SUMMER LIVERIES 317 



from the oppression of summer coming between the twin 

 rigours of spring and autumn. That this summer eclipse is 

 something more than the first stage in a preparation for 

 the spring splendour is suggested by the ptarmigan, which 

 is one of the few birds that has a separate dress for spring, 

 summer, and winter. Both the summer duskiness and the 

 winter whiteness seem to be in some degree protective* 

 They help to hide both birds, which are indeed pursued by 

 a great number of enemies from ermines to eagles. But 

 how much of what is held to be protective is more or less 

 accidental ? Is there any bird at any season more glaringly 

 conspicuous than the cock pheasant, which suffers no eclipse 

 in summer, yet now and again one sees even a pheasant 

 strangely disappear into the autumn hues of a wood, as if 

 he were especially adapted to avoid human enemies when 

 the sport of shooting begins ? The male and female partridge, 

 which one must hold in the hand to distinguish from one 

 another, have a constant colour, very beautiful but not 

 salient. They are very conspicuous in spite of their brown- 

 ness on the close-cut stubbles. On the light plough-lands of 

 Surrey they are perfectly fitted to their surroundings, but 

 are quite fairly distinguishable on the chalk ploughs of 

 Berkshire. What is one to infer ? 



The fact is, most hunted birds and animals consent in 

 colour with their surroundings. Stripes and dots are hard 

 to pick out. Some are said to stand in poses that help 

 their colours. Mr. Pycraft, one of the specialists on colour, 

 says that the snipe stands with head down and the bittern 

 with tail up, each so that he may use his particular pattern 

 of soft stripes of grey and brown to the best advantage. 



But, as it seems to the writer, birds are not growing 

 better and better fitted to their surroundings, but worse and 

 worse. The livery of most young birds, when once they 



Y 



