190 



CHOWS AND ROOKS. 



person walking near a plantation heard a shrill cry, and 

 running in to find out the cause, discovered a Crow fastening 

 itself on a young rabbit, weighing from half to three-quarters 

 of a pound, which was making great efforts to release itself, 

 but in vain, for the Crow actually caught it up and bore it 

 away across two or three fields. Such is their favourite 

 food ; but, when pressed by hunger, they will also feed on 

 potatoes, barley, or, in short, whatever comes within their 

 reach. 



Rook. 



The Eook, on the other hand, is # social bird, passing 

 its days with those relations and friends amongst whom it 

 was born and bred ; and for its food, preferring a vegetable 

 diet, or such insects as it can collect under the sod of the 

 meadow, or pick up in its progress over a fallow or fresh- 

 ploughed field. There is one intermediate link seen, in 

 parts of England, between the Carrion Crow and the Rook, 

 namely, the Hooded-gray or Royston Crow. They are 

 clever birds, and when frequenting the sea- shore, in search 

 of shell-fish, may be frequently seen, after vain attempts to 



