HINTS FOB STUDYING ORNITHOLOGY. 



359 



wading, a third for scratching and walking ; and so on. 

 You will thus be able to decide, at a glance, whether a 

 bird belongs to the typical, the sub-typical, or the aber- 

 rant orders ; and these are the first divisions. If its 

 claws or talons are hooked and retractile, like those of a 

 cat, you may be sure it belongs to the order Raptores, 

 (Jig. 56.) a, or birds of prey ; if its hind toe is on a 



level with the others, so as to rest upon the ground with 

 them, and its claws are merely curved, and are not re- 

 tractile, you may conclude it is of the order of perchers 

 (Insessores) b while, if the hind toe is wanting, or is 

 placed high up on the heel, you may feel assured that 

 the species belongs tp one of the three aberrant groups, 

 composed of the gallinaceous (Rasores} c, the wading 

 (Grallatores) d, and the swimming tribes (Natatores] e. 

 I shall now give you a short explanation of these pri- 

 mary divisions. 



(444.) In the investigation of the rapacious order you 

 will have no difficulty. A vulture, a hawk, and an owl, 

 gives you a perfect idea of the Vulturidce, the Falconida, 

 and the Strigida: these are the only great divisions yet 

 known, and they follow each other in beautiful succession. 

 The family of vultures is so small, that you will have 

 no great trouble in ascertaining the name of a species, by 

 the help of some of the general works upon birds I shall 

 presently name. You will also find a valuable paper 

 upon them by Mr. Vigors, in the Zoological Journal.* 



* Vol. ii. 

 A A 4 



