171. _The COMMON or WHITE STORK_ (Ardea ciconia) _is a bird distinguished
by its strong and sharp red bill, its white plumage, and the orbits of
the eyes and the quill feathers being black. The feathers of the breast
are long and pendulous._
_This bird is upwards of three feet in length. It is found in every
quarter of the world, except America; and, though rarely seen in England,
is extremely common in Holland and some other parts of Europe. It is a
bird of passage, and leaves Europe in the autumn for Egypt, Barbary, and
some of the countries of Asia._
The Mahometans have the highest veneration for the stork; and any person
would be held in abhorrence who attempted to kill or even to molest these
birds. They frequent the streets of the most populous towns, where they
devour offal and filth of almost every kind; and, in fenny countries, they
are of great service by feeding upon noxious reptiles and insects. In
ancient Thessaly it was a crime expiable only by death to kill one of them.
Storks are easily tamed and rendered domestic, and may be trained to reside
in gardens, which they soon clear of frogs, toads, and other reptiles. In a
wild state they make their nests of sticks and dried plants, on lofty trees
or the summits of rocks. The inhabitants of Holland frequently place boxes
on their houses for them to build in.
The _quills_ of the stork are large, and make excellent pens for writing
with.
172. _The COMMON HERON_ (Ardea major, Fig. 41) _is a bird of the stork
tribe, distinguished by the cinereous colour of its plumage, by the male
having a long and pendent crest on the hind part of the head, the
feathers of the neck long; and by having a double row of black spots on
the neck._
_This bird, which is somewhat more than three feet in length, is common
in most of the fenny parts of Great Britain._
A few centuries ago heronies were nearly as common in the neighbourhood of
noblemen's houses as rookeries. These birds, like rooks, delight in
building their nests in society, and on the highest trees. As many as
eighty herons' nests are mentioned by Mr. Pennant, to have been counted on
a single tree at Cressi Hall, near Gosberton in Lincolnshire.
When heron hawking, or the pursuing of these birds with falcons, was a
favourite diversion in this country, great attention was paid to the
preservation of the breed, they were ranked among royal game, and were so
far protected by the laws, that any person destroying or shooting at one of
them was liable to a penalty of twenty shillings. A penalty of ten
shillings was exacted for taking young herons from the nest, and any one
taking or destroying the eggs, betwixt the twenty-first of March and the
thirteenth of June, was punishable by twelve months' imprisonment, and a
forfeiture of eightpence for every egg so taken. These birds were formerly
as much esteemed for the table as pheasants are now, and no fewer than four
hundred herons are stated to have been served up at Archbishop Neville's
inthronization feast, in the reign of Edward the Fourth.
Plumes formed of feathers of the heron and egret are used as ornaments for
the caps of knights of the garter.
Herons subsist chiefly upon fish, and are very destructive in fish-ponds.
It has been calculated that a single heron will destroy nearly 3000 carp in
a year. These birds take their prey by wading into the water, and seizing
the fish as they pass by: they also sometimes catch them in shallow water
by darting from the air, and securing them against the bottom.
173. _The BITTERN_ (Ardea stellaris, Fig. 42) _is a bird of the stork
tribe, distinguishable by its brownish yellow plumage, variously marked
with black; by the feathers of the neck and breast being peculiarly long;
and the bill being strong, of brown colour above, and greenish beneath._
_This bird is not quite so large as the heron. It is found in marshes of
several parts of England, as well as on the continents of Europe, Asia,
and America._
The _flesh_ of the bittern was formerly much esteemed at the table. Amongst
other provisions at Archbishop Neville's inthronization feast, there appear
to have been 204 bitterns. These birds are now sometimes to be seen in the
poulterers' shops in London, where they are generally sold for about
half-a-guinea each. The _hind claws_ were once in esteem as tooth-picks,
from an opinion that the use of them tended to preserve the teeth from
decaying.
Few birds of their size are more strong, or, when attacked, are more
ferocious than these. They subsist chiefly on fish, frogs, mice, and other
animals. During the months of February and March the males, in the mornings
and evenings, make a kind of deep, lowing noise, which is supposed to be
their call to the females. These birds form their nests among rushes, and
generally lay four or five greenish brown eggs.
174. _The CURLEW_ (Scolopax arquata, Fig. 44) _is a bird known by having
a long arched black bill, bluish legs, and blackish wings, with snowy
spots and marks._
_Its general weight is betwixt twenty and thirty ounces._
_In winter large flocks of these birds are seen on our sea-coasts, and in
summer they often retire into mountainous parts of the interior of the
country. They are found in Europe, Asia, and Africa._
Curlews are frequently shot for food, and sometimes are very palatable,
particularly if killed at a distance from the sea: but such as are killed
near the sea-coasts have often a fishy and bad taste.
They feed on marine and other worms and insects, and build their nests upon
the ground in unfrequented places distant from the coast, laying four eggs,
which are of a pale green or olive colour, marked with irregular brown
spots.
