“鳥獸 Neau-show. Birds and Beasts (of Formosa).” From the 18th chapter of the revised edition of the 臺灣府志 Tai-wan foo-che, Statistics of Taiwan. Translated by Robert Swinhoe, Esq., H.B.M. Consul at Taiwan: with critical notes and observations. Journal of the North China Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society n.s. I, ii (December 1865): 39-52.
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ARTICLE
III.
鳥獸 NEAU-SHOW. BIRDS AND BEASTS (OF FORMOSA).
From the
18th chapter of the revised edition of the 臺灣府志 Tai-wan foo-che, Statistics of Taiwan.
Translated by Robert Swinhoe, Esq., H.B.M. Consul at Taiwan: with critical
notes and observations.
鳶
Yuen. Kite. (Milvus melanotis, Schlegel. Found from Canton to Amoorland,
in Japan and in Formosa. It is called at Amoy and Formosa Bah-heo or Nai-heo.)
鴒
Ling. Wagtail and Lark group, Motacillinæ and Alaudinæ. (鶺鴒 Tsih-ling means Pied Wagtail, of which
there are three species found in China and Formosa, Motacilla luzoniensis,
M. Japonica, and M. ocularis. 百鴒 Pih-ling, is the Thick-billed Lark, Menalocorypha
mongolica, found in the Western hills near Peking, and kept throughout
China as a cage-bird for its song and mimic powers. 角鴒 Koh-ling is the Sky-lark usually called 半天飛 Pwan-t’een-fei, or Flying in mid sky.
The species in Formosa, and from Foochow to Canton is the Aluda cœlivox,
called at Amoy Paw-tew-ah. In North China to the Amoor the English
Sky-lark, A. arvensis occurs. At Shanghai the species is intermediate to
these two, and is identical with Acantarella of South Europe. The
authors probably intend to signify that lark-like birds are found in Formosa,
without specifying any particular kind.)
鸛
Kwan. Herons. (Ardeadæ, exclusive of species. 烏鸛 Woo-kwan is the common Heron of general
distribution, Ardea cinereal, called in Amoy 青絲 T’chen-si or Grey Egret. 白鸛 Pih-kwan is the Great White Heron or
Egret, Egret-
[p. 40]
ta alba. Europeans
wrongly call these birds Cranes. The character for crane is 鶴 Hŏ.)
鶺鴿
Tsih-kö. Domestic Pigeon. (鶺 Tsĭh is also the specific appellation for the Pied Wagtail, [see above.]
It means the bird of the roof or housetop.)
雉
Che. Pheasant, Phasianus torquatus; the common Chinese species.
烏
Woo. Crow. (The coast towns of Formosa are singularly enough destitute of
crows. In the Tammy mountain range and at Sawo harbor I found a black crow,
which I have distinguished as the Corvus colonorum. The Chinese there
have a great respect for it and object to its being shot, as they say the bird
warns them against the approach of the savage, and sympathizes with them when
any of their comrades are killed.)
燕
Yen. Swallow. (Of this there are three species in Formosa; the ordinary Hirundo
rustica or Chimney Swallow, the Daurian Swallow, Hirundo daürica,
and the Sand Martin, Cotyle sinensis.)
鳩
Kew. Dove: —that is 班鳩 Pan-kew. It differs from those on the Chinese main. Those of a grey and
black colour are called Pan-kew. To this group belongs a
chesnut-coloured (赤 chih)
species called 火鳩 Ho-kew, Fire-dove. Turtur humilis. There is another with green body
and entirely red (紅 hung)
bill and legs, which is called the 金鳩 Kin-kew, Golden dove, Chalchophaps formosanus, but this species only
occurs at Tanshuy. [Lower Tamsuy in the Fung-shan district is here meant.]
(Names for the Dove in the Amoy and Formosan dialect are Pan-ká and Ka-tsuy,
the latter term being more generally used.)
