BOOK X.

THE NATURAL HISTORY OF BIRDS.

CHAP. 1. (1.)—THE OSTRICH.

The history of the birds[2878] follows next, the very largest of which,

and indeed almost approaching to the nature of quadrupeds, is the

ostrich[2879] of Africa or[2880] Æthiopia. This bird exceeds in height

a man sitting on horseback, and can surpass him in swiftness, as wings

have been given to aid it in running; in other respects ostriches

cannot be considered as birds, and do not raise themselves from the

earth. They have cloven talons, very similar to the hoof[2881] of the

stag; with these they fight, and they also employ them in seizing

stones for the purpose of throwing[2882] at those who pursue them.

They have the marvellous property of being able to digest[2883] every

substance without distinction, but their stupidity[2884] is no less

remarkable; for although the rest of their body is so large, they

imagine, when they have thrust their head and neck into a bush, that

the whole of the body is concealed. Their eggs[2885] are prized on

account of their large size, and are employed as vessels for certain

purposes, while the feathers of the wing and tail are used as ornaments

for the crest and helmet of the warrior.

CHAP. 2. (2.)—THE PHŒNIX.

Æthiopia and India, more especially, produce[2886] birds of diversified

plumage, and such as quite surpass all description. In the front rank

of these is the phœnix,[2887] that famous bird of Arabia; though I

am not quite sure that its existence is not all a fable. It is said

that there is only one in existence in the whole world, and that that

one has not been seen very often. We are told that this bird is of the

size of an eagle,[2888] and has a brilliant golden plumage around the

neck, while the rest of the body is of a purple colour; except the

tail, which is azure, with long feathers intermingled of a roseate

hue; the throat is adorned with a crest, and the head with a tuft of

feathers. The first Roman who described this bird, and who has done so

with the greatest exactness, was the senator Manilius, so famous for

his learning; which he owed, too, to the instructions of no teacher.

He tells us that no person has ever seen this bird eat, that in Arabia

it is looked upon as sacred to the sun, that it lives five hundred

and forty years,[2889] that when it becomes old it builds a nest of

cassia and sprigs of incense, which it fills with perfumes, and then

lays its body down upon them to die; that from its bones and marrow

there springs at first a sort of small worm, which in time changes into

a little bird: that the first thing that it does is to perform the

obsequies of its predecessor, and to carry the nest entire to the city

of the Sun near Panchaia,[2890] and there deposit it upon the altar of

that divinity.

The same Manilius states also, that the revolution of the great

year[2891] is completed with the life of this bird, and that then a

new cycle comes round again with the same characteristics as the former

one, in the seasons and the appearance of the stars; and he says that

this begins about mid-day of the day on which the sun enters the sign

of Aries. He also tells us that when he wrote to the above effect,

in the consulship[2892] of P. Licinius and Cneius Cornelius, it was

the two hundred and fifteenth year of the said revolution. Cornelius

Valerianus says that the phœnix took its flight from Arabia into Egypt

in the consulship[2893] of Q. Plautius and Sextus Papinius. This bird

was brought to Rome in the censorship of the Emperor Claudius, being

the year from the building of the City, 800, and it was exposed to

public view in the Comitium.[2894] This fact is attested by the public

Annals, but there is no one that doubts that it was a fictitious phœnix

only.

CHAP. 3. (3.)—THE DIFFERENT KINDS OF EAGLES.

Of all the birds with which we are acquainted, the eagle is looked upon

as the most noble, and the most remarkable for its strength. There are

six[2895] different kinds; the one called “melanaetos”[2896] by the

Greeks, and “valeria” in our language, the least in size of them all,

but the most remarkable for its strength, is of a blackish colour. It

is the only one among all the eagles that feeds its young; for the

others, as we shall mention just now, drive them away; it is the only

one too that has neither cry nor murmur; it is an inhabitant of the

mountains. The second kind is the pygargus,[2897] an inhabitant of the

cities and plains, and distinguished by the whiteness of its tail. The

third is the morphnos,[2898] which Homer also calls the “percnos,”

while others, again, call it the “plangus” and the “anataria;” it is

the second in size and strength, and dwells in the vicinity of lakes.

Phemonoë, who was styled the “daughter of Apollo,” has stated that this

eagle has teeth, but that it has neither voice nor tongue; she says

also that it is the blackest of all the eagles, and has a longer tail

than the rest; Bœus is of the same opinion. This eagle has the instinct

to break the shell of the tortoise by letting it fall from aloft, a

circumstance which caused the death of the poet Æschylus. An oracle, it

is said, had predicted his death on that day by the fall of a house,

upon which he took the precaution of trusting himself only under the

canopy of the heavens.

The fourth kind of eagle is the “percnopterus,”[2899] also called the

“oripelargus;”[2900] it has much the appearance of the vulture, with

remarkably small wings, while the rest of the body is larger than the

others; but it is of a timid and degenerate nature, so much so, that

even a raven can beat it. It is always famishing and ravenous, and has

a plaintive murmuring cry. It is the only one among the eagles that

will carry off the dead carcase; the others settle on the spot where

they have killed their prey. The character of this species causes the

fifth one to be known by the distinctive name of “gnesios,”[2901] as

being the genuine eagle, and the only one of untainted lineage; it is

of moderate size, of rather reddish colour, and rarely to be met with.

The haliætus[2902] is the last, and is remarkable for its bright and

piercing eye. It poises itself aloft, and the moment it catches sight

of a fish in the sea below, pounces headlong upon it, and cleaving the

water with its breast, carries off its prey.

The eagle which we have mentioned as forming the third species, pursues

the aquatic birds in the vicinity of standing waters: in order to make

their escape they plunge into the water every now and then, until at

length they are overtaken by lassitude and sleep, upon which the eagle

immediately seizes them. The contest that takes place is really a sight

worthy to be seen. The bird makes for the shore to seek a refuge, and

especially if there should happen to be a bed of reeds there; while

in the meantime the eagle endeavours to drive it away with repeated

blows of its wings, and tumbles into the water in its attempts to seize

it. While it is standing on the shore its shadow is seen by the bird,

which immediately dives beneath, and then making its way in an opposite

direction, emerges at some point at which it thinks it is the least

likely to be looked for. This is the reason why these birds swim in

flocks, for when in large numbers they are in no danger from the enemy;

as by dashing up the spray with their wings they blind him.

Again, it often happens that the eagle is not able to carry the bird

aloft on account of its weight, and in consequence they both of them

sink together. The haliætus, and this one only, beats its young ones

while in an unfledged state, with its wings, and forces[2903] them

from time to time to look steadily upon the rays of the sun; and if it

sees either of them wink, or even its eye water, it throws it headlong

out of the nest, as being spurious and degenerate, while, on the

other hand, it rears the one whose gaze remains fixed and steady. The

haliætus[2904] is not a species of itself, but is an eagle of mixed

breed: hence their produce are of the species known as the ossifrage,

from which again is produced the smaller vulture; while this in its

turn produces the large vulture, which, however, is quite barren.

Some writers add to the above a seventh kind, which they call the

“bearded”[2905] eagle; the Tuscans, however, call it the ossifrage.

CHAP. 4.—THE NATURAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE EAGLE.

The first three and the fifth class of eagles employ in the

construction of their aerie the stone aëtites,[2906] by some known as

“gangites;” which is employed also for many remedial purposes, and is

proof against the action of fire. This stone has the quality also, in a

manner, of being pregnant, for when shaken, another stone is heard to

rattle within, just as though it were enclosed in its womb; it has no

medical properties, however, except immediately after it has been taken

from the nest.

Eagles build among rocks and trees; they lay three eggs, and generally

hatch but two young ones, though occasionally as many as three have

been seen. Being weary of the trouble of rearing both, they drive one

of them from the nest: for just at this time the providential foresight

of Nature has denied them a sufficiency of food, thereby using due

precaution that the young of all the other animals should not become

their prey. During this period, also, their talons become reversed,

and their feathers grow white from continued hunger, so that it is

not to be wondered at that they take a dislike to their young. The

ossifrage, however, a kindred species, takes charge of the young ones

thus rejected, and rears them with its own; but the parent bird still

pursues them with hostility, even when grown up, and drives them away,

as being its rivals in rapine. And indeed, under any circumstances, one

pair of eagles requires a very considerable space of ground to forage

over, in order to find sufficient sustenance; for which reason it is

that they mark out by boundaries their respective allotments, and seek

their prey in succession to one another. They do not immediately carry

off their prey, but first deposit it on the ground, and it is only

after they have tested its weight that they fly away with it.

They die, not of old age, nor yet of sickness, or of hunger; but the

upper part of the beak grows to such an extent, and becomes so curved,

that they are unable to open it. They take the wing, and begin upon the

labours of the chase at mid-day; sitting in idleness during the hours

of the morning, until such time as the places[2907] of public resort

are filled with people. The feathers of the eagle, if mixed with those

of other birds, will consume them.[2908] It is said that this is the

only bird that has never been killed by lightning; hence it is, that

usage has pronounced it to be the armour-bearer of Jove.

CHAP. 5. (4.)—WHEN THE EAGLE WAS FIRST USED AS THE STANDARD OF THE

ROMAN LEGIONS.

Caius Marius, in his second consulship, assigned the eagle exclusively

to the Roman legions. Before that period it had only held the first

rank, there being four others as well, the wolf, the minotaur,

the horse, and the wild boar, each of which preceded a single

division.[2909] Some few years before his time it had begun to be

the custom to carry the eagle only into battle, the other standards

being left behind in camp; Marius, however, abolished the rest of them

entirely. Since then, it has been remarked that hardly ever has a Roman

legion encamped for the winter, without a pair of eagles making their

appearance at the spot.

The first and second species of eagle, not only prey upon the whole

of the smaller quadrupeds, but will attack deer even. Rolling in the

dust, the eagle covers its body all over with it, and then perching

on the antlers of the animal, shakes the dust into its eyes, while

at the same time it beats it on the head with its wings, until the

creature at last precipitates itself down the rocks. Nor, indeed, is

this one enemy sufficient for it; it has still more terrible combats

with the dragon,[2910] and the issue is much more doubtful, although

the battle is fought in the air. The dragon seeks the eggs of the eagle

with a mischievous avidity; while the eagle, in return, carries it off

whenever it happens to see it; upon these occasions, the dragon coils

itself about the wings of the bird in multiplied folds, until at last

they fall to the earth together.

CHAP. 6. (5.)—AN EAGLE WHICH PRECIPITATED ITSELF ON THE FUNERAL PILE OF

A GIRL.

There is a very famous story about an eagle at the city of Sestos.

Having been reared by a little girl, it used to testify its gratitude

for her kindness, first by bringing her birds, and in due time various

kinds of prey: at last she died, upon which the bird threw itself on

the lighted pile, and was consumed with her body. In memory of this

event, the inhabitants raised upon the spot what they called an heroic

monument,[2911] in honour of Jupiter and the damsel, the eagle being a

bird consecrated to that divinity.

CHAP. 7. (6.)—THE VULTURE.

Of the vultures, the black ones[2912] are the strongest. No person has

yet found a vulture’s nest: hence it is that there are some who have

thought, though erroneously, that these birds come from the opposite

hemisphere.[2913] The fact is, that they build their nest upon the

very highest rocks; their young ones, indeed, are often to be seen,

being generally two in number. Umbricius, the most skilful among the

aruspices of our time, says that the vulture lays thirteen eggs,[2914]

and that with one of these eggs[2915] it purifies the others and its

nest, and then throws it away: he states also that they hover about for

three[2916] days, over the spot where carcases are about to be found.

CHAP. 8. (7.)—THE BIRDS CALLED SANGUALIS AND IMMUSULUS.

There has been considerable argument among the Roman augurs about

the birds known as the “sangualis” and the “immusulus.” Some persons

are of opinion that the immusulus is the young of the vulture, and

the sangualis that of the ossifrage. Massurius says,[2917] that the

sangualis is the same as the ossifrage, and that the immusulus is the

young of the eagle, before the tail begins to turn white. Some persons

have asserted that these birds have not been seen at Rome since the

time of the augur Mucius; for my part, I think it much more likely,

that, amid that general heedlessness as to all knowledge, which has of

late prevailed, no notice has been taken of them.

CHAP. 9. (8.)—HAWKS. THE BUTEO.

We find no less than sixteen[2918] kinds of hawks mentioned; among

these are the ægithus, which is lame[2919] of one leg, and is looked

upon as the most favourable omen for the augurs on the occasion of a

marriage, or in matters connected with property in the shape of cattle:

the triorchis also, so called from the number of its testicles,[2920]

and to which Phemonoë has assigned the first rank in augury. This last

is by the Romans known as the “buteo;” indeed there is a family[2921]

that has taken its surname from it, from the circumstance of this bird

having given a favourable omen by settling upon the ship of one of them

when he held a command. The Greeks call one kind[2922] “epileus;” the

only one, indeed, that is seen at all seasons of the year, the others

taking their departure in the winter.

The various kinds are distinguished by the avidity with which they

seize their prey; for while some will only pounce on a bird while on

the ground, others will only seize it while hovering round the trees,

others, again, while it is perched aloft, and others while it is flying

in mid air. Hence it is that pigeons, on seeing them, are aware of the

nature of the danger to which they are exposed, and either settle on

the ground or else fly upwards, instinctively protecting themselves by

taking due precautions against their natural propensities. The hawks

of the whole of Massæsylia, breed in Cerne,[2923] an island of Africa,

lying in the ocean; and none of the kinds that are accustomed to those

parts will breed anywhere else.

