Chapter 2

Fig. 10. IN THE FOREGROUND A MATED PAIR HAVE BEGUN TO BUILD. BEHIND AND TO THE RIGHT TWO UNMATED HENS LIE IN THEIR SCOOPS(Page 19)

Fig. 10. IN THE FOREGROUND A MATED PAIR HAVE BEGUN TO BUILD. BEHIND AND TO THE RIGHT TWO UNMATED HENS LIE IN THEIR SCOOPS

(Page 19)

On October 18 the weather cleared and a fair number of penguins started to build their nests. The great majority however, apparently resting, still sat about. Those that built took their stones from old nests, as at present so many of these lay unoccupied. They made quite large nests, some inches high at the sides, with a comfortable hollow in the middle to sit in. The stone carrying (Fig. 20) was done by the male birds, the hens keeping continual guard over the nest, as otherwise the pair would have been robbed of the fruits of their labours as fast as they were acquired.

As I strolled through the rookery, most of the birds took little or no notice of me. Some, however, swore at me very savagely, and one infuriated penguin rushed at me from a distance of some ten yards, seizing the leg of my wind-proof trousers. In the morning quite a large number lay down on the sea-ice, a few yards short of the rookery, content apparently to have got so far. They lay there all day, motionless on their breasts, with their chins outstretched on the snow.

By the evening of October 18 most of the penguins had gathered in little groups on the nest-coveredeminences, but there was at that time ample room for all, there being only about three or four thousand arrived. Although there were several open water holes against bergs frozen into the sea-ice some half mile or so away, not a single bird attempted to get food.

At 6P.M.the whole rookery appeared to sleep, and the ceaseless chattering of the past hours gave place to a dead and impressive silence, though here and there an industrious little bird might be seen busily fetching stone after stone to his nest.

At that date it was deeply dusk at midnight, though the sun was very quickly rising in altitude, and continuous daylight would soon overtake us.

Fig. 11. THE ROOKERY BEGINNING TO FILL UP(Page 18)

Fig. 11. THE ROOKERY BEGINNING TO FILL UP

(Page 18)

By the morning of October 19 there had been a good many more arrivals, but the rookery was not yet more than one-twentieth part full. All the birds were fasting absolutely. Nest building was now in full swing, and the whole place waking up to activity. Most of the pebbles for the new nests were being taken from old nests, but a great deal of robbery went on nevertheless. Depredators when caught were driven furiously away, and occasionally chased for some distance, and it was curious to see the difference in the appearancebetween the fleeing thief and his pursuer. As the former raced and ducked about among the nests, doubling on his tracks, and trying by every means to get lost in the crowd and so rid himself of his pursuer, his feathers lay close back on his skin, giving him a sleek look which made him appear half the size of the irate nest-holder who sought to catch him, with feathers ruffled in indignation. This at first led me to think that the hens were larger than the cocks, as it was generally the hen who was at home, and the cock who was after the stones, but later I found that sex makes absolutely no difference in the size of the birds, or indeed in their appearance at all, as seen by the human eye. After mating, their behaviour as well as various outward signs serve to distinguish male from female. Besides this certain differences in their habits, which I will describe in another place, are to be noted.

The consciousness of guilt, however, always makes a penguin smooth his feathers and look small, whilst indignation has the opposite effect. Often when observing a knoll crowded with nesting penguins, I have seen an apparently under-sized individual slipping quietly along among the nests, and always by his subsequent proceedings hehas turned out to be a robber on the hunt for his neighbours' stones. The others, too, seemed to know it, and would have a peck at him as he passed them.

At last he would find a hen seated unwarily on her nest, slide up behind her, deftly and silently grab a stone, and run off triumphantly with it to his mate who was busily arranging her own home. Time after time he would return to the same spot, the poor depredated nest-holder being quite oblivious of the fact that the side of her nest which lay behind her was slowly but surely vanishing stone by stone.

