· · · · · · · · * * · *; ** ** *****s = º } |－ } ſj Ģ &= §. gº *** **** * , a * sº Prº Fºº * : : º ºs º zºº ° ºr ºr ºs ºr ºt * -- ººlºsº- c. . . 45 $54 sº * * * *- ºgº º ºsº º º tºº ſº. *cºrsº-º-º-º-ºss. … ***ºgº FOUNDED BY M HANNAH. W. PATTERSONJR - |N MEMORY OF HER PARENTS -º- |Nico E Po RATED MARC H 19. 1895. T º s º * º w º º o º paccºrson ſibraru,úlescºeſnil.1. class 59 O books, \5 vo) ºn 2 Accession No G O A. C. Museums º Eº E- º ºWTU Fº º TIIITIIIHITIIIHTITF |U C-l C- º - C l L- Cº- T- [*- * º ſº- º s: [-…] ſº [*- ſº-d Cº- C-l t- º- º º- [-] º C- D- Cl -] i : mi Museum, ©l, , 6.5 + 7, OCLOGICAL LECTURES. ///zz///e A”oyzz, ZV.5'7/7ZZZO.V. 41. GEORGE SHAW, M.D.F.R.S.&c. WZZZZ /*/.47%.5" from the firſt Authorities and most select specimens º, Z/Zºº. /// % 2 * zzº % Z/2 * % % M** GRIFFITH. VOI, II, - Los Do N. Printed for G. Kearsley, Fleet Street, | 804), ZOOLOGICAL LECTURES j DELIVERED AT THE ROYAL INSTITUTION IN THE YEARS 1806 AND 1807, Bºy GEORGE SHAw, M.D. F.R.S. 2^ &c. &c. VOL. I. LONDON : PRINTED FOR GEORGE KEARSLEY, FLEET-skTEET; BY THOMAS DAVISON, WHITEFRIARs. *I Cºmmºn. 1809. Yeº-o-º-, 5 : 3 + . 5 2- 5 D 2– l ADVERTISEMENT. THE present short course of Lectures is by no means intended as a deeply scientific and ela- borate series of zoological disquisitions, but may rather be termed, in the words of Sir Kenelm Digby, “ a familiar discourse with Lady-Audi- tors.” The general tenor of the explanations is purposely conducted with as little appearance of the parade of technical terms as possible; and the reader must not expect to find any long disserta- tions relative to the nature of animal life, any very minute observations relative to the classification of the animal kingdom, and still less any quota- tions from Aristotle in order to prove that “a man hath ten toes *;” but the whole is merely intend * Grew, Mus. Reg. Soc. yo ADVERTISEMENT. ed as a plain illustration of the animal world ac- cording to the Linnaean mode of arrangement, with some occasional deviations and transpositions. It should be added, that these Lectures were accompanied by a very numerous collection of en- gravings, drawings, &c. in order to elucidate the respective subjects; and, wherever circumstances rendered their introduction possible, by preserved as well as living specimens of the animals them- selves. British Museum, May 30, 1808. The reader is requested to pay particular attention to the list of Errata, and to cast his eyes on the Notes and Illustrations. SYLLABUS OF LECTURES. VOL. I. -º- - Lecture I. Introduction. General description of the Animal King- dom, according to different authors. Linnaean ar- rangement. Union of animal and vegetable life in Zoophytes, and particularly in Polypes. General de- scription of Polypes. } LEcTURE II. Linnaean arrangement of MAMMALIA or viviparous Qua- drupeds. Order Primates, comprehending the Apes, Macaucos, and Bats. Vampyres. Order Bruta, Bra- dypus or Sloth. Fossil skeleton, supposed to be allied to this latter genus. , LECTURE III. Continuation of Linnaean Mammalia. Genera of Da- sypus or Armadillo, Manis or Pangolin, Myrmeco- | ...” SYLLABUS. phaga or Ant-Eater, Platypus or Duckbill. order Ferae. Canis or Dog, Felis or Cat, Viverra or Wee- sel. Didelphis or Opossum, Macropus or Kanguroo. Order Glires. Hystrix or Porcupine, Castor or Bea- ver, Arctomys or Marmot, Lepus or Hare, Sciurus or Squirrel, Mus or Mouse, Dipus or Jerboa. LECTURE IV. Continuation of Linnaean Mammalia. Elephant. Mam- moth. Order Pecora. Giraffa or Camelopard, Cer- vus or Deer, Bos or Ox, Camelus or Camel, Moschus or Musk, Antilope or Antelope, Ovis or Sheep, Capra or Goat. Order Bellua. Equus or Horse, Hippopota- mus, Rhinoceros, Tapir, Sus or Hog. Pinnated Mam- malia. Phoca or Seal. Trichechus or Walruss. Whales. General History of the different genera and species of ditto. A LECTURE W. BIRDs. General description of the anatomy of Linnaean division of Order Accipitres. Vultures, Eagles, Owls. Order Pica. Hornbills, Toucans, Parrots, Wood- peckers, Paradise-Birds, Kingfishers, Cuckows, and Humming-Birds. ' \ SYLLABUS, LECTURE VI. **-r continuation of Birds. Order Passeres. Pigeons, Thrushes, Chatterers, Grosbeaks, Thick and Slender-Billed Small- Birds. Nightingale, Taylor-Bird, Titmice, Swallows, and Goatsuckers. Order Gallinae. Pheasants, Turkey, Partridge, Dodo, Peacock. Ostrich. . Cassowary. Bustard. Order Grallae. Jabirus, Herons, Storks, Bitterns. Ibis, Scarlet ditto, Egyptian ditto, Curlew. Jacana. Trumpetér. Spoonbill. Snipes and Plo- vers. Flamingo. Order Anseres. Swan. Supposed song of Black Swan. Pelican. Corvorant. Pen- guins. Albatross. Tropic-Bird. VOL. II. Lectur E VII. Linnaean AMPHIBIA. General description of Genus Testudo or Tortoise, different species of. Genus Rana or Frog, different species of Genus Lacerta or Lizard, different species of Crocodiles, viz. Indian, V SYLLABUS. American, &c. Chamaeleon. Salamander. Water- Newts. Sirens, viz. Carolina and Austrian. Genus Draco or Dragon. Serpent tribe, general description of Genus Crotalus or Rattle-Snake. Genus Boa. Boa Constrictor, &c. Genera of Coluber, Anguis, Amphisbaena, Caecilia, and Hydrus. LECTURE VIII. FISHEs, general description of Linnaean arrangement of. Apodal Fishes, containing the genera of Muraena, An- guilla, Synbranchus, and Gymnotus. Jugular Fishes. * Genus Trachinus or Weever, Gadus or Codfish. Tho- racic Fishes. Genera of Gymnetrus, Coryphaena, Echeneis, Pleuronectes, Chaetodon, Acanthurus, Per- ca, Holocentrus, Scomber, Mullus, and Trigla. Ab- dominal Fishes. Genera of Salmo, Esox, Silurus, Exo- coetus, and Cyprinus. Cartilaginous"Fishes. Lam- preys, Rays; Torpedo, Sharks, Sturgeons, Trunk- Fishes, and Porcupine-Fishes. LEcTURE IX. Insects; general description of Linnaean arrangement of. Examples of the different divisions. Order Coleoptera exemplified by the genera of Scarabaeus, Cerambyx, and Curculio. Order Hemiptera exempli- SYLLABUS. fied by the genera of Blatta, Gryllus, and Fulgora. Order Lepidoptera exemplified by the genera of Pa- pilio, Sphinx, and Phalaena. Order Neuroptera ex- emplified by the genera of Libellula and Ephemera. Order Hymenoptera exemplified by the genus Ich- neumon. Order Diptera exemplified by the genera of Musca, Culex, and Oestrus. Order Aptera exem- plified by the genera of Aranea and Acarus. LEcTURE X. Linnaean MolluscA Nuda, or Soft-Bodied Animals, ex- emplified by the genera of Limax, Aplysia, Doris, Nereis, Pyrosoma, Nais, Sepia, &c. Common Cuttle- Fish described. Ink-Fish or Calamary. Eight-Armed Cuttle-Fish. Colossal ditto. Kraken. Genus Me- dusa, exemplified by Medusa Pulmo. Genus Actinia or Sea-Anemone. Genus Asterias or Starfish. Genus Echinus or Sea-Urchin. LEcTURE XI. Linnaean MolluscA Testacea, or Soft-Bodied Animals furnished with shells. Division of Shells into Uni- \ valves, Bivalves, and Multivalves, with a general de- scription of the nature of the inhabitings animals. Particular description and history of the Argonauta SYLLABUS. Argo or Paper Nautilus. Description of the Linnaean genus Nautilus, or Pearly Nautilus. Genera of Den- talium, Serpula, Teredo, and Sabella. Bivalve Shells exemplified. History of the Mytilus margaritiferus or Mother of Pearl Shell, of Pearls, of the Pearl- Fishery, and manufacture of artificial pearls. Genera of Spondylus, Chama, and Pinna. Multivalve Shells exemplified by the genus Lepas or Barnacle. History of the Lepas anatifera, &c. Hatching of shell-ani- mals, and growth of shells. LEcTURE XII. } Linnaean Vermes and 200phytes. The Vermes or Worms elucidated by a description of the genera of Taenia, Gordius, Filaria, &c. Genus Furia, with the history of the Furia infernalis. Zoophytes or Plant-Animals. Genus Hydra or Polype particularly described. Gene- ral description of the Coral tribe, with the observations of Marsigli, Peyssonel, Ellis, &c. Genera of Sertularia, Tubularia, Flustra, Gorgonia, Isis, and Madrepora. Formation of coral rocks and islands in the Indian seas by the different species of Madrepoe, &c. Animal- cula Infusoria or Animalcules in fluids, general his- tory of. Description of the genus Vorticella, and of some of the chief species. Genus Cercaria, with the particular description of Cercaria mutabilis, Genus SYLLABUS. Trichoda, with particular description of Trichoda Sol. Genus Volvox, with particular description of Volvox Globator or the Globe-Animal. Genus Vibrio, with description of the Vibrio Anguillula or Paste-Vibrio. Genus Cyclidium. Genus Monas, containing the smallest of all animals visible by the assistance of the microscope. The Vignette represents, in its natural size, an elegant species of Humming-Bird, called the Trochilus furcatus or Smaller Fork-Tailed Humming-Bird, seated on a sprig of the Ipomaea coccinea. Plate 1 to face page 7 Plate 31 to face page 105 2. 17 32 — 107 3 20 * 33 — 108 4 — 37 34 —- , 1 ll 5 -— 38 35 116 } 6 —— 42 º: 36 — , 117 7 — 43 36* — 118 8 —— 44 37 — 119 9 —— 45 38 — 120 10 —- 47 39 — 122 11 —— 49 40 — 125 12 —— 51 41 — 128 13 —- 60 42 — 129 14 —— 68 43 — 132 15 —— 70 44 — 135 16 — 71 | 45 — 137 17 —— 73 46 — 143 18 -—— 75 47 — 147 19 —— 78 48 -— 150 20 -— 79 49 —— 152 21 —— S2 50 — 156 22 -- 83 51 —— 164 23 — 85 52 —— 166 24 —— 88 53 — 168 25 — 89 54 — 172 26 —— 90 55 — 175 27 —— 91 56 — 176 28 — 93 57 — 179 29 — 96 58 — 180 30 - 102 • 59 – 183 \ xiv. * Plate 60 to face page 184 Plate 74 to face page 226 61 — 187 75 — 229 62. 189 || || 76 — 230 63 — 196 77 —— 233 64 — 197 78 -— 234 \ 65 — ib. | 79 —— , 236 66 — 198. 80 — 237 67 — 202 81 — 238 68 — 209 82 - –— 242 69 — 213 83 —— 243 70 — 217 | 84 —— 246 71 — 219 85 — 247 72 -— 220 86 — 248 73 - 223 *. LECTURES, &c. &c. LECTURE F. THE study of Natural History at large, or in all its branches, has of late been so much cultivated, that it seems almost unnecessary to enforce its utility by any particular recommendation. Its importance begins to be understood, and it is generally acknowledged, that, exclusive of its more consequential aims, it has the peculiar advan- tage of uniting amusement with instruction, and of impressing the mind with a train of the most pleasing ideas while engaged in contemplating the infinitely-varied forms exhibited in the field of Nature, and in tracing their gradations and con LECT. K. B 2 LECTURE I. nexions; and we must readily allow that it is no unimportant object to be able to secure to our- selves some species of - study, which in its pro- gress may continue to afford a rational delight, and in the pursuit of which there can be no fear of soon exhausting the subject. I shall here beg leave to introduce the opinion of one of the greatest and most estimable cha- - racters that perhaps ever ornamented this or any other nation. I mean the celebrated Ray, whose dignified simplicity of language enforces with peculiar energy the truth of his sentiment. “We content ourselves, (says he) with a little skill in philology, history, or antiquity; and we neglect that which appears to me of much greater moment: I mean the study of Nature, and the works of Creation. I do not mean, (he adds,) to derogate from or discommend those other studies; I only wish that they might not quite jostle out and exclude this; and that men would be so equal and civil as not to vilify or disparage in others those studies they themselves are not conversant in. No knowledge can be more pleasant to the soul than this; none.so satisfying, or that doth so feed the mind; in comparison of which the study of LECTURE I. 3 words and phrases seemeth insipid and jejune; for words being but the images of things, to be given up wholly to their study, what is it but to verify the folly of Pygmalion, to fall in love with a statue, and neglect the reality! The treasures of Nature are inexhaustible: there is enough for the most indefatigable industry, the happiest op- portunities, the most prolix and undisturbed va- cancies.” Such appears to have been the opinion of Mr. Ray. I shall next observe that the celebrated poet Gray was in a peculiar manner devoted to the study of Natural History; as appears from the testimony of his friend Mr. Mason, who assures us that Gray frequently felicitated himself on having been early introduced to so delightful a science, and which improved in so remarkable a manner the general tenor of his health and spirits. I might also here mention, as a circumstance not generally known, that Gray translated the Lin- naean Genera or Characters of Insects into elegant Latin hexameters, some specimens of which have been preserved by his friends, though they were never intended for publication. 4. LECTURE I. Another exalted character, whose hours of leisure from the official employments of his life were devoted to this pursuit, was the learned and accomplished Sir William Jones, whose works bear ample testimony to the attention which he paid to the history of the Productions of Nature. -- § The mistakes which occasionally appear in the works of various authors, even of the highest cele- brity, arising from a want of accurate information relative to the natural subjects of which they are speaking, are numerous and striking; the epithets by which many objects are distinguished, are, for this reason, improperly chosen, and utterly incon- sonant with the character of the things intended. This is no where more strikingly illustrated than in the august lines of Milton, in which the de- scription of a sleeping whale is injured by an epi- thet of all others least according with the nature of the animal. “That sea-beast Leviathan, which God, of all his works Created hugest that swim th’ ocean stream. Him haply slumb’ring on the Norway foam The pilot of some small night-founder'd skiff, LECTURE I. 5 .# * Deeming some island, oft, as seamen tell, With fixed anchor in his scaly rind, Moors by his side under the lee, while night Invests the sea, and wished morn delays.” But none of the whale-tribe are furnished with scales, or any thing analogous to them. It must be acknowledged, however, that this observation may appear a mere piece of hypercriticism, and that Milton by the expression of scaly rind, might only mean rough or scaly, in the same sense that those epithets are often applied to the bark of a tree, or any other irregular surface. There can be little doubt, however, that real and proper scales were intended by the poet, nor is it difficult to dis- cover the particular circumstance which impressed Milton with this erroneous idea, viz. a figure in the works of Gesner, so injudiciously expressed as to ap- pear on a cursory view, as if coated with large scales, scales, with a vessel near it, and an inscription above it, importing that sailors often mistake a whale for an island, and thus endanger themselves by attempting to anchor upon it. As the general learning and extensive reading of our great poet are so well known, it can hardly be doubted that he was conversant with the writings of Gesner, 6 LECTURE I. * whose work was then the great depository of na” * tural knowledge, and that the figure and descrip- tion there given left a lasting impression on his mind. It must be confessed also that the poet was here deceived by the naturalist. A modern writer, having occasion to allude to the dormant state of the Butterfly and Moth tribe, during their period of imperfection, has evidently shewn that he supposed the animal to become a chrysalis after having appeared in its complete or flying state, and has thus entirely inverted or reversed the real progress of the animal. “Thus the gay Moth, by sun and vernal gales Call'd forth to wander o'er the dewy vales, From flower to flower, from sweet to sweet will stray, Till, tir'd and satiate with her food and play, Deep in the shades she builds her peaceful nest, In lov'd seclusion pleas'd at length to rest: There folds the wings that erst so widely bore; Becomes a household Nymph, and seeks to range no more." A curious example of ridiculous ignorance re- lative to such subjects, might be taken from some of the public papers for the month of July 1794, in which we were informed that in the neighbour- hood (I think) of Sheffield, were found (in the *** øº ſae 7，2×37，1% ???，，，zºzzzºººººº vrins. I， vaevſ, I LECTURE I. 7 words of the describer) “two strange phaenomena of Nature, whose bodies were green, and covered or slated over, in regular and exact chesses, repre- senting shell-work: the heads of these animals were exactly like that of a Lion, and upon the slightest touch, it darted out two spears behind, of the finest Scarlet colour, and at the same time one before, which was white, and shaped like the paw of a bear: they had each of them fourteen legs, and om each side the back of these wonderful creatures, was the representation of the animal itself, in perfect white, which shone like silver.” It is extremely easy to all who are conversant in the history of insects, to guess what these for- midable monsters must have been : viz. a brace of harmless Caterpillars, of a species, singular indeed in appearance, but by no means very uncommon, and which do, by a slight aggravation, in some degree justify the description of the observer. & A few years ago, a description, (accompanied by a figure,) of one of the most common insects in England, but in its first state, (in which it always resides under water) was given, with much solem- nity, in a periodical publication, (the Gentleman's Magazine) and was considered by its describer, 3. LECTURE I. who, I believe, was the late Mr. Philip Thicknesse, as a new, and till then unheard-of animal, of which he believed himself to have been the first describer. To a total ignorance of the real nature of ani. mals (excusable in ancient times, but not so in mo- dern) must be attributed the numerous histories of showers of frogs and mice, and other animals; the raining of blood; the change of certain Frogs into Fishes, and back again from Fishes to Frogs, with many other particulars equally extravagant; and from these and many other instances which might be adduced, we may perceive what mistaken notions may be adopted by those, who otherwise well informed, happen to have paid little or no re- gard to the general doctrines of Natural History. • Natural History at large, divides itself into what are called the three Kingdoms of Nature; viz. the animal, the vegetable, and the mineral kingdom. Of these the Zoological or animal kingdom is what naturally engages our first attention, and seems to claim a superiority over the rest. It would be unnecessary to add, that Zoology com- prizes the whole animal world, or all those beings which are called by the name of Quadrupeds, Birds, Amphibia, Fishes, Insects, Testaceous LECTURE I. 9. animals, and Zoophytes, which latter are of very various forms, and are allied by many resemblances to the vegetable world. • In taking a survey of the animal world, we may either commence with the highest order of animals, and gradually descend from our own species to the minutest animalcules visible by the assistance of the microscope; or from these minute points, as it were, of existence, to Man himself, the chief of Creation here helow. - I must observe, that it may be greatly doubted, whether it be practicable to make out a continued natural chain or series of animals, united through- out by evidently connecting links; at least, all at- tempts of that kind have hitherto failed; and the animal world, and indeed all the productions of Nature, seem rather connected by many points of affinity on different sides, than by a regular chain of gradation; so that, as the learned Dr. Pallas has well observed,the face of nature may rather be said to represent a reticulated or polygonal surface, than to be disposed in a continued linear progression. But though a perfectly natural chain or arrange- ment of animals cannot be contrived, it is still ne- cessary to form some kind of classification, in order 10 LECTURE I: to keep together such tribes as most evidently fe- semble each other. Naturalists have therefore in- vented several systems or distributions of animals; formed, either from the general external appear- ance, or from the structure of the principal in- ternal organs. The most ancient division of animals, (exclusive of the slight sketches to be found in some parts of the sacredwritings,) is that of Aristotle, who divided animals into viviparous or such as produce living and perfectly-formed young, and into oviparous, or such as produce eggs, from which the young are afterwards excluded. This distinction of animals was not conducted with perfect exactness, and Aristotle himself was sensible that it was liable to some exceptions, and that it contained certain inac- curacies. It continued however to be in use, with some modifications, till towards the decline of the seventeenth century, when our famous Mr. Ray formed a new classification of animals, founded chiefly on the structure and nature of the heart and lungs in the different tribes; and the Linnaean arrangement of the animal kingdom still acknow- ledges that of Ray for its basis; particularly with respect to quadrupeds. * * LECTURE I. 11 The great or general Linnaean outline or ar- rangement of the animal world is thus distributed. First, into such animals as have warm red blood, and a heart divided into two cavities, or ventricles, as anatomists term them. These animals consist of Quadrupeds and Birds; the former being vi- viparous, or producing living and ready-formed young, and the latter or birds being oviparous, or producing eggs, from which the young are after- wards excluded. w The next division consists of such animals as have a heart with a single cavity or ventricle, while the blood, though red, is of a far lower tem- perature than in quadrupeds and birds; insomuch that it is commonly said to be cold blood. These animals consist of what Linnaeus calls Amphibia, such as Tortoises, Frogs, Lizards, and Serpents, and in the next place, of Fishes. The former of these subdivisions, or the Frog, Tortoise, Lizard, and Serpent tribes, have what Linnaeus terms ar- bitrary lungs, or such as can suspend respiration at pleasure, for a considerable time, without injury to the animal. The latter tribe, or that of Fishes, instead of lungs, is furnished with what are 12 LECTURE I. commonly called gills, in which innumerable divi- sions of blood-vessels are disposed in semicircular ranges. The third order or great division of animals consists of such as Linnaeus supposes to have a heart with a single cavity, and a cold whitish or nearly co- lourless blood. These animals consist of Insects, and of a very numerous and diversified tribe, called, in a large acceptation of the word, by the name of Worms. The former of these tribes, or that of Insects, is distinguished by the particular organs called antennae, and resembling small horns; while the latter tribe, or that of Worms, is distinguished, by having tentacula or flexible feelers. Modern observations seem to prove that the former of these divisions, or Insects, have, in reality, no true or regular circulation: this however is a point which I confess I consider as by no means com- pletely ascertained. º Since the establishment of the Linnaean arrange- ment, so captivating appears to have been the study of system-making, that numerous arrange- ments have been attempted in different parts of the animal kingdom; more particularly within a ILECTURE I. 13 few years past. It may however be much doubted whether the study of Natural History has been greatly advanced by their institution. - It is impossible not to allow some degree of justice to the complaints uttered on this subject by an ingenious naturalist in a neighbouring nation, who thus expresses his sentiments. By what fatality does it happen, that the beau- tiful and elegant science of Natural History is be- come an assemblage of systems, of methods, and discussions of nomenclature, as dry and tedious as they are idle and unnecessary? How can it hap- pen that men of any sterling sense should spend their time in endeavouring to reduce into geome- trical divisions the beautiful gradations of Nature, and to be the slaves to arbitrary and petty ar- rangements, which rise and perish, like so many mushrooms, and which appear to be of no other effect but to disgust and fatigue those who are doomed to study them? When shall we see a stop put to that inundation of new and barbarous words and terms, which deform and disgrace almost all our new works on Natural History, and which threaten to reproduce the scholastic jargon of the 14 LECTURE I. f ages of darkness? A certain methodical arrange- ment is indeed absolutely necessary in the science of natural history; but it is by no means necessary to obscure an easy and elegant study by the intro- duction of innumerable harsh and ill-constructed technical terms, and to sacrifice every grace and elegance of language to the desire of torturing Greek into bad French, and to substitute unin- telligible awkwardness for elegant explanation. It is certain, continues this author, that neither Arnoldus de Villa Nova, nor Raymond Lully, or any other among the old masters of the study of Alchemy, ever introduced a diction more bar- barous, or terms more repulsive, than some of our modern managers of systematic Natural History. I give this quotation as a proof of the ridicule to which the spirit of minute arrangement, so much admired among the lower order of natural- ists, has of late unthinkingly exposed itself. I hope, however, that the author had no intention of glancing at the celebrated Monsieur Cuvier, whose arrangement of the animal kingdom, not- withstanding the unnecessary minuteness of some of his divisions, must be allowed to possess a very LECTURE I. 15 high degree of merit, and perhaps may be allowed to be the most truly philosophic that has yet been S6262 Iſle - - Monsieur Cuvier divides the whole animal world into what he calls Vertebrated and Invertebrated animals; that is, such as are furnished with a back- bone, divided into the joints called vertebrae, and forming a case or guard for the spinal marrow, and into such as are destitute of this series of bones, and are therefore Invertebrated animals. His first class, viz. the Vertebrated animals, are subdivided into such as have warm blood and a heart with two cavities or ventricles, and into such as have comparatively cold blood, and a heart with one ventricle. In the first division then of Verte- brated animals rank Quadrupeds and Birds, and in the second, or such as have cold blood and a single ventricle, rank the Linnaean Amphibia and JFishes. - The second great class, consisting of the Inver- tebrated animals, or such as are destitute of the spine or back-bone, is divided into such as have a system of blood-vessels for the purpose of circu- lation, and such as have none. The first of these divisions, or that consisting of 15 y- LECTURE I. animals furnished with blood-vessels, contains the major part of what Linnaeus calls Mollusca or soft-bodied animals, and also all the Crustacea or such as are furnished with a moderately hard or crustaceous covering. In the second division of Invertebrated animals, are contained those which are supposed to be destitute of a regular system of blood-vessels; these animals are Insects and Zoo- phytes; Monsieur Cuvier not allowing a circu- lation of the blood in insects, and in the animals called Zoophytes, it has certainly never been observed. Such is the general outline of Monsieur Cu- vier's Zoological System. His institution and arrangement of the various genera of animals, under each more particular division of his system, is conducted with great anatomical precision, and evinces the highest-de- gree of philosophical knowledge of animals; but the whole arrangement has a somewhat compli- cated and forbidding appearance to a general reader, and is of course less immediately attrac-" tive than the more simple arrangement of Lin- Il:{2|{IS. - Animals are, in general, sufficiently and readily DIowa. A Mrs.cºm, A zºo,” Cºcº'zzona, a 2.%// 4, 6/ſca/w/º A*.*. - - - - LECTURE I. 17 distinguished from vegetables, and there are few instances in which we can suppose a person in the least danger of confounding them. Yet there are many indistinct approximations between animals and vegetables, exclusive of the real or acknow- ledged connecting links. Thus there are many animals which are nearly as torpid as the major part of vegetables: and again, there are some vegetables which seem almost to trench upon the properties of animals, by their peculiar motion on being suddenly irritated; thus, the Dionaba Mus- cipula, or Venus's Fly-Trap, an American plant, well known to all who are conversant with the science of Botany, is furnished with leaves pos- sessed of so strong a degree of irritability, as to confine, by their sudden contraction, any small animal which happens to alight upon them; and the Hedysarum gyrans, an East-Indian plant, of the papilionaceous or pea-bloom tribe, seems to possess a kind of voluntary motion in the small leaves situated on each side the base of the larger ones. In general, however, the distinction be- tween animals and vegetables is too striking to admit of any hesitation, and it would be a mere loss of time, in the short space allotted to our pre- LCET. I. C fºi - LECTURE.I., sent course of Lectures, to enter, with any degree of minuteness, into the history of the possible cases in which a doubt might be supposed to arise between the two kingdoms, to which such parti- cular subject should be supposed most properly to belong. . . . . . . . . . . . . . if The limits of animal, and vegetable life are: generally allowed to concur or unite in those extra- ordinary beings called Zoophytes, and above all others in those Zoophytes called Polypes, of which four different species have been discovered in our own country, as well as in many other parts of Eu- rope. They are small water animals, of a very tender substance, and furnished at the upper part with several long and slender arms, with which they seize their prey: the body is of a lengthened and tubular form, and the whole creature possesses, in a very high degree, the power of extending or. contracting itself at pleasure. It produces its young principally by a species of vegetation; cer- tain small swellings or tubercles appearin g; at in- tervals on different parts of its body, which, in’ the space of a few days, become complete, and resemble the parent animal in every respect ex- eept that of size. When thus fully formed, they w t? drop-off from the body of the parent animal, and attach themselves to any convenient substance: it often happens that a Polype shall be loaded, not only with a primary but a secondary offspring, the young animals themselves, before their se- paration from the parent, producing others in a similar manner; so that the whole may be com- pared to a kind of genealogical tree. These crea- tures are highly voracious, and possessing, as be- fore observed, a very high degree of contractile and extensile power, are capable of swallowing other animals of far larger size than themselves; the tubular body of the Polype enlarging in order to receive them. The act of seizing their prey is very sudden and violent, but their mode of swal- lowing or absorbing it is very gradual. When a Polype is cut into two or three pieces, each piece, in the space of a few days, especially in warm weather, becomes a perfectly complete animal, by the reproduction of every part deficient. Thus, if a Polype be cut into three pieces, the office of the head or upper part is to produce a new extremity or tail, with its sphincter-muscle; of the tail part to produce a new head and arms; and of the middle part to produce both extremes. It there- * 20 LECTURE I. fore cannot be doubted that the Polypes do really constitute the connecting link between animal and vegetable life. The figures of the Polype, selected for our pre- sent inspection, are from the work of the cele- brated Roesel; and represent with great elegance and fidelity, the appearance of these extraordinary animals, both in their natural size, and magnified by the microscope. The species in these figures of Roesel are the Green, the Brown, and the yellowish-Grey Polype. These most curious and interesting animals were first fully described by a Monsieur Trembley, of Geneva, who, about the year 1780, happened to discover them in searching after some small aqua- tic plants. They had indeed been discovered long before by the celebrated Leewenhoeck, who gave a general description of the animal, and observed that it multiplied by an apparent vegetation; but it was reserved for Monsieur Trembley to discover and describe, in an ample and circumstantial man- ner, all its extraordinary properties. Monsieur Trembley happened first to observe the small green Polype, or Hydra viridis, and being greatly sur- prised at the appearance of a creature, which had - . º - - º - º º º | | º \ |PO||YIPE s &e wazaſ//eº/?wºre zºº/* *** * *a*4/ºz ºr ºſcºw Azer.ºr IECTURE I. 2I at once the aspect of a plant, and the motions of an animal, determined to try the experiment of cutting it in two, in order to ascertain its doubtful nature; and was beyond measure astonished to find that instead of destroying it, both parts seemed uninjured by the wound, and that, in a very few days, each had reproduced every deficient organ, and that each animal seized its prey, and moved about as before. This striking discovery, being announced, was at first considered by many as a fable; and it was (eVen contended, that this division of animal life was in itself absolutely impossible upon the prin- ciples of common sense, as well as of sound philo- sophy; but, at length, the attention of philosophers in every part of Europe being excited by the sin- gularity of the circumstance, the animals were every where sought after, and experiments made by cutting them in every possible direction. Their real nature was thus completely ascertained; and, from subsequent experiments, it was found, that in reality many other tribes of the inferior animals were likewise possessed of the power of repro- duction, though in a less striking degree; and thus a wide field of philosophical investigation was sud- 22 EECTURE F. - denly opened, which may be said to have consti- tuted a new era in the science of Natural History, s In warm weather so rapid is the multiplication of the common Polype, that the descendants of a single animal are supposed to amount to several thousands in the course of a single summer. . . . An ingenious observer in our own country, soon after the first account of Monsieur Trembley's dis- coveries had been published, made the following observations, which I shall give in his own words, “A single Polype, say she, was put into a glass by itself, on the 12th of July, with two intentions, viz. first, that I might learn how long-lived the ereature is, and at what rate it produces branchers, It is still alive in this present week of September; and goes on to produce at least five in a week, one week with another. But, because this Polype had the appearance of a young one on it when I first set it apart, (which young one was separated by falling off from the parent in three days' time,) I was willing to make trial how long it would be before a young Polype might be expected, pro- vided the old one was without any appearance of a bud, and was itself only of moderate growth. Ac- cordingly I took such a one, which was a brancher LECTURE I: t $3. #om the first-mentioned animal, and put it into a glass by itself on the 23d of July, and in a week's time it produced a young one, and since that time produces at the rate before-mentioned, viz. five in a week. Soon after, I sent to a friend well skilled in figures, to desire him to make a computation of the number a single Polype would produce in a year's time, and on the moderate supposition, that, (a week being allowed for every brancher when separated, before it begins to produce,) it be sup- posed afterwards to produce one in three days. But he informs me that there exists no rule by which such computation can be made; that it is in itself extremely difficult, and that, after all, mis- takes might arise in such a multitude of figures as would be necessary; but that he went so far as to calculate the number of the second generation, which amounted to more than eleven thousand. What then, says he, must be the amount of the whole " . Theobjections made at the time of the first dis- covery of the extraordinary power of reproduction in the Polype were chiefly these. If the animal soul or life, said the objectors, be one indivisible essence, all in all, and all in every part, how comes it in this animal, to endure being divided several 24 2. LECTURE I. times, and yet continue to exist and flourish? Again, if animal identity consists in consciousness, and if every living creature is sensible of pleasure and pain, or in other words, has a consciousness, which is generally thought a reasonable suppo- sition; when the Polype is divided into several parts, which all become perfect Polypes, where shall we find the identity of the original animal? A letter dated from the University of Cam- bridge, inserted in the Philosophical Transactions, reasons thus on the subject. - The last news from Paris gives us something very surprising; viz. that an animal called the Polypus is of such a nature, that life is preserved in it after it has been cut into several pieces; so that one animal seems by section to be immediate, ly divided into two, or three, or more complete animals, each separately enjoying life, and con- tinuing to perform all the usual operations of its species. Such an account would have been less regarded, had we not been informed that letters avouching the reality of the fact had lately been communicated to the Royal Society, and that its reality had also been confirmed by some of our best observers. - Some of our friends, who are firmly attached LEctURE I. , 25 to the general metaphysical notions we have formerly learned, reason strongly against the pos- sibility of such a fact; but, as I have myself for- merly confessed my distrust of the truth of some of those principles, I shall now make no scruple of acknowledging that I have already seen so many strange things in Nature, that I am become very cautious in affirming what may, or what may not possibly be. The most common operations of Nature in the animal and vegetable world are all in themselves astonishing, and nothing but daily experience and constant observation makes us see without amazement an animal produce another of the same kind, or a tree blossom, and produce leaves and fruit. The same observation, and daily experience, make it also familiar to us, that, besides the first way of increasing vegetables from their respective seeds, they are also increased by cuttings; and every one knows that a twig of a willow, cut off, and placed in the ground, does presently take root and grow, and by degrees becomes as much a real and perfect tree as the original one from which it was taken, \ - Here is then, in the vegetable kingdom, a fa- miliar instance of the very example hitherto un- known in the animal kingdom. The best philosos phers have long ago observed very strong analoa gies between these two classes of Beings, and the moderns have every day found reason to extend that analogy; and some have even talked of a scale of Nature, in which, by an insensible transition, a connexion is made from the most perfect of ani- mals to the most imperfect of vegetables. Now in such a scale who shall say, here animal life entirely ends, and here the vegetable life begins 3 or just thus far, and no farther, one sort of operation goes, and just here another quite different sort takes place # Or again, who will venture to say, Life in every animal is a thing absolutely different from that which we dignify by the same name in every vege. table? and might not a man even be excused if he should modestly doubt whether vegetables may not themselves be considered as a very low and im- perfect tribe of animals, as animals might, in like manner, be considered as a more perfect and exalted kind of vegetables? - At our next meeting I shall proceed to give a general description of the different tribes of the animal kingdom. LECTURE II. WE have already seen that Linnaeus has ar. ranged the whole animal world into three great divisions; the first containing such animals as have warm red blood, and a heart divided into two ca- yities, or ventricles; the second containing ani- mals with cold red blood, and a heart with one gavity only; and the third consisting of animals with pale or colourless cold blood, and a heart (as Ilinnaeus imagined) furnished with a single cavity. The secondary or more particular Linnaean dis. tribution of Animals is thrown into six divisions, the first of which is entitled Mammalia, compre- hending such animals as suckle their young, being furnished with proper organs for that purpose. The second division comprises Birds. The third the Amphibia in the Linnaean sense of the word, comprising the Lizard, Tortoise, Frog, and Ser- 28 LECTURE II. pent tribes. The fourth division comprehends Fishes; the fifth Insects, and the last Worms, which latter term is to be received in a very extended signification; comprising a great multitude of Animals which, in common language, bear very different titles. -- With some occasional variations and transposi- tions, the Linnaean distribution of animals will be that by which we shall regulate our own survey of the animal world; and we shall, of course, begin with Quadrupeds or Linnaean Mammalia. The old and generally received English term Quadru- ped, means, as every one knows, a four-footed animal; and it is evident that it will apply to a Lizard, a Tortoise, or a Frog, as well as to the higher order of Quadrupeds, or such as are ge. nerally called four-footed Beasts. It was therefore absolutely necessary to fix upon some term which should sufficiently distinguish the viviparous from the oviparous quadrupeds; and Linnaeus according- ly instituted the expressive term Mammalia, mean- ing such animals as are furnished with organs for suckling their young. This (except in one doubt- ful instance) sufficiently distinguishes Quadrupeds of the higher order, or four-footed Beasts, from the LECTURE II. 29 * oviparous quadrupeds, which we shall find to be more properly referred to the Linnaean Amphibia. Among the Mammalia we must not be surprised to find all the kinds of Whales arranged; it being well known that those animals nourish their young by suckling them, in the manner of other Mamma- lia; and that in the structure of their skeleton and internal parts, they resemble quadrupeds and not fishes; so that they may be considered as Mamma- lia in the disguise of Fishes. The doubtful instance which I just mentioned is exemplified in that most singular animal called the Duckbill: a native of New-Holland, and dis- covered but a very few years ago. In this animal we have the appearance of an indistinct alliance to very different tribes, since the bill or snout resem- bles that of a Duck, and, upon the strictest exa- mination that has yet been made, no appearance of teats has been discovered in the female; so that if the animal be really destitute of those organs, it cannot belong to the Linnaean Mammalia, the grand or essential character of which consists in being provided with them. w The general characters of the Mammalia at large are the following. 36 . LECTURE If.. The plan or fabric of their Skeleton, as well as of their internal organs, bears a degree of general resemblance to that of Man. * Their outward covering consists, in general, of hair; but in some few, the animal matter or sub- stance of the hair takes the form of distinct spines or quills, as in the Porcupine and Hedgehog tribe; and in a highly curious species of Ant-Eater disa covered in New Holland, and called the aculeated Ant-Eater, or Porcupine Ant-Eater. In other Mammalia the same substance is expanded into the appearance of very strong and broad scales, as in the quadrupeds of the genus Manis or Pangolin, which from its general appearance has obtained the improper title of the Scaly Lizard; though no other- wise allied to the Lizards; being a genuine vivi- parous quadruped, and consequently belonging to the Linnaean Mammalia; and lastly, in one set of Mammalia, called Armadillos, instead of hair, which is only sparingly scattered over some parti- cular parts of the animal, we meet with strong bony zones or bands, forming a regular suit of armour, and securing the animal from all common injuries. The instruments of loco-motion, or feet, in the 31% Mammalia are generally four in number, and fur- mished with separate toes, or divisions, guarded by claws, more or less strong in the different tribes. In some, as in the Monkeys, the feet have the ap- pearance of hands; and the claws often bear a great resemblance to . the human nails, for which reason these animals have sometimes been called Quadrumanes; as having four hands, rather than four feet". In some tribes of Mammalia the feet are armed or shod with strong hoofs, either quite ontire, or cloven or divided. In such of the Mam- malia as possess the power of flight, as in the Bat tribe, the fore-feet are drawn out into slender fin- gers of an immoderate length, and united by a common membrane or web. In some of the aquatic Mammalia, as the Seals, for instance, both the fore and hind feet are very strongly or widely webbed; and in the Whales, there are in reality only two feet, the bones of which are inclosed in what are commonly called the fins, while the lobes of the tail in some degree answer the purpose of a - pair of hind-feet, but consist merely of strong 'The cºunted coverinparticular assacred disme, which indeed has often been applied to such animals by many prior writers. 1 - t 32. LECTURE II. muscles and tendons without any internal joints or bones. The arms, or offensive and defensive weapons of the Mammalia, besides the claws and teeth, (which will be afterwards particularized,) are prin- cipally the horns; inserted in various directions, and on different parts in the different tribes. The horns are either perennial or annual. In the Rhi- noceros the horn is perennial, and situated on the top of the nose. in the Deer tribe the horns are annual, branched, covered while young, with a soft villous skin or coat; they grow from the tip, and become very solid and strong at their full size. In the Ox tribe, as well as in the Sheep and Goat, they are hollow, mounted on a bony core, and grow from the base. Besides the assistance which they derive from horns and claws, the Mammalia have many other modes of defence, which they occa- sionally exert; and sometimes even deter their enemies by their voice or their scent, of which we have many curious examples in the history of par- ticular animals. The Teeth in Quadrupeds or Mammalia are of three kinds. I. Front or Cutting-Teeth, of a broad, compressed structure, designed for cutting their LECTURE II. 33 food; 2. Sharp, lengthened, or canine teeth, si- tuated on each side the cutting-teeth, and calcu- lated for tearing and dividing the food; and lastly, Grinders, with broad, angular tops, for commi- muting or grinding the food. They are situated, as in the human subject, on each side the jaws. The teeth afford a principal character in forming the tribes and genera, or particular sets of Quadrupeds > their distribution differing greatly in the different kinds. In some the canine teeth are wanting; in others the front teeth; and some few are totally destitute of any teeth. The tail in Quadrupeds is formed by a con- tinuation of the vertebrae or joints of the back-bone; and is in some of great length, and covered with very long hair: in others very short; and in some few entirely wanting, as in the real or genuine Apes. The Senses of the Mammalia consist, as in Man, of the organs of sight, hearing, tasting, and smelling, and the power of feeling; and in many of these animals the organs are of greater acuteness or sensibility than in Man. The Eyes, in some Quadrupeds, are furnished with what is called a nictitating membrane, or semistransparent guard, LECT. II, D 34; LECTURE. II. situated beneath the eyelids, and which can at pleasure be drawn over the ball of the eye for its farther defence. The nose or organ of smelling is more or less compressed and lengthened. In the Elephant it is extended in a most wonderful man- ner into a long and tubular proboscis or trunk, at the tip of which are placed the nostrils. The tongue in Quadrupeds is usually of a flattened and lengthened shape; sometimes, as in the Cat or Lion-tribe, beset on its upper surface, with small, reversed spines. In some few, as in the Ant- Eaters, it is of a cylindric shape, and lengthened into the form of a worm, and is extensile at the pleasure of the animal. ſº The Teats or Mammae are found in all these animals, and, as before observed, give rise to the Linnaean title of the whole class. After this general description of the Mammalia, we may proceed to take a slight view of the prin- cipal tribes or orders, and their most remarkable genera and species. Modern Naturalists have disagreed with respect to the particular methods or distributions into which they have arranged Quadrupeds. The cele- brated Count de Buffon entirely neglected all me- -* LECTURE II. 35 thod or system, giving his elegant, but too diffuse descriptions without any regular order of distri- bution; and having begun his natural history of Quadrupeds in this manner, he chose to continue it through the whole of his voluminous work, ex- cept in a few instances, in which he seems to have found the necessity of being systematic even in spite of himself. Not contented with this general neglect of all arrangement in his history of Qua- drupeds, Buffon seems to have taken a pleasure in endeavouring to depreciate the merit of systematic arrangement in general, and more particularly that of Linnaeus. Linnaeus, however, appears to have been fully conscious of his own superiority, and to have understood the policy as well as the dignity of literature too well, to exalt into cele- brity the petulant remarks of Buffon by conde- scending to answer them. He even carefully ab- stained from mentioning that author; not a single quotation from the work of Buffon making its ap- pearance in the whole course of the twelfth edition of the Systema Naturae of Linnaeus. A defect which is very properly remedied in the enlarged edition of that work by Dr. Gmelin. The whole class of Mammalia is divided by 36 LECTURE II. . *º- Linnaeus into seven orders. The first of these orders is entitled Primates, as containing the chiefs of the Creation. Its characters are, four front or cutting teeth above and below ; and one canine or sharpened tooth on each side these. The feet are formed with a resemblance of hands, and the nails are more or less ovate in shape. Most of the order feed chiefly on vegetable substances. In a merely zoological view, the Human kind stands at the head of this order, forming the Linnaean genus Homo. Of the human species it can only be necessary here to observe, that it is strongly, allied in the general structure of the body to a race of animals by no means calculated for flatter- ing us by the resemblance. The leading characters of the genus Simia, comprehending the whole race of Apes, Baboons, . and Monkeys, are, that the teeth have the same disposition and general form as the Human teeth;. i. e. that there are four flattish front teeth, both. above and below, a sharpened or canine tooth at some distance on each side these, and several grinders beyond: the feet also have a general re- semblance to hands, and in most species are fur- nished with nails rather than claws. ' ("||ESN trºl" ("0.01ſt ED ORAN () TAN zºod ººzoº, ºr ºr *-*. LECTURE II. 37 This numerous race, consisting of the different kinds of Apes, Baboons, and Monkeys, has in all ages extorted from the philosopher and the mo- ralist, sentences expressive either of complaint or admiration. The chief of the tribe, or the Oran Otan, has been often studiously held up as not only making a nearer approach to the general figure of Man- kind than any other animal, but even as possessing a degree of intellect superior to the rest of the animal world; and a variety of exaggerated descrip- tions might be cited from those who have given its natural history. Two very distinct species of Oran Otan are known: the one a native of Africa, and of a black colour; the other a native of the East Indies, and of a reddish or chesnut colour. It is to these that most of the popular tales relate. But the two species, distinct as they are, have been till lately confounded by most authors, and among others by Linnaeus, under the title of Simia Sa- tyrus. The species which makes the nearest ap- proach to the human figure, is the chesnut-coloured or reddish Oran Otan, well represented in the works of Vosmaer and Audebert. It is also figured by Fdwards. The general fault of the 38 LECTURE II. common figures of these animals is, that the artists represent the mouth as if furnished with human lips. The Black Oran Otam, which, as before observed, is a native of Africa, has been long ago very elegantly figured in the celebrated work of Dr. Tyson. It is somewhat less strikingly allied to the human figure than the former animal, the face being rather more prominent. Like the former, it has hitherto been brought to Europe in a young or unadvanced state, and its height has hardly ever exceeded that of two feet; but it appears probable that both species at their full length may arrive at a size not far inferior to the human sta- ture, and indeed the black species, if we may rely on the accounts of some travellers, has been known to surpass that height. The manners of both these animals, in a state of captivity, are gentle, and void of that disgusting ferocity so remarkable in many of the large ani- mals of the Genus Simia. Their imitations of human actions, and the feats of dexterity for which they have been celebrated, have been so often re- peated in various works of natural history, that they must be familiarly known to all persons of |BILACK ORAN- O TAN. from Tyron. *Janºuzenºn.” by ºxºteyrº sº. LECTURE II. •. 39 reading; and it must be quite unnecessary to re- cite them to an audience like the present. Those who may wish to examine their history more mi- nutely, must be referred to the works of Buffon, Camper, Vosmaer, Daubenton, and Cuvier. Convinced ºy the luminous observations of these latter enquirers, relative to the anatomy of these singular animals, we shall find that there are essential differences, even between their bodily structure and that of the human race; and shall readily dismiss all apprehensions of being too nearly allied to animals, which have, by unin- formed philosophers, been held up as the rivals of Mankind. From the observations of Camper and Cuvier, it is evident that these animals are in reality cal- culated for running and climbing in the manner of most other quadrupeds, and not for walking up- right, as they are generally represented. It is however true, that they can more readily assume that position than most other quadrupeds, and may no doubt have been sometimes seen in such a posture in their native woods. Like the rest of the genuine Apes, the Oran Otans are perfectly destitute of a tail. 40 LECTURE II. The manner of both the species of Oran Otan, viz. the black and the chesnut-coloured, are repre- sented as extremely gentle when in a state of cap- tivity. Dr. Tyson, who about the close, of the 17th century gave a description of a young Oran Otan of the black species, assures us that it was (to use his own expressions), “the most gentle and lóving creature that could be. Those on ship- board that he knew, he would embrace with the greatest tenderness, and, as I was informed, al- though there were other Monkies on board, yet it was observed, that he would never associate, and, as if nothing akin to them, would always avoid their company.” Mr. Vosmaer's account of the manners of a chesnut-coloured Oran Otan, brought into Holland in the year 1776, and presented to the Prince of Orange's Menagerie, is so curious, that I shall repeat it from his accurate publication on that subject. * This animal, says Mr. Vosmaer, was in height about two Rhenish feet and a half. It shewed no symptoms of fierceness or malignity, and was even of a melancholy appearance. It was fond of being in company, and shewed a preference to LECTURE II. 41 those who took daily care of it, of which it seemed to be very sensible. Often, when they retired, it would throw itself on the ground as if in despair, uttering lamentable cries. Its keeper having been accustomed sometimes to sit near it on the ground, it would take the hay of its bed, and spread it in the form of a cushion or a seat, and by every de- monstration invite its keeper to sit with it. Its usual manner of walking was on all fours, but it could also walk on its two hind feet. One morn- ing it got unchained, and we beheld it, with won- derful agility, ascend the beams and rafters of the building: it was not without some trouble that it was taken, and we then remarked the prodigious strength of the animal; the assistance of four men being necessary, in order to hold it in such a man- ner as to be properly secured. During its state of liberty, it had, among other things, taken the cork from a bottle of Malaga wine, which it drank to the last drop, and had set the bottle in its place again. When presented with strawberries on a plate, of which it was extremely fond, it was very amusing to see it take them up one by one with al, fork, and put them into its mouth. Its common drink was water, but it also willingly drank all 42 LECTURE II. sorts of wine, but preferred Malaga. After eating, it always wiped its mouth, and when presented with a toothpick, always used it in a proper man- ner. This animal lived seven months in Holland, and was brought from the island of Borneo. Two other very remarkable species of Ape are those called the long-armed Apes, or Gibbons. One of these is of a black colour, with the arms of such a length, that the tips of the fingers touch the ground when the animal stands upright. It is a native of India, and grows to the height of about three feet. It is remarkable for having been once placed by Linnaeus, in one of the earlier editions of the Systema Naturae, under the genus Homo, having been considered at that time as being still more nearly related to the Human race than even the Oran Otan. It was the Simia Lar of Linnaeus, and is finely represented in Miller's Miscellaneous plates of Natural history”. The other species of Gibbon, or long-armed Ape, differs from the pre- * But besides this animal, Linnaeus, in some editions of the Systema Naturae, once introduced a species under the name of Homo Nocturnus, which was evidently no other than the Oran Otan, indistinctly described, with various circumstances of aggra- walion, from certain voyages and travels. Zazzºzozz º.ºzzzz º z/??”., wozzozz,2,2,2 ºr NO III+) (ISIN SLV-ty. SIOT GILIHLM. SIO ſºlº) (IºIIM IV*) NOT MOVT II SIMI & HLAMADIY AS º º º Fº 3. 㺠- º |D) ()() = FACIED) |BAIB () (ON. *o relºalondon Rºjºa. by Gººyºº. */* LECTURE II. 43 ceding in being entirely white, except the face and hands: it is the Simia Moloch of Audebert. Of this animal, an admirable specimen exists in the Leverian Museum, and is well represented in the second number of the work entitled Museum Leverianum. It is impossible to contemplate the animal, without being struck with the very pe- culiar appearance which its general resemblance- to the human figure gives it. The common Barbary Ape, and the smaller variety or Pygmy Ape, are too well known to re- quire particularizing: the latter is supposed by Mr. Pennant to have been the Pygmy of the an- cients; so famous for their supposed battles with the Cranes. º The next division of the genus Simia compre- hends what are called the Baboons. They are in general of large size, with lengthened dog-like faces, very muscular bodies, and tails of different lengths in the different species. One of the most remarkable is the Simia Hamadryas of Linnaeus, or Grey Baboon. It is of an elegant grey colour, with the hair thickly mottled or freckled with mi- nute dusky specks. As a species, it is particularly distinguished by the excessive length and fulness \ 44 LECTURE II. of the hair on each side the head, which flows over the shoulders in such a manner as to form a kind of mantle. It is a native of many parts of Africa, and, like most other Baboons, is of a ferocious dis- position. In a state of nature it feeds entirely on fruits and grain; and is said to commit great ha- voc in plantations of various kinds. This Baboon was one of the sacred animals of the ancient Egyp- tians, and frequently appears among the hierogly- phics inscribed on the ancient sarcophagi and obelisks of that country. It is also one of those species which are furnished with a tail of moderate Pength. # r Among the Baboons with very short tails, the most remarkable is the S. Mormon, or variegated Baboon; finely represented in the first number of the Museum Leverianitm. . It is of an olive-brown colour, with a cast of yellow, and thickly be- sprinkled with small black specks. The whole length of the nose, in the full-grown animal, is of a vivid red, and the cheeks of a bright blue, marked on each side by several deep furrows: round the lower part of the body, the skin is of a beautiful changeable violet-colour, shaded with red. Like the former, it is a native of various parts of Africa. | || | |W - n º |\\\\\ | VARIE GATED BABOON, 1800 Jarº. London Publiſh'd by G. Kearwley Fleet ºtreet. ("(). All" A., & Pll) F. R \ll () N KEY zºod ºccº Zondon /////.44, 6 Maº A/ecº-ſºrcea, LECTURE II. 45 There is a smaller species, resembling this in every respect except size, and in having the face less brilliantly coloured. It is the S. Maimon of Lin- naeus, and is often considered as a variety of the former, but it rather seems to be truly distinct. Among the Monkeys properly so called, or those with very long tails, the common green monkey, or S. Sabaea of Linnaeus, furnishes a good example. Its colour is a dark greenish grey, with the under parts of the body and insides of the limbs white: the tail long and blackish. I must not omit to mention, that some Mon- keys, particularly those of America, are furnished with what Linnaeus calls a prehensile tail; that part being so constituted, as to possess the power of strongly coiling round any object at pleasure, and thus answering in some degree the purpose of a fifth hand: the under part of the tail, in such monkeys, is generally bare, and lined with a very strong elastic skin. t To those who wish to become acquainted with the several species of this cztremely extensive genus, I must recommend the coloured plates of Schreber, who, in his work on the Mammalia, has collected almost all which have been hitherto de- 46 LECTURE II. AP scribed. Several good figures may also be found in the magnificent work of Audebert, though many bad ones may also be there found. It may be added, that from indistinct or transient views of some of the larger kind of Apes amid Baboons, must have originated the ancient idea of Satyrs, as the smaller kind of Apes gave rise to that of Pygmies. ...' The next natural genus, or assortment of the Order Primates, is that of Lemur or Macauco. It consists of a set of animals, allied to the mon- keys in some degree, but of a much more elegant { * ** appearance, The particular character of the genus Lemur consists in the disposition of the teeth, which re- semble those of Monkeys, but the lower front teeth are stretched out or forwards; and the canine teeth are placed close to them. As a secondary character, it may be observed, that the feet are formed like hands, and that the index or second finger of the hind feet is often furnished with a sharp lengthened claw. The genus Lemur, like that of Simia, feeds chiefly on vegetables; though some species are also observed to be carii- WOrOuS, - SLOW LIEMIUR zºo.4 º'ca. 4ozzoz. ººz & 6. Meanw/ev Azeez ſązez. -- T- ºr. º º º º*&are rºo. LECTURE II. 47 Of this genus, some are totally destitute of a tail, while others have that part of great length. Of the tailless kind, is the Lemur Tardigradus, or Slow Lemur, a native of the East Indian islands, and particularly of Ceylon. This animal is ex- cessively slow in all its motions, more particularly during the day; and it is from this circumstance that it has been sometimes called the Ceylon Sloth, though not at all allied in any other respect to the Sloths properly so called, or the Bradypus tribe. Another and somewhat smaller species of Lemur, which has been often confounded with the former, is the slender-limbed Lemur : it is destitute of a tail, and is distinguished by the remarkable slen- derness of its limbs. It is said to be naturally ra- ther a quick and lively animal than slow in its motions. Among the long-tailed species of Lemur, the most elegant is the Lemur Catta of Linnaeus, or ring-tailed Macauco, an animal of great beauty, and a perfect contrast to the Slow Lemur in its manners; being a species of great agility, and leaping with peculiar lightness and ease. It is often brought over to Europe, and is easily ren- dered domestic. The L. Mongos, or brown Ma- 48 LECTURE II: cauco, differs in being of a brown colour without variegation; in some, rufous on the breast, and white beneath. t § The two genera of Simia and Lemur may be said to constitute the real or proper Primates: Linnaeus, however, as is well known, places in this order the genus Vespertilio or Bat; an association which at first appears incongruous, but which is justified by a consideration of many particulars in the structure of those animals; though not appa- rent at first view; nor will the transition from the genus Lemur to Vespertilio appear too abrupt, if we consider, that in the Linnaean genus LEMUR once stood a very curious animal, allied in many points to the rest of that tribe, but so different in others, that it is now, by the common consent of Zoolo- gists, removed from it, and allowed to constitute a distinct genus. It is the Colugo, formerly called the Flying Lemur; the Galeopithecus of Pallas, a large animal, measuring about three feet in length, or from head to the extremity of the tail, and is furnished with expanded lateral membranes, when fully extended, measuring nearly as much : these membranes are not naked; as in the bats, but covered with a furry skin, like the rest of the COLT GO or FLYING LEM tº: ***** *///z ºr c/º Azcº ſº. LECTURE II. 49 body, and reaching to the feet themselves, and are continued from the hind-feet to the tip of the tail, which is included in the same skin". This curious quadruped, which has often been indistinctly de- scribed by Indian travellers, under the title of the Flying Cat, is a native of the East Indian islands, where it lives in the manner of the genus Lemur, but flutters about during the night in the manner of a bat. Its general colour is grey, with a slight cast of reddish brown. Specimens are figured in the work of Audebert, from the museum of the Prince of Orange. That figured in the work of Mr. Pennant is from the Leverian museum. This animal therefore may, at present, lead us, by a kind of natural transition, to the genus Vespertilio or Bat. Linnaeus has been sometimes severely censured for placing the Bats in the same tribe with the Primates, to which, on a cursory view, they seem so little allied. As it is certain, however, that we cannot form a fairly connected chain of the animal world, these seemingly abrupt transitions are but * Its particular characters are: no front-teeth in the upper-jaw; but in the lower six broad, short, and distinct or separate teeth, deeply notched or pectinated on the tips. LECT. II. E. * 56 LECTURE II. of small consequence in an arrangement of Qua- drupeds. I may add, in the words of an inge- nious French writer, “so easy is it for a person con- versant in subjects of this nature to ring changes, as it were, on the animal world, that a new system of Quadrupeds might be composed in less than half an hour.” Without enquiring, therefore, whether the Lin- naean arrangement be in all points the best and most natural, it may perhaps, with some variations, be considered as the most convenient. The genus Vespertilio, or Bat, is characterized by having, in general, small, upright, numerous, sharp-pointed teeth; and the fingers or divisions of the fore-feet are stretched out to a great length, and connected by a thin, naked membrane, giving the animal the power of flight. With respect to the teeth, however, in this genus, I must observe that they differ so much in the different kinds or spe- cies, that several distinct genera might be formed, instead of one, if an exact regard were paid to the particular disposition of the teeth in the various tribes. Some of the French. naturalists have pur- sued this plan, and have instituted several genera from the single Linnaean genus Vespertilio. Z2 /º | LECTURE II. 51 The curious structure of the wings in the Bat tribe cannot be contemplated without admiration; being so formed as to be capable, from their thin- ness, of being contracted at pleasure into innu- merable wrinkles, so as to lie in a very small space when the animal is at rest, and to be stretched into a wide expanse for occasional flight. The common Bats of our own country, how- ever really curious, sink into insignificant objects compared to the enormous species found in some parts of India, Africa, and South America. Of these the chief is a species, long celebrated under the name of the Vampyre Bat: it is the Vesper- tilio Vampyrus of Linnaeus, and its extraordinary history, if true, may well be said to deserve par- ticular attention. The body of this animal is twice the size of a squirrel, or even larger, and the extent of the wings often meåsures at least five feet": the colour of the body is a dusky brown, the head, neck, and shoulders of a reddish-brown: the wings black, as in the common bat. This species preys chiefly on insects and fruits; but it * Sir Hans Sloane, as appears by his size preserved in the British Museum, was in possession of a specimen measuring seven feet. This is the largest I ever remember to have heard of, and was brought from Sumatra. 