CHAP. 10.—IN WHAT PLACES HAWKS AND MEN PURSUE THE CHASE IN COMPANY WITH

EACH OTHER.

In the part of Thrace which lies above Amphipolis, men[2924] and hawks

go in pursuit of prey, in a sort of partnership as it were; for while

the men drive the birds from out of the woods and the reed-beds, the

hawks bring them down as they fly; and after they have taken the game,

the fowlers share it with them. It has been said, that when sent aloft,

they will pick[2925] out the birds that are wanted, and that when the

opportune moment for taking them has come, they invite the fowler

to seize the opportunity by their cries and their peculiar mode of

flying. The sea-wolves, too, in the Palus Mæotis, do something of a

very similar nature; but if they do not receive their fair share from

the fishermen, they will tear their nets as they lie extended.[2926]

Hawks will not[2927] eat the heart of a bird. The night-hawk is called

cybindis;[2928] it is rarely found, even in the woods, and in the

day-time its sight is not good; it wages war to the death with the

eagle, and they are often to be found clasped in each other’s talons.

CHAP. 11. (9.)—THE ONLY BIRD THAT IS KILLED BY THOSE OF ITS OWN KIND.—A

BIRD THAT LAYS ONLY ONE EGG.

The cuckoo seems to be but another form of the hawk,[2929] which at a

certain season of the year changes its shape; it being the fact that

during this period no other hawks are to be seen, except, perhaps,

for a few days only; the cuckoo, too, itself is only seen for a short

period in the summer, and does not make its appearance after. It is the

only one among the hawks that has not hooked talons; neither is it like

the rest of them in the head, or, indeed, in any other respect, except

the colour only, while in the beak it bears a stronger resemblance

to the pigeon. In addition to this, it is devoured by the hawk, if

they chance at any time to meet; this being the only one among the

whole race of birds that is preyed upon by those of its own kind. It

changes its voice also with its appearance, comes out in the spring,

and goes into retirement at the rising of the Dog-star. It always lays

its eggs in the nest of another bird, and that of the ring-dove[2930]

more especially,—mostly a single egg, a thing that is the case with no

other bird; sometimes however, but very rarely, it is known to lay two.

It is supposed, that the reason for its thus substituting its young

ones, is the fact that it is aware[2931] how greatly it is hated by all

the other birds; for even the very smallest of them will attack it.

Hence it is, that it thinks its own race will stand no chance of being

perpetuated unless it contrives to deceive them, and for this reason

builds no nest of its own: and besides this, it is a very timid animal.

In the meantime, the female bird, sitting on her nest, is rearing a

supposititious and spurious progeny; while the young cuckoo, which is

naturally craving and greedy, snatches away all the food from the other

young ones, and by so doing grows plump and sleek, and quite gains the

affections of his foster-mother; who takes a great pleasure in his

fine appearance, and is quite surprised that she has become the mother

of so handsome an offspring. In comparison with him, she discards her

own young as so many strangers, until at last, when the young cuckoo

is now able to take the wing, he finishes by devouring[2932] her. For

sweetness of the flesh, there is not a bird in existence to be compared

to the cuckoo at this season.

CHAP. 12. (10.)—THE KITE.

The kite, which belongs to the same genus, is distinguished from the

rest of the hawks by its larger size. It has been remarked of this

bird, extremely ravenous as it is, and always craving, that it has

never been known to seize any food either from among funereal oblations

or from the altar of Jupiter at Olympia; nor yet, in fact, does it ever

seize any of the consecrated viands from the hands of those who are

carrying them; except where some misfortune is presaged for the town

that is offering the sacrifice. These birds seem to have taught man the

art of steering, from the motion of the tail, Nature pointing out by

their movements in the air the method required for navigating the deep.

Kites also disappear during the winter months, but do not take their

departure before the swallow. It is said, also, that after the summer

solstice they are troubled with the gout.

CHAP. 13. (11.)—THE CLASSIFICATION OF BIRDS.

The first distinctive characteristic among birds is that which bears

reference more especially to their feet: they have either hooked

talons, or else toes, or else, again, they belong to the web-footed

class, geese for instance, and most of the aquatic birds. Those which

have hooked talons feed, for the most part, upon nothing but flesh.

CHAP. 14. (12.)—CROWS. BIRDS OF ILL OMEN. AT WHAT SEASONS THEY ARE NOT

INAUSPICIOUS.

Crows, again, have another kind of food. Nuts being too hard for their

beak to break, the crow flies to a great height, and then lets them

fall again and again upon the stones or tiles beneath, until at last

the shell is cracked, after which the bird is able to open them. This

is a bird with a very ill-omened garrulity, though it has been highly

praised by some.[2933] It is observed, that from the rising of the

constellation Arcturus until the arrival of the swallow, it is but

rarely to be seen about the sacred groves and temples of Minerva; in

some places, indeed, not at all, Athens for instance.[2934] In addition

to these facts, it is the only one that continues to feed its young for

some time after they have begun to fly. The crow is most inauspicious

at the time of incubation, or, in other words, just after the summer

solstice.

CHAP. 15.—THE RAVEN.

All the other birds of the same kind drive their young ones from their

nest, and compel them to fly; the raven, for instance, which not only

feeds on flesh, but even drives its young, when able to fly, to a still

greater distance. Hence it is that in small hamlets there are never

more than two[2935] pairs to be found; and in the neighbourhood of

Crannon, in Thessaly, never more than one, the parents always quitting

the spot to give place to their offspring. There have been some

differences observed between this and the bird last mentioned. Ravens

breed before the summer solstice, and continue in bad health for sixty

days—being afflicted with a continual thirst more particularly—before

the ripening of the fig in autumn; while, on the other hand, the crow

is attacked by disease after that period. The raven lays, at most, but

five eggs. It is a vulgar belief, that they couple, or else lay, by

means of the beak; and that, consequently, if a pregnant woman happens

to eat a raven’s egg, she will be delivered by the mouth. It is also

believed, that if the eggs are even so much as brought beneath the

roof, a difficult labour will be the consequence. Aristotle denies

it, and assures us in all good faith that there is no more truth in

this than in the same story about the ibis in Egypt; he says that it

is nothing else but that same sort of billing that is so often seen

in pigeons.[2936] Ravens are the only birds that seem to have any

comprehension of the meaning of their auspices; for when the guests

of Medus[2937] were assassinated, they all took their departure from

Peloponnesus and the region of Attica. They are of the very worst omen

when they swallow their voice, as if they were being choked.

CHAP. 16.—THE HORNED OWL.

The birds of the night also have crooked talons, such as the

owlet,[2938] the horned owl, and the screech-owl, for instance; the

sight of all of which is defective in the day-time. The horned owl

is especially funereal, and is greatly abhorred in all auspices of

a public nature: it inhabits deserted places, and not only desolate

spots, but those of a frightful and inaccessible nature: the monster of

the night, its voice is heard, not with any tuneful note, but emitting

a sort of shriek. Hence it is that it is looked upon as a direful

omen to see it in a city, or even so much as in the day-time. I know,

however, for a fact, that it is not portentous of evil when it settles

on the top of a private house. It cannot fly whither it wishes in a

straight line, but is always carried along by a sidelong movement. A

horned owl entered the very sanctuary of the Capitol, in the consulship

of Sextus Palpelius Hister and L. Pedanius; in consequence of which,

Rome was purified on the nones[2939] of March in that year.

CHAP. 17. (13.)—BIRDS, THE RACE OF WHICH IS EXTINCT, OR OF WHICH ALL

KNOWLEDGE HAS BEEN LOST.

An inauspicious bird also is that known as the “incendiary;”[2940]

on account of which, we find in the Annals, the City has had to be

repeatedly purified; as, for instance, in the consulship of L. Cassius

and C. Marius,[2941] in which year also it was purified, in consequence

of a horned owl being seen. What kind of bird this incendiary bird

was, we do not find stated, nor is it known by tradition. Some persons

explain the term this way; they say that the name “incendiary”

was applied to every bird that was seen carrying a burning coal

from the pyre, or altar; while others, again, call such a bird a

“spinturnix”;[2942] though I never yet found any person who said that

he knew what kind of bird this spinturnix was.

(14.) I find also that the people of our time are ignorant what bird it

was that was called by the ancients a “clivia.” Some persons say that

it was a clamatory, others, again, that it was a prohibitory, bird. We

also find a bird mentioned by Nigidius as the “subis,” which breaks the

eggs of the eagle.

(15.) In addition to the above, there are many other kinds that are

described in the Etruscan ritual, but which no one now living has ever

seen. It is surprising that these birds are no longer in existence,

since we find that even those kinds abound, among which the gluttony of

man commits such ravages.

CHAP. 18. (16.)—BIRDS WHICH ARE BORN WITH THE TAIL FIRST.

Among foreigners, a person called Hylas is thought to have written the

best treatise on the subject of augury. He informs us that the owlet,

the horned owl, the woodpecker, which makes holes in trees, the trygon,

and the crow, are produced from the egg with the tail[2943] first; for

the egg, being turned upside down through the weight of the head of the

chick, presents the wrong end to be warmed by the mother as she sits

upon it.

CHAP. 19. (17.)—THE OWLET.

The owlet shows considerable shrewdness in its engagements with other

birds; for when surrounded by too great a number, it throws itself on

its back, and so, resisting with its feet, and rolling up its body

into a mass, defends itself with the beak and talons; until the hawk,

attracted by a certain natural affinity, comes to its assistance, and

takes its share in the combat. Nigidius says, that the incubation of

the owlet lasts sixty days, during the winter, and that it has nine

different notes.

CHAP. 20. (18.)—THE WOOD-PECKER OF MARS.

There are some small birds also, which have hooked talons; the

wood-pecker, for example, surnamed “of Mars,” of considerable

importance in the auspices. To this kind belong the birds which make

holes in trees, and climb stealthily up them, like cats; mounting with

the head upwards, they tap against the bark, and learn by the sound

whether or not their food lies beneath; they are the only birds that

hatch their young in the hollows of trees. It is a common belief,

that if a shepherd drives a wedge into their holes, they apply a

certain kind of herb,[2944] immediately upon which it falls out.

Trebius informs us that if a nail or wedge is driven with ever so much

force into a tree in which these birds have made their nest, it will

instantly fly out, the tree making a loud cracking noise the moment

that the bird has lighted upon the nail or wedge.

These birds have held the first rank in auguries, in Latium, since

the time of the king[2945] who has given them their name. One of the

presages that was given by them, I cannot pass over in silence. A

woodpecker came and lighted upon the head of Ælius Tubero, the City

prætor, when sitting on his tribunal dispensing justice in the Forum,

and showed such tameness as to allow itself to be taken with the hand;

upon which the augurs declared that if it was let go, the state was

menaced with danger, but if killed, disaster would befall the prætor;

in an instant he tore the bird to pieces, and before long the omen was

fulfilled.[2946]

CHAP. 21. (19.)—BIRDS WHICH HAVE HOOKED TALONS.

Many birds of this kind feed also on acorns and fruit, but only those

which are not carnivorous, with the exception of the kite; though when

it feeds on anything but flesh, it is a bird of ill omen.

The birds which have hooked talons are never gregarious; each one seeks

its prey by itself. They nearly all of them soar to a great height,

with the exception of the birds of the night, and more especially those

of larger size. They all have large wings, and a small body; they walk

with difficulty, and rarely settle upon stones, being prevented from

doing so by the curved shape of their talons.

CHAP. 22. (20.)—THE PEACOCK.

We shall now speak of the second class of birds, which is divided into

two kinds; those which give omens[2947] by their note, and those which

afford presages by their flight. The variation of the note in the one,

and the relative size in the other, constitute the differences between

them. These last, therefore, shall be treated of first, and the peacock

shall have precedence of all the rest, as much for its singular beauty

as its superior instinct, and the vanity it displays.

When it hears itself praised, this bird spreads out its gorgeous

colours, and especially if the sun happens to be shining at the time,

because then they are seen in all their radiance, and to better

advantage. At the same time, spreading out its tail in the form of a

shell, it throws the reflection upon the other feathers, which shine

all the more brilliantly when a shadow is cast upon them; then at

another moment it will contract all the eyes[2948] depicted upon its

feathers in a single mass, manifesting great delight in having them

admired by the spectator. The peacock loses its tail every year at the

fall of the leaf, and a new one shoots forth in its place at the flower

season; between these periods the bird is abashed and moping, and seeks

retired spots. The peacock lives twenty-five years, and begins to show

its colours in the third. By some authors it is stated that this bird

is not only a vain creature, but of a spiteful disposition also, just

in the same way that they attribute bashfulness to the goose.[2949] The

characteristics, however, which they have thus ascribed to these birds,

appear to me to be utterly unfounded.

CHAP. 23.—WHO WAS THE FIRST TO KILL THE PEACOCK FOR FOOD.—WHO FIRST

TAUGHT THE ART OF CRAMMING THEM.

The orator Hortensius was the first Roman who had the peacock killed

for table; it was on the occasion of the banquet given by him on his

inauguration in the college of the priesthood. M. Aufidius Lurco[2950]

was the first who taught the art of fattening them, about the time of

the last war with the Pirates. From this source of profit he acquired

an income of sixty thousand sesterces.[2951]

CHAP. 24. (21.)—THE DUNGHILL COCK.

