Catharte Condor, Temm. & L aug. pi. col. 133, adult Male, 494, head of the adult living
t „ Male, 408, young Female.
Condur Vulture, Lath. Syn. p. 4. Id. Suppl. p. 1. jfe. Suppl. II, p. 1, pi. Im Y . Jfe.
Gen. Hist. I, p. 4, pi. 1, adult Male. IIawkesw. Voy. I,, jit 75. Wbom’s Zoography,
X p . <371. Stevenson, Vdy. Jim. II. p. 53*.. 1
Her Condor Geier, o f German authors.
t ‘ Cabinet o f the Academy of Natural Sciences.
Tw^tljh a ^egree®M‘stets history been exaggerated by fables
j jJjat the mention or the Con^g- immediately recalls to mind t f e
Roc, of Marco P#ky®ficf thy Arabian Trales,, Some authors have
indeeArei^rrM athiMiame to it. audjuwen go ^o; far asAUmake it
the fabjecf « f^ n c of the labours of Hercules, the destrufctiOMisfif
the «Stymphalian birds.a Such in fact were Die stories related' by
the,. ea!?/travellers, that V » when reduced to wh A i l
feltgmedt oi Buffon was their reatwalue, mcanriot hut now appear
unaccountaBle’^that they#hould everAiave fouifi eredfence/Uhd
still miire so that compilers should have gon^an accumulating
under the ^onaor’s hjsiwy hot« Pl(§r©ly the tales told of it, but
(Risers ^eollfpted fromTeyery quarter, of th#*globe, howeyi®r ^mote
or difierejlt in climaje, nothesitatin&tei gike cufcreneyto the most
revolting^bsur^itmsiiii Tim sfeoullts ifF Father IfCTtfilee, Who wife
the first describer, Frezieff and especlally^Hawke^orth’s, appear
toyfeyer.t# bwoMrab^eosiredt; while the ardent imagination ©f
Garcilasso led him t# i^dilg##» the wildest extravagances -4»
Relation to this biHL Tmbb.eiplle and de Laet, nO less? than AcoWh,
in his History of jhe lndies, alclCbed. to this cowardly Vulture J fe
strength, couragdl and raptoriaflhahiis of' aft Eaglef and eveip in
a higher degree, ghugdoing him the honour to represent himas
nDfi»idable^ro ever^ living ereatpre, and »the a|padfedr enemy of
man himself. DesmhrfelSm's itoproves^tf possible upoipfeese storie s,
giving the Condor sfxll gitafer ..size and strength, anfi stating that
it* isiwell known to c wry off ipfe its prodigious talons a hind, or
erte® a heifer,' with as muA-easeas an Eaglewould rabbit l
Such a creature could not of course dwell in ficnhifesi few how* could
' it amongtrCes dfopliyits iclmroroipds wings ? r'-‘ i.Theyjiwere therefore
liiditedij to sMvannahs andci^p^n .grounds*- A-Momio -de #®ii.g!,
Sloane in the llhlfeosopUerid TtfanmaetfoMs-,. and wen tfe'd-emmyd
la^Cbndamine, who saw the b ird -hdmseM, ,and certainly witneyse#
nov sue®)exploits an had; beep related* dfi fit, indulged in wild
thebafies; depending On*'«popular?-teles land supeWstitiops/> The
obscurity created by-so muebfHDkrepresAfiationcouldnOt however
its--trudi Yulturei-fMke'natAe; from the vaduteness'of isajljt
wht pointed ba t its approprMteypilaee in'tshensystfem. Ms opimfem
Was adoptedruby Briss/m pnd^'jypmc/^nd- it became ana®m|g
naturalists generally a ^ R ked 'point, notwifetandmfethe« elo-
quentlj^expressed doubts of Buffon, who.want&d lather osnaecoiiant
@#>iiiSi supposed great- strength and agility
tolhfase rank* o>f an Eagley these qualities*.dot permitting, him to
degrade -lithso low a s. the Vutaufes. But a-,-(Stall greater e rro r of
the French Pliny^ as he may befon 'evMy account so appositely
styfo%was '‘consider the'Condort- as- fioi < pe@j§MsWlf. to America,
bt%as= a genuine ^ p j a nbiite, of which happily there were but
fow, however, for otherwise the human rlfce would not' have
been able to stand against them. But it was-onfy’kr its imagina>||r
character that the-#cwdsfe>of Buffon was-truly cosmopolite, having
no other existence than what wa<st,hase'd«Upon absurd and ridiculous
fictions gathered in all parts of th#glp,fee.; for no living bird could
be placed in competition with- one f e w flight,
distance was bo impediment, and whose strength and swiftness-
united would have rendbred him lord of ereation.-
We slhouldi hoWe!^«vim.ake some allowance lot thd^redulity/of
our forefathers, in believing upon the reports*of weak or lying
travellers all -the romance and extravagant tales related of this