. Mus.
F. With a duſky bill, and yellow cere: head, lower part of the
,
neck, and chin, brown, mixed with white : breaſt and belly
white, varied with long ſtripes of brown, pointing downwards : fe-
moral feathers very long, white, and marked with long dentated
ſtripes of pale brown: upper part of the neck, and back, of a very
deep brown: coverts and tertials brown, barred or edged with
white: primaries duſky, barred with cinereous : tail of a pale rufta
color, marked near the end with a duſky narrow bar: legs yellow,
Size of the Goſhawk.
Inhabits North America. Sent from Carolina to Sir Aſhton Lever.
PLACE.
IOI. LeverIAN.
F. With a duſky bill, greatly hooked : head ſtriped with brown
,
and white : upper part of the body and wings of a deep
brown; each feather elegantly marked at the end with a large white
fpot: the whole under ſide of the body white: the outmoſt feathers
of the tail marked with nine white, and the ſame number of dulky
bars; middle feathers with duſky and cinereous: the wings extend
beyond the end of the tail: legs ſtrong and yellow.
Size of a Buzzard. Sent to Sir Aſhton Lever from Carolina.
PLACE.
a
Barred.

RED-SHOULDERED, AND BUZZARD FALCON.
241
Barred-breaſted F. Latham, i. 56, Nº 36.-Lev. Mus.
102. RED-
SHOULDERED.
F. With a ſlender duſky bill; yellow cere ; and legs, head, and
neck, of a yellowiſh white, ſtreaked downwards with duſky
lines: back of a deep brown, edged with ruft-color: lefſer coverts
of wings ferruginous, ſpotted with black; primaries and ſecon-
daries black, ſpotted on each ſide moſt diſtinctly with white: breaſt
and belly of a light tawny; the firſt ſtreaked downwards with
black; the laſt traverſed with deeper tawny: tail ſhort and duſky,
croſſed by ſeven narrow bands of white; the two neareſt to the ends
more remote than the others : legs weak. LENGTH twenty-two
inches.
Inhabits Long Iſland. This is a new ſpecies, preſerved in Mrs.
BLACKBURNE's Muſeum.
PLACE
Afh-colored Buzzard, Edw. ii. 53.-Latham, i. 55, Nº 35. 48; Nº 28.-De 103. Buzzard.
, . ,
Buffon, i. 223.
Falco Buteo. Quidfogel, Faun. Suec. N° 60.-Br. Zool, i. 54.-Lev. Mus.
F. With a duſky bill, and bluiſh yellow cere: head, and hind
part of the neck, of a cinereous brown, ſtreaked with yellow :
back brown; lower part and rump barred with ruft-color, fome-
times with white: the coverts of the wings brown; the greater and
ſcapulars ſpotted with white; the three firſt quil-feathers black,
white at their baſes, the interior webs of the reſt blotched with
black and white: the throat and breaſt yellowiſh, marked thinly
with oblong brown ſpots : belly white, varied with great ſpots of
brown: feathers of the thighs long, white, croſſed with ſagittal bars
VOL. I.
I i
of

2.4.2
BUZZARD, AND PLAIN FALCON.
PIACE
of yellow: tail marked with about nine bands of black and light
cinereous; the tip white: legs ſhort, ſtrong, and yellow. LENGTH
two feet two inches,
The American varies in ſize, and ſometimes ſlightly in color ; but
in both has ſo much the habit of the Engliſh Buzzard, as not to me-
rit ſeparation. It is called in New York, the great Hen Hawk,
from its feeding on poultry. It continues there the whole year.
.
Lays in May five eggs: the young fly about the middle of June.
It is alſo an inhabitant of Hudſon's Bay and Newfoundland ; and in
Europe as high as Sondmor, in Norway; where, from its attacking
the Eagle, it is called Orne-Falk. Migrates, before winter, from
Sweden. Is ſcarce in Ruſſia; and very few are found in Sibiria. Is
found in winter as low as Woroneſch*.
104. PLAIN.
F. With the bill black : head duſky: nape ſpotted with white :
back, and coverts of wings, and tail, of an uniform deep brown:
under fide of the neck, breaſt, and belly, and thighs, deep brown,
ſlightly ſpotted with white: primaries duſky; inner webs marked
with
great oval ſpots of white, mottled with brown: middle feathers
of the tail plain brown; inner webs of the reſt mottled with white;
exterior webs and ends ſlightly edged with the fame: legs ſtrong:
yellow ? Wing reaches near the length of the tail. LENGTH, from
bill to tail, two foot one.
Inhabits Hudſon's Bay.
PLACE.
* In Ruſſia, lat. 52 north.
Marſh

MARSH, AND RINGTAIL FALCON.
243
Marſh Hawk, Edw. iv. 291...Latham, i, 90.-Lev. Mus.BL. Mus.
,
105. MARSH
F. With a bluiſh bill; orange cere, orbits, and legs : irides
hazel: a black line extends from the corner of the bill beyond
the eyes; above that is another of white, which encircles the cheeks,
and meets in front of the neck : head, throat, and upper part of
the breaſt, varied with black and ruft-color: back, and coverts of
the wings, brown: rump white : breaſt and belly, and thighs, of a
bright ferruginous : tail duſky brown, croſſed by four black bands :
legs ſtrong, thick, and ſhort; which are ſpecific diſtinctions from
the next.
LENGTH two feet.
Inhabits Penſylvania : frequents, during the ſummer, marſhy
places; where it feeds on the ſmall birds, Frogs, Snakes, and Li-
zards. At approach of winter quits the country.
PLACE.
Br. 2001. i. N° 59.-Edw. iii. 107.---Latham, i. Nris 75, 75 A, and Nº 34, is a 106. RINGTAIL.
ZoolN.
ruft-colored variety.
Falco Pygargus, F. Hudſonius, Lin. Syft. 128.-Muller, No 72.BL. Mus.
F. With a duſky bill and yellow cere: a white line over each
eye: head, upper part of the neck, and back, duſky brown:
coverts and primaries of the ſame color; the inner fides of the laſt
white: breaft, belly, and thighs, whitiſh, marked with ferruginous
ſpots : vent and rump white, encircling the root of the tail: the
middle feathers of the tail duſky; the next of a bluiſh aſh-color;
the outmoſt white, all marked tranſverſely with orange bars : legs
long, and very ſlender.
This ſpecies is ſuperior in ſize to the Britiſh Ringtail; but, having
moſt of the characters of that bird, we doubt not but that it is the
I i 2
fame.
SIZE.

244
WINTER FALCON.
SIZE AND PLACE.
fame. Like the European kind, ſkims along the ground in ſearch
of prey, which is Mice, Frogs, and ſmall birds. Builds its neſt
indifferently on the ground, or on the lower parts of trees. It is
fubject to vary to a deep ruft-color; plain, except on the rump
and tail.
Inhabits Hudſon's Bay. Weight, in Hudſon's Bay, ſeventeen
ounces and a half. Length twenty-one inches. Extent three feet
feven. Is very common in the open and temperate parts of Ruſia
and Sibiria; and extends as far as lake Baikal *. It is not found far
in the north of Europe. Linnæus omits it among the birds of his
country; but Mr. Brunnick deſcribes one, which had been ſhot in
lat. 58, on the little iſland of Chriſtianſoe t.
107. WINTER.
a
F. With a black bill; yellow cere : head of a deep brown: back
the ſame, tinged with ruft: hind part of the neck ſtreaked
with white: the coverts of the wings duſky, edged with dull white;
thoſe on the ridge with orange; ends of the primaries duſky; the
other parts barred with brown and white: breaſt and belly white,
marked with heart-Ihaped ſpots : thighs fulphur-colored, fpeckled
with duſky: vent feathers white: tip of the tail white; then fuc-
ceeds a broad duſky bar; the remaining part barred with brown,
tawny, and black: legs long, and very ſlender.
Is of an elegant form, and about the ſize of the RINGTAIL.
Inhabits the province of New York : appears at approach of
winter, and retires in the ſpring. Bl. Mus.
Mr. Latham's Northern Falcon, Nº 62, ſeems to differ from this
only in age, or ſex
Size.
PLACE.
* Dr. PALLAS
+ In the Baltic, a little north-eaſt of Bornholm.
Hirundo


Х
210
P Mazell Sculp
Swallow-tailed Falcon N:108.
UNT

SWALLOW-TAILED FALCON, AND BUZZARDET.
245
108. SWALLOW-
TAILED.
Hirundo maxima Peruviana, avis prædatoris calcaribus inſtructa, Feuillee Voy.
Peru, tom. ii. 33.
Herring, or Swallow-tailed Hawk, Lawſon, 138.--Brickell, 175.-Cateſby, i. 4.
Le Melan de la Caroline, Briſon, i. 418.-De Buffon, i. 221.
Falco Furcatus, Lin. Syft. 129.-Latham, i. 60.-Lev. Mus.
E.
و
PLACE
With a black bill, leſs hooked than uſual with rapacious
birds ; baſe of the bill hid in feathers, and briſtly: the eyes
large; irides red: head, neck, breaſt, and belly, of a ſnowy white-
neſs: back, coverts of wings, and ſcapulars, black, gloffed with
purple and green: inner webs of the primaries and ſecondaries
white towards their baſe; the tertials white: tail of the ſame color
with the back; and moſt extremely forked; the outmoſt feather
above eight inches longer than the middlemoft: the legs yellow.
This moſt elegant ſpecies inhabits only the ſouthern parts of
North America ; and that only during ſummer. Like Swallows,
they feed chiefly flying; for they are much on wing, and prey on
various forts of inſects. They alſo feed on Lizards and Serpents ;
and will kill the largeſt of the regions it frequents with the utmoſt
eaſe. They quit North America before winter. We are not ac-
quainted with their retreat. It probably is in Peru : at left we
have the proof of one being taken in the South-ſea, off the coaſt
which lies between Ylo and Arica, in about the latitude 23 ſouth,
on September 11th, by the reverend the Father Louis Feuillee *.
F. With duſky bill: head, cheeks, neck, breaſt, and belly, 109. BuzzardIT.
white, marked with large brown ſpots, more ſparingly dif-
perſed over the breaſt and belly: leffer coverts brown; the others
Journal des Obferv, &c. vol. ii. 33.
colored

246
LITTLE FA L C O N.
.
colored like the head : primaries duſky: thighs white, with ſmall
ſagittal ſpots of brown: tail duſky, barred and tipt with white :
legs yellow. LENGTH fifteen inches. It has much the habit of
the Buzzard; but the legs in proportion are rather longer.
In the LEVERIAN Muſeum. Except in the almoſt uniform
color of the tail, Mr. Latham's fpecies, p. 97, Nº 83, agrees
with this.
110. LITTLE
Little Hawk, Cateſby, i. 5.---Latham, i. 110. N°94.
Emerillon de Cayenne, Buffon, i. 291. Pl. Enl. N° 444.
Falco Sparverius, Lin. Syft. 128.--Lev. Mus.--Bl. Mus.
M A LE.
a
a
а.
F. With bluiſh bill, and yellow cere : crown of fine light grey,
:
with a red ſpot in the middle; on the hind part a ſemicircle
formed of round black ſpots : cheeks white, bounded on each ſide
with a large black ſpot : throat white : breaſt of a pale yellow,
ſpotted with black: back of a brilliant bay, croſſed by broad black
bars : coverts of the wings of a beautiful grey, thinly ſpotted with
black; primaries black, ſpotted on their inner webs with white : tail
long; the middle feathers barred near the end with a black band,
and tipt with white; the two exterior feathers white, croſſed with
three or four black bars : legs yellow.
Length eleven inches and a half. Weight only three ounces and
an half. This varies in color from the female, in the ſame manner
as the European Keſtrils.
Theſe birds inhabit America, from Nova Scotia to the Antilles ; are
active and ſpirited. They prey on ſmall birds, Mice, Lizards, and
inſects. The FEMALE is the following.
Size
a
PLACE.
Emerillon

LITTLE, AND PIGEON FALCON
247
.
Emerillon de St. Domingue, De Buffon, i. 291. Pl. Enl. N° 465.-Latham, i. 11.
N°95.Lev. Mus.BL. Mus.
F. With a ſhort and very crooked bill : crown of a deep Naty
a
blue, obſcurely ſpotted with red: hind part of the neck, back,
and tail, of a bright ferruginous color and black, elegantly diſpoſed
in narrow tranſverſe bars : coverts of the wings of the ſame colors;
primaries black: under fide of the neck, breaſt, and belly, of a
dirty white, marked with large ferruginous ſpots : thighs and vent
feathers white : legs long, ſender, and orange-colored : tail long,
croſſed with eleven black, and the ſame number of bright ferrugi-
nous bars.
The New York Merlin of Mr. Latham, i. 107. N° 94, bears ſo
great a reſemblance to this, that I do not venture to ſeparate
them.
III. PIGEON.
Pigeon Hawk, Cateſby, i. 3.-Phil. Tranſ. lxii. 382.-Latham, i. 101.
i.
Falco Columbarius, Lin. Syft. 128.-Lev. Mus.-Bl. Mus.
F. With a duſky bill, and yellow cere : crown, back, and co-
a
verts of the wings and rump, of a bluiſh grey, with the middle
of each feather ſtreaked with black : the hind part of the head
ſpotted with reddiſh white: cheeks and under ſide of the body
white, with large oblong ſpots of black : primaries and ſecondaries
duſky; their inſides marked with great oval ſpots of white: tail
long; black tipt with white, and croſſed with four bars of bluiſh
grey: legs yellow
Its length is from ten to twelve inches. The weight fix ounces.
It inhabits America, from Hudſon's Bay as low as South Carolina,
In the laſt it attains to a larger ſize. In Hudſon's Bay it appears in
a
SIZE.
PLACE.
3
May

248
DUBIOUS, AND DUSKY FALCON.
tumn.
May on the banks of Severn river, breeds, and retires ſouth in au-
It feeds on ſmall birds; and on the approach of any per-
ſon, flies in circles, and makes a great ſhrieking. It forms its neſt
in a rock, or ſome hollow tree, with ſticks and graſs; and lines it
with feathers : and lays from two to four eggs, white, ſpotted
with red. In Carolina it preys on Pigeons, and young of the wild
Turkies.
ز
112. DUBIOUS.
F.
With a duſky bill: yellow cere and irides: head duſky,
ſtreaked with ruft-color: back and coverts of wings brown,
edged with ruſt: the primaries duſky aſh-color, barred with black,
and the inner webs marked tranſverſely with oval ferruginous
ſpots: tail long, of a deep cinereous, with four broad bars of black :
breaſt and belly dirty white, marked with oblong ſtreaks of brown:
legs yellow.
Length about ten inches. Weight fix ounces. In the marks
and colors of the tail it much reſembles the Sparrow Hawk: in
the ſpots on the breaſt it agrees with the Engliſh Merlin.
Inhabits New York and Carolina. I have my doubts whether
this is any more than a variety of the preceding, eſpecially as the
Engliſh SPARROW HawK varies with the ſame colors.
SIZE.
PLACE.
313. DUSKY.
3
F. With a bluiſh bill; upper mandible armed with a ſharp
proceſs; yellow cere: head, back, and coverts of the wings,
and tail, a duſky brown, Nightly edged with ferruginous : hind part
of the neck ſpotted with white : primaries duſky; inner webs
marked with oval ſpots of a pale ruit-color: tail ſhort, tipped with
white, and barred with four broad duſky ſtrokes, and the fame
number of narrow ones of white : the hind part of the head ſpotted
with

CINEREOUS EAGLE.
249
with white : from the chin to the tail whitiſh, ſtreaked downwards
with diſtinct lines of black : legs deep yellow.
Inferior in ſize to the laſt. Inhabits the province of New York. Size, AND PLACE.
Bl. Mus.
A. CINEREOUS EAGLE, Br. Zool. i. N° 45.-Latham, i. 33.
Vultur Albicilla, Lin. Syft. 123.
F. With pale yellow bill, irides, cere, and feet : plumage light
,
cinereous: body and coverts of the wings clouded with darker:
primaries duſky: tail white.
In ſize equal to the Black Eagle. Inhabits Europe, as high as Size, AND PLACE.
Iceland and Lapmark*. Is common in Greenland; but does not
extend to America : at left, if it does, it varies into the White-
headed Eagle, to which it has great affinity, in particular in its
feeding much on fiſh: the Danes therefore call it Fiſke-orn t. Is
common in the ſouth of Ruſia, and about the Volga, as far as trees
will grow. Is very ſcarce in Sibiria ; but has been obſerved in the
eaſtern parts about Nertſchink. It ſeems to be the ſpecies called by
the Tungufi, Elo; which breeds on the banks of the Kharioufowa, a
river which falls into the Penſhina ſea I.
It inhabits Greenland the whole year, fitting on the rocks with
fagging wing, and flies ſlowly. It makes its neſt on the lofty
* Leems, 331.
| Hift. Kamtſchatka, 501.
+ Brunnick, Nº 12.
Kk
Vol. I.
cliffs,

250
CI NERE OU S E A G L E.
ز
cliffs, with twigs, lining the middle with moffes and feathers. Lays
two eggs. Sits in the latter end of May, or beginning of June.
Theſe birds prey on young Seals, which they ſeize as they are
floating on the water; but oft-times, by fixing their talons in an old
one, they are overmatched, and drawn down to the bottom, ſcream-
ing horribly. They feed alſo on fiſh, eſpecially the Lumpfiſh, and
a fort of Trout *; on Ptarmigans, Auks, and Eider Ducks. They
fit on the top of rocks, attentive to the motion of the diving birds;
and, with quick eyes, obſerve their courſe by the bubbles which
riſe to the ſurface of the water, and catch the fowls as they riſe
for breath.
The Greenlanders uſe their ſkins for cloathing, next to their bo-
dies. They eat the fleſh, and keep the bill and feet for amulets.
They kill them with the bow, or take them in nets, placed in the
ſnow, properly baited; or tempt them by the fat of Seals, which
the Eagles eat to an exceſs; which occaſions ſuch a torpidity as to
make them an eaſy prey.
The Erne, or CINEREOUS Eagle, the Vultur Albicilla of LIN-
NÆUS, is the firſt year wholly duſky, even to the bill, cere, and tail.
In the fecond year the cinereous color commences, teffelated with
black; the tail becomes white, and the end of its feathers for fome
time tipped with black.
It is very eaſily made tame : will attach itſelf to its maſter, dif-
tinguiſh him from others, and receive him with many marks of
endearment. When hungry, repeats the founds, tack tack; and
when fatisfied with food expreſſes its content, by a repetition of the
ſame note. Is particularly fond of fish: is a ſluggiſh and cowardly
fpecies, and will be put to flight even by the Turkies. --- Mr.
Oedman.
و
ز
* Salmo Carpio, Faun. Greenl. 170, Nº 124.
B. CRYING

CRY IN G E A G L E.
251
B. CRYING EAGLE, Planga et Clanga, Ariſtot. Hift. An. lib. ix.
Morphnos, Clanga, Anataria, Wil. Orn. 63.-Raii Syn. Av. 7. N° 7.
Spotted Eagle, Latham, i. 38.
Le Petit Aigle, De Buffon, i. 91.-Br. Mus.
j
PLACE
ز
F. With a duſky bill and yellow cere : color of the plumage a
ferruginous brown; the coverts of the wings, and ſcapulars,
elegantly varied with oval white ſpots ; on the greater coverts very
large: primaries duſky; the ends of the greater white : breaſt and
belly of a deeper color than the reſt of the plumage, ſtreaked down-
wards with dull yellow : tail dark brown, tipt with dirty white :
legs feathered to the feet, which are yellow. LENGTH two feet.
Is found in many parts of Europe, but not in Scandinavia : is fre-
quent in Ruſſia and Sibiria, and extends even to Kamtſchatka. Is
leſs generous and ſpirited than other Eagles; and is perpetually
making a plaintive noiſe, from which it was ſtyled by the antients
Planga & Clanga; and Anataria, from its preying on Ducks, which
Pliny * deſcribes with great elegance. The Arabs uſed to train it
for the chace; but its quarry was Cranes, and other birds: the
more generous Eagle being flown at Antelopes, and various qua-
drupeds. This ſpecies was even itſelf an object of diverſion ; and
made the game of even ſo ſmall a Falcon as the Sparrow Hawk :
which would purſue it with great eagerneſs, foar above, then fall on
the Eagle, and, faſtening with its talons, keep beating it about
the head with its wings, till they both fell together to the ground.
This Sir John Chardin has ſeen practiſed about Tauris.
* Lib. X. C. 3.
Kk 2
C. ICELAND

252
ICELAND FALCON
C. ICELAND FALCON, Gent, Mag. 1771. p. 297. fig. good.
Falco Iſlandus Fufcus, Brunnick, 2. N° 9.
Le Gerfault d’Iſland, Briſon, i. 373. tab. xxxi.-Pl. Enl. 210.
Falco Gyrfalco, Lin. Syf. 130.---Faun. Suec. N° 64.-Latham, i. 82, Nº 68; and 71,
Nº 50 B. parag. 2d.m-Lev. Mus.
;
F. With a ſtrong bill, much hooked, and the upper mandible
sharply angulated on the lower edges ; cere bluiſh: head of
very pale ruft-color, ſtreaked downwards with duſky lines: neck,
breaſt, and belly, white, marked with cordated ſpots : thighs white,
croſſed with ſhort bars of deep brown : back and coverts of wings
duſky, ſpotted and edged with white : the exterior webs of the pri-
maries duſky, mottled with reddiſh white; the inner barred with
white: the feathers of the tail croſſed with fourteen or more narrow
bars of duſky and white; the duſky bars regularly oppoſing thoſe
of white : the wings, when cloſed, reach almoſt to the end of the
train: legs ſtrong and yellow. The LENGTH of the wing, from
the pinion to the tip, fixteen inches.
This ſpecies is an inhabitant of Iceland, is the moſt eſteemed of
any for the ſport of falconry, and is, with the two following, re-
o
ſerved for the kings of Denmark; who fends his falconer, with two
attendants, annually into the iſland to purchaſe them. They are
caught by the natives; a certain number of whom in every diſtrict
are licenſed for that purpoſe. They bring all they take, about
Midſummer, to Belleſted, to meet the royal falconer; and each brings
ten or twelve, capped, and perched on a croſs pole, which they
carry on horſeback, and reſt on the ſtirrup. The falconer examines
the birds, rejects thoſe which are not for his purpoſe, and gives
the ſeller a written certificate of the qualities of each, which enti-
tles him to receive from the king's receiver-general ſeventeen rix-
dollars for F, or the pureſt white Falcon; ten for E, or thoſe which
are

ICELAND FALCON.
253
MANNER OF
TAKING
are left white; and ſeven for this ſpecies *. This brings into the
iſland between two and three thouſand rixdollars annually t.
They are taken in the following manner :-Two poſts are faf-
tened in the ground, not remote from their haunts. To one is
tied a Ptarmigan, a Pigeon, a Cock or Hen, faſtened to a cord
that it may have means of fluttering, and ſo attract the attention of
the Falcon. On the other poſt is placed a net, diſtended on a
hoop, about ſix feet in diameter. Through this poſt is introduced
a ftring, above a hundred yards long, which is faſtened to the net,
in order to pull it down ; and another is faſtened to the upper part
of the hoop, and goes through the poſt to which the bait is tied.
As ſoon as the Falcon ſees the fowl futter on the ground, he takes
a few circles in the air, to ſee if there is any danger, then darts on
its prey with ſuch violence as to ſtrike off the head, as nicely as if
it was done with a razor. He then uſually riſes again, and takes
another circle, to explore the place a ſecond time: after which it
makes another ſtoop; when, at the inſtant of its deſcending, the
man pulls the dead bird under the net; and, by means of the other
cord, covers the Falcon with the net, at the moment it has ſeized
the prey; the perſon lying concealed behind ſome ſtones, or elſe lies
flat on his belly, to elude the fight of the Falcon I.
As ſoon as one is caught, it is taken gently out of the net, for
fear of breaking any of the feathers of the wings or tail ; and a cap
is placed over its eyes. If any of the tail-feathers are injured, the
falconers have the art of grafting others $; which ſometimes has
occaſioned a needleſs multiplication of ſpecies.
The Iceland Falcons are in the higheſt eſteem. They will laſt
ten or twelve years; whereas thoſe of Norway, and other countries,
3
3
a
* Brunnick, p. 2.
+ Olaffen, i. 32
6 Brunnick, p. 3.Horrebow, 58.
| Horrebow, 59, 60.
feldom

254
ANTIQUITY OF FALCONRY.
ANTIQUITY OF
FALCONRY.
ſeldom are fit for ſport after two or three years uſe. Yet the Nor-
wegian Hawks were in old times in great repute in this kingdom,
and even thought bribes worthy of a king. Geoffry Le Pierre, chief
juſticiary, gave two good Norway Hawks to King John, that Welter
Le Madina might have leave to export a hundred weight of cheeſe.
John, the ſon of Ordgar, gave a Norway Hawk to have the king's
requeſt to the king of Norway, to let him have his brother's chat-
tels; and Ralf Havoc fined to King Stephen in two Girfals (Gyrfal-
cons) and two Norway Hawks, that he might have the fame ac-
quittance that his father had *.
I cannot fix the preciſe time of the origin of falconry; the paf-
fage in Ariſtotle, and the epigram in Martial, do by no means fix it
to the periods in which they wrote. The philoſopher † informs
us, that " there was a diſtrict in Thrace, in which the boys uſed
to aſſemble at a certain time of the year, for the ſake of bird-
catching That the ſpot was much frequented by Hawks,
" which were wont to appear on hearing themſelves called : and
« would drive the little birds into the buſhes, where they were
caught by the children; and that the Hawks would even ſome-
"times take the birds and fling them to theſe young ſportſmen ;
“ who (after finiſhing their diverfion) gratefully beſtowed on their
« affiftants part of their prey." This tale may have ſome truth at
the bottom; it being notorious that Larks, and even Partridges,
will, by the terror of a Hawk paſſing over them, lie ſo ſtill as to
fuffer themſelves to be taken by any paſſenger. Here ſeems to
have been no training of theſe Thracian Hawks, but a mere caſual
concurrence of Hawks and ſmall birds, which afforded now and
then an amuſement to the youth of the country. The thought ex-
preſſed on the antient gem, of little Genii engaged in the chace of
Deer, aſſiſted by an Eagle, may have originated from this ſtory.
• Madox, Antiq. Exch. 469. 497.
+ Arift. de Mirabil. Aufcult.
3
The

ANTIQUITY OF FALCONRY.
255
The Poet only deſcribes another kind of bird-catching, in the
following epigram on the fate of a Hawk:
Prædo fuit volucrum, famulus nunc Aucupis, idem
Decipit, et captas non fibi, meret, aves *
a
By the word decipit, it is plain that the Hawk was not trained; but
was merely uſed as a ſtale, either to entice ſmall birds under a net,
or to the limed twigs : the laſt is a method ftill in uſe in Italy.
The Italians call it Uccellare con la Civetta ; for inſtead of a Hawk,
they place a ſmall ſpecies of Owl on a pole, in the middle of a
field; and ſurround it, at various diſtances, with lime-twigs. The
ſmall birds, from their ſtrange propenſity to approach rapacious
fowls, fly around, perch on the rods, and are taken in great num-
bers t. A Hawk would ſerve the purpoſe full as well. Pliny
mentions the uſe of bird-lime $; and Longus, in his elegant ro-
mance of Daphnis and Chloe, employs the latter to catch little birds
for his beloved S.
Julius Firmicus, who dedicated his book to Mavortius Lollianus,
conſul A. D. 354, proves that falconry was in uſe in his days;
for, ſays he, Falcons taken when the ſun is in Virgo or Mercurii, are
far the beſt. And we further learn that it was in uſe in France in
the reign of Merouée, who began his reign about the year 576; and,
being in the abby of Tours, was perſuaded to amuſe himſelf with
Dogs and Hawks ..
I cannot find any certainty of Hawks being trained in our
iſland for diverſion before the time of King Ethelbert, the Saxon
monarch; who died in the year 760. He wrote into Germany
for a brace of Falcons, which would fly at Cranes and bring them
* Lib. xiv.
ep.
216.
$ Fr. ed. octavo, 82.
Saxon Chr. 60.
+ Olina, 65. I Hift. Nat. lib. xvi. C. 44..
# La Fauconnerie de Ch. d'Arcaſia, p. 443.
to

256
ANTIQUITY OF FALCONRY.
to the ground *, as there were very few ſuch in Kent. This
fhews how erroneous the opinion was, of thoſe who place it in the
reign of the emperor Frederic Barbaroſa t, who was drowned in
1189. By the application of Ethelbert to Boniface, archbiſhop of
Mentz, for the brace of Falcons, it is evident, that the diverſion
was in perfection in Germany before the year 752, the time in
which that prelate was martyred by the Pagans. It ſeems to me
highly probable, that falconry was invented in Scythia, and paſſed
from thence into the northern parts of Europe. Tartery is even at
preſent celebrated for its fine breed of Falcons; and the ſport is in
ſuch general eſteem, that, according to Olearius, there was no but
but what had its Eagle or Falcon I. The boundleſs plains of that
country are as finely adapted to the diverſion, as the wooded or
mountanous nature of moſt part of Europe is ill calculated for that
rapid amuſement
The antiquity of falconry in Tartary is evinced by the exhibition
of the ſport on the very antient tombs 5 found in that country; in
S
which are figured horſemen at full ſpeed, with Hawks on their
hands : others again, in the ſame attitude, diſcharging their arrows
at their game, in the very manner of the antient Scythians.
From Germany, falconry got footing in England; and became ſo
favored a diverſion, that even fanguinary laws were enacted for the
preſervation of rapacious fowls. Edward III, made it death for
the ſtealing of a Hawk : and to take its eggs, even in a perſon's
own ground, was puniſhable with a fine at the king's pleaſure, and
impriſonment for a year and a day. In the reign of James I. the
amuſement was carried to ſuch an extravagant pitch, that Sir Thomas
Monſon is ſaid to have given a thouſand pounds for a caſt of Hawks.
* Quoted by Mr. Whitaker in Hift. Mancheſter, from Max. Bibliotheca Patrum, xiii.
p. 85. ep. 40.
† Spelman's Gloff 1 Olearius's Travels, 177. § Strahlenberg, tab. A. B.
a
a
D. GREENLAND.

