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happens concerning man. For they recount that the hawks in Thrace assist the bird-catchers in the hunt; for they make their haunts in the densest woods, where kinds of birds dwell, and they align themselves with those going to the hunt, to receive an equal share of what is caught; and when the hunters shake the trees, the birds are shaken and driven out, and fly up, and the hawks flying over their heads 729 peck at their heads, and cast them down to the earth, and prepare an easy catch for the men; and they gladly share the catch itself with them immediately. The pelican is fond of its young; for while feeding its chicks, it is struck by them with their wings in the face; and pecking them, it kills them, and taking pity, mourns for them for three days. But the mother, coming over them, breaks open her side, and drips her blood upon the chicks, and they are brought to life. And these pelicans eat shellfish in this way; being unable to take them out because they are clamped shut; they swallow them first, so that by the heat around the throat the connecting glue might be melted, and the loosened shells might be relaxed; therefore, having vomited them up, they easily eat their edible part. And the wood pigeons do not hatch their eggs where they lay them, but having moved to another place, because of the multitude of hunters, they raise their young. And whenever they perceive some have come to hunt the young, they fly up, and draw the hunters' attention to themselves, providing a moment of escape for the young, and when the young have escaped, very boldly with their young, having taken off, they tread the air. The peacock, coming from the Indies, is a lover of beauty. This one, having plumed its beauty and displayed the spectacle of its feathers, leads the female to intercourse, showing this adornment to her as if it were a meadow; for the peacock is almost more full of fair flowers than a meadow. For gold is planted on its feathers, and in a circle the sea-purple runs around the gold; and below the gold is placed a circle of indigo, and there is an eye in the feather. But the phoenix has the size of a peacock, but differs from the beauty of the peacock in its coloring; for its feathers are mixed with gold and purple, and its head is naturally adorned with a graceful circle of a crown. And the circle is dark blue, and similar to roses. And being beautiful to the sight, and long-haired with rays, it stands on high