UNPAIRED BIRDS. 
107 
V XIV. 
"'hi i Speciall y liable to premature death. Again, birds 
f 6 j. e ^' av 'e bad their nests destroyed, or barren pairs, or 
tlioij ^ ^'“H'iduals, would easily be induced to desert 
„ lai r ,na tes, and would probably be glad to take what 
off- 6 . 1,!le y could of the pleasures and duties of rearing 
ajA 1 ,' 1 lri K> although not their own . 7 Such contingencies 
X tv '° se probably explain most of the foregoing cases . 6 
di^^less it is a strange fact that within the same 
tlw let > during the height of the breeding-season, 
s l*ould be so many males and females always 
fsiir.]" to re pair the loss of a mated bird. Why do not 
W,. } 8 Pare birds immediately pair together? Have 
Oi-'oi,' 0 * s °me reason to suspect, and the suspicion has 
a <-t f ^ to Jenner Weir, that inasmuch as the 
lojj ,, 0 Cour tshrp appears to be with many birds a pro- 
th*^ et an, l tedious affair, so it occasionally happens 
tl le eerta in males and females do not succeed during 
co^Per season, in exciting each other’s love, and 
< 6 ^tly c i 0 uot p a j r ? This suspicion will appear 
' v Ja t less improbable after we have seen what 
>et i ’ eilr 'y i n the season, of small coveys of mule partridg 
f the ,. aVe heard other instances. See Jenner, on the re- 
p. 140) on the 
idges, of which 
tanled state 
hite (< Nat. Hist, of Selbome,’ 1825, vol. i. 
tar 1 - w. - 
of 
h lo ^'Uuivc organs in certain birds, in ‘Phil. Transact. 1824. 
iu triplets, I owe to Mr. ,) enner Weir the oases 
, 11 ai ‘d parrots, and to Mr. Fox, of partridges ; on carrion- 
‘Field? 
I 
’ ‘"'lowing case has been given (‘The Times? Aug. 6th. 1868) 
the rl "ta,' 1808, p. 415. On various male birds singing 
Atn,.A f'-oper jieriod, see Rev. L. Jenvus, ‘ Observations iu Natural 
1*?’ 18 16, p. 87. 
* a, A 7 
hy 6 & 
w’.’^ter u! ‘ Morris, on tho authority ot‘ the Hon. and Rev. O. W . 
von ^ le S limci keeper here found a hawk’s nest this year, with 
..MthiJg ones in it. He took four and killed them, but left one 
,, " e te botl" 11 ? 8 "''Plied as a decoy to destroy tire old ones by. They 
A 1 ' 1 ; kee, J 6 lot TKxt day, in the act of feeding the young one, and 
, pd WTAWM it was done with. Tho next, day he c»me again 
lin„ ^ tw ° other charitable hawks, who had come with an adopted 
succour tire orphan. These two he killed, and then left 
Ou returning afterwards lie found two more charitable 
the 
' to 
lest. 