GREENLAND FALCON
257
D. GREENLAND.
DUSKY. Falco Fufcus, Faun. Groen. 56, Nº 34. b,
Grey Falcon, Crantz, i. 78.--Egede, 64.
Size
PLACE.
F. With duſky irides : lead-colored cere and feet : brown crown,
marked with irregular oblong white ſpots : forehead whitiſh:
cheeks blackiſh: hind part of the head and throat white: breaſt
and belly of a yellowiſh white, ſtriped downwards with duſky
ſtreaks: the back duſky, tinged with blue, the ends of the feathers
lighteſt, and ſprinkled over with a few white ſpots, eſpecially to-
wards the rump: wings of the ſame colors, variegated beneath with
white and black: the upper part of the tail duſky, croſſed very
faintly with paler bars; the under fide whitiſh,
Leffer than the Collared Falcon.
Inhabits all parts of Greenland, from the remoteſt hills to thoſe
which impend over the ſea. They are even ſeen on the iſlands of
ice remote from ſhore. They retire in the breeding-ſeaſon to the
fartheſt part of the country, and return in autumn with their young.
They breed in the ſame manner as the Cinereous Eagle, but in more
diſtant places; and lay from three to five eggs. The tail of the
young is black, with great brown ſpots on the exterior webs.
They prey on Ptarmigans, Auks, and all the ſmall birds of the
country: have frequent diſputes with the Raven, but feldom come
off victors; for the Rayen will, on being attacked, fing itſelf on
its back; and, either by defending itſelf with its claws, or by call-
ing, with its croaking, numbers of others to its help, oblige the
Falcon to retire, The Greenlanders uſe the ſkin, among many
others, for their inner garments; the wings for bruſhes; the feet for
amulets: but ſeldom eat the fleſh, unleſs compelled by hunger.
It is alſo a native of Iceland.
Vol. I.
LI
E. COLLARED.

258
COLLARED, AND KITE FALCON,
E. COLLARED. Falco Ruſticolus, Lin. Syft. 125.-Faun. Suec. N° 56.-Faun. Groenl.
N° 34.-Latham, i. 56.
a
a
F.
With a lead-colored bill, tipt with black : head broad and
flat, ſtreaked lengthways with black and white; on the cheeks
the white predominates : the throat, under ſide of the neck, and
breaſt, are of a pure white; that on the neck almoſt furrounds it,
forming a ſpecies of collar: the belly is of the fame color, marked
with a few duſky cordated ſpots: the back is waved with aſh-color
and white; the tip of each feather white: the coverts of the wings
of the fame colors, but more obſcure: the exterior webs of the
primaries duſky: the tail rounded, croſſed with twelve or thirteen
whitiſh and duſky bars: the legs yellow. Size of a Hen.
Is rarely found in the remoteft parts of Greenland. Inhabits alſo
Sweden ; and extends eaſtward as far as Simbirſk, lat. 541, in the
government of Caſan *.
a
PLACE.
F. Kite, Br. Zool. i. N° 53.-Latham, i. 61. No 43.
Falco Milvus Glada, Faun. Suec. No 57
Le Milan Royal, De Buffon, i. 197.- Pl. Enl. 422.-Lev. Mus.
Size.
F.
With yellow bill and cere: white head, ſtreaked with black :
body ferruginous, with a few dulky ſpots : tail much forked
and ferruginous.
Weight forty-four ounces. Length twenty-ſeven inches : extent
five feet one.
Inhabits the north of Europe, as high as Jarlſberg, in the very
ſouth of Norway †; but does not extend farther. This ſpecies, the
PLACE.
• Extracts, i: 315.
+ Hammer, Faun. Norway,
See

K I TE FA L C O N.
259
Sea Eagle, Lanner, Buzzard, and Keſtril, quit Sweden, in flocks, at
approach of winter, and return in ſpring *. Of theſe, the Buzzard
and Keſtril winter at Woroneſch, in Ruſſia, in lat. 52 t; and, together
with the Lanner and Kite, about Aſtrakan I, in lat. 46.39; but the
far greater part of the Kites are ſuppoſed to retire into Egypt, being
ſeen in September paſſing by Conſtantinople $, in their way from the
north; and again in April returning to Europe |l, to fhun the great
heats of the eaſt. They are obſerved in vaſt numbers about Cairo,
where they are extremely tame, and feed even on dates, I ſuppoſe for
want of other food. They alſo breed there; ſo that, contrary to
the nature of other rapacious birds, they increaſe and multiply
twice in the year; once in the mild winters of Egypt, and a ſecond
time in the ſummers of the north. It makes its appearance in Greece
in the ſpring; and in the early ages, ſays Ariſtophanes **, "it governed
“
e that country: and men fell on their knees when they were firſt
« bleſſed with the ſight of it, becauſe it pronounced the flight of
“ winter, and told them to begin to ſheer their vernal fleeces. The
“ Crane likewiſe, by its autumnal departure, warns the mariner to
hang up his rudder, and take his reſt, and every prudent man to
« provide their winter garments : and the SWALLOW again informed
“ them when they were to put on thoſe of ſummer. Thus, adds the
o chorus of birds, are we to you as AMMON, DODONA, APOLLO :"
meaning, in thoſe early days, that man conſulted only theſe natural
calendars, and needed no other than what they took from the flight
of birds tt, or the flowering of plants,
They inhabit England in all ſeaſons. I have ſeen their young
taken, the laſt week in May, or firſt in June, in the great woods be-
张
​<<
* Aman, Acad. iv, + Extracts, i. 100.
I Vol. ii. 142.
$ Forſkahl,
Deſcr. Arab. 7.
7
|| Wil. Orn. 75.
** Aves.
Belon Obf. xxxvi. p. 107.b.
++ See this ſubject moſt ingeniouſly handled in Mr. STILLINGFLEET's Eſſays,
in the Calendar of Flora.
L1 2
longing

260
HONEY BUZZARD, AND LANNER.
longing to Sir Joſeph Banks, in Lincolnſhire ; and have often ob-
ſerved them in various places in the depth of winter.
G. HONEY BUZZARD, Br. Zool. i. N° 56.-Latham, i. 52. N° 33.
Falco Apivorus Slaghok, Faun. Suec. N° 65.-Lev. Mus.
F. With an afh-colored head; dark brown above ; below white,
ſpotted or barred with ruſty brown : tail brown, barred with
two duſky bars, remote from each other: legs ſtrong and yellow :
bill and cere black. LENGTH twenty-three inches. Weight thirty
ounces.
PLACE.
Inhabits as far north as the diſtrict of Sondmor, in Norway *. Is
found in plenty in the open parts of Ruſſia and Sibiria, near woods ;
and preys much upon Lizards.
H. LANNER, Br. Zool. i. N° 51.- Latham, i. 86.
Falco Lannarius, Foun. Suec. Nº 62.-De Buffon, i. 243.
a
j
F. With a white line over each eye: cere and legs bluiſh : breaſt
white, tinged with yellow, and marked with brown ſpots :
primaries and tail duſky; the firſt marked with oval ruft-colored
ſpots on the inner webs; the laſt, on both.
Inhabits Iceland, the Feroe ifles, and Sweden; the Tartarian deſerts
and the Baraba. Breeds on very low trees. None in the north or
eaſt of Sibiria. Much eſteemed for falconry.
PLACE.
Strom. 235.
1. Moor

MOOR BUZZARD, AND KESTRIL.
261
1. Moor BUZZARD, Br. Zool. N° 57.--Lanham, i. 53.
Falco Æruginoſus, Faun. Suec. N° 66.
Hons-tjuf, Le Buſard, De Buffon, i. 218. pl. X.--Pl. Enl. 424.
SIZE.
F. Entirely of a chocolate brown, tinged with ruft: on the hind
part of the head a light clay-colored ſpot: ſlender long yellow
legs : cere black
Weight twenty ounces. Length twenty-one inches.
Found in the Tranſbaltic countries, as far north as Sondmor *.
Common in the ſouth of Ruſia: not in Sibiria. It continues the
whole year in Sweden.
PLACE
K. KESTRIL, Br. Zool. i. Nº 60.-Latham, i. 94.
Falco Tinnunculus, Kirko-Falk, Faun. Suec. N° 61.Muller, Nº 65.
La Creſſerelle, De Buffon, i. 280. pl. xviii.Pl. Enl. 401, 471.
a
а.
a
Male. F. With the crown and tail of a fine light grey, the laſt
marked with a black bar near the end: back and wings of
a purpliſh red, ſpotted with black. - Female. Head reddiſh; crown
ſtreaked with black: back, tail, and coverts of wings, dull ruft-co-
lor, barred with black : legs yellow. Weight of Male fix ounces
and a half: of Female eleven.
Frequent in the deſerts of Tartary and Sibiria, in the open coun-
tries, where ſmall trees are found for it to breed in. Migrates into
Sweden, at the time in which the White Wagtail returns, and the
Saffron, Snowdrop, and bulbous Violet, bloſſom. Each of theſe
birds quit the country about the ſame day, in September t. Not
found farther north?
PLACE.
# Strom, 235
+ Calendar of Flora, and Migr. Av. in Amen. Acad. v. 397. 382.-Is found as
far ſouth as the Holy Lando-Haſelquiſt Itin. 291.
L, SPARROW

262
SPARROW HAWK, AND HOBBY.
L. SPARROW HAWK, Br. Zool. i. Nº 62.--Latham, i. 99. .
Sparfhok, Faun. Suec. N° 68.-Muller, Nº 71.-Strom. 235.
L'Epervier, De Bufon, i. 225. pl. xi.--Pl. Enl. 412, 467.
a
F. With head, back, and coverts of wings and tail, (in ſome)
of a deep bluiſh grey; in others, of a deep brown, edged with
ruft-color: breaſt and belly of a whitiſh yellow, with waved bars
of deep brown or dull orange: tail cinereous, with five broad black
bars; the tips white.
Weight of the male five ounces : female nine.
Found as high as Sondmor, and in the Feroe iſlands, in the ſouth
of Ruſſia; but none in Sibiria.
PLACE
j
M.
HOBBY, Br. Zool. i. N° 61.---Latham, i. 103.
Falco Subluteo, Faun. Şuec. N° 59.
a
a
F. With crown, back, and coverts of a bluiſh black : from the
crown a black ſtroke points down the cheeks, which are white :
breaſt white, with oblong black ſpots: thighs and vent pale orange :
inner webs of primaries marked with oval reddiſh ſpots: two mid-
dle feathers of the tail plain dove-color; the inner webs of the
others marked like the primaries: legs yellow. Weight of the
male ſeven ounces.
Schonen, the moſt ſouthern province of Sweden *, and, I believe,
does not extend farther north. This ſpecies winters about Woro-
neſch and Aſtrakan t; and frequents the ſame places in Sibiria with
the KESTRIL.
PLACE.
;
* Faun. Suec.
+ Extracts, ii. 142.
3
III. O WI..

GREAT HORNED OWL,
263
III. OWL. Gen. Birds III.
* EA RE DO W L S.
114. EAGLE,
Great Horned Owl, Edw. 60.--Latham, i. 119.
Great Grey Owl, Foſelyn, 96.-Lawſon, 145.
Jacurutu, Margrave, 199.
Stria Bubo Uf, Faun. Suec. N° 69.
O.
With a duſky bill: yellow irides : horns ſhorter than the
European Eagle Owl; thoſe, with the head, black, marked
with tawny: circle round the eyes cinereous, edged with black; on
the throat a large cruciform mark of a pure white, reaching to the
beginning of the breaſt: upper part of the breaſt duſky and tawny;
the lower part thickly barred with black aſh-color, mixed with yel-
low: coverts of wings, ſcapulars, and back, elegantly painted with
zigzag lines, cinereous, black, and orange; the fcapulars alſo
marked with a few great white ſpots: primaries broadly barred with
black and ferruginous : tail of a deep brown, croſſed with brown
duſky bars, and marked with numerous tranſverſe cinereous lines :
legs and feet covered with foft light brown feathers to the very
claws, which are very ſtrong and hooked.
This ſpecies is inferior in ſize to the EAGLE OWL, Br. Zool. i.
N° 64; but ſeems only a variety.
It is common to South and North America, as high as Hudſon's
Bay. Makes, during night, a moſt hideous noiſe in the woods,
SIZE
PLACE
not

264
L ON G-E ARE DOW L.
not unlike the hollowing of a man; ſo that paſſengers, beguiled by
it, often loſe their way.
The favages have their birds of ill omen, as well as the Romans,
They have a moft fuperftitious terror of the Owl, which they
carry ſo far as to be highly diſpleaſed at any one who mimics its
hooting *
This ſpecies is common in Kamtſchatka, and even extends to the
Arctic regions; in the firſt of which it very often inclines to white.
It is found as low as Aſtrakan.
115. LONG-
Br. Zool.i. N° 65.-Moyen Duc ou Hibou, Hiſt. d'Oiſ. i. 342.
Strix Otus, Faun. Suec. N° 71.---Latham, i. 121,
ERRED
O. With very long ears, of ſix feathers each, yellow and black :
irides yellow: back and coverts of wings deep brown, grey,
and yellowiſh ruft-color: primaries barred with duſky and ferru-
ginious : breaſt and belly pale yellow, with ſlender brown ſtrokes,
pointing downwards : tail barred with cinereous and duſky; the
bars of the middle feathers bound above and below with white: feet
feathered to the claws. LENGTH fourteen inches : EXTENT of the
Engliſh ſpecimens three feet fourt. Weight ten ounces,
Obſerved by Mr. Hutchins about Severn ſettlement in Hudſon's
Bay, where it lives in the woods, far from the fea: at night fallies
in ſearch of prey. Approaches the tents of the inhabitants, and is
very clamorous. Builds its neſt in trees, and lays four white eggs
in April. Never migratese
PLACE.
* Colden's Six Indian Nations, i. 17.
+ if no miſtake is made in Mr. Hutchins's MS. the extent is lefs by far than that of
the Engliſh kind.
Inhabits

SHORT-E A RED OW L.
265
Inhabits Sweden, and the northern and ſouthern parts of the Ruſian
dominions, and the eaſtern parts of Sibiria. Is found as far ſouth
as Aſtrakan, and even in the hot climate of Egypt*.
Short-eared Owl, Br. Zool. i. No 66.-Phil. Tranſ. Ixii. 384.--Latham, i. 124,
Moyen Duc, ou Hibou, Pl. Enl. 29.--Bl. Mus.---Lev. Mus.
116. SHORT-
EARED
а
a
SIZE.
O. With a leffer head in proportion than the former : bill duſky :
irides yellow : head, back, and coverts of the wings, pale
brown, edged with dull yellow : breaſt and belly.yellowiſh white,
marked with a few duſky ſtreaks pointing downwards: thighs, legs,
and toes, warmly covered with plain yellow feathers: tail dulky
brown, marked on each ſide of the middle feathers with a large
yellow circle, with a brown ſpot in the middle. In the others, the
feathers are yellowiſh, obliquely barred with black. The horns, or
ears, conſiſt of only a ſingle feather, which it can raiſe or depreſs at
pleaſure. The wings reach beyond the end of the tail. LENGTH
fourteen inches. Weight fourteen ounces.
Found in plenty in the woods near Chateau Bay, on the Labrador
coaſt. It is alſo an inhabitant of the Falkland Iflands; fo probably
is common to North and South America. In Hudſon's Bay it is called
the Mouſe Hawk. It never fies, like other Owls, in ſearch of prey;
bur fits quiet on a ſtump of a tree, watching, like a Cat, the appear-
ance of Mice. It breeds near the coaſt; makes its neſt with dry
graſs upon the ground; and migrates fouthwards in autumn. Father
Feuillée ſpeaks of an Owl he found in Peru that has ſome reſemblance
to this, particularly in the Hawk-like ſhape of the bill. He ſays
PLACE.
3
* Hafjelquiſt, Itin. 233.
Mm
VOL. I.
it

266
SHORT-EARED OW L.
it burrows under ground to a great depth, like a Rabbet; for
which reaſon he names it Ulula Cunicularia *. It is very com-
mon in the northern and woody parts of Sibiria. Comes boldly
to the night fires, and aſſaults men, when it is often killed with
ſticks.
In Europe it is found in Great Britain, and reaches to the
Orkney iſles. Does not perch, but fits on the ground, on which
it lays it eggs amidſt the heath. Appears and diſappears in Lin-
colnſhire with the Woodcock. Perhaps migrates to Sweden or
Norway, where it is alſo found, and even as high as Iceland +.
Flies and preys by day, in dark and cloudy weather. Friendly
to the farmer, by being an excellent mouſer. Does not fly far;
but if diſturbed, ſoon alights, and fits looking about; at which
times its horns are very conſpicuous. This circumſtance hitherto
unattended to; ſo that it has been ranked among the Earleſs
Owls.
The SHORT-EARED Owl appears to me to be La Chouette of
the Comte de Buffon, and his Moyen Duc, ou Hibou, tab. 29. of
the Pl. Enlum. In p. 102. of my indexes to his Ornithologie, and
the Pl. Enl. I have endeavoured to clear up the confuſion, which
the illuſtrious writer has introduced on the ſubject.
* Voy. Peru, ii. 562.
+ See Strix Funerea, Faun. Suec. Nº 75.-- Pontop. Atlas Danica, tab. 25.-Olaffer's
Iceland, ii, tab. 46.
Little

RED, AND MOTTLED OW L.
267
117. RED.
Little Owl, Cateſby, i. 7.--Latham, i. 123.
Strix Afio, Lin. Syft. 132. Bl. Mus.--Lev. Mus.
O. With yellow irides : horns, head, back, and wings, of a plea-
fant tawny red, ſtreaked with black: the ſcapulars marked
with large white ſpots : primaries barred with black, red, and
white: breaſt pale tawny, marked with oblong black ſpots : tail
*red, barred with duſky: feet covered with feathers to the claws.
LENGTH ten inches and a half.
Inhabits New York, and as low as the Carolinas. Lives in the
woods near the coaſt.
PLACE.
118. MOTTLED.
Latham, i. 126.Bl. Mus.-Lev. Mus.
و
O. With the face white, ſpotted with brown : head, wings,
,
and upper part of the body, mottled with aſh-color and
pale red: the ſcapulars marked with great white ſpots; as are the
coverts of the wings: the primaries with black and pale ferru-
ginous : breaſt and belly whitiſh, varied with duſky ragged ſtripes,
pointing downwards: toes feathered to the claws. LENGTH eleven
inches.
Inhabits the province of New York. Breeds in May, and con-
tinues in the country the whole year.
PLACE.
M m 2
** WITH

268
WAPACUTHU, AND SOOTY OWL
** WITHOUT EARS.
119. WAPACU-
THU,
O. With gloffy black bill, and claws much incurvated : baſe
of the bill beſet with ſtrong briſtles: irides bright yellow :
ſpace between the eyes, cheeks, and throat, white: the ends of
the feathers on the head black : fcapulars, and all the coverts
of the wings, white, elegantly barred with duſky reddiſh marks,
pointing downwards: primaries, ſecondaries, and tail feathers,
irregularly ſpotted and barred with pale red and black : back
and coverts of the tail white, mixed with a few duſky ſpots :
breaſt and belly dirty white, croſſed with innumerable reddiſh
lines: vent white: legs feathered to the toes, which are covered
with hairs. Weight five pounds: length two feet : extent
four.
Inhabits the woods about Hudſon's Bay: makes its neſt on the
moſs, on the dry ground. The young are hatched in May, and fly
in June; and are white for a long time after. Feeds on Mice and
ſmall birds. Called by the Indians, Wapacuthu, or the Spotted
Owl. The Europeans ſettled in the bay, reckon it a very delicate
food.
PLACE.
120. Sooty
Cinereous Owl, Latham, i. 134, Nº 19.-Br. Mus.
0.
With a whitiſh bill: bright yellow irides : circlets conſiſt
of elegant alternate lines of black and pale afh-color: head,
hind part of the neck, and coverts of wings, ſooty, marked with
narrow bars of dirty white: primaries deep brown, with broad
bars,

SOO TY, AND SNOWY OW L.
269
:
bars, compoſed of lefſer of duſky and pale cinereous: tail moſt
irregularly marked with oblique ſtrokes of brown and dirty white :
the breaſt and belly whitiſh, greatly covered with large oblong
blotches of duſky brown: as a fingular mark, from the chin to
the vent is a ſpace, about an inch in breadth, entirely naked : legs
feathered to the feet. Weighs three pounds: length two feet:
extent four.
Inhabits Hudſon's Bay the whole year. Flies in pairs. Feeds on
Mice and Hares. Flies very low; yet ſeizes its prey with ſuch
force, that, in winter, it will ſink into the ſnow a foot deep; and,
with great eaſe, will fly away with the AMERICAN HARE, N° 38,
alive in its talons. It makes its neſt in a pine-tree, in the middle
of May, with a few ſticks lined with feathers; and lays two eggs,
ſpotted with a darkiſh color. The young take wing in the end of
July
PLACE.
a
121. SNOWY.
Great White Owl, Edw. 61.Ellis's Voy. 40.--Du Pratz, ii. 91.--Clayton's Vir-
ginia.-Ph. Tranſ. iii. 589.
Great Speckled Owl, Egede, Greenland, 64.
Strix Nyctea, Harfang, Faun. Suec. N° 76.-Buffon, i. 387.--Latham, i. 132,
.
N° 17.-Bl. Mus.-Lev. Mus.
O. With a head leſs in proportion than other Owls : irides yel-
low: whole plumage of a ſnowy whiteneſs, ſometimes pure,
oftener marked with duſky ſpots: the legs and feet covered warmly
to the very claws with long ſnowy feathers of the moſt delicate and
elegant texture: the claws are of a fine contraſting blackneſs, very
large and very crooked. Its length two feet; but it varies greatly
in weight, from three pounds to one and a half.
It inhabits the coldeſt parts of America, even as high as the re-
mote mountains in the icy centre of Greenland; from which, in in-
Size.
tenſe
PLACE.

