BREEDING. 
331 
is capable of tearing the prey to pieces, and were the 
young to be dependent on the father’s care alone they 
would starve amid plenty. No mortal being can replace 
the mother ! 
In cases of great danger both parents will bravely and 
cleverly defend both young and eggs; often, indeed, in a 
most touching manner. They know their enemies, too. 
Birds which build in hedges or on trees will allow a dog 
to approach without betraying the slightest signs of fear; 
if a cat, however, appears on the scene, the aspect of 
affairs is entirely changed, and cries of terror are the order 
of the day. Birds nesting on the ground, on the contrary, 
are well aware that the dog is a dangerous neighbour. 
The protection afforded by man is readily recognized, as 
may be observed in the cases of Swallows, Starlings, and 
the shrewd Sparrow, even. Real danger is met differently 
by different birds. The little Warbler seems to implore 
you with beseeching glance to pass on; White throats, 
as before-mentioned, feign lameness, so as to draw off 
your attention from the nest to themselves; Birds of 
Prey, Peewits, Gulls, and Terns, strike courageously 
alike at man and dog; the Petrels vomit oil over the 
aggressor; the Gannet remains quietly sitting on her 
eggs, but vehemently attacks all assailants with her 
powerful beak; the Domestic Fowl, as well as Ducks, 
Geese, and Swans, boldly attack the intruder,—a Swan 
has even been known to kill an otter in defence of its 
young; and a Farm-yard Cock to dispose of a female 
Sparrow Hawk, by aid of beak and spurs, under similar 
circumstances. I have observed the Black-headed Plover, 
on the sandy islets of the Nile, adopt a singular method 
of preserving its nest: this clever individual, on the 
approach of danger, immediately scrapes the sand over 
