64 
BIRDS IN A VILLAGE. 
quietly until the watcher loses patience and moves 
away. But on this occasion I had not been 
standing more than ten seconds before the bunting- 
flew down to a small tuft of furze and was there 
greeted by the shrill welcoming cries of its young. 
I went up softly to the spot, when out sprang the 
old bird I had seen, but only to drop to the ground 
as the wagtail had done, to beat the turf with its 
wings, then to lie gasping for breath, then to flutter 
on a little further, until at last it rose up and flew 
to a bush. 
How wonderful it is that this parental instinct, 
so beautiful in its perfect simulation of the action 
of a bird that has lost the power of flight, should 
be found in so large a number of species ! But 
when we find that it is not universal ; that in two 
closely allied species one will possess it and the 
other not ; and that it is common in such widely 
separated orders as gallinaceous and passerine birds, 
pigeons, ducks, and waders, it becomes plain that 
it is not assignable to community of descent, but 
has originated independently in a vast number of 
species. Something of the beginnings and pro- 
gressive development of this instinct may be learnt, 
I think, by noticing the behaviour of various 
passerine birds in the presence of danger to their 
nests and young. Their actions and cries show 
that they are greatly agitated, and in a majority 
