TRACKS IN THE SAND 75 



Savannah and, unlike that bird, it very rarely 

 hops. 



Crows' tracks are common at all seasons of the 

 year and always characteristic. The * 'gouty" 

 toe joints, the lazy habit of dragging one or more 

 toes, the very rare hop, have all been mentioned 

 in my previous publication. In alighting, the 

 feet come down together and the hind toe and 

 even the tarsus may cut the sand. In springing 

 away, the feet together sometimes sink in deeply. 

 In both acts the marks of the wing feathers are 

 often plainly imprinted on the sand. While 

 the adult crow rarely hops, the young do so fre- 

 quently. Hopping is probably the primitive 

 form of locomotion in arboreal birds that jump 

 or hop from limb to limb, while the art of walk- 

 ing is acquired later if the bird frequents the 

 ground. I have watched an adult crow and four 

 full grown young on the beach. The young fre- 

 quently called for food and whenever this was 

 found by the parent, the young, although gen- 

 erally walking, would, at these times, hurry to her 

 with long hops, aiding themselves by spreading 

 their wings. This spreading of the wings to 



