Chap. XIV. UNPAIEED BIRDS. 107 



are especially liable to premature death. Again, birds 

 which have had their nests destroyed, or barren pairs, or 

 retarded individuals, would easily be induced to desert 

 their mates, and ^\ould probably be glad to take what 

 share they could of the pleasures and duties of rearing 

 offspring, although not their own.''' Such contingencies 

 as these probably explain most of the foregoing cases.^ 

 Nevertheless it is a strans^e fact that within the same 

 district, during the height of the breeding-season, 

 there should be so many males and females always 

 ready to repair the loss of a mated bird. Why do not 

 such spare birds immediately pair together? Have 

 we not some reason to suspect, and the suspicion has 

 occurred to Mr. Jenner Weir, that inasmuch as the 

 act of courtship appears to be with mauy birds a pro- 

 longed and tedious affair, so it occasionally happens 

 that certain males and females do not succeed durins^ 

 the proper season, in exciting each other's love, and 

 consequently do not pair ? This suspicion will a23pear 

 somewhat less improbable after we have seen Avhat 



' See White (' Nat. Hist, of Selborne/ 1825, vol. i. p. 140) on the 

 existence, early in the season, of small coveys of male partridges, of which 

 fact I have heard other instances. See Jenner, on the retarded state 

 of the generative organs in certain birds, in ' Phil. TraDsact.' 1824. 

 In regard to birds living in trii)lets, I owe to Mr. Jenner Weir the cases 

 of the starling and parrots, and to Mr. Fox, of partridges ; on carrion- 

 crows, see the ' Field,' 1868, p. 415. On various male birds singing 

 after the proper period, see Eev. L. Jenyns, ' Observations in Natural 

 History,' 1846, p. 87. 



^ The following case has been given (' The Times,' Aug. 6th, 1868) 

 by the Eev. F. O. Morris, on the authority oil the Hon. and Eev. 0. W. 

 Forester. " The gamekeeper here found a hawk's nest this year, with 

 "five young ones in it. He took four and killed them, but left one 

 " with its wings clipped as a decoy to destroy the old ones by. Tliey 

 " were both shot next day, in the act of feeding the young one, and 

 " the keeper thought it was done with. The next day he came again 

 " and found two other charitable hawks, who had come with an adopted 

 " feeling to succour the orphan. These two he killed, and then left 

 " the nest. On returning afterwards he found two more charitable 