Next after the peacock, the animal that acts as our watchman by night,

and which Nature has produced for the purpose of arousing mortals

to their labours, and dispelling their slumbers, shows itself most

actuated by feelings of vanity. The cock knows how to distinguish the

stars, and marks the different periods of the day, every three hours,

by his note. These animals go to roost with the setting of the sun, and

at the fourth watch of the camp recall man to his cares and toils. They

do not allow the rising of the sun to creep upon us unawares, but by

their note proclaim the coming day, and they prelude their crowing by

clapping their sides with their wings. They exercise a rigorous sway

over the other birds of their kind, and, in every place where they are

kept, hold the supreme command. This, however, is only obtained after

repeated battles among themselves, as they are well aware that they

have weapons on their legs, produced for that very purpose, as it were,

and the contest often ends in the death of both the combatants at the

same moment. If, on the other hand, one of them obtains the mastery, he

instantly by his note proclaims himself the conqueror, and testifies by

his crowing that he has been victorious; while his conquered opponent

silently slinks away, and, though with a very bad grace, submits to

servitude. And with equal pride does the throng of the poultry yard

strut along, with head uplifted and crest erect. These, too, are the

only ones among the winged race that repeatedly look up to the heavens,

with the tail, which in its drooping shape resembles that of a sickle,

raised aloft: and so it is that these birds inspire terror even in the

lion,[2952] the most courageous of all animals.

Some of these birds, too, are reared for nothing but warfare and

perpetual combats, and have even shed a lustre thereby on their native

places, Rhodes and Tanagra. The next rank is considered to belong

to those of Melos[2953] and Chalcis. Hence, it is not without very

good reason that the consular purple of Rome pays these birds such

singular honours. It is from the feeding of these creatures that the

omens[2954] by fowls are derived; it is these that regulate[2955] day

by day the movements of our magistrates, and open or shut to them their

own houses, as the case may be; it is these that give an impulse to

the fasces of the Roman magistracy, or withhold them; it is these that

command battles or forbid them, and furnish auspices for victories to

be gained in every part of the world. It is these that hold supreme

rule over those who are themselves the rulers of the earth, and whose

entrails and fibres are as pleasing to the gods as the first spoils of

victory. Their note, when heard at an unusual hour or in the evening,

has also its peculiar presages; for, on one occasion, by crowing the

whole night through for several nights, they presaged to the Bœotians

that famous victory[2956] which they gained over the Lacedæmonians;

such, in fact, being the interpretation that was put upon it by way of

prognostic, as this bird, when conquered, is never known to crow.

CHAP. 25.—HOW COCKS ARE CASTRATED. A COCK THAT ONCE SPOKE.

When castrated, cocks cease to crow. This operation is performed two

different ways. Either the loins of the animal are seared with a

red-hot iron, or else the lower part of the legs; after which, the

wound is covered up with potter’s clay: this way they are fattened

much more easily. At Pergamus,[2957] there is every year a public show

of fights of game-cocks, just as in other places we have those of

gladiators.

We find it stated in the Roman Annals, that in the[2958] consulship of

M. Lepidus and Q. Catulus a dung-hill cock spoke, at the farm-house of

Galerius; the only occasion, in fact, that I know of.

CHAP. 26. (22.)—THE GOOSE.

The goose also keeps a vigilant guard; a fact which is well attested

by the defence of the Capitol, at a moment when, by the silence of

the dogs, the commonwealth had been betrayed:[2959] for which reason

it is that the Censors always, the first thing of all, attend to the

farming-out of the feeding of the sacred geese. What is still more,

too, there is a love-story about this animal. At Ægium one is said to

have conceived a passion for a beautiful boy, a native of Olenos,[2960]

and another for Glauce, a damsel who was lute-player to King Ptolemy;

for whom at the same time a ram is said also to have conceived a

passion. One might almost be tempted to think that these creatures have

an appreciation of wisdom:[2961] for it is said, that one of them was

the constant companion of the philosopher, Lacydes, and would never

leave him, either in public or when at the bath, by night or by day.

CHAP. 27.—WHO FIRST TAUGHT US TO USE THE LIVER OF THE GOOSE FOR FOOD.

Our people, however, are more wise; for they only esteem the goose for

the goodness of its liver.[2962] When they are crammed, this grows to

a very large size, and on being taken from the animal, is made still

larger by being soaked in honeyed milk.[2963] And, indeed, it is

not without good reason that it is matter of debate who it was that

first discovered so great a delicacy; whether, in fact, it was Scipio

Metellus, a man of consular dignity, or M. Seius, a contemporary of

his, and a Roman of equestrian rank. However, a thing about which there

is no dispute, it was Messalinus Cotta, the son of the orator Messala,

who first discovered the art of roasting the webbed feet of the

goose, and of cooking them in a ragout with cocks’ combs: for I shall

faithfully award each culinary palm to such as I shall find deserving

of it. It is a wonderful fact, in relation to this bird, that it comes

on foot all the way from the country of the Morini[2964] to Rome; those

that are tired are placed in the front rank, while the rest, taught by

a natural instinct to move in a compact body, drive them on.

A second income, too, is also to be derived from the feathers of the

white goose. In some places, this animal is plucked twice a year, upon

which the feathers quickly grow again. Those are the softest which lie

nearest to the body, and those that come from Germany are the most

esteemed: the geese there are white, but of small size, and are called

gantæ.[2965] The price paid for their feathers is five denarii per

pound. It is from this fruitful source that we have repeated charges

brought against the commanders of our auxiliaries, who are in the habit

of detaching whole cohorts from the posts where they ought to be on

guard, in pursuit of these birds: indeed, we have come to such a pitch

of effeminacy, that now-a-days, not even the men can think of lying

down without the aid of the goose’s feathers, by way of pillow.

CHAP. 28.—OF THE COMMAGENIAN MEDICAMENT.

The part of Syria which is called Commagene, has discovered another

invention also; the fat of the goose[2966] is enclosed with some

cinnamon in a brazen vessel, and then covered with a thick layer of

snow. Under the influence of the excessive cold, it becomes macerated,

and fit for use as a medicament, remarkable for its properties: from

the country which produces it, it is known to us as “Commagenum.”[2967]

CHAP. 29.—THE CHENALOPEX, THE CHENEROS, THE TETRAO, AND THE OTIS.

To the goose genus belong also the chenalopex,[2968] and the

cheneros,[2969] a little smaller than the common goose, and which forms

the most exquisite of all the dainties that Britannia provides for the

table. The tetrao[2970] is remarkable for the lustre of its plumage,

and its extreme darkness, while the eyelids are of a scarlet colour.

Another species[2971] of this last bird exceeds the vulture in size,

and is of a similar colour to it; and, indeed, there is no bird, with

the exception of the ostrich, the body of which is of a greater weight;

for to such a size does it grow, that it becomes incapable of moving,

and allows itself to be taken on the ground. The Alps and the regions

of the North produce these birds; but when kept in aviaries, they lose

their fine flavour, and by retaining their breath, will die of mere

vexation. Next to these in size are the birds which in Spain they call

the “tarda,”[2972] and in Greece the “otis;” they are looked upon

however as very inferior food; the marrow,[2973] when disengaged from

the bones, immediately emits a most noisome smell.

CHAP. 30. (23.)—CRANES.

By the departure of the cranes, which, as we have already stated,[2974]

were in the habit of waging war with them, the nation of the Pygmies

now enjoys a respite. The tracts over which they travel must be

immense, if we only consider that they come all the way from the

Eastern Sea.[2975] These birds agree by common consent at what moment

they shall set out, fly aloft to look out afar, select a leader for

them to follow, and have sentinels duly posted in the rear, which

relieve each other by turns, utter loud cries, and with their voice

keep the whole flight in proper array. During the night, also, they

place sentinels on guard, each of which holds a little stone in its

claw: if the bird should happen to fall asleep, the claw becomes

relaxed, and the stone falls to the ground, and so convicts it of

neglect. The rest sleep in the meanwhile, with the head beneath the

wing, standing first on one leg and then on the other: the leader looks

out, with neck erect, and gives warning when required. These birds,

when tamed, are very frolicsome, and even when alone will describe a

sort of circle, as they move along, with their clumsy gait.

It is a well-known fact, that these birds, when about to fly over the

Euxine, first of all repair to the narrowest part of it, that lies

between the two[2976] Promontories of Criumetopon and Carambis, and

then ballast themselves with coarse sand. When they have arrived midway

in the passage, they throw away the stones from out of their claws,

and, as soon as they reach the mainland, discharge the sand by the

throat.

Cornelius Nepos, who died in the reign of the late Emperor Augustus,

after stating that thrushes had been fattened for the first time

shortly before that period, has added that storks were more esteemed as

food than cranes: whereas at the present day, this last bird is one of

those that are held in the very highest esteem, while no one will so

much as touch the other.

CHAP. 31.—STORKS.

Up to the present time it has not been ascertained from what place the

storks come, or whither they go when they leave us. There can be no

doubt but that, like the cranes, they come from a very great distance,

the cranes being our winter, the storks our summer, guests. When about

to take their departure, the storks assemble at a stated place, and

are particularly careful that all shall attend, so that not one of

their kind may be left behind, with the exception of such as may be in

captivity or tamed; and then on a certain day they set out, as though

by some law they were directed to do so. No one has ever yet seen a

flight of cranes taking their departure, although they have been often

observed preparing to depart; and in the same way, too, we never see

them arrive, but only when they have arrived; both their departure as

well as their arrival take place in the night. Although, too, we see

them flying about in all directions, it is still supposed that they

never arrive at any other time but in the night. Pythonoscome[2977] is

the name given to some vast plains of Asia, where, as they assemble

together, they keep up a gabbling noise, and tear to pieces the one

that happens to arrive the last; after which they take their departure.

It has been remarked that after the ides of August,[2978] they are

never by any accident to be seen there.

There are some writers who assure us that the stork has no tongue. So

highly are they esteemed for their utility in destroying serpents, that

in Thessaly, it was a capital crime for any one to kill a stork, and by

the laws the same penalty was inflicted for it as for homicide.

CHAP. 32.—SWANS.

Geese, and swans also, travel in a similar manner, but then they are

seen to take their flight. The flocks, forming a point, move along

with great impetus, much, indeed, after the manner of our Liburnian

beaked galleys; and it is by doing so that they are enabled to cleave

the air more easily than if they presented to it a broad front. The

flight gradually enlarges in the rear, much in the form of a wedge,

presenting a vast surface to the breeze, as it impels them onward;

those that follow place their necks on those that go before, while the

leading birds, as they become weary, fall to the rear. Storks return

to their former nests, and the young, in their turn, support their

parents when old. It is stated that at the moment of the swan’s death,

it gives utterance to a mournful song;[2979] but this is an error, in

my opinion, at least I have tested the truth of the story on several

occasions. These birds will eat the flesh of one another.

CHAP. 33.—FOREIGN BIRDS WHICH VISIT US; THE QUAIL, THE GLOTTIS, THE

CYCHRAMUS, AND THE OTUS.

Having spoken of the emigration of these birds over sea and land, I

cannot allow myself to defer mentioning some other birds of smaller

size, which have the same natural instinct: although in the case of

those which I have already mentioned, their very size and strength

would almost seem to invite them to such habits. The quail, which

always arrives among us even before the crane, is a small bird, and

when it has once arrived, more generally keeps to the ground than

flies aloft. These birds fly also in a similar manner to those I have

already spoken of, and not without considerable danger to mariners,

when they come near the surface of the earth: for it often happens

that they settle on the sails of a ship, and that too always in the

night: the consequence of which is, that the vessel often sinks.

These birds pursue their course along a tract of country with certain

resting-places. When the south wind is blowing, they will not fly, as

that wind is always humid, and apt to weigh them down. Still, however,

it is an object with them to get a breeze to assist them in their

flight, the body being so light, and their strength so very limited:

hence it is that we hear them make that murmuring noise as they fly, it

being extorted from them by fatigue. It is for this reason also, that

they take to flight more especially when the north wind is blowing,

having the ortygometra[2980] for their leader. The first of them that

approaches the earth is generally snapped up by the hawk. When they are

about to return from these parts, they always invite other birds to

join their company, and the glottis, otus, and cychramus, yielding to

their persuasions, take their departure along with them.

The glottis[2981] protrudes a tongue of remarkable length, from which

circumstance it derives its name: at first it is quite pleased with the

journey, and sets out with the greatest ardour; very soon, however,

when it begins to feel the fatigues of the flight, it is overtaken by

regret, while at the same time it is equally as loth to return alone,

as to accompany the others. Its travels, however, never last more than

a single day, for at the very first resting-place they come to, it

deserts: here too it finds other birds, which have been left behind

in a similar manner in the preceding year. The same takes place with

other birds day after day. The cychramus,[2982] however, is much more

persevering, and is quite in a hurry to arrive at the land which is its

destination: hence it is that it arouses the quails in the night, and

reminds them that they ought to be on the road.

The otus is a smaller bird than the horned owl, though larger than the

owlet; it has feathers projecting like ears, whence its name. Some

persons call it in the Latin language the “asio;”[2983] in general it

is a bird fond of mimicking, a great parasite, and, in some measure,

a dancer as well. Like the owlet, it is taken without any difficulty;

for while one person occupies its attention, another goes behind, and

catches it.

