186 



NUMIDIAN CRANE. 



these migrations it has been remarked, that they fly at a 

 great height in the air, and somewhat in the form of a 

 triangle, headed by one of the number, who is their 

 leader. They feed on green corn and other vegetable 

 productions, and destroy and devour great numbers of 

 reptiles and serpents. 



When full grown, they are nearly five feet in length. 

 The bill is about four inches long, and of a greenish - 

 black colour. The plumage is somewhat ash-coloured, 

 and the forehead black. On the upper part of the neck 

 there is a bare ash-coloured space of about two inches ; 

 and above this the skin is naked and red. The quill- 

 feathers of the wings and the legs are black. From the 

 pinion of each wing springs an elegant tuft of loose fea- 

 thers, curled at the ends, which can be erected at pleasure, 

 but which, when the birds are at rest, hangs over and 

 covers the tail. 



Numidian Crane, or Demoiselle. From its beautiful 

 form and very singular motions, this bird has, in France, 

 received the general appellation of La Demoiselle, or, 

 the lady. It treads the ground with all the lightness and 

 elegance of a dancer. This circumstance is so remark- 

 able, that nearly all writers who have mentioned it, 

 have named it from its mimic gestures. Aristotle calls 

 it the actor, or comedian; Pliny, the dancer; and both 

 Plutarch and Athenaeus have noticed its singular man- 

 ners. 



The Numidian Crane has, behind each eye, a tuft of 

 long, white, and pendent feathers. The bill is yellow- 

 ish, but red at the tip. The head and tips of the pri- 

 mary quill-feathers are black. The feathers of the breast 

 are long and pendulous. The general colour of the plu- 

 mage is a bluish ash ; but the head, neck, throat, breast, 

 and legs, are black. 