like the sun; so that others also have recorded the form of its body, as they themselves say when they describe it thus: For its length is nearly double that of an eagle. And with various feathers, and colors, Its body is on fire. So its breast appears purple, And its legs are reddish, and around its neck, It is adorned with saffron-colored tufts. And its head is like the bed of day, And it looked with an apple-colored pupil. And in a circle around the pupils it appeared as a berry. And it had the most beautiful voice of all. And it appeared as king of all birds, As one could perceive; for all the winged creatures together Rushed behind it, running a long course. And it in front, exulting like a bull, Went, bearing a swift step of its foot. They say this animal is one of a kind, not continuing 732 by succession, but that it exists quite alone, and lives for five hundred years. And at the time when it is about to die (for it foresees its death), having aimed for a certain high place, towards the rising of the sun, it constructs its nest from aromatic twigs, and then is wholly consumed by the ray of the sun, and is completely resolved into dust; then from the dust a worm is born, and from the worm it is transformed into the first phoenix. But the eagle is most unjust concerning the rearing of its young; for having made two, it appropriates one, but the other it scourges with its

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τυγχάνει περὶ τὸν ἄνθρωπον. Ἱστοροῦσι γὰρ τοὺς ἐν τῇ Θρᾴκῃ ἱέρακας τοῖς ὀρνιθοθήραις περὶ τὴν ἄγραν συναίρεσθαι· ποιοῦνται μὲν γὰρ τὰς διατριβὰς ἐν ὕλαις δασυτάταις, ἕνθα γένη τῶν ὀρνίθων ἐνδιαιτᾶται, καὶ τοῖς ἐπὶ τὴν ἄγραν ἰοῦσι συντάττονται, ἰσομοιρίαν τοῦ ἀγρευθέντος δέξασθαι· καὶ τῶν θηρευτῶν τὰ δένδρα διασειόντων, οἱ ὄρνεις τινασσόμενοι σοβοῦνται, καὶ ἀνίπτανται, καὶ οἱ ἱέρακες κατὰ κεφαλῆς τούτων 729 ὑπεριπτάμενοι, τὰς κεφαλὰς αὐτῶν κολάπτουσι, καὶ εἰς γῆν καταῤῥίπτουσι, καὶ εὔθηρον τὴν ἄγραν τοῖς ἀνθρώποις παρασκευάζουσιν· οἱ δὲ ἄσμενοι τῆς ἄγρας αὐτῆς παραχρῆμα μεταδιδόασιν. Φιλότεκνον ὁ πελεκάν· τρέφων γὰρ τοὺς νεοσσοὺς, τύπτεται ὑπ' αὐτῶν ταῖς πτέρυξιν εἰς τὸ πρόσωπον· ὁ δὲ κολάπτων αὐτοὺς ἀναιρεῖ, καὶ σπλαγχνισθεὶς πενθεῖ ἐπὶ τρεῖς ἡμέρας αὐτούς. Ἡ δὲ μήτηρ ἐλθοῦσα ἐπάνω αὐτῶν ῥήγνυσι τὴν πλευρὰν αὐτῆς, καὶ ἐπιστάζει τὸ αἷμα αὐτῆς ἐπὶ τοὺς νεοσσοὺς, καὶ ζωογονοῦνται. Οὗτοι δὲ οἱ πελεκᾶνες τὰς κόγχας τούτῳ τῷ τρόπῳ ἐσθίουσι· μὴ δυνάμενοι διὰ τὸ ἐσφίγχθαι αὐτὰς ἀνελεῖν· καταπίνουσιν αὐτὰς πρότερον, ὅπως τῇ περὶ τὸν φάρυγγα