I 
The Hijlory of ANIMALS. 385 
to England, about eight years fince, a very great curiofity. It fell into the hands of a 
perfon in the city, who had a large colledtion of foreign birds, as well as thofe of our 
own kingdom, dried. 
None of the writers on thefe fubjedts feem to have been acquainted with it, unlefs 
Barrelier .means it by the fpecies which he has figured under the name of Hydrocorax 
viridefcens, but his figure does not perfe&ly agree with the fpecimens fent over to us. 
It frequents ponds, and, it is faid, feeds on fifh; but probably it haunts them, for the 
fake of the frog and newt-kinds, and other creatures which inhabit their fhores, like 
the other of it’s kind. The beak feems formed for Eriking through the bodies of foil 
'animals of this fort. 
C O R V U 8. 
T Ip H E beak of the Corvus is of a convex and cultrated form ; the upper and, the 
under chaps are nearly equal in fize, and the bafe is ornamented with a kind of 
fetas or briftles. 
This genus comprehends the jay and magpy-kind, befide thofe ufually under flood 
by the name Corvus, the crow, raven, and jack-daW tribe. Thefe fometimes limply 
called Picre, are carefully to be diftinguifhed from the Picus, a genus heretofore too 
nearly approaching to them in name, though quite different in form and manners. 
Corvus ater dorfo ccerulefcente . 
I"he black Corvus , with a blue bach 
This is a bird of no great beauty, but it’s fize dillinguifhes it among the crow-kind j 
it is of the bignefs of a common hen: the head is fmall, in proportion to the body, 
and is fomewhat depreffed on the crown, and flatted at the fides: the eyes are large, 
and very bright and piercing; the beak is confiderably large: it is two inches long, 
moderately thick, fomewhat ridged on the back, and fharp at the point, and the 
under chap is very little either fhorter or narrower than the upper: it is of a dufky 
blackifh colour. 
The head is black, with a flight tinge of a dufky blue, vifible only in fome lights $ 
in others it is totally and invariably black : the neck, back, and rump are alfo of a 
deep black, but they have a very flrong and elegant tinge, of the fame blue with 
that of the head, and is on thefe parts vifible in all lights and all directions: the breaft 
and belly are perfectly black : the wings are long, the tail is but fhort; when the 
wings are clofed, their tips reach nearly to it’s extremity : the legs are rebuff, and of a 
bluifh-black, and the toes are long and flender; the claws are black, anc^ are not very 
long, nor very fharp. 
The long feathers of the wings are twenty in number in each, and the two exte¬ 
rior ones in each wing are fomewhat fhorter than the others: the large feathers of the 
tail are all of a length. 
This is a very common bird with us; it builds in high trees, and makes it’s neft in 
a carelefs manner, but it is very bold in the defence of it’s young. It has a remarka¬ 
bly quick fcent; it’s food is principally carcaffes, and it will fmell them at a great dis¬ 
tance. When the air is clear, we often fee it entertaining itfelf with flying to a fur- 
prifing height. It’s voice is naturally hoarfe but loud; it will be kept tame about 
houfes, and will learn to imitate the human voice in the manner of the parrot, and 
does it very articulately : it will alfo mimic the notes of other animals* more nearly 
than any other of the talking birds. 
Corvus 
