596 
BIRD-LIFE. 
call of the sportsman, who understands how to imitate its 
note. Sitting on a branch, with raised tail and ruffled 
head-feathers, it screams out “ Cuckoo” to the world at 
large. While flying it will often glide slowly in front of 
its mate, and tell its passion with a low “cwawawa,” to 
which the latter answers, “ kwikwikwik,” &c., with great 
rapidity, a cry savouring more of laughter, or a chuckle, 
than a favourable response to its affectionate adulation. 
When both are at the height of their courtship the one 
cries “ cuc-cuckoo, cue-cuckoo,” while the other laughs 
and chuckles. After the breeding season is over both 
sexes are silent. It is possible that, as a rule, the 
Cuckoo is content with one mate; yet it is more likely 
that neither sex is particular in the matter of conjugal 
fidelity: it seems much more likely that each male 
should court all hen birds alike, and vice versa , else why 
this unbounded jealousy ? 
At the commencement of pairing time the female 
already begins to hunt diligently amongst the bushes for 
some suitable nest in which to lay her egg, for this traitor 
to other birds, impatient, restless creature as she is, does 
not care to take upon herself the trouble of rearing her own 
brood, but leaves them to the mercy of others. The little 
Warblers, thus called upon, must exercise all their activity 
to keep such an insatiable bird as a young Cuckoo supplied 
with food, while the real parents are enjoying themselves, 
flying hither and thither to their heart’s content, laying 
other eggs, and leaving them also to the care of public 
charity! As we have said before, the hen Cuckoo, 
before laying, spies out every crack, crevice, or bush, 
until she has found a nest suited to her taste. She then 
lays her egg, if necessary, first on the ground, whence 
she picks it up with her beak, and places it in the home 
