1-26 CKEATOPHOKA CARUNCULATA 



migrating swarms of locusts, that they are compelled to 

 remain in touch with these insects for the greater portion 

 of the year. A few stray individuals occasionally remain for 

 a time after the larger flocks have taken their departure, and 

 find an asylum in the ranks of the resident Red-winged or 

 Brown and White Starlings, with both of which species they 

 are on amicable terms." 



" When pursuing a flight of mature locusts these Starlings 

 perform various extraordinary and beautiful aerial evolutions 

 with the object of intercepting and surrounding a portion of 

 a swarm, and in doing this their movements closely resemble 

 those of another locust-destroying Starling, the lieautiful 

 Rose-coloured Pastor of Eastern Europe and Asia. Indi- 

 vidually the two species are very different, collectively and 

 under similar conditions their actions are quite similar. 

 Starting in a dense ' ball-like ' mass, they suddenly open out 

 into a fan-shaped formation, then assume a semi-circular 

 arrangement, and finally end by forming a hollow cylinder, 

 in which a portion of the locusts are enclosed ; as the 

 imprisoned insects are destroyed, the Starlings gradually fill 

 up the hollow of the cylinder until they again assume their 

 ' ball ' formation and proceed to follow the remaining locusts. 

 At other times the Starlings station themselves on the tops 

 of bushes and trees, from which they dart on the flying 

 insects like Flycatchers. When feeding on the ground, on 

 the young locusts, they advance in long lines, three or four 

 deep, the rearmost birds constantly jumping over those in 

 front of them, like English Starlings. When locusts are not 

 to be had the Wattled Starling will eat almost any variety 

 of insect food, but seem to prefer grasshoppers and small 

 beetles : occasionally they feed upon berries and seeds. 



"In Cape Colony the Locust Birds usually breed in veiy 

 large colonies, in localities in which the locusts have 



