Henry Eliot Howard

“ During the courtship there always seems to me a distinct unwillingness on the part of the male to go beyond the boundaries of his territory; the female often does so, and this, I believe, is a cause of their being apart from one another for short periods of time, and it may be that during these periods the male returns to his favourite branch, behaving as he usually does on his first arrival, but no doubt keeping a close watch on her movements. ”

“ The intensity of his emotions soon discloses the fact that a female has arrived, and it is then no difficult matter to approach him closely, the more so as he is never very far distant from the female; and she, at this time, seems to be decidedly happier low down amongst the bushes than higher up amongst the trees. She travels unconcernedly from bush to bush in search of food, and he follows her, but, owing to his frequent fits of excitement, often lags some little distance behind. ”

“ Sometimes a male is still more restless, and between the outbursts of excitement shown when in the vicinity of the female, will fly backwards and forwards over a considerable area, never many minutes in the same spot, but moving rapidly from tree to tree and bush to bush, occasionally bursting into song. As showing the degree of excitement of the male at this period, I have seen one, prior to the arrival of a female, executing a dance which consisted of a series of jumps up and down on a branch, giving the bird a very comical appearance. ”

“ If, however, the male sings, a reply—the call-note of the species—will generally be forthcoming from the female. On the other hand, they will often travel within a few feet of one another, searching for the Chironomidæ, or flying off and on to the ivy berries, the flies not being sufficient to satisfy their hunger. Periodical outbursts of excitement on the part of the male are not uncommon; the cause is often difficult to ascertain, but sometimes it is quite apparent; when, for instance, there is excitement amongst the different individuals of his own or other closely allied species. ”

“ Until the females arrive the males usually sing their true song, but occasionally, especially when excited, imitate other species. Upon the arrival of the females a change takes place, and excitement is at its highest point, with the result that the true song is so far forgotten that, especially during that part of the courtship when the male is close to the female, high-pitched squealing notes, together with imitations, are almost solely produced, and often for a considerable time without a pause. Now let us see how the males behave under the influence of a different kind of excitement. ”

“ The excitement diminishes in intensity week by week, finally disappearing when the young are reared and the males leave their breeding territories. Sometimes when a pair are quietly feeding amongst the oaks, a second male joins them, an intrusion to which the other male objects, spreading out his tail; on the arrival of a second female the two males have a scolding contest, facing one another with tails outspread and feathers raised. ”

“ Yet their antics are no less remarkable. The difference is only one of degree, not, however, in the performance, but in the plumage. Imagine the Blackcap possessed of the gorgeous plumes of many other species, and his exhibition would be a truly remarkable one. During this time of excitement the feathers on the head, especially the black cap, are raised, but sometimes alternately raised and lowered, those on the breast and flanks are fluffed out and the throat is often distended, but more particularly so when singing. ”

“ Many naturalists believe that the type of the song of different species is a matter of tradition, that is to say, that the parents hand it down to their offspring. This hypothesis requires that the young birds should have had predominant opportunities of hearing their parents' song; but the fact seems to have been lost sight of that there are species, and those, too, in which the vocal powers are developed in the highest degree, that are silent during the period in which they are engaged in tending their young, some of them even remaining so until the following spring. ”

“ When the males thus collect together they spread their tails, raise the feathers on their backs and heads, and scold one another vigorously, often moving from place to place. As many as four will sometimes collect round one female, and their antics are then most ludicrous, all of them being in a state of excitement, spreading and flirting their tails. One will, perhaps, warble and imitate other species, another will twist and turn about on a branch, frequently hanging head downwards, and while doing so twisting his head upwards in a grotesque manner. ”

“ The young continue with the female for some time after they are really capable of taking care of themselves, though the male does not often accompany them. He still sings, but the song is poor; his outbursts of excitement are less frequent and less intense. Excitement amongst individuals of other species will attract him, and he will frequently be an interested spectator if a Garden- Warbler, disturbed while feeding its young, commences to croak. Sometimes he pursues one of another species, such as a Chiff-chaff, Nightingale, or Hedge-Sparrow, and either plays or fights with him. ”

“ Whatever part, therefore, they have to play, whether quarrelling, singing, making preparations for and tending their young, or exhibiting apparent jealousy towards their neighbours, they do it to the best of their ability. This is probably why they are so much in evidence in the woods and groves they love to inhabit, and this is also the cause of the endless peculiarities of character, of which each member of the species partakes alike. ”

“ The male is now most excitable, and if an individual of another species approaches the nest too closely, immediately darts off in pursuit. When brooding he will not leave until almost touched, then flutters off, runs about the ground, squeals, and imitates the notes of other species.
Both of the parents are energetic, but in the presence of danger exhibit somewhat different characteristics. The male is always the bolder, and consequently it is a more difficult matter to persuade the female to overcome her alarm and approach her offspring when one is near the nest. ”

“ It is true that the males have considerable opportunities of hearing them, but it is also true that there are other species inhabiting the same situations which are more frequent and more persistent singers. Or, how is it that the series of imitative strains is to so large an extent composed of the songs and call-notes of our indigenous species? As far as the song of our own migrants, in their winter home, is concerned, silence may reign, but the males must have innumerable opportunities of hearing the cries, call-notes, and songs of species foreign to this country ”

