FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   105   106   107   108   109   110   111   112   113   114   115   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   128   129  
130   131   132   133   134   135   136   137   138   139   140   141   142   143   144   145   146   147   148   149   150   151   152   153   154   >>   >|  
ually on the ear. The hen is an affectionate mother, and takes every means, when a stranger approaches her nest, to lead him away from the spot. Wilson describes observing a hen-pheasant depart from this usual custom. He came suddenly upon one with a young bird in her company. The mother fluttered before him for a short time, when suddenly darting towards the young one, she seized it in her bill, and flew off along the surface of the ground through the woods, with great steadiness and rapidity, till she was beyond his sight, leaving him in much surprise at the incident. He searched round, but could find no other birds. Here was a striking instance of something more than "blind instinct"--by the adoption of the most simple and effectual means for the preservation of her solitary young one--in this remarkable deviation from the usual manoeuvres of the bird when she has a numerous brood. The ruffed grouse is of a rich chestnut-brown, mottled with brown and grey; while on each shoulder are the curious ruffs, or tufts, from which he obtains his name, of a rich velvety black, glossed with green. The skin beneath them is bare; the tail is grey, barred with blackish-brown. Another species of grouse, smaller than the two former, inhabits Canada. PASSENGER-PIGEONS. Flights of locusts are often seen passing through the air, like vast clouds, obscuring the sky. The passenger-pigeon of America appears in almost equal numbers. The accounts of their vast nights would be incredible, were they not thoroughly well authenticated. They are beautiful birds; the males being about sixteen inches in length, the females slightly smaller, and usually of less attractive plumage. The head, part of the neck, and chin of the male bird, are of a slaty-blue colour; the lower portions being also of a slate colour, banded with gold, green, and purplish-crimson, changing as the bird moves here and there. Reddish-hazel feathers cover the throat and breast, while the upper tail-coverts and back are of a dark slaty-blue. Their other feathers are black, edged with white; and the lower part of the breast and abdomen are purplish-red and white. The beak is black, and the eyes of a fiery orange hue, with a naked space round them of purplish-red. Its chief food is the beech-mast; but it also lives on acorns, and grain of all sorts--especially rice. It is calculated that each bird eats half a pint of food in the day; and when we recollec
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   105   106   107   108   109   110   111   112   113   114   115   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   128   129  
130   131   132   133   134   135   136   137   138   139   140   141   142   143   144   145   146   147   148   149   150   151   152   153   154   >>   >|  



Top keywords:
purplish
 

colour

 

grouse

 

feathers

 

breast

 
mother
 
suddenly
 

smaller

 
pigeon
 

America


females

 

length

 
passenger
 

attractive

 
plumage
 

clouds

 
inches
 
obscuring
 

slightly

 

authenticated


beautiful

 

sixteen

 

incredible

 

numbers

 

nights

 

accounts

 

appears

 

acorns

 

orange

 

recollec


calculated

 
changing
 

crimson

 

banded

 

portions

 
Reddish
 

abdomen

 
coverts
 

throat

 
velvety

surface
 

ground

 
darting
 
seized
 

steadiness

 

rapidity

 
incident
 

searched

 
surprise
 

leaving