If the wind, by its contrary blasts, should begin to prevent the onward

progress of the flight, the birds immediately take up small stones,

or else fill their throats with sand, and so contrive to ballast

themselves as they fly. The seeds of a certain venomous plant[2984] are

most highly esteemed by the quails as food; for which reason it is

that they have been banished from our tables; in addition to which, a

great repugnance is manifested to eating their flesh, on account of the

epilepsy,[2985] to which alone of all animals, with the exception of

man, the quail is subject.

CHAP. 34. (24.)—SWALLOWS.

The swallow, the only bird that is carnivorous among those which have

not hooked talons, takes its departure also during the winter months;

but it only goes to neighbouring countries, seeking sunny retreats

there on the mountain sides; sometimes they have been found in such

spots bare and quite unfledged. This bird, it is said, will not enter

a house in Thebes, because that city has been captured so frequently;

nor will it approach the country of the Bizyæ, on account of the crimes

committed there by Tereus.[2986] Cæcina[2987] of Volaterræ, a member of

the equestrian order, and the owner of several chariots, used to have

swallows caught, and then carried them with him to Rome. Upon gaining

a victory, he would send the news by them to his friends; for after

staining them the colour[2988] of the party that had gained the day,

he would let them go, immediately upon which they would make their way

to the nests they had previously occupied. Fabius Pictor also relates,

in his Annals, that when a Roman garrison was being besieged by the

Ligurians, a swallow which had been taken from its young ones was

brought to him, in order that he might give them notice, by the number

of knots on a string tied to its leg, on what day succour would arrive,

and a sortie might be made with advantage.

CHAP. 35.—BIRDS WHICH TAKE THEIR DEPARTURE FROM US, AND WHITHER THEY

GO; THE THRUSH, THE BLACKBIRD, AND THE STARLING—BIRDS WHICH LOSE THEIR

FEATHERS DURING THEIR RETIREMENT—THE TURTLE-DOVE AND THE RING-DOVE—THE

FLIGHT OF STARLINGS AND SWALLOWS.

In a similar manner also, the blackbird, the thrush, and the starling

take their departure to neighbouring countries; but they do not lose

their feathers, nor yet conceal themselves, as they are often to be

seen in places where they seek their food during the winter: hence

it is that in winter, more especially, the thrush is so often to be

seen in Germany. It is, however, a well-ascertained fact, that the

turtle-dove conceals itself, and loses its feathers. The ring-dove,

also, takes its departure: and with these too, it is a matter of doubt

whither they go. It is a peculiarity of the starling to fly in troops,

as it were, and then to wheel round in a globular mass like a ball, the

central troop acting as a pivot for the rest. Swallows are the only

birds that have a sinuous flight of remarkable velocity; for which

reason it is that they are not exposed to the attacks of other birds

of prey: these too, in fine, are the only birds that take their food

solely on the wing.

CHAP. 36. (25.)—BIRDS WHICH REMAIN WITH US THROUGHOUT THE YEAR; BIRDS

WHICH REMAIN WITH US ONLY SIX OR THREE MONTHS; WITWALLS AND HOOPOES.

The time during which birds show themselves differs very considerably.

Some remain with us all the year round, the pigeon, for instance;

some for six months, such as the swallow; and some, again, for three

months only, as the thrush, the turtle-dove, and those which take their

departure the moment they have reared their young, the witwall[2989]

and the hoopoe, for instance.

CHAP. 37. (26.)—THE MEMNONIDES.

There are some authors who say that every year certain birds[2990]

fly from Æthiopia to Ilium, and have a combat at the tomb of Memnon

there; from which circumstance they have received from them the name

of Memnonides, or birds of Memnon. Cremutius states it also as a fact,

ascertained by himself, that they do the same every fifth year in

Æthiopia, around the palace of Memnon.

CHAP. 38.—THE MELEAGRIDES.

In a similar manner also, the birds called meleagrides[2991] fight in

Bœotia. They are a species of African poultry, having a hump on the

back, which is covered with a mottled plumage. These are the latest

among the foreign birds that have been received at our tables, on

account of their disagreeable smell. The tomb, however, of Meleager has

rendered them famous.

CHAP. 39. (27.)—THE SELEUCIDES.

Those birds are called seleucides, which are sent by Jupiter at the

prayers offered up to him by the inhabitants of Mount Casius,[2992]

when the locusts are ravaging their crops of corn. Whence they[2993]

come, or whither they go, has never yet been ascertained, as, in fact,

they are never to be seen but when the people stand in need of their

aid.

CHAP. 40. (28.)—THE IBIS.

The Egyptians also invoke their ibis against the incursions of

serpents; and the people of Elis, their god Myiagros,[2994] when the

vast multitudes of flies are bringing pestilence among them; the flies

die immediately the propitiatory sacrifice has been made to this god.

CHAP. 41. (29.)—PLACES IN WHICH CERTAIN BIRDS ARE NEVER FOUND.

With reference to the departure of birds, the owlet, too, is said to

lie concealed for a few days. No birds of this last kind are to be

found in the island of Crete, and if any are imported thither, they

immediately die. Indeed, this is a remarkable distinction made by

Nature; for she denies to certain places, as it were, certain kinds of

fruits and shrubs, and of animals as well; it is singular that when

introduced into these localities they will be no longer productive, but

die immediately they are thus transplanted. What can it be that is thus

fatal to the increase of one particular species, or whence this envy

manifested against them by Nature? What, too, are the limits that have

been marked out for the birds on the face of the earth?

Rhodes[2995] possesses no eagles. In Italy beyond the Padus there is,

near the Alps, a lake known by the name of Larius beautifully situate

amid a country covered with shrubs; and yet this lake is never visited

by storks, nor, indeed, are they ever known to come within eight miles

of it; while, on the other hand, in the neighbouring territory of the

Insubres[2996] there are immense flocks of magpies and jackdaws, the

only[2997] bird that is guilty of stealing gold and silver, a very

singular propensity.

It is said that in the territory of Tarentum, the woodpecker of Mars

is never found. It is only lately too, and that but very rarely, that

various kinds of pies have begun to be seen in the districts that lie

between the Apennines and the City; birds which are known by the name

of “variæ,”[2998] and are remarkable for the length of the tail. It

is a peculiarity of this bird, that it becomes bald every year at the

time of sowing rape. The partridge does not fly beyond the frontiers

of Bœotia, into Attica; nor does any bird, in the island[2999] in the

Euxine in which Achilles was buried, enter the temple there consecrated

to him. In the territory of Fidenæ, in the vicinity of the City,

the storks have no young nor do they build nests: but vast numbers

of ringdoves arrive from beyond sea every year in the district of

Volaterræ. At Rome, neither flies nor dogs ever enter the temple of

Hercules in the Cattle Market. There are numerous other instances of a

similar nature in reference to all kinds of animals, which from time

to time I feel myself prompted by prudent considerations to omit, lest

I should only weary the reader. Theophrastus, for example, relates

that even pigeons, as well as peacocks and ravens, have been introduced

from other parts into Asia,[3000] as also croaking frogs[3001] into

Cyrenaica.

CHAP. 42.—THE VARIOUS KINDS OF BIRDS WHICH AFFORD OMENS BY THEIR

NOTE—BIRDS WHICH CHANGE THEIR COLOUR AND THEIR VOICE.

There is another remarkable fact too, relative to the birds which give

omens by their note; they generally change their colour and voice at

a certain season of the year, and suddenly become quite altered in

appearance; a thing that, among the larger birds, happens with the

crane only, which grows black in its old age. From black, the blackbird

changes to a reddish colour, sings in summer, chatters in winter, and

about the summer solstice loses its voice; when a year old, the beak

also assumes the appearance of ivory; this, however, is the case only

with the male. In the summer, the thrush is mottled about the neck, but

in the winter it becomes of one uniform colour all over.

CHAP. 43.—THE NIGHTINGALE.

The song of the nightingale is to be heard, without intermission,

for fifteen days and nights, continuously,[3002] when the foliage

is thickening, as it bursts from the bud; a bird which deserves our

admiration in no slight degree. First of all, what a powerful voice in

so small a body! its note, how long, and how well sustained! And then,

too, it is the only bird the notes of which are modulated in accordance

with the strict rules of musical science.[3003] At one moment, as it

sustains its breath, it will prolong its note, and then at another,

will vary it with different inflexions; then, again, it will break into

distinct chirrups, or pour forth an endless series of roulades. Then

it will warble to itself, while taking breath, or else disguise its

voice in an instant; while sometimes, again, it will twitter to itself,

now with a full note, now with a grave, now again sharp, now with a

broken note, and now with a prolonged one. Sometimes, again, when it

thinks fit, it will break out into quavers, and will run through, in

succession, alto, tenor, and bass: in a word, in so tiny a throat is to

be found all the melody that the ingenuity of man has ever discovered

through the medium of the invention of the most exquisite flute: so

much so, that there can be no doubt it was an infallible presage of his

future sweetness as a poet, when one of these creatures perched and

sang on the infant lips of the poet Stesichorus.

That there may remain no doubt that there is a certain degree of art

in its performances, we may here remark that every bird has a number

of notes peculiar to itself; for they do not, all of them, have the

same, but each, certain melodies of its own. They vie with one another,

and the spirit with which they contend is evident to all. The one that

is vanquished, often dies in the contest, and will rather yield its

life than its song. The younger birds are listening in the meantime,

and receive the lesson in song from which they are to profit. The

learner hearkens with the greatest attention, and repeats what it

has heard, and then they are silent by turns; this is understood to

be the correction of an error on the part of the scholar, and a sort

of reproof, as it were, on the part of the teacher. Hence it is that

nightingales fetch as high a price as slaves, and, indeed, sometimes

more than used formerly to be paid for a man in a suit of armour.

I know that on one occasion six thousand sesterces[3004] were paid for

a nightingale, a white one it is true, a thing that is hardly ever to

be seen, to be made a present of to Agrippina, the wife of the Emperor

Claudius. A nightingale has been often seen that will sing at command,

and take alternate parts with the music that accompanies it; men, too,

have been found who could imitate its note with such exactness, that

it would be impossible to tell the difference, by merely putting water

in a reed held crosswise, and then blowing into it, a languette being

first inserted, for the purpose of breaking the sound and rendering it

more shrill.[3005] But these modulations, so clever and so artistic,

begin gradually to cease at the end of the fifteen days; not that you

can say, however, that the bird is either fatigued or tired of singing;

but, as the heat increases, its voice becomes altogether changed, and

possesses no longer either modulation or variety of note. Its colour,

too, becomes changed, and at last, throughout the winter, it totally

disappears. The tongue of the nightingale is not pointed at the tip, as

in other birds. It lays at the beginning of the spring, six eggs at the

most.

CHAP. 44.—THE MELANCORYPHUS, THE ERITHACUS, AND THE PHŒNICURUS.

The change is different that takes place in the ficedula,[3006] for

this bird changes its shape as well as its colour. “Ficedula” is the

name by which it is called in autumn, but not after that period; for

then it is called “melancoryphus.”[3007] In the same manner, too, the

erithacus[3008] of the winter is the “phœnicurus” of the summer. The

hoopoe also, according to the poet Æschylus, changes its form; it is a

bird that feeds upon filth[3009] of all kinds, and is remarkable for

its twisted top-knot, which it can contract or elevate at pleasure

along the top of the head.

CHAP. 45.—THE ŒNANTHE, THE CHLORION, THE BLACKBIRD, AND THE IBIS.

The œnanthe,[3010] too, is a bird that has stated days for its

retreat. At the rising of Sirius it conceals itself, and at the

setting of that star comes forth from its retreat: and this it does, a

most singular thing, exactly upon both those days. The chlorion,[3011]

also, the body of which is yellow all over, is not seen in the winter,

but comes out about the summer solstice.

(30.) The blackbird is found in the vicinity of Cyllene, in Arcadia,

with white[3012] plumage; a thing that is the case nowhere else. The

ibis, in the neighbourhood of Pelusium[3013] only is black, while in

all other places it is white.

CHAP. 46. (31.)—THE TIMES OF INCUBATION OF BIRDS.

The birds that have a note, with the exception of those previously

mentioned,[3014] do not by any chance produce their young before the

vernal or after the autumnal equinox. As to the broods produced before

the summer solstice, it is very doubtful if they will survive, but

those hatched after it thrive well.

CHAP. 47. (32.)—THE HALCYONES: THE HALCYON DAYS THAT ARE FAVOURABLE TO

NAVIGATION.

It is for this that the halcyon[3015] is more especially remarkable;

the seas, and all those who sail upon their surface, well know the

days of its incubation. This bird is a little larger than a sparrow,

and the greater part of its body is of an azure blue colour, with only

an intermixture of white and purple in some of the larger feathers,

while the neck[3016] is long and slender. There is one kind that is

remarkable for its larger size and its note; the smaller ones are

heard singing in the reed-beds. It is a thing of very rare occurrence

to see a halcyon, and then it is only about the time of the setting

of the Vergiliæ, and the summer and winter solstices; when one is

sometimes to be seen to hover about a ship, and then immediately

disappear. They hatch their young at the time of the winter solstice,

from which circumstance those days are known as the “halcyon days:”

during this period the sea is calm and navigable, the Sicilian sea

in particular. They make their nest during the seven days before

the winter solstice, and sit the same number of days after. Their

nests[3017] are truly wonderful; they are of the shape of a ball

slightly elongated, have a very narrow mouth, and bear a strong

resemblance to a large sponge. It is impossible to cut them asunder

with iron, and they are only to be broken with a strong blow, upon

which they separate, just like foam of the sea when dried up. It has

never yet been discovered of what material they are made; some persons

think that they are formed of sharp fish-bones, as it is on fish that

these birds live. They enter rivers also; their eggs are five in number.

