273 [Assembly 



Jiugust 15, 1854. 



Present — Prof. Mapes, Hon. Hugh Maxwell, Messrs. Lawton, 

 Lowe, Chambers, Rapelye, Van Wyck, Prof. Renwick, Martin E. 

 Thompson, Messrs. Barney, Schenck, of Jersey, Blakeslee, of 

 Connecticut, Cowing, of New-Orleans, Rev. Dr. Fitch, lately of 

 California, John Robinson, John Lodge, of Jersey, Mr. Judd, 

 Consul Cowdin, Paul Stillman, Mr. Pardee and Mr. Henry, of 

 the Mechanics' Institute, and others — between forty and fifty 

 members. 



George B. Rapelye, of New- York, in the chair. 



Henry Meigs, Secretary. 



The Secretary read the following extracts made by him, viz : 



THE BEE EATER. 



Aristotle describes it in the 40th chapter of the 9th book of his 

 History of Animals. In the 1st chapter of the 6!h book and thir- 

 teenth chapter of the 9th book he calls it Merops. Linnseus 

 called it Merops apiaster. It catches bees on the wing as swal- 

 lows do flies. 



Natural History of New- York — Zoology, vol. 2, page 117. 



GENUS TYRANNUS, OR TYRANT RACE. 



Our king bird is Tyrannus intrepidus — the intrepid tyrant (por- 

 trait 72). He is called in New- York Kinghirdjelsewhere commonly 

 called Field martin. He winters in Mexico, enters Louisiana on his 

 way north about the middle of March, and enters New- York about 

 the last of April or beginning of May, and he goes as far as lati- 

 tude 57 degrees north. He spreads over our continent from the 

 Atlantic to the Pacific. It lays from four to six eggs, white, with 

 a few deep brown spots; feeds on berries and seeds, beetles, can- 

 ker worms, and all kinds of insects. By this, and his inveterate 

 hostility to rapacious birds, he more than compensates for the 

 few domestic bees with which he varies his repast. Like hawks 

 and owls, he ejects from his mouth, in the shape of large pellets, 

 all the indigestible parts of insects and berries. 



The olive sided king bird (figure 73), Tyranus Cooperi, is 

 nearly of the same size and appearance and habits -, it directs its 