52 LECTURE II. is pretended that it has the power of inserting the tip of its tongue so dexterously into the vein of a sleeping person, as to draw away a considerable quantity of blood, without waking the patient ; all the while fanning with its wings, and agitating the air, in those hot climates, in so pleasing a manner, as to fling the sufferer into a still sounder sleep. It is therefore said to be unsafe for any person either to sleep in the open air, in regions frequented by these animals, or to sleep in a chamber with an open window. The cattle in many parts of South America are said to be often destroyed by these bats. The tongue of the Vam- pyre bat, when accurately examined, is found to be covered with very numerous, small, sharp prickles; but, except these, as the Count de Buffon observes, there seems to be nothing very par- ticular in its structure, which can enable the animal to exert this singular power of bleeding without causing pain. It is, however, on account. of this quality that Linnaeus has denominated the species Vespertilio Vampyrus; but as he has given no explanation of the name, it is probable that the reason may not be generally known. A Vampyre is an imaginary monster, or spirit, sup- posed to suck the blood of sleeping persons. It LECTURE II. 53 also alludes to one of the most absurd and de- grading superstitions that ever entered the human mind. About the year 1732, an idea prevailed in some parts of Poland and Hungary, that certain human bodies, after interment, became possessed of a power of extracting or absorbing blood from those who were so unfortunate as to pass over, or stand near their graves: such bodies were said to be possessed by Vampyres, and in order to put a stop to their pernicious power, it was supposed necessary to disinter them, and wound them with a sword. Astonishing as this folly may appear, it is yet more astonishing to find that a great many learned treatises were written on the subject, and that while some endeavoured to combat the ab- surdity upon all the principles of sound philosophy, others defended it, from what they called un- doubted facts. In the Bibliotheca Anatomica of the learned Haller may be found a list of most of the publications on this subject, and whoever reads that entertaining work of the late Lord Orford, entitled Reminiscences”, will be fully con- * In this work we are informed by his lordship, that a very exalted personage, in the time of his father, was perfectly con- 54 LECTURE II. vinced that this superstition was by no means con- fined to the vulgar. We see, therefore, the pro- priety of the Linnaean name Vampyre or Blood- Sucker applied to this kind of Bat. It is also to be observed, that the propensity to sucking the blood of animals is not in reality confined to the Vampyre bats, but is practised by many other species; and even the common bats of Europe are said to possess a similar faculty. Some of the large animals of this genus are well represented in the superb work of Seba, entitled Thesaurus rerum Naturalium, and are repeated, on a smaller scale, in Schreber's work on the Mammalia. Bats are animals that lie torpid during the winter months; sometimes concealing themselves singly in any convenient cavity, and sometimes hanging together in clusters under rocks, in ca- verns, and sheltered places. When thus taken, in a torpid state, the circulation of the blood is not to be perceived by the microscope in the vessels of the membrane of the wings; but on the vinced of the existence of these beings, and expressed high dis- pleasure against Sir Robert Walpole for speaking irreverently of Vampyres. LECTURE II. 55 application of a certain degree of heat, the animal gradually recovers from its torpor, and the circu- lation of the blood becomes visible. The general appearance of the Bat, together with its nocturnal flight, must be confessed to excite the idea of something hideous and dismal; and for this reason the ancients consecrated it to Proserpine, and supposed it to be one of the inha- bitants of her dusky regions: and it cannot fail to occur to the recollection of every one, that painters, in their representations of fiends and demons, usually exhibit them with the leathern wings of the Bat. It is also equally evident, that the fabulous Harpies of the ancients must have originated from a similar source; the larger Bats of India and Africa, by a little poetical exaggera- tion of their manners, answering extremely well to the general description of those monsters. I know not whether it may be worth while to mention the celebrated experiments of Spallan- zani, respecting a supposed additional sense or faculty in Bats, enabling them, when deprived of sight, to avoid any obstacles as readily as when they retained their power of vision. These expe- riments are cruel, and perhaps do not lead to 56 LECTURE II. any very important discoveries in the animal oeco- nomy: nevertheless, that I may not seem entirely to neglect a phenomenon which has been thought worthy of attention by several eminent experi- mentalists, I shall here give a short abstract of Spallanzani's observations. Having observed that Bats would fly in the most dusky chambers with precision, and not even touch the walls, he found them equally exact in their motions when the eyes were closely covered: and at length he destroyed the eyes, and covered the socket with leather; and even in this state the animal continued to fly with the same precision as before; avoiding the walls, and cautiously sus- pending its flight in seeking where to perch. It even flies out at a door without touching the archi- traves. The Abbé repeated his experiments on several species of Bats; and with the same suc- cess. These experiments were repeated by Vas- salli at Turin, by Rossi at Pisa, Spadon at Bologna, and Jurin at Geneva. Spallanzani's arguments for supposing that in these instances no other sense can supply the place of sight, are the following. “ Touch cannot, in this case, supply the place of sight, because an animal covered with hair LECTURE II. 57 cannot be supposed to have that sense very deli- cate. In flying through the middle of a narrow passage which turned at right angles, the Bats regularly bent their flight at the curvature, though two feet distant from the walls. They discovered holes for their retreat; found a resting-place on the cornice; avoided the branches of trees sus- pended in a room; flew through threads hung perpendicularly from the ceiling, without touching them, though they were scarcely at a greater distance from each other than that of their ex- tended wings; and when the threads were brought nearer, they contracted their wings to pass through them. They equally avoided every obstacle, -though the whole head was covered with a varnish made of Sandarach dissolved in spirit of wine. “ The ear could not have discovered a cor- nice, or the threads; this sense therefore does not compensate the want of vision. Besides, Bats fly equally well when the ear is most carefully covered. The smell might possibly assist them; for when the nose was stopped, they breathed with difficulty, and soon fell. While they did fly, however, they avoided obstacles very well; and the smell could scarcely have assisted them in dis- 58 LECTURE II. covering the suspended threads. The taste must have been, in every respect, unequal to the task of supplying the place of sight.” Such were the experiments, and such the con- clusions of Spallanzani. * From Mr. Jurin's anatomical observations on these animals, it appears, that a very large pro- portion of nerves is expanded on the upper jaw, the muzzle, and the organ of hearing; and these appeared to him, in a great degree, to account for the extraordinary faculty above described. I shall conclude the history of these animals by observing, that they are commonly supposed to produce two young at a birth, which they suckle for a very considerable time. When re- cently born, they adhere most tenaciously to the breast of the parent, so as not to be removed without difficulty. The parent also occasionally flies, with her two young ones thus attached to her, even when they are considerably advanced in their growth. We have now surveyed the Linnaean Order Primates, and shall pass on to that entitled Bruta, a title not easy rendered into our own language, since the word Brute is applicable to the rest of 1.ECTURE II. 59 the Mammalia, as well as to these. We must therefore be content to use the Linnaean word unchanged. The Order Bruta is characterized by a want of front or cutting teeth, both in the upper and lower jaw. The feet are armed with strong claws: their pace is, in general, somewhat slow, and their food is principally vegetable. In the rapid and general survey which the term allotted for our lectures permits us to take of the animal world, we can only mention the chief or leading particulars in each order. The genera which should properly compose the Linnaean order Bruta are those of Bradypus or Sloth; Dasypus or Armadillo; Manis or Pangolin; and Myrmecophaga or Ant-Eater; and lastly, the new or lately dis- covered genus Platypus, Ornithorynchus, or Duck- bill. All the animals belonging to these genera are totally destitute of front-teeth, and some are destitute of all teeth”. * Linnaeus himself preferred the Elephant to the order Bruta, but it seems to be the general opinion of later Zoologists that it should more properly be referred to a different order. The same may be said of some other quadrupeds sometimes stationed by authors among the Bruta of the Linnaean arrangement. § {} LECTURE II. The genus Bradypus or Sloth is highly remark- able. It consists of but very few species, of which the most curious is the three-toed Sloth, or Brady- pus tridactylus of Linnaeus. This quadruped is a native of the hotter parts of South America, where it resides on trees, feeding on the foliage and fruit. It is of all quadrupeds the slowest in its motions, appearing even to move with difficulty, and never exerting its progressive powers, except when urged by a want of food. Before the dis- covery of the western hemisphere, the common Tortoise seems to have been considered as the established type of tardiness; but the three-toed Sloth is a much more striking example of languid inotion and habitual inactivity. The early ac- counts, however, of this extraordinary animal seem to have been given with a considerable degree of exaggeration; it having been at first pretended, that the creature could scarcely advance to the distance of a stone's throw in less than fifteen days: that it required eight or nine minutes, in order to move one foot to the distance of three inches. The general appearance of the Sloth is extremely uncouth: its size is that of a smallish - º º Lu, ºn º º º º, "" |''. º 7.3 LECTURE II. 61 dog: the body is of a thick shape, the fore-legs very long; the hinder far shorter: the feet are very small, but they are each armed with three most excessively strong and large claws, of a slightly curved form, and sharp-pointed: the head is small: the face short, with a rounded or blunt snout: the eyes small, black, and round: the ears flat, round- ed, lying close to the head, and not ill resembling those of Monkeys. The general colour of the animal is a greyish brown, and the hair is extreme- ly coarse, moderately long, and very thickly covers , the whole body and limbs. A remarkable character as to colour in this animal is a broad patch on the upper part of the back of a reddish or yellowish brown, marked on each side by several black spots, and down the middle by a very conspi- euous long black stripe. In the young animals this stripe is but very obscurely, if at all, visible. The leading or specific character of the animal consists in all the feet being furnished with three claws; which affords an easy and ready mark of distinction between this species and the two-toed Sloth or Bradypus didactylus, which is of similar size, and considerably allied to it in form, but has % 62 f_ECTURE II. invariably two claws only on the fore-feet, and three on the hind *. . . . . . . . . . The Count de Buffon, in one of those flights of paradoxical eloquence in which he sometimes in- dulges, is not willing to allow the common or three-toed Sloth any share in contributing to the general beauty in the scale of animated nature, but considers it as an ill-constructed mass of de- formity, calculated only for misery, which he thinks is the less to be wondered at, since perhaps the major part of Mankind experience a similar fate. “From a defect in their conformation, says this author, the misery of these animals is not less con- spicuous than their slowness: they have no cutting- teeth: the eyes are obscured with hair; the chaps are heavy and thick; the hair is flat, and resembles withered herbs; the thighs are ill jointed to the hanches; the legs are too short, ill turned, and ter- minated still worse: their feet have no soles, and no toes which move separately, but only two * The three-toed Sloth exhibits a peculiarity in the structure of its skeleton, unexampled by that of any other quadruped: viz. that the neck has nine vertebrae or bones; the number in all other quadrupeds, and even in the two-toed Sloth, being only seven. LECTURE II. 63 or three claws disproportionately long, and bent downwards, which move together, and are more hurtful to their walking than advantageous in as- sisting them to climb. Slowness, habitual pain, and stupidity are the results of this strange and bungled conformation. The Sloths have no wea- pons either offensive or defensive. They are fur- nished with no means of safety; for they can neither run, nor dig into the earth. Confined to a small space, or to the tree, under which they are brought forth, they are prisoners in the midst of space, and cannot move the length of one fathom in an hour. They drag themselves up a tree with much labour and pain; their cry, and interrupted accents, they dare only utter in the night: all these circum- stances announce the misery of the Sloths, and recal to our minds those defective monsters, those im- perfect sketches of Nature, which, being hardly endowed with faculties of existence, could not sub- sist for any length of time, and have accordingly been struck out of the list of beings. If the regions inhabited by the Sloths were not desert, but had been occupied for any length of time by Man and the larger animals, these creatures would never have descended to our times; but would have been anni- 64 LECTURE II. hilated, as in some future period will be the case. Every thing that Nature could possibly produce, capable of existence, has been produced, of which the Sloths are a striking example. They constitute the last term of existence in the order of animals endowed with flesh and blood: one other defect added to the number would have totally prevented their existence. To regard these bungled sketches as beings equally perfect with others; to call in the aid of final causes to account for such dispropor- tioned productions, and to make Nature as brilliant in these as in her most beautiful animals, is to view her through a narrow tube, and to substitute our own fancies for her intentions. Why should not some animals be created for misery, since in the human species the greatest number of individuals are devoted to pain from the moment of their ex- istence P Evil, it is true, proceeds more from our- selves than from Nature. For a single person who is unhappy because born feeble or deformed, there are millions who are rendered miserable by the oppression of their superiors. The inferior ani- mals, in general, are more happy, because the species have nothing to fear from individuals: to them there is but one source of evil: to Man there ‘LECTURE II. 65 are two; Moral Evil, of which he is himself the fountain, has accumulated into an immense ocean, which covers and afflicts the whole surface of the earth. Physical evil, on the contrary, is restrained within very narrow bounds: it seldom appears alone; for it is always accompanied with an equal, if not a Superior good. Can happiness be denied to animals, when they enjoy freedom; have the faculty of procuring subsistence with ease, and pos- sess more health and organs capable of affording more pleasure than those of the human species? Now the generality of animals are most liberally endowed with all these sources of enjoyment. The degraded Sloths are perhaps the only animals to whom Nature has been unkind, and which exhibit to us the picture of innate misery.” In opposition however to this eloquent ha- rangue, we may venture to suppose, without any fear of being in the wrong, that the Sloth, notwith- standing this appearance of wretchedness and de- formity, is as well fashioned for its proper modes and habits of life, and feels as much pleasure in its solitary and obscure retreats, as the rest of the animal world, of greater locomotive powers, and superior external elegance. LECT. II. F 66 LECTURE II. I should add, that although the Sloths are na- tives of South America, yet it is contended by Seba and some others that the two-toed species has been found in some parts of the East-Indies, and particularly in the island of Ceylon. A few years ago a very remarkable animal was brought into this country from the interior parts of Bengal, which by Mr. Pennant and others was referred to the present genus, and considered as a species of Sloth. Its general appearance however was so much allied to that of ā Bear, that it was natural enough, at first sight to sup- pose it to belong to the genus Ursus. It was in company with Mr. Pennant that I first examined it with accuracy, and could not but agree with him in opinion that it should be regarded as a species of Sloth, from the appearance of the teeth. But the age of the animal was not ascertained, and it was not clear that it had gained the legitimate number of its teeth. It was described by myself under the name of Bradypus ursinus or the Ursine Sloth, and has been extremely well figured by an ingenious artist, whose representation has been re- peated in different works. The animal was about the size of a Bear, and of a black colour, with very LECTURE II. 67 \ long shaggy hair; a lengthened , naked, and flexible snout; five excessively strong, curved claws on the fore-feet, and five much smaller, and of a rounder shape, on the hind feet; the tail and ears very short. Its motions were not peculiarly languid, as in the Sloths, but moderately lively: its manners were gentle, and it fed on vegetable substances and milk. I forbear any longer description of the ani- mal, and must refer those who wish for more par- ticular information, to the description given in the - Naturalist's Miscellany, and in last Edition of Mr. Pennant's Quadrupeds; but I have now to observe that in consequence of information received on this subject from an ingenious naturalist lately arrived from India, and who has had opportunities of examining the animal in its native regions, it ought really to be referred to the genus Ursus or Bear, and may therefore not improperly be named Ursus Bengalensis or the Bengal Bear”. To the genus Bradypus or Sloth is allied, ac- cording to the ingenious Cuvier, the celebrated * In the Leverian Museum, the impending dispersion of which must be considered as an unspeakable disadvantage to the study of Natural History in this Country, may be seen a very fine specimen of this remarkable animal. 68 LECTURE II. fossil skeleton of a very large quadruped, dug up a few years ago in South America, and preserved sº tº: * sº *. in the Museum at Madrid. It has hº ñºlescribed sº * tºº. º. under the title of Megatherium, and differ # *. * aft cording to Cuvier, in its characters, taken §ât from all known quadrupeds; and each of its bones, considered apart, also differs from the correspond- ing bones of all known animals; but it appears more nearly allied to the Sloths than to any other of the Mammalia. The skeleton; measures near . . . " .*.*, *, *, twelve feet in length, and six in height. * º g- sº *. *#. * * #, （3/~ate/yyyy • 6opt, † ?.ca/， 'zºo zº zoº， ºſº/º/rºyº f} /**/:/7a/º/a/a/a7 ]|\[(]\]|[^\[\\[]{{[lſ,Wºº) º INJOINVOE) [?][{][INVS ţr t） [ ] {\[ es) ae % | ）;ſiiſīſ ſh ſſſ zº &% & W -8 § § Nº * º \\ 69 3. :: * §. 4.Y % º :3. : ; & §§ *3. * *: º #.§ 4*;** *. 3. s LECTURE III. IN the preceding Lecture, I repeated the cele- brated harangue of the Count de Buffon, relative to the supposed misery of the Quadrupeds called Sloths, and concluded with a slight account of a supposed Indian species, and of a remarkable fossil skeleton, seemingly allied to the same genus. I shall now proceed to the remaining animals of this order, all of which are distinguished by the total want of front teeth, and some are totally destitute of any teeth. One of the most remarkable of these Genera of Quadrupeds is that of Dasypus, or Arma- dillo. This genus is readily distinguished from all others, since all the species belonging to it are by nature furnished with a most elegant suit of bony armour, so curiously disposed, that it is im- possible to behold it without the highest admira- .* 7O LECTURE III. tion. The long zones or divisions, covering the upper part of the body, differ in number in the different species, and thus afford a good general character of distinction. The most common spe- cies is the Dasypus movem-cinctus, or nine-banded Armadillo. All the Armadillos are natives of South America, where they reside in dry and rocky places, and have the faculty of burrowing under ground. They wander about chiefly by night, and devour various kinds of roots and grain : they also prey on worms and insects; and when in a state of captivity, will readily eat ani- mal food, and that in considerable quantities. The side-teeth or grinders are numerous, but they have neither canine nor front-teeth. They are of a perfectly innocent and inoffensive nature. The largest species known is the twelve-banded Arma- dillo, which arrives at the length of four feet from the snout to the tip of the tail: all the rest are of a much smaller size, measuring not more than a foot in body, exclusive of the tail. The general colour of Armadillos in a living State seems to be brown, but some are of a very pale or yellowish brown cast; and all, in a natural state, have the shelly or bony armour covered with a yº º|# º º & º º º -º-º-º: º A. jº *A*- º º § º º º Tºº! º º º "W. --> 76 MIAN IS TIE TRADAC TYLA or Zong Zoº /*go/” º º - º º º ºº ſº. ſº º MANIs PENTADA et Y.L.A . or w/hor/ /ai/º/*go/”. º - ºr º zºoººoº…/ondon /a///ha ºr 6.4%azºr &c. ºccº. º *. _- LECTURE III. 71 thin, semitransparent epidermis or skin, beneath which the bony crust itself is white. When the Armadillos are attacked by other animals, they roll themselves up into the form of a ball, by con- tracting their body and limbs, and are thus secured from all common violence; affording one of the most beautiful and striking instances of the bene- volent care which Nature has taken in the pro- tection of animals of a weak and inoffensive Inature. The genus Manis or Pangolin, is distinguished by an appearance so far removed from that of the generality of viviparous quadrupeds, that, at first view, it rather suggests the idea of an animal of the Lizard tribe; and hence these quadrupeds have been often called by the improper title of Scaly Lizards. The mouth is lengthened into the form of a tubular snout, without any teeth, and the tongue is very long, round, and capable of being extended at pleasure, to a great length, and instead of hair, the animal is coated on all parts, except on the belly, by extremely strong and large scales, composing a suit of armour, capable of defending the creature, when rolled up, from the assaults of the most ferocious enemies. The Pan- *12 LECTURE III, golins are of a harmless nature, and are chiefly found in various parts of India and the Indian islands: they feed on the smaller kinds of insects, and particularly on ants, which they obtain by stretching out their long worm-shaped tongue amidst heaps of those insects, and when covered with them, suddenly retracting it, and swallowing . them. * There seem to be only two or three distinct species known, with some occasional varieties of each. The principal species is the Manis pen- tadactyla of Linnaeus, or the five-toed Pangolin; distinguished by having five claws on the fore- feet, and four on the hind: the middle claws of . the fore-feet being extremely large and strong. In India this animal is particularly called the Pangolin; it is said chiefly to frequent woods and marshy places, walking slowly, and when pursued, rolling itself up into the form of an oval ball; and thus becomes so strongly armed, that even the Tiger and the Leopard cannot attack it with impunity, but wound their own feet in the assault. The colour of the five-toed Pangolin is a pale, yellowish brown; besides the character of five claws on the fore-feet, the tail, in this species, is 27 LECTURE III. 73 shorter than the body. It grows to the length of four or five feet, or even more. The other species or four-toed Pangolin, the M. tetradactyla of Linnais, is very closely allied to the preceding, but is of a rather longer or more slender shape, with only four claws on all the feet; and the tail is considerably longer than the body. Its man- ners are similar to those of the preceding kind, and its size scarcely inferior. The next genus which we shall attend to, is that of Myrmecophaga, or Ant-Eater. It is distin- guished, like that of Manis, by having the mouth lengthened into the form of a snout, and perfectly destitute of teeth, except that, very deep at the back part of the mouth, are said to be situated (according to the observations of Camper) a pair of small bony prominences, which may be sup- posed to act as a kind of grinders: the tongue, as in the former genus, is very long, round, and capable of being extended to a great distance from the tip of the snout. The body, except in one or two species lately discovered, is covered with hair. The species of Ant-Eaters are not nu- merous. The chief is the Great Ant-eater, or M. Jubata of Linnaeus, a quadruped of very con- '74 f_ECTURE III. siderable size and of very singular aspect, mea- suring from six to seven feet in length, from the tip of the snout to that of the tail; the body is of T a lengthened form, with a small head, long snout, - and very long hairy tail. The colour of the animal is a deep iron-grey, with a broad black band or stripe, edged with white, passing along each side of the breast and flanks; the tail is also black: on the fore-feet are four claws, and on the hind-feet five : the two middle claws of the fore-feet being extremely strong; a circumstance . which renders this quadruped, though destitute of teeth, a very formidable adversary, since it has been known to destroy animals of much greater apparent strength, by continued laceration and pressure. It is a native of South America; chiefly * of Brasil and Guiana; sleeping during the greatest part of the day, and coming out by night. It feeds entirely on ants and other insects, laying its tongue on the hillocs or nests of these insects, and from time to time retracting it, in order to swallow the ants with which it is covered. The finest specimen of this animal perhaps ever brought into Europe, is preserved in the Leverian Museum. The smallest species of Ant-Eater is a highly Two TOED ANT EATER - º N º º Nº. N º - º º popourist Ast EATER -º-º- Zºº &cºzzondon ////4, 6'4” - LECTURE III. 75 elegant animal, scarcely larger than a squirrel, and measuring little more than seven inches from the nose to the tail, which is longer than the whole body and head, and is also strongly prehensile : the snout is slightly bent, rather sharpened, and of a tubular structure; the legs short, with the fore feet furnished with only two claws on each, but of excessive size in proportion to the limb. The hind-feet have each four claws, of moderate size. The colour of the animal is an elegant pale yellow-brown, and the hair is beautifully undulated or waved. This species, which is called the two- toed Ant-Eater, Myrmecophaga didactyla of Lin- naeus, is a native of South America, where it re- sides on trees, and lives on insects, and particularly on a species of Ants, which form their nests on . the trees it frequents. An excellent figure of this species of Ant-Eater has been given by Edwards, in his Gleanings of Natural History, The last species of Ant-Eater which I shall mention, is a native of Australasia or New Hol- land, and differs from all the rest in being covered, not with hair, but with strong and sharp quills or spines, similar to those of a Porcupine, but shorter in proportion. This highly curious species usually *6 LECTURE III. * measures about a foot or fifteen inches in length, and is of a thick and strong form, with very short limbs, and a narrow tubular snout. ” It affords a striking instance of one of those collateral affinities which we had before occasion to advert to ; by which animals of different tribes have a kind of connexion with each other; in the present in- stance, we see an affinity between the genus Myrmecºphaga in the order Bruta, and the Por- cupine, which belongs to a widely different tribe of animals, and ranks in an order called Glires. The Aculeated or Porcupine Ant-Eater, is of a black or very dark brown colour on the limbs and lower parts, while the spines or quills are of a yellowish white, with black tips. On the fore-feet are five very strong claws, and on the hind four; the tail is excessively short, and beset with large upright quills. In its mode of life this animal resembles the rest of the Ant-Eaters. It is ge- nerally found in the midst of some large ant-hill. It burrows with great strength and celerity under ground, when disturbed, and it is said that it will even burrow under a very strong pavement, re- moving the stones with its claws: during such exertions, its body is observed to be stretched or LECTURE III. 77 ! lengthened to an uncommon degree, so as to ap- ‘pear very different from the short and plump aspect which it bears in its undisturbed state. It cannot have escaped the attention of every one, that the genera of the Pangolins and Ant- Eaters differ only in their external covering from each other; the Linnaean genus Myrmecophaga being covered with hair, and that of Manis with strong horny scales. In consequence therefore of . the discovery of the aculeated or porcupine Ant- Eater, it follows that the Linnaean character of the genus Myrmecophaga, is in part rendered inap- plicable, since a genuine species of Ant-Eater is now discovered, which is coated, not with hair, but with strong spines or quills. We may there- fore either enlarge the Linnaean character of the Ant-Eaters, by saying that the body is covered either with hair or spines, or else we may consider the aculeated Ant-Eater as constituting a new and distinct genus, of which the characters will be, a mouth of a tubular structure, and without teeth, but furnished with a long, extensile tongue, and the body covered with strong spines. I may add that two other species have been lately discovered, 78 LECTURE III. somewhat smaller than the present, with shorter spines, and of a whitish colour. We now arrive at a genus of quadrupeds of so very extraordinary a nature, as to surpass in sin- gularity every other that has hitherto been dis- covered. This genus, which at present consists but of a single species and its supposed varieties, is distinguished by the title of Platypus or Orni- thorhynchus; the former name having been given it on account of the very expanded webs of its fore-feet, and the latter from the appearance of the snout, which has the resemblance of the bill of a bird. Its English generic name of Duckbill is that by which it is commonly known. If we rank this animal according to the Linnaean ar- rangement of quadrupeds, it must of necessity belong to the order Bruta, being destitute of teeth; but if we rank it according to its general habit or appearance, it might find a place among the Seals and other web-footed quadrupeds. The fact how- ever is, that it may be questioned whether it really and properly belongs to the tribe of Mammalia or not; since no examination hitherto made, of such specimens as have been brought over, preserved º www. º wº N º W º º º º º º º º º º - º º º Z/ º º W. º 20 º | | | |º | |m|| | (". l | || || º | | T | |º |||}| Beaſe &Yeet ºf the IPILATYPUS ºtherºVacaraz saxe. rado, fºrzondon zºº by rºarº Zºrºccº. LECTURE III. 79 in spirits, have exhibited the least appearance of teats for suckling the young; nor is it easy to con- ceive how the animal could perform the action of sucking; since the mouth or snout bears the most exact resemblance to the bill of a Duck, and par- ticularly to that of the broad-billed Ducks called Shovellers. This beak is surrounded at the base by a circular flap or border, resembling leather, and perfectly separating the base of the bill from the fur of the head. There are no teeth of any kind; and even the tubercles or processes, which may be perceived by dissection, on each side the base or back part of the beak, are not real teeth, having no sockets, and not being of a really bony nature. The tongue is situated very far back in the mouth, and is broad and short: the fore-feet are webbed, much more widely in proportion than in any other web-footed quadruped, and are fur- nished with five short, sharp, and strong claws: the hind-feet are less deeply webbed, and have also five claws, of a slightly curved form; besides which, in the male animal is situated on each foot a very strong and sharp crooked spur or sixth claw, not ill resembling the spur of a Cock: the body is of a broad, and slightly de- 30 * LECTURE III. pressed-shape, with a rather small head, and eyes so small, and so deeply imbedded in the fur, as not to be distinctly visible without a close in- spection: the tail is broad, rather short, and very slightly pointed. The whole animal is thickly covered with strong, but soft and glossy hair, which on the upper parts is of a deep iron-grey, more or less intense in different individuals, and on the under-parts considerably paler; in some specimens whitish. The general length of the animal, from the tip of the bill to that of the tail, is from twelve to sixteen or eighteen inches. This most extraordinary and dubious qua- druped is a native of Australasia or New Hol- land, where it inhabits fresh-water lakes, and is supposed to feed on worms, water-insects, and perhaps on various weeds, in the manner of a Duck. It is obliged to rise every now and then to the surface in order to breathe, and it is at this particular juncture that it is principally taken, by transfixing it with a small kind of harpoon. It is supposed to burrow, at a considerable depth into the banks of the waters it inhabits. If there be no mistake in the anatomical dis- quisitions hitherto made on the Duckbill, its in ſ LECTURE III. A 81 ternal structure is not less extraordinary than its external; since it appears to be oviparous; presenting an appearance which gives reason for supposing that it bears internal eggs, in the manner of many of the lizard tribe, from which the young are hatched before their final ex- clusion. This Quadruped therefore may be considered as the miracle of Modern Zoology. In the Phil. Trans. for 1802, may be found an excellent description of the anatomy of this in- teresting animal, by the ingenious Mr. Home. The order Bruta presenting several highly curious animals, we have dwelt somewhat longer upon it, than its proportional limits would other- wise have allowed us to do ; and must hasten through the remaining orders with a more rapid step. The third Linnaean Order of the Mammalia is entitled Ferae. It contains the predacious qua- drupeds, and consists of several genera, all agree- ing in having teeth evidently calculated for feeding on flesh. The front-teeth, which are usually six both above and below, approach to a conical or pointed figure; the canine-teeth are long; and J.E.C.T. III. t G. 32 LECTURE III. the grinders not flattened at the top, but are of a lobated and sharpened form; the claws also with which the feet are furnished are sharp, and more or less curved in the different species. The first genus of the Ferae or predacious quadrupeds, (if we exclude that of Phoca or Seal, which will be more properly stationed in a dif- ferent division), is that of Canis or Dog ; this comprehends all the animals of the Dog tribe: it consequently consists of the common Dog, with all its numerous varieties; the Hyaena, of which there are two distinct kinds; the For, of which many varieties exist; the Wolf, so common and so destructive in many parts of the northern world; and the Jackall, peculiar to Eastern and Southern regions. The chief character of the Dog tribe, consists in having six front-teeth above and below; the middle ones in the upper jaw, and the side ones in the lower jaw lobated: the grinders are six or seven on each side: the toes, or divisions of the fore-feet are five in number, and of the hind-feet four. To these characters may be added that the visage is of a lengthened shape. % Next succeeds the genus Felis or Cat, compre- saeſ) THIYAENA „› ‹› ‹› ‹› ********* |, E to PARI) º ...” º PANTHER Zºozy ſºcz", /da/. *4% ºn 6.7%caº A/ºca Jºneca. LECTURE III. 83 hending all the Cat or Lion tribe, from the Lion, which is the leading or principal species, to the common Cat. The species in this genus are pretty numerous: among the chief is the Tiger, perhaps, when seen in perfection, the most beau- tiful of quadrupeds, being of a strong and lively orange-colour, with numerous transverse black stripes. The Panther is a highly beautiful species, of a bright tawny yellow colour, marked with very numerous black spots, disposed in circles of four or five spots in each, with one or more cen- tral spots: the Leopard extremely resembles the Panther, but is smaller, and differs in having no central spot in the circles of black spots with which the skin is covered. These two animals, the Panther and the Leopard, have been very fre- quently confounded in the works of naturalists: the difference however will be readily perceived on inspecting their respective skins in the shops of the dealers in furs. Of these animals the Tiger is chiefly found in Asia, and the Lion, Panther, and Leopard in Africa; but none of them are natives of America, other species of this genus being improperly so named. Of these the chief is the Jaguar, com- 84 LECTURE III. monly called the Brasilian Tiger, about the size of a Wolf, and of a tawny colour, with the top of the back marked by long black stripes, and sides by rows of irregular lengthened spots. Many of the smaller American animals of this genus are very beautiful, and are collected and figured in the works of Schreber and others. M I shall dismiss this genus by observing that the general shape of most of the species resembles that of the common Cat, which, in a wild state, is a native of many parts of Europe, and among others of our own island; being occasionally found in woods: in its natural or wild state it is far larger than the domestic kind, and is of a grey colour, with darker stripes. The numerous varieties of the domestic Cat are well known: the variety call- ed the Angora Cat is reckoned the most elegant, and is remarkable for the fulness of its hair; it is also often seen with one eye of a bright blue, and the other yellow. All the generic characters of the whole lion tribe may be readily exemplified by an examination of the common Cat, and it is therefore unnecessary to particularize them here; we may only observe as a particular mark, that the claws are retractile, that is, so constituted as ST RIATED WAR of MEPHITIC W E As E.I. º E (; ) - TIAN | (HINE Tº ſº. zºº, Zoº, */// 4 º' Mºvº A/º LECTURE III. 85. to be at pleasure withdrawn into a kind of sheaths when not in use. - The succeeding genus contains a great many species, comprehending all the animals of the Weasel kind. Linnaeus indeed institutes two se- parate genera for these animals, on account of certain differences observable in the disposition of the teeth; but, in a general view, the may all be considered as furnishing one very large genus or assortment, under the titleſ fºod; fa. The ge- neral character of the Weasel tribe is a certain slenderness and length of body; with a sharpened visage, short legs, and, in most species, a longish tail; (for it is short in but a few.) The front teeth are six in number: with the middle ones shorter than the rest *. - To the Weasel tribe belongs the celebrated animal called the Ichnuemon, which was so highly esteemed by the ancient Egyptians on ac- count of its great utility in destroying serpents and other noxious animals. It has a general re- semblance to a very large ferret, but is of a brown- * The animal known by the name of the Polecat, (Mustela Putorius, Lin.) may serve to give some idea of the general ap- pearance of the animals of this genus. 86 LECTURE III. ish-grey colour, with the hair freckled by innumer- able minute dusky specks. The snout is long and sharp, and the tail thick and full at the base, and gradually tapering to the tip. Like many other animals of this tribe it is a dangerous enemy to many creatures larger than itself, over which it gains an easy victory by fastening upon them, and sucking their blood. It is a native both of Asia and Africa, and varies in size in the different regions. ar Some of the Weasel tribe are remarkable for diffusing, when disturbed or hunted, a most intoler- ably fetid small, so powerful as to taint the air to an incredible distance. If the accounts given of . this odious vapor are not aggravated by those who have experienced its effects, every other ill smell which Nature is capable of producing is surpassed ty the overpowering fetor of these extraordinary quadrupeds. In consequence of the dreadful ema- nation, even the dogs are said to relinquish their prey, and the men to fly with the utmost precipi- tation from the tainted spot. One of the most re- markable of these animals is the Mephitic Weasel, a North-American species, of the size of a small cat, and of a deep chocolate-brown colour, with a LECTURE III. 87 broad white stripe down the back, and a very long bushy tail of a white colour. j Other animals of the Weasel tribe are equally remarkable for diffusing an odor of a highly pleas- ing kind; as the animal called the Civet-Cat for instance, which is a large viverra or Weasel, mea- suring more than three feet from the nose to the end of the tail: it is of a yellowish grey colour, marked along the sides by large blackish or dusky spots disposed into rows: the throat, breast, and legs are also black. The substance called Civet is obtained by scraping it out from time to time from a peculiar gland or cavity in which it is con- tained. When fresh, it is excessively strong, but grows milder by length of time. The remaining genera of animals belonging to the Ferae or predacious tribe are the following, viz. Ursus or Bear, comprehending many species. Didelphis or Opossum, a numerous genus. Macropus or Kangaroo, a genus greatly allied to that of Opossum in some points, but differing considerably in others, and not feeding on animal food, nor in strict propriety to be ranked in this order. Talpa or Mole. $8 LECTURE III. Sarea, or Shrew ; and lastly, Primaceus, or Hedgehog. Of these genera the most remarkable are those of Didelphis and Macropus, Opossum and Kanga- roo. The Opossum tribe is characterized by hav- ing small rounded front teeth, ten in the upper, and eight in the lower: the canine teeth are long, and the grinders are lobed or divided on their up- per part. But the chief character of the genus consists in a peculiar cavity or pouch in which the parent places the young, immediately after their birth, and in which she preserves them till they are sufficiently advanced in growth to be able to defend and provide for themselves. In this pouch the teats are placed, which are six or eight in number. The Opossums are also often distinguished by the appearance of a thumb on the hind-feet, and in some species the tail is of that kind which Linnaeus calls prehensile, formed, as in some of the Monkeys, in such a manner as to be able strongly to coil round any object at pleasure. The Opossums now constitute a pretty exten- sive genus of quadrupeds, many new species hav- ing been of late years discovered in Australasia or 2Z tº º º/ - º!"T"Tº º % !" º ºn ºwº- - - º - º sº § º Sº &s º ſº VIRG TNLAN OP ()SS UNI, from the Lever an Museum. isoarebºundon Pººna by Gºwwley ºver street. tºº. IPETAURINE, OTP.O. § SUTM º º º w º -- " LEMURINE () POSSINI - *cº zºod ºccº /ø/oa Zºº. 4, &Mºazºv ºccº ºccº. LECTURE III. 89 New Holland; but the species first discovered is a native of North-America, and is said to be com- mon in Virginia in particular. It is about the size of a Cat, with very thick fur, of a pale yel- lowish grey colour, and with a naked flesh-co- loured tail, coated with a kind of scales like those on the tail of a rat, but larger. It resides in woods, and preys principally on birds and their eggs. Among the New Holland Opossums the Le- murine Opossum is one of the most elegant: of the size of a Cat, of a fine dark-grey colour, yellow- ish beneath; with an exquisitely soft fur, and with a face much resembling the genus Lemur; the tail is long, deeply furred, and prehensile at the tip”. A still more elegant kind of New Holland Opossum is the Petaurine Opossum, often mea- suring more than a yard in length from the nose to the tip of the tail. The Petaurine Opossum has the general appearance of a Flying Squirrel, being furnished with a broad furry membrane, from the fore to the hind-feet, by the help of which it springs * The Squirrel Opossum or Did. Sciurea is also a New-Hol- land species of great elegance: it is of the size of the Grey or American Squirrel, and is of a pale grey above and white beneath, with the tail very full of hair, and tipped with black. SO LECTURE III. from tree to tree, and to a very considerable dis- tance: the hind-feet are furnished with thumbs, and the tail is long and thickly furred: the colour of the whole animal is a most beautiful sable or blackish grey, of a yellowish cast beneath, and its fur is still finer than that of the lemurine Opos- sum. It is known in its native regions by the name of Hepoona Roo. But the most curious of all the Opossums is the Didelphis pygmaea or Pygmy Opossum, which in its general form is similar to the Hepoona Roo, but no larger than a common Mouse. Its colour is an elegant pale brownish-grey, white beneath, and the tail is slightly flattened, with the hair spreading to a small distance on each side, throughout its whole length. The genus Macropus or Kangaroo, which fol- lows that of Opossum, is strongly allied to those animals in being provided with a pouch for the temporary preservation of its young, but differs in the front-teeth, which are six in number in the upper jaw, and two in the lower, which lower teeth are extremely large, long, sharp, and prominent: the grinders are five on each side, both above and below: it also differs in its manner of life, being § g Pºſſ; MY O P O S SUNL a nº-ºr-nº-rºze. ********* º º -ºr- º - º | º º º º º º º - º º º º E LUTElsh (ºr EY or SILVER WANGUR00 -- zoo.º. ºozº, Zºo, /a/.4% ºr ºraºrºccº. LECTURE III. 9 L entirely herbivorous, and in reality should not be placed in the order Ferae. It is unnecessary to observe that the Kangaroo is one of the most elegant as well as curious animals discovered in modern times. The first discovery of this extra- ordinary quadruped, which had till then remained concealed as it were in a corner of the world, was in the year 1770, on that part of the coast of New- Holland which is now called New South Wales. The general size of the Kangaroo when full grown, is at least equal to a full grown sheep : the upper parts are small while the lower are remarkably large in proportion: yet such is the elegance of gradation in this respect, that the Kangaroo may be justly considered as one of the most picturesque of quadrupeds: the fore legs are extremely short, with the feet divided into five toes, each furnished with a sharp and somewhat crooked claw: the thighs and hind-legs are extremely stout and long; and the feet are so constructed as to appear, at first sight, composed of but three toes, of which the middle is by far the largest, and is furnished with a claw of vast strength; and what appears on a cursory view, to be the inner toe, will be found, on a near inspection, to consist of two small toes, 92 , LECTURE III. united under a common skin, with the respective claws placed so close to each other as to appear like a split or double claw. The Kangaroo rests on the whole length of the foot, which is callous, blackish, and granulated beneath, and bears a ge- neral resemblance to that of a bird. A popular error seems to prevail, that it never touches the ground with its fore-feet; but all who have con- templated the animal when at large, must have observed that it every now and then places the fore-feet on the ground; though its favourite atti- tude appears to be that of supporting itself, on its hind-feet, with the assistance of its tail, which is remarkably strong. This animal is observed to produce but a single young at a birth, which it carries for a great length of time in its ventral pouch, and which frequently emerges in quest of food or exercise, and again returns on the least alarm. Of the Kangaroo there seem to be differ- ent races or varieties, or perhaps even distinct species, the exact discrimination of which yet re- mains to be investigated. The common kind is of a pale brown colour; but some are of a dark iron-grey, and others of a very fine whitish or blueish grey. º *...* º z. -: º º C º: C º- i LECTURE III. 93 G K, I RES. We are now to survey the remaining Orders of the Linnaean Mammalia, having passed through the three first. . The fourth Order is entitled Glires or Sleepers, from the Latin word Glis, signifying an animal of the Dormouse tribe. . The English term Sleepers, proposed by some zoologists, must be confessed to be much too vague a term ; since, though several Quadrupeds of this order lie dormant during a good part of ...the winter, yet the major part do not. The prin- & g 3 ‘cipal character of the animals of this order con- *: sists in a pair of very conspicuous, strong, and lengthened, teeth, placed close together in the front of both jaws. They have no canine teeth, but are furnished with grinders on each side. The first assortment or genus of the Glires is that of Hystria or Porcupine, which, exclusive of the teeth, such as just mentioned, is distinguished, as every one knows, by the extraordinary covering of its body, which is beset, all over the upper parts, - $4 LECTURE III, with very long, strong, and sharp spines or quills, elegantly variegated with alternate zones of black and white. The common Porcupine, which is about the size of a small dog, is a native of many of the warmer regions of Asia and Africa, and even of some of the warmer parts of Europe. It is an animal of a harmless nature; feeding en- tirely on vegetable substances, as roots, barks of trees, and fruits. It inhabits subterraneous re- treats, which it is said to form into several com- partments or divisions, leaving only a single hole for entrance. It seems to admit, of several va- rieties as to size, and length of its quills, and is distinguished, as a species, by having the upper part of the head crested as it were by long bristles. It would be a waste of time to particularize the long-continued error (for such it, in a great degree, is), of the Porcupine possessing the power of darting its quills at pleasure, with great vio- lence, and to a considerable distance, at its ene- mies: this notion seems now pretty generally ex- ploded, and perhaps might have originated from some accidental circumstances; for the Porcupine, like most other quadrupeds, having the power of - LECTURE III. S5 contracting and shaking the general skin of the body, may sometimes, by this motion, cast off a few of its looser quills to some distance, and thus- even slightly wound any animal that may happer. to stand in its way; and this may have given rise to the popular idea of its darting them at pleasure against its enemies. The poet Claudian, it is well known, has availed himself of this notion, and has represented the Porcupine in the usual stile of false wit so re- markable among the minor poets. “ Ecce, brevis propriis munitur bestia telis, Externam nec quaerit opem, fert omnia secum, Sepharetra, sese jaculo, sese utitur arcuſ” “Arm'd at all points in Nature's guardian mail, See the stout Porcupine his foes assail; And, urged to fight, the ready weapons throw, Himself at once the quiver, dart, and bow.” There are several different species of Por- cupine, one of the most remarkable of which is called the Canada Porcupine. It is of the size of a small or half-grown Beaver, and has, at first sight, so little of the appearance of a Porcupine, that it would hardly be supposed by any common -96 LECTURE III. spectator to belong to the same genus; the fur, which is extremely full, and of a dusky brown colour, being much longer than the quills, which are only to be observed on a close inspection: these quills have their points barbed with many minute reversed spines, and are very apt to wound and adhere strongly to the skin of any animal that happens to make a close approach; and so conscious does this Porcupine appear of their power, that he is observed, when attacked, pur- posely to brush against the aggressor, leaving numbers of his spines infixed on his skin. It will naturally occur to every one, that we have not yet particularly noticed an animal greatly allied in its general appearance to the Porcupine tribe: viz. the Hedgehog. But the Hedgehog, which, on a general view, might be associated with the Porcupines, is, in fact, widely removed from them in the structure of its teeth, which are perfectly those of the Order Ferae. , st Perhaps the most extraordinary genus among the Glires is that of Castor or Beaver; it is cha- racterized by the very strong pair of cutting teeth in each jaw, and, more strikingly, by the very singular structure of the tail, which is large, of a is | º / . | | || | º º | | || º º º - 2.9 LECTURE IV. 97 flattened oval form, and covered with large-scales. The general length of the Beaver is about three feet, and its colour a fine, deep, chesnut-brown. The use of its fur is too well known to require particular mention, but it is to be observed that it is the under or inner fur, beneath the longer hair, that is used in the composition of so many articles of commerce, and varies according to the season of the year, the health of the animal, and many other circumstances. The favourite resorts of the Beaver are retired watry and woody situations. In such places the animals assemble, and sometimes to the number of several hundreds, living in a kind of families, and building a sort of arched mansions, curiously lined or plaistered with clay. Of these a long and agreeable description may be found in the writings of Buffon. In such retreats the Beavers, which are always natives of cold climates, and parti- cularly of the northern parts of America, pass the rigour of the winter months; feeding at in- tervals on the twigs and branches of the softer kind of trees, as willows, and poplars, great quan- tities of which they cut into proper lengths, and lay up in their cells. Sometimes, however, the LECT, III, H S$ LECTURE III. Beavers seem to forget their usual oeconomy, and five in a less regular stile, straying about, and ap- pearing to have merely a few common holes in the banks of the waters they frequent. It has been said that the Beaver fed entirely on fish; and the Count de Buffon, who delighted in such speculations, fancied this kind of diet to have been originally the cause of the flattened, scaly, and fish-like appearance of the tail of the animal; the organic particles of its fishy food having at length impressed on the Beaver something of a fishy form. It seems, however, pretty generally agreed that the principal food of the Beaver is of a vegetable nature. From the Beaver is obtained the celebrated drug called Castor, which is the product of a par- ticular gland, and is taken from the animal imme- diately after killing it: it is one of the strongest or most ſetid of all animal substances, and is of very considerable use in medicine. Linnaeus comprized a large tribe of animals be- longing to the Order Glires, under one extremely numerous genus entitled Mus, or Mouse, or Rat: but the genus was by this rendered too extensive; and as many of the species admitted into it were TECTURE III. 99 very different in habit or general appearance, it was at length thought better to distribute them into several distinct genera, leaving the Mouse or Rat tribe, strictly so called, to form the genus Mus. Among the genera thus formed out of the old Linnaean genus Mus, one of the chief is that called Cavia, or, as it may be otherwise pro- nounced, Çavia, in English Cavy. * As the characters of the teeth in almost all the Glires are very nearly similar, it is often un- necessary to particularize them. I shall therefore only observe, that the genus Cavia is in general of a thick and short form, and of various size. As the most familiar example, we may mention the well-known species improperly called the Guinea- Pig, which is now the Cavia Cobaya, or variegated Cavy, and was the Mus Porcellus of the earlier editions of the Systema Naturae of Linnaeus. It is a native of the hotter parts of South-America, and is now well known in most parts of Europe. The South American animal called the Aguti or Java-Hare, belongs also to this genus, and is of the size of a Rabbet or larger. The largest kind of Cavy yet known, is a spe- IOO LECTURE III, cies not often to be found in the European Mue seums: it is called the Patagonian Cavy, and is considerably larger than a Hare, and of a pale brown colour, with a large black patch on the hind part of the body. It occurs in the Leverian Museum, and in that of the late Mr. John Hunter. Another genus lately subtracted from that of Mus, is called Arctomys or Marmot. It contains but few species, most of which are of a thick form, with large, roundish, and somewhat flattened heads, and small mouths, which, when held open, appear longer in their perpendicular than their transverse diameter. The Marmots feed on roots, grain, and leaves, which they often collect into heaps; they reside in subterraneous holes or burrows, and sleep during the winter. The most , common European species is the Alpine Marmot, a native of the Alps and the Pyrenean mountains. Its general size is rather superior to that of a Rabbet, and its colour a tawny grey. It inhabits the higher part of the Alps, in which situations several individuals unite in forming a subter- raneous retreat, well lined with moss and hay, which they prepare during the summer, as if con- scious of the necessity of providing for their long LECTURE III. IO1 sleep in winter. At the commencement of the autumnal frosts, they stop up the holes or en- trances of their mansion, and gradually fall into a state of torpidity, in which they continue till the arrival of the succeeding spring. The genus Lepus or Hare, is easily distin- guished among the rest of the Glires: the cutting teeth in the upper jaw being disposed in a double pair; two small inner teeth being placed at the base of the large or outward pair. As this is a genus of which the history, (in the European species at least) is well known, I shall at present only particularize the distinction between the common Hare and the Rabbet, which two animals resemble each other so much, that the con- struction of a genuine specific character of each has been found a task of some difficulty; and it is a curious fact that the attempts at a specific character of the Rabbet in particular, by Linnaeus, in the earlier editions of his Systema Naturae, are remarkable for want of precision. The criterion proposed by the late Mr. Daines Barrington, in the Philosophical Transactions, has been adopted by modern systematic writers, and consists in the comparative length of the hind legs with that of I O2 LECTURE III. the body. In the Hare the hind-legs are longer than half the length of the back; in the Rabbet they are shorter. The genus Sciurus or Squirrel, is so well characterized by the remarkable disposition of the hair on the tail, as to require no other ex- planation. I shall only observe that it is a nu- merous genus, that some of the exotic species are of very considerable size, and that some squirrels have a furry skin, stretching from the fore to the hind-feet, enabling them at pleasure to spring to a far greater distance than those species which are unprovided with such a la- teral skin. The European Flying Squirrel is an elegant, but rather small species, found in Poland, and in some parts of Siberia, where it is chiefly said to inhabit birch-woods. Its colour is a beautiful pale grey, white beneath. In North America is a still smaller species of an elegant pale-brown colour, and which has been some- times confounded with the former ; and in some parts of Asia is a very large species, of a dark colour, and much allied in its general appearance to the Petaurine or Flying Opossum of New Holland. - --~~ º- ºš3 - º N (OMINION FLYING SQUIRREL. rºof, ºn 'rºnºw *** * * * * *. LECTURE III. 103 The genus Myovus or Dormouse, is principally distinguished from that of Squirrel by the form of the tail, which is round or cylindric; not flattened and spreading. The genus contains but few spe- cies. The common Dormouse is too well known to require any description. The chief or prin- cipal species is the Glis of the ancient Romans, which is the Fat Dormouse of Pennant, and is a native of the South of Europe, Hiving in the manner of a Squirrel, but sleeping through the winter. Its size is not very far short of that of the common Squirrel, and its colour pale grey, white beneath. The genus Mus or Mouse, under which, as we have before observed, were once arranged a great many animals now placed under different genera, is still extremely extensive; comprehending all the species of the Rat and Mouse tribe strictly so called. Of these, the chief species known to our ancestors in this country was the black Rat, now become a rare animal in comparison with the brown Rat, introduced above a century ago from the Eastern regions, and vulgarly called the Norway Rat. It is at present the common Rat of our own country, and has, in a great de- 104. LECTURE III. gree, destroyed the black Rat, or original English species: it is a size larger than the black Rat, and, as is well known, is of a brownish grey colour, white beneath. It is a native of India. The Common Mouse needs no description, and the same may be said of our common field- mice, and the Water-Rat; but the beautiful Har- west-Mouse, first distinctly described as a British species by the late Mr. White of Selburne, claims our-attention from its peculiar elegance. Its size does not much exceed half that of the common- Mouse, and in its colour it bears a near resem- blance to the Dormouse, being of a pale rufous brown above, and white beneath. It is COmmon in some parts of Hampshire. º The exotic species of this genus are excessively numerous, and vary in size, from nearly that of a Rabbet to a degree of minuteness beyond that of the common small British species. Among the large exotic Rats one of the most remarkable is the Mus Typhlus or Blind Rat, a native of the Southern parts of Russia, where it burrows under ground, and feeds on the roots of various vegeta- bles. It usually measures about eight inches in length: is of a brown colour and destitute of a HLAMI's TER º, - --~~~ - o, …, º |}|,IND RAT zººſ, Zozºo/, /*////4, º/, wº. LECTURE III. 105 tail; but it is chiefly remarkable for the total want of external eyes, having merely two almost imper- ceptible rudiments of those parts, situated under the skin itself; so that it exhibits the only instance of a truly blind quadruped; for the Mole and some others, vulgarly considered as blind, on account of the extreme smallness of their eyes, have still those organs complete in all the usual parts; but the Mus Typhlus is totally blind. In return, its hearing is said to be uncommonly acute, enabling it readily to avoid all the general dangers to which it may be exposed. Of the European Rats of large size the IHamster or Mus Cricetus is the most remarkable. It is of the general size of the brown Rat, but of a thicker form, and is of a pale reddish colour above, and black beneath; with, generally, two or three white spots on each side the fore-parts. On each side of the mouth the Hamster is fur- nished with a large membranaceous pouch or bag, which is capable of containing the quantity of a quarter of a pint English measure. This animal is an inhabitant of Germany, Poland, and Russia, and is often extremely destructive, by devouring vast quantities of grain, which it carries off in its 106 LECTURE III. cheek-pouches, and deposits in its subterraneous retreat in order to feed on during the autumn. On the approach of winter the Hamster conceals himself in his deep cell, well lined with dried grass and moss, and falls into a state of the most profound sleep and entire torpidity; every animal function being so entirely deadened, that it is said the creature may be cut open without exhibiting any sign of sensibility: the heart, however, may be observed to contract and dilate alternately, but with a motion so slow that the pulsations do not exceed fourteen or fifteen in the space of a minute : the strongest stimulants are of no avail, and the electric shock may be passed through the animal without exciting any appearance of irri- tability. This lethargy of the Hamster has been generally ascribed to the effect of cold alone; but late observations have proved, that, unless at a certain depth beneath the surface, so as to be beyond the access of the external air, the animal does not fall into its state of torpidity; the se- verest cold, on the surface, not affecting it. On the contrary, when taken out of its burrow and exposed to the air, it infallibly wakes in a few hours. Its waking is a gradual operation, and COMMON JERBOA. zº， …， v.Zºzáſ，|×ſyº.º.， ſzczae *** _----|-~ LECTURE III. IO7 after several languid movements and profound in- spirations, it opens its eyes, and endeavours to walk, but reels about for some time, as if in a state of intoxication, till at length it perfectly recovers all its powers. Another singular species of Rat, furnished with pouches on each side the mouth for the temporary reception of food, is described in the fifth volume of the Transactions of the Linnaean Society, under the name of the Canada Rat ; its size and colours nearly resemble those of the brown or Norway Rat, but it is somewhat paler, and of a yellower cast. Its way of life is sup- posed to be similar to that of the Hamster. The genus Dipus or Jerboa is remarkable for the peculiar structure of the legs, of which the fore-pair are extremely short, and the hind-pair extremely long, giving the animal the appearance of a Kangaroo in miniature: the teeth resemble those of the rest of the Glires, and there is no ventral pouch as in the Kangaroo : otherwise these animals and the Kangaroos might almost admit of being placed in the same assortment. The common Jerboa, of which there are some varieties as to size and colour, is a native of many 108 LECTURE III. of the Eastern and Southern parts of the world; frequenting dry and sandy places, where it burrows under the surface and conceals itself during the day, coming out to feed during the night. Its general attitudes are those of a bird, hopping on its hind-legs, and when pursued, springing, by vast and quickly repeated leaps, to a great dis- tance, so as not to be easily overtaken by the swiftest of quadrupeds. The general size of the common Jerboa is that of the common or brown Rat, and its colour pale yellowish-brown, white beneath; the tail very long, and elegantly ter- minated by a feather-shaped tuft, of a black co- lour, tipped with white. It is well represented in the works of Bruce, Buffon, Edwards and other modern authors. The genus Hyraw, which concludes the Order Glires, is of rather late institution, and consists of two species, each about the size of a common Rabbet, and of nearly similar colour. The genus Hyrax differs from all the rest of the Glires in the front teeth of the lower jaw, which, instead of two, are four in number, rather broad, and notched at the edges or tips. Of the two species of Hyrax, one is the Ashkoko of Mr. Bruce, which CAPE |H|YIRAX. wo, Jarº " London Pºlished by ºxearºy Fleet ºver. LECTURE III. 109 he supposes to be the Saphan of the sacred writ- ings. It is found in several parts of Africa, and inhabits the cavities of rocks. The other species is the Cape Hyrax, a native of the Cape of Good Hope, inhabiting similar situations with the former. º will iº º º º : - - I 1 LECTURE IV. WE now turn our attention to the next order of Mammalia, which is a very extensive one as to species, though the genera are not numerous. This order is entitled Pecora, and contains all the Cattle, commonly so called, as Oxen, Sheep, Goats and others. It also comprises the Camelopardi, the Deer tribe, the Antelopes, the Musk and some others. In this order also, at present, though perhaps not quite of a similar nature with the rest, we may be permitted to rank the Elephant, which in its manners or habits resembles the Pe- cora, though it does not ruminate, and is not fur- nished with any front-teeth. In the Linnaean arrangement the Elephant is placed among the Bruta, from the want of fore- teeth. By Mr. Pennant it is arranged under the I 12 t LECTURE III. cloven-hoofed Order, in which stand the Linnaean Pecora. By Monsieur Cuvier it is considered as constituting an Order distinct from all others. The mouth is usually furnished with one very broad grinder on each side both above and below, and with two upper tusks. The general appear- ance, and even the general history of the Elephant is pretty well known to most persons. It is a na- tive of the warmer regions of Asia and Africa, where it is chiefly seen in woody regions, and feeds entirely on vegetable substances, as the tender shoots of trees, and various kinds of fruit and grain. The Elephant drinks by means of its trunk, first sucking up the water into it, and then conveying it to the mouth. The intelligence and docility of the Elephant are well known, and are generally detailed, with sufficient enlargements in most of the common publications on Natural History. I shall here only observe that in general the intelligence of animals is in proportion to the size of the brain: yet in the Elephant that part is by no means large. * In some parts of North-America, are often found fossil bones bearing a general resemblance to those of the Elephant, and commonly known LECTURE IV. 113 by the title of Mammoth bones: the teeth how- ever, (that is the grinders,) are of an appearance widely different from those of the Elephant, being deeply lobed on the top, like those of Carnivorous animals. Of this curious, and at present unknown animal in a recent state, the complete skeleton has been of late discovered in North America, and was, as is well known, exhibited in this me- tropolis. Every one must have been struck with its general similitude to that of an Elephant, but the grinders or lateral teeth, as before observed, are of a very different appearance, and seem to indicate an animal of a carnivorous nature. By Mr. Pennant this animal is considered as a species of Elephant, under the title of the American Ele- phant, and he seems to be of opinion that it may yet exist in some of the remote parts of the American Continent yet unvisited by Europeans. Others have supposed it an animal of an extinct species, and in reality allied only to the Elephant in the general size and appearance of its bones, while some particular parts seem to prove a dif- ferent tribe, and there have not been wanting some, who have even imagined it to be a marine animal. . All however is-at present conjectural on LECT, IV, I i 14 LECTURE IV. this subject, and it can only be mentioned as one of those interesting zoological curiosities. which will probably long continue to remain imperfectly understood. One of the great or leading characters of the Order Pecora or Cattle, to which we now proceed, is the total want of front-teeth in the upper jaw. In the lower jaw there are six or eight front-teeth: the grinders or side-teeth are usually pretty numer- ous, and such of the Pecora as are furnished with horns, have no tusks or canine-teeth; which on the contrary are conspicuous in such as are not ſur- nished with the defence of horns. Another cha- racter belonging to most of this tribe of Mammalia is the power of rumination, or ruminating: that is, of throwing up into the mouth at intervals a por- tion of the food which has been hastily swallowed during their feeding, in order that it may undergo a more complete grinding by the teeth. This action is so conspicuous in Cows and other cattle, that every one is perfectly acquainted with it. The stomachs of these animals and of others that ruminate, are wonderfully calculated for facili- tating this necessary operation, and may be found _described at large, accompanied by proper expla- LECTURE IV. 115 . natory plates, in the ingenious observations of Daubenton, annexed to the quarto edition of Buffon's History of Quadrupeds. All the Pecora or Ruminants as they are often called, are hoofed; and in the major part the hoof is divided into two principal parts, with the addi- tion, in many, of two very small undivided hoofs or processes on each side, or rather behind the principal ones. \ In the Camel the structure of the foot is pe- culiar; the sole or part beneath the hoofs, being swelled into a kind of elastic pad, covered with an extremely strong, but flexible skin, admirably adapted for enabling the animal to travel over the dry and sandy deserts which it is chiefly destined to inhabit. . 