THE HOODED CROW. 



turned out to be rather a highly-coloured egg, but of the ordinary type. I may mention that in the 

 nest I also found a piece of hard clay (about the size of the smallest of the four eggs), with distinct 

 marks of a bird's beak upon it. The only reason I can think of to account for this strange conduct on 

 the part of the Jackdaw i.s that it may have been done to make the eggs less conspicuous to any 

 wandeiing Jay, the nest being placed not far from the mouth of the hole, and the eggs, consequently, 

 more or less in sight of a passing 

 bird. I showed the eggs and 

 clay to Professor Newton and 

 others, after one of the ' Zoo ' 

 meetings, and, if I remember 

 rightly, you also saw them your- 

 self ; if not then, you have seen 

 them in my cabinet, and will 

 remember them. On the 26th 

 of April, 1874. I took four 

 eggs out of the very nest above 

 mentioned, but they had nothing 

 extraordinary about them." 



Mr. Dresser adds : " I have 

 seen the eggs above described by 

 Mr. "VVharton, and can confirm 

 what he says respecting their being 

 evenly and carefully daubed ; and 

 I should say that there is no 

 doubt it was done by the bird 

 itself, but for what reason it is 

 impossible to say with certainty 

 It appears probable that it w;>,.-; 

 done for the purpose of conce.il- 

 ment." 



The Jackdaw measures about 

 thirteen inches in length, and is 

 of a black colour, with purplish 

 wings and tail, the back having 

 somewhat of a greyish shade on 

 the margins of the fcatners. The 

 crown of the head is glossy blue- 

 black, forming a cap, while the COMMON JACKDAW. 

 neck is hoary grey, inclining to 



silvery grey near the cap, becoming somewhat whiter on the lower sides of the neck. Bill and feet 

 black; eye bluish- white. The sexes are alike in size and plumage. 



THE HOODED CROW (Cor one comix -,. 



The distribution of the present species over Europe is somewhat singular, as, although it occurs in 

 nearly every country, it cannot be said to be universally spread over the Continent, but rather appears 

 to be distributed in colonies. Thus it is spread over the northern parts of Great Britain and Ireland, 

 but diminishes in numbers as one approaches southward, where the common Carrion Crow (C. 

 hiemalis) is the ordinary species. Indeed, throughout Europe these two species of Crow appear to be 

 somewhat representative, the one replacing the other in different localities. In Northern Germany, 

 for instance, the river Elbe appears to constitute a dividing line, for on the east side the Hooded 

 Crow, and on the west side the common Carrion Crow, respectively breed. In the south of Europe 

 the Hooded Crow is rarer, and occurs chiefly as a migrant, but the place par excellence where the 

 migration of the present species can be most successfully studied is the little rocky island of 



