30 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



larly, and yet wrongly, ascribed to the Peewit." As we have here 

 two experienced observers expressing their disbelief in the fact that 

 the Lapwing ever employs the ruse of " shamming wounded " on 

 behalf of its offspring, I thought the following incident worth reporting, 

 as evidence in the opposite direction : — On May 30th of this year (1901) 

 I was walking along the bank of an old disused canal, bounded on 

 either side by a considerable stretch of flat marshy ground, upon which 

 a number of Lapwings breed. As I approached a certain spot I noticed 

 a pair of these birds becoming tremendously excited, flying backwards 

 and forwards past me in a manner so characteristic of them when 

 their young are hatched, and crying incessantly. When I thought I 

 had reached the place about which they seemed most anxious, and 

 near where the young were probably lying hidden in the grass, I 

 stopped, and immediately both birds alighted on the ground close to 

 me, with wings spread and hanging down brushing the ground, and 

 each began running along, constantly toppling over on to one shoulder, 

 with wings flapping feebly upon the ground, exactly as if injured. 

 When I approached them they immediately flew up, and began flying 

 backwards and forwards again close to my head ; but when I stopped 

 they again settled, and went through the same performance. There 

 was no doubt about the simulation of injury, and I think this con- 

 clusively proves that the Lapwing does — at all events, upon occasions 

 — employ this well-known deception to protect its young, though in the 

 case of these birds the instinct did not seem to be a highly perfected 

 one, as when approached they gave up the deception, and did not 

 attempt to decoy me further. I have never before seen a Lapwing act 

 in this manner, and had always myself been sceptical upon the point. 

 Mr. E. Selous, in 'Bird Watching,' discussing the possible origin of 

 this interesting piece of acting in birds, suggests that the performance 

 might have been originally due to a sort of hysteria and loss of mental 

 balance caused by the shock of being suddenly disturbed from the nest, 

 after sitting still for a long time, and that this has been acted upon 

 by Natural Selection, " aided by the intelligence of the bird in per- 

 ceiving the advantage of such a performance," until it has become an 

 " instinct " or habit. But I have often thought it might have arisen 

 from birds being seized with actual cramp from long sitting, this 

 having been acted upon by Natural Selection in the same manner ; and 

 it seems to me quite possible that even some of the cases one meets 

 with to-day of birds fluttering along the ground as if wounded, when 

 put off their nests, may be attributable to temporary cramp from long 

 sitting in the same position. — Bernard B. Riviere (82, Finchley 

 Road, N.W.). 