4. The whole Order Pecora, without an excep- tion, feeds entirely on vegetable food. Of these genera I shall only particularize a few of the most remarkable. One of these is the Camelopardi, or Giraffa. The most curious or singular genera in the Linnaean Pecora, or Ruminant tribe, are those of Camelopardi, Camel, Musk, and Antelope. The Camelopardi, which is the Camelopardalis Giraffa y ſ 116 LECTURE IV. of the modern editions of the Systema Naturae of Linnaeus, was once considered as a species of Deer ; but it differs from the Deer tribe in its horns, which are never cast, but are permanent, simple or unbranched, covered by a skin, and terminated by a tuft of short bristles. The Ca- melopardi or Giraffe is the tallest of all Quadru- pods, often measuring seventeen feet from the top of the head to the soles of the fore feet: its neck is of a vast length, and the fore-parts of the ani- mal appear, on account of their conformation, to be considerably higher than the hinder. The whole aspect of the Camelopardi is at once sin- gular and elegant in the highest degree : its co- lour is a very pale yellowish or whitish brown, with numerous, large, squarish spots of light chesnut-colour. The history of this animal has been much elucidated of late years by the re- searches of various African travellers, and speci- mens of the complete skin have been brought into Europe, of which one of the finest is in the Museum of the late Mr. Hunter; now the Mu- seum of the College of Surgeons. Mr. Pennant, in his History of Quadrupeds observes, that, had he not seen the dried skin of the Camelopardi, º º ÇIRAFFF, . º º º -** --ºn-ton * by ºr ºver. º 30.’ -ae aerº， z， ， ， ， ºyº ：，：----ſae• ----ſaeº. №- - ſ.---------： ~，-_ - - - - \！№ae， №. º yſſºſ ·|× %|× ſººſ £ſº: º£ ----£ LECTURE IV. { 17 *- he should have been almost inclined to entertain doubts as to the existence of so extraordinary an animal. It was however well known to the an- cient Romans, who sometimes exhibited it to the people in their public shews; and its represent- ation occurs in the celebrated remain of anti- quity generally called the Praemestine Pavement. The Deer tribe or the genus Cercus is cha- racterized by having branched horns, which are annually deciduous, falling off at a particular sea- son, being gradually replaced by others. Of the Deer tribe the largest species is the Elk, (Cervus Alces. Lin.) a native of the northern parts of Europe and America, in which latter it is called by the name of Moose. The Elk is not an ami- mal of an elegant shape, having a large head, and a very thick short neck: its colour is a dark greyish brown. The Stag or red Deer, (C. Elaphus Lin.) on the contrary may be considered as one of the most elegant of the whole tribe: its colour is a strong reddish brown, and its horns are branched, or di- vided into many round, and sharp-pointed pro- cesses. It" is a native of the wooded parts of Europe, and particularly of Germany. I | 8 LECTURE IV. The Fallow Deer, (C. Dama. Lin.) is the spe- cies so generally seen in our parks, and is distin- guished by having the horns dilated into a broad, subdivided expanse at the upper parts. In colour it varies greatly, as do most animals when in a state of captivity. ... " . . Rein-Deer. C. Tarandus.—A moderately large species of a grey colour, and with slender horns of great length, dividing into numerous processes. This species, as is well known, constitutes a great part of the wealth of the Laplanders, and is most providentially ordained to support that simple and harmless people with many of the chief conve- niences of life. The Or tribe, or the genus Bos, is distinguished by having bent or lunated horns, which are permanent, and have a core or central bony part, on which the horny shell is mounted. The Wild Ox or Urus, is found in the more northern parts of Europe and Asia, and from it have been gra- dually derived all the breeds of domestic cattle. One of the most remarkable species of this genus is the Bos grunniens of Linnaeus, or grunt- ing Ox, so named from its voice. Its size is that of a small bull; and its colour blackish brown : it 6 * 2 “…g. \，\! Ķ ***************y º wº ºwº， wozvoz,…， XIV） ~~~~ № ± …………………= №.:：= ~ =· º; 7 |-№， =№ |---- LECTURE IV. 1 19 is covered with long woolly hair, and is remark- able for the vast length and fulness of the hair on the tail, which is of a silky softness, of a milk- white colour, and reaches to the ground. The tails of this species of Ox, which in its native country of Tartary, is called the Pak, are used by persons of fashion in China, India, and other parts of the Eastern world, by way of fly-flaps, and are carried, on some occasions, as ensigns of authority. * The genus Camelus or Camel contains the Camel and Dromedary, the Lama, the Vicuna, and a few other species of inferior note. The Camel and Dromedary are pretty well known to almost every one : the Camelus Dromedarius of Linnaeus or Arabian Camel has a single elevation or bunch on the back: the Camelus Bactrianus of Linnaeus or Bactrian Camel has two ; but the names of Camel and Dromedary are differently applied by different writers, which sometimes causes a degree of confusion when speaking of them. It has been supposed by some that they constitute in reality but one species, varying either with a single or double elevation on the back. These animals are of the greatest possibl 120 LECTURE IV. utility to the inhabitants of many of the Asiatic and African regions, since with a very small portion of food they can travel for several days together, and can also suffer a long abstinence from water. The admirable contrivance of Na- ture for enabling the animal to do this must by no means be omitted. This consists in the sto- mach of the Camel and Dromedary being so formed as to be divided internally into a vast many separate cells or cavities; and as the whole organ is of great size, when the Camel drinks, it takes in a very large quantity of water, which is preserved in the cells of the stomach, and is, at the pleasure of the animal, thrown back into the mouth, in order to refresh that part when heated and parched by the sun and dust. The genus Moschus or Musk is distinguished by having no horns, and in the mouth being fur- mished with long, sharp, crooked tusks, one on each side, directed downwards, and reaching nearly two inches beyond the lips. The com- mon Musk is an inhabitant of the mountains of Thibet, and is of the size of a Roebuck, and of a deep iron grey colour. The substance called Musk, by far the most powerfully diffusive of ..?,” NUU S K Mºazoº, // cº-ºwer. - 4, 6 zºo,” ºccº /oazz º.º. LECTURE IV. 121 all animal odors, (if we except that of some of the American Viverrae, before mentioned) is con- tained in a small pouch about the size of an egg, situated beneath the body; and is of an unctuous substance, and of a reddish brown colour. When fresh, it is said to be so excessively powerful or penetrating, as to force blood from the nose, eyes, and ears of those who incautiously smell it. It forms, as is well known, an article of com- merce, and is used both as a medicine and a perfume". * To this genus belongs a very elegant little quadruped, about the size of a small cat, and called the Pygmy Musk. It is found in many parts of Java and Sumatra, but is of so tender a nature as not to be capable of being brought alive into Furope. It is distinguished as a species, by the total want of the small or secondary hoofs behind the larger pair on each foot, and which are found in almost all the rest of the Cattle tribe. To this little species of Musk also belong the very minute legs with their hoofs, sometimes * It has been also observed that the smell of musk is not easily discharged even from metallic substances themselves which have been rubbed with it. I 22 LECTURE IV. seen in Museums, and which do not much exceed the size of a quill in diameter. They have often been tipped with gold and used for the purpose of a tobacco-stopper, and are sometimes called by the mistaken title of the legs of Greenland Deer. In the Order Pecora we find a very extensive genus under the title of Antelope, forming the modern genus Antilope, (for Linnaeus arranged the few species then known, among the Goat tribe.) The Antelopes are in general remarkable for the elegance of their appearance. The com- mon Antelope or A. Cervicapra is a native of many parts of Asia and Africa, its general size is somewhat smaller than that of a fallow deer, and its colour a tawny reddish-brown above, and white beneath : the horns black, of a peculiarly beautiful form, having a double flexure, first in- wards, and again outwards, and they are elegantly and distinctly marked, throughout almost their whole length, by numerous prominent rings or circles. The Antelopes in general inhabit the hottest regions of the globe: their swiftness is proverbial, and it is observed that most spe- cies are of a gregarious nature, forming herds of many hundreds or even thousands together. For COMMON ANTELOPE. zzza/e &/ºnate. 39 LECTURE IV. 123 * figures of this numerous and elegant tribe I must refer to the work of Schreber, where they are collected from the works of Pallas and many other describers. In the Leverian Museum, so unfor- tunately doomed to dispersion, may be found some of the most curious kinds. Of the Sheep and Goat tribe, or the two Lin- naean genera of Ovis and Capra, it may be suf. ficient to say, that the species which is supposed to be the origin of the Common Sheep in all its varieties, is the Argali, a large and handsome animal, found in many of the mountainous re- gions of the Eastern world. In this its natural state it is rather covered with hair than wool, and is of a pale tawny-brown colour, with very large horns. The Common Goat, in all its varieties, is sup- posed to have descended from the animal called the Iber, a large and very active quadruped, found in situations not dissimilar to those in which the Argali or Wild Sheep is seen. The Ibex is of a brown colour, with excessively large and long horns, bending or curving backwards, and marked above by rows of transverse knobs or half-circles. 124; LECTURE IV. The chief distinctive character between the two genera of Ovis and Capra or Sheep and Goat, is that in the former the horns have a spiral curvature; in the latter a simple one. The next, or 6th Linnaean Order of Quad- rupeds is called BELLUE, a word which cannot admit of any very distinct English corresponding word. We must be content to take the Linnaean term in its original shape. This order, Bellua, consists, in general, of animals either of large or moderate size, and comprizes the Rhinoceros, Horse, the Hippopotamus, the Tapir, and the Hog. Of these Genera we surely need not particu-, larize that of Equus or Horse, any otherwise than to say, that the common Horse is a native of the Eastern regions, in which it is still seen in al, state at least approaching to that of natural wildness, and that the cultivated or improved races of the Eastern countries are allowed to excel all others in swiftness as well as in beauty. The Ass belongs to the same genus, and, like the Horse, is a native of the East, and is an animal of great elegance and fleetness ; and by no means to be judged of from its degraded descendents in the European regions, where it LECTURE IV. 125 generally appears under every possible circum- stance of disadvantage. But, so far as regards mere beauty, the Afri- can species of this genus, called the Zebra, must be confessed to stand superior to almost every other quadruped, even the Tiger itself scarcely excepted. The Zebra, as every one knows, is distinguished by its numerous ribband-like, brown stripes on a cream-coloured ground. The Zebra has not yet been brought into a state of com- plete domestication; its native wildness still pre- venting every effort at rendering it serviceable in an economical view. Lastly to the genus Equus or Horse is re- ferred an animal, discovered of late years in the mountainous parts of Chili in South-America, and distinguished by the title of the Cloven-footed Horse. The chief character of the genus Horse (exclusive of the teeth,) consisting in the hoofs being perfectly. entire or undivided, it follows that the animal just mentioned, must be consi- dered as constituting a very anomalous species, contradicting in part, the generic character of the rest. But as nature sco, ns all artificial ar- rangements, we cannot presume to suppose that 126 LECTURE IV. she may not have produced a species of this ex- traordinary cast. The Cloven-footed Horse was first described by Molina, in his Natural History of Chili: In its general appearance, size, and colour, it resembles the Ass, but has the voice of the Horse, and the hoofs are divided, like those of ruminant-animals. One might be in- duced to suppose that Molina, from its general appearance, might have chosen to consider it: ās a species of Horse, but that it. really belonged more properly to the Antelope tribe; but this supposition is contradicted by its anatomical structure, which resembles that of other ani- mals of the Horse’ genus. It must therefore be considered as one of the most remarkable ani- mals yet discovered. ; : The genus Hippopotamus, of which we only know of one species, is a highly singular genus. *r The front-teeth in each jãw are: four 3. and the tusks, which are single on each side are very large: the feet are each furnished with four hoofs. The Hippopotamus is a very large animal: its general size equalling that of the Rhinoceros: in its mode of life it is Amphibious, concealing itself during the day in large rivers, out of which LECTURE IV. 127 it only raises its nostrils at intervals, in order to breathe; and coming out by night to graze, feeding entirely on vegetables. Its form is highly ..uncouth; the body being extremely large, fat, and roundaiánd. the legs very short and thick: the head very large, with short rounded or very slightly pointed ears, an extremely, wide mouth, with teeth of a vast size and strength ; particu- larly the tusks, or canine-teeth of the lower jaw, which are of a curved form, streaked on their outside with numerous furrows, and appear as if obliquely cut off at the tigi: These teeth some- times measure more than two feet in length. The skin of the Hippopotamus is smooth, but is thinly covered with short hairs. When the Hippopotamus, first emerges from the water, it is observed to be, of a brown colour, accom- panied by a blueish cast; but when dry, is of an obscure brown. It is naturally of a harmless disposition, but if pursued or wounded, is said to become excessively furious, and to be capa- ble of easily overturning a canoe or boat, and has sometimes been known to sink them, by biting large pieces out of the bottom. The young are capable of being tamed, and we are told by Be- I 28 LECTURE IV. Ion that he saw one in that state. The Hippo- potamus is a native of the large African and Asiatic rivers, and is sometimes seen in herds. The tusks are much esteemed as a species of ivory, being more hard, and less liable to change colour than those of the Elephant: they are there- fore in great use among the dentists. I shall add, that the Hippopotamus was known to the ancient Romans, and that Pliny tells us that Scaurus a Roman Ædile, treated the people of Rome with the exhibition of an Hippopotamus accompanied by four Crocodiles, all brought out of Egypt, and exhibited in a temporary lake, prepared for that purpose. * * The genus Rhinoceros, which some natural- ists have placed, like the Elephant, among the Bruta of the Linnaean arrangement, is distin- guished by the remarkable circumstance of a horn or process situate above the nose. The mouth is furnished in each jaw with two teeth, placed at the corners of the jaws in the manner of canine-teeth; and in each jaw are six grinders on a side. The general height of the Rhino- ceros is about eight feet, but specimens are said to be occasionally seen which nearly equal the i | . º º º º º º º º º º º º º º --~~ º -º-º: sº º º º º º º - - - - … º - º º - º º ------ --~~~~ º º º º Š s º º º | º 2// 5 H5 c H: C = * º = º º %#ſ'， %� %ſſſ}} ： Ä % ºff,， |×tae· %ſ\\ ſae·|- %$§ ·| }}© ¿ſ. ·ſ.}}}}}}}}}}}ſ. | （）№.| |- §§§ · SIIN (; LE-HI () IR NEID RIHIN () CEIROS, LECTURE IV. 129 Elephant in size. The skin of the Rhinoceros is strong and hard, of a dusky brown colour, and disposed, on the upper parts of the animal, in such a manner as to form several strong pleats about the fore and hind parts of the body : on the lower parts it is of a softer nature: the feet are each divided into three large hoofs , all standin g forwards. The Rhinoceros at full growth has the appearance of . an animal invested with a kind of armour, on account of the strongly-marked foiás and tubercles of the skin. There exists a curiºus plate of the Rhinoceros, by Albert Durer, in which he has so far exaggerated these particulars, that the creature appears as if actually in a complete suit of armour of the most elaborate workman- ship. This figure by Albert Durer is repeated in the works of Gesner and Aldrovandus, and many others, and seems to have long continued a kind of standard representation of the animal. The best general representation is perhaps that in the works of Buffon. So larg g s the horn of a full-grown Rhinoceros, as to exceed the length of three feet: it is of a black colour, solid, smooth - except at the base, curved backward s, and sharp- pointed. The Rhinoceros is principally a native LECT, I. K * I 30 LECTURE IV. of Asia and Africa, where it is still seen in consi- derable numbers, living in woody regions, and feeding on the young shoots of trees. In some parts of Africa is also found another species, called the two-horned Rhinoceros, having two horns on the nose, one behind the other: this species, which is of equal size with the common or single-horned Rhinoceros, is farther distin- guished by having a much smoother skin than that of the single-horned species, and which (in the younger specimens particularly,) exhibits hardly any of the roughnesses or folds which dis- tinguish the common kind. The ancient Ro- mans had undoubtedly seen a two-horned Rhi- noceros exhibited ; since the circumstance is par- ticularized in an Epigram of Martial, who, in speaking of the combat between this animal and a bear, says that it threw up or tossed the bear with its double horn as easily as a bull would a bag of wool. The animal also appears with a double horn on a coin' belonging to the reign of Domitian. It is well known that the cele- brated Mr. Bruce has been much censured for having figured in his travels the two-horned Rhi- noceros as perfectly resembling in every other LECTURE IV. *~ 13 || particular the common or single-horned species: it is also certain that the figure given in Mr. Bruce's work is absolutely a copy from Buffon's figure of the common Rhinoceros, with the addi- tion merely of a second horn. It does not how- ever follow from this circumstance that Mr. Bruce's figure is deceptive; and it is surely no improbable circumstance that the common Rhinoceros may vary with a double horn ; in which case Mr. Bruce, knowing Buffon's figure to be correct, might have thought it unneces- sary to be at the trouble of causing a com- pletely new figure to be executed. I must add, that Mr. Bruce's description of the manners or habits of the animal, is an in- teresting and even a sublime composition; and I recommend it to all who wish for an ani- mated account of so extraordinary a quadruped. The genus called Tapir consists of a single species only, and is distinguished by having nu- merous teeth, amounting in all to no fewer than forty-two: namely six front or cutting-teeth above and below ; two canine-teeth above and below, and twenty-six grinders: the nose is lengthened out into a short proboscis, and the feet are each } 32 LECTURE IV. divided into three narrow hoofs in front, with the addition of a small or spurious hoof behind each of the fore-feet. The Tapir is a South-American animal, nearly equal in size to a heifer. Its co- lour is an obscure brown, and the skin is but spar- ingly covered with hair. It is an animal of harm- less manners, wandering about the woods, and feeding on the young shoots of various shrubs. It has been occasionally brought alive into Eu- rope, and a well preserved specimen occurs in the Museum of Mr. Hunter. The genus Sus or Hog, concludes the enumera- tion of the Linnaean Bellua'. It is characterized by having four front-teeth above, and six below: two short tusks or canine-teeth in the upper jaw, and two very long and curved ones in the lower jaw, projecting upwards from the mouth : the snout is prominent, moveable, and abruptly ter- minated; and the feet are divided into two large, and two smaller hoofs, all pointing forwards. The wild Boar, which is supposed to be the stock or origin of all the domestic breeds, is a native of almost all the temperate and warmer regions of the ancient Continent. It is, in general, of smaller size than the domestic Hog, and is of a dark grey 27.3 '/w/， /， ， ， ， ， ، ، ، ، :） }); "（II-IV" J. IPIEL) STEAIL ſaecaewºon ºwlyhä hy daerlº Fleet ºu « !'， ： LECTURE IV. I 33 colour. Between the bristles, next the skin, is a much fincr and softer kind of hair, of a some- what woolly or curled nature: but the principal difference between the wild Boar and the domestic is the size of the tusks, which in the wild Boar are often several inches in length, and capable of inflicting the most severe and fatal wounds. Though the general size of the Wild Boar is inferior to that of the domestic, yet instances have occasionally occurred in which the animal has been seen of a size so enormous as far to surpass the general measure of its tribe, and to render credible the seemingly extravagant recitals which sometimes occur in the works of ancient authors. PIN N AT As WE are now to take a view of the pinnated Mammalia, or those in which the divisions or toes of the feet are connected by webs; enabling the animals, whose principal residence is in the waters, .*.* * . f & § 134 LECTURE IV. to swim with far greater facility than any other quadrupeds, while, on the contrary, they walk with much greater difficulty. In the Linnaean System, in which, perhaps, too great a degree of attention is paid to the cha- racters of the teeth, these quadrupeds are some- what awkwardly arranged; making their appear- ance in detached parts of the class Mammalia. In this instance therefore we shall depart from the Linnaean arrangement, and pursue that of Mr. Pennant and others; making a separate order for the pinnated quadrupeds, which will thus be made to lead, by a natural transition to the Ce- taceous Mammalia, or Whales. I need hardly observe, that by the pinnated or web-footed Mam- malia, must be understood those only which are strikingly and conspicuously distinguished by webs on all their feet, and not those which are par- tially web-footed, as the Otter, Beaver, and many others. Of the truly pinnated quadrupeds we are ac- quainted with but two distinct genera, viz. that of Phoca or Seal, and that of Trichechus or Manati. . . .” The first genus, or Phoca, (Seal,) is entirely LECTURE IV. 135 marine. . It is characterized by having teeth, si- milar in form and disposition to those of the order Ferae: while the feet are so formed as to resemble a kind of leathery fins, through which are very , distinctly traced the toes, which are terminated by slightly lengthened nails or claws. Though the whole genus Phoca is aquatic, yet it is so constituted as to require occasional intervals of repose, and even a considerable degree of con- tinuance on dry land; forsaking at particular periods the water, and congregating in multitudes on the shores, on floating ice, or on insulated rocks, and this especially at the season in which the young are produced. The most common species, or that which seems to have been known from times of remote antiquity, is the Phoca vitu- lina of Linnaeus, the common Seal, or Sea-Calf, as it is frequently termed. It is a native of the European seas, and is chiefly seen in the northern regions. Its size varies, but its general length seems to be from five to six feet, and its colour grey or greyish brown: the head is large and rounded, without any appearance of external ears: the neck small and short ; the parts adout the shoulders and breast very thick, the body tapering * 136 LECTURE IV. thence towards the extremity: the legs are so very short as to be scarcely perceptible, but the feet are large, and the hinder ones are so placed as to be of the highest use to the animal in swim- ming, being situated at the extremity of the body, and close to each other: the tail is very short: the whole animal is covered with short, thick-set, glossy hair, and its general colour is a dark grey- ish brown. In this respect, however, it is known to vary, like most others of its genus, being some- times seen spotted or variegated. Like the rest of the genus it feeds on various fishes, shell animals, and marine plants. A species much re- sembling this, but larger, is often seen about some of the European coasts: it differs in having a somewhat more lengthened snout than the com- mon Seal, and is generally black above, and white beneath, but, like the former, it varies in colour. It is the Pied Seal of Mr. Pennant, which in the first or folio edition of the British Zoology, was not considered as distinct from the common Seal. I shall not pursue the description of this genus further, than to observe that it is of considerable extent, and that several species inhabiting the Asiatic and American seas are of vast size, and - - º W. º ſ/ º ſ/ º /º º º/ º/ º W/ |ºſſ. | | - |||| º ºft º º | | | | | º ! º | - | º º º Wººl º º # º º | º ! !. º º n | | | | ſº | º º | W | ſtill º M LECTURE IV. 13 in their occonomy or mode of life exhibit many curious particularities, for the description of which I must refer to the last edition of Mr. Pennant's History of Quadrupeds, where a full description of their manners will be found, extracted from the works of Steller and other travellers of high authority. I proceed to the next genus, which is entitled Trichechus or Walruss. It is characterized by the want of fore-teeth, and by a very large tusk on each side, pointing downwards: the grinders are obtuse, with wrinkled or irregular surfaces at the top. The feet resemble those of the genus Phoca. in structure, but the hind-feet are placed still more backward, and even coalesce or unite into the appearance of a single fin in some species. The principal species in the Trichechus Rosmarus of Linnaeus, or the Northern Walruss, an animal of vast size, having been often seen of the length of eighteen feet. Its shape resembles that of a Seal, but it is of a thicker or less elegant aspect; its colour is a dark brown ; the skin being thick, and scattered over with short dusky hair: the head is small, and rounded, the upper lip very large, divided in the middle, and beset with numerous I 38 LECTURE IV. bristles of the length of three or four inches, and of the thickness and colour of wheat straw; the tusks are of great length, measuring from eighteen inches to two feet or more. The Walruss is of a gregarious nature, often assembling in vast num- bers on the masses of floating ice so often seen in the northern seas; where they produce their young in the spring season, and have generally but one at a birth. In their manners they re- semble the genus Phoca, but feed principally on sea-plants and shell-animals rather than on fishes. The Walruss is naturally a harmless animal, unless attacked, when it becomes extremely vindictive; roaring in a dreadful manner, and with its long tusks grappling with and endeavouring to overset the boats of those who attack it. It is an animal which has long ago been pretty well represented in the works of somé of‘the earlier zoologists, but it is observéd by Mr. Pennant, that the best re- presentation is given *the fifty-second plate of the last voyage of Captain Cook. There appear, however, to be distinct races or varieties of the Walruss, those seen in the icy regions of the American seas, and represented in the above plate, having longer and sharper tusks in pro- LECTURE IV. 139 portion than those observed in the northern seas of Europe, in which also the tusks are observed to diverge, not to converge, as in the American variety. • Another species is the T. borealis, or Whale- tailed Walruss, the feet of which very nearly re- semble those of Whales, exhibiting no distinct appearance of the toes or claws. It grows to a still longer size than the common Walruss, sometimes measuring eight-and-twenty feet in length, and is an inhabitant of the Asiatic and American seas. A third species is the T. Manatus, or the Ma- nati, found in the Indian and American rivers, and of which a curious anecdote is told by the early historians of America, who relate that at the first arrival of the Spaniards, a tame Manati was kept by a Prince of Hispaniola, in a lake adjoin- ing to his residence; and which, when called by its name, would readily appear and suffer itself to be caressed by its protectors. It would occasion- ally offer itself to its Indian favorites, and carry them over the lake, to the nnmber of ten at a time, singing and playing on its back. At length, in consequence of a violent inundation, it was it 40 LECTURE IV. i carried back to its native waters, and never more appeared. It is well known that the common Seal or Phoca vitulina, may also be readily tamed. Lastly the round-tailed Manati, a species allied to the former, but smaller, is a native of the larger African rivers; it grows to the length of fourteen feet, and is of a dark colour, with hair somewhat resembling that of the Seals, and a flat rounded fin at the extremity of the body, formed by the juncture of the webs of the hind-feet: the fore- feet are each furnished with flat and rounded nails. A specimen of this animal exists in the Leverian Museum. CETACEA. HAvrNG taken a slight survey of the pinnated or web-footed quadrupeds, we are led by a kind of natural transition to the Cetaceous Mammalia or Whales. These cannot in strict propriety be called Quadrupeds, since they are in reality furnished with only two feet, which have the appearance of LECTURE IV. 141 thick fins, while the tail, which is divided into two horizontal lobes, is merely muscular and ten- dinous, being void of any bones analogous to the feet in the rest of the Mammalia; those bones being only to be found in the fins or fore-feet. The general appearance of the Cetaceous Mammalia or Whales so much resembles that of a fish, that it is very natural for any one to sup- pose that they should be classed among that tribe of animals, and not with the rest of the Mam- malia; and indeed so far has this compliance with popular custom been followed, that most natu- ralists, till the institution of the Linnaean System, gave them the appellation of Fishes. Thus, ex- clusive of the more early writers, the celebrated Ray and Willoughby considered them in this view, and commenced their History of Fishes with that of Whales. Nay even Linnaeus himself, in his well-known work the Fauna Suecica, as well as in some of the earlier editions of the Systema Na- turae, arranged them under the class of Fishes. But, since their whole interior structure agrees with that of the Mammalia; since they have lungs and breathe, since they have warm blood, and a heart resembling in conformation that of Qua- 142 LECTURE IV. drupeds, and in particular, since they produce and nourish their young in the same manner, it fol- lows very clearly that they can with propriety be ranked in no other class of animals than the Lin-, naean Mammalia. * § * In a general view, exclusive of their Fish-like form, the Whales are distinguished by a particu- larity not to be found in any of the rest of the aquatic Mammalia. This is a double opening or spout-hole, on the top of the front of the head, through which they discharge at intervals, with great violence, and to a great height, the water which they have taken in at the mouth. . Though the Whales, all together, constitute a pretty numerous tribe, yet the genera, or par- ticular divisions into which they have been distri- buted are but few... Linnaeus institutes for the whole tribe only four distinct genera, viz. Balaena, Physeter, Monodon, and Delphinus. The first of these genera, or that of BALAENA, is distinguished by the total want of teeth; instead of which the mouth is furnished, but in the uppet jaw only, with a vast number of very long and broad, horny, flexible plates, disposed in regular rows along each side. These are popularly known : | | º | Will LECTURE IV. 1 4 3 by the name of Whalebone; each plate is deeply fringed or subdivided at its lower edge into long and slender bristles, by which means the edges of the under jaw are secure from being wounded by it, and at the same time the junction of many rows of bristled or subdivided edges operates as a strainer, when the mouth, after receiving food, suddenly closes, thus retaining the prey, and per- mitting the superfluous water to escape. The principal species of the genus Balana is the B. Mysticetus or great Whalebone Whale, Mysticet, or common Northern Whale. It is on all hands allowed to be the largest of all animals yet dis- tinctly known. Before the Northern Whale-Fish- eries had reduced the number of this species, it was no uncommon circumstance to find specimens of an hundred, an hundred and twenty, or even, according to some, an hundred and fifty feet in length. Such however are now very rarely, if ever seen, and it is not often that they are found of more than sixty or seventy feet in length. In its general appearance the animal is peculiarly uncouth; the head constituting nearly a third of the whole mass: the mouth is of prodigious width, the tongue measuring eighteen or twenty feet in 144, LECTURE IV. length: the eyes most disproportionably small; scarce exceeding in size the eyes of an Ox. The common colour of this species is black above, and white beneath; but in this it is known to vary: the skin, as in all the rest of the Whale tribe, is perfectly smooth, soft, and glossy, and is entirely bare, or destitute of any appearance of hair. The general residence of the animal is in the Northern seas; its food is supposed to consist chiefly of dif- ferent kinds of small, gelatinous marine animals, particularly of the smaller Medusae or Sea-Blub- bers, and Sea-Snails of the genus called Clio. The throat in this Whale is observed to be very narrow, so that it only preys on the smaller sea- animals in general. With respect to the anatomy of the Whale, I shall content myself with observing, that on so colossal a scale of magnitude does nature act in these animals, that the vertebre or joints of the back-bone are of the size of moderate barrels; the ribs and jaw-bones so large as to be occasion- ally used to form the sides of tall, arched gate- ways; the heart too large to be contained in a very wide tub; the aorta or principal artery mea- sures about a foot in diameter, and it is computed LECTURE IV. 145 that the quantity of blood thrown into it at every pulsation of the heart, is not less than from ten to fifteen gallons. º sº The strength of the great Northern Whale is prodigious; it is able to shatter a strong canoe in pieces with a single stroke of its tail: it swims, according to the computation of Cepede, at the rate of about thirty-three feet in a second, and it is further computed that in the space of about forty-seven days, it might circumnavigate the globe in the direction of the equator, even allow- ing it to rest by night during the whole time. It is supposed to be an extremely long-lived animal. The female produces, in general, but one young at a birth, which usually measures something more than twenty feet in length; and she has the repu- tation of being very tenderly attached to her offspring*. The least of all the Whalebone-Whales or Lin- * B. Glacialis or Nord-Caper is a very large species of Whale, but thinner in proportion than the Mysticete : it is an extremely voracious animal; preying on many kinds of fish, and in par- ticular on Cod and Herring. In the stomach of this Whale have been observed three hundred Cod: and in the stomach of a second individual were found more than a tun of herrings. LECT, I. * L I 46 LECTURE IV. nasan Balaenae is the B. rostrata, rostrated or taper-snouted Whale. It seldom reaches to the length of twenty feet, and is of an elegant shape, its colour is blueish-black above, and white be- neath, and the skin, from the throat to the middle of the body beneath, is marked in a longitudinal direction by very numerous, deep furrows, the in- sides of which are of a red colour: this furrowed structure of the skin beneath the fore-parts of the body, appears to be a wonderful institution of Nature for enabling the animal to increase at pleasure its diameter, and render itself specifically lighter; by inflating a vast cavity situated beneath the breast and communicating with the throat: during this action the furrowed skin becomes ex- tended laterally, and the insides of the furrows. being thus laid open, give the appearance of so many beautiful red stripes, along the sides and be. neath the body. This curious structure, which, perhaps, was first distinctly described by the late Mr. Hunter, is not peculiar to the present species, but exists in some others. The Rostrated Whale is a native of the Northern seas, and has occasion- ally been taken on our own coasts. The genus PHYSETER, containing what are f 277 „aerae azazaer， ºffiwr， raeae * J. O'IVIHI;， VO) (Iºſ (\，\，\，}{ſ-JI, NAY， Iſºſ LECTURE IV. 147 called Sperma-Ceti Whales, is distinguished by having visible teeth in the lower jaw only, which when the mouth is closed, are received into so many open sockets in the upper jaw : an accurate inspection of the upper jaw however proves that there are corresponding teeth in that also, but they are very small, and situated so deep within the sockets as to be totally invisible on a general view. . * - The Physeter Macrocephalus, or great Sper- maceti Whale, is not greatly inferior in size to the Great Whalebone Whale or Mysticete, and is of a shape not less uncouth; the head being of so vast a size as at least to equal a third of the length of the whole animal. It is from this Whale, as well as from some others of this genus, that the well- known substance popularly known by the name of Spermaceti is obtained. This substance, which in the living animal is a liquid oil, is contained in al, vast cellular cavity within the head; when €X- posed to the effect of cold air, it concretes into a solid form:, it exists in other parts of the animal, as well as in the head, and may be gained from the blubber or common oil by proper preparation: in a smaller proportion also it is found to exist iu 148 LECTURE IV. the blubber of all the rest of the Whale tribe, and even in the oil of the generality of marine animals. Another remarkable production of this and other species of the Physeter tribe, is known by the name of Ambergris, and has long continued its reputation as an agreeable perfume. Am- bergris is an opake whitish, greyish, or yellowish substance, so light as to swim, not only in water, but even in spirit of wine. Its real origin was formerly much disputed, but it is now ascertained to be a product from the Whales of this tribe, and it will perhaps excite some surprise in those who may not be informed of its real nature, to be told that it is no other than part of the natural con- tents of the animals' intestines, hardened by the effect of some disease, into a compact or unusually solid state. An idea has been entertained, and perhaps it is not an improbable one, that Am- bergris owes its odour to the flesh of a particular species of Cuttle Fish, which has naturally a musky smell, and on which these Whales are known particularly to feed.* In the larger pieces * Sepia moschata. Bosc, Sonnini's Buffon. Mollusque. tom. 3. p. 80, pl. 34. LECTURE IV. 149 of Ambergris, the horny beaks of these Cuttle- Fish are generally found imbedded. The genus Delphinus or Dolphin is charac- terized by having numerous teeth in both jaws. These animals constitute the Smallest of the Whale tribe; the common Dolphin rarely exceeding the length of eight or ten feet. Its shape is length- ened or fish-form, with a plump or thick body, slightly sharpened snout, and a thick pointed fin towards the middle of the back. Its colour, like most others of the tribe, is dark blueish or brown- ish-black above, and white beneath: this animal was well known to the ancients, who celebrated it for a supposed affection to the human race, and regarded its appearance at sea as a prosperous omen. Modern seamen are of a different opinion, and consider its appearance rather as a prelude to an approaching storm. The Dolphin swims very swiftly, and preys on various kinds of fish; and it is observed by the accurate Otto Fabricius, in his work entitled Fauna Greenlandica, that in swimming it constantly assumes a curved posture, depressing very considerably both head and tail. during that action; and thus justifying in Some degree the observations of the ancients, who ap- 150 LECTURE IV. pear indeed to have been guilty of some aggrava- tion in this respect in their poetical and sculptorial representations, while the moderns, on the con- trary, have been somewhat too severe in Con- demning them, - * * The Porpoise or D. Phocana, is a still more common species than the Dolphin, and so ex- tremely similar to it, that there can be little doubt of its having been often confounded with it: it is however a smaller animal, and rarely exceeds the length of six or seven feet: its chief mark of dis- tinction from the Dolphin seems to consistin havin 3. a shorter and blunter snout. The Porpoise, being the most common European species of all the Cetaceous tribe, has, of course, been more ac- curately inspected, as to its anatomical structure, than any of the rest; Rondeletius, Ray, Tyson, and others, having given a good general anatomy of the animal. It is also a curious fact, (such is the revolution of taste), that the Porpoise was a few centuries ago considered as a splendid and elegant dish at royal and noble tables; and this in Eng- land even so late as the reign of Queen Elizabeth. By far the largest of the Dolphin genus is the species called the Grampus, the D. Orca of Lin IL)， LIPTII： . Tº ſo ſº nº ſe ss）. LECTURE IV. I 5.1 naus. It arrives at the length of five-and-twenty feet, and is of an extremely fierce and voracious nature, feeding on the larger fishes, and even, occasionally, on the Dolphin and Porpoise them- selves. It is found in the Mediterranean and "Atlantic, as well as in the polar regions, and is one of the most ferocious inhabitants of the ocean. As a species it is chiefly distinguished by having the snout turned a little upwards. I cannot but here observe that the Linnaean character of this species may mislead, since it is said to be furnished dentibus serratis, with serrated or sawed teeth, a particularity not found in any of the Whale tribe, which have all simple or plain, conical teeth: but the meaning of the words dentibus serratis here is only to be understood in the common classical sense, as in Pliny and other authors; meaning so disposed as to give the outline of the jaw a ser- rated appearance in profile. There remains one more Linnaean genus of the ..Whale tribe, and that one of the most remarkable: this is the genus Monodon or Narwhal. It is dis- tinguished by an extremely large and long, spi- rally twisted tooth, projecting in a straight direc- tion, from the upper jaw. Sometimes there are I 52 LECTURE IV. two of these teeth, parallel to each other, in which case one is always observed to be somewhat shorter and thinner than the other. Supposing the na- tural number to be two, as stated by Linnaeus, in his generic character, I need not observe, that the name of Monodon would be peculiarly absurd. In fact the natural number is two, but one is always observed to predominate, and the probability is that they are so constituted as alternately to supply the defect occasioned by casting, on one side. The common Narwhal or M. Monoceros of Linnaeus, sometimes called the Sea Unicorn, is an inhabitant of the northern seas, where it grows to the length of more than twenty feet, exclusive of the tooth, which is about half the length of the body. The colour of the animal is an ir- regular variegation of black and white on the upper parts, and white beneath; and the young are said to be of a much darker colour than the full-grown animal. The food of the Narwhal, like that of the great Whalebone Whale, consists chiefly of Sea-blubbers or Medusae and other small animals, but it is also known to prey occasionally on fishes, and particularly on flat-fish. Before this animal became very distinctly known to the ~~~~. ：） ~~~~ ~~~~rºzºvº º zrae， ，,.:.，，， Z， _）~：：~~~~º "IV || &\ \ | \， \!| ºzzzzzº， z/zzz/~tº? ^^^^^^ '^//ºº/ o */ ///， //vº.wº º - - º 27.9 LECTURE IV. 153 naturalists of Europe, the teeth, or spiral horn- like processes, were held in very hign estimation, as the supposed horns of Unicorns. Various medical virtues were attributed to them, and they were even numbered among the articles of regal magnificence. At Rosenberg in Denmark is said to be still preserved an ancient throne, composed of Narwhals' teeth, and which was once the seat of state of the ancient Danish Monarchs. I purposely omit speaking of the supposed different species of this genus; their description, as yet, being not sufficiently accurate to justify any very clear conclusions. Having thus taken a general view of the Mam- malia or viviparous quadrupeds, we shall in our next Lecture proceed to Birds. 155 LECTURE W. WE are In OW entering upon a beautiful and ex- tensive branch of Natural History, called Orni- thology or the History of Birds. These animals far excºging Quadrupeds in point of number, it was highly necessary that they should be dis- tributed into orders, and genera, in order to faci- litate the knowledge of the species. In this part of Zoology, as in Quadrupeds, we shall pursue the Lingan arrangement, with some variations and transpositions. I know not whether it may be thought neces- sary to be very particular in the description of a bird, as distinguished from a quadruped, but as , there are some circumstances which are important in the comparative anatomy of these animals, it may not be improper to give a slight general description of them, I 56 LECTURE V. The skeleton or bony frame of the animal is in general of a lighter nature than in quadrupeds, and is calculated for the power of flight: the spine is immoveable, but the neck lengthened and flex- ible: the breast-bone very large, with a prominent keel down the middle, and formed for the attach- ment of very strong muscles: the bones of the wings are analogous to those of the fore-legs in quadrupeds, but the termination is in three joints or fingers only, of which the exterior one is very short. What are commonly called the legs are . analogous to the hind-legs in quadrupeds, and they terminate, in general, in four toes, three of which are commonly directed forwards, and one back- wards; but in some birds there are only two toes, in some only three. All the bones in birds are much lighter or with a larger cavity than in Quadrupeds. - With respect to the definition of a Bird, as ab- solutely distinguished from all other animals, it would be sufficient to say, accordin g to the old mode, that a bird is a two-footed, feathered animal. The power of flight need not enter into the defini- tion; for there are many birds which are perfectly destitute of the power of flight; as the Ostrich, SIKE LETON ſy |'TſIRRIE Y ****, *, *//a/4, c/º Azcz.fºrce. LECTURE V. 157 the Cassowary, all the Penguins, and some other birds. The feathers with which birds are covered are analogous in their nature to the hair of Qua- drupeds, being composed of a similar substance appearing in a dissimilar form. Beneath or under the common feathers or general plumage, the skin in birds is immediately covered with a much finer or softer feathery substance called down. The external or common feathers are called by different names on different parts of the animal. The longest of the wing-feathers, which are ge- nerally ten in number, in each wing, are called the first or great quills, (in the Linnaean phrase remiges primores, as being the chief oars or guid- ers as it were.) The feathers constituting the middle part of the wing are called the secondaries or second quills (remiges secondarii of Linnaeus,) and are more numerous, than the first : the fea- thers descending along each side the back are called the scapular feathers: the small feathers covering the shoulders are called the smaller wing- coverts, (tectrices minores:) the next series to these are called the larger wing-coverts, (tectrices secondariae or majores,) and at the edge of the shoulder are a few rather strong and slightly 158 LECTURE v. # * º lengthened feathers, constituting what is called ** * the false or spurious wing; the alula or alulet of some ornithologists. The tail, in mºst birds, consists of twelve feathers; in some of ten only ;- ** * • #3, s , , and in some others of eighteen, twenty ºf twenty- t four. Sometimes on each side the tail of above it, at the lower part of the back, are placed Se- veral very long feathers of a different structure from the rest: these have been called the hypo- chondriac and unpygial feathers. These are the principal distributions of the feathersºon a bird. With respect to the particular shape of the ſea- thers themselves, they vary greatly in the different *... * * *. † sº *~ tribes. ,--. The particulars most important in the com- parative anatomy of birds are these. The throat, after passing down to a certain distance, dilates itself into a large membranaceous bag, ànswering to the stomach in quadrupeds: it is called the crop, and its great use is to soften the food taken into it, in order to prepare it for passing into another stronger receptacle called the gizzard: this which may be considered as a more powerful stomach than the former consists of two very strong muscles, lined and covered with a stout. * . * *{ ... • *. LECTURE W. 159 tendinous coat, and furrowed on the inside". In this receptacle the food is completely ground and reduced to a pulp. The lungs of Birds differ from those of quadrupeds in not being loose or free in the breast, but fixed to the bones all the way down: they consist of a pair of large spongy bodies, covered with a membrane which is pierced in several places, and communicates with several large vesicles or air-bags dispersed about the cavities of the body. The eyes of birds are more or less convex in the different tribes; and in general, it may be observed that the sense of sight is more acute in birds than in most other animals; and they seem to possess a greater degree of power in accom- modating the convexity of the eye to any par- ticular distance than other animals, for which purpose they are provided with a curious ap- paratus of scales round the iris or coloured part of the eye not be observed in quadrupeds. Birds have no outward Ear, but the internal is formed on the same general plan as in quadrupeds. Birds as every one knows are oviparous ani- mals, always producing Eggs, from which the * In the predaceous birds or Accipitres this is wanting, the sto- mach being allied to that of quadrupeds. 160 LECTURE W. young are afterwards excluded. The process of the young in the Egg, from the time of its first production to that of the complete forma- tion of the bird, is extremely curious and in- teresting, and may be found detailed with suf- ficient exactness in the works of Malpighi, Buf. fon, Monro, and many others. I shall only ob- serve on this subject that the first appearance of the young, as an organized body, begins to be visible in six hours after the egg has been placed in a proper degree of heat under the parent animal”. The number of eggs is extremely various in the different tribes of birds. - Birds are divided by Linnaeus into six Or- ders or Assortments, viz. I. Accipitres or Pre- dacious Birds, such as Vultures, Eagles, Hawks, Owls, and some others. * A particular highly worthy of attention is, that the chick, or young bird, when arrived at its full size, and ready for hatch- ing, is by nature provided with a small, hard, and calcareous protuberance at the point or tip of the bill, by which it is enabled the more readily to break the shell, and which falls off some hours after its hatching. So careful has Nature been, and so accurately has every circumstance attending the process been foreseen and provided for 1 LECTURE W. I61 2. Pica or Pies, containing all the birds of the Crow and Jay kind, the Parrots, the Wood- peckers, the Kingfishers, and a great variety of other birds. * 3. Passeres or Passerine birds, comprising the Pigeons, the Thrushes, the Larks, and all the Finches or small-birds in general, either with thick or slender bills. 4. Gallinae or Gallinaceous birds, or such as are more or less allied to the common domestic Fowl, and consequently containing the Pheasant and Partridge tribe, the Peacock, Turkey, and a variety of other birds. 5. Gralla or Waders, consisting of all the Heron tribe, the Curlews, the Plovers, and other numerous tribes which have lengthened legs and chiefly frequent watery situations. 6. The Anseres or Web-footed birds, as the Swan, Goose, or Duck tribe, the Gulls, the Pen- guins and many others. Out of these six Linnaean Orders some or- nithologists have instituted a few others, in or- der to give a greater degree of clearness and pre- cision to the arrangement of birds, but they cannot be considered as absolutely necessary. LECT . I. - M 162 LECTURE V. Thus the Pigeons have been sometimes consi- dered as properly forming a distinct order of birds under the title of the Columba or the Colum- bine Order, instead of being ranked among the Passeres of Linnaeus; and the Ostrich, Cassowary, and Dodo have been supposed to constitute an or- der called the Struthious Order, instead of ranking either among the Grallae or Gallinae of Linnaeus. . The first Linnaean tribe of Birds, called Ac- cIPITREs, consists of the Vultures, the Eagles, the Owls, and the Shrikes or Butcher-Birds; for all these birds are, of a predacious nature, and feed. entirely on animal food. Their general charac- ters, considered at large, or as belonging to the whole tribe, are these. The bill is more or less curved, strong, and often covered, round the base, by a naked membrane, called a cere; and on. each side, towards the tip, is a pretty strong point or projection, forming a kind of tooth, and serving the more easily to tear the prey. The wings are large and strong, and the whole body stout and muscular; the legs strong and short, the claws much curved, and sharp-pointed. These birds generally make a somewhat neg-, ligently or slightly-formed nest, in lofty situa- LECTURE v. 163 tions, and lay from two to four eggs. The fe- male in the predacious birds is always larger than the male ; and the whole tribe, according to Linnaeus, may be considered as analogous to the Order Fera, among quadrupeds. Of the predacious tribe the first genus or set is that of Vultur. Its chief character is, a beak of a somewhat lengthened form, running strait to some distance, but curving strongly at the tip; it has no cere or naked membrane at the base: the head and neck, in most species, are bare of feathers, being covered only with a kind of down. The species of Vultures are con- siderably numerous, and they inhabit almost all the warmer parts of the globe, but are not so often seen in the Northern regions, where their presence would be less necessary. They are observed to prey on dead animals in preference to living ones, and as they are always on the watch for those, and prefer such as are in a putrid state, they may be considered as the Sca- vengers of Nature in the animal world, and are of extreme utility in the hotter regions, by quickly removing all such animal remains as would other- wise tend to infect the air. l 64 LECTURE V. The largest, and most extraordinary of all the Vultures is the South-American species called the Condor, so long celebrated as the largest of all birds possessing the power of flight, and till lately, so very indistinctly described in the works of naturalists. It does not appear that a spe- cimen of the Condor was ever seen in Europe till about twelve or fifteen years ago, when a female bird was brought over in a dried state by Captain Middleton, and deposited in the Le- verian Museum. About two years afterwards a male, in the most perfect 'preservation, was ob- tained, and placed in the same collection. It is this latter specimen that has afforded the oppor. tunity of giving a true description of the species, which is distinguished by being of a black co- lour, with the shorter or secondary wing-feathers white; the head furnished with an upright, Com- pressed, fleshy crest or comb, the throat, to a considerable distance down the breast, naked and red, and the neck furnished, down each side, with several short, circular wattles or flaps: round the upper part of the neck, where it joins the back, is a kind of ruff or tippet of milk-white, downy feathers: the wings are of vast extent, and when 5, ("OND OR zºo.º. ººz-Zoº /a/.4% **A*/ºr ºcerºcer. - º” - -- - *cº LECTURE V. 165 the bird was fresh killed, are said to have mea- sured nearly fourteen feet from tip to tip. This specimen affords an epportunity of rectifying an important error in the description of the Condor given by general observers, who have seen it in its native regions, but probably at a distance, and with its wings closed; for such descrip- tions tell us that the back’ of the bird is milk. white, which is not the case, but the mistake may be supposed to have arisen from the white wing-feathers folding over, the back when the wings are closed. In such descriptions also, the tail is said to be small, whereas, on the contrary, it is large in proportion to the bird. The ac- counts of the Condor, by some of the earlier historians of the Western Continent are singu- larly curious, and such as the more sober phi- losophic faith of European Naturalists could thardly be supposed to admit. These writers assure us that the Vulture called the Condor is capable of snatching up, and carrying off boys of upwards of ten years of age; that a pair of these destroyers in concert, will attack a heifer in the midst of a field, and tear it in pieces with the utmost ease. In short, the descriptions of I 66 LECTURE V. the Condor bring to our mind the imaginary bird called the Roc or Ruck, which makes so conspicuous a figure in the Arabian Tales. The most common European Vulture is the V. castaneus, or great brown Vulture : it is of a dusky chesnut-brown colour, with a naked head and neck; the long wing-feathers black, and the base of the neck surrounded by a ruff of short whitish feathers. This is the Vulture so often seen in the usual exhibitions of animals. It is found in the South of Europe, and in many parts of Africa. The next genus of the Accipitres is called Falco, and contains all the Eagles, Falcons and Hawks. It is a genus so very numerous that on the most moderate computation the species may be supposed to amount to about 120. The largest and most celebrated species is the Golden Eagle, or Falco Chrysaetos of Linnaeus, which is of a reddish brown colour, with dusky shades and variegations, and has the cere or naked mem- brane round the base of the bill of a deep yellow or gold-colour: and the legs and feet are of similar colour. Its general length is about three feet, and its weight about 12 pounds. It is ob- served to vary in some degree in its colours. The § º º * \s s --sº º GOLDEN EAGLE zºo.7 ºz. z. z.ondon Pºža. 3rºſcºw/º Azeez.ºrcee. º”. -- - - -- * LECTURE. V. 167 Golden Eagle is the Bird of Jupiter of the an- cient Greeks and Romans. It is numbered among our native British birds, having been oc- casionally observed to breed in the northern parts & of the island; but in Ireland it is more com- mon: its extent of wings, when fully expanded, is more than seven feet, The Osprey or F. Haliatus of Linnaeus is one of the larger or rather middle-sized species of this genus, and is of a brown colour above, white beneath, with the head whitish, and the cere, legs and feet blue. Linnaeus, in mentioning this bird, falls into a vulgar error, in supposing that the left foot is slightly webbed. The Osprey is a native of Europe, and is found in our own country, chiefly frequenting the sea-shores, and the larger lakes, and preying on fish, which it seizes by precipitating itself upon them from a considerable height*. Few of the present genus * A much larger and finer species, very nearly equalling the Golden Eagle in size, is the Falco Ossifragus of Linnaeus, which by many naturalists is also called the Sea-Eagle, though very different from the Common Osprey. Its colour is brown with paler variegations, and it is remarkable for the strong curva- ture of its sharp-pointed claws. Native of England, &c. # 68 LECTURE V. have any gayety of colours, but some are pos- sessed of a high degree of elegance, especially some of the smaller kind of Falcons and Hawks, among which latter may be particularized the Restril, a well-known British species of a reddish brown colour above, spotted with black; with the head and tail dove-coloured, the latter marked by a black bar. The female is brown, with black variegations, and the tail is brown also, with numerous blackish bars. The third genus of the Accipitres is that of Strip or Owl. The bill in this genus is hooked, but without cere at the base: the nostrils are covered by reversed bristly plumes, and the head, eyes, and ears are very large. The genus is pretty numerous; and the largest or principal species is nearly equal to a small Eagle in size, and of a rich chesnut-brown colour, elegantly marked and spotted with very numerous blackish variegations of different sizes: the head is dis- tinguished by a large pair of feathered tufts, rising above each ear, and the irides or circles of the eyes are of the finest golden yellow. This bird, generally known by the name of the Eagle- Owl, or Great Horned Owl is not very uncom. º allºw- - º ſº º º sº sº º º #ſº ºn raiſº º GREAT Hollº NIED Owl, zºo.º. ºceſa Zoroazov, *&^* ºr ººzººey ººze. ſºver. LECTURE W. 169 mon in many parts of Europe, and has been sometimes found in England. In North Ame- rica is a species much allied to it, but differing in having the under parts ash-coloured and marked by very numerous transverse brown lines or bars. The common Brown Owl, and the common Barn Owl must be supposed to be known to every one. Owls in general are calculated for seeing to the greatest advantage in a sober light, for which reason they shun the glare of day, and pur- sue their prey by night; and, as an eminent writer somewhat oddly expresses himself, they see ill because they see too well; their eyes being sensible to the smallest or weakest im- pressions of light. Yet some species have been observed to prey, like Hawks, during the day- time; and it is remarkable that such species are in some degree allied to Hawks in shape; having a slender or lengthened body and a longer tail than the rest of their tribe. The bird called the Caparacoch or Hawk-Owl of North America is of this kind, and is well figured in the ornithological work of Edwards. Some of this genus are remarkable for their small size; as a Siberian species, called by Dr. Pallas I'O LECTURE V. Strir demnuta, which is hardly superior to a sparrow in size, and of an elegant grey co- lour, freckled with very numerous dark-brown or blackish specks. Ornithologists differ in some degree about the next or fourth Linnaean genus of the Acci- pitres or predacious Birds; some thinking that it should rather be placed among the Picae or Pies. Its habits however are strictly those of Birds of prey. This genus is called Lanius, in English Shrike or Butcher-Bird, which name is given to it on account of its singular practice of separating the limbs of such birds and other animals as it kills, and fastening them on thorns, by regularly transfixing each : this practice is not only common to the several European spe- cies, but is observed in those of Africa and Ame- rica. The Great or Common English Shrike or Butcher-Bird is the Lanius Excubitor of Lin- naeus, and chiefly seen in the northern parts of the kingdom. It is about the size of a Thrush and of a grey colour, with black wings and tail, and a black streak across each eye; the bill and legs are also black. Some of the exotic species of this genus are of very brilliant colours, The Order PIcAE or PIES, at which we now arrive, is so very numerous, that, far from passing through all the genera of which it is composed, we shall only select a few as examples. The Order Picas may be considered as analogous to that of Primates among Quadrupeds. The bill varies in structure in the different genera, but is commonly of a slightly compressed and con- vex form : they build their nests or deposit their eggs in trees, and their food is principally of a vegetable nature, though some genera feed on insects. I shall now proceed to select some examples of the genera belonging to this numerous order. The genus Buceros is one of the most singular: it consists of birds of rather large size, and dis- tinguished by the excessive size of their beaks, which are often still farther remarkable for some kind of large prominence on the upper man- dible. The most conspicuous species is the Bu- ceros Rhinoceros of Linnaeus, commonly called the Rhinoceros-Bird: its general size is that of a Turkey, but with a much more slender body in proportion. Its colour, is black, with the tail white, crossed by a black bar: the beak is of 172 LECTURE W. enormous size, of a lengthened, slightly curved, and pointed shape, and on the upper mandible, towards the base, is an extremely large process, equal in thickness to the bill itself, and turning upwards and backwards in the form of a thick, sharp-pointed horm. The use of this strange pro- cess is by some supposed to be that of enabling the bird the more easily to tear out the entrails of its prey; but others affirm that it is not of a predacious nature, feeding only on vegetable substances. This bird is principally found in the East-Indian islands. In the Leverian Museum is a remarkably fine specimen. But the genus Ramphastos or Toucan ex- hibits a still greater degree of disproportion be- tween the size of the bill and that of the bird; for the Toucans in general are not larger than Magpies; but are provided with bills of so in- ordinate a size as, in some species, almost to equal that of the whole body: the bill in this genus however, notwithstanding its size, is of a very slight substance, having a very large in- ternal cavity, and the exterior sides, in the living bird, are so slight that they may be impressed by the fingers, and afterwards restore themselves Sº - -- *c. º LECTURE v. 173 by their own elasticity. The tongue in the Tou- oans so much resembles a long slender feather, that the first describers considered it as really such : it is of a horny substance, and divided at the edges into innumerable notches or barbs. The Toucans are all natives of South America, and feed on the softer kind of fruits. One of the most remarkable species is the T.oco, the Ram- phastos Toco of Linnaeus, a bird about the size of a Pigeon, black above and white beneath; with a bih measuring more than seven inches in length, and of a reddish-yellow colour with a black tip. - The Toucans are not very numerous, and are in general of very gay colours; the under parts being commonly either red or bright yel- low, or varied with both these colours; while the prevailing colour of the upper parts is a greenish black. The bills are, in some species, not less brilliant, being richly marked and shaded with red, green, or yellow, generally in the form of long and broad stripes or bands on each side. - The genus Psittacus or Parrot needs very little description, since every one knows the usual *x. 174 - LECTURE v. shape of a Parrot's bill, and that the feet are formed for climbing, or are, in the Linnaan phrase, scansorial, that is, with two of the toes forwards, and two backwards. Every one how- ever may not have observed that in a Parrot's bill the upper mandible is moveable as well as the lower; a very rare particularity in animals; and that the tongue, in most species, is thick and fleshy: in some however, and particularly in some which are natives of New Holland, the tongue is tipped by a finge of white cartilagi- nous fibres. -- º - So very numerous is this splendid genus, that the species already described in the works of authors amount to more than 170, and new OſłCS are frequently added to the list, particularly from the regions of Australasia or New Holland, and from the Indian islands. The whole genus, for the convenience of investigation, is divided into the long and short-tailed kinds: the long-tailed kinds are remarkable for having the two middle feathers of the tail longest, the rest shortening gradually - on each side, so that the shape of the tail is more or less lanced or sharpened in the dif. ferent species. On the contrary, in the short- º * *- -- º * ſ - º º - - º Fº º - º (; REAT SC ARLET MACC AW zºº ſº. Zºº” ////º ("Wºº Aº.