Chapter L: THE RAZORBILL OR AUK (Alca torda) 100 (5)

All macaws are essentially birds of the great primeval forests of tropical America, the blue and yellow species being especially abundant in those of northern Brazil. During the hottest hours of the day these birds sit quietly perched on the lower branches of thick-foliaged trees, the long tail hanging straight down, and the neck being drawn in. After resting for several hours, they issue forth in search of food; and a flock of these magnificent birds on the wing in the clear air of the tropics is a truly splendid sight, as they fly slowly to and from their feeding-places. Having selected a likely looking tree, the whole flock descend with a rush, and proceed to strip it of its fruit. Quickly each bird climbs out to the end of a branch and sets to work at cracking nuts, or devouring softer fruit. When such a flock of araraunas is feasting, little is seen of the birds themselves, but their presence is amply manifested by their incessant and discordant cries and screams. If a shot be fired in the neighbourhood, the whole flock rises immediately in a gold and azure cloud. Macaws of all kinds constantly make raids on cultivated crops, where, unless promptly driven off, they do incalculable damage in a surprisingly short space of time, cocoa being one of the crops to which they are specially partial.

As is the case with all members of the parrot tribe, the union between the sexes of the ararauna is very close: the two members of a pair are thorough comrades, and live only for themselves and their offspring. At the pairing-season each couple of the older birds resorts to the same spot, and often to the same tree, as has served them previously as a breeding-place. For the nest a tall tree is always selected, and a slit in the trunk or a hollow in one of the branches is enlarged by means of the powerful beak until a cavity large enough to contain the nest is excavated. In this chamber the female ararauna deposits a couple of white eggs of nearly the same size as those of a domesticated hen, afterwards incubating them with great assiduity, her long tail projecting all the time out of the hole, and thus revealing the situation of the nest.

Tame araraunas and other macaws are much esteemed by the Indians of Brazil and other South American countries. These dwell on the properties of their owners, and fly off to feed in the fields, just in the same manner as domesticated pigeons in Europe. They form the ornaments of the Indian poultry-yard.

In captivity in Europe macaws thrive well, and can be taught to speak, although they never turn out such good linguists as many other members of the parrot tribe.

THE MANDARIN DUCK

(_Æx galerita_)

The male of the mandarin duck--the mandarin drake, as it should properly be called--looks so essentially Chinese that one would almost intuitively guess that it came from China. Nevertheless, it has a near relative, and the only other member of the same genus, in North America, where it is represented by the summer duck (_Æx sponsa_). In this distribution these painted ducks, as they have not inaptly been called, resemble several other groups of animals, such as the true alligators (_Alligator_) and the spoonbeaked sturgeons (_Polyodon_ and _Psephurus_), each of which has one North American and one Chinese species, although the American and Asiatic spoonbeaked sturgeons are referred to separate genera.

Ducks, it may be mentioned, are divided into two distinct sections--namely, the swimming ducks and the diving ducks; the mandarin duck and its American relative belonging to the former section, of which they form a special group, characterised by the ornate plumage of the drakes, and particularly by the broad ornamental feathers on the shoulders and the elongated plumes on the head, which form a kind of helmet, with a large flange extending backwards over the neck.

The mandarin drake is specially distinguished from the male of the summer duck by possessing a ruff on the neck formed of elongated, narrow, chestnut feathers streaked with whitish, and a chestnut and black “fan” rising up in a kind of tiger’s-claw shape on each side of the hind end of the body, and mainly formed by the broad innermost secondary feather of the wing; the helmet being copper-coloured, purple, and green, and separated by a broad white band enclosing the eye from the chestnut throat-ruff, while the beak is reddish brown. The other details of colour and pattern are sufficiently apparent in the illustration.

This gorgeous breeding-livery is, however, worn only during a portion of the year. For four months--namely, from June till September--the mandarin drake is a very ordinary-looking bird, clothed in a greyish dress, which in autumn gives place, by a second moult, to the breeding-livery, the latter lasting till the following summer. When the drake is in the non-breeding plumage, it is mainly distinguishable from the duck by its somewhat superior size. The colour of the female is chiefly grey, relieved with brown and white.

