Part 21

THE WHISTLING SWAN.

The WHISTLING SWAN (Cygnus musicus) has a more compact body and shorter and thicker neck than the Cygnus olor. The beak, which is without the cere, is raised at its yellow base, and tipped with black. This species is sixty inches long, and from ninety to ninety-six broad, the wing measures twenty-four, and the tail eight inches.

The Whistling Swan is a native of the colder latitudes of both hemispheres, but has been known to breed as far south as Greece. In England, where it is only a winter visitor, it is sometimes seen in large flocks, should the season be severe, but very rarely occurs in mild winters. In the eastern countries of Europe it is numerously met with.

The winter peregrinations of this bird take it at certain seasons into Egypt and Northern Africa, as also to the north-western portions of the African continent, as for example the lakes of Morocco, Algeria, and Tunis. It also sometimes visits Spain. In an easterly direction it is to be met with in great numbers throughout the lake districts of Central Russia, and also near the mouths of large rivers, both in Southern Russia and Central Siberia. Of the Whistling Swans that breed in Iceland, few ever wander far from their native place, and this for a very simple reason, namely, that owing to the Gulf stream which sweeps through its numerous bays and creeks, and the many hot springs derived from volcanic sources, the inland lakes are kept free from ice, while in Russia the swans are all obliged to take their departure before the setting in of winter freezes the lakes and rivers.

In its general appearance the Whistling Swan bears some resemblance to the Mute or Tame Swan, but is by no means so elegant in its shape. Its neck has not the same flexibility or the same graceful bend; nevertheless, though surpassed in grace by Cygnus olor, it is a very beautiful bird. The main feature in which it differs from other Swans is its loud-toned and agreeable voice. Pallas informs us that "its voice has a sound as sweet as that of a silver bell," and adds, "it sings as it flies, and may be heard at a great distance, indeed all that has been said of the notes of the dying Swan is no fable, for with its last breath the wounded 'Singing Swan' utters its song."

"The epithet musicus," says Faber, "is well bestowed on these birds, for when a little flock of them approaches, flying in the air, their tuneful melancholy voices sound like trumpets heard at a distance. Olaf tells us, "when a company of these birds passes through the air, their song during the long winter nights is truly delightful, equal to the notes of a violin." "It is certain," says Arman, "that the voice of a Singing Swan has a more silvery tone than that of any other creature. When wounded, its breath produces this silver sound, so that its song is celebrated in many a Russian ballad." Oesel says, "Their song consists of two notes, which when uttered by the whole flock are very loud, and may be heard at the distance of three English miles." "At last," says Homeyer, "I have heard the voice of the Singing Swan. Eight or ten of these birds were swimming about a hundred yards from the shore, and uttering their loud full-sounding notes. I cannot say that any melody was distinguishable; there was first a single, long-drawn, well-sounding note, followed by another in a lower key, so that altogether they formed a sound that was not inharmonious. Notwithstanding the distance at which I was, the notes were brought distinctly to my ear over the water."

Schilling expresses himself still more plainly: "When, owing to the intensity of the frost the water of the sea is frozen, and the streams everywhere converted into ice, and the Swans are thus shut out from all the shallows where they usually obtain their food, these stately birds assemble by hundreds in any patch of water that may be still accessible, and there, with melancholy cries, bewail their destitute condition. At such times during the long winter evenings, and throughout the night, I have often listened to their many-voiced lamentations, which have been heard distinctly at a distance of three or four miles. Sometimes the notes thus heard would resemble the sound of a bell, sometimes that of some wind instrument. Still it was not exactly like either of them, just as a living voice cannot be imitated by dead metal. This peculiar concert realised in my mind the truth of what I had heard concerning the song of the Swan, which I had before regarded as a poetical fiction. Indeed, in one sense it might truly be called the death-song of these beautiful creatures, for, seeing that they are quite unable to obtain their food in deep water, they must soon die of hunger, as they no longer have strength enough to fly to a warmer climate, and are thus often found starved to death and frozen upon the ice; still to the last we hear their clear melancholy voice."