270
SNOWY O W L.
tenſe cold, it migrates to the ſhores. It adds horror even to that
country, by its hideous cries, reſembling thoſe of a man in deep
diſtreſs.
It is rare in the temperate parts of America, and feldom ſtrays
as low as Penſylvania or Louiſiana, yet has been frequently ſeen by
Doctor Garden, in the ſultry climate of South Carolina, among the
groves of Palmetto trees, or the Chamerops bumilis *, which line the
ſhores from the Capes of Florida quite to Charleſtown. There they
lurk during day, and fally out in queſt of prey during night. Is
very common in Hudſon's Bay, in Norway, and Lapland. It fears
not the rigor of the ſeaſon, but bears the cold of the northern
regions the whole year. It flies by day, and is ſcarcely to be diſtin-
guiſhed from the ſnow: it flies pretty ſwiftly, and falls perpendi-
cularly on its prey. Feeds on the White Grous, and probably
on the Hares; for to the laſt circumſtance it owes its Swediſh name,
Harfang. It preys alſo on Mice, and Carrion; and in Hudſon's
Bay is almoſt domeſtic, harbouring in places near the tents of the
Indians.
Is ſcarce in Ruſia; grows more common on the Uralian moun-
tains, and all over the north and eaſt of Sibiria, and in its Afiatic
empire, even in the hot latitude of Aſtrakan † ; are very numerous
in Kamtſchatka.
* Lin. Sp. Pl. 11. 1657.-See alſo Bartram's Journal 1765, p. 13.
+ Extracts, i. 91. ii. 142.
Lathars


ΧΙ
234
7
117
118
KUP
-
M Griffithe del
P. Mazell Sculp
1ry Red Owl. 18 Mottled. 120 Barred.
47
.
.
JAIL
OS

BARRED, AND HAWK OWL,
271
Latham, i. 133, Nº 18.-BL. MUS.Lev. Mus.
122. BARRED.
O. With a pale yellow bill, beſet with ſtrong briſtles: irides yel-
low: circlets whitiſh, barred with duſky lines: head, back,
coverts of the wings, and the breaſt, barred with dark brown, and
white tinged with yellow; the primaries with black and white: the
belly white, marked downwards with long ſtripes of deep brown:
tail barred with broad bands of black, and narrower of white :
wings reach only half the length of the tail: feet feathered to the
claws.
A large ſpecies, two feet long; the extent four. Weight three
pounds.
Inhabits Hudſon's Bay, and New York. Preys on Hares, Grous,
Mice, &c.
SIZE.
PLACE.
123. HAWK,
Little Hawk Owl, Edw. 62.--Latham, i. 142, Nº 29; 143, Nº 30; 147, Nº 36;
148, Nº 37.-Phil. Tranſ. lxi. 385.
Le Chat-huant de Canada, Briſſon, i. $ 18,--De Buffon, i. 391.
Chouette a longue queue de Sibirie, Pl. Enl. 463.-Lev. Mus.
а.
O. With yellow irides : head finely ſpotted with duſky and
pure white: back brown, with a few large white ſpots: pri-
maries of a deep brown, regularly ſpotted with white on each web:
upper part of the breaſt white ; lower part and belly barred with
brown: tail very long, and cuneiform, marked with broad bars of
brown, and narrow of white: feet protected with feathers to the
claws.
LENGTH ſeventeen inches. Weight twelve ounces. Never
hatches above two young at a time; which, for ſome months after
flight, retain a ruſty brown plumage.
3
This

272
W H I TEOW L.
PLACE.
а.
This ſpecies is common to North America, Denmark, and Sweden.
The Savages who come down to Hudſon's Bay, call it Сabetitutch.
It flies high, like a Hawk, and preys by day on the White Grous.
Like the Short-eared Owl, will hover over the nocturnal fires. Is a
bold bird ; will attend the fowler, and often ſteal the game he has
fhot, before he can pick it up. Was ſeen by the navigators near
.
Sandwich found, in lat. 61 north.
This bird is very frequent in all Sibiria, and on the weſt ſide of
the Uralian chain, as far as Cafan and the Volga: not in Ruſſia.
124. WHITE.
Tuidara, Margrave, 205.
Barn Owl, Clayton's Virginia.-Phil. Tranſ. iii. 589.
White Owl, Br. Zool. i. N°67.-Latham, i. 138.
Strix Flammea, Faun. Suec. N° 73.
L'Effraie, ou L'Effraſaie, De Buffon, i. 366. pl. xxvi. Pl. Enl. 440.--Leve
MUS.BL. Mus.
O. With a white bill: duſky irides : head, back, and coverts of
wings, of a pale beautiful yellow, with two grey and two white
ſpots placed alternately on each fide of the fhafts: breaſt and belly
wholly white: interior ſides of the feathers of the tail white; ex-
terior marked with obſcure duſky bars : legs feathered: feet covered
with ſhort hairs. LENGTH fourteen inches. WEIGHT eleven
ounces.
This bird is common to North and South America, and to Europe.
Was found by the navigators near Sandwich found, lat. 61 north.
Is rare in Sweden, and, I believe, not found farther north. Inhabits
Tartary. The Mongol and Kalmuc Tartars almoſt pay it divine ho-
nors; becauſe they attribute to this ſpecies the preſervation of the
founder of their empire, Cingis Khan. That prince with his ſmall
PLACE
army

BROW NOW L.
273
a
army happened to be ſurprized and put to fight by his enemies,
and forced to conceal himſelf in a little coppice: an Owl ſettled on
the buſh under which he was hid, and induced his purſuers not to
ſearch there, as they thought it impoſſible any man could be con-
cealed in a place where that bird would perch. From thenceforth
they held it to be ſacred, and every one wore a plume of the feathers
of this ſpecies on his head. To this day the Kalmucs continue the
cuſtom, on all great feſtivals; and ſome tribes have an idol in form
of an Owl, to which they faften the real legs of one
Brown Owl, Br. Zool. i. No 69.-Latham, i. 140.--De Buffon, i. 372 -Pl. Enl,
125. Brown.
438,
Strix Ulula, Faun. Suec. N° 78.Bl. Mus.-Lev. Mus.
With dark hazel irides: head, wings, and back, of a deep
brown ſpotted with black: coverts of the wings and ſcapulars
varied with white ſpots: breaſt of a pale aſh-color, marked with
duſky jagged ſtrokes pointing downwards: feet feathered to
the claws. LENGTH about fourteen inches. WEIGHT nineteen
ounces.
Inhabits Newfoundland: rare in Ruſſia: unknown in Sibiria ;
found in Sweden and Norway t.
PLACE
* Extracts.
I Brunnich, Nº 19,
VOL. 1.
Nn
Little

274
L I T T L E O W L,
1 26. LITTLE.
Little Owi, Br. Zool. i. Nº 70.-De Buffon, i. 377.
Strix Paſſerina, Faun. Suec. Nº 79.---Latham,i. 149, Nº 38, Nº 39; 150, Nº 40.
BL. MUSLEV. Mus.
O. With pale yellow irides : bill whitiſh brown : head light
brown fpeckled with white: back, and coverts of the wings,
and fcapulars, of the fame color, marked in parts with white ſpots :
the breaſt whitiſh, varied with ruft-color: tail barred with white,
and marked regularly on each web with circular white ſpots : feet
feathered to the claws. It varies in length, from eight to ſeven
inches. The ſmalleſt I have ſeen is from Nova Scotia ; which has
white circlets about the eyes, and fewer white ſpots on its plu-
mage.
Inhabits from Hudſon's Bay to New York. Called by the natives
of the firſt, Shipmofpiſh. Lives in all ſeaſons among the pines :
builds its neft half way up the tree: lays two eggs. Are moſt
folitary birds. Keep cloſe in their retreat the whole day; but are
moſt active mouſers during night. Frequent in Ruſſia; lefs ſo in
Sibiria,
The LITTLE Owl appears in Sweden with the firſt rays of the
ſun: its voice is a moſt acute whiſtle, by the imitation of which,
ſmall birds are readily collected together.
PLACE
* EARED.

SCANDINAVIAN, AND TAWNY OWL.
275
* E AR E D.
A. SCANDINAVIAN EARED Owl, Strix Scandiaca, Faun. Suec. N° 70.Latham i. 120.
SIZE.
O. With the plumage entirely white, ſprinkled with black ſpots.
Size of a Turky: in all reſpects like the Snowy Owl, except
the ears.
Inhabits the Lapland alps. Mentioned by Linnæus ; who ſeems
to take his deſcription from a painting of Rudbeck's; but its exiſtence
is confirmed by Mr. Tonning of Drontheim *.
PLACE
j
*
** EARLESS.
B. TAWNY Owl, Br. Zool. i. N° 68. Latham, i. 139.
Strix Stridula, Skrik Uggla, Faun. Suec. Nº 77.--Pl. Enl. 437.---Lev. Mus.
O. With a plain head : duſky irides : plumage of the head, and
the whole upper part of the body, tawny, ſpotted and powdered
with duſky ſpots: breaſt and belly yellowiſh, mixed with white,
marked downward with duſky ſtreaks: tail blotched, barred, and
ſpotted with pale ruft-color and black : toes feathered to the claws.
WEIGHT nineteen ounces.
* Rariora Norvegiæ, in Amen. Acad. vii. 479.
Nn 2
Inhabits

276
S W E DI SHOW L.
PLACE,
Inhabits Europe, as far as Sweden. Frequent in the ſouth of Ruſia,
and deſerts of Tartary; and breeds in the neſts of Rooks. None in
Sibiria : a ſuſpicion that it is found in Hudſon's Bay ?
C. Swedish.
THE Strix Aluco of LINNÆUS ; La Hulote, de Buffon, i. 358;
Pl. Enl. 441, is a bird of Sweden. I never met with it, there-
fore borrow the deſcription from Mr. Latham's Ornithology.
The head is large : irides duſky: circle of feathers round the eyes
greyiſh : upper part of the body deep iron grey, ſpotted with black
and white: breaſt and belly white, ſtriped down with ragged black
ſtrokes: legs and feet covered with feathers, white, with numerous
black ſpecks: tail barred with reddiſh aſh and black: the firſt
feather of the wings exceeds the reſt by two or three inches: the
wings reach beyond the end of the tail.
This ſpecies lays, in April, from three to five eggs, of a ſnowy
whiteneſs: the young are blind to the tenth day, and are covered
with filthy red warts. The female parent feeds them with mice.
They fly towards the end of July. The note of the young is like
the noiſe of granſhing one's teeth. The old fly in the moſt quiet
manner, and make no ſort of noiſe: they feed on ſmall birds, but
vetches have been found in their ſtomach. In the ſummer they
live in the woods; towards winter return to the neighborhood of
houſes. It refuſes to eat in captivity, and loſes its life with its li-
berty. If one of its young is taken away, it removes the reſt to ano-
ther place.
D. SPOTTED

S P O T TE DOW L.
277
D. SPOTTED.
DOCTOR Tengmalm, an able ornithologiſt, reſident near Stock-
bolm, lately diſcovered a new ſpecies of Owl, of the ſize of a
Blackbird. The bill duſky, tipped with white: from its corners,
to each eye, is a line of black: the irides yellow: the circlet of
feathers round the eyes is white, mixed with dulky: head grey,
ſtriped with white, and ſurrounded with a duſky circle ſpotted with
white and duſky: primaries duſky, barred with white: breaſt and
belly white, varied irregularly with dulky marks: tail above, of a
duſky grey, ſtriped with white : toes feathered to the claws; grey,
with pea-ſhaped ſpots of white,
ORDER

278
GREAT SHRI K E.
ORDER II. PIES,
IV. S H R I K E. Gen. Birds IV.
227. GREAT
Great Shrike, Br. Zool. i. N° 71,
Lanius Excubitor, Warfogel, Faun. Suec. Nº 80.- Latham, i. 160.
White Whiſky John, Phil. Tranſ. lxii. 386.
La Pie-grieche Griſe, De Buffon, i. 296. pl. xx.-Pl. Enl. 445.-Lev. Mus.
S.
3
With a black bill and legs: cinereous crown, hind part of
• the neck, and back: cheeks white, croſſed from the bill with
a bar of black ; under fide, from chin to tail, white, marked with
femicircular lines of a pale brown: lefſer coverts black ; thoſe on
the joints of the wings aſh-color: primaries black, marked with a
ſingle band of black; fecondaries tipt with white: the tail cunei-
form; the two middle feathers black, the tips of the next on each
fide white; on the reſt the white prevales, till the exterior, when
the black almoſt entirely vaniſhes: beyond each eye of the female
is a brown bar.
Inhabits North America, from Hudſon's Bay to Louiſiana. In
Hudſon's Bay, lives in the woods remote from ſhores, and is the
firſt bird there which brings out its young in the ſpring, Makes
its neſt with dry graſs or bents, and lines it thickly with feathers :
lays ſeven eggs, of a pale blue color, blotched with brown.
Is frequent in Ruſia, but does not extend to Sibiria ; yet one was
taken by our navigators within Bering's ſtraits, in lat. 66, on the
Afiatic ſide of the Frozen Sea. Has the ſame manner of transfix=
ing and tearing its prey as the Engliſh kind.
3
S. With
PLACE.

BLACK-CROWNED, CRESTED, AND NATKA SHRIKE.
279
128. BLACK
CROWNED
a
S. With the bill, legs, crown, and ſides of the head, back, and
coverts of wings, black: primaries black, marked with a ſmall
ſpot of white, and another on the ridge of the wing: throat, cheeks,
and vent, pure white : breaſt and belly tinged with aſh-color: tail
long; middle feathers black; the reſt marked at their ends with
white, which increaſes to the exterior ; in which the black almoſt
vaniſhes. Rather inferior in ſize to the laſt.
Inhabits North America. Seems to be La Pie Grieſche de la Louis
fiane, Briſon, ii. 162; Latham, i. 162.
PLACE,
129. CRESTED
Lanius Canadenſis, Lin. Syft. 134.--De Buffon, i. 316.--Pl. Enl. 479. fig. 2.-
Latham, i. 182.
La Pie Grieſche de Canada, Briſon, ii. 171.-Lev. Mus.
S. With black bill and legs : head adorned with a reddiſh creft:
a
cheeks duſky, ſpotted with white : hind part of neck and back
brown, inclining to red: throat and breaſt of a yellowiſh red : belly
and vent of a fine aſh-color: coverts of the wings black, edged
with white; primaries with white on their exterior fides: tail black,
bordered on each ſide, and tipt with white. Length fix inches
and a half: EXTENT about eleven.
Inhabits Canada.
a
PLACE
130. NATKA.
S. With the bill Nightly incurvated at the end, black, except the
upper half of the lower mandible : crown, lower part of the
upper ſide of the neck, and the back, black: over each eye is a
white line, extending to the very nape; beneath that one of black:
from chin to vent is wholly white: a narrow white circle quite en-
compaſſes

280
RED-BACK ED SHRI K E.
compaffes the neck : leſſer coverts of the wings black; greater
white, more or leſs daſhed down the ſhafts with black: primaries
duſky, fringed with yellowiſh brown; ſecondaries black, edged
and tipped with white: tail black, a little rounded; the four out-
moſt feathers tipped with white : rump cinereous, the edges of the
feathers grey: legs black. Length ſeven inches one-fourth.
Brought from Natka ſound in North America. Communicated
to me by Mr. Latham, who deſcribes it (vol. i. p. 169) under the
name of the Northern.
PLACE.
131. RED-
BACKED
Br. Zool. i. N° 72.- Latham, i. 167,
Lanius Collurio, Faun. Suec. No 81.
Pie-grieche de la Louiſian, De Buffon, i. 307.—Pl. Enl. 397.-Lev. Mus.
S.
a
PLACE.
With
grey crown and rump: ferruginous back and coverts of
wings : black line acroſs the eyes : breaſt and belly roſeate :
tail black ; exterior feathers edged with white: head and upper
part of the FEMALE dirty ruſt-color; line over the eyes the ſame
color: breaſt and belly dirty white, marked with duſky ſemicircular
lines. LENGTH ſeven inches and a half.
Inhabits Ruſſia; not Sibiria. Is found in Sweden and Chriſtianfoe.
The Count De Buffon ſays, he received one from Louiſana. I
imagine, that, as the Norwegians give the Great Shrike and this a
name, that they may be found in their country. The firſt they call
Klavert, the laſt Hanvark. Mr. Ekmark has obſerved both of
them, only during ſummer, in Eaſt Gothland; but is not certain
whether they winter. Each ſpecies appears in Italy in the ſpring;
retires in autumn.
The RED-BACKED SHRIKE returns to Sweden the latter end of
April: makes its neft in low buſhes, in form of a cup, near a quarter
of a yard in diameter, of wool, ſoft dry graſs, &c. with amazing art.
The

G RE Y S H R I K E.
281
The young are long before they fly: the taſk of feeding the young
reſts chiefly on the female; and principally the food conſiſts of in-
fects of the hymenoptera order. Their food is not confined to thoſe,
for Mr. Oedman has ſeen about the neſts the exuviæ of thouſands of
hornets. The female defends its neſt ſtoutly, yet at other times is
very timid: the male with great affection feeds its mate, when the
latter is on the duty of incubation; and during that time is rarely
ſeen at home. When the female has quitted the neft, the male un-
dertakes the care of the young ; fitting for their protection in the
top of ſome neighboring tree: the female fits in fearful ſilence :
its mate elevates its voice. This ſpecies feeds chiefly on inſects,
feldom on ſmall birds.- Mr. Oedman.
A. Grey, Lanius Nengeta, Lin. Syft. 135.- Latham, i. 183,
Grey Pye of Brafil, Edw. 318.
S.
With the crown, hind part of the neck, back, and coverts of
the wings, deep cinereous : a black line paſſes from the bill
through the eyes to the hind part of the head: greater coverts and
ſecondaries black, tipt with dirty white; primaries black: breaſt
and belly light aſh-color: tail black; ends of the outmoſt feathers
white. Much larger than Nº 127, the common Great Shrike;
and differs fpecifically.
Vol. 1.
Inhabits
оо

282
LESSER GREY SHRIK E.
PLACE.
Inhabits Ruſia, but is more frequent in Sibiria ; where it lives
in the foreſts the whole winter. Taken and tamed by the fowlers ;
and kept by the Ruſſians for the diverſion it affords in the manner
of killing its prey. They ſtick a rod with a ſharp point into the
wall of a room, on which the Shrike perches. They turn looſe
a ſmall bird, which the former inſtantly ſeizes by the throat,
ftrangles, and then ſpits it on the point of the ſtick, drawing it on
with its claws and bill. Thus it ſerves as many as are turned to
it, and afterwards eats them, thus ſuſpended, at its leiſure * The
Germans ſtyle it Wurchangel, or the Suffocating-angel. The old Eng-
liſh, Wariangel, which fignifies a bird of ſome very miſchievous
qualities; as is evident from Chaucer.
ز
This Sompnour, which that was as ful of jangles,
As ful of venime ben thiſe Wariangles t:
B. LESSER GREY, Pie Grieche d'Italie, De Buffon, i. 298..--Pl. Enl. 32.
.
.
S. With the forehead black: a black line croſſes the eyes, like
as in the former : head, hind part and ſides of the neck, back,
and coverts of wings, cinereous, paleſt on the rump: ridge of the
wing white: primaries black, with a white ſpot near the baſe ; fe-
condaries black, tipt with white : throat white: breaſt and belly
tinged with roſe-color: tail marked like the preceding.
Inhabits Ruſa, but not Sibiria. Found in Italy and Spain.
PLACE.
* EDWARDS, Gl. p. 233.
+ The Freres tale.-Ful of venime, becauſe it was believed, that the thorn on
which it ſtuck its prey was venomous.
V. PARRO T.

CAROLINA PARRO T.
283
V. PARRO T. Gen. Birds V.
132. CAROLINA
Parrokeeto, Lawſon, 142.-Latham, i. 227.-Lev. Mus.
Parrot of Carolina, Cateſby, i. 11.-Du Pratz, ii. 88.
Pſittacus Carolinenſis, Lin. Syft. 141.c.-Brilon, iv. 350.
La Perruche a tete jaune, De Buffon, vi. 274.
Le Papegai a tete aurore, De Buffon, vi. 247.
P..
PLACE.
With the forehead, ridge of the wings, and feathers round
• the knees, orange : head and neck yellow : back, body, and
coverts of wings and tail, green: primaries duſky, mixed with blue
and green; the upper exterior ſides edged with yellow: tail very
long and cuneiform: legs white. Length thirteen inches.
WEIGHT three ounces and a half.
Inhabits the ſouthern parts of North America, but never appears
higher than Virginia. It is in general a migratory bird, even in Ca-
rolina ; arriving at the ſeaſon when mulberries are ripe, which they
are very fond of, and which are the earlieſt fruits of the country,
except ſtrawberries. They infeft, in autumn, the apple-orchards
in vaft flocks, and make great havock by ſplitting the fruit for the
fake of the kernels only, being very greedy of them, and the ſeeds
of cypreſs, and other trees. They devour too the buds of the
birch.
Few of theſe tender birds continue in Carolina during the whole
year. They breed in hollow trees, in low ſwampy grounds. When
taken, they eaſily grow tame, but do not ſpeak. Their inteſtines
are ſaid to be a ſpeedy poiſon to Cats.
ooz
The

284
ILLINOIS PARRO T.
·
EGGS.
The eggs of Parrots are roundiſh, and generally of a pure white ;
thoſe of the Maccaws ſpotted, like the eggs of a Partridge. The
number uſually two; yet the Count De Buffon gives an inſtance of
a Perroquet, in a ſtate of confinement, which laid four eggs every
ſpring, during five or ſix years : one of the eggs was addle; the
others productive *
133. ILLINOIS.
Tui-apeta-jube, Margrave, 206, Nº 2.-Wil. Orn. 116.--Raii. Syn. to. 34.-
De Buffon, vi. 269.-Pl. Enl. 528.-Latham, i. 228.
Pfittacus Pertinax, Lin. Syft. 142.
La Perruche Illinoiſe, Briſon, iv. 353.
Yellow-faced Parrot, Edw. 234.
PLACE.
P. With a cinereous bill : orange-colored irides : forehead,
cheeks, and ſometimes the hind part of the head, of a rich
orange: crown, upper part of the body, tail, and coverts of the
wings, of a fine green: primaries green, edged externally with
blue : breaſt and belly of a yellowiſh green: vent yellow : tail very
long and cuneiform. Of the fame fize with the former.
Inhabits the interior parts of North America, in the country of
the Illinois, ſouth of lake Michigam : it is alſo met with in the Bra-
zils. Is a lively bird; but its voice not very articulate. Father
Charlevoix met with ſome on the banks of the Theatiki, a river that
riſes a little fouth of lake Michigam, and runs into the Miſiſipi. He
ſays, that thoſe he faw were only ftragglers, which migrated before
winter; but that the main body paſſed the whole year on the bor-
ders of the Miſiſipi t.
The Count De Buffon confines the whole genus of Parrots to ex-
actly twenty-five degrees on each ſide of the Equator I. It always
a
LATITUDES OF
PARROTS.
Oif. vi, 115
+ Journal Hiſtorique, vi. 124.
I Oif. vi. 82.
gives

ILLINOIS PARRO T.
285
gives me pain to differ in opinion with ſo illuſtrious a character;
but I muſt produce my authorities of their being common at far
greater diſtances. On the continent of America, two ſpecies have
been obſerved by the Spaniards about Trinity Harbour, in the South
Seas, in north lat. 41.7*. Dr. Forſter ſaw, in the raw, rainy lati-
tude of Duſky Bay, in New Zealand, 46 ſouth, two kinds. In the
neighborhood of Botany Bay, in New Holland, in ſouth lat. 34, five
,
ſpecies were diſcovered ; among which, the greater variety of the
fulphur-creſted cockatoo appeared in amazing multitudes. But
what is moſt wonderful, a ſmall ſpecies of this tender genus is to be
met with as low as Port Famine, in the ſtreights of Magellan, in
ſouth lat. 53. 44 t, in flocks innumerable. They inhabited the
vaft foreſts of the country. Their food muſt be confined to buds
and berries; for no ſort of fruit-trees have been obſerved there.
The foreſts likewiſe were frequently bounded by mountains, pro-
bably cloathed with eternal ſnow.
* Barrington's Miſcellanies, 489.491.
+ See Spilbergen's Voy. in Purchas, i. 80; Wood's, in Dampier's Voy. iv. 112; and
Byron's, in Hawkeſworth’s Coll. i. 38. Beſides theſe authorities, Lieut. Gore (ſince
Captain) and Mr. Edwards, now ſurgeon at Caernarvon, who failed with Mr. Byron,
confirmed to me the exiſtence of theſe birds in the ſtreights of Magellan.
VI. CROW.

286
R A V E N.
VI. CROW. Gen. Birds XII.
134. RAVEN
Br. Zool. i. N° 74.
Corvus Corax, Lin. Syft. 155.
Korp, Faun. Suec. N° 85.—Leems, 240.-Faun. Groenl. p. 62.Latham, i. 367.
-
.
---De Buffon, iii. 13.-Lev. Mus.
a
a
Size.
With the point of the bill a little incurvated, with a ſmall
C.
tooth on each ſide, of a black color, glofſed with blue. It
varies to white, and to pied. In the Feroe iſles is a breed which
are black and white, and are ſaid to keep in a place ſeparate from
the common kind *.
The largeſt of the genus. Weighs three pounds. Length two
feet two inches.
Very numerous as far north as Finmark, Iceland, and Greenland,
where it frequents the huts of the natives, and feeds on the offals
of the Seals t. Preys in concert with the White Bear, Arctic Fox,
and Eagle. Devours the eggs of birds, eſpecially the Ptarmigan:
eats fore-fiſh, and ſhell-fiſh: drops the laſt from on high to break
them, and get at the contents. Turns round in the air, and is dex-
terous; changes its prey from its bill to its feet, or from its feet to
its bill, by way of eaſe. Eats alſo berries, and, when almoſt fa-
miſhed, dried ſkins and excrements. Neſtles on high rocks, which
overhang and afford a canopy. Couples in March ; lays in April.
Each preſerves a diſtrict to itſelf. The male fits in the day; the
female in the night : the former ſleeps cloſe by its mate. Have
PLACE.
* Brunnick, p. 8.
7 Egede, 64.
ſtrong

CARRION CROW.
287
ſtrong affection to their young brood. Hearing its croaking
echoed, repeats it; as if admiring its own note. At approach of
ſtorms, collects under ſhelter of rocks.
Caught by the natives. Its fleſh is eaten. The ſkins reckoned
the beſt for cloathing: the wings uſed for bruſhes: the quils ſplit,
are made into fiſhing-lines. They alſo inhabit Newfoundland, and
now and then appear as low as Virginia and Carolina *.
This bird is, among the American ſavages, an emblem of return
of health. Their phyſicians, or rather magicians, when they viſit
a fick perſon, invoke the Raven, and mimic his croaking voice t.
The northern Indians, on the contrary, deteſt this and all the Crow
kind I. It inhabits Kamtſchatka and Sibiria ; but not within the
Afiatic Arctic regions.
The Raven in winter lives in Sweden, in flocks, near the ſhores
of the ſea, to ſupport itſelf on whatſoever the waves fling up. The
ruftics eſteem it a bird of ill omen, eſpecially when it is heard
croaking near the houſes of the ſick. They fear ſhooting this bird,
under a notion that it will ſpoil their gun.-Mr. Oedman.
135. CARRION.
Br. Zool. i. N° 75?-Latham, i. 370.
Blaae Raage, Brunnick, Nº 29.
Corvus Corone, Faun. Suec. No 86.
La Corbine, ou l'Corneille, De Buffon, iii. 45:-Pl. Enl. 483.-Lev. Mus.
C. With the plumage wholly black, gloffed with violet : bill
ſtrong, thick, and arched: noſtrils covered with ſtrong black
briſtles: ends of the feathers of the tail ſlightly pointed. LENGTH
eighteen inches and a half. Weight from twenty to twenty-two
ounces S.
+ Adair's Hift. Am. 173.
I Mr. Hutchins.
Lawſon, 139.
§ Voyage, i. 121.
3
Inhabits

288
CARRION CROW.
PLACE.
Inhabits the province of New York, and the inland parts of Hud-
Son's Bay. Mr. Blackburn obſerved, that it retains there the ſame
manners as the European ſpecies; and never migrates from New
York. MR. KALM ſays, that they fly in great numbers, and have a
cry much reſembling the Rook *. By his account, they appear of
a mixed nature, feeding not only on grain, but on carrion ; and are
alſo very pernicious to young poultry. Like Rooks, they pull up
the corn of the country, the new-fown maize; and, when it ripens,
pick a hole in the leaves which ſurround the ears, expoſing it to
corruption, by letting in the rain. The inhabitants of Penſylvania
and New Jerſey were wont to proſcribe them, ſetting three pence
or four pence on the head of each Crow; but the law was ſoon
repealed, becauſe of the great expence it brought on the public
ſtock t. Mr. Kalm alſo remarks this agreement with the Rook
ſpecies, that they ſettle much on trees, both in February and the
ſpring
Theſe birds are ſo rare in Sweden, that Linnæus gives only one
inſtance of its being killed in his country. Yet it is found in the
dioceſe of Drontheim, and in the Feroe iſlands. They are ſcarce in
Ruſia ; and only in the north, Grow more common in Sibiria,
and are found plentifully beyond the Lena, where the Hooded
Crow ceaſes. Was obſerved about Botany Bay, in New Holland;
and is met with in the Philippine iſles I.
The CARRION Crow is never ſeen farther north than Norcoping
lat. 58. 45.-Mr. Oedman.
* See article Rook, p. 292, A. where a compariſon is made of the differences
between theſe two birds.
+ Voyage, ii. 65.
| De Buffon, iii. 56.
Br.

