162 



at Natural 



His loud and varied notes at early dawn, 

 and again at latest eve, are extremely grate- 

 ful to me ; and many an hour of delight do 

 I experience, when," having mounted" up to 

 the top of a favourite aged oak which grows 

 on the border of a swamp, I see him chasing 

 the heron and the windhover through the 

 liquid void, till they are lost in the distance. 

 Then, again, how eager is his pursuit ! 

 how loud his croaking ! how inveterate his 

 hostility ! when he has espied a fox steal- 

 ing away from the hounds, under the covert 

 of some friendly hedge. His compact and 

 well-built figure, too, and the fine jet black of 

 his plumage, are, in my eye, beautifully orna- 

 mental to the surrounding sylvan scenery." 



The HOODED CROW (Centw cornix) is a 

 bird of passage, which visits England in the 

 beginning of winter, and leaves it with the 

 woodcock. It is found both in the inland 

 and maritime parts of this kingdom ; and, in 

 the latter, it feeds on crabs and other shell- 

 fish. It is very common in many parts of the 

 Highlands of Scotland, the Hebrides, Ork- 

 neys, &c. They build indifferently in all 

 kinds of trees ; lay six eggs ; have a shriller 

 voice than the common Crow ; and are much 

 more mischievous. 



CROW SHRIKE. (Cracticus.) A genus 

 of birds found in Madagascar, New Holland, 

 &c., of which there are several species. The 

 BLACK-THROATED CKOW SHRIKE (Cracticus 

 niffror/itlari*, Gould) is a handsome species, 

 with a black head, neck, and breast ; the 

 under parts, the hinder part of the neck, 



shoulders, centre of the wing, white ; the tail 

 black, the ends of the feathers white, except 

 the two middle feathers, which are black. 

 It is a native of New South Wales, is usually 

 seen in pairs, and from its active habits and 

 conspicuous pied plumage, forms a striking 

 object among the trees. It feeds on insects 

 and small lizai'ds, but is not satisfied with 

 such trifling prey ; its powerful and strongly 

 hooked Mil makes it a formidable enemy to 

 young birds, mice, and other small animals, 

 which it soon kills, tears to pieces, and de- 

 vours on the spot. Mr. Gould, in his inva- 

 luable work on the " Birds of Australia," 

 from which our figure is copied, tells us that 

 wounded individuals on being handled inflict 

 severe blows. The nest is like that of a jay. 



CRUSTACEA, or CRUSTACEANS. The 

 term applied to those animals which are 

 covered with a soft shell or crust. These 

 consist of crabs, lobsters, and many others of 



a much less complicated structure, and of a 

 different external form. They are called 

 articulated animals that is, those whose 

 members or limbs consist of segments or 

 rings, articulated into each other, to the in- i 

 side of which their muscles are attached. ' 

 The tegumentary skeleton of Crustacea ge- I 

 nerally possesses a considerable degree of 

 stony hardness ; and, indeed, contains no j 

 small proportion of carbonate of lime. This i 

 solid envelope may be looked upon as a kind 

 of epidermis ; for beneath it we find a mem- 

 brane like the true skin of higher animals ; 

 and at certain times it detaches itself and 

 falls off, in the same manner as the epi- 

 dermis of reptiles separates itself from their 

 bodies. The way in which they free them- ; 

 selves from their old shell is exceedingly ; 

 singular. In general, they manage to get 

 out of it without occasioning the least : 

 change in its form. When they are first 

 denuded, the whole surface of their bodies ! 

 is extremely soft, and it is not for some time 

 that the substance which has been exuded 

 from the pores on the surface of their skin, j 

 acquires a hard consistence. 



Crustaceous animals present remarkable 

 physiological distinctions. They respire by t 

 means of branchicp, or branchial plates, usu- 

 ally attached to their feet or to their jaws ; 

 they have from five to seven pairs of feet ; j 

 their head is frequently not distinct from 

 the trunk, provided with from two to four 

 jointed, setaceous antennae ; and two com- 

 pound movable eyes seated on peduncles, 

 which are sometimes movable, and at others I 

 fixed : they have a distinct heart, and a 

 regular circulating system : and their organs | 

 of reproduction are placed either in the feet i 

 01 tail. In those genera where the head is 

 not separated from the trunk, the shield or \ 

 covering envelopes the whole thorax. In ; 

 other genera the head is distinct from the 

 body, which is divided into seven segments, i 

 to the lower sides of which the feet are at- j 

 tached ; these for the most part have a tail, ! 

 consisting of many segments. The limbs 

 vary from ten to fourteen, each having six 

 articulations. The two anterior limbs, and 

 sometimes even three on each side, are pro- 

 vided with forceps ; at other times they are 

 terminated by simple hooks, and in many 

 instances by appendages which fit them for 

 swimming. The mouth has usually two 

 mandibles, a labium or lip below, and from ' 

 three to five pairs of jaws : these small leg- ! 

 shaped appendages are not fitted for loco- 

 motion, but, being situated near the mouth, 

 assist in the operation of feeding. 



Animals of this class live in various situa- 

 tions, suited to their organization : some 

 { inhabit considerable depths of the ocean, 



others are found on rocky shores, or in ! 

 I muddy shallows ; some, such as crawfish, i 

 j inhabit rivers, under stones and banks ; ] 

 I while the land-crab takes up its abode in 

 j inland situations, making periodical jour- 

 I neys to the coast in vast numbers, for the ! 

 i purpose of depositing its eggs. [See CUAB.] 

 ; Some of the Crustacea have the power of 

 ! emitting light in the dark. Others are en- 

 dowed with the power of not only detaching 

 I one of their limbs, when seized upon by an 