鷺
Loo. Egret, Herodias garzetta. (Commonly called 白鷺絲 Pih-loo-sze; —Amoy, Péh-hing-sì, Choo-loo
朱鷺 is the
Russet-headed small White-heron, Bubulcus russata. Both these are called
by Europeans Paddy Birds; the former is the common White Egret which
occurs in South China throughout the year; the latter is the Egret with reddish
head and back, seen only in summer and often about cattle.)
畫眉
Hwa-mei. Amoy, Hoe-bi; Painted Eye-brow; same as the species of the
Chinese main, but with no white on the eye-brow. (The Formosan Song thrush, Leucodiopteron
taiwanum, differing as observed by the authors chiefly in the absence of
the white eye-brow, from the Song thrush of South China, L. sinense.)
鸜鵒
Keu-kuh. This is the 八哥 Pa-ko, Eight brethren.
[p. 41]
The
Mainah, Acridotheres cristatellus, a black bird with a small frontal
crest and a white wing spot.)
布穀
Poo-kuh. Cloth-grain. (The Crow Pheasant or Larkheel Cuckoo, Centropus
affinis, vulgarly called Bang-king. The large Crow Pheasant of South
China, Centropus sinensis, does not occur in Formosa. The Cuckoo is
called at Amoy the Kat-suy-ieng or Dove-hawk.)
鳧
Foo. Wild Ducks. (Of these many species visit the Formosan shores and inner
waters in winter. No species of duck to my knowledge is a constant resident in
the island.)
鷗
Ngau. Gulls and Terns, Laridæ. (A general term, including the many
species of Gulls and Terns that occur.)
海鷄母
Hai-ke-moo. Sea-fowl’s dam, —of a black colour with green legs, and larger than
the domestic fowl. It dwells amidst islands of the sea, whence its name. The
marrow of tis bones has a fine relish. (This description answers to the Black
Albatross of the Chinese seas, Diomedea nigripes, the younger birds of
which have greenish feet. The term Hai-koe-moo at Amoy is usually
applied to the large Grey Gull, Larus occidentalis.)
鴛鴦
Yuen-yang. Mandarin Duck, Aix galericulata. (I do not believe that this
bird occurs in Formosa in a wild state. It breeds in summer in Amoorland, and
is found in winter as a visitant to the lakes of central China. I have never
heard of its appearing on the coast, and do not see how it could well wander to
Formosa. The Falcated Teal, Anas falcata, has probably been mistaken by
the authors for it.)
翡翠
Fei-tsuy. Vulgar name, 釣魚翁 To-he-âng, Fishing reverence. It is accustomed to sit on banks by water and
watch for fish, on which it feeds. (The Fei-tsuy, whose feathers are
used for embroidery and ornament in China, are the Halcyon smyrnensis a
beautiful species with blue-green upper-parts, and the H. pileate with purple
upper-parts, neither of which occur in Formosa. The Halcyon here is the H.
coromanda, a pink species. The small species called To-he-ang is the
King of the Shrimps of Europeans, Alcedo bengalensis, closely allied
to the English King-fisher, and found throughout the greater part of Asia.)
白鷴 Pih-heen. Silver Pheasant, Euplocamus nycthemerus. (Not found
wild in Formosa. Its position is occupied by the handsome Pheasant E.
swinhoii, known to the colonists as 畫鷄 Wa-koe, Flowered fowl.)
長尾三娘
Chang-wei-san-neang. Long-tailed third maiden, (or third daughter of a family;)
—allied to the 鷴
[p. 42]
Hien, Silver
Pheasant, of a bluish-grey colour, reflecting a dazzling brilliancy. Another
name for the same is 練雀 Leen-tcheo, Elegant Magpie. (This is the Long-tailed Blue Jay of Formosa, Urocissa
cœrulea, called in this dialect, Tăng-be-swan-neuong.
The allied form of China is the U. sinensis, called at Amoy, Tăng-bi-ken.
Its stated affinity to the Silver Pheasant, to a European naturalist would
appear ridiculous.)
