﻿74 
  THE 
  ZOOLOGIST. 
  

  

  A 
  Question 
  of 
  interest 
  in 
  the 
  Life 
  of 
  the 
  Cuckoo. 
  — 
  The 
  Cuckoo 
  

   [Cuculus 
  canorus), 
  whose 
  life 
  is 
  surrounded 
  by 
  so 
  much 
  of 
  mystery, 
  

   seems 
  to 
  be 
  a 
  perennial 
  source 
  of 
  interest 
  not 
  less 
  to 
  the 
  true 
  bird- 
  

   lover 
  than 
  to 
  the 
  casual 
  observer. 
  In 
  view 
  of 
  possibly 
  more 
  attention 
  

   being 
  given 
  to 
  the 
  habits 
  of 
  the 
  Cuckoo 
  during 
  the 
  coming 
  summer, 
  I 
  

   am 
  about 
  to 
  ask 
  a 
  question, 
  and 
  suggest 
  an 
  answer 
  : 
  Does 
  the 
  bird 
  

   usually 
  seen 
  accompanying 
  the 
  Cuckoo 
  migrate 
  with 
  it 
  ? 
  Until 
  I 
  

   receive 
  further 
  information 
  on 
  the 
  subject, 
  I 
  reply 
  that 
  it 
  does 
  not. 
  On 
  

   Aug. 
  22nd, 
  189-4, 
  I 
  saw 
  the 
  interesting 
  spectacle 
  of 
  a 
  young 
  Cuckoo, 
  

   fully 
  developed, 
  attended 
  by 
  its 
  foster-mother, 
  a 
  Meadow-Pipit. 
  The 
  

   " 
  following" 
  in 
  this 
  case 
  was 
  very 
  decided, 
  but 
  I 
  would 
  put 
  that 
  down 
  

   entirely 
  to 
  the 
  maternal 
  instinct. 
  I 
  can 
  hardly 
  think 
  that 
  a 
  bird 
  whose 
  

   life 
  is 
  lived 
  on 
  such 
  sober 
  lines 
  as 
  the 
  Meadow-Pipit 
  would 
  follow 
  its 
  

   foster-child 
  far 
  beyond 
  the 
  bounds 
  of 
  its 
  favourite 
  moorlands. 
  It 
  will 
  

   rather, 
  I 
  think, 
  give 
  up 
  its 
  child, 
  as 
  other 
  birds 
  do, 
  when 
  the 
  natural 
  

   period 
  of 
  motherhood 
  ceases. 
  It 
  is 
  even 
  less 
  likely 
  that 
  the 
  Cuckoo's 
  

   dupe 
  comes 
  with 
  it. 
  This 
  aspect 
  of 
  the 
  question 
  is, 
  I 
  think, 
  hardly 
  

   worth 
  discussing 
  ; 
  but, 
  as 
  throwing 
  a 
  little 
  light 
  upon 
  the 
  whole 
  

   matter, 
  I 
  may 
  record 
  briefly 
  an 
  incident 
  which 
  came 
  under 
  my 
  own 
  

   observation 
  on 
  June 
  16th, 
  1903. 
  I 
  was 
  spending 
  an 
  afternoon 
  by 
  the 
  

   shore 
  of 
  the 
  Solway, 
  when 
  my 
  companion 
  and 
  I 
  were 
  attracted 
  by 
  the 
  

   presence 
  of 
  two 
  Cuckoos, 
  male 
  and 
  female, 
  among 
  the 
  rocks. 
  One 
  

   (the 
  male) 
  was 
  calling 
  ; 
  the 
  other 
  (the 
  female) 
  was 
  attended 
  by 
  another 
  

   bird, 
  a 
  Kock-Pipit. 
  I 
  have 
  not 
  hitherto 
  seen 
  the 
  Rock-Pipit 
  recorded 
  

   as 
  a 
  dupe 
  of 
  the 
  Cuckoo, 
  but 
  I 
  am 
  certain 
  of 
  its 
  identity 
  in 
  this 
  case. 
  

   It 
  was 
  clear 
  that 
  the 
  female 
  Cuckoo 
  was 
  on 
  the 
  outlook 
  for 
  the 
  nest 
  

   of 
  the 
  Pipit. 
  The 
  latter 
  did 
  not 
  follow 
  closely, 
  but 
  when 
  the 
  Cuckoos 
  

   arose 
  on 
  the 
  wing 
  it 
  left 
  its 
  stance 
  on 
  a 
  neighbouring 
  rock, 
  and 
  took 
  

   flight 
  after 
  them. 
  The 
  whole 
  proceedings 
  pointed 
  to 
  the 
  fact 
  that 
  the 
  

   dupe 
  does 
  not 
  actually 
  associate 
  itself 
  in 
  any 
  permanent 
  way 
  with 
  the 
  

   Cuckoo, 
  but 
  the 
  Cuckoo, 
  by 
  a 
  kind 
  of 
  hypnotism, 
  secures 
  a 
  temporary 
  

   influence 
  over 
  the 
  dupe. 
  Indeed, 
  I 
  would 
  be 
  inclined 
  to 
  say 
  that 
  the 
  

   dupe 
  actually 
  leads 
  the 
  Cuckoo 
  to 
  its 
  nest. 
  If 
  this 
  assumption 
  be 
  

   proved 
  correct, 
  it 
  fully 
  accounts 
  for 
  the 
  egg 
  of 
  the 
  Cuckoo 
  being, 
  as 
  it 
  

   frequently 
  is, 
  laid 
  in 
  a 
  nest 
  of 
  which 
  discovery 
  is 
  next 
  to 
  impossible. 
  

   I 
  should 
  add 
  that 
  I 
  did 
  not 
  find 
  the 
  nest 
  of 
  that 
  Piock-Pipit, 
  but 
  I 
  feel 
  

   pretty 
  sure 
  that 
  the 
  lady 
  Cuckoo 
  found 
  it 
  before 
  the 
  proceedings 
  closed. 
  

   J. 
  W. 
  Payne 
  (1, 
  Meadow 
  Place, 
  Edinburgh). 
  

  

  Little 
  Owl 
  (Athene 
  noctua) 
  and 
  Waxwing 
  (Ampelis 
  garrulus) 
  in 
  

   Lincolnshire. 
  — 
  I 
  have 
  lately 
  seen 
  specimens 
  of 
  these 
  birds, 
  which 
  were 
  

   shot 
  in 
  this 
  county. 
  The 
  Little 
  Owl 
  (a 
  female) 
  was 
  shot 
  on 
  Jan. 
  11th 
  

  

  