CONSCIOUS PROTECTIVE RESEMBLANCE. 543 



could become habitual without a suitable environment. I flushed a 

 pair of Francolinus subtorquatus, one of which squatted in the same 

 manner, but, by force of circumstances, among the short, black and 

 charred remains of a grass fire. Here its colour stood out in bold 

 relief, and I easily bagged it " (Zool. 1899, p. 545, note). I have on 

 several occasions observed a similar behaviour on the part of this same 

 bird in Mashonaland ; and, indeed, the blackening of the veldt by grass 

 fires not unfrequently gives one opportunities of realising that at least 

 some protectively coloured animals have no mental appreciation what- 

 ever of the real relation between their own colouring and that of their 

 environment. 



There are few birds in this country which show a stronger apparent 

 reliance on their protective colouring than the little Rufous-capped 

 Lark (Tephrocorys cinerea) or the Cape Long-claw (Macronyx capensis) ; 

 they will readily permit one to approach within a few yards of them, 

 and will then merely run on ahead in their curious, crouching, rat-like 

 manner. This action is certainly of considerable protective value in 

 their ordinary surroundings, but they will do precisely the same on 

 the open " burns," where it must be rather detrimental than other- 

 wise. Did they really comprehend the contrast exhibited by their 

 plumage in such spots, they would assuredly escape by flight instead 

 of by running. Not long ago I noticed a similar case on the part of 

 our common Side-striped Jackal (Cam's lateralis). While travelling on 

 a post-cart we passed a fire burning not far from the road, and strongly 

 outlined against the burnt grass we saw the forms of two Jackals. 

 They were a little distance apart, one sitting on its haunches, the 

 other standing, and they were evidently watching for the rats, young 

 birds, &c, which the fire would disturb. At our approach they merely 

 looked round at us without concern, and so, without stopping the cart, 

 one of my companions tried a shot with his rifle. The bullet whizzed 

 close over the head of the standing animal, which promptly bounded 

 into the long, unburnt grass ; the other, however, which had only 

 heard the report without feeling the shock of the bullet, merely 

 crouched to the ground, when it was quite as conspicuous as before, 

 and did not move until a second bullet knocked up the dust close by 

 its side. I have further seen an identical instance of the misapplica- 

 tion of the protective crouching instinct on the part of the Aard Wolf 

 (Proteles cristatus) in Natal; and, doubtless, such observations could be 

 multiplied were special attention paid to them. 



Anyone who has had many opportunities of observing animals mu3t 

 have been struck by the fact that even though they may possess a con- 

 siderable amount of intelligence, this is curiously limited in many 



