On thy Presence, bright ESSENCE! my hope will pre sume That thy smile of approval my song may illume; spotted and barred with black; beneath, light ferruginous, barred with black; tail cinereous grey, with a black bar near the end; legs yellow. The female is considerably larger than the male; the head and tail the same colour as the back, which is not so bright a red-brown as the male; beneath, lighter than the male, but the black spots not so distinct; eggs from four to six, not so large as a pigeon's; colour reddish brown, with dark blotches; nest on trees, and sometimes in a deserted mag. pie's or crow's nest. Inhabits England, Europe, and Siberia. Feeds principally on mice, sometimes on cockchafers, occasionally on birds; seen hovering in the air and quite stationary for some time, then pouncing suddenly down on its prey. This bird is a very useful one. In a paper read before the Linnean Society containing some valuable observations on the Birds of Norfolk and Suffolk by the Rev. R. SHEPPARD and the Rev. W. WHITEAR, May 3, 1825, it is stated, that a hawk of this kind was observed to dart upon a weasel and immediately to mount aloft with it in its talons; but had not proceeded far before both fell from a considerable height to the ground; the weasel ran off, but the Kestril, upon examination, was found to have been killed by a bite in its throat. This bird is said to migrate to the north early in the spring; there are several varieties; it was formerly trained to catch game. The Palumbarius, or GosHAWK, inhabits England, Europe, and North America. Legs yellow, body brown, tail feathers with pale bands; length twenty-two inches; devours poultry, and was formerly much used in falconry.-The Nisus, SPARROW-HAWK, or Spar-Hawk, inhabits England, Europe, Africa, and Madeira. The legs are yellow, body above yellowish brown, beneath, white waved with grey, tail with blackish bands. Male twelve inches, the female fifteen inches long. That, to NATURE, to TRUTH, and to SCIENCE, devote, My Harp may respond with a musical note; Two other varieties: one spotted with white, the other entirely white. It is very bold, and preys on poultry, pigeons, partridges, &c. Sometimes tamed and flies abont gardens; it has been also taught to catch larks. The male of this species was formerly called a musket. The Gyrfalco, or BROWN GYRFALCON, inhabits Europe, and preys on cranes and pigeons. The Lannarius, or LANNER, is the size of the Buzzard; three varieties. Inhabits England, Europe, and Tartary. Builds in low trees; migrates: much esteemed in falconry. The Vespertinus, or INGRIAN FALCON, inhabits Ingria, Russia, and Siberia; size of a pigeon; builds on trees, or takes possession of a magpie's nest; preys on quails; flies abroad chiefly in the evening or at night. The Subbuteo or HOBBY, inhabits England, Europe, and Siberia; back brown, belly palish, with oblong brown spots; twelve inches long; two varieties; preys on larks. The Esolon, or MERLIN, inhabits Europe; body above bluish ash, with rusty spots and stripes; beneath, yellowish white with oblong spots; length twelve inches. Migrates southerly on the approach of winter; often seen in England. Three other varieties found in the West Indies, or New York. The Pumilius, or TINY FALCON, has the body brown ash, beneath whitish, with blackish bars. Said to be the smallest of the genus, being hardly six inches long; inhabits Cayenne; but the Cerulescens, a native of Java, described by Dr. HORSFIELD, and a specimen of which is in the East India House Museum, is, I believe, still smaller. The Communis, COMMON FALCON, Yearly Falcon, Aged Falcon, or Falcon Gentle, of which there are above ten varieties, inhabits Europe and North America, some of its varieties, China, Hudson's Bay, and India. The general colour of the plumage is brown, the feathers edged with rusty; body beneath white, irregularly marked with brown; the tail with darker transverse That SCIENCE affianc'd with NATURE, fair bride, With THEE and with TRUTH o'er my SONG may preside: bands; bill bluish ash; legs green or yellow; length eighteen inches; feeds on various animals. The above is the usual colours of the bird at three years old; but it puts on different appearances from year to year till it arrives at that age. One variety is entirely white, with scarcely visible yellow spots; another brownish black; another spotted with black and red. The mule is considerably smaller than the female, and hence he has been called a Tircelet, Tercell, or Tassel ; he is also said to be much less courageous than the female, and hence she was the bird usually employed in HAWKING, a sport which was for. merly so much in repute; but which has, deservedly, given way to other and more praiseworthy occupation, I trust never to be revived: we may hope too that the intelligence which is abroad will ultimately banish from among men the puerile pursuits of hunting and shooting animals for sport, thau which what can be, to an intellectual being, more derogatory or degrading? Hawking, hunting, shooting, and fishing for sport are all the remains of the prejudices and customs of barbarous ages: it is time that a high and diffused intelligence should lift up its voice and discountenance so great a departure from the dignity of intellectual man. Some of the Falcon tribe have been used in Asia for hunting Hares, Deer, &c. Mr. SOUTHEY alludes to this sport in Thalaba: "The deer bounds over the plain : The lagging dogs behind Follow from afar ! But lo! the Falcon o'er head Hovers with hostile wings And buffets him with blinding strokes." THALABA, vol. ii. page 129. The Peregrinus, PEREGRINE FALCON, or Duck Hawk, is found But soft-some warbler's echoing lay on some of our rocky shores, and builds commonly in the most inaccessible cliffs; it was formerly much used in falconry, and, being a bold and powerful bird, was in great esteem; it was, however, chiefly used in the taking of Ducks, and other waterfowl,-whence one of its names. In concluding this long note on an important genus of birds it may just be added, that by the 9th of Hen. VII, "taking the eggs of any Fawcons, Goshawks, Laners, or Swannes, out of the neste," rendered the offender liable "to be imprisoned for a year and a day, and a fine at the king's will:" and that the Duke of St. Alban's is still hereditary grand Falconer of England: but the office is not exercised. There are also several statutes relating to hawks and their eggs, which it may be sufficient merely to mention they are, it is presumed, all become a dead letter. It may also be observed that, in former times, and in many countries, the custom of carrying a falcon about was esteemed a mark of a man of rank: many persons of distinction were painted with a hawk on the hand. Aristotle, Pliny, and many other ancient writers, speak of the method of catching birds by means of hawks; but, it is said, that falconry was practised with far more spirit and universality among the ancient Britons than in any other nation; that it commenced as early as the fifth century, and was cultivated as late as the fifteenth, when the introduction of the use of gunpowder most probably superseded the use of birds, as means of obtaining game. THE WOOD-LARK'S INVOCATION. Alauda arborea. (LINN.) GODDESS of the realm of SONG ! Round whose throne the WARBLERS throng, Love demands our earliest lay;— While we welcome laughing spring. MAY, with feet bedropp'd with dew, MAY, whose arch look, winning wiles, GODDESS of the soul of SONG! Thou to whom delights belong, Deign to prompt the WARBLERS' LAY; (2) Order, PasSERES, (Linn.) LARK, the WOOD, the TIT, the Rock, the MEADOW, &c. The Genus ALAUDA, (Linn.) or LARK, comprehends more than fifty species distinguished by a sharp, pointed, slender, bill, nostrils covered partly with feathers and bristles: tongue cloven at the end toes divided to their origin: claw of the back toe very long, a little crooked: their motion running not hopping. The following are the chief: The Arvensis, or SKY-LARK, for an account of which see the SKY-LARK'S SONG. |