From these extracts we hope the reader will be able to arrive at a more correct idea of the real character of the song of the dying Swan. The poetical notions which have been entertained upon the subject have, it appears, really some foundation, but the facts have been so distorted as to become no longer recognisable. The dying Swan, we find, has nothing peculiar in its notes, but its last cries may be as loud and musical as any others to which it has previously given utterance.

In Russia, we are told, the Whistling Swan is preferred as an ornamental bird to our Tame Swan, principally on account of the loudness of its voice.

Montagu gives the following interesting account of one of these birds which was shot at Bridgewater, and was given to him after it recovered from its wounds:--

"This beautiful and docile creature is now in high health, living with many sorts of Ducks, in the greatest harmony. Towards the spring she becomes more clamorous and impatient of confinement, but at all times will approach those persons who are in the habit of feeding her, and will take food from the hand, at the same time uttering those plaintive harmonious notes for which the species has been remarkable, and which are always attended with a singular jerk of the head. She usually carries her neck straight and erect, either upon the water or when stationary upon land; but in walking the head is lowered, and the neck reclining on the back. In the season of love she flaps along the surface of the water, and would undoubtedly fly if the precaution of annually cutting the feathers of one wing were omitted. Her nature is gentle, timid, and sociable, and she will follow those with whom she is acquainted from one side of the menagerie to the other, especially the ladies of the family dressed in white; is often turned out of her course by a pugnacious male Shieldrake, and acts only offensively when food is the object, and then only when resentment is not expected. She eats but little grass on land, but will devour aquatic plants occasionally. Barley, however, is her principal food, and she never attempts to touch bread, which is sometimes thrown to other birds; nor will she devour small fish, which some of the Diving Ducks greedily eat."

The nesting-place of the Whistling Swan is in the wide swamps of Finland and North Russia; considerable numbers likewise breed in Iceland and North America. In Iceland, Faber tells us, they may be seen in February upon ponds of fresh water, and there they remain until the end of April, when most of them resort to more elevated situations; some of them, however, remain in the valleys. A small pond or lake is always selected as a breeding-place, and if a pair should not be able to appropriate a whole pond, they take possession of part as their own peculiar property, and resolutely drive away all intruders. The nest, which is sometimes raised upon an island, but often floats upon the water, is generally a huge structure, built of reeds, rushes, sedge, and water-plants, and its cavity carefully lined with down. About the end of April or the beginning of May (probably much earlier in more southern latitudes) the female lays from five to seven yellowish white, greenish, or brownish yellow eggs, from which the young come forth during the first days of July. The faithful husband during the whole period of incubation keeps his partner company, lying upon the nest, but taking no part in the brooding. Towards the middle of October the whole family may be seen swimming about together, the young ones being by that time nearly fully fledged. Throughout the north these Swans are eagerly sought for, and many are mercilessly destroyed during the moulting season. When moulting their wing-quills they are attacked in their breeding-ponds by means of small boats, and numbers of them killed with sticks. Both old and young are at this season very fat, and are in much request for the table.

BEWICK'S SWAN.

BEWICK'S SWAN (Cygnus Bewickii) is considerably smaller than the species above described. In this bird the neck is very slender, the bill much raised at its base, and the tail composed of eighteen feathers; in other respects it resembles the Cygnus musicus. The plumage is at first grey, afterwards white, tinged with rust-red on the crown of the head and under surface of the body, and ultimately becomes of a pale white. Bewick's Swan is an annual visitor to Great Britain, and is most numerously seen during severe and long-continued snowstorms, when it resorts to the open sea-coast of estuaries. Mr. Blackwall, describing a flock of these birds seen in Lancashire, says, "They were observed flying at an elevation not exceeding fifty yards above the surface of the earth. They flew in a line, taking a northerly direction, and their loud calls, for they were very clamorous when on the wing, might be heard to a considerable distance. One individual of this flock having been wounded, was placed on a reservoir, near the place where it fell. When on the water it had somewhat the appearance of a Goose, being almost wholly devoid of that grace and majesty by which the Mute Swan is so distinguished. It appeared to be a shy and timid bird, and could only be approached by stratagem, when it intimated its apprehension by uttering its call. This bird carefully avoided the company of a Mute Swan that occupied the same piece of water." According to Yarrell, some other specimens taken near Belfast were very gentle and timid, and never attempted to molest the Wild Fowl contained in the same pond, though all were their inferiors both in size and strength.