º.º. LECTURE V. 175 tailed Parrots the feathers of the tail are of equal length, and the end or tip is nearly even or slightly rounded. The larger kind of long-tailed Parrots are called Maccaws ; the smaller Par- rakeets. The English term Parrot, in common language being usually confined to the short or even-tailed kinds. Of the large long-tailed Par- rots or Maccaws the most conspicuous is the Psittacus Macao of Linnaeus, of Great Scarlet Maccaw, which indeed may be well considered 31S OIRé of the most magnificent of the whole feathered tribe. As a species, it is distinguished by having the body scarlet, the wings blue, with a bar of yellow, and the cheeks bare, white, and slightly wrinkled. In colours it sometimes varies a little in different individuals. Like the rest of the great Maccaws, it is a native of South-America. The best figure extant is that of Edwards, which, in the true expression of character, as well as of colours, far surpasses that given in the Planches Enluminées of Daubenton. In its native regions this bird is often seen in large flocks, which, from the brilliancy of their colours, when seen at a distance, exhibit the appearance of a kind of flying rainbow. An appearance ITG LECTURE. V. of this kind is described in Anson's voyage, of the description of the beautiful isle of Tinian. The Psittacus Ararauma or Blue and Yellow Maccaw is of similar size and shape, but is entirely of a fine blue colour above, and gold- yellow beneath. Psittacus Augustus or hyacinthinus is of equal size with the two preceding, but is entirely of a fine deep blue, with the bill and feet black, and the orbits of the eyes, and base of the lower man- dible surrounded by a bare yellow skin. This very fine species was unknown to Naturalists till it made its appearance in the Leverian Museum. It is supposed to be a native of South-America. The smaller kind of long-tailed Parrots, or Parrokeets as they are commonly called, are wonderfully numerous. As an example of these I shall mention the Psittacus Aleaſandri or com- mon Ring-Parrakeet, which is a native of India and the Indian islands, and is supposed to have been first made known to the Greeks and Ro- mans by means of the Indian expeditions of Alexander and his Generals. It seems to have been almost the only Parrot distinctly known to the Ancients. It is to this species that Ovid's .56 Ps (TTACUS AUGUSTU's - - ºr ºſcarazer Azer.ºz. - 7./www.oz. Auð4%a. Zºoey rºcº LECTURE v. 177 beautiful Elegy on the death of Corinna's Parrot must be referred. * One of the most elegant of the Parrakeets is a species lately brought in a dried state from New-Holland, and which I have myself lately described under the name of Psittacus Melanotos or black-backed Parrakeet. It is a middle-sized species, and remarkable for the vivid contrast of its colours. . Among the short or even-tailed Parrots the common Grey Parrot may serve as an example: it is the Psittacus Erithacus of Linnaeus, and is a very well-known species, generally of the size of a small Pigeon, and of a deep-grey co- lour with a red tail; it is a native of the inland parts of Africa. The Parrot called the Ama- zon’s Parrot (P. A.'stivus) is also of this di- vision, and is subject to much variety in point of colour. The Parrots called Lories belong also in ge- neral to the short-tailed division in this genus. As an example we may take the Psittacus Gar- rulus or Scarlet Lory, remarkable for the beauty of its plumage. I, ECT. I. a TN 178 LECTURE v. Among the numerous genera of the Order Pica one of the principal is the genus Wood. . pecker or Picus. It is distinguished by having climbing feet, as in the Parrots, and a strait, strong, pointed bill; while the tongue is wonder- fully calculated by Nature for the mode of life to which the animal is destined, being of equal length, when extended, with the body of the bird; but by an admirable apparatus of muscles and tendons, it is either withdrawn into the bill, or thrust out at pleasure, and is tipped with a sharp horny point, serving to seize and transfix the softer kind of insects upon which the birds of this genus feed; as well as to probe or search for them in the cavities of the bark and bodies of trees. The residence of the whole genus Pi. cus, which is very numerous, is in the hollows of trees, in which they breed. The most fami- liar example of the genus is the common Green English Woodpecker or P. viridis Lin. frequent in this country, and of a green colour, with the top of the head sprinkled with bright scarlet spots. The Picus major is an elegant British spe- cies also, and notwithstanding its name, is of Źź !，2% ± |- ſae · |- |× ſae ſae. · º -renº |PICUS FILEATT's 4%/4, º/carºr/ey Weez fºrcz. zºo.º. ººcąz Zzzax/oz Zºº, LECTURE V. 179 smaller size than the former, and of a black and white colour, with a red bar across the back of the head. Of the exotic species, the greater numbe are natives of America; one of the chief is the Picus principalis of Linnaeus or JWhite billed IVood- pecker, always distinguished by the ivory white- ness of its bill: the bird itself is one of the largest of its tribe, and is black, with a white stripe down each side of the neck, and a length- ened crimson crest on the head. Picus pileatus is a North-American species nearly allied to the former, but easily distin- guished by its black or deep Head-coloured bill. The least of the whole genus is the Picus minimus of Linnaeus, of the size of a Wren, and of a brown colour, with the top of the head red, and the back part black speckled with white: the total length of the bird is three inches and a half: it is a native of South-America. Among the Picas it would be unpardonable to omit the splendid genus Paradisea or Paradise- Bird, of which but a very few species were known some years ago, but which is so far increased by the persevering researches of mo- 2’ 18O LECTURE W. derm naturalists that the number is pretty con- siderable. Of these the most common, or that which was earliest known to the Europeans is the Paradisea apoda of Linnaeus, who did wrong to give it that title, since it still keeps up in some degree the highly absurd idea, that the bird was naturally destitute of feet, the word apoda meaning footless, whereas, on the con- trary, the legs and feet of the Paradise-Birds are rather remarkably stout and large. The cha- racter of the Paradise-Birds is that the bill, which is somewhat lengthened, slightly curved and sharp-pointed, is beset, round the base, with up- right velvet or plush-like feathers, and that from each side, beneath the wings, springs, in most species, a certain number of loose-webbed fea- thers, of a peculiar construction, and greatly ex- ceeding the rest in length. The P. apoda or common Paradise-Bird is about the size of a Thrush, and of a very fine reddish chesnut-colour on the upper parts, and yellowish-white beneath: the velvet-feathers round the bill are black; the top of the head and the back of the neck yellow, and the throat of the most brilliant golden-green : the tail is of mo- .58 º ºrrº. GREAT or COMINION PARADISIE BIRD - - * Cºona on 7% ºr º/carrºr Azeez Jºzez. º - - - - - *. º - - _ - - - º - - º - - sº - - - --~~ - *T ("OMMON |XINGIFISHEIR zºº.cº.zoº/ºr &Mºzºr Azer-ºccº. LECTURE V. 181 derate length; of the same brown colour with the rest of the upper parts, and is shaped as in the generality of birds, and is in a great degree concealed by the long and beautiful as- sortment of the loosely-webbed floating plumes springing from the sides of the back: these are of the most elegant structure imaginable, and are generally of a bright jonquil yellow at their base, gradually growing pale or whitish as they advance in length; and besides these, there are two very long naked shafts or slender quills in the middle. The long floating feathers are popularly called the tail of the bird, though in reality, as before observed, the tail is of a very different appearance and structure. This species, or the Paradisea apoda, like the rest of the genus, was once supposed to be natur- ally without feet, and to float almost perpetually in air, never resting, except by the supposed assistance of the two long and slender naked shafts or filaments before mentioned, which the bird was supposed to have the power of occasion- ally coiling round the branches of trees, and of thus sometimes sleeping. These fables are now sufficiently exploded. The Paradise-birds are said 182 LECTURE V. to live chiefly on the larger kind of Butterflies and Moths. They are the peculiar natives of the Philippine and other Indian islands, and the reason of the old supposition of their wanting legs was owing to these parts having been gener- ally cut off by the natives before they sold the skins to the Europeans. Several of the most ele- gant species of the genus Paradisea, have lately been engraved in a most magnificent manner in a French work on the subject by Audebert and his associates; but it must be confessed that they neither seem to have been copied from capital specimens, nor can they be said to exhibit with sufficient effect the peculiar splendor and elegance so remarkable in the birds of this genus. A highly learned dissertation on the genus Paradisea may be found in the additions to Mr. Pennant's Indian Zoology, by the late Dr. Reinhold Forster, together with an elaborate and satisfactory dis- quisition relative to the fabulous Phaenia of an- tiquity, to which these birds have been sometimes supposed to bear a kind of affinity. The beautiful genus Alcedo or Kingfisher has a strait, strong, very sharp-pointed beak; with a very short tongue; legs and feet extremely short, º - -- ("OMIM ON ('U' ('KOW zºo.º. ºoza, Mozdowº Z%// ºº 6:/carºſe //ceº.ſtreet. do LECTURE V. 1 33 and the toes so constituted as to form what Lin- naeus calls a pes gressorius or gressorial foot, con- sisting of three toes forwards and one backwards, but with two of the front-toes joined half way from the base. The genus Alcedo or Kingfisher is numerous, and remarkably brilliant in point of colour, the prevailing cast being blue or green, with different degrees of splendor. The only European species is the common Kingfisher, one of the most brilliant of all the European birds. It inhabits the banks of rivulets, where it deposits its eggs. The Kingfisher is supposed to be the Alcyon of the Ancients, but the idea of the float- ing nest, which the ancients attributed to their Alcyon, will by no means apply to this bird; though such a circumstance really takes place in a certain genus of aquatic birds of a very dif- ferent tribe. The genus Cuculus or Cuckow is characterized by its slightly curved bill, climbing feet, and tail composed of ten soft feathers. It is a numerous genus, differing greatly in size and colours in the different species: the only species inhabiting Europe is the common Cuckow or Cuculus Camorus of Linnaeus, so well 184 LECTURE v. known by its remarkable note. The common Cuckow is about the size of a turtle-dove, and of a. deep blueish grey above, white beneath, with numerous narrow dusky bars: the tail rather long and edged with black and white bars, but the young, or bird of the first year's growth, differs so widely in appearance from the bird in its advanced state, that at first sight, it would hardly be supposed to belong to the same species, being varied with brown, black, and ash-colour, somewhat in the manner of the plumage of a Woodcock. The extraordinary conduct of the Cuckow in usurping the nest of some other bird, of much smaller size than itself, as the Yellow- hammer, the Wagtail, or the Hedgesparrow for instance, and depositing its egg in it, leaving it to be hatched, and the young nursed by the care of a stranger, has long excited the wonder of the philosophic world. It is observed that the Cuckow seldom lays more than one egg in the same nest, as if conscious that the space would not be sufficient for the young when hatched. On this subject may be found a highly curious and interesting paper in the 78th vol. of the Phil. Trans, by the celebrated Dr. Jenner, from which LECTURE v. 185 it appears that the young Cuckow, on the very first day of its exclusion from the egg, employs itself in throwing out all the young of the bird under which it has been hatched; remaining sole possessor of the nest, and engrossing all the care of the parent bird. Whether any of the nu- merous species of Exotic Cuckows pursue a plan so much differing from the general institution of Nature, seems as yet unknown. - But, of all the order Picas, none is so remark- able for beauty and singularity as the numerous genus Trochilus or Humming-Bird. This bril- liant and lively race is peculiar to America, and with few exceptions, to the hottest parts of South America. Their Wvacity, swiftness, and singular appearance unite in rendering the Humming- • Birds the admiration of mankind; while their colours are so brilliant, that it is not by com- paring them with the analogous hues of other birds that we are enabled to describe their ap- pearance, but by the more exalted brilliancy of polished metals and precious stones; the ruby, the topaz, the garnet, the Sapphire, the emerald, and polished gold being considered as the most proper objects of elucidation. It is not however I 36 LECTURE W. to be imagined that all the race of Humming- Birds are so decorated; some are even obscure in their -colours, and instead of the prevailing splendor of the major part of the genus, exhibit only a faint appearance of a golden-green tinge slightly diffused over the brown or purplish-brown colour of the back and wings: neither are all the species. yery small, for some few exist which mea- SUlre many inches in length, and may be con- sidered as the giants of this generally diminutive genus.” . . . . . The structure of the tongue in the Humming- Birds, which constitutes the chief part of the ge- neric character, cannot be sufficiently admired. It consists of a very long double tube, formed somewhat on the principle of the long trunk in some of the Moth and Butterfly tribe, except that instead of being rolled into a spiral form when contracted, it is merely withdrawn and doubled deep into the throat as in the Wood- peckers, and at the tip it is fringed on each side with a few horny hairs or processes. By means of this tongue the animal absorbs the sweet juice or nectar at the bottom of flowers, and always feeds on the wing, stretching out its |RED THIR (). ATEI) HIVIMIN (; BI||RI) zºo.7 ºzºz.,ozºon Zºº” Arººroº - Zºº.º. LECTURE V. 187 tongue in the manner of a large Moth, and dart- ing off with the most rapid motion on the least apprehension of danger. One of the most com- mon, as well as one of the most beautiful of all the Humming-birds is the Trochilus Colubris or red-throated Humming-bird, which is not confined to South America, but occurs also in most of the northern parts of that continent, and is even found as far north as Canada. Its colour above is green-gold, with purplish-brown wings, and tail, and beneath white, with the throat, to a considerable distance over the breast, of the most intense and vivid Crimson, changing, on the least alteration of posture, into the most brilliant gold- colour, and again in some particular lights, into a very dark or blackish cast. As before observed, it is found in most parts of North America, and whoever places, in summer-time, some of its fa- vourite flowers in the window, as the scarlet Mo- narda, the Balsamine, and some others, is sure of being visited by multitudes of this species of Humming-Bird. “ The most violent passions,” says an elegant writer, “ sometimes agitate their little breasts: they have often dreadful contests, when numbers happen to dispute the possession of iſ 88. LECTURE V. the same flower: they will tilt against each other with such fury as if they meant to transfix their antagonists with their long bills. During the fight they often pursue the conquered into the apart- ments of houses which happen to have the windows open, and, taking a few turns round the room, Pike the flies in Europe, again make their escape into the open air. They are almost fearless of mankind, and, in feeding, will suffer people to approach within two yards of them, but if ap- proached more nearly, fly off with the rapidity of lightening.” An author of high credit, Fer- mandez Oviedo, in his History of the Indies, speaks from his own experience of the wonderful cou- rage and spirited instinct of this minute bird in defence of its young. “When they see a man (says he) climbing a tree where they have their nest, they will fly at his face, and strike him in the eyes, coming, going, and returning, with such swiftness, that no man would lightly believe it that had not seen it.” The nest is of an elegance suited to the architect, being composed of small . fragments of mosses and lichens on the outside, and lined within with the down of the leaves of plants: it is somewhat like the nest of a Chaffinch º º TRO CHILITS MINIMIT S or- Zea.wa. Zºº” Zºz wºod ºccº, Zondon Auð//ha ºr 6 ſcarrºr Azer.ºrced. LECTURE W. 189 in miniature, its internal diameter being about an inch, and its depth about half an inch. The bird lays only two eggs, which are white, round, and of the size of small pease. It is a general rule of nature that the smallest birds lay the greatest number of eggs, but in the Humming- Bird this rule seems reversed. The smallest of all the Humming-Birds is the Trochilus Minimus of Linnaeus; but it is aot very splendid in colour, being of a dull gilded green above, with brown or purplish wings and tail, and white beneath; it measures only an inch and quarter in total length, from the tip of the bill to the end of the tail. It is a native of South-America, but is said likewise to be sometimes found in the island of Jamaica. One of the largest of all the Humming-birds is the Trochilus Pella or Topaz Humming-Bird, the body of which is of the size of a Wren, but as the two middle tail-feathers greatly exceed the rest in length, and as the bill is also of consider- able length, the total extent of the bird amounts to more than eight inches. The colour of the body is a deep brownish rose-red; of the back, wings, and tail purple; the head black, and the throat * 190 LECTURE V. and breast of the most vivid changeable polished- gold or topaz-colour, varying according to the light, into deep green. It is a native of Surinam. I should observe, that this very numerous genus is divided into two assortments, according to the shape of the bill, which is either strait or curved. The species just mentioned is one of the curve- billed kinds, but the two preceding ones belong to the strait-billed division. The Humming-birds have rarely been so coloured in the figures given in the works of naturalists, as to convey any very exact idea of their brilliant hues. An ingenious’ attempt has been lately made by a French artist, Audebert, to express by means of prepared gold itself, properly rubbed on the copper-plate used in the process, the metallic brilliancy of the birds; but though the work be highly elegant, yet it must be acknowledged that the experiment has not succeeded so completely as might be wished. The publication itself however is highly valuable, since it collects in one view more species and va- rieties than had ever been represented in any one work before. In this work also the peculiar struc- ture of the brilliant feathers of the Humming- bird is well explained, and it is justly observed LECTURE v. 191 that this is owing to the barbs or lateral plumes of the feathers being of a flattened form, of a some- what horny structure, and so disposed as to form on each feather very numerous rows of concave cylindric mirrors as it were, which very strongly reflect the light which falls upon them in different directions. There is one more particular to be noticed with respect to this curious genus, which is, that if we may rely on the observations of a French observer, who had frequent opportunities of examining their manner of -life in the West Indies, some of the larger Humming-birds have been known to swallow minute insects as well as the juices of flowers; fragments of such, accord- ing to Monsieur Badier, having been sometimes found in their stomachs. This however is con- tradicted by others who have never been able to perceive any remains of insects in the stomachs of these birds, but merely the chrystallized sac- charine matter or juice which had been extracted from flowers. One would almost be tempted to suppose that in those cases in which the remains of insects had been found, some species of Certhia or Creeper had been mistaken for a Humming-bird; the Certhiae f N I92. LECTURE V. * feeding on insects, and the smaller kinds being sº nearly allied in appearance to the Humming-birds that they seem to differ only in the structure of the tongue, which is not of a tubular form. 193 LECTURE WI. - THE Order Passeres of Linnaeus may be said to comprehend most of the smaller kind of land birds in general, together with some of a larger size than the rest. The natural characters of this order of birds are the following. The bill is form- ed so as to operate in the manner of a forceps; the limbs are rather weak than strong: their flight is quick, with a frequent repetition of the move- ment of the wings: they chiefly build in trees, or shrubs, and in general lay a moderate number of eggs, except some of the smaller species, which lay numerous ones. They excel in the art of nidi- fication or constructing their nests. Their food is either animal or vegetable; some live chiefly on insects, some on seeds, and some on both. The whole order is considered by Linnaeus as ana- logous to the Glires among Quadrupeds. The Pigeon tribe, forming the first Linnaean LECT, I. O J 94. LECTURE VI. genus in this order, under the title of Columba, is by some referred to a distinct order called, the Columbine. The generic characters of the Pigeon are a rather weak and slender.bill, swelled, at the base into a soft protuberance in which the nostrils are situated: the tongue is entire or undivided. The common Pigeon may stand as an example. To give a particular history of the Pigeon would be superfluous. In its wild state it is known by the name of the Stock-Dove, and inhabits the hollows of rocks and other similar situations. In its domestic or cultivated state it runs into a number of beautiful varieties, the culture of which forms a particular kind of business. . This ad- diction to the more rare and singular kind of Pigeons is not confined to modern times, but may be traced to the ancient Romans, who, ac- eording to the testimony of Pliny, were as far gone in the expensive varieties of tame* Pigeons * Among others the variety called the carrier Pigeon was highly esteemed both among the Greeks and Romans; it is the nature of this bird to retain a very strong and almost invincible --- attachment to the place of its early residence: being therefore carried elsewhere, it hardly ever fails to fly back again to its native spot. If therefore marked by any particular token, as a signal of LECTURE VI. f$95 as the moderns". The Pigeon is the C. Oenas of Linnaeus. It must not be confounded with the Wood-Pigeon, Ring-Dove; or the Columba Pa- lumbus of Linnaeus, which is of much larger size: in 'sofrie writers, “however, we find this latter bird improperly named the Stock-Dove. Thus Thom- son in particular so names it. ºr rº t . . . “The Stock-Dove only thro’ the forest cooes , Mournfully hoarse; oft ceasing from his plaint, Short intervatee weary woe; again The ad idea of his murderd mate struck ñom his ide by savage fowler's guile * ~ * Aeroishi, fancy comes; and then resounds A louder song of sorrow thro' the grove.” sº tº . . . . . . ~se intelligence; or if a letter be tied to its leg, it becomes the swiftest of all messengers. The tales related of this bird are almost in- credible. One has been known to fly from Bºylon to Aleppo, (which is considered as a distance of thirty days journey,) in the space of forty-eight hours.” * Linnaus observes that the domestic Pigeon commonly, or at least frequently, breeds once a month; laying two eggs each time: the increased production of the whole, would amount in the space of four years to the number of eighteen thousand. Others say that from a single pair of Pigeons may proceed four- teen thousand in the space of four years. 196 LECTURE VI. The species of Pigeons are excessively nu- merous, and many are remarkable for the splendor and beauty of their colours. Of the whole genus by far the most magnificent is the Columba co- romata of Linnaeus or great crowned Pigeon, a native of the East-Indian islands; in size not far inferior to a Turkey, and of a beautiful violet purple colour, with a very large, upright, com- pressed crest. The eyes are of the most vivid red, and the whole bird has an air of an unusual mag- nificence. The Pigeons are succeeded by the numerous tribe of Thrushes, forming the genus Turdus of Linnaeus. The species are so very numerous that those at present known may be supposed to amount to at least 160. The character of the genus consists in having a straitish beak, slightly bending towards the tip with a small notch on each side: the nostrils are oval and naked. The common Song-Thrush may stand as an example. It is brown above, whitish beneath, with reversed arrow-shaped spots on the breast and belly. The Fieldfare is another species, brown above, §§ $32 º N Nº. - N sº N. (; REAT' ('TROWNED PIGEON - zºody ºccº /onaon /a/.4% 24, ºſſºwſer º.ºecº. - .* - º 6/ º mintºniº #*º %%}， m MIO ("RING THIRT STI **** */4%/4, c/ºwwº zoº.” TſITRAMARINE AMPET. Is zºo.º. Zondon /////4¢ & Mºazzº Azcz.ſzºwcz. LECTURE WI. 197 with the head lead-coloured or blueish grey, the body white beneath. Of the exotic Thrushes none are more remark- able than the celebrated bird called the Mocking- Thrush, or mocking-bird of America, the T. Or- pheus and Polyglottus of Linnaeus. Of this bird an animated description may be found in Mr. Pennant's Arctic Zoology. The genus Ampelis or Chatterer, which is very nearly allied to that of Thrush, differs in having the nostrils concealed by small bristles growing over them. ** It is not a numerous genus, but is remarkable for the extreme splendor of its colour. The Am- pelis Cotinga for instance, or Ultramarine Ampelis, is of so intense and brilliant a blue as scarcely to be surpassed by any other natural object, not even by the blue exhibited on the wings of some of the larger exotic Butterflies. The Pompadour Ampelis is remarkable for its fine purple colour: both these species are natives of South America”. * In the large picture at present before us, may be seen both these beautiful species by the ingenious pencil of the Chevalier de Barde; they are taken from select specimens in the Leverian Museum. I 98 LECTURE VI. The only European species is the A. Garrulus, or Bohemian Chatterer of the older writers; it is a native of many parts of Europe, and is an occa- sional visitant in our own country. It is of a beautiful bright bay colour, with the larger wing and tail-feathers black, and is easily distinguished by the remarkable appearance of the secondary wing-feathers, which are each tipped with a small, flat, oval appendage, of a bright red colour and of a shining surface, like that of sealing-wax. The genus Loria or grossbeak, is remarkable for the thick or stout appearance of the bill in most species: it is a very numerous' genus, and may be exemplified by the Bullfinch, the Cross Bill and many others, and particularly by the bird called the Coccothraustes or Grossbill. The genus Emberiza is distinguished by hav- ing a moderately strong bill, with the gape or outline descending rather abruptly on each side the base, and the inside of the upper mandible is usually furnished with a hard or callous tubercle, serving for the convenient breaking of seeds and other vegetable substances on which these birds chiefly live. Like the genus Loxia, it contains a great number of species. º ("occo'THR AUSTE's oyº Gº O SSBILL zºo.º. ºczº. 2 ºzoa º ºr º/Zºº ſº. LECTURE WI. 199 The remaining genera of the Order Passeres, consist of the more Slender-billed small birds, or such as, from the structure of their beaks, are more calculated for feeding on the smaller and softer insects than on grain. Linnaeus ranges the major part of these birds under a vast genus called Motacilla or Warbler, the characters of which are a weak, slender bill, slightly notched at the tip: the tongue either divided or jagged at the tip, and the legs slender. These birds live principally on the smaller kind of insects and worms. Among the principal species is the Nightingale, which is the M. Luscinia of Linnaeus, a native of most parts of Europe and Asia, and of a migra- tory nature. In our own country it arrives, as is well known, about the beginning of April, and leaves us in the month of August, “To every person, (says the Count de Buffon,) whose ear is not totally insensible to melody, the name of the Nightingale must recal the charms of those soft evenings in spring, when the air is still and serene, and all nature seems to listen to the songster of the grove. Other birds, the larks, the canaries, the chaffinches, the petty-chaps, the linnets, the goldfinches, the blackbirds, the Ame- 200 LECTURE VI. rican mocking-birds, excel in the several parts which they perform: but the nightingale com- bines the whole, and joins sweetness of tone with variety and extent of execution. His notes assume each diversity of character, and receive every change of modulation; not a part is re- peated without variation; and the attention is kept perpetually awake, and charmed by the endless flexibility of strains. The leader of the vernal chorus begins the prelude with a low and timid voice, and he prepares for the hymn to ma- ture by essaying his powers and attuning his organs: by degrees the sound opens and swells; it bursts with loud and vivid flashes; it flows with smooth volubility; it faints and murmurs; it shakes with rapid and violent articulations: the soft breathings of love and joy are poured from his inmost soul, and every heart beats in unison, and melts with delicious languor. But this continual richness might satiate the ear. The strains are at times relieved by pauses, which bestow dig- nity and elevation. The mild silence of evening heightens the general effect, and not a rival in- terrupts the solemn scene.” I must not omit to observe, that, according to LECTURE VI. 201 the united testimonies of all modern naturalists, the admired, song, of the Nightingale is that of the male bird, who thus employs himself, as if to entertain and , soothe the female during her task of incubation; so that the celebrated lines of Virgil, however beautiful. in point of poetry, are in reality inaccurate in point of natural history. Qualis populea merens Philomela sub umbra Amissos queritur foetus, quos durus arator Observans, nido implumes detraxit; at illa Flet noctem, ramoque sedens, miserabile carmen Integrat, et moestis late loca questibus implet. So close in poplar shades, her children gone, The mother Nightingale laments alone: whose nest some prying churl had found, and thence, By stealth, convey'd th' unfeatherd innocence. But she supplies the night with mournful strains, And melanchely music fills the plains. Among the very numerous species of the genus Motacilla, every one must be acquainted with the common Water-Wagtail, or M. Alba of Linnaeus; but so very marked and peculiar is the appearance of this bird and a few others mearly allied to it, that Dr. Latham in his excellent Ornithology, has instituted for these birds a separate genus to 2O2 LECTURE VI. which he confines the title of Motacilla or Wag- tail, while all the rest of the Linnaean Motacilla are referred to a genus called Sylvia or Warbler. Among the smallest and most curious birds of the genus Motacilla, may be numbered the Indian species called the M. Sutoria or small Taylor-bird. It is so named from its singular practice in build- ing its nest, which consists of one or two leaves proper for the purpose, dexterously sewed toge- ther by the bird, which makes use for this purpose of any kind of fine vegetable filament that it can most easily procure. If the nest be prepared from one leaf only, the two edges are sewn toge- ther, so as to form a kind of pouch: if of two leaves, the edges of both are connected in a similar manner. The figure at present exhibited is copied from Mr. Pennant's Indian Zoology; and the original was a drawing in the possession of Governor Loten. The hollow of the leaves is filled up with cotton or feathers. The colour of the bird is yellow. Among the European birds the genus Parus or Titmouse is distinguished for the remarkable neatness of the nest in some species; more parti- cularly the elegant little species called the long- ae ſae |× |× （ ） （ ， |（%ſ，% |（ ， ， |× |× |× --~~~ --> 3. \\ } } |×|× |× ： （） №. №. № \\ ： §. （~~~~ №.· .§.· №. ſaeſ （~~~~ SMALL TAYLOR-13 IRI) - r/e, ºr Jºe - Mºzzº 7 ºr º º zºo.º. ºozº. 2 ozoa º IECTURE WI. 203 tailed Titmouse, which builds a deep oval nest with a lateral opening. Others build pendent nests as the Polish T. or P. pendulinus. Among the soft-billed Passeres or small-birds the genus Hirundo or. Swallow is remarkable for many particularities. The characters of the genus consist in a small short bill, with a broadish base; a wide mouth or gape; a short, divided tongue; long wings, and short legs. jº. The common Swallow, or Hirundo rustica, is a migratory bird, varying its residence according to the season, on account, chiefly, of the insect tribes on which it feeds. If kept in a sufficiently warm apartment, and supplied with insect food, the common Swallow may be kept throughout the winter, without exhibiting any symptoms of an inclination to torpidity. It is well known that it has been by many supposed to remain torpid, or rather concealed in close caverns and other retired situations during the winter season; and this really appears to have been sometimes the case with the later broods; instances having been known of Swallows suddenly appearing on the tops of sunny buildings and rocks in the middle of winter. Among the most extravagant theories, 204 LECTURE WI. was that of the supposed submersion of the Swal- low tribe under water during the winter; but I forbear to dwell any longer on a topic so often discussed, and shall recommend to those who may wish to pursue the arguments on all sides, relative to the dormancy of Swallows, to the pages of Pennant, Buffon, Klein, Willughby, and especially to those of the Gentleman's Magazine, where they may find an ample harvest of observations on the subject. One curious circumstance should not be omitted in the history of the Swallow, which is, that the same pair have been known to return to the self. same spot in which they bred the year before: this has been observed for at least three years successively, and has been ascertained by mark- ing the birds, before their disposition to migration, by a circle of red or other coloured silk fastened round their legs. Allied to the Swallow genus is that of Capri- mulgus or Goatsucker, a genus of birds, differing, as Linnaeus observes, in the same degree from the Swallows that Moths do from Butterflies; for in reality the Goatsuckers may almost be considered as a kind of nocturnal Swallows. The bill is very LECTURE VI. 205 small in most species, but broad at the base, the gape or swallow excessively wide; the edges of the jaws beset with strong bristles, the wings long, and the tail even, or not forked. They are, in general, birds of moderate size, and are remark- able for their curiously variegated or speckled plumage, without any brilliancy of colour. The common European Goatsucker, the only species known in Europe, is a migratory bird, appearing in England during the summer months, and feed- ing, like the rest of this genus, on the larger kind of Moths, Beetles, and other insects”. The largest of the genus is the Caprimulgus Grandis or Great South American Goatsucker, in size scarce inferior to a Buzzard, and with a mouth so wide as to measure three inches in the gape, or from the tip of the bill to the angle of the mouth. Its plumage is a dull cream colour with very nu- merous brown freckles or variegations. But the most curious or singular of all the Goatsuckers is an African species discovered not many years ago in Sierra Leona, and which is somewhat smaller than the common European Goatsucker. It is * It flies by night, and is sometimes called the Fern-Owl, or Churn-owl. 4-w 206 f LECTURE WI; remarkable for having two excessively long naked shafts, springing from the upper::part of the shoulders, in the middle of the smaller Govertº feathers: these naked shafts far exceed the length of the whole bird, and are dilated at the tip into a very large oval web or plumed part. This spe- cies, which in colour pretty nearly resembles the European species, is known by the name of the Caprimulgus longipennis or long shafted Goat- sucker, and may be considered as one of the most remarkable of the whole feathered tribe. The Order Gallinae, to which we shall now turn our attention, contains the Gallinaceous birds, meaning such as are allied in habit or general ap- pearance, as well as in their mode of life, to the common domestic fowl. This order comprises the Cock or Pheasant tribe, the Turkey, the Par: tridges and Quails, and several other birds of a similar nature. The birds of this tribe have, in general, heavy bodies, short wings, very convex, strong, and rather short bills, the upper mandible closing or shutting over the edges of the lower: they have strong legs, and the toes are usually connected at the base by a strong membrane, reaching as far as the first joint, and they are fur- LECTURE VI. 201 nished with rather broad claws, formed for scratch- ing up the ground in search of food, and other purposes: these birds have also in general more than twelve feathers in the tail, in which par- ticular they resemble the web-footed birds. The Gallinaceous birds feed chiefly on grains and seeds, and sometimes on insects: they build a nest of a eareless, structure, and in general lay numerous eggs. This tribe of birds is considered by Lin- naeus as analogous to the tribe of Pecora or Ru- minants among Quadrupeds. It is remarkable that, according to the old Mosaic Law, these birds alone, were considered as pure, or proper for human food. e. " Of the common domestic fowl, of which the history and manners are too well known to require particular , illustration, we need only observe that it, is of East Indian extraction, and still occurs in its natural or wild state in some of the East Indian islands. In this state it is generally of a dark or blackish grey colour, barred and streaked with white variegations, and the narrow feathers of the neck have the shafts or middles dilated into a kind of horny tip. In its domestic state it is well known to run into very numerous 208 LECTURE VI. varieties, of which the most remarkable is that called the Silk Fowl, S. lanatus Lin) in which the whole body is covered with feathers so loosely webbed as rather to represent hair than plumes. . This variety is most common in some parts of China and Japan. Another very remarkable va- riety of the common fowl is called the Negro Fowl, in which not only the whole plumage, but the comb, wattles, skin, and even the flesh itself are entirely black. This variety is said to be chiefly found in some of the lower parts of Africa. The genus or particular set in which the fowl is placed is entitled Phasianus, and comprehends not only the fowl but all the Pheasants. Its cha- racters are that the cheeks or sides of the head. are bare, or covered by a naked skin : that the bill is short and strong, and that the legs, in most species, are armed with spurs. The common Pheasant or Phasianus Colchicus of Linnaeus, takes its title from the regions of the ancient Colchos, where it was formerly found, and from whence it. was first brought into different parts of Europe. Of late years some other highly beautiful birds of this genus have been rendered 3. § 6'5" º º -- " . º ARGUS PELEASANT º, Zoº, /º///ºr 6.4% wº ºr, ſº ca. LECTURE VI. 209 common in our own country in a domestic state, as the Gold Pheasant of China or P. pictus of Linnaeus, of which if we had seen the figure only, and not the bird itself, we might have rather ima- gined it to have been a mere pictorial animal, than a real or genuine species, so peculiarly vivid and varied is its elegant plumage. The Argus Pheasant, so remarkable for its size and beauty, though unaccompanied by any brilliancy of colour, is a native of Sumatra, and has for many years been considered as consti- tuting one of the chief ornaments of the Eu- ropean Museums. There exists in China some very large species of Pheasant as yet undescribed, and known to us only from the long tail-feathers, which are some- times brought over, and which are of such a length as to exceed six feet: their colour is grey, with very numerous brown bars. This may perhaps be the bird mentioned by Marco Polo, who says that in the neighbourhood of the city of Sirigas in Carthage are large Phea- sants, with tails measuring from seven to ten spans in length. *. # +jº LPCT, I., , , ,-, - P * < *..., t a. *-*. { 2} 0 LECTURE WI. The P. ignitus or Fire-backed Pheasant, de- scribed in Sir George Staunton's Account of the Embassy to China, is a species, which till that period had either never been described, or so im- properly and indistinctly as to convey no just idea. of the bird. I confess however that I have some suspicion of its being very nearly allied to the Guan of Edwards's Ornithology. If so, it has been referred by Linnaeus and others to a wrong genus; and considered as a species of Turkey. 4. The Turkey, so long domesticated in this country as well as in most other parts of Europe, is a native of North America, and by no means of India, as sometimes imagined. The genus to which the Turkey belongs is called Meleagris, and is distinguished by a short, thick bill, and the head and throat covered by spongy tuberculated, bare, reddish, or other coloured membrane. The Turkey in its native regions of North America is commonly of a black colour, accompanied by a coppery and greenish gloss. It is seen in nu- merous flocks, and is principally found in woods. A very fine specimen of the Wild American Tur- key may be seen in the Leverian Museum, The EECTURE VI. .# 211 Tuſkey is commonly said to have been intro- duced into England, or cultivated in a domestic státe, in the reign of King Henry the Eighth. A very numerous genus called Tetrao or Par- #ridge succeeds. It contains a vast variety of species, of which by far the major part are inha- bitants of Africa and America. In our own country the two prevailing species are the Com- mon Partridge and the Common Gºuail. The former of these is so well known that ‘it would appear a mere loss of time to particularize its description. The latter Ör the Quail is less com- món; and is a migratory species, varying its quarters according to the season. The Quail, says an excellent ornithologist, seems to spread en- tirely through the old world, but does not inhabit the new : it is 'seen from the Cape of Good Hope even to Iceland; and throughout Russia, Tartary, and China; and is mentioned by so many tra- vellers and in so many places, that we may almost call it a universal inhabitant of the old continent. In spring it migrates northward, and in autumn southward; and this in large flights, like most other migrating birds. Twice in a year such vast flights come into the island of Capri (in the 212 LECTURE VI. Archipelago) that the bishop of the island draws his chief revenue from them, and has thence been sometimes called the Bishop of Quails. Almost all the islands in the Archipelago, and on the op- posite coasts, are also at particular times covered with these birds. On the western coast also of the kingdom of Naples, within a space of about four or five miles, have been taken no less than eight hundred thousand in a day. Great clouds of Quails are also occasionally seen to alight in spring on some of the French coasts, according to the testimony of the Count de Buffon. All these observations may therefore tend to con- firm the account in the sacred writings of the Quail having been the bird sent, heaven-directed, in such countless flights, among the Israelites during their abode in the wilderness. The Quail is the Tetrao Coturnir of Lin- naeus, and is distinguished as a species by its pale chesnut-brown colour, with a whitish stripe down each feather, and by a whitish stripe over each eye. ~. In China is a species much allied to it but of a smaller size, and with a black crescent be- neath the throat. This is the species trained by º zºº’e” Zone/o/, /a/.4%/4, & Mºrº Zºº. LECTURE VI. 213 the Chinese for fighting, in the manner of Cocks in Europe. The Francolin is a beautiful species, about the size of the common Partridge or rather larger, and elegantly variegated with different colours : it is a native of the Grecian Islands, and is the F. Francolinus of Linnaeus. Among the Gallinaceous tribe we must by no means omit that most singular bird the Dodo, a very large and thick-bodied bird, formerly seen in the island of Bourbon in the Indian seas, as well as in some parts of Africa, but which for nearly two centuries appears to have eluded all the diligence of naturalists to detect. The only authentic original figure of the Dodo is a paint- ing preserved in the British Museum, which is said to have been executed from the living bird, brought into Holland by the Dutch some time after the discovery of the Indies by the way of the Cape of Good Hope. The bird appears to be considerably larger than a Turkey, with very short wings, useless for flight, and with a large head, an extremely large thick bill, and very short, thick legs. A skin of a Dodo was preserved in the Museum of the famous John 214 LECTURE WI. Tradescant, at Lambeth, and was seen by ottf famous Ray, who mentions it in his Synepsis of Birds; but this skin appears to hawe been after- wards suffered to decay; the beak, alone, with one of the legs, and, that, in a state of consi- derable decay, being now preserved in ther Ash- molean Museum at Oxford, which is well known to contain the old collection of Tradescant. The Leg-of a Dodo was also preserved in the Mu- seum of the Royal Society, and is well-deseribed by Grew in his description of that collection: it is at present in the British Museum, and, (fortunately for ascertaining the reak existence of so extraordinary a bird,) is in a good state of preservation; amply confirming the description given by Dr. Grew, and at once demonstrating to the eye of every ornithologist that it cannot belong to any other known bird. This leg, from the British Museum, with the beak from the Oxford Museum may be found amply de- scribed and figured in the Naturalists' Miscellany, where I have taken some pains to evince the existence of the animal, which has been some- times considered as doubtful. The bird itself however is either grown so rare as to be no * LECTURE VI. 215 longer easily discoverable in the regions where it was formerly found, or else, like some other animals, must have become extinct, from some causes of destruction with which we are un- acquainted. It would be unnecessary to observe that the generic characters of the Dodo, (which is the IXidus ineptus of Linnaeus,) are taken from the figures published by Edwards and others, and which have been copied from the painting in the British Museum. The colour of the Dodo is a variegation of black and white, as may be seen in the coloured engraving of Edwards. The figure of the Beak from the Oxford Museum, and of the Leg from the British Museum will give a sufficiently clear idea of the characters of the genus. The bill is strongly wrinkled or indented in the middle ; and the legs are thicker in proportion to their length than in any other bird. But the Pride of the order Gallinae, and indeed of the whole feathered race, is the genus * Pavo or Peacock; in the chief species of which, or Pavo cristatus, Nature seems to have exhausted all her powers of splendor combined with eke- 216 LECTURE VI. gance. The Peacock is a native of India, and when the conquering Alexander led his deso- lating Myriads into the peaceful plains of India, he is said to have been so struck by the sight of the Peacock in its native regions, and in the full magnificence of its plumage, as to have for- bidden any one to destroy a Peacock under pain of death. It may not be improper to observe, on the subject of the Peacock, that the beau- tiful set of feathers springing from the lower part of the back, and usually called the tail, do not constitute the real tail, which is situated be- neath them, and is short like that of a hen, and serves as a support to the long and beautiful feathers constituting the admired train, which, together with the upright and slightly revolute feathers on the head, constitute the characters of the genus Pavo. There are two remarkable genera of birds, which are placed by ornithologists in different Orders; some referring them to the present Order Gallina, while others rather choose to rank them among the, Gralla. These are the genera called Struthio and Otis or Ostrich and Bustard. In reality the birds which rank under A. LECTURE WI. 21 */ these two genera seem to be of an ambiguous cast, and may with almost equal propriety be placed in either order. The genus Struthio or Ostrich is eminently conspicuous among birds; containing by far the largest of the feathered tribe. The generic characters consist in a some- what conical, and slightly flattened bill; wings useless for flight, and feet formed for running, being destitute of the hind or back toe. The Common Ostrich, of which at least the general appearance and common history must be known to almost every one, is a native of the hottest parts of Africa; the body of the male is black, of the female brown; the wings and tail in both are white; the neck nearly bare, and of a flesh colour: the legs excessively strong, and the feet have only two toes, a particularity not to be found in any other bird.’ The Ostrich is supposed to feed principally on vegetable substances: it has been accused, from the earliest times, of a proverbial neglect of its eggs, which it is supposed to leave in the sand without paying any regard to their se- curity. Dr. Sparrman however is inclined to 218 LECTURE VI. believe that the male and female Ostrich sit by turns on the eggs, which are generally from ten or twelve to twenty in number; (not fifty, as mistakenly stated by Linnaeus in the Systema Naturae.) Other travellers of high reputation assure us, that the male Ostrich, accompanied by three, four, or five females, makes a kind of nest or cavity, in which all the females deposit their re- spective eggs, which they all likewise sit on, the male occasionally relieving them by exercising that office himself. The American or three-toed Ostrich was of course unknown till the discovery of that Con- tinent. It is a native of South America, and perhaps the only specimen known in Europe is that in the Leverian Museum; but it has rather the appearance of a half-grown bird than one of its full growth. The colour of the American Ostrich is brown, with whitish wing and tail feathers, and the feet have three toes. **r- In the same genus with the Ostrich is by Linnaeus placed the Cassowary, or Emu, under the title of Struthio Casuarius; but of late it has 7/ SILLWAI’IW £) SILIĞIN DESV,) SITIV （LIL SJÄLV § Ill №llº ſlºº,) LECTURE WH. 219 been rather considered as belonging to a distinct genus, under the name of Casuarius, and is called Casuarius Galeatus. The Cassowary is a native of the East Indian islands, and was first brought into Europe by the Dutch, towards the close of the sixteenth century. It is of a coal-black colour, and is remarkable for the total want of wings, having only, in place of them, five or six strong, naked, horny spines or quills on each side: on the head is a very strong and some- what flattened rising crest or helmet, down each side the neck run a pair of long spongy wattles of an irregular surface and of a mixed red and violet-colour. The feathers of this bird are re- markably long and narrow, so as to give the bird at first sight the appearance of being co- vered rather with hair than feathers: each fea- ther is also double, two springing from one shaft or base: the legs are extremely strong, and the feet have three toes, all pointing for- wards. Among the best representations of the Cassowary are those of Roberts in the seventeenth century, of Mr. Millar in his Miscellaneous Plates of Natural History, and Barraband in some plates lately published at Paris. 220 LECTURE VI. In New Holland is a species of Cassowary of rather superior size to the Indian Casso- wary, of a brown colour, destitute of a horny crest, and in its whole appearance bearing a nearer resemblance to the Ostrich. It has been described under the name of Casuarius Australis. The genus Otis or Bustard is characterized by a slightly convex and rather pointed bill, very open nostrils, sharp divided tongue, and long legs, naked above the knee, with feet formed for running, having three toes, all directed forwards. The chief Species is a European Bird, and is occasionally seen in our own country; some- times in small flocks or groups, and sometimes singly. It chiefly frequents large open plains, is a very large bird, with long neck and legs, and of a yellowish brown colour, elegantly varied with numerous blackish transverse streaks and bars. The male bird has a membranaceous sack or pouch within the neck, for the purpose of holding water; this pouch is capable of containing several pints, but it is remarkable that the female bird is des- titute of a similar apparatus. The general food of the bustard is supposed to be of a vegetable nature, but it also feeds on worms and insects, 72 W . Wºº. W º \, º º º º º º º º º - - º--~~~ - =>T. * rºute |E IT'S TARD) zºod ºccº Zondon Zºº & 6 Acarºſe, ºr ºccº - - LECTURE VI. 221 and, according to some late observations, on rats' and field-mice. A very extraordinary cir- cumstance has been lately related of this bird; viz. that it has been known to descend suddenly from its flight, and from some unknown caprice, to attack a horse and its rider with great vio- lence, and with such blind fury as to suffer itself to be seized by the traveller, rather than at- tempt an escape. Two instances of this are recorded in the Gentleman's Magazine of the date of about two years past. The two remaining Orders of Birds are the Gralla, and Anseres, or the PWaders and the Web-footed Birds. The former of these tribes is termed Gralla on account of the general length of the legs in these birds, which in some genera is such as to give the appearance of the birds walking as it were on stilts, the Latin word Grallae signifying a pair of stilts. The birds contained in this tribe are all the Herons, Cranes, Storks, and Bitterns ; all the Snipe and Plover-kind. The Ibises, the Coots and Rails, and several other birds, some of very large size, and some rather small. I must also here ob- serve, that systematical ornithologists differ in 22.2 LECTURE WI. opinion as to the arrangement of some of 'the genera in the Order Grallae, some of which tap- pear of a dubious cast, and may with altritſst equal propriety be referred either to the Graſſla or Gallinae; while others seem to hang in equal suspence between the Grallie and the Anseres or Web-footed Birds. In both these tribes I shall, as tisual, parti- cularize only some of the most important généra. We shall commence with the Order (Grälläe. The Order Gralla is considered by Linnaeus as analogous to the Order Bruta among Qua- drupeds. The bill in these birds is generally father long than short: the legs fengthened, and the thighs often bare of feather's above the knee. Their chief residence is in watery situations, and their food consists of various kinds of aquàtic animals, though some feed also on vegetable sub- stances. Their nests are often on the ground, sometimes in tall trees. It is observed that few of the birds of this order lay more than four eggs, and some genera only two. Perhaps the most remarkable genus among the Gralle or f/aders is that of Mycteria or Jabiru. It is distinguished by having a very +.) - - - - - - **, cº LECTURE VI. 223 large, pointed beak, which instead of descending, as in the generality of birds, turns slightly up- wards: the front or face is bare of feathers, and the legs are of great length, with feet of the usual or general structure; that is having three toes forwards and one backwards. The only species of this genus mentioned by Linnaeus is the Mycteria Americana or Common Jabiru, a very large bird, a native of South-America, of a white colour, with the bill, long wing- feathers and tail black, and the neck bare, of a black colour, encircled at the bottom by a broad red zone or collar; but of late years two other species have been added to this genus, one of which is the bird now before us; it is called the M. Senegalensis or Senegal Jabiru, and differs from the American or Common Jabiru in having a pale or whitish beak, with a red base, and crossed near the middle by a broad black bar. Of this species a more particular description may be found in the fifth volume of the Transactions of the Linnaean Society. New Holland has also afforded another species, smaller than the former, and distinguished by having the 224, LECTURE WI. neck covered with feathers, and of a deep change- able greenish-black colour. A fine specimen may be seen in the Leverian Museum, now (unfor- tunately for the study of natural history,) con- demned to dispersion. The birds of this genus are supposed to live in the manner of Herons, to which their whole habit bears a near resemblance. The Herons, which belong to a genus called Ardea, are by far the most numerous of all the tribe of wading-birds or Grallae, and are distin- guished by a rather large and long, strait sharp- pointed bill, generally marked on each side by a longitudinal furrow. Their legs are very long, and the feet of the usual or general structure, except that, in some species, the claw of the middle toe is deeply serrated or toothed on its inner edge, in order the better to enable such species to hold their prey, which often consists of fish, frogs, and other water-animals. The common Heron must be known to every one, and is a very frequent inhabitant of the country. The Crane, now so rarely seen, and that only as an accidental visitant, was once a constant inhabitant. It is a migratory species, and, unlike most of the genus, LECTURE VI, 225 feeds, at least principally, on grain of different kinds*. The largest bird of the Heron tribe is the East Indian species called the Hargil, or Giant-Crane, or Giant-Heron; chiefly seen in Bengal. It is of a blackish colour, with a naked yellowish neck, an extremely large beak, and a long, pendent craw or crop. On opening one of these birds, says an eminent traveller, was found a land-tortoise ten inches long in its craw, and a large black cat in its stomach. It is said to be easily tamed, and rendered domestic; in which state it has been permitted to fly about at plea- sure in the neighbourhood, when it has been ob- served to sit on the tallest trees, and at the dis- tance of two or three miles could spy the dinner carrying along the court-yard; and would then dart from its station, and soon join the company, and has been known to snatch up a whole fowl from the dish, and swallow it in an instant: the traveller adds, that the bone of a shin of beef, being broken asunder, served it but for two mouth- * The Indian Crane or Ardea Antigone of Linnaeus, is nearly allied in general appearance to the Crane, but differs in having a red bare collar round the neck; it is well figured in the works of Edwards. * '. LECT, I. Q 226 LECTURE WI. fuls. A young bird of this species is preserved in the British Museum. Many highly elegant birds belong to the genus Ardea, among which may be particularized the Egret or Ardea Garzetta, a beautiful white spe- cies, remarkable for affording, like some other birds of this tribe, a peculiarly elegant kind of long and delicate feathers, appropriated by he- raldic rules to the decoration of eertain orders of knighthood and other ceremonials. The Stork is a large species of Heron, of a white colour, with the longer wing-feathers black, and the legs and beak of a bright red. The Bitterms are a kind of Herons which differ from the rest in the thicker or shorter appearance of their bodies, and in the fulness of the feathers on the breast. The common Bittern, which is the Ardea stellaris of Linnaeus, is a very elegant bird, of a pale yellowish brown, beautifully varied with darker streaks and specks: it is found in marshy situations, and is remarkable for uttering, during some particular states of the weather, a peculiarly loud and sudden noise, the nature of which has given rise to many disputes among naturalists, and is thus explained. by Sir Thomas Browne. “That a Bittor maketh that mugient noise, or · ：№. §¶√∞ , ，|} | '''T''}}, {{N. |-ſºſ| -… ſae ae & 'T√≠ 1， \， zºow ºczºw zo， º，4，6:42， º， ，，，^. LECTURE VI. 227 as we term it, bumping, by putting its bill into a reed, as most believe, or as Bellonius and Aldro- vandus conceive, by putting the same in water or mud, and after a while retaining the air by Sud- denly excluding it again, is not so easily made out. For my own part, though after diligent enquiry, I could never behold them in this motion; notwithstanding by others whose observations we have expressly requested, we are informed, that some have beheld them making this noise on the shore, their bills being far enough removed from reed or water; that is, first strongly attracting the air, and unto a manifest distention of the neck, and presently after with great contention and vio- Hence excluding the same again. As for what others affirm of putting their bill in water or mud, it is also hard to make out. For what may be observed from any that walketh the fens, there is little intermission, nor any observable pause, be- tween the drawing in and sending forth of their breath. And the expiration or breathing forth doth not only produce a noise, but the inspiration or hailing in of the air, affordeth a Sound that may be heard almost a flight shot. Now the reason of this strange and peculiar 228 LECTURE VI. noise, is deduced from the conformation of the wind-pipe, which in this bird is different from other volatiles. For at the upper extream it hath no fit larynx or throttle to qualify the sound, and at . the other end, by two branches deriveth itself into the lungs. Which division consisteth only of semicircular fibres, and such as attain but half way round the part: by which formation they are dilatable into larger capacities, and are able to contain a fuller proportion of air; which being with violence sent up the weazon, and finding no resistance by the larynx, it issueth forth in a sound like that from caverns, and such as some- times subterraneous eruptions from hollow rocks afford. As Aristotle observeth in a problem; and is observable in pitchers, bottles, and that instru- ment which Aponensis upon that problem de- scribeth, wherewith in Aristotle's time gardiners affrighted birds. º Whether the large perforations of the extre- mities of the weazon, in the abdomen, admitting large quantity of air within the cavity of its mem- branes, as it doth in Frogs, may not much assist this mugiency or boation, may also be considered, For such as have beheld them making this noise t 7.5 S ('AIR LIE T || BI's &r & Mearwºº A/ecº ſºrce. - %a. 4. zºo.7 ("cº.z. Zondon /ºu/ LECTURE VI. 229 out of the water, observe a large distention in their bodies; and their ordinary note is but like that of a raven.” The Hudson's Bay Bittern or American Bittern, elegantly figured in the works of Edwards, is very nearly allied to the English Bittern, but of rather smaller size. The Ardea minuta, or Smallest Bittern, is not much larger than a Thrush, and has been sometimes found in England. The genus of birds called Tantalus' claims our attention, from its having been supposed to con- tain the celebrated bird called the Ibis, so much esteemed by the ancient Egyptians, for its useful Quality in destroying various troublesome reptiles and other animals. The Linnaean genus Tantalus is distinguished by having a long, curved bill, not sharpened, but rather slightly rounded at the tip; and the front or fore-part of the face is covered by a baſeskin, One of the handsomest species is the T. Ruber or scarlet Ibis, a native of South- America, and entirely of a most brilliant scarlet colour, except the tips of the wings, which are black: its size is that of a common fowl. The Egyptian Ibis has generally been sup- 230 LECTURE VI. posed to be the T. Ibis of Linnaeus, a large spe- cies, of a white colour, with the tips of the wings black, and the beak yellow. From the exami- nation, however, of such specimens of embalmed Ibises as have lately been brought over from Egypt, Monsieur Cuvier is of opinion that the Egyptian Ibis is not the T. Ibis of Linnaeus, but either the same with, or very nearly allied to, the bird described and figured by Mr. Bruce, under the title of Abbou Hammes. It is about the size of a Curlew, and is of a white colour, with the tips of the wings and the scapular-feathers black, the base of the beak greenish, and the head slightly tinged with brown. The bird however embalmed by the ancient Egyptians, and examined by Cuvier and others, has the head and neck naked or bare of feathers, and of a blackish colour, a particular which I do not recollect that Mr. Pace has men- tioned in his desaription; nor does it appear in the figure annexed to the description, in which both the head and neck appear plumed; so that it is not quite clear that Mr. Bruce's bird is really the Ibis of the ancient Egyptians, or that it is the same with the Ibis of Monsieur Cuvier. It is () ºr LINE of an IBIs //o/, an Aº (7/c/a/. |- ſºlº allº III: Is zºo.º.º. Zoºdoº, ºr ºr ºver LECTURE VI. 23} most probable that the Egyptians held several different species of this genus in nearly equal veneration. º Herodotus tells us he was assured that the Egyptians were annually invaded by 'swarms of small flying serpents, which were attacked, con- quered, and killed by the Ibis, which on this account was revered by the Egyptians. He adds that he had been shewn heaps of the bones of these serpents near the confines of the de- serts. As to the winged serpents, we well know that no such animals are now discoverable; and it is not very probable that any such have ever existed. The animal called the Dragon indeed, or the Flying-Lizard might be adduced as in some degree justifying such an idea; but the Dragon is a harmless animal, whereas the Flying-Serpents mentioned by Herodotus are sup- posed to have been highly poisonous. An in- genious French author, Monsieur Savigny, so far from supposing any natural antipathy to exist be- between the Ibis and the serpent tribe, imagines that neither the Egyptian Ibis nor any other of the genus feed on such reptiles, being by no means calculated for such a kind of food, but that the 232 LECTURE VI. * whole is nothing more than a metaphorical illus- tration of the effects of the hot south-winds and clouds of sand, which at a particular period, viz. during the spring, invade, or as it were threaten the borders of Egypt, at which time all man- ner of contagious diseases prevail, and of the salubrious effects of the cooling north-winds, which blow after the inundation of the Nile, at which time the Ibis makes its appearance, and may therefore be said to have conquered the winged Serpents; i.e. the hot winds, with all their accompanying evils. The Cerastes or horned Serpent, which is an inhabitant of the hot sandy deserts, was therefore very naturally made an em- blem of the malignity of these winds, with their accompanying sands and diseases; while the Ibis, which so constantly accompanied the effects of the cooling north-winds and the recovered ver- dure of the country, became a kind of emblem of salubrity, and of the conquest over the winged Serpents. sº The Egyptians, according to this author, instead of saying in common language, The sands, in which the Cerastes resides, are blown into the air and arrive among us with their train of evils; - -----：|×zrae，:：ºſºzº ：ſae^^.