175. _The WOODCOCK_ (Scolopax rusticola, Fig. 45) _is a bird with varied
plumage, a long straight bill reddish at the base, legs ash-coloured, the
thighs clad with feathers, and the head with a black band on each side._
_The weight of the woodcock is generally about twelve ounces._
_These birds are migratory, and usually begin to arrive, in England about
the first week in October, and depart about the middle of March._
The woodcocks which arrive in the southern parts of England, probably come
from Normandy; and those in the northern parts from Sweden. The latter
appears evident by the time of their departure from Sweden exactly
coinciding with that of their arrival in Britain, and their retreat from
this country coinciding with their re-appearance there. In their migrations
they chiefly fly during the night, and arrive in greatest numbers with
north-easterly winds and during foggy weather.
Few birds are so much in esteem for the table as these and they are
fattest, and consequently in best condition, during the months of December
and January. Before they were protected by the game laws, it was customary,
in some of the northern parts of England, to catch woodcocks by traps. Long
parallel rows of stones or sticks, four or five inches high, were made in
moonlight nights on the commons frequented by them. In these rows several
intervals or gateways were left in which the traps were placed. When the
birds, running about in search of food came to one of these rows, they did
not usually cross it, but ran along the side till they arrived at the
gateways, which they entered, and in which they were caught.
Notwithstanding the high opinion entertained by British epicures respecting
the woodcock for the table, we are assured that the inhabitants of Sweden,
Norway, and other northern countries, wholly reject them, under a notion
that they are unwholesome. They, however, eat and are particularly partial
to the _eggs_ of the woodcock. These are carried for sale, in great
numbers, to the markets of Stockholm and Gottenburg.
In commencing its flight this bird rises heavily from the ground, and makes
a flapping noise with its wings. It does not long continue in flight, and
stops so suddenly as to fall apparently like a dead weight. A few moments
after being on the ground it runs swiftly, but soon pauses, raises its
head, and casts a glance around before it ventures to lurk in concealment
under the herbage or bushes.
Woodcocks are seldom known to breed in this country. Those very few,
however, that happen to remain, after the great flights have departed,
construct their nests on the ground, generally at the root of some tree,
and lay four or five eggs of rusty colour marked with brown spots. They
feed on worms and insects.
176. _The COMMON SNIPE_ (Scolopax gallinago, Fig. 43) _is a small bird,
with long straight bill, brown legs, the plumage varied with blackish and
tawny colour above, and white beneath, and the front marked with four
brown lines._
_These birds, which usually weigh about four ounces, are found in marshy
places in most parts of the world. They are migratory, a considerable
portion of them leaving Great Britain in the spring of the year and
returning in the autumn. Many, however, continue with us through the
whole year._
Snipes, on account of their delicate flavour, are in great request for the
table. But as, like woodcocks (175), they are eaten with their entrails,
which contain many stimulant insects, &c. it has been supposed that a
frequent indulgence in such food is apt to induce the gout, or at least to
accelerate its paroxysms. It is remarkable respecting these birds that,
though generally fat and rich eating, they seldom cloy even the weakest
stomachs.
In winter they usually continue near marshy grounds, concealed among rushes
and thick herbage; but, during severe frosts, they resort to sheltered
springs, unfrozen boggy places, or any open streams of water. In summer
they disperse throughout the country, and are occasionally found even among
the highest mountains. When roused by the sportsman they utter a feeble
whistle, and generally fly off, against the wind, in a zigzag direction.
Snipes are fattest and in best season in November and December.
These birds feed on small worms, slugs, and insects. They form their nests
of dried grass and feathers, in concealed and inaccessible parts of
marshes, and have each four eggs of a dirty olive colour marked with dusky
spots.
177. _The RUFF and REEVE_ (Tringa pugnax, Fig. 46) _are the male and
female of a species of sandpiper, which have very varied plumage, the
face coloured with yellow pimples, the three lateral tail feathers
without spots, and the covert feathers of the wings brown, inclining to
ash-colour._
_The males, or_ ruffs, _have, round their heads, after they are twelve
months old, a very singular arrangement of long feathers, which drop off
every year at the season of moulting. The female, or_ reeve, _has no
feathers of this description. The weight of the ruff is generally more
than seven ounces, and that of the reeve about four._
_These birds are found in the fens of Lincolnshire, Cambridgeshire, and
Yorkshire._
In the early part of spring they begin to appear in the fens, and they
disappear about Michaelmas. These birds are caught in nets, and a skilful
fowler has been known to catch six dozen in one morning. In general the
males only are taken, the females being allowed to escape on account of
their smaller size, and that they may be left to breed. When caught they
are generally put up, for some days, to be fattened; and for this purpose
are fed with boiled wheat, and bread and milk mixed with hempseed, to which
sugar is sometimes added. By this treatment, in the course of a fortnight,
they become excessively fat. The usual mode of killing them is by cutting
off their head with a pair of scissars. They are cooked, like woodcocks,
with their intestines, and, when in perfection, are esteemed by epicures a
most delicious food.