烏鶖
Woo-tsew. Amoy, Aw-tsew; the Drongo, Dicrurus macrocercus, with a
black body and long tail, is smaller than a 鷹 Ying, Hawk, but is able to fight with
hawks, fowls, kites and all evil-disposed birds.
伯勞
Pih-laou. Amoy, Pe-lo; Shrike or Butcher-bird, Lanius schach,
which is the 鵙 Keuĕ.
黃鶯
Hwang-ying. Amoy, Ng-ying; the Oriole, Oriolus chinensis.
鷹
Ying. Hawk. (Usually applied to the short-winged Hawks, Accipiter, but
often to the Falcons as well.)
鸕鷀
Loo-tsze. Amoy, Law-tche; Cormorant, Phalacrocorax carbo.
鵂鶹
Hew-lew. Formosan Large Owl, Syrnium caligatum; that is the 鴟鴞 Ch’e-hiau, Eagle Owl, Bubo maximus.
(The authors are wrong in confounding these two birds. The large owl of this
island called by the colonists Ham-hay, is quite distinct from the
Horned Owl of China of the greater part of the old continent.)
雀
Tcheo. Sparrow, Passer montanus. Amoy, Chek-tcheaou-ah, or Paddy bird.
白頭翁
Peh-t’ow-ung. White-headed reverence. (The Green Bulbul, Ixos sinensis,
called in Amoy Peh-t’aou-kok.)
海鵞
Hai-go. Sea Goose. Vulgar name, 南風戅 Lam-hong-gong, South-wind Booby; also called 布袋鵞 Pau-tay-go, Cloth-bag Goose. It is
commonly found on the seashore, hunting fish. Its quills can be used for
feathering arrows. (This is the White Albatros of the China seas, Diomedea
brachyura, which usually comes up with the south-west monsoon. It is often
caught in spring by fishermen, and brought into Amoy. In captivity it looks
very stupid. The cloth bag refers perhaps to the fact of small bags being made
of its large webbed feet. I have never met the
蓽雀
Pe-tcheo. Pencil sparrow. Like a sparrow but smaller, of a (紫
Tsze) clay colour. Their twittering is pleasant to hear. Kept in a cage they
will come and go of their own accord. (This is the Munia, of which there
are
[p. 43]
three species in Formosa, the To-pe-la
M. topela, the Opela or Aw-tseu-pe-la, M. acuticauda,
and the Ang-pe-la. M. formosana of the mountains. These three are all
kept in cages by the Chinese.)
白鳩
Peh-kew. White Dove. It coos at the fifth watch, whence it is termed the bird
that knows the watches.
竹雞
Chuh-ke. Amoy, Teëk-koe; Bamboo fowl.
(The Formosan Bamboo fowl or Patridge, Bambusicola
sonorivox, is distinct from that found in South China, B. thoracica. Their cries however are very similar. They are caged
by the Chinese, and prized for their noisy song, and fighting propensities.)
鷂
Yau. Harrier. Circus sp. (Of this
Hawk several species occur.)
鷦鷯
Tcheao-leao. The Grass-warblers; termed in the 通志 Tung-che, General Statistics, 鷦鴱 Tcheao-e. 爾雅 Urh-ya calls it the 桃蟲鷦 T’aou-chung-tcheao, Peach-insect Wren, and its female the 鴱 E. Another name for this bird is the 韈雀Wă-tcheo, Stockinged Magpie. Another, the 巧婦 Keaou-foo, Skilful Housewife. The native foreigners go out to cut grass, and
on hearing its voice go back. (There is much confusion of species here. These
names are usually applied in South China to the Little Tailor-bird, Orthotomus, called at Amoy Mang-tang-ah, no species of which
appears to exist in Formosa. They may in Formosa imply either the Prinia sonitans, the Drymoica extensicauda, the D. flavirostris, or the Suya striata.)
