3o6 BIRD BEHAVIOUR 



play the same game on the Collared Doves loose at 

 the Zoo, on the Starling, and even once on the 

 wild Duck. Except for practical jokes of this kind, 

 I have not seen the Sparrow play, or fly for amuse- 

 ment ; in fact. Passerine birds, except the Crow 

 tribe, though so light and active, seem seldom to 

 fly for sport, though many sing in the air besides 

 the Skylark. 



Sportive flights, however, are common in birds 

 of other groups, and merge imperceptibly into 

 courting displays j even the slow, greedy Wood- 

 Pigeon towers up and sails down in the courting 

 ecstasy, and the more active and cheerful common 

 Pigeon is very fond at all times of gliding for some 

 distance with upward-slanting wings in true Eagle 

 fashion, an action which the Pouter among domestic 

 breeds indulges in in exaggerated fashion, being a 

 Pigeon which carries out all Pigeon peculiarities to 

 extremes. 



Jackdaws soar up in pairs in true raptorial fashion 

 in the spring, and Rooks go in for all sorts of aerial 

 antics before changes of weather, while I have 

 seen both the Calcutta House-Crow and Carrion- 

 Crow in London play a game very like " I'm king 

 of the castle," in the former case on our lightning'- 

 conductors on the Indian Museum and in the 

 latter on the weather-vane on a Regent's Park 

 church. The Indian Crow also likes swooping 

 down on Dabchicks, evidently being amused to see 

 them dive, for he has far too much sense t6 think 

 he can possibly catch them. 