Here could be seen how much individual character makes for success or failure in the efforts of the penguins to produce and rear their offspring. There are vigilant birds, always alert, who seem never to get robbed or molested in any way: these have big high nests, made with piles of stones. Others are unwary and get huffed as a result. There are a few even who, from weakness of character, actually allow stronger natured and more aggressive neighbours to rob them under their very eyes.

Fig. 12. “The Hens would keep up this Peck-pecking hour after Hour”

Fig. 13. An Affectionate Couple(Page 26)

Fig. 13. An Affectionate Couple

(Page 26)

In speaking of the robbery which is such a feature of the rookery during nest building, specialnote must be made of the fact that violence is never under any circumstances resorted to by the thieves. When detected, these invariably beat a retreat, and offer not the least resistance to the drastic punishment they receive if they are caught by their indignant pursuers. The only disputes that ever take place over the question of property are on the rare occasions when abona-fidemisunderstanding arises over the possession of a nest. These must be very rare indeed, as only on one occasion have I seen such a quarrel take place. The original nesting sites being, as I will show, chosen by the hens, it is the lady, in every case, who is the cause of the battle, and when she is won her scoop goes with her to the victor.

As I grew to know these birds from continued observation, it was surprising and interesting to note how much they differed in character, though the weaker-minded who would actually allow themselves to be robbed, were few and far between, as might be expected. Few, if any, of these ever could succeed in hatching their young and winning them through to the feathered stage.

When starting to make her nest, the usual procedure is for the hen to squat on the ground for some time, probably to thaw it, then working withher claws to scratch away at the material beneath her, shooting out the rubble behind her. As she does this she shifts her position in a circular direction until she has scraped out a round hollow. Then the cock brings stones, performing journey after journey, returning each time with one pebble in his beak which he deposits in front of the hen who places it in position.

Sometimes the hollow is lined with a neat pavement of stones placed side by side, one layer deep, on which the hen squats, afterwards building up the sides around her. At other times the scoop would be filled up indiscriminately by a heap of pebbles on which the hen then sat, working herself down into a hollow in the middle.

Individuals differ, not only in their building methods, but also in the size of the stones they select. Side by side may be seen a nest composed wholly of very big stones, so large that it is a matter for wonder how the birds can carry them, and another nest of quite small stones. (Fig. 14.)

Different couples seem to vary much in character or mood. Some can be seen quarrelling violently, whilst others appear most affectionate, and the tender politeness of some of these latter toward one another is very pretty to see. (Fig. 13.)

Fig. 14. “SIDE BY SIDE … NESTS OF VERY BIG STONES AND NESTS OF VERY SMALL STONES”(Page 26)

Fig. 14. “SIDE BY SIDE … NESTS OF VERY BIG STONES AND NESTS OF VERY SMALL STONES”

(Page 26)

I may here mention that the temperatures were rising considerably by October 19, ranging about zero F.

During October 20 the stream of arrivals was incessant. Some mingled at once with the crowd, others lay in batches on the sea-ice a few yards short of the rookery, content to have got so far, and evidently feeling the need for rest after their long journey from the pack. The greater part of this journey was doubtless performed by swimming, as they crossed open water, but I think that much of it must have been done on foot over many miles of sea-ice, to account for the fatigue of many of them.

Their swimming I will describe later. On the ice they have two modes of progression. The first is simple walking. Their legs being very short, their stride amounts at most to four inches. Their rate of stepping averages about one hundred and twenty steps per minute when on the march.

Their second mode of progression is “tobogganing.” When wearied by walking or when the surface is particularly suitable, they fall forward on to their white breasts, smooth and shimmering with a beautiful metallic lustre in the sunlight, and push themselves along by alternate powerful little strokes of their legs behind them.

When quietly on the march, both walking and tobogganing produce the same rate of progression, so that the string of arriving birds, tailing out in a long line as far as the horizon, appears as a well-ordered procession. I walked out a mile or so along this line, standing for some time watching it tail past me and taking the photographs with which I have illustrated the scene. Most of the little creatures seemed much out of breath, their wheezy respiration being distinctly heard.

