25UO FIELD-NOTES FCR THE YEAR. ClI. XV. 



parts of the river where tlie stream is the slowest, or 

 lie in dead water, apparently not ha^-ing the strength, 

 which, in the warm weather, enables them to lie per- 

 fectly at their ease in the strongest rapid. 



Amongst the curious instincts which birds display 

 in providing themselves with food, one most resem- 

 bling reason is that which teaches the common crow, 

 on finding on the shore a shell containing fish, to fly 

 with it to a height in the air, and then to let it 

 drop in order to break the shell sufficiently to get 

 at the fish enclosed in it. "\Mien the stone does 

 not break the first time that the crow drops it, she 

 darts down, picks it up, and ascends still higher, 

 till she perceives that the height is sulficient for her 

 purpose. Sometimes another crow darts in to carry 

 oflf the booty ; upon which a battle ensues in the 

 air. Cunning as the crow is, she seldom finds any 

 prize without letting all the neighbourhood know of 

 it by her cries and gestures. With perfect truth 

 the ancient poet said — 



" Tacitus pasci, si posset conns, haberet 

 Plos dapis, et rixoe multo minus invidiseque." 



The crows collect great numbers of sea-shells on 

 particular favourite hillocks, which are often at 

 some distance from the sea. I have frequently ob- 

 served in this countrv" great collections of this kind, 

 and from the state of the shells it would appear 