CHAP. 48.—OTHER KINDS OF AQUATIC BIRDS.

The sea-mew also builds its nest in rocks, and the diver[3018] in trees

as well. These birds produce three at the very most; the sea-mew in

summer, the diver at the beginning of spring.

CHAP. 49. (33.)—THE INSTINCTIVE CLEVERNESS DISPLAYED BY BIRDS IN THE

CONSTRUCTION OF THEIR NESTS. THE WONDERFUL WORKS OF THE SWALLOW. THE

BANK-SWALLOW.

The form of the nest built by the halcyon reminds me also of the

instinctive cleverness displayed by other birds; and, indeed, in no

respect is the ingenuity of birds more deserving of our admiration. The

swallow builds its nest of mud, and strengthens it with straws. If mud

happens to fail, it soaks itself with a quantity of water, which it

then shakes from off its feathers into the dust. It lines the inside

of the nest with soft feathers and wool, to keep the eggs warm, and

in order that the nest may not be hard and rough to its young when

hatched. It divides the food among its offspring with the most rigid

justice, giving it first to one and then to another. With a remarkable

notion of cleanliness, it throws out of the nest the ordure of the

young ones, and when they have grown a little older, teaches them how

to turn round, and let it fall outside of the nest.

There is another[3019] kind of swallow, also, that frequents the

fields and the country; its nest is of a different shape, though of

the same materials, but it rarely builds it against houses. The nest

has its mouth turned straight upwards, and the entrance to it is long

and narrow, while the body is very capacious. It is quite wonderful

what skill is displayed in the formation of it, for the purpose of

concealing the young ones, and of presenting a soft surface for them to

lie upon. At the Heracleotic Mouth of the Nile in Egypt, the swallows

present an insuperable obstacle to the inroads of that river, in the

embankment which is formed by their nests in one continuous line,

nearly a stadium in length; a thing that could not possibly have been

effected by the agency of man. In Egypt, too, near the city of Coptos,

there is an island sacred to Isis. In the early days of spring, the

swallows strengthen the angular corner of this island with chaff and

straw, thus fortifying it in order that the river may not sweep it

away. This work they persevere in for three days and nights together,

with such unremitting labour, that it is a well-known fact that many

of them die with their exertions. This, too, is a toil which recurs

regularly for them every year.

There is, again, a third kind[3020] of swallow, which makes holes in

the banks of rivers, to serve for its nest. The young of these birds,

reduced to ashes, are a good specific against mortal maladies of the

throat, and tend to cure many other diseases of the human body. These

birds do not build nests, and they take care to migrate a good many

days before, if it so happens that the rise of the river is about to

reach their holes.

CHAP. 50.—THE ACANTHYLLIS AND OTHER BIRDS.

Belonging to the genus of birds known as the “vitiparræ,” there is

one[3021] whose nest is formed of dried moss,[3022] and is in shape so

exactly like a ball, that it is impossible to discover the mouth of it.

The bird, also, that is known as the acanthyllis,[3023] makes its nest

of a similar shape, and interweaves it with pieces of flax. The nest of

one of the woodpeckers, very much like a cup in shape, is suspended by

a twig from the end of the branch of a tree, so that no quadruped may

be able to reach it. It is strongly asserted, that the witwall[3024]

sleeps suspended by its feet, because it fancies that by doing so it

is in greater safety. A thing, indeed, that is well-known of them all,

is the fact that, in a spirit of foresight, they select the projecting

branches of trees that are sufficiently strong, for the purpose of

supporting their nests, and then arch them over to protect them from

the rain, or else shield them by means of the thickness of the foliage.

In Arabia there is a bird known as the “cinnamolgus.”[3025] It builds

its nest with sprigs of cinnamon; and the natives knock them down with

arrows loaded with lead, in order to sell them. In Scythia there is a

bird, the size of the otis, which produces two young ones always, in

a hare’s skin suspended[3026] from the top branches of a tree. Pies,

when they have observed a person steadily gazing at their nest, will

immediately remove their eggs to another place. This is said to be

accomplished in a truly wonderful manner, by such birds as have not

toes adapted for holding and removing their eggs. They lay a twig upon

two eggs, and then solder them to it by means of a glutinous matter

secreted from their body; after which, they pass their neck between the

eggs, and so forming an equipoise, convey them to another place.

CHAP. 51.—THE MEROPS—PARTRIDGES.

No less, too, is the shrewdness displayed by those birds which make

their nests upon the ground, because, from the extreme weight of their

body, they are unable to fly aloft. There is a bird, known as the

“merops,”[3027] which feeds its parents in their retreat: the colour of

the plumage on the inside is pale, and azure without, while it is of a

somewhat reddish hue at the extremity of the wings: this bird builds

its nest in a hole which it digs to the depth of six feet.

Partridges[3028] fortify their retreat so well with thorns and shrubs,

that it is effectually protected against beasts of prey. They make a

soft bed for their eggs by burying them in the dust, but do not hatch

them where they are laid: that no suspicion may arise from the fact

of their being seen repeatedly about the same spot, they carry them

away to some other place. The females also conceal themselves from

their mates, in order that they may not be delayed in the process

of incubation, as the males, in consequence of the warmth of their

passions, are apt to break the eggs. The males, thus deprived of the

females, fall to fighting among themselves; and it is said that the one

that is conquered, is treated as a female by the other. Trogus Pompeius

tells us that quails and dunghill cocks sometimes do the same; and

adds, that wild partridges, when newly caught, or when beaten by the

others, are trodden promiscuously by the tame ones. Through the very

pugnacity thus inspired by the strength of their passions, these birds

are often taken, as the leader of the whole covey frequently advances

to fight with the decoy-bird of the fowler; as soon as he is taken,

another and then another will advance, all of which are caught in their

turn. The females, again, are caught about the pairing season; for then

they will come forward to quarrel with the female decoy-bird of the

fowler, and so drive her away. Indeed, in no other animal is there any

such susceptibility in the sexual feelings; if the female only stands

opposite to the male, while the wind is blowing from that direction,

she[3029] will become impregnated; and during this time she is in a

state of the greatest excitement, the beak being wide open and the

tongue thrust out. The female will conceive also from the action of

the air, as the male flies above her, and very often from only hearing

his voice: indeed, to such a degree does passion get the better of her

affection for her offspring, that although at the moment she is sitting

furtively and in concealment, she will, if she perceives the female

decoy-bird of the fowler approaching her mate, call him back, and

summon him away from the other, and voluntarily submit to his advances.

Indeed, these birds are often carried away by such frantic madness,

that they will settle, being quite blinded by fear,[3030] upon the

very head of the fowler. If he happens to move in the direction of the

nest, the female bird that is sitting will run and throw herself before

his feet, pretending to be over-heavy, or else weak in the loins, and

then, suddenly running or flying for a short distance before him, will

fall down as though she had a wing broken, or else her feet; just as

he is about to catch her, she will then take another fly, and so keep

baffling him in his hopes, until she has led him to a considerable

distance from her nest. As soon as she is rid of her fears, and free

from all maternal disquietude, she will throw herself on her back in

some furrow, and seizing a clod of earth with her claws, cover herself

all over. It is supposed that the life of the partridge extends to

sixteen years.

CHAP. 52. (34.)—PIGEONS.

Next to the partridge, it is in the pigeon that similar tendencies

are to be seen in the same respect: but then, chastity is especially

observed by it, and promiscuous intercourse is a thing quite unknown.

Although inhabiting a domicile in common with others, they will none

of them violate the laws of conjugal fidelity: not one will desert

its nest, unless it is either widower or widow. Although, too, the

males are very imperious, and sometimes even extremely exacting, the

females put up with it: for in fact, the males sometimes suspect them

of infidelity, though by nature they are incapable of it. On such

occasions the throat of the male seems quite choked with indignation,

and he inflicts severe blows with the beak: and then afterwards, to

make some atonement, he falls to billing, and by way of pressing his

amorous solicitations, sidles round and round the female with his feet.

They both of them manifest an equal degree of affection for their

offspring; indeed, it is not unfrequently that this is a ground for

correction, in consequence of the female being too slow in going to her

young. When the female is sitting, the male renders her every attention

that can in any way tend to her solace and comfort. The first thing

that they do is to eject from the throat some saltish earth, which they

have digested, into the mouths of the young ones, in order to prepare

them in due time to receive their nutriment. It is a peculiarity of

the pigeon and of the turtle-dove, not to throw back the neck when

drinking, but to take in the water at a long draught, just as beasts of

burden do.

(35.) We read in some authors that the ring-dove lives so long as

thirty years, and sometimes as much as forty, without any other

inconvenience than the extreme length of the claws, which with them, in

fact, is the chief mark of old age; they can be cut, however, without

any danger. The voice of all these birds is similar, being composed

of three notes, and then a mournful noise at the end. In winter they

are silent, and they only recover their voice in the spring. Nigidius

expresses it as his opinion that the ring-dove will abandon the place,

if she hears her name mentioned under the roof where she is sitting on

her eggs: they hatch their young just after[3031] the summer solstice.

Pigeons and turtle-doves live eight years.

(36.) The sparrow, on the other hand, which has an equal degree of

salaciousness, is short-lived in the extreme. It is said that the male

does not live beyond a year; and as a ground for this belief, it is

stated that at the beginning of spring, the black marks are never to be

seen upon the beak which began to appear in the summer. The females,

however, are said to live somewhat longer.

Pigeons have even a certain appreciation of glory. There is reason for

believing that they are well aware of the colours of their plumage,

and the various shades which it presents, and even in their very

mode of flying they court our applause, as they cleave the air in

every direction. It is, indeed, through this spirit of ostentation

that they are handed over, fast bound as it were, to the hawk; for

from the noise that they make, which, in fact, is only produced by

the flapping of their wings, their long feathers become twisted and

disordered: otherwise, when they can fly without any impediment, they

are far swifter in their movements than the hawk. The robber, lurking

amid the dense foliage, keeps on the look-out for them, and seizes

them at the very moment that they are indulging their vainglorious

self-complaisance.

(37.) It is for this reason that it is necessary to keep along with

the pigeons the bird that is known as the “tinnunculus;”[3032] as it

protects them, and by its natural superiority scares away the hawk: so

much so, indeed, that the hawk will vanish at the very sight of it,

and the instant it hears its voice. Hence it is that the pigeons have

an especial regard for this bird; and, it is said, if one of these

birds is buried at each of the four corners of the pigeon-house in

pots that have been newly glazed, the pigeons will not change their

abode—a result which has been obtained by some by cutting a joint of

their wings with an instrument of gold; for if any other were used,

the wounds would be not unattended with danger.—The pigeon in general

may be looked upon as a bird fond of change; they have the art, too,

among themselves of gaining one another over, and so seducing their

companions: hence it is that we frequently find them return attended by

others which they have enticed away.

CHAP. 53.—WONDERFUL THINGS DONE BY THEM; PRICES AT WHICH THEY HAVE BEEN

SOLD.

In addition to this, pigeons have acted as messengers in affairs of

importance. During the siege of Mutina, Decimus Brutus, who was in the

town, sent despatches to the camp of the consuls[3033] fastened to

pigeons’ feet. Of what use to Antony then were his intrenchments, and

all the vigilance of the besieging army? his nets, too, which he had

spread in the river, while the messenger of the besieged was cleaving

the air?

Many persons have quite a mania for pigeons—building towns for them on

the top of their roofs, and taking a pleasure in relating the pedigree

and noble origin of each. Of this there is an ancient instance that is

very remarkable; L. Axius, a Roman of the equestrian order, shortly

before the Civil War of Pompeius, sold a single pair for four hundred

denarii, as we learn from the writings of M. Varro.[3034] Countries

even have gained renown for their pigeons; it is thought that those of

Campania attain the largest size.

CHAP. 54. (38.)—DIFFERENT MODES OF FLIGHT AND PROGRESSION IN BIRDS.

The flight of the pigeon also leads me to consider that of other birds

as well. All other animals have one determinate mode of progression,

which in every kind is always the same; it is birds alone that have

two modes of moving—the one on the ground, the other in the air.

Some of them walk, such as the crow, for instance; some hop, as the

sparrow and the blackbird; some, again, run, as the partridge and the

woodhen; while others throw one foot before the other, the stork and

the crane, for instance. Then again, in their flight, some birds expand

their wings, and, poising themselves in the air, only move them from

time to time; others move them more frequently, but then only at the

extremities; while others expand them so as to expose the whole of the

side. On the other hand, some fly with the greater part of the wings

kept close to the side; and some, after striking the air once, others

twice, make their way through it, as though pressing upon it enclosed

beneath their wings; other birds dart aloft in a vertical direction,

others horizontally, and others come falling straight downwards. You

would almost think that some had been hurled upwards with a violent

effort, and that others, again, had fallen straight down from aloft;

while others are seen to spring forward in their flight. Ducks alone,

and the other birds of that kind, in an instant raise themselves aloft,

taking a spring from the spot where they stand straight upwards towards

the heavens; and this they can do from out of the water even; hence it

is that they are the only birds that can make their escape from the

pitfalls which we employ for the capture of wild beasts.

