76 INTRODUCTION. 



introduced in the south-eastern counties ; and the 

 pheasant, the finest of our additions, has been 

 completely naturalized ; but these will fall far 

 short to compensate for the cock of the woods, 

 the " wilde horse," the bustard, or the red-grouse, 

 should the latter ultimately fail. 



The proportion in which the different orders 

 occur may be interesting. According to one of 

 the latest lists, including all the species discovered 

 up to the end of 1836,* the whole number of 

 species which have been actually killed or taken 

 in Britain is 323. In this number the Raptores 

 amount to 30, the Incessores to 117, the Rasores 

 to 17, the Grallatores to 66, and the Natatores 

 to 93. In this enumeration of the extent of the 

 orders, the Natatores, or water-fowl, are the most 

 disproportionate, a fact which is easily accounted 

 for by the insular character of the country, and 

 the considerable extent of lakes and marsh which 

 occur in various parts. Of the Raptores none, 

 we believe, have been altogether lost, but the 

 abundance and generality of some of the larger 

 species have been much reduced from the reasons 

 we have already stated. Of the Incessores about 

 forty-nine species are migratory, leaving only 



* A Nomenclature of British Birds, being a Systematic 

 Catalogue of all the Species hitherto discovered in Great 

 Britain and Ireland, intended for labelling Collections. By 

 Henry Doubleday. 1836. 