^ ！！！ - --- --- º º º-º-º: º sº s º º * -ºs. - º º --- º: º º: LECTURE VI. 233 may perhaps overwhelm our cultivated lands and cause our destruction; and venomous Serpents may then possess our abodes as they now do their na- tive deserts; instead of speaking thus, they would say in metaphor, The Flying-Serpents will destroy Egypt. In the same manner, when, by the effect of the north-winds the country was purified, and the Ibis, the harbinger of fertility, re-appeared, they would say, The Ibises have conquered the Serpents. Lastly, the sands, accumulated on the confines of the desert, arrested by vegetation in those places where the openings between the hills afforded them a passage, might well be denominated the heaps of bones, which declared the victory of the Ibis, and justified the veneration paid to the bird. The genus Numenius or Curlew is so closely allied to that of Ibis, that it only differs in not having a naked front. The common Curlew is a native of our own island, and is often seen on our coasts. Its colour is pale-brown, varied with deeper brown, and the lower parts are white. The genus is not very numerous, but some of the exotic species are birds of considerable elegance; one in particular which sometimes strays into this country, and is of a brilliant coppery-brown colour, 234 LECTURE VI. with greenish, iridescent variegations, according to the direction of the light. It is naturally an inhabitant of Russia, Siberia, and other distant regions, and is the Numenius igneus of modern ornithologists. - Another exotic species much allied to this, and which though a native of South-America, has been seen on the British. coasts, is the N. Guarauna, which is by Linneusreferred to his genus Scolopax. I must also here observe that the supposed Egyp- tian Ibis or the Abbow Hannes of Bruce, may be considered as a Numenius rather than a Linnaean Tantalus. Among the most singular genera of the Grallac or Waders, is a genus called Parra. It is distin- guished by a slightly obtuse beak of moderate length, by a rising scolloped flap or naked skin above the base of the bill in front, by a spine or sharp horny process on each shoulder, and lastly by the immoderate length of the toes and claws, which in some species nearly equal half the length of the body. The Parra variabilis or variable Parra, called the J acana, is well figured in the works of Edwards, and is of a chesnut colour above, white beneath, with green wings. It is a * TIRITTIMI PIETET， VARIABILME „JACAÑA ~º： º ºczºz Zozza，/^^， ^，z:Zºz， ez „ſzºceae. LECTURE VI. 235 native of South-America, and is represented in Edwards's plate in its natural size. But the most ‘remarkable bird of the genus is called the faithful Parra or faithful Jacana; it is the Parra Chavaria of Linnaeus, and is of the size of a common do- mestic fowl. It is chiefly of a blackish brown colour, deeper beneath, and stands high on its legs; the toes and claws being of such a length as sometimes to entangle one another in walking. This bird is easily tamed and rendered domestic, in which state it is made the guardian of all the other kind of poultry, which are committed to its care in the same manner as a flock of sheep are to that of their attending dog. During the day- time it defends them from all birds of prey, being able, by means of the spurs on its shoulders, to drive off even Vultures themselves. It is said never to desert the charge committed to its care, going out with them to proper situations by day, and very regularly bringing them all safe home at night. Of a similar disposition and manners is an- other South American bird belonging to the order Grallae, but of a different genus, called Psophia or Trumpeter from the peculiarity of its notes, 236 LECTURE VI. The genus Psophia has a shortish, pointed bill, long legs, and feet of the usual structure. The principal species is called the Golden-breasted Trumpeter, and is a rather large and tall bird, of the size of a domestic fowl, with a long meck, and of a grey colour above, black beneath; the breast of a changeable golden-green with a blackish cast. This bird is also tamed by the South Americans, and made use of as a guard to their poultry in the same manner as the Parra Chacaria before described, but seems to be some- what inferior to that bird in its character and qua- lities. The Trumpeter is by some ornithologists rather referred to the Linnaean order Gallinae than that of the Grallae. Indeed it seems to partake of the nature of both these orders. The genus Platalea or Spoonbill is too remark- able to be passed over in silence. Its character is a long flattened bill, dilated at the tip into a broad and slightly rounded expanse. The common or European Spoonbill, which was once a native of our own island, but which has long since ceased to appear among us except as a mere accidental straggler, is about the size of a Stork, and of a white colour, with the bill and legs blackish or Z% --- - - ->=>33 - -- - --> --~~ --> E---> --> - - - --~~~~ - - ---> --- - º: ºº:: 3. º ºº: - -- * Tºsº. - º - - - SIPO) () NIBILIL. - º zºo'ſ Geºzzowdow Zºº & CMºrrºw ºccºeez. --~~ º, -*. Øo - - - º - º LECTURE VI. 237 deep brown. It is recorded by Mr. Pennant that a flock of these birds migrated into the marshes near Yarmouth in the year 1774. In Holland they were once considered as common birds, but are now become more rare. In South-America is a highly beautiful species, similar in size and ge- neral appearance to the European Spoonbill, but entirely of a bright rose-colour. South-America also produces a very small species of this genus, which is said by Linnaeus hardly to exceed the size of a Sparrow, and is of a brown colour above, and white beneath. The birds of this genus are observed to live in the manner of the Heron tribe, on fish, reptiles and water insects, and they build their nests on tall trees. The two genera of Tringa and Charadrius con- tain all the birds of the Snipe and Plover tribe, and are very much allied to each other, but in the genus called Tringa the feet are furnished with a back toe, whereas in the genus Charadrius there is none. Of the genus Tringa the 7. Interpres or Turnstone may serve as an example; and of the genus Charadrius. one of the most remarkable species is the ch, Himantopus or long-legged § 2 - * * tº tº * Plover; one of the rarest of the British birds; # ... ** sº, 23.8 LECTURE VI. black above, white beneath, with red legs of a most extravagant length. The last genus of the Gralla which I shall par- . 2:#; º-, "...º. . . . . g . . ticularize, is the Flaminge or Phoenicopteras; it is distinguished by a large, broad, but rather thin bill, suddenly bent down in the middle as if broken, and finely toothed or serrated on the edges. The Red F lamingo is a most extraordinary bird, of the size of a Goose, but with a neck and legs so enormously long as to appear out of pro- portion to the rest of the animal. The colour of the whole bird when full grown is a vivid scarlet, with the tips of the wings black. It is a native of Africa and of South America, frequenting the sea coasts and the brinks of rivers, and feeding in the manner of the Heron tribe, on fish and water insects, and sometimes on vegetables. - * . . . As the feet in the Flamingo are pretty deeply webbed, it may be considered as forming a kind of connecting link between the Graha. and the Anseres, or web-footed swimming-birds, to which we shall now direct our attention. strongly or conspicuo usy-webbed feet, and are, - from their general structure, calculated for swim- |FL, ANTING () zºody ºccº.zowaa.on ** * CAcºcºccº. LECTURE VI. 239 ming. * They consist of the Swan or Goose-tribe, the Penguins, the Gulls, the Grebes, the Pelicans, and several others. &# This order is considered as analogous to the order Bellua among the Mammalia. The bill in these birds is in general either somewhat dilated º, at the tip, or furnished with a kind of nail or ap- pendix at that part, and in most it is so con- structed as to operate as a sort of strainer, the * : edges being toothed with slight prominences. The feet in all are very widely webbed, the legs strong and short, and the whole body stout, fat, and mus- eular. Their food consists of fish and other water animals, and frequently of water-plants. Their rest is generally on the ground; but sometimes on lofty rocks: the number of eggs in the birds of this, order differs, greatly in the different genera, some laying "only one egg; others two; others * four, and others. 3. great number, from ten to twenty. . f: * ſ ‘. . . . . As the chief examples of the tribe of Anseres or web-fºoted birds, may be adduced the wild ...and tame Swan; or the Anas Cygnus ferus, and * domesticus; the genus Anas containing all the birds distinguished in common language by the 240 LECTURE VI. f names of Swans, Geese and Ducks. This genus is distinguished by having a broad, slightly convex bill, toothed along the edges by numerous small cartilaginous plates or processes, disposed like the teeth of a comb; and the tongue is obtuse, fleshy, and slightly toothed or pectinated at the edges. The two birds often confounded together by natu- ralists, under the titles of the wild and tame Swan, are now found to be truly distinct; nor does the .* difference consist merely in the exterior appear- ance, but in the interior organization; the trachea or wind-pipe in the tame Swan being simple or straight, while in the wild Swan it is very strikingly reflected or doubled into the sternum or-breast- bone, so as to be able to utter the powerful note for which the bird is remarkable. The wild Swan is rather smaller or more slender than the tame, with a black beak, and a yellow cere at the base; while the tame Swan, on the contrary, has a red or orange beak, with a large, globular, black cere at the base. * } w Every one has heard of the supposed musical voice of the Swan, which was believed to be par- ticularly exerted during its latest hours, when it. reclined on the banks of its native waters, and ^ LECTURE VI. 241 took leave of life with a sweetly-mournful song or dirge. So strongly was this idea impressed on the minds of the ancients, that the Swan became the symbol of poetry; but false as it really is, it seems to have had its excuse, and to have originated from some exaggerated descriptions of the natural notes of the wild Swan; the flocks of which, dur- ing their flight, have been often observed to emit a sound far from unpleasing in concert, though the general notes of a single bird are harsh and stridulous. The tame Swan has no other voice than a mere hiss: yet so common appears to have been the general belief of its musical powers, that the celebrated Aldrovandus, in his Ornitho- logy, speaks, as he imagines, from good authority, of the music of the Swans upon the Thames near London, which he had been well assured, were very frequently heard to sing. Sir Thomas Brown, with his usual depth o learning and solemnity of diction, endeavours in his Pseudodoxia Epidemica, or Vulgar Errors, to explode this popular notion, and concludes with this sentence: “When therefore we consider the dissention of authors, the falsity of relations, the indisposition of the organs, and the immusical I, ECT. I. IR, 2+2 LECTURE VI. * note of all we ever beheld or heard of, if gene- rally taken, and comprehending all Swans, we cannot assent thereto : surely he that is bit by a Tarantula shall never be cured with this music; and with the same hopes we may expect to hear the harmony of the spheres.” There is a highly curious species of Swan, a native of some parfs of New Holland, and the neighbouring regions, called the Black Swan, which I have myself some years ago described under the name of Anas Piutºnia. .* It is sometimes brought over to this country in a living state, and whoever †: § ~" . . • ‘i’ fº, i < * & -2 , * * , , . . . . has closely attended to it, thust have been struck * -- ** .* ^*. § S. *** * * º .#3. * * * .. *: * * * * * <> *...* * * **. ; : z º.º. * * * with the sweetness of the tones which it occasionally ‘. . . . . tº sº. § tº ... º. 3. * * * * * * *, a- 3, . º '... “, ºr ºf fiºsº : * >. 3. .. §§ e utters: they are mºtº lºgg ănuáněe, but sin- * * 3. **. § % * ...: àsº º à &Ạ* ...' - . <& §º # ſº, 3 *! ... * * * . - º s ". ...sº º º º º º ºlà àº, $º'. § w gularly melodious.g. #ºº of serve that the •r ". #, J. º • * 3. * * - r.” black or southern Swängthdāgh so lately made tº tº }* * 'º' #. t .# 3 - ? & familiar to the European:satiºn the dis- º º §§ §:: * * * 2” ########### coveries in the Southerºiſſº appears to have º * ** been known toºtºrs a great many years; • . §" r *** , ºr * ..:* ago, since on some ºf the older kind of globes : º * * ... * * ** ... * *t ſº gº. ** ,”, and maps, we may occasionally observe about ". these regions, an inscription importing that black, Swans are there to be found. Fº The genus Pelecanus or Pelican, is distin- |BIL, A C K SWAN zºº.cº.zondon ºz or º zºº, a ſºrce. º, cº, - 9.3 º º % º - º º l ſº ('OMIM ON |"E.I., ICAN zºoººoº, Zondon Pub//d 4, 6 Marw/ºr Zºe ſover LECTURE VI, 243 guished by a loose dilatable skin beneath the lower mandible, and by widely webbed-feet, with four toes all turned forwards. The great or common white Pelican is a native of many parts of the old Continent, and is of the size of a Swan, with an enormous pouch under the bill, capable of con- taining a vast quantity of fish, on which the bird chiefly preys, as well as of water, which it is said occasionally to carry to its mate while engaged in incubation. The Corvorant is a species of Pelican, though the sac or membrane under the bill is but of slight extent in this bird. The Corvorant is a native of England, and though a web-footed bird is often observed to sit or rest in trées: it builds on high rocky cliffs. It has been sometimesºtained and used for fishing, by putting a brass collar round its neck, &c. The Chinese employ a different species for this purpose, which is described and figured in Sir G. Staunton's Embassy to China. It is very nearly allied to the Corvorant, but is of a brown colour above, and whitish with brown spots beneath. According to Sir G. Staunton's account, these birds are carried in boats by their proprietors on the “wers, and are so well trained 244 IECTURE v1. as not to require any ring round their necks, but spring into the water at the command of their owners, and soon return with their prey in their mouths. Among the Goose tribe we may particularize a species often found in the northern parts of our own island, and called the Bernacle Goose or Clakis: it is commonly supposed the A. Erythropus of Linnaeus, and is black above with the feathers barred or edged with white. This is the bird which the vulgar, and even some of the learned On Oe supposed to have been produced, not in the manner of other birds, from an egg, but from a peculiar kind of shell-fish called the Bernacle, an animal which we shall have occasion to parti- cularize when we arrive at that department of Zoology, One of the most singular genera among the Anseres or the web-footed swimming-birds, is the genus Penguin, Aptenodytes or Pinguinaria. We cannot but recollect, that among quadrupeds there are some particular kinds, which in point of ex- ternal appearance, seem to make an approach to animals of a different cast or nature; thus, the Manis has so much the appearance and make of a Lizard that, outward form alone were con- LECTURE VI. *- 24s ***-*.*. sidered, it might be looked upon as constituting a link between the proper or viviparous quadrupeds and lizards. The Jerboa and the Kangaroo have the usual actions and attitudes of birds; generally standing on the hind legs only. The Bats may also be adduced as quadrupeds of an anomalous nature, and possessed of the power of flight; while the Cetaceous tribe affords a striking instance of the gradual declension of the quadruped form, till in the Manati it approaches to that of a very different class of beings. Even among birds there are not wanting some instances of the same sort of indistinct alliance to animals of an opposite cast; the Penguins, which I have just mentioned, being furnished with wings so very short, covered with feathers so very small, so much resembling scales, and so perfectly useless for flight, that they seem approximated in some degree to fishes, and are capable of exercising with ease and expe- dition no other actions than those of swimming and diving; since when they attempt to walk, they can merely stagger along in an awkward manner, and if disturbed are liable to stumble and fall. The genus Penguin is not very numerous, and 246 LECTURE VI. Af the largest of all is called the Patagonian Pen- guin; it is about the size of a Swan, and of a deep or blackish ash colour above, and white be- neath : the headiº plack; and the beginning of the neck marked by a yellow collar, descending on each side from the eyes. It is an inhabitant of the Magellanic seas; the other species of Pen- guin are also natives of the Antarctic regions, and are in general about the size of a common Duck. The generic character of the Penguins consists in having a strong but rather narrow bill, slightly bent towards the tip, nostrils linear, and wings useless for flight ; all the four toes placed forwards. There is a European bird, occasionally seen on our own coasts, which a beginning ornithologist might be inclined to suppose a Penguin; and which indeed is often called the northern Penguin. Its colour is black above, and white beneath, and its size that of a Goose. In the shortness of its wings, and its general appearance, it greatly Ire- ins, but belongs to a dif- w:t ***** # *. * * & aft; * * ſerent genus, called Alca or Awk, and is the Alca sembles a true Pengu impennis of Linnaeus. It is the only bird of its genus that is incapable of flight; the rest of the Awks flying with great strength. lºgeneric º sº t &/ - —）-）_|- GIRIE AT AYNIKTPATAGONIAN PIEN GITTIIN zºoº wezº Zoº， º czºwszy zzzzzzzz. 3.5 --> *…* - - - - --- º/ WANDERING ALB ATIRoss zºod Orºz-Zondon Pºa ºr 6/ſcarrºr ºcerºez. ILECTURE VI. 24? character of the Awks consists in a strong, thick bill, compressed on the sides, and marked by transverse furrows: the feet three-toed, all directed forward. With respect to the real or southern Penguins, we may observe, that Linnaeus having seen but two species, and paying too strict a regard to the mere form of the beak, arranged them most un- happily in the same genera with the Tropic-Bird OT Phaeton, and with the Diomedea or Albatross, both remarkable for their power of wing, and the aerial elevation of their flight. The Albatross or Diomedea, is a very large bird, of a white colour when full-grown, varied with shades of brown, but when young often of a blackish colour, with a very large bill, and wings of so. great an extent as sometimes to & #: w: ; ºr a. * *. sº º .* measure more than ten feet. It is so remarkable for the extent of its migra- Ży gº * ** *. *3 º: % -º-º: X * tions; thi a %3 rx- º inay almost be said to pass from pole to poleºgen at a greater distance from land than any other known bird. It is the Diomedea exulans of Linnaeus, and the wandering Albatross of the English ornithologists, and is pretty well represented in the works of Edwards. 248 IECTURE VI. The other genus, or Phaeton, with which Lin- naeus once associated the Penguins, merely on ac- count of the form of the beak, is called the Tropic- Bird. The principal species is the Phaeton aethe- reus of Linnaeus, and is so named from the vast height to which it soars. It is about the size of a large Duck, but more slender in proportion, of a silvery white colour, with numerous -trans- verse blackish bars or streaks, and has the middle tail-feathers extremely slender, and of a vast length in comparison with the rest. It is rarely seem beyond the limits of the Tropical regions. Another species is of a pale rose colour. After these examples of the tribe Anseres or tº e < -- tº sº gº! - A - web-footed swimming-birds, it would be unfiéées- * . . . ** §. -*. *. º: sary to dwell on the less conspicuous genera of gº .* wº “... º.º. . * * * * : :***** jº. £º: º, the order. I shall therefore request your afte *~4. * 28 º’sº *... tº º tidº Rºssº A *g, *, * * º º, it. ** a ‘º k *. * * # in my next Lecture, to the animals distiá J .# , ” s' º º # * . by the title of Amphibia. ; : * > } º g 3. * #. # * ** '? g łº sº sº ºw-” 3 ºf $3. $ sº º $. * * END of volumE rººf T. Davison, Printer, Whitefriars. PIHAETON ETHERETS - zºº ºr Zondon./a44/4(4), ºſcºwº ºr ºver. &6. ZOOLOGICAL LE('TURES. 2///////, A”0/ZZ /V.5'7/7ZZZO.V. 4. George shaw.M.D.E.R.s.º.e. ZZZZZ ZºZAZZ", ſº from the firſt Authorities and most select specimens ^ º *% */4 % y Mºs Griffith. - LONDON, Printed for G.Kearsley, Fleet Street, 18, ()), ZOOLOGICAL LECTURES dELIVERED AT THE f ROYAL INSTITUTION ^ IN THE YEARS 1806 AND 1807, BY GEORGE SHAW, M.D. F.R.S. &c. &c. VOL. II. = LONDON : PRINTED FOR GEORGE KEARSLEY, FLEET-STREET; BY THoMA's DAvison, whiteFRIARs. * wnsmº ºms * 1809. :* NOTES, CORRECTIONS, AND ELUCIDATIONS. LEcTURE IV. Vol.I.P. 112. To what is said in this page of the American Mammoth it may be added, that Monsr. Cuvier is decid- edly of opinion that it ought to be considered as an ex- tinct animal greatly allied to the Elephant, and which he calls Le Grande Mastodonte. The tusks he thinks were situated in a similar manner with those of the Elephant, and it appears to have been provided with a similar trunk or proboscis. See the work entitled Annales du Museum d’Histoire Naturelle. No. 46. LECTURE WI. P. 215.—To what is here said of the Dodo add, that in some modern publications this bird is, by an enormous , error, said to have no claws. This I suppose must have arisen from a typographical error in Gmelin's edition of the Systema Naturae, where the description added to the specific character of the Dodo, concludes with the words unguibus nullis instead of unguibus pullis, dusky or black claws, NOTES, CORRECTIONS, Lecture VII. Vol. II. P. 5. l. 16.—The Amphibia whose eggs hatch internally, as Vipers, &c. should be termed ovi-viviparous. Lecture XI. P. 168.—The genus Teredo, though differing widely in habit from most of the testaceous animals, will be found, if accurately considered, to approach in point of fabric to the inhabitants of the bivalves; and the jaws, as they are commonly termed, are in reality a pair of valves, and somewhat resemble those of the genus Pholas. P. 181—The inhabiting animal of the genus Pinna is in reality allied to that of Mytilus or Muscle. Its ana- tomy is detailed in the work of Poli. + w P. 189. l. 13.—The Bivalve Shells are increased by a constant succession of new laminae, as well as by the en- largement of the outline or circumference of the valves. LEcTURE XII. P. 218.-The figure accompanying the short descrip- tion here given of the Vorticella racemosa is taken from a small specimen, and though executed with sufficient fidelity as to its general appearance, fails in expressing the incomparable elegance of the animal itself. Indeed * AND ELUCIDATIONS. it is scarcely possible by any figure to express the genuine habit of the animal, especially when arrived at its full growth, when the branchings are extremely numerous. It may be added that two or three distinct species of this kind of compound Vorticellae exist, which are all evidently confounded by Linnaeus and some others under the name of Vorticella anastatica. Their general mode of growth or increase is as follows: viz. the first or parent animal swims single, and is furnished with an extremely short stem, hardly equalling the length of the body; but which, in a few hours, extends to a surprising degree, and becomes the chief or general stem: after this the body divides longitudinally, forming two distinct and similar bodies, whose respective stems very soon begin to lengthen, and, after some hours, each of these two bodies again divides, forming double the former number. This method of increase is continued till all the numerous branches of the animal tree are formed; and when it has thus remained for the space of eight, ten, or even many more days, the several animals separate, in succession, from their respective branches or stems, and swim about in order to form new colonies; so that in the space of some days the tree is left perfectly bare. To this, which is the general mode of increase, the accurate Muller has added a still more surprising one, viz. that the naked stems again repullulate, producing new heads or bodies in place of those which have departed. This latter mode of increase, I must confess, has never yet fallen under my own ob- :^ *. * . . NOTES, &c. '- & servation, and is allowed to be somewhat doubtful even by Muller himself. P. 216.-The distich quoted in this page is not from Pope's Essay on Man, but from a poem by Boyse." Directions for placing the Plates in vol. II. * • F-i The Vignette represents the beautiful English Butterfly called Papilio Cardui or the Painted Lady, with its caterpillar and chrysalis. Plate 87 to face page 8 Plate 117 to face page 108 88 17 118 º ib. 89 *. 2O '119 —— ib. : 90 — 22 120 — 109. * Q1 -— 25 121 — 112 92 —— 27 122 — 117 93 29 123 — 118 94 —— 31 124 — 121 95 —— 32. 125 — 123 96 36 126 — 124 97 — 39 127 — 126 98 —— 40 128 — 127 99 —— 41 129 — 128 100 —— 52 130 —— 129 101 — 55 | 131 —— 134 102 —— 56 132 — 135 103 —— 62. 132* — ib. 104 —— 64 133 — 140 105 —— 65 J34 –—— 14F 106 — 66 135 —— 143. 107 —— 67 136 — 145 108 —— 68 137 —— 149 109 — 69 138 —— 151 l 10 —— 70 139 – 158 11 1 — 71 140 — 162 112 — 75 141 — 164 113 —— 96 142 — 165 l 14 — 100 143 —— 166 1 15 —— 103 144 — 168 116 –— 104 145 — 170 -º-º- & Plate 146 147 148 149 150 . 15 f 152 ' 153 154 155 to face page – tºº mºnº & wººl sº 18O 182 183 184 192 193 196 2O3 205 207 iv. ' & Plate 156 to face page 157 158 *159 — 159% 1.59%+ 160 —— 161 —— 162 — 163 sºmeºmºmº 206 209. - . 218 219 ib. ib. 220 222. 223 224, LECTURES, # * ,” The Sea Tortoises, or Turtles as they are com- monly called, are distinguished from the rest by J.ECT. II. C t8 LECTURE VII. their very large and long fin-shaped feet, in which are inclosed the bones of the toes; the first and se- cond alone on each foot being furnished with visible or projecting claws; the rest not appearing beyond the edge, The shield, as in the Land Tortoises, consists of a strong bony covering, in which are imbedded the ribs, and which is coated externally with hard, horny plates; in one or two species much thicker than the hormy covering or epidermis of the land Tortoises. There is however one species of Turtle, and that the largest of all others, which instead of a strong horny covering, has one of a leathery consistence, marked over the whole surface into small angu- lar subdivisions which do not take away from the general smoothness of the whole: along the whole upper part run five prominent ribs or lines, while the under parts of the animal are bare, or destitute of any lower shell, so that this animal might form a distinct genus from the rest of the Turtle tribe. Its colour is olive-brown, and its size so great that it has been seen of the length of eight feet, and of the weight of a thousand pounds. It has been sometimes taken both on the coast of France and England. It is found LECTURE VII. 19 in the Mediterranean and Atlantic seas, and about some of the African coasts. A most magnificent specimen taken on the English coasts is pre- served in the Leverian Museum. The Green, or Edible Turtle, which is the T. Mydas of Linnaeus, grows also to a very large size; often measuring more than five feet in length, and weighing five or six hundred pounds. Its colour is a dull palish brown, with a few dusky variegations. The introduction of this animal as an article of luxury into England is of no very distant date, and can perhaps hardly be traced much farther than about fifty or sixty years backward. They are chiefly found about the Bahama islands, and seem to feed chiefly on marine vegetables, from which their fat ac- quires the greenish colour which gives name to the animal. ' - The T. Caretta of Linnaeus or the Loggerhead Turtle, is of at least equal size to the former, and often superior: its colours are beautiful, hav- ing a finely variegated shell, but the horny pieces or divisions are too thin for the purposes of the artificers in tortoise-shell, and are therefore neg- lected in trade : as a species it may be distin- 20 LECTURE VII. guished both from the green and the true tortoise- shell turtle or Hawksbill by the more numerous divisions of the shell, which amount to fifteen in- stead of thirteen, which is the constant number in the rest. The Loggerhead Turtle is a very strong and fierce animal, and is even dangerous; defending itself with great vigour with its legs, and being able to break the strongest substances with its mouth. Aldrovandus tells us that on offering a thick walking-stick to one which he saw publicly exhibited at Bologna, the animal bit it in two in an instant. The T. imbricata, the Hawksbill, or imbrä- cated Turtle, is the species which affords the ele- gant substance commonly known by the name of Tortoise-shell, and of which such innumerable ornamental articles are prepared. This species of Turtle is called the imbricated Turtle, from the disposition of its scales, which lap over each other at the tips in the manner of tiles on a house, and by this particularity as well as by the number of its scales, which are always thirteen, it may be distinguished from the Loggerhead Turtle, in which the number is fifteen. The shape of the bill also, which is sharper and more - º º | - º ... . . º º º º ". º | MB Rio Atºp Tºtºkº I, E. zºº.º. Zwº ºr 4 ºzºwº ºccº. º LECTURE VII. 21 curved than in the Loggerhead Turtle, is another mark of distinction. The colour is a beautiful variegatiºn ºf blackish brown and yellow, vary- ing greatly iº iifferent individuals. This species is a native of the Asiatic seas, but is also found, though much more rarely, in the Atlantic, and even in the Mediterranean. Its general length is about three feet, but sometimes it is found much larger. The Greeks and Romans appear to have been highly partial to the use of Tortoise- shell as an ornamental article, decorating their doors, the pillars of their houses, and their beds with it. The great consumption of it at Rome may be guessed at by what Velleius Paterculus has related, who tells us that when the city of Alexandria was taken by Julius Caesar, the ma- gazines or warehouses were so full of this article, that he proposed to have made it the principal ornament of his triumph, as he did of ivory afterwards, during his triumph after the African War. We now pass to the genus called Rana or Frog, consisting of all the animals comprehended un- der the general names of Frog and Toad. This is a singularly curious race of animeds, though from prejudice often considered in an unfavourable 22 LECTURE VII. light. The character of the genus is, that the body is destitute of any particular covering ex- cept the mere skin; furnished with four feet, and without any tail. The most familiar example that can be given is the Common Frog, which is the Rana temporaria of Linnaeus, which is almost every where seen in moist situations, where it can command a sufficient quantity of insects and small worms, which are its favourite food. As a species the Common Frog is distinguished by its yellowish-brown colour, spotted with black, and by a lengthened brown patch or streak be- neath each eye. It often however varies in co- lour, running through all the shades of olive, and sometimes even of reddish brown. The form of the common Frog is light and elegant ; the limbs finely calculated for the peculiar motions of the animal, and the hind feet strongly webbed, to assist its progress in the water, to which it oc- casionally retires during the heats of summer, and again during the frosts of winter, when it lies in a state of torpidity either plunged in the soft mud at the bottom of stagnant waters, or in the hol- lows beneath their banks, till it is awakened from its slumbers, by the return of Spring. In the month of March it deposits its eggs, in large º, * .4 - - º - .90 º sº - t º LECTURE VII. 23 groupes or clustered masses; each egg being of Ra, gelatinous substance, perfectly transparent, and containing the young animal in its centre under the form of a round black globule. In the space of about a month the globule assumes an oval . shape, and soon after hatches; not in the form of - a complete Frog but of what is termed a tad- pole, and appearing, on a general view, to con- sist merely of head and tail; the former black and large, the latter slender, and bordered with a transparent finny margin. The motions of the tadpoles are very lively, and in the advanced state of Spring are so plentiful that the waters they inhabit appear blackened by their numbers. They Hive on the leaves of the plant called duckweed and on other small vegetable substances: during the early part of their growth they are furnished on each side the head with a pair of ramified breathing organs, which drop off when they are farther advanced in age ; and when they have arrived at the age of five or six weeks, the hind- legs make their appearance, and soon afterwards the fore-legs. Some time after this the tail begins to decrease, and at length becomes quite obli- terated. The animal now ventures upon land, 24 LECTURE VII, and no longer feeds on vegetable but on animaf food, preying on the smaller kind of insects and worms. It does not arrive at its full size till at least five years old, and is supposed to live about fifteen. } The Frog which is so frequently eaten in many parts of the Continent is a different species, rather larger and of a greener colour, spotted with black, and with two pale yellow lines down the back. Those, however who collect the Frogs for the purpose of the table are known not to be very scrupulous in their choice, and it is acknow- ledged that not only Common Frogs but even Toads also are often intermixed with the green ©IłęSe: Such animals of this genus as are of a heavier or thicker form than the rest, with shorter limbs, and which rather crawl than spring, are called Toads. Of these the Rana Buſo or Common Toad is the principal European species. Its changes are similar to those of the Frogs but the eggs from which its tadpoles proceed are not deposited in the form of clustered heaps, but in that of long double strings, bearing the appear ance of so many necklaces. The Common Toad † - .9/ ºs- º º: º - º w º º º | º º º º Wº º § º º º º §§§ ºlº 2- - C 2 - §§ º W --- º º §º º § º º º |º |º º § º º º º º ſº S. º º N. : - w W. º º º º º º º t º - º º N º º LECTURE VII, 25 is a perfectly innocent animal, and the tales re- lative to its supposed venom are now pretty well exploded. There are however some exotic spe- cies of Toad, which exsudé a highly acrimonious and offensive moisture from their skin, and which is said to be of a corrosive or hurtful nature. In South-America is produced a highly sin. gular species of Toad, called the Pipa or Toad of Surinam. It is of large size, with a flattened and somewhat triangular head; and with all the toes * . of the fore-feet regularly divided into four parts . at the tip; the hind-feet being widely webbed, The young are produced, not in the usual man- mer, but from numerous cells on the back of the animal. It appears however on accurate exa- mination, that even there they have undergone the general change from the tadpole to the com- plete animal, several having been observed in the form of tadpoles in the cells themselves. Before we leave the Frog tribe we should par- ticularize what has been sometimes called the Frog-Fish of Surinam, and which was once sup- posed to change from a Frog to a Fish. It is no other than the Tadpole or first state of a spe- cies of South-American Frog, which, when first 26 LECTURE WIf. arrived at its state of perfection, appears less than the Tadpole from which it was gradually formed. Nor is this peculiar to the Surinam Frog or Rana paradova, but takes place in some of the Euro- pean animals of this genus, which are rather larger in the tadpole state than when first arrived at their perfect form, as in the species called the R. al- liacea or alliaceous Toad, a native of Germany, and some other parts of Europe. To the Frogs succeed the Lizard tribe, con- stituting the Linnaean genus Lacerta, and dis- tinguished by having a lengthened body, four feet, and a tail. The Lizard tribe is extremely numerous, and contains many animals of vast size, as the Crocodiles and Alligators; and others very small, as the common Newts. For the con- venience of zoological students the genus may be divided into assortments arranged according to the habit or general appearance of the species, First the Crocodiles, distinguished by very large and strong scales. The Guanas, commonly fur- nished with a serrated process along the back, and often by a pouch or flap under the throat, The Cordyles, with serrated or toothed scales. The Lizards emphatically so called, with smooth ('OMMON CIR o colD ILIE. ==ſae: ==== =======|- ==== №ē __=====~=====， ）==， ！= ！！ ！===|- ----_== ----- _）~ ---- *** √≠√≠√∞ √≠√∞ſaevae^^*，. LECTURE VII. 27 bodies, and square plates beneath. The Cha- maeleons, with granulated skin, a large head, long extensile tongue, and long cylindric tail. Geckos, with granulated skin, scattered over with tuber- eles, and lobated feet. Skinks, with a very Smooth skin, and large fish-like scales. Salamanders OP Newts, with soft skins, and which general y in- habit the water. And lastly the long or Snake- shaped Lizards, with extremely short legs and very minute feet. . . . º Of this vast tribe of animals those termed Cro- codiles have in all ages been regarded as some of the most formidable animals of the warmer re- gions. They inhabit Asia and Africa, but seem to be most common in the latter, where they reside in large rivers, as the Nile and the Niger, preying chiefly on fish, but occasionally seizing on almost every animal which happens to be ex- posed to their rapacity. Their size is prodigious, specimens being often seen of twenty feet in length, and we have accounts of some which ex- ceeded thirty feet. The general colour of the Common Crocodile, when arrived at full growth, is blackish Ölive above and yellowish white be- neath. The armour with which the body is co- 28 LECTURE vir. vered may be humbered among the most elaborate * r ...,' pieces of Nature's mechanism: it is so strong as easily to repel a musket ball; but on the under parts of the body it is much weaker or thinner. The Crocodile is produced from an egg scarcely larger than that of a goose, and covered with a strong calcarious shell, like that of a bird. Of these eggs the female deposits a numerous brood in the sand, and the young, when hatched, imme- diately betake themselves to the water. º The Indian or Gangetic Crocodile is of at least equal size with the Nilotic, and is distin- guished by its very long and narrow snout, and by having teeth almost double the number of those of the Nilotic species. The Alligator or American Crocodile is more nearly allied to the Nilotic, but is supposed to be distinguished by two rising lines or crests along the upper part of the tail. - - . . The Ceylonese Crocodile much resembles these, but has every scale on the upper parts fur- nished with a flat crest or elevation. Besides these species, two or three others may be pretty distinctly traced in the works of naturalists, though their precise specific characters cannot be ， ， ----zººaerºzae„rºz，¿?zºº，zw，7ſae^^^^^ solº ſo, y • NOȚIȚIOWYMIAI, ) |- *ſ.ſº ：<■ §§ Zºſ º. ſae §§ ſae！ LECTURE VII. 29 accurately investigated. The common Crocodile has been supposed by the ancients to move the upper jaw : this the most accurate of the modern observers have given up as a mistaken doctrine ; but a naturalist of the French school, Monsieur Geoffroy, has lately revived the ancient doctrine, and contends that this circumstance really takes place in the Nilotic Crocodile. As farther examples of the Lizard tribe I shall only mention the Chamaeleons and the Salamanders or Water-Newts. The common Chamaeleon, a native of many of the warmer parts of the world, and particularly of Africa, has long been cele- brated for its supposed power of changing its co- lour at pleasure according to the object on which it is placed. This is a vulgar error; but it is true that the animal does every now and then change its colour in a surprising manner, from some par- ticular causes not well understood. The general colour of the animal is a greyish or blueish green; and this often becomes, in the space of a few mo- ments, variegated with spots and patches of red, brown, yellow, and other shades. The size of the full-grown Chamaeleon is sometimes nearly a foot, exclusive of... the tail, which is at least of equal 3O LECTURE vil. length. The eyes are large and globular, with a very small opening in the skin, so that the ball of the eye can only be seen externally: the animal can direct one eye upwards and the other down- wards at pleasure, so great is its command over these organs. The tongue is extremely long, ex- tensile at pleasure, like that of a Woodpecker, and furnished at the end with a broad glutinous tip. With this it catches insects, darting the tongue upon them, and suddenly retracting it, like the quadrupeds of the genera of Manis and Myrme- cophaga. The Chamaeleon can support avery long abstinence, and will even bear to be confined many weeks together without any visible food, and hence the old notion of its living on air. The best figure of the Chameleon is that given in Mr. Miller's miscellaneous plates of Natural History. . . . . . . - There are two or three other species of Cha- maeleon which have only been fully described of late years. . . . . . . . . w I proceed to the last division of the Lizards, containing the Salamanders, or Water-Newts. In their whole economy these Lizards are strongly allied to Frogs, inhabiting the water, and pro. 2 i * : .*** -- 9% - | W. º º º º º - º - - º º 2. == º : : : º 1.ECTURE VII. 31 ceeding from soft gelatinous eggs or spawn. The young, when first hatched, are furnished on each side the breast with a pair of ramified breathing- organs, which are obliterated when the animal is full-grown. The common Salamander, so famous for the old vulgar error which relates to its sup- posed power of living in the fire, is a beautiful animal of about eight or nine inches in length, and of a black colour, with large, irregular, deep- yellow spots and patches. It is a native of many parts of Germany in particular, and occasionally appears either on land or in water: on the upper part of the body it is furnished with a great many large pores, from which, OIl any irritation a whit- ish watery fluid exsudes, and this has given rise to the popular superstition of its being able to quench any fire into which it can be thrown. The larger English-Newt or L. palustris of Linnaeus much resembles it, but is smaller, and of a brown colour, with minute white specks, and varied with black and yellow beneath. " The common or smaller Newt, the L. aquatica of Linnaeus, is an inhabitant of every stagnant water, and is a very elegant animal, of a yellow- ish olive-brown eolour, withiumerous round black § f 32 LECTURE VII. spots; the under parts bright orange with larger and more irregular black spots. The male of this species is distinguished by a rising crest along the back, and by its broad finny tail, ending in a sharpened point. It is one of the most conve- nient subjects for exhibiting a general view of the circulation of the blood by the microscope. Having thus given a general survey of the Lizards, I shall mention an animal of a somewhat dubious cast, and which has for many years been known to naturalists under the name of the Siren. It was first discovered by the late ingenious Dr. Garden, of Charlestown in South Carolina, who not being able to refer it to any known animal, sent a specimen to Linnaeus for his opinion. Lin- naeus was so struck by the singularity of its ap- pearance and its characters, that he instituted for it a new order of the amphibia under the title of Meantes. The Siren of Carolina has the general appearance of an Eel, as to size, but has on each side the neck a pair of ramified breathing-organs or branchiae, resembling those of water lizards in their imperfect state: it has also two feet only, which are furnished with small claws. Some have been inclined to suppose this animal no other .，.，… 。 %№. ſºſſºſ，ſae ſaeſae ſaeſſae---- ſ.ſae 。#¿ |-ſ！！！！！！！ %%%%%%% Źźſae ： ſº： ſae º：№ ź， ſae： ſae?） |?！！！ ± ： |-！№.ſae №… …=№№- № | – № ） （~~~~=№ ſae±± ſaeſ. . %↓ .%} §§ %%Gae. |× } %; ſ)|- §§ - ******** - º -- - № .！ ， ！- ： ~~~~ §§§ --~~~~ ~~~~）; º ae |-§§|× （§§ （№.№ № №.ſae （~~ ſºſ （º ~--~ ） \! *** \， \,\! ：|- |×\，：： （） §§ſ.·§.}ſae ：- ° N (04) Vºl. (I ſ), N |，\'|','|| - º --~~ LECTURE VII. * 33 than the larva or unadvanced state of some hi- therto unknown species of Lizard; while others suppose it to be a truly perfect animal, and to constitute very properly a distinct genus. The celebrated Camper having from some mistake supposed it to be without lungs, referred it to the genus Muraena or Eel, considering it as a species of Eel differing from the rest in having ramified fins. A second species of Siren is a native of Europe, and is only found in the celebrated lake called Lake Circhitz or Zitticher sea, in the dutchy of Car- niola. It is somewhat more than a foot in length, and entirely of a pale rose-colour. Other species of an equally dubious or uncer- tain cast have been discovered in different parts of the world, some of which are perhaps really the larvae, or young of Lizards, while others seem truly to constitute a distinct genus like those I have just deseribed. & Another very singular animal, which Linnaeus considers as a distinct genus, is the Draco or Dragon, otherwise called the Flying-Lizard. It is a small Lizard with a very long tail, and with a wide expanded skin on each side the body, sup- Lect. II. D 34 IECTURE VII. ported by internal ribs, and by the help of which it flies or flutters. It is a perfectly innocent animal, and is found in many parts of Asia and Africa. Its natural colour is a fine blueish grey, with darker variegations, and the wings are elegantly spotted towards their edges with black and white varie- gations. The animal is the Draco volans of Lin- neus. Another species has been described by some, differing from the present in having, the fore-legs joined to the upper part of the wings. I shall proceed to take a very short survey of the Serpent tribe, constituting the last order of the Linnaean amphibia. The Serpents, in a ge- neral view, are readily distinguished from the rest by their total want of feet; moving by the assist- ance of their scales, and their general powers of contorsion. In the serpents the distinction of the species is often very difficult, the animals often varying greatly in colours according to the dif. ferent stages of their growth. Linnaeus imagined that he had discovered an infallible method of as- certaining the species, viz. from the number of scaly plates on the lower parts of the animal in the different genera; but experience has suffi- ciently proved this method to be erroneous, and ! iFCTURE VII. 35 the general pattern or disposition of the colours is perhaps a more certain criterion, though confessed to be liable to alteration. One of the most singular properties of the Serpent tribe is that of casting their skin from W time to time. When this operation takes place, so complete is the spoil or cast-skin that even the external coat of the eyes themselves makes a part of it. The distinction of Serpents into poisonous and innoxious can only be known by an accurate inspection of the teeth; the fangs or poisonous teeth being always of a tubular structure, and fur- mished with a small hole or slit near the tip : they are rooted into a particular bone, so jointed to the remainder of the jaw on each side, as to permit the fangs or poisoning teeth to be raised or depressed at the pleasure of the animal. Above the root of each is a glandular reservoir of poison, which in the act of biting is pressed into the tube of the tooth, and discharged into the wound through the hole near the tip. The fangs are ge- nerally single on each side; sometimes double or treble, and in general there are small or young fangs situated at the base of the larger ones, ready to grow up and supply their place when lost by 36 LECTURE VII. accidental violence. But poisonous Serpents may often be at least guessed at, though not demon- strated, from the habit or general appearance of the animal, most of the venomous Serpents having rather large heads, covered with small scales, whereas those which are innocent have the head generally covered with large scaly plates; but on the other hand some highly venomous Serpents have the head covered with large scales also; so that no absolute mark of distinction can be found except the fangs. In general it may be said that innocent Serpents have four rows of teeth in the upper jaw; two on the palate and the rest on each side; but that poisonous Serpents have no other outward or side-teeth but the fangs. The genera or particular sets of Serpents esta- blished by some modern naturalists are pretty nu- merous, and even unnecessarily so. Linnaeus on the contrary established but few. His first genus is that of Crotalus or Rattle Snake. Its character is that beneath the body are broad scaly Semi- circular transverse plates or shields; the same, to- gether with some divided shields beneath the tail, and the tail itself terminated by a rattle, composed of many dry horny flattish organs of a peculiar º W. - s LECTURE VII. 87 * shape, growing over each other, and so consti- tuted as to give a strong rattling sound when the - animal shakes them, which it never fails to do when irritated or disturbed, and may thus be said to warn other animals of their danger in making too near an approach. The common Rattle-Snake (for there are several different species) is naturally a slow-moving animal, and therefore all the tales that are told of its darting with the rapidity of lightning about its native woods and plains, must be considered as mere imaginary description. The Count de Cepede in his history of the Rattle- Snake commences with a Buffonian flourish of this kind, and assures us that “the traveller wandering in the midst of the burning solitudes of Africa, and fainting under the midday heat, feels not a more thrilling horror on hearing at a distance the tremendous voice of the Tyger roaring for his prey, than he who passing through the moist forests of the new world experiences, when in the midst of beauty and fragrance he is on a sudden surprized by the sound of the Rattle-Snake, ready to dart upon him in order to destroy him.” The Rattle- Snake on the contrary, according to the united testimony of all real observers, never attacks or 38 LECTURE vii. moves towards a person who approaches him, but always endeavours to escape, and never bites un- less accidentally trodden on or purposely irritated. The colour of the Rattle-Snake is brown with yel- low variegations; in one species these are in the ` form of bars, and in another in the form of Lo- zenge-shaped streaks; it grows to the length of some feet. Its bite is certainly one of the most dangerous of the whole Serpent tribe; but its effect, like that of every other poisonous Serpent, must vary extremely according to the state of health of the person receiving the wound, as well as of the part on which the wound has been in- flicted: if it happens on a large vein, it very soon proves fatal: if not, it is often curable. We have well attested accounts of a dog's having been killed in less than two minutes by the bite of a Rattle-Snake”. The next Linnaean genus of Snakes is called Boa, and is distinguished by having broad scaly transverse plates, both beneath the body and tail, * The fascination of the R. Snake is now pretty generally referred either to the mere effects of fear, or to the supposed ſas. cinated animals having been first in reality bitten and disabled { from making their escape. ſzºrºzvºz： ， ， ， ، ، |-- \ 0 \\ \lo lol （„s， o, y *** - zae H.ECTURE VII. 39 but without any rattle. Very few of this gemus are poisonous, but some of them are remarkable for their enormous size; in particular a species found in Africa and called the Boa Constrictor, which grows to the length of thirty-five feet, and is said to destroy even Deer and Antelopes, by writhing itself round their bodies, so as to break or crush their bones, and then swallowing them very gradually, for all Serpents are capabie, from the particular organization of their jaws, of swal- lowing animals of much greater diameter than their own bodies. This is supposed to be the species which ter- rified the army of Regulus near the river Bagrada in Africa, and which is said to have measured 120 feet in length. This perhaps was an exaggera- tion. In the British Museum is a skin measuring thirty-five feet, and it is probable that many ages ago much larger specimens might have occurred than any at present to be found, the increased po- pulation and cultivation of most countries havin § tended more and more to lessen the number of such animals. Some of the Boae are remarkable for the elegance of their colours and the beautiful disposition of their pattern. 40 LECTURE VII. The most numerous of all the Linnaean ge- nera of Serpents is that of Coluber. It contains a mixture of poisonous and harmless Snakes : and is distinguished by having the under part of the body as far as the tail furnished with broad undi- vided plates, while the under part of the tail is covered with divided ones. Of the poisonous animals of the genus Coluber, one of the most remarkable is the C. Naja or Cobra de Capello, a native of many parts of India, and not less poi- sonous than the Rattle-Snake in America; its co- lour is commonly a dull yellow, and it has the power, when irritated, of dilating to a great extent the skin of the neck, into the form of a large flat- tened oval; this part is marked above by a very large patch resembling a pair of spectacles, and of a black colour edged with white. There ap- pear to be many varieties of this Snake in India”. Among the innocent species of Coluber the common English Snake may be mentioned as an example; a perfectly inoffensive animal, and which may even be tamed and rendered do- mestic. * The common Viper is the only poisonous Snake of this genus in our own country. | - - º º º º - * {} 3. º º º | | º º º tº ſº º Will | | º º º = - ..9-y s J.9 a - º º º º % * Aſ - - § W // Ž §§ º - | |ſ| º - N º W WNº. | º N\\\\\\\\ | W/ (). % N \\ M. W \\ - º |º NA \ W | W º | | - | | | | | / / º | ſ/ | º | / ſºW. Ž%º Ø º º º/ ºft º/ º º r | it. ºntº n ºś ºś º º ſº Nºſhi ºlºſ. º H!!! º |f|| LECTURE VII. 41 The genus Anguis is distinguished by being uniformly covered with scales of a similar form in all parts, and commonly with very small scales. The common English Slowworm, the Anguis Fra- gilis of Linnaeus, is an example of this genus, and is perfectly innocent, though vulgar prejudice still imagines its bite to be fatal. Many of the Indian and American Serpents of this genus are highly beautiful animals. The genus called Amphisbaena is distinguished by having the body surrounded by complete rings of small square scales. The species are very few, and are perfectly innocent. Lastly the genus Caecilia is characterized by being only marked along the sides by a kind of semicircular wrinkles. These Serpents are also innocent. I have before observed that the genera of Ser- pents have been lately increased by the formation of some new ones. Of these I shall only mention the genus Hydrus or Water-Snake, a true and proper genus, and easily distinguished by the flattened form of the tail, which is in some species compressed vertically; in others horizontally. In point of general appearance these Snakes resemble 42 LECTURE VII. the genus Anguis. . They are all natives of the waters, and are mostly found about the coasts of the southern islands and those of India and the Indian islands. . Some species are poisonous, being furnished with tubular fangs, and others are harmless. LECTURE VIII. THE course of our Zoological investigations has now led us to a very extensive tribe of Animals, distinguished by the title of Fishes. Like the Amphibious animals their heart, in the language of anatomists, is unilocular, or consists but of one chief cavity, and their blood is far less warm than that of the higher order of animals, as quadrupeds and birds : the red particles of their blood are also of an oval shape. The organs of breathing in Fishes, analogous to the lungs in quadrupeds and birds, are distinguished by the name of gills, and consist of a vast number of ramifications of blood- vessels, curiously disposed in rows, and supported on a certain number of bony arches, generally four, on each side the breast. By the gills the air contained in the waters they inhabit, is sup- posed to afford oxigen to the blood in its passage through the very delicate ramifications of the blood-vessels on the gills; so that the same pro- 44 LECTURE VIII. cess of nature which in the higher orders of ani- mals takes place in the internal cavity of the lungs, is brought about in Fishes externally by means of the subdivided branchings of the gills. These important organs the gills, are secured ex- ternally by a strong bony flap on each side, called the gill-cover, and which is generally edged with a thin membrane, capable of extension or con- traction by means of a certain number of elastic arches with which it is internally furnished. The form of the body varies greatly in the different tribes: it must be almost unnecessary to add, that the most common or general shape is that of an oval, more or less contracted or sharpened at each extremity, and slightly compressed on each side. There is one tribe or order of Fishes in which the gills differ in their structure from the rest, and in some particular kinds have an appearance ap- proaching to that of a kind of hollow lungs, while in others, certain organs situated near the gills bear an appearance resembling lungs, and these particularities of structure so much influenced the mind of Linnaeus, that he placed most of the Fishes of this particular tribe, or what are gener- ally termed the Cartilaginous Fishes, among the LECTURE VIII. 45 Amphibia; imagining them to be possessed of a kind of real lungs as well as of gills. * The more accurate researches of modern natu- ralists have proved the mistake, and sufficiently explained its causes, and such Fishes are again remanded to their proper situation. The generality of Fishes are covered with scales, of very various form and size in the differ- ent tribes, and even many fishes which are popu- larly supposed to be perfectly destitute of scales, are found, on an accurate inspection, to be fur- nished with them, as the common Eel, for ex- ample. The scales in Fishes are to be considered as analogous to the hair, or spines, or scales in the different kinds of quadrupeds, as well as to the feathers of birds, the animal matter of which they consist being nearly the same in all. The chief instruments of motion in Fishes are the fins, which may be considered as analogous to the limbs in quadrupeds: they consist of a certain number of elastic rays or processes, either of one single piece, in the form of a spine, or of jointed and subdivided pieces, ramifying towards the ex- tremity: the strong or spiny rays are usually placed at the fore-part of the fin, and the soft or * 46 LECTURE viii. jointed rays towards the back-part. By the various flexure therefore of these organs, the movements of Fishes are conducted; the perpen- dicular fins, situated on the back or upper part of the animal, keeping the body in equilibrio, while the tail, which is also perpendicular in its direc- tion, and capable of various flexures and contrac- tions, operates as a rudder at the stern of a vessel, and the side or breast-fins as oars. With respect to the internal parts of Fishes, it is observed that the throat is short; the stomach large, and the intestines far shorter than in qua- drupeds and birds: the liver very large, and usually placed on the left side. In the majority of Fishes occurs under various shapes, a highly cu- rious and important organ called the air-bladder or swimming-bladder: it generally lies close be- - neath the back-bone, and is provided with a very strong muscular coat, which gives it the power of contracting at the pleasure of the Fish, so as to condense the contained gas or elastic air with which it is filled, and thus enable the animal to descend to any depth, and again to ascend by being restored to its largest size. In some Fishes it is found to communicate with the throat; in LECTURE viii. 47 others with the stomach. Some Fishes are totally destitute of the air-bladder, and such Fishes are observed to remain always at the bottom; as the whole tribe of what are termed flat-Fish. If in such Fishes as are provided with an air-bladder, - that organ be punctured, so as to let out its con- tained gas or particular aerial fluid, the Fish is unable to rise afterwards, but is obliged to remain continually at the bottom”. The teeth in Fish are extremely various in the different tribes, in some very large and strong, in others very small; in some sharp, in others obtuse; in some very numerous, and in others very few. Sometimes they are placed in the jaws, sometimes in the palate or the tongue, or even at the entrance of the stomach. The eyes are in general large, and very much flattened, or far less convex than in quadrupeds and birds; this structure being better calculated for giving them an easy passage through the water they inhabit: in return, the central part of the eye, or what is * It is observed by Cuvier, that some Fishes having remained for a considerable time near the surface of the water, under a hot Sun, have had their air-bladder so dilated by the heat com- municated to its contained gas, as to be unable suddenly to com- press it sufficiently to permit themselves to descend. & 48 • , LECTURE VIII. # called the crystalline humour, is of a round or glo- bular shape, in order to give the animal the ne- cessary power of vision, and to compensate for the comparative flatness of the cornea. The organ of smelling in fishes is large, and the animals have the power of contracting or di- lating the passage to it at pleasure. Their smell is supposed to be extremely acute. * * * It was formerly much doubted whether fishes possessed the sense of hearing, having no external ear: the accurate researches of modern anatomists have however clearly evinced that the organ of hearing, though differing in some particulars from that of other animals, does yet exist; and is only modified according to the different nature of the animals, Indeed although the nature of the organ of hearing in fishes was not accurately known to the older anatomists, yet it was plain that fishes did hear; as was evident from a practice common in many parts of Europe of calling Carp and other fishes to their feeding-place by the sound of a bell; a signal which the animals readily obey. The particular structure of the Ear in fishes may be found amply explained in the works of Monro, Cuvier, Camper, and other modern anatomists. Of voice, properly so called, fishes are en- LECTURE VIII. 49 tirely destitute, the particular kind of stridulous sound which some kinds are observed to produce on being first taken out of the water, being en- tirely owing to the sudden expulsion of air from . their internal cavities, as in the Gurnards or Pi- pers, and some other fishes. By far the greater number of fishes are ovipa- rous, producing soft eggs, usually known by the name of spawn. Some fishes are however vivi- parous, the eggs first hatching internally. Fishes may certainly be considered as the most prolific of all animals: many millions often proceeding from a single individual. The gradual evolution of the young from the egg is highly curious. In the spawn of the Barbel and some others, which usually hatches in the space of about nine or ten days, on the second day may be perceived in each egg a small dusky speck between the white and the yolk; on the third day the motion or pulsa- tion of the heart becomes visible, and the body may be perceived, adhering laterally to the yolk: on the 6th day the back-bone and ribs are percep- tible; on the 7th day the eyes; and the animal begins to move itself briskly from time to time, till at length, on the 9th or 10th day it bursts from LECT, II. Gy º A. i 50 * LECTURE viii. its confinement. During the first six or eight hours from its birth, it is observed to grow nearly as much in proportion as in fifteen or twenty days afterwards. In the young ani- mal before it has left the egg, the pulsations or beatings of the heart amount to about forty in a minute; but immediately after hatching, they are increased to the number of sixty in a minute. Young fish, in this very diminutive state, are so transparent as to exhibit with great distinctness the course even of their larger blood-vessels. In the work of Dr. Bloch we find a good representa- tion of a fish in this state, viz. the Common JBarbel. * J The age of fish is, according to Linnaeus, determinable from the number of concentric cir- cles of the vertebrae or joints of the back-bone, in the same manner as that of trees is supposed to be from the concentric circles of the wood. Leew- enhoeck used to imagine that the age of fish might be determined from the concentric circles or fibres of the scales; but perhaps it may admit of much doubt whether either of these opinions be true. After this general survey of fishes as a tribe, IECTURE VIII, $ 5H I shall proceed to give a view of the Linnaean arrangement of the different kinds of Fishes. In order to understand this we must observe that the under or belly fins, called by Linnaeus the ventral fins, are to be considered as analogous to the feet in quadrupeds; and it is from the si- tuation, presence or absence of these fins that the Linnean divisions of fishes are instituted. Such fishes as are entirely destitute of ventral fins are termed apodal or footless fishes, and these form the first Linnaean order. Those which have the ventral or belly-fins placed more forward than the pectoral or breast-fins, are termed ju- gular fishes, and form the second Linnaean di- vision. Those which have the ventral fins situated directly or immediately beneath the breast fins are called thoracic fishes, and constitute the third Linnaean division; and lastly those which have the ventral fins situated beyond or behind the breast or pectoral fins are termed abdominal fishes, and form the fourth Linnaean division. There still remains a particular tribe, called cartilaginous fishes. This is the tribe which Lin- naus improperly admitted among his amphibia, on a supposition of their being furnished with lungs \ $2 LECTURE VIII. as well as with branchiae or ramified gills. This division differs from all the rest of the fish tribe in having a cartilaginous instead of a bony skeleton, and in being destitute of ribs. It consists of the Lampreys, the Rays, the Sharks and a variety of other fishes, and will be particularized after our survey of the Linnaean fishes, or such as have a bony skeleton, furnished with ribs. In passing through these I shall select a genus or two of each division as an example, and parti- cularize a few of the leading or principal species. Of the first division or the apodal or footless fishes, in which the ventral or belly fins are want- ing, the genus Muraena or Eel is one of the princi- pal. The Eels are distinguished by their long clyindric smooth body with a shallow back-fin, uniting with that of the tail into a continued bor- der; tubular nostrils, and eyes covered by the common or general skin, which is transparent in those parts. The Common Eel, which is so well known as scarcely to require a particular descrip- tion, is a very general inhabitant of almost all parts of the ancient continent, varying in size and co- lours according to the nature of the waters in which it is found. I have before observed that it A/7// ('(') MIMI (YN IEIETI, Nes s (’ ON GEIR TEIE IL zºoae øezºzzo， Zººzó4%z 4)， «‘Azzzzzzzerº_ſºzzz-ſzºccº. º - - cº º º, T.ECTURE VIII. 53 is vulgarly reputed a scaleless fish, but though the scales on a general view are not conspicuous, on account of the slime with which they are covered, yet when the skin is well wiped and dried they are easily visible, and are of a lengthened oval form, of a whitish colour, and exhibit a very elegant texture when examined by the microscope. They have long ago been well described and figured in the works of the celebrated Leewenhoeck. The Conger or Sea-Eel (Muraena Conger of Linnaeus) so much resembles the Eel in its general appearance that it has often been considered ra- ther as a variety than truly distinct. It is however of a much larger size, of a blacker or darker co- lour, and is commonly marked along the sides by a row of white specks. It is likewise an inhabit- ant of the sea, and is only an occasional visitant of fresh waters. Both the Eel and the Conger are viviparous; producing their young, which are very numerous during the decline of summer. The young are at first very small. A very celebrated species of this genus is the Muraena of the ancient Romans, who considered it as one of the most luxurious articles of the table, and sometimes kept it in reservoirs, where it was * 54 LECTURE VIII.' occasionally tamed to such a degree as to come at the signal of its master in order to receive its food. Its size is at least equal, if not superior to that of the Common Eel, and its colour a dusky greenish brown, pretty thickly variegated on all parts with somewhat angular marks and patches of dull yel- low, which are scattered over with dusky specks. I almost hesitate to relate the disgusting instance of barbarous cruelty practised, according to Pliny, by a Roman of distinction of the name of Vedius Pollio, who was in the habit of causing such of his slaves as had offended him to be thrown into his reservoirs in order to feed his Muraenae, expressing a savage delight in thus being able to taste in an improved state their altered remains. The Empe- - ror Augustus honoured this man with his presence at one of his entertainments; when a young slave happening to break a crystal goblet, was imme- diately ordered to be thrown to the Muraenae. The boy however, flying to the feet of the Em- peror and explaiming the secret, Augustus was so shocked at this instance of cruelty, that he im- mediately ordered all the crystal vessels in the house to be broken before his face, and the ponds - of the owner to be filled up; giving the boy his 20/ - - LECTURE VIII. 55 freedom, and bestowing an unmerited pardon on the offender ; sparing his life in consideration of former friendship. This story has been so often related that it cannot be supposed to be impressive to many from its novelty, but many authors make * , ºr º, ø, º * *.