104 RA^ AND SOME OF HIS FELLOW-WORKERS 



owns the obligations of the Ornithology to Gesner and 

 Aldrovandi, but claims to have corrected many of their 

 mistakes, such as the making of two or three species out 

 of one. Willughby had made a collection of pictures 

 of birds, and caused various species to be drawn for him 

 by good artists ; from these and published figures a 

 selection was made which Ray thought were the best 

 and truest hitherto engraved. Neither the sources of 

 the figures nor the scale is indicated. 



Birds of all countries are included. The measure- 

 ments and the weight of the bird are often given, and 

 a careful note is made of its external features. There 

 are usually rough memoranda concerning the internal 

 anatomy (crop, gizzard, intestine, csecal appendages, 

 gall-bladder, trachea, &c.), and the contents of the 

 stomach are sometimes mentioned. The eggs of many 

 of the birds are shortly described. The species is iden- 

 tified, if possible, with some species of earlier authors, 

 and a large part of the history is sometimes condensed 

 from Aldrovandi, Gesner, Clusius, Jonston, Belon, Olina, 

 Turner, &c. There are also descriptions of foreign birds 

 taken from Marcgraf (birds of South America), Bontius 

 (East Indies), and others. The uses of the bird in 

 medicine, cookery, falconry, &c., are noted. Harvey or 

 Malpighi may be quoted on some point of anatomy or 

 physiology ; some trustworthy friend may furnish a 

 description or a note of occurrence. The localities 

 mentioned show a wide acquaintance with British 

 topography, and a singular curiosity (in Eay, no doubt) 

 concerning places, names and odd facts of every kind. 

 The popular English names of the birds are given, and 

 now and then names that have some etymological 

 interest. For instance, the following names for the 

 woodpecker are quoted : — woodspite, pickatrees (N. of 





