'0 



STrntfttrg of Natural 



rope ; and these are generally either clothed j 

 with warm coats of feathers, or have large 

 quantities of fat lying beneath the skin, to 

 defend them from the rigours of the climate. 

 In all climates, however, birds are longer 

 lived than quadrupeds of the same climates: 

 indeed, it may be said, that, in proportion 

 to the size of their bodies, birds possess more 

 vitality, and live longer, than either man or 

 quadrupeds. 



Naturalists have arranged birds in various 

 orders, founded on the organs of manduca- 

 tion and prehension. The following is that 

 ofCuvier: 1. BIRDS OF PKEY (Accipitres, 

 Lin.) ; distinguished by their crooked beak 

 and claws, by means of which they are ena- 

 bled to overcome and prey upon other birds, 

 and even the weaker quadrupeds. They 

 hold the same rank among birds as the 

 Carnivara among quadrupeds. They all 

 have four toes, and the nails of the great 

 and middle toes are the strongest. They 

 form two families, the diurnal tmd. nocturnal, 

 the first havirtg nostrils inserted in a naked 

 cere, three toes before and one behind, with- 

 I out feathers ; eyes directed sideways : the 

 second having nostrils at the anterior edge 

 of the cere, which is more or less covered 

 I with stiif hairs ; the external toe capable of 

 being turned behind ; eyes large, directed 

 forwards. 2. PASSERINE BIRDS (Posseres). 

 I This is the largest class, and embraces all 

 birds which do not belong to the other five. 

 They present a great resemblance in their 

 structure, and the genera are so closely allied 

 | that it is difficult to distinguish between 

 them. They may, however, be separated 

 I into two great divisions : 1. Those with the 

 I exterior toe united to the middle one, by one 

 ! or twojoiiitsonly;and,2. Exteriortoe almost ' 

 as long as the middle one, and united to it ' 

 ! as far as the last joint but one 3. CLIMBERS 

 i (Scansores*). Birds whose exterior toe directs 

 itself backwards like the great toe, affording 

 | a very solid support, by which some of them 

 | cling to and climb the trunks of trees 

 i 4. GALLINACEOUS BIRDS. (GalUnacece.') 

 1 These have a heavy gait, a short flight, a 

 i medium-sized beak, the upper mandible 

 ! vaulted, nostrils partly covered by a cartila- 

 ginous scale, toes generally dentated at the 

 edges, with short membranes between those 

 in front. 5. WADERS (Grallce) may be re- 

 cognised by the nudity of the lower part of 

 i their thighs ; very frequently by the length 

 I of their legs ; and generally by some little 

 ! web, at least, between the external toes. In 

 I flying, they extend their legs behind them, 

 contrary to the habit of other birds, who 

 draw them up close to the body 6. WEB- 

 FOOTED BIRDS (Palmipedes) are strongly 

 characterised by their feet, formed for swim- 

 ming, being affixed to the hinder part of 

 their body ; with very 1 short and compressed 

 tarsi ; and palmated between the toes. For 

 much information on the habits of Birds we 

 would refer to the pages of London's Ma- 

 gazine of Natural History, and to " The 

 Zoologist ; " while the great work, " Gray 

 and Mitchell's Genera of Birds," contains 

 an immense supply of matter in illustration 

 of this important and interesting class. In 

 Macgillivray's " British Birds " much valu- 



able information is given by the able pro- 

 fessor of Marischal College, Aberdeen. 



BIRGUS. A genus of long-tailed Crus- 

 taceous animals, of which the PUKSE-CKAB 

 (Birytis latro) is the largest. This species 

 of land-crab is a native of Amboyna, and 

 other neighbouring islands, where it is said 

 to inhabit the fissures of rocks or holes in 

 the earth by day, and to come forth at 

 night to seek its food on the beach. Some 

 say it climbs cocoa-nut trees in the night to 

 get the cocoa-nuts ; and it is certain it can 

 subsist on them, as well as on some other 

 kinds of nuts, when more favourite food 

 is not easily attainable. When properly 

 dressed, this animal is regarded as an ex- 

 cellent dish. [See CRAB.] 



BISON. There are two kinds of Bison ; 

 one of them European, which is now become 

 very scarce ; the other American, which still 

 exists in vast numbers. 



The EUROPEAN BISON (.Bos bonasus) 

 is as large as a bull or ox ; and in his native 

 state of wildness, is distinguished not only by 

 his size and the fleshy protuberance on his 

 shoulders, but by the superior depth and shag- 

 giness of his hair, which about the head, neck, 

 and shoulders, is sometimes so long as almost 

 to touch the ground. The head is small ; the 

 eyes are red and fiery ; the forehead is wide; 

 and the horns are short, extremely strong, 

 sharp-pointed, and stand distant from each 

 other at their bases, like those of the common 

 bull. His colour is a dark rufous brown, 

 sometimes nearly black ; his limbs remark- 

 ably strong ; and his whole aspect in the 

 highest degree savage and gloomy. The 

 principalEuropean regions where this animal 

 is at present found, are the marshy forests of 

 Poland, the Carpathian mountains, and Li- j 

 thuania. Its chief Asiatic residence is the 

 neighbourhood of Mount Caucasus. This 

 animal is very scarce, and would probably i 

 soon be extinct but for the strict orders of ! 

 the emperor of Russia, who will not permit i 

 any to be shot in his dominions. This mon- 

 arch has presented a stuffed specimen and 

 skeleton of one to the British Museum. 



The AMERICAN BISON. (Bos Ameri- 

 canus.) The American Bison, most fre- 

 quently called " the Buffalo," differs from 

 the European chiefly in being larger, more 

 shaggy, in having a more protuberant bunch 

 over the shoulders, and by the length and 

 fineness of its woolly hair. The hump is 

 oblong, diminishing in height posteriorly, 

 and gives a considerable obliquity to the 

 outline of the back. The hair over the 

 head, neck, and fore-part of the body is 

 long and shaggy, forming a beard beneath 

 the lower jaw, and descending below the 

 knee in a tuft. The hair on the top of the 

 head rises in a dense mass, nearly to the 

 tips of the horns, and, directly on the front, 

 is curled and matted strongly. The numbers 

 of this species still existing are surprisingly 

 great, when we consider the immense de- 

 struction which annually takes place. They 

 were once extensively diffused over the what . 

 is now the territory of the United States, 

 but they aje no longer found except in the 