鬼車
Kwei-keu. Demon’s conveyance; vulgarly called 九頭烏 Kaou-t’aôu-aw, Nine-headed Crow. (This is the Goat-sucker Caprimulgus stictomus. The other bird of darkness that the Chinese
have many fables about is the Am-kong-tcheaou
or Night Heron, Nycticorax griseus.)
彩囊
Tsai-nang. Coloured purse. Gallicrex
cristatus. This and the five following species are not comprised in the old
Statistics. They are now introduced into the present revised edition, in the Foo-kaou, or Appendix of descriptive
quotations.
五鳴雞
Woo-ming-ke. Fowl of five cries, Coturnix
sp.
雷舞
Luy-woo. Thunder dancer, Ardetta
cinnamomea.
番蓽
Fan-pe. Foreign pencil, Motacilla boarala.
倒掛
Taou-kwa. Topsy-turvy hanger, Loriculus
puniculus or Love bird. It is brought from the Chinese main.
The
above species are of the Feathered
class.
[p. 44]
附考
Foo-kaou. Appendix of Descriptive quotations.
長尾三娘
Chang-wei-san-niang has a vermilion bill and halcyon wings. Its dorsal mantle
is shot with a lustrous tint. Its tail is long, surpassing one foot, whence the
Taiwan men have derived its name. It is found in the midst of the Cho-lo (Kia-e hien) hills, and is seldom
seen in the plains. [Extracted from the 臺海采風圖 Tai-hai-tsai-fung-too.]
白鳩 Pih-kew.
White Dove, —in blowy rainy weather dances its wings and moves in circles. It
is clothed in a frost-like robe with snowy edgings. It may be approached and
played with. By some it is called the 洋鴿 Yang-kŏ. Foreign pigeon, and is said to come from Java. When Formosa was
first opened (to emigrants), a pair were not purchaseable under $20, but now
the young being frequently produced and reared in confinement, their value does
not exceed at most one tenth of that sum. [使槎錄 She-chai luh.]
白鳩 Pih-kew.
The white dove knows the times and seasons; and marks the limit of each period
of time by several continuous coos. [臺灣志畧 Tai-wan-che-leō.] (This bird is usually known in South China among Europeans as the
Pescadore Dove, people supposing that it is found wild on those flat-topped
treeless islands. It is simply an albino of the Indian Dove, Turtur risorius, which is not found wild
in China. The Laughing Dove is a common caged bird throughout Asia, and in many
parts of Europe, breeding readily in confinement. In the wild state, it occurs
throughout India and its archipelago. It seems probable that this domestic
variety was originally introduced into Formosa as a caged bird, by the Dutch
from Java.)
綠鳩 Luh-kew.
Green Dove, —has a (紺 kan)
violet bill, and (碧 peih)
turquoise plumage, more brilliant than that of 鸚鵡 Ying-woo, Parrot; but possesses no fine voice, yielding in this respect to
the White Dove. (This dove is not uncommon in the mountains of Fung-shan hien
and Tai-wan hien, occasionally visiting the plains. It is a Treronine speices, and has been named Sphenocercus formosæ.)
海八哥
Hai-pa-ko. Marine Eight brethren, —has a black body, a red crown, and green
feet. It is otherwise called 田鷄 Tien-ke, Field fowl, 烏鬚 Woo-seu, Black-beard, and 鷙烏 Che-woo, Falcon Crow. It can attack and beat others of the feathered bribe.
Its tail is long and of a black col-
[p. 45]
our. It may be seen at times in flocks
sitting on the backs of cattle. [使槎錄 She-chai-luh.] (Several
birds are sadly confounded together in this extract. The bird first meant is
the Tian-koe or Field fowl, so called
at Amoy, the generally distributed Moor-hen, Gallinula chloropus. But this has a very short tail; and by the
long black tail, a bird of like haunts, the Leaf-walker, Hydrophasianus chirurgus is siginified. The given habits of the
species of attacking birds of prey and sitting on the backs of cattle, are not
possessed by either of these weter-birds. The only black-birds to which such
characters can be assigned are the true Pa-ko,
Acridotheres cristatellus, and the
Woo-tsew, Dicrurus macrocercus,
allued to above.)