MAGPIE, AND CINEREOUS CROW.
289
136. MAGPIE,
Br. Zool. i. Nº 78. Latham, i. 392.--De Buffon, iii. 85.
Corvus Pica, Skata, Skiura, Skara, Faun. Suec. N°92. Lev. Mus.
C. Variegated with black and white, the black moſt beautifully
gloffed with green and purple : the tail very long, cuneiform,
black, reſplendent with the ſame rich colors as the body. Length
eighteen inches : weight nine ounces.
Viſits Hudſon's Bay, where the natives call it Oué ta-kee Aſke, or
the Heart-bird. It migrates, and but ſeldom appears there *.
Is found in Europe, as high as Wardbuys, in lat. 711. It is
eſteemed there an augural bird. If it perches on the church, it is
ſuppoſed to portend the death or removal of the miniſter: if on
the caſtle, that of the governor t. The Magpies ſwarm in the
temperate parts of RufriaCommon in Sibiria, and even as far as
Kamtſchatka, and the iſles.
PLACE.
-
137. CINEREOUS.
Corvus Canadenſis, Lin. Syf. 158.-Latham, i. 389.
Le Geay Brun de Canada, Briſſon, ii. 54.-De Buffon, iii. 117.-Lev. Mus.
a
C.
With a black bill, ſtrong, ſtrait, notched near the end of the
upper mandible : noſtrils covered with a tuft of whitiſh fea-
thers reflected downwards: the forehead, cheeks, and under
part
of
the body, of a dirty reddiſh white : the feathers on the crown long
and black, forming a ſpecies of creft, like that of the Engliſh Jay:
the plumage on the back brown, filky, looſe, and unwebbed, like
that of the Jay: wings black : tail long, cuneiform, black; the
three outmoſt feathers tipt with dirty white: legs black. LENGTH
near eleven inches : extent fifteen. Weight two ounces and a half.
. Phil. Tranſ. lxii. 387.
+ Leems, 241.
VOL. 1.
PP
Inhabits

290
BLU E CROW.
PLACE.
Inhabits Hudſon's Bay, Newfoundland, and Canada, and the woods
on the weſtern coaſts of America. Theſe birds breed early in
ſpring: their nefts are made of ſticks and graſs, and built in pine-
trees. They have two, rarely three, young ones at a time. Their
eggs are blue. The young are quite black, and continue ſo for
ſome time. They fly, in pairs. The male and female are per-
fectly alike. They feed on black moſs, worms, and even fleſh.
When near habitations or tents, they are apt to pilfer every thing
they can come at, even falt meat. They are bold, and come into
the tents to eat victuals out of the diſhes, notwithſtanding they have
their hoard of berries lodged in the hollows of trees. They watch
perſons baiting the traps for Martins, and devour the bait as ſoon
as they turn their backs. Theſe birds lay up ſtores for the winter ;
and are ſeldom ſeen in January, unleſs near habitations: they are a
kind of mock-bird. When caught, they pine away, and die, tho'
their appetite never fails them * Deteſted by the natives of
Hudſon's Bay.
139. BLUE,
-
Jay, Clayton's Virginia.-Phil. Tranſ. iii. 590.--Larson, 141.
Blue Jay, Cateſby, i. 15.--Edw. 239.---Latham, i. 386.
Corvus Criſtatus, Lin. Syft. 157.
Le Geay Bleu de Canada, Briſſon, ii: 55.--De Bufon, iii. 120.-Bl. Mus.
----Lev. Mus.
.
a
C. With a ſtrong thick bill: head adorned with a rich blue
creſt: a ſtripe of black from the bill extending beyond the
eyes: throat and cheeks white: neck furrounded with a black col-
lar: breaſt of a pale vinaceous red : belly white: back of a pale
purple : coverts of the wings and ſecondaries, of a rich blue,
Mr. Hutchins.
beautifully

S T ELLER'S CROW.
291
PLACE.
beautifully barred with black; the ſecondaries, and one order of
the coverts, tipt with white: tail long and cuneiform, barred with
blue and black; the tips of all white, excepting thoſe of the two
middlemoſt: legs black. LENGTH twelve inches.
Inhabits Newfoundland, Canada, and as far fouth as Carolina. Has
the ſame actions and jetting motion as the Engliſh Jay, but its cry
is lefs harſh. It feeds on fruits and berries, and commonly ſpoils
more than it eats. It is particularly fond of the berries of the bay-
leaved Smilax. Reſides in the country all the year. Lays in May
five or fix eggs, of a dull olive with ruſty ſpots.
C. With a crefted head : bill, neck, and back, black : lefſer co- 139. Sreller's **
,
verts of the wings duſky; the others of a rich reſplendent
blue: exterior webs of the primaries of the ſame color; the inner
duſky; the ſecondaries of a beautiful rich blue, croſſed with narrow
black bars, remote from each other : the rump, belly, and breaſt,
of a dull blue: tail very long, cuneiform, and of a fine gloſſy blue;
the middle feathers ſlightly barred. Size of an Engliſh Jay,
Inhabits the woods about Nootka or George found, in North Ame-
rica.
It had been before diſcovered by Steller, when he landed on
the fame ſide of that continent. Deſcribed from a ſpecimen in the
collection of Sir Joseph BANKS.
a
a
PLACE.
* Latham, i. 387.
Pp 2
A. Roor,

292
ROOK.
A. Rook, Br. Zool.i. N° 76.- Latham, i. 372.
Corvus Frugilegus, Roka, Faun. Suec. N° 87.---De Buffon, iii. 55.
C. Black, gloſſed with purple: a tinge of dull green over part
of the tail : the ends of the feathers of the tail broad, and
rounded; thoſe of the Crow, acute: the bill ftraiter, ſlenderer, and
weaker, than that of the Carrion Crow: the length two inches and
a half; that of the latter only two inches and a quarter. The bill
of the Crow is of a more intenſe black. The noſtrils and baſe of
the bill of the Rook naked, and whitiſh, occafioned by being often
thruſt under ground in ſearch of food. The weight of both
nearly the ſame, about twenty-one ounces: the LENGTH about
eighteen inches: the EXTENT of wings in the Rook three feet one
inch and a half; of the Crow, two inches and a half leſs *
The Rook has not been obſerved in Sweden, except in the ſouth-
ern province of Scania, and the iſle of Oland. It breeds there; but
is driven away by the ſeverity of the winter. No mention is made
of it in the Daniſh or Norwegian Faune. Is common in Ruſia,
and the weſt of Sibiria; but there are none in the eaſt. They
migrate in the beginning of March to the environs of Woroneſch,
and mingle with the common Crows t.
PLACE.
* I once had the curioſity to compare the meaſurements of theſe common birds, and
found them as above; but they are often inferior in fizes to the ſubjects I examined.
+ Extracts, i. 103.
3
B. Hooded,

HOODED CROW.
293
B. HOODED CR. Br. Zool. i. N° 77.-Latham, i. 374.
Corvus Cornix, Kraka, Faun. Suec. N° 88.
Krage, Leems, 239.--De Buffon, iii. 61.
PLACE.
C. With black head, wings, and tail; afh-colored body.
,
Inhabits Europe, as high as the Feroe iſlands and Lapmark,
where it continues the whole year; but in the northern countries
often retires to the ſhores, where it lives on ſhell-fiſh. Is very
common in all Ruſſia and Sibiria: none beyond the Lena. Mi-
grates to Woroneſch, and paſſes the winter there. Grows very large
beyond the Ob, and often varies to entire blackneſs. This bird,
and the Raven, in Oetober quit the ſub-alpine woods, where they
breed; and ſpread all over the plains of Italy. This ſpecies extends
to Syria, as do the Raven, Crow, Jackdaw, and Magpie *.
It is very ſingular, that the HOODED Crow, when it migrates, at
the approach of winter, out of Smoland, retires into Upland, a pro-
vince three degrees to the north of the former : there it lives during
winter, near the ſhores, in the manner of the Raven. It is a bird
deteſted by the natives. Feeds on the eggs of the wild Geeſe and
Ducks. Is driven away from the iſles by the BLACK-BACKED
GULL.-Mr. Oedman.
This ſpecies, the Raven, Crow, JACKDAW, Pie, and Jay, paſs
their winter at Woroneſch t, removing probably from hotter as well
as colder climates; for three of the above can endure the fevereſt
cold.
* Ruſſel's Aleppo, 69.
+ Extracts, i. 100.
C. JACKDAW,

294
JACK DAW, AND NUTCRACKER.
C. JACK DAW, Br. Zool. i. N° 81.-Latham, i. 378.
Kaia, Faun. Suec. Nº 89.--De Buffon, iii. 69.
PLACE.
C.
With white irides: hind part of the head light grey: breaſt
and belly dulky ah: reſt of the bird black. LENGTH thir-
teen inches.
Inhabits as far north as Sondmor : is ſometimes ſeen in the Feroe
ifles. Migrates from Smoland and Eaſt Gothland the moment that
harveſt ends; and returns in the ſpring, attendant on the Stares.
Winters about Upſal, and paſſes the night in vaft flocks in ruined
towers, eſpecially thoſe of antient Upſal. Is ſeldom met with be-
yond Helſingeland, a province lying between lat. 61. and 62. 33.
Inhabits towers, but often uſes the deſerted neſts of Woodpeckers.
Common over all Ruſia and the weſt of Sibiria. A few are
ſeen beyond lake Baikal. Are migratory, unleſs in the ſouth of
Ruſia.
D.
NUTCRACKEK, Br. Zool. ii. App. p. 625.--Lathom, i. 400.--De Buffon, iii. 122.
Merula Saxatilis, Aldr. Av. ii. 284.
Corvus Caryocatactes, Notwecka, Notkraka, Faun. Suec. No 91.
C. With primaries and tail black, the laſt tipt with white : vent
white: reſt of the plumage of a ruſty brown: crown, and co-
verts of the tail, plain; every other part marked with white trian-
gular ſpots. Size of a Jackdaw.
a
Is found as high as Sondmor. Common in the pine-foreſts of
Ruſſia and Sibiria, and even in Kamtſchatka. Lives on nuts and
acorns,
PLACE.

J
295
A
Y.
acorns, and on the kernels of pine-cones. Neſtles in the bodies
of trees, which it perforates like the Woodpecker.
The NUTBREAKER comes very late into Sweden; and ſtays there
till the nuts are gathered. Is not to be ſeen beyond Upland. Hazel
nuts rarely are to be met beyond Gefle, lat. 60.45: they have indeed
been planted, by Mr. Hog ſtrom, at Skellefla, near the arctic circle:
they endured the winter, but did not bear fruit. The nuts of Oland
are greatly ſought after in Sweden, and thought there as ſweet as
almonds.-Mr. Oedman.
E. JAY, Br. Zool. i. Nº 79.-Latham, i. 384.-De Buffon, iii. 107.
Corvus Glandarius, Alloníkrika, Kornſkrika, Faun. Suec. Nº
go.
PLACE
C.
With a black ſpot on each ſide of the mouth: very long
feathers on the head : body purpliſh aſh: greater coverts of
wings beautifully barred with rich blue, black, and white. LENGTH
thirteen inches.
Is met with as high north as Sondmor. Not migratory. Common
in the woods of Ruſſia and Sibiria; but none beyond the Lena. It
is met with again in China.
The Jay is eaten in Sweden ; and taken in ſpringes, baited
with the berries of the mountain aſh, or forbus aucuparia.--Mr.
Oedman.
F. Rock,

296
ROCK CROW.
F. Rock, Greater Redſtart, Wil. Orn. 197.
La Paiſle Solitaire, Belon Oyf. 322.
Codiroſſo Maggiore, Olina, 47.---Latham, i. 176.-De Buffon, iii. 354. Aldr. Av. ii.
282.
Stein-Rotela, Geſ. Av. 732.
a
C. With crown, and neck above, and coverts of wings, brown
and dirty white. In the males, the middle of the back marked
with a ſpot, conſiſting of a bar of blue, black, and ruft-colored:
throat, breaſt, and belly, orange, ſpotted with white, and a few duſky
ſpots : two middle feathers of the tail duſky; the reſt ferruginous :
has the ſame looſe ſilky texture of feathers as the Jay. Size of a
Stare.
Found as high as the foreſts of Lapland. Is called by the Swedes,
Lappſkata and Olyckfugl; by the Norwegians, Gertrudsfogels alſo
Ulyksfuegl, from its being ſuppoſed to forebode ill-luck. Linnæus,
for the ſame reaſon, ſtyles it Lanius Infauftus ; and in his Fauna,
Corvus Infauftus *. It is common in the woods of the north of Ruſſia
and Sibiria. Is a moſt audacious bird. Linnæus relates, that in
dining amidſt the Lapland foreſts, it would often ſnatch away the
meat before him. Breeds in crevices of rocks. Feeds on worms
and inſects. Sings finely, and is often preſerved in cages for its
ſong.
PLACE,
* Syft. 138.-Faun. Suec. No 93
ROLLER.

GARRULOUS ROLLER.
297
ROLLER. Gen. Birds, XIII.
G. GARRULOUS, Br. Zool. ii. App. p. 530 quarto, 624 octavo.-Latham, i. 406.-De
Buffon, iii. 133.-Aldr. i. 395.
Coracias Garrula, Spanſk-kraka, Bla-kraka, Faun. Suec. Nº 94
R. With a naked ſpot beyond each ear: head, neck, back,
breaſt, belly, and greater coverts of the wings, of a light
bluiſh green: back ferruginous : coverts of the tail, lefſer coverts of
the wings, and lower parts of the ſecondaries, of a rich blue; pri-
maries black above, blue beneath: middle feathers of the tail dirty
green; the reſt of a light blue: the exterior feathers on each ſide
much longer than the reſt, and tipt with black : legs yellowiſh.
Size of a Jay
This elegant bird is found not ſpread, but as if it were in a ſtream,
from the ſouthern parts of Norway to Barbary and Senegal : from the
ſouth of Ruſa to the neighborhood of the Irtiſh, only, in that em-
pire ; and ſoutherly, to Syria *. In Sweden, it arrives with the
S
Cuckoo; retires at the concluſion of the harveſt t. It makes its
neſt in the birch, preferably to all other trees $; and in places
where trees are wanting, ſuch as Malta and Barbary, it forms its
neft in clayey banks. Zinanni ſays it lays five eggs, of clear green,
ſprinkled with innumerable dark fpecks . It feeds on fruits, acorns,
PLACE
* Ruffels Aleppo, 69. + Amen. Acad. iv. 583.
I De Buffon, iii. 139: from this circumſtance, one of its German names is Birck-
beher, or the Birch Jay.
ß Zinanni delle Nova, &c. p. 68. tab. x. fig. 29.
VOL. I.
and
eq

298
GARRULOUS ROLLER.
and inſects. Is a ſhy bird; but, at times, is ſeen in company
with Crows and Pies on the plough lands, picking up worms,
and grains of corn. Schwenckfelt fays, that in autumn it grows
very fat, and is eſteemed as a delicacy *. It is remarkably
clamorous. Is migratory. M. Adanſon obſerved them in Sene-
gal, in flocks, in the month of September, and ſuppoſes they winter
theret:
* Av, Silefiæ, 244.
† Voy. Senegal, Engl. ed. 25. 107.
VII. ORIOLE.

RED-WING ORIOLE.
299
VII. ORIOL E. Gen. Birds XIV.
Acolchichi, Fernand. Nov. Hiſp. p. 14.---Wil. Orn. 395:- Raii Syn, Av. 166. 140. RED-WING.
Latham, i. 428.
Black Bird (zd ſp.) Lawſon, 139.
Red-winged Starling, Cereby, i. 13.--Du Praiz, ii. gr.
Le Troupiale a Aifles Rouges, Briſon, ii. 97.
Le Commandeur, De Buffon, iii. 214.---Pl. Enl. 402.
Oriolus Phoeniceus, Lin. Syft. 161.
0.
PLACES
a
With black bill and legs: plumage of a fine jetty blackneſs,
• except the lefſer coverts of the wings, which are of a bright
ſcarlet, with the loweſt row white. LENGTH ten inches. The FE-
MALES are of a duſky color.
Inhabit from the province of New York to the kingdom of
Mexico. In North America they are called Red-winged Starlings,
and Swamp Black-birds; in Mexico, Commendadores, from their red
Shoulders, reſembling a badge worn by the commanders of a certain
Spaniſh order. That kingdom ſeems to be their moſt ſouthern reſi-
dence. They appear in New York in April, and leave the coun-
try in Oétober. They probably continue the whole year in the
ſouthern parts, at left Cateſby and Lawſon make no mention of
their departure. They are ſeen in flocks innumerable, obſcuring
at times the very ſky with their multitudes. They were eſteemed
the peſt of the colonies, making moſt dreadful havock among the
maize and other grain, both when new ſown, and when ripe. They
are very bold, and not to be terrified with a gun; for, notwithſtand-
Q q2
ing
MANNERS.

300
RE D-WING ORIOL E.
ing the ſportſman makes ſlaughter in a flock, the remainder will
take a ſhort fight, and ſettle again in the ſame field. The farmers
ſometimes attempt their deſtruction, by ſteeping the maize in a de-
coction of white hellebore before they plant it. The birds which
.
eat this prepared corn are ſeized with a vertigo, and fall down;
which ſometimes drives the reſt away. This potion is particularly
aimed againſt the PURPLE GRAKLES, or PURPLE JACKDAW, which
conſorts in myriads with this ſpecies, as if in conſpiracy againſt the
labors of the huſbandman. The fowler ſeldom ſhoots among the
flocks, but ſome of each kind fall. They appear in greateſt numbers
in autumn, when they receive additions from the retired parts of the
country, in order to prey on the ripened maize.
Some of the colonies have eſtabliſhed a reward of three pence a
dozen for the extirpation of the Jackdaws: and in New England,
the intent was almoſt effected, to the coſt of the inhabitants; who
at length diſcovered that Providence had not formed even theſe
ſeemingly deſtructive birds in vain. Notwithſtanding they cauſed
ſuch havock among the grain, they made ample recompence, by
clearing the ground of the noxious worms * with which it abounds.
As ſoon as the birds were deſtroyed, the reptiles had full leave to
multiply: the conſequence was the total loſs of the graſs, in 1749;
when the New Englanders, late repentants, were obliged to get their
hay from Penſylvania, and even from Great Britain.
The Red-winged Orioles build their neſts in buſhes, and among
the reeds, in retired ſwamps, in the form of a hang-neſt; leaving it
fuſpended at fo judicious a height, and by ſo wondrous an inſtinct,
that the higheſt floods never reach to deſtroy it. The neft is ſtrong,
made externally with broad graſs, a little plaſtered; thickly lined
USES.
NESTE
* The Caterpillar of the Bruskus Piſi, or Peaſe Beetle, in particular. See Kalm, i
173. 176.
with

WHITE301
- B
ORIOL E.
-BACKED with bent or withered grafs. The eggs are white, thinly and irre.
gularly ſtreaked with black.
Fernandez ſays, that in Mexico they build in trees near towns;
and both he and Cateſby agree, that they ſing as well in a ſtate of
confinement as of nature ; and that they may be taught to ſpeak.
I
agree with M. de Buffon, that, in caſe the manner of their nidifi-
cation is as Fernandez aſſerts, the diſagreement in the different coun-
tries is very wonderful.
In Louiſiana they appear only in winter, and are taken in a clap-
net, placed on each ſide of a beaten path made on purpoſe, and
ſtrewed over with rice. As ſoon as the birds alight, the fowler
draws the net, and ſometimes takes three hundred at a haul.
They are alſo eaten in the Engliſh colonies. Fernandez does not
commend their fleſh, which, he ſays, is unpalatable and unwhole-
ſome.
Du Pratz ſpeaks of two kinds: this, and another which is grey
and black, with a red ſhoulder, like the ſpecies in queſtion. I
ſuſpect he forms out of the young birds, not yet arrived at full color,
a new kind; or perhaps a female bird; for I have received from
Dr. Garden one under that title, which agrees with the deſcription
given by M. Du Pratz. Theſe are ſtreaked with pale ruſty
brown: cheeks black: over each eye a white line: breaſt and
belly black, ſpotted with pale brown: lefſer coverts of the wings
YOUNG, OR
FEMALES?
rich orange.
White-backed Maize Thieves, Kalm, ii. 274.
141. WHITE
BACK ED,
A Species mentioned barely as above by Mr. Kelm, with the ad-
dition of their being leſs than the laſt: that they fing finely,
and appeared flying now and then among the buſhes near Saratoga ;
but

302
BALTIMORE ORIOL E.
PLACE.
but that he ſaw them for the firſt time near New York. As Mr.
Kalm ſeems not to have had a diſtinct fight of theſe birds, it is pof-
fible that they are the WHITE-WINGED ORIOLES of Mr. Latham, ii.
440: the coverts of whoſe wings are white; the reſt of the plumage
entirely black. His ſpecies came from Cayenne.
142. BALTIMORE.
Baltimore bird, Cateſby, i. 48.--Latham, i. 432.
Le Baltimore, Briſon, ii. 109.---De Buffon, iii. 231.-Pl. Enl. 506.
Oriolus Baltimore, Lin. Syft. 162.--BL. Mus.--Lev. Mus.
MALE.
FEMALE,
O. With the head, throat, neck, and upper part of the back,
black : leſſer coverts of the wings orange; the greater black
tipt with white : breaſt, belly, lower part of the back, and coverts
of the tail, of a bright orange: primaries duſky, edged with
white: two middle feathers of the tail black; the lower part
of the reſt of the ſame color, the remaining part orange: legs
black.
Head and back of the female olive, edged with pale brown:
coverts of the wings of the ſame color, marked with a ſingle bar
of white : under ſide of the body, and coverts of the tail, yellow:
tail duſky, edged with yellow. LENGTH of this ſpecies ſeven
inches.
Inhabits from Carolina* to Canada f. Suſpends its neſt to the
horizontal forks of the Tulip or Poplar trees, formed of the fila-
ments of ſome tough plants, curiouſly woven, mixed with wool,
and lined with hairs. It is of a pear ſhape, open at top, with a
hole on the ſide, through which the young diſcharge their excre-
PLACE.
* Lawſon, 145
+ De Buffon
3
ments,

XII
258
Houses you the
Baltimore Oriole N.12.
P Mazell Scule
Art


B A S T A R D ORI O L E.
303
ments, and are fed. In ſome parts of North America, this ſpecies,
from its brilliant color, is called the Fiery Hang-neft. It is called
the Baltimore bird, from its colors reſembling thoſe in the arms of
that nobleman.
It quits North America before winter, and probably retires to
Mexico, the Xochitototl of Fernandez * ſeeming to be the ſame ſpe-
cies.
143. BASTARD
Baſtard Baltimore, Cateſby, i. 49.-Latham, i. 433.
.
i
Le Baltimore Batard, Briſon, ii. 111.--De Buffon, iii. 233.--Pl. Enl. 506.
Oriolus Spurius, Lin. Syft. 162. Bl. Mus.--Lev. Mus.
a
ز
O. With the head, neck, and upper part of the back, of a full
gloſſy black: breaſt and belly of a fine orange bay: lower
part of the back, and coverts of the tail, of the fame color: the
leffer coverts of the wings light bay; the greater black, edged with
dirty white: the quil feathers duſky, edged with white: tail cunei-
form and black.
The head of the female, and hind part of the neck, deep olive :
throat black: coverts of wings duſky edged with white; primaries
and ſecondaries of the fame colors: under fide of the body of a
greeniſh yellow : tail duſky, edged with yellow.
Inhabits North America. Arrives in New York in May. Lays
five eggs; and uſually hangs its neft in an apple-tree.
PLACE
* Av. Nov. Hifp. 39-
Latham,

304
BLACK, AND BROWN - HEADED ORIOLE.
144. BLACK
Latham, ii. 445, Nº 37.
Le Troupiale Noir, Briſſon, ii. 103. tab. X.-De Buffon, iii. 320.---Pl. Enl. 534.
BR. Mus.
PLACE,
O. With a black bill
, an inch long : legs of the ſame color:
whole plumage black and gloffy. LENGTH near ten inches.
Extent one foot. Weight two ounces and a quarter.
FEMALE. With head, breaſt, and belly, duſky, tinged with cie
nereous; the reſt of the plumage of a greeniſh brown.
Inhabits North America, even as far as Hudſon's Bay. Arrives
there in the beginning of June, as ſoon as the ground is thawed ſuf-
ficiently for them to get food, which is Worms and Maggots.
They ſing with a fine note till the time of incubation, when they
defift, and only make a chucking noiſe till the young take their
flight; when they reſume their ſong. They build their neſts in
trees, about eight feet from the ground; and form them with moſs
and grafs. Lay five eggs, of a dark color, ſpotted with black.
Gather in great flocks, and retire foutherly in September. A bird,
which I apprehend to be only a lefſer variety, is deſcribed by the
Comte de Buffon, iii. 221. Pl. Enl. 606. Latham, ii. 446.
a
145. BROWN-
HEADED
O. With the head of a ruſty brown: the body and wings black,
gloffed with green: the tail of a duſky color. Size of a com-
mon Blackbird.-- BR. Mus. LEV, Mus,
Inhabits New York, and appears there in ſmall flocks during
fummer. Perhaps migrates to St. Domingo, where it is alſo found,
and is called there, according to Mr. Kuchan's account, Sifleur, or
Whiſtler; but differs from that deſcribed by M. De Buffon, iii. 230,
which is entirely yellow beneath.
PLACE,
0. With

RUSTY, WHITE - HEADED, &c. ORIOLE.
305
146. Rusty
O. With duſky bill and legs : head, and hind part of the neck,
of a blackiſh purpliſh hue, with the edges of the feathers ruſt-
colored: from the bill, over and beneath the eyes, extends a black
ſpace, reaching to the hind part of the head: throat, under ſide of
the neck, the breaſt, and back, black, edged with pale ruft: belly
duſky: wings and tail black, gloffed with green. Length between
ſeven and eight inches.
Appears in New York in the latter end of Oftober, and makes a
very ſhort ſtay there: it probably is on its way ſoutherly from Hud-
Son's Bay, where it is alſo found.
PLACE
Le Caſſique de la Louiſiane, De Buffon, iii. 242.- Pl. Enl. 646.
147. WHITE
HEADED,
O. With the head, neck, belly, and rump, white : the reſt of the
plumage changeable violet, bordered with white, or in ſome
parts intermixed. LENGTH ten inches French.
Inhabits Louiſiana.
PLACE,
-HEADED,
O. With a duſky bill : head and throat pure white : ridge of the 148. HUDSONIAN
wing, ſome of the under coverts, firſt primary, and thighs, of
the ſame color: all the reſt of the bird duſky, in parts gloffed with
green : on the breaſt a few oblong ſtrokes of white: legs dulky.
LENGTH eight inches and a half. Extent thirteen and a half.
WEIGHT an ounce and three quarters.
Inhabits Hudſon's Bay. A very rare ſpecies. Quere, if only dif-
fering in ſex from the laſt.--Lev. Mus.
PLACE.
VOL. I.
Rr
Le

306
OLIVE, YELLOW-THROATED, &c. ORIOLE,
149. OLIVE
Le Carouge Olive de la Louiſiane, De Buffon, iii. 251.-Pl. Enl. 607.
3
O. With the head olive, tinged with grey: hind part of the
neck, the back, wings, and tail, of the ſame color, tinged with
brown, brighteſt on the rump and the beginning of the tail: the
fides alſo olive, daſhed with yellow; the ſame color edges the greater
coverts and primaries: the throat is orange-colored: the under
fide of the body yellow: legs a browniſh aſh-color. LENGTH fix
or ſeven inches French. EXTENT from ten to twelve.
Inhabits Louiſiana.
PLACI
THROATED.
150. YELLOW- 0.
O. With a bright yellow ſtroke over each eye: cheeks and
throat of the ſame color: all the reſt of the plumage tinged
with green, only fome of the coverts of the wings are tipt with white :
bill and legs duſky. LENGTH nine inches. ExtenT fifteen and
a half.
PLACE.
Was ſhot in Hudſon's Bay.
151. UNALASCH-
KA.
Latham, ii. 447, Nº 40.
,
0.
a
With a brown bill; between its baſe and the eyes a white
mark: plumage above, brown; the middle of each feather
clouded: chin white, bounded on each ſide by a dark diverging
line : fore part of the neck and breaſt of a ruſty brown: coverts of
the wings, the ſecondaries, and tail, brown, edged with ruft: pri-
maries and belly plain : fides duſky: legs brown. LENGTH eight
inches
Brought by the late navigators from Unalaſcbka.
PLACE.
Latham,

SHARP-TAILED ORIOL E.
304
Latham, i. 448.
152. STARP.
TAILED
O. With the crown brown and cinereous : cheeks brown, fur-
rounded by a border of light clay-color, commenced at the
baſe of each mandible of the bill: throat white: breaſt, ſides, and
vent, of a dull pale yellow, ſpotted with brown: belly white: back
varied with aſh-color, black, and white: greater and leſſer coverts
of the wings duſky, deeply hordered with ruft-color ; primaries
black, nightly edged with ruft: the feathers of the tail ſlope off on
each ſide to a point, not unlike thoſe of a Woodpecker ; are of a
duſky color, and obſcurely barred: the legs of a pale brown. SIZE
of a Lark.
Inhabits the province of New York.---From Mrs. Blackburn's col-
lection.
a
PLACE
Rr 2
VIII. GRAKLE.

