THE FAUNA OF THE RAILROAD 23 



of partridges dusting between the sleepers, and they 

 appeared far less alarmed by an approaching train 

 than they would have been if a man or a dog had 

 come along the line. Indeed, they did not get up 

 till the engine was upon them, when it seemed 

 impossible that all could escape unhurt. But a search 

 on the line after the train had passed showed only one 

 or two feathers dropped by the birds when dusting. 



Some birds have a perverted liking for actually 

 nesting in old railway-trucks, or occasionally in those 

 in use. Water-wagtails are the commonest experi- 

 menters in this department of animal railway life. 

 They have been known to follow the truck when 

 moved to another station ; but whether they would 

 ever try to sit on the eggs unless the truck were 

 returned to the place from which it was moved is 

 doubtful. Barnes railway bridge on the Thames is 

 a very favourite nesting site with house-martins, 

 which build in great numbers among the iron supports 

 beneath it. Why the eggs are not " addled " by the 

 constant vibration of the trains passing only a few 

 feet above them is an unsolved mystery ; but as the 

 birds have built there for many years, it is evident 

 that they consider the position a good one. On the 

 Uganda Railway it might be expected that the great 

 herds of wild game of all kinds found along some 

 parts of the line would have moved off at once to 

 a distance from the track. When hunted they do 

 so. But it was observed that the trains themselves 

 caused them very little concern. Some species used 

 the track as a path. Others fed without moving 