θερμότητι διατακῇ μὲν ἡ συνέχουσα κόλλη, ἀνεθεῖσαι δὲ αἱ κόγχαι χαλασθῶσιν· ἑξεμέσαντες οὖν αὐτὰς, εὐμαρῶς τὸ ἐδώδιμον αὐτῶν κατεσθίουσιν. Αἱ δὲ φάσσαι οὐκ ἔνθα τίκτουσιν ἐπωάζονται, ἀλλὰ μεταστᾶσαι, διὰ τὸ πλῆθος τῶν θηρευτῶν, εἰς ἕτερον τόπον, ἐκτρέφουσι τοὺς νεοττούς. Καὶ ἐπειδὰν αἴσθωνται εἰς θήραν ἀφιγμένους τινὰς τῶν νεοττῶν, ἀνίπτανται, καὶ τὴν τῶν θηρευτῶν σπουδὴν εἰς ἑαυτὰς περισπῶσι, καιρὸν φυγῆς τοῖς νεοττοῖς παρέχουσαι, καὶ ἐκφυγόντων τῶν νεοττῶν, μάλα θαρσαλέως σὺν τοῖς νεοττοῖς, ἀπάρασαι, αἰθεροβατοῦσιν. Φιλόκαλον ὁ ταὼς ἐξ Ἰνδῶν ὁρμώμενος. Οὗτος, ἀναπτερώσας τὸ κάλλος καὶ τῶν πτερῶν ἐπιδείξας τὸ θέατρον, ἐπάγεται πρὸς συνουσίαν τὴν θήλειαν, ὥσπερ λειμῶνα τὸν καλλωπισμὸν τοῦτον ἐπιδεικνὺς αὐτῇ· ἔστι γὰρ σχεδὸν λειμῶνος ὁ ταὼς εὐανθέστερος. Περιπεφύτευται γὰρ αὐτῷ χρυσὸς τοῖς πτεροῖς, καὶ κύκλῳ τὸ ἁλουργὲς περιθέει πορφυροῦν τὸν χρυσόν· καὶ ὑπὸ τοῦ χρυσοῦ περίκειται τὸ ἴσον κύκλον, καὶ ἔστιν ὀφθαλμὸς ἐν πτερῷ. Ὁ δὲ φοῖνιξ μέγεθος μὲν ἔχει ταῶνος, διαφέρει δὲ τῷ κάλλει τοῦ ταῶνος τῇ χροιᾷ· κεκέρασται γὰρ αὐτῷ χρυσῷ καὶ πορφύρᾳ τὰ πτερὰ, εὐφυεῖ δὲ κύκλῳ στεφάνου ἡ κεφαλὴ αὐτοῦ κεκόσμηται φυσικῶς. Ἔστι δὲ ὁ κύκλος κυάνεος, καὶ ῥόδοις ἐμφερής. Εὐειδὴς δὲ ὢν τῇ θέᾳ, καὶ ἀκτῖσι κομῶν, ὥσπερ ἥλιος ἐφ' ὕψους ἵσταται· ὡς ἱστορῆσαι καὶ ἄλλους τὴν μορφὴν αὐτοῦ τοῦ σώματος, ὡς καὶ αὐτοὶ διαγράφοντες φάσκουσιν οὕτως· ∆ιπλοῦν γάρ ἐστι τὸ μῆκος ἀετοῦ σχεδόν. Πτεροῖς δὲ ποικίλοισιν, ἠδὲ χρώμασιν, Σῶμα αὐτοῦ κέκαυται. Στῆθος μὲν οὖν αὐτοῦ πορφυροῦν φαίνεται, Σκέλη δὲ μιλτόχρωτα, καὶ κατ' αὐχένα, Κροκοπίνοις μαλλοῖσιν εὐτρεπίζεται. Κάρα δὲ κοίτης ἡμέρας παρεμφερὴς, Καὶ μηλίνῃ μὲν τῇ κόρῃ προσέβλεπε. Κύκλῳ δὲ κόρῃσι κόκκος ὡς ἐφαίνετο. Φωνὴν δὲ πάντων εἶχεν εὐπρεπεδεστάτην. Βασιλεὺς δὲ πάντων ὀρνέων ἐφαίνετο, Ὡς ἦν νοῆσαι· πάντα γὰρ τὰ πτηνὰ ὁμοῦ Ὄπισθεν αὐτοῦ δολιχεύοντες ἐπέσσυντο. Αὐτὸς δὲ πρόσθε, ταῦρος ὣς γαυρούμενος, Ἔβαινε κραιπνὸν βῆμα βαστάζων ποδός. Τοῦτο φασὶ μονογενὲς ὑπάρχειν ζῶον, μὴ συνιστά 732 μενον διαδοχῇ, ἀλλ' ὑπάρχειν αὐτὸ μονώτατον, καὶ ἔτη ζῇν πεντακόσια. Καὶ ἐν καιρῷ τοῦ μέλλειν αὐτὸ τελευτᾷν (προαισθάνεται γὰρ τὴν ἀποβίωσιν), ἐφ' ὑψηλοῦ τινὸς τόπου ἐστοχασμένος, κατὰ τὴν ἀνατολὴν τοῦ ἡλίου, ἐξ ἀρωματικῶν φρυγάνων συμπηγνύναι τὴν καλιὰν, κἄπειτα ὑπὸ τῆς ἀκτῖνος ὁλοκαυτίζεσθαι τοῦ ἡλίου, καὶ εἰς κόνιν παντελῶς ἀναλύεσθαι· εἶτα ἐκ τῆς κόνεως σκώληκα γίγνεσθαι, καὶ ἐκ τοῦ σκώληκος εἰς τὸν πρῶτον φοίνικα μεταβάλλεσθαι. Ὁ δὲ ἀετὸς περὶ τὴν ἀνατροφὴν τῶν νεοττῶν ἐστιν ἀδικώτατος· δύο γὰρ ποιήσας, τὸν μὲν ἕτερον οἰκειοῦται, τὸν δὲ ἕτερον μαστίζων τοῖς