308
PURPLE GRA KLE.
VIII. GRA KL E. Gen. Birds, XV.
153. PURPLE.
Tequixquiacatzanatl *, Fernondez Mex. 21.
La Pie de la Jamaique, Briſſon, ii. 41.---De Buffon, iii. 97.--Pl. Enl. 538.
Merops Niger iride ſub-argentea, Brown's Jamaica, 476.
Purple Jackdaw, Cateſby, i. 12.-Latham, i. 462.
Black-bird, Lawſon, fp. 2d, 139.- Sloane Jamaica, ii. 299.
Gracula Quiſcula, Lin. Syft. 165.-B.. Mus.-Lev. Mus.
G.
Size.
With a black bill: ſilvery irides : head and neck black,
gloffed over with a moſt reſplendent blue, variable as
oppoſed to the light: back and belly, with green and copper-color,
growing more duſky towards the vent : tail long, and cuneiform:
legs black : wings and tail rich purple. Female entirely duſky :
darkeſt on the back, wings, and tail.
LENGTH of the male thirteen inches and a half: the WEIGHT
about fix ounces. LENGTH of the female eleven inches and a
half.
Theſe birds inhabit the ſame countries as the Red-wing Orioles,
and generally mingle with them. They ſometimes keep ſeparate ;
but uſually combine in their ravages among the plantations of
maize. After that grain is carried in, they feed on the ſeeds of the
Water Tare Graſs, or Zizania aquatica. Their good qualities, in
clearing the country from noxious infects, have been recited before,
in page 300, mixed with the hiſtory of their congenial compa-
mions.
* i, e. The Salt Starling, becauſe in Mexico it frequents the falt lakes.
3
They

BOAT-TAIL GRA KL E.
309
PLACE.
Nesr.
а
They appear in New York and Philadelphia in February, or the
beginning of March ; and fit perched on trees near the farms, and
give a tolerably agreeable note. They alſo build in trees, uſually
in retired places, making their neſts externally with coarſe ſtalks,
internally with bents and fibres, with plaiſter at the bottom. They
lay five or fix eggs, of a pale plue color, thinly ſpotted and ſtriped
with black. After the breeding-ſeaſon, they return with their
young from their moſt diſtant quarters, in flights continuing for
miles in length, blackening the very ſky, in order to make their
depredations on the ripening maize. It is unfortunate that they in-
creaſe in proportion as the country is more cultivated; following
the maize, in places they were before unknown, wherefoever that
grain is introduced.
They migrate from the northern colonies at approach of winter;
but continue in Carolina the whole year, feeding about the barn-
door. Their fleſh is rank, and unpalatable; and is only the food
of birds of prey. The ſmall Hawks daſh among the flocks, and
catch them in the air.
They are alſo found in Mexico, and in the iſland of Jamaica.
They are ſometimes eaten; but their fleſh is hard, rank, and of
bad nouriſhment.
154. BOAT-TAIL.
Gracula Barrita, Lin. Syft. 165.-Latham, i. 460.
Le Troupiale Noir, I&terus Niger, Briſon, ii. 105.-De Buffon, iii. 220.--Pl.
Enl. 534.
Monedula tota nigra, Sloane, 299.--Raii Syn. Av. 185.--Lev. Mus.
G. With the bill an inch and a half long, harp, and black :
plumage black, gloſſed with purple: tail cuneiform, ex-
panded when walking: in fight, or on the perch, folded, ſo as
to

310
BOAT-TAIL GRAK LE.
PLACE,
to form an oblong cavity in its upper part. LENGTH about thir
teen inches.
Inhabits not only the greater Antilles, but the warmer parts
of North America ; conforting with the Purple Grakles, and Red-
winged Orioles. Feeds on maize and inſects; in the iſlands on
Bananas.
IX. CUCKO O.

CAROLINA CUCKO O.
3ΥΣ
IX. CUCKO O. Gen. Birds XIX.
155. CAROLINA
Cuckoo of Carolina, Cateſby, i.9.-Lawſon, 143°
Le Coucou de la Caroline, Briſſon, iv. 112.
Cuculus Americanus, Lin. Syf. 170.-.Latham, i.537.-Lev. Mus.--Bł. Mus.
C.
PLACE.
With the upper mandible, of the bill black, the lower yel-
low: head, and whole upper part of the body, and coverts
of the wings, cinereous; under fide entirely white: primaries
brown on their exterior, orange on their interior fides : tail long;
two middle feathers entirely cinereous, the others tipt with white :
legs duſky. LENGTH twelve inches.
Inhabits North America. Arrives in New York in May. Makes
its neft in June, uſually in apple-trees; and lays four eggs, of a
bluiſh white color. The neft is made of ſmall ſticks and roots,
and reſembles greatly that of the Engliſh Jay; but is ſmaller. It
retires from North America in autumn.
This bird, as well as all the foreign Cuckoos, have only the
generical character of the well-known European ſpecies. They
differ in their economy, nor have the opprobrious notes of that
bird.
A. EUROPEAN

312
EUROPEAN CUCKO O.
A. EUROPEAN CUCKOO, Br. Zool. i. No 82. tab. xxxvi. fem. Latham, i.
509
Cuculus Canorus, Gjok, Faun. Suec. N° 96.
Le Coucou, De Buffon, vi. 305.Lev. Mus.
PLACE.
C.
With dove-colored head, hind part of the neck, back, rump,
and coverts: throat, and under ſide of the neck, of a pale
grey: breaſt and belly white, barred with black: primaries duſky;
inner webs marked with white oval ſpots : tail cuneiform; middle
feathers black, tipped with white; the reſt marked with white ſpots
on each web.-FEMALE. Neck of a browniſh red : tail barred
with ruft-color and black, and ſpotted with white.
Inhabits all parts of Europe, as high as Saltens Fogderie, in Nora
way *, within the Arctic circle; and even at Loppen, in Finmarkt.
It is found equally high in Aſia; and extends as far eaſt as Kamt-
Schatka. In all places it retains its fingular note, and its more ſin-
gular nature of laying its eggs in the neſts of ſmall birds, and to-
tally deſerting them I. Of the above circumſtance I beg leave to
add a proof, which fell under my own notice in June 1778; when
I ſaw a young Cuckoo, almoft full grown (when I firſt diſcovered
it) in the neſt of a white Wagtail, beneath fome logs in a field ad-
jacent to my houſe. The Wagtail was as ſolicitous to feed it, as
if it had been its own offspring; for, many days after the Cuckoo
ز
a
a
* Pontop. ii. 75.
+ Leems, 291.
| Dr. PALLAS.
fled,

W RY NECK,
313
fled, it was ſeen often perched on the adjacent walls, ftill attended
and fed by the Wagtail.
It arrives in the northern and eaſtern parts of Aſia, about the
tenth of June.
W RYNEC K. Gen. Birds XX.
B. WRYNECK, Br. Zool. i. Nº 83.-Latham, i. 548.
Jynx Torquilla Gjoktyta, Faun. Suec. Nº 97.
Le Torcol, De Buffon, vii. 84.-Pl. Enl. 698.Lev. Mus.
W. With a black and colored lift dividing lengthways the
crown and back : upper part of the body elegantly pen-
cilled with grey, black, white, and ferruginous : tail conſiſts of ten
feathers, grey, fpeckled with black, and marked equidiſtant with
four broad black bars.
Extends over all Ruſia and Sibiria, and even to Kamtſchatka.
Found in Sweden, and as high as Drontheim, in Norway; and pro-
bably migrates as far as the Cuckoo. The Swedes call this bird
Gjoktyta, or the bird which explains the Cuckoo : probably for the
ſame reaſon as the Welſh and Engliſh ſtyle it the Cuckoo's Man, as it
ſeems its attendant, and to point out its arrival.
PLACE
VOL. I.
Sf
X. WOOD-

314
WHITE BILLED WOODPECKER.
X. WOODPECKER. Gen. Birds XXI.
156. WHITE-
BILLED.
Quatotomomi, Fernand. Mex. 50.-Wil. Orn. 390.
Ipecu, Marcgrave, 207.-Wil. Orn. 138.--Raii Syn. Quad. 43.-Latham, ii. 553.
Picus principalis, Lin. Syft. 173.
Largeſt White-bill Woodpecker, Cateſby, i. 16.-Lawſon, 142.- Barrere Fr.
Equin. 143.-Kalm, ii. 85.
Grand Pic noir à bec blanc, De Bufon, vii. 46.—Pl. Enl. 690.
W.
With a bill of ivory whiteneſs; great ſtrength; three
inches long: irides yellow: a conic creſt, of a rich ſcar-
let color, on the hind part of the head : head, throat, neck, breaſt,
and belly, black: beneath each eye is a narrow ſtripe of white,
crooked at its beginning, running afterwards ſtrait down the ſides
of the neck: upper part of the back, primary feathers, and coverts
of the wings, black; lower part of the back, and the ſecondaries,
white: tail black.
This is a gigantic ſpecies, weighing twenty ounces; and in bulk
equal to a Crow.
Inhabits the country from New Jerſey to the Braſils. Is in North
America a ſcarce bird; in South America more common. It breeds
in the kingdom of Mexico in the rainy ſeaſon; for which reaſon
Nieremberg ſtyles it Picus Imbrifætus *. The Spaniards call them
Carpenteros, Carpenters, on account of the multitude of chips which
they hew out of the trees, either in forming their neſts, or in ſearch
of food, inſects, and worms, which lurk beneath the bark. They are
very deſtructive to trees; for they have been known to cut out a
PLACE.
a
* Euſeb. Nieremberg.
meaſure

PIL EATED WOODPECK E R.
315
meaſure of chips in an hour's time*. Inſtinct directs them to form
their holes in a winding form, in order the better to protect their
neſts from the injury of the weather t.
Canada is deftitute of theſe birds. The Indians of that ſevere
climate purchaſe the bills from the favages of the more foutheri
parts, at the rate of two or three Buck ſkins apiece, in order to
form the coronets I of their fachems and warriors. Theſe coro-
nets were made with ſeveral materials. Gay plumes formed the
rays; the beaks of birds, claws of rare animals, and the little horns of
their Roes, were the other ornaments. They were never worn but
on high folemnities; either when a warrior ſung the ſong of war, or
was ſetting forward on his march to meet the enemy. He went
forth like a Spartan hero, dancing, and crowned ||.
157. PILEATED
Larger Red-creſted Woodpecker, Cateſby, i. 17.
Le Pic noir hupe de Virginie, Briſſon, iv. 29.
Picus Pileatus, Lin. Syft. 173.--Latham, i. 554.
Le Pic noir à huppe rouge, De Buffon, vii. 48.Pl. Enl. 718.--Lev. Mus.---
BL. Mus.
a
W. With a bill two inches long, of a duſky color on the upper,
and whitiſh on the lower mandible: irides of a gold-color:
a tuft of light brown feathers reflected over the noſtrils: the crown
adorned with a rich ſcarlet creſt, bounded by a narrow buff-colored
line; beneath that is a broad band of black, reaching from the
eyes to the hind part of the head; under this is another line of
buff-color, commencing at the bill, and dropping down on each
ſide of the neck to the pinions of the wings: from the lower man-
Cateſby.
+ Barrere.
Cateſby.
ll Lafitau Meurs de Sauvage, ii. 6.
SE 2
dible

316
GOLDEN-WING WOODPECKER.
dible a line of ſcarlet extends along the lower part of the cheeks:
chin and throat white: fore and hind part of the neck, back, breaft,
belly, and tail, black: the wings black, marked with a double line
of white: legs duſky. LENGTH eighteen inches. WEIGHT nine
ouinces.
PLACE.
Inhabits the foreſts of Penſylvania and New York. When the
maize begins to ripen, this and the other kinds make great havock,
by ſettling on the heads, and picking out the grain; or making
holes in the leaves, and letting in the wet, to the deſtruction of the
plant *. It breeds and reſides the whole year in the country. It
extends as high as lat. 50. 31. north ; being found near the banks
of Albany river, near four hundred miles from its diſcharge into
Hudſon's Bay. Lays fix eggs, and brings forth its young in June.
The Indians deck their Calumets with the creſt of this ſpecies.
158. GOLDEN
WING
Golden-winged Woodpecker, Cateſby, i. 18.
Le Pic Rayè de Canada, Brilon, iv. 70.
Picus Auratus, Lin. Syft. 174.-Latham, i. 597.
Le Pic aux ailes dorees, De Buffon, vii. 39.-Pl. Enl. 693-Lev. Mus.BL.
Mus.
W. With a black bill, bending like that of a Cuckoo : crown
cinereous; on the hind part a ſcarlet ſpot: cheeks and un-
der ſide of the neck of a pale red: from each corner of the mouth a
black line extends along the cheeks: the upper part of the breaſt
is marked with a black creſcent; the remainder and the belly
whitiſh ſpotted with black: back and coverts of wings of a fine
pale brown, barred with black: the primaries cinereous; their
Shafts of a moſt elegant gold-color ; the under ſide of the webs of a
* Kalm.
gloffy

FERRUGINOUS WOODPECKER
317
PLACE.
gloffy yellow: rump white, ſpotted with black : tail black, edged
with white; the ſhafts of all the feathers gold-colored, except thoſe
of the two middle feathers : legs duſky. LENGTH twelve inches.
WEICHT five ounces. The FEMALE wants the black on each ſide
of the throat.
Inhabits from Hudſon's Bay to Carolina, and again on the weſtern
fide of North America. In the firſt is migratory, appearing in
April, and leaving the country in September. All the American
Woodpeckers agree with thoſe of Europe in building in hollow
trees, and in laying fix white eggs. The natives of Hudſon's Bay
call this ſpecies, Ou-thee-quan-nor-ow, from the golden color of the
ſhafts and under ſide of the wing feathers *
The Swediſh Americans call it Hittock, and Piut t; words formed
from its notes. It is almoſt continually on the ground; and never
picks its food out of the ſides of trees, like others of the genus : nei-
ther does it climb, but fits perched like the Cuckoo; to which it
has ſome reſemblance in manners, as well as form. It feeds on in-
ſects. Grows very fat, and is reckoned very palatable. It inhabits
the Jerſies, and other provinces to the ſouth, the whole year,
Latham, i. 592.
Le Pic Mordoré, De Buffon, vii. 34.--Pl. Enl. 524,
159. FERRUGIC
NOUS.
W. With a duſky bill : the crown and pendent creſt of a pale
yellow: a crimſon bar extends from the mouth along the
lower
part
of the cheek: the cheeks, back, and coverts of the wings,
of a deep ferruginous color: lower part of the back of a pale yel-
low: primaries ferruginous, barred on their inner webs with black.
Size of the Green Woodpecker.
Phil. Tr. lxii. 387.
+ Kalm, ii. 36.
This

318
RED-HEADED WOODPECKER.
PLACE
This new ſpecies was ſent to me by Dr. Garden, of Charleſtown,
South Carolina.
160. RED-
HEADED.
Red-headed Woodpecker, Catejby, i. 20.-Lawſon, 3d ſp. 143.--Du Pratz, 92.---
Latham, i. 561.
Picus Erythrocephalus, Lin. Syft. 174.
Le Pic a tefte rouge, de la Virginie, Briſon, iv. 53.-Pl. Enl. 117.
Le Pic noir a domino rouge, De Buffon, vii. 55.-Pl. Enl. 117.-Lev. Mus.---
BL. Mus.
a
W. With a lead-colored bill: head and neck of the moft deep
and rich ſcarlet : back, coverts of wings, primaries, and tail,
of a gloſſy blackneſs: the ſecondaries white, marked with two black
bars : breaſt and belly white: legs black. The head of the Fe-
MALE is brown. LENGTH nine inches and a half. WEIGHT two
ounces.
PLACE.
Inhabits Penſylvania, and the neighboring provinces. Feeds on
maize and apples; and is a moſt deſtructive ſpecies. They pick
out all the pulp, and leave nothing but the mere rind. They feed
alſo on acorns. They were formerly proſcribed; a reward of two
pence was put on their heads : but the law was repealed. They
migrate fouthward at approach of winter. When they are ob-
ſerved to linger in numbers in the woods, in the beginning of winter,
the inhabitants reckon it a ſign of a mild ſeaſon *.
This ſpecies extends acroſs the continent to the weſtern coaſt of
America.
a
* Kalm, ii. 87.
Red-

CAROLINA, AND SPOTTED WOODPECKER.
319
161, CAROLINA.
Red-bellied Woodpecker, Cateſby, i. 19.
i
Picus Carolinus, Lin. Syft. 174.---Latham, i. 570.
Le Pic varié de la Jamaique, Briſon, iv. 59.---De Buffon, vii. 72.
Woodpecker of Jamaica, Edw. 244.Bl. Mus.
W. With the forehead, crown, and hind part of the head, of an
orange red; under ſide of a light aſh-color, tinged with yel-
low : the vent ſpotted with black : the back and wings cloſely
barred with black and white: middle feathers of the tail black, the
outmoft barred with black and white. The crown of the female is
light grey: hind part of the head red. LENGTH eleven inches.
WEIGHT two ounces eleven penny-weights.
Inhabits North America, and the greater Antilles.
PLACE
162. SPOTTED.
Great Spotted Woodpecker ? Br. Zool. i. N° 85.-Latham, i. 564.
Le Pic varié, Briſon, iv. 34.-De Buffon, vii. 57.-Pl. Enl. 196.595.
Picus Major, Faun. Suec. No 100..Lev. Mus.--Bl. Mus.
W. With buff forehead; black crown, bounded behind with a
crimſon band: vent feathers crimſon: back black : fcapulars
white: wings and tail barred with black and white: breaſt and
belly white, tinged with yellow. LENGTH nine inches. EXTENT
fixteen. Weight two ounces three quarters. FEMALE wants the
crimſon marks.
Sent to Mrs. Blackburn from New York. Inhabits Europe, as
high as Lapmark. Extends to the moſt eaſtern part of Sibiria.
PLACE.
L'Epeiche

320
CANADA SPOTTED, AND HAIRY WOODPECKER.
L'Epeiche de Canada, De Buffon, vii. 69.---Pl. Enl. 347.---Briffon, iv. 45.
163. CANADA.
SPOTTED
W. With white forehead, throat
, breaſt
, and belly: crown
black; beneath is a band of white, encircling the head;
from each eye another of black, uniting behind, and running down
the hind part of the neck; each ſide of this bounded by white;
that again bounded by black, commencing at the baſe of the bill,
and uniting with the ſcapulars: the back black; fcapulars of the
ſame color, mixed with a few white feathers : wings ſpotted with
black and white: middle feathers of the tail black; the outmoſt
black and white. Size of the laſt.
Inhabits Canada.
PLACE.
164. HAIRY.
Hairy Woodpecker, Cateſby, i. 19.---Latham, i. 572.
Picus Villofus, Lin. Syft. 175.
Le Pic varié de la Virginie, Brilon, iv. 48.
L'Epeiche ou Pic Chevell de Virginie, De Buffon, vii. 75.-Lev. Mus.--BL.
Mus..
W. With the crown black: the hind part of the head marked
with a crimſon ſpot; the cheeks with two lines of white and
two of black: whole under ſide of the body white: back black, di-
vided in the middle lengthways with a line of white unconnected
feathers, reſembling hairs: the wings black, ſpotted in rows with
white: two middle feathers of the tail black; the two outmoſt en-
tirely white; the reſt black, marked croſſways with white. The
female wants the red ſpot on the head. LENGTH nine inches.
WEIGHT two ouncesa
Inhabits

DOWNY WOODPECKE R.
321
PLACE.
Inhabits from Hudſon's Bay * to Carolina. In the laſt very de-
ſtructive to apple-trees.
165. Downy.
Smalleſt Spotted Woodpecker, Cateſby, i. 21.
Picus Pubeſcens, Lin. Syft. 175.-Latham, i. 573.
Le Petit Pic varié de la Virginie, Briſſon, iv. 50.
Fourth Woodpecker, Lawſon, 143.
L'Epeiche ou Petit Pic varie de Virginie, De Buffon, vii. 76.Lev. Mus.---
BL. Mus.
PLACE,
W. Of the fize of a Sparrow. In all reſpects reſembles the laft,
except in fize; and in having the outmoſt feather of the tail
marked with a ſingle white bar.
Inhabits Penſylvania and Carolina, and is very numerous.
numerous. It is
alſo found, but more rarely, near Albany fort, in Hudſon's Bay. The
Woodpecker tribe is the moſt pernicious of all the birds of America,
except the PURPLE GRAKLE; but this little ſpecies is the moſt de-
ſtructive of its whole genus, becauſe it is the moſt daring. It is
the peſt of the orchards, alighting on the apple-trees, running round
the boughs or bodies, and picking round them a circle of equidiſtant
holes. It is very common to ſee trees encircled with numbers of
theſe rings, at ſcarcely an inch's diſtance from each other; ſo that
the tree dries and periſhes.
a
* Phil. Tranſ. lxii. 388.
VOL. I.
Ti
Yellow

322
YELLOW-BELLIED, &c. WOODPECKER
266. YELLOW
BELLIED.
Yellow-bellied Woodpecker, Cateſby, i. 21.
Picus Varius, Lin. Syft. 176.-Latham, i. 57 4
Le Pic Variè, Briffon, iv. 62.
Le Pic Variè de Carolina, De Buffon, vii. 77.--Lev. Mus.BL. Mus.
W. With a crimſon crown, ſurrounded by a line of black :
cheeks white, with two lines of black: chin crimſon :
breaſt and belly light yellow; the firſt ſpotted with black:
coverts black, croſſed by two bars of white : primaries ſpotted
with black and white : tail black; interior webs of the two mid-
dle feathers barred with white; the two outmoſt feathers edged
with the ſame color. The FEMALE wants the red on the crown.
LENGTH nine inches. Weight one ounce thirteen penny-
weights.
Inhabits the ſame country with the former. Is very numerous,
and very deſtructive to the fruits.
PLACE.
LEGGED.
167. Yellow- THIS is inſerted on the ſuſpicious authority of Albin*. He
ſays, that it is of the ſize of the Little Engliſh Spotted Wood-
pecker ; that the hind part of the head is black; the ridges of the
wings, and the lower part of the belly, white; the reſt of the plu-
mage, and the tail, black; the legs yellow.
3
* Vol. iii. 9.-Brilon, iv. 24, who follows Albin, calls it, Le Pic noir de la Nouvelle
Angleterre.
Three-

THREE-TOED WOODPECKER.
323
Three-toed Woodpecker, Edw. 114.-Phil. Tranſ. lxii. 388.-Latham,i.600.60r.
Picus Tridactylus, Lin. Syft. 177.-Faun. Suec, Nº 103.
Le Pic variè de la Cayenne, Brilon, iv. 55.-Lev. Mus.
168. THREE
TOED
W. With black feathers reflected over the noftrils : crown of
a bright gold color: irides blue: cheeks marked length-
ways with three black and two white lines: hind part of the neck
and back black; the laſt ſpotted on the upper part with white :
coverts of the wings black; primaries black, ſpotted with white :
all the under ſide of the body white; the ſides barred with black :
the middle feathers of the tail black; the outmoſt ſpotted with
white: legs duſky : toes, two before, only one behind; which
forms the character of this ſpecies. LENGTH eight inches. Ex-
TENT thirteen. WEIGHT two ounces.
Inhabits Hudſon's Bay, and Norton Sound, lat. 64. Is frequent in
Sibiria, and common as far as Moſcow, in the alps of Dalecarlia in
Sweden, and in thoſe of Switzerland *.
PLACE.
* M. Sprunglin's collection at Stettlin, near Bern, who told me it was common
among the Alpse
Tta
A. BLACK

324
BLACK WOODPECKE R.
A. BLACK W. Picus Martius, Lin. Syft. 173.
Spillkraka, Tillkraka, Faun. Suec. Nº 93.--De Buffon, vii. 41.-Wil
. Orn. 135.-
Latham, i. 552.-Lev. Mus.
a
PLACE.
W. With the crown of the head of a rich crimſon: the reſt of
the plumage of a full black: the head of the female marked
with red only behind. LENGTH eighteen inches. Extent twenty-
nine. WEIGHT near eleven ounces.
Inhabits the foreſts of Germany, Switzerland, and the north, from
Peterſbourg to Ochotſk, on the eaſtern ocean, eaſtward, and to Lap-
mark weſtward. It migrates to Woroneſch, about the third of
March, and continues coming in greateſt numbers in April. Is
called there The Fuſilier; and is the moſt cunning, and difficult to
be ſhot, of all the tribe.
It does vaſt damage to trees, by making holes of a great depth
in the bodies to neſtle in. A buſhel of duft and chips, a proof
of its labors, are often found at the foot of the tree. Makes
as much noiſe in the operation, as a woodman does with an
Rattles with its bill againſt the ſides of the orifice, till
the woods reſound. Its note very loud. Lays two or three white
ſemi-tranſparent eggs. Feeds on caterpillars and inſects, eſpecially
Ants.
MANNERS
axe.
B. GREEN,

GREEN, AND GREY-HEADED WOODPECKER,
325
B. GREEN, Br. Zool. i. N° 84.-Latham, i. 577.
Picus Viridis, Wedknar, Gronſpik, Grongjoling, Faun. Suec. N° 99.-De Buffon,
vii. 7.-Lev. Mus.
W. :
With crimſon crown: green body; lighteſt below. LENGTH
thirteen inches,
Inhabits Europe, as high north as Lapmark, where it is called
Zbiaine * Is found in Ruſia; but diſappears towards Sibiria.
It inhabits the wooden ſteeples of Sweden, as well as trees.
PLACE.
و
C. Grer-HEADED, Edw. 65.--Latham, i. 583.
W. With a grey head, and neck of a bluiſh grey: noſtrils co-
vered with harſh black feathers, extending in a line to the
eyes: a black line, beginning at the baſe of the lower mandible,
points beneath the cheeks towards the hind part of the neck: under
fide of the body of the color of the head, daſhed with green: all
other parts ſo exactly like the laſt, that I ſhould ſuppoſe it to have
been a variety, had not my very ſcientific friend, PALLAS, aſſured
me that it was a diſtinct ſpecies, and inferior in ſize to the common
GREEN.
It is found in Norway, and among the alps of Switzerland † ; and
common in the north of Ruſſia, and ſtill more in Sibiria. The
Tungufi, of Nijmaia Tungouſka, roaſt this ſpecies, bruiſe the fleſh,
and mix it with any greaſe, except that of the Bear, which diſſolves
PLACE.
* Leems, 292
+ Catalogue of Swiſs birds in M. Sprunglin's cabinet, which that gentleman fa-
vored me with. This ſpecies was not unnoticed by the great GESNER, See his
Hift. Av. ed. p. 710, line 20.
.
too

