that they had been put up, for, shortly after the last flight had gone, a large drove of cattle, driven by a boy, passed right over where they had been. As the time corresponds with that at which the flights came up whilst I was watching at the bank, I have no doubt that this is the accustomed cause—that the birds, having fed during the night, assemble at early dawn in some chosen place, where, if not disturbed, they would probably remain till the evening; but, if put up, fly to join their fellows at another such place, probably the nearest.
Yesterday, being Sunday, the cattle were not driven across, and on the stormy morning they may also not have been. Possibly it is a not quite regular occurrence.
I should note that there had been no "dancing" amongst the birds whilst at the amphitheatre.
At 5.30 p.m. (raining, and continued so more or less all the time) walked to the bank, and found the birds assembled in the heather as before. I wished to see if they performed the same antics here, before taking flight, as I had been witness of at the amphitheatre. Unfortunately, there are no facilities here for a close view, and it was, even from the beginning, difficult to make the birds out through the glasses. I assured myself, however, that precisely the same thing was going on, and, as I think, rather more so than usual,[1] so that I regretted much not being able to see better. I should not, however, speak positively, unless I had unmistakably seen some birds dancing in a very vigorous manner, and caught the "dreary gleams"—now more than ever so—very frequently. As the gloom darkened, they were difficult to distinguish from the white tails of the rabbits, but I do not think I ever confounded them. I now feel sure that these antics give expression to the anticipation of going and desire to be gone, which begin to possess these birds as evening falls. They are the prelude to, and they end in, flight. The two, in fact, merge into each other, for short flights, between the antics over the ground, are a part of the display (as I have described), and it is impossible to say which one of them will be continued into the full flight of departure. I also noted that the usual long-drawn wailing note which ordinarily precedes both dance and flight was, this evening, ushered in by a short, one-syllabled
- ↑ Possibly on account of the rain.
