'i': / THE AVICULTURAL MAGAZINE BEING THE JOURNAL OF THE AVICULTURAL SOCIETY FOR THE STUDY OF BRITISH AND FOREIGN BIRDS IN FREEDOM AND IN CAPTIVITY EDITED BY PHYLLIS BARCLAY-SMITH, F.Z.S. VOL. LIV JANUARY, 1948, to DECEMBER, 1948 Hertford STEPHEN AUSTIN & SONS, Ltd. 1948 CONTENTS Title-page ......... i Contents .......... iii Alphabetical List of Contributors v List of Plates ........ viii Officers for the Year 1948 ...... 1 List of Members ........ 3 Rules of the Avicultural Society ..... 77 The Society’s Medal ...... 20 Magazine ......... i Index . . . . . . . . . .213 ALPHABETICAL LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS “ Alpha ” The Lighter Side of Foreign Bird-Keeping, 29. Special Numbers of the Avicultural Magazine, 40. Amsler, Dr. Maurice, F.Z.S. Maud Knobel, 1922-1948, 137. Astley, Hubert D. Breeding of Queen Alexandra Parrakeets (reprinted), no. Barclay-Smith, Phyllis (“ P. B-S.55) The New Bird Pavilion at the Antwerp Zoo, 1 14. The 13th International Congress of Zoology, 155. The New Secretary and Treasurer, 167. Beauchamp, P. W. A Study in Self-Preservation : Nuthatches and Tree-Creepers lodge with Sparrow-Hawks for Safety, 133. Campbell, Lewis M. Aviculture in Australia, 90. Chawner, E. F. Special Numbers of the Avicultural Magazine, 67. Clark, Mrs. G. T. Breeding Results for 1947, 33. Delacour, J. The Scarlet Cock-of-the-Rock, 1. New Budgerigars and Bengalese in Japan, 79. The Swans, 180. Derscheid, Jean-Marie Exotic Kingfishers in Captivity, 93. Motmots in Captivity, 101. Derscheid, Jean-Pierre Notes on the Behaviour of the Male Rosy-billed Duck, 177. Ezra, Alfred Breeding Results at Foxwarren Park in 1947, 19. Falkner, Guy Notes on the Black-capped Social Weaver, 27. On Hand-Rearing some African Birds, 52. Goodwin, Derek Bird Life on Malta, 57. Lebanese Interlude, 1 18. Griffiths, W., D.F.H. The Birdman Artiste, 46. “ H.N.B. 55 A Venerable Cockatoo, 174. VI ALPHABETICAL LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS Hill, W. C. Osman Hybrid Macaws in the Edinburgh Zoo, 175. ISENBERG, A. H. Breeding of “ Clarin-Jilgaro ”, 160. Jones, Terry The Red Mountain Dove, 48. The Andean Crested Duck, 196. Knight, Mrs. Virginia Breeding Crested Budgerigars, 1 76. Knobel, E. Maud Post Mortem Examinations, 37. Special Numbers of the Avicultural Magazine, 67. Amazon Parrots (reprinted), 138. Manfield, H. The Breeding of the Ruddy Sheldduck in the gardens of the Royal Zoological Society, Adelaide, S. Australia. Maxwell, P. H. A Pair of Rare Amazons at Whipsnade Zoo, 175. Maxwell, W. H. Broken Bones in Pheasants, 38. Morrison, Alastair British Aviculture : Prospect and Retrospect, 3. Norris, K. A. Sea-Bird Colonies on Skomer and Grassholm, 108. Phillipps, Reginald Breeding Insectivorous Birds (reprinted), 168. PODMORE, C. R. Observations on the Nesting of Song-Thrushes, 55. Porter, Sydney A Bird Show in Johannesburg, 156. Notes on some Waterfowl at the Sanctuary of St. Lucia, Zululand, 119. Prestwich, A. A. (“ A. A. P. ”) British Aviculturists’ Club, 34, 65, 80, 96, 125, 151, 206. Dove and Pigeon Registry in U.S.A., 37. The National Cage-Bird Show, 38. Breeding Stanley Parrakeets, 39. Additions to the London Zoo, 40, 68, 98, 135, 174, 210. The Food of Pigmy Parrots, 67. A Brown-headed Parrot, 67. “ Crystal Palace ” Show, 68. Green Conure, 68. Galdpagos Penguins nesting in Florida, 68. Change of Colour in Plumage without a Moult (Report of Discussion at Meeting of British Aviculturists’ Club) , 80. Breeding Splendids in California, 98. News from the Cameroons, 98. ALPHABETICAL LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS Vll Parson-Finch X Long-tailed Grass-Finch Hybrids, 98. Winkles for Softbills, 98. A Weaver X Canary Hybrid, 99. Prospect and Retrospect, 106. The Psittacine Registry, 166, 210. The Shama : Historical Notes, 172. Review — Tropical Birds, 208. The John Frostick Memorial Cup, 210, Reventlow, Axel Details on the Keeping of Humming Birds in Copenhagen, 69. Ripley, Dillon Waterfowl Notes from the Eastern United States, 194. Scott, Peter Fowl-Pest Regulations, 39. The Waterfowl Registry, 62. Some recent additions to the collection of the Severn Wildfowl Trust, 202. Silver, Allen Retirement of Mr. James Bailey from the London Zoo, 54. Stresemann, Vesta Eclipse plumage and nuptial plumage in the Old Squaw or Long-tailed Duck, 188. Swan, J. A. See “ Alpha ”, and p. 99. Tanner, E. B. A Few Notes on the Senegal Finfoot, 50. Watkins, T. R. Holmes Parrakeet Breeding Results, 1947, 21. Weaver, George A. J. The Pheasant Registry, 22. Webber, L. G. The Ground Parrot in Habitat and Captivity, 41. Withers, Robert H. Special Numbers of the Avicultural Magazine, 66. Witting, R. G. The President’s Garden Party, 123. Yealland, John Birds from the British Cameroons Forest, 211. Vlll LIST OF PLATES LIST OF PLATES *The Scarlet Cock of the Rock A View of Alpha’s aviary from the Sun facing page 1 Room ...... 33 31 Ground Parrot ..... 33 41 Young Ground Parrots .... 33 41 James Bailey ..... Humming Bird Gage with growing vegeta¬ 33 54 tion ....... 33 69 Humming Birds ..... 33 69 Transport Gage for Humming Birds . 33 78 Tame Leptocoma zeylonica 33 78 * Motmots ...... 33 IOI Exterior Aviaries of Antwerp Zoo 33 114 Side Aviaries in Main Hall between pages 1 14 and 115 Method of cleaning glass front of aviary . Side Aviary showing door and method of 33 placing food ..... 33 Passage behind aviaries 33 Compartment with Little Egrets facing page 115 Dark hall showing lighted compartments . 33 1 16 Lighted Compartment with Kookaburra . 33 117 Groups at B.A.C. dinner facing pages 126 and 127 E. Maud Knobel ..... facing page 137 Guilding’s Parrot ..... 33 152 Arthur Alfred Prestwich 33 167 * Rosy-billed Ducks displaying . 33 177 Andean Crested Ducklings (2 plates) 33 198 * Denotes coloured plate AVICULTURAL MAGAZINE CONTENTS PAGE The Scarlet Cock of the Rock ( with coloured plate) , by J. Delacour British Aviculture : Prospect and Retrospect, by A. Morrison Breeding Results at Foxwarren Park, 1947, by A. Ezra .... Parrakeet Breeding Results, 1947, by T. R. Holmes Watkins The Pheasant Registry, by G. A. J. Weaver ...... Notes on the Black-capped Social Weaver ( Pseudonigrita cabanisi), by G. Falrner The Lighter Side of Foreign Bird-keeping (with plate), by ** Alpha ” Breeding Results for 1947, by Mrs. G. T. Clark ..... British Aviculturists’ Club . . . . Post-mortem Examinations . . . ' . Notes ............. Correspondence . . . . . VOL. 64 No. t PRICE 5/- JAN.-FEB 1948 4*O0O3OSG3KlK>K>K> w THE AVICULTURAL SOCIETY Founded 1894 President : A. EZRA, Esq., O.B.E. MEMBERSHIP SUBSCRIPTION is £1 per annum, due on 1st January each year, and payable in advance. Life Membership, £15. Subscriptions, Changes of Address, Names of Candidates for Membership, etc., should be sent to — The Honorary Secretary and Treasurer , Tel.: Primrose 0247. MISS E. MAUD KNOBEL, 86 Regent’s Park Road, London, N.W. 1. THE AVICULTURAL MAGAZINE is published bi-monthly and sent free to members. Members joining at any time during the year are entitled to back numbers for the current year on the payment of subscription. ALL MATTER FOR PUBLICATION IN THE MAGAZINE SHOULD BE ADDRESSED TO— The Editor , MISS PHYLLIS BARCLAY-SMITH, 51 Warwick Avenue, Tel. : Cunningham 3006. London, W. 9. The price of the Magazine to non-members is 55. post free per copy, or £1 10*. for the year. Orders for the Magazine, extra copies, and back numbers (from 1917) should be sent to the publishers, Messrs. Stephen Austin & Sons, 1 Fore Street, Hertford. Tel. : Hertford 2546-8. POST-MORTEM EXAMINATIONS CAN NOW BE UNDERTAKEN (See announcement on page 37 of this number.) Avi. Mag. 1948 Scarlet Cock-of-the-Rock, Rupicola peruviana aequatorialis. AVICULTURAL MAGAZINE THE JOURNAL OF THE AVICULTURAL SOCIETY Vol. 54. — No. 1. — All rights reserved. JAN.— FEB., 1948 THE SCARLET COCK OF THE ROCK By J. Delacour Owing to some differences in the muscles of the legs, modern authors have separated the Cocks-of-the-Rocks ( Rupicola ) from the Gotinga family and placed them in one of their own. Whether or not this characteristic is a sufficiently deep rooted one for such a drastic splitting still remains to be proved, and I have no opinion to-day on the subject. These birds, however, look and behave like Cotingas and are certainly very closely allied to them. The Amazonian Cock-of-the-Rock ( Rupicola rupicola) is well known in aviculture and has often adorned zoo cages and private aviaries. I always had one or two in the inner compartments of the tropical house at Cleres. Given enough shade, dampness, and proper food containing plenty of carrot, tomato, and various red berries, the males kept their beautiful orange colour well. They always proved disagreeable and I never could keep a pair together for any length of time. They are dangerous to other birds if they can catch them, and I was horrified one day to find the mangled remains of a pair of Purple Sunbirds which had shared for some time the large and planted compartment of the Gocks-of-the-Rock which, I had thought, could never get hold of them. At the St. Louis Zoo they managed to keep four or five males together in a large planted indoor aviary, but they proved troublesome ; fights were frequent and often one or two had to be removed ; moreover, losses were never published. At liberty, R. rupicola gather in large numbers and each male dances in turn. How accurate are some narrations of these wonderful performances I am not prepared to say. The Amazonian Cock-of-the-Rock inhabits the forests of the low¬ lands and hills of the Guianas, Southern Venezuela, and Northern Brazil, that is to say, the Amazonian region, being partial to rocky slopes and cliffs. The second species has its own peculiarities. While the Amazonian 2 J. DELAGOUR - THE SCARLET (JOCK OF THE ROCK i Cock has a high compressed crest with a thin dark subterminal border, truncated tertiaries, and tail coverts with disintegrated barbs that look like lace, the Andean Cock-of-the-Rock ( Rupicola peruviana) has a thick crest and all the feathers are normal in shape. As is shown on the accompanying plate, its colour pattern is very different. The three vermilion and orange subspecies ( peruviana , aequatorialis, saturata ) are found in the subtropical parts of the Eastern Andes, from 3,000 to 12,000 feet, in forest, and extend from Bolivia to Venezuela. The scarlet subspecies, however, which is figured here and is the only one to have been imported alive so far, inhabits the western slopes of the Andes in Ecuador and Colombia. It is the finest of all and the only true scarlet one. It was first brought alive to New York in December, 1941, by C. Cordier, who landed twelve specimens in perfect con¬ dition, three of which remained at the Bronx Zoo, the others going to other zoos and a pair to Mrs. Milton Erlanger. Their capture has been reported in the Avicultural Magazine, 1942, pp. 3-4, with a photograph of one of them. They proved much more peaceful and sociable than the Amazonian species. At the time of writing, two of the original males are still living at the Bronx Zoo in perfect condition, if a little faded in colour. One has been sharing for a few years a large planted compartment with Quetzals, Umbrella Birds, Tanagers, and several other birds, and there have been no quarrels. Since Mr. Cordier’s visit in 1941 the inhabitants of South-Western Colombia, who had learnt from him how to catch and to feed Scarlet Cocks-of-the-Rock, have regularly sent a few every year to the Louis Ruhe firm, in New York. The same thing happened with Quetzals in Costa Rica, so that these two marvellous species are well represented at present in American collections. Mr. F. Fooks brought a full-coloured male to London in 1947, but it unfortunately did not live long. Like its Amazonian cousin, the Scarlet Cock-of-the-Rock is omni¬ vorous, but feeds mostly on fruit. Both are extraordinarily dainty eaters and for their size consume an astonishingly small quantity of food. ALASTAIR MORRISON— BRITISH AVICULTURE 3 BRITISH AVICULTURE : PROSPECT AND RETROSPECT By Alastair Morrison The present low ebb in which the practice of aviculture finds itself calls, I think, for an effort at stocktaking, to survey the past and to try and forecast the future. The old days and the conditions as we knew them before the war are gone for ever. Is there still a place for aviculture ? The answer to that question depends on the body of aviculturists as a whole ; on the positive effort they are prepared to make to help themselves and the precautions which they take to avoid the mistakes of the past. Aviculture consists of the practice of keeping birds in captivity for the pleasure that their possession affords, for scientific study, for educational purposes, and for the preservation and maintenance of species which are threatened with extinction in a wild state. Of these four objects, the first is the one which is most difficult to justify and which, at the same time, is undoubtedly the strongest motive which induces people to keep birds in captivity. Birds are such beautiful and fascinating creatures that most of us take pleasure in seeing and observing them in a wild state. Small wonder then that many of us like to increase our contacts with birds by keeping additional specimens in captivity where we try to maintain them and to breed them in the same perfect condition as if they were in a wild state, by careful treatment and attention to their wants. This is a motive which is much decried by the critics of bird keeping in general, but I regard it as a perfectly reasonable one and see no cause to be apologetic about it. Birds can be kept in the most perfect health and condition in captivity and will live for years in such a state, in many cases probably longer than they would have done in a wild state, although it is not possible to make any firm assertions on this point due to our incomplete knowledge concerning longevity in wild birds. But the motive which I have outlined is certainly the basic reason which leads most people to keep birds. The number of aviculturists who keep birds for any other reason is very limited. Much can be learned from a careful study of birds in captivity, particularly the study of moults and breeding habits. Unfortunately, however, it must be freely admitted that the record of aviculturists in careful and scientific observation is a very poor one. Large numbers of birds have been kept and bred in captivity, often under ideal conditions, but the number of accurate, careful observations which have been published is very limited. Scientific ornithologists not infrequently 4 ALASTAIR MORRISON - BRITISH AVICULTURE have queries which could be answered by aviculturists, and their virtual inability to do so is the cause of some exasperation, a very unfortunate state of affairs. I can cite two examples which came to my attention recently. One well-known ornithologist has been making a study of the evolution of the African Lovebirds. As is well known, several of the species (Peach-faced, Fischer’s, Masked, Nyassa, and Black-cheeked) are closely related and interbreed freely. Before the introduction of the Parrot ban they were imported into this country in very large numbers and almost every conceivable hybrid between the various species was bred. A careful study of such hybrids would be most helpful in trying to establish the nature of their common ancestor but there is little detailed and accurate information on the subject. Careful descriptions of the various crosses are lacking and no good series of such specimens was ever preserved for museum use. In order to obtain all the desired information it would be necessary to start all over again, which is practically impossible to-day. On another occasion I encountered an ornithological authority whose views on a prominent aviculturist, to whom he had unsuccessfully applied for information concerning moults, practically ignited the atmosphere. It is a great pity that this sort of thing should happen because it brings aviculture into disrepute with scientific ornithologists and ensures the latters’ disapproval of all traffic in birds. It is scientific ornithologists whose views carry weight with such phenomena as Colonial Govern¬ ments, on the good will of which will ultimately depend any resumption of the importation of birds. Some valuable scientific work has been done on birds kept in captivity, for instance experiments on the effect of light on the sexual development of birds, but it has not been done by individuals who would normally be considered as aviculturists, and certainly not by members of the Society. Obviously, highly technical matters cannot be attempted by the average aviculturist, but there is much room for co-operation between the aviculturist and the more scientific orni¬ thologist. The best way to improve the position is, I think, to set up some machinery whereby members of the Society can be informed of the type of information desired by museum workers and others, a special liaison committee which would ascertain the requirements of workers in the British Museum and members of the B.O.U. Some effort on these lines would do much to enhance the standing of the Society, which at present is not very high. I often think that the word scientific has a frightening effect on the average aviculturist. He conjures up visions of retorts and test tubes, and elderly, absent-minded gentlemen, with high domed heads, speaking an incomprehensible jargon to a select few. The truth is that any series of observations or experiments on any aspect of bird life which are careful, accurate, and sustained, and which lead to any ALASTAIR MORRISON - BRITISH AVICULTURE 5 addition to our knowledge may fairly be considered scientific. This applies just as much to additions to our knowledge concerning the practice of aviculture as to anything else. I would like to see the Avicultural Magazine contain three types of contribution in roughly equal proportions, firstly, notes and news from various collections, etc., secondly, articles on the technique of aviculture, and thirdly, observa¬ tions on birds kept in captivity. Verbosity and sentiment should be completely eliminated. Newsprint is far too valuable to print the ramblings of some aviculturists, and although we all have some form of sentimental attachment for birds, there is not, to my knowledge, a single aviculturist in the country who can afford to try expressing his sentiments in writing without doing a grave disservice to the English language. The Avicultural Magazine should contain more observa¬ tions and less fiction. It should be a valuable work of reference, not a chatty periodical. The keeping of birds for educational purposes primarily concerns public institutions. A good collection of birds is a living museum, far more interesting and instructive than any dreary gallery of stuffed birds. With proper forethought there is no reason why a collection should not be accessible to the public without affecting the birds or even interfering with their breeding activities, and it is most desirable that any large collection should, to some extent, be open to the public. Unfortunately, the attitude of the Government towards private collec¬ tions is narrow-minded and unimaginative. By far the best collection that has ever been brought together in this country was opened to the public some years before the war. The owner, not unreasonably, charged for admission, since the entry of the public involved him in additional expense. The proceeds constituted a minute contribution towards his general expenses and there was no question of his making any profit by admitting the public. However, he omitted to charge entertainment tax, he was taken to court by the taxation authorities and fined for a misdemeanour. If he had cared to form himself into a “ Society ”, with his butler as president, his chauffeur as secretary, and half a dozen keepers as members of the council, he would not have been taken to court. The law permits almost any association of individuals to form themselves into a society which escapes entertain¬ ment tax, regardless of the quality of the collection which is shown, but any private person who opens his collection to the public, be it the finest in the world, must either foot the entire bill himself and allow free entry or pay entertainment tax as if he was a circus proprietor or the manager of a cabaret. The reaction of any normal person to such treatment is to consign the public to the devil. Let them stick to the circus. The preservation in a state of aviculture of birds threatened with extinction in a wild state is a matter concerning which there is much 6 ALASTAIR MORRISON - BRITISH AVICULTURE loose thinking and many misconceptions. It is a question on which I shall comment in more detail later in this article. Suffice it to say that although there is no doubt that various extinct species could have been maintained in captivity, such as the Passenger Pigeon, and that other species which are in danger of extinction could also be maintained, aviculturists lack and always have lacked the high general standard of skill and energy necessary to achieve this state of affairs. I question whether there is a single species in danger of extinction now being maintained in captivity in any part of the world, and the alleged rarity in a wild state of various birds which have been maintained to some extent in captivity by aviculturists who consider them to be on the verge of extinction has little or no factual foundation. These then in brief are what I consider to be the objects of aviculture. For the purposes of this article I am largely limiting myself to the question of keeping foreign birds. I would, however, add that I consider any fancier, whether he be interested in foreigners, Canaries, Budgerigars, or British birds, is equally an aviculturist, but I do not feel competent to discuss questions relating to Canaries or Budgerigars, although I have the utmost respect and admiration for those who keep and breed them. Some of the best aviculturists in the country are working-men Canary fanciers. It does not follow that such fanciers would know the difference between a Shama and a Cockatiel, but there can be no questioning their basic, essential skill and enthusiasm. In the past, foreign bird keepers have tended to keep somewhat aloof from the Budgerigar and Canary worlds, which is much to be regretted. Let us hope that they will keep closer together in the future. I do not believe that any thinking aviculturist will doubt that con¬ ditions as they existed before the war have disappeared for good. They were the days of wholesale importation of birds, abundant food supplies, and great private collections, the property of wealthy and sometimes very knowledgeable and discriminating owners. Except in the case of Parrots, there were no restrictions on the importation of birds, though some countries limited or prohibited their export. Birds were available to suit all tastes and purses and every type of food was abundant and cheap. The foreign exchange position permitted us to buy wherever we wanted ; prices abroad were generally low ; and there was any amount of shipping to bring the birds over. Cages, netting, and every sort of appliance and material were in plentiful supply. Superficially, it was a rosy picture, but it was marred by the appalling mortality among the birds which could be imported so cheaply and in such large numbers, and by the dirt, squalor, and dishonesty of the bird trade. I am of the opinion that for every bird maintained in a healthy state in captivity, twenty died in being caught or imported. The high rate of mortality was well known to every aviculturist who visited the bird shops. We were used to picking out ALASTAIR MORRISON- — BRITISH AVICULTURE 7 our birds from crowded cages, well knowing that a large proportion of the other inmates of the cages were bound to die in the dealer’s shop. We can all remember advertisements such as “ 6 pairs assorted Senegal Finches, i&y. carriage paid These evils were largely due to the fact that a wholesale trade existed. No live thing can be treated purely as an article of commerce without suffering in the process, and birds are no exception. Where birds were collected in small numbers by skilled collectors mortality was negligible, but the cost was relatively high and only limited numbers of rarely kept species were imported in this way. So long as aviculturists ignored the brutality and preferred to buy their birds cheaply by means of whole¬ sale importation than at higher prices from qualified collectors, the trade was bound to persist. It did none of us much credit. There was some correspondence on the subject in the Magazine in 1933 but no action. We were, however, living in a fool’s paradise. There was a steady tendency for the export of birds to be prohibited by many countries and colonial territories, largely occasioned by the wasteful and reckless manner in which commercial collecting was carried out. The Black-cheeked Lovebird, a species with a peculiarly limited range, was in some danger of extinction at one time. I have seen figures which will shortly appear in the Ibis and which show that no fewer than 16,000 birds were collected in 1929 alone. In 1930, export of the birds was prohibited from Northern Rhodesia. How many Black¬ cheeked Lovebirds exist in captivity to-day ? In the same way, the export of Fischer’s and Masked Lovebirds from Tanganyika was prohibited in 1929. Areas of West Africa are said to have been largely denuded of the commonly imported Waxbills and Weavers. An increasing interest in wild life was being taken everywhere in the world and the trade in livestock was the subject of much bitter and well- founded criticism. Psittacosis, towards the outbreaks of which the dirty conditions under which Parrots were imported undoubtedly contributed, had resulted in the Parrot ban. It was probably the thin edge of the wedge for it now appears that this disease, or one similar to it, dangerous to human beings and carried by birds, is not confined to Parrots. There have been a number of outbreaks in the Faeroe Islands among fowlers engaged in catching Fulmar Petrels or sorting their feathers, and there have even been reports of psittacosis carried by Canaries. Whether all these reports are justified or not I do not know, but there can be no doubt that they were very likely to lead to further restrictions on the importation of birds, due to the intervention of the health authorities. However, many fine