The vulture and the heavier wild birds can only fly after taking a

run, or else by commencing their flight from an elevated spot. They

use the tail by way of rudder. There are some birds that are able to

see all around them; others, again, have to turn the neck to do so.

Some of them eat what they have seized, holding it in their feet. Many,

as they fly, utter some cry; while on the other hand, many, in their

flight, are silent. Some fly with the breast half upright, others with

it held downwards, others fly obliquely, or else side-ways, and others

following the direction of the bill. Some, again, are borne along with

the head upwards; indeed the fact is, that if we were to see several

kinds at the same moment, we should not suppose that they have to make

their way in the same element.

CHAP. 55. (39.)—THE BIRDS CALLED APODES, OR CYPSELI.

Those birds which are known as “apodes”[3035] fly the most of all,

because they are deprived of the use of their feet. By some persons

they are called “cypseli.” They are a species of swallow which build

their nests in the rocks, and are the same birds that are to be seen

everywhere at sea; indeed, however far a ship may go, however long its

voyage, and however great the distance from land, the apodes never

cease to hover around it. Other birds settle and come to a stand,

whereas these know no repose but in the nest; they are always either on

the wing or else asleep.

CHAP. 56. (40.)—RESPECTING THE FOOD OF BIRDS—THE CAPRIMULGUS, THE

PLATEA.

The instincts, also, of birds are no less varied, and more especially

in relation to their food. “Caprimulgus”[3036] is the name of a bird,

which is to all appearance a large blackbird; it thieves by night, as

it cannot see during the day. It enters the folds of the shepherds,

and makes straight for the udder of the she-goat, to suck the milk.

Through the injury thus inflicted the udder shrivels away, and the goat

that has been thus deprived of its milk, is afflicted with incipient

blindness.

“Platea”[3037] is the name of another, which pounces upon other birds

when they have dived in the sea, and, seizing the head with its bill,

makes them let go their prey. This bird also swallows and fills itself

with shell-fish, shells and all; after the natural heat of its crop has

softened them, it brings them up again, and then picking out the shells

from the rest, selects the parts that are fit for food.

CHAP. 57. (41.)—THE INSTINCTS OF BIRDS—THE CARDUELIS, THE TAURUS, THE

ANTHUS.

The farm-yard fowls have also a certain notion of religion; upon laying

an egg they shudder all over, and then shake their feathers; after

which they turn round and purify[3038] themselves, or else hallow[3039]

themselves and their eggs with some stalk or other. (42.) The

carduelis,[3040] which is the very smallest bird of any, will do what

it is bid, not only with the voice but with the feet as well, and with

the beak, which serves it instead of hands. There is one bird, found

in the territory of Arelate, that imitates the lowing of oxen, from

which circumstance it has received the name of “taurus.”[3041] In other

respects it is of small size. Another bird, called the “anthus,”[3042]

imitates the neighing of the horse; upon being driven from the pasture

by the approach of the horses, it will mimic their voices—and this is

the method it takes of revenging itself.

CHAP. 58.—BIRDS WHICH SPEAK—THE PARROT.

But above all, there are some birds that can imitate the human voice;

the parrot, for instance, which can even converse. India sends us

this bird, which it calls by the name of “sittaces;”[3043] the body

is green all over, only it is marked with a ring of red around the

neck. It will duly salute an emperor, and pronounce the words it has

heard spoken; it is rendered especially frolicsome under the influence

of wine. Its head is as hard as its beak; and this, when it is being

taught to talk, is beaten with a rod of iron, for otherwise it is quite

insensible to blows. When it lights on the ground it falls upon its

beak, and by resting upon it makes itself all the lighter for its feet,

which are naturally weak.

CHAP. 59.—THE PIE WHICH FEEDS ON ACORNS.

The magpie is much less famous for its talking qualities than the

parrot, because it does not come from a distance, and yet it can speak

with much more distinctness. These birds love to hear words spoken

which they can utter; and not only do they learn them, but are pleased

at the task; and as they con them over to themselves with the greatest

care and attention, make no secret of the interest they feel. It is a

well-known fact, that a magpie has died before now, when it has found

itself mastered by a difficult word that it could not pronounce. Their

memory, however, will fail them if they do not from time to time hear

the same word repeated; and while they are trying to recollect it, they

will show the most extravagant joy, if they happen to hear it. Their

appearance, although there is nothing remarkable in it, is by no means

plain; but they have quite sufficient beauty in their singular ability

to imitate the human speech.

It is said, however, that it is only the kind[3044] of pie which feeds

upon acorns that can be taught to speak; and that among these, those

which[3045] have five toes on each foot can be taught with the greatest

facility; but in their case even, only during the first two years of

their life. The magpie has a broader tongue than is usual with most

other birds; which is the case also with all the other birds that can

imitate the human voice; although some individuals of almost every kind

have the faculty of doing so.

Agrippina, the wife of Claudius Cæsar, had a thrush that could imitate

human speech, a thing that was never known before. At the moment

that I am writing this, the young Cæsars[3046] have a starling and

some nightingales that are being taught to talk in Greek and Latin;

besides which, they are studying their task the whole day, continually

repeating the new words that they have learnt, and giving utterance

to phrases even of considerable length. Birds are taught to talk in a

retired spot, and where no other voice can be heard, so as to interfere

with their lesson; a person sits by them, and continually repeats the

words he wishes them to learn, while at the same time he encourages

them by giving them food.

CHAP. 60. (48.)—A SEDITION THAT AROSE AMONG THE ROMAN PEOPLE, IN

CONSEQUENCE OF A RAVEN SPEAKING.

Let us do justice, also, to the raven, whose merits have been attested

not only by the sentiments of the Roman people, but by the strong

expression, also, of their indignation. In the reign of Tiberius,

one of a brood of ravens that had bred on the top of the temple of

Castor,[3047] happened to fly into a shoemaker’s shop that stood

opposite: upon which, from a feeling of religious veneration, it was

looked upon as doubly recommended by the owner of the place. The bird,

having been taught to speak at an early age, used every morning to

fly to the Rostra, which look towards the Forum; here, addressing

each by his name, it would salute Tiberius, and then the Cæsars[3048]

Germanicus and Drusus, after which it would proceed to greet the Roman

populace as they passed, and then return to the shop: for several years

it was remarkable for the constancy of its attendance. The owner of

another shoemaker’s shop in the neighbourhood, in a sudden fit of anger

killed the bird, enraged, as he would have had it appear, because with

its ordure it had soiled some shoes of his. Upon this, there was such

rage manifested by the multitude, that he was at once driven from that

part of the city, and soon after put to death. The funeral, too, of the

bird was celebrated with almost endless obsequies; the body was placed

upon a litter carried upon the shoulders of two Æthiopians, preceded

by a piper, and borne to the pile with garlands of every size and

description. The pile was erected on the right-hand side of the Appian

Way, at the second milestone from the City, in the field generally

known as the “field of Rediculus.”[3049] Thus did the rare talent of

a bird appear a sufficient ground to the Roman people for honouring

it with funeral obsequies, as well as for inflicting punishment on a

Roman citizen; and that, too, in a city in which no such crowds had

ever escorted the funeral of any one out of the whole number of its

distinguished men, and where no one had been found to avenge the death

of Scipio Æmilianus,[3050] the man who had destroyed Carthage and

Numantia. This event happened in the consulship of M. Servilius and

Caius Cestius, on the fifth day[3051] before the calends of April.

At the present day also, the moment that I am writing this, there is in

the city of Rome a crow which belongs to a Roman of equestrian rank,

and was brought from Bætica. In the first place, it is remarkable[3052]

for its colour, which is of the deepest black, and at the same time it

is able to pronounce several connected words, while it is repeatedly

learning fresh ones. Recently, too, there has been a story told about

Craterus, surnamed Monoceros,[3053] in Erizena,[3054] a country of

Asia, who was in the habit of hunting with the assistance of ravens,

and used to carry them into the woods, perched on the tuft of his

helmet and on his shoulders. The birds used to keep on the watch

for game, and raise it; and by training he had brought this art to

such a pitch of perfection, that even the wild ravens would attend

him in a similar manner when he went out. Some authors have thought

the following circumstance deserving of remembrance:—A crow that was

thirsty was seen heaping stones into the urn on a monument, in which

there was some rain-water which it could not reach: and so, being

afraid to go down to the water, by thus accumulating the stones, it

caused as much water to come within its reach as was necessary to

satisfy its thirst.

CHAP. 61. (44.)—THE BIRDS OF DIOMEDES.

Nor yet must I pass by the birds[3055] of Diomedes in silence. Juba

calls these birds “cataractæ,” and says that they have teeth and eyes

of a fiery colour, while the rest of the body is white: that they

always have two chiefs, the one to lead the main body, the other to

take charge of the rear; that they excavate holes with their bills,

and then cover them with hurdles, which they cover again with the

earth that has been thus thrown up; that it is in these places they

hatch their young; that each of these holes has two outlets; that one

of them looks towards the east, and that by it they go forth to feed,

returning by the one which looks towards the west; and that when about

to ease themselves, they always take to the wing, and fly against the

wind. In one spot only throughout the whole earth are these birds to be

seen, in the island, namely, which we have mentioned[3056] as famous

for the tomb and shrine of Diomedes, lying over against the coast of

Apulia: they bear a strong resemblance to the coot. When strangers who

are barbarians arrive on that island, they pursue them with loud and

clamorous cries, and only show courtesy to Greeks by birth; seeming

thereby, with a wonderful discernment, to pay respect to them as the

fellow-countrymen of Diomedes. Every day they fill their throats,

and cover their feathers, with water, and so wash and purify the

temple there. From this circumstance arises the fable[3057] that the

companions of Diomedes were metamorphosed into these birds.

CHAP. 62. (45.)—ANIMALS THAT CAN LEARN NOTHING.

We ought not to omit, while we are speaking of instincts, that among

birds the swallow[3058] is quite incapable of being taught, and among

land animals the mouse; while on the other hand, the elephant does what

it is ordered, the lion submits to the yoke, and the sea-calf and many

kinds of fishes are capable of being tamed.

CHAP. 63. (46.)—THE MODE OF DRINKING WITH BIRDS. THE PORPHYRIO.

Birds drink by suction; those which have a long neck taking their drink

in a succession of draughts, and throwing the head back, as though

they were pouring the water down the throat. The porphyrio[3059] is

the only bird that seems to bite at the water as it drinks. The same

bird has also other peculiarities of its own; for it will every now and

then dip its food in the water, and then lift it with its foot to its

bill, using it as a hand. Those that are the most esteemed are found in

Commagene. They have beaks and very long legs, of a red colour.

CHAP. 64. (47.)—THE HÆMATOPOUS.

There are the same characteristics in the hæmatopous[3060] also, a bird

of much smaller size, although standing as high on the legs. It is a

native of Egypt, and has three toes on each foot; flies[3061] forming

its principal food. If brought to Italy, it survives for a few days

only.

CHAP. 65.—THE FOOD OF BIRDS.

All the heavy birds are frugivorous; while those with a higher flight

feed upon flesh only. Among the aquatic birds, the divers[3062] are in

the habit of devouring what the other birds have disgorged.

CHAP. 66.—THE PELICAN.

The pelican is similar in appearance to the swan, and it would be

thought that there was no difference between them whatever, were

it not for the fact that under the throat there is a sort of second

crop, as it were. It is in this that the ever-insatiate animal stows

everything away, so much so, that the capacity of this pouch is quite

astonishing. After having finished its search for prey, it discharges

bit by bit what it has thus stowed away, and reconveys it by a sort of

ruminating process into its real stomach. The part of Gallia that lies

nearest to the Northern Ocean produces this bird.

CHAP. 67.—FOREIGN BIRDS: THE PHALERIDES, THE PHEASANT, AND THE NUMIDICÆ.

In the Hercynian Forest, in Germany, we hear of a singular[3063]

kind of bird, the feathers of which shine at night like fire; the

other birds there have nothing remarkable beyond the celebrity which

generally attaches to objects situate at a distance.

(48.) The phalerides,[3064] the most esteemed of all the aquatic birds,

are found at Seleucia, the city of the Parthians of that name, and in

Asia as well; and again, in Colchis, there is the pheasant,[3065] a

bird with two tufts of feathers like ears, which it drops and raises

every now and then. The numidicæ[3066] come from Numidia, a part of

Africa: all these varieties are now to be found in Italy.

CHAP. 68.—THE PHŒNICOPTERUS, THE ATTAGEN, THE PHALACROCORAX, THE

PYRRHOCORAX, AND THE LAGOPUS.

Apicius, that very deepest whirlpool of all our epicures, has informed

us that the tongue of the phœnicopterus[3067] is of the most exquisite

flavour. The attagen,[3068] also, of Ionia is a famous bird; but

although it has a voice at other times, it is mute in captivity. It was

formerly[3069] reckoned among the rare birds, but at the present day it

is found in Gallia, Spain, and in the Alps even; which is also the case

with the phalacrocorax,[3070] a bird peculiar to the Balearic Isles, as

the pyrrhocorax,[3071] a black bird with a yellow bill, is to the Alps,

and the lagopus,[3072] which is esteemed for its excellent flavour.

