C O R V U S. 
of florins its flight is troubled, and its cry raucous; and 
it ultimately gathers under the flielter of crags. The 
Greenlanders eat its flcfli, clothe themfelves with its 
Ikin, make bruflies of its wings, and fplit the quills for 
their fiflffng-lmes. When a phyfician, among the Ame¬ 
rican favages, vifits a patient, he invokes the raven, as 
the fign of returning health ; the Efquimaux, however, 
deteft and dread the whole genus. The name bellowed 
on the raven in all languages, is evidently formed from 
its croak. In Greek it is called j copl; in Latin, corvus-, 
in Spanifh, cuervo; in Italian, corvo ; in German, rabc, 
rave, kol-rave (coal-raven) ; in Swedifh, korp ; in Polifh, 
kruk ; in Hebrew, orcb ; in Arabic, gerahi'o ; in Perlian, 
calak ; in old French, corbin. The Scotch name co’rbey, 
like many others of that dialed!, was introduced from 
the French. The Englilh word raven is derived from 
the German rabe. M. Montbeillard objedts to the in- 
diferiminating application of the name corvus, to the 
crows, daws, magpies, &c. The corvus of the ancients 
was appropriated to the large fpecies only ; but the fimi- 
larity of habitudes and manners, and the Arid! confor¬ 
mity of the generic charadters, undoubtedly juilify the 
Linnaean claflification. 
2. Corvus capiftrum, the collared raven. This fpe¬ 
cies is one of Vaillant’s newly-difcovered birds of Africa. 
It refembles the common raven in the-dhape of its body, 
feet, and claws; the middle claw being joined to tire 
inner on£ by a membrane as far as the firll articulation ; 
alfo in the feathers at the bale of the bill bending for¬ 
wards and covering the noflrils; but it differs in the lhape 
of the beak, the length of the wings, and the form of 
the tail. This bird, which Vaillant calls corbiveau, 
ieems to occupy'the interval between the ravens and vul¬ 
tures. Upon the whole, however, it molt refembles the 
ravens ; it approaches the vultures of Africa by the fize 
of the wings, which, when folded up, reach three inches 
beyond the tail ; by the duplicature of the tail, and by 
the lhape of the bill, which is laterally comprefled, con¬ 
vex above, much bent and rounded, that is, riling in 
proportion as it lengthens in a progrellive curve ; thefe 
marks are fufficient to diltinguilh this bird from all the 
ravens hitherto deferibed. It has a large white fpot on 
the nape of the neck ; all the rell of the plumage being 
of a fhining black, with lleel-coloured reftedtions ; except 
a white line from each lide of this fpot which encircles 
the breaft, forming a kind of necklace or collar. The 
white line which completes the collar is faint, being 
formed of but one row of half-white feathers, only the 
tips of which are viiible. The throat is not of fo deep 
a black as the reft of the body ; the feathers which cover 
it are forked, overhanging the Item as if the end of the 
latter had been cut oft'. The tail is tapering, the middle 
feathers being longeft, the others growing fhorter and 
Ihorter, like notches or Hairs. The feet are black; as 
is the beak, except at the tip, which is white. The iris 
.of the eye is hazel. This fpecies is inferior in fize to the 
common raven, and may be placed between that , and the 
carrion crow. It is farther to be obferved, that the 
claws of this fpecies are ftronger, and more hooked, than 
in ravens in general. In this it refembles the rapacious 
birds, and its manners exhibit the fame marks of analogy. 
Voracious, noify, bold, gregarious, and fordid, like the 
crows, thefe birds make carrion their principal food; 
m fearch of which they fly in numerous and clamorous 
flocks; their cries are hoarfe and deep, and their man¬ 
ners dilgufting, like mod birds which feed on carrion. 