collections, both quantitatively and qualitatively, existed, and private patrons of aviculture arranged for the special importation of little known species from remote areas and thereby 8 ALASTAIR MORRISON - BRITISH AVICULTURE greatly increased the number of species which have been kept in captivity. Great progress had been made in the technique of aviculture and relatively few groups of birds could not be kept successfully. With the impact of the Second World War, a profound change took place. Bird food and materials became virtually unprocurable or fabulously expensive and all importation of birds ceased. Many fine collections had to be broken up and the fearful rise in taxation and the scarcity of labour and its high cost made it extremely difficult for the owners of large collections to carry on. Stocks of all birds declined enormously and in-breeding, coupled with technical incompetence, combined further to reduce the numbers of those birds, such as Parrots, game birds, and Waterfowl, which are most freely bred in captivity. Wartime conditions still persist, and indeed there is little likelihood of any appreciable change within the measurable future. A few, a very few, skilled breeders are once again building up stocks, but the food shortage remains and is likely to do so for many years, and no importa¬ tions for private aviculturists are taking place, apart from an almost negligible and often illegal trickle. Every indication is that no importations by firms or private indi¬ viduals will be sanctioned during our present economic difficulties. No one can say how long these difficulties are likely to last, but it is most improbable that they will terminate in the near future. If the present shortage of bird foods and the absence of importation of fresh stocks persist for much longer, it seems as if the practice of aviculture may disappear altogether from this country. It appears to me that the only method of avoiding this will be by vigorous co-operative action on the part of all British aviculturists. The Avicultural Society should take a lead in this matter and try to do something positive to justify its existence. To-day is no time for moribund apathy in any sphere of life. It should, in my opinion, be the aim of the Society to achieve two things : firstly, to endeavour, in conjunction with representatives of the Canary and Budgerigar fancies, to obtain assured supplies of bird food inside the sterling area ; and secondly, to endeavour to import limited numbers of birds on behalf of members and under the best possible conditions. I know this is a tall order. It will involve a lot of hard work and expense and certain aspects of the scheme are likely to require sanction from the Board of Trade. I do not know whether the latter will be forthcoming. It will largely depend on the presentation of the Society’s case and the ability with which that case is handled. It may prove to be entirely out of the question, but I am convinced that it is worth trying. Nothing could be worse than the present position. As regards food, the principal points to bear in mind are that in the past most bird food was imported from non-sterling areas, and further¬ more, that with the present world wide shortages of food we cannot ALASTAIR MORRISON - BRITISH AVICULTURE 9 hope to import any food from any area where it forms a staple article of diet. It is, I am sure, a waste of time to petition the Government for a resumption of imports in the same way as before the war. It would call for hard currency which would never be made available. An attempt to establish alternative sources of supply within the sterling area would be a very different proposition. It would be useless to try to import millet seed from Africa, where it forms a staple article of diet. We could not expect to import any food grains from India, in the event of the new Dominions remaining in the sterling area, but we might be able to obtain some form of dried insects or other insectivorous food there. We might be able to induce Australian growers to produce millet and Canary seed, and sunflower and hemp should not be out of the question. I can give an example of the sort of thing I mean. I spent the winter of 1 946-47 in Hong Kong, a British possession within the sterling area. Sunflower seed was freely obtainable there. It is not a staple article of diet and as far as I know its export is not prohibited, as in the case of rice. It is a popular Chinese light snack, generally nibbled before meals or when drinking tea. Peanuts and even hemp and red millet might also be obtainable. They are grown in many parts of China. Not fully realizing the present shortage of bird food in England, I did not go into the matter in detail before I left, but enquiries could very easily be made through one of the firms exporting from Hong Kong. Again, appreciable quantities of Canary seed might be obtainable in Gibraltar. Any amount of sherry can be bought there, why not Canary seed ? I cannot say for certain whether it would be possible, but it would be well worth finding out. Nor am I in a position to state just what import permits might be necessary in order to import such items of bird food, but a serious co-operative approach to the Board of Trade by the Society on behalf of aviculturists in general would demonstrate that they are prepared to make a constructive effort to help themselves and would probably receive sympathetic consideration. It would, of course, be absolutely essential that this attempt should not be made by the Avicultural Society alone and that the support of the Canary and Budgerigar societies should be secured as well. Any approach must be made on behalf of the whole avicultural world. I do not feel competent to comment on the technical organization which would be required. The Society possesses members who are experienced and successful business men and who would be admirably qualified to advise on the matter. The sort of thing which I had in mind was an Avicultural or Bird Fanciers’ Co-operative or Association, to be formed for the express purpose of importing bird food and control of which should be shared by the Avicultural Society and the various specialist Budgerigar and Canary societies. Regional cage bird societies would, I think, have o ALASTAIR MORRISON - BRITISH AVICULTURE to be excluded in the first instance so that the Association would not become unduly unwieldy. The aim of the Association would be to negotiate an agreement with Australian and New Zealand farmers to encourage the growth of millet and Canary seed by offering a guaranteed price on behalf of fanciers in this country for a number of years. It would not be a big scale contract but the agricultural authorities in Australia and New Zealand might quite probably be interested. Profitable crops for small¬ holders are always of interest. Perhaps the various affiliated Australian and New Zealand Avicultural Societies might be able to advise as to the prospects of such a scheme. The societies making up the Associa¬ tion would have to guarantee to take certain amounts on behalf of their members and if this was loyally abided by, there would be no need to worry about a possible surplus falling into the hands of dealers at cut prices. If the interests of fanciers really lay in supporting their own co-operative, they would not be likely to cut their own throats by purchasing elsewhere. Retail distribution would have to be the re¬ sponsibility of the constituent societies after bulk allocations had been made to them on the basis of available supplies. Each society would have to undertake a survey to estimate the requirements of its own members. There would undoubtedly be an outcry on the part of seed merchants and dealers. I do not personally feel that they deserve over much consideration. Their record in the past has not been a very impressive one. Their main preoccupation has been the quickest and largest profit without any reference to the long-term interests of their cus¬ tomers. For instance, no English dealer has ever had the enterprise to produce mealworms in this country. It was always less trouble to import them from Holland. It is almost certain that any special out of the ordinary effort will meet with obstruction on their part. It would be far better to try and do the job ourselves. The main difficulty is undoubtedly going to be that of finance. The Co-operative would have to rely not merely on the support of the con¬ stituent societies and their cash balances, if any, but on the support of all individual aviculturists. If every fancier and aviculturist is pre¬ pared to support the scheme in accordance with his means, I believe that the difficulty could be overcome. I myself am no Croesus, but I would personally be prepared to contribute the modest sum of £20 towards the venture. Obviously, the first requirement is to ensure a supply of food. The next requirement is to arrange for the importation of fresh stocks of live birds. This would be for the Avicultural Society alone and could, I think, be achieved in two ways. In the first place, there are various members of the Society and other persons interested in birds living abroad who would probably be only too glad to help send small ALASTAIR MORRISON — BRITISH AVICULTURE II numbers of birds to aviculturists in this country. It would be necessary for the Society to arrange for any import permit, to pay the cost of shipping, etc., and to set up some machinery for the equitable distribu¬ tion of birds so received among members who would, in their turn, have to undertake to see that no birds are left on the hands of the Society without a purchaser. I consider that something on these lines would be possible, but the Society must take the initiative in the matter. It should be borne in mind that an immense variety of birds is available within the sterling area. It would be quite unnecessary to look farther. An additional method would be to commission a collector to bring back birds for members. There should be no insuperable difficulty about this, if an import permit can be obtained. The Society is just as entitled to employ a collector as the London Zoological Society. Such a venture would be costly, for under present conditions no trip to any part of the world would be likely to cost less than £1,000, probably far more. Would the Society be prepared to underwrite such a venture on a basis of salary plus expenses for the collector ? A suitable, skilled, and reliable collector could almost certainly be found but whether members would be prepared to accept the financial risks is another matter. A permanent arrangement of this nature would, I think, be most beneficial for members and they would have the satisfaction of knowing that their birds were being brought back under the best possible conditions. Furthermore, some measure of protection exists in nearly all countries and colonial territories to-day, and the necessary collecting permits would be far more likely to be obtainable for a collector working on this basis. Under present world conditions no collector can possibly afford to collect privately. It was a hazardous vocation before the war when it was customary for collectors to finance their own trips entirely. To-day any such venture would, in my opinion, be sheer lunacy. If on the lines suggested above, or by any other means, it should once again be possible to import birds and to keep them in captivity in reasonable numbers, it is essential that we should improve the whole technique and practice of aviculture. To-day, conditions as they existed before the war may seem like a Golden Age. I am not in agreement with this belief. There was a splendid fagade, which unfortunately concealed a core of varying degrees of rottenness. There were some fine collections and some very keen and able aviculturists, but there were various practices and beliefs which were far from ideal. I have already touched on the wholesale mortality among birds imported to this country. I propose to conclude this article by com¬ menting on various other matters which in my opinion reflected unfavourably on the practice of aviculture. There was a widespread and altogether lamentable failure to 12 ALASTAIR MORRISON - BRITISH AVICULTURE appreciate quality in birds. They were generally evaluated according to their alleged rarity and/or according to their cost. There was much loose thinking on the subject of rarity and the word was seldom used in a rational sense. A rare bird, to my way of thinking, is one which is definitely known to exist in very limited numbers in a wild state. This generally applies either to birds with a limited island habitat, or to large birds, the numbers of which have been seriously affected by human agencies, generally the man with the gun. We can all think of examples. To the former category belong the rare indigenous birds of New Zealand and of islands everywhere ; to the latter large birds such as the Trumpeter Swan, Californian Condor, Wattled and Whooping Cranes. A third, and more puzzling category, consists of birds which appear always to have been rare in a wild state, such as the various Grebes confined to individual lakes, the peculiar Horned Coot of Bolivia and, perhaps, the very lovely Paradise Parrakeet of Australia. Birds belonging to all these categories can genuinely be regarded as rare and many are in real danger of extinction. I do not, however, know of a single example of a bird which is undoubtedly rare in a wild state being maintained in appreciable numbers in captivity. The Trumpeter Swan is being saved by various well thought out conservation measures but I do not think that aviculture can claim any of the credit which belongs to an efficient wild life preservation service. We cannot take the credit for species maintained in a semi-feral state. My own experience is that the so-called rarity of birds kept in captivity has been consistently and grossly exaggerated, sometimes as the result of pure ignorance and sometimes as the result of a perfectly normal sales technique on the part of collectors and others who have birds to sell. Such birds are generally rarely imported and but very few are rare in a wild state. They are rarely imported for various reasons. There may be a ban on their export, such as the American Bluebirds ; their haunts may be very inaccessible, such as various Mountain Birds of Paradise ; they may be difficult to keep in captivity, such as certain Tyrants and Cotingas ; or there is no live bird trade in the area which they inhabit, such as the beautiful little Red-crested Finch [Rhodospingus gruentes) and the Celestial Parrotlet ( For pus coelestis) of Western Ecuador. Sometimes the reason is due to a combination of these various factors. These are the prime causes which lead to a bird being considered rare in aviculture. Even where birds have been regarded as genuinely rare, they have sometimes reappeared in a most peculiar way, such as the Splendid and Queen Alexandra Parrakeets which, living in arid and sparsely inhabited areas, escaped notice for many years until drought or a natural, cyclical increase drove them into more generally inhabited areas. In no group is the belief that many species are exceedingly rare in a ALASTAIR MORRISON - BRITISH AVICULTURE 3 wild state more widespread than among Pheasant keepers. Some Pheasant keepers seem obsessed with the idea that it is only through their public-spirited efforts that the more highly priced species are being saved from extinction. My own conclusions, based on fairly careful inquiries when at one time I thought of collecting Pheasants, and on several years’ residence in China, the home of some of the species involved, is that with one or two doubtful exceptions, no Pheasant is in any danger of extinction. At any rate in China, the forms most reduced in numbers at one time were the various races of the Common Pheasant, but due to restrictions on the use of firearms since 1937 and the cessation in the traffic in frozen Pheasants since that date, the birds are now more common than they have been for many years. As regards other Chinese Pheasants, I admit that there is some evidence as to the rarity of the Brown Crossoptilon which has a limited range in the mountains of western Hopei and northern Shansi, and which may have been seriously affected by deforestation, but even in this case it should be remembered that travel through the areas which it inhabits have become increasingly difficult ever since the first World War, that very few ornithologists have searched for it since then, and that for the past ten years travel in those areas has become entirely out of the question. The Blue and the White Crossoptilons and the Chinese Monaul are never likely to disappear, inhabiting as they do very wild and difficult country and Reeves’s Pheasant is far more common than is generally supposed. During the war, examples were even shot within easy walking distance of the centre of Chungking. I do not know of any evidence of the rarity of the Amherst, Golden, Silver, or Chinese Koklas Pheasants, and there is still plenty of wild country in Formosa, the home of the Mikado and Swinhoe’s Pheasants. Neither La Touche’s Handbook to the Birds of Eastern China nor Caldwell’s South China Birds contains any reference to the approaching extinction of Cabot’s Tragopan and Elliot’s Pheasant. Indeed Caldwell makes the following statement regarding Elliot’s Pheasant : — cc This pheasant is well able to take care of itself and will abound in the wooded high¬ lands of Fukien and Chekiang throughout time to come.” Caldwell was a first-class field observer, an American missionary with an intimate knowledge of Fukien. He was also, if I may be allowed to digress, one of the most astonishing game shots of all time. During the course of his evangelical work he shot many tigers which were marauding the countryside, on foot in grass jungle, his favourite weapon being a very light -25 calibre Savage rifle. Would any British sportsman be prepared to do the same ? To revert to Pheasants, I have made these detailed comments on Chinese Pheasants in order to show how little justification there is for assuming that certain species of birds are exceedingly rare in a wild state. Such alleged rarity is seldom based on references to published 14 ALASTAIR MORRISON - BRITISH AVICULTURE observations by competent ornithologists. If the standing of the Avicultural Magazine is to be improved, any statements of this nature accepted for publication should always be accompanied by references to the authorities being cited in support of such assertions. The most serious effect of this inaccurate and misplaced obsession with rarity is that most aviculturists will take more interest in a third- rate example of an expensive bird than in a perfect example of a com¬ moner species. A further effect is that we tend to lose sight of the fact that many common birds are as fine and as beautiful as their more expensive relatives. Which is intrinsically more desirable, a common Pintail or an Eyton’s Tree Duck ; an absolutely perfect example of a Silver Pheasant or an Imperial ; a Superb Spreo Starling or a Wallace’s Bird of Paradise ; a Lavender Finch or a Royal Parrot Finch ? The answer is, I think, that they are all equally desirable and that everyone is entitled to personal preferences, but those preferences should never be based on the cost factor. I do not wish it to appear that I am not interested in rarely imported birds. Far from it. I want to see as big a variety as possible imported. Variety adds enormously to the interest of aviculture. The collections which were brought in from various countries to the order of wealthy aviculturists before the war were most valuable and stimulating. But I do want quality and cost to be seen in their right perspective. The man I respect and admire is one who would prefer to keep a perfect example of a common bird than an inferior example of an expensive one, while retaining a healthy interest in variety and novelty. Deference to the cost factor had a peculiarly unfortunate effect on the showing of Foreign Birds in England. I have no particular disagree¬ ment with the classes provided, but the fact remains that in any class a commonly imported bird seldom stood any chance of competing with an expensive one and I never heard of any supreme award being won by a common bird. This completely ignored the fact that good quality was far more likely to be encountered in the case of a common bird than a rarely imported one, since selection had been made from more specimens. Most of the prizes and all the supreme awards went to wealthy aviculturists. Individual quality, without reference to value, was ignored. If shows are ever reorganized on a large scale I hope that the time will come when an Orange Bishop is just as likely to win the supreme award as a Bird of Paradise. The show system was not one which encouraged the average keen aviculturist who kept a few birds and was very proud of them. Some judges even dealt in foreign birds and there were cases where prizes were awarded to a bird which had been sold to the exhibitor by the judge. The bird may well have deserved the prize but the class should have been judged by someone else. Most aviculturists sooner or later become especially interested in ALASTAIR MORRISON - BRITISH AVICULTURE 5 one group, family, or genus of birds, and try to keep as many species as possible belonging to that particular group. This tendency to collect is a very natural one, and no one suffers from it more than myself. I am always collecting something, and as far as birds are concerned I used to specialize in Bulbuls and the genus Sporophila. It is a good thing in many ways. It broadens one’s knowledge of any group, and the acquisition of species not hitherto imported adds interest and zest to one’s avicultural activities. But it must be realized that a bird is not necessarily interesting because it has not previously been imported. The collecting mania frequently adds a spurious value to birds. Inflated prices have often been paid for birds by aviculturists not so much on account of the value of the bird itself, but because other aviculturists did not yet possess it. A first importation always com¬ manded a special value, but the process of reasoning which led to this being so was not a very good one. Possessive ness does little harm when it merely involves a wealthy aviculturist in paying a collector a higher price than is really called for. Indeed the avicultural world often benefited, because in this way species from unusual localities were introduced and established, and if they were once bred prices fell to a level where other aviculturists could afford to purchase. The most undesirable form of possessiveness consists of the retention of certain specimens by an aviculturist who himself is not able to make the best possible use of the birds but does not desire that the opportunity should be afforded to anyone else. There is the case of a certain very beautiful rare-coloured Parrakeet which a prominent aviculturist did everything in his power to establish by careful breeding from his one original bird. Another aviculturist possessed two such rare-coloured birds. He made no effort to breed from them, would not part with them to the aviculturist who wished to do so, and kept them confined in ordinary Parrot cages. Another case concerned a rare and strictly protected species of island Duck which was brought to this country by a private aviculturist. The only pair lived for many years, doubtlessly in the best of health, but under con¬ ditions where there was never the slightest likelihood that they would ever breed. Finally one of the pair died and so disappeared all hope of establishing the species in captivity, for it is not likely to be imported again. No aviculturists worthy of the name should ever keep a bird if there is some other aviculturist who can keep it better than himself, particularly if he can breed it. One type of collector is the aviculturist who collects medals. The medal scheme was a sound idea when it was introduced. It was designed to encourage the breeding of species which had hitherto not done so in captivity. Unfortunately it all too often became an end in itself. Many birds were bred and many medals awarded, but the value of the reports on these successes is slight. They contain very few 1 6 ALASTAIR MORRISON BRITISH AVICULTURE original and valuable observations on breeding habits. It is also seldom clear just what steps are taken by the Council to verify breeding records. I do not question the fact that the birds have bred and the young have lived to feed themselves, but I have an uneasy feeling that there have been cases where the young one, having fed himself, has done little more than drop down dead on the feeding tray. There is no distinction between the award for breeding a first-class specimen and a rickety weakling. I question whether the award of medals under the present rules does much real good. In breeding birds, the main criterion of success had always been the number of birds reared, and not the quality. Every effort is made to mass-produce birds. This is not confined to aviculture. The exponents of mass production are most common in the poultry industry. Unfor¬ tunately, it just cannot be done. Any breeding animal needs individual attention and plenty of room in which to exercise. If either of these factors is unduly limited there is an inevitable decline in stamina. Mass production of poultry is leading to a serious decline in the stamina of poultry stocks and outbreaks of all sorts of “ new ” diseases. It is the same in aviculture. I have known Pheasants reared in small portable pens until they were old enough to be placed in their aviaries, a system which deprives the chicks of any opportunity for exercise throughout the most vital growing period. The system has certain advantages of a commercial nature to commend it. Natural enemies are eliminated and a very large proportion of birds are reared to maturity with the minimum of trouble. The resulting birds, however, are quite inferior and contain a substantial proportion of hopeless cripples. The best Pheasants which I have seen were permitted to roam as chicks over a large extent of ground. They were a lot of trouble and some inevitably were lost but the survivors were splendid specimens. The same con¬ sideration applies to Waterfowl and other birds. If birds are to be maintained in captivity, aviculturists have got to have an outlook which