48 Habit and Instinct. 



the wing by a bird younger than ten days or a fortnight. 

 The wild duck, tame duck, and chick I had, together with 

 other birds, in a room, dashed repeatedly at flies which 

 settled on the floor. The wild duck caught one for the first 

 time when it was seven days old ; the chick succeeded 

 when he was nine days old. I never saw the tame duck 

 successful. Nor have I ever seen a chick, pheasant, or 

 duckling, when only two or three days old, catch at the 

 first shot, even a running fly — one, that is to say, the 

 wings of which had been clipped. I must therefore repeat 

 that young birds in my experience do not show that 

 congenital accuracy of aim which Spalding's observation 

 implies; hence his results, until they are confirmed by 

 other observers, must, in my opinion, be regarded as 

 unusual and tending to give an exaggerated view of the 

 inherited skill. 



Secondly, with regard to the difference of behaviour 

 towards the fly which was swallowed, and the bee which 

 was thrown aside disabled. The implication is that there 

 is an instinctive discrimination between the edible fly and 

 the hurtful bee, and that, too, when these insects were on 

 the wing. It is possible that the buzzing of the bee made 

 the difference in the behaviour in the two cases ; but all 

 my own observations are against the view that there is any 

 truly congenital power of discrimination. This, however, 

 was not Spalding's view. He regarded a fear of bees as 

 instinctive, but only imperfectly so, by which it would 

 seem that he meant that it had not yet reached the stage 

 of infallible avoidance. To quote his own words, " the 

 chicks were uncertain, shy, and suspicious." It may 

 be well, however, to give the whole passage. " When a 

 week old, my turkey came on a bee right in its path — the 

 first, I believe, it had ever seen. It gave the danger chirr, 

 stood a few seconds with outstretched neck and marked 



