This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from ...
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This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1825 Excerpt: ...to birds four times their dimensions. The greater butcher-bird is about as large as a thrush; its bill is black, an inch long, and hooked at the end. This mark, together with its carnivorous appetites, ranks it among the rapacious birds; at the same time that its legs and feet, which are slender, and its toes, formed somewhat differently from the former, would seem to make it the shade between such birds as live wholly upon flesh, and such as live chiefly upon insects and grain. Indeed, its habits seem entirely to correspond with its conformation, as it is found to live as well upon flesh as upon insects, and thus to p;irtake in some measure of a double The Serrrunry Fiilcon, an inhabitant of Asia and Africa, is a curious bird, for whose natural history wfc are chiefly indebted to the indefatigable labours of M. le Vail ant. Its body, when standing erect, is not much unlike the cmne; but its head, bill, and claws, are precisely those of the faicon. The general colour of the plumage is a bluish-ash; the tips of the wings, the thighs, and the vent, being blackish: the tail is black near the end, but the verv tip is white: the legs are long, so that it meauret, when standing erect, full three feet from the top of the head to the ground. Ou the back or the head are nature. However, its appetite for flesh is the most prevalent; and it never takes up with the former when it can obtain the latter. This bird, therefore, leads a life of continual combat and opposition. As from its size it does not much terrify the smaller birds of the forest, so it very frequently meets birds willing to try its strength, and it never declines the engagement. It is wonderful to see with what intrepidity this little creature goes to war with the pie, the crow, and the kestril, all abo...
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