can best be described as being “ bloody minded ”, to regard every bird with a most critical eye, and to reject out of hand any bird which does not measure up to the most exacting standards. Far better from the point of view of aviculture and of the birds themselves to destroy inferior specimens rather than to sell them to someone who has not the knowledge or the ability to distinguish a good bird from a bad one. If only the fittest can survive in a wild state, it is disastrous to try and reverse the process in captivity. Our standards are not high. Far more bad birds are bred than good ones, and to breed from these poor specimens in their turn only results in further deterioration in stocks. The good aviculturist is one who is never satisfied with his own efforts. He must be in a permanent mood of personal discontent, for ever trying to do better. If birds and food are ever imported freely again I would like to see ALASTAIR MORRISON - BRITISH AVICULTURE 17 a number of aviculturists try a simple experiment, to see how many generations they can breed from one original pair of birds, say Zebra Finches, without the introduction of fresh blood. It should be possible to do so indefinitely, indeed I am informed that it has been done in the case of the Chestnut-breasted Teal, but no matter how good the original pair, I believe that the stock would deteriorate in the hands of most aviculturists. One serious difficulty is, of course, the lack of continuity in breeding efforts by private aviculturists. Obviously, an aviculturist will not necessarily want to keep the same species of birds all his life. Stocks of birds must be continually shifting between owners. The registers which are now being compiled should perform a very useful purpose and are a valuable innovation. I advocated something of the sort in respect of Parrots in a letter to the Avicultural Magazine about fifteen years ago. One danger the compilers of these registers must try and guard against is accepting all birds as being of equal value for breeding purposes. The registers, if they are to be of any lasting value, should attempt to grade birds into various categories according to their quality. If aviculture does survive, it seems likely that most collections will be very small with a few very big ones. It seems as if the medium income group are suffering the biggest relative reduction in purchasing power as a result of our present economic troubles. I hope that every possible encouragement will be given towards the creation of large new collec¬ tions if persons sufficiently interested are forthcoming. No aviculturist should, however, receive any encouragement unless he has had practical experience of himself caring for birds and looking after them. There is nothing worse for aviculture than the wealthy aviculturist who can afford to employ individuals to look after his birds and who has no experience of the essential duties of feeding and cleaning and general care. No aviculturist should ever have to rely on the judgment of his curator or keeper. He should possess the necessary information and experience himself. He should be able to do anything better than his curator or keeper and if he cannot, it would be far better to leave birds alone. We have been fortunate that many of our wealthy patrons of aviculture have been first-class practical fanciers in their own right, who have established interesting new techniques for the keeping of unusual birds, and who sometimes have insisted on personally attending to favourite birds themselves, despite their employment of efficient curators. It is a valuable tradition which should be maintained. One of the most serious tendencies which aviculturists must guard themselves against is what I can only describe as the impact of pseudo science. It is primarily an institutional complex but I suspect that it is a heresy which may some day come to pervert the avicultural world. It briefly amounts to a smug belief that our knowledge of animals is so complete, our scientific attainments so high, that no living creature 1 8 ALASTAIR MORRISON BRITISH AVICULTURE kept in captivity can possibly die except as the result of an act of God, and that vitamin pills and dubious inoculations are the universal panacea for all ills. It is a phenomenon which is likely to manifest itself in the provision of ultra-violet ray treatment for birds and animals which, either as the result of skulking habits or living in misty hills, rarely see the sun in a wild state. I do not decry science, but I believe that it is a monstrous conceit to believe that our present incomplete knowledge allows us to think that a so-called scientist is necessarily qualified to give rulings on the requirements of birds or animals in captivity. The greatest success has in any case always been achieved by private persons who would not know what a vitamin was, and care less. No amount of semi-scientific knowledge can ever make up for the prime requisites for any aviculturist or zoologist which are practical experience ; attention to detail ; an understanding of the requirements of wild animals which is partly natural, partly experience, but mostly common sense ; and long hours of straightforward, honest to goodness hard work. The real danger of the pseudo-scientific approach is that it leads to the most damnable of all beliefs, that no bird or animal kept in captivity can possibly die except from an unavoidable cause. This belief is sanctimonious twaddle. If any living creature is kept in captivity under artificial conditions which eliminate the natural enemies which it would encounter in a wild state, it must follow that unless it dies of old age, which is very rare, death must be due to some aspect of those artificial conditions under which it is kept. The pseudo-scientist may argue that under the heading of natural enemies must come disease and parasites which cannot be eliminated in captivity. I am very sceptical of this argument. I would go so far as to say that it is far more scientific and stimulating to regard the argument with scepticism than to accept it without demur. I believe that the truth is that any living creature kept in captivity which is in perfect condition is largely immune to infectious diseases and entirely immune to the ravages of parasites, even if it is carrying them. I believe that the same applies in a wild state too. Recorded accounts of disease affecting an animal in a wild state generally refer to animals which have cycles of scarcity and abundance. When they become over abundant the subsequent over-stocking leads to a shortage of food, malnutrition, and loss of condition, and renders them a ready prey for any hostile microbes or bacteria which may be handy at the time. Obviously, there are some diseases which can kill a healthy animal in a wild state, but how many records are there of an animal or bird dying in a wild state from one of the diseases which commonly cause their deaths in captivity ? I do not believe that there is any evidence on the point at all. I have had the most perfect newly caught specimens of Kelp Geese ALFRED EZRA - BREEDING RESULTS AT FOXWARREN PARK, 1947 1 9 through my hands, in perfect condition and as fat as butter, which were unbelievably full of worms. Your helminthologist would probably say they were bound to die but I could find no evidence of it. Every collector has probably had the same experience. I doubt whether many parasites have any direct interest in killing their host. A few records which exist of wild birds being killed by parasites generally refer to individuals which have been storm bound or otherwise affected by external phenomena. It is understandable then that the natural resistance of the bird being reduced, the parasites get the upper hand and eventually kill their host. This is what happens in captivity. A parasite which may live naturally in an animal without doing it any harm may very well kill it if the animal is allowed to lose condition in captivity. The essential cause is human incompetence, nothing else. Obviously, we are all bound to make mistakes. None of us are infallible. The absolutely unforgivable thing is to deny the possibility of making mistakes ; to blame, instead of ourselves, parasites, disease, the weather, suicide on the part of the animal, “ X ”, or anything else. I realize that in the course of expressing the above views, I have probably trodden on a few avicultural toes. I make no apology for doing so. Aviculture is at the cross-roads. It can either go forward or disappear. The decision rests with every individual member of the Society. But if we are going to make a new start it is essential that the flaws and weaknesses of the old system should be clearly understood, and I have written this article with that consideration in mind. We have a national failing which leads us to believe that the past is sacrosanct, that something which has been done before is of necessity good. It is a belief that is responsible for many of our present troubles. Let us see that it does not apply to aviculture. * * * BREEDING RESULTS AT FOXWARREN PARK, 1947 By Alfred Ezra Although 1947 proved to be one of the best Summers one can remember, very few young birds were reared, but many eggs were laid. The one outstanding success was the rearing of two Green¬ winged King Parrakeets. The young left the nest on 17th July, and up to the time of their removal from the parents (6th October), they were still being fed by the parents. 20 ALFRED EZRA - BREEDING RESULTS AT FOXWARREN PARK, 1 947 Queen Alexandra Parrakeets. — One pair reared four young from the first clutch of eggs. At the second attempt seven eggs were laid. Five of these were fertile, but unfortunately none hatched out. The second pair had one clutch of three, which were infertile. Leadbeater’s Cockatoos. — These were most disappointing, as they gave up incubating the day before the eggs were due to hatch. All the eggs contained perfectly formed chicks. At the second attempt they only incubated for six days. Ringneck Parrakeets. — Also very disappointing this year. Only three young were reared, two lutinos and the third one a green. A Crimson-winged hen paired to a Green-winged King cock laid four eggs. All infertile. A lutino Ringneck paired to a lutino-bred Alexandrine also laid, but all the eggs were infertile. In the small bird aviaries very few young ones were reared — it was not until their second attempt that the Rothschild’s Grackle reared one young, which brings my total to six. I hope to have luck in breeding these very rare birds again next year. Malabar Starlings. — One young was reared from the first nest, and the second nest was destroyed, and both eggs were broken. A hen Triangular Spotted Pigeon paired to a cock Snow Pigeon, reared four young from three nests. We now have seven of these beautiful hybrids. A pair of Bronzewinged Pigeons must surely hold the record for the number of eggs laid this season. Unfortunately they will not incubate, and the same applies to the Crested Pigeons and Necklace Doves. Other birds that attempted to nest were Superb Starlings, Pagoda Starlings, and Pekin Robins. No ornamental Pheasants were reared this year, although numerous eggs were laid. The Mikado Pheasant did get as far as hatching two young, which only lived for four days. In the big animal enclosure the full winged Mandarin Ducks reared a good many young, but very few Carolinas were reared. Four Ruddy-headed Geese were reared, and a good many Pea chicks. This is the first year I have not reared any Cranes. A good many eggs were laid, but owing to the very cold spring all the eggs were frozen. The birds that give me the greatest pleasure are my Indian Chukor Partridges. I still have about twenty round the house, always coming up to be fed and roosting on the top of the house. They breed well, but the cats destroy most of the young birds. T. R. HOLMES WATKINS - PARRAKEET BREEDING RESULTS, 1 947 21 PARRAKEET BREEDING RESULTS, 1947 By T. R, Holmes Watkins Mr. Prestwich, having exhorted all who keep Parrakeets to record their breeding successes in these days of great scarcity, and being myself fully in agreement, the following notes for 1947 are offered to encourage those whose achievements are greater than my modest contributions. The season just past will, I think, be generally regarded as dis¬ appointing. It might not have been unreasonable to expect a big output of young birds by way of compensation for the cruel winter which destroyed so many, at least of the wild birds. On the contrary, there appears to have been an unwelcome amount of infertility even amongst old established breeding pairs. The severe and prolonged cold may possibly have had nothing to do with this for I was interested to read that Colonel Tendon reported on similar lines. Whilst infertility with my own birds was not unusually apparent there was a certain amount of dead in shell. In all six pairs of Parrakeets laid forty-three eggs, four of which were not incubated and two misshapen. Therefore from a possible thirty-seven, twenty-six young were certainly hatched and twenty birds reared to maturity. The eggs which failed to hatch were almost equally divided between clear, addled, and dead in shell. Records of individual pairs were as follows : — Golden-mantled Rosellas. — This, a tried and trusted pair, produced their usual two broods, eight young reaching maturity. Mealy Rosellas . — For the first time for many years one clutch of eggs only was laid from which three young were reared. Stanleys.- — Like the last two pairs this one has reared many young in past years. The usual six eggs were laid, five of which hatched. Passing the aviary one morning when the young were about ten days old I threw a strawberry to the old birds. A few hours later I found the brood in great distress, one dead and the remainder apparently about to follow. Changing the nest bed and withholding of green food corrected the trouble and four young eventually left the nest to be successfully reared. • Princess of Wales. — Had hoped to increase the number of young from this pair by removing the first few eggs laid so as to prevent breakage. The first three so removed were restored on the morning the fourth was due to be laid. The clutch completed was six, of which one was addled, two eggs contained completely developed chicks dead (these were the first and second eggs laid and removed) and the remaining three hatched and were successfully reared. 22 GEORGE A. J. WEAVER - THE PHEASANT REGISTRY The experiment, which I propose repeating next season, has shown that the incubation period is exactly seventeen days. It is interesting to note that a cock of last season’s breeding shows the completely developed spatule on the third primary which is con¬ trary to the statement recorded by Cayley in Australian Parrots , p. 137, that this is not acquired until long after the bird has reached adult plumage. It has not been my experience that this species undergoes a complete moult during the first autumn. Cf. Tavistock’s Parrots , p- 2 65- Crimson Wings. — The third egg of the first clutch was misshapen, two were clear, and the remaining egg contained a dead chick. I feared the hen would not make a second attempt, but she did finally complete a similar clutch. Again the third egg was misshapen, but two young were successfully reared from the remainder. They were exceptionally fine specimens, and from their size one at least should prove to be a hen and a mate for an unrelated cock that came into colour this season. That, however, remains to be seen ; I defy anyone to sex an immature bird with certainty. Kings. — Four eggs were laid but the hen did not sit. Barnard's and Pennant's did not get as far as eggs, one could hardly blame one pair of the latter which are last season’s birds and for whom no nest was provided ! Both these species, like the Kings, did not, however, have a fair chance as they were moved to new aviaries, which had been only finished at some expense and considerable labour in January. * * * THE PHEASANT REGISTRY By George A. J. Weaver, F.Z.S. When the above Registry was planned it was thought that very few Ornamental Pheasants, etc., remained in confinement in this country. All known fanciers and zoological institutions were circularized, with the result that far from a gloomy outlook, it has been found that there are no less than 1,200 birds of 34 species still flourishing here. There are, however, many large estates where these birds enjoy full liberty and therefore no record is available. Nevertheless the results are most en¬ couraging, and with another breeding season not far off certain species may again become well established. It will be remembered that mention was made of interbreeding between Golden and Amherst GEORGE A. J. WEAVER - THE PHEASANT REGISTRY 23 Pheasants with a corresponding threat to the purity of each species. These two species are amongst the largest in numbers recorded in this census, and fanciers have co-operated by stating if their birds are of pure or impure stock. It is thought that there are doubtless numbers of these birds which the owners in good faith have recorded as pure, whereas expert examination may prove otherwise. Unfortunately it is an almost impossible task to prove the pedigree of all the birds registered so that a little latitude must be allowed with the figures given against these two species. Pure strains of Amherst certainly exist, notably in the collections of Gapt. Scott-Hopkins, Mr. Wilford Smith, and the Duke of Bedford, and credit should be given to these enthusiasts for the care they have exercised in keeping them thus. The major problem still appears to be feeding, although from personal experience I do not find this so. My remaining bird, a cock Amherst, has kept in fine condition the past few years on a diet con¬ sisting mainly of raw carrot, fruit in season, table scraps and plenty of greenstuff and consequently, I think, that grain has been a little over¬ rated in the past. I agree that corn is certainly beneficial in cold weather and also to laying hens, and suggest that fanciers should conserve for this purpose any they may obtain. Articles in the Pheasant number of this magazine tend to bear me out on the foregoing remarks, but perhaps some well-known authority can be induced to tell us his experiences, past and present, of feeding a number of birds and the corresponding effects the changes of diet have had. Another frequent reason one finds for the decline in Pheasant enthusiasts is that of aviaries in sad need of repair. Material is difficult to obtain these days, and that obtainable is for the most part of inferior quality. Wood is unseasoned and splits very easily, and the quantity allowed for £1 is negligible. Further, the price of birds is now somewhat high. I am able to quote a few prices at present asked, by which it will be seen that the average fancier cannot hope to extend his activities through lack of means. One is lucky to obtain Silvers at £4, Goldens £ 6 , and Amhersts at £8 a pair. Usually they are a pound or two higher. For some of the rarer species, figures are as follows : — £ Temminck’s . . *25 Impeyans . . .20 Mikados . . .20 Edward’s . . *15 Chinquis . . .20 These figures are a great setback to lovers of these birds, and many are prevented from obtaining mates for odd birds for this reason. Consequently a bird that may have produced double or treble its kind in a season is wasted. 24 GEORGE A. J. WEAVER - THE PHEASANT REGISTRY Species Male Female Unsexed Golden Pheasants — ■ Golden— Pure ...... 119 102 42 „ Impure ..... 5 3 16 Lady Amherst’s— Pure .... 48 48 34 „ „ —Impure 4 2 — • Kaleege Pheasants— Silver ....... 7i 59 9 Bel’s ....... — 1 - — Lineated ...... 1 2 — Horsfield’s ...... 1 5 — • White-crested ...... 1 — Swinhoe’s ...... 7 10 6 Edward’s ...... 21 24 19 Long-tailed Pheasants— Reeves’ ...... 17 28 ----- Elliot’s ...... 3 — Mikado ...... 12 14 15 Copper ...... 1 Impeyan Pheasant ..... 13 11 24 Tragopan Pheasants — Temminck’s ...... 21 19 25 Blyth’s ....... 2 Cabot’s ...... — 1 — Satyr ....... 4 4 — Fireback Pheasants — Malayan-crested ..... — 1 — Wattled Pheasants — Bulwer’s ...... — 1 — - Eared Pheasants — Brown ....... 4 5 1 Blue ....... 8 6 21 * White ....... 1 — . — Peacock Pheasants — Germain’s ...... 5 2 — Palawan ...... 4 3 — Grey ....... 8 8 3 Grey var. bakeri ..... 1 1 — Argus Pheasants — Malayan ...... — 1 — Crested ...... • — 2 — - Peafowl — Indian ....... 34 21 21 Specifer. ...... 2 — Black-shouldered ..... 25 21 23 White ....... 4 2 2 Junglefowl — Red . . 33 (and 30 mixed) 37 approx, at 25 Woburn, Hybrids — Blyth’s X Satyr ..... — 1 — Imperial X Silver ..... 2 — — Black-shouldered X Specifer 2 — 2 Sonnerats X Javan .... Also some Kaleege of mixed ancestry at Woburn 1 * The White Eared-Pheasant, a rarity even in pre-war days, appeared too good to be true when recorded, and I was prompted to inquire further into the matter. The result is that the bird in question has now been definitely established as the white form of the so-called English Game Pheasant (P. Colchicus var. alba.). T. R. HOLMES WATKINS - PARRAKEET BREEDING RESULTS, 1 947 25 Briefly, the species are established as follows : — Golden . — -Some 74 pairs and trios are recorded, the balance being chiefly odd males and a few young unsexed. Amherst — This species is not so strongly represented as the above, there being approximately 32 pairs and trios. Balance : as Golden. There are in addition a few running loose at Woburn, of which no figures are available. Silver. — -This, the commonest of the Kaleege Pheasants, is represented by some 51 pairs and trios. Balance : as the foregoing species. Bel's.— Only one, a female, is recorded, the property of Mrs. Reynolds-Sams. Lineated. — A trio only, in the aviaries of Mr. G. A. Betting. Horsjield's.— Regent's Park have the only recorded birds of this species. White-crested Kaleege. ■ — The only pair recorded are at Whipsnade. Swinhoe's. — It is to be regretted that this lovely species is not more numerous. There are 7 pairs and a few odd birds. Edward's . — 19 pairs and trios are on record, together with a few odd males and young. Reeves's.— It was at first thought that this species no longer remained with us, but as records came in it was found that at least 1 5 pairs and trios existed together with a few odd males. There are also a few at liberty at Woburn, and again no figures can be given. Elliot's.- — Once fairly common, the Elliot’s, I am sorry to say, is now represented by only three male birds. A pair (the only one) was in the Whipsnade collection, but Dr. Vevers has since advised me of the loss of these, attributed to a weasel. A very few are at liberty at Woburn from whom future stocks appear to depend. Mikado .—There are some 10 pairs and trios together with a number of odd males and young. Copper .- — A male Soemmering’s at Regent’s Park is the sole represen¬ tative of this group. Impeyan. — It is pleasing to record some 10 pairs of this magnificent species and results show that it is maintaining its numbers. Leckford reared 24 young the past season. Temminck's.- — A fine stock of these Tragopans still exists and appear to be established safely. Leckford have done exceptionally well, rearing some 20 young. In addition they have 10 pairs of adult birds, and a further 10 pairs and some odd and young ones are distributed in various collections. Blyth's.— Two males and one female represent this species. They are in the Whipsnade and Regent’s Park collections. Cabot's.