First would pass a string of them walking, then a dozen or so tobogganing. (Fig. 15.) Suddenly those that walked would flop on to their breasts and start tobogganing, and conversely strings of tobogganers would as suddenly pop up on to their feet and start walking. In this way they relieved the monotony of their march, and gave periodical rest to different groups of muscles and nerve-centres.

The surface of the snow on the sea-ice varied continually, and over any very smooth patches the pedestrians almost invariably started to toboggan, whilst over “bad going” they all had perforce to walk.

Figs.16,17,18and19present some idea of the procession of these thousands on thousands ofpenguins as day after day they passed into the rookery.

Fig. 15. ON THE MARCH TO THE ROOKERY OVER THE SEA-ICE. SOME ARE WALKING AND SOME “TOBOGGANING”(Page 28)

Fig. 15. ON THE MARCH TO THE ROOKERY OVER THE SEA-ICE. SOME ARE WALKING AND SOME “TOBOGGANING”

(Page 28)

When tobogganing, turning to one side or the other is done with one or more strokes of the opposite flipper. When fleeing or chasing, both flippers as well as both feet are used in propulsion, and over most surfaces tobogganing is thus their fastest mode of progression, but when going at full tilt it is also the most exhausting, and after a short spurt in this way they invariably return to the walking position.

By October 20 many of the nests were complete, and the hens sat in them, though no eggs were to be seen yet. In the middle of one of the frozen lakes rose a little island, well suited for nesting except for the fact that later in the season, probably about the time when the young chicks were hatched, the lake would be thawed and the approach to the island only to be accomplished through about six inches or more of dirty water and ooze. Until then, however, the surface of the lake would remain frozen, and was at this time covered with snow.

Not a penguin attempted to build its nest on this island, though many passed it or walked over it in crossing the lake. How did they realize thatlater on they would get dirty every time they journeyed to or from the spot?

Not far from this island another mound rose from the lake, but this was connected with the “mainland” by a narrow neck of guano-covered pebbles. This mound was covered with nests, showing that the birds understood this place could always be reached over dry land. Surely this was well worth remarking.

There was a part of the ice-foot on the south side of the rookery where a track worn by many ascending penguins could be seen, leading from the sea-ice on to the beach. The place was steep and the ice slippery, and, in fact, the track led straight up a most difficult ascent. Not ten yards from this well-worn track a perfectly easy slope led up from the sea-ice to the rookery. The tracks in the freshly fallen snow showed that only one penguin had gone up this way. Presumably the first arrival in that place had taken the difficult path, and all subsequent arrivals blindly followed in his tracks, whilst only one had had the good luck or independence to choose the easier way.

On October 21 many thousands of penguins arrived from the northerly direction, and poured on to the beach in a continuous stream, the snakyline of arrivals extending unbroken across the sea-ice as far as the eye could see.

Fig. 16. PART OF THE LINE OF APPROACHING BIRDS, SEVERAL MILES IN LENGTH(Page 28)

Fig. 16. PART OF THE LINE OF APPROACHING BIRDS, SEVERAL MILES IN LENGTH

(Page 28)

A great many now started to climb the heights up the precipitous side of Cape Adare and to build their nests as far as the summit, a height of some 1000 feet, although there was still room for many thousand more down below. What could be their object, considering the wearisome journeys they would have to make to feed their young, it is impossible to say. It might be the result of the same spirit which made them spread out in little scattered groups over the rookery when only a few had arrived, and that they prefer wider room, only putting up with the greater crowding which ensues later as a necessary evil. There is, however, another explanation which I will discuss in another place.

At 9P.M.it was getting dusk, and the rookery comparatively silent, although on some of the knolls two or three birds might be seen still busily working, toddling to and fro fetching stones. The other thousands lay at rest, their white breasts flat on the ground, and only their black beaks and heads visible as they lay with their chins stretched forward on the ground, whilst in place of the massed discord of clamour heard during the day, the separate voices of some of the busy oneswere distinct. A fine powdering of snow was falling.

