THE FACT IS, THAT WE DO NOT KNOW 553 



Shrike " uailing " meat, insects, and the bodies of such birds 

 as may be thrown to him. 



I have had my doubts in this matter j and still, after observ- 

 ing Shrikes carefully in various parts of the country, must 

 admit that the matter is not finally narrowed down to a simple 

 question of hoarding. Too many bodies are stuck up, too 

 promiscuously, and too few are made use of afterward, for us 

 to consider it simply as a piece of the bird's thrift. I suppose 

 the habit of impaling, considered simply as such, and without 

 reference to ulterior purposes subserved, may have been grad- 

 ually acquired as the result of the Shrike's physical organiza- 

 tion — the relatively little force of grasping with his feet he 

 possesses, in comparison with the power of his beak. The 

 talons of a Hawk, for example, are very effective instruments, 

 not only for striking and killing prey, but also for holding it 

 while it is torn by the beak. The Shrike has much less pre- 

 hensile power ; it strikes with the beak, and devours as best 

 it may. A Nuthatch, for example, will take an acorn to a 

 crack in the bark, and wedge it there while it hammers away 

 at it with the bill. Such a habit of fastening its prey having 

 been acquired, as something entirely unconnected with the 

 storing up of provisions, may then have been turned to account 

 as a means of securing its prey for future use, and thus become 

 the usual way of making a hoard. 



It is certain, however, that the Shrike makes no great use of 

 his larder ; and that he sometimes impales and sometimes not, 

 aipparently at his caprice. He is just as likely to eat a grass- 

 hopper as to stick one. He spits its victims as often when 

 food is plenty as when it is scarce; and the majority of the 

 bodies gibbeted are left to wither and be blown away, or be 

 eaten up by the bugs. On one occasion, when I watched a 

 Shrike closely for some time, I saw him impale a number of 

 grasshoppers in succession, and continue foraging for more, 

 which he ate upon the spot, as soon as caught. I never 

 witnessed the act of impaling a bird or mouse, but I suppose 

 it would be the same as for a grasshopper ; and in the instance 

 to which I refer the bird worked the unfortunate insect on 

 the thorn with his beak, pushing and pressing it down with 

 various strokes, until it was fixed to his satisfaction. 



But we have not yet finished our study of Shrikes — having 

 still to consider their flight, their voice, and especially their 

 domestic habits. 