— The only bird, a female, is at Leckford. Satyr. — There are 4 pairs still in the country. Leckford have 2 pairs, Gapt. Scott-Hopkins and Whipsnade 1 each. 26 T. R. HOLMES WATKINS - PARRAKEET BREEDING RESULTS, 1 947 Firebacks. — This group is represented by only one bird, a female Malayan-crested in the Regent’s Park collection. Eared Pheasants. — The Blue appear to be the most prolific, Whipsnade having reared i o young and Leckford 1 1 . There are 5 adult pairs and some odd males. Brown are represented by 4 pairs and two odd birds, and White by a male only in the aviaries at Hesketh Park, Southport. BulwePs. — Regent’s Park possess the only bird recorded, a female. Peacock Pheasants. — Leckford have the majority of Germain’s, 4 male and 2 female. Regent’s Park have a male. The Grey is more estab¬ lished, there being 6 pairs, and a few odd birds, also 3 young reared at Leckford. In addition, Regent’s Park have a pair of the form, var. bakeri. The only representatives of the Palawan are at Leckford. Argus Pheasants. — There are only three birds recorded, all at Regent’s Park. They are females, of which one is a Malayan and two Crested. Peafowl. — There are still a fair number of these birds about, and doubtless many more remain of which we have no record. The Indian and Black-shouldered appear to be the most prolific, 21 and 23 young respectively having been reared during the past season. Specifer are in low numbers, mainly owing to their being unable to stand the rigours of our winter, and the feet are extremely susceptible to frostbite. The White form is represented by a pair and two young at Foxwarren, the others, mostly males, are distributed in the various collections. Junglefowl. — The Red is the only member of this group still kept in England, and they are steadily maintaining their numbers, some 25 young resulting from last season’s breedings. Hybrids. — I will not dwell on these as they are of little interest to the average enthusiast apart from their colourings. On looking through the foregoing list, it will be noticed that certain names stand out, and I think a special mention should be made of these. Outstanding amongst them is Leckford, without doubt still the largest and most varied private collection in the country. Mr. Terry Jones, the curator, is to be complimented on maintaining such a large number under the prevailing conditions of the past few years, and still further honours should be his for the number of young he has succeeded in rearing. On looking through the records I find that there are no less than 200 birds of 15 species kept at Leckford, including 120 young reared last season. Certainly an achievement and one of which enthusiasts particularly should applaud, as no doubt many of these birds will in due course find their way into the numerous depleted aviaries in this country. Other fine collections worthy of note are those of Gapt. Scott-Hopkins comprising 44 birds of 12 species, R. S. Hirst with 37 birds of 10 species, and Mrs. Reynolds-Sams, who has 37 birds of 9 species. As may be expected the Zoological Society have well-stocked aviaries of Pheasants, and special attention is now being GUY FALKNER - NOTES ON THE BLACK-CAPPED SOCIAL WEAVER 27 paid to breeding, chiefly at Whipsnade. Records show 258 birds of 18 species at Whipsnade and of these 57 are young reared last season. Regent’s Park have 84 birds of 23 species. I approached the Board of Trade regarding importations, and the following reply was received. “ With reference to your letter of the 13th October regarding the proposed importation of Ornamental Pheasants, Peafowl, Junglefowl, and/or eggs by purchase or exchange from the Continent or U.S.A., I am to say that on advice received by the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries the importation of birds and/or eggs is not permitted at the present time. “ It is therefore regretted that the Department is unable to issue the necessary import authority for this purpose.” No doubt a few birds may arrive through the agencies of the Zoo¬ logical Society or professional dealers, but supplies for the most part must for some time to come depend on fanciers themselves. I am willing to continue acting as liaison between fanciers for the exchange or sale of surplus birds and will appreciate notification of all fresh acquisitions, requirements, etc. In conclusion may I tender my thanks to all concerned for the close co-operation they have afforded me, and in particular I would like to express my gratitude to Mr. Prestwich, Mr. Beever, and Capt. Scott-Hopkins for the help they have so freely given in many ways. I am also indebted to Dr. Vevers for placing his records at my disposal during a visit to Regent’s Park. * * * NOTES ON THE BLACK-CAPPED SOCIAL WEAVER (. Pseudonigrita cabanisi) By Guy Falkner I have in the garden here at Mombasa a large tree with, I should think, roughly, between three and four hundred nests. These nests are very compactly woven and are mostly suspended from the very tips of the branches. As yet there are hardly any leaves on the tree, which, of course, makes it much easier to watch the birds’ nest-building and courtship, etc. The cocks only appear to make the nests and the hens help line them. The cocks fly in small flocks of twenty or forty very rapidly to some particular spot in the garden for nesting material. Palm leaf seems very popular to construct the outside of the nest. The method used is to land on the tip of the leaf, hang on and pull until it is the required length, then cut it across — sometimes the strips look 28 GUY FALKNER - NOTES ON THE BLACK-CAPPED SOCIAL WEAVER quite 8 or io in. long. Usually these palm strips are, I think, about 5 in. long, that is from what one could see — I never measured any of the fallen ones, so often dropped when a cock returns with a strip and is attacked by another cock on landing. Grasses of various sorts are also being used, particularly one very soft grass which seems to grow only on paths and very sandy soil. The lining of the nest appears to be made of the leaf of what looks like some species of mimosa, with a very pretty vermilion and yellow flower. The combings from the Alsatian dog were much sought after, but only by the hens. I never once saw a cock use this lining. The noise from the tree where this colony of Weavers are nesting has to be heard to be believed-— not unlike a colony of Starlings. The cocks fight like mad, chiefly over nesting material, frequently falling locked together by feet and beak. The cock’s courtship consists of a few rapid hops sideways along a branch, quivering his wings and singing his rasping little “ song ” (if, indeed, it can be called this !) very rapidly. He also hangs upside down from the nest entrance, rapidly flapping his wings and swaying from side to side — as a rule this lasts roughly for about a minute — but is repeated at frequent intervals. The new nests are often woven on to the old nests, the latter, having become rotten with age, frequently give way and fall to the ground, as the old material cannot stand the strain of the weight of the two nests. The ground under the tree is literally littered with old and new nests joined together and broken eggs. The eggs are rather large for the size of the bird, a Starling-coloured blue, mostly rather heavily mottled at the blunt end, with a reddish brown. Some of the eggs I saw were speckled all over ; once I saw a clear blue egg with no markings at all. The general appearance of the cock bird from a distance is as follows. Black head and bib ; eye, ruby colour ; back, wings, and tail Sparrow-coloured ; the remainder bright lemon yellow. The hens resemble a hen Sparrow, with a greenish yellow “ wash The young cocks resemble a hen Sparrow in colour. These latter were building nests in a separate tree and none of the adult birds appeared to take any notice of them, but a good deal of bickering went on between themselves ! I should say the size of the birds is about half as large again as an adult Sparrow, may be a bit larger. The flight is rapid and they usually plane ” up to the perch they are about to land on. The cocks seem to go on building, even when their mates are sitting, until the young are hatched, when their real work starts. I think as yet (14th March) there are only a very few with young — and those only just hatched. One curious fact I watched. I saw a cock and hen mate ; directly the cock got off the hen she popped into the nest and stayed there about a minute. This happened three or four times in rapid succession. The last time of mating the cock hung suspended from the nest bottom while the hen remained inside. This is the last I saw of them for I left Mombasa the next day. “ ALPHA ” - THE LIGHTER SIDE OF FOREIGN BIRD-KEEPING 29 THE LIGHTER SIDE OF FOREIGN BIRD¬ KEEPING By “ Alpha 55 Our members will, I hope, forgive me if I write under the above pseudonym, but it is adopted only to justify my undertaking, given in the December issue, 1946, to contribute at least one article (or letter) to the Magazine each year. In passing, may I say how sorry I am that no member has taken up my challenge — it would have made such a difference to our Editor had a number come forward to help “ hold the bridge * * * Well, now to my story. I have kept foreign birds solely for their beauty or song, or both, for nearly fifty years, ranging from Grey Singing Finches to the choicest of the Tanagers, and in that time I have many recollections of quaint and amusing incidents which must of necessity vary with every member. For instance, have you ever given ten shillings for a dead bird ? (By the way, I am referring to the days when ten shillings were ten shillings !) Well, neither have I — quite. But when Jacob came to live with me he was more dead than alive, and his plumage resembled the modern girls’ swim-suits. I have rather a soft spot for the down- and-outs, so I parted with this sum to the late Mr. Chapman and home we went. The only part of Jacob reasonably clothed was his wings, so he went into quarantine for a month to be built up. At the end of that time his cage was transferred to the aviary for a few days, so that he could get accustomed to his surroundings, and it was then placed on the floor, the door was opened, and out Jacob hopped. I have a rooted dislike of having food vessels on the floor and these are therefore all in glass containers, each fixed at the end of a metal arm, like the spokes of a wheel, so that there is at least a foot between each vessel. Well, Jacob was even weaker than I thought for, although he made valiant efforts to fly up to the food he failed lamentably to reach his objective, so there was Jacob on the floor and the food about 18 inches above his nose. Now what was to be done ? Well Jacob would evidently have to go back into quarantine or - ? Yes, the or had it. I built a ladder — Jacob’s ladder, you see ? — up which he very thankfully clambered his way to sustenance, and this perforce had to be his life-line for quite a while. With the moult, however, a new and very glossy Jacob emerged — by the way Jacob was a Red-shouldered Whydah — and disdaining his ladder flew happily to his eats. The life-line, of course, was no longer required, and if I afterwards mentioned ladder to Jacob he adopted an indignant air and looked “ What ladder ? ” 30 “ ALPHA ” - THE LIGHTER SIDE OF FOREIGN BIRD-KEEPING Talking of Whydahs reminds me of a quaint proceeding on the part of a cock Giant Whydah I had. It had attained its full bridal plumage, and the urge to pay court to one of the feminine sex was at times evidently overpowering, so much so that he used to pin a small Weaver in a corner of the aviary and go through his very dignified and rather beautiful performance of bobs and bows before his inamorata. The Weaver appeared positively mesmerized by the gallantry of its resplendent suitor, and made no attempt to escape from its unusual position. Apart from the intimate glimpse it gave me of Whydah courtship it at least solved the question of the sex of the Weaver, for I gave the Whydah sufficient ornithological knowledge to know that his offering was only made to one of the opposite sex. After some minutes of pirouetting and bowing the Giant would give a final bob and fly away, much apparently to the relief of the Weaver, which then departed hurriedly, apparently glad to find itself still alive. Another amusing incident which remains in my memory refers to a Golden-fronted Fruitsucker. In the crossbar of the door of the flight, which incidentally faced the french windows of the breakfast room, I secured two holders about 2 feet apart and fixed between them, all unsuspecting the trap I was making, a round perch. This perch was some 3 inches away from the crossbar, in which I had screwed about four ordinary right-angled dresser hooks and upon which I fixed pieces of apple, orange, banana, etc. One of the most regular visitors was the Fruitsucker I have mentioned, and judging from his satisfied demeanour he seemed to think he had discovered a heavenly bird larder. Well, all went well for some time until one fine day the ends of the perch, having become smooth with friction, began to move under the weight of the bird. At first this only entailed a continual dance as the Golden Front sought to maintain his equili¬ brium, but after a while the ends got so smooth that it gave the bird no chance to remain upright, but just turned slowly over with him. Those who have held a Golden-fronted Fruitsucker will remember the tight clutch with which the bird holds on to one’s fingers, and this same trait evidently forbade the bird to leave go of the perch. The look of comical “ Where am I ” surprise on the Fruitsucker ’s face as he felt himself being carried away from his beloved fruit and the amazed expression when he found himself upside down was worth seeing. But it takes a good deal to disconcert a Golden-fronted Fruitsucker, and after pondering over the situation for a moment he pulled himself up the other side, thereby looping the loop, and then balancing himself precariously on the betraying perch he resumed his meal. After a while he seemed quite to enjoy the sensation of the “ merry-go-round ”, so I left the perch in its loosened con¬ dition for him to amuse himself on. Mention of this bird recalls a Shama which for a while, when they Avic. Mag. 1948, A View of Alpha’s Aviary from the Sun Room. “alpha” - THE LIGHTER SIDE OF FOREIGN BIRD-KEEPING 3 I were both in quarantine, was in the next cage to the Fruitsucker. As those of our members who have kept the bird know, a Shama would sell his soul for a mealworm, and I would sometimes open the door of his cage and throw these delectable insects into the air for the pleasure of seeing him catch them — and he very rarely missed. I tried the same game with the Fruitsucker, but he made no attempt to capture the morsel in mid-air, although he was quite a good catcher if the mealworms were thrown directly at him. One day by some mischance the two birds were out together, and after giving the Shama his mealworm, another was thrown to the Fruitsucker. It doesn’t take a Shama long to dispose of this dainty — a bite, a gulp, and it’s gone. The dignified Fruitsucker, however, likes to savour the “ bouquet ” of his mealworm and makes quite a performance of it. Well, the Fruitsucker picked up his worm and was proceeding to manipulate it to his liking when the Shama, like the black and brown thunderbolt his name is supposed to represent, pounced on the struggling insect, then firmly held in the Fruitsucker ’s beak, and a tug-of-war began for possession. I suppose the skin of the mealworm must have been rather old for it did not part readily, and there were the two birds each struggling to obtain the coveted prize. Neither, having got a grip, dared open his beak to secure a larger portion in case his opponent secured the worm ! Round and round they waltzed, looking blue murder at each other the while, until at last the inevitable happened and the luckless animal was pulled into two pieces. After this it was useless to let them out together for a fly round and a meal¬ worm — the Shama watched the Fruitsucker like a hawk, but he never attempted any liberties except when a mealworm was the prize, and then he threw discretion to the winds and went to it. I have had several specimens of each of these birds, but I never found the Shama as confiding as the Fruitsucker — the latter would come on to one’s finger quite willingly for a mealworm, but the Shamas preferred them thrown into the air, and they were all adept at catching. The tameness of foreign birds — principally the insectivorous and fruit-eating species — is a delightful trait in their nature. One of the most confiding I had was a young Spotted Emerald Tanager which, from the first day he was let out into the aviary, flew on to my hand in the most confiding way, without waiting for an invitation, and would not only take a mealworm from my palm but would stand there and eat it. It apparently thought it was safer there than taking the morsel away, and it was probably right ! As an exact antithesis of the Emerald Tanager what a delightfully unsatisfactory inmate of an aviary is a Rainbow Bunting. His wonder¬ fully soft but striking colours are a sheer delight — when you can see them — for he is an adept at hiding himself ; but I must confess 32 “ ALPHA 55 - THE LIGHTER SIDE OF FOREIGN BIRD-KEEPING “ personality ” is not his strong point. He really carried shyness to excess, although I suppose it was a natural trait, as his colours pro¬ bably made him too conspicuous in his native woods. One of the most charming of the larger birds was a Royal Starling, which never tired of flying backwards and forwards between the aviary and the flight — a matter of 70 feet — and he used to take a delight in gliding just over the heads of some of the other inmates which were sitting on branches and which had to crouch down to avoid the sweep of the Starling’s wings. Although so large in com¬ parison with some of the others, I found him a most gentle bird, and he never molested even the smallest, while his size protected him against others. He made a gorgeous sight when the sun shone on his back feathers, although I don’t know that he was not equalled by a Superb Starling which was in the aviary with him. They both had a favourite perch at the end of the flight which opened out into the “ forest ” — thickly planted with Cotoneaster frigida — but the Royal always gave way to the Superb. I soon found that the latter was a hen, and I feel sure they would have bred if I had been able to give them a place to themselves, as they agreed perfectly. To leave the brilliantly coloured birds for a moment and go to the other extreme. I suppose there is hardly a more modestly clad bird than the Grey Singing Finch, but he certainly has something which most of the others have not got. I refer, of course, to his song. I was so pleased with this that I bought several more Greys, only to learn that even a fair sized aviary is not big enough to house two cock Grey Singing Finches. Singing, fighting, chasing, tormenting, the stronger gave the others no rest until he was again the undisputed “ cock of the walk And cheek ! I have seen a Grey grip the long tail of a Whydah and literally swing on it till he was tired, while the owner gazed helplessly at the indignity to which he was subjected some 12 to 18 inches below his beak. And talking of cheek, is any bird more chock full of cheek and pluck for his size than a Zebra Finch ? The size of the opposite number is immaterial — if the Zebra is in the right mood he will tackle the biggest “ Joe Louis ” amongst them, sounding his “ penny tin trumpet ” vigorously the while and more often than not driving his opponent away by sheer pertinacity. Among the smallest birds surely one of the most beautiful when in colour is the Yellow- winged Sugar Bird. At one time I had four of these morsels, living jewels a lady friend called them, and although they agreed quite well amongst themselves, sometimes they would indulge in a quaint battle with uplifted beaks and threatening gestures, but they never did any harm. And although such mites, I never saw any other bird attempt to molest them. I used to think that the scimitar-like beak gave thoughtful pause to any would-be attacker. MRS. G. T. CLARK' — BREEDING RESULTS FOR 1 947 33 The expression I have mentioned of living jewels reminds me that a good many years ago the landscape gardener who laid out most of my garden asked if he could bring a Dutch gardening friend to have a look round. Of course I readily agreed, but the most startling- incident of his visit to my mind had only an indirect connection with horticultural matters. When he came to the aviary he stood entranced at the ever changing flow of colours as the birds flew backwards and forwards, and then gently breathed — “ Flying Flowers.55 When I tell you the gentleman in question was almost as broad as he was long and must have weighed anything from 18 to 20 stone, to hear such a beautiful and poetical expression from such a large body seemed utterly incongruous. Said my landscape gardener afterwards : “ When he gets back to Holland he will have an aviary of his own,55 but whether he ever did or not I never heard. While mentioning persons rather than birds, although there is a direct connection, a friend who was a great lover of horses asked me how much the aviary had cost to build. “ Round about a hundred and fifty,55 I replied. “ A hundred and fifty,55 he gasped. “ Why, good heavens ! You could have built a stable for that.55 Which just shows you ! And so, looking back across the vista of the years, one could go on drawing on memories, memories, memories, until one’s readers got weary of reading about nothing in particular, but only silhouettes of incidents that happened and passed — sometimes in a flash— and before that wearisome state is reached (“ reminuisances 55 another friend called them) I will end these few desultory notes and re-live myself the very happy and delightful days they brought me. * * * BREEDING RESULTS FOR 1947 By Mrs. G. T. Clark Barnards (No. i pair) — four young birds in the nest in early March, which died, I believe, through lack of green food. Four young left the nest in the second round, but unfortunately one cracked its skull. Barnards (No. 2 pair) reared three young ones. Meallies (No. 1 pair) reared eight young in two nests. Meallies (No. 2) reared one young one in the first nest and four in the second nest. Golden Mantled reared six young ones in two nests. Gockatiels reared seven young in two nests. Crimson Wings — for the first time in four years the eggs were clear. 3 34 BRITISH AVICULTURISTS’ CLUB Yellow Redrump hen to Redrump cock reared one hen Redrump and a split Yellow cock. Another Yellow hen paired to a Redrump cock reared four hen Redrumps and one split Yellow cock. Bourke’s reared three young in the first nest and six in the second. Kings went to nest three times and hatched young ones each time, but the mice disturbed them. Lutino Ringnecks had four fertile eggs, but only hatched and reared one young one. Pair of Green Ringnecks. Cock split Lutino reared one Green and one Lutino. Pennants (No. i) laid six eggs — five fertile but all failed to hatch. Pennants (No. 2) laid four eggs, all infertile. Derbyan hen laid three eggs, all infertile. Rock Peblars reared four fine young ones. Queen of Bavaria Gonures reared one young one, which they were enticing out of the nest, then a rat killed it. Queen Alexandras (No. 1 pair) reared eight young in two nests. Queen Alexandras (No. 2) pair reared six young in one nest. Queen Alexandras (No. 3) reared three young ones. Queen Alexandras (No. 4) reared two young ones. Queen Alexandras (No. 5), whose eggs were fertile last year, were infertile this. This pair also broke an egg this year. This is the first Princess of Wales egg to be broken in the nest here, although I have heard that it often happens. * * * BRITISH AVICULTURISTS5 CLUB The ninth meeting of the Club was held at the Rembrandt Hotel, Thurloe Place, South Kensington, S.W. 7, on Wednesday, 14th January, 1948, at 6 p.m., followed by a dinner. Chairman : Miss P. Barclay-Smith. Members of the Club present : Dr. M. Amsler, Miss F. E. Bacon, P. L. Dabner, A. M. P. M. Dillon, B. H. Dulanty, A. Ezra (Patron), C. L. Faudell, J. F. M. Floyd, Frank Grant, Dr. E. Hindle, Major E. F. Housden, G. T. lies, H. J. Indge, Terry Jones, Miss E. Maud Knobel (Club Hostess), Miss M. H. Knobel-Harman, H. Murray, K. A. Norris, A. A. Prestwich (Hon. Secretary), H. J. Rabbin, D. H. S. Risdon, Peter Scott, D. Seth-Smith, A. E. Sibley, Allen Silver, E. O. Squire, Capt. H. S. Stokes, E. N. T. Vane, R. H. Withers, R. G. Witting. BRITISH AVICULTURISTS5 CLUB 35 Guests of Honour : Madame J. M. Derscheid, Jean-Pierre Derscheid. Guests : Miss M. Antell, Mrs. B. Bath, R. G. Bath, Mrs. F. W. Beaumont, S. F. Beaumont, G. N. Clark, Mrs. G. N. Clark, Miss J. Crone, D. N. Dalton, Mrs. F. Grant, Walter Higham, D. W. Johnston, Miss E. Kinnear, N. B. Kinnear, Miss M. Kirkby- Mason, John Lucas, Miss M. M. Macfarlane, R. E. Moreau, Dr. N. B. Pevsner, Mrs. N. B. Pevsner, Miss M. Prosser, Mrs. D. Seth-Smith, W. O. Skeat, Dr. Herbert Smith, Lieut.-Com. G. P. Staples, G. S. Webb, Mrs. R. C. Witting. Members of the Club, 31 ; guests, 29 ; total, 60. After the Loyal Toast the Chairman said that in addition to the Guests of Honour the Club was gratified by the presence of several distinguished guests : Mr. Kinnear, Director of the British Museum (Natural History) and Miss Elizabeth Kinnear ; Mr. Skeat, British Council ; Dr. G. F. Herbert Smith, Hon. Secretary, Society for the Promotion of Nature Reserves ; Dr. and Mrs. N. B. Pevsner ; and Mr. Moreau, Editor, The Ibis . The Chairman in welcoming Madame Derscheid and her son paid tribute to the scientific work of the late Dr. J. M. Derscheid, particu¬ larly his contributions to aviculture. In addition to his sound scientific knowledge, Dr. Derscheid had a great appreciation of beauty, was no mean artist and had largely added to the interest and value of his papers by the illustrations. She recalled his great love for England and his many visits to this country where he had made numerous friends, and expressed the deep gratitude that was felt for his work in assisting the escape of British airmen during the war which had cost him his life. So great was his interest in aviculture that during the years of imprisonment preceding his death he had written and illus¬ trated a large number of articles which had been published in Belgium during the German occupation and were now being translated and published in the Avicultural Magazine. The illustrations were being copied by his son Jean-Pierre as only one original remained, that of the Kea, which was reproduced on the souvenir menu of the dinner. Miss Barclay-Smith concluded with the following words : “ Madame, we are greatly honoured by the presence of yourself and your son to-night and to have the opportunity of paying tribute to the memory of your husband, Dr. Derscheid. As a scientist and above all in the avicultural world he has done the most valuable work and his death is an irreparable loss. We are very glad to see in your son the promise of a scientist of equal eminence as his father, and on him we place great hopes for the future. We wish to express to the Derscheid family and through them to the whole of the Escape Service of Belgium our heartfelt thanks for the assistance they gave and the sacrifices they made for our country and our countrymen 36 BRITISH AVICULTURISTS’ CLUB during the war ; it is a proof of friendship that we can never forget. Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you the toast c Madame Derscheid, Jean-Pierre Derscheid and all that they represent of the friendship of Belgium for Great Britain ’.” In reply Monsieur Jean-Pierre Derscheid thanked the British Aviculturists’ Club for the honour that had been conferred upon him and his mother and for the tributes that had been paid to the memory of his father, and said that he was proud that he had inherited his father’s love for England. The Chairman, in introducing Mr. Walter Higham, said that as this was a special occasion Mr. Prestwich, the Hon. Secretary, had been anxious to provide a really worthy entertainment. He had therefore asked Mr. Higham, who in colour photography was second to none, to show his colour film “ Hungarian Featherland ”. Mr. Higham then showed his film and said that Miss Barclay-Smith had accompanied him to Hungary and helped him with its produc¬ tion ; she had also undertaken all the complicated organization necessary for such a trip, which had taken three weeks, during which they had travelled over 2,000 miles. “ Hungarian Featherland ” was made with the co-operation of the International Committee for Bird Preservation, and had the full assistance of the Royal Hungarian Institute of Ornithology. The subjects included such birds as Great White Heron, Purple Heron, Black Tern, Spoonbill, Golden Oriole, Moustached Warbler, Stork, Marsh Harrier, Tawny Pipit, Bee-eater, Hoopoe, Collared Flycatcher, Blackwinged Stilt, Avocet, Kentish Plover, Little Bittern, Ruff, and Reeve, etc. Slow motion studies of bird-flight are one of the features of this film. Apart from birds there were interesting glimpses of Hungarian life, including a gipsy village, and the horses and cattle that roam the Hortabagy. It is no exaggeration to describe this film as “ A triumph of colour photography ”, and Mr. Higham justly deserved the generous applause he received. Before the meeting Miss Knobel presented Madame Derscheid with a bouquet of red carnations, tied with the Belgian national colours, on behalf of the Club. At the close of the meeting Miss Knobel said she was sure she was voicing the opinion of all members in congratulating Mr. Prestwich on the great success of the Club which was entirely due to his efforts. It had put new life into the Avicultural Society. They all owed him a great debt of gratitude. This was followed by sustained applause. Arthur A. Prestwich, Hon. Secretary. The date of the next meeting is 10th March, 1948. POST-MORTEM EXAMINATIONS 37 POST-MORTEM EXAMINATIONS Council announces that post-mortems can now be made. Rule i. — A short account of the illness should accompany the specimen. All birds to be sent as fresh as possible to Mr. W. Lawrence, The Zoological Society of London, Regent’s Park, London, N.W. 8. Rule 2. — A fee of ioj. and a stamped addressed envelope must be enclosed with the bird. Rule 3. — No body or skin of any bird will be returned under any circumstances whatever. * * E. Maud Knobel, Hon. Secretary. * NOTES All Members are invited to contribute to this column. Those who may not have sufficient material for a paper should often be able to send shorter contributions. Royal Zoological Society of South Australia. Breeding of Queen Alexandra Parrots. In the September-October, 1947, Z00 News, the Royal Zoological Society of South Australia gives the following report : — Two of the most valuable exhibits in the Zoo are a pair of Queen Alexandra Parrots which have consistently reared families year after year. Details are given below. Tear. No. Reared. Tear. No. Reared. 