*.*ś, a mistake as to the Fish, which instead of a Mu- a * : * * * * raena they erroneously suppose to be a Lamprey. The Eels strictly speaking, are furnished with pec- toral or breast-fins; but the Muraenae have none. º Authors therefore wh9. are 3” sº.” º ſº precise division of the genera of fishes, instead of ... }: ** - e .. 3. - #. *. - comprehending the Eels; and the Muraenae under the common titlºff Muraena, as Linnaeus has º done, divide thentifito distinct genera under the - sº... . . . . * * titles of Muraºna, *guilla, Synbranchus, and some others; all agreeing in general form, but dis- w . . . ***, - . . tinguished from each other by the absence or pre- sence of breast-fins and some other circumstances. A more remarkable genus of apodal or foot- '3& less fishes is that of Gymnotus, which is distin- guished by a lengthened body, without any back- fin, but furnished with one beneath, running along almost from extent or length of the animal. The principal species is the Gymnotus electricus or Elec- trical Gymnotus, sometimes improperly termed the 56 LECTURE VIII. Electric Eel. It is an animal of an unpleasant ap- pearance, bearing a general resemblance to a very large Eel, but thicker in proportion, and is gene- rally of a very dark blackish brown colour. The length of such specimens as have been brought into Europe have hardly exceeded three or four feet, but in its native regions of South-America, and particularly in the river Surinam in the pro- vince of that name, it is said to arrive at the length of seven, ten, or even fifteen feet. It was first made known to the Philosophers of Europe about the year 1671, when its wonderful proper- ties were described to the French academy by a Dr. Richer, one of those sent out by the academy to conduct some mathematical observations at Cayenne. The fish possesses the highest possible degree of natural electricity or galvanism, so that when touched it communicates a very powerful electric shock; so powerful indeed that it is affirmed to be sometimes fatal to incautious swimmers who happen to encounter it in its na- tive waters. By this electric power it supports its life; suddenly stupifying such smaller fishes or other animals on which it preys, and then devour- ing them. To those who may wish for a more s Elecºmic zºº ºccº. Zozº, Zºº & º/ºr ("Y MIN () TUS º Azeez.ſºcea 2 LECTURE VIII, B7 ample detail both of the animal itself and its extraordinary powers, I must recommend the de- scription by Dr. Garden in the Philosophical Transactions, and the highly accurate anatomical survey of the animal by the late Mr. John Hun- ter in the same work. After these examples of the first tribe or apo- dal fishes, I shall proceed to those which Linnaeus terms Jugular, as having the ventral or belly- fins placed before the pectoral or breast-fins. Of this division the genus called Trachinus, or Weever, may afford an example. It is charac- terized by having a compressed body, the gill- covers serrated or toothed on their edges, and terminated by a spine; and a small fin situated on the top of the back, almost immediately beyond the head. The most common species or T. Draco, of Linnaeus is a native of the European seas, and is sufficiently common about our own coasts. It usually measures about a foot in length, and is of a yellowish silvery colour; with the small or first back-fin before mentioned of a black colour, and furnished with four or five strong spines or rays. With this fin it wounds such as attempt to seize it, by suddenly throwing itself back, and infix- 58 LECTURE VIII. ing the spines of its fin; and so painful is the wound, that a general belief still prevails of its being accompanied by a kind of poison; but it is certain that the spines of the fin are not tubular, nor is any fish known to contain any real or pro- per poisonous fluid; though several become poi- sonous by feeding on acrimonious substances, and being eaten without proper precautions. - To the jugular fishes belongs a numerous genus entitled Gadus or Codfish, containing In Ot only the Common Codfish, but the Haddock, the Ling, the Burbot, and a great variety of others. The chief character of this genus is that the ven- tral fins are slender, and terminate in a point, and that the back-fins are two or three in number. The Common Codfish is a native of the northern seas, where it resides in immense shoals, and performs various migrations at stated seasons, vi- siting in succession the different coasts both of Europe and America. The chief fishery is about the sand-banks of Newfoundland, which are de- scribed as constituting a vast submarine mountain of above five hundred miles long, and near three hundred broad. Our own country enjoys the greatest share of this fishery, which is carried on LECTURE VIII. 59 by the hook and line only, the principal baits, according to Mr. Pennant, being Herring, pieces of seafowl, and the shellfish called Clams, and with these are caught fish sufficient to find em- ployment for fifteen thousand British seamen, and to afford subsistence to a much more numerous body of people at home, who are engaged in the various manufactures which so vast a fishery de- mands. The fish, when taken, are properly cleaned and dried, and in this state are sent into every part of the European continent. The fishermen are well acquainted with the use of the air-bladder in this fish, which is usually called the sound; and when the fish is first taken, they contrive to perforate the sound or air-bladder with a long needle, in order to let out its contained air, by which means the fish is effectually kept under water in their well-boats, and thus brought fresh to the place of sale. The third Linnaean division or the Thoracic tribe is extremely numerous: in this division the ventral fins are situated immediately beneath the pectoral ones. Among the most remarkable ge- nera may be reckoned the lately instituted one so LECTURE VIII. of Gymnetrus, distinguished by its very long, compressed body, numerous, small, slender teeth, and very long, slender ventral fins or processes. One of the most remarkable species is that which has been named the Russelian Gymnetrus, from the late Dr. Patrick Russel; it was of a silvery colour, and is represented Oſ). the plate we are now viewing in its natural size, and was proba- bly a young specimen from its want of visible. - • tº & , & || teeth. The same animal in its complete of ad- vanced state appears from the description of Pro- fessor Ascanius and others to measure not less than ten feet in length, with a strongly marked lateral line, and a few rows of dusky spots across the body. It is a native of the Northern and Indian seas, and is popularly called the King of the Herrings, Another species is the Hawkenian Gymnetrus, or Blochian Gymnetrus; in its general appear- ance much allied to the former, but differing in colour, having the fins of a bright red, and the body clouded with blueish bands. A specimen measuring six feet in length and about ten inches in breadth, was taken on the coast of Cornwall, fiſcTURE VIII, 6i This has been published under the title of the ^. Comet-Fish; I suppose from the infrequency of its appearance. • * * This genus is not a Linnaean one, and was first described by Ascanius, under the name of Regalecus. & --- The beautiful genus Coryphana or Coryphene, improperly called Dolphin by sailors, consists in general of rather large Fishes, of a lengthened shape, with a large and very sloping head, and in general of beautiful colours. The common Cory- phene in particular, is a Fish of extreme beauty of colour, being of a rich and bright blue-green, with numerous orange-coloured specks. It mea- sures about three feet in length, and is an inha- bitant of the Indian and Atlantic seas, often ap- pearing in large shoals, and sometimes following ships in order to obtain any occasional articles of food which may happen to be thrown overboard. When taken out of the water its beauty of colour gradually fades as the Fish expires; the lustre va- mishing by degrees, with partial restorations, till at length it becomes of a dull greyish or cinereous cast, without any remains of its former splendor. This gradual evanescence of colour in the dying 52 LECTURE VIII. Coryphene is contemplated by sailors with as much delight as the ancient Romans are said to have exhibited on viewing similar changes in the expiring Mullet, when brought to their tables before the feast began. . . . . Among the smallest Fishes of this genus is the C. Novacula or Razor Coryphene, so named on account of its extreme thinness of body. it is of a reddish-yellow colour, varied in some parts with blue lines and spots. - The genus Echeneis or Remora is a highly sin- gular one, and is readily distinguished by the very remarkable structure of the head, which is flat- tened on the top into the form of an oval space, divided down the middle, and crossed by very mu-º merous partitions, beset on the edges with small fibres. By this part the Fishes of this genus are enabled to adhere with the utmost tenacity to any moderately flat surface, and thus frequent- ly affix themselves either to the sides of * ships, Or to Sharks and many other of the larger Fishes. - * * The ancients imagined that these Fishes pos- sessed the power of stopping a vessel in full sail by thus adhering to it, and rendering it immove- wae， ae , ， ， ， ， ， ， º4//w/* ºººº • w：LOWY， TYIL NY， NY） \\[\\[\\[JLILCIKALIWY LECTURE VIII. 63 able in the midst of the sea. The adhesion how- ever of a number of these Fishes at once to the side of a small canoe, in the earlier ages of man- kind, may really be supposed to have considerably retarded its progress, and have even caused it to incline on one side; and the tale once related, mi ght have gradually grown into the exaggerated powers, afterwards ascribed to the animal. The real fact is, that the Remora being a Fish of very weak powers of fin, takes the advantage of occa- sionally attaching itself to any large swimming body, whether animate or inanimate, which it -happens to meet with ; for when left to its own exertions it swims weakly, unsteadily, and often on its back. It is therefore necessary that it should avail itself of the occasional assistance of sºme larger floating body, and for this purpose the wonderful structure of the head is formed. The common Remora or E. Remora of Linnaeus is a native of the Mediterranean sea, and is of a brown colour, with about eighteen bars across the sucker on the head. * Another species, called the Indian Remora, is of an olive-green colour, with 24 bars across the sucker. A third species has been discovered in A 64. LECTURE VIII. the Pacific Ocean, which is smaller than the others, and has tel, bars only across the head. Of the whole tribe of Fishes, few are more re- markable than the genus Pleuronectes, which con- tains the different kinds of Flounders, Turbots, Soles and other Fishes of similar kind. In this genus nature exhibits a most extraordinary devia- tion from her usual plan in the formation of ani- mals: the two sides in this genus representing an upper and under surface, one appearing at first view to be the back, and the other the belly of the Fish. The eyes are placed on one side only, and the animal generally swims, not in the manner of other Fishes, but sideways, or with the coloured surface upwards and the pale one downwards. In order to facilitate the investigation of this numerous genus, Linnaeus divides them into such as have the eyes looking either to the left or the right. If a Fish of this nature be laid with its coloured side upwards, and its belly towards the observer, then if the eyes are on the right hand, it belongs to the division Oculis dertris of Linnaeus: if on the contrary the eyes are on the left hand, it then must be sought for in the left handed division of the genus, or among those, in the Linnaean phrase, TTTRI) () Tº º --- - º, --- º -- --- Nº. |FLO UNI) Elk zoº ºccº Zoº, /a/.4/ºr ºſcºw/ºr ºcºccº. Z/24 Zo.5 ſae aer，ºſºſižzºzººaeººººº^ºz. z.z.º.º.º.o.ºz. （~~~~ºw，ſºr § （1) || LI. Nº DV Lºſ o Nºvºſ LECTURE VIII. 65 Oculis sinistris. It is owing to a want of attention to this circumstance that so many errors have crept into works of natural history, relative to the Fishes of this genus; for if the engraver is not careful to reverse the drawing, it will give the spe- cies in a wrong division of the genus. I cannot acquit the artists employed in my own works of some inattention in this respect. Of the species with the eyes to the right the common Flounder furnishes a good example, and of those with eyes to the left the Turbot. The numerous genus Chaºtodon is remarkable for the peculiar elegance and variety of its co- lours in the different species, which are often dis- posed in the form of bands or zones, either trans- verse or longitudinal. Most of these Fishes are natives of the Indian and American seas. Their teeth are small, very numerous, close-set, and resemble so many bristles. Another genus, greatly allied to Chaetodon, and one intermixed with it, differs in having strong and broad teeth, and a very strong upright spine on each side the base of the tail. It is a lately instituted genus, and is called Acanthurus, or Thorn-Tail. LECT, II, F 66 LECTURE VIII. Among the Thoracic Fishes rank all the kinds of Perches, forming the Linnaean genus Perca. They have sharp teeth, scaly and serrated gill- covers, and a back-fin with the fore-part furnished with spiny rays, and the back part with soft ones; and the scales in most species are hard and rough. The common Perch is an elegant fish, of an olive brown, marked by five or six dusky transverse bars, and is found in most parts of Europe. Very strongly allied to the genus Perca are the several lately instituted genera of Holocentrus Sciana and some others. The Fishes of the Mackrel tribe belong to a genus called Scomber, and are distinguished by their oblong body, furnished above and below the back-part near the tail, with several small or spu- rious fins: in some species also the lateral line or middle longitudinal division of the Fish is fur- nished with a series of strong and broad scales. The common Mackrel is universally known, and is certainly one of the most beautiful of the Eu- ropean Fishes. Its celebrated migrations, so well detailed in the entertaining work of Mr. Pennant, begin now to be greatly called in question, and it is rather supposed that the glittering myriads ~ © ~ (º () MITMI ON \\ \ ('\\{\\{\\ſ,]], . //%|- ſae. ， ， „， ，''）; //，/////////%，^^， ^，..，^. Z/27 SUR MULLE T. |×W ſae zºwº ('aerºz ZaeZº，« %，º/， /ſ/，/z/∂z. LECTURE VIII. 67 which appear on the surface of our seas during the vermal season, were in reality at no great dis- tance during the severity of winter, having only quitted the deep retreats of the ocean for the shal- lower parts near the shores, where they hasten at that season of the year in order to deposit their spawn. The genus Mullus or Mullet consists of Fishes distinguished by a pair of very long barbs or soft processes at the tip of the lower jaw. One of the principal species is the red Mullet or the Sur- mullet, the favourite luxury of the ancient Ro- mans, who gave the most extravagant sums for it, and had it brought to table in a glass vessel, before the feast began, in order that the guests might contemplate the elegant changes of its colour during the minutes of its expiration; the natural rosy red, exhibiting at that time the most beautiful flushings and alternate paleness, till at length all fades into a dull grey. The concluding genus of the Thoracic Fishes is that of Trigla, containing the Gurnards: they are distinguished by a large head, roughed with sharp lines, and have spiny gill-covers. Of this 68 LECTURE VIII. genus is the fish called the Piper, of a red colour, and celebrated for its excellency as an article of food. But the most remarkable species is the Flying Gurnard, which is of a reddish colour, with very strong scales, and the pectoral fins so very large as to represent a kind of wings, and to enable the animal to use them occasionally in the manner of the flying-Fishes emphatically so called: these broad pectoral fins are also remarkable for the beauty of their colour, being of a fine oblive green, with numerous sapphire-coloured spots. The last Linnaean division consists of the Ab- dominal Fishes, or those in which the ventral fins are placed beyond the pectoral ones. This order contains many very curious and interesting genera, of which, however, I shall only particularize a very few, as clear exemplifications of the order. Of these one of the most important is the genus Salmo, comprising all the Salmon and Trout race: a numerous tribe, distinguished by having a smooth and somewhat lengthened body, with the hind part furnished above with a small fatty fin without any rays. The tongue is cartilaginous, and often beset with teeth as well as the jaws. Zoº PILIP EIR \！\， ， №. |- ： ！\， ， №|ק§- -（±，±，±）， ſzºw，， „º， º cae”， „Zozza，Zºw，z， ź，zº Zz， Žºzecz ſºrrez. - Zºº zººae zºº， aerºyº ： zºwº， wozºwº z-z-z， gºz TIXLI, I NOIN INIO , ) ºſ XII, IL NOVI (IſInLOEI, ) LECTURE VIII. 69 The common Salmon is the S. Salar of Lin- maeus, and is an inhabitant of the northern regions, where it occurs at different periods both in salt and fresh waters, quitting the sea, at certain periods, in order to deposit its spawn in the gravelly beds of clear rivers. At this particular period hardly any obstacles are able to overcome the impetuosity of the Salmon intent on forcing their way up the stream; and they are known to spring up occasionally in such a manner as to pass cataracts of many feet in height. Like the Swal- low, the Salmon visits the self-same spot each season; as has been ascertained by the experiment of fastening a small ring to the tails of some indi- viduals, and then setting them at liberty, when they have made their appearance at the same spot, for three successive seasons. The male Salmon is distinguished by its strongly curved or hooked jaws. The Trout, the Grayling, the Char, and a multitude of other Fishes, esteemed for the use of the table, belong to the genus Salmo. The genus Esor or Pike is known by its flat- tened head, wide mouth, Sharp numerous teeth, and lengthened body, with the back and vent-fin 70 LECTURE VIII. placed nearly opposite each other towards the end: the common Pike is a native of many parts of Eurºpe, but is commonly said to have been first introduced into England in the reign of Henry the Eighth. In America are certain very large species of this genus, covered with very strong, bony, square scales, as if in a kind of armour. But the genus Silurus is a more remarkable instance of this bony kind of armature investing some particular Fishes. In the genus Silurus we have examples of Fishes entirely coated as if in a regular suit of armour. Many naturalists, how- ever, choose to separate these armed species from the rest under different titles. The curious genus Earocoetus contains the true or proper flying-fishes, or such as are particularly known by that name: this genus is by no means numerous; containing only four or five species. All are distinguished by a lengthened herring- shaped body, and pectoral fins of a vast length and size, and of a sharpened form. The common Flying-Fish is about the size of a Herring and of a silvery colour, with pale brown fins. It is often observed in the Mediterranean, sometimes singly, and sometimes in shoals, occasionally springing A/// |RIB ||B |E |D S ILLIT RITS zºoººczºzzzzzzzzzz zzzz/， /， /º/， /zecz ſzwecz. A// zae zºzy， wº …?zw/77，ºzººzzº 7，7，7，7，7 ººº^ THIS [,\\[ *) NIINIAI „DINIWAL) () LECTURE VIII. 71 out of the water in order to avoid the rapacity of the larger fishes, and springing with expanded fins to the distance of about an hundred yards, and at the height of about three feet above the surface of the water, after which it is again obliged to plunge; its fins growing dry, and unable to sup- port it any farther. The other species are chiefly natives of the Indian seas. The Carp-Tribe, forming the genus Cyprinus, has for its character, a small mouth without teeth, which are placed at the entrance into the stomach; an oval oblong body, and, in general, a single back-fin. As an example of this genus I shall only mention the beautiful species called the Gold-Fish, which, as every one knows, is ori- ginally a native of China, from whence it has been gradually introduced into many parts of Europe; into England (if I mistake not) about the year 1691, but did not become common till about the year 1728, when a great many were brought over by Sir Matthew Decker, and by his means dispersed throughout the kingdom. Like the rest of the Carp tribe they are very long-lived, and are said to last above a century. As to the 72 LECTURE VIII. common Carp it is supposed to arrive at the age of two hundred years. We have now passed through all the Linnaean orders of Fishes, but there still remains a large tribe which I before mentioned under the title of Cartilaginous Fishes. I also observed that they differ from all other fishes in having a compara- tively soft or cartilaginous skeleton, and that some particularities in the structure of their gills in- duced Linnaeus improperly to rank them aS a.ſ.l. order of the Amphibia under the name of Nantes. Of the Cartilaginous Fishes the first genus is that of Petromyzon or Lamprey. The character is a long, round, Eel-shaped body; a mouth fur- nished with numerous teeth in circular rows, and seven round spiracles or breathing-holes on each side the neck: these breathing-holes each lead into a tubular cavity, lined with a red pleated mem- brane, thus forming a series of organs analogous to gills in fishes, but not quite of a similar struc- ture, and more approaching to that of lungs. The common or great Lamprey is an inhabitant of the sea, but comes into rivers during the spring. It is viviparous like the Eel, which it resembles in LECTURE VIII. 73 its general habits. It sometimes is seen to swim with a considerable degree of swiftness, but is . more commonly found adhering by the mouth to some large stone or other substance, to which it clings so powerfully as to require a great degree of force to separate it. As an article of food the Lamprey has long been celebrated. Its usual colour is a dull yellowish-white, clouded with brown or olive-coloured variegations. All the rest of the genus are of much smaller size, but in shape and way of living resemble the great Lam- prey, except that they are confined to rivers. The next genus of the Cartilaginous. Fishes consists of the Ray, or Skate tribe, and is charac- terized by a flattish body, in some of a lozenge- shape, in others rounded, and in all furnished with a lengthened tail: the mouth is placed beneath the head, and is furnished with very numerous small teeth generally covering the lips or edges of the mouth; and on each side the neck beneath, are placed five large transverse slits or openings leading to the gills. The common Skate furnishes a good example of this genus, and is the Raja Batis of Linnaeus. It often grows to a vast size, 74 LECTURE VIII. sometimes weighing at least two hundred pounds: its general colour on the upper side is pale brown, with deeper variegations, and white, tinged with flesh-colour beneath. It is found in great plenty about the European coasts. Like the rest of the genus the Skate may be termed oviviviparous, dis- charging its young, each in a kind of oblong square capsule or pouch. Some species of Ray are furnished with a very long and slender tail, towards the middle of which is attached a long, sharp, serrated spine, which the animal uses both as an offensive and defensive weapon: the wounds it inflicts with this spine are considered as highly dangerous, but the effect is produced by the mere puncture and laceration of the instrument, and not by any poisonous fluid, of which, as we have before had occasion to observe, all the fish tribe is destitute. Among the most remarkable fishes of this genus, are those which are distinguished by a sort of forked or two-lobed head, with the side or pec- toral fins extending to a great distance on each side. These kinds of Rays grow to a vast size, and are chiefly found in the Indian and American TOR PEDO RAY. zºo, Jºne. Zondon Pººrhea by ºars/ey Pºtreet. LECTURE VIII. 75 seas. We have accounts of an animal of this kind taken on the coast of Barbadoes, which required seven yoke of oxen to draw it along. But the most curious species of Ray is the Torpedo, which is the Raja Torpedo of Linnaeus, an inhabitant of the European seas, and some- times taken on our own coasts, though much more common about those of France and Italy. The body of the Torpedo is of a rounded shape, and of a dull reddish-brown colour, with four or five large round dusky spots, and of a pale or white colour beneath; the tail is of moderate length, and terminated by a slightly rounded fin. The Torpedo possesses a similar electric or galvanic power with the Gymnotus before described, and has been celebrated both by ancients and moderns for its wonderful faculty of causing a sudden numb- ness or painful sensation in the limbs of those who handle it. The particular organs forming its electric or galvanic battery have been accurately described by Mr. Hunter in the Philosophical Transactions, and as the general history of the animal is now so well known, I shall at present content myself with saying, that the Torpedo from the first moment of its birth begins to exer- ‘76 LECTURE VIII. eise its electric powers; and Spallanzani eVérº. assures us that having opened a Torpedo and taken out one of the young, he found that it com- municated a very perceptible electric shock. The next remarkable genus among the Carti- laginous Fishes is that of Squalus or Shark: In these animals the body is of a lengthened form; the mouth placed beneath, and furnished with nu- merous teeth, and on each side the neck are a certain number of transverse slits, leading to the gills, as in the Ray tribe: the number of these slits or openings differs in the different species from five to seven ; but the prevailing number is five. It would be unnecessary to add that Sharks are animals of great rapacity, and that the larger kinds are among the most formidable enemies of the deep. The white Shark in particular, or Squalus Carcharias, has long been celebrated for its destructive powers, and is the dread of navi- gators in the warmer regions. It arrives at the length of more than thirty feet, and is of a pale grey colour: the mouth is extremely wide, and is furnished with from three to six rows of strong; flat, triangular, sharp-pointed teeth, sérrated on their edges, and so placed in the cartilaginous LECTURE VIfſ. 77 edge of the jaws as to be either raised or depressed at pleasure. So voracious is this animal that like many other inhabitants of the sea, it does not spare even its own species. An author of credit * re- lates that a Laplander had taken a shark, and fastened it to his canoe; but soon missed it, with- out being able to guess how : in a short time af. terwards he caught a second, of much larger size, in which, when opened , he found that which he had lost. The Sharks form a very numerous race, and some are distinguished by the elegancy of their colours, as the Zebra Shark, an Indian species, of a brown colour, with white bars and stripes, and the blue European Shark, which is of an elegant bright blueish grey colour. Of those which have the most singular appearance the S. Zygaena or Hammer-headed Shark affords a cu- rious example. It is of a brown colour, and grows to the length of fifteen feet: the head is length- ened out to a vast distance on each side, and the eyes placed at each extremity. It is an inha- bitant of the Mediterranean sea. The Sharks, like the Rays, are ovi-viviparous * Leems. 18 LECTURE VIIſ, fishes, and produce their young enclosed in ob. long cartilaginous square sheaths, each corner of which runs out into the form of a lengthened and convoluted tendril. The Sturgeons which I shall next mention, form a genus called Accipenser, and have a long body, covered above with rows of large bony tu- bercles; a lengthened, obtuse snout, furnished with four tendrils or beards; and a mouth placed entirely beneath, perfectly destitute of teeth, and only capable of closing by means of a strong cartilaginous edge or border. The Common Stur- geon grows to the length of eighteen or twenty feet, and is of a pale olive-brown above and white beneath. It is a sea fish, but frequents the mouths of large rivers during the early part of summer in order to deposit its spawn. It has been often celebrated as an excellent fish for the table, and was held in high esteem among the ancient Romans. From the roe or spawn pro- perly pressed and salted is prepared the substance called Caviare. The fish called the Isinglass Stur. geon is of still larger size than the common one, and is the A. Huso of Linnaeus: it is of a dusky blue colour above, and white or reddish white be- LECTURE VIII. *19 neath, and is much less strikingly tuberculated than the Common Sturgeon; being sometimes found nearly smooth. It is from the sound or air-bladder of this species of Sturgeon that the substance called Isinglass is prepared. The smallest species of Sturgeon yet known is called the Sterlet, which seldom exceeds the length of three feet. It is found in the Caspian sea, and in some of the Russian rivers, and is highly celebrated for the delicacy of its flesh. It is recorded of Prince Potemkin of Russia, that in seasons when the Sterlet was unusually scarce he has been known to give the sum of three hun- dred rubles for a tureen of Sterlet soup. The Caviar prepared from the roe of the Sterlet is a dainty still more expensive, and is said to be almost exclusively confined to the use of Russian Royalty. I shall finish with a very hasty survey of two or three other remarkable genera of the Carti- laginous tribe. Among these the genus Lophius claims a place. It has a depressed head, nu- merous, sharp teeth, and pectoral fins furnished with a kind of joint resembling an elbow. The only European species is the L. Piscatorius, or 80 LECTURE VIII. Angler, sometimes called the Toadfish. It is, found about our own coasts, and grows to the length of six or seven feet. Its appearance is extremely singular, the head being of enormous size, and the mouth excessively wide. Its co- lour dusky brown above, and pale beneath. In the American seas are found some species of a still more singular appearance, as the L. His- trio in particular, which exhibits one of the most grotesque shapes that can easily be imagined. It grows to more than a foot in length. The genus called Ostracion or Trunk-Fish, has the body cased in a bony sheath or box, curi- ously divided or marked into angular spaces, leav- ing only the tail free or disengaged. The spe- cies of this genus are sometimes difficultly ascer- tained, on account of a certain similarity of struc- ture: many of the most remarkable kinds have been admirably figured in the celebrated work of Dr. Bloch. The genus Diodon is so named from the pe. culiar appearance of the mouth, the bony jaws. of which constitute as it were two large teeth. Nothing can be more singular than the appear- ance of some of the leading species of this genus., ŁECTURE.VIII. 81 One of these is the Diodon Hystrix, or Porcu- pine-Fish, which grows to the length of about. a foot and half, and is eovered over with a strong skin, beset with very long and sharp-pointed spines, so that in point of habit or external ap- pearance it may be said to connect in some de- gree the class of fishes with that of the spiny quadrupeds, such as the Porcupines and Hedge- bogs. Another species has shorter spines with a much broader base. There is a very remarkable European fish, sometimes referred to this genus, but which in reality should form a distinct one, commonly called the Sun-Fish or Diodon Mola. It is of a silvery colour with a cast of blueish brown; grows to a very large size, and perfectly repre- sents the head of some large fish abruptly cut off from the body. I must not omit observing that the genus Diodon is that which misled Linnaeus into the idea that the Cartilaginous fishes were furnished with a kind of lungs as well as with gills. In order to ascertain this point he requested Dr. Garden of Carolina to examine into the organs of the Porcupine and other Diodons in a living LECT. II. G 82 LECTURE;VIII, state: the result of these inquiries. seemed to prove a species of real internal lungs; but the more accurate researches of others have since proved that these supposed lungs were no other than a particular kind of vesicular processes which the animal has the power of occasionally inflating in order to render itself specifically, lighter and to ascend at pleasure with the greater facility, i LECTURE IX. WE are now to direct our attention to a large and various class of beings known by the title of Insects. The characters by which Insects are distinguished from other animals are the following. First, they are furnished with several feet; never fewer than six, and sometimes with a great many. Secondly their flesh, or the muscular part of their frame, is affixed to the internal surface of their skin, which is generally of a somewhat tough or strong substance, and in many even hard or horny. Thirdly, they breathe, not in the usual manner of the generality of the larger animals, by lungs, or by gills, but by a sort of spiracles or breathing- holes, situated at certain distances along each side of the body; and lastly, the head is generally fur- 34 LECTURE IX, nished with a peculiar pair of processes called Ana tennae or jointed horns, which are extremely various in the different tribes, and form a leading charac- ter in the institution of the genera or smaller as- sortments into which Insects are distributed. The ancients seem to have entertained very vague ideas relative to the production of Insects, which they did not suppose to be conducted in the same regular and invariable order as in the larger animals, but to be owing to the putrefaction of various animal and vegetable substances; nor was it till towards the commencement of even the eighteenth century that the general history of In- sects began to be clearly comprehended. Their forms and differences had indeed long before been studied with some degree of attention; but the accurate knowledge of their respective tribes, and their various states or transformations, had been but obscurely traced or understood. The first state in which the generality of In- sects appear is that of an egg. From this is hatched the animal in its second state, in which it is often called the Caterpillar, though this term more particularly relates to the insects of the Moth and Butterfly tribe. The Insect in this LECTURE IX. 85 its imperfect state has been called by Linnaeus by the name of Larva, ‘being as it were the mask or disguise of the animal in its future form. It is much to be wished that the word, with proper va- riation, might be received into our own language, under the name of Jarve, by which means we should avoid the inconvenient term of Caterpillar, which is apt to convey the idea of one particular tribe of insects only. The Larve then differs very much in its appearance, according to the different tribe to which it belongs. In the Moth and But- terfly tribe, as before observed, it is emphatically called by the name of Caterpillar, and is univer- sally known. In the Beetle tribe it is of a thick heavy form, with the body of a rounded and bulging appearance at the hind-part. In the Lo- cust or Grasshopper tribe, and some others of the same order, it does not much differ from the com- plete insect, except in not being furnished with wings. In the Fly and Bee tribe and some others it is popularly known by the name of Maggot, and is of an oval-oblong form, without any feet. In the Dragon-Flies, and in the Water-Beetles, and some other insects, it is often of a very singular form, and differs more from the complete insect 86 LECTURE IX. than in any others except those of the Moth an Butterfly tribe. • - . . When the time arrives in which the Larve is to change into its next state, that of Chrysalis, or, as Linnaeus calls it, Pupa, it ceases to feed, and hav- ing placed itself in some quiet situation for the purpose, lies still for several hours; and then, by a kind of laborious effort, frequently repeated, di. vests itself of its external skin, or larve-coat, and immediately appears in the very differentform of a chrysalis or pupa. The Chrysalis or Pupa differs in the different tribes of Insects almost as much as the Larve. In most of the Beetle-tribe it is furnished with short legs, capable of some degree of motion, though very rarely exerted. In the Butterfly tribe it is perfectly destitute of all ap- pearance of limbs, and has no other motion than a mere lateral bending or writhing when touehed. In the Locust tribe it differs but very little from the perfect insect, except in not having the wings complete. - In most of the Fly tribe it is perfectly oval, without any apparent motion, or distinction of parts. In the Bees and other Insects of a si- milar cast, it is less shapeless than in that of Flies, exhibitin g the faint or imperfect appearance of the LECTURE IX. .87 limbs. In the Libellulae or Dragon-Flies it is loco- motive, as in the Locust tribe, but differs most widely from the appearance of the complete insect, and may be numbered among the most singular of the whole. I should here observe that the Lin- naean term Pupa, which most modern entomolo- gists substitute for that of chrysalis, was given from the indistinct resemblance which many in- sects bear in this state to a doll, or a child when swathéd up according to the old fashion. From the Pupa or Chrysalis emerges at length the complete insect, in its perfect or ultimate form, from which it can never after change, nor can it receive any further increase of growth. This last or perfect state of an insect is in the Linnaean lan- guage the Imago. This surprising alteration of shape during the different periods of an Insect's life is to be con- sidered as an evolution, or successive display of parts before concealed, and which lay masked under a different shape. Swammerdam persuaded himself that he could demonstrate all the parts of the future 'Butterfly, even in the body of the Caterpillar itself; and though this has been some. times called in question, yet it may be easily con- §§ , LECTURE IX. ceived that by a very accurate and delicate inves- tigation, the rudiments of the future Fly may be detected in the Caterpillar, provided it be ex- amined but a very few hours before its trans- formation into the chrysalis. . . It is in the larve or caterpillar state that most insects are peculiarly voracious, as in many of the common caterpillars of Moths and Butterflies, In their complete state many inseets are satisfied with the lightest and most delicate nutriment; some do not feed at all, while others, as several Beetles, Dragon-Flies, &c. devour animal and vegetable substances with a considerable degree of avidity. Some insects undergo no change of shape, but are hatched from the egg eomplete in all their parts, and only cast their skin from time to time during their growth, till at length they acquire the full size of their respective species. * We must now attend to a few particulars re- lative to the general anatomy of inseets. The major part of insects have the head distinctly divided or separated from the breast, and, the latter from the body; thus forming three portions. The limbs in insects, as I before observed, are never H.ECTURE IX. 39 less than six in number, and in some insects much more numerous. They are, in general, divided or marked into a regular thigh, leg, and foot, which latter generally consists of several joints, and is in most insects terminated by a pair of eurved claws. * .*. The Mouth in some tribes of insects is formed for gnawing or breaking the food, and operates by a pair of strong, horny jaws, moving laterally, as in the Beetle tribe; while in others it is formed for suction, and consists of a tubular organ, fur- nished with proper accompaniments for facilitating its operation. In the Butterfly and Moth tribe it consists of a double tube, of different length in the different species, and when at rest, is rolled into a spiral form, and extended at full length when in use. J. The Stomach varies in the different tribes of insects, and the intestines are generally rather strait, or usually make but few turns or bendings. . The existence of the Brain in insects is denied by Linnaeus, but by this he can only be supposed to mean that it does not bear much resemblance to that of larger animals. In reality it is, as may be imagined, very small, and from it extends along 90 I.ECTURE IX. or down the back aſkind of pulpy cord, analogous to the spinal marrow, and which ramifies into branches or divisions, which are conducted to the different parts of the body, and form the nervous system in insects. The Eyes in insects differ in the different tribes, but by far the greaterpart of insects are furnished with eyes apparently two in number, and situated on each side the head. The outward surface or coat of these eyes is composed of a-prodigious number of minute hexagonal convexities, like so many convex lenses or glasses, but the exact man- ner in which vision is performed by theset organs. is not perhaps exactly ascertained. Some have supposed each of the hexagonal divisions or lenses to operate as a real and separate eye, and that the optic nerves are expanded into a separate retina or coat at the bottom of each. The head of a eommon Dragon-Fly or Libellula is furnished with no less than twenty-five thousand of these dimi- nutive lenses. That they are really convex exter- fally is certain, but that they are also convex on the internal or opposite part, though affitmed by many, may be doubted; and it is perhaps more probable that each is in reality what opticians 1.ECTURE IX. 91 call a magnifying meniscus, having, the outward or convex part of a smaller sphere than the con- cave of interior, In Spiders the eyes are from six to eight in number; of a simple structure, and placed at a considerable distance from each other. But besidês the eyes just described, or those placed on each side the head, there are on the heads of many insects two or three small separate eyes, of a simple structure, and seated on the top of the head. They have been called by Linnaeus by the title of Stemmata, and their real nature is not clearly understood. The Muscles, or organs constituting the several portions of the flesh in insects, are far more nu- merous than in the larger animals, and are ex- tremely sensible or irritable. In the human body it is observed, that the muscles can hardly be said to exceed the number of five hundred; but in a large Caterpillar, the anatomy of which has been given with laborious accuracy by Lyonett, the number of the muscles amounts to more than four thousand. , The comparative powers of the muscles in in- sects are also far strónger than in the larger ani- 92 LECTURE IX. mals: thus we know that a Flea and a Grass, hopper are capable of springing to a mueh greater distance in proportion to the length of their bodies than any quadrupeds; for a Flea is capable of springing at least 200 times its own length ; whereas the Jerboa and the Kanguroo, in their most powerful springs fall very far short of the same proportional distance. tº- We have before observed that insects are not provided with lungs, like the higher orders of ani- mals, but that they breathe by means of a certain number of pores or small openings, generally placed on each side the body, and which are con- tinued into very numerous branches, dispersed about the body of the animal. If the lateral pores of breathing-holes in insects be stopped, by rubbing them with oil or any other sub- stance capable of excluding the air, the animal, after a certain time, falls into convulsions and dies. It has been a matter of doubt among mattle ralists, and particularly those of the French school, whether insects can properly be said to have a circulation of the blood; and whether they have any organ that can properly be called a heart. The celebrated Cuvier seems to suppose that they have not. It is acknowledged indeed that the animals of the Crab and Lobster tribe, the Mo- noculi, and others of that particular cast, have a genuine circulation; but these animals should, according to some Zoologists, be separated from insects, and form a distinct division in the animal kingdom. Nay Monsieur Lamarek is willing to exclude even the Spider tribe from the class of insects, because in these animals the heart and circulation of the blood are distinctly visible. - The organ which the famous Italian anatomist Malpighi supposed to constitute the heart, or rather a kind of chain of hearts, in the Silkworm, has been since proved to be a vessel of a different nature, the use of which does not appear to be fully understood; but no ramifications of blood- vessels proceed from it. . - ~ . s It seems to have escaped the attention of those who are not willing toallowa circulation oftheblood in insects, that, though it may not be perceptible in the major part, yet it certainly appears to take place in some which are allowed on all hands to be genuine insects; and particularly in the genus Cimex or Bug, I shall here give a quotation on 94 LECTURE IX. this subject from an author, who, though he cannot be supposed to have deeply investigated the ana- tomy of insects, was yet an excellent general observer, and who detailed with great plainness and accuracy his own observations, viz, Mr. Henry Baker, the celebrated microscopic observer. In speaking of the common Bug or Cimex lectur larius, Mr, Baker says: “In the legs of these in- sects, when very small, the current of the blood is remarkably visible, together with an extra- ordinary vibration of the vessels, which I have never observed in any other creature; and though one of these animals has been confined between two glasses for many weeks together, so as not to be incapable of stirring, and has at times appeared dead, yet a little warmth, properly applied, would renew the motion of the bowels, and the circus lation of the blood as briskly as ever.” Mr. Baker also observes that the circulation of the blood may be perceived in the wings of Grasshoppers, and that the globules of the blood in those animals are of a green colour, t - After this general description of the nature of insects at large, I shall proceed to a slight survey * of the several families or divisions into which they LECTURE IX, 95 are systematically distributed for the convenience of investigation and arrangement; and shall give a few examples of each division. . . The Linnaean system of entomology being o all others the most elegant and easy, will be best calculated for our purpose. Linnaeus distributes all insects into seven Orders or great assortments, the first of which contains all the insects of the Beetle tribe, or such as have strong horny sheaths or covers to their wings. I must here observe, that the term Beetle is more particularly restricted to one single genus so called, but in a general sense it takes in the whole tribe called by Linnaeus Coleoptera or sheath-winged insects. In these animals the real or proper wings are of a mem- branaceous nature, and when not in use are cu- riously folded under the exterior strong or horny sheaths. The Coleopterous insects form a very large or extensive order; the genera or particular sets being very numerous, and each distinguished . by some leading particularity of appearance. , In the genus Beetle, properly and emphatically so called (in Latin Scarabaeus,) the distinctive cha- racter is that the antennae or horns are furnished at the tip with a slightly-expanded part, divided 96 LECTURE Ix. into several distinct plates or laminae, as in the common Cockchaffer, which being one of the most frequent insects in this country, must be supposed to be known to almost every one. It proceeds from a yellowish-white larve, of a dis- agreeable appearance, which resides under ground, and feeds on the roots of corn and other grasses, and is supposed to continue at least three years in that state before it gives birth to the complete insect. Among the exotic Scarabaei or Beetles many are found of a gigantic size in comparison with those species which are natives of Europe; some measuring four, five, or even six inches in total length. The genus is also extremely ex- tensive, and so singular is the appearance of many, that hardly any variety of horn or process can be. conceived, which is not found exemplified in some particular species. As a proof of this we may take a view of some of the exotic Beetles repre- sented in the works of Monsieur Olivier, Mr. Drury and others. I shall also particularize one insect of this genus, which, I believe, exists only in the splendid collection of Mr. Francillon, and which, from its very peculiar appearance, has been named the Kanguroo Beetle. |) I Dº I º zz.” (20///ø/ºr M/ozzazz.” ENENIA zºº ººzondon ºf 4, & Mºurº ºr Joyce, º º ...labºrozº f ECTURE EX, 97 Among the most numerous genera of the Co- leopterous or sheath-winged insects is that of Ce- rambya or Goat-Chaffer, which contains a vast variety of species; some of extraordinary size, and of beautiful colours”. One of the principal English-species is the Cerambyx moschatus or Musk Goat-Chaffer, a beautiful insect of more than an inch in length, and with very long, joint- ed horns. It is of a fine dark golden-green co- lour, and diffuses to a great distance a very fra- grant scent, like that of a mixture of musk and roses. It chiefly appears in the hottest part of July, and is seen on willows and poplars in particular. A genus still more numerous than that of Cer- ambyx is called Curculio or Weevil, and is easily distinguished by the remarkable situation of the antennae or horns, which are placed on the snout itself, which in this genus is often of a considerable length. In this genus stands the famous insect generally known by the title of the Diamond- * This genus has a rather lengthened body, and very long an- ey 4. | tennae in most species. LECT. II. H 98. , LECTURE IX. Beetle, a native of Brazil, and remarkable for the extreme brilliancy of its appearance, which is owing to numerous rows of scaly spots of a golden green cast, disposed on a jet-black ground, and accompanied by a variable or iridescent lustre. The magnified figure (here represented) will give a clearer idea of its appearance than any verbal description. It is an insect which varies consider- ably in size, but is usually something more than an inch.in length. f To the genus Curculio also belongs the curious animal the Nut Weevil, a small brown insect, with an extremely long, and slender snout. This insect is the parent of the maggot in the hazel- nut, which is known to every body. About the beginning of August, the female Curculio wan- ders about the hazel-trees, while the nuts are, in a very tender state, the rind of which she perforates with her snout, and deposits an egg in the puncture; and thus continues to do, till she has deposited her whole stock. The nut, not apparently injured by this slight perforation, continues to grow, and gradually ripens its kernel. --- When the egg is hatched, the maggot, finding its food ready-prepared, begins to feast on the kernel. LECTURE IX. *- 99. By the time it is fully grown the natural fall of the nut takes place, and the animal, not at all injured by the shock, creeps out at the circular hole which it has previously prepared, and immediately bur- rows under ground, where, after a certain time, it casts its skin and commences chrysalis, or pupa, in which state it remains all winter, and till the beginning of the following August, when it emerges from its concealment and appears in its complete form. Its colour is a dull, uniform brown. The order Coleoptera or the sheath-winged. tribe contains a great many other very curious genera, both of large. and small size, but the limits of our Lecture will not allow us to parti- cularize more than a few examples of each order of insects. I shall therefore now pass to the second Lin- maean order, called Hemiptera, or as it were Half- winged insects; for in this order the wing-sheaths are of a tough or leathery constitution at their upper part, and soft, or membranaceous at the lower, and the real or under-wings are often of great size, and pleated longitudinally in the man- mer of a fan. This order contains all the in- 100 LECTURE IX. sects of the Locust and Grasshopper tribe; the Cockroaches; the Lantern-Flies; the Cicadae, and many others, some of large and some of very small size. The genus called Blatta or Cockroach is dis- tinguished by the flattened form of the body; by a pair of long, bristle-shaped horns at the head, by the wings lying horizontally over the body, and by a pair of tips or processes resembling short horns at the end of the body. The Cockroaches are a numerous and disagreeable tribe; generally running very swiftly, chiefly appearing by night, and feeding on almost all kind of animal sub- stances: they are mostly natives of warm cli- mates: the species now so very common in this country, and especially in the metropolis, is sup- posed to have been originally imported from the Eastern regions; it has obtained among the Lon- don vulgar the very improper title of the Black Beetle, a name which not only confounds it with a species of real Beetle, emphatically so called in the country, but also leads people erroneously to suppose it of the Beetle tribe or order Coleoptera. It is the Blatta Orientalis of Linnaeus, and should be called the Eastern or Oriental Cockroach. To |}|L.A.T. T.A. Z// - Zºº” L//zzazzazzzzzz | || || || || º º zzazz //c/a/zºº/zz - * herºz frºzefºwºwº wº, ºr ºnwan, ºr ºn tºº *_ºw. LECTURE IX. 1Ol be particular in its description would be unneces- sary. In South America and the West Indies is a species much resembling it, but of a rather larger size, of a longer shape, and of a fine chesnut-co- lour: it is the B. Americana of Linnaeus or Ame- rican Cockroach, and is excellently figured by the celebrated Madam Merian, in her splendid work on the insects of Surinam. But the most remark- able and destructive of all the Cockroaches is the B. gigantea, or Great Cockroach, found in many parts of the West Indies and America. It is often seen of nearly the diameter of an egg, and is of a brown colour. Like the rest of the tribe, it comes out chiefly by night, and devours almost every article of an animal nature, thus committing great devastation in domestic articles. It has also a most troublesome practice of making a kind of drumming 'noise behind wainscot or paper by night, so that only those who are very good sleep- ers can repose in rooms which are haunted by this insect. It is figured in the elegant work of the late Mr. Drury. But the ravages committed by the Blatta or Cockroaches are chiefly of a domestic nature, and fall infinitely short of those inflicted on mankind 102 LECTURE EX. by the Locust tribe. The genus Gryllus, compre- hending all the kinds of Locusts and Grasshoppers, is wonderfully numerous, and is distinguished by a large head, with strong jaws; slender.horns, a lengthened body; and the hind-legs formed for leaping. Among the species most remarkable for their ravages is the:Gryllus migratorius or migra- tory Locust, which of all the insects capable of injuring mankind, seems to possess the most dreadful powers of destruction. Legions of these animals are from time to time observed in various parts of the world, but more particularly in the Eastern regions, where the havoc they sometimes commit is almost incredible. The sun is often darkened by their numbers while the swarm is in the act of migration; so that at mid-day people can hardly distinguish each other. They settle on the richest parts of the country, and in a few hours devour all the corn and other vegetables, and change the most fertile province into the ap- pearance of a barren desert. In the year 1748, some straggling ſlights, which had committed con- siderable havoc in some parts of Germany and France, were observed to make their appearance in England, and were even seen about and in the f (, Rºy L.I.T. S., zº zºz. ºſazzzz.， zºo）, ºcrºz Zozzzzczaeº，ſy∞ √∞aer, ſzer„ſaeaeae. LECTURE IX. 103 metropolis itself; but as they were evidently driven out of their course by adverse winds, and were much weakened during their flight, they soon perished. Straggling specimens are from time to time observed, but happily this insect can hardly be fairly numbered among the regular native in- sects of England. . Its general size may be ob- served in the figures we are now viewing, which are copied from those of the admirable Roesel, an artist of such transcendent excellence in his mode of representing the smaller animals, that in the words of Mr. Fuseli he may be said to have raised insect-painting almost to the dignity of History. A species of Locust of much larger size and of great beauty of colours is that called G. cris- tatus or the crested Locust, so named from the rising processes on the top of the back. This species is at least five or six times the size of the migratory or wandering Locust, and is a native of the Eastern regions. It is often salted, and used as an article of food in many parts of the Levant, and it is supposed that it was the food of saint John during his state of retirement in the desert. It has indeed been sometimes supposed that the 104. LECTURE IX, word angiºs in the sacred writings, may rather mean the tender shoots of vegetables; but since the fact is so well ascertained that Locusts are still eaten in those regions, we need not admit any other interpretation than the common one ; nor need we wonder that an abstemious Anchoret, during his state of solitary seclusion from the commerce of the world, should support himself on a food which certainly is not to be numbered among the luxuries of life, but merely to be re- garded as a substitute for food of a more agree- able nature. sº- I shall only mention as a farther example of the Hemipterous insects, the beautiful genus Ful- gora or Lantern-Fly. It is distinguished by the peculiar structure of the head, which in most spe- cies, and more especially in the great or chief kind, is of a large, lengthened, and inflated form, as if swelled out with air; and the mouth consists of a long, slender tube, lying beneath the breast. The F. Lanternaria or South-American Lantern Fly is certainly one of the most curious, and even one of the most beautiful of insects. It is a ma- five of many parts of South-America, and is com- mon in Surinam, where it was observed in par- F'ſ I, tº OR A. s º | | º º º "| | º Zºº /, wºrwarzz zºo.º. ººzºonºon ºf ºr ºnear rºcerº. - - -- LECTURE IX. 105 ticular by the celebrated. Madam Merian, and is figured in her. most elegant work on the Surinam insects, where she gives an entertaining account of the surprize into which she and her domestics were thrown, on first observing these insects to shine by night, like so many flames of fire in the room into which they had been introduced. The insect is of the size represented in the figures we are now viewing. Its colours, when living, con- sist of a beautiful variegation of brown, green, and red, on a yellowish ground, and the under wings are decorated by a large eye-shaped spot on each. The light afforded by the fire or Lantern- Fly proceeds entirely from the head, and is said to be sufficient to enable a person to read the small- est print by; as well as to travel with by night in the manner of a torch, if tied to the end of a stick. Madam Merian was somewhat deceived as to the larva or first stage of this insect, which she confounds with a species of Cicada, and this is one of the most remarkable oversights in her work; in which, if there be here and there a few inaccuracies in her descriptions, we must at least allow that the general elegance of her figures can hardly be surpassed. - 106 LECTURE IX. \ We now pass to the most splendid of all the orders of insects, entitled Lepidoptera or scaly- winged insects. It consists of all the Moth and Butterfly tribe, or the Papilionaceous insects, as they are often called. The powder or down on the wings of these insects has been often con- sidered by naturalists as composed of a kind of feathers; but in reality it is composed of a kind of very minute scales, which differ in size and form in the different species, as well as on the different parts of the same species: their general appearance is that of an abrupt oval, terminating in several projecting points at the abrupt or broad end, and fastened by a small quill or point at the root or opposite end to the membrane of the wing. The Lepidopterous insects, or the Butterfly and Moth tribe are divided by Linnaeus into three distinct genera or sets, under the titles of Papilio, Sphina, and Phalaena, or Butterfly, Sphinx, and Moth. They all proceed from Caterpillars, which afterwards change into a chrysalis, out of which, after a certain period, emerges the complete insect. This change is so familiarly known as to su- persede the necessity of any particular description. LECTURE.IX. 107 In the Butterflies, the wings, when the insect is at rest, are so placed as to meet upwards, or by their upper surfaces applied to each other; and the horns or antennae in most species terminate in a small head or club. The genus Papilio or Butterfly is so astonishingly numerous, that in or- der to facilitate the investigation of the species, it is absolutely necessary to divide them into seve- ral sections instituted from the particular shape of their wings and other particulars. This has been done with great elegance by Linnaeus. The largest of the genus, and such whose wings if measured from the inner or lower corner to the tip are longer than if measured from the same corner to the base or shoulder-part, are fºrmed es. Equites or Knights or Chiefs, and are ingeniously divided into Greeks and Trojans, and named from the principal Heroes of the Iliad. The Trojans are distinguished by red or blood-coloured spots on each side or near the breast; and are generally of dark colours. The Greeks have no red marks near the breast, and are generally of more brilliant colours: but some inaccuracies have been ob- served in the Linnaean arrangement, which are easily rectified by slight transpositions. Of the 108 JLECTURE IX. Trojan division one of the most magnificent is the Papilio Priamus or great black and green Am- and of the Greek division the tº º 'º' —ºr * i-sºtºsponsis, European speciºlºgii, Machaon or Swal- §ºs. *::::: low-tailed Butter ºnay-se ve as an example. * *, º ‘sº 43: y ry; * p The remaining? boina Butterfly; *... ***'. T.º. § tº sections of the Butterfly tribe . . . .º. * are distributed according º rules equally inge- * tº *::: y:, sº * > * * ... º nious, and by which the student in Entomology is *****, Y.: * * in general enabled to refer each to its proper divi- & sion; but I shall not at present particularize these, but shall proceed to the genus Sphina. This genus is distinguished by the slightly angular or prismatic form of the antennae or horns, which are generally short in proportion to the animal; and by a peculiar thickness of the body, which in most terminates in a point. The name of Sphina: is applied to this genus from the favourite posture often assumed by the Caterpillars of many species; which have a habit of slightly raising the fore-part of their body in such a manner as to bear some re. semblance to the figure of the Egyptian Sphinx. In this genus are many insects of great beauty and elegance; particularly among the exotic species. Most of their Caterpillars undergo their change • , º, º ... sº into chrysalis at a cºnsiderable depth beneath the * * §º. , ºr * zº zrºzzº/，y，z ，zººº，，， ， ， ¿????????. /…/ º 0 l'11 d.v…]" Zyº | º -º-º: MIAC IH AON - º Wºody Wºzz/ezº ſº*// 1” ºccº Zozo, Pºžea ºr ºr ºrzºccº. - S = || || N × . 92/. oce//www. 1863.0 ºr Zondon.ºrºv & Mearrºreed ZZ.9 _/22 º/ º º - ſ| ſ W. º º \ M | | º \ | | | º/ 2. º º º º - - - | - º, º - | PHLALAs, N.A. - - º M a. - ſº M, º º º - \º º º º º w | *a*, *. **, 3,0aº Zondon, Pºr/edº, & Zºrzew, Zºº.Jºez. LECTURE IX. 109 surface of the ground, into which they retire at the time of their approaching change; and after lying, in some species a few weeks, in others many months, the chrysalis, by the motions of the in- cluded animal, forces itself up to the surface, and gives birth to the Insect in its perfect form. The insects of this genus are often called Hawk-Moths by the English collectors. The genus Phalana or Moth is distinguished by sharp-pointed horns, which in many species are simple, and in many are beautifully barbed or feathered along the sides. This genus, like that of Butterfly, is so very numerous, that it is di- vided into many sections, instituted from the habit or general appearance of the animals, combined with some other circumstances. These I shall not particularize, but shall merely observe that of one or two of the leading species. Of all the European Moths by far the most magnificent is the Phalaena Junonia, a name which I have myself applied to it, in order the more effectually to separate it from some smaller species of similar appearance, with which Linnaeus has conjoined it. It often mea- sures six inches in breadth, when expanded, and is found in Germany, France, and Italy, where its 1 IO LECTURE Ix. $ Caterpillar, which is very large and beautiful, feeds on the leaves of apple and pear-trees and some others. The complete insect exhibits a beautiful assemblage of different shades of grey, and each wing is marked in the middle by a most elegant and conspicuous eye-shaped spot. The Phalaena Cecropia of Linnaeus is a very fine insect, and is not uncommon in many parts of North-America. Its Caterpillar is of a green co- lour and a remarkable appearance, and has been elegantly represented in the beautiful work on the Insects of North-America by a Mr. Abbot, ac- companied by excellent notes and illustrations by our celebrated botanist Dr. Smith of Norwich. I shall proceed to give a general explanation of the remaining Linnaean Classes of Insects. The Class Neuroptera or Nerve-Winged, or Fibre-PWinged Insects consists of such as have four large wings, furnished with very conspicuous nerves, fibres, or ramifications dispersed over the whole wing. This order is exemplified in those elegant and very common Insects called Dragon-Flies, as well as in May-Flies, and many others. I shall content myself with giving as an illustration of this order the common English LECTURE IX. 11] Dragon-Fly, or Libellula varia. It is a large and beautiful Insect, seen chiefly towards the decline of summer, principally in the neighbourhood of watry places; it has a very large head, with con- spicuous eyes, large transparent wings, with black veins, and a very long body, richly variegated with blue and black. It is of a very rapacious nature and preys on the smaller insects, but is perfectly destitute of any sting as vulgarly sup- posed, and is incapable of injuring any of the larger animals. It proceeds from a larve which inhabits the water, and is of a very peculiar and unpleasant form. During its larve state, which continues at least two years, it is as rapacious as when in its complete form, preying on the smaller kind of Water-Insects. When the period is arrived at which it is to give birth to the Dragon-Fly, it ascends the stem of some water plant, and by a few efforts, breaks open the skin of the back, when the enclosed Dragon-Fly gra- dually liberates itself from its confinement; its wings which are at first very short, tender, and contracted, gradually expanding themselves to their full size, like those of a Butterfly when newly emerged from its chrysalis. In the space $ 12 LECTURE IX. of about half an hour the change is complete, and the same animal which before that time would have been killed by any long exposure to the air, would now be as effectually destroyed by submersion under water. The celebrated Insect called the Ephemera belongs to this Order, and proceeds likewise from an aquatic larve. The common May-Fly or Trout-Fly is a species of Ephemera, which emerges from its chrysalis chiefly in the month of May. But the most celebrated animal of the genus is that described by the famous Swammer- dam and held up as the most curious instance of the brevity of animal life, since, when one arrived at its complete or perfect form, it lives only about six hours. It must be recollected flowever that the animal has lived three years in its former or lava state, so that its brevity of life is only to be referred to that of its complete or perfect form. The size of this remarkable animal, which is not a native of England, but is common in many parts of Europe, is given on the plate we are viewing. Its colour is white, with a yellowish body, and the larva is of a pale brown. The Insects of this genus have one particu- EPHEMIºlº A. Z2/ ſºzºzzzzzz * - , Zarzzzz zºe zºº wºrk ºnzº 2 /zrºz /º/Zºromzz 5 ºzza/e///ºzzzzzzzz 4 /º/, ///zzzzzzzz nºw, º/*** º, & A*, *.