LECTURE V. 163 



tions, and lay from two to four eggs. The fe- 

 male in the predacious birds is always larger 

 than the male 3 and the whole tribe, according 

 to Linnaeus, may be considered as analogous to 

 the Order Feres among quadrupeds. 



Of the predacious tribe the first genus or 

 set is that of Vultur. Its chief character is, a 

 beak of a somewhat lengthened form, running 

 strait to some distance, but curving strongly at 

 the tip : it has no cere or naked membrane at 

 the base : the head and neck, in most species, 

 are bare of feathers, being covered only with a 

 kind of down. The species of Vultures are con- 

 siderably numerous, and they inhabit almost all 

 the warmer parts of the globe, but are not so 

 often seen in the Northern regions, where their 

 presence would be less necessary. They are 

 observed to prey on dead animals in preference 

 to living ones, and as they are always on the 

 watch for those, and prefer such as are in a 

 putrid state, they may be considered as the Sca- 

 * vengers of Nature in the animal world, and are 

 of extreme utility in the hotter regions, by quickly 

 removing all such animal remains as would other- 

 wise tend to infect the air. 