1936 • 5 Brought forward 32 1937 • 7 1942 . 4 1938 . 4 1943 . 3 1939 • 6 1944 . 5 1940 . 5 1945 • (6 died) 1941 . 5 1946 . 5 Carried forward 32 Total reared 49 At the present time the old birds are in the process of rearing five young. Queen Alexandra Parrots have maintained their value of £5 or £ 6 each throughout the years, so it will be readily seen that these two birds have certainly earned their board and residence at the Zoo. They are exceedingly tame, and to an almost embarrassing extent, for they often alight on Head Bird Keeper H. Manfield when he enters their cage, and care must be taken to see that they have been displaced before leaving. One of these Parrots is a wild bird captured at the Hermannsburg Mission in 1945. The origin of the other is unknown. Dove and Pigeon Registry in U.S.A. Mr. W. R. Kern is conducting a census and registry of all foreign Doves and Pigeons kept in the U.S.A. He says they are none too plentiful, and that some stocks are in danger of dying out. In this country the Order Columbiformes never seems to have attained the popularity its members deserve, and at the present time, thanks mainly to feeding difficulties, their numbers must be very few indeed. Inci¬ dentally, an advertiser in Cage Birds asks for offers for an “ American Passenger Pigeon, moulted, fine specimen The discovery of a Passenger Pigeon would cause quite a flutter in the ornithological dove-cot ! A. A. P. Inquiry revealed the fact that the bird was indeed a specimen of Ectopistes migratorius, but a stuffed one ; a printer’s error had changed “ mounted ” to “ moulted ”. 38 NOTES Broken Bones in Pheasants It might be thought that it would be a troublesome matter to set a bird’s broken leg, but there appears to be little difficulty, judging by my experience this year (1947). I set a dozen Pheasant’s eggs, six Golden, and six Silver, under a broody hen. Unfortunately, seven were unfertile, two weakly chicks died in the shell, and only three hatched normally, all Silvers. I put them in a coop along with the broody, a Rhode Island-Light Sussex cross, with a delightful disposition, but considerable weight. All was going well until the third morning, when I found one of the chicks with a broken leg. The break was practically in the middle of the tarsus, and I thought I might be able to set it. I used half-inch surgical adhesive tape, several thicknesses round the leg to make it firm. I made a little coop and run for the chick, and it appeared fairly contented during the day, and ate quite well. In the evening, however, it became so unsettled and woebegone that I had to put it back to the broody. In the morning I found the other leg broken. So much for my soft-hearted- ness. This was a bad break, low down near the foot, but I managed to make it fairly firm with tape. The chick was a wonderful patient, hardly making a movement, and silent except for an occasional “ shrill ” when I was setting the leg. It just had to stay in its little coop now, as it could not walk. The coop was taken indoors every night for warmth. The chick was a splendid co-operator, and fed and drank well. Chickweed and small worms were favourites. I do not care to give chicks worms as a rule, but I had to keep the mite’s appetite healthy and keep it growing. In a few days I could see an improvement in the first break, but the second seemed worse, the foot swelling very badly. In ten days the bone of the first leg appeared to have knitted, while the second break still showed bad swelling, although the chick could move all its toes. After this, however, improvement was seen daily, and within a month I had the tapes off. The first break was set so well that there was absolutely no sign of a join, while the second knitting can be seen only when the bird is in hand. I put the chick back to the big coop where it proceeded to fight, and defeat, the other two ! The broody took it to her heart, as a matter of course ; a wonderful hen, she had the poults as tame and gentle as herself. This was not to be the end of the breakages, however. About the end of September I handed the birds over to their ultimate home, and in their excitement at having a large aviary they started flying about. They were now three months old, and very well grown. One was seen to be unable to use a leg, and I was asked to go and see what was wrong. This was not my friend “ Splinty ”, but one of the others, and the worst break yet, compound, in the middle of the tarsus, skin and scutes broken and bleeding. I treated it with an antiseptic, and again used the adhesive tape, much more of it this time. The foot swelled very badly, and the patient was too active, but after about three weeks it began to put its foot to the ground and put a little weight on the leg. Daily improvement continued, and now the leg is perfectly sound and straight, although the join can be seen. In nature I have seen broken limbs mended, but usually the join is off the straight. Loss of a foot is not fatal to a Pheasant in the wild. I have seen a number, in fat condition, with only a stump left, obviously having been caught in a gin trap. W. H. Maxwell. The National Cage Bird Show The National Exhibition of Cage Birds was held at the Royal Horticultural Hall on 4th, 5th, and 6th December, 1947. It was organized by Cage Birds for the benefit of the Soldiers’, Sailors’, and Airmen’s Help Society. The Foreign Section attracted 103 entries — an increase of 43 on last year — and was judged by K. A. Norris. The National Award of Merit for the best Foreign Bird and the National Foreign Bird Silver Trophy were awarded to G. C. Lynch for his Blue Satin Bower Bird — a bird we have seen on numerous occasions, but never looking better. The Psittacine classes were not supported to the extent one could have wished. The five classes produced only 28 entries. The winners were : E. F. Benjamin’s Masked Lovebirds, C. Laidlaw’s Stanley Parrakeet, E. G. Gumbrell’s Pennant’s Parrakeets, P. A. Birch’s King Parrakeets, and Mrs. F. Riley’s Red-and-Blue Macaw. There were twenty-five entries in the common Waxbills, Mannikins, etc. class, and this was won by Mrs. L. Scamell’s St. Helena Waxbills, followed byH. Metcalf’s Three-coloured Mannikins and T. Crewes’s Orange-cheeked Waxbills. In Gouldian NOTES 39 Finches, P. J. Al.lerst.on was first with a perfect pair of Black-headed ; H. Douth- waite’s Red-headed cock being second. The largest class, 27 entries, was that for Grassfinches, and the rarer small seed- eaters not previously classified. T. Crewes gained the first half-dozen or so awards ; his Red-headed Parrot Finches, Melba Finches, Pectoral Finches, and Silver Zebra Finches heading his magnificent team. Mrs. Scamell registered a second win in the Small Insectivorous Bird Class with a good pair of Zosterops, second, perhaps rather unluckily, being T. Crewes’s Crimson-breasted Barbet ; another pair of Zosterops (J. E. Davis) was third. The Larger Insectivorous Bird Class contained but five entries, first being G. G. Lynch's Blue Satin Bower Bird, with his Donaldson’s Touraco third, the gap being filled by O. E. Dunmore’s Jay-Thrush. The remaining class for lutinos, hybrids, etc., was won by H. Douthwaite’s hen lutino Ringneck Parrakeet ; his Blue-winged X Turquoisine Parrakeet hybrid being second. A. A. P. Fowl Pest Regulations The most recent order of the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries concerning the movement of live poultry is that dated 24th November, 1947. Poultry is defined as 45 Domestic fowls, turkeys, ducks, and geese ”. This leaves some room for doubt about the type of birds it refers to, as the word “ Domestic ” might refer to the ducks and geese as well as to the fowls. The Ministry has clarified this point and — alas for aviculturists — the word only applies to fowls, and wild ducks and geese are included in the movement ban. In accordance with this order, no poultry — as defined — may be moved from a scheduled area to other parts of the country. The scheduled area includes : the counties of Bedford, Berks, Buckingham, Cambridge, Derby, Essex, Hertford, Huntingdon, Isle of Ely, Kent, Leicester, Lincoln (Parts of Holland), Lincoln (Parts of Kesteven) , Lincoln (Parts of Lindsey), London, Middlesex, Norfolk, Northampton, Nottingham, Oxford, Rutland, Soke of Peterborough, Southampton, Stafford, East Suffolk, West Suffolk, Surrey, East Sussex, West Sussex, Warwick, Worcester, and the West Riding of Yorkshire. There is, moreover, a complete ban on all movement of birds into Scotland and the Scilly Isles. However, birds may be moved freely in the rest of the country — that is in Wales and in England west of a line running approximately from Yorkshire through Worcestershire to Hampshire — and from this area into the scheduled area. Swans are not specifically included and may legally be moved, but the Ministry believes that they may carry the disease and asks that they be moved as little as possible. The Ministry urges the fullest co-operation in these regulations so that the disease may be controlled as soon as possible. There seems still just a chance that the restrictions will be lifted in time for birds to be moved before next breeding season. For reference the order is called No. 6899. Live Poultry (Regulation of Sales, Exhibitions, and Movements) Order of 1947. Peter Scott. Breeding Stanley Parrakeets In fairness to my friends at Keston, I think I should amplify my remarks on the Stanley in the September-October number of Avicultural Magazine, 1947, p. 167. The Duke of Bedford started breeding the Stanley shortly before the Great War, and during the next nine or ten years carefully built up a considerable breeding stock. When, in 1923, he decided to give up the regular breeding of this species, he was able to write in Bird Motes , 1923, p. 97 : — “ There is now in Europe an unrelated stock of this pretty species, quite sufficient, if properly managed , to render aviculturists independent of importation from Australia. “ I should like to emphasize the fact, however, that Stanley owners must take a great deal more pains over the housing and mating of their stock than bird-keepers have ever done in the past with any parrakeet, budgerigars alone excepted, if in a few years’ time Stanleys are not to become as scarce as Elegants and New Zealands. . I have done my bit, and the future of the species in Europe now rests with those who, at different times, have secured my young or imported stock.” Aviculturists evidently did not take this warning to heart, for within ten years Keston found that Stanleys were quite unobtainable in this country, and they had 40 CORRESPONDENCE to import their breeding stock from Australia. From then on they bred numerous Stanleys, and at the peak period just before the war, they were putting on the market from thirty-five to forty-five aviary-bred young ones each year. Thus it will be seen that the present numerical strength of this species is in the main due to Keston initiative and perseverance. Two other species they have concentrated on at Keston, the Mealy Rosella and the Golden-mantled Rosella, also appear on the register in gratifying numbers. Finally, all the Yellow Redrumps must be directly descended from Keston birds, as the variety originated in their aviaries. A. A. Prestwich. Additions to the London Zoo October, 1947. The registered additions for the month numbered sixty-seven. The most important were 2 Southern Resplendent Trogons ( Pharomachrus mocino costaricensis) , a subspecies new to the Collection, received in exchange ; 1 Humming Bird, Sp. inc., presented by the New York Zoological Society ; and 3 Indian Manyar Weaver Birds ( Ploceus manyar striatus ), a subspecies new to the Collection, purchased. Other interesting arrivals were 1 Western Melba Finch ( Pytilia melha citerior) 2 Hartlaub’s Touracos ( Tauraco hartlauhi ), 2 Secretary Birds ( Sagittarius serpentarius) , 4 Olive Pigeons ( Columba arquatrix) , 2 Grey-necked Crowned Cranes ( Balearica regulorum ), 2 Eider Ducks ( Somateria mollissima ) 6 Gannets (Sula bassana ), 2 Blue¬ cheeked Barbets ( Cyanops asiaticus) , 3 Crimson-breasted Barbets ( Xanthohema hama- cephalus) , 2 Red-eared Bulbuls ( Otocompsa emeria) , 1 TickelPs Thrush ( Turdus unicolor) $, and 2 Indian White-eyes ( Zosterops palpebrosa) . The only new arrival at Whipsnade, apart from transferences from Regent’s Park, was a Grey-breasted Helmet Guinea Fowl ( JVumida galeata). November, 1947. There were twenty- three new arrivals during the month. Outstanding were 4 Large Darwin’s Finches ( Geospiza magnirostris ) from the Galapagos Islands, a species new to the Collection, collected by David Lack. Members interested in this group of Finches, rather dull-looking, but highly important from the evolutionist’s point, should read Lack’s Darwin’s Finches. Other interesting newcomers were 1 Emperor Goose (Philacte canagica ), 2 Red¬ breasted Geese ( Branta ruficollis) , 1 Blue-throated Brown Sunbird ( Cyanomitra cyanolama) , 1 Superb Sunbird ( Cinnyris superbus ), 4 Indian White-eyes {Zosterops palpebrosa ), 5 Indian Shamas {Kittacincla macroura indica), and 1 Eastern Sarus Crane (Grus anti gone). A. A. P. * * * CORRESPONDENCE SPECIAL NUMBERS OF THE AVICULTURAL MAGAZINE May I register a respectful protest against the constantly recurring method of issuing special numbers of the Magazine devoted exclusively to one particular section of birds ? It is obvious that if a member is not interested in the class of bird dealt with in such a number the issue makes very little appeal to him. For instance, I find that in the last eight years there have been no less than six numbers devoted exclusively to Waterfowl, four to Parrots, two to Pheasants, one to Birds at Semi-Liberty, and one to Softbills. Only the latter number had much interest to me, and I should have been well content had the articles in that one been spread over several issues. Now it is proposed to publish a Bird of Prey issue, and it is admitted that few aviculturists have kept specimens of this particular group of birds. I suggest that at the outside only a few dozen members will be interested in such an issue — all the other hundreds will lay it aside disappointed. If we are not careful someone with a bird in his bonnet will want an Extinct Bird number with articles about the Moa, Dodo, and other dead and gone feathered inmates of our prehistoric fathers’ aviaries ! Do, please, let us have issues of general appeal and so sustain the interest of members in every number. I pen the foregoing with every sympathy in your efforts to produce a Magazine issue after issue, but isn’t it easier to produce a general issue than a special one ? Alpha. CANDIDATES FOR ELECTION Miss Frances Edith Bacon, 18 Owen Mansions, Queens Club Gardens, W. 14. Proposed by Phyllis Barclay-Smith. D. Bowles, The Dudley Zoological Society, Dudley. Proposed by Geo. Weaver. J. Byrne, 128a Cavendish Road, Clapham, S.W. 12. Proposed by P. Howard Alderson. W. D. Cummings, Holworth Cottage, Seafield Road, Angmering-on-Sea, Sussex. Proposed by E. Maud Knobel. Edward B. Day, Hill House, Tetbury, Gloucester. Proposed by E. Maud Knobel. H. Fenton, 48 Porchester Terrace, W. 2. Proposed by M. H. Knobel-Harman. E. G. Gunbrell, West Leigh, Frampton Cotterell, Bristol. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. Geo. Hardy, Jr., 5212 Douglas Road, New Westminster, B.C., Canada. Proposed by E. Maud Knobel. Mrs. L. H. King, Orchard House, Ruddington, Nr. Nottingham. Proposed by F. Dallow, M.B.E. Mrs. Nicholas T. Luming, 50 Sheridan Road, Oakland, California, U.S.A. Proposed by E. Maud Knobel. Michel Braun de ter Meeren, S.’Hesidelle, Archemes par Grey-Doicean, Belgium. Proposed by J. P. Derscheid. J. H. Noordzy, c/o Zoological Garden, Blydorp, Rotterdam, Holland. Proposed by A. F. C. A. van Heyst. H. F. Quemby, Standard House, High Street, Baldock, Herts. Proposed by E. Maud Knobel. Stanley T. Rawson, Oaken Holt, Farmoor, Oxford. Proposed by Charles R. Freeman. Miss Jean Reed, 14 East Seventy-second Street, New York, U.S.A. Proposed by Mrs. Effie Clark. H. Smyth, i i Hamilton Street, Homebush, N.S. W., Australia. Proposed by Capt. Brian Burgis. W. A. Upson, 56 Garfield Road, Ponders End, Middlesex. Proposed by P. Howard Alderson. Payson Yucovitch, Rte 1, Box 587, Hanford, Calif., U.S.A. Proposed by E. Maud Knobel. NEW MEMBERS G. M. Durrell, c/o Grindlay’s Bank, 54 Parliament Street, W.C. 1. Harry van Dyk, 97 Korvelseweg, Tilburg, Netherland. R. Uddin Khan, 80-82 Lister Street, Hull, Yorks. Mrs. M. Kirkaldy, F.Z.S., Warley Mount, Brentwood, Essex. Mrs. M. Knight, 3718 Sperling Avenue, Burnaby, B.C., Canada. Peter MacKern, 3 Chine Court, Western Road, Branksome Park, Bournemouth, Hants. A. Mitchell, 16 Albany Street, Hull, Yorks. Mrs. Grace B. Morse, 901 W. Main, Puyallut, Washington, U.S.A. Hubert J. Rabbin, I.S.O., 33 Kingsway, Wembley. D. Tiranti, 6 Albert Mansions, 54 Church Road, Hove. DONATION £ s- d. J. Spedan Lewis . .1000 Lady Poltimore . .400 Captain Scott-Hopkins .120 v A. Lamb . . .220 MEMBERS’ ADVERTISEMENTS The charge for Members’ advertisements is one penny per word. Payment must accompany the advertisement , which must be sent on or before the 20th of the month , to Miss E. Maud Knobel, 86 Regent’s Park Road, N.W. 1. All members of the Society are entitled to use this column , but the Council reserves the right to refuse any advertisements they consider unsuitable. Absolutely Indispensable to Aviculturists . . . “ AVICULTURE,” Vol. 1, £1 Os. 9 d. ( Vols . II and III out of print.) A mine of information on birds of all kinds compiled by leading authorities on every branch of aviculture. ★ “ Index Guide to the Avicultural 1894-1930.” By E. H. ★ To be obtained from : MESSRS. STEPHEN AUSTIN & SONS, LTD., 1 FORE STREET, HERTFORD, HERTS. For back numbers of the Avicultural Magazine apply also to the Publishers at the above address. ★ The originals of the plates published in the Avicultural Magazine may be, in most cases, purchased ; apply to the Secretary : MISS KNOBEL, 86 REGENT’S PARK ROAD, LONDON, N.W.l. Magazine, 55. Cloth Boards. STEPHEN AUSTIN AND SONS, LTD., PRINTERS, HERTFORD. AVICULTURAL MAGAZINE I Mtijm CONTENTS PAGE The Ground Parrot in Habitat and Captivity (with plate), by L. C. Webber , 41 The Birdman Artiste, by W. Griffiths ....... 46 The Red Mountain Dove ( Geotrygon montana ), by Terry Jones . .48 A Few Notes on the Senegal Finfoot ( Podica senegalensis) , by E. B. Tanner . 50 On Hand Rearing some African Birds, by Guy Falkner . . . .52 Retirement of Mr. James Bailey from the London Zoo (with plate), by Allen Silver ............ 54 Observations on the Nesting of Song Thrushes, by C. R. Podmore . . . 55 Bird-Life on Malta, by Derek Goodwin . . . . . . -57 The Waterfowl Registry, by Peter Scott ....... 62 British Aviculturists’ Club .......... 65 Correspondence . . . . . . .. , . . .66 Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . .67 VOL. 54 No. 2 PRICE 5/- M ARCH-APRIL. 1948 THE AVICULTURAL SOCIETY Founded i8g4 President : A. EZRA, Esq., O.B.E. MEMBERSHIP SUBSCRIPTION Ls £i per annum, due on ist January each year, and payable in advance. Life Membership, £15. Subscriptions, Changes of Address, Names of Candidates for Membership, etc., should be sent to — The Honorary Secretary and Treasurer , Tel.: Primrose 0247. MISS E. MAUD KNOBEL, 86 Regent’s Park Road, London, N.W.i. TOE AVICULTURAL MAGAZINE is published bi-monthly and sent free to members. Members joining at any time during the year are entitled to back numbers for the current year on the payment of subscription. ALL MATTER FOR PUBLICATION IN THE MAGAZINE SHOULD BE ADDRESSED TO — The Editor , MISS PHYLLIS BAR CLAY-SMITH, 51 Warwick Avenue, Tel. : Cunningham 3006. London, W. 9. The price of the Magazine to non-members is 5 s. post free per copy, or £1 10s. for die year. Orders for the Magazine, extra copies, and back numbers (from 1917) should be sent to the publishers, Messrs. Stephen Austin & Sons, 1 Fore Street, Hertford. Tel. : Hertford 2546-8. POST-MORTEM EXAMINATIONS CAN NOW BE UNDERTAKEN (See announcement on page 37 of Jan-Feb. number.) Rule i. A short account of the illness should accompany the specimen. All birds to be sent as fresh as possible to Mr. W. Lawrence, The Zoological Society of London, Regent’s Park, London, N.W. 8. Rule 2. A fee of ioj. and a stamped addressed envelope must be enclosed with the bird. Rule 3. No body or skin of any bird will be returned under any circumstances whatever. A vie. Mag. 1948. Copyright ] Ground Parrot (Pezoporus wallicus). [A. E. R. Leer Copyright] Young Ground Parrots. Frontispiece j Avicultural Magazine THE JOURNAL OF THE AVICULTURAL SOCIETY Vol. 54. — No. 2. — All rights reserved . MARCH-APRIL, 1948 THE GROUND PARROT IN HABITAT AND CAPTIVITY By L. G. Webber In the past decade or so quite a number of Australia’s rare birds (some thought to be almost extinct) have popped up in captivity. To the aviculturist must go the sole credit for a good deal of our knowledge of the habits of these species, and for the fact that, in some cases, he has rehabilitated and increased their numbers, probably saving them from passing entirely from our ken as living creatures. Of these, the one which has caused more comment and excitement than any other is the intriguing Ground Parrot ( Pezoporus wallicus). According to historical notes in various ornithological and avicultural publications, this bird has been known for about 1 50 years, yet there is no authentic record of it having been bred in captivity, in fact very few have seen the inside of an aviary. Cayley, in Australian Parrots , has little to say about it in captivity, and records Peir of Campsie, N.S.W., as having had a pair for some years, and this as far back as 1885 ; it is also mentioned as having been exhibited at the Zoo, quoting Tavistock, and I take this to mean the London Zoo, as well as a probable breeding record in France a number of years ago. There is also mention by Cayley of a living example at the time of writing (1937) at the Royal Park Zoological Gardens near Melbourne. I was in Melbourne when this bird arrived and was horrified to see such a rare creature in such disgusting surroundings. At that time a special section was reserved for Australian fauna and in a delapidated old compartment, the floor riddled with holes of rodents, looking more like a backyard fowl pen than an aviary, was this very rare native Parrot resting on a log lying in one corner. Armed with notebook and pencil I remained in the vicinity watching and waiting 41 4 42 L. C. WEBBER - GROUND PARROT IN HABITAT AND CAPTIVITY for some hours, and with the falling light made my way back to Melbourne with no more notes than the bird’s name, and the fact that it was motionless all the time under observation. This appears to agree with Mr. Peir’s observations on the behaviour of the birds in his possession. Since this time it was reported that the Adelaide Zoo had secured some (?) specimens, and had also acquired the Melbourne bird. It is to the generosity of a Sydney aviculturist, Mr. A. E. R. Leer, who obtained a permit to keep these birds, that I am indebted for the valuable data and photographs from which the bulk of these notes were compiled. The birds depicted were observed and captured by Mr. Leer and were the first seen alive in Sydney for many years ; they attracted visitors from as far afield as Adelaide, a mere 1,000 miles away. A detailed description of the bird may be had on reference to Cayley’s Australian Parrots , but outstanding points will be mentioned, and first of these concern sexing ; both male and female are similar in colour, the latter being slightly larger, but this is not a reliable or accurate method of determining sex. It is much simpler in the pre¬ adult plumage stage when the young male is distinguished by a lighter shade of green on the crown — it is in fact still visible in the adult stage, but more difficult to detect. The feet, although zygodactyle conforming to the normal Parrot, have an unusual feature, fine sharp hooks are present on the underside of each toe, in shape not unlike a crochet needle. The actual use of these is not definitely known, but we could assume as an aid in running. These birds are remarkably fast on foot. In repose the Ground Parrot does not effect a normal parrot-like stance, but always has the appearance of crouching, even when moving about. However, when being pursued, it will repeatedly run to the top of a tussock, stretch itself, and have a look-see, then off again. If surprised at close range, the bird will “ freeze ”, drawing its cheek feathers around its beak, obviously to complete its camouflage ; once the observer moves his eye from the bird it will disappear as if by magic. From the apparent ease with which a dog can scent them, only confirms earlier statements as