fat is much less abundant. Five or six sports- 

 men set out together on horseback, taking with 

 them two camels laden with provisions for a 

 month, besides an abundant supply of powder 

 and ball. They search for places where rain 

 has lately fallen, or where pools of water oc- 

 cur; for in such localities there is likely to be 

 that plentiful herbage which never fails to 

 attract the ostrich. Having discovered its foot- 

 prints, the sportsmen examine them with care. 

 If they appear only here and there on the 

 bare spots, they indicate that the bird has been 

 here to graze; but if they cross each other in 

 various directions, and the grass is rather 

 trampled down than eaten, the ostrich has cer- 

 tainly made her nest in the neighborhood; and an 

 active but cautious search for it is commenced. 

 If she is only making her nest, the operation may 

 be detected at a great distance, as it consists 

 simply of pushing out the sand from the centre 

 to the circumference of a circle, so as to form a 

 large hole. The sand rises in dense clouds round 

 the spot, and the bird utters a pining cry all day 

 long. When the nest is finished, she cries only 

 towards three in the afternoon. The female sits 

 on the eggs from morning till noon, while her mate 

 is grazing; at noon, ho takes her place, and she 

 goes to the pasture in her turn. When she re- 

 turns, she places herself facing her mate, and at 

 the distance of five or six paces from the nest, 

 which he occupies all night, in order to defend 

 it from enemies, especially from the jackals, 

 which often lie in ambush, ready lo take ad- 

 vantage of an unguarded moment. Hunters 

 often find the carcasses of these animals near 

 ostriches' nests. In the morning, while the re- 

 umda is sitting, the sportsmen dig on each side of 

 the nest, and at about twenty paces from it, a 

 hole deep enough to contain a man. In each of 

 these they lodge one of their best marksmen, and 

 cover him up with long grass, allowing only the 

 gun to protrude. One of these is to shoot the 

 male, the other the female. The reumda, seeing 

 this operation going forward, becomes terrified, 

 and runs off to join her mate ; but he docs not 

 believe there is any ground for her terror, and 

 with somewhat ungallant chastisement, forces 

 her to return. If these preparations were 

 made while the delim Avas sitting, he would 

 go after her, and neither would return. 

 The reumda having resumed her place, the 

 sportsmen take care not to disturb her ; it is the 

 rule to shoot the delim first, and they patiently 

 wait his return from the pasture. At noon he 

 takes his place as usual, sitting with his wing's 

 outspread, so as to cover all the eggs. In this 

 position the thighs are extremely prominent, and 

 the appointed marksman takes aim at them; 

 because, if he succeeds in breaking them, there is 

 no chance of escape, wheh there would be, if 

 almost any other part were wounded. As soon as 

 he falls, the other sportsmen, attracted by the 

 report, run up and bleed him, according to the 

 laws of the Koran. They hide the carcass, and 

 cover with sand every trace of blood that has 

 been shed. When the reumda comes home at 

 night, she appears uneasy at the absence of 

 her mate, but probably concluding that he was 

 hungry, and has gone for some supper, she takes 

 his place on the eggs, and is killed by the second 



marksman in the same way as the delim. The 

 ostrich is often w r ay-laid, in a similar manner, at 

 its usual drinking place ; a good shot being con- 

 cealed in a hole whence he fires on it. The 

 ostrich drinks nearly every five days, when there 

 is water; otherwise, it can do without it for a 

 much longer time. Nothing but excessive thirst 

 induces it ever to approach a human habitation, 

 and then it flies as soon as it is satisfied. It has 

 been observed,that whenever the flashing lightning 

 announces an approaching storm, it hastens 

 towards the water. Though single birds may 

 often be shot on these occasions, it is a much less 

 certain sport than killing them on the nest, and 

 less profitable, as, in the latter case, the eggs form 

 no contemptible part of the spoil. The nest of 

 an ordinary pair contains from twenty-five to 

 thirty eggs. But it often happens that several 

 couples unite to hatch together; in this case they 

 form a great circular cavity, the eldest couple lay 

 their eggs in the centre, and the others make a 

 regular disposition of theirs around them. Thus, 

 if there are four younger couples, they occupy 

 the four angles of a square. When the laying is 

 finished, the eggs are pushed towards the centre, 

 but not mixed; and when the eldest delim begins 

 to sit, all the rest take their places where their 

 eggs have been laid, the females observing similar 

 order. These associations are found only where 

 the herbage is very plentiful, and they are under- 

 stood always to be family groups, the centre 

 couple being the parents of the rest. The younger 

 birds lay fewer and smaller eggs — those of one 

 year old, for instance, have only four or five. 

 The period of incubation is ninety days. — These 

 particulars cannot be perused without exciting 

 great interest. I have abridged them con- 

 siderably, — my object being to settle a point 

 which has ever occasioned so much disparity of 

 opinion. — N Annette. 



[Thank you, dear Nannette. We are under a 

 heavy-weight of obligation to you, for so con- 

 tinually watching over the interests of Our 

 Journal.] 



Toads Eating their Skins. — My remark that 

 " toads eat their skins," Mr. Editor, is not a 

 novel assertion; inasmuch as Bell, in his "Bri- 

 tish Beptiles," published in 1839, corroborates a 

 similar fact. Indeed, at page 110 of that work, 

 he describes minutely the toad's behavior while 

 shedding his skin. Your correspondent, J. 

 Lusher, who is so very enthusiastic in his endea- 

 vor to solve the " grand mystery" relating to 

 the same operation with Frogs, says — I seem 

 anxious to ascertain facts. I not only seem to 

 be so, but am so. — William Marshall, Ely. 



[The fact of Toads eating their skins, is quite 

 set at rest. Mr. Lusher's remark has reference 

 to Frogs eating their skins. He has kept these 

 animals so long, and watched their movements 

 so very narrowly, that we can hardly feel sur- 

 prised at his incredulity. You remark, Sir, in 

 your former letter, that you never observed a 

 frog cast its skin and swallow it ; but that you 

 had once dissected a frog, and found a skin in 

 its stomach. It is this remark that so puzzles 

 our Correspondent. He says— '' If one frog does 

 this, why do not all frogs do it? " We cannot 

 blame him for trying to solve the doubt.] 



