CRANE. 125 



in the spring many thousands collect on the island of Rugen, 

 awaiting favourable weather to cross the Baltic, which pas- 

 sage they perform in one night. In autumn the same may 

 be observed on some islands in the Mediterranean, when 

 the birds travel towards the south. Acccording to Mr. 

 Drummond the Crane is very rare in Corfu, but occasionally 

 seen there in the spring. 



It is remarkable hoAV very punctually the Crane keeps to 

 its time of autumnal migration, namely, within eight days 

 during the month of October, being from the 12th till the 

 20th of that month ; and still more curious is the fact of 

 this bird having been observed, for many years in succession, 

 to travel or pass over a certain spot, within a thousand yards 

 right and left, without variation. The spot alluded to is 

 a gentleman's house, near a village in Thuringia. In the 

 spring of the year the Crane arrives in Europe from the 

 middle of March till the middle of April, according to the 

 season being early or late. It is immaterial to the Crane 

 whether it journeys by night or day, although the middle 

 of the day is apparently the time generally chosen by this 

 bird to recruit its strength by rest and food, when on a long 

 journey. It has already been observed that the Crane 

 travels in great numbers, it is necessary to add that such 

 a number as a thousand or more birds is divided into smaller 

 groups of from twenty to sixty, and that each group is 

 regularly headed by one of the larger birds, and flies in 

 the form of a swallow-tail, and all the groups remain very 

 close to each other. When the weather is fine, the Crane 

 flies steadily along, but when a change in the weather is 

 expected, the birds proceed at a very considerable rate, 

 and generally all of the party making a regular clacking 

 noise. 



Usually the Crane flies too high to be in danger of being 

 killed by a common gun-shot. A very remarkable circum- 