It would be difficult to estimate the number of penguins that poured into the rookery during the following day. There was no evidence that any pairing had taken place on or before the march, and the birds all had the appearance of being quite independent.

Far away from the beach the line had become thicker, and was no longer in single file, the progress of the birds being slow and steady, but when within half a mile or so from the beach, excitement seemed to take possession of them, and they would break into a run, hastening over the remaining distance, the line now being a thin one, with slight curves in it, each bird running, with wide gait, and outstretched flippers working away in unison with its little legs. In fact, the whole air of the line at this time was that of a school-treat arrived in sight of its playing-fields, and breaking into a run in its eagerness to get there.

Fig. 17. ARRIVING AT THE ROOKERY(Page 28)

Fig. 17. ARRIVING AT THE ROOKERY

(Page 28)

Arrived at the rookery, and plunged suddenly amidst the din of that squalling, fighting, struggling crowd, the contrast with the dead silence and loneliness of the pack-ice they had so recently left, was as great a one as can well be imagined; yetonce there, the birds seemed collected and at home. This was a matter of surprise to me then, but I remember now my own sensations on arriving home after my life in the Antarctic, and that I felt only slightly the sudden return to the bustle of civilization.

Our presence among them made little or no difference to the penguins. When we passed them closely they would bridle up and swear or even run at us and peck at our legs or batter them with their flippers, but unless their nesting operations were interfered with this attack was short-lived, and the next moment the birds would seem to forget our very existence. If I walked by the side of a long, nest-covered ridge, a low growl arose from every bird as I passed it, and the massed sound, gathering in front and dying away behind as I advanced, reminded me forcibly of the sound of the crowds on the towing-path at the 'Varsity boatrace as the crews pass up the river.

Walking actually among the nests, your temper is tried sorely, as every bird within reach has a peck at your legs, and occasionally a cock attacks you bravely, battering you with his little flippers in a manner ludicrous at first but aggravating after a time, as the operation is painful and severe enough to leave bruises behind it, andnaturally this begins to pall. The courage of these little birds is most remarkable and admirable.

Our hut, being built on the rookery, could only be approached through crowds of penguins. Those that nested near us seemed quickly to become used to us and to take less notice of us than those farther off. One thing, however, terrified them pitiably. We had to fetch ice for our water from some stranded floes on the ice-foot, and this we did in a little sledge. As we hauled this rattling over the pebbly rookery it made a good deal of noise, and in its path nests were deserted, the occupants fleeing in the greatest confusion, a clear road being left for the sledge, whilst on either side a line of penguins was seen retreating in the utmost terror. After about a minute, they returned to their places and seemed to forget the incident, but we were very sorry to frighten them in this way, as we endeavoured to live at peace with them and to molest them as little as possible, and we feared that later on eggs might be spilt from the nests and broken. As time went on, those on the route of the sledge became accustomed even to this, and we were able to choose a course which cleared their nests.

Fig. 18. ARRIVING AT THE ROOKERY. IN THE BACKGROUND IS THE CLIFF UP WHICH MANY OF THE BIRDS CLIMB TO MAKE THEIR NESTS AT THE SUMMIT(Page 28)

Fig. 18. ARRIVING AT THE ROOKERY. IN THE BACKGROUND IS THE CLIFF UP WHICH MANY OF THE BIRDS CLIMB TO MAKE THEIR NESTS AT THE SUMMIT

(Page 28)

Although squabbles and encounters had been frequent since their arrival in any numbers, it now became manifest that there were two very different types of battle; first, the ordinary quarrelling consequent on disputes over nests and the robbery of stones from these, and secondly, the battles between cocks who fought for the hens. These last were more earnest and severe, and were carried to a finish, whereas the first named rarely proceeded to extremes.

