COURTSHIP. 109 



The account of the display of the bird of 

 paradise just related is regarded by the natives 

 as a dancing-display ; we prefer to consider it 

 rather as a dress-display. 



The jacana of South America is an expert 

 dancer. " Mr Hudson," writes Dr Sharpe, " says 

 that in the Argentine Kepublic he has seen these 

 birds leave their feeding all in a moment, and 

 with quick excited notes cluster together in a 

 close group, and go through a singular and 

 pretty performance, all together holding their 

 wings outstretched and agitated, some with a 

 rapid fluttering, others with a slow-moving, 

 leisurely motion, like that of a butterfly sunning 

 itself. The performance over, the birds peace- 

 ably scatter again. . . ." 



One, at least, of the manakins — small South 

 American birds — practises the noble sport of 

 dancing. Mr Nutting, in relating his travels 

 in Nicaragua, writes: "The natives call this 

 bird the ' bailador ' or ' dancer,' but it was not 

 until I had been in the region for some time 

 that I understood why it was called by that 

 name. One day when hunting through the 

 dense forest, the profound silence was suddenly 

 broken by the regularly repeated note of 'El 

 Bailador,' and softly making my way to the 

 spot, I witnessed one of the most remarkable 

 performances it has ever been my lot to see. 

 Upon a bare twig which overhung the trail at 

 a distance of about four feet from the ground, 

 two male 'bailadors' were engaged in a 'song 

 and dance ' act that simply astonished me. The 

 two birds were about a foot and a half apart^ 