326
MIDDLE, AND LEST SPOTTED WOODPECKER.
too readily. They anoint their arrows with it, and pretend, that
the animals, which are ſtruck with them, inſtantly fall*.
D. MIDDLE SPOTTED W. Br. Zool.i. N° 86.--Latham, i. 565.
Picus Medius, Faun. Suec. N° 101.-Briſon, iv. 38.
a
W. With a crimſon crown and vent: in all other reſpects like
the GREAT SPOTTED, N° 162, except in fize, being rather
leſs.
E. Lest SPOTTED W. Br. Zool. i. N° 87.
Picus Minor, Faun. Suec. N° 102.
Le Petit Epeiche, De Buffon, vii. 62.-.Pl. Enl. 598.-Brilon, iv. 41.-Lev. Mus.
W. With a crimſon crown: the reſt of the head, breaſt, and
belly, like thoſe of the former: back barred with black and
white: the white on the wings diffuſed in broad beds. Weight
under an ounce. LENGTH fix inches. EXTENT eleven.
The Middle only is found in Ruſſia. This, and the GREAT
SPOTTED, extend to the eaſtmoft parts of Sibiria ; but all three
are found as high as Lapmark t, the extremity of northern Europe,
far within the polar circle; a country which is one vaſt foreſt
of pines, firs, and birch I. Innumerable inſects, or their larvæ,
lurk in all ſeaſons in the bark of the trees; fo that this tribe of
birds is never compelled, for want of food, to fhun even the
moſt rigorous winters of that ſevere climate. It alſo bears the
heats of the torrid zone ; for I diſcovered it among the drawings
in the collection of Governor Loten, made in the iſland of Ceylon.
PLACE.
* Gmelin. Voy. Sibirie, ii. 113.
+ Leems, 292.
I Flora Lapp. Proleg. 21.
XI. KING-

BELTED KINGFISHE R.
327
XI. KINGFISHER. Gen. Birds XXIII.
169. BELTED.
Kingfiſher, Cateſby, i. 69.
American Kingfiſher, Edw. 115.
Le Martin peſcheur hupe de la Caroline, Brilon, iv. 512. & de St. Domingue,
515.
Alcedo Alcyon, Lin. Syft. 180.--Latham, i. 637.
Le Jaguacati, De Buffon, vii. 210.--Lev. Mus.
a
a
K.
a
With a black bill, two inches and a half long: head creſted
with long bluiſh grey feathers: above the upper mandible of
the bill, on each ſide, is a white ſpot; beneath each eye is another :
chin and throat white: the upper part of the breaſt croſſed by a
broad grey belt; the lower part, and belly, white: the ſides of a
vermilion color; in ſome croſſing the breaſt: upper part of the
neck, the back, and coverts of the wings, of a pleaſant bluiſh grey:
the ſecondaries of the ſame color; their ends, and thoſe of the
lower order of coverts, tipt with white: primaries black, barred
with white : tail grey; the two middle feathers plain ; the reſt
barred with white: the legs orange. LENGTH thirteen inches.
WEIGHT three ounces and a half.
Inhabits Hudſon's Bay, Norton Sound, and other parts of North
America. The Achalalaeti, i. e. the Devourer of fiſh, of the Mex-
icans *, ſeems to be the ſame bird. It has the ſame cry, manners,
and ſolitary diſpoſition, with the European fpecies; and feeds not
only on fiſh, but Lizards. It makes its neſt in the face of high
a
PLACE,
* Fernandez, Nov. Hifp. 13.
banks,

328
EUROPEAN KINGFISHER.
banks, penetrating deep into them in an horizontal direction. Lays
four white eggs, which diſcharge the young in June. It migrates in
Mexico; is there eaten, but is obſerved to have the ſame rankneſs
as other piſcivorous birds.
A. EUROPEAN KINGFISHER, Br. Zool. i. N° 88.-Latham, i. 626.
Le Martin-Pecheur, Buffon, vii. 164.--Pl. Enl. 77.
Alcedo Iſpida, Lin. Syft. 179.-Lev. Mus.
PLACE.
K. With the crown, and coverts of the wings, of a deep green, ,
ſpotted with cærulean : ſcapulars and back bright cærulean:
tail rich deep blue: breaſt and belly orange red. .
Said by Du Pratz to be found in North America ; but, as I never
ſaw it in any collection, doubt the fact. Inhabits the temperate
parts of Ruſia and Sibiria, and is frequent about the Jeneſei, but not
farther eaſt. It does not extend to Sweden, and it even ſeems a
rarity in Denmark *
The Tartars and Oftiaks uſe the feathers of this bird as a love-
charm. They fling them on water, and preſerve thoſe which ſwim;
believing, that the woman, whom they touch with one of theſe
feathers, will immediately become enamoured with them. The
Oſtiaks preſerve the bill, feet, and ſkin, in a purſe, and imagine
them to be preſervatives againſt all ſorts of misfortunes t.
* Muller, Prod. Zool. Dan. 13.
+ Gmelin, Voy. ii. 112.
The

EUROPEAN KINGFISHER.
329
The moſt fingular northern philtre, is a ſort of muſhroom, worn
by the youth of Lapland in a purſe, ante pubem pendulo. LINNÆUS's
apoſtrophe is very diverting.
« O ridicula Venus, tibi, quæ in exteris regionibus uteris caffea et choco-
« lata, conditis et ſaccharatis, vinis et bellariis, gemmis et margaritis, auro
“ et argento, ſerico et coſmetico, faltationibus et conventiculis, mufica et
« comoediis, tibi ſufficit hic folus exfuccus fungus.” Flora Lappon. 368.
Vol. I.
UU.
XII. NUT-

330
CANADA, AND BLACK-HEADED NUTHATCH.
XII. NU THAT CH.
Gen. Birds XXIV.
170. CANADA.
NUTHATCH, Br. Zool.i. N° 89?-_Latham, i. 648.651.
Le Torchepot de Canada, Brillon, iii. 592.
Sitta Europea Notwacka, Faun. Suec. N° 104.
La Sittelle, De Buffon, v. 460.-Lev. Mus.
N.
With the crown, hind part of the neck, and ſhoulders,
• black : back and rump of a light blue grey: over each
eye a white line: cheeks white : primaries duſky, edged with grey:
breaſt and belly of a pure white: two middle feathers of the tail
grey; the others black, with a white ſpot at the end : vent ruft-
colored. Size of the European ; of which it ſeems a mere variety.
Inhabits Canada, and as far ſouth as New York, and extends to
the weſtern fide of America, Kamtſchatka*, Sibiria, and Ruſſia; Swe-
den, and Sondmor † in Norway: and does not migrate.
PLACE
171. BLACK-
HEADED.
Nuthatch, Cateſby, i. 22, lower figure.-Latham, i. 650. B.
Le Torchepot de la Caroline, Briſon, iii. 22.
a
N. With the bill, head, and hind part of the neck, black : over
each eye is a white line: back of a fine grey: wings duſky,
edged with grey: breaſt and belly, and vent feathers, red: two
middle feathers of the tail grey; the reſt black, marked with a
white ſpot. Leſs than the European.
Inhabits the temperate parts of America.
PLACE,
* Among a ſmall collection of drawings made in that country by one of our
voyagers.
+ Strom, 247
Small

XIII
271
Kager
Sunny
Marell sculp
.
Ferruginous Woodpecker N: 159
Nuthatch N. 170.
SNA
OF


L EST NU THAT CH.
331
Small Nuthatch, Cateſby, i, 2z..Briſon, iii. 958.-Latham, i. 651. C.
La Petite Sittelle à tête Brune, De Buffon, V. 474.
172. Lest.
a
a
N. With a brown head, marked behind with a white ſpot: back
grey: wings of a deep brown: under ſide of the body of a
dirty white: two middle feathers of the tail grey; the others
black.
Inhabits Carolina, and other parts of North America.
PLACE.
UU 2
XIII. TODY.

332
DUS K Y TODY: HO OPO E.
XIII. TODY. Gen. Birds XXV.
173. Dusky
Todi Sp. quarta, Pallas Spicil. vi. 17.-Latham, ii. 661, Nº 9.-Br. Mus.
T.
3
With a bill half an inch long, broad at the baſe, ſlightly
• indented above the noſtrils, and a little bent near the point ;
baſe beſet with briſtles; upper mandible brown, lower white: co-
lors above duſky; below yellowiſh white: primaries and tail of the
ſame color with the back, edged with dirty white: legs dark. Size
of a Hedge Sparrow.
Inhabits Rhode Iſand. Has the actions of a Flycatcher. Fre
quents decayed trees, and feeds on inſects. Has a brief agreeable
note, which it repeats twice or thrice.-Br. Mus.
PLACE.
HOOPO E. Gen. Birds XXVII.
A. HOOPOE, Br. Zool. i. Nº 90.-Latham, i. 687.-De Buffon, vi. 439.
Upupa Epops, Harfogel, Popp, Faun. Suec. Nº 105.-Lev. Mus.
H. With a high creft, of pale orange tipt with black: back and
wings barred with black and white : neck reddiſh brown:
breaſt and belly white : only ten feathers in the tail; black, with a
white

Η Ο Ο Ρ Ο Ε.
333
PLACE.
white creſcent * acroſs the middle: legs black. LENGTH twelve
inches.
Inhabits Europe, as far as Sweden, where it is called Harfogel, or
Soldier-bird, not only on account of its plumed head, but becauſe
the common people believe its appearance to be an omen of war.
The Hoopoe is called the Harfogel, or Soldier-bird, not from its
creſt but its note, uttering, as it runs on the ground, the note Opp,
opp, opp, thrice repeating it, then haftens moſt ſwiftly to another ſpot,
and repeats the ſame. Opp, in the Swediſh language, ſignifies the
ſame as To Arms! hence this bird has been ſtyled the omen of war.
The Norwegians ſtyle it Ærfugl ; it is therefore likely that it may
ſometimes viſit their country. It is properly a ſouthern bird, and
extends even to Egypt and India. Is common in the ſouthern de-
ſerts of Ruſa and Tartary; grows ſcarcer beyond the Ob; yet fome
are ſeen beyond lake Baikal. Dr. Pallas confirms to me its filthy
manners f. He aſſures, that it breeds, in preference, in putrid car-
caſes; and that he had ſeen the neſt of one in the privy of an unin-
habited houſe, in the ſuburbs of Tzaritſyn. Lays from two to
ſeven cinereous eggs. Uſually has no neſt of its own. Breeds
ſometimes in hollow trees, holes in walls, or on the ground. Mi-
gratory
* Correct the deſcription of this part in the Britiſh Zoology.
+ See Br. Zool. i. 258.-Is rarely ſeen in Britain.
XIV. CREEPER,

334
EUROPEAN, AND BAHAMA CREEPER.
XIV. CRE E P E R. Gen. Birds XXVIII.
174. EUROPEAN
Br. Zool. i. Nº 91.-Cateſby, App. xxxvi.
Certhiu Familiaris Krypare, Faun. Suec. No 106.-Latham, i. 701.
Le Grimpereau, De Buffon, V. 481.-Lev. Mus.
C.
With head and neck brown, ſtreaked with black : rump
tawny: coverts of wings varied with brown and black : pri-
maries duſky, edged with white, and edged and barred with ferru-
ginous marks: breaſt and belly filvery : tail very long, conſiſting
of twelve ſharp-pointed feathers of a tawny hue.
Inhabits North America. Is found, but very rarely, in Ruſia and
Sibiria. Found in Sweden, and never quits the country; and ex-
tends as far north as Sondmor *.
PLACE.
175. BAHAMA.
Bahama Titmouſe, Cateſby, i. 59.
Yellow-bellied Creeper, Edw. 362.
Certhia Flaveola, Lin. Syft. 187.—Latham, i. 737.
Le Grimpereau de Martinique, ou le Sucrier, Briſon, iii. 611.
Le Sucrier, De Buffon, v. 542.
و
C.
With a duſky bill, head, and back: cheeks black : above each
eye is a yellow line: rump yellow: wings dulky; the prima-
ries croſſed with a bar of white : neck, breaſt, and belly, yellow :
tail black; the exterior feathers tipt with white.
The female hath the ſame marks, but the colors are more ob-
fcure.
* Strom, 244
Inhabits

PURPLE CREEPER.
335
PLACE.
Inhabits the Bahama Iſlands, and the Antilles ; in the laſt it lives
among the ſugar-canes, and fucks the ſweet juice which exudes
from them *
L'Oiſeau pourpre à bec de grimpereau, De Buffon, v. 526.-Latham, ii. 723.
175. A.
PURPLE
CREEPER
а.
C. Wholly of a purple color. Length four inches and a half.
According to Seba, it inhabits Virginia ; and is ſaid to fing
well.
* De Buffon, v. 542
2
XV. HONEY-

336
RED-THROATED HONEYSUCKER.
XV. HONEYSUCKER. Gen. Birds XXIX *.
176. RED-
THROATED
Paſſer Muſcatus, Geſner, Av. 655.
Ouriſſia five Tomineio, Cluf. Exot. 96.
Guainumbi Prima, (foem.) Marcgrave, 196.
Colibry, Viamelin, or Riſing Bird, Joſelyn's Voy. 100.--Rarities, 6.-Lev. Mus.
Trochilus Colubris, Lin. Syft. 191.-Latham, i. 769.
L'Oyſeau Mouche a rouge gorge, Briſſon, iü. 716.
Humming Bird, Cateſby, i. 65.-Lawſon, 146.-Edw. 38.
Le Rubis, De Buffon, vi. 13.
H.
With a black bill, three quarters of an inch long : crown,
upper part of the neck, back, and coverts of the wings, of a
moſt reſplendent variable green and gold : chin and throat of a
ſhining rich ſcarlet, changing, as oppoſed to the light, from gold to
a full black; theſe feathers lie nearly as compactly as ſcales : breaſt
and belly white; the ſides green: middle feathers of the tail green;
the exterior purple.
The chin, throat, and whole under fide, of the female, is white:
the exterior feathers of the tail tipt with white.
This bird, ſo admirable for its minuteneſs, vaft ſwiftneſs of flight,
food, and elegance of form and colors, gave riſe to numbers of ro-
mantic tales. They were not the Europeans alone, who were ſtruck
with its great beauty; the natives of America, to whom it was ſo
familiar, were affected with its gemmeous appearance, and beſtowed
on it titles expreſſive of its reſplendent colors. Some nations called
MANNERS
* This
genus may be divided into thoſe with ftrait and thoſe with incurvated bills;
but, there being none of the laſt in North America, the diſtinction is omitted.
it

RED-THROATED HONEYSUCKER.
337
SWIFTness.
Food
it Ouriſſa, and Guaracyaba, or the Sun-beam; others, Guaraeygaba,
or Hairs of the Sun; others again named it Huitzitzil, or Vicililin,
or the Regenerated; becauſe they believed it died annually, and was
re-animated at the return of the flowers it fed on: that it ſtuck its
bill into the trunk of a tree, and remained lifeleſs for ſix months;
when the vital powers re-migrated, and reſtored to nature one of
its moſt brilliant wonders.
It flies with a ſwiftneſs which the eye is incapable of following.
The motion of the wings is ſo rapid as to be imperceptible to the
niceſt obſerver. Lightning is ſcarcely more tranſient than its flight,
nor the glare more bright than its colors. It never feeds but upon
wing, ſuſpended over the flower it extracts nouriſhment from; for
its only food is the honied juice lodged in the nectarium, which it
fucks through the tubes of its curious tongue. Like the Bee, hav-
ing exhauſted the honey of one flower, it wanders to the next, in
ſearch of new ſweets. It admires moſt thoſe flowers which have
the deepeſt tubes. Thus the female Balſamine, and the Scarlet
Monarda, are particular favorites. Whoſoever fets thoſe plants
before the window is ſure to be viſited by multitudes of theſe di-
minutive birds. It is a moſt entertaining ſight to ſee them ſwarm-
ing around the flowers, and trying every tube of verticillated plants,
by putting their bills into every one which encircles the ſtalk. If
they find that their brethren have been beforehand, and robbed the
flower of the honey, they will, in rage, pluck off, and throw it on
the ground.
The moſt violent paſſions animate at times their little bodies.
They have often dreadful conteſts, when numbers happen to diſpute
poſſeſſion of the ſame flower. They will tilt againſt one another
with ſuch fury, as if they meant to transfix their antagoniſts with
their long bills. During the fight, they frequently purſue the con-
quered into the apartments of thoſe houſes whoſe windows are left
VOL.I.
Xx
open,
RAGE.

338
RED-THROATED HONEYSUCKER.
open, take a turn round the room, as Flies do in England, and
then ſuddenly regain the open air. They are fearleſs of mankind;
and in feeding will ſuffer people to come within two yards of them;
but on a nearer approach, dart away with admirable ſwiftneſs.
Fernandez Oviedo, an author of great repute, ſpeaks from his own
knowlege of the ſpirited inſtinct, even of this diminutive bird, in
defence of its young: “ So that when they ſee a man clime ye tree
« where they have their neſts, they flee at his face, and ſtryke hym
" in the eyes, commyng, goying, and returnyng, with ſuch fwyft-
“neſs, that no man woulde lyghtly beleeve it, that hath not ſeene
( it*.!
Father Charlevoix gives a more apocryphal inſtance of the cou-
rage of this bird, in its attack on its diſproportioned enemy the
Raven. As ſoon as the laſt appears, the Honeyſucker flies up like
lightning, beds itſelf beneath the Raven's wing, and, piercing him
with his needle-like bill, till the bird is heard to croak with agony,
at length tumbles to the ground dead, either from the fall or the
wound. This relation ſeems of a piece with the combat of the
Wren with the Eagle, mentioned by Ariſtotle †: but, to do juſtice
both to the French voyager and Grecian philoſopher, I muſt add,
that each of them delivered their reports from oral evidence.
Many fables have been related of the melody of the ſong of theſe
birds. In fact, their only note is Screep, ſcreep, ſcreep; but the noiſe
which they make with their wings, eſpecially in the morning, when
numbers are in motion, is a ſort of buzz or ſound reſembling that
of a ſpinning-wheel. Their note is chiefly emitted when they
happen to ſtrike againſt each other in their flight.
Their nefts are found with great difficulty, being built in the
NOTE.
Nests.
* Hift. of Weſt Indies, tranſlated by Richard Eden, p. 199.
+ Hift. An. lib. ix. c. 11. vol. i. 931.--Charlevoix, V. 232.
branch

RED-THROATED HONEYSUCKER.
339
branch of a tree, amidſt the thick foliage. It is of elegance fuit-
able to the architects; formed on the outſide with moſs; in the in-
fide lined with the down or goffamer collected from the Great
Mullein, or Verbaſcum Thapſus ; but it is alſo ſometimes made of
fax, hemp, hair, and other ſoft materials. It is of an hemiſpherical
ſhape. Its inner diameter an inch: its depth half an inch. The
female is ſaid to be the builder ; the male fupplying her with ma-
terials. Each affiſts in the labor of incubation, which continues
during twelve days. They lay only two eggs, white, and as ſmall
as peaſe. The firſt is very ſingular, and contrary to the general
rule of nature, which makes, in all other inſtances, the ſmalleſt and
moſt defenceleſs birds the moſt prolific. The reaſons of the ex-
ception in this caſe are double. The ſmallneſs of their bodies
cauſes them commonly to eſcape the eyes of birds of prey; or if
ſeen, their rapid flight eludes purſuit: ſo that the ſpecies is pre-
ſerved as fully as if they had been the moſt numerous breeders.
The Indians of Mexico, Peru, and Maynas, make moſt exquiſite
pictures of the feathers of birds; but thoſe of the Honeyſuckers
form the moſt brilliant part. Some uſe them as ornaments, and
hang them as pendants in their ears, which give a blaze emulous
of the Ruby and Emerald. In order to compoſe pictures, the In-
dians draw off the feathers with ſmall pincers, and with fine paſte
moſt artfully join them together. They diſpoſe them with ſuch
ſkill, as to give the true lights and ſhade to the performance, and
imitate nature with the greateſt fidelity. Theſe were meant to de-
corate the idols and temples ; for, before the depreſſion of the In-
dian ſpirit by the tyranny of the Spaniards, religion was highly cul-
tivated among the Mexicans and Peruvians; and, notwithſtanding
it was cruel, was attended with great ſplendor.
The generical name (in the Braſilian tongue) of theſe birds, is
Guianumbi. There are ſeveral ſpecies, but only one which is found
X x 2
in

340
RUFFED HONEY SU CK E R.
PLACE
MIGRATES.
in North America. This kind is found from Canada, through that
great continent, as low as Louiſiana, and from thence to the Braſils.
It breeds even in the northern climate of Canada; but retires not
only from thence, but even from the warm provinces of Carolina,
at approach of winter. In Hiſpaniola, the mountains of Jamaica,
and the Braſils, countries where there are a perpetual ſucceſſion of
flowers, they reſide throughout the year.
177. Ruffed
Latham, i. 785.
a
a
FEMALE.
H. With long ſtrait ſlender bill : head of a rich variable green
and gold: the feathers on the neck long, and diſpoſed on
each ſide in form of a ruff, and of a moſt brilliant crimſon and cop-
per color: back, and coverts of the tail, ruft-colored: breaſt and
belly white, the laſt daihed with red: feathers of the tail pointed;
the ends brown, bottoms ferruginous : coverts of wings green :
primaries deep blue.
Crown, upper part of the neck, back, and coverts of wings and
tail, green and gold : throat white, ſpotted with brown and varia-
ble copper : belly white, daſhed with ruft: primaries deep blue :
middle feathers of the tail green; thoſe on the ſide ferruginous at
their bottoms, black in the middle, and tipped with white.
Inhabit in great numbers the neighborhood of Nootka Sound.
The Indians brought them to our navigators alive, with a long hair
faſtened to one of their legs.
PLACE,
ORDER III.

W I L D T U R K E Y.
341
ORDER III. GALLINACE O U S.
XVI. TUR KE Y. Gen. Birds XXXI.
178. WILD.
Turkey, Folſelyn's Voy. 99.--Rarities, 8.-Clayton's Virgin.---Ph. Tr. Abridg. iii.
590.--Lawſon, 149.-Cateſby, App. xliv.
Le Coc d'Inde, Belon, 248.
Gallo-pavus, Geſner, Av. 481.-Icon. 56.
Gallo-pavo, Aldrov. Av. ii. 18.
Gallo-pavo, the Turkey, A. 3.
Gallo-pavo Sylveſtris Nova Angliæ, a New England Wild Turkey, Raii Syn.
Av. 51.
Meleagris Gallo-pavo, M. capite caruncula frontali gularique, maris pectore
barbato, Lin. Syft. 268.
Le Dindon, De Buffon, ii. 132.-Brilon, i. 158. tab. xvi.-Pl. Enl. 97.
DescRIPTION.
T.
TAIL.
With the characters deſcribed in the definition of the genus.
Color of the plumage dark, gloſſed with variable co
copper
color and green : coverts of the wings, and the quil-feathers, barred
with black and white. Tail conſiſts of two orders; the upper, or
Thorter, very elegant; the ground color a bright bay; the middle
feathers marked with numerous bars of ſhining black and green;
the greateſt part of the exterior feathers of the ſame ground with
the others, marked with only three broad bands of mallard green,
placed remote from each other; the two next are colored like thoſe
of the middle; but the end is plain, and croſſed with a ſingle bar,
like the exterior.
The

342
W I L D T U R K E Y.
a
a
WHITE
VARIETY
SiZE.
The longer, or lower order, were of a ruſty white color, mottled
with black, and croſſed with numerous narrow waved lines of the
fame color, and near the end with a broad band.
Wild Turkies preſerve a fameneſs of coloring. The tame, as
uſual with domeſtic animals, vary. It is needleſs to point out the
differences, in ſo well-known a bird. The black approach neareſt
to the original ſtock. This variety I have ſeen nearly in a ſtate of
nature, in Richmond and other parks. A moſt beautiful kind has
of late been introduced into England, of a ſnowy whiteneſs, finely
contraſting with its red head, and black pectoral tuft. Theſe, I
think, came out of Holland, probably bred from an accidental white
pair ; and from them preſerved pure from any dark or variegated
birds.
The ſizes of the wild Turkies have been differently repreſented.
Some writers aſſert, that there have been inſtances of their weigh-
ing fixty pounds; but I find none who, ſpeaking from their own
knowlege, can prove their weight to be above forty. Joſelyn ſays,
that he has eaten part of a Cock, which, after it was plucked, and
the entrails taken out, weighed thirty * Lawſon, whoſe authority
is unqueſtionable, ſaw half a Turkey ſerve eight hungry men for
two meals t; and ſays, that he had ſeen others, which, he believ-
ed, weighed forty pounds. Cateſby tells us, that out of the many
hundreds which he had handled I, very few exceeded thirty pounds.
Each of theſe ſpeak of their being double that ſize, merely from the
reports of others.
The manners of theſe birds are as fingular as their figure. Their
attitudes in the ſeaſon of courtſhip are very ſtriking. The males
fling their heads and neck backwards, briſtle up their feathers,
W
a
MANNERS.
New England Rarities, 8.
+ Hift. Carolina, 149 and 27.
I App. xliv.--The greateſt certain weight is given by Mr. Clayton, who ſaw one
that reached 3816,--Ph. Tranſ.
drop

W I L D T U R K E Y.
343
NOTES.
IRASCIBLE,
or
POLYGAMOUS.
drop their wings to the ground, ftrut and pace moſt ridiculouſly ;
wheel round the females, with their wings ruſtling along the earth,
at the ſame time emitting a ſtrange found through their noſtrils,
not unlike the grurr of a great ſpinning-wheel. On being inter-
rupted, fly into great rages, and change their note into a loud and
guttural gobble; and then return to dalliance.
The found of the females is plaintive and melancholy.
The paſſions of the males are very ſtrongly expreſſed by the
change of colors in the fleſhy ſubſtance of the head and neck, which
alters to red, white, blue, and yellowiſh, as they happen to be af-
fected. The fight of any thing red excites their choler greatly.
They are polygamous, one cock ſerving
hens. They
lay in the ſpring; and will lay a great number of eggs. They will
.
perſiſt in laying for a great while. They retire to ſome obſcure
place to ſit, the cock, through rage at loſs of its mate, being very
apt to break the eggs. The females are very affectionate to the
young, and make great moan on the loſs of them. They fit on
their eggs with ſuch perſeverance, that, if they are not taken away
when addle, the hens will almoſt periſh with hunger before they
will quit the neft.
Turkies greatly delight in the ſeeds of nettles; but thoſe of the
purple Fox-glove prove fatal to them *.
They are very ſtupid birds ; quarrelſome, and cowardly. It is
diverting to ſee a whole flock attack the common Cock; who will
for a long time keep a great number at bay.
They are very ſwift runners, in the tame as well as the wild
ſtate. They are but indifferent flyers. They love to perch on
trees; and gain the height they wiſh, by riſing from bough to bough.
In a wild ſtate, they get to the very fummit of the loftieft trees,
even ſo high as to be beyond the reach of the muſquet t.
SWIFT
PERCH HIGH.
* De Buffon.
+ Lawſon, 45.
In