In regard to the mating of the birds, the following most interesting customs seemed to be prevalent.

The hen would establish herself on an old nest, or in some cases scoop out a hollow in the ground and sit in or by this, waiting for a mate to propose himself. (Fig. 26.) She would not attempt to build while she remained unmated. During the first week of the nesting season, when plenty of fresh arrivals were continually pouring into the rookery, she did not have long to wait as a rule. Later, when the rookery was getting filled up, and only a few birds remained unmated in that vast crowd of some three-quarters of a million, her chances were not so good.

For example, on November 16 on a knoll thickly populated by mated birds, many of which alreadyhad eggs, a hen was observed to have scooped a little hollow in the ground and to be sitting in this. Day after day she sat on looking thinner and sadder as time passed and making no attempt to build her nest. At last, on November 27, she had her reward, for I found that a cock had joined her, and she was busily building her nest in the little scoop she had made so long before, her husband steadily working away to provide her with the necessary pebbles. Her forlorn appearance of the past ten days had entirely given place to an air of occupation and happiness.

As time went on I became certain that invariably pairing took place after arrival at the rookery. On October 23 I went to the place where the stream of arrivals was coming up the beach, and presently followed a single bird, which I afterwards found to be a cock, to see what it was going to do. He threaded his way through nearly the whole length of the rookery by himself, avoiding the tenanted knolls where the nests were, by keeping to the emptier hollows. About every hundred yards or so he stopped, ruffled up his feathers, closed his eyes for a moment, then “smoothed himself out” and went on again, thus evidently struggling against desire for sleep after his journey. As he progressedhe frequently poked his little head forward and from side to side, peering up at the knolls, evidently in search of something.

Fig. 19. Adélies arriving at the Rookery

Fig. 20. A Cock carrying a Stone to his Nest(Page 21)

Fig. 20. A Cock carrying a Stone to his Nest

(Page 21)

Arrived at length at the south end of the rookery, he appeared suddenly to make up his mind, and boldly ascending a knoll which was well tenanted and covered with nests, walked straight up to one of these on which a hen sat. There was a cock standing at her side, but my little friend either did not see him or wished to ignore him altogether. He stuck his beak into the frozen ground in front of the nest, lifted up his head and made as if to place an imaginary stone in front of the hen, a most obvious piece of dumb show. The hen took not the slightest notice nor did her mate.

My friend then turned and walked up to another nest, a yard or so off, where another cock and hen were. The cock flew at him immediately, and after a short fight, in which each used his flippers savagely, he was driven clean down the side of the knoll away from the nests, the victorious cock returning to his hen. The newcomer, with the persistence which characterises his kind, came straight back to the same nest and stood close by it, soon ruffling his feathers and evidently settling himself for a doze, but, I suppose, because he madeno further overtures the others took no notice of him at all, as, overcome by sheer weariness, he went to sleep and remained so until I was too cold to await further developments. On my way back to our hut I followed another cock for about thirty yards, when he walked up to another couple at a nest and gave battle to the cock. He, too, was driven off after a short and decisive fight. Soon there were many cocks on the war-path. Little knots of them were to be seen about the rookery, the lust of battle in them, watching and fighting each other with desperate jealousy, and the later the season advanced the more “bersac” they became.

A typical scene I find described in my notes for October 25 when I was out with my camera, and I mention it as a type of the hundreds that were proceeding simultaneously over the whole rockery, and also because I was able to photograph different stages of the proceedings as follows:

Fig. 22shows a group of three cocks engaged in bitter rivalry round a hen who is cowering in her scoop in which she had been waiting as is their custom. She appeared to be bewildered and agitated by the desperate behaviour of the cocks.

Fig. 21. SEVERAL INTERESTING THINGS ARE TAKING PLACE HERE(Page 43)

Fig. 21. SEVERAL INTERESTING THINGS ARE TAKING PLACE HERE

(Page 43)

OnFig. 23a further development is depicted,and two of the cocks are seen to be squaring up for battle. Close behind and to the right of them are seen (from left to right) the hen and the third cock, who are watching to see the result of the contest, and another hen cowering for protection against a cock with whom she has become established.