The distributional area of the mandarin duck includes northern China, Japan, and Amurland; but the species appears to be nowhere common, and in most districts is decidedly rare. In China these ducks, which are regarded as semi-sacred birds, are highly valued, and are kept in cages.

Unlike the majority of the duck tribe, both the mandarin and the summer duck are in the habit of perching on the branches of trees, and make their nests in holes either in the branches or trunk. In this perching habit they resemble the tree-ducks of the genus _Dendrocycna_. After lining the hole with a plentiful supply of feathers, down, and other soft material, the female lays a clutch of from seven to fifteen eggs. These she incubates herself, carefully covering them up with down every time she leaves the nest; and she likewise takes sole charge of the ducklings, from the time they are hatched till they are able to shift for themselves. When, as is frequently the case, the nest is situated over water, the ducklings throw themselves down into the water very soon after they are hatched, but in other instances they are carried in the beaks of their parents, as is the case with those of the ordinary wild duck when the nest is built above the level of the ground.

The food of these ducks, like that of many other members of the tribe, includes insects, worms, water-snails, young frogs, and other water-animals, together with the leaves and young shoots of various kinds of water-plants.

The mandarin duck is an active and untiring bird, moving quickly on the ground, and flying easily and rapidly into trees, where it flits from bough to bough with the ease and assurance of a wood-pigeon. It lives and breeds well in confinement, and may be seen in nearly all zoological gardens, as well as on many ornamental waters.

In the summer duck, which is a native of North America and Cuba, but occasionally wanders to Jamaica and the Bermudas, the colour of the upper-parts of the male in the breeding-dress is chiefly glossy green, with the cheeks purple, and black patches on the neck, and white stripes on both the head and neck. The wing-coverts are partly blue, the flanks are brown, black, and white, while the breast is chestnut spotted with white, and the rest of the under-parts white; the beak being a mixture of black, white, purplish, yellow, and scarlet, and the feet yellow.

THE HERON

(_Ardea cinerea_)

The heron, or common or grey heron, as it is frequently called in order to distinguish it from its relatives, has fortunately not shared the fate of the bittern, and is still more or less common in many parts of Great Britain, where it may be seen at all hours of the day standing mid-leg deep in some stream patiently awaiting the next passing fish. Its gregarious habits and the protection accorded to many of the ancient heronries in various parts of the country doubtless account for the survival among us of this handsome, albeit thin and ill-favoured, grey bird. Nevertheless, on account of its fish-eating habits, the heron has many enemies, and is relentlessly persecuted in certain districts, especially by those connected with fisheries. Recently, however, efforts have been made to check this persecution; and in East Sussex, where there are no trout-hatcheries, these birds are protected throughout the year.

Although, as just mentioned, herons may be seen fishing at all hours of the day, they are chiefly nocturnal birds, and thus the very opposite of the kingfisher, which always captures its prey by daylight. When a heron sees a fish within reach, it strikes with unerring aim like a flash of lightning, and usually seizes its victim crosswise in its spear-like beak. In the case of larger fish, it is stated, however, to attack them by stabbing in the back--a mode of attack from which such fish, although mortally wounded, generally manage to escape. Of those fish which are seized crosswise in the beak, the larger ones are first beaten to death, after which they are swallowed head-foremost. When a successful lunge has been made, the heron resumes its motionless, watchful pose, confident that, although scared away for a time, the fish will soon return.

As the heron is a most voracious bird, consuming, it is affirmed, fully its own weight of food in a day, and as this food consists chiefly of fish, anglers, it must be confessed, have some excuse for the detestation with which they regard the species. Nevertheless, the heron does some good, as it also consumes a number of snakes and frogs, as well as water-rats. In addition to the above, herons also eat river-mussels, insects, worms, and probably also young birds.

The geographical distribution of the heron is very extensive, comprising most of the countries of the Old World, although the bird visits some of these only during certain parts of the year. In the north of Europe, for example, herons are migratory, travelling southwards to Africa in parties of as many as fifty individuals in October, and not returning till the following March or April. All streams and pieces of water in the neighbourhood of forests, or at least where a certain number of large trees are to be found, may serve as the fishing-resorts of the heron.

