ORDER ACCIPITRES. 127 



collar of feathers, like the tringa pugnax ; a fine tail, like the 

 male peacock; or aigieites of lively colours, or peculiar forms 

 of plumage, of which all the females are destitute. It is well 

 worthy of observation, that these distinguishing characteristics 

 are never more remarkable than at the periods of sexual inter- 

 course. The peacock loses his fine tail, the tringa pugnax his 

 collaret of feathers ; in fine, each of these animals is more or 

 less degraded after this period is past. 



The young bird has an obscure and dull plumage like the 

 female, when the colours of this last are difierent from the male. 

 If the plumage of the female be similar to that of the male, 

 then the young bird has at first a covering peculiar to his age. 

 Arrived at the period of puberty, he is invested with more bril- 

 liant colours, as if to attract the attention of the female ; she is 

 invariably covered with a more sombre plumage, or one of little 

 brilliancy. The females have generally less ardour than the 

 males, except among the partridge kind. 



Vivacity, splendour of plumage and colours, and continual 

 loquacity are signs in each species, of ardour, energy and vigour. 

 The infinite diversity of colours in birds is one of the greatest 

 obstacles to the perfection of ornithology. A female, or a 

 young individual, is often very difficult to recognise, as to 

 species, so uncertain are the shades of plumage according to 

 climate, aliment, migration, age, sex, domesticated, or wild 

 state ; insomuch so, that naturalists have often, out of a single 

 species, created many. Besides, birds vary in a manner quite 

 different to quadrupeds, being more numerous in collateral 

 races, in species congeneric, and approximating in mixtures, and 

 finally in the modifications which occur every season, at each 

 moulting of the plumage. Nevertheless, on accidents of such 

 inconstancy, species are determined, multiplied ad infinitum, 

 and naturalists imagine that they are enriching science by 

 loading it with dry and useless descriptions of individuals. 

 It may also be questioned whether the publishing of splendid 

 figures at an enormous expense, of rare and beautiful birds. 