“ I have already mentioned that the colouring of the immature males on their arrival in this country in the spring is not so intense as that of the older birds, and that some of them still carry the brown-tipped feathers on their head; consequently, it is by no means a difficult matter to distinguish them. They are just as vigorous singers, although their song is not so perfect, and their power of imitation is considerable, parts of the song of the Nightingale and the Garden-Warbler, amongst other species, being introduced. ”

“ The fact that birds with gorgeous plumage do not as a rule possess any great powers of song, and, on the other hand, that the best singers are as a rule dull-coloured, is regarded as an indication of the reality of sexual selection, in so far as it proves that the excitement of the female has been essentially affected by only one of the characters of the male. ”

“ It is possible that the sequence of imitative strains in the song of the male in other parts of the British Islands does not contain the songs of the species mentioned in so large a proportion, but I can scarcely believe that it can be so; it is more probable that the law of uniformity accompanies the imitative faculty, as it does every other vital manifestation of the animal world, and that for reasons at present unknown to us, certain strains may have been and may be incorporated more readily than others. ”

“ During these battles their whole attitude is expressive of intense rage, their feathers are drawn closely to their bodies, but their black head-feathers are raised; they fly at one another, and, meeting in the air, peck furiously at each other as they flutter round and round. Such fights are evidently a great exertion, for, when resting after each trial of strength they sit with bills open, panting for breath, before they again dart off, flying very rapidly in and out of the trees. ”

“ I once heard a male that sang beautifully earlier in the spring, repeat continually and almost perfectly the first line of the song "Pop goes the Weasel." Proof that sexual intercourse is the direct cause is lacking. But bearing in mind these facts, and the analogy of the deterioration of the colour and plumage as a result of the same cause, and that the development of the vocal powers in the spring corresponds with that of the sexual organs, showing how intimately associated the one is with the other ”

“ The only reliable method would be to transfer a young one into the territory of a pair who had offspring of much the same size. The song of the male has little influence.
When the young have just left the nest the anxiety of the parents is even greater than before. They are now more or less scattered, and this is especially the case if their departure, on account of any alarm, has been a hurried one. If you happen to be near them the excitement of the parents is intense ”

“ This hesitation lasts for some time, and while it lasts she often reaches the nest, settles on the side of it, but even then her courage fails her and again she disappears. In time she becomes callous and feeds naturally, but is always more careful than the male to conceal her approach. That her excitement is considerable is shown by the way she sometimes quivers her wings in the same manner as just previous to coition. The length of time necessary for the parents to overcome their alarm at your presence depends very much on their first impression. ”

“ Outbursts of excitement are of common occurrence with the male, and he then pursues the female, erecting his feathers and flapping his wings.
Directly the first egg is laid the male takes his turn in sitting on the nest; and in cold seasons, especially in the mornings, the eggs are never left long exposed, one or other of the birds always showing anxiety to return. Now the time that they leave their eggs exposed, either previous to or during incubation, appears to vary with the prevailing conditions of the atmosphere. ”

“ The difference also in the quality of the feathers is very striking, which, while lacking the finish and gloss of the older birds, resemble more nearly the undeveloped plumage of the young on leaving the nest. The inferiority with regard to the song is even more marked, the immature birds not possessing so great a variation nor the same richness of tone. ”

“ And, as bearing on this question, it is a fact of no small importance that the males generally pair with the females that first settle in their territory, before whom they have behaved in the manner referred to, and ultimately rear with them offspring in that territory.
It is difficult to describe the excitement of the male when a female is present; the variations in the sounds he produces and the antics he performs are so numerous. ”

“ The power of imitation must be founded upon a congenital basis, and if the song had been thus handed down, it is difficult to see why the young, when they have so many more opportunities of hearing other species in preference to their own, should sing true to type at all. If it is, therefore, true that in a large number of instances the song could not have been passed on from parent to offspring, it is à fortiori true of the imitations which are so essentially a part of the song. ”

“ The males, while resting, sing very quietly a song which is scarcely audible twenty yards away, but they do occasionally break out into louder strains, which are very poor compared with those in spring. The quiet song is much the prettier. During the performance the throat is considerably distended, but the effort to produce the sound is apparently not very great. If it were not for the mist and the smell of decaying vegetation it would be easy, when listening to this song, to imagine oneself back again in spring. I have sometimes seen two males, comparatively near, answering one another ”

“ The view I hold with regard to these extravagant bodily antics is that they are reflex actions directly resulting from any excessive excitement, that they are not confined solely to courtship, and do not in any way influence the female. This view, as I am inclined to believe, gains considerable support from the fact that we find a parallel case in the vocal organs, namely, that whenever the excitement reaches a certain degree of intensity, no matter how different the stimulus may be, the reactions that follow are always similar. ”

“ Returning once again to the simple explanation with which we set out, namely, individual acquirement, I find it difficult to understand from this point of view why there should be such similarity in the imitations; for with the imitative faculty so strongly implanted, and with different males living in contact, as they undoubtedly do, with different species, we should here look for and surely expect to find some traces of divergent individualism. ”

“ At other times there are two females and one male. When this is the case the females pursue and fight with one another. But as a rule the female is little in evidence during all these proceedings, pursuing her way quietly in search of food; in fact, she seems to take no interest at all in the performances of the males. ”