Chapter 67

CHAP. IV.Of theIncubationof Birds.

Of theIncubationof Birds.

Another Thing relating to the State of this Tribe of Animals, is theirIncubation.

And first, theEggit self deserves our Notice. Its Parts within, and its crusty Coat without, are admirably well fitted for the Business of Incubation. That there should be one Part provided for the Formation of the Body[a], before its Exit into the World, and another for its Nourishment, after it is come into the World, till the Bird is able to shift for, and help it self; and that these Parts should be so accurately brac’d, and kept in due Place[b], is certainly a design’d, as well as curious Piece of Workmanship.

And then as to the Act it self, ofIncubation, What a prodigious Instinct is it in all, or almost all the several Species of Birds, that they, and only they, of all Creatures, should betake themselves to this very Way of Generation? How should they be aware that their Eggs contain their Young, and that their Production is in their Power[c]? What should move them to betake themselves to their Nests, and there with Delight and Patience to abide the due Number of Days? And when their Young are gotten into the World, I have already shewn how admirable their Art, their Care, and Στοργὴ is in bringing them up until, and only until, they are able to shift for themselves.

And lastly, when almost the whole Tribe of Birds, do thus by Incubation, produce their Young, it is a wonderful Deviation, that some few Families only, should do it in a more novercal Way[d], without any Care or Trouble at all, only by laying their Eggs in the Sand, exposed to the Heat and Incubation of the Sun. Of this the Holy Scripture it self gives us an Instance in the Ostrich: Of which we have an Hint,Lam.iv. 3.The Daughter of my People is become cruel, like the Ostriches in the Wilderness.This is more plainly expressed inJobxxxix. 14, 15, 16, 17.[The Ostrich]leaveth her Eggs in the Earth, and warmeth them in the Dust, and forgetteth that the Foot may crush them, or that the Wild-Beast may break them. She is hardened against her Young ones, as though they were not hers: Her Labour is in vain, without Fear. Because God hath deprived her of Wisdom, neither hath he imparted unto her Understanding.In which Words I shall take notice of three Things, 1. Of this anomalous Way of Generation. It is not very strange, that no other Incubation but that ofthe Sun, should produce the Young; but ’tis very odd and wonderful that any one Species should vary from all the rest of the Tribe. But above all, 2. The singular Care of the Creator, in this Case, is very remarkable, in supplying some other Way the Want of the Parent-Animals Care and Στοργὴ[e], so that the Young should notwithstanding be bred up in those large and barren Desarts ofArabiaandAfrica, and such like Places where those Birds dwell, the most unlikely and unfitting (in all human Opinion) to afford Sustenance to young helpless Creatures; but the fittest therefore to give Demonstrations of the Wisdom, Care, and especial Providence of the infinite Creator and Conservator of the World. 3. The last Thing I shall remark is, That the Instincts of Irrational Animals, at least of this specified in the Text, is attributed toGod. For the Reason the Text gives why theOstrich is hardened against her young Ones, as though they were not hers, is, BecauseGODhath deprived her of Wisdom, and not imparted Understanding to her;i.e.he hath denied her that Wisdom, he hath not imparted that Understanding, that Στοργὴ, that natural Instinct to provide for, and nurse up her Young, that most other Creatures of the same, and other Tribes are endowed with.

Thus I have dispatched what I intend to insist upon concerning the State of this Set of Animals; of which, as also of their admirable Instincts, a great deal more might deserve our especial Observation; particularly the admirable Curiosity, Art, and Variety of Nidification[f], used among the various Species of Birds; the great Sagacity, and many Artifices used by them in the Investigation and Capture of their Prey[g], the due Proportion of the more and less useful, the Scarcity of the Voracious and Pernicious, and the Plenty of the Mansuete and Useful[h]. Also the Variety of their Motion and Flight might deserve Consideration, the Swiftness of such whose Food is to be sought in far distant Places, and different Seasons[i]; the slower Motion and short Flights of others more domestick; and even the Aukwardness of some others to Flight, whose Food is near at hand, and to be gotten without any great Occasion of Flight[k]. These and divers other such like Things as these, I say, I might have spoken more largely unto; but I shall pass them by with only a bare Mention, having already taken notice of them in the Company of other Matters of the like Nature, and manifested them to be Acts of excellent Design, Wisdom, and Providence, in the great Creator.