But to thefe habits the collared ravens unite a ftrong ap¬ 
petite for living prey ; they attack and kill lambs and 
young gazelles, which they devour, beginning with the 
eyes and tongue. They fly in troops after the buffalo, 
the ox, the horfe, and even the rhinoceros and elephant; 
on the backs of thefe large animals many are often feen 
perched at a time ; fatal enemies indeed would they be, 
had they but ftrength equal to their third: for blood ; 
but, as the Ikin of thefe quadrupeds is too thick to be 
Vol. V, No. 268, 
237 
wounded by them, the raven is content with drawing the 
blood and moiftur.e from wounds already made, by the 
wood-lice and gad-fly burrowing in their flefh. And 
Vaillant obferves, that this fanguinary inftinct in the 
raven is really of lervice to the beaft, who buffers her 
with pleafure to draw out with her bill thofe larvae 
which otherwife gnaw' into his vitals, and caufe him to 
wafte away to death, as many of them do. This bird 
flies very ftrong, and hovers at a great height in the air. 
They make their nefts in October, either -in thickets or 
in large trees ; it is very large, hollow, conftrufted of 
boughs, and lined with foft fubftances within. The fe¬ 
male lays three eggs, which are greenilh, fpotted with 
brown. It is not a migratory bird, but remains all the 
year in the country where it was hatched. Vaillant met 
with it in all parts of Africa ; but more frequently in 
the country of the Great Namaquois and in Swartland, 
and feldomeras he approached the Cape. Thecolonifts 
call it rmg-hals-kraai, the collared raven. The female is 
fomewhat lets than the male, has lefs white on the collar, 
and the black colour is not fo bright, but rather inclines 
to brown. 
3. Corvus magnus, the great raven. This is another 
of Vaillant’s birds of Africa, and much refembles the 
common raven ; fo that it is probably a variety only of 
the fame fpecies; for, this bird being generally fpread 
all over Europe, it is not furprifing it ihould be found 
at the Cape all’o. It was obferved, indeed, that in 
Africa the bird was generally larger ; the bill ftronger and 
more bent; but it agrees in all other particulars, and 
its habits are the fame ; and we know that the European 
raven varies in fize in different places, and has a beak 
more or lefs arched. This bird is met with moll com¬ 
monly in the mountains about the bay of Saldannah ; they 
keep in fmall flocks, and do not mix with the other fpe¬ 
cies of the fame genus. They feed upon carrion, earth¬ 
worms, fnails, the iand-tortoife, and large infetls; they 
will attack the young gazelles, and fometimes kill them. 
In Europe, this bird fometimes lives on fruits and grain ; 
but Vaillant allures us this is not the cafe with the 
African one ; for, having killed feveral in places where 
much corn was fown, he never found any appearance oi 
grain in their ftomachs; but only the remains of the food 
mentioned before. They haunt the fame places con¬ 
tinually ; make their neft in the rocks; and lay four or 
five eggs, which are green fpotted with brown. The 
colonifts diftinguilh this from the other fpecies by the 
name grootc-kraai, great raven. The colour of this bird 
is entirely black, which is filming on the wings and 
tail, but not with any reflection of green or purple. 
The eyes are dark brown; the feet, bill, and nails, a 
fine black. The female is fomewhat lefs than the male, 
and of a browner black. 
4. Corvus auftralis, the South Sea raven; nineteen 
inches in length ; bill remarkably ftrong at the baie, 
and much comprefled at the fides, and of a black colour; 
the plumage duIky black ; the feathers beneath the chin 
are of a remarkably loofe texture ; quills brownifh black; 
tail eight inches long, and black ; legs black. Native of 
the Friendly Ifles, in the South Seas. 
5. Corvus corone, the carrion crow. Though thefe 
birds refort to the fouleft carrion, their favourite food 
in the fpring is partridges eggs, for which they fearch 
with great diligence, and are fo dexterous as to carry’ 
them on the point of the bill to their young. In rivu¬ 
lets and lhallow ftreams, they are watchful for the fpawn 
of fillies, and will carry away trout of a large fize, which 
they take in the aft of fpawning. During winter they 
live with the .rooks and daws, and nearly in the fame 
way, fauntering among our flocks, hovering, near the 
work of our labourers, and fometimes hopping upon the 
backs of hogs and fheep, with fuch familiarity^ that 
they might be taken for domeftic birds. At night they 
retire into the woods to rooft on the large trees, as their 
general rendezvous, whither they refort from every quar. 