This Swan appears by preference to spend the greater portion of its time on land. Its voice, which is chiefly heard during the migratory season, is a low deep whistle, once repeated. Temminck states that this species breeds in Iceland in May, and has been seen in Picardy during the winter.

THE BLACK-NECKED SWAN.

The BLACK-NECKED SWAN (Cygnus nigricollis) is a beautiful bird, inhabiting South America, and recognisable from its northern brethren by the shortness of its wings, which do not extend beyond the base of the tail, which is composed of eighteen feathers, and by the black in its plumage. In this bird the entire body is white with black head and neck, the former enlivened by a white line upon the brow. The eye is brown, and the beak lead-grey; the cere and bare cheek-stripes are blood-red, and the feet pale red. This species is forty-eight inches long, the wing measures fourteen, and the tail from six to seven inches. The habitat of the Black-necked Swan is limited to the most southern portion of America, extending from South Peru to the Falkland Islands, and from that point along the east coast as far as Santos in Brazil. The residence of these birds varies with the season of the year; during the spring and autumn they are met with in small parties about Buenos Ayres on their way to their more northern haunts, where they remain throughout the winter, when they return south to breed. During the period of incubation they occupy the lagoons and lakes of the interior, and after that season unite with their own and allied species into large flocks. The flight of this Swan is light and beautiful, but in other respects it is without the grace that characterises most members of this family. While swimming the neck is held erect, after the manner of a Goose. We are without particulars concerning the incubation of these birds, beyond that when first hatched the young are covered with white down, and that they grow with such rapidity that by the autumn they are scarcely distinguishable from their parents. The late Earl of Derby was presented with the first Black-necked Swan ever brought to Europe; to this were afterwards added seven more. After the death of the Earl two were presented to her Majesty, and the rest consigned to the Zoological Gardens, in the Regent's Park, where they lived for many years without breeding. In 1856, however, a pair commenced a nest, but did not lay until the following year, since which time they have incubated annually.

THE BLACK SWAN.

The BLACK SWAN (Cygnus-Chenopsis-atratus) has a slender body, very long neck, and small well-formed head; the beak nearly equals the head in length, and is without a cere. In this species almost the entire plumage is of a brownish black, lightest on the under side, and shading into blackish grey at the edges of the feathers. This sombre garb is relieved by the brilliant white of the primary and of a considerable portion of the secondary quills. The eyes are scarlet, the bridles red, and the feet black: the beak is carmine-red, tipped with white, a stripe near the extremity of the upper mandible is also white. This bird is not quite so large as the Cygnus olor. The Black Swan is not merely strictly confined to Australia, but inhabits only its southern and western districts, occupying the rivers, estuaries, lagoons, and large pieces of water frequently in large flocks. On arms of the sea, which expand into sheets of shallow water, these birds are especially numerous, as in such localities they are beyond the reach of severe winds or pursuit from the natives. "In the white man, however," says Mr. Gould, "the Black Swan finds an enemy so deadly, that it has been almost, if not entirely, extirpated. One most destructive mode in which this is effected, is that of chasing the birds with a boat at the time they shed their primary quill-feathers, when, being unable to fly, they are soon rowed down and captured."

The breeding season is from the beginning of October to the middle of January. Mr. Gould procured newly-hatched young, clad in greyish white, at Southport River, on the 31st of December, and took five newly-laid eggs on Flinders' Island on Bass' Straits, on the 13th January. The nest is large, composed of flags and other herbage, and generally placed on an isolated island. The eggs are from five to eight, pale green stained all over with buffy brown, and are four and a half inches long by two and three-quarters broad. The Black Swan is graceful in demeanour, and gentle and harmless unless molested.

