684 
Birds of Celebes: Megapodidae. 
Dr. Guillemard takes a different view of the matter: the bird buries its 
eggs in the sand, often to a depth of three feet or more, in order that they 
may be safe fiom the attacks of depredators, and no chick of ordinary size could 
work its way to the surface; hence he concludes that “the strength and enor- 
mous size of the egg are adapted to the peculiar nesting habits of the species, 
rathei than that the unusual nidification is due to an aberrant reproductive 
organisation”. 
But it is not merely with extra size and strength in the chick that the 
unusually large egg of the Megapodes is associated; the great length of the egg, 
as compared with its width, is certainly necessary to the development of the 
flight-feathers of the chick, which , in the case of some Megapodes , is able to fly 
the very day it is hatched. This is the case in the Moleo, as Mr. Wallace 
was assured by Mr. Duivenbode of Ternate. The latter “had taken some eggs 
on board his schooner, which hatched during the night, and in the morning the 
little birds flew readily across the cabin”. 
The following explanation of the origin of the breeding economy of the 
Moleo is almost the same as that of Dr. Guillemard. “Gnce upon a time” the 
Megapodes laid ordinary-sized eggs and hatched them like other Gallinaceae. 
Like many other birds, they covered them up to conceal them from foes when 
obliged to go away to feed. Those birds — they had not then the characters 
of Megapodes — which nested on the sunny sea-strand always found theii- eggs 
hot on their return; they ventured to take longer and longer absences in search 
of food, and, at last, like the male Ostrich, they returned to them only during 
the cool night, while some which had covered up their eggs more deeply, find- 
ing they kept their heat, gradually abandoned this nightly visitation also. 
Moreovei, brooding on the eggs was discouraged by frequent scares from prowl- 
ing mammals a.nd reptiles, which, frightening the parent-bird away, devoured 
the exposed contents of the nest; often, too, the sitting bird w^as pounced upon, 
and the habit of sitting was gradually abandoned as a failure. Meanw'hile, the 
eggs, bulled deeply enough to keep warm, produced chickens, some of which, 
unable to work their way to the surface, found their cradle and grave in one; 
many others, emerging on to the strand without a mother near to protect and 
teach them, ivere easily caught and destroyed by innumerable foes; only such 
as were stronger, shyer, more active, and more fortunate escaped. The process 
of natural selection increased in severity as time went on, for the enemies of 
the Megapode, outwitted at first, learnt more of its novel breeding habits; the 
therefore, required more careful burying, and the young needed to be more 
active and quick-witted to escape; with the result that in the typical Megapodes 
the eggs are at this day buried in huge artificial heaps of rubbish collected by 
the parents and often covered over very deeply and — for a searcher — 
awkwardly (we read of 6 feet, 5 feet, 6 feet — found “after several hours’ hard 
‘digging in Gould, and it would be easy to multiply instances), while the Moleo 
