Courtship 



they are simply built by the males for the delectation of 

 the opposite sex. 



Every male bird by his colouring, his antics, his vocal 

 powers or his fighting capacity does his utmost to appear 

 in favourable light before the females. From the drab 

 sparrow to the gorgeous bird of paradise, there is no 

 exception. Having won the affections of the trustful hen, 

 a consummation which is not always easily brought 

 about, he frequently lapses from the path of virtue and 

 sometimes becomes a veritable tyrant. 



Courtship amongst insects is rare. Lord Avebury 

 gives an amusing account of the efforts of a springtail to 

 win a bride. He says : " It is very amusing to see these 

 little creatures coquetting together. The male, which is 

 much smaller than the female, runs round her and they 

 butt one another, standing face to face and moving back- 

 wards and forwards like two playful lambs. Then the 

 female pretends to run away and the male runs after her. 

 With a queer appearance of anger, he gets in front and 

 stands facing her again ; then she turns coyly round, but 

 he, quicker and more active, scuttles round too, and seems 

 to whip her with his antennae ; then for a bit they stand 

 face to face, play with their antennae and seem to be all 

 in all to one another." 



Several species of spiders are adepts at courtship. Mr 

 and Mrs Peckham have described their antics from actual 

 observation in the following words (a male and female 

 were placed together in a box) : " He saw her as she 

 stood perfectly still, twelve inches away ; the glance 

 seemed to excite him and he moved towards her ; when 

 some four inches from her he stood still, and then began 

 the most remarkable performance that an amorous male 

 could offer to an admiring female. She eyed him eagerly, 

 changing her position from time to time so that he might 

 be always in view. He, raising his whole body on one 

 side by straightening out the legs, and lowering it on the 

 other by folding the first two pairs of legs up and under, 

 L 161 