These birds are to be found in most aviaries in Europe, but as an instance of their most successful rearing, Mr. Gould gives us the following account of some of them kept on the Wandle, at Carshalton, Surrey, by Mr. S. Gurney:--"They were purchased from Baker, Leadenhall Market, in 1851, but did not breed till 1854, when they laid their first egg on January 1. It was a most severe winter, snow on the ground, and intense frost nearly the whole time they were sitting. They hatched their young during the greatest cold of that winter, from which they did not suffer, though they had no shelter of any kind, and their nest was fully exposed to the east wind. Out of the ninety-three young ones hatched by them up to the present year, 1862 (inclusive), about half that number have been reared. Some of them have died from disease, but most of them have been killed by the old ones dragging them about in the fields, when they have fallen into small holes on their backs, and have not been able to recover themselves. They have bred sixteen times in seven years, having laid 111 eggs."

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The GEESE (Anseres) constitute a very numerous family, whose members are met with in all parts of the world. In these birds the body is compact, the neck short, and the head large; the legs are situated near the middle of the body. The beak, which nearly equals the head in length, and slopes gradually to its tip, is vaulted above and flat beneath, compressed at its sides, and terminated by a large broad nail; its margins are more or less denticulated, and its surface covered with a soft skin. The moderate-sized foot has its three anterior toes united by a large web, and armed with stout, strong, flatly-curved claws. In the large, broad, pointed wing the second quill is longer than the rest, and the upper secondaries are less developed than in the Swan; the wrist-joint exhibits a hard knob, which in some species assumes the form of a powerful spur. The short tail is composed of from fourteen to twenty feathers, and is either broadly rounded or straight at its extremity. The plumage is very similarly coloured in both sexes, but varies considerably in different groups; the young when one year old resemble their parents. Every division of the world has its own appropriate species of Geese. In Europe, and in Asia, many different kinds are to be met with in almost equal abundance, and in high northern latitudes many are common to the eastern and western hemispheres. Towards the south, however, the habitat of the different races is more sharply defined. The Geese are less exclusively aquatic than any other Lamellirostres; indeed, some of them pass the greater part of their lives on dry land, and a few might almost be called arboreal in their habits, seeing that they not only resort to and roost upon trees, but build their nests among the branches. Most of them prefer plains to mountainous districts; nevertheless, certain species are to be met with at considerable altitudes, both in the Himalayas and the Andes. They walk extremely well, and though in swimming they are neither so graceful as the Swans nor as active as the Ducks, they row themselves along with ease and facility; on an emergency many of them will dive to a considerable depth, and the power and endurance of their flight is remarkable. When flying in companies, they always arrange themselves in a regular V-shaped phalanx, the form of which appears to be of importance; neither is it difficult to understand why they so persistently adopt the same arrangement, as it is evident that such a disposition is the only one that would enable every individual of the numerous party to have a free and unobstructed range of vision, and, moreover, it possibly facilitates their passage through the air, at all events it affords free scope for the use of their wings, which otherwise, from their crowding together, would be seriously interfered with. Very generally a flight of Wild Geese will be seen to press onward with unbroken ranks until they are quite lost in the distance; occasionally, however, they will, as it were, with one consent relax their speed, break up their phalanx, and for a short space become confusedly mixed together. Soon, however, a leader again places himself at their head; his followers resume their ranks, and the whole body moves forward in precisely the same order as before. Their flight is accompanied by a loud rushing noise, caused by the powerful strokes of their wings, and the rising or setting down of a flock presents a very bustling scene. When walking on level ground, the Geese keep the fore part of the body slightly elevated, with their neck straight or somewhat bent. Their steps are short and quick, and upon occasions many species can run with considerable speed. While swimming, the breast is deeply immersed, while the tail, on the contrary, is raised above the surface of the water. Their voice varies with the species; most of them express their anger by loud and prolonged hissing, some cackle, while others, like the Singing Swans, produce loud resonant notes that can be heard at a great distance.

