382 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



species of North American Egrets (Stejneger, ' Stand. N. H.,' iv. 

 pp. 6-8; Sharpe, 'Cat. B. B. M.,' xxvi. p. 106, &c). In 

 Dichromanessa rufa there are two distinct phases, one normally 

 grey and the other pure white — not, it must be remembered, 

 merely pathological albinos ; and it is only during recent years 

 that these two forms have ceased to be placed in different species 

 and even genera. I shall return to this question shortly. 



William Harrison, best known for his authorship of a ' De- 

 scription of England ' appended to Holinshed's ' Chronicles,' has 

 a little to say about the wild life of his period (Book 3, c. 2, 

 1587 edition), and offers a list of the birds then breeding in this 

 country. He specifies, amongst many others, Crane, Bittern, 

 Wild and Tame Swan, Bustard, Doterell, Brant, Barnacle (which 

 he believed came from a shell), Wigeon, Oliet [Oystercatcher] , 

 ..." besides divers others whose names are to me utterly un- 

 known, and much more the taste of their flesh, wherewith I was 

 never acquainted." He adds: ". . . as for Egrets, Pawners, and 

 such like, they are dailie brought unto us from beyond the sea, 

 as if all the foule of our own countrie would not suffice to satisfie 

 our delicate appetites." It is clear that these birds simply 

 augmented the home supplies, and did not constitute them, for 

 the first edition of Harrison's book was published in 1577, only 

 thirteen years after the Egret was expressly protected in England. 

 Where did our author get his information ? The rest of his 

 book is obviously compiled from works that are still extant, and 

 all his items read familiarly to the student of mediaeval litera- 

 ture ; but perhaps this fragment on the importation of the Egret 

 is of his own personal knowledge, and so may not be found in 

 other works. As I have already shown, Egrets were killed by 

 the cook, and their blood was saved for the making of sauce. 

 Therefore, we must assume that these imported birds were 

 brought to England alive — indeed, with the methods of transport 

 at the disposal of the times they could hardly have been carried 

 dead and fresh for any distance. Where did these foreign Egrets 

 come from ? Southern Europe can be left out of consideration 

 altogether ; and so it is likely that this lost bird lived in some 

 other Northern European country besides England. It seems 

 to have enjoyed a long reputation as a table bird, for in the 

 time of Edward I. it headed the list of game birds with the 



