THE RAZORBILL AND GUILLEMOT 19 



third form of caress is the twining by one bird of its neck round the 

 neck of its mate, which I have noted in the case of guillemots, and also 

 of gannets. Here the avian neck plays the part of the human arm. 



The most remarkable of these love actions was one which 

 I witnessed in the case of guillemots only. In its complete form it 

 consisted in running the head down the breast till the tip of the beak 

 nearly touched the ground between the feet, then in raising it well up 

 and jerking it about quickly from side to side. Sometimes the head 

 was moved down a short way only, then raised and jerked. Sometimes, 

 again, the head might be jerked without any preliminary bowing 

 action ; and sometimes the latter alone occurred, or was followed by 

 some caress, such as the feather nibbling. On one occasion I saw one 

 bird keep its head between its feet while the other delicately nibbled 

 at its crown. These actions were not confined to one sex. Both 

 might be seen bending their heads to the ground side by side. But 

 the presence of both was not essential. One would occasionally 

 perform by itself. The shorter, unfinished bows, curious forward 

 movements of the head, were made not only by pairs but by a number 

 at a time. In the latter case it appeared to have rather a social than 

 a sexual significance. 



The downward inclination of the head to the feet is the most 

 interesting feature in this display, on account of its close resemblance 

 to the movement performed by guillemots when pushing their eggs 

 beneath their breasts with the bill, before settling down to incubate. 

 I have indeed seen guillemots, before they had eggs, shuffle along 

 the ledge as if seeking a spot to lay, and then bring the beak down 

 between the feet in the way described. In these cases the action 

 may have been actually anticipative of egg-laying, and have had no 

 sexual meaning. But circumstantial evidence left no room to doubt 

 that in the majority of cases it was a love-display. The resemblance 

 between the two acts probably extends to the curious little nibbling 

 movements that the bird often makes with the bill during the space 

 of time in its display when the tip of its beak is held just above the 



