FEATHER LICE I27 



remarked, " These insects . . . are apt to kill the pheasant unless it takes 

 care to bathe itself in dust." 



The phenomenon known as "anting" may be another method by 

 which the bird keeps down the numbers of its lice. Russian soldiers were 

 said to clean their lousy garments by putting them on ants' nests, and it 

 has been suggested that the habit of some birds of lying with outstretched 

 wings on an ant's nest allows the ants to run through their plumage and 

 perform a similar service. The subject, however, is both controversial 

 and complicated. There are two types of anting behaviour, one known 

 as "passive anting", the other as "active anting". " Passive anting " 

 by a young carrion-crow is described by Condry : "After a few seconds 

 hesitation he stepped into the middle of the swarming ants . . . When 

 some of the ants found their way via his legs to his feathers, the bird 

 showed apparent pleasure and slowly settled down among the ants with 

 wings outspread and tail fanned. Then he dropped his head down in a 

 swooning posture till his beak touched the ground. He was soon covered 

 with ants ..." 



Many cases of "active anting," which seems to be a more usual 

 phenomenon, have been recorded : Chisholm describes this curious 

 procedure carried out by some immature starlings : 



" Each bird snatched up an ant from a gravel path and dabbed 

 it quickly first under one wing and then under the other, after which 

 the insect usually was dropped . . . All the actions of the starlings 

 were very rapid. Two birds in particular nearly fell over backwards 

 while rearing up smartly and applying ants beneath their tails . . . 

 When the birds departed, the path was bespattered with dead and 

 maimed ants, some fifty per cent, of which had their abdomens 

 burst." 

 There is further evidence which may throw some light on this 

 peculiar habit. Tame or captive birds have been seen rubbing cigar- 

 butts, lemon-juice, vinegar and even beer into their plumage. The 

 American purple grackle {Quiscalus quiscula) anoints its plumage with 

 the liquid found inside the walnut, which has a strong acid reaction, 

 and there are other reports of birds applying aromatic oils from fruits 

 and leaves to their bodies. It has therefore been suggested that the 

 birds are smearing insecticides on their plumage. The formic acid 

 within the bodies of the ants is liberated as these are crushed against 

 the feathers, and it is thought that the lice and other ecto-parasites are 

 either killed directly, or through eating the acid-covered feathers. 