to the bird having a strong odour, and yet not once did the dog, an English Setter, locate a nest. Birds were flushed and scents followed considerable distances, but always came to an abrupt end ; on occasions the dog would circle round a radius of some 50 to 60 feet. A thorough search sometimes revealed a nest within this area, and observations proved that the bird, instead of alighting, in a normal manner, “ dropped like a stone,” which would tend to indicate that this was the method of approach to the nest, thus breaking the scent. L. G. WEBBER - GROUND PARROT IN HABITAT AND CAPTIVITY 43 Human approach to the nest can be made within 3 feet before the hen will be flushed, and it was not unusual to see the bird fly a short distance, land, and play the old established trick of affecting a broken wing, fluttering around to distract attention away from the nest. The eggs, usually three or four, are practically round in shape, pure white without gloss. The nests are not found in the swamps but on the high ground, the birds observing a local seasonal migration from the winter feeding grounds, leaving towards the end of July for the breeding season nesting sites, sometimes in hilly country, where their more natural food is to be found, a type of tussock grass. In the winter they feed on the sorgham and cultivated millets grown for winter stock feed. The birds feed early morning and late evening and are rarely, if ever, seen unless flushed from their hideout. The food appears to be always green, one bird caught in the net disgorged half a cupful of green seed, but the unusual part of this was that the crop was still so well packed that it extended past the body line of the bird, giving it a very queer appearance. They are practically silent, but the call note is heard more towards the breeding season and then frequently at night, and on dull wet days — this note is similar to the single call note of the Turquoisine Parrakeet. When the nesting site has been selected, usually inside a tussock of grass, but has been found in a fallen hollow log, it takes up to four days to prepare the nest by nipping the grass stalks off short. The soil is well trampled down, the eggs being laid in this shallow depression. After the eggs are hatched (twenty-one days, but not confirmed) the perimeter of the nest is gradually built up by the excreta of the nestlings, who normally all face towards the centre. Once again nature does not fail these birds, the excreta is black, the soil is black, so the position of the nest is not given away. The reason for the black excreta is due to the young being fed exclusively on green food, and, of course, the nestlings themselves are black, completing the cycle. The Ground Parrots’ natural enemies are more likely to be snakes, as foxes and cats were not observed. However, as there are no rabbits in the swamps or near vicinity, there is, therefore, no attraction for the foxes or cats. Hawks might play some part in keeping the number of birds down, and on one occasion by observing the antics of a hawk it led to the discovery of a Ground Parrot. Notes in Captivity Cayley in his introduction to Australian Parrots says : “ Recent successes, both in Australia and abroad, in breeding in captivity several species of the fast disappearing Neophema Parrakeets is proof that it is possible, with scientific methods, to breed any of our rarer 44 L. G. WEBBER - GROUND PARROT IN HABITAT AND CAPTIVITY Parrots. One hears the objection that birds bred under such circum¬ stances would perish if liberated. No doubt. But what is the alterna¬ tive ? Is it not far better to see these birds reproducing their kind in captivity than allow them to become extinct. Unless a serious attempt is made to save these few species now on the verge of extinc¬ tion, only museum specimens will be left as witness of a fate that might have been prevented. In advocating the breeding of these birds in captivity, especially the rarer species, I do so in the hope that such breedings will be carried out under licence and in a purely scientific manner — not on a commercial basis.” This would especially apply to the Ground Parrot, and instead of these notes being the first to appear in print for some years (in fact the last aviary notes were published in the Avicultural Magazine, September-October, 1941) let us hope that they may be a forerunner of further records of this bird in captivity. However, to be able to do this we need in this State (N.S.W.) a much more sympathetic government, one that would use some foresight to the future of our rare birds, and allow the aviculturist to make a real attempt to get on with the study and breeding of not only those considered on the verge of extinction, but any or all of the “ fully protected ” species. The Ground Parrots, strange as it may seem, show a preference for sunflower seed and canary and millet seed in that order, yet they never see a sunflower in their native state. Lucerne and thistle are the popular green foods. It was almost a week before the adult birds would feed off the ground, and unlike the normal Parrot never pick food up with the feet and pass it to the bill. A very uninteresting bird in the aviary remaining still all day, becoming very active after sunset, feeding and bathing, climbing all over the aviary wire, and night observations showed both birds bathing at 1 1.30 p.m. They were very fond of the sun, and whilst trying to find sufficient cover, always took advantage of the sunniest spot. Special observations during the approach of the breeding season were disappointing, the cock spent quite some time climbing the wire, apparently seeking an escape, and constantly calling the hen ; she did not respond, and remained on her selected day roost. The nestlings in the accompanying photo were three weeks old when collected, and were completely disowned by the parents when placed in the aviary ; this meant, of course, resort to hand feeding. Their food mixture was rolled oats, a few drops of cod-liver oil, crushed arrowroot biscuits moistened with milk. They were fed three times a day, and on this diet thrived, gaining weight and strength. After the first week the milk was deleted from the mixture as they went a bit off colour, and it was assumed that the milk was to blame, L. C. WEBBER - GROUND PARROT IN HABITAT AND CAPTIVITY 45 and boiling water was used to moisten the food. As soon as the food cooled down the youngsters refused to take any more, and to prevent this happening the food bowl was placed in a larger one containing boiling water. Green seed was added now to the diet, consisting of millet and native seeding grasses. At six weeks the birds were picking the food themselves, especially the seeding grass, and at this stage were being placed on the lawn, during the day, in a large portable chicken coop. They would bask in the sun and having had enough of this would all go to one corner and have a sleep. Being hand fed they were extremely tame, and would show an intelligent alertness when called by an imitation Ground Parrot call. Two of them would, if placed on the lawn, fly down to the food pot when called, a distance of about 6 feet. The milk was again reintroduced in the diet and the birds then refused to take any food at all — in three days they were all dead. Although not visible in the photo the long nestling hair was still evident, even though the normal plumage was showing on most of the body and wings. Earlier, when the nestlings were just covered with the down, the new feathers, a rich green and black, could be seen by blowing the down. Although not a story of success some valuable information was gleaned from the four weeks the young were being hand reared, and next time should be a different ending. 46 W. GRIFFITHS - THE BIRDMAN ARTISTE THE BIRDMAN ARTISTE By W. Griffiths, D.F.H. A very common sight, indeed, on the streets of Calcutta, is to see a birdman walking with a long bamboo balanced on his shoulder, supporting on either side five or six wire cages packed with birds. These birdmen invariably call at the homes of all keen aviculturists and it is not long before they all seem to know anyone interested in birds, since it is a case of one birdman giving the news to his pals. And then the aviculturist sure has the time of his life picking and choosing, bargaining, exchanging and sometimes ending up by selling his own surplus stock to the birdman. More often than not, these cages are filled with common avian life such as Avadavats, Nutmeg Finches, Zosterops, Nuns, Java Sparrows, Weavers, Sunbirds, and Silverbills, and are offered at first at a shilling each, but are later given for about 2 d. each. When, however, they have nothing rare to sell, they generally fill a cage with Silverbills, each bird being painted by hand and with all the colours of the rainbow — enough to make even the beautiful Gouldian Finch blush with shame. This, of course, being an old trick, is well known to all aviculturists and even to an inexperienced eye, beneath all this wonderful colouring, can easily be detected the all too familiar and common Silverbill. Again, besides this, the call note is so very easily recognized too, yet it is surprising to see how many people, fooled by this camouflage, pay terrific prices for these birds and these shrewd birdmen sure know when they are dealing with 44 greenhorns ”. Just to make the artiste birdman a wee bit happy, I have often pretended to show amazement at the sight of such beautiful and exotic birds and on inquiring what they were, have been given such names as 44 Gulabi ” Munia (Gulabi meaning pink and Munia a name generally given to small finches), Rose finch, 44 Belighty 55 Waxbill, (Belighty means English), etc., and that these birds have come from Australia, Africa or America, whichever place comes to their minds first. Quite automatically then, the price is raised and you are informed that he is letting you have them cheap for £ 1 each. The bargaining then starts and should he remain adamant, just pass a hint that the birds look painted and with a countenance full of guilt he surrenders a pair for the same price as an unpainted one. One day I bought a pair of these painted Silverbills for my son who was taken up with their bizarre colouring. He had them in a small cage and they were getting on fine till a few days later he came to me with tears in his eyes and sadly said, 44 Daddy, my birds are dead.” On accompanying him to discover the cause, I beheld both birds lying at the bottom of the cage with just a few traces of colour still on them but the drinking water all tinged. The poor birds had both W. GRIFFITHS - THE BIRDMAN ARTISTE 47 taken a bath and the colour being washed away poisoned the water which they later drank. Very often, however, the Indian birdman gets quite a lot of Austra¬ lian Finches which are brought out by Chinese sailors for them, and these are first taken to the aviculturist for sale before being taken to the £c Hart ” — small market place where all birdmen meet twice a week. In this manner I have from time to time picked up some real bargains, due to the pitiful condition of the birds and the superstitious practices of the Indian birdman. I remember once purchasing five Painted Finches ( Emblema picta ) at a shilling and sixpence each. There were three males and two females in the lot. They were just taken off the boat and were in a deplorable condition being only half-clothed. The dealer got them at a shilling each and was satisfied with his small profit as he was convinced they would not survive. Three did not live, unfortunately both females died, but the two males that lived I had for two years. The superstitions, an Indian bird dealer has, are as follows : — ( a ) If he sells a man any bird or birds (his first sale) and later in the day has many more sales, he considers his first buyer as lucky and will always try to sell this buyer something or other, even at a loss, with the hope that he will have good sales later in the day. (b) To refuse any buyer a sale first thing in the morning is con¬ sidered unlucky as he will then have a bad day of sales. These superstitions also being known to fanciers, they all try to be the first, of a morning, in the bazaar and although one is very often unlucky, there is great fun in it. I have been refused a pair of Pic- torellas for £i during the day but have got the same pair for 15^. merely by being the first on the scene on a different day. I got a pair of Crimson Finches the very same way. Before concluding I thought I would mention another little trick which really proves the artistic ability of the Indian birdman. Down the main streets of Calcutta, the American, who during the war was always to be found, was the one who generally suffered under the ruse. Birdmen would be seen with two or three Rose-ringed Parrakeets perching on their fingers or shoulders. The tails of these birds, each feather done separately, were turned and twisted into various fantastic patterns. Some were curled upwards, others fanned out like a per¬ forming peacock’s tail, some like the Lyre-bird, etc. They really did look grand and being finger tame were bought up like hot cakes and fetched real high prices. But were they finger tame ! The poor birds were doped, but when the effects wore off these Parrakeets were to be seen “ taking off” with their well-known piercing call note, kee-ak, kee-ak, kee-ak, much to the amusement of the passers-by as they watched the surprised countenance of the duped one. 48 TERRY JONES - THE RED MOUNTAIN DOVE THE RED MOUNTAIN DOVE Geotrygon montana By Terry Jones It is a pity that Pigeons and Doves are not more popular aviary birds, as they are almost invariably harmless to other birds however small, unless those birds also be Doves. Their lack of popularity is, I think, largely due to their two faults, nervousness and a lethargic disposition. Personally I like, second only to waterfowl, the Doves and Pigeons, whether they be wild species or the many domestic variations of the Rockdove. One of the species kept here is the Red Mountain Dove ( Geotrygon montana). The Ground Dove families to which this Dove belongs are the most desirable of the Dove groups, as they are active birds, and very rarely indulge in the battering panics of the more arboreal species. In the Red Mountain Dove the sexes are most conveniently dissimilar. The cock is a warm cinnamon brown above ; face, throat, breast, and underparts pinkish-white, with a brown streak running from the beak through the eye. The hen’s pattern is the same, only the cinnamon is replaced with olive-brown and the pinkish- white with dirty grey- white. They spend most of the daytime marching about the floor with a curious bobbing stern action, so common amongst the waders, and stop suddenly to pick up some seed or insect. They are much more omnivorous than most Doves, being fond of slugs, worms, fruits, etc. Early in the year the cocks start cooing, and appear to have four different types of coo. Firstly, when under no particularly strong emotional impulse the cocks sit on some bough uttering a fairly high pitched sad coo repeated almost indefinitely at about ten second intervals. The hens only very occasionally call in this way, and then in a weaker voice. Secondly, when at the chosen nesting site the cock birds, and quite often the hens, will crouch with twitching wings uttering at intervals a curious double coo. This begins with a short throaty coo, the wings are then raised fully stretched above the back, lowered expanded in a very slow flap and shut, the bird then giving the normal sad coo. This coo-flap-coo is repeated at about twenty-second intervals. This call generally seems to be used when one of the pair wants to summon its mate. Very often when nest building if the foraging member of the pair is away long, the bird on the site uses this call. I have also noticed that if when sitting, a bird uses this call it is pretty soon relieved by its mate. On several occasions when the sitting hen has been using this call, the cock has answered her several times with a softer version of his No. i call before flying up to relieve her. The third call is a series of short sharp TERRY JONES - THE RED MOUNTAIN DOVE 49 cu-cu-cus and used as an alarm call, the caller generally being chased by its mate or by a rival. The fourth call is used invariably after pairing, and very occasionally when displaying. In the latter instance the cock flies down to his mate, using exaggerated clapping wing beats rather as a farmyard cock descends from a wall to his hens ; on landing with a bump a little in front of the hen, he bows to her once, beak to the ground and short tail fanned out on high, giving a single rather low coo. This action is rather similar to the display of the wood pigeon, except that the bow is only made the once. This display always occurs when the cock j’umps from the hen’s back after coition. We have two pairs of these Doves, both of which reared young in 1946. One pair shared an aviary with a pair of Princess of Wales Parrakeets. These Parrakeets have a mouse-proof stand on which their food dishes are placed. It was upon this flat table top that I noticed the hen Dove squatting quietly with twitching wings. In a minute or so the cock flew up with a twig. He landed on her back, placed the twig beside her breast, and went off to find another. The hen, shuffling round in an endeavour to form a hollow on the table top, knocked the twig over the edge. The cock marching around the floor eventually found the twig, and after testing it once or twice, offered it again to the hen. If one were to look in on the birds an hour or so later, the nest would obviously consist of one twig or nothing. I filled a little punnet with hay and put it on the table where the Dove wanted to build. She squatted as before on the table, completely ignoring my delightful nest. She obviously was determined to lay on the table top and let her eggs be swept to the floor. I gathered a bucketful of flints and completely covered the table top with them. (The Parrakeets had been given another table.) Even the most pig-headed of Doves must realize that if she wanted to sit down on the table top without spiking herself she must sit in the punnet, and sit in the punnet she did. We left the birds severely alone at first. I was therefore somewhat surprised at the end of a fortnight to hear squeaks and to see the cock bird feeding youngsters of several days old. From subsequent nestings I discovered that the incubation is about ten days, and that the eggs are quite brown, rather the colour of a hen’s brown egg. We supplied the old birds with a little dry biscuit-meal, a few peanuts, maple peas, and plenty of live food. When eating earth¬ worms, the Doves picked them up and beat them against the ground in exactly the same manner as does a Blackbird or Robin before they were swallowed. They were also very fond of the slimy whitish fawn slugs, and small snails. Gentles and blow fly chrysalis, especially the latter, were greedily eaten. Both sexes were model sitters and parents ; the cock birds relieve the hens between eight and half-past in the 50 E. B. TANNER - A FEW NOTES ON THE SENEGAL FINFOOT morning, a couple of hours earlier than most male Pigeons consider necessary. One morning when I went in both the cock and the hen were sitting in the punnet. I happened to come back considerably later, and both birds were sitting as I had left them, their dishes of food and live bait untouched. Something was evidently amiss, so I went up to the stand and discovered that the youngsters had got separated and that each parent was brooding a baby, so neither was free to relieve the other. I gently picked up the hen and put her on the floor. Much to my surprise she began to play the broken wing trick, fluttering and tumbling about the floor. I picked her baby up and quickly slipped him alongside his brother under his father’s breast. This broken wing display interested me, as it was apparently an automatic reaction to a disturbance at the nest, and had not necessarily anything to do with fear. If in subsequent nests I dis¬ turbed the hen while on the nest, she would invariably go through her display quite often coming fluttering and tumbling across the floor to take titbits from my hand. The youngsters, both cocks, left the nest at about a fortnight old. They seemed very immature, and sat fluffed out on the floor except when being fed by their attentive parents, but at night they managed to roost well off the ground. Their plumage was very dark brown, broadly tipped with cinnamon, the general effect in the distance was of a darker edition of their father. * * * A FEW NOTES ON THE SENEGAL FINFOOT (Podica senegalensis) By E. B. Tanner Finfoots have not often, if ever, been imported, and consequently little seems to be known of them at close quarters. Perhaps a few remarks upon one which I had when I went to the Gold Coast in 1946 for the Zoological Society of London as a guest of Mr. G. S. Gansdale, G.M.Z.S., may be of interest. The Senegal Finfoot is about the size of the smaller Sun-Bittern [Eurypyga helias), and is very like that bird in the head and neck, although the latter is not so long. It is also a heavier and more powerful bird. The upper parts are a darkish brown and are covered with round cream-coloured spots. The lower parts, light with a rosy flush. Legs orange-red and lobed like a Coot. Tail, rather long and stiff. The bird has a Duck¬ like stance, squat with short legs set wide apart. A native brought this one in, and I housed it in a cage with dried grass and a large water pot. It was necessary to hand feed it at first, E. B. TANNER - A FEW NOTES ON THE SENEGAL FINFOOT 51 like many freshly caught birds which do not recognize artificial food as food at all and will otherwise starve in the midst of plenty. It had been brought from a distance, and we had none of its natural food available, i.e. small marsh and water life. Grasshoppers were plentiful but not easy to catch in quantity, and the other small birds needed those we did get. My attempt at breeding gentles was not successful, owing to the humidity keeping the sand wet, so that it was more like mud. The gentles, consequently, did not clean them¬ selves and being wet enabled them to escape up the sides of their tin. A visitation of Driver Ants put an end to the experiment. I fed the Finfoot at first on minced raw meat, wetted and dipped in fish meal. He took it more readily wetted and also minus the fish meal, but previous experience had taught me the risk of raw meat for smaller birds without roughage of some kind, as a regular diet. It was while holding him as I had to at first, that I found he had a peculiar habit of inflating his body, the intake causing a growling noise. This intake was very powerful, pushing one’s hand open, and it was almost impossible to hold him, except against oneself. It seemed as if it would go on until he burst, but then he would suddenly collapse with a hiss. This was immediately followed by a struggle and vicious pecks. This habit must be very useful, as I all but let him escape, especially before I was accustomed to it. The growling and swelling was quite startling, and made the bird seem ominous and snake-like, especially as he used to look one straight in the eye and follow movement with his beak ready to dart. This last was an efficient implement, and he used to draw blood half a dozen times whenever I opened the door to take him out or feed him, but as he got used to me I would only get a half-hearted peck with no power behind it. He would eat a small bird, as I found out when I gave him a young Bronze- winged Mannikin which had died. At first, he would wash his meat like a Sun Bittern does, but not invariably, and ceased doing this usually after he had the mixture. This mixture was the universal food for insectivorous birds, made from all that was obtainable, i.e. minced raw meat (often goat and all not used put in the refrigerator at once before it turned), fish, and meat meals — taken out by me, ground biscuits, a very little hard-boiled egg — (maximum supplies, four per day) and ground peanuts. These last, being fresh, were of course, full of oil, almost enough to flow when minced, and very different to the ones we get over here. He ate this mixture with avidity, settled down, and was quite happy and quiet. Another peculiar habit was turning round and round as a dog does when about to lie down so many times that he got the grass twisted round his tail in a hard rope. It was impossible to pull it off without pulling out his tail feathers, so I had to hold him and untwist the rope until it would slip off. I got quite fond of him and never doubted that I 52 GUY FALKNER - HAND REARING SOME AFRICAN BIRDS would get him here, but he died suddenly two days out from Liverpool. I was a month travelling with the collection as I left Oda in a special railway- van for Takoradi. The boat was delayed and did not arrive for a week, so I and the collection spent a week on a siding in the full rays of the sun. The hold was covered over and was dark except for a few lights which I fixed up myself. With this and the reek of the hides and palm oil, I think the journey was just two or three days too long for him. If it had not been for the week’s hold up at Takoradi, I am sure he would have got here and thrived. He was in perfect condition, and I gave his body to the cook to put on ice. He gave him to me when he went ashore at Liverpool, but unfortunately in the rush of unshipping the collection I forgot him and left him lying on a hatch. In conclusion, perhaps Finfoots are outside the scope of aviculturists, but one never knows, one or two may arrive. I feel sure from my experience that they will thrive, given the same treatment as small Waders, especially in a marshy aviary in the summer, although I should not be inclined to trust them with small Finches if they came within range. * * * ON HAND REARING SOME AFRICAN BIRDS By Guy Falkner hartlaub’s lourie General description of adult from green, red flight feathers, blackish- blue tail and over wings, crest ditto, red skin round eye with a white spot over eye and a white line running along under the eye, bill blackish horn, feet and legs black. It might, I thought, possibly interest some of the readers of the Avicultural Magazine to hear of hand rearing the above bird. They are very common in the Thompson Falls district, about 50 miles from where I live. I also have them in the garden here but have never found a nest locally. Most of the nests now (24th September, 1947) contain young birds. The young are perfectly hideous little things, and covered with black fluff with huge 44 gapes ” of a pale pink colour, bill lightish horn colour. The young ones I am rearing are about as big as newly hatched chickens. I was very relieved to find that they 44 gape ” for food and are not fed like the pigeon family, i.e. on 44 milk ” from the crop. They eat an enormous amount of food, which being paste very quickly goes through them. I feed them every half-hour — which is a tie but well worth the trouble. Their food consists of ripe banana or Paw-Paw 1. I think probably sweet potato will be added to their diet as they grow older. Even at this young 44 down ” stage they preen 1 Since writing the above I found Paw-Paw too acid and discontinued it.