110 
BIRD-LIFE. 
Few other birds care, like the above, to show them¬ 
selves openly. All those aware of their own weakness 
seek to hide themselves from the observation of the 
enemy. Some few are ever striving to secrete themselves, 
so timorous are they, and others are never to be found 
far from their place of refuge. Bad flyers, as, for example, 
the Bails and Crakes, are only to he seen occasionally; 
and those species whose plumage resembles the colour of 
the ground we may soon recognize as timid creatures, 
which are always endeavouring to hide from the rest 
of the world. Large birds also conceal themselves 
when exposed to attack from those stronger than 
they are. The blustering Turkey Cock, when it really 
comes to fighting, shows himself to be only a miserable 
swaggerer; in his native forests his hectoring ways 
immediately vanish at the appearance of a bird of prey, 
when he instantly descends from the highest branches 
into the low scrub. I have, to my great amusement, 
discovered him to be an arrant coward, who, in his terror, 
magnifies every danger ten times over. The Golden 
Eagle (.Aquila fulva ) and Bonelli’s Eagle commit great 
ravages among the poultry of the few country people 
inhabiting the sierras and barren plains of Spain: in 
those regions the Fowls have learnt to hold themselves 
in constant readiness for timely and precipitate flight as 
soon as they catch sight of these robbers. One day all 
of a sudden I saw a whole tribe of Turkeys rush, with 
great clamour, into one of the peasants’ houses, followed 
by the Cocks and Hens in a state of unmitigated 
terror. I snatched up my gun to try and shoot the 
creature causing this commotion, naturally expecting 
to see an Eagle in the air. In vain I sought for the 
king of birds: an innocent little Kestrel was the 
