BIRDS SENSIBLE OF ATMOSPHERIC ^•.\RIATIO^•S. 21 



sport amuiig the uewly-buckliug Iciivcs ; the raven testifies his joy by sonorous croaking ; 

 and the cattle bound on the plains. It might even be imagined that birds possessed 

 some knowledge of the future, and were gifted with a foresight superior to that of other 

 animals ; and it was, doubtless, from this idea that the ancient augurs, destitute of 

 oiu- barometers, observed them with so much care, and drew presages from their move- 

 ments. 



Of all the feathei'ed tribes, however, marine birds apj)oar to be the most sensible to 

 these atmospheric variations. The importimate cries of the petrel and the albatross, and 

 their uncertain flutteriugs near the rocks, indicate clearly the approach of the hurricane. 

 Bii-ds that suffer much from rains avoid them instinctively, and find, as speedily as they 

 can, some place of shelter. All birds, except the aquatic races, are never better than in 

 dry coimtries and seasons ; multiplpng, in such circimistances, mth astonishing rapidity, 

 as they do in the ardent climates of the tropics. Their whole organization is penetrated 

 by the aii", as a sponge imbibes water, and immersed in the vast atmospheric ocean which 

 surrounds oiu- globe, it must exert upon them a constant influence. 