FOOTNOTES:[a]The Chicken is form’d out of, and nourish’d by the White alone, till it be grown great. The Yolk serves for the Chicken’s Nourishment, after it is well grown, and partly also after it is hatch’d. For a good Part of the Yolk remains after Exclusion, being receiv’d into the Chicken’s Belly; and being there reserv’d, as in a Store-house, is by theAppendicula, orDuctus intestinalis, as by a Funnel, convey’d into the Guts, and serves instead of Milk,&c.Willugh. Ornith. L. 1. c. 3.Ipsum animal ex albo liquore Ovi corporatur. Cibus ejus in lutco est.Plin. L. 10. c. 53.Aristotlesaith,The long sharp Eggs bring Females; the round ones, with a larger Compass at the sharper End, Males.Hist. An. L. 6. c. 2. After which, he tells of a Sott atSyracuse, that sate drinking so long, till Eggs were hatch’d; as also of the Custom ofÆgypt, of hatching Eggs in Dunghills.[b]As the Shell and Skin keep the Yolk and two Whites together; so each of the Parts, (the Yolk and inner White at least,) are separated by Membranes, involving them. At each End of the Egg is a Treddle, so call’d, because it was formerly thought to be the Sperm of the Cock.But the Use of these, (saith Dr.HarveyinWillugh. Ornith.c. 3.)is to be as ’twere, the Poles of this Microcosm, and the Connections of all the Membranes twisted and knit together, by which the Liquors are not only conserv’d, each in its Place, but do also retain their due Position one to another.This, although in a great Measure true, yet doth not come up to what I have my self observ’d; for I find, that theseChalazæ, orTreddles, serve not barely to keep the Liquors in their Place, and Position to one another; but also to keep one and the same Part of the Yolk uppermost, let the Egg be turn’d nearly which way it will; which is done by this Mechanism: TheChalazæare specifically lighter than the Whites, in which they swim; and being brac’d to the Membrane of the Yolk, not exactly in theAxisof the Yolk, but somewhat out of it; causeth one Side of the Yolk to be heavier than the other; so that the Yolk being by theChalazæmade buoyant, and kept swimming in the Midst of two Whites, is by its own heavy Side kept with the same Side always uppermost; which uppermost Side I have some Reason to think, is that on which theCicatriculalies; that being commonly uppermost in the Shell, especially in some Species of Eggs more I think than others.[c]All Birds lay a certain Number of Eggs, or nearly that Number, and then betake themselves to their Incubation; but if their Eggs be withdrawn, they will lay more. Of which, see Mr.Ray’s Wis. of God, p. 137.[d]TheTabonis a Bird no bigger than a Chicken, but is said to lay an Egg larger than a Goose’s Egg, and bigger than the Bird it self. These they lay a Yard deep in the Sand, where they are hatch’d by the Warmth of the Sun; after which they creep out, and get to Sea for Provisions.Navarett’sAccount of China in Collect. of Voyages, Vol. 1. This Account is in all Probability borrow’d fromNieremberg, orHernandez, (that copy’d from him,) who call this Bird by the Name ofDaie, and its EggsTapun, not the Bird it self, asNavarettedoth. But my Friend Mr.Raysaith of it,Historia isthæc proculdubio fabulosa & falsa est. Quamvis enim Aves nonnulla maxima ova pariunt, ut v.g.Alkæ,Lomwiæ,Anates,Arcticæ, &c. hujusmodi tamen unum duntaxat, non plura ova ponunt antequam incubent: nec ullam in rerum naturâ avem dari existimo cujus ova albumine careant. Cum Albumen præcipua ovi pars sit, quodque primum fœtus alimentum subministrat.Raii Synop. Av. Method. p. 155.[e]The Eggs of the Ostrich being buried in the Sand, are cherished only by the Heat of the Sun, till the Young be excluded. For the Writers of Natural History do generally agree, that the old Birds, after they have laid and covered their Eggs in the Sand, forsake them, and take no more Care of them.Willugh. Ornith. L. 2. c. 8. §. 1.But there is anotherOstrich[ofAmerica] whichAcarettells us of, that takes more Care of her Young, by carrying four of her Eggs, a little before she hatcheth, to four Parts of her Nest, there to breed Worms for Food for her Young.Acaret’s Disc. in Philos. Trans.Nᵒ. 89.[f]SeeBook IV. ch. 13.[g]SeeBook IV. ch. 11. and 14.[h]SeeBook IV. ch. 10.beginn.[i]SeeBook IV. ch. 8.[k]TheColymbi, orDouckers, having their Food near at hand in the Waters, are remarkably made for Diving therein. Their Heads are small, Bills sharp-pointed, Wings small, Legs flat and broad, and placed backward, and nearer the Tail than in Other Birds; and lastly, their Feet; some are whole-footed, some cloven-footed, but withal fin-toed.Vid.Willugh. Ornith.L. 3. §. 5.

[a]The Chicken is form’d out of, and nourish’d by the White alone, till it be grown great. The Yolk serves for the Chicken’s Nourishment, after it is well grown, and partly also after it is hatch’d. For a good Part of the Yolk remains after Exclusion, being receiv’d into the Chicken’s Belly; and being there reserv’d, as in a Store-house, is by theAppendicula, orDuctus intestinalis, as by a Funnel, convey’d into the Guts, and serves instead of Milk,&c.Willugh. Ornith. L. 1. c. 3.Ipsum animal ex albo liquore Ovi corporatur. Cibus ejus in lutco est.Plin. L. 10. c. 53.Aristotlesaith,The long sharp Eggs bring Females; the round ones, with a larger Compass at the sharper End, Males.Hist. An. L. 6. c. 2. After which, he tells of a Sott atSyracuse, that sate drinking so long, till Eggs were hatch’d; as also of the Custom ofÆgypt, of hatching Eggs in Dunghills.

