22nd of May, in a spot only two feet from the nést of the
preceding year. It consisted of not more than a handful or
so’ of whitish sedge grass, about twenty inches across, and
two or three inches only above the level of the water of the
submerged parts of the marsh, close’to the edge of which it
was situated. There was a kind of creeping moss about ét',
and one or two very low-lying'shobts of sallow.
“ It was placed in an open part of the middle of the
south-east wing of the marsh. I have a memorandum that
there was not then a leaf unrolled, the only visible signs :of
summer being & kind of ’ Carex coming into flower ón thè
hummocks; and yet the nights were quite as light asrfthe
day. I kept watch at the distance of nearly half a mile;
but unfortunately the smoke bf my fire blew towards the
nest. I saw a Crane go sailing down?- and -afterwards the
pair walking together, when they indulged in a minuet or
some more active dance, skipping into the air as the Demoiselles
sometimes do in the Zoological Gardens; Oncemr so
I saw the beak of one pointed perpendicularly^ohtH'eö sky;
and a couple bf "seconds after wards Jhe'loud -trumpet. Struck
my ear. - It was twó’or- three o’clock in thé mornmgctpfore
a bird came on to the nest; andevendhen she-was-soon off,
but again came back,, sitting-always with-her head‘up.'f$Éjü*
left it very wild? when at last we advanced from bur bivouac.
In this watch I r saw and heard many interesting birds,
amongst them a Hen-Harrier (;Gircus.ej/amus)i - Also a pair
of: Goshawks (iis<wr palumba^iusy A&shed into a tree tclbse
over my.head, the Crane still visible-in'the distance. -These
eggs were rather smaller than' the pair from Tsosuomtf' two
other nests-which I have since óbtaimd^in Lapland have
éggs as big as those which are' said -;to'eoTne from Germany,
and vary as they d o ^ I had the pleasure in"August*é&57* of
showing Mr. Frederick" Godman and his' brother Rercy a mest
hear Muonio-v'aara, -from' which èggs were taken th^same
year, and a youngone fledged, from the same marsh at least,
if . not from the- same host as- in 1856.. Their wading.tothis
nest, 'known to be'empty, amidst swarms of grëedy gnats,
was a satisfactory proof fof '-zeal,” | |
The Crane having a strong and thick muscular stomach,
feeds largely upon grain* fenny seeds and bents; and m
Spain it is very partial to the large sweet acorns, so much
so that in the Dehesa de Remonte, in Andalucia, war was
declared against the species, owing to its interfering with,tM.
fattening of the swine which were fed there.; -About S^atow,
in Southern China, Mr. Swinhoe found that, during their
winter spjourn, the Cranes fed-' chiefly upon the tubers of
the sweet potato (Batata* e » g g a n d in-the sandy plains
of the Punjaub, Mr. Hume has observed thèse’birds bpnng
into the water-melons.* 1 .
■ Cranes, when taken young, become amusing, albeit somewhat
\diâgcr ou s, pets fnhd-so, long .ago as 15©|h we- find m an
inventorv of Serjeant Heble’s goods, §at§4J>% Ju&of that
year,-three Cranes valued at five shillings; eacja.f Their
’ peculiar habih ol “ dancings” is. well known,-and may be
frequently' observed in the Gardens of the Zoological Society,
although' this; spefiies; appears-less .-addicted to this display
than|ome ofttofeongeners.' ' -r - ' ’/
The -singular structuré'of the windpipe and its, cdnvohir-
tions^-lodged fefebiween the' two plates of bone forming the
sides of -the-keel of the sternum in this bird have long-been
known. The first illustration on the-next page is a represents
tion-of the ’breast-bone;of a young male Crane, in whiph the
trachea; or windpipe,.quitting the neck, p|%fh^ _bird, passes
downwards and backwards between -;the branches of the
furcula, or merry thought,, to war du-tfie inferior edge-of. the
keel, which -is^hollowed; out-to -receive-it; into this groove,
formed byttËe .-separation of the èides of the* keel,'the trachea
passls, an'd is firmly bound therein ^ cellular membrane,
I bn May, as the Editor was studying the e'oloursyf the sof tp a rtaM
two Cranes, ^ e f e ^ l y a pahvfrôm Lulea mainland, presented .in |Ç W o J e
Zoological Gardens by Mr. .N a n ^ /g T . Shairp,' the.darker bird probably the
male, was observe^ to t be stalking a sparrow ip th^; enclosure. 1 The drawn m
neck shot out to its fullest'è ité n f':‘there was a snap and a faint squeak ; for a
minute 1 so the spaiTow was battered against the ground and then swallowed
whole. The other bird got highly excited during this operation, and, after
executing a ^ d a n c e , made an ineffectual a ^m p h to 'catch another sparrow as
it flew; oyer. ' - ■ m g
■> ‘Gentleman’s Magazine,’ vol.’tSj.-p.‘257.