— G. F. GUY FALKNER — -HAND REARING SOME AFRICAN BIRDS 53 their fluff continually. One has to wash the beaks with warm water after every meal to keep them from getting sticky. My greatest diffi¬ culty is keeping them warm. I think they require a very high tempera¬ ture until they are feathered — more so than most birds I have hand reared. They are kept in a box, lined thickly with cotton wool and over this I put a linen handkerchief, which is renewed every time I feed them. If they are taken out of the cotton wool nest and placed on a piece of paper they relieve themselves at once ; directly they do this I feed them and they are no more trouble. One revolting trick they have is to swallow the food, and, if frightened suddenly sick the whole thing up- — in fact both ends want continual watching while you handle them ! I imagine I could now take a place as a 65 monthly nurse 55 at any time ! The birds are fed from daybreak until about 7.30 p.m. continually every half-hour and so far seem to be doing well. The nests of the Turaco (at least the four or five I have seen) are about 8 to 15 feet from the ground mostly in wild coffee trees, at the extreme end of the branches and well hidden by foliage. The nest is not unlike a Pigeon’s but much better made and more cup-shaped. Eggs dull white and rather like a Pigeon’s — never more than two eggs. DUSKY TURTLEDOVE I have successfully reared a pair of these lately and they can now fly and feed themselves but refuse to leave the cage. They are dull birds as yet, as they are in immature plumage. I fed them about every hour or hour and a half on bread, which I “ chewed ” first, and also half-ripe maize — which at this stage is very sweet, tender, and milky, an ideal food to rear young Pigeons and Doves on. They are now fed on millet and biscuit crumbs but almost entirely live on the biscuit crumbs, which they much prefer to any of the various grain I have tried them with. What I take to be the cock has a far longer tail than the hen, quite half an inch longer ; he is also of a lighter grey colour and his eye (sherry-coloured with dark pupil) is much lighter than that of the hen. They are, in my opinion, handsome birds when in full adult plumage — they are great drinkers, like all the Pigeons and also sun¬ bathe a good deal, lying on their sides at the bottom of their cage. They are both ridiculously tame but have bad fits of “ night fright ” — for no reason as far as I can make out. They sleep in my room at night as the Searfu ants are so bad here, that, if I were not in the room to move the cage when the ants get on the march, they would kill them at once— as indeed they would kill any living thing that could not get away from them. I hope eventually both the Doves and the Turacos will find their way to England this year. Since writing this I have found the best food to rear young Turacos on is boiled potato “ chewed up ” and fed to them while it is warm ! Filthy, but it answers o.k.! 54 ALLEN SILVER - RETIREMENT OF MR. JAMES BAILEY RETIREMENT OF MR. JAMES BAILEY FROM THE LONDON ZOO By Allen Silver There can be very few people interested in birds and who were regular or occasional visitors to the gardens of the Zoological Society of London who have not been acquainted with James Bailey. He first saw the light of day at a hill farm on the Wiltshire Downs on gth March, 1886, and came to the Zoo as a helper in 1905, when he was 19 years old. In 1909 he was promoted to Junior Keeper and in 1912 to Senior Keeper, when he became Head Keeper of the Small Bird House. He served with distinction during the 1914-18 War for four years, where incidentally he collected souvenirs in the form of bullet and shrapnel wounds. On his return to the Zoo, in February, 1919, he went back to his former occupation, and in 1923 was made Overseer of the whole bird section. Whilst with the Society he served under three secretaries, viz. Sir P. Chalmers Mitchell, Professor Julian Huxley, and Dr. Sheffield A. Neave, and under the superintendence or curatorships of Mr. R. I. Pocock, Mr. David Seth-Smith, and Dr. G. M. Vevers. Many notable breeding successes occurred during this period, many of which have been recorded by Mr. Seth-Smith. Mr. Bailey retired on a pension in December, 1947, after 42 years’ service. During the attacks by air on London in the recent war he was a warden in the Society’s A.R.P. and was one of the few wardens permitted to carry firearms. Quite a few exciting nights were experienced in the area of the Zoo, as most people know. In the opinion of Dr. Vevers it would be difficult to find anyone in this country with more experience in the identification, keeping, and breeding of birds of all descriptions in captivity. His knowledge of the feeding and habits of birds under avicultural conditions is quite unsurpassed. Many members of the Avicultural Society have good cause to be grateful to Mr. Bailey, for he never failed to give advice and to place his knowledge and experience at their disposal. Those who know him admire his equanimity, philosophical outlook, and ready sense of humour. The position of Overseer which he held has now been ably filled by Mr. Edward Tanner, who has been Head Keeper of the Small Bird House at the Zoo for many years. Avi. Mag. 1948 James Bailey London Zoo 1886-1947. [To face p. 54 G. R. PODMORE — THE NESTING OF SONG THRUSHES 55 OBSERVATIONS ON THE NESTING OF SONG THRUSHES By G. R. Podmore As I have only quite recently been elected a member of the Avicultural Society perhaps it is natural that I should submit this short article with some diffidence. Nevertheless, as I have kept both British and foreign birds intermittently for nearly forty years, the present account of the 1947 breeding of Song Thrushes in my garden aviary may not be without interest to at least some of our readers. During the recent conflict with Germany I was compelled to part with practically all my foreign birds because of the impossibility of obtaining sufficient millet at a reasonable price. The only birds I retained were an Orange-headed Ground Thrush, a Pekin Robin (one of my own breeding), an Australian Crested Pigeon, and a superannuated Waxwing. All these, except the Pekin Robin, were very old birds indeed and have since passed away. The Pekin Robin, however, happily remains. Towards the end of March, 1947, I decided to bring in a mixed collection of about fifty British seed-eaters and softbills, among which were a pair of Tree Pipits, a cock Blackbird, and three Song Thrushes (two cocks and a hen). Within four days of introducing the Thrushes, which, by the way, had been confined by the dealer in cages, the two cocks commenced to sing, one at each end of a 50 ft. flight. It was apparently a contest, so fervent and sustained were their varied notes. Every morning and evening, and not infrequently at intervals through¬ out the day, these two artists flung their music at each other with commendable defiance. Then one morning I noticed that the water in one of the fountains was very dirty and on the edges were patches of mud and bits of wet fibre. Having replenished the water I watched for developments. Presently one of the Thrushes with a tuft of dried grass and earth in its beak hopped on to the edge of the fountain and dipped the stuff in the water several times until it was thoroughly saturated. The bird then flew off into a smooth-leaved holly (one of several planted down the middle of the flight), and although I was unable to locate the building site it was evident that operations had been under way for some time. It may be mentioned that as the flight is planted with various trees and shrubs and the surrounding earth overgrown by grass and weeds, no special material was supplied to the birds for nesting purposes. A noticeable effect of the constructional process was a dark mark on the feathers of one of the birds where the breast came in contact with the mud when moulding the inside of the nest. About a week afterwards, although I still could not see the nest 56 G. R. PODMORE - THE NESTING OF SONG THRUSHES itself owing to the thick foliage, I did see the bird in a sitting position. When the eggs were hatched I realized that with the competition for live food from Yellow-hammers, Reed Buntings, Chaffinches, Tree Pipits, and other semi-insectivorous birds it would be necessary to provide earthworms and gentles exclusively and in abundance for the young Thrushes. The parent birds, indeed, soon reminded me of my responsibilities, for whenever I appeared with the maggot tin they flew to my feet and virtually demanded immediate attention. I was astonished at the facility with which the grubs were picked up by the old birds from the aviary floor. As many as a dozen maggots at a time were gathered in the beak and flown outside to the nest. As time progressed I was able by the aid of binoculars to identify four youngsters being fed, and from that time until they were eating independently maggots were supplied in ever-increasing quantities. How many of these grubs were consumed by these four young Thrushes during their period of rearing to independence it is beyond me to compute, but the quantity was far greater that I should have supposed desirable or even possible. In addition, a gardener whom I know undertook to collect as many earthworms as possible from the various gardens upon which he was employed, and with this supplementary fare coming in regularly the young Thrushes grew apace. No soft food or fruit of any kind was ever taken out to the nestlings so far as I could discover. They were reared entirely on worms and gentles and such miscellaneous flies and grubs as could be procured naturally in the flight. In the earlier stages, however, it was necessary to offer very small maggots every three or four hours during the day. The only external difference between the young birds and their parents was that the former were speckled on their backs, but these spots gradually disappeared as the young ones grew towards maturity. They are now about five months old, and whilst I imagine that a certain amount of scolding and chasing of one another in and out of the trees and bushes is merely play, I have observed a tendency to quarrelling not only among themselves but between individual youngsters and their parents. In such a spacious and densely planted flight, however, I do not anticipate serious results, but during the coming spring it may be found advisable to separate them. DEREK GOODWIN - BIRD-LIFE ON MALTA 57 BIRD-LIFE ON MALTA By Derek Goodwin To anyone arriving from Egypt, with its teeming ubiquitous bird- life, Malta is apt at first sight to appear rather lacking in bird-life unless adverse weather conditions have resulted in a concentration of held-up migrants. More detailed observations, however, will soon show that although the number of species that breed on the island is few, those few are numerous and widely distributed, many others spend the winter there, and there is an almost continuous passage of trans- Mediterranean migrants, which reaches its peak from March till early June and then again from September to Decem¬ ber and is at its lowest in July and August when only a few odd birds are seen. The reason for the apparent scarcity is the timidity that most species show owing to persecution. Birds of nearly all species are shot for food. On Sunday mornings in spring and autumn there will be gunners all over the island, in every stone cairn, under every clump of carob trees, among the rocks on the shore, waiting to fire at any bird — from a Wheatear to a Purple Heron — that should approach within range. In winter the bird-trappers wait patiently for hours, until the call-birds, in their tiny prisons have drawn the attention of a flock of their kind, and the latter attracted by the fluttering of a Linnet or Greenfinch tied by its legs to a stick which is manipulated by the hidden watcher, have discovered the food spread between the nets. A large percentage of these unfortunate birds die within a week of capture. They are perhaps the lucky ones, since most of those that survive are doomed to drag out their lives in wretchedly small and incredibly filthy cages ; although the Wagtails, after their wings have been clipped, are often allowed the freedom of the house in order that they may serve as animated and ornamental fly-traps. Of the birds that breed on the island the commonest and most self-evident is the Maltese Sparrow. His strident chirp is heard from every tree and building, his untidy nest fills every hole and crevice about the houses, and large colonies also breed in many of the coastal cliffs. It would be interesting to know if this latter habit is the result of a search for “ lebensraum ” by an ever-multiplying species or the original habitat of the bird before it attached itself to mankind. This bird is a sub-species of the Spanish Sparrow, it is said to differ from the typical form in being only slightly streaked on the flanks. But this feature is extremely variable and one may often see in adjacent holes one cock bird almost, if not quite, as heavily marked on the flanks as the typical form, and another showing no striations at all. The hen birds much resemble a darkish hen House Sparrow 5 58 DEREK GOODWIN - BIRD-LIFE ON MALTA in plumage, and after the autumn moult the cock differs little from a cock House Sparrow, but in the breeding, plumage which is apparently acquired by abrasion, his chestnut red cap, pale cheeks, and larger black breast patch at once distinguish him. The Sparrow seems to enjoy the same sort of affectionate regard in Malta as the Robin in England. I have never seen it killed or used for food, although it is sometimes kept as a cage-bird. In the country districts almost every house has the walls festooned with earthenware jars and the roof bordered with stone nest-boxes for the Sparrow’s benefit, and his Maltese name signifies bird of the roof or homestead. In general his habits are those of the House Sparrow, including the rather peculiar one of several cock birds mobbing a single hen who vigorously defends herself as they attempt to peck her ventral regions — a procedure sometimes initiated by the display (?) in which a single cock bird, chirping excitedly with raised tail and lowered wings, hops around a hen bird who attacks him whenever he approaches closely. Although also a town scavenger the Maltese Sparrow feeds very largely on insects in the fields, and in consequence is probably rather beneficial to the farmer than otherwise, unlike his relatives elsewhere. In November and December, 1943, a pair of these birds occupied a cavity in the wall opposite my window in Sliema. During this period there was little evidence of sexual activity, but the hen, and to a lesser extent the cock also, were continually carrying pigeons’ feathers into the nest, behaviour reminiscent of the Egyptian Kite which commences building in October, although it does not normally lay until the latter part of January. The Sardinian Warbler is common and well distributed, his habit of frequently flying up on to some wire or bush-top to look around after the manner of a Whitethroat (a bird he much resembles in most respects), and his harsh scolding alarm notes make it impossible to overlook him. He does not appear to be often shot or trapped, although children hunt him through the bushes with sticks and stones and his young are often taken to be reared as pets, which since the people so doing have usually no idea of the needs of insectivorous birds, is tantamount to a death sentence in most cases. This bird is to be seen wherever there is a reasonable amount of cover, even in small town gardens. All the nests I found were placed low down in some bush or shrub and were cup-shaped structures of dry grass and similiar materials lined with vegetable down. I saw no hen Sardinian Warblers between mid-November, 1943, and the 13th January, 1944, although cock birds were very much in evidence, singing and indulging in the display flight in which the bird, uttering a sibilant warble, flies in a peculiarly deliberate style with the wings beating slowly in a manner rather similar to the display flight, DEREK GOODWIN - BIRD-LIFE ON MALTA 59 of the Greenfinch. It seems likely that the hen birds migrate in winter but that the cocks remain in their territories, but as the bird is so common in Southern Europe and a regular trans- Mediterranean migrant extensive ringing and checking up of individual birds would be necessary to establish the exact status of the Maltese specimens. The Spectacled Warbler is a miniature Sardinian Warbler in shape and markings, the cock having a blue-grey head and generally warm brown body plumage with white throat and delicate salmon-fawn tint on underparts and flanks instead of the black head and bluish grey plumage of the larger bird. The hen much resembles the hen Sardinian, but is of a much paler and less greyish brown. This bird probably owes its name to the same ornithological genius who named the Red-rumped Ghat and Spotted Flycatcher, for it would need a rather vivid imagination to see the resemblance between spectacles and the bare pinkish skin around its eyes, which is indeed not nearly so conspicuous a feature in this bird as in the Sardinian. The Spectacled Warbler is even more widely distributed than its relative. Even a clump of thistles or the smallest shrub will serve it for shelter and nesting-site and it is found in the most barren and rocky places, although less common in town gardens than the larger bird. The nest is a smaller edition of the Sardinian and the birds’ habits appear similar, although cock Spectacleds always seemed to be far more abundant than the hens, perhaps because the latter are more retiring, in which case they differ in this respect from the hen Sardinian who is as ubiquitious and self-assertive as her mate in spite of her dowdier plumage. The Corn Bunting is very abundant in the more open parts of the island, and is apparently a summer migrant, arriving in February and leaving in September or October. During his stay on the island the cock bird spends most of his time sitting hunched-up with tail adroop on the top of a fig tree, or where modern civilization has penetrated a barbed-wire entanglement, reiterating his monotonous jingling song and letting his wife or wives “ get cracking ” on domestic duties. The Short-toed Lark arrives early in April. The first intimation one usually has of this event if one is living in a town is the fact that this species has suddenly replaced the Skylark as the most abundant species in the bird-dealers’ cages. When one goes into the countryside the bird himself is to be seen on the wing over every field and patch of waste land, uttering his song, which to my ears always seems remarkably similar to that of the Chaffinch. This bird by the way is constantly confused with the Skylark by most English people on the island, the latter bird, which is one of the most numerous winter migrants, appearing in spite of its numbers, to pass unrecognized owing to its not singing whilst in Malta. 5: 6o DEREK GOODWIN - BIRD-LIFE ON MALTA The Blue Rock-Thrush is present throughout the year, although whether the breeding birds are resident is a point that only ringing and recording will elucidate. It is common about all the coastal cliffs and in many of the rocky valleys inland, and in winter is often seen in more open country about houses and farmsteads. This lovely bird rivals its more soberly garbed relatives as a songster, many of its notes and phrases much resembling those of the Blackbird, which indeed it resembles in many ways except as regards its choice of habitat. Some of my happiest memories of Malta are of hours spent sitting on a certain grassy slope, looking across the blue water to the sister isle ofGozo and listening to the Blue Rock-Thrushes as they flew out of the cliffs above to glide down on outspread wings and alight, still singing, among the tumbled boulders at the sea-edge far below. At various times I located several nests, but none were reachable. I was informed by R.S.M. Routledge, who had lived some years on the island, that he had once found a nest low down in a stone archway and that both nest and eggs resembled those of the Blackbird. The Blue Rock-Thrush (at least in Malta and Eastern Libya) is extremely wary and takes good care to keep a discreet distance from mankind. Presumably it is not easy to trap as I never saw one in captivity. I take it this is the “ Bluebird 55 of Oliver Goldsmith’s Animated Nature , of which he says that : “ It is so docile and observes everything with such diligence that though waked at midnight by any member of the family it will at once commence to speak or whistle at the word of command.” Truly an accommodating pet ! Jackdaws I only saw twice — once a pair and once a small flock of about fifteen. I was told that before the possession of shotguns became general they were common, but that now only a few survivors breed on the tiny isle of Commino. Since this islet is now inhabited it seems unlikely that they will be able to survive much longer even in this last outpost. The Palm Dove, I think the Egyptian race breeds in St. Anton Gardens, where I imagine it must have been artificially introduced. Only on a very few occasions have I seen odd individuals elsewhere on the island, no doubt all such wanderers are shot or trapped before they have been long away from their sanctuary. Odd pairs of Yellow-legged Herring Gulls are to be seen at all seasons of the year about the coast, but I never saw any signs of nesting. I think the fundamental reason for this failure to breed is being so conspicuous and slow-flying that the birds are usually shot if they loiter about any particular cliff-top, as they do in March and April. In view of recently published investigations on the British Herring Gull, however, it seems possible that lack of sufficient numbers to stimulate the birds to breeding pitch might be a contributory factor as far as the individual pairs are concerned. DEREK GOODWIN - BIRD-LIFE ON MALTA 6 1 In winter, or rather from mid-autumn till the middle of April, many familiar “ English ” birds are present. Flocks of Linnets, Serins, Greenfinches, Chaffinches, and Goldfinches rove about the island, and all too many succumb to the lure of the innocent traitors in the little wire cages and are taken in the clap-nets. The Linnets and Serins indulge in a good deal of desultory warbling song, especially on warm afternoons, when, fed and rested, the flocks are sunning themselves in some peach or almond tree. The Song-Thrush forages along the bottom of the stone walls, in damp valleys, and in the gloom beneath the dark carob trees, alert and apprehensive, ever ready to flee at the sight of his enemy man. So wild and shy is this bird on Malta that I have spoken to many people who knew the bird well at home, and yet could hardly be convinced that it was to be found on Malta at all, far less that it was in fact extremely abundant. Flocks of Skylarks and Starlings feed in the fields. Grey Wagtails haunt the ephemeral streams that in winter flow along the beds of the many narrow valleys, and the ill-named White Wagtail is to be seen in most of the public gardens, as well as in more open country, associating in pairs during the day and roosting communally at night as it does in Egypt. Stonechats are also common during the winter. They associate in pairs and appear to hold joint territories. At all events when they first arrive there is a great deal of excited sparring, chasing, and calling which soon abates, leaving in most cases a cock and hen occupying territory which they share without dispute, and so far as I could observe without any display of affection or even interest towards one another. In the winter of 1943-4 hen Black Redstarts were extremely common throughout the island, but I only saw one cock bird during this period — a fine specimen who haunted a small ruined garden and adjacent buildings in the heart ofValletta. The Meadow-Pipit and the Robin are also abundant at this season. The latter bird is not as a rule so unsuspicious towards human beings as his English prototype, but he behaves similarly in other respects, haunting gardens, orchards, and deep valleys where he stakes out a territory and sings defiance at his neighbours. His tender plaintive melody is the only bird-song of quality to be heard on Malta except for that of the Blue Rock-Thrush, and it is a happy coincidence that it is to be heard at the time of year when the latter bird is silent. On the 15th November, 1944, two Goldcrests appeared in a large conifer growing in a small garden near our billet in Sliema. They continued to be seen almost daily in the same tree until early in January, when I was moved to Valletta. A Chiff-Chaff was also in the habit of frequenting the same tree. This little warbler is not uncommon in winter, and as with most of the species above mentioned its numbers are swelled by passage migrants in spring and autumn. I have already in a previous article dealt with migrant birds in Malta 62 PETER SCOTT - THE WATERFOWL REGISTRY and Egypt, so will refrain from allowing a dull article to degenerate into a dull catalogue by enumerating the species to be seen on passage in Malta. Suffice to say they comprise most of our summer visitors to Britain, and a good many that we seldom see, such as the Hoopoe, Purple Heron, Lesser Kestrel, and Little Egret — all of which are abundant. No article on Maltese birds would, however, be complete without fuller mention of one passage migrant — the Turtle Dove. This bird is present in large numbers from mid-April till mid-June (although its numbers fluctuate daily as with other migrants), and being not only highly edible but also very beautiful and disinclined to die even under the most adverse conditions, it is a prime favourite both for the cage and the kitchen. The Dove that halts on Malta for rest and food finds no rest for the sole of her foot, but an ack-ack barrage from every clump of carob trees and clap-nets in every field. Some, of course, escape every hazard and continue on their way, but all too many within a few hours of arriving on the island are stuffed dead or dying into the string game-bags of the shooters or trundled round the streets on a hawker’s barrow, their delicate plumage torn and blood-stained from rough handling. The Turtle Doves appear not to alight on Malta during the return migration in autumn. I have seen a few flying over fairly high in September, but never saw one in the fields or along the cliffs, nor are fresh-caught specimens on sale after the end of June. * * * THE WATERFOWL REGISTRY By Peter Scott About a year ago the Avicultural Society established a Registry of the waterfowl remaining in the various collections in this country. Its object was to take stock of the Swans, Geese, and Ducks which had survived the war years, and to arrange exchanges for breeding purposes. As a result, a number of species were kept going in this country which would, but for the Registry, almost certainly have died out. This scneme has proved sufficiently useful, we feel, to be continued as an annual service to those who are interested in keeping ornamental waterfowl. The Waterfowl Registry embarks, therefore, upon its second season. Because of the great shortage of birds which inevitably followed the war, we were unable to make arrangements last year for many of those who co-operated so handsomely when the scheme was first launched. This was just as disappointing for us as for those whom we could not help. The last breeding season, however, was fairly PETER SCOTT - THE WATERFOWL REGISTRY 63 successful and a small number of waterfowl were available for exchange and for sale by last autumn. The conservation of these stocks is now as important as ever for two reasons : first, because food supplies are still so short that plans for expanding waterfowl collections cannot yet be extensively undertaken except by zoos and similar bodies, and secondly because the recent outbreak of “ fowlpest ” in this country has severely limited the import of waterfowl from abroad and the movements of birds within this country. It is hoped that the restric¬ tions now in force will not last very long. Meanwhile we must try to keep up the breeding stocks of our rarer species and be careful not to allow any which are now firmly established to become rare. Once more the circular letter and printed form, listing all the species known to be in captivity, has brought an excellent response from aviculturists all over the country. It appears that waterfowl are kept by at least 75 people or institutions. The total number of birds is not less than 2,403, including some 98 species of Swans, Geese, and Ducks. According to the information obtained the following birds are kept in captivity : — Species. Males. Sex Unknown. Females. Swans — Whooper Swan 6 1 8 Bewick’s Swan 1 — 1 Black-necked Swan . 