Herons build in large colonies, or heronries, which may contain from about fifteen to as many as four hundred nests. Formerly there were a great number of English heronries, especially in Lincolnshire, but many of these, like the well-known large one near Spalding, have been broken up. Many, however, still remain, and a new one has been recently established near Lewes. One of the largest English heronries was that of Bride, near Rye, in Sussex, which in 1860 contained as many as four hundred nests, although by 1880 there were barely a couple of hundred. Now, owing to the felling of some of the trees, this magnificent heronry has ceased to exist.

The nest is a large, rude structure of dry sticks and reeds, lined with hair, wool, and feathers, in which the female lays her three or four large green eggs. The young remain in the nest, or nesting-platform as it might well be called, until fully fledged, and are remarkably voracious. Putrefying fish cover the edge of the nest, as well as the ground below, and poison the air with their smell. The parents attend to their offspring for a few days after the latter leave the nest; but at the end of this period old and young part company.

If the nest be attacked, the parents suffer their eggs or young to be carried off, without doing more than opening their beaks and uttering mournful cries, although in many cases a single blow from the beak would suffice to slay the spoiler.

Heron-hawking was in former days a favourite sport of the nobles all over Europe. The falcon, usually the peregrine, always endeavoured to get above the heron, when, after the delivery of a successful attack, both birds fell together headlong to the ground. As a rule, the ornamental feathers--at one time highly esteemed--were plucked from the heron, which was then set at liberty.

On account of the damage it does to fisheries, the heron is even more persecuted on the Continent than in Great Britain; and is shot whenever an opportunity occurs, except in protected breeding-places.

THE GREAT SPOTTED WOODPECKER

(_Dendrocopus major_)

It is not a little remarkable that such nearly allied birds as the great green woodpecker, or yaffle, and the two kinds of pied or spotted woodpeckers should present such remarkable diversity in the matter of colouring; the former being mainly olive-yellow with a red skull-cap in both sexes, while the other two are pied above and chiefly white below, with a red band at the back of the head of the cock alone. A third group is represented by the great black woodpecker, which is wholly sable, with an ivory-white beak. The difference in the matter of colouring between the green and the pied species is probably due to their different habits, the former being to a great extent a ground-bird, fond of frequenting lawns and meadows near woods for the purpose of digging up ants’ nests, while the other two are almost completely arboreal. In the dappled shade cast by the leaves--especially those of pines--on the trunks of trees, these pied birds are comparatively inconspicuous; while among grass of moderate length the green woodpecker is absolutely invisible. It is further noteworthy that the pied species have most of the under surface of the body white, whereas in the green woodpecker the same aspect is grey. To a bird walking on grass a white under surface would certainly be no protection; but in bright sunshine on the trunk of a tree such a surface would undoubtedly tend to render the bird inconspicuous, as it would counteract the effect of the dark shade thrown by the body, in precisely the same manner as in the case of white-bellied quadrupeds.

Very curious is the fact that while, as already mentioned, the red band on the back of the pied species occurs in the adult only in the males, such a band is found in both sexes of the immature birds. This fact, coupled with the occurrence of a red head in both sexes of the green species, may be taken as an indication that red on the head was at one time a feature in all woodpeckers, but that for some reason it has been discarded in the females of the pied group.

Woodpeckers present some of the finest examples of the adaptation of bodily structure to be met with in the whole animal kingdom. The strong, conical beak is, for example, admirably suited for chiselling out, by repeated blows of the head, rotten wood in insect-infected trees, or prising off loose pieces of bark in order that the bird may be able to get at the insects and other creatures lurking beneath. Then, again, the short legs and the curious structure of the feet, with two toes turned forwards and the other backwards, enable these birds to obtain the most effective foothold on smooth, slippery bark. Lest, however, the feet should prove ineffectual, the bird is aided in climbing by its tail, the feathers of which have unusually strong quills, the tips of these being bare and shiny. When this tail is pressed firmly against the bark, the stiff tips of the feathers afford very considerable support to the ascending bird.

