THE HOOPOE. 855

bottles; else the bottles break, and the wine runneth out,
and the bottles perish; but they put new wine into new
bottles, and both are preserved :” the fermentation of the
new wine would be too strong for old skins to resist, but
by employing new skins, both wine and bottles would be
preserved.

Though rather out of place here, the Lapwing of Levi-
ticus xi. must be referred to, having been accidentally
omitted in its proper order. It is supposed to be the
Hoopoe, Upupa epops, Plate XIII., a bird often mentioned
in the writings of antiquity, and remarkable for the beautiful
crest, which forms so conspicuous an ornament to the head ;
the plumage is fawn-coloured, barred with black and white
on the wings and lower part of the back; the tail is black,
with a white crescent at the base. This pretty bird is about
twelve inches long; it feeds on worms, snails, and insects.
The prohibition of the hoopoe as an article of diet, in Levi-
ticus xi., probably arose from the nature of its food. It is
well known in Egypt.