Latin Texts & Translations

Apicius, that very deepest whirlpool of all our epicures, has informed us that the tongue of the phœnicopterus ^[Note] is of the most exquisite flavour. The attagen, ^[Note] also, of Ionia is a famous

bird; but although it has a voice at other times, it is mute in captivity. It was formerly ^[Note] reckoned among the rare birds, but at the present day it is found in Gallia, Spain, and in the Alps even; which is also the case with the phalacrocorax, ^[Note] a bird peculiar to the Balearic Isles, as the pyrrhocorax, ^[Note] a black bird with a yellow bill, is to the Alps, and the lagopus, ^[Note] which is esteemed for its excellent flavour. This last bird derives its name from its feet, which are covered, as it were, with the fur of a hare, the rest of the body being white, and the size of a pigeon. It is not an easy matter to taste it out of its native country, as it never becomes domesticated, and when dead it quickly spoils.

There is another ^[Note] bird also, which has the same name, and only differs from the quail in size; it is of a saffron colour, and is most delicate eating. Egnatius Calvinus, who was prefect there, pretends that he has seen ^[Note] in the Alps the ibis also, a bird that is peculiar to Egypt.