40 Wild ^ Tame Hoopoes 



Board of Agriculture to land the gazelles — cloven- 

 footed animals — at Dover. 



My hoopoes, after much trouble in feeding them, 

 were brought safely home, and, as soon as the weather 

 became warmer, were placed in a small outdoor aviary. 

 After a week or so, I ventured to open the door and 

 let them fly loose in the garden, and it was the pret- 

 tiest and most uncommon sight to see seven hoopoes 

 flitting along the terrace towards me when they spied 

 the tin of meal-worms in my hand. Gradually they 

 found their way all round the garden immediately 

 surrounding the house, but, curiously enough, never 

 seemed to trust themselves out of its sight. 



Very quickly their natural instinct taught them to 

 prod with their long bills — which had lengthened to 

 almost full growth at two months old — in the turf of 

 the lawn ; and it was very interesting to notice their 

 movements when a grub was felt an inch or more 

 beneath the surface of the ground, showing that the 

 tip of the bill must be extremely sensitive for this 

 purpose and furnished with nerves. 



When once a hoopoe commenced to dig with 

 quick hammering movements, a large brown grub 

 was almost sure to be pulled out, to be knocked about 

 for a few seconds and then swallowed ; the bird 

 throwing his head back, opening his bill, and chuck- 

 ing the insect deftly down his throat. 



People's astonishment was great when I walked 

 them round the garden. If the hoopoes were out of 

 sight, I used to whistle, and almost immediately they 

 would come flitting to within a few yards of me, erect- 



