SECTION XVI.

Wren.

Motacilla troglodytes.—LINN.

THE wren may be placed among the finest of our singing birds. It continues its song throughout the winter, excepting during the frosts. It makes its nest in a very curious manner; of an oval shape, very deep, with a small hole in the middle for egress and regress; the external material is moss, within it is lined with hair and feathers. It lays from ten to eighteen eggs; and as often brings up as many young; which, as Mr. Ray observes, may be ranked among those daily miracles that we take no notice of; that it should feed such a number without passing over one, and that too in utter darkness.

The head and upper part of the body of the wren are of a deep reddish brown; above each eye is a stroke of white; the back, and coverts of the wings, and tail, are marked with slender trans. verse black lines; the quill feathers with bars of black and red. The throat is of a yellowish white. The belly and sides crossed with narrow dusky and pale reddish brown lines. The tail is crossed with dusky bars. [Pennant.

SECTION XVII.

Swift.

Hirundo apus.-LINN.

THIS species is the largest of our swallows; but the weight is most disproportionately small to its extent of wing of any bird; the former being scarce one ounce, the latter eighteen inches; the length near eight. The feet of this bird are so small, that the action of walking and of rising from the ground is extremely difficult; so that nature hath made it full amends, by furnishing it with ample means for an easy and continual flight. It is more on the wing than any other swallows: its flight is more rapid, and that attended with a shrill scream. It rests by clinging against some wall or other apt body; from whence Klein styles this species hirundo muraria. It breeds under the caves of houses, in steeples, and other lofty buildings; makes its nest of grasses and

feathers; and lays only two eggs, of a white colour. It is entirely of a glossy dark sooty colour, only the chin is marked with a white spot: but by being so constantly exposed to all weathers, the gloss of the plumage is lost before it retires. I cannot trace them to their winter quarters, unless in one instance of a pair found adhering by their claws, and in a torpid state, in February, 1766, under the roof of Longnor chapel, Shropshire; on being brought to a fire, they revived and moved about the room. The feet are of a particular structure, all the toes standing forward; the least consists of only one bone; the others of an equal number, viz. two each; in which they differ from those of all other birds.

This appears in our country about fourteen days later than the sand martin, but differs greatly in the time of its departure, retiring invariably about the tenth of August, being the first of the genus that leaves us.

The fabulous history of the Manucodiata, or bird of Paradise, is in the history of this species in great measure verified. It was believed to have no feet, to live upon the celestial dew, to float perpetually on the Indian air, and to perform all its functions in that element.

The swift actually performs what has been in these enlightened times disproved of the former: except the small time it takes in sleeping, and what it devotes to incubation, every other action is done on wing. The materials of its nest it collects either as they are carried about by the winds, or picks them up from the surface in its sweeping flight. Its food is undeniably the insects that fill the air. Its drink is taken in transient sips from the water's sur face. Even its amorous rites are performed on high. Few persons who have attended to them in a fine summer's morning, but must have seen them make their aërial courses at a great height, encircling a certain space with an easy steady motion. On a sud. den they fall into each other's embraces, then drop precipitate with a loud shriek for numbers of yards. This is the critical conjunc ture, and to be no more wondered at, than that insects (a familiar instance) should discharge the same duty in the same element.

These birds and swallows are inveterate enemies to hawks. The moment one appears, they attack him immediately; the swifts soon desist; but the swallows pursue and persecute those rapacious

Swifts delight in sultry thundry weather, and seem thence to receive fresh spirits. They fly in those times in small parties with particular violence; and as they pass near steeples, towers, or any edifice, where their mates perform the office of incubation, emit a loud scream, a sort of serenade, as Mr. White supposes, to their respective females.

[Pennant.

SECTION XVIII.

On the Migration of Birds.

It is believed that many different kind of birds annually pass from one country to another, and spend the summer or the winter where it is most agreeable to them; and that even the birds of our own island will seek the most distant southern regions of Africa, when directed by a peculiar instinct to leave their own country. It has long been an opinion pretty generally received, that swallows reside during the winter-season, in the warm southern regi. ons; and Mr. Adanson particularly relates his having seen them at Senegal, when they were obliged to leave this country. But be sides the swallow, Mr. Pennant enumerates many other birds which migrate from Britain at different times of the year, and are then to be found in other countries; after which they again leave these countries, and return to Britain. The reason of these migrations he supposes to be a defect of food at certain seasons of the year, or a want of a secure asylum from the persecution of man during the time of courtship, incubation, and nutrition. The following is his list of the migrating species.

