96 MATESHIP WITH BIRDS 



district, to drive them out altogether. And in the 

 Autumn, when there is none of the cares of the nest- 

 ing season to distract, the exuberant spirits of the 

 Yellow-tufts frequently carry them through regular 

 quadrilles. 



I recall one such performance, which was pre- 

 sented by about 30 birds. It was most engaging. 

 With wings drooped and tails raised, the graceful 

 creatures bowed, advanced, retired, hopped around, 

 and, amid much excited chattering, went through 

 a highly-spectacular display before rising simul- 

 taneously and flying to another spot to repeat the 

 antics. Do the birds deliberately arrange these 

 play-parties? It seems to me that, in a semi- 

 capricious way, they do, even though we have 

 nothing to show how such arrangements are 

 effected. 



Quite apart from that consideration, however, 

 there can be no doubt as to the purpose of the Yel- 

 low-tuft in its even more extraordinary antics when 

 danger appears to menace its babies. No bird of 

 my acquaintance is able to practise the broken-wing 

 ruse with greater skill than this Honeyeater. Utter- 

 ing the most pitiful of cries, it will go fluttering 

 along over the roughest ground, falling into 

 depressions and scrambling out again, now beat- 

 ing its little wings on the earth, now making 

 them to quiver tremulously in the air but all the 

 time keeping a wary eye open to see whether the 

 intruder is being satisfactorily deceived into follow- 

 ing away from that precious nest. There never 

 yet was a dog (and seldom a boy) able to resist 



