996 JOURNAL, BOMBA Y NA TDRAL HISTORY SOCIETY, Vol. XIX. 



No. XXV.— INTELLIGENCE IN BIRDS. 



In recording instances of " maternal solicitude " and the '■ injury feigning 

 habit in birds " of various kinds I, for one, must confess that I never thought of 

 ascribing the action of the birds, to anj-thing but instinct and it never struck 

 me, to watch more closely, to see if reason played any part, as Mr. Dewar 

 appears to have done. 



However, whether the injury feigning habit, is due to instinct or intelli- 

 gence. Heave to men more capable of passing opinions on the subject than 

 myself to solve the problem, but that in other matters, biida show a 

 tolerable amount of intelligence, 1 do not think there can be much doubt, 

 and a cuuple of instances, which have come under my personal notice, may 

 be of inierest. 



The first case is that of a King Crow. I was waiting near the Wazii-abad 

 Railway Station, in the Punjab, for a very dark and large Peregrine Falcon, 

 that I had noticed pass that way on thiee successive days, wi.h my nets and 

 nooses and hoping it would pass again that day, and while sitting on a stone, 

 I watched a Bock of mynahs, turning up leaves for worms, wt ile on the 

 telegraph wires above, sat a couple of King-Crows, a Roller and a Hoopoe, 

 One of the mynahs, finally got a huge earth worm out, and the one next to it, 

 promptly made for it to take away the tit-bit. Suddenly there was heard, 

 close overhead the double note *' titu" twice repeated of a " shikm" (,l . ha<iiu-i). 

 Tiie mynahs and hoopoe, were off like a shot ftjr the nearest tree, leaving the 

 worm behind, when down came theKing-dow and secured the prize. I have 

 frequently heard the King-Crow give this call and the imitatim is simply 

 perfect, but never before nor since, have I knoAvn one to make such use of his 

 powers of mimicry. 



The second instance is that of a Peregrine Falcon. I was after duck, in a 

 naiTOW water channel with a caste of peiegiints and we had been vainly 

 trying to put up a gad wall. It had origi: ally been flushed fn m a pond some 

 distance away and taken refuge from the two perfgrir.es, which were in hot 

 pursuit in tl.is water cut, about 8 ft. wide, with sloping grassy banks. In vain 

 we threw bricks and mud at it, but it would not leave the water, and if it did, it 

 was only to fly ten yards or so, and drop in again the moment the falcons got 

 near. Up and down that cut we went for about ten minutes, or moie, till the 

 duck took to diving, and as the little head appeared close to the edge, one of 

 the falcuns would make a dart for it, but only to find it gone, when she got 

 there. Both falcons had given up " waiting on, " and were now seated on the 

 bank, close to the water's edge, but flew the moment the head appeared and 

 made for it. The water was fairly clear and the duck quite viable when near 

 the surface, and as it passed under one of the falcuns, she ran along the edge 

 beside it, not attempting to fly, and as the beak came up. in among a lot of 

 grass, out shot a claw and grabbed it. I expected the duck to pull the falcon 

 into the water, but she seemed to have provided for this contingency, aid had 

 a firm hold of the grass with her other foot. This feat struck me as having 



