THE BRENT GOOSE (Bernicla torquata). ONE-FIFTH NATURAL SIZE.
Upon the southern coasts of the Baltic and in Holland, during the spring and autumn, thousands of these birds are shot, and a still greater number captured by means of decoys. Their flesh is much esteemed, but has occasionally a disagreeable rancid taste, probably owing to the shell-fish upon which they feed. To remedy this, it is usual in Holland to keep them for some time before they are killed, feeding them with grain and other vegetable diet.
The FOXY GEESE (Chenalopex) are at once recognisable from the above species by their slender neck, large head, short beak, high foot, broad wing, and beautiful plumage. The somewhat feeble bill, which is raised at the base and depressed towards the tips, terminates in a broad, round nail; the partially bare foot is slender, and furnished with small toes; the wings exhibit a slight spur[Pg 138] at the wrist-joint, and have the upper secondary quills well developed; the short tail is composed of fourteen feathers. The members of this group are natives of Africa and Syria.
THE NILE GOOSE.
The NILE GOOSE (Chenalopex Ægyptiacus) has unusually variegated plumage. In this species the sides of head and front of the neck are yellowish white, finely dotted; the patch around the eye, the nape, and a broad band about the throat, are reddish brown; the feathers on the upper portions of the body are grey and black, and those of the under side reddish yellow, marked with black and white; the centre of the breast and belly are of lighter shade, and the former is decorated with a large, round, reddish brown patch; the white wing-covers are striped with black and enlivened by a fine metallic lustre; the tips of the quills and the tail-feathers are glossy black; the eye is orange or yellow; the beak blueish red with blueish grey base, and light tip to the upper mandible; the foot is reddish, or light yellow. This bird is two feet three inches long and four feet and a half broad; the wing measures sixteen inches and the tail five inches and a quarter. The female is smaller than her mate, but nearly resembles him in her general appearance; her plumage, however, is not so finely marked, and the patch upon her breast of inferior size.
The head-quarters of the Nile Goose extend from Egypt to the Cape of Good Hope, and from the east coast far into the interior of Africa; along the west coast of that continent it probably does not occur. From Africa its range extends throughout Palestine and Syria, reaching as far as Greece, Italy, and the south of Spain. During our travels in Africa we had abundant opportunities of observing these beautiful birds, whose portrait is not unfrequently to be seen sculptured upon the monuments of ancient Egypt. In Lower Egypt they are abundant all along the Nile, except in such places as are particularly unsuited to their habits; as, for example, where the river washes walls of bare rock, or where no islands are to be met with. In Southern Nubia they are to be seen in large flocks; in Soudan they are regular occupants of the banks of the rivers, and are even met with upon pools of rain-water, as well as large ponds, at a considerable distance from their banks. During the breeding season these birds generally occur in pairs, afterwards in company with their young families; but at a later period they associate together in large flocks, and in the moulting season, during which they are not incapable of flight, innumerable hosts of them may be seen crowding the shores of the river for hours together. On one occasion during our journeyings along the White Nile, for three successive days we found the banks crowded with countless birds, of which the Nile Geese formed a very conspicuous portion; they are, however, never to be seen at any great distance from water, except, indeed, when winging their way high in the air. They seem, moreover, to prefer certain parts of the river, from whence they fly into the neighbouring fields in search of food, returning to them again when their hunger is satisfied. Each pair takes possession of a certain space of ground, from which they jealously expel all intruders; nevertheless, the males readily associate with each other, and may often be seen together apparently enjoying a quiet chat, or occasionally a bit of fighting. The personal endowments of the Nile Geese are quite on a par with the elegance of their plumage. In running they emulate the long-legged Spurred Geese; they swim gracefully and without effort, keeping the fore part of their bodies deeply immersed; they are able, moreover, to dive to a considerable depth, rowing themselves along when under water both with their feet and wings. Their flight is noisy, but light and rapid. When flying in pairs, one follows close behind the other; when in large flocks, they frequently observe no regular order, except they are bound upon a long journey, on which occasions they adopt the V-like phalanx. Their voice has some distant resemblance to that of our Domestic Goose; it is, however, hoarse, and reminds the listener of the notes of a cracked trumpet. In all its proceedings this Goose seems to be particularly cautious and circumspect; always watchful[Pg 139] for its own safety, it mistrusts the slightest approach of a stranger, and in this respect is more afraid of a foreigner than of the negroes, with whose appearance it is most familiar. Its temper and disposition are by no means in accordance with the beauty of its appearance; indeed, it must be classed with the most domineering and vicious of its race, for although living in society it can hardly be said ever to be at peace with its companions. During the pairing season the battles between the males are literally to the death (at least so we have found it in some that we kept in confinement); they follow one another with loud cries and unappeasable fury, bite savagely, and beat each other with their wings until one or both fall exhausted to the ground. The Ganders seem to delight in tyrannising over all the other inmates of the pond, and not content with persecuting Ducks and Geese considerably larger than themselves, such is their boldness and audacity that they will sometimes attack even man himself. Should one of them encounter another male of his own species, either alone or accompanied by a female, it will fall upon him as though it were a bird of prey, and should it be unable to kill him by blows inflicted with the beak and wings, will try to drown him. No sooner is the vanquished bird so exhausted as to be unable to resist, than, mounting upon its body, the victor seizes it by the neck and holds its head under water until life is quite extinct. With such dangerous propensities it is not to be wondered at that this species, notwithstanding the vivacity of its manners and the beauty of its appearance, is scarcely admissible among other birds.
The food of the Nile Goose is of a very promiscuous character; like our own Wild Geese it may be seen grazing in the fields upon all sorts of vegetables; after the manner of Ducks it obtains nutriment from the mud of shallow pools, and will even dive to the bottom of rivers in search of what is there procurable. At certain seasons the young birds are passionately fond of locusts, and neither old nor young have the slightest objection to animal food; they do not, however, appear to eat fishes. It may occasionally happen in places where no trees are to be met with that these birds construct their nests upon the ground, but wherever there are woods coming to the water's edge, or even single trees of suitable dimensions, their nests must be looked for among the branches. In Africa they generally select for this purpose the thorny mimosa, known among the Arabs as the Harahsi. Their nest is very generally constructed of branches derived from the tree itself, inter-mixed with smaller twigs, and warmly lined with grasses.
The number of eggs, according to our own experience, varies from four to six; our black hunters nevertheless asserted that they had taken ten or twelve from a single nest. The eggs are of very round shape, thick-shelled, smooth, and of a yellowish or greyish white colour. The breeding-time of these birds varies according to the season. In Egypt breeding commences about the beginning of September. From individuals kept in confinement we have ascertained that the period of incubation extends over twenty-seven or twenty-eight days, and that only the female sits upon the eggs. During this period the Gander keeps careful watch, sitting constantly close to his mate and giving timely warning of the approach of any intruder. Once a day, and that always in the afternoon, the breeding female leaves her nest, having previously covered her eggs warmly with down. The young are able to run about immediately after leaving the egg, and on the slightest alarm hurry at once into the water, where they immediately dive; their education very much resembles that of the goslings of the Grey Goose.
In Egypt the Nile Goose is much sought after both by Turks and Europeans. Its flesh differs little as an article of food from that of the Wild Geese; that of the young birds is excellent, but the old are hard and tough, nevertheless they make capital soup.