烏鶖Woo-tsew.
Drongo, Dicrurus macrocercus, is like
a Pa-ko, Mainah, but has the whole
body entirely black, the bill like an awl, and the tail long. It flies
impetuously, sings like the 黃鶯 Hwang-ying, Oriole, and is
excellent at imitating the notes of other birds. At night, according with the
watches, it passes the cry from one to another. It can attack the 鷹 Ying, Sparrow-hawk, and the鸇 Chen, Kestrel. Meeting all evil birds, it flies into the air, and
darting at them, pecks at their breasts and sides. Hawks and Kestrels fly
slower and cannot catch it with their claws to inflict hurt. It flies away
singing and returns to its perch. The evil birds dare not approach. [臺海采風圖 Tai-hai-tsai-fung-too.]
彩囊
Tsai-nang. Coloured purse, —is like a fowl, but smaller; on its crown it has a
purse of five colours; Gallicrex
cristatus. [使槎錄 She-chai-luh.]
五鳴雞
Woo-ming-ke. Fowl of five cries, —is as large as a 鵪鶉 Yen-chun, Quail, with the nape white. At every watch by the clepsydra it
utters a song. (An allusion to the ancient method of noting time by water
dropping in a vessel. [Ibid.] (This small Quail I do not know, but I suspect it
to be either the Coturnix sinensis, kept
as a cage bird at Canton, or a local variety of the same.)
雷舞
Luy-woo. Thunder dancer, —is the name of a bird of a (蒼
tsang) greenish-brown and chesnut colour. On hearing thunder it dances; Ardetta cinnamomea. [Ibid] White Pa-ko, Mainahs, and White Hwa-mei, Thrushes, we have never seen,
but it is said that at 鹽水港 Keen-shwuy-keang, 統領埤 Tung-ling-pei, 加冬樹 Kia-tung-shuh, and 大數圍 Ta-soo-wei, every year white Pa-ko,
Mainahs occur. The people of the neighbourhood watch them at
[p. 46]
breeding-time, and take and rear their
young. [使槎錄 She-chai-luh.]
番蓽
Fan-pe. Foreign Pencil, —is in form like a Swallow, with an ashy-black back,
yellow-coloured under-parts, and a long tail. It sings as it flies, and shakes
as it walks. It belongs to the 鶺鴒
Tsih-ling, Pied Wagtail genus, Motacilla boarula. [諸羅志 Cho-lo statistics.]
倒掛鳥
Taou-kwa-neaou. Topsy-turvy-hanging Bird, —is like the 鸚鵡 Ying-woo, Parrot, but smaller. Its
plumes and quills are of a fresh clear red alternating with green, and harmonize
well with the green tree branches. The tip of its bill is like a hook, its feet
are short, and its claws are long. It delights in hanging head downwards, and
at night sleeps in the same way. This species comes from Japan and Luzon.
[Ibid.] (Love-birds, Loriculi, are here meant, which are brought to
Formosa in cages from the main by Chinese. No species of Parrot appears to be
found in Formosa.)
———
Domestic Animals.
牛 New.
Cattle. The 水牛 Shwuy-new, Water-cow or Buffalo comes from the Chinese main, and is used to
crush sugar-cane for the preparation of sugar. The 黃牛 Hwang-new, Yellow cow, the neighbouring
hills have in abundance. They are caught and tamed, and are trained for use in
the ploughing of fields and drawing of carts.
馬 Ma.
Horses, —comes from the main. They have also at hand mares with which the stock
is kept up.
狗 Kow.
Dog.
猪 Choo.
Pig.
羊 Yang.
Goat.
[p. 47]
貓 Maou.
Cat.
鷄 Ke.
Fowl.
鵝 Go.
Goose.
鴨 Ya.
Duck.
番鴨 Fan-ya.
