LAWS OF DEPENDANCE. 
343 
pied much in the same useful work. Probably also 
the H. virgata is sought out by those w r anderers, 
the Fieldfare and Redwing. Starlings during their 
winter peregrinations consume the smaller sorts 
indiscriminately; in the stomach of one in January, 
1838, I found H. nitida, costata, caperata, fusca, 
virgata, and Bulimus lubricus. This shews they 
search with diligence, and with a pre-existing in¬ 
stinct relative to their resources in severe times, for 
the whole of these testacea were at the period 
mentioned lodged deeply in hedges and rubbish, 
and under stones. I find also that the same time 
of trying necessity obliges the Gold-crest and Tit¬ 
lark to resort in some degree to this food. The 
former will on these occasions seek out Balea per¬ 
versa, Clausilia perversa, Pupa muscorum, &c., and 
the Titlark finds under stones on his open pastures 
a sufficiency of H. caperata to provide him a daily 
meal in conjunction with the beetles his more favo¬ 
rite diet. The fresh-water shells are the favorite 
dish of Water Rails; and LandRails, during summer 
become fat on the snails which infest corn and grass 
lands. As for the marine molluscs, they also appear 
to be the pabulum of numerous species of fish, and 
on our own shores no tribe seems more active in 
this consumption than the genera of Trigla, Pleu- 
ronectes, Solea and Platessa, judgingby the contents 
of their stomachs. I was much surprised some 
short time since by finding in the stomach of aTub a 
miscellany of univalves, nearly the whole of which 
were devoid of their animal contents, they w T ere 
indeed what collectors term “ dead specimens;” 
so that either these fish must resort to this dead 
matter from some peculiarity of service which it 
bestows on their economy, or else in their rapacity 
they seize indifferently on all that they meet with. 
These specimens were derived from the genera 
Natica, Nasa, Rostellaria, Fusus, and Turritella. 
