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THE MIGEATION OF BIEDS. 



[By the Rev. M. G. Watkins.] 



This subject is best divided into two parts ; first, the history of, and the views 

 which have been held on, migration ; secondly, the phenomena of migration, and 

 the general laws connected with it. 



I. The least observation showed men from the earliest times that certain 

 birds arrived and departed at certain seasons; "yea, the stork in the heaven 

 knoweth her appointed times ; and the turtle, and the crane, and the swallow 

 observe the time of their coming " ; and again, says Holy Writ, " the time of the 

 singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land." 

 (1). The first writer to take a scientific interest in migration, whose speculations 

 indeed were not superseded for more than 2,000 years, was Aristotle. He notes 

 the analogy between the migration of fish and of birds, and is the earliest writer to 

 name the double migration of birds, from the autvmmal cold into warmer regions, 

 and from summer warnith again to colder countries. Cranes, he says, fly facing 

 the wind, which is now found to be more or less the case with all birds. He has 

 discernment enough to pronounce that the fable of their carrying a stone with 

 them for ballast is untrue. Quails cannot fly with ease in showery weather, 

 hence they utter their call to each other as they fly, being in difficulties. On 

 their outward journey they have no leaders, but on their return they take with 

 them the Quail-mother (probably the Landrail), the long-tongued bird (perhaps the 

 Greenshank), the night Owl and the Ortolan. The latter calls to them through the 

 night. Cranes too choose a leader and rest all night on the ground during their 

 migrations, with their heads under their wings and standing on one leg in turns, 

 while the leader with eager neck listens and looks out and gives notice in case of 

 alarm. These are his chief statements on migration, but singularly enough he 

 dwells uijon the hibernation of Swallows, affirming that "ere now many have 

 been seen entirely void of feathers in deep glens " ; precisely the stories which 

 found favour even with Gilbert White, and on which Johnson founded his state- 

 ment of Swallows " conglobulating together by flying round and round and 

 sinking in a heap " for the winter into deep rivers (2). 



The Roman Pliny, 300 years afterwards, is much more credulous. He 

 repeats these stories of the Crane. Some birds, he states, " make voyages over 

 sea and land to see strange countries." Quails settle at times in great numbers on 

 sails and masts, thus bearing down the ships and sinking and drowning the 

 sailors. They choose companions to go with them, especially the "Glottis." 

 "This bird," says Pliny, in his quaint fashion, "is very forward at the 'first 

 setting-out ' (as being desirous to be a traveller, to see far countries and to change 

 the aire), and the first dales journey he undertaketh with pleasure, but soone 



(i) Jer. viii., 7, Cant, ii., 12. 



(2) Ar. Hist. Animalium viii. 14, Sec. 3, Sec. 5; 18, Sec. i ; ix, Sec. it. Boswell's Johnson 

 (Ed. iSi6> ii p. 56. 



