. The birds of California : a complete, scientific and popular account of the 580 species and subspecies of birds found in the state. Birds; Birds. The Wilson Phalarope. Taken in Modoc County WILSON PHALAROPE, MALE A-WING Photo by the A ulhor AND FEMALE, longer militant. They do not have to be. They have arrived. It is sober truth to say that these sturdy pioneers of feminism have assumed all the functions of leadership, in- cluding that of courting, and that they have delegated to the males all domestic cares and responsibilities, save that of laying eggs. These birds before me were evi- dent
. The birds of California : a complete, scientific and popular account of the 580 species and subspecies of birds found in the state. Birds; Birds. The Wilson Phalarope. Taken in Modoc County WILSON PHALAROPE, MALE A-WING Photo by the A ulhor AND FEMALE, longer militant. They do not have to be. They have arrived. It is sober truth to say that these sturdy pioneers of feminism have assumed all the functions of leadership, in- cluding that of courting, and that they have delegated to the males all domestic cares and responsibilities, save that of laying eggs. These birds before me were evi- dently paired and, as manifestly, had local attachments for that particular stretch of grass and weeds and ooze. One pair lit near me as I was photo- graphing a Black Tern's nest, and the male began to poke about in the reeds, like a hen that has forgotten, or pretends to have forgotten, the pre- cise location of her nest. The female dogged his steps and he occasionally chased her off in a petulant way, pre- cisely as a female of any more rational species would have done under like circumstances. Finally, the male housewife disappeared in a certain clump toward which he had already twice feinted. The female came to a standstill and mounted guard for as much as ten minutes. The situa- tion was perfectly clear from an oological standpoint. The eggs were being covered until it suited my pleasure to claim them. Imagine my surprise, therefore, when the female suddenly flitted over the weeds to a more distant clump, to which her dutiful spouse had sneaked, routed him out and made off with him to parts unknown. On succeeding days I raked that neck of the swamp with a fine- toothed comb, but all to no avail. The birds came and went without rhyme or reason, now one, now two, and now all four at once; from I knew not where, and disappeared again as mysteriously. If they lighted, the reeds swallowed them up; if they flew, they did it in a demure way which was a rebuke to curiosity. In flying,
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Photo credit: © Library Book Collection / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1920, booksubjectbirds, bookyear1923
