COURTSHIP, INSTINCT AND REASON 207 



and musical sounds. In most cases such animals have 

 a more general and simple " cry," which is not necessarily 

 a sexual appeal, but addressed to comrades generally, 

 and also a more elaborate cry or song which is primarily 

 used by the male as an attraction in courtship, but has 

 in the case of many birds been inherited from original 

 male singers by the females also. The " singing " of 

 birds apart from simpler cries and calls is a sexual 

 address, an act of courtship. It is a display of power 

 and capacity on the part of the male, and that such is 

 its character is shown by the competition between male 

 birds in the endeavour to " out-sing " one another. Some 

 birds become extraordinarily excited in these competi- 

 tions, which take the place of actual fighting, the victor 

 who silences his opponents being the winner of the 

 female bird, who is at hand listening to the competition. 

 Caged chaffinches are celebrated for their eagerness to 

 compete with one another in singing. They deliver 

 their little song alternately until one is exhausted and 

 unable to take up his turn. He is vanquished. So 

 excited do the birds become that it occasionally happens 

 that one of the competitors drops down dead. The 

 beginning and directive causes of the particular song of 

 different kinds of birds is not understood. But it is 

 well known that they have a great gift of imitation. 

 Parrots, piping crows, ravens, and other such birds are 

 familiar instances, whilst little birds such as bullfinches 

 can be trained to whistle the melodies which human 

 beings have invented. Even the house-sparrow, which, 

 though allied to singing finches, never sings at all when 

 in natural conditions, has been converted into a songster 

 by bringing it up in company with piping bullfinches. 



Other animals which cannot sing like the birds yet 

 use their voices in courtship. The frogs and toads are 



