136 BOMBAY DUCKS 
After about two hours’ constant vituperation and 
fighting, things begin to quiet down a little. By this 
time it is probably long past nine o’clock, The quiet 
is, however, only relative; throughout the day the 
squabbling seems never to entirely cease; the whole 
colony appears to be in a state of stifled wrath, ready 
to bubble forth at any moment. Some of the bats 
seem to suffer from sleeplessness, and such individuals 
take good care that their immediate neighbours shall 
keep them company. A bat will suddenly, and without 
any apparent provocation, attack its sleeping friend. 
A fight of course ensues which, as likely as not, will 
spread ; for a flying fox, like an Irishman, seems always 
ready for a row. Such fights invariably end in two 
or three individuals being jockeyed out of their places. 
The bats thus evicted seek new roosting-stations, and 
these become the centres of fresh squabbles. 
Perhaps about 4 p.m. is the quietest part of the 
day; for by this time the bats begin to realize that the 
hour is at hand when they must be up and doing, so 
that it is a case of “now or never” if they want any 
sleep that day. The bat colony then looks like a 
number of dried cocoanuts hanging from trees—cocoa- 
nuts round the upper part of which a black membrane 
has been wrapped. This appearance is due to the fact 
that the wings and fur of a flying fox are not the same 
colour. The former are almost black, while the fur 
is of a reddish-brown hue. If the day be very hot, the 
bats hang by one wing and fan themselves with the 
other, 
While yet the sun is above the horizon the early- 