344
W I L D TURKE Y.
GREGARIOUS.
HAUNTS.
In the ſtate of nature they go in flocks even of five hundred *.
Feed much on the ſmall red acorns; and grow ſo fat in March,
that they cannot fly more than three or four hundred yards, and are
then foon run down by a horſeman. In the unfrequented parts
bordering on the Miſiſipi, they are ſo tame as to be ſhot with even
a piftolt
They frequent the great ſwamps I of their native country; and
leave them at fun-riſing to repair to the dry woods, in ſearch of
acorns, and various berries; and before ſun-ſet retire to the ſwamps
to rooft.
The fleſh of the wild Turkey is ſaid to be fuperior in goodneſs
to the tame, but redder. Eggs of the former have been taken
from the neſt, and hatched under tame Turkies; the young will
ſtill prove wild, perch ſeparate, yet mix and breed together in the
ſeaſon. The Indians ſometimes uſe the breed produced from the
wild, as decoy-birds, to ſeduce thoſe in a ſtate of nature within their
reach s.
Wild Turkies are now grown moſt exceſſively rare in the inha-
bited parts of America, and are only found in numbers in the diſtant
and moſt unfrequented ſpots.
The Indians make a moſt elegant cloathing of the feathers.
They twiſt the inner webs into a ſtrong double thread of hemp,
or inner bark of the mulberry-tree, and work it like matting. It
appears very rich and gloſſy, and as fine as a filk ſhagl. They
alſo make fans of the tail; and the French of Louiſiana were wont
to make umbrellas by the junction of four of the tails -
a
* Lawſon, 149.
+ Adair's Amer. 360.
| It is in the ſwamps that the loftieſt and moſt bulky trees grow: the wet, with
which they are environed, makes them a moſt ſecure retreat.
§ Lawſon, 149.
|| Lawſon, 18.-Adair, 423.
Du Pratz, ii. 85.
When
a

WILD TUR KE Y.
345
PLACE.
MISTAKEN BY
BELON
When diſturbed, they do not take to wing, but run out of fight.
It is uſual to chaſe them with dogs; when they will fly, and perch
on the next tree. They are ſo ſtupid, or ſo inſenſible of danger, as
not to fly on being ſhot at; but the ſurvivors remain unmoved at
the death of their companions *.
TURKies are natives only of America, or the New World; and of
courſe unknown to the antients. Since both theſe poſitions have
been denied by ſome of the moſt eminent naturaliſts of the ſixteenth
century, I beg leave to lay open, in as few words as poſſible, the
cauſe of their error.
Belon t, the earlieſt of thoſe writers who are of opinion that theſe
birds were natives of the old world, founds his notion on the de-
ſcription of the Guinea Fowl, the Meleagrides of Strabo, Athenæus,
Pliny, and others of the antients. I reft the refutation on the ex-
cellent account given by Athenæus, taken from Clytus Mileſius, a
diſciple of Ariſtotle, which can ſuit no other than that fowl. “ They
“ want,” ſays he,“ natural affection towards their young. Their
“ head is naked, and on the top is a hard round body, like a peg
or nail : from their cheeks hangs a red piece of fleſh, like a
<< beard: it has no wattles, like the common poultry: the feathers
are black, ſpotted with white: they have no ſpurs : and both
“ ſexes are ſo like, as not to be diſtinguiſhed by the ſight.” Varro I
and Pliny § take notice of the ſpotted plumage, and the gibbous
ſubſtance on the head. Atheneus is more minute, and contradicts
every character of the Turkey: whoſe females are remarkable for
their natural affection; which differ materially in form from the
males; whoſe heads are deſtitute of the callous ſubſtance; and
whoſe heels (in the male) are armed with ſpurs.
+ 248. Hift. des Oif.
I Lib. iii. c. 9.
* Du Pratz, 224.
§ Lib. x. c. 26.
Vol. I.
Y y
Aldrovandus,

346
W I L D T U R K E Y.
ALDROVANDUS,
AND GESNER.
a
66
Aldrovandus, who died in 1605, draws his arguments from the
ſame ſource as Belon; I therefore paſs him by, and take notice of
the greateſt of our naturaliſts, Gesner*; who falls into a miſtake
of another kind, and wiſhes the Turkey to be thought a native of
India. He quotes Ælian for that purpoſe; who tells us, “ that in
« India are very large poultry, not with combs, but with various-
« colored creſts, interwoven like flowers : with broad tails, neither
bending, nor diſplayed in a circular form, which they draw along
o the ground, as Peacocks do when they do not erect them : and
« that the feathers are partly of a gold color, partly blue, and of
an emerald color t.
This, in all probability, was the ſame bird with the Peacock
Pheaſant of Mr. Edwards, Le Paon de Tibet of M. Briſſon, and the
Pavo Bicalcar atus of Linnæus. I have ſeen this bird living. It has
a creſt, but not ſo conſpicuous as that deſcribed by Ælian; but it
has thoſe ſtriking colors in form of eyes : neither does it erect its
tail like the Peacock I. The Catreus of Strabo s ſeems to be the
fame bird. He deſcribes it as uncommonly beautiful, and ſpotted;
and very like a Peacock. The former author | gives a more mi-
nute account of this ſpecies, and under the ſame name. He bor-
rows it from Clitarchus, an attendant of Alexander the Great in all
his conqueſts. It is evident from his deſcription, that it was of this
kind; and it is likewiſe probable, that it was the ſame with his
large Indian poultry before cited. He celebrates it alſo for its fine
note; but allowance muſt be made for the credulity of Ælian.
The Catreus, or Peacock Pheaſant, is a native of Tibet, and in all
probability of the north of India, where Clitarchus might have ob-
ferved it; for the march of Alexander was through that part of In-
* Av. 481.
+ De Anim. lib. xvi. c. 2.
§ Lib. xv. p. 1046.
| Edw. ii. 67.-Briſſon,
| De Anim. lib. xvii.
i. 291.-Lin. Syft. 268.
c. 23.
dia

WILD TUR KE Y.
347
dia which borders on Tibet, and now known by the name of Penj-ab,
or Five Rivers.
I ſhall now collect from authors the ſeveral parts of the world Not NATIVES OF
where Turkies are unknown in the ſtate of nature. Europe has no
EUROPE;
ſhare in the queſtion, it being generally agreed, that they are ex-
otic in reſpect to our continent.
Neither are they found in any part of Aſia Minor, or the Afatic
NOR OF ASIA;
TURKEY, notwithſtanding ignorance of their true origin firſt cauſed
them to be named from that empire. About Aleppo, capital of
Syria, they are only met with domeſticated, like other poultry *. In
Armenia they are unknown, as well as in Perſia, having been brought
from Venice by ſome Armenian merchants into that empire t; where
they are ſtill ſo ſcarce, as to be preſerved among other rare fowls
in the Royal menagery I.
In India they are kept for uſe in our ſettlements, and imported
from Europe, as I have been more than once informed by gentle-
men long reſident in that country.
Du Halde acquaints us, that they are not natives of China; but
were introduced there from other countries. He errs, from miſ-
information, in ſaying that they are common in India.
I will not quote Gemelli Careri, to prove that they are not found
in the Philippine iſlands, becauſe that gentleman, with his pen, tra-
velled round the world in his eaſy chair, during a very long indif-
poſition and confinement S.
But Dampier bears witneſs that none are found in Mindanao 11.
NOR AFRICA
The hot climate of Africa barely ſuffers theſe birds to exiſt in
that vaſt continent, except under the care of mankind. Very few
are found in Guinea, except in the hands of the Europeans : the ne-
I Bell's Travels, i. 128.
* Ruſſell
, 63.
+ Tavernier, 146.
Sir James Porter's OblTurkey, i. I. 11 I. 321,
Y y 2
groes

348
WILD TURKE Y.
3
groes declining to breed any, on account of their great tender-
neſs *.
Prosper Alpinus ſatisfies us that they are not found either in Nubia
or in Egypt. He deſcribes the Meleagrides of the antients; and
only proves that the Guinea-hens were brought out of Nubia, and
fold at a great price at Cairo t, but is totally filent about the Tur-
key of the moderns.
Let me in this place obſerve, that the Guinea-hens have long
been imported into Britain. They were cultivated in our farm-
yards: for I diſcover, in 1277, in the grainge of Clifton, in the pa-
riſh of Ambroſden, in Buckinghamſhire, among other articles, VI. mu-
tilones, and ſex AFRICANÆ fæminæ $; for this fowl was familiarly
known by the names of Afra Avis, and Gallina Africana & Numida.
It was introduced into Italy from Africa, and from Rome into our
country. They were neglected here by reaſon of their tenderneſs
and difficulty of rearing. We do not find them in the bills of fare
of our antient feaſts $: neither do we find the Turkey : which laſt
argument amounts to almoſt a certainty, that ſuch a hardy and
princely bird had not found its way to us. The other likewiſe was
then known here by its claſſical name; for that judicious writer,
Dr. Caius ll, deſcribes, in the beginning of the reign of Elizabeth,
the Guinea fowl, for the benefit of his friend Geſner, under the
name of Meleagris, beſtowed on it by Ariſtotle .
Having denied, on the very beſt authorities, that the Turkey ever
exifted as a native of the old world, I muſt now bring my proofs
* Barbot, in Churchill's Coll. v. 29.-Boſman, 229.
+ Hift. Nat.
Ægypti, i. 201.
| Kennet's Parochial Antiq. 287.
§ Neither in that of George Nevil, archbiſhop of York, in 1466, nor among the
delicacies mentioned in the Northumberland Houſhold Book, in the beginning of the
reign of Henry VIII.
| Caii Opuſc. 93
Hift. An. lib. vi. C. 2.
of

W I L D T U R K E Y.
349
of its being only a native of the new; and of the period in which
it firſt made its appearance in Europe.
The firſt preciſe deſcription of theſe birds is given by Oviedo ; BUT OF AMERICA.
who in 1525 drew up a ſummary of his greater work, the Hiſtory
of the Indies, for the uſe of his monarch Charles V. This learned
man had viſited the Weſt Indies and its iſlands in perſon, and payed
particular regard to the natural hiſtory. It appears from him, that
the Turkey was in his days an inhabitant of the greater iſlands, and
of the main land. He ſpeaks of them as Peacocks; for, being a
new bird to him, he adopts that name, from the reſemblance he
thought they bore to the former : “ But (ſays he) the neck is bare
“ of feathers, but covered with a ſkin which they change after their
phantaſie into divers colours. They have a horn as it were on
« their front, and HAIRES on the breaſt *.” He deſcribes other
birds, which he alſo calls Peacocks. They are of the gallinaceous
genus, and known by the name of Curaſao birds; the male of
which is black, the female ferruginous.
The next who ſpeaks of them as natives of the main land of the
warmer parts of America, is Franciſco Fernandez, ſent there by
Philip II. to whom he was phyſician. This naturaliſt obſerved
them in Mexico. We find by him, that the Indian name of the Mexico.
male was Huexoloft, of the female Cibuatotolin : he gives them the
title of Gallus Indicus, and Gallo-Pavo. As the Indians as well as
Spaniards domeſticated theſe uſeful birds, he ſpeaks of the ſize by
compariſon, ſaying that the wild were twice the magnitude of the
tame; and that they were ſhot with arrows or guns t. I cannot
learn the time when Fernandez wrote. It muſt be between the
years 1555 and 1598, the period of Philip's reign.
DARIEN.
Pedro de Cieſa mentions Turkies on the Iſthmus of Darien I.
* In Purchas, iii. 995.
Years Travels, 20.
+ Hift. Av. Nov. Hiſp. 27.
+ Seventeen
Lery,

350
W I L D T U R K E Y.
YUCATAN.
N. AMERICA.
a
Lery, a Portugueſe author, afferts that they are found in Braſil, and
gives them an Indian name *; but ſince I can diſcover no traces of
them in that diligent and excellent naturaliſt Marcgrave, who re-
fided long in that country, I muſt deny my aſſent. But the former
is confirmed by that able and honeſt navigator Dampier, who ſaw
them frequently, as well wild as tame, in the province of Yucatan t,
now reckoned part of the kingdom of Mexico.
In North America they were obſerved by the very firſt diſcoverers.
When Renè de Laudonniere, patronized by Admiral Coligini, attempt-
ed to form a ſettlement near the place where Charleſtown now ſtands,
he met with them on his firſt landing, in 1564, and by his hiſtorian,
has repreſented them with great fidelity in the Vth plate of the re-
cital of his voyage I. From his time, the witneſſes to their being
natives of this continent are innumerable. They have been ſeen in
flocks of hundreds in all parts, from Louiſiana even to Canada : but
at this time are extremely rare in a wild ſtate, except in the more
diſtant parts, where they are ſtill found in vaſt abundance.
It was from Mexico or Yucatan that they were firſt introduced into
Europe; for it is certain that they were imported into England as
early as the year 1524, the 15th of Henry VIII G. We probably
received them from Spain, with which we had great intercourſe
till about that time. They were moſt ſucceſsfully cultivated in
our kingdom from that period; inſomuch that they grew common
in
every
farm-yard, and became even a diſh in our rural feaſts by
WHEN FIRST IN-
TRODUCED INTO
EUROPE.
-
* In De Laet's Deſcr. des Indes, 491. + Voyages, vol. ii. part. 2d, p. 65,
85, 114.
| De Bry.
§ Baker's Chr. — Anderſon's Diet. Com. i. 354. --Hackluyt, ii. 165, makes
their introduction about the year 1532. Barnaby Googe, one of our early writers on
huſbandry, ſays they were not ſeen here before 1530. He highly commends a Lady
Hales, of Kent, for her excellent management of theſe fowl. p.
166.
the

W I L D T U R K E Y.
351
the year 1585; for we may certainly depend on the word of old
Tuſſer, in his account of the Chriſtmas huſbandlie fare *.
Beefe, mutton, and porke, ſhred pies of the beſt,
Pig, veale, gooſe and capon, and Turkie well drett:
Cheeſe, apples, and nuts, jolie carols to heare,
As then in the countrie, is counted good cheare.
But at this very time they were ſo rare in France, that we are
told that the very firſt which was eaten in that kingdom appeared
at the nuptial feaſt of Charles IX. in 1570 7.
They are now very common in all parts of Ruffa, but will not
thrive in Sibiria. Are cultivated in Sweden and even in Norway,
where they degenerate in ſize I.
* Five hundred pointes of good huſbandrie, p. 57.
† Anderſon's Dict. Comm. i. 410. I Pontopp. 78.
XVII. GROUS,

352
R U F F E D G R OU S.
XVII. GRO U S. Gen. Birds XXXVI.
179. Ruffed
Ruffed Heathcock, or Grous, Edw. 248.-Latham.
Morehen, La Hontan, i. 69.
Pheaſant, Lawſon, 139.
Tetrao umbellus, Lin. Syft. 275.-Tetrao togatus, ibid.
La gelinote hupèe de Penſylvanie, Briſon, i. 214.--and, La groſſe gelinote
de Canada-207.
Le Coq de Bruyere a fraiſe, De Buffon, Oif. ii. 281. Pl. Enl. 104.--Lev.
MUS, BL. Mus.
G
R. With a great ruff on the hind part of the neck, to be
raiſed or depreſſed at pleaſure : the head creſted: that, hind
part of the neck, the ruff, back, and coverts of the wings, pret-
tily varied with brown, ferruginous, and black: the black on the
ruff diſpoſed in broad black bars: the coverts of the tail marked
with heart-ſhaped ſpots of white : chin white: fore part of the neck
yellowiſh: breaſt and belly dirty white, barred with cinereous
brown: primaries barred on their outmoſt fides with black and ruft-
color.
Tail large, expanſible like a fan; in ſome of a cinereous colour,
in others orange, moft elegantly barred with narrow undulated lines
of black; near the end with a broad band of aſh-color, another
of black, and tipped with white.
Legs feathered to the feet: toes naked and pectinated.
Female wants both creſt and ruff. Crown dulky: back mixed
with black and ruft-colour like a Woodcock: breaſt, belly, and
coverts of the wings, barred with dirty white and cinereous brown:
tail

RU F F E D G R OU S.
353
SIZE,
PLACE,
MANNERS.
TRAM
tail ſhort, brown, tipt with white; two middle feathers mottled
with red.
In fize theſe birds obſerve a medium between a Pheaſant and a
Partridge. Length 1 foot 5 inches.
They inhabit North America, from Hudſon's Bay * to the Caroli-
nas, and probably to Louiſiana t.
The hiſtory of this ſpecies is very curious: all which I beg
leave to tranſcribe from Mr. Edwards, according to the accounts
given him by Mr. Bartram and Mr. Brooke, who had frequent op-
portunity of obſerving its manners; to which I ſhall add another,
borrowed from the Travels of the Baron La Hontan.
“ He is (ſays Mr. Bartram) a fine bird when his gaiety is dif- From Mr. Bara
" played; that is, when he ſpreads his tail like that of a Turkey-
« cock, and erects a circle of feathers round his neck like a ruff,
walking very ſtately with an even pace, and making a noiſe fome-
thing like a Turkey; at which time the hunter muſt fire immedi-
ately at him, or he flies away directly two or three hundred yards,
« before he ſettles on the ground. There is ſomething very remark-
« able in what we call their thumping; which they do with their
wings, by clapping them againſt their fides, as the hunters ſay.
« They ſtand upon an old fallen tree, that has lain many years on
“ the ground, where they begin their ſtrokes gradually, at about
two ſeconds of time diſtant from one another, and repeat them
quicker and quicker, until they make a noiſe like thunder at a
o diſtance; which continues, from the beginning, about a minute;
" then ceaſeth for about ſix or eight minutes before it begins again.
“ The found is heard near half a mile, by which means they are dif-
a
66
* Phil. Tranſ. lxii. 393.
+ The accounts given by Bollu, Engl. ed. i. 95. and by Du Pratz, ii. are too
flight for us to determine the ſpecies they mean. Charlevoix, in his account of
Canada, vol. v. deſcribes it very well.
VOL. I.
<< covered
Z z

354
RU F F E D G R OU S.
MR. BROOKE.
« covered by the hunters, and many of them killed. I have ſhor
many of them in this poſition; but never ſaw them thump, they
« moſtly ſeeing me firſt, and ſo left off. They commonly exerciſe
“ in thumping ſpring and fall, at about nine or ten in the morning,
o and four or five in the afternoon. Their food is chiefly ber-
« ries and feeds of the country : their fleih is white, and choice
« food. I believe they breed but once a year, in the ſpring, and
“ hatch twelve or fourteen at a brood; which keep in a company
« till the following ſpring. Many have attempted to raiſe the young
ones, and to tame them; but to no purpoſe. When hatched
“ under a hen, they eſcape into the woods ſoon after they are
« hatched, where they either find means to fubfift, or periſh.”
The hiſtory of this bird is thus further illuſtrated by Mr. Brooke
of Maryland, in North America: “ The ruffed Grous, or Pheaſant,
“ breeds in all parts of Maryland, fome countries on the Eaſtern
6 ſhore excepted. They lay their eggs in neſts they make in the
« leaves, either by the fide of fallen trees, or the roots of ſtanding
ones. They lay from twelve to fixteen eggs: the time of incu-
« bation is in the ſpring; but how long their eggs are hatching
" I cannot ſay; but probably it is three weeks, the time that a
" Dunghill Hen fits. I have found their neſts when a boy, and
s have endeavoured to take the old Pheaſant, but never could fuc-
ceed: ſhe would almoſt let me put my hand upon her before ſhe
* would quit her neſt; then by artifice ſhe would draw me off
" from her eggs, by fluttering juſt before me for a hundred paces
or more; ſo that I have been in conſtant hopes of taking her.
They leave their neſts as ſoon as they are hatched; and I believe
* they live at firſt on ants, ſmall worms, &c. When they are a
« few days old, they hide themſelves ſo artfully among the leaves,
" that it is difficult to find them: as they grow up, they feed on
“ various berries, fruits, and grain of the country: grapes they
66 likewiſe
a

RU F F E D G R OU S.
355
a
a
LA HONTAN.
<< likewiſe are fond of in the ſeaſon; but the Pheaſant is more par-
« ticularly fond of the ivy-berry. I do not know any other animal
" that feeds on this berry: I know it is poiſon to many. Though
« the Pheaſant hatches many young at a time, and often fits twice
a year, the great number and variety of Hawks in Maryland
,
e feeding on them, prevents their increaſing faft. The beating of
" the Pheaſant, as we term it, is a noiſe chiefly made in the ſpring
« of the year by the cock-bird; it may be diſtinctly heard a mile in a
« calm day; they fwell their breaſts like the Powting Pigeon, and
“ beat with their wings, which make a noiſe not unlike a drum in
« found; but the Pheaſant ſhortens each founding note, till they
run one into another undiſtinguiſhably, like ſtriking two empty
« bottles together.”
In order to perfect, as far as I am able, the hiſtory of this bird,
I ſhall give a quotation from Baron La Hontan's Voyages to North
America, publiſhed in Engliſh, (vol. i. p. 67.) where he ſpeaks of
a bird found near the lakes of Canada, which, I think, can be no
other than the above-deſcribed, though the names given them dif-
agree.
La Hontan ſays, “ I went in company with ſome Canadeſe on
purpoſe to ſee that fowl flap with its wings: believe me, this
fight is one of the greateſt curioſities in the world; for their flap-
ping makes a noiſe much like a drum, for about the ſpace of a
« minute; then the noiſe ceaſes for half a quarter of an hour;
« after which it begins again. By this noiſe we were directed to
“ the place where the unfortunate More-hen fat, and found them
upon rotten moffy trees. By flapping one wing againſt the
« other they mean to call their mates; and the humming noiſe that
« enſues thereupon may be heard half a quarter of a league. This
they do in the months of April, May, September, and O&tober ;
and, which is very remarkable, the More-hen never flaps in this
Z z 2
manner
CC

356
PINNATED GRO U S.
MR. GRAHAM.
“ manner but upon one tree. It begins at break of day, and gives
over at nine o'clock in the morning, till about an hour before fun-
« ſet, then it flutters again, and continues ſo to do till night.”
To theſe accounts I beg leave to add the following, out of the
Philoſophical Tranſactions ; which informs us, that this ſpecies of
Grous bears the Indian name of Puſkee, or Puſpuſkee, at Hudſon's Bay,
on account of the leanneſs and dryneſs of their feſh, which is ex-
tremely white, and of a very cloſe texture; but when well prepared,
is excellent eating. They are pretty common at Mooſe Fort and
Henly Houſe ; but are feldom ſeen at Albany Fort, or to the northward
of the above places. In winter they feed upon juniper-tops, in fum-
mer on gooſeberries, raſpberries, currants, cranberries, &c. They
are not migratory; ſtaying all the year at Mooſe Fort: they build
their neſt on dry ground, hatch nine young at a time, to which the
mother clucks as our common hens do; and, on the left appearance
of danger, or in order to enjoy an agreeable degree of warmth, the
young ones retire under the wings of their parent.
180. PINNATED.
Urogallus minor fuſcus cervice plumis alas imitantibus donata, Cateſby, App. tab. i.
Tetrao Cupido, Lin. Syft. 274.-Latham.
La Gelinote hupee d'Amerique, Brilon, i. 212.-Lev. Mus.-BL. Mus.
a
GR.
With head, cheeks, and neck of a reddiſh brown, marked
with duſky lines: chin and throat of a pale ruſty brown:
on the head is a ſmall creſt: on each ſide of the neck a moft fin-
gular tuft (five feathers in each) gradually lengthening to the fifth,
which is about three inches long: the upper feathers ferruginous
and white; the lower black: back and fcapulars black and pale
ruft-colour; the former ſpotted with white: breaſt and belly barred
with white and pale brown: tail barred with pale brown and black.
Legs

SHARP-TAILED GRO U S.
357
Size.
و
a
PLACE.
Legs covered with ſoft brown feathers : toes naked and pecti-
nated.
Size of a Pheaſant. A peculiar fpecies, not to be confounded
with the preceding *. Deſcribed from the real bird by Mr. Cates-
by; and by myſelf from the ſpecimens in Mrs. Blackburn's cabinet,
which were ſent from the province of Connecticut. Is frequent
about a hundred miles up Albany river, in Hudſon's Bay.
The tufts, which diſtinguiſh this ſpecies from all others, are
rooted high on the neck, not far from the hind part of the head.
The bird has the power of erecting or dropping them at pleaſure.
When diſturbed, it would ſpread them horizontally, like little wings ;
at other times let them fall on the ſides of the neck t. It is pro-
bable, that they aſſiſt in running or flying, or perhaps both, as the
real wings are very ſhort, in proportion to the weight of the body.
Theſe appendages are peculiar to the cock, and almoſt the only
difference between it and the hen.
181. SHARP
TAILED
Long-tailed Grous, Ed-w. 118.-Ph. Tr. lxii.
Tetrao Phaſianellus, Lin. Syft. 273.-Latham.
Le Coq de Bruyeres à longue queue, de la Baye de Hudſon, Briſſon, App. 9.De
Buffon, ii. 286.
GR. With the head, cheeks, and hind part of the neck, varied
with reddiſh brown and black: the back and coverts of the
tail of the ſame color: the ſcapulars and great coverts of the wings
ferruginous, fpotted with black, and great ſpots of white : prima-
ries black, ſpotted with white: breaſt and fides white, elegantly
marked with fagittal ſpots of black : belly white : tail ſhort and
* The Comte De Buffon, ii. 282. falls into this miſtake.
+ Catefoy.
cuneiform;

358
SHARP-TAILED GRO U S.
SIZE.
PLACE.
cuneiform; the two middle feathers two inches longer than the
others: the tail is of the ſame color with the back, only the
exterior feathers are ſpotted with white : the legs are covered with
ſoft and long feathers, extending over the pectinated toes, which
would be otherwiſe naked.
The Length of this ſpecies is ſeventeen inches: the Extent of
wings twenty-four: Weight two pounds.
Inhabits Hudſon's Bay; and, according to Dr. Mitchel, the unfre-
quented parts of Virginia ; but none have been brought over to
England from any other place than the Bay.
Linnæus confounds this with the Wood Grous, or Cock of the
Wood * Compariſon will ſhew with how little reaſon the Comte
De Buffon t makes it to be the female of the next ſpecies, our Spot-
ted Grous. If the female of that was not aſcertained, the difference
in the form of the tail would be ſufficient to eſtabliſh a diſtinction;
by which it approaches neareſt to the European Pheaſant of any
bird in North America.
The Indians about Hudſon's Bay call this ſpecies the Au Kuſkows
It continues there the whole year; lives among the ſmall larch
buſhes, and feeds, during winter, on the buds of that plant and the
birch ; in the ſummer, on all ſorts of berries. The females lay from
nine to thirteen eggs. The young, like others of this genus, run
as ſoon as hatched, and make a puling noiſe like a chicken. They
differ chiefly from the cock, in having leſs of the red naked ſkin
over the eyes. The cock has a fhrill crowing note, but not very
loud. When diſturbed, or while flying, it makes a repeated noiſe
of Cuck, cuck; and makes a noiſe with the feathers of its tail like
the cracking of a fan. The fleſh of theſe birds is of a light brown
color, plump, and very juicy.
a
ز
a
* Br. Zool.i. Nº 92.
tab. xl.
+ Oif. i. 279.
Black

