POLISH SWAN. 233 



foreign geographical localities as producing it, beyond the 

 probability of its inhabiting those countries in the vicinity 

 of the Baltic. 



About 1852, the late Earl of Derby having a female 

 only, of the Polish or Changeless Swan, the Ornithologi- 

 cal Society, still possessing their old male only, of the 

 same species, sent it to Knowsley, at his Lordship's re- 

 quest, to form a pair. Four cygnets were produced, which 

 were white when hatched, and remained so. At the sale 

 of the collection at Knowsley, the pair of old birds were 

 purchased by Mr. Bartlett for the Ornithological Society, 

 and placed on the canal in St. James's Park. They pro- 

 duced a brood of seven cygnets in the summer of 1854, 

 and another brood of six in 1855, which were all white 

 from the egg, and have remained so. This prolific pair of 

 Changeless Swans have produced seventeen white cygnets 

 in three seasons. 



I saw examples of each of the four species of our 

 British Swans, which had been shot while at large, in the 

 severe weather of the winter of 1854-5. 



In the adult bird the beak is reddish orange ; the nail, 

 lateral margins, nostrils, and base of the upper mandible, 

 black ; the peculiarity of the nostril has been noticed ; the 

 tubercle, even in an old male, of small size; the irides 

 brown ; the head, neck, and the whole of the plumage, 

 pure white ; legs, toes, and intervening membranes, slate 

 grey. 



From the point of the beak to the end of the tail is 

 fifty-seven inches. From the carpal joint to the end of 

 the second quill-feather, which is the longest in the wing, 

 twenty-one inches and a half; tarsus four inches ; middle 

 toe and nail five inches and three-quarters. 



Its food and habits closely resemble those of the Mute 

 Swan. 



