208 FIELD-NOTES FOR THE YEAR. CH. XV. 



parts of the river where the stream is the slowest, 

 or lie in dead water, apparently not having the 

 strength, which, in the warm weather, enables them 

 to lie perfectly at their ease in the strongest rapid. 

 Amongst the curions instincts which birds dis- 

 play in providing themselves with food, one most 

 resembling reason is that which teaches the com- 

 moncrow,on finding on the shore a shell containing 

 fish, to fly with it to a height in the air, and then 

 to let it drop in order to break the shell sufficiently 

 to get at the fish enclosed in it. When the shell 

 does not break the first time that the crow drops 

 it, she darts down, picks it up, and ascends still 

 higher, till she perceives that the height is sufficient 

 for her purpose. Sometimes another crow darts in 

 to carry off the booty, upon which a battle ensues 

 in the air. Cunning as the crow is, she seldom 

 finds any prize without letting all the neighbour- 

 hood know of it by her cries and gestures. With 

 perfect truth the ancient poet said — 



" Tacitus pasci, si posset corvns, haberet 

 Plus dapis, et rixse multo minus invidiaeque. " 



The crows collect great numbers of sea-shells on 

 particular favourite hillocks, which are often at 

 some distance from the sea. I have frequently 

 observed in this country great collections of this 

 kind, and from the state of the shells it would 