Aristotlesaith,The long sharp Eggs bring Females; the round ones, with a larger Compass at the sharper End, Males.Hist. An. L. 6. c. 2. After which, he tells of a Sott atSyracuse, that sate drinking so long, till Eggs were hatch’d; as also of the Custom ofÆgypt, of hatching Eggs in Dunghills.

[b]As the Shell and Skin keep the Yolk and two Whites together; so each of the Parts, (the Yolk and inner White at least,) are separated by Membranes, involving them. At each End of the Egg is a Treddle, so call’d, because it was formerly thought to be the Sperm of the Cock.But the Use of these, (saith Dr.HarveyinWillugh. Ornith.c. 3.)is to be as ’twere, the Poles of this Microcosm, and the Connections of all the Membranes twisted and knit together, by which the Liquors are not only conserv’d, each in its Place, but do also retain their due Position one to another.This, although in a great Measure true, yet doth not come up to what I have my self observ’d; for I find, that theseChalazæ, orTreddles, serve not barely to keep the Liquors in their Place, and Position to one another; but also to keep one and the same Part of the Yolk uppermost, let the Egg be turn’d nearly which way it will; which is done by this Mechanism: TheChalazæare specifically lighter than the Whites, in which they swim; and being brac’d to the Membrane of the Yolk, not exactly in theAxisof the Yolk, but somewhat out of it; causeth one Side of the Yolk to be heavier than the other; so that the Yolk being by theChalazæmade buoyant, and kept swimming in the Midst of two Whites, is by its own heavy Side kept with the same Side always uppermost; which uppermost Side I have some Reason to think, is that on which theCicatriculalies; that being commonly uppermost in the Shell, especially in some Species of Eggs more I think than others.

[c]All Birds lay a certain Number of Eggs, or nearly that Number, and then betake themselves to their Incubation; but if their Eggs be withdrawn, they will lay more. Of which, see Mr.Ray’s Wis. of God, p. 137.

[d]TheTabonis a Bird no bigger than a Chicken, but is said to lay an Egg larger than a Goose’s Egg, and bigger than the Bird it self. These they lay a Yard deep in the Sand, where they are hatch’d by the Warmth of the Sun; after which they creep out, and get to Sea for Provisions.Navarett’sAccount of China in Collect. of Voyages, Vol. 1. This Account is in all Probability borrow’d fromNieremberg, orHernandez, (that copy’d from him,) who call this Bird by the Name ofDaie, and its EggsTapun, not the Bird it self, asNavarettedoth. But my Friend Mr.Raysaith of it,Historia isthæc proculdubio fabulosa & falsa est. Quamvis enim Aves nonnulla maxima ova pariunt, ut v.g.Alkæ,Lomwiæ,Anates,Arcticæ, &c. hujusmodi tamen unum duntaxat, non plura ova ponunt antequam incubent: nec ullam in rerum naturâ avem dari existimo cujus ova albumine careant. Cum Albumen præcipua ovi pars sit, quodque primum fœtus alimentum subministrat.Raii Synop. Av. Method. p. 155.

[e]The Eggs of the Ostrich being buried in the Sand, are cherished only by the Heat of the Sun, till the Young be excluded. For the Writers of Natural History do generally agree, that the old Birds, after they have laid and covered their Eggs in the Sand, forsake them, and take no more Care of them.Willugh. Ornith. L. 2. c. 8. §. 1.But there is anotherOstrich[ofAmerica] whichAcarettells us of, that takes more Care of her Young, by carrying four of her Eggs, a little before she hatcheth, to four Parts of her Nest, there to breed Worms for Food for her Young.Acaret’s Disc. in Philos. Trans.Nᵒ. 89.

But there is anotherOstrich[ofAmerica] whichAcarettells us of, that takes more Care of her Young, by carrying four of her Eggs, a little before she hatcheth, to four Parts of her Nest, there to breed Worms for Food for her Young.Acaret’s Disc. in Philos. Trans.Nᵒ. 89.

[f]SeeBook IV. ch. 13.

[g]SeeBook IV. ch. 11. and 14.

[h]SeeBook IV. ch. 10.beginn.

[i]SeeBook IV. ch. 8.

[k]TheColymbi, orDouckers, having their Food near at hand in the Waters, are remarkably made for Diving therein. Their Heads are small, Bills sharp-pointed, Wings small, Legs flat and broad, and placed backward, and nearer the Tail than in Other Birds; and lastly, their Feet; some are whole-footed, some cloven-footed, but withal fin-toed.Vid.Willugh. Ornith.L. 3. §. 5.

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