The climax in the way of special adaptation is presented, however, by the woodpecker’s tongue, which, owing to the form and structure of the supporting bones, can be thrust out a long distance in advance of the tip of the beak, and is covered with a sticky secretion to which insects adhere. A similar structure obtains in the tongue of the wryneck; but there are certain foreign woodpeckers in which that organ is normal.

By means of its strong beak, the spotted woodpecker chisels out in the trunk of a tree, where the wood is more or less decayed, both a sleeping and a nesting hole. A circular entrance leads for some distance horizontally into the heart of the stem, after which the hole descends vertically for some way, and then expands into a large dome-shaped chamber, which serves as a receptacle for the clutch of three to eight white eggs, these being incubated by the male and female birds alternately. It is very generally believed that woodpeckers live entirely upon insects and other invertebrate animals; this, however, is a mistaken idea, for they likewise eat various kinds of seeds and berries, as well as nuts and walnuts, which they crack in nuthatch-fashion. The cry of the pied woodpecker is either a short and sharp “hi, hi,” or a harsh and resounding “hæ, hæ”; but a more familiar sound is the tapping on the bark of the stem or larger boughs by the beak, in order that the bird may ascertain whether the wood beneath is sound or rotten. Very characteristic is the undulating flight of a woodpecker, the bird generally dropping suddenly near the end of its course, so as to alight only a short distance from the root of the selected tree, up the stem of which it then rapidly climbs.

The larger spotted woodpecker frequents woods with different kinds of trees; but its special favourites are pines, poplars, and willows.

THE SENEGAL PARROT

(_Pæocephalus senegalus_)

Although the name Senegal parrot, or rather _perroquet de Sénégal_, has been applied to several distinct members of the parrot tribe, it is now by general consent restricted to the gorgeously coloured species forming the subject of the accompanying illustration. In addition to this name, it has also the titles of orange-bellied long-winged parrot and black-headed parrot, the first of which is the more distinctive, although the second is preferable on account of its conciseness.

The black-headed parrot is a native of Senegambia and some of the countries of the West Coast properly so called, although the exact limits of its distributional area, which probably extend a considerable way into the heart of the continent, are still imperfectly known.

This parrot has been a well-known bird in Europe from very early days, as it was mentioned by Aloysius Cada Mosto so long ago as 1445, and was again referred to by the naturalist Brisson in the year 1760. Large numbers of these parrots are at times imported into Europe, especially to Havre and likewise to Liverpool. At the last-named port immense consignments used to be received now and then, but as these were for the most part young birds a very large proportion died soon after their arrival, especially when purchased singly and separated from their companions. Such young birds used to be sold at prices ranging upwards from five or six shillings; but tamed individuals are worth from twenty to thirty shillings each, while the few specimens that learn to talk fetch much higher prices.

If caught sufficiently young, these parrots make admirable cage-birds, as they are strikingly handsome, and fairly hardy. Occasionally they will lay in captivity, if provided with a suitable nesting-place. Sometimes they become very tame, although they are always nervous and excitable birds, uttering when alarmed a curious grating sound, and when thoroughly terrified giving vent to a shrill, whistling scream of fear. As a talker, the black-headed species bears, however, no comparison to the common grey parrot; and it has even been stated that the former is totally unable to learn to speak, although this is an error. The adult cock, which is rather larger and handsomer than his partner, has the head, cheek, and the upper portion of the throat brownish or blackish grey; the back, rump, and upper tail-coverts are glossy grass-green, while the wing-quills are olive greenish brown, the wing-coverts green with brown middles, and the shoulders, together with the lesser under wing-coverts, yellow. Those portions of the upper surface not already mentioned, together with the throat and the upper part of the breast and the whole of the tail-feathers, are bright grass-green. The remainder of the under surface is yellow, passing into bright orange-red on the middle of the breast and abdomen, the yellow likewise embracing the under tail-coverts. The beak is dark horny grey passing into blackish brown, with the soft “cere” at its base, like the patch of bare skin round each eye, blackish; while the feet are dark brown. Bright colour reappears in the iris of the eye, which varies from sulphur-yellow to dark brown, probably according to age.

In the hen the head is light brownish grey, the under surface uniformly yellow without any tinge of orange, while the under tail-coverts are yellowish green instead of yellow. In size the female may be compared with a small jackdaw.

