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end here. The number of ribs is twelve on each side; and the trachea, instead of entering at once into the chest, passes into a cavity in the keel of the breast-bone, and so proceeding for a considerable distance, turns upwards abruptly, and is again inflected over the edge of the breast-bone before penetrating into the chest.

3. Bewick's swan (Cygnus Bewickii). This bird can only be confounded with the preceding, but is to be distinguished by the following points:-The general size is a fourth less; and the bill is more duck-like, being thicker, shorter, and higher at the base, where it joins the forehead; and the black extends over a greater space (nearly two-thirds), so as to include the nostrils. As it regards internal structure, the similarity is as striking as between the bills, though there is still a decided difference. The trachea is of smaller calibre, and passes more deeply into the keel of the breast-bone; and the bronchi or subdivisions are less than half the length of the same parts in the hooper.

Mr. John Blackwall, in his researches in Zoology (quoted in Yarrell's “British Birds,") after referring to a specimen of Bewick's swan in the Manchester Museum, says, "About half-past eight, on the morning of the 10th of December, 1829, a flock of twenty-nine swans, mistaken, by many persons who saw them, for wild geese, was observed flying over the township of Crumpsall, at an elevation not exceeding fifty yards above the surface of the earth. They flew in a line, taking a northerly direction, and their loud calls, for they were very clamorous when on the wing, might be heard to a considerable distance. I afterwards learned that they alighted on an extensive reservoir near Middleton, belonging to Messrs. Burton and Sons, calico-printers, where they were shot at, and an individual had one of its wings so severely injured that it was disabled from accompanying its companions in their retreat. A short time since, I had an opportunity of seeing this bird, which resembled the rest of the flock with which it had been associated,

and found, as I had anticipated, that it was precisely similar to the small swan preserved in the museum at Manchester, which, I should state, was purchased in the fish market in that town, about five or six years ago.

"Twenty-nine of these birds congregated together, without a single whistling swan among them, is a fact so decisive of the distinctness of the species, especially when taken in connexion with those external characters and internal structure in which it differs from the hooper, that I should no longer have deferred to describe it as a new bird to ornithologists, had I not been anticipated by Mr. Yarrell.

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"Of the habits and manners of this species, little could be ascertained from a brief inspection of a wounded individual; I may remark, however, that when on the water, it had somewhat the air and appearance of a goose, being almost wholly devoid of that grace and majesty by which the mute swan is so advantageously distinguished. It appeared to be a shy and timid bird, and could only be approached near by stratagem, when it intimated its apprehension by uttering its call. It carefully avoided the society of a mute swan which was on the same piece of water.

"On the 28th of February, 1830, at half-past ten in the morning, seventy-three swans, of the new species, were observed flying over Crumpsall in a south-easterly direction, at a considerable elevation. They flew abreast, forming an extensive line, like those seen on the 10th of December, 1829; like them, too, they were mistaken for wild geese by most persons who saw them with whom I had an opportunity of conversing on the subject; but their superior dimensions, the whiteness of their plumage, their black feet, easily distinguished as they passed overhead, and their reiterated calls, which first directed my attention to them, were so strikingly characteristic, that skilful ornithologists could not be deceived with regard to the genus to which they belonged. That these birds

were not hoopers may be safely inferred from their great inferiority in point of size.

"I was informed, that when the wild swans were shot at, near Middleton on the 10th of December, 1829, one of them was so reluctant to abandon the bird which was wounded on that occasion, that it continued to fly about the spot for several hours after the rest of the flock had departed, and that, during the whole of this period, its mournful cry was heard almost incessantly. In consequence of the protracted disturbance caused by the persevering efforts of Messrs. Burton's workmen to secure its unfortunate companion, it was at last, however, compelled to withdraw, and was not seen again till the 23rd of March, when a swan, supposed to be the same individual, made its appearance in the neighbourhood, flew several times round the reservoir in lofty circles, and ultimately descended to the wounded bird, with which, after a cordial greeting, it immediately paired. The newly arrived swan, which proved to be a male bird, soon became accustomed to the presence of strangers; and, when I saw it on the 4th of April, was even more familiar than its captive mate. As these birds were strongly attached to each other, and seemed to be perfectly reconciled to their situation, which, in many respects, was an exceedingly favourable one, there was every reason to believe that a brood would be obtained from them. This expectation, however, was not destined to be realized. On the 13th of April, the male swan, alarmed by some strange dogs which found their way to the reservoir, took flight and did not return; and on the 5th of September, in the same year, the female bird, whose injured wing had recovered its original vigour, quitted the scene of its misfortunes and was seen no more."

Among the swans we may enumerate a very beautiful species (Cygnus nigricollis), from Chili, the Falkland Isles, the Rio del Plata, and other parts of the coast of South America, distinguished

by a black neck, which contrasts well with the snowy whiteness of the rest of its plumage. The bill is red, the legs flesh-colour; in size it equals the hooper.

We shall conclude our sketch of the swans with one which nullifies the proverb of the classical writers of antiquity, who talked of the black swan as a bird out of the range of possibility:

"Rara avis in terris, nigroque simillima cygno."—Juvenal.

That "rara avis in terris" is, with many other astonishing productions, a native of New Holland and Van Diemen's Land, where it abounds on the lakes and larger rivers, one of which (Swan River) takes its name from the multitudes which habitually frequent it.

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The black swan (Cygnus atratus, Bennett) has all the manners of its European congeners. It is usually seen in small flocks, which are shy and wary. Of late years, this elegant bird has been introduced into England, where it thrives and breeds, and will, no doubt, soon become as common as the tame swan on our orna

mental lakes and rivers. The general colour is perfectly black, with the exception of the primary and a few of the sécondary quillfeathers, which are white; the bill is bright red; the legs and feet ash-colour.

The generic characters are as follows:-Bill equally wide throughout its whole length, elevated at the base, and depressed towards the tip, where a nail-like projection bends down over the tip of the lower mandible; the edges of both mandibles furnished with a series of transverse upright lamina or plates, which are nearly hidden when the bill is closed; nostrils, oblong and lateral; neck long; wings long and ample; legs short and placed far backwards, the toes before fully webbed, behind small and free; plumage thick and close. The food of these birds, pre-eminent among the Anatidæ for grace and elegance on their congenial element, consists principally of vegetable matter, such as grain and the roots, stems, and leaves of aquatic plants; but never fish, as some have supposed.

HERONS.

HERONS, which have often been mentioned in the annals of the ancient sports of our country, have, during the last few years, much decreased. They are now exclusively confined to about thirty-five places in England, enumerated by the Rev. Thomas Milner in his "Atlas of Physical Geography," the principal ones being Cobham Park and Penshurst Place, Kent; Beverley, Yorkshire; Cressie Hall, Lincolnshire; Wanstead Flats, Essex; and Chillingham Park, Northumberland, where they are carefully preserved. We also find them in a few spots in Scotland and Ireland.

During the middle ages, heron-hawking was a great amusement amongst our wealthy ancestors. In the first volume of Froissart's

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