This last bird derives its name from its feet, which are covered, as

it were, with the fur of a hare, the rest of the body being white, and

the size of a pigeon. It is not an easy matter to taste it out of its

native country, as it never becomes domesticated, and when dead it

quickly spoils.

There is another[3073] bird also, which has the same name, and only

differs from the quail in size; it is of a saffron colour, and is most

delicate eating. Egnatius Calvinus, who was prefect there, pretends

that he has seen[3074] in the Alps the ibis also, a bird that is

peculiar to Egypt.

CHAP. 69. (49.)—THE NEW BIRDS. THE VIPIO.

During the civil wars that took place at Bebriacum, beyond the river

Padus, the “new birds”[3075] were introduced into Italy—for by that

name they are still known. They resemble the thrush in appearance, are

a little smaller than the pigeon in size, and of an agreeable flavour.

The Balearic islands also send us a porphyrio,[3076] that is superior

to the one previously mentioned. There the buteo, a kind of hawk, is

held in high esteem for the table, as also the vipio,[3077] the name

given to a small kind of crane.

CHAP. 70.—FABULOUS BIRDS.

I look upon the birds as fabulous which are called “pegasi,” and are

said to have a horse’s head; as also the griffons, with long ears and

a hooked beak. The former are said to be natives of Scythia,[3078]

the latter of Æthiopia. The same is my opinion, also, as to the

tragopan;[3079] many writers, however, assert that it is larger than

the eagle, has curved horns on the temples, and a plumage of iron

colour, with the exception of the head, which is purple. Nor yet do the

sirens[3080] obtain any greater credit with me, although Dinon, the

father of Clearchus, a celebrated writer, asserts that they exist in

India, and that they charm men by their song, and, having first lulled

them to sleep, tear them to pieces. The person, however, who may think

fit to believe in these tales, may probably not refuse to believe also

that dragons licked the ears of Melampodes, and bestowed upon him the

power of understanding the language of birds; as also what Democritus

says, when he gives the names of certain birds, by the mixture of whose

blood a serpent is produced, the person who eats of which will be able

to understand the language of birds; as well as the statements which

the same writer makes relative to one bird in particular, known as the

“galerita,”[3081]—indeed, the science of augury is already too much

involved in embarrassing questions, without these fanciful reveries.

There is a kind of bird spoken of by Homer as the “scops:”[3082] but

I cannot very easily comprehend the grotesque movements which many

persons have attributed to it, when the fowler is laying snares for

it; nor, indeed, is it a bird that is any longer known to exist.

It will be better, therefore, to confine my relation to those the

existence of which is generally admitted.

CHAP. 71. (50.)—WHO FIRST INVENTED THE ART OF CRAMMING POULTRY: WHY THE

FIRST CENSORS FORBADE THIS PRACTICE.

The people of Delos were the first to cram poultry; and it is with them

that originated that abominable mania for devouring fattened birds,

larded with the grease of their own bodies. I find in the ancient

sumptuary regulations as to banquets, that this was forbidden for the

first time by a law of the consul Caius Fannius, eleven years before

the Third Punic War; by which it was ordered that no bird should be

served at table beyond a single pullet, and that not fattened; an

article which has since made its appearance in all the sumptuary[3083]

laws. A method, however, has been devised of evading it, by feeding

poultry upon food that has been soaked in milk: prepared in this

fashion, they are considered even still more delicate. All pullets,

however, are not looked upon as equally good for the purposes of

fattening, and only those are selected which have a fatty skin about

the neck. Then, too, come all the arts of the kitchen—that the thighs

may have a nice plump appearance, that the bird may be properly divided

down the back, and that poultry may be brought to such a size that a

single leg shall fill a whole platter.[3084] The Parthians, too, have

taught their fashions to our cooks; and yet after all, in spite of

their refinements in luxury, no article is found to please equally in

every part, for in one it is the thigh, and in another the breast only,

that is esteemed.

CHAP. 72.—WHO FIRST INVENTED AVIARIES. THE DISH OF ÆSOPUS.

The first person who invented aviaries for the reception of all kinds

of birds was M. Lænius Strabo, a member of the equestrian order,

who resided at Brundisium. It was in his time that we thus began to

imprison animals to which Nature had assigned the heavens as their

element.

(51.) But more remarkable than anything in this respect, is the story

of the dish of Clodius Æsopus,[3085] the tragic actor, which was valued

at one hundred thousand sesterces, and in which were served up nothing

but birds that had been remarkable for their song, or their imitation

of the human voice, and purchased, each of them, at the price of six

thousand sesterces; he being induced to this folly by no other pleasure

than that in these he might eat the closest imitators of man; never for

a moment reflecting that his own immense fortune had been acquired by

the advantages of his voice; a parent, indeed, right worthy of the son

of whom we have already made mention,[3086] as swallowing pearls. It

would not, to say the truth, be very easy to come to a conclusion which

of the two was guilty of the greatest baseness; unless, indeed, we

are ready to admit that it was less unseemly to banquet upon the most

costly of all the productions of Nature, than to devour[3087] tongues

which had given utterance to the language of man.

CHAP. 73. (52.)—THE GENERATION OF BIRDS: OTHER OVIPAROUS ANIMALS.

The generation of birds would appear to be very simple, while at the

same time it has its own peculiar marvels. Indeed, there are quadrupeds

as well that produce eggs, the chameleon, for instance, the lizard, and

those of the serpent tribe of which we have previously spoken.[3088] Of

the feathered race, those which have hooked talons are comparatively

unprolific; the cenchris[3089] being the only one among them that lays

more than four eggs. Nature has so ordained it in the birds, that the

timid ones should be more prolific than those which are courageous. The

ostrich, the common fowl, and the partridge, are the only birds that

lay eggs in considerable numbers. Birds have two modes of coupling,

the female crouching on the ground, as in the barn-door fowl, or else

standing, as is the case with the crane.

CHAP. 74.—THE VARIOUS KINDS OF EGGS, AND THEIR NATURE.

Some eggs are white, as those of the pigeon and partridge, for

instance; others are of a pale colour, as in the aquatic birds: others,

again, are dotted all over with spots, as is the case with those of the

meleagris; others are red, like those of the pheasant and the cenchris.

In the inside, the eggs of all birds are of two colours; those of the

aquatic kind have more of the yellow than the white, and the yellow is

of a paler tint than in those of other birds. Among fish, the eggs are

of the same colour throughout, there being, in fact, no white. The eggs

of birds are of a brittle nature, in consequence of the natural heat

of the animal, while those of serpents are supple, in consequence of

their coldness, and those of fish soft, from their natural humidity.

Again, the eggs of aquatic birds are round, while those of most other

kinds are elongated, and taper to a point. Eggs are laid with the round

end foremost, and at the moment that they are laid the shell is soft,

but it immediately grows hard, as each portion becomes exposed to the

air. Horatius Flaccus[3090] expresses it as his opinion that those eggs

which are of an oblong shape are of the most agreeable flavour. The

rounder eggs are those which produce[3091] the female, the others the

male. The umbilical[3092] cord is in the upper part of the egg, like a

drop floating on the surface in the shell.

(53.) There are some birds that couple at all seasons of the year,

barn-door fowls, for instance; they lay, too, at all times, with the

exception of two months at mid-winter. Pullets lay more eggs than the

older hens, but then they are smaller. In the same brood those chickens

are the smallest that are hatched the first and the last. These

animals, indeed, are so prolific, that some of them will lay as many as

sixty eggs, some daily, some twice a day, and some in such vast numbers

that they have been known to die from exhaustion. Those known as the

“Adrianæ,”[3093] are the most esteemed. Pigeons sit ten times a year,

and some of them eleven, and in Egypt during the month of the winter

solstice even. Swallows, blackbirds, ring-doves, and turtle-doves sit

twice a year, most other birds only once. Thrushes make their nests

of mud, in the tops of trees, almost touching one another, and lay

during the time of their retirement. The egg comes to maturity in the

ovary ten days after treading; but if the hen or pigeon is tormented

by pulling out the feathers, or by the infliction of any injury of a

similar nature, the maturing of the egg is retarded.

In the middle of the yolk of every egg there is what appears to be a

little drop[3094] of blood; this is supposed to be the heart of the

chicken, it being the general belief that that part is formed the first

in every animal: at all events, while in the egg this speck is seen

to throb and palpitate. The body of the animal itself is formed from

the white fluid[3095] in the egg; while the yellow part constitutes

its food. The head in every kind, while in the shell, is larger than

the rest of the body; the eyes, too, are closed, and are larger than

the other parts of the head. As the chicken grows, the white gradually

passes to the middle of the egg, while the yellow is spread around

it. On the twentieth day, if the egg is shaken, the voice of the now

living animal can be heard in the shell. From this time it gradually

becomes clothed with feathers; and its position is such that it has

the head above the right foot, and the right wing above the head: the

yolk in the meantime gradually disappears. All birds are born with the

feet first, while with every other animal the contrary is the case.

Some hens lay all their eggs with two yolks, and sometimes hatch twin

chickens from the same egg, one being larger than the other, according

to Cornelius Celsus: other writers, however, deny[3096] the possibility

of twin chickens being hatched. It is a rule never to give a brood hen

more than twenty-five[3097] eggs to sit upon at once. Hens begin to lay

immediately after the winter solstice. The best broods are those which

are hatched before the vernal equinox: chickens that are hatched after

the summer solstice, never attain their full growth, and the more so,

the later they are produced.

CHAP. 75. (54.)—DEFECTS IN BROOD-HENS, AND THEIR REMEDIES.

Those eggs which have been laid within the last ten days, are the

best for putting under the hen; old ones, or those which have just

been laid, will be unfruitful; an uneven number[3098] also ought to

be placed. On the fourth day after the hen has begun to sit, if,

upon taking an egg with one hand by the two ends and holding it up

to the light, it is found to be clear and of one uniform colour, it

is most likely to be barren, and another should be substituted in

its place. There is also a way of testing them by means of water; an

empty egg will float on the surface, while those that fall to the

bottom, or, in other words, are full, should be placed under the hen.

Care must be taken, however, not to make trial by shaking them, for

if the organs which are necessary for life become confused, they will

come to nothing.[3099] Incubation ought to begin just after the new

moon; for, if commenced before, the eggs will be unproductive. The

chickens are hatched sooner if the weather is warm: hence it is that

in summer they break the shell on the nineteenth day, but in winter

on the twenty-fifth only. If it happens to thunder during the time of

incubation, the eggs are addled, and if the cry of a hawk is heard

they are spoilt. The best remedy against the effects of thunder, is to

put an iron nail beneath the straw on which the eggs are laid, or else

some earth from off a ploughshare. Some eggs, however, are hatched by

the spontaneous action of Nature, without the process of incubation,

as is the case in the dung-hills of Egypt. There is a well-known story

related about a man at Syracuse, who was in the habit of covering eggs

with earth,[3100] and then continuing his drinking bout till they were

hatched.

CHAP. 76. (55.)—AN AUGURY DERIVED FROM EGGS BY AN EMPRESS.

And, what is even more singular still, eggs can be hatched also by

a human being. Julia Augusta, when pregnant in her early youth of

Tiberius Cæsar, by Nero, was particularly desirous that her offspring

should be a son, and accordingly employed the following mode of

divination, which was then much in use among young women: she carried

an egg in her bosom, taking care, whenever she was obliged to put it

down, to give it to her nurse to warm in her own, that there might be

no interruption in the heat: it is stated that the result promised by

this mode of augury was not falsified.

It was perhaps from this circumstance, that the modern invention took

its rise, of placing eggs in a warm spot and covering them with chaff,

the heat being maintained by a moderate fire, while in the meantime

a man is employed in turning them. By the adoption of this plan, the

young, all of them, break the shell on a stated day. There is a story

told of a breeder of poultry, of such remarkable skill, that on seeing

an egg he could tell which hen had laid it. It is said also that when

a hen has happened to die while sitting, the males have been seen

to take her place in turns, and perform all the other duties of a

brood-hen, taking care in the meantime to abstain from crowing. But

the most remarkable thing of all, is the sight of a hen, beneath which

ducks’ eggs have been put and hatched.—At first, she is unable to

quite recognize the brood as her own, while in her anxiety she gives

utterance to her clucking as she doubtfully calls them; then at last

she will stand at the margin of the pond, uttering her laments, while

the ducklings, with Nature for their guide, are diving beneath the

water.

CHAP. 77. (56.)—THE BEST KINDS OF FOWLS.

The breed of a fowl is judged of by the erectness of the crest, which

is sometimes double, its black wings, reddish beak, and toes of unequal

number, there being sometimes a fifth placed transversely above the

other four. For the purposes of divination, those that have a yellow

beak and feet are not considered pure; while for the secret rites of

Bona Dea, black ones are chosen. There is also a dwarf[3101] species

of fowl, which is not barren either; a thing that is the case with no

other kind of bird. These dwarfs, however, rarely lay at any stated

periods, and their incubation is productive of injury[3102] to the

eggs.

CHAP. 78. (57.)—THE DISEASES OF FOWLS, AND THEIR REMEDIES.

