58 Littler, The School in Wild Life. [is^^'o'ct. 



any other species heard from its nest. But is he right ? To 

 transfer one of his examples from England to Australia, we 

 get the following : — A nestful of young Jackasses with silent 

 parents hear round them day after day the rich warbling 

 notes of the Magpie. The young birds, as soon as they are 

 old enough, commence practising, not their own notes, but 

 those of the Magpie, and when they are fully fledged they will 

 be Magpies in as far as their powers go. 



What would happen if half a dozen or more species of song 

 birds were to bring up their broods close to one another ? Would 

 the species with the loudest or most harmonious song teach 

 the whole six broods its own song, to the exclusion of the other 

 parents ? I think not, but rather that each species would retain 

 its own note. Suppose clutches of eggs of half a dozen species 

 could be hatched and the young reared in an incubator, what 

 results, as far as vocal capabilities, would we have ? Each species 

 would develop its own particular song, independent of its 

 neighbour. 



To pass on to another portion of the article, that which treats 

 of nest-building. The author asserts that the young birds, 

 aided by their natural sharpness, learn the art from their parents, 

 and that while they are nestlings, they make mental notes of 

 their cradle, inside and out. I quite reject the theory that 

 birds are mere copyists and automatons. Birds do not " learn " 

 how to make a nest, the gift being handed down from generation 

 to generation. Nor do they blindly build whether environment 

 be suitable or not. They display an intelligence oftentimes 

 marvellous, and build nests by " instinct ; " but it is their 

 " intelligence " that tells them whether it would be safe or not 

 to nest in a seemingly suitable situation. Birds are quick to 

 employ new materials in the construction of their nests should 

 they prove suitable. But how did they learn the suitability 

 or otherwise of certain materials ? How did Silver-eyes and 

 Robins become acquainted with the suitability of cow and horse 

 hair for their nests ? Or how did other birds — several may be 

 named — learn the use of string and wire?* 



In conclusion, the author of the article deals with the evergreen, 

 ever-mysterious subject of migration. Speaking of the habit 

 many species of birds have of quitting the Arctic Circle on the 

 approach of winter, and returning again in spring to nest, he 

 says : — " There may have been a time, before the snow crept 

 so far down, when they spent the whole year farther north, and 

 being very much creatures of habit, they still return to the old 



[* There is a subtle question as to heredity or instinct involved in Mr. Littler's 

 notes. Some of the problems ne propounds are not readily answered, and open up a 

 field of study the width of which has not been more than half realized by the {>t\^ 

 Australasian observers who have ventured to treat it at all. The further one goes 

 into such a problem the more involved he becomes, unless he be one of those 

 fortunate individuals who, passing life out of doors, is not only exceptionally 

 favoured as to matters of observation, but does not shrink from sacrificing a theory 

 for truth.— H.K.] 