As is the case with many other members of its tribe, very little is known with regard to Senegal parrots in a state of nature. They are stated, however, to associate in small parties of about half a dozen, and to take up their quarters, whenever possible, in the tops of the huge monkey-bread trees, where they reveal their presence by uttering piercing screams at the approach of an intruder on their domains. In taking wing, and also when settling after a flight, they are stated to be somewhat awkward, but when once started they fly as straight and as swift as arrows. Details are wanting with regard to their nesting-habits; but, when the young are strong enough to fly, the whole party takes to wandering about, and then frequently do much damage to the banana, rice, maize, and other crops. In captivity, at any rate, the males perform a kind of love-dance at the commencement of the breeding-season.

The Senegal parrot is the typical representative of a genus, with rather more than a dozen species, confined to Africa south of the Sahara. That genus belongs to a subfamily (_Pioninæ_), of which the more typical representatives, such as _Pionus_ and _Chrysotis_ (Amazon parrots), are South American.

THE GOLDFINCH

(_Carduelis elegans_)

Properly speaking, the name “goldfinch” ought to be the designation of the canary, but it was doubtless given to the well-known British bird long before canaries were thought or heard of in England, and the former has, therefore, an indefeasible title. And, after all, if the canary be put aside, the designation is really very suitable to the goldfinch, referring as it does to the bright golden wing-bar which distinguishes both sexes from all other British birds. Taking into consideration the fact that both sexes share the brilliant plumage characteristic of the species, the goldfinch can lay claim to be the most brightly coloured perching-bird indigenous to the British Isles and north-western Europe generally.

To describe the colouring of such a well-known bird would be altogether superfluous on the present occasion, more especially as it is so excellently shown in the Plate. It may be remarked, however, that there is some amount of individual variation in this respect, and that the development of the red area on the head and of the white spots on all the tail-feathers is a feature of the adults alone; and it may be added that in regard to colouring females differ from the males chiefly by the smaller extent of the red area, which may contain black spots.

To one variation bird-fanciers have given the special name of “cheverel”; this rare sport, when fully developed, being characterised by the wholly white chin, and by the white patch on the cheek extending upwards so as to unite across the back of the head with its fellow of the opposite side. The brown patch on the breast is likewise replaced by white. Every kind of variation between a typical goldfinch and the so-called cheverel may be seen; and it is thus evident that the latter is merely a partially albinistic phase of the former.

There is an idea, doubtless unfounded, that the cheverel, or chevil, as it is sometimes called, mates better with the canary, and is likewise a superior songster; and it is to the latter notion that it owes its name, which is apparently derived from an old English word _chefle_ or _chevelen_, signifying to talk idly, or chatter.

The distributional area of the goldfinch extends from the British Isles to western and central Siberia, beyond which it is replaced by the grey-headed goldfinch (_Carduelis caniceps_)--a bird with which the large eastern race of the European species will interbreed. Although the goldfinch is only a casual visitor to Scotland, in Scandinavia its breeding-area extends some five degrees farther north than that of its cousin, the brambling.

Owing to the estimation in which it is held as a cage-bird, the goldfinch was almost exterminated from most parts of England some years ago; but now that bird-nesting has been to a great extent stopped, the species is gradually recovering its numbers, and may often be seen on many thistle-covered commons to which it was long a stranger. In addition to Europe and western and central Asia, the goldfinch also inhabits northern Africa, while it has been introduced into New Zealand and Japan.

Its favourite haunts are open lands on the borders of woods, plantations, fields with trees, parks, and commons and other waste grounds. Thick forests it studiously avoids.

The food of this bird consists of seeds, more especially those of thistles and burdocks, as well as those of the birch and the alder. As a rule, it seeks those on the plants and trees themselves, and not on the ground; and in picking out the seeds from thistle-heads, it may be seen hanging head-downwards and in various other graceful attitudes on the stems. From the nature of its food, the goldfinch is, indeed, a most valuable bird both to the agriculturist and the gardener, on whom it confers additional benefits by disturbing insects which take up their quarters in its food-plants. It is, therefore, worthy of protection on two grounds--its utility and the beauty of its plumage, to say nothing of its song.