Fig. 24shows the two combatants hard at it, using their weight as they lean their breasts against one another, and rain in the blows with their powerful flippers.

Fig. 25shows the end of the fight, the victor having rushed the vanquished cock before him out of the crowd and on to a patch of snow on which, as he was too brave to turn and run, he knocked him down and gave him a terrible hammering.

When his conqueror left him at length, he lay for some two minutes or so on the ground, his heaving breast alone showing that he was alive, so completely exhausted was he, but recovering himself at length he arose and crawled away, a damaged flipper hanging limply by his side, and he took no further part in the proceedings. The victorious bird rushed back up the side of the knoll, and immediately fought the remaining cock, who had not moved from his original position, putting him to flight, and chasing him in and out of the crowd, the fugitive doublingand twisting amongst it in a frantic endeavour to get away, and I quickly lost sight of them.

Scenes of this kind became so common all over the rookery, that the roar of battle and thuds of blows could be heard continuously, and of the hundreds of such fights, all plainly had their cause in rivalry for the hens.

When starting to fight, the cocks sometimes peck at each other with their beaks, but always they very soon start to use their flippers, standing up to one another and raining in the blows with such rapidity as to make a sound which, in the words of Dr. Wilson, resembles that of a boy running and dragging his hoop-stick along an iron paling. Soon they start “in-fighting,” in which position one bird fights right-handed, the other left-handed; that is to say, one leans his left breast against his opponent, swinging in his blows with his right flippers, the other presenting his right breast and using his left flipper. My photographs of cocks fighting all show this plainly. It is interesting to note that these birds, though fighting with one flipper only, are ambidextrous. Whilst battering one another with might and main they use their weight at the same time, and as one outlasts the other, he drives his vanquished opponent before him over the ground, as a trained boxingman, when “in-fighting” drives his exhausted opponent round the ring.

Fig. 22. Three Cocks in Rivalry(See page 38)

Fig. 22. Three Cocks in Rivalry

(See page 38)

Fig. 23. Two of the Cocks squaring up for Battle(See page 38)

Fig. 23. Two of the Cocks squaring up for Battle

(See page 38)

Desperate as these encounters are, I don't think one penguin ever kills another. In many cases blood is drawn. I saw one with an eye put out, and that side of its beak (the right side) clotted with blood, whilst the crimson print of a blood-stained flipper across a white breast was no uncommon sight.

Hard as they can hit with their flippers, however, they are also well protected by their feathers, and being marvellously tough and enduring the end of a hard fight merely finds the vanquished bird prostrate with exhaustion and with most of the breath beaten out of his little body. The victor is invariably satisfied with this, and does not seek to dispatch him with his beak.

It was very usual to see a little group of cocks gathered together in the middle of one of the knolls squabbling noisily. Sometimes half a dozen would be lifting their raucous voices at one particular bird, then they would separate into pairs, squaring up to one another and emphasizing their remarks from time to time by a few quick blows from their flippers. It seemed that each was indignant with the others for coming and spoiling hischances with a coveted hen, and trying to get them to depart before he went to her.

It was useless for either to attempt overtures whilst the others were there, for the instant he did so, he would be set upon and a desperate fight begin. Usually, as in the case I described above, one of the little crowd would suddenly “see red” and sail into an opponent with desperate energy, invariably driving him in the first rush down the side of the knoll to the open space surrounding it, where the fight would be fought out, the victor returning to the others, until by his prowess and force of character, he would rid himself of them all. Then came his overtures to the hen. He would, as a rule, pick up a stone and lay it in front of her if she were sitting in her “scoop,” or if she were standing by it he might himself squat in it. She might take to him kindly, or, as often happened, peck him furiously. To this he would submit tamely, hunching up his feathers and shutting his eyes while she pecked him cruelly. Generally after a little of this she would become appeased. He would rise to his feet, and in the prettiest manner edge up to her, gracefully arch his neck, and with soft guttural sounds pacify her and make love to her.