** - º, -** - ~~~ LECTURE IX. 113 larity in their history which is unexampled in that of any other. This consists in the double change of the winged insect, which as soon as it springs from the chrysalis, flies to some ad- joining body, and then again divests itself of its skin, that of the wings themselves not excepted. The Order Hymenoptera consists of Insects with four membranaceous wings, but not remark- ably fibrous as in the former Order*. It contains all the Wasp and Bee tribe; the Ichneumons and a variety of others. The general history of the Bee and Wasp tribe being pretty familiar to most persons, I shall confine myself to an ex- ample or two from the genus Ichneumon, the habits of which, so far as relates to the production of their young, are peculiarly singular. The genus Ichneu- mon is distinguished by long, slender antennae, with a great many joints, and by the very slender process which connects the breast with the body of the animal, and which in many species appears like a kind of footstalk. # They are also furnished in general with a sting or piercer, which in some is innocent, while in others it is calcu- lated for the discharge of a highly agrimonious or poisonous fluid, as in wasps and bees. LECT. II. I I 14 LECTURE IX. . These insects deposit their eggs in the bodies of other living Insects, and generally in those of Caterpillars. For this purpose the female Ichneumon selects her victim, and in spite of all the efforts of the tormented animal, pierces its skin, and deposits her eggs beneath: the Caterpillar after the first pain is over appears to suffer nothing; but after a few days the inclosed eggs hatch, and the larvae of the Ichneumons are nourished by the juices of the Caterpillar, which at length dies in consequence; but sometimes not till it has undergone its change into a chrysalis. * Some very minute Ichneumons deposit their eggs in even the eggs themselves of Moths and Butterflies. So small are some species of this very numerous genus, The next Order, called Diptera, consists of Insects with two wings only, as the whole race of Flies, strictly so called, as well as Gnats and a great variety of other Insects, All the real Flies, or those of the genus Musca, are derived from Maggots, which have themselves been hatched from the eggs deposited; by the parent Flies. But of these Maggots many differ greatly from each other both in form as well as LECTURE Ix. I 1.5 in manner of life and place of residence, some living on putrid animal substances, some on the smaller insects’; and some are of an aquatic na- ture. Some Flies, as a species greatly allied to the common Window-Fly for instance, are ovi- viviparous, producing living Maggots, which have themselves been first hatched internally. "The Common Gnat belongs to a genus called Culer, and is sufficiently known to supersede the neéessity of particular description. It deposits its eggs in groupes on the surface of stagnant wa- ters, and the young during their larva state are of a very peculiar appearance. When changed into the chrysalis state they are still loco-motive, and when ready for the production of the perfect Insect spring to the surface of the water, and give birth to it. In the genus called CEstrus or Gad-Fly the eggs are laid by the parent insect in the skin of the backs of Cattle, in one species; in others in the nostrils and other parts of Deer and Sheep: the larves, when arrived at their full size, creep out, and retiring beneath the surface of the grass or under any convenient body, change into a chrysalis, from which in a certain space springs the animal in its ultimate form. } i 6 LECTURE IX. The last Order of Insects is called Aptera, and comprises Wingless Insects. . It consists, according to Linnaeus, of the Crab and Lobster tribe, of Spi- ders, Scorpions, Centipedes, Monoculi, Mites, and many other Insects. But, as I have before ob- served, some of the French zoologists have been inclined to dismiss th; Crab and Lobster tribe, the Monoculi, &c. from the class of Insects. The Crabs and Lobsters, as is well known, cast their skins annually, the body shrinking before the change, and enabling them easily to draw out their limbs from the shell: the animal being then in a weak and tender state, remains in some quiet retreat till its new shell is completely grown. This genus is excessively numerous, and some of the species are extremely small. The larger ani- mals of the kind, as the larger kind of Crabs for instance, possess the extraordinary power of casting off at pleasure any limb that happens to be accidentally maimed or bruised, instead of waiting for a gradual convalescence: a new limb is soon afterwards formed, which gradually sup- plies the place of that which had been voluntarily cast off. t The Scorpions, forming the genus Scorpio of 28a, , ººza Zondºn, /a/…/ 41 & Zºcorrºw.” ſºrºr. e º, -º LECTURE IX. A 17 Linnaeus, are distinguished by their oblong body, eight legs; two large claspers or claws in front, and long, jointed tail, furnished at the tip with a crooked and very sharp-pointed sting, provided with a poisonous fluid, which is injected into the wound. caused by the sting. The Common or Italian Scorpion measures about three inches from the head to the end of the tail, and is of a reddish- brown colour. * ºr It is very common in the warm parts of Europe, and though its sting causes pain- ful symptoms yet it is rarely productive of any real danger. But the Great African Scorpion, with a body as large as a Crawfish, and measuring eight or nine inches from the head to the tip of the tail, is a far more dangerous animal, and its sting is said to be often fatal. It is found in the hotter regions of Africa. I shall only mention one or two more genera of the Apterºis or Wingless Insects. The genus Aranea or spider has eight eyes, situated separate from each other on the top of the head. The mouth is armed with two strong fangs or holders, the tips of which are each furnished with a small hole or slit, through which is discharged a poi- sonous fluid, sufficient to destroy or kill the mi- 1 I 8 LECTURE IX. nute animals on which Spiders prey. The legs are eight in number, and at the end of the body are four or five small teats or . organs through which the animal draws its thread. Each of these teats is pierced with a vast number of holes through each of which proceeds a distinct thread, and the animal can either draw its thread from all the holes at once or by any particular number; in short what we call a single spider's thread may consist, according to some computists, of not less than six thousand distinet filaments. The size to which the European spiders arrive is not very great, but the hotter regions of Africa and Ame- rica produce spiders of a size so gigantic as to be formidable even to birds and many other animals on which they prey. One of the chief of these is the Aranea Avicularia or Bird-catching Spider, of which very capital specimens may be seen in the Leverian Museum. These Spiders are found principally in the hotter parts of South-America. The genus called Acarus or Mite contains the smallest of all known Insects, as well as some of considerable size. The mites are a very numerous race. The generic character consists in having eight legs, and in many species a kind of claspers, ILIE ('TURE. S. - Zºº - LECTURE IX. 1:19 operating as a pair of additional legs. The body is of a thick and roundish shape; in some species nearly globular, and in others flattish. The com- mon Cheese-Mite or Acarus Siro of Linnaeus is a familiar example of the genus. It proceeds from an egg deposited by the parent insect, and is at its first hatching, perfectly like the parent except in size, and in wanting the third part of legs, , which do not make their appearance till after the first casting of its skin. The Mite is beset with long hairs, and if it be accurately surveyed by the microscope, it will be found that these hairs are not of a simple structure, but are bearded along the sides in the manner of the bristles on an ear of barley. To the genus Acarus or Mite belongs a very curious Insect popularly known by the name of the Harvest Bug, which is of a bright scarlet colour, and so very small as to be but just visible to a good eye without the assistance of a glass. In the middle of summer, or rather towards its decline, this little animal is often pecu- liarly troublesome by attaching itself to the skin of those who walk among long grass or through corn fields. H2O LECTURE IX. It is even to a species of Mite that the cuta, neous disorder so common among the vulgar of al- most all nations has been supposed to owe its exist. ence. At least it is certain that a particular disorder of that kind is really caused by a very small spe- cies of Mite, which insinuates itself beneath the cu- ticle and causes extreme irritation. This disorder, though not often noticed by modern physicians, appears to have been well known in this country about the time of Queen Elizabeth; and is very distinctly recorded by Mouffet in his History of Insects. The animal has hardly any where been figured with sufficient exactness except in the work of Baron Degeer. . The figure, we at present view is a very correct representation of the animal, which is of a white colour, with reddish brown head and hind-legs: it is chiefly distinguished as a species by having the two pair of fore-legs excessively thick at their origin, and terminating in a slender tube; while the four hind-legs proceed from a very narrow base, then suddenly enlarge into an oval shape, and from thence gradually stretch into a long and sharp- pointed bristle. *a Z2/ |BILACK S LTTG, |,INTAX IMAXIMIſs Z2/" ſpo/// / /o/, .ſ.%/ * * * *%z ºr / Mº Azzºz. - - --~~~~ - º */º LECTURE X, THE Mollusca or soft-bodied animals, are, in the Linnaean arrangement, divided into such as are destitute of a shelly covering, and such as are fur- mished with one. In our present lecture we shall turn our attention to the first of these tribes, or Soft-bodied Animals without any truly shelly or very hard integument, though some of them, as we shall perceive when we arrive at such particu- iar genera, have a kind of coriaceous, and even a crustaceous covering. In giving a view of the Linnaean Mollusca, it is not my intention to pass formally through every genus, but to select as ex- amples such as are either most important or most curious. The genus Limaa, which stands first on the list, may be considered as important; since it forms, as it were, the type or pattern of most of 122 LECTURE X. the Animals inhabiting the univalve, spiral shells, whose inhabitants are formed on the same plan. The genus Limaa or Slug is characterized by hav- ing an oblong body, furnished above with a fleshy shield, and beneath with a flattened expansion, answering the purpose of a foot or locomotive or- gan. On the right side of the breast is a large orifice ; and on the front of the head are four feelers or tentacula, or, as they are popularly termed, horns. The most familiar example of this genus is the common black Slug, generally called the black Snail, so frequently seen in fields and gardens in damp weather. There is also another species, rather larger and of a brown colour, found in similar situations; but the largest of the Bri- tish species is the Limax maximus of Linnaeus, which somewhat exceeds the size of both the for- mer, and is of a pale greyish-brown colour, spot- > ted and streaked with black. All these animals feed entirely on vegetables, and are produced from whitish gelatinous eggs, deposited in shady situa- tions, beneath the surface of the ground. In al- most all particulars, except in not being furnish- ed with a shell, they resemble the common of Garden Snails. Z2.5 ºw ºcº. |DOIRIS RADIATA *** Zoº /*4%/4, ºr AZ.cº.ſºve: - LECTURE X. 123 The marine Genus Aplysia, is nearly allied to that of Limax, but of a somewhat more compli- cated structure. ... * * The genus Doris, which is also marine, is greatly allied to that of Limax, and the species, which are numerous, are often called by the name of sea-snails. Among these one of the most com- mon is the Doris papillosa of Linnaeus; of the size and colour of the brown slug, but covered or bristled over with numerous, soft, pointed processes. The Linnaean species of the genus Doris differ so considerably in habit or general appearance in the different tribes, that Monsr. Cuvier and others have instituted for them several distinct genera, instead of grouping them all together, as Linnaeus has done. Among the most beautiful is the Doris radiata of the Gmelinian edition of the Systema Naturae. It is found in the Atlantic ocean, and is about an inch in length, of a very fine deep- blue colour, accompanied by a silvery lustre, and is distinguished, as a species, by having on each side the body three pair of spreading tufts or pro- cesses, of a blue colour, and each consisting of se- veral distinct, diverging rays or fibres. I have be- fore observed that it is not my intention to pass with 124 LECTURE X. punctilious exactness through all the Linnaean ge- nera of the Mollusca Nuda, and I shall therefore sex lect only the chief or principal kinds. Some of these genera contain animals of a long worm-like form, and seem, as it were, to connect in some degree the insect tribe with that of the Vermes; since, at first view they much resemble the animals of the gents Scolopendra or Centipede among Insects. Of these the genus Nereis may be taken as an example. The generic character consists in having a long body, furnished along each side with groups of feather- shaped tentacula, or feelers, according to Linnaeus, but which, in reality, are to be considered as so many branchiae or respiratory organs. The most conspicuous species is the Nereis gigantea of Lin- maeus, measuring from twelve to fifteen inches in length, about three quarters of an inch in breadth, and furnished along each side, from head to tail, with a triple row of the above-mentioned feather- shaped organs. Its colour is brown, with irides- cent variations, according to the cast of light. In the Gmelinian Edition of the Systema Naturae of Linnaeus this animal is more properly referred to a genus called Terebella, and is the Terebella ca- runculata of that edition. - - y20 - -- º = * = | W. tº - ". º ". º | |MW º | - - º W W LECTURE X. 125 In the Linnaean genus Nereis also stands an extremely minute species, so very small as to re- quire the assistance of a microscope in order to be distinctly examined. It has however been raised to a kind of importance from having been sup- posed by Linnaeus.the chief cause of the luminous appearance of sea-water by night; since on tak- ing up vessels full of sea-water, when the sea has appeared most brilliant, this microscopic species of Nereis has been observed in it in great plenty. The Medusae however, and a great many other marine animals, are of a phosphorescent nature, and appear luminous during the night, so that the Nereis noctiluca of Linnaeus cannot be considered as the chief cause of the phenomenon. This circumstance induces me to mention one of the new genera of marine mollusca lately insti- tuted by the French naturalists, under the name of Pyrosoma. It is described and figured in the work entitled “Annales du Museum National d'Histoire Naturelle.” This animal, (for there is only one species yet discovered) is of a lengthened and tubular form, open at one extremity, and closed at the other: the body is scattered over with numerous soft papillae or tubercles, and there is 126 LECTURE X, no appearance of any regular viscera or inter- mal organs, but the whole presents a continued vacuity. The colour of this curious animal, when at rest, is a pale greenish blue; but when in mo- tion, which is performed by the alternate con- traction and dilatation of the body, the whole appears in the highest degree of phosphoric lustre, passing through all the colours of a bar of red- hot iron, till at length it becomes of what is term- ed a white-heat; after which it again passes into the colour of red-hot iron, and from that gra- dually declines into its original greenish hue. The length of this animal is that of several inches, and its diameter about a fourth or fifth of its length. It is a native of some particular parts of the At- lantic Ocean, where it is seen in great multitudes, and irradiates the waves with its fiery brilliancy. Linnaeus would perhaps have been inclined to have made it a species of Holothuria. In the enlarged edition of the Systema Natu- rac by Gmelin, some of the small fresh-water spe- cies of the Linnaean genus Nereis are more pro- perly referred to a new and distinct genus, under the name of Nais. As an example of this genus may be mentioned a very small, transparent, and Z27 | - º | ſº º - || || || - | | |º | | || “. PHLos PHORIC IPYRoso MA º, Zwon *% aſ ºr ºr A/ºrºccº. - º º . -- - - º º - or " * º Z24% ºn ºn revº, NAIS PROBOs ("IDEA zºo.º. ººzzo” Zºº ºr 6./cow/º. LECTURE X. 12? elegantly formed worm of about half an inch in length, not uncommon in stagnant waters, and call- ed the Nais proboscidea, or long-snouted Nais, since, if accurately inspected, it will appear to be furnish- ed with a very long, transparent proboscis, which continues always stretched out, the animal being incapable of retracting it. This species, like some other of the smaller Vermes, possesses in a high degree the power of reproduction, and if cut or broken, each part will survive, and reproduce its defective organs. - But, by far the most remarkable of all the Lin- naºan genera of the Mollusca nuda or Shell-less Mol- lusca is that of Sepia, in English Cuttle or Ink- Fish. The genus Sepia or Cuttle is distinguished by having a fleshy and somewhat lengthened body, seated or enveloped in a kind of sheath, reaching nearly to the head of the animal. The head is furnished with very large eyes, and a horny, cen- tral beak, consisting of two mandibles, and resem- bling that of a parrot. Round the base of the head arise eight long arms, in a radiated direc. tion, and in some species are two additional arms, of a much greater length than the rest. All these arms are beset, on their internal surface, 128 LECTURE X. with numerous, round, concave cups, or suckers, which adhere so strongly to whatever substance the animal chuses to attach itself to, as not to be separated without great force. - - . Exclusive of these characters, the animals of this genus are furnished with an internal pouch OF receptacle, filled with a very dark-coloured fluid, in some species intensely black: . this fluid they discharge at pleasure through a tubular orifice situated at the base of the breast. - The most common European species of this genus is the Sepia Officinalis of Linnaeus, generally known by the name of the Cuttle-Fish. This ani- mal, which, at its full growth, measures about two feet in length, is of a pale bluish-brown colour, with the skin marked by numerous dark-purple specks. Imbedded in the back or fleshy part of the body of this species is always found a large oblong-oval, calcareous bone, of a cellular tex- ture, and which is of so light a nature as to float in water. It has been supposed that the animal has the power of filling the minute cellules of this bone with air, or of exhausting them of it at plea- sure, in order to ascend or descend with the great- er facility. This bone of the Cuttle-Fish is often Z29 S - S § - *. St. S S. S. - - N -> § S S. S. - * sº º N - S. S. Sº Sº | º | | | ſ º |||ſ. | - Žººr- 2^º º - º % ºš º º º º % Wºź. º A A （ (ºcean ſome º * **aſ recºzone of zerº, Z.30 ºn rºa CTTTLE IFIS EI /…///wcz, - º º º ***** /º/, CMºza Zºº, ſº 1.ECTURE X. 129 found in considerable quantities, cast on the shores, and forms a small article of commerce, being used for various purposes by different arti- ficers. It also serves, when reduced to powder, as a good common dentiſtice, and is indeed con- sidered as one of t innocent that can be used for that purpose.” . . . . The anatomy of he Cuttle-Fish is highly curious, and has long ago been detailed by Swam- merdam and others; and was even not unknown to the ancients. The animal is furnished with a pair of large lungs or respiratory organs, situated nearly as in quadrupeds, but they are constituted 401] 3, different principle, and are more allied to the gills of Fishes. The most striking particularity however in this animal is that of having three dis- tinct hearts: these are situated in the form of a triangle, and the lowest of the three is larger than the rest. The eyes, which in this whole genus are remarkably large, are covered, as in Eels and some other fishes, by the common skin, which is trans- parent in those parts. The pupil of the eye appears double, and the internal cavity of the eye is lined with a purplish-coloured mucus, which causes the eyes of the living animal to appear phosphoric or LECT, II. *> K • I30. LECTURE X. fiery in a high degree: ; the exterior coat. or ball of the eye is remarkably strong, so as to seem almost calcareous, and is when taken out of a brilliant pearl-colour; and they are worn in some particular parts of Italy, and in the Grecian islands by way of artificial, pearls in. necklaces. The Cuttle-Fish, like the rest, of its tribe, is of a pre- dacious nature, and feeds on fishes, shell-fish, and other marine animals, and is, no doubt, a highly formidable adversary; since it possesses:the power of fastening itself.so closely, by the assistance of the suckers or cups. of its arms, that no animal, unless of very considerable size, and strength, can be supposed to liberate itself from its grasp. Its favourite residence is between the vacuities or vlefts of submarine rocks, where it is generally sure of meeting with plenty of food, and, in defect of which, in such situations, it occasionally sallies out into the ocean in pursuit of prey. During these excursions, on the approach either of danger to itself, or the more easily to prevent the escape of its intended prey, it discharges, from the tubu- lar orifice at the breast, a quantity of the black fluid with which it is always amply provided; and thus obscures or darkens the water to a great, dis. LECTURE X. 13| * tance round. This practice of the Cuttle-fish was well-known to the ancients. Our own celebrated countryman, Mr. Ray, draws from this circum- stance a singularly apposite and witty illustration; and observes that an obscure and prolix author may not improperly be compared to a Cuttle-Fish; since he may be said to hide himself under his own ink! The black liquor or ink of the Cuttle- Fish, when collected, and dried, splits or cracks into fragments, which being then ground down, and redissolved in water, form an exquisite Ink, of the most durable blackness; and the well-known Chinese preparation, commonly called Indian-Ink, is, in reality, supposed to be no other than the concrete juice ofthe Cuttle-Fish, carefully managed, perfumed, and at length formed into the orna- mented cakes or masses in which we receive it. I should here observe that all the species of the genus Sepia are provided with a similar fluid, which they use for similar purposes; but that of the Common Cuttle-Fish is of a deeper or blacker colour than in most other kinds. In some species it is of a reddish-brown colour, and from it is pre- pared by the Chinese the brown and reddish-brown varieties of Indian-Ink which are sometimes seen. Y32. LECTURE X. The Ancient Romans, as appears from several passages in their writings, made use of the juice of the Cuttle-Fish by way of an ink, but they seem to have been unacquainted with any other mode of preparing it than that of merely mixing or dis- solving it in water. The female Cuttle-Fish deposits its eggs in numerous clusters, on the stalks of fuci, on corals, about the projecting sides of rocks, or on any other convenient. Substances. These eggs, which are of the size of small filberds, and of a black colour, are popularly known by the name of sea-grapes: each individual egg is of an oval shape, but with a somewhat sharpened point; the young proceeds from it complete in all its parts, and differing from the parent animal in no other respect than that of size. The Calamary, Loligo, Pen-Fish, or Ink-Fish, is a species scarcely less remarkable than the pre- ceding. It is of a much more lengthened shape, of a darker colour, and with the two long additional arms of greater length in proportion; and on each side the tail is an expansion or process, forming a kind of short triangular fin. This animal is also an inhabitant of the European seas, but is less common than the Cuttle-Fish. It has the same LECTURE X. 1.3% habit of occasionally darkening the water by the discharge of its ink. Instead of the remarkable caleareous bone belonging to the common Cuttle- Fish, we find in the Calamary a long, thin, trans- parent, pen-shaped cartilage; of a curious appear- ance, pointed at the tip of the dilated part, and semicylindrical at the other end, somewhat repre- senting the stem of a quill. This is supposed to be the reason of the name of Calamary, applied to this species. Its general habits are very similar to: those of the Cuttle-Fish. It is a very prolific animal, and the eggs are of a very singular and curious ap- pearance: they are deposited in the form of nume- rous lengthened groups, radiating from a common centre, and spreading every way into a circular form: each egg is of a glassy transparency, and the young animal may be very distinctly observed in each, many days before the period of exclusion. These groups of the eggs of the Calamary are often. seen swimming on the surface, and are occasionally. thrown on shore; the whole groupe sometimes, measures more than a foot in diameter, and from its general appearance, unless closely inspected, is often mistaken for a species of Medusa or Sea- Blubber. 134, LECTURE X. A more remarkable species than either of the preceding is the Eight-Armed Cuttle-Fish, or Se- pia Octopodia of Linnaeus. This animal has # short, oval body, surrounded at the upper part by an expansile membrane, into the sides of which are inserted the arms, which are of great length, beset on the inside with a double row of suckers or holders, and are all of equal length, or without an additional long pair as in the two preceding species of this genus. The eight-armed Cuttle- Fish, when at full growth, may be considered as a very formidable animal, and possesses such a de- gree of strength as to make it dangerous to attack it without great precaution. Such is the ferocity and violence with which it defends itself, that even the strongest Mastiff can hardly subdue it without a long and doubtful contest. It has even been known to attack a person while swimming, and to fasten itself with dangerous force round the body and limbs. It is supposed that there is something more than a mere power of adhesion in the aceta- bula or concave suckers or fasteners with which the arms of this animal are beset; something of an electric or galvanic nature; since the pain which their application causes does not soon cease after 2.5/ - ºw.…. EIGHT AIRMED CTTTLE FISH zºneaſ ºz//ozzº wºody wººzza, A44% a' ºr ººcºº |EIGHT AIRMED CITT TILE IFISH pºemſeaſ/o/, /d/// zºo/, //c/a/a/aa A.w///ca. 4, 6/zzarº // cº-ºccº. º wn º | ſ º º |E|\}|HIT ARMED ("Iſ TTLE |E|SIHI way". *…* /ø/ nº ozºne o//e Zez/. zºo.ºca. Zozaan Zºº & Cºnrºez.” LECTURE X. 135 the removal of the animal; a kind of stinging or urtication remaining for many hours, and long aſ- ter this, a troublesome irritation and itching. This species arrives at a very large size, being often seen so large that the body equals the size of a gourd, while the arms measure from three to four feet in length, and from nine to twelve in cir- cumference when spread out in the form of a star, which is a posture in which the animal frequently places them. It resides in the deep channels formed by large rocks, and is generally seen in pairs. The male is said to wander about in quest of prey to a certain distance from its recess, while the female rarely wanders from it. The eggs of the Ei ght-Armed Cuttle-Fish are extremely numer- ous, and are disposed in a kind of grape-like clus- ter: they are of a glassy transparency, so that the young animal, as in those of the Calamary, may be seen in them long before the time of its exclusion. The Sepiae or Cuttle-Fish in general, were often called by the ancients by the title of Polypi, on account of their numerous limbs: they also possess, like the Polypi of modern Natural His- tory, a considerable degree of reproductive power; 136 LECTURE x. being often seen with limbs which have evidently been mutilated, and have reproduced. . . * The Eight-Armed and common Cuttle-Fish are numbered among the edible marine animals, and are still used in many parts of Europe as a food. With the Romans they seem to have been consi- dered as a delicacy. When boiled, they assume a red or deep salmon-colour, especially when salted, The Greeks as well as the Romans are known to have been in the habit of using the Cuttle as a food, and it has been supposed, and surely not without a considerable degree of probability, that the celebrated plain, but wholesome dish, the black broth of Sparta, was no other than a kind of Cuttle-Fish soup, in which the black liquor of the animal was always added as an ingredient ; being, when recent, of a very agreeable taste. Mr. Pennant, in the fourth volume of his Bri- tish Zoology, speaking of the Eight-armed Cuttle, tells us, he has been well assured from persons worthy of credit, that in the Indian seas this spe- cies has been found of such a size as to measure two fathoms in breadth across the central part, while each arm has measured nine fathoms in LECTURE X. 137 length; and that the natives of the Indian isles, when sailing in their canoes, always take care to be provided with hatchets, in order to cut off im- mediately the arms of such of those animals as happen to fling them over the sides of the canoe, lest, they should pull it under water and sink it. This has been considered as a piece of eredulity in Mr. Pennant, unworthy of a sober naturalist. It is certain however that a great variety of appa- rently authentic evidences seem to confirm the reality of this account. The ancients, it is evi- dent, acknowledged the existence of animals of the Cuttle-Fish tribe of a most enormous size; witness the account given by Pliny and others of the large Polypus as he terms it, which used to rob the repositories of salt-fish on the coasts of Carteia, and which, according to his description, had a head of the size of a cask that would hold fifteen amphorae 5 arms measuring thirty feet in length, of such a diameter that a man could hardly clasp one of them, and beset with suckers or fasten- ers of the size of large basins that would hold four or five gallons apiece. The existence in short of some enormously large species of the Cuttle-Fish tribe in the Indian and northern seas can hardly be 13s LECTURE x. . doubted; and though some accounts may have been much exaggerated, yet there is sufficient cause for believing that such species very far sur- pass all that are generally observable about the coasts of the European seas. A modern natura- list chooses to distinguish this tremendous species by the title of the Colossal Cuttle-Fish, and seems amply disposed to believe all that has been re- lated of its ravages. A northern navigator of the name of Dens is said some years ago to have lost. three of his men in the African seas, by a monster of this kind, which unexpectedly made its appear- ance while these men were employed, during a calm, in raking the sides of the vessel. The Colos- sal Cuttle-Fish seized these men in its arms, and drew them under water, in spite of every effort, to preserve them : the thickness of one of the arms which was cut off in the contest was that of a mi- zen-mast, and the acetabula or suckers of the size of pot-lids. But what shall we say to the idea of a modern French naturalist, who is inclined to suppose, that the destruction of the great French ship the Ville de Paris, taken by the English during the Ameri- can war, together with nine other ships which LECTURE X. 139 * eamerto her assistance on seeing her fire signals of distress, was owing, not to the storm which ac- companied the disaster, but to a groupe of Colos- sal Cuttle-Fishes, which happened at that very time to be prowling about the ocean beneath these unfortunate vessels? These accounts, whether true or false, natu- rally recal to our recollection the far-famed mon- ster of the Northern seas, often mentioned in a vague manner under the name of Kraken or Kor- ven. The general tenor of these accounts is, that in some parts of the Northern seas, during the heat of summer, while the sea is perfectly calm, a vast mass, resembling a kind of floating island, about a quarter of a mile in diameter, is seen to rise above the surface: appearing to be covered with a profusion of sea-weeds, corals, and other marine substances. When it is fully risen, it sel- dom fails to stretch up several enormous arms, of such a height as to equal that of the masts of a ship; and after having continued in this position for some time, it again slowly descends. From the general description thus given of its shape, it has been supposed that it is a species of Sepia or Cuttle-Fish. Linnaeus, in the first edition of his 140 LECTURE X. work entitled Fauna Suecica, as well as in the earlier editions of his Systema Naturae, seems in- clined to admit the existence of this animal, and forms a genus for it under the name of Micro- ÇOS/721/S. The genus Medusa contains a very remark- able set of marine animals, which are generally characterized by their soft and almost gelatinous substance, their rounded and somewhat flattened shape, their semitransparency, and their numerous arms or tentacula. The species of this genus are extremely numerous, and often present an appear- ance in the highest degree elegant and singular. They are of various sizes, some measuring one or two, or even three feet in diameter, while others are of a size so diminutive as scarcely to equal half an inch in diameter. One of the most remark- able of the larger kinds is the Medusa Pulmo, which is seen in many of the European seas, and is most common about the coasts of Italy and Si- cily. It measures from one to two feet in diame- ter: the body is nearly hemispherical, concave be- neath, notched into several very slight or shallow divisions round the edge, and furnished beneath with a very large and curious apparatus, consisting A.3.3 |M|IFIDUSA PUILM0 zºo” ºccºa/wwºw, Zºº 4, c/º Azer.ºreer NIIEDUSA (CAMPANIEL L.A. or Zºe/A//ara ºn tº maſºra/ºe & mayºra’ Z.3/ |-- sºs s = E. E. ss= | ss= W ºwº rºº. zºo.º. ºccº, ºn 7% 41. &/ºr Zºet.** LECTURE X. - 141 of eight limbs or arms, springing from a central trunk, dividing into eight large wrinkled lobes, which are tipped with so many lengthened sub- triangular processes. The whole animal is of a. glassy transparency, and very much resembles the appearance of a chandelier or glass lustre. The Medusae in general are with extreme difficulty preserved in their natural appearance, either in spirits, or by any other method, and many of them have been but very imperfectly described and figured in the works of Naturalists. The Medusa Pulmo, which I have just mentioned, has been very accurately and elegantly described and re- presented by Dr. Macri, an Italian physician, who many years ago published its description. The species of Medusae differ very much in habit from each other; insomuch that several distinct genera might be instituted from the single Linnaean ge- nus Medusa. Many species are highly phospho- ric, and shine during the night with a very bril- liant lustre. They are of a predacious nature, and live on the smaller kinds of fishes, and other ma- rine animals, which, notwithstanding their appa- rently tender nature, they are enabled to seize 142 LECTURE x. with their arms or tentacºla, and to absorb by s means of their mouth or central orifice. They afe probably viviparous animals; they are in general. called by the popular title of sea-blubbers, and are sometimes so very numérous as to float by thousands on the surface of particular parts of the * Another very singular genus is that of Holo- thuria, of which the characters are, an oblong, mayant or floating body, furnished at one extre- mity with several arms, feelers, or tentacula, sur- - rounding the mouth or opening. I shall here ob- serve, once for all, that many of the Linnaean ge- nera of the Mollusca are capable of considerable improvement, and that he has somewhat too fre- quently associated under one genus, animals not sufficiently resembling each other in habit or ge- neral appearance. The most common perhaps of the European species of the present genus is the Holothuria tremula; an animal of a lengthened, . cylindric form, of a purplish-red colour, and beset on all sides with very numerous soft tubercles of different sizes; and furnished at its upper end, round the mouth, with numerous short but cu- * A-5 - º | --~~ - *…" º | | | - wº, Mºaº ºr HOLOTHURIA Uſ TRICTUI, Uſs ºf eſºzzº ºpezer ºf a Jezzºzzzzz coºr ºwcºw/moz/. *nzº rºw: /ø/ &c., &c. zealazzazz --- - - º) zºº/* Wowºw, Zºº 4, 6 Mºzzº ºr -º LECTURE X: 143 riously branched arms, forming the appearance of so many clusters: the animal is chiefly a native of the northern seas. A much more remarkable species is the Holo- thuria Physalis of Linnaeus, generally known to sailors by the name of the Portuguese Man of War. It may be considered as one of the most curious of all the Mollusca, and resembles in shape an ob- long transparent bladder, several inches in length, sharp at one end, and somewhat rounded at the other ; of a pale purple colour, with deeper veins or ramifications: along the upper part runs a slightly elevated ridge or crest, somewhat undulated or notched on the outline, while from beneath the large or obtuse end of the animal hang down, in a perpendicular direction, a great many string- shaped feelers or processes of a deep purple co- lour, and of different lengths: lastly, the edges of the body beneath, are surrounded by a series of short or abrupt processes of a deep purplish-brown colour. The appearance of the whole is in the highest degree singular and elegant. From hav- ing examined a very fine drawing of this animal, in its living or recent state, by an artist of great talent, I am enabled to give its description with sufficient accuracy. The figures hitherto given, such as that in Sloane's Jamaica, and some other works, exhibit only a general similitude. It is often confounded with a different species, resembling it in some degree, but of a much longer or more slender form, and of a greenish colour, with nu- merous yellowish-brown tentacula, among which are two or three central ones far exceeding the rest in size and length; of a wrinkled or annu- lated appearance, and of the richest deep-blue co- lour. The real structure or anatomy of these ve- sicular Holothuriae seem as yet but very imper- fectly understood. They are observed to float oc- casionally, during fine weather, on the surface of a calm sea, and when taken, have the power of in- flaming the skin to a considerable degree, if in- cautiously handled. - - - The beautiful genus Actinia, from its flower- like appearance when expanded, called the Sea- - Anemone, is characterized by having an oblong body, of an extensile and expansile nature, and adhering by the base to rocks or other marine substances. The mouth is situated in the centre of the upper part or disc, and is surrounded by very numerous, soft, extensile feelers or arms, ACTININ VARIA ACTINLA DIANTHUs º ºn. - N - § ſº § º N º º º º º/ º º º º º º \ . * = º - º/ . ACTINIA ("ERIEU's -º- Zºra. Z//wcaſ. Z//zazz LECTURE X. 145 spreading in the manner of rays, and disposed in a single, double, or triple series, according to the different species. The Actiniae are very common on the rocks of most of the European coasts: when in their contracted state, they have the appear- ance of inanimate, rounded masses of coloured pulp or flesh; and when expanded, they greatly resemble the appearance of an expanded polype- talous flower, particularly those of the Anemone and Ranunculus tribe. One of the most common British species is the Actinia varia *, found on most of our coasts, and varying ad infinitum in its colours, being either red, olive, green, of differ- ent shades, and either plain or variously spotted: its principal character, and which distinguishes it in whatever variety of general colour it may hap- pen to appear, consists in a row of short bead-like prominences, surrounding the external row of ten- tacula: these bead-like processes are invariably of a bright blue colour. The Actinia varia S. S. in general measures about two inches in diameter at the base, but is occasionally seen of far larger size. A more beautiful species is however found on * Act, Mesembryanthemum. Ellis, Gmel. Syst. Nat, . LECT. II. I. 146 LECTURE x. our own coasts ; generally imbedding itself in the sand, instead of adhering to rocks; it is called the Actinia crassicornis, and is distinguished by its red colour, and roughish external surface, while the central or middle part, when expanded, is white, most elegantly marked near the base of the tenta- cula with numerous carmine-coloured streaks: the tentacula themselves being of a pearl-colour, and of a much thicker or more swelled appearance than in most other species. The Actinia crassi- cornis often measures four, five, or even six inches in diameter when in its expanded state. The Actiniae or Sea-Anemonies are naturally very voracious animals, preying not only on the softer sea-animals, but on such as are guarded by a shelly defence; they swallow various kinds of univalve shell-fish, the smaller kind of crabs, and other animals, and when they have absorbed the juices of their prey, they reject the shell or other integument by the mouth. When kept in vessels of sea-water, which may be easily practised, they seem to require no particular nutriment, absorb- ing a sufficient quantity of animal gluten from the sea-water itself for all the purposes of nutrition. In this confined state they do not grow or increase LECTURE X. 147 in, size, though they frequently produce a numer- ous offspring, being of a very prolific nature, and viviparous. The young are produced of various sizes. from that of a pin's head to that of half an inch in diameter, and to the number of five, ten, or In Ore at a birth. As these animals are allied to the Polype tribe in some degree, they partake of their qualities, and will reproduce many of their organs, * when either purposely or accidentally mutilated. The minuter genera of the Mollusca it would be tedious and uninteresting to particularize in the course of a lecture, but the larger and more remarkable ones justly demand our attention. Of these the genus Asterias or Star-Fish is one of the chief: it is rather of a coriaceous or crustaceou nature than of that soft cast so common to many other of the Mollusca. The generic character consists in having a depressed body, covered by a coriaceous or tough integument, roughened by very numerous small processes or tentacula. The mouth is central, and situated beneath. By far the greater number of the Sea-Stars or Asteriae are of a stellated or radiated shape; several lengthen- ed arms or limbs proceeding from the common body or central part, so that the animal represents 148 LECTURE x. the form of a star, as vulgarly painted. In some the rays or limbs are few in number, and in others numerous: in the more simple species the prevail- ing number of the rays is five; in others ten, 'or twelve. In some the rays, instead of being broad or thick at the base, are throughout extremely narrow; and lastly, some are of a compound and very numerously-ramified appearance. Several are natives of the European seas, but the most striking are of exotic origin. Many have been ad- mirably figured in the work of Seba, and many in that of Link, an author who wrote a work on this genus in particular, accompanied by very numer- ous plates. As the strong and almost crustaceous skin of these animals admits of their being easily preserved in their natural appearance, they are frequently seen in collections, and many of the most rare and curious species may be found in the British and Leverian Museums. Of the simpler kinds, or those with large, thick rays, the A. reti. culata is one of the largest, and most elegant; it often measures a foot in diameter, and is of a yel- lowish red colour, with the upper surface curiously tuberculated, and the margins of the rays jointed in such a manner as to appear as if artificially carv- Z37 ºlº º º º § - § º §§ § | - º -S$s * º ſº º # s º *.*. ASTERIAs PAPPos A º/* Zºe/a ^4 reaſ .ſ.Zºº A. Zºº, *&^%z-Zoº /*///4, & Mººr/ºr ºrz Jºz. LECTURE X. 149 ed; while the whole surface of the body is mark- ed into numerous, slightly-prominent, reticular spaces of a triangular figure. It is a native of the Indian seas. . . . The Ast. Gigas” is of similar size and colour, and is all over roughened by small pointed pro- tuberances, which also verge the margins of the rays: it is a native of the Atlantic, and is well figured in the magnificent work of Seba. Of the British species the 4. popposa OT COIIle mon twelve-rayed Star-fish is a good example. Its colour is a dark yellowish red, and its surface roughened by very numerous small protuberances. Its usual number of rays or limits is twelve, but it varies, from ten or eleven, to thirteen or even fifteen. The most curious of the whole tribe is the A. Caput Medusa of Linneus, or Medusa's Head Star-Fish. It grows to a large extent, measuring † Ol’é than two feet in diameter when the limbs are fully extended: This very extraordinary ani- mal is first divided into five equidistant, jointed processes, each of which is soon subdivided into -** * A. Gigas. : Mus. Tessin. pl. 9. 150 LECTURE x. two other smaller Ones ; and each of these, at a somewhat farther distance, into two others, still smaller, this mode of regular subdivision being continued to a vast extent, and in the most beau- tiful gradation of minuteness, till at length the number of extreme ramifications amounts to se- veral thousands. By this most curious structure, the animal becomes, as it were, a kind of living net, and is capable of catching such creatures as are destined for its prey, by the sudden contrac- tion of all its innumerable ramifications, and thus the object is secured beyond all power of escape. For examples of this animal I must refer to the British and Leverian Museums. The Sea-Stars in general have a very consider- able degree of reproductive power, and if injured by accidental violence, or if one or more of the limbs be cut or torn off, the animal will in time be furnished with new ones. They wander about the ocean in quest of prey, more particularly near the shores, and feed not only on the softer Sea-ani- mals, but on the smaller shell-fish. Their mouth, which, as I before observed, is situated beneath, is armed with hard and sharp teeth, resembling a kind of spines, and converging towards the centre Z.38% Z% ºwe nº zºº.º.º. Zwaa.… º/” º º | Tºº |º | º º | | | ºº: º º Nº. º Nº. º º º º L º º º | W. º º | º | - º º º º - º º ſº - º º º \\ º º º º --- º - º \ º º - | º ". | º | ſºn º º º | | | º º: º º º º * aw/º. |E ("HINTſs E S Ctrl, ENTTIs or Cozzzzzzo, Jezz /7/w/2 zºº’erº-Zozºo/, /a/.4%/4, ºvºv Zºº.”. LECTURE X. I 5.1 of the mouth, and differing in number in the dif. ferent species. I should not omit to observe that the curious species last mentioned, the Medusa's Head Star-Fish, is chiefly confined to the Indian seas, but is sometimes found in those of Europe. Those who may wish for a particular description of the anatomy of the Star-fishes, may consult the observations of Reaumur on this subject, publish- ed in the Memoirs of the French Academy. The concluding genus of the Linnaean Mollus- ca Nuda, or such as have not a true shelly inte- grant, is called Echinus or Sea-Urchin. Its ap- pearance is remarkable, the body, which is soft, being inclosed in a thin, calcareous crust, which is thickly beset with spines, of different length in the different species, which are extremely numer- ous, and vary considerably in habit or general appearance from each other. The mouth in this genus is central, placed beneath, and furnished with five strong, converging, bony teeth or spines. The most familiar example of the genus is the common or edible Sea-Urchin ; the Echinus escu- Jentus of Linnaeus, so very frequently seen on many of our own coasts. Its shape is nearly glo- bular, but slightly flattened beneath, and some- 152 LECTURE x. times measures four inches or more in diameter, The body, or soft part within the shell, is mark- ed, as it were, into a kind of lobes or divisions, not much unlike those of the pulp of an orange; the intestines are disposed in a somewhat circular di- rection, and the whole body is internally support- ed by a set of upright bony columns. On the outside of the shell, which is generally of a dull violet-colour, and sometimes greenish, are seated a prodigious number of sharp, moveable spines, curiously articulated with the tubercles of the sur- face, and connected by strong ligaments. These spines are the instruments of motion, by the assist- ance of which the animal conveys itself at plea- sure to any particular spot ; and so tenacious are they of the vital principle, that, on breaking the shell, the several fragments have been sometimes seen to walk off in different directions. Between the spines, disposed in continued longitudinal rows or series, on the different divisions of the shell, are an infinite number of small holes, com- municating with tentacula or feelers placed above them: these feelers are the instruments by which the creature fixes itself at pleasure to any object, and stops its motion: they are possessed of a very ^ LECTURE X. 153 high degree of contractile power, and are furnish- ed at the extremity with a slightly expanded tip, which acts as a sucker or fastener. By these feel- ers also the Echinus takes its prey, fastening ea- sily on any small shell-fish in its way, and securing it, by applying to the shell the tips of its feelers and dragging it to , its mouth. This species is considered as no unpleasant article of food, and was a dish well known to the ancient Romans. The internal structure of the spines, if closely ex- amined, will be found to bear a considerable re- semblance to those of the hedge-hog, the general structure being the same in both, though the one is of a horny, and the other of a calcareous sub- stance. To particularize the Exotic Echini would be an endless task. Among the most remarkable species is the flattish-bodied Indian Echinus, with extremely large, thick, club-shaped spines, of a violet colour, barred with white. This curious species, with several of its most remarkable va- rieties, occurs in the highest perfection in the Le- verian Museum. The shells of the Echini in ge- neral, when dried, and divested of their spines, generally present a very elegant and beautiful appearance, the pattern of the jointed subdivisions 154 LECTURE x. of the shell or crust varying in the different spe- , cies, and the general colour being of a reddish or yellowish cast. We may observe here, that many different species of this genus occur very fre- guently in a fossil state; sometimes imbedded in chalk, and sometimes in flint. I have now passed through the chief tribes of the Mollusca nuda, or the Soft-bodied animals des- titute of a stony shell; and shall in my next lec- ture proceed to the shelly or testaeedus tribe. LECTURE xi. THE Linnaean Mollusca Testacea, or Soft-bo- died Animals furnished with Shells, are divided into three assortments, called Univalves, Bivalves, and Multivalves ; meaning, that the shelly cover con- sists either of one, two, or several parts or valves. A Univalve Shell may be exemplified by that of the common snail; for the shell is simple or un- divided. A Bivalve Shell may be exemplified by a Muscle, in which, as every one knows, the shell is composed of two pieces or valves; and lastly a Multivalve Shell may be exemplified by any spe- cies of Lepas or Bernacle, in which the shelly co- vering of the animal is formed of several pieces or divisions. The animals inhabiting by far the greater part of the Univalve shells are formed on the plan of the common Garden Snail, to which they bear a great general resemblance, though furnished, in I 56 LECTURE XI. the different genera, or sets, with some particular parts or organs not to be observed in Snails; and the Snails themselves are formed on the plan of the genus Limax or Slug, which, as I mentioned at our last meeting, may be considered as the ar- chetype or pattern of most of the animals of the univalve shells, The animals inhabiting the bivalve shells are formed on a different plan, and, except in a few particular instances, bear a general resemblance to the animal of the muscle and the oyster, and are closely allied to the Linnaean genera of the Naked Mollusca called Tethys and, Ascidia, The animals of the Multivalve Shells vary con- siderably in their structure; for while some are shaped like the animals of the Bivalves, others are formed like those of the major part of the Uni- valves; that is they have a snail-like shape; and lastly, others are of a habit or appearance totally differing from any of the Univalve or Bivalve tribes, and peculiar to themselves and to the ge- nus Triton among the naked Mollusca. The most striking deviation from the general plan of Nature in the Univalve shells is exhibited in the Linnaean genus Argonauta or Argonaut ; LECTURE xf. 15% * the principal species of which are inhabited by "animals of an appearance so widely remote from that of the rest of the shell-tribe, and so closely al- "lied to the genus Sepia or Cuttle, as scarcely to differ except in the circumstance of having two of the arms' furnished towards the tip with a very lárge, expanded, oval membrane, by the assist- "ance of which it is enabled to sail along the sur- # , . face of the sea, when calm, in any particular di- rection, and on the least appearance of danger to * submerge itself by suddenly contracting its webbed arms, and withdrawing them into the shell. The principal species of the genus Argonauta, the first of the Univalves in the Linnaean arrange- ment, is well kniown to the shell-collectors by the name of the Paper Nautilus. This shell, which grows to a very considerable size, some- times measuring near ten inches in length, is of an appearance uncommonly elegant, representing a kind of boat or vessel, of a slightly compressed shape, gradually widening towards the tip or mouth, and turning up at the back part into a spi. ral curvature. The whole shell, which is scarcely thicker than 'common paper, of a white colour, and semitransparent, is marked throughout its 158 LECTURE XI. whole surface by very numerous, deeply-impress- ed, obliquely-descending furrows; and the keel or bottom is tuberculated along each side by the pro- jecting tips of the furrowed part of the shell. This shell, with its inhabiting animal, sailing along the surface in fine weather, has from very remote times attracted the admiration of mankind, and has been celebrated as having given the first hint for the practice of navigation, as if man, with all his powers of mind, was unable to conceive the possibility of swimming or sailing in a boat upon the water, without first receiving a hint from the inhabitant of a shell ! This is the species to which the well-known lines of Pope allude, and which have been so often quoted on the subject, that not- withstanding their real beauty, they may be consi- dered as almost vulgarized by frequent repetition. “Learn of the little Nautilus to sail, “Spread the thin oar, and catch the rising gale." As the animal which thus sails in the shell called the Paper Nautilus is not fastened to the shell by any connecting tendon, like the rest of the testa- ceous tribe, but has the power of leaving the shell at pleasure, and as its appearance is widely differ- AR tº ox Atºto, PAPER N \tºr its ºr ºf rzewº ***** *4% ºr 6 Mºr A*.*. LECTURE XI. E.59 ent from the rest, and exactly similar in all re- spects to the genus Sepia or Cuttle, except in having expansile membranes at the two foremost arms, a suspicion has often been entertained, that it could not be the true or proper inhabitant of the shell, but that it was some species of Cuttle, which was a usurper of the shell in which it swam; and this suspicion was strengthened by the con- sideration that many of the Univalve shells are occasionally inhabited or usurped by some of the smaller species of the Crab-tribe, as the Cancer Bernardus, Diogenes, and others. As the animal of the Paper-Nautilus is ex- tremely quick-sighted, and descends from the sur- face on the least appearance of danger, it is very difficultly obtained, and is principally found after a storm, during which it is sometimes driven ashore. * Most of the European naturalists seem, till lately, to have coincided in opinion that the ani- mal was not the real and proper inhabitant of the shell, notwithstanding the testimony of the celebrated Dutch observer, Rumphius, who, above a century ago, during his residence in the island of Amboyna, had opportunities of examining the 160 LECTURE, Xf. animal, and who has even described and figured it with sufficient exactness to prove that it was not a mere Sepia or Cuttle, but that it was really furnished with the palmated arms which operated as sails, and occasionally as oars in swimming. Rumphius's observations were however, in a great degree, unknown to the generality of writers, by being inserted in a work entitled Ephemerides Naturae Curiosorum. In the British Museum is a specimen of this dried and expanded upon paper, accompanied by a model in wax, seated in the natural shell. From an inspection of the dried specimen alone all doubts must vanish as to the real existence, of the animal, and it was from this specimen, assisted by the model, that the figure which I my- self caused to be published of the Paper-Nautilus in the act of sailing was executed. This figure of the animal seated in the shell is the first that has been given since the days, of Rumphius. Being particularly solicitous on this subject, I requested the late Professor Sibthorpe of Oxford, to attend, during his travels, to the history of this animal, and to endeavour by every possible method to obtain a specimen, in order to remove LECTURE XI, 161 any uncertainty that might still remain. By good fortune he succeeded in the attempt, and brought back a middle-sized specimen of the shell with the animal in it. This I examined, and had the fur- ther satisfaction to find that it exactly coincided with all that had been said-by those who believed it to be the real inhabitant-animal of the shell. The two membranes were still wider in proportion than in any figure yet represented; and on each side the body was a very numerous groupe of small:eggs. These I examined in order to find whether the em- bryo-animal with its shelly covering-existed in the egg, which would at once have been an experimen- tum crucis on the subject; but the eggs were not sufficiently advanced to shew this particular: Since that time however specimens of the animal in its shell have been brought to the French National Museum, and on an examination of the eggs in these specimens, it appears that the embryo-ani- mal is furnished, like snails and other shell animals, with the shell, even while yet in the egg; so that, no farther doubt now remains of the Cuttle-shaped animal inhabiting, the Paper Nautilus being the true and natural inmate of the shell. I have been the more particular on this subject, since LECT, II, Mi 182 LECTURE XI. some of the latest writers, and even Lamark and Cuvier, were doubtful; or rather, gave into the no- tion of the shell being inhabited by an animal which was not its constructor. It now remains to describe, as shortly as pos- sible, the animal itself, and this will be best done by saying, that the species of Sepia or Cuttle-Fish which it most resembles is the Common Eight- Armed Cuttle-Fish, or Sepia Octopodia of Lin- naeus: the body is oval; the head furnished with a parrot-shaped beak, like that animal; and the arms, which are eight in number, are of nearly equal length, each beset on its upper surface with two rows of suckers or fasteners as in the Cuttle- Fish, and each of the first or front arms is dilated on its inner side into avery large oval, semitrans- parent process or web, which the animal hold. ing in such a manner as to unite at the edges, they form a large sail-like concavity, which catch- ing the gale, enables it at pleasure to navigate the surface of the sea when calm. The spectacle, aS before observed, has been described by various au- thors, but by none more elegantly than by Pliny, whose short and beautiful description has been generally quoted by modern writers, - ºw ºw. ANIMAI, º///eſ//www.zºor/ºcrºcº /?wer Azzºz/ar - - - zºº ºccº /ø/ow Pººr 6. Mººr ºf Z/2 IECTURE XI. - 163 & © “Among the principal miracles of Nature (says he) is the animal called Nautilos or Pompi- los. It ascends to the surface of the sea in a su- pine posture, and gradually raising itself up, forces out, by means ºf its tube, all the water from the shell, in order that it Hay'swim the more readily; then throwing back is two foremost arms, it dis. plays between them a membrane of wonderful te: nuity, which acts as a sail, while with the remaining arms it ºws itself along; the tail in the middle acting as a helm to direct its course; and thus it pursues its voyage 3 and if alarmed by any appear- ance of danger, takes in the water and descends.” The Paper Nautilus is an inhabitant of the Mediterranean and Atlantic seas. In the Indian seas is found a species so similar that it has gene- rally been considered as a variety: it di fºrs in having the shell marked into numerous slight tu- bercles on each side the furrows. This is the va- riety described by Rumphius, in his account of its inhabiting animal, observed by him during his residence at Amboyna. There are other species and varieties of this genus, which the short limits of our lectures will not permit us to particularize. I shall only observe that the supposed species, so much celebrated under the title of the glass Nau- 164: LEdTURE xi. * tilus, and which is the Argonauta vitreus of Lin- naeus, (so very rare that hardly more than four or five specimens are to be found in the European cabinets) is suspected by an ingenious French Na- turalist to be rather the internal shelly support or bone of some kind of unknown Molluscous animal, than a real and proper shell. Yet, on the other hand, we are assured that Monsieur Bonnet has actually seen the shell sailing like other species of this genus, to which its inhabiting animal is *ś: , ... ' § 4.3 ° & yº", 3 , “ • * **, $ 3. * **, : ** * * sº º sº- e I shall now proceed to the next Linnaean set * **/ 3. greatly allied. : * § * or genus of shells, which is almost equally extra- ordinary with that of Argonauta, and has been often confounded with it by careless readers of works on Natural History. This is owing to an unfortunate similarity of names; for both have been called by the general title of Nautilus. Lin- naeus, in order to prevent confusion, named the former genus Argonauta, and restricted the gene- ric name Nautilus to that which we are now go- ing to consider, and which is in common language called the Pearly Nautilus, in order to distinguish it from the Paper Nautilus or Argonauta. The principal species of the Linnaean genus Nautilus is the N. Pompilius, a large and strong shell, NAUTILI's IPOMIPILIII s - - - - - - /// or /a/º Azzº/or ſº º, º, º ſº º |. º - º º º º º º W º N Zoºzzºna/ Jeczoz o/Zºe Jºe// zo when the ºzºwaa.ºwcare zºº ºctºr Zondon Pºa º ºſzarºv Azeez Jºcee. - - |PEARLY NAUTILI's A/ Wº W wº, z/elºw.readed/zi, a waſ ºzazzº & Wood'orºaz/. º: | º ºwn º N º º §§ ºw ºw. Zºo” werſ, Zºº, Zºº. 4, &carºſer//wz.” | º º | W.W ºº º º º | º | | | º º | º in W | º W . LECTURE XI. 165 often measuring five or six inches in length: it is of a very firm or dense fabric, of a smooth, round- ed outline, and of a shape somewhat compressed on the sides, with a very wide opening or mouth, and with the back part rolled into a spiral form within the cavity of the shell. The colour, exter- nally, is a dull yellowish-white, marked with mu- merous zebra-like yellowish-brown or dusky bands, and within of the richest and brightest silvery- pearl-colour. When the natural pellicle or epi- dermis of the outside is rubbed off, the whole shell appears silvery also. The great add striking cha- racter of the genus however, at least so far as re- gards the shell, is the extraordinary structure of the internal part, which is formed into a great number, (from thirty to forty) separate chambers or divisions, each communicating with the rest by a small tubular hole near the centre. The open- ing or mouth of the shell therefore presents a large but shallow concavity, pierced with a central or nearly central hole, and beyond lie all the divi- sions before-mentioned. The body or chief part of the inhabiting animal fills up the front or great concavity, and that only ; while from its extre- mity proceeds a slender tail or process, passing through all the rest of the chambers; and it has H 66 LECTURE XI. been supposed by some, that the animal pos- sesses the power of at pleasure filling up the chambers or cavities either with air or water, or of exhausting them of both occasionally, in or- der to make itself specifically heavier or lighter, during its navigations; for this animal is also sup- posed to have a power of sailing, though in a less perfect manner than the Argonaut or Paper Nau- tilus. The animal is also indistinctly allied to the Cuttle-Fish tribe; having an oval body, with the front or central part furnished with a parrot-shaped beak, and surrounded by arms or tentacula; but they differ from those of the Sepiae or Cuttles in being very short, extremely numerous, disposed in several concentric rows or circles, and not be- set with any visible suckers. From above the neck or round the upper part of the head rises a large, concave flap or hood, beset on the inside with nu- merous but small suckers or concave tubercles. By the elevation and expansion of this concave flap or hood the animal of the Pearly Nautilus is sup- posed to sail. It is of a pale reddish-purple co- lour, with deeper spots and variegations. It is remarkable that this animal has also been described and figured in the works of Rumphius, but the drawing representing it in its recent and AN INIAL ZZ 0//e/earſ. A//ar &/ºz o.º. º/ºr J/42// – º/one ºw.” -- - zºo.º. Zºº 1.ECTURE XI. 167 fiatural state was unfortunately lost, and the figure accompanying the description of that author was . executed from a specimen long preserved in spi- rits, and which had totally lost its natural appear- ance. It therefore, of course, gives no distinct idea of what it was meant to elucidate. From the time of Rumphius the animal seems to have re- mained in great obscurity, till it was lately again described with accuracy by a French writer, and a figure, said to be faithful, accompanies the de- scription, and may be found in the voluminous con- tinuation of Buffon's Natural History by Sonnini and others. * The animals of most of the remaining Linnaean genera of the Univalve Shells are more or less al- lied in shape to the common Snail, which is itself allied in a similar manner to the naked or shell- less animals called Shugs, belonging to the genus Limaa among the naked Mollusca. Instead of taking up the time appointed for this lecture with a-mere enumeration of the Lin- naean genera of Shells, I shall content myself with observing that they are admirably constituted on the principles of true science, and are to be re- garded as a very high improvement on all former plans of arrangement; but that they are to be ! 