Brad DeLong wrote: > Well, how about: > > Are California Quail Conscious? > ------------------------------- > > "Hey! A car's coming!" "Great! Let's all run across the road in front > of it!" "That's a wonderful idea!" "Yes!" "Genius!" "A good plan!" > "Go! Go! Go!" > > That is what my wife Ann Marie claims goes on in our local covey of > California quail...
A very colourful story. ;-) If the quail are conscious, it must be terrible for them to do something they know is stupid and not be able to stop themselves. It's kind of like when people gamble away their houses or men develop sexual fixations on women's shoes. Those old instincts and stimulus response behaviors are powerful indeed - sometimes affecting our actions even when we know better. They're always out there in the background, ready to take over when our brains are tired or distracted. Or maybe the birds are just showing off. The suicidal behavior of your quail sounds a lot like the death-seeking antics of our local robins, magpies and starlings. They'll dive down and swoop in front of oncoming cars, pulling up and out of danger at the last possible second. There were a couple of times when I thought our car was going to smack into magpies and robins - they just come at you from out of nowhere - but they've never been hit yet. I think they do it for a thrill. ;-) Kevin Street
