•70 Fables and Prejudices regarding Serpents^ 



lates several instances which prove that birds do not shew 

 themselves afraid, except when the serpent approaches their 

 nests to seize their young. Then one may see the terrified 

 parents fly around their enemy, uttering plaintive cries, just 

 as our warblers do when any one stops in the vicinity cf their 

 nests. It may also be, that the animals which it is pretended 

 had been seen fluttering around the snake, and at last falling 

 into his mouth, have been already wounded by his poison- 

 fangs ; a supposition which perfectly corresponds to the way 

 in which venomous serpents master their prey. Many tree- 

 snakes seize their prey by twisting their slender tails around 

 their victim : Dampier* has several times been a witness of 

 this spectacle : observing a bird flapping its wings, and utter- 

 ing cries, without flying, this traveller perceived that the poor 

 bird was locked in the folds of a snake, when he attempted to 

 lay hold of it. Rusself presented one day a fowl to a Dipsas, 

 and the bird in a short time gave signs of death ; not conceiv- 

 ing how the bite of a snake not poisonous, and so small, could 

 produce such an eff'ect, he carefully examined the fowl, and 

 found the folds of the tail of the snake around the neck of the 

 bird, which would have perished, had he not disengaged it. 

 Many birds of small size are accustomed to pursue birds of 

 prey, and other enemies of their race, or to fly about the place 

 where the object of their hatred lies concealed : there is rea- 

 son to believe that this phenomenon, known in Europe to 

 every observer, also takes place in exotic regions ; and per- 

 haps this is also one of the circumstances which have contri- 

 buted to the invention of the stories which have been related 

 of the power of fascination in serpents. 



But I have too long interrupted the progress of my work, 

 in exposing the numerous errors which have disfigured one 

 of the most beautiful parts of natural science ; and I believe 

 I ought to omit the fables concerning the basilisk, the hybrid 

 snakes produced by the congress of eels and serpents, and the 

 other tales as strange as absurd, which are still believed by 

 many persons. Yet, before terminating this division of my 



* Voyages, iii. p. 275. t Russel, i. p. 20. 



