INDEX 



345 



herrings, 1 15; nesting habits 

 difficult to observe, 115, 116; 

 probably eats heads of herrings 

 disgorged for young, 117, 1 18; 

 has no reason to vary diet during 

 breeding-season, as asserted, 118; 

 suggested origin of its specialised 

 method of feeding, 118, 119; 

 attacks those approaching its 

 nest, 121 ; makes swoop in 

 silence, but utters cry whilst 

 circling between each, 121 ; blow 

 with feet ineffective, 122 ; attacks 

 almost indefinitely, 122 ; mode 

 of attack, 123, 124. Attack made 

 by both sexes, 124 ; an exception 

 noted, 124, 125 ; theory in regard 

 to this, 125. Feared less by gulls 

 than Arctic skua, 128 ; mobbed 

 by gulls, 128 

 Skylarks, aerial combats of, 35, 

 36 ; impressive hop^ of male in 

 courtship, 49 ; song of, how 

 differing from the nightingale's, 

 312 ; effect of if heard at night, 



Snipe, a familiar example of in- 

 strumental music during flight, 

 52 ; modification of tail-feathers 

 by sexual selection, 53 ; wings 

 apparent but not real cause of 

 bleating, 53, 54, 55 ; different 

 ways of descending to earth, 53, 

 55, 56 ; different modes of flight, 

 54; see-saw or " chack-wood " 

 note, 54, 56 ; swishing of wings, 

 56 ; extraordinary notes of, 57. 

 Tail feathers less modified in 

 female, and producing a different 

 bleat, 57 ; but diff'erence not 

 great, 57, 58. Individual differ- 

 ences in bleat, 57, 58 ; flying in 

 circles, 58 ; bleat best in morning 

 and evening, 58 ; flight difficult to 

 follow, 58 ; private allotment in 

 fields of air, 58 ; bleating of males 

 against each other, 59 ; bleating 

 of male and female to each other, 

 59 ; bleating of one answered 

 vocally by the other on ground, 

 59. Extraordinary movements 

 when alarmed during incubation, 



60, 61 ; theory with regard to 

 these, 63, 64 



Sparrows, seize burrows of sand- 

 martins, 325 ; creditable motives 

 of, in so doing, 325, 326 



Sparrows, Tree, at straw-stack in 

 winter, 199 ; seize burrows of 

 sand-martins, 325 



Species, knowledge lost by destruc- 

 tion of any, 333 



Specific life, any, of more value than 

 most individual ones, 334 



Spiders, if they had their Phidiases, 



52 



Spur-winged Lapwing, curious per- 

 formances of, 81, 82; suggested 

 origin of, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, 87, 

 88, 89, 90, 91, 92, 93, 94, 95 



Starlings, acting as fly-catchers, 8, 

 48 ; and as wood-peckers, 48. 

 Manner of feeding, 9 ; at straw- 

 stack in winter, 199, 204, 205 ; 

 fighting with hen blackbird, 204 ; 

 fighting with each other, 204, 

 205. Their simultaneous flights, 

 210, 214, 215 ; difficulty of ex- 

 plaining these and suggestions as 

 to, 214, 215. How associated 

 with rooks, 261 



Stock-doves, their aerial combats, 

 38, 39 ; arising sometimes out of 

 the ground-tourney, 4 1 , 42. Their 

 ground - tourneys, 39, 40, 41; 

 bowing of fighting birds to each 

 other, 39, 40, 41 ; fighting of 

 male and female, 42, 43 ; court- 

 ing bow of male to female, 43, 

 44, 45 ; bowing of female to 

 male, 43, 44 ; bow silent or 

 accompanying note subdued, 45 ; 

 court on trees or on ground, 45 ; 

 their nuptial flights in early 

 morning, 46, 47 ; make nest in 

 rabbit-burrows, 47 



Structure, slight changes of, not 

 easy to see, 229 



Thought-transference, as pos- 

 sible explanation of some move- 

 ments of birds and other animals, 

 219, 220, 221, 222, 223, 286, 



