Chap. XIV. 
UNPAIKED BIKDS. 
107 
are especially liable to premature death. Again, bircfe 
which have had their nests destroyed, or barren pairs, or 
retarded individuals, would easily be induced to desert 
their mates, and would probably be glad to take what 
share they could of the pleasures and duties of rearing 
offspring, although not their own.^ Such contingencies 
as these probably explain most of the foregoing cases.^ 
Nevertheless it is a strange fact that within the same 
district, during the height of the breeding-season, 
there should be so many males and females always 
ready to repair the loss of a mated bird. Why do not 
such spare birds immediately pair together? Have 
we not some reason to suspect, and the suspicion has 
occurred to Mr. Jenner Weir, that inasmuch as the 
act of courtship appears to be with many birds a pro- 
longed and tedious affair, so it occasionally happens 
that certain males and females do not succeed during 
the proper season, in exciting each other’s love, and 
consequently do not pair ? This suspicion will appear 
somewhat less improbable after we have seen what 
See White (‘ Nat. Hist, of Selborne/ 1825, vol. i. p. 140) on the 
existence, early in the season, of small coveys of male partridges, of which 
fact I have heard other instances. See Jenner, on the retarded state 
of the generative organs in certain birds, in ‘Phil. Transact.’ 1824. 
In regard to birds living in triplets, I owe to Mr. Jenner Weir the cases 
of the starling and parrots, and to Mr. Fox, of partridges ; on carrion- 
crows, see the ‘Field,’ 1868, p. 415. On various male birds singing 
after the proper period, see Kev. L. Jenyns, ‘ Observations in Natural 
History,’ 1846, p. 87. 
^ The following case has been given (‘ The Times/ Aug. 6th, 1868) 
by the Kev. F. O. Morris, on the authority of the Hon. and Rev. O. W. 
Forester. ‘‘ The gamekeeper here found a hawk’s nest this year, with 
“ five young ones in it. He took four and killed them, but left one 
“ with its wings clipped as a decoy to destroy the old ones by. They 
“ were both shot next day, in the act of feeding the young one, and 
“ the keeper thought it was done with. The next day he came again 
“ and found two other charitable hawks, who had come with an adopted 
‘‘ feeling to succour the orphan. These two he killed, and then left 
“ the nest. On returning afterwards he found tw^o more charitable 