These birds differ very much, both as to the localities they select for their nesting-places, and the season at which they breed. Many species, as spring approaches, begin to assemble in remote morasses and unfrequented swamps, and here upon small islands or hillocks they make a rude kind of nest, composed of water-plants, and lined with down. Some, on the contrary, select the forked branches and hollow trunks of trees, or occasionally convert to their own use the eyries of other birds. Their brood consists of from six to twelve well-shaped, thick-shelled eggs, always of a dull and uniform tint. The usual duration of incubation is about a month. The newly-hatched Goslings are covered with a soft warm coat of greyish down, and soon begin, under the guidance of their parents, to provide for themselves. They run and swim actively on the very day of their birth, and their growth is so rapid, that in the course of a couple of months they are completely fledged. They, however, remain together as a family for a very long period. All Geese live principally upon vegetable diet; by means of the hard margins of their beak they are able to crop grass, and also to collect grain, and a variety of vegetables. They likewise procure various small animals and aquatic plants from the bottom of the water.

THE SPUR-WINGED GOOSE.

The SPUR-WINGED GOOSE (Plectropterus Gambensis) is characterised by its large size, slender body, long neck, strong beak, furnished with an excrescence at its base, its unfeathered face, and long bare legs. The feet are provided with long toes, connected by large webs; in the long, pointed wings the upper secondaries are much developed, and the wrist-joint armed with a powerful spur; the tail is of moderate length and wedge-shaped, and the plumage, composed of large feathers, is smooth and compact. In this bird the cheeks, chin, throat, centre of breast, under side, and the short feathers on the upper wing-covers are all white; the rest of the plumage is blackish green. The eyes are reddish brown, the beak and the excrescence at its base blueish red; the feet dull light red. This species is three feet long and five feet and a half broad; the tail measures seven inches. The female is considerably smaller than her mate, but resembles him in the coloration of her feathers; the young are brown on the upper parts of the body, with black wings, a greyish brown neck, and white throat; the rest of their plumage is light grey. The habitat of the Spur-winged Goose extends over the whole of Central and South Africa, where it occupies the borders of streams or rain tanks, in small parties, and seldom wanders to any distance from its usual haunts. During the months of March and July it retires to secluded and marshy localities in order to moult, as at those periods it is unable to fly. At the commencement of the rainy season the flocks separate in pairs, and seek their breeding-places. The large nest, which is formed of rushes, reeds, and grass, is occasionally placed in the water, and contains from three to six eggs. The downy young appear about September or October, and remain with their parents until they are full-grown. Within the first year they acquire the same plumage as the adults, but do not exhibit the excrescence on the bill till they are somewhat older. When in the water the movements of this species resemble those of its brethren, but upon the ground its gait is very similar to that of the Stork. When about to fly it runs for some distance, and then rises with powerful and rapid strokes of its wings to a considerable height; occasionally whilst in the air it may be seen indulging in a very peculiar hovering motion. We have never heard the Spur-winged Goose do more than utter a hoarse hissing sound. According to our own observations it is timid and cautious in its intercourse with man, but appears to take little heed of any of its feathered companions. Yarrell mentions that two specimens of this bird have been shot in England, the one in Cornwall, the other in Yorkshire, and for many years several have been kept in the Zoological Gardens, Regent's Park.

THE GREY OR WILD GOOSE.

The GREY or WILD GOOSE (Anser cinereus), the species from which our Domestic Goose is descended, has the feathers on the upper portions of the body of a brownish grey, edged with a whitish shade; whilst those on the under side are yellowish grey bordered with deep grey. The wing is dark grey, and the region of the rump pure white; the quills and tail-feathers are blackish grey with white shafts, the latter are also tipped with white; the eye is light brown, the beak yellow, and the foot pale red. This species is fully three feet long, and five feet and a half broad; the wing measures eighteen, and the tail six inches. The Grey Wild Goose was formerly very common in the fenny districts of England, but is now comparatively rare both in this country and in Ireland. It is a winter visitor to Orkney and Shetland, but does not remain to breed, passing northwards in the spring.