84 VARIETIES OF SHOOTING. 



external difference is so slight, there can be but little doubt 

 that they are distinct varieties of this bird. The adult swan 

 is of a pure white, but the young birds, like those of the 

 tame or mute swan, are grey in plumage. They breed in 

 the Arctic Ocean, and only visit these shores in the winter 

 season, when the colds of their summer residence are too 

 severe for them. They are easily shot, till rendered wild and 

 cunning by incessant firing at them. A charge of shot from 

 an ordinary gun, if directed against the head or under the 

 wing, will often kill them; but not even swan-shot will 

 penetrate the feathers of the back and upper surface of the 

 wings. They weigh from twelve to twenty pounds, and 

 strike with such force of wing as to break the arm of a care- 

 less or ignorant person. 



The COMMON WILD GOOSE (Anser ferus), generally called 

 the GREY LAG, is more an inland bird than one frequenting 

 the coast ; but it can scarcely ever be shot on the feed, which 

 is its only reason for seeking the interior. In Scotland it is 

 often stalked among the lochs, which are accessible to the 

 shooter from their bold and partially-wooded shores ; but in 

 the south nothing but the punt-gun has a chance with this 

 wary bird. The flavour of a wild goose, when in good order, 

 is most delicious, and is even superior, in the opinion of some 

 gourmands, to that of the wild duck or teal. Formerly the 

 grey lag used to breed in our fens and marshes, but such a 

 thing is now unknown, and in some mild winters such as 

 that of 1858-9 not a goose is to be seen on any of our 

 coasts. The beak is of a pink-flesh colour, with the horny 

 nail at the point white, as in the tame goose ; iris brown ; 

 legs, toes, and membranes dull flesh colour; the plumage re- 

 sembles that of the tame goose. The adult male measures 

 thirty-five inches in length, and the female thirty inches. 



The BEAN GOOSE [Anser segetuni) very rarely breeds in 

 this country, the greater proportion of those which appear 

 in September and October having migrated here from the 

 north. It differs from the grey lag in having the nail, edges 

 and base of the bill black, the middle portion being orange. 

 The plumage also is darker. The legs and toes also are 

 orange. In length and weight there is very little difference 

 between the two kinds. 