Foreign Duck (or Muscovy); like the duck bur larger; feathers with less gloss;
bill and legs vermilion colour; flesh coarse; taste inferior; comes from
abroad.
番猪
Fan-choo. Foreign pig. Hair of a yellow colour.
The above
are Domestic animals.
———
Appendix of Descriptive Quotations.
Formosa has an abundance of wild cattle,
occurring in herds of hundreds and thousands. When it is desired to capture
some, a wooden stockade is erected with four sides, in one of which is left a
door. The cattle are driven towards it till they all enter, when the gate is
shut on them and they are barred in and left to starve. Afterwards they are by
degrees haltered and birdled, and treated to fodder and beans, until they
become not different from domestic cattle. [臺海采風圖 Tai-hai-tsai-fung-too.]
(In the Fung-shang district, the Chinese farmers have many of them large herds
of cattle, which are driven out to feed on the hills every morning, and driven
back to pen in the evening. They are small, extremely pretty animals, with
short horns, and rather a wild look. They are mostly of a yellowish-brown
colour, but blackish-brown varieties also occur. They are straighter-backed and
somewhat different from the Amoy cattle, and indeed look like miniatures of
some of the cattle at home. These cattle are for the most part offspring of captured
animals from the hilly interior, which from isolation, might be expected to
differ from the wild stock of the ordinary yellow cow of south China, if we
knew of the existence of such an animal, and had the opportunities of comparing
the two together. The Formosan wild cow is new to science.)
The horses are small and weakly in
strength, different from those of the Chinese main. The inner mountains have
mountain horses. [Ibid.] (Horses, or rather ponies are very scarce in Formosa. Those
I have seen may have been importations, but they did not appear to me to differ
particularly from the ponies procurable at Amoy. What the mountain horses are I
cannot make out, unless they be offspring of animals that the Dutch may have
introduced.)
[p. 48]
水沙 Shuy-sha, as also 紅頭嶼 Hung-tow-sew (the Red-head island or Botel Tobago), produce yellow goats, whose
skins are sold for mattrasses. [Ibid.] (The domestic goats of south China and
Formosa are black, small, short-haired, and bearded on the chin. Query? Is the
animal here spoken of, the Formosan mountain goat antelope, Capricornis
Swinhoii, in a state of domestication?)
The Foreign Duck is as big as a goose with
small and delicate feet, and has its cheeks red like a cock’s comb. The drake
is a deep yellowish-brown colour. When released they are accustomed to fly
about. People frequently take them to the Chinese main, but they are unwieldy
stupid birds, and have nothing in them to afford amusement. [Ibid.] (The
Muscovy Duck, Cairina moschata, or as the Chinses sometimes call it the 龍頭鴨 Lung-tow-ya, Dragon-headed Duck is here
meant. It owes its introduction into Formosa as a domestic bird probably to the
Japanese, or perhaps to the Dutch.)
———
Wild Quadrupeds.
艾葉豹
E-yeh-paou. Mint (Artemisia) leaf Leopard is a product of Formosa. It is
somewhat larger than a dog and harmless towards man. It is otherwise called the
獐虎 Chang-hoo, Muntjak Tiger, (Leopardus brachyurus, a species allied to
the L. macroscelis or Tiger Cat of the Straits, but remarkable for its
short tail.)
熊 Heung.
Bear.
麋 Me. Elk
or Plain Brown Deer, Rusa Swinhoii.
鹿 Luh.
Spotted Deer, Cervus taiwanus.
麂 Ke. (Not
known to me. The dictionary defines the animal “Stag-like, with feet resembling
a dog; has a long tusk on each side of its mouth, and is fond of fighting.”)
麕 Keun or 麞 Chang. Muntjak. (Same as the small
Chinese species Cervulus Reevesii.)
兔 T’oo.
Hare, Lepus sinensis.
猴 How.
Monkey, Macacus cyclopis. (Common on Ape’s Hill, Takow.)
[p. 49]
山貓
Shan-maou. Hill Cat, Felis viverrinus. (Found throughout tropical Asia.)
