THE CROCODILE. lol 



exists a little bird which, flies about, perpetually seeking, even in 

 the mouth of the Crocodile, the insects which form the principal 

 part of its nourishment." This bird, which Geoffroy Saint- 

 Hilaire recognised as the Charadrius ^Egyptius of ornithologists, 

 is like a Plover. The bdella, which thus torment the Croco- 

 diles, and even excite them to madness, are no other than our 

 European gnats. Myriads of these insects haunt the banks of 

 the Nile, and when these giants of its waters repose on its margin, 

 warming themselves in the sun, they become the prey of these in- 

 significant pigmies. It is like the war between the Lion and the 

 Mouse, described by La Fontaine. The bdella fly into the Croco- 

 diles' mouths in such numbers that they cover the entire surface 

 of the palate, and form a brownish crust. These little pests 

 pierce the tongues of the reptiles with their stings. It is then 

 that this bird comes into the mouth of the monster to catch 

 them, and deliver it from such innumerable enemies. The 

 Crocodile with one bite could easily destroy the bird, but he 

 knows too well what he owes to this friend to do it an injury. 

 Crocodiles of the Nile are more voracious than the American 

 Alligators. Hasselquist asserts that in Upper Egypt they often 

 devour women who come to draw water from the Nile, as well as 

 children playing upon its banks. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire says, 

 that in the Thebaid they often met with Arabs wanting an arm 

 or leg, who accused Crocodiles of this mutilation. Sir Samuel 

 Baker also mentions, in his late work on the Nile and its tribu- 

 taries, the desire of these amphibia for human flesh, and the dread 

 they are held in by the natives. Livingstone, the celebrated 

 traveller, gives the following account of an encounter he had with 

 one of these ferocious animals : 



"The Crocodile," says the celebrated traveller, "makes many 

 victims every year among the children who are so imprudent as to 

 play on the banks of the Liambia when their mothers go to fetch 

 water. The Crocodile stupefies its victim with a blow from its tail, 

 then drags it into the river, where it is soon drowned. In general, 

 when the Crocodile perceives a Man it dives, and furtively glides 

 away from the side which he occupies. Sometimes, on the other 

 hand, it precipitates itself with surprising agility towards the person 

 it has discovered, which may be noticed from the disturbance 



