72 BIRD BEHAVIOUR 



(Milvus govinda), Kiag-Crow {Dicrurus ater), and 

 Roller (Coracias indica). Similarly one can see the 

 swarming of the true ants greatly appreciated by 

 our Sparrows and Starlings, the latter especially 

 capturing them with almost Swallow-like skill ; 

 while on the other hand I have seen a Swallow 

 reverse its natural habits by settling to pick these 

 ants up oflE the ground. 



The most extraordinary aberration of feeding- 

 habit I ever witnessed, however, was the behaviour 

 of a Song-Thrush I watched at Oxford some years 

 ago, as it was running along the edge of the stream 

 that flows through Magdalen College grounds ; 

 suddenly it dashed into the water and secured 

 one of a shoal of minnows, which it beat on the 

 ground and then swallowed whole. It is probable 

 that fish are often eaten by land-birds when the 

 opportunity presents itself, as they certainly are 

 by water-birds not usually reckoned as fishers ; 

 thus, I have seen a Coot I kept in India suddenly 

 duck its head under and secure a little fish — and 

 it must be remembered that to an insectivorous 

 bird anything will serve for an insect if it is small 

 enough. 



In India I have seen the House-Mynah (Acri' 

 dotheres tristis) with a gecko lizard in its bill, and 

 in Africa the exquisite Malachite Sun-bird {Nec- 

 tarinia famosa), a nectar-eater by custom and 

 structure, has been found to have fed on tiny 

 lizards ; while in Britain the Missel-Thrush has 

 not only been found preying on the young of the 



