HABITS OF THE GREAT PLOVER. 459 



soon after rejoined the flock. Here, again, and in a higher 

 degree, it did not seem as if a serious attack was made, or even 

 meditated, by the Hawk, for surely he could have struck one out 

 of so many birds all around and close to him if he had intended 

 to. Was it sport, therefore, or bullying, or aifecting to do some- 

 thing beyond his strength ? Afterwards, when the Peewits were 

 walking about, I observed amongst them a Hawk (which I have 

 no doubt was the same one, a Kestrel) springing about over the 

 ground in an awkward and encumbered manner, which I at first 

 attributed to injury, but soon saw that it had something in its 

 claws which, I suppose, it was overpowering. Unfortunately, 

 where it last settled down with its prey, a slight sandy ridge hid 

 it from my view. The Peewits, both those which happened 

 to be nearest to the Hawk and the flock generally, seemed not in 

 the least alarmed, but wholly indifferent. I waited till near ten. 

 Quite a small band of Plovers, not rising from the amphitheatre, 

 but coming from some other place (not noted), flew over the 

 bracken in the direction of the heath, but no further flight took 

 place— no grand one, such as I had seen yesterday, and had hoped 

 to see again from the moment of rising. 



September 25th. — Rose early, and walked to same place as 

 yesterday. 



Small flight of Peewits (i. e. for Peewits— forty or fifty 

 perhaps) observed flying, amongst which was a small bird, I 

 think a Starling. It flew with them from one part of the 

 flock to another, making, or appearing to make, little dives at 

 particular birds. After a minute or so this bird flew back 

 towards where the Peewits had risen from, and where a good 

 many Starlings and other small birds were also feeding. Mid- 

 way it was joined by another bird (either its own species or one 

 somewhat smaller), which made wide, curving swoops or flights 

 at it, sheering off on point of meeting, and again approaching. 

 It is not easy to say what was the feeling — the mental attitude 

 of the Starling (for I am pretty sure it was one)— towards the 

 Peewits. Was it one of hostility ? Was it sympathy ? Or was 

 it a joyous or a kind of fussy participation in the affairs of the 

 latter ? I incline to one of the latter explanations, or, as I think 

 probable, to that of a mixture of the two. The attitude of the 



Peewits seemed one of mere indifference. 



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