The nest is a beautifully made structure, nearly resembling that of the chaffinch, and generally built by the female alone, who is cheered in her task by the continuous song of the cock. It is frequently built in gardens, often at no great distance from the house, generally at a height of from fifteen to twenty feet above the ground, the most favoured situation being the fork of a bough, in which it is so well secured that it will retain its place even when the tree is felled. The four or five black-spotted bluish green eggs are laid by the female in May, and are hatched in thirteen or fourteen days. The young remain in the company of their parents for some time after they have left the nest. In many parts of the Continent goldfinches collect in the autumn in large flocks, which in winter break up into small parties of from ten to twenty birds.

THE RAZORBILL OR AUK

(_Alca torda_)

The razorbill, or auk, which, in suitable localities, is one of the commonest of British sea-birds, has an interest all its own from the circumstance that it is the nearest living relative of the now extinct great auk, these two species being, in fact, the sole members of the genus _Alca_. Both these birds present a considerable superficial resemblance to the penguins of the Southern Hemisphere; and it seems to be due to this resemblance that the latter owe their name, for there appears to be little doubt that the great auk was the true and original penguin, or pinguin, and that the birds we now know by that name were so called by the old voyagers on account of their likeness to the former species. Such resemblance as exists between the two groups is, however, merely of the most superficial kind, auks being strong fliers, with feet of normal structure, whereas the wings of penguins serve the purpose of paddles, and the bones of their feet are quite unlike those of all other birds.

Auks, in fact, appear to be near relatives of the gulls and terns, which have assumed, in accordance with their mode of life, a partially upright position of body. For these birds, in common with guillemots, very frequently breed on the narrow ledges of cliffs, where it is obvious that an upright posture affords them greater facilities for movement and at the same time economises space. In accordance with this habit, razorbills, in common with other members of the auk tribe, lay pear-shaped eggs, which cannot well roll off the bare ledges of rock on which they are often laid. As a rule, each female deposits only one, relatively large, egg; while no female incubates more than a pair of these eggs at the same time. Sometimes, in place of a bare ledge, the egg is laid in a hollow in the rock, or, where the soil is of a suitable nature, in a hole excavated by the parent bird.

All members of the auk tribe are inhabitants of the cooler portions of the Northern Hemisphere; their place in the corresponding southern latitudes being taken by the aforesaid penguins.

In addition to its remarkable bodily shape, the adult razorbill is easily recognised by the great lateral compression and subterminal expansion of the beak, from which the bird derives its ordinary vernacular name; as well as by the deep groovings and wide band on the sides of this appendage. The curved white stripe running from just in front of the eye to the root of the beak is another distinctive feature of the species; and this, too, in a more or less distinct form, in birds of all ages, whereas in the young the groovings and white markings on the beak are wanting. Considerable difference exists between the summer and winter plumages of the adult birds. In summer the head and neck are sooty brown, while the back and wings are black with a greenish gloss; the beak and the rest of the under-parts, together with a narrow wing-bar, being white. On the other hand, the winter plumage of the adults, like that of the young in summer, is browner above, while the sides of the head and the fore portion of the neck are of the same snowy white as the under-parts of the body.

The razorbill inhabits the coasts on both sides of the North Atlantic, breeding far up on the Norwegian coast, on those of Iceland and the Faröe Islands, and on the opposite side of the ocean on the shores of Newfoundland, Labrador, and Greenland; latitude 70° about marking its northward breeding range on the American side, while in Europe the limit is about one degree less. Eastwards the range extends to Jan Mayen Island; while the southward boundary of the breeding area in Europe appears to be formed by the Brittany coasts. In great Britain these birds breed, in suitable localities, all round the coasts, inclusive of those of the Shetland Islands. These limits do not, however, by any means indicate the whole range of the species, for in winter these birds visit the Mediterranean, and occasionally the Canaries.

Throughout the year razorbills associate in large flocks, although in autumn the numbers of these colonies are diminished, apparently by a portion of the birds going out to sea. Bempton Cliffs, on the Yorkshire coast, form one of their favourite breeding-places, where the birds congregate in thousands, in company with guillemots, and yield a large harvest of eggs. The laying season commences about the middle of May, but is at its height some days later; while eggs and young may be found together till late in June. By the end of July the birds have for the most part finished their breeding season, and by the first week in August nearly all have forsaken the cliffs for the sea, which is their true home, and on which they often pass the night.

