202 HABITS OF THE HOOPOE. 



two or three pieces were given to them, the scramble, though they could not have been 

 very hungry, and the subsequent struggle, for possession, was maintained with a pertinacity 

 that was truly surprising. Two might be seen tugging with might and main at the same 

 morsel, till wearied with repeated efforts they would give over for a while, still retaining, 

 however, their hold, to resume the contest after an interval of rest ; and it was not 

 unusual on such occasions for a third individual, generally a smaller and weaker bird, 

 to quietly watch the issue of the contest, when it would endeavour to deprive the victor 

 of its prize. Certainly, I never saw birds struggle so vigorously before, nor pull with 

 such determined force and energy, tumbling over not unfrequently from the violence of 

 their efforts." 



This pugnacious disposition appears to be universal among the Hoopoes, for M. Necker 

 remarks that in his own country they fight in the most desperate manner and leave the 

 scene of their combat covered with feathers that had been torn off in the struggle. 

 Another histoiy of tame Hoopoes was communicated to Bechstein, the well-known 

 author of " Cage Birds," by the owner of the Hoopoes. Of little birds, which he had 

 taken from nests on the top of an oak-tree, he says, " They followed me everywhere, 

 and when they heard me at a distance, showed their joy by a peculiar chirping, jumped 

 into the air, or, as soon as I was seated, climbed upon my clothes, particularly when 

 giving them their food from a pan of milk, the cream of which they swallowed greedily. 

 They climbed higher and higher, till at last they perched on my shoulders, and sometimes 

 on my head, caressing me very affectionately ; notwithstanding this, I had only to speak a 

 word to rid myself of their company ; they would then immediately retire to the stove. 

 Generally they would observe my eyes to discover what my temper might be, that they 

 might act accordingly. 



I fed them like the nightingales, with the universal paste, to which I sometimes added 

 insects ; they would never touch earthworms, but were very fond of beetles and May-bugs 

 (cockchaffers) ; these they first killed, and then beat them with their beak into a kind 

 of oblong ball. When this was done they threw it into the air, that they might catch 

 it and swallow it lengthwise ; if it fell across the throat, they were obliged to begin 

 again. 



I took them one day into a neighbouring field, that they might catch insects for them- 

 selves, and had then an opportunity of remarking their innate fear of birds of prey, and 

 their instinct under it. As soon as they perceived a raven, or even a pigeon, they were 

 on their bellies in the twinkling of an eye, their wings stretched out by the side of their 

 head so that the large quill-feathers touched ; they were thus surrounded by a coat of 

 armour formed by the feathers of the tail and wings, the head leaning on the back with 

 the bill pointed upwards ; in this curious position they might be taken for old rags. As 

 soon as the bird which frightened them was gone, they jumped up immediately, uttering 

 cries of joy. They were very fond of lying in the sun ; they showed their content by 

 repeating in a quivering tone, vec ! vec ! vec ! When angry, their notes are harsh ; and the 

 male, which is known by its colour being redder, cries hoop ! hoop ! 



The female had the trick of dragging its food about the room ; by this means it was 

 covered with small feathers and other rubbish, which by degrees formed into an 

 indigestible ball in its stomach about the size of a nut, of which it died. The male lived 

 through the winter ; but not quitting the heated stove, its beak became so dry that the 

 two parts separated and remained more than an inch apart ; thus it died miserably." 



One of these birds which was seen in captivity by Mr. Yarrell was in the habit of 

 concealing any superabundant food, and resorting to his hidden stores whenever he felt 

 hungry. It was mostly fed upon meal worms, which it always killed before eating, by 

 repeated bites from the end of the bill, and by a succession of pecks as they lay on the 

 ground after being disabled by the bites. On account of this habit, and from the fact 

 that the horny portions of the bill are very much longer than the bony structures, some 

 zoologists have considered the Hoopoe to be related to the Hornbills, and have accordingly 

 placed them next to those remarkable birds. 



The general colours of the Hoopoe are white, buff, and black, distributed in the 

 following manner. The plumes of the crest, which is composed of a double row of 