SPOTTED GROUS.
359
182. SPOTTED.
Black and Spotted Heathcock (male) Edw. 118.
Brown and Spotted Heathcock (female) Edw. 71.
Tetrao Canadenſis (male) Lin. Syft. 274.
Tetrao Canace (female) Lin. Syft. 275.--Latham.
La Gelinote de la Baye de Hudſon, Briſon, i. 201. and the ſame, App. 10. (male.)
La Gelinote de Canada, Briſon, i. 203. tab. xx. fig. 1. 2. (m. and fem.)--De
Buffon, ii. 279.-Pl. Enl. 131, 132.
a
GR. With a white ſpot before and behind each eye: head, neck,
back, and coverts of the wings and tail, duſky brown, croſſed
with black: throat of a gloffy black, bounded by a white line,
commencing at the external corner of each eye: breaſt of the for-
mer color: belly white, marked with great black ſpots : tail black,
external feathers tipt with orange: legs feathered: toes naked and
pectinated.
The FEMALE is of a reddiſh brown, barred and ſpotted with black:
belly of a dirty white, ſpotted with black : tail of a deep brown,
barred with mottled bands of black; the tips of the exterior fea-
FEMALE.
thers orange.
Size,
PLACE,
The Weight is twenty-three ounces : LENGTH fifteen inches :
EXTENT near two feet.
Inhabits Hudſon's Bay, Newfoundland, and Canada. Is called by
the Engliſh of Hudſon's Bay, the Wood Partridge, from its living in
pine woods. Theſe birds are very ſtupid; ſo that they are often
knocked down with a ſtick; and are uſually caught by the natives
with a nooſe faſtened to a ſtake. In ſummer they are very palat-
able; for in that ſeaſon they feed on berries. In winter they livé
on the ſhoots of the ſpruce-fir, which infects the fleſh with a very
diſagreeable taſte. If it is true, that this ſpecies lays but five
eggs *, it is a ſtrange exception to the prolific nature of the genus.
a
+ Pb, T. lại, 39o.
White

360
WHITE GRO U S.
183. WHITE
White Partridge, Edw.72.--Ellis's Voy. 37.
La Lagopede de la Baie de Hudſon, De Buffon, ii. 276. tab. ix. --Latham.
La Gelinote blanche, Briſſon, i. 216.-Pl. Enl.
Tetrao Lagopus, ſuecis Snoripa, Lappis Cheruna, Faun. Suec. Nº 203.
SUMMER
PLUMAGE.
WINTER
PLUMAGE.
DOUBLY
FEATHERED.
a
GR. With a black bill : ſcarlet eye-brows, very large in the
male, in the female far leſs conſpicuous. Head, neck, and
part
of the back, coverts of the tail, and ſcapulars, deep orange,
croſſed with numerous duſky lines, and often marked with great
blotches of white: belly, legs, and middle feathers of the tail, white :
the reſt of the tail duſky, tipt with white : the ſhafts of the quill
feathers black : the legs and toes warmly clad with a very thick and
long coat of ſoft white feathers : the claws broad and flat, adapted
for digging
Such is the ſummer dreſs : in winter they change their color to
white, or, more properly ſpeaking, moult, and change their colored
plumes for white ones. By a wonderful providence, every feather,
except thoſe of the wings and tail, becomes double; a downy one
fhooting out at the baſe of each, as expreſſed in the plate, which
gives an additional protection againſt the cold. In the latter end
of February, the ſummer plumage begins to appear firſt about the
rump, in form of brown ſtumps *, the firſt rudiments of the coat
they aſſume in the warm ſeaſon, when each feather is ſingle, fuit-
able to the time. I ought to have obſerved before, that the Spot-
TED Grous alſo changes its ſingle for double feathers at approach
of winter, notwithſtanding it undergoes no change of color.
The WEIGHT of this ſpecies is twenty-four ounces : its LENGTH
fixteen inches and a quarter : Extent twenty-three.
Theſe birds are met with round the globe, within and without
SIZE.
PLACE,
* Drage's Voy. ii. 9.
the

WHITE GROUS.
361
NORWAY
و
the arctic circle, and as high as lat. 72, in the countries round Hud-
fon's Bay, and as low as Newfoundland ; in Norway ; perhaps in the
N. of the Ruſſian dominions in Europe *, and certainly in Afa all
over Sibiria, as far as Kamtſchatka, and in the iſlands which lie be-
tween that country and America. Finally, they abound in Lapland
and Iceland ; and I repeat, with certainty, that Norway has ſupplied
me with this ſpecies, which was ſent to me by the late Mr. Fleiſcher,
of Copenhagen, along with the leffer kind, which proved to be the
ſame with the White Grous of the Alps, and the Ptarmigan of the
Highlands of Scotland. Each of the varieties of the Norwegian
birds were in their ſummer dreſs; and differed moſt materially in
fize as well as color, the one being in all reſpects like the American
kind: the lefſer agreed in every point with that which I deſcribe,
N° 95, vol. i. of my Britiſh Zoology.
The natives diſtinguiſh the kinds. The larger, which inhabits
foreſts, is ſtyled by them Skorv Rype, or the Wood Grous; the
leſſer, which lives in the mountains, is called Field Rype, or the
Mountain Grous T. They all burrow under the ſnow; and form
extenſive walks beneath. There they feed, eſpecially in Lapland,
on the ſeeds of the dwarf birch I, and in the ſeaſon on variety of
berries of mountain plants. During winter they are taken and
brought to Bergen by thouſands ; are half roaſted, and put into
firkins, and tranſported to other countries g.
The leſſer variety is not unknown in America. The fort here
NORWEGIANS
DISTINGUISH
TWO KINDS
* The feathers of the Rufian kind, whichſoever it was, in early times, about
Pechora, were an article of commerce, and were ſold for two pence of their money
per Pood, or 38 lb. Purchas, ii. 536.
+ The Rufian White Grous inhabits indifferently woods, mountains, plains, and
marſhes. The Britiſh ſpecies or variety is in Ruſſia about half the ſize of the Sibirian
kind.
I Fl. Lap. 268.
§ Pontoppidan, ii. 92.
Vol. I.
deſcribed
3

362
WHITE GROU S.
deſcribed is found in amazing quantities, eſpecially about Hudſon's
Bay, where they breed in all parts along the coaſts, make their nefts
on dry ridges on the ground, and lay from nine to eleven eggs,
powdered with black,
This is the only ſpecies of Grous in North America to which
Providence hath given that warm protection to its feet, evidently
to ſecure them againſt the cold of their winter lodgings : and, as
they are greatly ſought after by Eagles, Owls, and other birds of
prey, a fine proviſion is made for their ſafety, by the change of co-
lor, which renders them not to be diſtinguiſhed from the ſnow they
lie on.
m
a
Every morning they take a flight into the air directly upwards,
to ſhake the ſnow from their wings and bodies. They feed in the
mornings and evenings, and in the middle of the day baſk in the
fun. In the morning they call to one another with a loud note,
interrupted ; feeding in the intervals, and calling again.
In the beginning of Oetober, they aſſemble in flocks of two hun-
dred, and live much among the willows, the tops of which they eat;
whence they are called Willow Partridges. About the beginning of
December they appear in leſs plenty, retiring from the flats about the
ſettlements on Hudſon's Bay to the mountains, where in that month
the ſnow is leſs deep than in the lowlands, to feed on cranberries
and other berries *. In Greenland they reſort in ſummer to the
mountains for the ſake of the crowberries t, which they eat even
with the leaves of the plant. In winter they deſcend to the ſhores,
where the winds ſweep the ſnow off the rocks, and enable them to
pick up a fuſtenance.
They are an excellent food, and much ſearched after by the Eu-
ropeans in Hudſon's Bay. They are generally as tame as chickens,
* Drage's Voy. i. 174,
+ Empetrum Nigrum.-See Crantz. Greenl. i.
64, 75.
eſpecially

WHITE GROUS.
363
eſpecially in a mild day: ſometimes they are rather wild; but by
being driven about, or ſhot at with powder, they grow ſo weary,
by the ſhort flights they take, as ſoon to become very tame again.
Sometimes the hunters, when they ſee the birds likely to take a long
Aight, imitate the crying of a Hawk, which intimidates them ſo
much, that they inſtantly ſettle. When the female is killed, the
male can ſcarcely be forced from the body of its mate *.
The uſual method of taking them is in nets made of twine, twen-
ty feet ſquare, faſtened to four poles, and ſupported in front in a
perpendicular direction with ſticks. A long line is faſtened to theſe
props, the end of which is held by a perſon who lies concealed at a
diſtance. Several people are then employed to drive the birds
within reach of the net, which is then pulled down, and often covers
at one haul fifty or ſeventy. At this time they are ſo plentiful,
that ten thouſand are taken for the uſe of the ſettlement from No-
vember to the end of April. In former days, they muſt have been
infinitely more numerous; for Sir Thomas Button relates, that when
he wintered there in 1612, he took eighteen hundred dozens of
theſe and other fowlt: but this is a trifle to the ſucceſs of M. Je-
remie, who aſſerts, that there were eaten in one winter, between
himſelf and ſeventy-nine others, ninety thouſand Grous, and twenty-
five thouſand Rabbets I.
The Laplanders take them by forming a hedge with the boughs
of birch-trees ; leaving ſmall openings at certain intervals, and
hang in each a ſnare. The birds are tempted to come and feed on
the buds or catkins of the birch; and whenever they endeavour to
paſs through the openings they are inſtantly caught.
a
* Faun. Groenl. p. 117. + Quoted in North-weſt Fox, 228.
+ Recueil de Voy, au Nord. iii. 344.
3 A 2
ROCK

364
ROCK, AND GREAT GROUS.
184. Rock.
a
ROCK Gr. With a black line from the bill to the eye. In
all other parts of the plumage of the ſame colors with the
White, Nº 183; but inferior in ſize by one third.
Differs in nature. Feeds on the tops of ſmall birch. Frequents
only the dry rocky grounds, and the larch plains. Makes a fingu-
lar ſnoring noiſe, with its neck ſtreched out, and ſeemingly with
difficulty. Is very numerous in the northern parts of Hudſon's Bay
and never viſits the fouthern end, except in very hard weather
Never takes ſhelter in the woods, but fits on the rocks, or burrows
in the ſnow. Is inferior in goodneſs to the preceding,
A. GREAT GROUS, Br. Zool. i. Nº 92.
Tetraonis alterum Genus, Plinii, lib. X. c. 22.
Tetrao urogallus Kjader, Faun. Suec. N° 200.- Latham.
La Tetras, ou le grand Coq de Bruyere, De Buffon, ii. 191. tab. v.-Pl. Enl. 73, 74.
MALE.
Size.
GR. With head, neck, and back croſſed with Nender lines of
black and grey: upper part of the breaſt gloffy green: tail
black; the feathers on each ſide ſpotted with white: legs feathered:
toes naked and pectinated. LENGTH two feet eight: Weight
ſometimes fourteen pounds.
Length of the female only two feet two: color ferruginous and
black, diſpoſed generally in bars.
Notwith-
FEMALE

GREAT GROU S.
365
PLACE
Notwithſtanding the opinions of Linnæus and the Count De
Buffon, this ſpecies is unknown in North America. Its moſt ſouth-
erly habitation, as far as I can diſcover, is the Archipelago, it being
found in the iſlands of Crete and of Milo. One was ſhot in the
laft, perched on a palm-tree, on whoſe fruit it probably fed. I
ſuſpect that it does not extend into Aſia Minor ; for Doctor Ruſſell
does not enumerate it among the Syrian birds. As the Tetrao,
which Athenæus * calls a ſort of Pheaſant, was found in the antient
Media, it
may
ſtill be met with in the northern part of Perſia. If
Ariſtotle intends this ſpecies by the words Tetrix and Ourax t, it was
likewiſe found in Greece; but he applies thoſe names only to a bird
which lays its eggs on the graſſy ground, and ſays no more.
Pliny gives a far clearer deſcription of the Tetraônes of Italy.
Decet TetRAONAS fuus nitor, abſolut aque nigritia, in ſuperciliis cocci
rubor. This certainly means only the cock of the Black Grous;
which is diſtinguiſhed by the intenſe blackneſs and the brilliant
gloſs of its plumage, as well as by its ſcarlet eyebrows, which is
common to it and the Wood Grous; which laſt is the ſpecies de
ſcribed by the ancient naturaliſt; truly in ſome reſpects, hyperbo-
lically in others. He ſays it is of the ſize of a Vulture, and not un-
like it in color I. Both theſe affertions approach the truth; for
the upper part of the body has a duſky or footy look, not unlike
that of the Vulture of the Alps. But when he ſpeaks of its being
the heavieſt bird next to the Oſtrich, we ſee plainly he goes beyond
all bounds.
It is a ſpecies found in moſt parts of the wooded and mounta-
nous countries of Europe, and extends even to the arctic Lapmark $ :
is common in Ruſia and Sibiria ; in the laſt are found greater and
leffer varieties. It is found even as far as Kamtſchatka.
+ Hift. An. lib. vi, c. I.
| Hift. Nat. lib. x.
* Lib. xiv. p. 654.
.
C. 22.
Leems, 241.
The

366
SPURIOUS GROUS.
a
The Great Grous is very eaſily tamed, if taken young, and is
fed with corn. The males, in a domeſtic ſtate, emit the ſame note
all the year, which in a wild ſtate they only uſe in the ſeaſon of
love. When a cock of this ſpecies is ſhot in the woods, its widows
are heard to utter a note inexpreſſibly miſerable at their loſs. In
the love feaſon the females have been found ſo greatly overpowered
with the all-ruling paſſion, as to lay themſelves on the ground, fo-
liciting the company of the males, with their uſual note; and fo
intent on the expected joys, as to neglect their own ſafety ſo much,
that the peaſants have actually taken them up in their hands.-
Mr. Oedman,
B. SPURIOUS Gr. Tetrao Hybridus. Racklehane. Roſlagis Roſlare, Faun. Suec.
N° 201.
a
a
GR. With a ſpotted breaſt and forked tail. In ſize equal to the
hen of the preceding. Is much ſcarcer, more timid, and its
note very different.
The SPURIOUS GROUS, or Racklehanen of the Swedes, is a breed
between the cock of the Black Grous, and a female of the Great Grous;
its note partakes of both ſpecies. It is reſtleſs, conſtantly moving
from tree to tree; is therefore hated by ſportſmen, as it gives other
birds notice of their approach. This variety is well figured by
Doctor Sparman, in his Muſeum Carlſonianum, tab. xv.--P.
The cock of the Black Game has been known in Sweden to
cover the common domeſtic Hen, which did produce a barren
ſpurious breed.
C. BLACK

BLACK GRO U S.
367
C. BLACK GROUS, Br. Zool. i. Nº 93.
Tetrao ius, Plinii.
Tetrao Tetrix, Orre, Faun. Suec. Nº 202.
Le Petit Tetras, ou Coq de Bruyere a queue forchue, De Buffon, ii. 210.--Pl. Enl.
172, 173
a
a
PLACE.
GR. With a white ſpot on the ſhoulders, and white vent fea-
thers: reſt of the plumage of a full black, gloffed with blue :
tail much forked, exterior feathers curling outwards. Weight
near four pounds. Length one foot ten inches.
Female weighs but two pounds. The tail is ſlightly forked and
ſhort: the colors ruft, black, and cinereous.
Inhabits Europe, as high as Lapland: extends over Ruſia and Si-
biria, as far as birch-trees grow, of the catkins and buds of which
it is very fond. Feeds much on the populus balſamifera *, which
gives its fleſh a fine flavor. In northern Europe, this and the laſt
ſpecies live during ſummer on whortle-berries, and feed their young
with gnats.
The BLACK Grous in the winter-time fills its craw with the cat-
kins of the birch, before it retires under the ſnow; and by this
means can fuſtain life ſeven days without any other food.--Mr.
Oedman.
In ſummer the males perch on trees, and animate the foreſts
with their crowing. In winter they lie on the ground, become
buried in the ſnows, and form walks beneath, in which they often
continue forty days t. They are at preſent taken in ſnares; but
in Lapland were formerly ſhot with arrows I.
* The Taccamakacca of North America.-Cateſby, i. 34.
I Olaus Gent, Septr. lib. xix. C. 13.
+ Amen. Acad.
iv. 591
During

368
PTAR MIG AN GROU S.
During winter, there is at preſent a very ſingular way of taking
the Black Grous in Sibiria. In the open foreſts of birch, a cer-
BLACK
tain number of poles are placed horizontally on forked ſticks :
by way of allurement, ſmall bundles of corn are placed on them;
and not remote, are ſet certain tall baſkets of a conic ſhape, with
the broadeſt part uppermoſt: within the mouth is placed a ſmall
wheel, through which paſſes an axis fixed ſo nicely as to admit
it to play very readily, and permit one ſide or the other, on the
leaft touch, to drop down, and again recover its ſituation. The
BLACK GROUs are foon attracted by the corn on the horizontal
poles ; firſt alight on them, and after a ſhort repaft fly to the baſkets,
attempt to ſettle on their tops, when the wheel drops fideways,
and they fall headlong into the trap, which is ſometimes found
half full.
D. PTARMIGAN, Br. Zool. i. Nº 95.
Tetrao Lagopus. Suecis Snoripa. Lappis Cheruna, Faun. Suec. N° 203.
Le Lagopede, De Buffon, ii. 264. tab. ix.
GR. With the head, neck, back, ſcapulars, and ſome of the
coverts of the wings, marked with narrow lines of black, aſh-
color, and ruft, intermixed with ſome white: wings and belly white :
outmoſt feathers of the tail black; thoſe of the middle cinereous,
mottled with black, and tipt with white. The male has a black
ſpot between the bill and the eye; which in the female is
ſcarcely viſible. One which I weighed in Scotland was nineteen
Another weighed by Mr. Ray, in the Griſons country,
only fourteen. It regularly changes its colors at approach of
winter.
ounces.
Inhabits

REHU SAK GROUS.
369
3
PLACE.
Inhabits Greenland, Iceland, Lapland, all Scandinavia, and Ruſia;
but I believe does not extend to Sibiria or Kamtſchatka. This,
from its haunts, is called by the Norwegians, Fiælde Rype, or Moun-
tain Grous. But in Ruſia it inhabits indifferently woods, moun-
tains, plains, and marſhes. Its feathers were formerly an article of
commerce. It is taken among the Laplanders, by the fame ſtrata-
gem as the White GROUS, N° 183.
The Greenlanders catch it in nooſes hung to a long line, drawn
between two men, dropping them over the neck of this filly
bird. They ſometimes kill it with ſtones; but of late oftener by
ſhooting. It is ſaid, that when the female is killed the male un-
willingly deſerts the body *.
The Greenlanders eat it either dreſſed, or half rotten, or raw,
with ſeals lard. The inteſtines, eſpecially thoſe next to the rump,
and freſh drawn, are reckoned great delicacies. They alſo mix
the contents with freſh train-oil and berries; a luxury frequent
among theſe people. The ſkins make a warm and comfortable
ſhirt, with the feathers placed next to the body. The women for-
merly uſed the black feathers of the tail as ornaments to their head-
dreffes.
E. REHUSAK, Montin, in Act. Phyfiogr. Lund. i. 150.
GR.
R. With neck ruft-colored, ſpotted with black: back and
coverts of tail black, varied with ruſty ſtreaks: breaſt divided
from the lower part of the neck by a dark ſhade: reſt of the breaſt
and vent white; the hen ſpotted with yellow: primaries white :
tail black; end whitish: thighs white, with ſome ruſty ſpots: legs
* Faun, Groenl. p. 117.
3 B
Vol. I.
feathered

370
HAZEL GRO U S.
PLACES
feathered to the toes: toes naked, covered with large brown ſcales.
Size of a ſmall Hen.
Inhabits both the woods and alps of Lapland. Lays thirteen or
fourteen reddiſh eggs, marked with large brown ſpots. When
diſturbed, flies away with a loud noiſe, like a coarſe laugh. The
Keron, or common Ptarmigan, on the contrary, is ſilent. The
Keron inhabits the Alps only.
a
F. HAZEL Gr. Will. Orn. 175.
Tetrao bonafia. Hiarpe, Faun. Suec. Nº 204.
La Gelinotte, De Buffon, ii. 233. tab. vii. -Pl. Enl. 474, 475.
-
SIZE.
GR. With the chin black, bounded with white: head and up-
per part of the neck croſſed with duſky and cinereous lines :
behind each eye a white line: coverts of wings and ſcapulars fpot-
ted with black and ruft-color: breaſt and belly white, marked with
bright bay ſpots : feathers of the tail mottled with aſh and black;
and, except the two middlemoſt, croſſed with a broad ſingle bar
of black: legs feathered half way down. FEMALE wants the black
ſpot on the chin, and white ſtroke beyond the eyes. Its fize ſupe-
rior to an Engliſh Partridge.
Inhabits the birch and hazel woods of many parts of Europe, as
high as the dioceſe of Drontheim, and even Lapland * ; and is not
unfrequent in the temperate parts. Paulſen † fays that it migrates
into the ſouth of Iceland in April, and departs in September? It lays
from twelve to twenty eggs : perches uſually in the midſt of a tree :
is attracted by a pipe, imitative of its voice, to the nets of the
PLACE.
Scheffer Lapl. 138.
Catalogue of Iceland Birds, MS.
ſportſmen,

HAZEL GROUS.
371
ſportſmen, who lie concealed in a hovel *. Is excellent meat, in-
ſomuch that the Hungarians call it Tſchafarmadar, or the bird of
Cæfar, as if it was only fit for the table of the Emperor. Is found
in moſt parts of the Ruſſian dominions with the Ptarmigan, but grows
ſcarcer towards the eaſt of Sibiria.
* Geſner Av. 230.
3 B 2
XVII. PAR

372
MARY LAND PARTRIDGE.
XVII. PARTRIDGE. Gen. Birds, XXXVII.
185. MARYLAND. American Partridge, Clayton, Ph. Tr. abridg. iii. 590.---Lavsſon, 140.–Cateſby, App.
plate xii..Du Pratz, ii. 86.
Tetrao Virginianus, Lin. Syft. 277.
Le Perdrix d'Amerique, Briſon, i. 231.--Et de la Nouvelle Angleterre, 229.--D6
Buffon, ii. 447
P.
With white cheeks and throat, bounded by a line of black on
all fides, and marked with another paſſing beneath each eye :
breaſt whitiſh, prettily marked with femicircular ſpots of black :
upper part of the breaft, coverts of wings, fcapulars, and coverts
of tail, bright bay, edged with ſmall black and white ſpots : ſcapu-
lars ſtriped with yellowiſh white: primaries and tail of a light
alh-color.
The head of the female agrees in the white marks of the male,
but the boundaries are ferruginous. There is alſo more red on the
breaſt. In other reſpects the colors nearly correſpond. In Size,
above half as big again as the Engliſh Quail.
Frequent from Canada to the moſt ſouthern parts of North Ame-
rica, perhaps to Mexico. Are great breeders, and are ſeen in covies
of four or five and twenty. Breed the latter end of April, or be-
ginning of May. Collect, towards the beginning of June, in great
.
flocks, and take to the orchards, where they perch when diſturbed.
Feed much on buck-wheat; grow fat, and are excellent meat. Mi-
grate from Nova Scotia, at approach of winter, to the ſouthern pro-
vinces; but numbers reſide in the latter the whole year. The males
have a note twice repeated, which they emit, while the females are
fitting
PLACE.

COMMON PARTRIDGE.
373
ſitting, uſually perched on a rail or gate. Make a vaſt noiſe with
the wings when they ariſe.
Of late they have been introduced into Jamaica ; are naturalized
; are naturalized IN JAMAICA.
to the climate, and increaſe greatly in a wild ſtate; and, as I am
informed, breed in that warm climate twice in the year.
.
a
COMMON PARTRIDGE. Tetrao Perdix. Rapphona. Faun. Suec. Nº 205.
A.
La Perdrix Griſe, De Buffon, ii. 401.-Pl. Enl. 27.
INHABITS as high as Sweden ; but has not yet reached Nor-
way *. Found in the weſt, and all the temperate parts of Ruſia
and Sibiria, and even beyond lake Baikal, where it winters about
ſteep rocky mountains expoſed to the fun, and where the ſnow lies
left.
During winter, in Sweden it burrows beneath the ſnow; and the
whole covey retires there, leaving a ſpiracle at each end of their
lodge.
* Brunnich, Nº 201.
B.QUAIL

374
QUA I L.
B. QUAIL, Br. Zool.i. N° 97.-Wachtel, Faun. Suec. No 206.-Lev. Mus.BL. Mus.
IS
S found no further north than Sweden. It appears there in the
beginning of the leafing month (May); and is neither heard or
ſeen there in autumn or winter, unleſs it ſhould, as Linnæus fup-
poſes, migrate to the ſouthern province, or Schonen, or retire to the
Ukraine, Wallachia, &c*.
Quails ſwarm ſo greatly, at the time of their migration, about
the Dniper, and in the ſouth of Ruſia, that they are caught by
thouſands, and ſent to Moſcow and Peterſburgh in caſks. They
are common in all parts of Great Tartary; but in Sibiria only in
the ſouth, as their paſſage is hindered by the lofty ſnowy mountains.
It is ſaid they winter beneath the ſnow; and in great froſts, to be
found torpid in the Ant-hills. Beyond lake Baikal, the quails ex-
actly reſemble thoſe of Europe, but are quite mute. Theſe are uſed
by the Chineſe in fighting, as we do Cocks,
* Amen. Acad. iy. 592.
XVIII. BUS.

NORTON SOUND, AND LESSER BUSTARD.
375
XVIII. BUS TARD. Gen. Birds, XXXIX.
IA
186. NORTON
SOUND
a
;
Am forry that I have it not in my power to do more than aſcer-
tain that a bird of the BUSTARD genus is found in North Ame-
rica. Captain King was fo obliging as to inform me, that he faw
on the plains near Norton Sound, N. lat. 643, great flocks of a
large kind. They were very ſhy; ran very faſt, and for a conſidera-
ble
way before they took wing ; ſo that he never could get one ſhot.
I often meet with the word Outarde, or Buſtard, among the
French voyagers in North America ; but believe it to be always ap-
plied to a ſpecies of Gooſe.
The Great Buſtard, Br. Zool. i. N° 98, is frequent over all the
defert of Tartary, and beyond lake Baikal. Is a folitary bird; but
collects into ſmall flocks at the time of its fouthern migration, and
winters about Aſtracan *.
A. LESSER BUSTARD, Br. Zool. i. Nº
99.
Tetrao Tetrax, Faun. Suec. Nº 196.
La Petite Outarde, ou la Cane-petiere, De Buffon, ii. 40.- Pl. Enl. 10. 25.Lv
Mus.
B.
With crown, back, fcapulars, and coverts of the wings, ferru-
ginous and black; primaries black at their ends, white at
their bottoms; the ſecondaries quite white: neck black, marked
3
* Extracts, 143
near

376
LESS ER BUS T A R D.
63
a
near the top and bottom with a white circle: breaſt and belly white :
middle feathers of the tail croſſed with ruſt and black, the reſt white.
FEMALE entirely ferruginous and black, except wings and belly.
Size of a Pheaſant.
Appears in Sweden rarely in the ſpring: not traced further north.
Very frequent in the ſouthern and fouth-weſt plains of Ruſſia, and
in ſmall flocks when it migrates. Continues a good way into the
deſerts of Tartary; but is never ſeen in Sibiria.
PLACE
END OF THE FIRST VOLUME.
D.T.
20
37
71 679 AA A 30





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