The most dangerous malady with every kind of fowl is that known as the

“pituita;;”[3103] which is prevalent more particularly between the

times of harvest and vintage. The mode of treatment is to put them on a

spare diet, and to expose them, while asleep, to the action of smoke,

and more especially that of bay leaves or of the herb called savin. A

feather also is inserted, and passed across through the nostrils, care

being taken to move it every day; while their food consists of leeks

mixed with speltmeal, or else is first soaked in water in which an

owlet has been dipped, or boiled together with the seeds of the white

vine. There are also some other receipts besides.

CHAP. 79. (58.)—WHEN BIRDS LAY, AND HOW MANY EGGS. THE VARIOUS KINDS OF

HERONS.

Pigeons have the peculiarity of billing before they couple; they

generally lay two eggs, Nature so willing it, that among birds the

produce should be more frequent with some, and more numerous with

others. The ring-dove and turtle-dove mostly lay three eggs, and never

more than twice, in the spring; such being the case when the first

brood has been lost. Although they may happen to lay three eggs, they

never hatch more than two; the third egg, which is barren, is generally

known by the name of “urinum.”[3104] The female ring-dove sits on the

eggs from mid-day till morning, the male the rest of the time. Pigeons

always produce a male and a female; the male first, the female the

day after. Both the male and the female pigeon sit on the eggs; the

male in the day-time, the female during the night. They hatch on the

twentieth day of incubation, and lay the fifth day after coupling.

Sometimes, indeed, in summer, these birds will rear three couples in

two months; for then they hatch on the eighteenth day of incubation,

and immediately conceive again; hence it is that eggs are often found

among the young ones, some of which last are just taking wing, while

others are only bursting the shell. The young ones, themselves, begin

to produce at the age of five months. The females, if there should

happen to be no male among them, will even tread each other, and lay

barren eggs, from which nothing is produced. By the Greeks, these eggs

are called “hypenemia.”[3105]

(59.) The pea-hen produces at three years old. In the first year

she will lay one or two eggs, in the next four or five, and in the

remaining years twelve, but never beyond that number. She lays for two

or three days at intervals, and will produce three broods in the year,

if care is taken to put the eggs under a common hen. The males are apt

to break the eggs in getting at the females while sitting, and hence it

is that the pea-hen lays by night, and in secret places, or else sits

on her eggs in an elevated spot; the eggs will break, too, unless they

are received upon some surface that is soft. One male is sufficient for

every five females; when there are only one or two females to a male,

all chance of their being prolific is spoilt through their extreme

salaciousness. The young breaks the shell in twenty-seven days, or, at

the very latest, on the thirtieth.

Geese pair in the water, and lay in spring; or, if they have paired

in the winter, they lay about forty eggs, after the summer solstice.

The hatching takes place twice in the year, if a hen hatches the first

brood; otherwise, their greatest number of eggs will be sixteen,

their lowest seven. If their eggs are taken away from them, they will

keep on laying until they burst; they will not hatch the eggs of any

other birds. The best number of eggs for placing under the goose for

hatching, is nine, or else eleven. The females only sit, and that for

thirty days; but if they are kept very warm, then only twenty-five. The

contact of the nettle is fatal to their young, and their own greediness

is no less so—sometimes, through over-eating, and sometimes through

over-exertion; for seizing the root of a plant with the bill, they will

make repeated efforts to tear it out of the ground, and so, at last,

dislocate the neck. A remedy against the noxious effects of the nettle,

is to place the root of that plant under the straw of their nest.

(60.) There are three kinds of herons, called, respectively, the

leucon,[3106] the asterias,[3107] and the pellos.[3108] These birds

experience great pain in coupling; uttering loud cries, the males

bleed from the eyes, while the females lay their eggs with no less

difficulty.

The eagle sits for thirty days, as do most of the larger birds; the

smaller ones, the kite and the hawk for instance, only twenty. The

eagle mostly lays but one egg, never more than three. The bird which

is known as the “ægolios,”[3109] lays four, and the raven sometimes

five; they sit, too, the same number of days as the kite and the hawk.

The male crow provides the female with food while she is sitting. The

magpie lays nine eggs, the malancoryphus more than twenty, but always

an uneven number, and no bird of this kind ever lays more; so much

superior in fecundity are the smaller birds. The young ones of the

swallow are blind at first, as is the case also with almost all the

birds the progeny of which is numerous.

CHAP. 80.—WHAT EGGS ARE CALLED HYPENEMIA, AND WHAT CYNOSURA. HOW EGGS

ARE BEST KEPT.

The barren eggs, which we have mentioned as “hypenemia,” are either

conceived by the females when they are influenced by libidinous

fancies, and couple with one another, or else at the moment when they

are rolling themselves in the dust; they are produced not only by the

pigeon, but by the common hen as well, the partridge, the pea-hen, the

goose, and the chenalopex; these eggs are barren, smaller than the

others, of a less agreeable flavour, and more humid. There are some who

think that they are generated by the wind, for which reason they give

them the name of “zephyria.” The eggs known as “urina,” and which by

some are called “cynosura,”[3110] are only laid in the spring, and at a

time when the hen has discontinued sitting. Eggs, if soaked in vinegar,

are rendered so soft thereby, that they may be twisted[3111] round the

finger like a ring. The best method of preserving them is to keep them

packed in bean-meal, or chaff, during the winter, and in bran during

the summer. It is a general belief, that if kept in salt, they will

lose their contents.

CHAP. 81. (61.)—THE ONLY WINGED ANIMAL THAT IS VIVIPAROUS, AND NURTURES

ITS YOUNG WITH ITS MILK.

Among the winged animals, the only one that is viviparous is the bat;

it is the only one, too, that has wings formed of a membrane. This is,

also, the only winged creature that feeds its young with milk from

the breast. The mother clasps her two young ones as she flies, and so

carries them along with her. This animal, too, is said to have but one

joint in the haunch, and to be particularly fond of gnats.

CHAP. 82. (62.)—TERRESTRIAL ANIMALS THAT ARE OVIPAROUS.—VARIOUS KINDS

OF SERPENTS.

Again, among the terrestrial animals, there are the serpents that are

oviparous; of which, as yet, we have not spoken. These creatures couple

by clasping each other, and entwine so closely around one another, that

they might be taken for only one animal with two heads. The male viper

thrusts[3112] its head into the mouth of the female, which gnaws it in

the transports of its passion. This, too, is the only one among the

terrestrial animals that lays eggs within its body—of one colour, and

soft, like those of fishes. On the third day it hatches its young in

the uterus, and then excludes them, one every day, and generally twenty

in number; the last ones become so impatient of their confinement,

that they force a passage through the sides of their parent, and so

kill her. Other serpents, again, lay eggs attached to one another, and

then bury them in the earth; the young being hatched in the following

year. Crocodiles sit on their eggs in turns, first the male, and then

the female. But let us now turn to the generation of the rest of the

terrestrial animals.

CHAP. 83. (63.)—GENERATION OF ALL KINDS OF TERRESTRIAL ANIMALS.

The only one among the bipeds that is viviparous is man. Man is the

only animal that repents of his first embraces; sad augury, indeed, of

life, that its very origin should thus cause repentance! Other animals

have stated times in the year for their embraces; but man, as we have

already[3113] observed, employs for this purpose all hours both of

day and night; other animals become sated with venereal pleasures,

man hardly knows any satiety. Messalina,[3114] the wife of Claudius

Cæsar, thinking this a palm quite worthy of an empress, selected, for

the purpose of deciding the question, one of the most notorious of

the women who followed the profession of a hired prostitute; and the

empress outdid her, after continuous intercourse, night and day, at

the twenty-fifth embrace. In the human race also, the men have devised

various substitutes for the more legitimate exercise of passion, all of

which outrage Nature; while the females have recourse to abortion. How

much more guilty than the brute beasts are we in this respect! Hesiod

has stated that men are more lustful in winter, women in summer.

Coupling is performed back to back by the elephant, the camel, the

tiger, the lynx, the rhinoceros, the lion, the dasypus, and the rabbit,

the genital parts of all which animals lie far back. Camels even seek

desert places, or, at all events, spots of a retired nature; and to

come upon them on such an occasion is not unattended with danger.

Coupling, with them, lasts a whole day; the only animal, indeed, of

all those with solid hoofs, with which such is the case. Among the

quadrupeds, it is the smell that excites the passions of the male. In

this act, dogs also, seals, and wolves turn back to back, and remain

attached, though greatly against their will. In the greater part of

the animals above mentioned, the females solicit the males; in some,

however, the males the females. As to bears, they lie down, like the

human race, as previously[3115] mentioned by us; while hedgehogs

embrace standing upright. In cats, the male stands above, while the

female assumes a crouching posture; foxes lie on the side, the female

embracing the male. In the case of the cow and the hind, the female

is unable to endure the violence of the male, consequently she keeps

in motion during the time of coupling. The buck goes from one hind

to another in turn, and then comes back to the first. Lizards couple

entwined around each other, like the animals without feet.

All animals, the larger they are in bulk, are proportionably less

prolific: the elephant, the camel, and the horse produce but one,

while the acanthis,[3116] a very small bird, produces twelve. Those

animals, also, which are the most prolific, are the shortest time in

breeding. The larger an animal is, the longer is the time required for

its formation in the womb; those, also, which are the longest-lived,

require the longest gestation; the growing age, too, is not suitable

for the purposes of generation. Those animals which have solid hoofs

bear but a single young one, while those which have cloven hoofs bear

two. Those, again, whose feet are divided into toes, have a still more

numerous offspring; but, while the others bring forth their young

perfect, these last bear them in an unformed state, such, for instance,

as the lioness and the she-bear. The fox also brings forth its young in

an even more imperfect state than these; it is a very uncommon thing,

however, to find it whelping. After the birth, these animals warm their

young by licking them, and thereby give them their proper shape; they

mostly produce four at a birth.

The dog, the wolf, the panther, and the jackal produce their young

blind. There are several kinds of dogs; those of Laconia,[3117] of both

sexes, are ready for breeding in the eighth month, and the females

carry their young sixty or sixty-three days at most; other dogs are

fit for breeding when only six months old; the female, in all cases,

becomes pregnant at the first congress. Those which have conceived

before the proper age, bear pups which are longer blind, though not

all the same number of days. It is thought that dogs, in general, lift

the leg when they water at six months old; this, too, is looked upon

as a sign that they have attained their full growth and strength; when

doing this, the female squats. The most numerous litters known consist

of twelve, but more generally five or six is the number; sometimes,

indeed, only one is produced, but then it is looked upon as a prodigy,

and the same is the case, too, when all the pups are of one sex. In the

dog, the males come into the world first, but in other animals, the two

sexes are born alternately. The female admits the male again six months

after she has littered. Those of the Laconian breed bear eight young

ones. It is a peculiarity in this kind, that after undergoing great

labour, the males are remarkable for their salacity. In the Laconian

breed the male lives ten years, the female twelve; while other kinds,

again, live fifteen years, and sometimes as much as twenty; but they

are not fit for breeding to the end of their life, as they generally

cease at about the twelfth year. The cat and the ichneumon are, in

other respects,[3118] like the dog; but they only live six years.

The dasypus[3119] brings forth every month in the year, and is subject

to superfœtation, like the hare. It conceives immediately after it has

littered, even though it is still suckling its young, which are blind

at their birth. The elephant, as we have already[3120] stated, produces

but one, and that the size of a calf three months old. The gestation of

the camel lasts twelve months; the female conceives when three years

old, and brings forth in the spring; at the end of a year from that

time, she is ready to conceive again. It is thought advisable to have

the mare covered so soon as three days, and indeed, sometimes, only

one, after she has foaled; and, however unwilling she may be, means

are taken to compel her. It is believed also, that it is by no means

an uncommon thing for a woman to conceive on the seventh day after her

delivery. It is recommended that the manes of mares should be cut, so

as to humble their pride, in order to make them submit to be covered by

the male ass; for when the mane is long, they are liable to be proud

and vain. This is the only animal, the female of which, after covering,

runs, facing the north or the south, according as she has conceived

a male or a female. They change their colour immediately after, and

the hair becomes of a redder hue, and deeper, whatever the colour may

naturally be; it is this that indicates that they must no longer be

covered, and they, themselves, will even resist it. Gestation does not,

however, preclude some of them from being worked, and they are often

with foal long before it is known. We read that the mare of Echecrates,

the Thessalian, conquered at the Olympic games, while with foal.

Those who are more careful enquirers into these matters, tell us that

in the horse, the dog, and the swine, the males are most ardent for

sexual intercourse in the morning, while the female seeks the society

of the male after mid-day. They say also, that mares in harness desire

the horse sixty days sooner than those that live in herds; that it is

swine only that foam at the mouth during the time of coupling; and that

a boar, if it hears the voice of a sow in heat, will refuse to take

its food,—to such a degree, indeed, as to starve itself, if it is not

allowed to cover—while the female is reduced to such a state of frantic

madness, as to attack and tear a man, more especially if wearing a

white garment. This frenzy, however, is appeased by sprinkling vinegar

on the sexual parts. It is supposed also that salacity is promoted by

certain aliments; the herb rocket, for instance, in the case of man,

and onions in that of cattle. Wild animals that have been tamed, do

not conceive, the goose, for instance; the wild boar and the stag will

only produce late in life, and even then they must have been taken and

tamed when very young; a singular fact. The pregnant females, among

the quadrupeds, refuse the male, with the exception, indeed, of the

mare and the sow; superfœtation, however, takes place in none but the

dasypus and the hare.

CHAP. 84. (64.)—THE POSITION OF ANIMALS IN THE UTERUS.