獺 T’a.
Otter. (A variety of Lutra nair, with white sides to under neck.)
山羊
Shan-yang. Hill goat, —can scale heights; breeds far amongst the mountains;
skin suitable for making shoes. (Capricornis Swinhoii, allied to C.
crispus of Japan. Half goat, half antelope.)
鼠 Shoo. Rats and
Squirrels.
野豬 Yeh-choo. Wild Boar,
with tusks sharp as a reaping-hook. (Sus taiwanus, allied to, if not
identical with, S. leucomystax of Japan.)
The above
are of the Furred tribe.
———
Appendix of Descriptive Quotations.
The Formosan hills have no tigers,
therefore deer are very numerous. In former years the whole country was given
up to hunting-ground for deer by the aborigines. Now the Chinese have ploughed
and sown, so that fair fields extend as far as the eye can reach, and the deer
have betaken themselves to the mountains. They are there hunted and taken, but
the horns of the Formosan species are thin and soft in the butt, and not equal
to the sleek and plump branchers from Kwan-tung (Leaoutung). A hundred
pairs when roasted will only yield 20 or so pounds of hart-glue (used for
medicine.) Though deer abound, you may seek a piece of venison in vain in the
markets. At the winter and spring festivities however, the aborigines cut
venison up into square blocks weighing over a pound each, and after steeping
them in salt, forward them to the departmental and district cities. The colour
of the venison so preserved is black, and its taste changed. It is not fit to
pick up with chop-sticks, and yet its price is not trifle. [使槎錄 She-chai-luh.]
Deer by their horns record their years,
each fork on the horn signifying one year, much as the age of horses is
recorded by their teeth. The aborigines are in the constant habit of shooting
deer with the bow for a livelihood, but no one has ever met with a buck
carrying seven forks or more on the horn. It was formerly declared that the
deer were fairy animals of great longevity; and it was stated that at the age
of 500 they were white, and at the age of 1000, black. But these stories are
fables; for the Chuh-tsan [Tëek-cham near Tamsuy] aborigines shot with
the
[p. 50]
bow a small deer with its entire body pure
white, its horns at the time having only two forks each. This albinism cannot
therefore be otherwise than due to an accidental variation in the colour of the
hair. Books are by no means entirely to be believed in. The deer three years
after birth commences to horn. The horns after the first year drop away much in
the manner of human milk-teeth. Other horns appear in their place, which
throughout its life-time it does not again lose; but every year an extra fork
is added to them. [稗海記遊 Pai-hai-ke-yu.]
The doe
deer at the age of 4 months acquires teats. Before they make their appearance
she gets extremely fat. When big with young, her skin is soft, smooth, spotted,
and glossy, and very lovely. As soon as the doe that has finished suckling
observes her roe getting to maturity, she deserts it and repairs to other
hills, fearing that her own young might entertain an improper affection for
herself. Animals do not confuse the ties of consanguinity, the horse excepted.
The stallion however when he does commit incest with his mother, soon after
dies. The doe deprives her offspring of such an opportunity, by setting a
distance between herself and her young; for she deserts it and betakes herself
afar. [Ibid.]
The Bear
genus does not consist simply of one species. There are the Pig-bear, the
Dog-bear, the Horse-bear, and the Man-bear, each differing in its peculiar
form. All the bears have hair stiff as bristles, thick and shaggy. The arrow’s
head cannot enter their coat. Their paws are strong, and with their claws they
can climb trees, on the summits of which they will sit cross-legged, or they
will burrow into the earth and dwell there. People capture them by stratagem.
Before they have carried young, their bellies contain much suet which is
eatable; their paws however are the titbits (lit. the one of eight pearls.) Hashed
and roasted they afford a true relish, but it is no easy matter to cook them
properly. The cook extracts the juice from the paws, and boiling it into a soup
with other kitchen stuff, it lends a delicious relish to the potage; one
paw will serve for several boilings. If you get a monthful at the cook-shop, it
will induce a smile of appreciation to learn its taste. [Ibid.] (I do not think
that more than one species of bear is found in Formosa; all the skins and paws
that I have seen are of this black bear, Helarctos formosanus. It is
black with a white crescent on the breast, and is allied to
[p. 51]
the Sun-bear of Japan, H. japonicus,
and that of the Himalayas. H, thibetanus.)