INDEX

Abyssinian Green Monkey, 48.

_Æx galerita_, 90;
_sponsa_, 90.

_Alca torda_, 100.

_Alces machlis_, 8.

_Ammotragus lervia_, 67.

_Ara ararauna_, 88;
_chloroptera_, 88;
_cærulea_, 88;
_militaris_, 88;
_severa_, 88.

_Arctomys bobac_, 72;
_marmotta_, 72;
_monax_, 72.

_Ardea cinerea_, 92.

Auks, 100.

Aurochs, 62.

_Balearica chrysopelargus_, 36;
_gibbericeps_, 36;
_pavonina_, 36;
_regulorum_, 36.

Bears, 22, 52.

Beaver, 70.

Bison, 62.

Bittern, 34.

Black Swan, 80.

Blue Macaw, 88.

Blue Roller, 32.

_Bos bonasus_, 62;
_b. caucasicus_, 62.

_Botaurus stellaris_, 34.

Brown Bear, 52.

_Bubo ignavus_, 40;
_sibiricus_, 40;
_turcomanus_, 40;
_virginianus_, 40.

_Buceros bicornis_, 86;
_rhinoceros_, 86.

Bustard, 82.

_Canis latrans_, 27;
_lupus_, 26;
_l. occidentalis_, 27;
_l. pambasileus_, 26;
_vulpes_, 50;
_v. flavescens_, 51;
_v. fulvus_, 51;
_v. melanogaster_, 50;
_v. montanus_, 50.

Capercaillie, 10.

_Capreolus bedfordi_, 15;
_caprea_, 14;
_manchuricus_, 15;
_pygargus_, 15.

_Carduelis caniceps_, 98;
_elegans_, 98.

Caribou, 17.

_Castor canadensis_, 71;
_fiber_, 70.

_Cercopithecus æthiops_, 48;
_callitrichus_, 48;
_diana_, 48;
_petaurista_, 48;
_sabæus_, 48.

_Cervus elaphus_, 68.

_Cobus coba_, 19;
_defassa_, 18;
_d. penricei_, 18;
_ellipsiprymnus_, 18;
_leche_, 19;
_leucotis_, 19;
_maria_, 19;
_vardoni_, 19.

_Coracias garrulus_, 32;
_indicus_, 32.

Coscoroba Swan, 81.

Cranes, Crowned, 36.

_Cricetus frumentarius_, 74.

Crocodiles, 44.

_Crocodilus niloticus_, 44;
_palustris_, 44;
_porosus_, 44.

Crowned Crane, 36.

_Cygnus atratus_, 80;
_nigricollis_, 81;
_olor_, 81.

_Cynælurus jubatus_, 56.

Deer, 14, 68.

Defassa Waterbuck, 18.

_Dendrocopus major_, 94.

Drill, 25.

Duckbill, 76.

Eagle Owls, 40.

Echidnas, 78.

Elk, 8.

_Felis catus_, 28;
_leo_, 1;
_lynx_, 58;
_l. canadensis_, 59;
_l. cervaria_, 58;
_l. isabellina_, 58;
_l. wardi_, 58;
_ocreata_, 28;
_onca_, 56;
_pardus_, 56;
_p. nanopardus_, 57;
_p. panthera_, 57;
_p. tulliana_, 57;
_p. villosa_, 56;
_serval_, 56;
_tigris longipilis_, 4;
_t. mongolica_, 4;
_t. sondaica_, 4;
_t. virgata_, 4;
_uncia_, 57.

Flamingo, 42.

Fox, 50.

_Gazella arabica_, 64;
_cuvieri_, 64;
_dorcas_, 64.

Gazelles, 64.

Gibbons, 45.

Goldfinch, 98.

Great Horned Owl, 40.

Great Spotted Woodpecker, 94.

Green Monkeys, 48.

Grisly Bear, 53.

Guenons, 48.

Gulls, 38.

_Halichærus grypus_, 7.

Hamster, 74.