Fig. 24. “Hard at it”(See page 39)

Fig. 24. “Hard at it”

(See page 39)

Fig. 25. The End of the Battle(Page 39)

Fig. 25. The End of the Battle

(Page 39)

Both perhaps would then assume the “ecstatic”attitude, rocking their necks from side to side as they faced one another (Fig. 26), and after this a perfect understanding would seem to grow up between them, and the solemn compact was made.

It is difficult to convey in words the daintiness of this pretty little scene. I saw it enacted many dozens of times, and it was wonderful to watch one of these hardy little cocks pacifying a fractious hen by the perfect grace of his manners.

Fig. 21is particularly instructive. In the centre of the picture a group of cocks are quarrelling, and on the left-hand side three unmated hens can be seen sitting in their scoops, whilst two of them (the two in front) are receiving overtures from two of the cocks who are making the most of their time whilst the others are fighting. On the right-hand side another cock is seen proposing himself to a fourth hen who seems to be meeting his overtures with the usual show of reluctance.

Although for the later arrivals a good deal of fighting was necessary before a mate could be secured, it seemed that some got the matter fixed up without any difficulty at all, especially during the earlier days when only a few birds were scattered widely over the rookery. Later, the cocks seemed to watch one another jealously, andto hunt in little batches in consequence. (Figs.27,28, and29.)

From the particulars I have just given it is also evident that a wife and home once obtained could only be kept by dint of further battling and constant vigilance during the first stages of domesticity, when thousands of lusty cocks were pouring into the rookery, and it was not unusual to see a strange cock paying court to a mated hen in the absence of her husband until he returned to drive away the interloper, but I do not think that this ever occurred after the eggs had come and the regular family life begun, couples after this being perfectly faithful to one another.

The instance I have given of a newly arrived cock by dumb show pretending to take a stone and place it before a mated hen, is typical of the sort of first overture one sees, though more frequently an actual stone was tendered. While on this subject I had better mention a most interesting thing which occurred to one of my companions. One day as he was sitting quietly on some shingle near the ice-foot, a penguin approached him, and after eyeing him for a little, walked right up to him and nibbled gently at one of the legs of his wind-proof trousers. Then it walked away,picked up a pebble, and came back with it, dropping it on the ground by his side. The only explanation of this occurrence seems to be that the tendering of the stone was meant as an overture of friendship.

Fig. 26. THE PROPOSAL. (NOTE THE HEN IN HER SCOOP)(Pages35and43)

Fig. 26. THE PROPOSAL. (NOTE THE HEN IN HER SCOOP)

(Pages35and43)

On October 26 there was no abatement in the stream of arrivals. The cock-fighting continued, and many of them, temporarily disabled, were to be seen moping about the rookery, smeared with blood and guano. Often a hen would join in when two cocks were fighting, occasionally going first for one and then the other, but I never to my knowledge saw a cock retaliate on a hen.

Once I saw two cocks fighting, and a hen taking the part of one of the cocks, the pair of them gave the other a fearful hammering, the hen using her bill savagely as well as her flippers. Completely knocked out and gasping for breath he got away at last, only to meet another cock who fought him and easily beat him. When this one had gone a third came, and the poor victim with a courage truly noble was squaring himself up with his last spark of energy, when I interfered and drove away his enemy.

The nests on most of the knolls soon became so crowded that their occupants, by stretching out their necks, could reach their neighbours withoutgetting up. As every hen appeared to hate her neighbour they would peck-peck at one another hour after hour, in the manner seen in myphotograph,(3)till their mouths and heads became terribly sore. Occasionally they would desist, shake their heads apparently from pain, then at it again.