63 LECTURE XI. considered rather as forming a general outline. than a minute and strictly accurate illustration of the subject. Among those genera whose inhabiting animal differs from the rest as to its nature, the genus Dentalium is an example: the shell is shaped like an Elephant's tusk in miniature, and its inhabiting animal is supposed to be allied to a Terebella. The genus Serpula is of various shape in the different species, but is generally of an ir- regularly twisted appearance, resembling a long tube warped in different directions. Its inhabit- ant is also supposed to resemble a Terebella. The genus Teredo is in reality a kind of naked worm, which lines with a shelly matter the wind- ing or irregular cavities which it forms in wood or other substances: its head is armed with a pair of very strong calcarious or shelly jaws, with which it works its way into the substance it inhabits, which is generally the wood of the bottoms of ships. . . This is the celebrated and destructive animal called the Ship-Worm, the Teredo navalis of Linnaeus, so formidable for its ravages, and which hardly any contrivances yet suggested by human ingenuity have been found fully sufficient to prevent. Thus a contemptible worm, multiply- z/ STEIRIPUTILA MITTRIC AT A zºwº zºccº， Z， º， ø， º aer， ºże， zez ſ’， ，, LECTURE XI: - 169 ing beyond its usual limits, is capable of destroying the most boasted efforts of human industry. About the year 1730 the most flourishing republic in Europe was made to tremble at the name of this seemingly insignificant creature; the Dykes of Holland during that year exhibiting such marks of decay in many parts, where they had been attacked by these animals, ori ginally introduced by ships from the East Indies, that great appre- hensions were entertained of the Dykes giving way, and exposing the country to the ravages of the OCéall. * - * The last Linnaean genus of the Univalves, the Sabella, is improperly placed among the shelly tribe; since the tubular structure, by Linnaeus called the shell, is merely oomposed of aggluti- nated grains of sand, lined by a connecting mem- brane. The inhabiting animal is allied to the genus Nereis among the naked Mollusca. Proceeding to the Bivalve Shells, we shall ob- serve that the chief instances in which the inhabit- ing animal differs in character from the rest, are , those of the genera entitled Anomia and Pinna. Of these the genus Anomia is inhabited by an ani- mal whose nature is not yet fully ascertained; and | 70 £ECTURE XI. the genus Pinna by an animal allied to the Smail and Slug; whereas in the rest of the Bivalves, the inhabitant is more or less allied in shape to an Oyster or a Muscle. Of the Linnaian genera of Bivalve Shells, one of the most important is that of Mytilus, since it contains the valuable species called the Mother-of- Pearl Shell; which, is the Mytilus Margari tiferus of Linnaeus. This shell, which grows to a very con- siderable size, is of a flattened and rounded shape, with the back sº the outside is irown, variously spotted and clouded * i. * *- **. of hinge-part strait. Its colour on according to circumstances, and on the inside, as every one knows, of the most brilliant, iridescent, silvery lustre. It is a shell of very considerable thickness, and when properly cut and polished is the beautiful substance usually known by the name of Mother of pearl, and of which so many ornamental articles are formed; and from the car- tilaginous or tendinous hinge at the back-part of the shell, in a petrified state, is produced that very rare and beautiful extraneous fossil called the Androdamas, (the Helmintholithus Androdamas of Limnaeus,) which when cut and polished, in the disposition of its fibres, and in its colours, bears MYT-11, U S MAR (; ARITIFEIRT s o, Zarz. 1/zz.wº º º - - º W º \ º w º | - * - §§ W º º º º º& ºº º º º º | - º º º º *Swº ºw Zavºz, ſzew wºº tºº. Moza */ 4, 6 Mºwrººve Jove/ LECTURE XI. 171 some resemblance to the eye of a peacock's feather. But the far more valuable products of this shell are Pearls themselves, which are found sometimes loose, and sometimes adhering to the shell, as welf as in the body of the animal. The pearl muscle, or Mytilus margaritiferus, is most common about the shores of the East-Indian islands, and particularly of Ceylon, where the chief pearl-fisheries have long been established, and of which an interesting description may be found in the Asiatic Researches and other publications. According to the tenor of these accounts, one of the chief pearl-fisheries of Ceylon is carried on, at different periods, in a semilunar bay called the bay of Condatchy, surrounded by a waste, sandy district: during the fishing-season this bay is said to offer a scene equally novel and astonishing; being frequented by a heterogeneous mixture of thousands of people of different nations, casts, and colours, residing in tents and huts erected on the surrounding shores: you here meet with brokers, jewellers, and merchants of all descriptions, as well as dealers in all kinds of provision; but by far the greater number are engaged in the pearl-business itself; in drilling, sorting, and otherwise preparing 172 LECTURE XI. them for sale. The drawbacks against this scene of entertaining confusion are, the offen- sive atmosphere occasioned by the putrefac- tion of the innumerable pearl-muscles lying in heaps on the shores; the badness of the water round the spot, which is so brackish as scarcely to be drinkable; the extreme heat of the weather 4 during the day, and the coldness and heavy dews of the night. The pearl-fishery therefore of Ceylon is extremely injurious to the health of those who engage in it, and frequent it. ''The Céylonese pearl-divers are said to make use of no particular precautions in .exercising their" occupation, but descend to the bottom at the depth of from five to ten fathoms by means of a large stone, fastened to them with a rope, and being furnished with a bas- ket, they collect, with as much expedition as pos- sible, such shells as happen to lie about the spot of their descent, continuing their search about two minutes, when, according to a signal, which they make to the boat to which their cord is attached, they again ascend with their treasure. It is added that each Diver will, in general, bring up as many as one hundred pearl-shells of various sizes in his met; and that, from long habit, some of these LECTURE XI. 1°73 Indian divers become so expert as to be able to continue under water for the space of six or seven minutes. , * . . . This reminds us of the famous Sicilian diver mentioned by Kircher and others, who could re- main so long under water, that he obtained the * popular title of Fish. Frederic, King of Sicily, unthinkingly tempted him by the offer of a golden cup thrown into the sea, to dive near the gulph of Charybdis.: he made two attempts, and each time astonished the spectators by the time he remain- ed under water; but in the third attempt he was, as is supposed, caught in the eddy of the whirl- pool, and never again appeared. . An ingenious French naturalist, whom I-before have had occa- sion to mention, is of opinion that he was caught by a Colossal Cuttle-Fish! !! The accounts how- ever of the Sicilian writers are against this Suppo- sition, since they affirm that his body was thrown up on the coast, at above thirty miles distance from the spot where he descended. With respect to the animal inhabiting the pearl-shell, it is (we know), popularly called the pearl-oyster; but in reality belongs to the Linnaean genus Mytylus. 474. LECTURE x I. It is furnished with a lengthened tubular tongue or soft trunk, by the assistance of which it depo- sits a small drop of a glutinous fluid on whatever place or substance it wishes to attach itself to, and then, suddenly withdrawing the trunk, forms, in consequence, a thread or ligament; and repeating this operation a great many times, 'fastens it- self by a short silken tuft. In the soft or pulpy part of the body of the animal are found the pearls; the real nature and production of which, as to the oeconomy of the animal, is perhaps still in a great degree unknown. The idea of Reau- mur is not improbable: viz. that the pearls are formed like the concretions called bezoars in qua- drupeds and some other animals. It is said that between one and two hundred pearls have been sometimes found within a single pearl-muscle. Though the general colour of the shell and the pearl is silvery, yet some have been found of a deep red, and others of a pink colour. It is far- ther observable, that a pearl, when cut through; frequently exhibits some extraneous body, as a grain of gravel or other substance in the centre, round which the several lamellae or concentric con- LECTURE XI. 178 eretions have been formed*. Besides those found in the body of the animal, several are often observ- ed rising from the internal surface of the shell, to which they are closely attached, so as not to be completely round, and are therefore considered as of little value. The largest Pearl-Shells, and such as are most encrusted with extraneous marine sub- stances, as Serpulae, Corals, &c. are in general ob- served to be most productive of pearls; while the smaller and smoother shells afford but few, or so small as to be of no importance in commerce. ." In addition to what has been said relative to Pearls, we may add, that irregular or grape-shaped pearls sometimes occur, which seem to be owing to a coalescence of several smaller ones into one mass. One of the noblest pearls on record is that which Cleopatra is absurdly said to have dissolved in vinegar, during an entertainment which she gave to Mark Antony, and afterwards to have drank it. We must surely suppose that she caused it to be well bruised first, before she put it into the vinegar. It was a pearl belonging to a * According to Cuvier pearls may be considered as formed by an extravasation of the calcarious matter with which the animal is furnished, for the augmentation of its shell. Itó EECTURE x I. pair of her ear-rings: the fellow to it is said to have been sent to Rome, and after being properly cut in two, formed a pair of pendants for the ears of a celebrated statue of Vénus in that city. “It may not be improper to observe, that the ele- gant manufacture of what are called false or arti- ficial pearls, which sometimes so nearly equal true ones in beauty as to be very difficultly.'distin- guished from them, is originally a French inven- tion, and is still carried on in its greatest perfec- tion at Paris. The thin glass bubbles used for this purpose have their inside lined by a péarl- coloured substance thrown into them through a small tube; the pearl-coloured substance is pre- pared by well beating the silvery scales of fishes, and particularly of bleaks, in water, which being poured away, the silvery sediment undergoes seve- ral other ablutions, and being then mixed with pro- per agglutinating ingredients, is used in the manner just described. The inventor is said to have been a Bead-maker of the name of Jacquin, and to have lived about the time of Henry the Fourth. This: man observed, that on washing the scales of the Bleak, a most beautiful silver-coloured powder was obtained; and it occurred to him that by intro- LECTURE Xī. F77 ducing this substance into the inside of finely- blown glass beads, slightly tinged with opaline hues, a perfect imitation of real pearls might be made: (for an attempt of a similar nature had some years before been made in Italy, by filling glass bubbles with quicksilver; but which was im- mediately discouraged; first, on account of the pearls so prepared wanting the true colour, and because they were judged to be dangerous by the physicians.) Jacquin was at first put to great dif- ficulty in preserving the silver-coloured powder, which, if not used quickly, becomes putrid, and dif. fuses an intolerable smell. Attempts were made to preserve it in spirits, but by this method the lustre was entirely destroyed. It was at length found, that volatile alkali possessed the power of preserving the substance without injury to its co- lour. Many years elapsed before the false pearls became very common; and even so late as the reign of Louis the Fourteenth it is said that a French Marquis who possessed very little property, but who was violently in love with a particular lady, gained her affections by presenting her with a rich string of these pearls, which cost him but three Louis’s, but which the Lady, supposing them to I, ECT, II, N I'78 IECTURE XI. be real ones, valued at a very high sum. The servant, who put the Marquis upon this stra- :tagem, had previously assured his master that these pearls withstood heat and moisture; that they were not easily scratched, and that their weight was the same with that of rear pearls. This anecdote, which is detailed by Professor Beck- man, proves that artificial pearls did not become common, even in France, till many years after their first-invention. $. > || The trade of artificial pearl-making is still car- ried on at Paris by the descendants of Jacquin the original inventor, but they are also made in many other parts of Európe, and with several variations as to the colour and kind of the glass, and other minute particulars. ** The Mytilus margaritiferus of Linnaeus, or great Pearl Muscle, is not the only shell which produces pearls. A species of the genus call- ed Mya, and which is the Mya margaritiſera ef Linnaeus, also produces pearls, though, in ge- neral, of a far smaller size, and of inferior qua- lity. This shell is commonly called the European pearl Muscle, and much resembles the common river muscle, though of a different genus. It is LECTURE xi. #179 found in rivers in the north of England, in Scot- land, Ireland, and many other parts of Europe. Jn the seventeenth century several rich pearls of large size are said to have been obtained from this shell in some of the rivers of Ireland. One was valued at upwards of 4.4, another at 4.10, and a third.at no less than 4.40. As a species, the Eu- ropean pearl-muscle, or more properly Mya, is distinguished by having a thick, coarse, blackish shell, generally barked or decorticated towards the hinge *. t I have before mentioned, when speaking of the real or Indian Pearl-Shell, the -French art of making artificial pearls. There exists also an art, said to be often practised by the Chinese, and which Linnaeus attempted to put in practice in Europe, of forcing, as it were, the production of pearls, in the Mya margaritifera or European pearl Muscle, by piercing the outside of the shell in several places, so as barely not to make complete perfor *. * Pearly concretions are also occasionally formed in all shells, and are of different colours according to that of the shell in which they are formed. Thus, the animal of the large univalve shell called the Strombus gigas or great rose-mouthed Strombus some- times produces pearly concretions of a fine rose-colour. H'80 LECTURE XI. rations. In this case, the animal, conscious of the weakness or deficiency of the shell in those spots, soon begins to secure the weakened parts by de- positing over them a great quantity of its pearly calcarious matter, and thus forms so many pearly tubercles over them. The practice however is, I believe, considered as not of importance sufficient to make it an object of gain, but rather of mere cu- riosity; the pearly tubercles thus obtained be- ing of inferior beauty to those more maturally produced. The Linnaean genera of Bivalve Shells are somewhat less numerous than the Univalves, and are principally constituted from the different struc- ture of the teeth or prominences belonging to the hinge of the Shells. Among the most remarkable genera are those of Spondylus and Chama; in the former of these, the chief species, which resemble Oysters in shape, are of rich colours, and beset with numerous and differently shaped spines and processes, giving the whole shell a singularly cu- rious aspect. In the genus Chama, many species of which greatly resemble those of Spondylus, we have an example of by far the largest and heaviest of the whole testaceous tribe ; the Chama Gigas. SPONLY LI's (AEI) ARO tº U. S. - Z/6 º, Jººzzº ºvozzº . º - º/ º/ - - - * / - º - º º - sº S. - wº- * - (%zzº &/ºr or Ǻraz (Žamº J/c// º - *_º zºº ºccº Zºº /* º º/ºr jºr T.ECTURE XI. P&#. or Great Clamp Shell, as it is called, sometimes measuring more than three feet in length, and weighing upwards of five hundred pounds. The inhabiting animal very much resembles an oyster in appearance, and is said to furnish food sufficient for one hundred persons. Specimens of this gi- gantic shell in its full grown state are not very common in collections, on account of their incon- venient size; those being preferred which are in their small or young state; but in very large collections, as in the British and Leverian Mu- seums, they may be seen to great advantage; par- ticularly in the latter, where there is a single valve of this shell weighing, I believe, at least three hundred pounds. The concluding genus of the Linnaean Bivalve Shells is the Pinna, the animal of which is consi- dered by Linnaeus as allied to a Limax or Slug, and consequently to the Snail tribe also. Some of the species and varieties of Pinna are very large shells, of a thin structure in proportion to their size: and they are generally affixed to rocks or other objects by a large tuft of very fine but strong silken fibres or threads, which the animal has the power of forming, by thrusting out a kind 182 LECTURE XI. of pointed trunk, with which it touches the object it wishes to adhere to, and by retracting it, forms a glutinous thread; and, by the repetition of this motion, forms the whole tuft by which it is fastened. The large sea Pinna or Pinna rudis is a cu- rious instance of this. This shell is brown exter- nally, with a slightly iridescent silvery cast with- in ; of a lengthened shape, with a very marrow base, and dilated and rounded towards the extre- mity. It is a frequent inhabitant of the Euro- pean coasts, and in some places, as about the coasts of Sicily and Italy, the silken tufts are often collected, and spun into various articles of dress, as gloves in particular; the silk requiring no dye, but retaining its native colour, which is an ele- gant, glossy, yellowish brown. Specimens of this kind of silk are generally to be seen in most of our Museums. Neither is this faculty of fastening or anchoring by means of silken fibres confined to the genus Pinna, but takes place, as we have al- ready seen, in the genus Mytilus, and probably in some of the rest. I now proceed to the Multivalve Shells, so named, as consisting of several valves or pieces, Z/7 ºf . ". ſ | W | | II. ". º º º . º ºn º - º - º " " º º º Z/ W. %, ’ T º º º - - flºº. º º ºn wº. IPINNA RUV) IS way: ROTUNDATA or ºrea/.ſca Zºrºa -- - * T - zºos ºccº, Zºo /*///a ºr ºſcºwº a Jawºr, -- " *cº. Z/6 ("HITON SQUAMO sitſ s *** ***. ^*/?” &cº //e//, //, , , , & ºrg/.4% ºvazzºza 4: …, zzzzzzzz/jazz -- zºo,” fºccº. Zozazz,, Z% * 64-wºº Azcz.ſº º," "... - -- LECTURE XI. 183 The Multivalves are distributed by Linnaeus into three genera, one of which, named Pholas, has the general appearance of a bivalve; but on close in- spection, will be found to differ; having small or accessorial valves or pieces at the back part of the shell. The inhabiting animal resembles an Asci- dia. The most common species of Pholas is the Pholas Dactylus of Linnaeus, a native of the Euro- pean seas : this species has the faculty of piercing and imbedding itself in calcarious rocks, in which it is generally found : the animal is considered as an edible shell-fish, and in some places is regarded as a delicacy. The next genus is of a very singular appear- ance, and is called Chiton. It is of an oval shape, and is composed of several transverse pieces; those at each extremity having a rounded outline. The inhabiting animal is shaped like a Doris or Sea- Snail. The species of Chiton are pretty numer- ous, and there is a considerable degree of general similarity between them. One of the largest is the Chiton squamosus, measuring about three inches in length, and of a greenish white colour. It is a native of the American seas; but several of this genus are found also about the European coasts. 184 LECTURE XI. The remaining genus of Multivalve shells is of a more singular nature than any of the rest: it is called Lepas or Barnacle : the shell consists of se- veral unequal valves or pieces, and is affixed at the base, in some species, to a long, wrinkled, leather- like tube; and in others immediately to the sub- stance to which it is attached, without the inter- vention of the leathery tube. The inhabiting animal is of a very singular structure, and is a kind of Tri- ton, perfectly resembling the Linnaean genus Tri- ton among the naked Mollusca : the body is oval, of a soft consistence, furnished with a long tubular trunk, surrounded by several pair of long, curved, jointed arms or tentacula, which taken all together have a kind of feather-shaped aspect. Among those species of Lepas in which the shell is seated on a tubular process, one of the most common is the Lépas anatifera, or Barnacle Shell. It is frequently found adhering to the bottoms of ships, to rocks, and other marine substances, whe- ther fixed or floating, and is sometimes seen single, and sometimes in groupes: the deathery tube is from one to two inches in length, and the shell it- self somewhat more than an inch long : its colour is white, slightly clouded with blueish brown, and LTE PAS ANATIFERA or Zºzºvac/e 4/o/, a ze/are gº *** **** 9/ºe raze wear *** * * * *** *** Jºvº. Z/9 LECTURE xi. 185 bften with a cast of flesh-colour; and is composed of about five valves; the two on each side being largest, and the fifth or back valve being slender or narrow. From the front of the shell"hang Out the curved tentacula, of a somewhat dusky colour, and resembling the shape of a plume of feathers. Among the “numerous errors with which Natural History was formerly encumbered, there prevailed an idea that the Bird called the Barnacle goose was not produced like other birds, from an egg, but that it derived its origin from this shell. This error, gross and absurd as it was, seems to have met with credit from authors who should have viewed objects of this nature with other eyes than those of the vulgar. It was supposed by these phi- losophers that the inhabitant of this shell was an immature bird, or young of the above-mentioned goose, which, after having attained its plumage, li- berated itself from the confinement of its shell, and dropped into the water. The numerous tentacula or arms of the inhabiting animal,which are disposed in a semicircular form, and, as before observed, have a feathery appearance, seem to have been all that could reasonably be alleged in favour of this strange supposition. Among others who have # 186 IECTURE xi, mentioned this goose-bearing, shell is Gerard, the author of the well-known Herbal. His, account runs as follows. “But what our eyes have seen, and hands have touched, we shall declare. There is a small island in Lancashire called the pile of Fowlders, wherein are found the broken pieces of old and bruised ships, some whereof have been cast thither by shipwracke, and also of the trunks - and bodies, with the branches of old rotten trees cast there likewise; whereon is found a certain spume or froth that in time breedeth unto certaine shells in shape like those of a muskle, but sharper pointed, and of a whitish colour; wherein is con- tained a thing in form like a lace of silk, finely woven, as it were, together, of a whitish colour, one end whereof is fastened unto the inside of the shell, even as the fish of oysters and muscles are: the other end is made faste unto the belly of a rude masse or lumpe, which in time commeth unto the w 'shape and forme of a bird. When it is perfectly formed, the shell gapeth open, and the first thing that appeareth is the foresaid lace or string: next come the legs of the bird hanging out, and as it groweth greater, it openeth the shell by degrees, till at length it is all come forth, and hangeth only LECTURE xi. 15; by the bill; in a short time after, it commeth to full maturitie, and falleth into the sea, where it gathereth feathers, and groweth to fowle bigger than a mallard, and less than a goose, having black legges and bill or beake, and feathers black and white, spotted in such a manner as is our Magpie, called in some places a Pie-Annat, which the people of Lancashire call by no other name than a tree-goose; which place and all those parts adjoining do so much abound with, that one of the best is to be bought for threepence. For the truth hereof if any do doubt, may it please them to re- paire unto me, and I will satisfy them by the tes- timony of good witnesses.” The species of Lepas furnished with the coria- ceous tube are pretty numerous, several new ones having been of late years discovered: these ani. mals sometimes attach themselves to animated as well as to inanimate bodies, and are frequently seen on turtles and other marine animals. In the Museum of the late Mr. Hunter is an instance of a species of Sea-Snake, the Anguis platura of Lin- naus (Hydrus bicolor) of more modern naturalists, which has a groupe of small Lepades affixed to one side of its tail. - ºf 88 - LECTURE XF. Among the species of Lepas without the ed- riaceous tube or stem, or such as are immediately affixed by the base of the shell, one of the most common is the Lepas Balanus of Linnaeus, or com- mon Acorn-Shell; frequently seen about almost all the European coasts, on rocks, &c. and a smaller species, extremely resembling it, is often See Il grouped on the backs of Oyster-shells. The animals of the whale tribe are often infested by various kinds of Lepades, some of which are merely affixed to the surface, while others are deeply im- bedded, to the distance of some inches beneath the cuticle. Having thus given a general description of the testaceous tribe, we have to observe, that the shell- animals are produced from eggs, which in some species are gelatinous, and in others covered with a calcarious shell; and that the young animal emerges from the egg with its shell on its back: the most familiar and convincing proof of this may be obtained by observing the evolution or hatch- ing of the eggs of the common Garden Snail, as well as of several of the water-snails, which depo- sit eggs so transparent that the motions of the young, with the shell on its back, may be very dis- LECTURE XI. s' 189 * tinctly seen several days before the period of hatching. All the shell-animals are of such a con- stitution as perpetually to secrete or exsude from their bodies a viscid moisture, and it is with this, managed according to the exigences of the ani- mal, that the shell, is throughout hiſe increased in dimensions, and repaired when accidentally broken in any particular part. The growth of shells proceeds from the edges of the mouth or opening, and thus the spires or turns of the Univalve shells are gradually increased in number and size, till the animal has arrived at the full limits of its growth. The Bivalves are increased in a similar manner, by the gradual enlargement of the out- line of each valve. LECTURE XII. THERE exists a large tribe of animals to which we have as yet paid no attention. These animals are, in common language, termed Worms, and constitute a particular division of the Order Vermes in the Linnaean arrangement. Their forms are various, and their natures extraordinary. The major part of them are the inhabitants of living animal-bodies; their introduction into which is one of those inscrutable mysteries which perhaps must for ever evade the power of human intellect. It is sufficient, at present, to say, that they exist in most animals; some kinds in the intestines, and some in other viscera. I do not mean however to pursue their history any further than is merely ne- cessary, in order to elucidate the various divisions of the Animal World. - 192 LECTURE XII. Of the whole tribe of Vermes none is more cu- rious than the genus called Tenia, which is ex- tremely numerous, and presents a great diversity of appearance in the different species; some be- ing of a globular form, with a small neck and head, while others are of immoderate length, with the body divided into very numerous joints; in some species very close set ; in others more dis- tant. The head in all the Taeniae, or Tape-Worms, as they are commonly called, is of a highly curious structure; being of a rounded and slightly flat- tened shape, with a small orifice in the middle, and four much larger ones placed round the mar- gin, while the whole circumference of the head is beset with a double, and, in some species, with a single row of sharp, reversed, crooked spines, by the assistance of which the animal is enabled to adhere tenaciously to the part in which it resides. It is surprising that Linnaeus should have main- tained that these animals had no distinct or pro- per head, and that Tyson and others, who had described them with one, were mistaken. A clear general idea of the genus Taenia may be obtained by inspecting a few plates of some of the principal species. ~= -- ~ 'zºº，·ſae ， ， ， ， ， ºººº ·----~ ~~ Z.5o ºzzº/zzzzzzzzzz ºº ^^ ^^^º//øºzºrºvºzº „zo zºzºitº. Z ºſº./6zzozzzzzºzzº ºżywo， ºzºyae«oo/**|- ， ， |-øy，zy z ºzy， z， ， zzzzzuo z zzzzzz//oº/ （o/w/º zº/º/awd/º/º/zzzzzwww./ôºoº/, / |- ſºzzº/**^^^^^^^^ ^^^ ^^^/*//*www.ae/|- »za«， »«， zaeºvº zaeº， |- zzzzzzzae）./* /w/：/, /， ，»， 2.57 1.ECTURE xII, H93 The lately instituted genus Filaria is so simi- lar to that of Gordius or Hair-Worm, that it can hardly be separted from it with propriety. Some species of Filaria inhabit the waters, and some are found in the bodies of animals; even in those of insects; many kinds of Beetles and Caterpillars being infested by them. Among those which in- fest the waters, the most common is the Horse- Hair Worm, so called from its general appearance, usually measuring several inches in length, and being of a dusky colour, and not much thicker than a horse-hair. It is the Gordius aquaticus of Linnaeus, and is in many places believed by the common people to be an animated horse-hair. Lin- naus observes that in Sweden an idea prevails of its bite, or rather its puncture, producing the com- - plaint called a Whitlow; and this he says was verified in the case of a Mr. Rinmann. I have likewise my- self been witness to an instance of a similar nature, in which thesºnal, on being taken out of the wa- ter, pierce jºr of the finger, near the nail, and a whitlow was the consequence of the puncture; but whether the same complaint might not have taken place from the puncture of any other substance on the same part, I cannot take upon me to determine. ,, .4 LECT. II. . . . . : - . . r: O. : F94 LECTURE XII; Among the most extraordinary of the Lin- naean Vermes is that which he calls Furia. There is only one species, which is called Furia inferna- lis, or the Infernal Fury; and not without good reason, if we may rely on the accounts which have been given of the torments it sometimes inflicts on the person it happens to attack. Its character is, a thin, thread-shaped body, edged along each side with a row of sharp, reversed prickles, lying close to the edge of the body, or at very acute angles. It bears a resemblance therefore to a minute Sco- Hopendra or Centipede, and from the structure of its-body, is enabled to perforate the skin in an in- stant, so as not to be extracted without extreme difficulty. It is pretended that this worm, in the marshy parts of Sweden, and some other coun- tries, is conveyed by some means or other through the air, and drops on the bodies of cattle and men; producing almost immediately a pain so insup- portable as sometimes to prove fatal in the space of a quarter of an hour. Linnaeus tells us that he himself once experienced the effects of this ani- mal, near the city of Lund in Sweden. Dr. So- lander once gave a slight description of this worm; but, from the difficulty of obtaining recent speci- LECTURE XII. 195 mens, its nature is still obscure; and even its very existence has been occasionally doubted; particu- larly by Blumenbach and Muller. There seems however to be no good reason for questioning the existence of some such animal, though the ac- counts of its extraordinary qualities may have been exaggerated. The best account of it is in a Quarto pamphlet, published by a Dr. Hagen, as an aca- demical thesis; in which all the observations rela- tive to it are summed up in a concise manner, and its real existence, seemingly, well ascertained. It is said to be generally about three quarters of an inch long, and in habit or shape to resemble a Scolopendra, as I before observed. I shall now pass to a branch of Zoology distin- guished by peculiarities of organization and ap- pearance unequalled by any other parts of the animal kingdom. These wonderful productions are now, by the common consent of Naturalists, distinguished, in systematic arrangement, by the title of Zoophytes or Plant-Animals. Of these the genus Hydra or Polype deserves our first attention; not only from its wonderful nature and properties, but because it serves as a kind of standard or example of refer- {96 LECTURE XII. ence in many other, genera of zoophytes more or less allied to it. The genus Hydra or Polype, comprehending the real or fresh-water polypes, was so named by Linnaeus because in reality it affords phenomena similar to those recorded of the fabulous Hydra of antiquity, which, when one head was cut off, pro- duced others in its place. The character of the Hydra or Polype is a long, tubular body, possessing a great power of contraction and extension; affix- ing itself by the tail; and furnished at its upper or open end with a certain number of long arms or.tentacula, differing in number in the different species. The principal species are the brown, the yellowish-grey, and the green Polypes, or the Hy- dra fusca, grisea, and viridis of Linnaeus. These curious animals may be found in small streams and in stagnant waters, adhering to the stems of aquatic plants, or to the under surfaces of the leaves, and other objects. They prey on small worms, Monoculi, and many other animals which happen to occur in the same waters. If a Polype be cut in two, the superior part will produce a new tail, and the inferior part will produce a new head and arms; and this, in warm weather, in the Z.52 º - A º ºº sº Zºº /*g//e Hºy DIN AWARDIs or GREEN POLYPE /o/, a zár natura/size & mayºf zoos ººzondon Paſº/* * CAzºr Lºcº Jºef. EECTURE XII. 19. course of a very few days. If cut into three pieces, the middle portion will produce both the head and tail; and in short, Polypes may be cut in all directions, and will still reproduce the defi- cient organs. The natural mode of propagation in this animal, is by shoots or offsets, in the man- ner of a plant; one or more branches or shoots proceeding from the parent stem, and dropping off when complete; and it frequently happens that these young branches will produce other branches before they themselves drop off from the parent, so that a polype may be found with several of its descendants still adhering to the original stock, or stem; thus constituting a real genealogical tree: but the Polype also, during the autumnal season, *3._deposits eggs, which evolve themselves afterwards into distinct animals, and thus it possesses two modes of multiplication. It appears a paradoxical circumstance that a Polype should be able to swallow a worm three or four times as large as itself, which is frequently observed to be the case; but it must be considered that the body of the ani- mal is extremely extensile; and that it possesses the power of stretching according to the size of the substance which it swallows. It seizes its prey 198 LECTURE XII. with great eagerness, but swallows it slowly, in the same manner as a snake swallows any small qua- druped. The arms of a Polype, when microsco- pically examined, are found to bear a general re- semblance to those of the Sepiae or Cuttle-Fishes, being furnished with a vast number of small or- gans, which seem to act as so many suckers or ace- tabula, by which means the animal can hold a worm, even though but slightly in contact with one of its arms; but when on the point of swal- lowing its prey, it then makes use of all the arms at once, in order the more readily to absorb it. The number of Zoophytes is extremely great, and the major part are of an appearance so much resembling vegetables, that they have been gene- rally considered as such ; though the horny and stony appearance of several of the tribe, at first view declare them to be of a widely different na- ture from the generality of plants. In others however the softness of their substance, and their ramified manner of growth, would immediately lead any one unacquainted with their real nature to suppose them vegetables. The hard, horny, or stony Zoophytes are in general known by the name of Corals; and of these there are several ge- LECTURE XII. 1:99 mera or kinds, instituted from the structure and appearance of the Coral or hard part, and the af. finity which the animal or softer part bears to some other genus among the soft-bodied Animals or Mollusca. The Zoophytes therefore unite the animal and vegetable kingdoms, and fill up the intermediate space. By the ancients most of the Zoophytes were considered as plants; but in later times some phi- losophers have imagined them rather to belong to the mineral kingdom, fancying that they grew or increased somewhat in the manner of crystals and other regularly figured bodies. About the beginning of the eighteenth cen- tury some observations were made on the com- mon red coral, and some other species, by Count Marsigli, which seemed to prove them of a vege- table nature; for on gathering them perfectly fresh, and placing them in sea water, they appear- ed to put forth small flowers from all the minute cavities or hollow points on the surface. These therefore were considered as a convincing proof that coral was a plant. The arguments against this theory were, the animal odor which they dif. fused in burning, and a greater degree of sensibi- 200 LECTURE XII. *º- lity in the supposed flowers than seemed quite con- sistent with the generality of plants. A very few years after Count Marsigli's dis- covery and description of the supposed flowers of Coral, Dr. Peysonel, a French physician, from ob- servations made on some parts of the European coasts, as well as on those of the West Indies, ven- tured to propose to the French Academy, a new theory relative to the nature of Corals; in which he maintained that the supposed flowers were real animals, allied to Actiniae, and that, in conse- quence, the corals should be considered as aggre- gates of animals, either forming, or at least inha- biting the calcarious substance of the coral in which they appeared. To this theory no great attention was paid; and several years elapsed before a farther advance was made in the knowledge of these bodies: but at length, about the year 1730, a Mr. Trembly of Geneva, in searching after some small aquatic plants, happened to discover the animals now call- ed Polypes: these had indeed been discovered long before by Leewenhoeck, in Holland; but he only gave a general description of the animal, and ob- served that it multiplied by an apparent vegeta- 201 tion, but was ignorant of its power of reproduction after cutting ; but Mr. Trembly, surprised at the singular appearance of a creature which had at once the aspect of a plant, and the motions of an animal, determined to try the experiment of cut- - ting it, in order to ascertain its doubtful nature; and was beyond measure astonished to find that instead of destroying it, both parts seemed unin- jured by the wound, and that in a very few days each had reproduced every limb that had been lost, and eat, and moved as before. This discovery be: ing announced, was at first considered by many as a fable; and it was even contended that this division of animal life was in itself absolutely im- possible upon the principles of common sense as well as of sound philosophy; but at length, the - attention of all Europe being excited by the singu- larity of the circumstance, the animals were every where sought after, and experiments made by cut- ting them in every possible direction, and their real nature thus completely ascertained; and from - subsequent observations it was found that the ani- mals of most of the Coral tribe, both hard and soft, were strongly allied to Polypes, and were endow- ed with the same reproductive properties, while 202 LECTURE XII. others were possessed of the same power, but seemed more allied to the Actiniae or Sea-Anemo- nies, and to the Medusae or Sea-Blubbers. After- wards the celebrated Mr. Ellis, by repeated obser- vations made about the British coasts, proved be- yond all doubt, that the smaller corals, commonly known by the name of Corallines or Sea-Mosses, were actually so many ramified Sea-Polypes, co- vered with a kind of strong, horny case, to defend them from the injuries to which they would other. wise be liable in the boisterous element in which they are destined to reside. Mr. Ellis's observations on the harder or stony Corals, as well as the observations of many other philosophers, have at length proved also that these stony Corals are equally of an animal nature; the whole coral continuing to grow as an animal, and to form by secretion the strong or stony part of the coral, which at once may be considered as its bone and its habitation, which it has no power of leaving, and a coral of this kind is therefore a large compound zoophyte. I shall mention a few species both of the small- er and larger corals as illustrations of what has been said relative to their growth and structure, 2.5.3 zaz'oºzee * -ºº: --- *w.ww. _* SERTTLARIA PIN NATA ***Moza.” A44%/4. 6%anº & Jººz. LECTURE XII. 203 and shall begin with a genus of the smaller corals called Sertularia. The genus Sertularia is re- markable for its vegetable appearance, and is po- pularly considered as a kind of sea-moss. It is a genus which contains a vast number of species, some natives of our own coasts, and others exotic. Most of the species are, when dried, of a pale, se- - mitransparent, yellowish-brown colour, and di- vided into very numerous ramifications. In the liv- ing or fresh state, the animal or Polype part may be observed to fill the whole, both of the stem and branches, and to send forth a head, with several arms, from every individual termination of the numerous branches. The whole therefore may be considered as a very compound or branched po- lype, defended by an elastic, horny covering. In the dried zoophyte the animal part shrinks up and becomes obliterated; the cortical part or case alone remaining. One of the most elegant spe- cies of Sertularia, and at the same time one of the most simple in its structure, is the S. pinnata or pinnated Sertularia, which is a native of our own coasts, and is found adhering to rocks, and often to oysters and other shell-fish : it seldom exceeds the height of about two inches; and its appear- 2O4. LECTURE xII. ance, when slightly magnified, is represented in * the figures we are at present viewing, and in which the whole structure of the Zoophyte is clearly shown. Like others of its genus, it produces eggs, at particular periods, which are situated in the bo- soms of the branches, and which produce young Zoophytes like the parent. * The Genus Tubularia is of uncommon ele- gance. It is of a softer nature than most other Zoophytes, except the Hydrae or proper Polypes; and some of the most beautiful species are na- tives of fresh waters, adhering to the stems of wa- ter-plants and other objects. The generic charac- ter of Tubularia is, a Zoophyte of a tubular struc- ture, either simple or branched; fixed by its base ; and protruding from the top of each tube a head, surrounded by numerous tentacula or arms, which are commonly placed in the form of a crescent or semicircle. It is hardly possible by any descrip- tion to give an adequate idea of the beauty and elegance of some of the Tubulariae. One of the largest species is a marine one, and is found on many of the European eoasts, on rocks and shells, and consists of straitish or upright yellowish tubes, of the thickness of a small straw, and about three \ z.5/ TUBU LARIA REPTAN S zz za zazz/ ºre L}/zzº Ž 7ew of Zºe TUIETIL ARIA REPTAN S zºo.º. ºozºzzona&n Pºžºr 6. Mºzarzer ºccº. LECTURE XII. 2O5 inches tall; and from the top of each proceeds a crimson head, of the form before mentioned, and about three quarters of an inch in diameter. But the most beautiful are two species, by no means very, uncommon in clear stagnant waters, where they adhere to various substances. The whole Zoophyte appears, at first view, like a small, trans- parent bladder, sometimes slightly, and sometimes very much branched, so as to extend to the dis- tance ºf about two inches; and from the top of each of the divisions of the vesicular part proceed five or six, or sometimes ten heads, of the most beautiful transparent white, and of about the eighth of an inch or more in diameter; each head being surrounded by sixty arms or tentacula, dis- posed in the form of a crescent, and generally in a state of rapid circular motion. These beautiful Zoophytes may be kept for many months in glasses of water, and exhibit a most elegant spec- tacle, especially when slightly magnified. These two fresh-water species vary a little in form, and are often confounded with each other. The one is the Tubularia reptans, and the other the Tubula- ria campanulata : In English they may be term- ed the Creeping or branching, and the Bell-shaped 206 LECTURE XII. Tubularia. The marine genus called Flustra adº first view so much resembles a fucus or sea-weed, that it has been commonly described as such be- fore the time of Mr. Ellis, who determined its real nature. It consists of flat, branched, leaf-like processes, each composed of very numerous cells, of a slightly horny or tough substance, open at the top, and affording a passage to the animal part or polype-head, which, in the recent zoophyte, pro- trudes through each cell ; and the regular manner in which the cells are disposed, gives the leaf or plant-like appearance to the whole. The most common species is the Fl. foliacea, or broad-leaved Flustra, common on our own coasts. - I shall now proceed to give an example or two of the principal genera of the hard or strong Zoophytes, more generally called Corals. Of these some are furnished with a kind of horny stem or central part, covered over throughout all the rami- fications by a soft bark of a calcarious nature, and in which the animal or polype-like fabric is placed, while in other species the central part or stem is of a stony hardness, and is covered, in a similar manner, by a softer bark containing the animal part. The most remarkable genus of the hard | Z.5.5 GORGONIA FLABELLIN: º,” º VENI sº FAN º stºº. º * * ºn º A º º º'º. - º - in ſº mº - hiſ -i. º - º º m I º - º | º - º º | Wºº º - º º º ºrd |- * . | º º º º º º | º º 5|| º | : º º - º § | º Hº ºn , Mºſ' lºſiº - lº. º Tººlſ" | º º º | º º sº | / ...] º zºo.º. ººzoa, 7%. 4, 6’4” 4%zz Jozcz. LECTURE XII. 297 Corals is called Gorgonia or Gorgon. It contains a great many species, which differ greatly from each other in appearance, some being of a flat- tened and fan-shaped form; others rounded, and branched in the manner of trees. Of the fan- shaped gorgoniae the species called the G. Flabel- lum Veneris, or Venus's Fan, is one of the most elegant. It is chiefly found on the rocks of the Indian and American seas, and grows to the height of two or three feet; its branches are so disposed as to resemble a kind of irregular net- work, and it is often seen in a proliferous state, many younger specimens branching out from the chief or principal one. Its colour is either purple or yellow, and sometimes intermixed. The stem or bone, when the soft part in which the polypes are placed is rubbed off, is of a horny substance, and of a blackish colour. But the species which of all others is most esteemed on account of the beauty of its colour, and the durability of its sub- stance, is the common red Coral, which is the Gor- goniap retiosa of modern naturalists. Red Coral is a native both of the European and Indian seas; adhering to rocks, and growing in an inverted po- sition. When recent, it is covered with a soft 2O3 LECTURE XII. fleshy coat or bark, of a red-lead colour, and beset with numerous small warts, from each of which proceeds a head of the general polype or animal part: those heads are divided into eight parts or arms, and, (as I had occasion before to observe), induced Count Marsigli to suppose that they were the flowers of the Coral. The red Coral, like most of the other Gorgoniae, is first produced from a small egg. The eggs of this Zoophyte being dis- charged by the Polypes, fall on the rocks and at- tach themselves by their glutinous moisture, and when fixed begin to grow. Before the Coral is excluded from the egg it is quite soft, and has no appearance of the bony part; but when it has grown to the height of about the eighth of an inch, it assumes the hardness of bone, and begins to mul- tiply its polype-heads, and to form new branches. I should here observe that Linnaeus somewhat im-, properly placed the Bed Coral in the genus Isis, under the name of Isis nobilis. The genus Isis differs from that of Gorgonia in being of a jointed fabrick, instead of being com- posed of continued branchings. It is of a stony hardness, but the joints are of a horny nature, or much softer. The whole Coral is covered with a § ~ º |- ！ Ź，ſy ：/z/， /z/，/z/，/z/， ///////// /^^^^^^^^^^^^ \\ & OILLAUXILII （IN Oºſ-LO?) Zºzzzzzzzzzzºzº → 22/22/º/ž/www.：Zº zº %70.7 47/ ^/ºsſ/vº/º/vo SII（II，II，III || $118|| º/ (; ORG ONIA ("EREBRUM o, Zºrado. 1/zz/zzore 1//www.ſl/zoº/wore LECTURE XII. 209 soft bark, in which, as in the rest of the tribe, are disposed the numerous branchings of the animal part. The most elegant species of Isis is an Indian Coral, growing to the height of about a foot, and of a white colour with the horny joints black. This, however, is the appearance of the Coral when dried, as it is usually seen in cabinets; but when recent, it is entirely covered with a soft whitish bark with numerous pores, from each of which protrudes a polype-head with eight arms. Some of the Coral tribe have their animal part more nearly approaching (so far as we can trust to the observations hitherto made) to that of a Medusa than to that of a Polype. Of this kind are those very numerous Corals known by the title of Madrepores, and which constitute the Lin- naean genus Madrepora. Their forms are very various, some being of a globular shape, others flattened, and others branched in various directions. They are generally marked with numerous star- shaped cavities, divided into several rays, but many are rather marked into various winding stripes composed of separate plates or laminae; and all, when recent, exhibit a gelatinous animal sub- stance situated either on the star-shaped cavities LECT, II, P 210 LECTURE XII. or on the winding laminated part of the surface, according to the different species. The Madre- pores are of a stony hardness, and this stony or calcarious substance is perpetually secretéd or des posited from the gelatinous animal part. The genus Madrepora is not only very numerous but very intricate; many of the species being difficult to describe, and their synonyms being often confounded by different authors. The very large globular Madrepores, covered with a winding or running pattern in the manner of a labyrinth, are º commonly called Brainstones, and are often seen of such a size as to measure nearly two feet in di- ameter: others of similar shape are covered over with numerous star-shaped spots or impressions. Of the branched Madrepores one of the most re- markable is that called the Cinnamon Coral or Cinnamon Madrepore : it is often about a foot in height, and of a pale brown colour, and when recent, is said to diffuse a fragrant smell. The muricated Madrepore is distinguished by its remarkably roughened surface, rising into innu- merable prominences, each perforated at the tip. This species varies, perhaps more than any other. of the Corai tribe, exhibiting all the diversities LECTURE XII. 21 H that can be imagined as to shape, but still preserve 'ing its particularity of surface. Some of the Madrepores bear an appearance so perfectly similar to that of some kind of Mush- room, that they have often been considered as pe. trified Mushrooms. The Madrepores in general as well as the other larger Corals, are chiefly found about the coasts of the Indian islands, where they are so numerous as to form vast rocks, their animals seeming to carry on their work by a kind of instinct, continuing to grow in such a manner as to encircle a vast body of water, so as to form a calm or smooth bay. Within the tropical seas, according to the learned Dr. Reinhold Forster, in his ingenious dis. sertation on . India, there are numerous small islands, but little elevated above the surface of the sea. All these are the work of marine Zoophyte Vermes, which raise on all sides their calcarious matter, from which at length are formed rocks and stony shallows, very dangerous to navigators. Easterly winds being most prevalent in these seas, the animals, as if actuated by instinct, endeavour to exclude the waves driven by the winds, by means of their stupendous works; and therefore, carrying on their habitations, they extend them are LECTURE XII. in long arms, which at last unite in a circle, within which they include a portion of calm, un- troubled sea. On the opposite or windward side, the waves continually throw up fragments of corals, which, accumulating by degrees, form a mound against the billows; and on that part the sea is rendered gradually shallower; while, on the other side, immediately under the arms raised by the Zoophytes, the sea is of an astonish- ing depth; and not unfrequently, a part of the work remains open for the ingress and egress of the tide. In the coral banks themselves, sand is collected by the waves, affording soil and ali- ment for the seeds of shore plants brought thither by the sea; and these plants at length perish- ing, gradually create and accumulate a vegetable mould. If by chance a Cocoa-Nut be carried by the sea to these spots, it germinates, and grows into a tall tree, bearing, and disseminating many nuts, some of which again germinating, soon form a palm-growe, affording shade to birds and other animals, and supplying navigators, driven to the place by stress of weather, with a grateful food and Hiquor. The bay included within the arms of the Zoophytes is a receptacle for those fishes LECTURE XII. *213 which require a calm sea, and thus another food from the animal kingdom is presented to strangers. The shallows also afford a quiet and desirable situ- ation to Mollusca, and shell-fish of all kinds, and contribute greatly towards supplying the inhabit- ants of the islands with a variety of food. Thus we perceive that the Coral tribe, however insigni- ficant it may at first appear, is one of these power- ful engines in the hand of the Author of nature which can produce the most stupendous effects from the most seemingly weak and unpromising agents. After this general survey of the Zoophyte tribe, I shall beg leave to direct your attention to a Class of Animals which, till the latter part of the seven- teenth century, had escaped all human attention and investigation, and constituted a kind of invisible world: a series of beings, the structure, powers, and properties of which, are perhaps more aston- ishing than those of most other animals: yet of such minuteness as, in general, to elude the sharp- est sight, unless assisted by glasses. The ancients therefore were totally unacquainted with this class of beings. To them the Mite was made the ne plus ultra, or utmost bound of animal minuteness; lout the moderns, assisted by the invention of the 214 Microscope, have discovered whole tribes of ani- mals, comparéd to which even Mites mayb sidered as a kind of Elephants . These minute beings are chiefly to be observed in fluids of vari- ous kinds; and principally in such as have had any animal or vegetable substances infused in them . and for this reason they are often ca. led in modern Zoology by the title of Animalcula Infusoria or - Infusorial Animalcules. . A most extraordinary idea was entertained by the celebrated Count de Buffon, relative to these Animalcules; viz. that they were not real animals, but a kind of organic particles or Moleculae, which were capable, under certain circumstances, of being formed into ani- mated beings. The experiments of Spallanzani and others have however completely overthrown t this chimerical and absurd theory of the Count de Buffon; and indeed one would hardly think it pos- sible for any person of unprejudiced mind, nay Oſle may even add, of common sense, to view the several animalcules in fluids, and at the same time to doubt of their being real animals. Their rapid and various motions; their pursuit of the smaller kinds on which many of the larger prey; their avoiding each other as they swim; the curious LECTURE XII. 2:15 and regular structure of their bodies; and their whele appearance, form the most convincing proofs of their real animal nature and life. Animalcules, , as I before observed, are most frequently found in fluids; but this is a doctrine that has not always been clearly understood, and has been productive of some erroneous ideas in natural history. Some writers, for instance, have asserted that almost every kind of fluid abounded with animalcules; and that wines, and spirits, ex- hibited legions of them. This, however, is so very far from the truth, that none are ever to be dis- covered in inflammable spirits, or in any fermented liquor that has not passed either into the state of vinegar, or that is not grown completely vapid. As almost all extraordinary discoveries are liable, when related by unskilful persons, to have their circumstances exaggerated by additional orna- ments, we need not be surprized that this has been the case relative to the History of Microsco- pic Animalcules. No sooner did the microsco- pical observations of Leewenhoeck and a few others become pretty generally known, than im- mediately, as if by a kind of fatality, the animal- cular doctrine was carried a great deal too far; 216. LECTURE xli., and innumerable substances were supposed to swarm with these minute beings, which later and more accurate observations have proved to be totally free from them. Thus, the blueish or bloomy appearance on the surface of several sorts of plums, grapes, and many other fruits, has been supposed owing to innumerable legions of animalcules on the surface of the fruit: but this idea is entirely erroneous. It happens, a little unfortunately, that Mr. Pope has introduced it into his celebrated poem the Essay on Man, which still continues to propagate the mistake amongst those who are not scientifically conversant in such subjects, * Ev’n the blue down the purple Plum surrounds, A living World, thy failing sight confounds.” The blueish appearance above-mentioned is a mere vegetable efflorescence, which regularly takes place on such kind of fruit, and consists of particles of no determinate shape, and has not the least ap- pearance that could lead to a supposition of its being of an animal nature. * To attempt a methodical enumeration of Ani- LECTURE XII. 217 malcules appears, at first view, almost a hopeless labour; since exclusive of the vast variety of species, (of which, in all probability, only a small part has yet been observed,) many of them have a power of changing their shape at pleasure; so as to appear widely different at particular times from what they did the moment before; and others, though their form is constant, are apt to vary in colour; by which means some deception or ob- scurity may arise, and an uncertainty in determin- ing the species. Much, however, has been done: a great many species of Animalcules have been perfectly well described, and are perfectly well known to microscopical observers, since they possess characters too clear and plain to admit of . any doubt of their species, whenever they happen to appear. As examples of this curious and interesting race of animals I shall particularize a few of the most remarkable kinds, and such as are well figured in the works of Naturalists. Among these the genus called Vorticella is one of the principal. Its character is, that the mouth or opening is surrounded by numerous short feelers, forming a kind of fringe round the head. ~ § 18 LECTURE XII. One of the most elegant species of Vorticella is the Vorticella Convallaria, a beautiful transparent animalcule, the body of which is formed like a bell- shaped flower, and is furnished with a very long tail or stem, by which it affixes itself to whatever substance it pleases. When a groupe of these animalcules is viewed by the Microscope, it ex- hibits the appearance of a set of animated flowers, alternately stretching out their stems at full length, and again suddenly contracting them in a spiral twist as represented in the figures we are now viewing. This species is very common, and is generally found attached to the stems and under surface of the leaves of the Common Lemna minor or Duckweed. But a still more elegant species is the Vorti- cella racemosa. It is found during the summer months in clear stagnant waters, attached to the stalks of the smaller water plants and other objects; to the naked eye the whole groupe, on account of the great number of individuals composing it, is distinctly visible, in the form of a small whitish spot, resembling a kind of slime or mouldiness, but when placed under the microscope in a drop of water on a glass, its extraordinary structure is 2.95. acrº-rºce º VORTI ("E.I.L.A. R.A.C.E.NIOSA º, ºr zazza/azze, mazºº º//, /a/…/ zºº ºr Zºº & Mºrºccº. - - *** *- -- ". *22 º – º Pi— = º º º - (Vº - = H º: > * * *. º wº VORTICIELLA STEN TOIREA zºo.º. Zozº, Zºº. 4, 6 Mººr//wz.” - ** zºº º 22///zz | zzzzzzz/ºzze 2. / ºr a /º/, /* ſº S. º º | /or/zoo/Z, zz/º/*zºo & Zºº, NV zºº.ºccerºy ºz///a/ ** - - * - - - % | & º Cozzºzz//arzzzzz O) º /2//zre/7 ºccº /ø//, /g/…/ z ºr cozzo” waſ.” zºo.º.o.º. Zoz//, ////zºº/coºr/ºr” 43*/ ## º - º § N /ø//º/, //zoo/zrzy Zºv///zºo”, cºrº/Zorzzº Zºº ºr coºzzo” dº ſº.” º/*** Z & Zºrºa'ar ºr /ø/4 ozºzºa. zºo.º. ºcea. Zozada, º/* 4.- : Arzºº ºr fºrecz. IECTURE XII. 219 immediately perceived. From a single stem pro- ceed, at various distances, several Smaller ramifica- tions, each terminated by an apparent flower, like that of a Convolvulus, and furnished on the op- posite edges, with a pair of filaments resembling stamina. The whole is in the highest degree transparent, and perfectly resembles the finest glass; while the varying motions of the seeming flowers, expanding and contracting occasionally, and turning themselves in different directions, afford a scene so singularly Curious as to be num- bered among the finest spectacles which the Mi- croscope is capable of exhibiting. Each animal, though seated on the common stem, is complete in itself, and possesses the power of detaching itself from the stem, and forming a fresh Colony from itself. To the genus Vorticella also belongs the cele- brated Animalcule called the Wheel-Animal, from the appearance which the head in some particular positions exhibits; as if furnished with a pair of toothed wheels, in rapid motion: this animalcule, which is called Vorticella rotatoria, has long ago been pretty well described and figured by Baker in his work on the Microscope: it is of a lengthened shape, and of a pale brown colour, and is of such a size 22O LECTURE XII. as to be sometimes perceptible by a sharp eye, even without a glass. It is remarkable for its strange power of reviviscence, or restoration to life and motion after being dried many months on a glass. The Wheel-Animal is often found on the scum covering the surface of stagnant waters, but more frequently in the water found in the hollows of decayed trees after rain. In spring and summer nothing is more com- mon than to see the surface of the smaller kind of stagnant waters covered with a fine deep green scum; and frequently the same kind of greenness is diffused throughout the whole body of the water: this green colour is entirely owing to an Animalcule of a genus called Cercaria”. I have myself de- scribed it under the name of Cercaria mutabilis or Changeable Cercaria, because a variety sometimes occurs of a red colour. The animal is of a length- ened oval shape, with a slightly lengthened tail, the body or middle part appearing as if filled with very numerous green spawn or ova, while the extremities are transparent. It occurs at this season of the year in almost every puddle. The red variety is far less common, and the ap- * Naturalist's Miscellany, vol. iii. pl. 107. zºo ("EIR (ARIA MIUTABILIS zz warzozzº ºr º zºº ºccº. Zoº /////z ºr 6. Mºrºccº. LECTURE XII. 221 *earance which it exhibits is such as to alarm the superstitious with the idea of the water being changed into blood; a panic of which numerous instances have been adduced by authors, and which is the more excuseable in those who are ignorant of the cause, as the animalcules are so very small as to be utterly imperceptible, except to an uncommonly acute eye, without the assist- ance of the Microscope; so that even taking up and examining it affords no satisfactory eluci- dation to the vulgar. I remember to have more than once seen the whole surface of a large pond thus covered with this animalcule, of which there º; was not the least appearance the preceding day. It should be observed that some other animals, and particularly some small insects of the genus Monoculus, have occasionally produced a similar appearance : but in that case the demonstra- tion becomes easy; since every one, on taking up the water, perceives the red insects. We are assured by Swammerdam that the whole city of Leyden was one morning in a state of consterna. tion on discovering that the waters of that place were apparently changed into blood; but the phi- losopher soon had the satisfaction of undeceiving 222 LECTURE XII. the people by demonstrating to them the real Call Se. Among the most remarkable of the Animalcu- lar tribe may be numbered a species of the genus called Trichoda, chiefly characterized by being beset with hairs or filaments. The species I have just mentioned is the Trichoda Sol; so named from its presenting the appearance of a sun, as generally expressed in engraving; viz. a globe or ball, beset on all sides with very long diverging rays, or spines. This animalcule is of a remark- ably inactive nature, affixing itself to the stem of some small water plant, and occasionally moving at the rate of about a quarter of an inch in an hour. Its size may be considered as gigantic, for one of the animalcular tribe, being equal to that of a small pin's head. This animalcule may be pulled or torn in pieces, by means of a pair of needles or other convenient instruments, and in the space of a single hour each piece will be appa- rently complete, and perfectly globular like the original. It preys on small Monoculi, particularly on a very small species called by Linnaeus Mono- culus Pediculus, hardly larger than a grain of sand. The Trichoda Sol appears to have been first de- TRI (IoT) A S () ºr SUN TRICHODA *4% ºzº.” a rºyº wº ºveryº/eº wore /ø//, /g/.” wºod ººz., was *//// & Cº.” /// 3. - º Zºº VOLVOX GLOBATOR zºz ºr zazz/wa/.czec e. */ea. zºo.º. oozºa zoza Zºº * &Wºwºc, *A*/ºrz Jºycea. _- 3"> **cº LECTURE XII. 223 scribed by a German author of the name of Eichorn, and afterwards more fully by Müller. The genus called Volvox also presents one of the largest and most curious of Animalcules, as well as one of the most beautiful, the chief spe- cies, or Volvox Globator, often equalling the size of a pin's head. In the advanced state of spring, and again in autumn, it appears in immense num- bers in the clearer kind of stagnant waters. Its general colour is green; but it sometimes is of a pale orange-colour. Its motions are irregular, in all directions, and at the same time rolling or spin- ning as if on an axis. When microscopically ex- amined it presents one of the most curious pheno- menain natural history, being always pregnant with several smaller animals of its own kind, and these with others still Smaller: the whole external surface is covered with very numerous small tubercles; which some have supposed to act as a kind of fins, while others have supposed them to be the valves of so many orifices which the creature can either open or close at pleasure, in order to manage its various motions. When groupes of these beauti- ful animalcules are viewed by the solar Microscope, they strongly recal to the recollection of the spec- 224 LECTURE XII. **. tator the magnificent scene in Mr. Walker's Eidouranion, representing numerous worlds re- volving in various directions.” In a genus called Vibrio, from its vibrating or serpentine form and motion, we meet with the largest of all the Animalcular tribe; viz. the Vibrio Anguillula or Eel-Vibrio, of which one variety inha- bits acid paste made of flower and water, or such as is used for the common purposes of bookbinding, and the other variety is often found in common vinegar. The paste Vibrio is distinctly visible to a good eye without a glass, and when full grown measures the tenth of an inch in length: it is vivi- parous, and frequently produces a tribe of young. Its general appearance when magnified is that of an Eel. This animalcule, from its size, and the ease with which it may at all times be kept and observed, is peculiarly interesting. It generally swarms on the surface of the paste, and often coats the sides of the vessel in which it is kept, often forming a kind of ramifications, resembling the branched ap- pearance of frost on a window: this is particularly observable in rainy weather. The genus Cyclidium is distinguished by its oval shape, and is among the smallest of Animal- $. ‘. “, *. ? & ** > %x A6% 4/aza/ea! Azewº of VIBRIO ANGUILLULA or TEELVIIBRIO 1&0&0céſz. Zondon Auð4%a &y &A carræ,’ &ct.Jereee. .** * ~ X * * * * * 6. & pe * & LECTURE XII. r 225 cules: the common oval Cyclidium never fails to appear in countless swarms in any kind of vegeta- ble infusion after the space of a few days; as in infusions of hay, beans, wheat, and other sub- stances. Its motions are generally very rapid. The smallest of all the Animalcular tribe be- long to a genus called Monas: its character is an oval or roundish body, with a central point or speck. Whenever any kind of soft vegetable substance has been either infused or boiled in water, the water, when set by, will not fail to ex- hibit animalcules of this genus, sometimes in the space of twelve, but assuredly in the space of twenty-four hours afterwards. The smallest of all the genus, and the smallest of all animal beings, so far as human research is capable of discovering, is a species called Monas Termo, which when sur- veyed by the utmost powers' of the microscope, still appears but as a kind of moving point, hav- ing merely a sensible diameter. It is found in various vegetable infusions, appearing in the space of a few hours. 4. * .# THE ENI, LECT. II. - * *. & e # $- & $ Lect. I II. II. III. III. III. IV. . p. 124. l. ult. For descendents read descendants. . p. 139. l. 9. For longer read larger. . p. 158. l. 10. For hypochondriac and unpygial feathers . E. R. R. A. T. A. VOL. I. p. 22. l. 11. For say she read says he. p. 40. l. 1. For manner read manners. p. 59. in the note. For preferred read referred. p. 81. l. 2. For oviparous read ovi-viviparous. p. 85. I. 18. For Ichnuemon read Ichneumon. p. 88. l. 6. For ten in the upper read ten in the upper jaw. p. 120. l. 18. For in the mouth read by the mouth. VI. VI. VIII. VIII. IX. IX. . p. 145. 1, 20. For S. S. read G. S. XII. read hypochondrial and uropygial feathers. . p. 176. l. 2. For Tinian read Quibo. . p. 182. l. 12. For seem to have been copied, read seem to have been all copied. p. 209. l. 22. For Carthage read Cathaye. p. 241.1. 19. For o read of VOL. II. p. 65. 1. 5. For it will read he will. p. 65. 1. 21. For one intermired read once intermired. p. 110. I. 17. For Class read Order. p. 112.1. 14. For one read once. p. 207. l. 21. For Gorgoniap retiosa read Gorgonia pre- tiosa. & T. Davison, Punter, Whytefriars, N . . ; y i . . ; . 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