THE CUCKOO 109 



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arrange the zoological collections brought back by Sir 

 Joseph Banks from Captain Cook's first voyage of 

 discovery, and the post of naturalist on the second 

 voyage had been offered to him. But love of his 

 Gloucestershire home and the prospect of distinction 

 in medicine decided Jenner to remain in England. 

 Throughout his eminent and useful career Natural 

 History continued to occupy his attention. He studied 

 the hibernation of the Hedgehog, the fossils of 

 Gloucestershire, and the habits of Birds His long- 

 meditated paper on the Migration of Birds was sent 

 in to the Royal Society in 1823, the year of his 

 death. 



Jenner's Observations on the Cuckoo are too long 

 for verbatim quotation, but as they are not accessible 

 to every reader, I think it may be worth while to give 

 them in a condensed form. I preserve, as far as 

 possible, the words of the author. 



" The first appearance of Cuckoos is about the ifth 

 of April. Like other migrating Birds they arrive and 

 depart in succession, and are more numerous in the 

 second than the first week of their arrival. The song 

 of the male soon proclaims its arrival. The song of 

 the female is widely different, and I believe that few 

 are acquainted with it ; the cry of the Dab-chick 

 bears the nearest resemblance to it. 1 



" Unlike most Birds, Cuckoos do not pair. The 

 female does not begin to lay till some weeks after her 



1 Some naturalists are of opinion that the female bird calls 

 "Cuckoo " like the male ; but clear and direct testimony cannot 

 be quoted. See Newton m Yarrell's British Birds, 4th edition, 

 Vol. 2, and Zoologist > June, 1886. 



