KEOPHROW PEKCIiOPTjEBlTS.
J WoifbUCBuhtir. âtl et hOu
As might be supposed, the 0
their peculiar habits and mode
Asia, and Africa; but that the
Britain cannot be questioned, i
in Somersetshire, in October,
sheep, and had so gorged tjiHn
a time, and was therefore at»)
appearance, was seen a t the sat
piti«h Islands are not a favourite place o f resort for any o f the Vultures,
of Uff* being more especially adapted for the southern countries o f Europe,
present species has undoubted claims to a place in the avifauna of Great
?asinuch as, according to Selby and Yarrell, a specimen was shot near Kilvc,
t •■ hk'h “ when first discovered was feeding upon the carcass of a dead
.•>!; the carrion a g to be unable or unwilling to fly to any great distance at,
•«ached and shot without much difficulty. Another bird, similar to it in
t,e time upon the wing at no great distance; it remained in the neighbourhood
e mate o f the one killed. T h e state and colour o f the pluma;
xiptioct o f M. Temimnck aud others, indicate a young bird, pro
a few days, and. was supposed fo.-f
this individual, judging from the
o f the first or, a t the furthest, of -riy. second vt»r.” *
Much more recently, namely in 1808, the acquisition o f a second example is thus recorded by Dr. Bree
in the ‘ Zoologist' for th at yearT
“ On the 28th of September-last the lab
o f Stanway Hall, sit uated a t Peldon, in Ess
after into the yard he sat
strange bird feeding upon the blood. Th
his gun. Presently w ca
again and hovered over the spot hope
his fate was sealed, and
Ambrose, to whom it few
the capture o f Vultur p em o p iëm
our shores, though not captured ;who lived near Bumhattt, further ap
among the large trees oh his farm.
Egyptian- At all events this bird w
occasionally visit our shores. The >
Respecting the two BrUjsi.-killed
with the following note :— “ Mr. Yar
in the possession o f the Rev. A . M ;
Chalvey, who informs me that it was
from Kilvc.” Through the »tercets
bis bird to London for tny iBMwctnw
) off-hand farm of Mr. Woodward,
haetmas geese: on going some time
bird flew away, and the man loaded
who had charge of
id been killing his M'
in hopesiojf another spell at the blood; but
! dead to the labourer’s shot. I wtw the bird next day at the house o f Mr.
sent for preservation. As far as I know, this is only the second instance of
rus in Great Britain. It is quite p^sahfe that it has more frequently visited
:l;
for Mr. I.aver, o f Colchester, informs me that many years ago his father,
tak en ; and I woul
the interest **f asy
I V nearest cow
tolerafvh «bumfem
pftrticu «;«■?•* in fta
Not han u g \m
observation* of ihi
“ The E gyptbi
attracted by a car
together. The ai
natives has a pair
i here tei
ichueatio
the Essex coast than Peldon. had a flock o f Vultures for several days
They were known by their fedi* beads, and were most probably the
ist now, I think, be ranked without doubt among the strangers which
pecimen now shot was in immature plumage.”
examples above mentioned/ Mr J . H. Gurney, jun., has favoured me
• ■ 11 was in error when he stated that the first-mentioned specimen was
i*hew". Such is not the easet if. belongs to the Rev. Mr. Mathew,'of
•btained on the cliffs bordering the British Channel, about half a mile
w n of mv friend Dr. B rer. M e. Woodward was -so obliging as to send
poctior. I t was from this specimen that the reduced figure in my Plate was
1er tm acknowledgments to both gcr.ilemet» for an act of courtesy whereby
o f the »pecies has been much enhanced.
r own where this bird is common arc Soothern France and Spain r there it is
is in all the more eastern p a rtsA f Europe ; but it is in Turkey and Egypt, and
t, that it is more numerous tbarf elsewhere.
v of observing this bird in ¡a '’state o f nature, I must now - n i mysrh" of
o f the;
sale a
alture
i respecting it.
rrefl, “ does not live in flocks like other Vuku
ty be seen assembled. At other times it » rare I
om separate, in the districts which it inhabits
ittached to it. The birds roost on the trees in 1
when