It is a very singular habit of the males, which are much more numerous than
the females, to take possession each of a small piece of ground, upon which
they run in a circle until all the grass is worn away. These _hills_, as
they are called by the fowlers, are near each other; and as soon as a
female alights, all the ruffs of the neighbourhood immediately begin to
fight for her. It is during this contest that the fowlers seize the
opportunity of entangling them in their nets.
The reeves form their nests of a few straws and dried grass loosely put
together upon the ground; and lay each four white eggs marked with large
rust-coloured spots.
178. _The LAPWING, or PEE-WIT_ (Tringa vanellus), _is a well-known marsh
bird, which has a crest at the back of the head, the upper part of its
plumage green, the breast black, and the legs red._
_Its general weight is seven or eight ounces. This bird frequents moist
heaths and marshy grounds in nearly all the temperate parts of Europe,
Asia, and Africa._
The name of Lapwing has been given to these birds, on account of the
flapping noise which they make with their large wings during flight; and
that of pee-wit has been obtained from their cry. They associate in flocks
during the winter-time, and are caught, by nets, in the same manner as
ruffs (177), but are killed as soon as they are caught. Lapwings are in
considerable demand by the London poulterers, particularly about the month
of October, when they are fat and excellent eating. Their _eggs_, which are
olive-coloured spotted with black, are esteemed a peculiar delicacy during
the whole season in which they can be obtained.
Lapwings feed chiefly on worms, and the females lay each two eggs on the
ground, in some hollow place, on the dry parts of marshes.
179. _The DOTTEREL_ (Charadrius morinellus) _is a species of plover
distinguished by its roundish and obtuse bill and black legs, its breast
being rust-coloured, and by having a white line over each eye, and
another upon the breast._
_These birds seldom weigh more than three or four ounces. About the
latter end of April, during the month of May, and part of June, they are
found, in flocks of eight or ten together, on the heaths and moors of
Cambridgeshire, Lincolnshire, and Derbyshire, and among the mountains of
Westmorland and Cumberland. They are also seen on the Wiltshire and
Berkshire downs in the months of April and September._
Such is the singularity of manners of these birds that it is possible to
catch them, even with the hand, by a very simple artifice. It was formerly
customary for the fowler to proceed, in the night, with a candle and
lantern, to the places where he knew the birds were in the habit of
roosting. Roused, but unalarmed, by the light, if he approached with
caution they would continue immoveable until he was able to discover them.
He would now stretch out one of his arms, which induced the imitative birds
to stretch their wing; then a foot, which the birds likewise mimicked. This
he did alternately until he was sufficiently near to extend and entangle
them in his net. There were other contrivances besides this: but the
greater facility of killing these birds by the gun has of late years
rendered them all useless.
When dotterels are best in season they are very fat and delicate eating.
There are several birds which are sold by the London poulterers under the
appellation of _plovers_. These are chiefly the GOLDEN PLOVER (_Charadrius
pluvialis_), the GREY SAND-PIPER (_Tringa squatorola_), and the GREEN
SAND-PIPER (_Tringa ochropus_), all of which are much esteemed for the
table.
180. _The LAND-RAIL, or CORN-CRAKE_ (Rallus crex), _is distinguished by
having a short and strong bill, and the legs situated far back; the
feathers of the back black, edged with bay, and the wings of a reddish
rusty colour._
_The usual weight of these birds is from six to eight ounces. They are
found, during summer, in corn-fields, but are migratory, and seldom seen
after the middle of September._
The remarkable cry of "crek, crek, crek," uttered by these birds in meadows
and corn-fields before the grass and corn are cut, is well known. It is
heard from the thickest part of the herbage: and, when any person
approaches the spot, so great is the rapidity with which they run, that it
is, almost in an instant afterwards, heard forty or fifty paces distant.
When pursued by dogs, these birds persist in keeping upon the ground, and
they may sometimes be taken even with the hand. They often stop short and
squat, and the dog, overshooting the mark, loses his trace. When driven to
the last extremity they rise, but they fly heavily, and generally with
their legs hanging down. They do not fly far before they alight: they then
run off, and, before the sportsman can reach the place, are at a
considerable distance. Sometimes the land-rail will alight upon a hedge, in
which case it will perch and sit motionless till the pursuer (who thinks it
is upon the ground) almost touches it.
When they first appear these birds are quite lean, but, before their
departure, they become so fat that the author of Rural Sports informs us he
has frequently been obliged to wrap his handkerchief round them, when
killed, to prevent the fat which exuded from the shot-holes from soiling
other birds.
The females lay twelve or more eggs of reddish cinereous white colour,
marked with rusty and ash-coloured spots and blotches. The nest is loosely
formed of moss or dry grass, generally in some hollow place among thick
grass.