In various places through the course of these pages, reference is made to the “ecstatic” attitude of the penguins. This antic is gone through by both sexes and at various times, though much more frequently during the actual breeding season. The bird rears its body upward and stretching up its neck in a perpendicular line, discharges a volley of guttural sounds straight at the unresponding heavens. At the same time the clonic movements of its syrinx or “sound box” distinctly can be seen going on in its throat. Why it does this I have never been able to make out, but it appears to be thrown into this ecstasy when it is pleased; in fact, the zoologist of the “Pourquoi Pas” expedition termed it the “Chant de satisfaction.” I suppose it may be likened to the crowing of a cock or the braying of an ass. When one bird of a pair starts to perform in this way, the other usually starts at once to pacify it. Very many times I saw thisscene enacted when nesting was in progress. The two might be squatting by the nest when one would arise to assume the “ecstatic” attitude and make the guttural sounds in its syrinx. Immediately the other would get close up to it and make the following noise in a soft soothing tone:

A-ah

Always and immediately this caused the musician to subside and settle itself down again.

Fig. 27. Cocks fighting for Hens

Fig. 28. Cocks fighting for Hens(Page 44)

Fig. 28. Cocks fighting for Hens

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The King penguin at the Zoological Gardens, whose sex is unknown, throws itself into the ecstatic attitude and sings a sort of song when its keeper strokes its neck. The blackfooted penguins never do it, though they breed several times a year. Figs.26and32show Adélies in ecstatic attitude.

To-day about a dozen skua gulls (Megalestris Makormiki) appeared for the first time. They did not start to nest, but sat on the sea-ice with a group of penguins, in apparent amity. A few occasionally flew about over the rookery.

On October 27 though the stream of arrivals continued there were wide gaps in it. It appearedto be thinning. For an hour in the forenoon it stopped altogether, and at the end of this time a storm of wind from the south struck us and continued for another hour with thick drift. Probably clear of Cape Adare the wind had been blowing before it reached us, and had stopped the birds' progress across the ice.

During the storm the rookery was completely silenced, most of the birds lying with their heads to the wind. A good many skuas arrived that day. Some chips of white, glistening quartz had been thrown down by our hut door recently, and later I found two of these chips in a nest about thirty yards away, showing up brightly against the black basalt of which all the pebbles on the rookery were composed.

As a rule the penguins were careful to select rounded stones for their nests, but these fragments of quartz were jagged and uncomfortable, and most unsuitable for nest building. Thus it was evidently the brightness of the stones which attracted them. Whilst I looked on, the owners of the pieces of quartz were wrangling with their neighbours, and a penguin in a nest behind shot out its beak and stole one of the pieces, placing it in its own nest. I had brought Campbell out to show him the piecesof quartz, and he witnessed the last incident with me.

Fig. 29. Cocks fighting for Hens(Page 44)

Fig. 29. Cocks fighting for Hens

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Fig. 30. Penguin on Nest

I may here mention an experiment I tried some days later. I painted some pebbles a bright red and had others covered with bright green cotton material as I had no other coloured paint. Mixing a handful of these coloured stones together I placed them in a little heap amongst natural black ones near a nest-covered knoll. Returning in a few hours I found nearly all the red stones and one or two of the green ones gone, and later found them in nests. Later still, all the red ones had disappeared, and last of all the green ones. I traced nearly all these to nests, and found a few days later that, like the pieces of white quartz, they were being stolen from nest to nest and thus slowly being distributed in different directions. At other times I saw pieces of tin, pieces of glass, half a stick of chocolate, and the head of a bright metal teaspoon in different nests near our hut, the articles evidently having been taken from our scrap-heap. Thus it is evident that penguins like bright colours and prefer red to green, as instanced by the selection of the coloured pebbles. I am sorry that I did not carry these colour tests further.

During October 29 the stream of arrivals wasundiminished, but the next day it slackened considerably, and during the next two days stopped altogether, all the rising ground of the rookery now being literally crammed full with nests, several thousands of them being scattered up the slopes of Cape Adare to a height of a thousand feet.

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