130 



HABITS OF BIRDS. 



Condor attacking a Puma. 



of ranking among eagles, being evidently, both from 

 structure and habits, nothing but a vulture. 



We can readily understand why the least of our 

 British birds, the gold- crested wren (Regulus chris- 

 tatus, RAY) should have been considered a royal 

 bird in most countries, from its having a fine coronet 

 of a bright gold-colour on its head, as Aristotle cor- 

 rectly remarks.* But why the common wren (Anor- 

 thura communis) should be called a king-bird, we 

 cannot conjecture, except it has been from irony 

 or antiphrasis, in the same way as M. Hebert tells 

 us it is called the ox (bauf) in some provinces of 

 France. From being unable to account for the lat- 



* Hist. Anim., viii., 3. 



