374 SCIENCE PROGRESS 



Antarctic Penguins : A Study of Their Social Habits. By Dr. G. Murray 

 Levick, R.N., Zoologist to the British Antarctic Expedition (1910-1913). 

 [Pp. x + 140, with 63 illustrations.] (London : William Heinemann. 

 Price 6s. net.) 



This excellent little book records the habits of the Adelie penguins during the 

 breeding season as observed at Cape Adare during one of the British Antarctic 

 Expeditions, and does so in an extremely interesting and instructive manner. It 

 will be remembered that these penguins winter somewhere (it is not known exactly 

 where) on the drift ice to the north, but that in the early Antarctic spring they 

 migrate southwards towards the breeding rookeries. Not being able to fly, they 

 perform this migration partly by swimming and partly by walking on their short 

 legs and tobogganning across the snow and ice fields. The rookeries are compara- 

 tively scarce and small areas, because they must consist of bare gravel as free as 

 possible of snow in order to enable the birds to make their nests of stones. Dr. 

 Levick records that the first penguins began to arrive in single-file processions 

 about the middle of October. In a few days the Cape Adare rookery contained 

 many thousands of them. His description of the habits of these very interesting 

 birds is excellent, and is illustrated by a large number of good photographs. The 

 hens settle themselves in scoops, and the courtly combats of the cocks are very 

 interesting and amusing, but seem to consist chiefly in pushing away rivals without 

 resorting to killing them. If two hens have made their scoops too close together, 

 they engage in a war of recriminations and peckings. As the rookeries are some 

 distance from the sea, in which only the birds can obtain food, both sexes remain 

 fasting for from four to six weeks. The eggs are laid about the middle of November, 

 and then apparently the cocks are released for about a fortnight, when they walk 

 down in large parties to bathe and feed in the sea. Dr. Levick's study of these 

 parties is very interesting, and suggests that the birds have a high degree of 

 intelligence. They seem to enjoy life on these occasions just as do parties of 

 human beings at the seaside, and would appear to indulge in games, tricks, and 

 even pleasure trips on drifting masses of ice. 



Owing to the small fear of human beings shown by these birds, they are 

 peculiarly suitable for a study of the comparative psychology of animals, and we 

 suggest that on another occasion a special investigator for the purpose might add 

 much to our knowledge of this neglected branch of science. Dr. Levick records 

 many observations and some experiments. Thus he found that the cocks preferred 

 to take brightly red-painted stones, and also stole them from neighbouring 

 nests. On one occasion, one of them seemed to desire to make friends with 

 one of the human party by laying a stone at his feet ; and we should have 

 liked to have read of more attempts to cultivate such friendships. On the 

 other hand the birds are occasionally very stupid, as for instance when they 

 cannot pass a rope slung low across the ground. It is also remarkable that they 

 make no efforts to destroy the nests of Skua gulls which injure their eggs and 

 young very frequently. There can be little doubt that penguins are able to com- 

 municate ideas to one another, and some of Dr. Levick's evidence as to this is both 

 instructive and amusing. They undertake an extraordinary kind of drill before 

 starting for the north again at the end of the Antarctic summer. There are also 

 some notes regarding Skua gulls and Emperor Penguins. 