The Hill
Pig or 野彘 Yay-che, Wild sow has the ears and tail rather small, the hair bristly, of
a (蒼 tsang)
greenish-brown colour, and differs somewhat from the domestic pig. The largest
are as big as a cow, with enormous tusks projecting beyond the lips. It gashes
trees and can break them down. Its strength can oppose the tiger. When enraged
it will wound people with its tusks, abruptly breaking their ribs or goring
their bellies. It rushes on its object like the wind. Hunters dare not shoot
them. There is also the 豪猪 Haou-choo, Porcupine Pig, which is another species. It is covered with arrows,
like the quills of the 猬 or 蝟 Wei, Hedgehog, which make a rustling
noise when the creature walks. These arrows it can dart at people, but they do
not carry to more than the length of a 尋 tsin, 8 feet, or a 丈 chang, 10 feet. [Ibid.] (The Porcupine, Hystrix
sp. will be when discovered, a new animal to the Formosan list.)
Foochow 東島 Tung-taou, East Island is no great
distance from the Pescadores. It only produces deer, which occur in herds of
from 100 to 1000. The islanders catch them, and taking out their intestines and
stomach eat them mixed with the animal’s ordure, as a great dainty; but the
carcase they sell. All the dried venison and deer’s sinews that the Foochow
people now sell are procured from East Island. [玉堂薈記 Yuh-tang-wai-ke.]
山鼠 Shan-choo, Hill Rats are caught by the
natives who stuff the rats’ bellies with bits of sugar-cane, clear off the hair
from the skin, and then roast lightly the carcases. Thus prepared and boiled
with pork they make a palatable soup. [使槎錄 She-chai-luh.]
山猫 Shan-maou, Hill Cat. Its hair is used
for binding into tufts for writing pencil, and is short, delicate, and pliant.
In the
villages there are also those who catch 蟬 Chin, Cicadas, and rolling them up in
paper roast them brown, and eat them as an accompaniment to wine. [Ibid.] (This
last clause has without doubt been printed out of place. It should have been
inserted by the authors in the article on Insects and Fish that follows the one
we have been working on.) ———
I must
offer a few words in conclusion as to the intention of this Paper. A friend a
few weeks ago observed to me, that in the course of his Chinese reading, he was
con-
[p. 52]
stantly stumbling across Chinese names for
birds and quadrupeds which with the help of the existing dictionaries he was
totally at a loss to identify. He at the same time suggested, that if I
translated the chapter on the Zoology of Formosa in the Tai-wan-foo-che,
I might benefit both the students of Chinese and myself. Thus stimulated I set
to work, and now offer the results of my labours to the Society at Shanghai. As
regards myself, I have found a certain benefit to accrue, for I have learned
that there are still several animals in the island, with which I am
unacquainted, and I have been able to bring to light from this Chinses work,
several facts and remarks which will much interest scientific men at home.
Regarding however the Chinese work from a scientific point of view, it will be
found to fall very far short of what might be expected in a book comprising as
it pretends to do, the entire statistics of Formosa. The notices of the animals
are short and incomplete, and sometimes so imperfect as to render it almost
impossible to detect what creatures are intended; moreover only a very small
proportion of the birds and beasts actually known to exist in the country are
treated of. In fact it requires no great discernment to see that the authors
are no naturalists, and in most cases have not seen themselves the animals that
they describe, but have simply accepted hearsay evidence as to the existence
and habits of this or that species. This will account in a measure for the
confusion sometimes observable in their descriptions. I have done my best to
render the Chinse text as simply and as plainly as possible, and have taken
care not to swell the paper with too many notes.
———
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