108 TIIEIK PARENTAGE. 



Black-Cock and the Capercali hen bears a greater resem- 

 blance to the father, the tail being similar to bis, and the 

 size intermediate between both parents. 



" But more direct evidence can be adduced as to the 

 Capercali cock being the father of many of the llackel- 

 Fogel. In the year 1830 M. Holm fell in with a brood 

 of Black-Cock, amongst which were two of these hybrids. 

 The one, a female apparently, was shot at the time ; the 

 other, a male, was seen in the same brood in the autumn 

 of that year, and was killed in the following spring. It 

 was stuffed by myself, and its father was beyond doubt a 

 Capercali eocik. The above brood of Black-Cock was met 

 with in one of M. Holm's well-preserved districts, where 

 many old Capercali cocks were left unmolested in 1830. 

 M. Wilhelm von Wright also speaks of a Rackel-Hane 

 being found amongst a brood of Black-Cock; and says, 

 moreover, that the Eackel-Pogel for the most part keep 

 eomjjany with the latter in the winter time. My expe- 

 rience is the same. Tiiey follow the Black-Cock as well 

 to the Lek as at other periods of the year, and it is very 

 seldom indeed that they are met with amongst the 

 Capercali, for the reason, probably, that they thrive best 

 amongst those with whom they have been brought up. 



" ivackel-Fogel," M. Falk continues, " are scarce in 

 Wermeland. During the thirty years that I have given 

 my attention to the subject I have only been able to 

 collect six males for the purpose of preserving, and to 

 iiear of two more which I was unable to obtain. Five of 

 the six had the Capercali cock for father, and only one 

 the Black-Cock. The last-named hybrids are much the 

 most rare, and at the present moment I know not of a 

 single specimen, the one I stuffed having been sent, if I 

 remember right, to Germany. 



"All this," says M. Falk, in conclusion, " gives more 

 probability to my opinion, that the most part of our 



