The Hoopoe 287 



graceful little bird and struts about with great dignity, 

 raising and depressing its crest, and bowing at each utter- 

 ance of its call-note " houp-houp." On the plains of India I 

 have seen a little party of these birds rise from the ground 

 together, when they look like a lot of large Butterflies, with 

 their black-and-white-banded wings, so that one could 

 readily imagine that they could be detected a mile off. 

 That this constitutes a danger for the species is un- 

 doubted, for by reason of its conspicuous appearance 

 the Hoopoe is easily perceived at a long distance, 

 and it would thus fall an easy prey to a Hawk, as its 

 powers of flight are somewhat limited. As a matter of 

 fact, many Hoopoes do fall victims to the attacks of Birds 

 of Prey, and doubtless many more would be thus captured, 

 but for a very singular method of protection possessed by 

 the bird. When danger is imminent, the Hoopoe simply 

 throws itself on the ground, sticks its bill out straight, so 

 that the crest is flattened along the back, spreads out its 

 wings and tail, and looks so like a bundle of rags " that the 

 spoiler passes over, none the wiser." Dr. A. E, Brehm, who 

 records this feature in the bird's economy has the following 

 note on the species — •" A family of Hoopoes affords a very 

 pretty spectacle, old and young vying with each other in 

 the comicality of their postures and gesticulations. Each 

 insect that the old birds capture with their long forceps-like 

 bill, is thrown up into the air and caught again in the gape, 

 because without this manoeuvre they are totally unable to 

 swallow their prey. Before the old bird has been able to 

 do this, the whole tribe of youngsters rush up and seek to 

 snatch away the morsel. They are, however, too clumsy 

 as yet to succeed. This little exhibition is amusing in the 

 extreme, and the more so if a Hawk or other Bird of Prey 

 arrives on the scene, when a sudden outcry is raised, and 

 one and all have resort in the greatest haste to the old 

 trick, and in an instant half-a-dozen coloured rags are 



