2 i8 
NATURE NOTES. 
Why does he do it ? — There is a parrot in this house which I have known 
for twenty-five years ; a very clever and amusing old fellow he is. Every morn- 
ing after his breakfast, and during our own, he takes a walk about the dining- 
room, and occasionally — not alwajs— he stops on the edge of the carpet, rubs his 
beak, as if pecking at it very gently a few' times, and then with his beak resting 
on the carpet like a sleeping apteryx, and turning round to right or left alternately, 
he scratches two or three times slowly with one leg, and several times rapidly 
with the other, which operation he repeats several times with perfect gravity. 
Can you or your readers tell me what he is about ? Is it merely to stretch his 
legs, or is he thinking of building a nest, or is it merely to make us laugh or 
wonder ? Does he think the carpet a flower-bed, or the edge of it a sandy beach, 
which it resembles in colour, and want to get at some roots or insects, or why is 
it ? I can think of no good solution to explain this extraordinary conduct. He 
is certainly not a lunatic nor an idiot, for his conduct in all other respects is most 
rational, and his observations often most pertinent. Can it be accounted for in 
any rational way ? G. D. 
Lemmings (p. 19S). — When crossing many of the higher table-lands in 
Norway this year, I was surprised at the large number of these pretty little animals. 
The guides and natives look upon them with about as much respect as we do rats, 
killing them whenever one crosses their path — a mere blow' with a stick w'ill do it. 
They cannot run very quickly, hence one is upon them, in most cases, before they 
have a chance of escape. They then hold up their heads in a defying, savage 
way, and squeak their loudest. They are most interesting little animals when 
w'atched in their native state. The reindeer are said to strike them with their 
feet, and to rip open the abdomen so as to get the vegetable food present in the 
guts. E. Pratt. 
A September Cuckoo. — While busy in my garden on September 12, I 
suddenly heard “ Cuckoo” called very loud and clear. Scarcely believing my 
own ears, I stood listening while the bird called ten or twelve times, finishing 
with a stammering “ Cuck-cuck-oo.” The voice came from some high trees near 
w'here the old birds constantly came in the summer. I have made inquiries, and 
have found one person beside myself who heard it, and from the same position. Is 
it not a very unusual circumstance, and would it not be a late-bred young bird ? 
Haslemere. A. C. H. 
Terrier catching Fish. — While living in Herefordshire, we once showed 
a Welsh terrier a perch swimming in a small pond at the end of the lawn. After 
that he could w ith difficulty be got away from the water as long as daylight lasted 
during the summer months. He would stand for hours up to his middle, perfectly 
motionless, seeming to exercise some sort of fascination over the fish, which came 
in twos and threes right under his nose. A quick grab usually resulted in one 
being caught, which he brought to the bank and played with until it was ex- 
hausted. The largest number taken in one day was five. They were always 
thrown back into the water, and swam off apparently none the worse for the 
unusual way in which they were caught. Another curious fact in connection with 
this w'as that on moving away to another house where there was no pond, the dog 
for some time persisted in standing with his head over any watering pot he could 
find. 
Clifton. K. T. Biggs. 
A Cat’s Antipathies {p. 199). I have a Persian cat just two years old, a 
very beautiful creature ; she makes friends with some people and show's curious 
dislikes to others. There is, for instance, a w'aiter who comes to me at times, 
and when he is in the house she can scarcely be persuaded to go near the kitchen, 
and at one time would jump upon me and put her paws round my neck, hiding 
her face in terror when he happened to be near. Lately 1 have remarked more 
confidence, and I feel sure the man in question would in no way hurt her. He 
may have frightened her once when she first saw him. I believe a high-bred 
Persian has very perceptive instincts, and I am often struck with the silent taste 
show'n by my pet. T. A. G. 
Sympathetic Gulls. — I am writing from a primitive little place on the 
Cumberland coast, the house we are in being almost on the shore, which is 
