Page:American Journal of Psychology Volume 21.djvu/60

There was a problem when proofreading this page.
51
PORTER

Table XIContinued

we shall later find the Crows using, and a method that may give the experimenter both positive and negative results for which he has not reckoned.

the gth trial the Oriole constantly chased the Cowbirds away from the box. On the 14th test the same male Cowbird opened the door with the beak on the end of the latch by reaching through the wire mesh. As he did this but once it can hardly be counted as a good example of imitation.

For the 48th and succeeding trials the second male Oriole was placed in the cage. It was evident at once that he was more pugnacious than Oriole i. There was no doubt that he would be ruler of this cage in a short time. He made efforts to get into the food-box during this his first trial. Three tests later, after Oriole i had opened the door in his usual manner (by reaching the beak through the wire mesh and pulling threads), the behavior of Oriole 2 was most significant. He made many of the same kind of efforts as Oriole i had just made but the latter was inside eating and the door was open.

Oriole 1 continued to open the door for three more trials. In the 53rd Oriole 2 entered first and Oriole 1 pulled the threads fourteen times with the door standing open. In the following