* Norft - of oreat interest from the obvious truthfulness of his
if Norfolk,’ a work of great interest fro1 ,

of his ‘History of the Birds « ee
is ace the rence
observations and remarks, I here annex bis account of the differe

s by which Bewick’s Swan is especially

distinguished :— - size (being one third less than the Whooper at the same age), exhibits

a ee Z cea oe was “r ‘The head is shorter and the elevation of the cranium
the following external differences, as given by Yarrell. The hea ; . ne :
eg he size of the head, the beak narrow at the middle and dilated towards the point.
— ss : ‘ar beyond the roots of the tail-feathers; the tail itself is
The wings when closed do not extend quite so far beyon¢ wus : oe

ve ae Bah tan 4 ‘oportion to the length of the tarsi.’ To these |

somewhat cuneiform; and the toes appear shorter in prop ; : oe Se ae

may add, from the examination of several specimens, both adult and immature, the et” that the
proportion of yellow to black in the bill of the adult Bewick s Swan 1s much less t agp se a ps
extending so far along the sides of the upper mandible, but rounding off behind the nostrils. The colour itself in
some freshly killed birds is decidedly more of a lemon-yellow than orange. The membrane beneath the lower
mandible also, which in the Whooper is yellow, is black in the adult Bewick’s Swan, and light’grey in the young,
a distinction apparently overlooked by Yarrell. ‘The distribution of black and yellow on the upper mandible
varies, however, in different specimens ; and I am somewhat inclined to believe that the broad band of black upon
the ridge of the bill extends nearer, by age, to the forehead, as in one or two examples in pure white plumage, |
have seen traces of the black extending quite up to the base of the bill, the usual yellow band across the upper
part showing faint indications of black mixed with the yellow colour. ‘This is not the case with birds
showing the slightest remains of grey in their plumage; and in such immature examples the tints of the bill, both
black and yellow, are less vivid. An adult bird, purchased in Norwich Market on the Ist of February, 1865,
weighed thirteen pounds ; and of two killed in the winter of 1870-71, a male weighed twelve pounds and a quarter,
and a female nine pounds. In many adult birds of this species that I have seen, the feathers of the upper part
of the head, especially, have been more or less tinged with rust-colour. Internally the convolutions of the trachea
present as marked a difference between this species and the Whooper, as between the latter and the domestic
Swan; but a reference to Yarrell’s illustrations will render it unnecessary for me to give here any further
description,”

I have long been aware that the extent of yellow and black markings of the bill are very variable ; and
Professor H. Schlegel, of Leyden, is of opinion that in England we only see young birds or females which

have more yellow on their bills than fully adult birds; but we certainly do get old birds also, as is shown
by the well-developed convolutions of the trachea. It is probable, I think, that specimens sometimes occur

in which the bill is almost wholly black ; otherwise why has the term melanorhinus been given to a bird

of this form by Naumann ?
Of the flesh of the Wild Swans as a viand, St. John says, that of those which feed inland is perfectly free
from any strong and unpleasant flavour, their food consisting

almost wholly of a kind of water-grass with a
bulbous root, of which there is a plentiful supply in the lochs of Sutherlandshire, and doubtless other parts
of Scotland ; and the birds become very fat, so much so as to make it exceedingly. difficult to preserve the
skins, the only part of them which he put to any use. ‘* When the feathers are picked out, there remains a
great thickness of very beautiful snow-white down, which, when properly dressed by a London furrier, makes
boas and other articles of ladies’ dress of unrivalled beauty.”
Speaking of the bird on Loch Spynie, St. John says, ‘‘ It usually comes in smaller companies than the
Hooper; I never saw above eight together, usually only four or five. They are easily distinguished, being
shorter and more compact-looking birds. They also swim rather higher in the water, and are mnch tamer.
ned, it is easy to approach them.
snow-like whiteness. The Wild Swan, on the w

as it seldom arches its

l ntil they have been shot at and frighte Their plumage is of a pure and
ater, is by no means so picturesque a bird as the tame Swan,
nec r - : a6 = od - a eo « » ‘ . « ~ . © + : '
ches k or spreads out its wings to act as sails as the latter bird does. On wing,
however, the Wild Swan is unrivalled,”

Tue egg, as figured by Mr Hewits is i i

gg, as hg ir. Hew S crez Iw . “e hes ¢ j

3 ge, gu y itson, Is creamy white, three inches and three quarters in length, by two
mches and seven eighths in breadth. : ;

Phe sexes are similar in plumage ; but the
to fourteen pounds, or about half that of the

The principal figure is about half the

male is smaller than the female

, Its weight being from nine
W hooper.

natural size.