1. Crows. Of this genus, the hooded crow migrates regularly with the woodcock. It inhabits North Britain the whole year; a few are said annually to breed on Dartmoor, in Devonshire. It breeds also in Sweden and Austria: in some of the Swedish pro. vinces it only shifts its quarters, in others it resides throughout the year. Every ornithologist is at a loss for the summer retreat of those which visit us in such numbers in winter, and quit our country in the spring; and for the reason why a bird, whose food is such that it may be found at all seasons in this country should leave us.

2. Cuckoo.-Disappears early in autumn; the retreat of this and the following bird is quite unknown to us.

3. Wryneck.-Is a bird that leaves us in the winter. If its diet be ants alone, as several assert, the cause of its migration is very evident. This bird disappears before winter, and revisits us in the spring, a little earlier than the cuckoo.

4. Hoopoe.-Comes to England but by accident: Mr. Pennant once indeed heard of a pair that attempted to make their nest in a meadow at Selborne, Hampshire, but were frightened away by the curiosity of people. It breeds in Germany.

5. Grous.-The whole tribe, except the quail, lives here all the year round; that bird either leaves us, or else retires towards the sea-coasts.

6. Pigeons. Some few of the ring-doves breed here; but the multitude that appears in the winter is so disproportioned to what continue here the whole year, as to make it certain that the greatest part quit the country in the spring. It is most probable they go to Sweden to breed, and return from thence in autumn; as Mr. Eckmark informs us, they entirely quit that country before winter. Multitudes of the common wild pigeons also make the northern retreat, and visit us in winter; not but numbers breed in the high cliffs in all parts of this island. The turtle also probably leaves us in the winter, at least changes its place, removing to the southern counties.

7. Stare.-Breeds here. Possibly several remove to other countries for that purpose, since the produce of those that continue here seems unequal to the clouds of them that appear in the winter. It is not unlikely that many of them migrate into Sweden, where Mr. Berger observes they return in spring.

8. Thrushes.-The fieldfare and the redwing breed and pass their summers in Norway and other cold countries; their food is berries, which abounding in our kingdoms, tempt them here in the winter. These two, and the Royston crow, are the only land birds that regularly and constantly migrate into England, and do not breed here. The hawfinch and crossbill come here at such uncertain times as not to deserve the name of birds of passage.

9. Chatterer. The chatterer appears annually about Edinburgh in flocks during winter, and feeds on the berries of the mountain ash. In South Britain, it is an accidental visitant.

10. Grosbeaks.-The grosbeak and crossbill come here but seldom; they breed in Austria. The pine grosbeak probably breeds in the forests of the highlands of Scotland.

11. Buntings. All the genus inhabits England throughout the year, except the greater brambling, which is forced here from the north in very severe seasons.

12. Finches.-All continue in some parts of these kingdoms, except the siskin, which is an irregular visitant, said to come from Russia. The linnets shift their quarters, breeding in one part of this island, and remove with their young to others. All finches feed on the seeds of plants.

13. Larks, Fly-catchers, Wagtails and Warblers.-All of these feed on insects and worms; yet only part of them quit these kingdoms, though the reason of migration is the same to all. The nightingale, black-cap, fly-catcher, willow-wren, wheat-ear, and white-throat, leave us before winter, while the small and delicate golden-crested wren braves our severest frosts. The migrants of this genus continue longest in Great Britain in the southern counties, the winter in those parts being later than in those of the north; Mr. Stillingfleet having observed several wheat-ears in the isle of Purbeck, on the 18th of November. As these birds are inca. pable of very distant flights, Spain, or the south of France, is pro bably their winter asylum.

14. Swallows and Goat-suckers.-Every species disappears at the approach of winter.

Water-Fowl.

Of the vast variety of water-fowl that frequent Great Britain, it is amazing to reflect how few are known to breed here: the cause that principally urges them to leave this country seems to be not merely the want of food, but the desire of a secure retreat. Our country is too populous for birds so shy and timid as the bulk of these are when great part of our island was a mere waste, a tract of wood and fen, doubtless many species of birds (which at this time migrate) remained in security throughout the year. Egrets, a species of heron, now scarce known in this island, were in former times in prodigious plenty ; and the crane, that has totally forsaken this country, bred familiarly in our marshes; their place of incubation, as well as of all other cloven-footed water-fowl (the heron excepted), being on the ground, and exposed to every one. As rural economy increased in this country, these animals were more and more disturbed; at length, by a series of alarms, they were necessitated to seek, during the summer, some lonely safe habitation.