Vol. XXin -^Y j^ Fisher, Habits of the Lavsan Albatross. I^ 



iq04 J ' ./ . J 



to offer. In the numerous other cases in which I saw both birds 

 'sing,' I do not remember whether they continued thereafter or 

 not. 



It is very amusing to watch three engage in the dance, one 

 attempting to divide its attention between two. This ' odd' bird 

 starts by bowing to the first partner, whom he suddenly forsakes 

 with a final deprecatory nod, and takes up the thread of the dance 

 with the second. The latter always seems ready to join in, since 

 he has been keeping up a sort of mark-time in the movements. 

 Thus the single one keeps switching back and forth, trying as it 

 were, to be on good terms with both partners at once. Three do 

 not keep this up very long, however, since the odd bird either 

 shows a preference for one of the partners and ignores the other 

 entirely, or walks off to seek a new acquaintance. But through- 

 out it all they are always exceedingly polite, and never lose their 

 temper in any way. 



Occasionally while ' cake-walking ' one will lightly pick up a 

 straw or twig, and present it to the other, who does not accept 

 the gift, however, but thereupon returns the compliment, when 

 straws are promptly dropped, and all hands begin bowing and 

 walking about as if their very lives depended upon it. 



Several times at this stage of affairs I have walked quietly 

 among a group of the busy creatures, and have begun to bow very 

 low, imitating as nearly as possible the manner of the Gonies. 

 They would all stop and gaze at me in astonishment, but recover- 

 ing their usual equanimity almost at once would gravely return 

 my bows and walk around me in puzzled sort of way, as if won- 

 dering what kind of a bird I might be. I thought of trying this 

 because in Rothschild's ' Avifauna of Laysan ' (which we had 

 taken with us on the steamer ' Albatross ') the following extract 

 is given from Kittlitz's notes on the birds of Laysan. 



"When Herr Isenbeck met one he used to bow to it and the 

 Albatrosses were polite enough to answer, bowing and cackling. 

 This could easily be regarded as a fairy tale ; but considering that 

 these birds, which did not even fly away when approached, had 

 no reason to change their customs, it seems quite natural." ^ 



' Extract from Avifauna of Laysan, etc., p. iii, (F. H. v. Kittlitz in : 

 Museum Senckenbergianum, I, pp. 117 et seq.) 