Hare, 20.

Heron, 92.

Hornbills, 86.

Horned Owls, 40.

Hulok, 46.

_Hylobates hainanus_, 45;
_hulok_, 45;
_lar_, 45;
_leucogenys_, 47;
_syndactylus_, 45.

Indian Rhinoceros, 60.

Jaguar, 56.

Kafir Crowned Crane, 36.

Kangaroo, 30.

_Larus argentatus_, 38;
_canus_, 38;
_hyperboreus_, 39.

Leopard, 56.

_Lepus europæus_, 20;
_timidus_, 20;
_t. hibernicus_, 20;
_t. scoticus_, 20.

Lion, 1.

Lynx, 58.

Macaws, 88.

_Macropus rufus_, 30.

_Maimon leucophæus_, 25;
_mormon_, 24.

Manchurian Tiger, 4.

Mandarin Duck, 90.

Mandrill, 24.

Mangabeys, 48.

Marmot, 72.

Martens, 54.

Moose, 8.

Mouflon, 66.

_Mustela americana_, 54;
_foina_, 54;
_martes_, 54;
_zibellina_, 54.

Nile Crocodile, 44.

_Ornithorhynchus anatinus_, 76.

Ostriches, 84.

_Otis tarda_, 82.

_Ovis ammon_, 67;
_canadensis_, 67;
_musimon_, 66;
_orientalis_, 67;
_vignei_, 67.

Owls, 40.

Parrot, Senegal, 96.

_Phoca vitulina_, 6.

_Phœnicoaias minor_, 43.

_Phœnicoparrus andinus_, 43;
_jamesi_, 43.

_Phœnicopterus chilensis_, 42;
_roseus_, 42;
_ruber_, 42.

Pied Hornbill, 86.

Pine-Marten, 54.

Platypus, 76.

_Pœocephalus senegalus_, 96.

Polar Bear, 22.

_Proëchidna bruijni_, 79.

_Rangifer tarandus_, 16;
_t. arcticus_, 17;
_t. caribu_, 17;
_t. fennicus_, 17;
_t. novæ-terræ_, 17;
_t. osborni_, 17.

Razorbill, 100.

Red Deer, 68.

Red Kangaroo, 30.

Reindeer, 16.

_Rhinoceros sondaicus_, 60;
_sumatrensis_, 60;
_unicornis_, 60.

Rhinoceroses, 60.

_Rhinoplax vigil_, 86.

_Rissa tridactyla_, 39.

Roe-deer, 14.

Roller, Blue, 32.

_Sciurus vulgaris_, 12;
_v. argenteus_, 13;
_v. leucurus_, 12;
_v. lilæus_, 13;
_v. rutilans_, 12;
_v. sibiricus_, 13;
_v. typicus_, 12.

Seal, 6.

Senegal Parrot, 96.

Silver Gull, 38.

Somali Ostrich, 84.

Spiny Ant-eater, 78.

Squirrel, 12.

_Struthio australis_, 84;
_camelus_, 84;
_masaicus_, 84;
_molybdophanes_, 84.

Swans, 80.

_Tachyglossus aculeatus_, 78.

_Tetrao urogallus_, 10.

Tigers, 4.

_Ursus arctus_, 52;
_a. dalli_, 52;
_a. eulophus_, 53;
_a. gyas_, 52;
_a. isabellinus_, 52;
_a. kidderi_, 53;
_a. lasiotis_, 52;
_a. middendorffi_, 52;
_a. piscator_, 52;
_a. shanorum_, 52;
_a. sitkensis_, 53;
_a. syriacus_, 52;
_horribilis_, 53;
_h. kenaiensis_, 53;
_h. phæonyx_, 53;
_leuconyx_, 53;
_maritimus_, 22.

_Vulpes alopex_, 50.

Waterbuck, 18.

White-handed Gibbon, 45.

Wild Cat, 28.

Wolf, 26.

Wolves, 26.

Woodpeckers, 94.

_Printed by_ MORRISON & GIBB LIMITED, _Edinburgh_

Transcriber's Notes:

Italics are shown thus: _sloping_.

Variations in spelling and hyphenation are retained.

Perceived typographical errors have been changed.