EASTERN MOCKINGBIRD 307 



writer has often seen the mocker as well as numerous other avian 

 species indulging on it. The ring-billed gull (Larus delawarensis) 

 also often eats the berries of the palmetto ! 



Lester W. Smith (MS.) writes that about Sarasota, Fla., he has 

 found mockers eating the pods of the yucca, or Spanish bayonet. They 

 "feed on the upper ripe pods while the lower mass, still green, is un- 

 touched." Miss Clara Bates (1940), of Fort Pierce, Fla., writes that 

 "like all birds, the Mockingbird is partial to the small red pepper [G. 

 frutescens).''^ 



Behavior. — As individualistic as the mocker is, its actions and be- 

 havior are replete with vigor and vivacity. There seems to be no con- 

 dition under which the bird does not appear keenly alive. One of 

 its marked traits is its alert defense of territory against all comers, 

 and in this it rivals the kingbird {Tyrajrinus tyr annus) in attacking 

 anything that violates it. At times it seems that a spirit of innate 

 pugnacity prompts attacks, for these are by no means limited to the 

 nesting season, or even winter territorial defense. Encounters among 

 themselves are frequent and as many as six, eight, or even more birds 

 will indulge in a battle royal. The writer once saw a group of 12 in 

 his yard engaged in a pitched combat of determined proportions, this 

 being the largest avian "mass attack" of which he has knowledge. 



The spirit of play appears well developed in the mocker also. It is 

 somewhat reminiscent of the duck hawk (Falco 'peregrmus anatwn) 

 in this respect. It seems to delight in bedeviling dogs and cats and 

 puts either to flight. A neighbor of the writer in Charleston main- 

 tained a kennel of hunting dogs for some years, and the mockers of 

 the neighborhood would often "dive-bomb" these dogs, plunging upon 

 them as they slept, or else they roamed about the enclosure and fre- 

 quently drove them to the shelter of the kennels, tails between legs ! 

 At times they would actually alight on a dog's back and peck savagely. 

 M. G. Vaiden (MS.), of Eosedale, Miss., says that "I have seen the 

 mockingbird ride my Belgian shepherd's back more than once, near 

 the nesting site, and usually the dogs find some other places to ramble 

 than those near a mocker's nest." It often attacks snakes also, and an 

 instance of this is related by Mrs. J. L. Alley (1939), of Tavernier, 

 Fla. She states that she witnessed an attack on a coachwhip snake 

 {Masticophis flagellum) near St. Petersburg in the summer of 1939. 

 The bird repeatedly alighted on the head of the snake and pecked it 

 viciously. The encounter was watched for a considerable time, the 

 snake finally seeking sanctuary under some bushes. 



The flight of the mocker is well sustained but appears somewhat 

 labored at times, particularly in heavy winds, probably on account of 

 the long tail. It is often the case that, when alighting on the ground, 

 where it spends much time, the bird elevates its wings and holds them 

 high, after the manner of some of the shorebirds, before folding them. 