1 3 1 Black Swan .... 7 6 Coscoroba Swan 3 — 3 Geese — Greylag Goose 54 20 60 Eastern Greylag Goose 3 — 2 White-fronted Goose 19 5 21 Greenland White-fronted Goose 2 2 Lesser White-fronted Goose 4 — 3 Bean Goose .... 8 — 4 Pink-footed Goose 22 43 27 Greater Snow Goose 6 9 7 Lesser Snow Goose . 3 3 7 Blue Snow Goose 13 1 1 18 Ross’s Snow Goose . 3 1 5 Bar-headed Goose 12 5 14 Emperor Goose 10 1 1 Swan Goose .... 3 — — Canada Goose 15 54 1 1 Western Canada Goose 1 1 Lesser Canada Goose 3 — 2 Cackling Goose 2 — 1 Barnacle Goose 44 51 43 Dark-bellied Brent Goose . 5 16 4 Light-bellied Brent Goose . i 1 Red-breasted Goose . 34 8 38 Shelgeese — Andean Goose 1 — — Upland or Magellan Goose 23 — 30 Barred Magellan Goose 2 — 2 64 PETER SCOTT - THE WATERFOWL REGISTRY Species. Shelgeese — Ashy-headed Goose . Ruddy-headed Goose Abyssinian Blue-winged Goose . Egyptian Goose Orinoco Goose Cereopsis or Cape Barren Goose Shelducks — Common Shelduck . Ruddy Shelduck Gape or South African Shelduck Paradise or New Zealand Shelduck Australian Shelduck . Radjah Shelduck Perching Geese and Ducks — Spur-winged Goose . Magpie Goose .... Maned Goose .... Mandarin Duck Carolina Duck Wild Muscovy Duck White-winged Wood Duck Tree Ducks — Black- billed Tree Duck Grey-breasted Tree Duck . Fulvous Tree Duck . Plumed or Eytons Tree Duck Surface Ducks — Australian Grey Duck American Black (or Dusky) Duck Florida Duck .... Indian Spotbill South African Yellow Bill . New Zealand Brown Duck Australian Grey Teal Chestnut-breasted Teal Gadwall ..... Falcated Duck Common Widgeon . American Widgeon . Chiloe Widgeon Common Shoveler South American Red Shoveler . Garganey Teal Cinnamon Teal American Blue-winged Teal Baikal or Formosa Teal Common Teal Chilean Teal .... Sharp-winged Teal . Chilean Pintail Common Pintail Bahama Pintail African Red-billed Pintail . Versicolor Teal Puna Teal .... Cape Teal .... Sex Males. Unknown. Females. 16 7 16 6 6 5 9 16 *3 9 2 11 526 31 — 36 24 8 29 2— 3 7—9 3— 5 2—3 4— 5 1 - — 2 2 — 1 84 100 57 64 — 57 2—3 1 — 1 1 1 — — 3 — 2 2 11 — 12 9—3 3—6 5 — 1 53 12 49 9—5 9 2 15 12 6 13 2 — 1 22 — 15 15 — i3 1227 46 — 42 21 5 15 2 1 3 2 — — 6 — 12 9—7 BRITISH AVICULTURISTS’ CLUB 65 Species. Males. Sex Unknown. Females. Diving Ducks — Red-crested Pochard 44 — 55 Rosy-billed Duck 15 — 13 South African Pochard 2 — i Canvasback 3 — 3 Common Pochard 26 — 20 American Redhead . 1 — — Common White-eye . 2 — — Madagascar White-eye 1 — 1 Ring-necked Duck . 1 — 2 Tufted Duck . 44 7 28 Scaup .... 3 — 3 Lesser Scaup . 4 — 1 Sea Ducks — Common Eider 1 1 — 6 Barrow’s Golden-eye 3 — 2 Saw Billed Ducks — Goosander 1 — 1 Red-breasted Merganser . . . — — 1 * * * BRITISH AVICULTURISTS5 CLUB The tenth meeting of the Club was held at the Rembrandt Hotel, Thurloe Place, South Kensington, S.W. 7, on Wednesday, 10th March, 1948, at 6 p.m., followed by a dinner. Chairman : Miss P. Barclay-Smith. Members of the Club present : Miss F. E. Bacon, P. A. Bradford, T. Crewes, Sir Godfrey Davis, B. H. Dulanty, O. E. Dunmore, A. Ezra (Patron), C. L. Faudell, Frank Grant, C. F. Harding, Dr. Tom Hare, Dr. E. Hindle, G. T. lies, H. J. Indge, Miss E. Maud Knobel (Club Hostess), G. C. Lynch, K. A. Norris, A. A. Prestwich (Hon. Secretary), D. H. S. Risdon, Peter Scott, Allen Silver, E. N. T. Vane, R. C. Witting, Wallace Wood. Guests of the Club : H. H. Buisman, Dr. Jeffery Harrison, Sir Philip Manson-Bahr, Lieut.-Commander C. P. Staples. Guests : Miss Betty Bevington, Hon. Anthony Chaplin, Mrs. T. Crewes, Lady Davis, Mrs. F. Grant, Mrs. T. Hare, F. Hill, H. L. Killick, Miss M. M. Macfarlane, Lieut.-Colonel W. P. C. Tenison, G. E. Weston. Members of the Club, 25 ; guests, 15 ; total, 40. The Chairman, in opening the meeting, said that once again the Club was honoured by the presence of several distinguished guests. Apart from the principal speakers, Dr. Jeffery Harrison, and Lieut.- Commander Staples, there were Sir Philip Manson-Bahr, Lieut.- Colonel Tenison, who had originated the discussion, and as the 66 CORRESPONDENCE Avicultural Society recognized no territorial limits, having members throughout the world, Mr. Buisman, who had just arrived from Holland was especially welcome. After a brief introduction by the Chairman, Dr. Jeffery Harrison opened the discussion on “ Colour Change in Plumage without a Moult ”, and showed specimens to illustrate his points. He was followed by Lieut. -Commander Staples, who advanced a theory how this change could take place. The Chairman moved a vote of thanks to the speakers, which was carried with acclamation. Sir Philip Manson-Bahr, Mr. Allen Silver, Sir Godfrey Davis, Mr. G. C. Lynch, Miss E. M. Knobel, Hon. Anthony Chaplin, Dr. Tom Hare, and Mr. H. H. Buisman, also took part in the dis¬ cussion. A full report of the proceedings will appear in the next number of the Avicultural Magazine. The next meeting of the Club will be on 12th May, 1948. The Treasurer begs to remind all members who have not already paid , that subscriptions (5$.) became due on 1st January, 1948. Arthur A. Prestwich, Hon. Secretary and Treasurer. ^ CORRESPONDENCE SPECIAL NUMBERS OF THE AVICULTURAL MAGAZINE Your correspondent “ Alpha ” has certainly trodden on quite a large number of toes — mine seldom register during the cold weather — but as many of us have become accustomed to hard blows and unexpected digs from all quarters during the past few years, it is doubtful whether he will have the satisfaction of knowing how many. My real object in writing, however, is to enter a mild protest against his suggestion that special numbers, i.e. issues dealing only with a particular family or species should be discontinued. I feel sure there are many readers like myself who rather welcome them. Quite a number of bird lovers would be glad to keep other species, but owing to lack of space, pockets with two holes instead of one, little leisure, or for some other reason, have to confine their activities to one kind. It does not mean that these aviculturists are not interested in others. Quite the contrary ; and to take up a copy devoted entirely to Parrakeets, Waterfowl, or Birds of Prey, for instance, would mean one or two hours of interesting reading. The special issues I have been able to peruse have proved to be very enlightening. In the event of one’s wishing to embark on further adventures, it is nice to be able to refer to the index and find an issue devoted to the birds you hope to add to your collection. Apart from this, it is interesting to compare habits, methods of feeding, breeding, and rearing, and much can be learned that could be usefully applied. As there does not appear any reasonable probability of our discovering tucked away in a remote corner of the globe a Moa or Dodo I agree that a special number would prove of little interest. Robt. H. Withers. 201 South Croxted Road, West Dulwich, London, S.E. 21. NOTES 67 As Secretary of the Avicultural Society, I would like to say in answer to “ Alpha’s ” letter on special numbers of the Avicultural Magazine, that I get more requests from outsiders for the special numbers, especially those on Waterfowl, than I ever did for any of the magazines on miscellaneous subjects. I would like to emphasize that the special numbers are very much appreciated and in demand. E. Maud Knobel. 86 Regent’s Park Road, London, N.W. i. I do not agree with Alpha’s views, for I like the special numbers, even when they deal with birds I know nothing about and now am never likely to come across. E. F. Chawner. The White House, Leckford, Stockbridge, Hants. THE BLACK-CAPPED SOCIAL WEAVER There is an unfortunate error in the last issue of the Avicultural Magazine. Mr. Guy Falkner in his article entitled “ Notes on the Black-capped Social Weaver (. Pseudonigrita cabanisi),” has obviously described one of the true Weavers, probably the Spot-backed Weaver ( Sitagra nigriceps). The Black-capped Social Weaver belongs to the sub-family plocepasserina — Sparrow Weavers — which differ from the Weavers described by Mr. Falkner in their smaller size, coloration (there is no difference in the colour of sexes), nesting-habits, and habitat. The Black-capped Social Weaver being an inhabitant of the arid parts of Kenya has never, to my knowledge, been recorded from Mombasa. Its nest is cone-shaped, and is not suspended as in the true Weavers. With all these differences, I cannot understand how such an error arose. C. S. Webb. c/o Zoological Society of London, Regent’s Park, London, N.W. 8. ^ * * NOTES The Food of Pigmy Parrots Remarkably little appears to be known about the habits of Dwarf or Pygmy Parrots, of the genus Micropsitta. There is even considerable uncertainty about their food. Dr. Ernst Mayr in his recent Birds of the South-West Pacific , suggests that it is either the soft abdomen of termites or certain fungi. A. A. P. A Brown-headed Parrot. A recent acquisition is a good example of the Brown-headed Parrot ( Poicephalus cryptoxanthus, olim fuscicapillus) . It may be simply described as a Senegal or Yellow- vented Parrot (P. senegalus ) without the yellow lower breast and abdomen, with the head and neck olive greyish-brown and horn-colour bill. Its revised specific name presumably means “ concealed yellow ” and refers to the under wing-coverts. A. A. P. The John Frosticic Memorial Cup. P. H. Alderson repeated his success of last year in winning this Cup at the “ Crystal Palace ” Show. His four nominated foreign birds scored 1 7 points. Mr. T. Crewes was the runner-up with 16 points. 68 NOTES “ Crystal Palace ” Show. The 75th “ Crystal Palace ” Championship Show was held on the 15th, 16th, and 17th January, 1948, at the Royal Horticultural Hall. The entry was larger than that of last year, 121 against 92, and the judge, Allen Silver, must have had quite a task in placing the awards. Condition appeared to be his main consideration. There is no “ Best Bird in Show ” at the “ Crystal Palace ”, instead Championship Trophies are awarded to the best bird in the Parrot-like, Seed-eater, and Insectivorous sections. These were won respectively by E. F. Benjamin’s Derbyan Parrakeet, T. Crewes’s Red-headed Parrot Finches, and G. C. Lynch’s Donaldson’s Touracou. The six Parrot-like classes attracted 46 entries, and the winners were P. H. Alder- son’s Levaillant’s Parrot, E. F. Benjamin’s Masked Lovebird, C. Laidman’s Stanley Parrakeet, W. P. Bland’s Rock Pebblers, P. A. Birch’s King Parrakeets, and E. F. Benjamin’s Derbyan Parrakeet. The class for common small seed-eaters was the largest and contained twenty- seven entries. Mrs. K. M. Scamell repeated her “ National success ” and won with St. Helena Waxbills ; P. J. Allerston was second with Green Avadavats, and T. Crewes third with Orange-breasted Waxbills. T. Crewes’s Red-headed Parrot Finches and Ruficaudas were the best of the rarer small seed-eaters. A.O.S. Seed-eaters was a good glass of 23, and the winner proved to be J. E. Davis’s Queen Whydah, awarded the special for best bird not qualifying for a Trophy : runners-up were T. Crewes’s Melba Finches and Mrs. Morton-Hicks’s Violet-eared Waxbills. The three classes for insectivorous birds were won by O. E. Dunmore’s Jay-Thrush, with his Purple-headed Starling second ; T. Corrall’s Red-vented Bulbuls ; and G. C. Lynch’s Donaldson’s Touracou, with his “National” Champion Blue Satin Bower Bird second. The remaining class for hybrids and abnormally-coloured birds contained no great novelties, and was won by S. N. Pinfield’s Zebra Finches, silver variety. A. A. P. Green Conure. E. N. T. Vane has recently obtained a pair of Green or White-eyed Conures (. Aratinga leucophthalmus) . This large macaw-like Conure was commonly imported about a hundred years ago, but during recent years it has only been obtainable very occasionally. It has not yet been bred in Great Britain, and the only satisfactory record is of one young one reared at the Adelaide Zoo, 1936-37 (Minchin, A.M. , *937> 309)- A. A. P. Additions to the London Zoo. December , 194J. There were twelve new arrivals during the month. Perhaps the most interesting was a Martinique Gallinule (. Porphyrula martinicus ) that flew on board R.M.S. Highland Brigade when passing Pai Island, near Rio de Janeiro. Another “ stray ” was a Gannet ( Sula bassana ) found near Bicester. Three Mikado Pheasants, one Impeyan Pheasant, and three Red-crested Pochards were obtained by purchase ; and a Chestnut-breasted Teal was presented by Terry Jones. Seventy-nine Budge¬ rigars were bred in the Menagerie during the year. A. A. P. Galapagos Penguins Nesting in Florida. Readers will remember that in A.M., 1947, p. 76, attention was called to the fact that in 1 946, the pair of Galapagos Penguins ( Spheniscus mendelius) owned by Mr. and Mrs. Calvin P. Bentley had hatched two young ones which unfortunately soon died. In 1947, two further eggs were laid, but in spite of steady incubation, neither hatched — possibly on account of the severity of the weather. A. A. P. CANDIDATES FOR ELECTION Pradyuman K. Desai, Takhteshwar Plot, Bhavnagar (B.S. Ry.), Kathiawar, India. Proposed by Kenneth Norris. Miss Virginia Dolbey, 37 Grosvenor Square, W. 1 . Proposed by E. Maud Knobel. Major C. C. Geertsema, A.D.C. to H.R.H. Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands, Boschwyk Soestdijk, Holland. Proposed by P. Duyzend. Hon. Robert Gerard, M.B.O.U., Abbey House, Binham, Fakenham, Norfolk. Proposed by R. C. Witting. R. H. Gibson, RR 2, Box 336, St. Helena, California, U.S.A. Proposed by E. Maud Knobel. Edwin John Tilleard Housden, Mulberry Hill, Baughurst, Hants. Proposed by Dr. Leslie Housden, O.B.E. H. G. Mack, c/o Gibson Manufacturing Co., Ltd., Guelph, Canada. Proposed by E. Maud Knobel. Mrs. Phillips, ii Gloucester Gate, N.W. 1. Proposed by E. Maud Knobel. Joseph Sykes, 167 North High Street, Musselburgh. Proposed by E. Maud Knobel. NEW MEMBERS Miss Frances Edith Bacon, 18 Owen Mansions, Queens Club Gardens, W. 14. D. Bowles, The Dudley Zoological Society, Dudley. J. Byrne, 128a Cavendish Road, Clapham, S.W. 12. W. D. Cummings, Holworth Cottage, Seafield Road, Angmering-on-Sea, Sussex. Edward B. Day, Hill House, Tetbury, Gloucester. H. Fenton, 48 Porchester Terrace, W. 2. E. G. Gunbrell, West Leigh, Frampton Cotterell, Bristol. Geo. Hardy, Jr., 5212 Douglas Road, New Westminster, B.C., Canada. Mrs. L. H. King, Orchard House, Ruddington, Nr. Nottingham. Mrs. Nicholas T. Luming, 50 Sheridan Road, Oakland, California, U.S.A. Michel Braun de ter Meeren, S.’Hesidelle, Archemes par Grey-Doicean, Belgium. J. H. Noordzy, c/o Zoological Garden* Blydorp, Rotterdam, Holland. H. F. Quemby, Standard House, High Street, Baldock, Herts. Stanley T. Rawson, Oaken Holt, Farmoor, Oxford. Miss Jean Reed, 14 East Seventy-second Street, New York, U.S.A. H. Smyth, i i Hamilton Street, Homebush, N.S. W., Australia. W. A. Upson, 56 Garfield Road, Ponders End, Middlesex. Payson Yucovitch, Rte 1, Box 587, Hanford, Calif., U.S.A. CHANGES OF ADDRESS Captain Brian Burgis, to c/o J. Madill, South Side, Gympie, Queensland, Australia. Sir Clive Milnes-Coates, Bart., F.Z.S., to 13 Hyde Park, S.W. 7. John Leslie, to 34 Amroth Avenue, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. S. Dillon Ripley, to Kilravock, Litchfield, Conn., U.S.A. Dr. A. R. Robertson, to Steynol Chambers, 18 Leslie Street, Vereeniging, Transvaal, South Africa. Kenneth J. Smith, to The Zoological Society of Glasgow and West of Scotland, Calderpark, Broomhouse, Glasgow. Alfred L. Wheeler, jun., to Box 259 College Station, Texas, U.S.A. CORRECTED ADDRESSES A. Martin, to 26 Somerford Road, Reddish, Stockport. Mrs. Ralph P. Morse, 901 W. Main, Puyallup, Washington, U.S.A. Mrs. Leon Cohn, with an e. DONATIONS E. Valentine . £1 o o Miss Chawner . £100 MEMBERS’ ADVERTISEMENTS The charge for Members’ advertisements is one penny per word. Payment must accompany the advertisement , which must be sent on or before the 20th of the month , to Miss E. Maud Knobel, 86 Regent’s Park Road, N.W. 1. All members of the Society are entitled to use this column , but the Council reserves the right to refuse any advertisements they consider unsuitable. FOR SALE Birds of La Plata (2 vols.) Signed by W. H. Hudson (no folders), perfect condition, £25. (1920). — Miss Inglis Mason, Peppercorn Cottage, Burton, Christchurch, Hants. Absolutely Indispensable to Aviculturists ... “ AVICULTURE,” Vol. I, £1 Os. 9 d. ( Vols . II and III out of print.) A mine of information on birds of all kinds compiled by leading authorities on every branch of aviculture. ★ “ Index Guide to the Avicultural Magazine, 1894-1930.” By E. H. 55. To be obtained from: MESSRS. STEPHEN AUSTIN & SONS, LTD., 1 FORE STREET, HERTFORD, HERTS. For back numbers of the Avicultural Magazine apply also to the Publishers at the above address. ★ The originals of the plates published in the Avicultural Magazine may be, in most cases, purchased ; apply to the Secretary : MISS KNOBEL, 86 REGENT’S PARK ROAD, LONDON, N.W.l. STEPHEN AUSTIN AND SONS, LTD., PRINTERS, HERTFORD. V AVICULTURAL MAGAZINE PAGE Details on the Keeping of Humming Birds in Copenhagen ( with plates ), by Axel Reventlow .......... 69 New Budgerigars and Bengalees in Japan, by Jean Delacour ... 79 Change of Colour in Plumage without a Moult ..... 80 Aviculture in Australia, by Lewis M. Campbell .... . 90 Exotic Kingfishers in Captivity, by Jean Marie Derscheid 93 British Aviculturists’ Club ......... 96 Notes ............. 97 Correspondence . . . . . . . . . * 99 Statement of Accounts . . . . . . . . , .100 VOL. 64 No. 3 PRICE 5/* MAY-JUNE 1948 THE AVICULTURAL SOCIETY Founded 1894 President : A. EZRA, Esq., O.B.E. MEMBERSHIP SUBSCRIPTION is £1 per annum, due on 1st January each year, and payable in advance. Life Membership, £15. Subscriptions, Changes of Address, Names of Candidates for Membership, etc., should be sent to— The Honorary Secretary and Treasurer , Tel.: Primrose 0247. MISS E. MAUD KNOBEL, 86 Regent's Park Road, London, N.W.i. THE AVICULTURAL MAGAZINE is published bi-monthly and sent free to members. Members joining at any time during the year are entitled to back numbers for the current year on the payment of subscription. ALL MATTER FOR PUBLICATION IN THE MAGAZINE SHOULD BE ADDRESSED TO— The Editor , MISS PHYLLIS BARCLAY-SMITH, 51 Warwick Avenue, Tel. : Cunningham 3006. London, W. 9. The price of the Magazine to non-members is 55. post free per copy, or £ 1 ioj. for the year. Orders for the Magazine, extra copies, and back numbers (from 1917) should be sent to the publishers, Messrs. Stephen Austin & Sons, 1 Fore Street, Hertford. Tel. : Hertford 2546-8. POST-MORTEM EXAMINATIONS Rule i. A short account of the illness should accompany the specimen. All birds to be sent as fresh as possible to Mr. W. Lawrence, The Zoological Society of London, Regent’s Park, London, N.W. 8. Rule 2. A fee of ioj. and a stamped addressed envelope must be enclosed with the bird. Rule 3. No body or skin of any bird will be returned under any circumstances whatever. Avi. Mag. 1948, Fig. 1 . — Humming Bird Gage with Growing Vegetation Fig. 2. — Humming Birds Dead twigs are provided as perches as these are preferred by At top from the left : — Discosura longicauda Gm. Chlorostilbon au. Humming Birds in the wild. aureiventris D’Orb. and La.fr., and Chlorostilbon aureiventris egregius Heine. Note little clamp on holder of feeding vessel. Avicultural Magazine THE JOURNAL OF THE AVICULTURAL SOCIETY Vol. 54. — -No. 3. — All rights reserved. MAY-JUNE, 1948 DETAILS ON THE KEEPING OF HUMMING BIRDS IN COPENHAGEN By Axel Reventlow, Director Zoological Gardens, Copenhagen The Copenhagen Zoo has bought, in the course of five years, Humming Birds from different transports. Below I will tabulate the experience gained with regard to the keeping and care of these birds. The manner in which the data is compiled makes it possible to follow the life history of each bird. In the column where the species are given I have briefly mentioned characteristics such as docility and show- value. The column “ Remarks 55 contains data on the cause and symptoms of death. It is my hope that later on, when others have published their experiences on the keeping of these diminutive birds, it will be possible to ascertain the cause of the failure in some cases. 69 6 Details on the Keeping of Humming Birds in Copenhagen 1935 70 AXEL REVENTLOW - HUMMING BIRDS AT COPENHAGEN T) » co r- O H H CM CM ^ w oi a 01 01 «S8 Q Q to M^q « 6^0 -* « - o co u .<•> i X* U JO Sh eo Td 4J O} w 43 ^ .bD O *5 nd +j « t3 a .5 tj ID .MO Jj cd 2 -5 y Scd +-* Sh bO O cd o o iu « c 2 bo 3 l2| bo ° , Tj Ki m is 0 -M P^ S-i 5h Cd n — 4 lO CO m *ORO Onn H ” CO CO CO CO CO £« 6} li. ™ « ~ ^ 0 d d d 2^- t^ CM d d CO CO ^cd Cl ei .2 2 So •a s.s mi| s °J O U T3 *gs j!* |sr ’o’* g CTcd *¥> d a •S-S3 S (U .3 leg 1 ’Tl 1 5-< 2 o S ft S« Jo w) o ^0 fl'S 2< > o J «* •5 43 > u IS 3. -a o £ a _ _ f 42 - d ^ | *S « -m 42 «U C ^ .2^ i.l.Sf’l Q“~° CO CO 10 10 to CO CO CO to 10 d ci Cl co t^co o> o « cm co ^ m | fS. 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I'-. to w CO 00 od cq ►J ci CO CO n- a ►H 05 IO cd id *C>Of ~ CO 01 >i > £03 £ .3 5 t S 173 i b/1 (L> t-1 •3 'a? 4s > 53 O g ^3 I * »cs -t-> O O e a 2 2 3 3 o o 00 O 5 a ^ to T3 O 'Pffi CO ,0 T3 3 « £ V 1^* oS O 3 o ■§* co ,0 T3 3 Q „ g J-s s?Q etf <■« 3 8 b- Sn X «« CL Q o o U cm lo mco o Of 10 iCCO CO T3 « «, Q° f'- CO CO CO CO CO 05 CO co CO CO rfco co Of si °~ CM CO CO 05 05 « co co 41 CO CM m 4 ►1 CM CO CO 05 Of 05 a CO co CO CO J>- co CO CO co co co' .5£ CO 05 o mm co AXEL REVENTLOW— HUMMING BIRDS AT COPENHAGEN 75 m .Jj 3 o S m CO 02 11 S3 J a 8*3* 1 ^ 5 x •a « Q I i C© CO 03 r»* moo co ei CO lONO 03 O eo CO H W Cl M 1-. CO co a CO CO CO « « CO 03 n 0 ocom 03 CO CO 1- Z ^co •9 to to or o ej 04 eo J 03c© m >4, H a H <■» 4> a m u • S*8 8 SP'O d a « 35 *r< q. “ J*3 3 |fl |!| t§-S ,g.s IB II s r- cp r**. CO CO cp CO cp CO CO fi. CO CO CO ©6 CO m co r'' CO 03 0 *1 CM CO CO co co co co CO CO r- r- i> t". i". 76 AXEL REVENTLOW - HUMMING BIRDS AT COPENHAGEN The first Humming Birds acquired for Copenhagen — the first live Humming Birds ever displayed in the whole of Scandinavia — were bought by us on the 17th May, 1935, from Fockelmann (Hamburg). These birds were caught in the Pernambuco region. Cordier, the collector, acclimatized them and took them by boat to Le Havre. From there they were taken via Paris by aeroplane to Hamburg. Here I bought twenty-two birds and took them by aeroplane to Copenhagen. On the 22nd October, 1935, we bought a further eight Chrysolampis mosquitus L. from Fockelmann (Hamburg) ; the place where these birds were caught is unknown. On the 22nd June, 1936, we again bought twelve Humming Birds from Fockelmann (Hamburg) ; I went to Hamburg and took the birds by aeroplane to Copenhagen. Cordier had caught these birds in French Guiana and in the Brazils. On the 28th August, 1936, we bought a further seven Humming Birds from the same firm and I took them by aeroplane from Hamburg to Copenhagen. On the 1 8th June, 1937, I went to Hamburg, bought fifteen Humming Birds from Fockelmann, and took them by railway to Copenhagen. Cordier had likewise caught these birds. Finally, ten Humming Birds were bought from Fockelmann (London). I fetched these birds on the 8th July, 1938, from the Hanover Zoo and took them by railway to Copenhagen. It is unknown where these birds were caught. In my opinion it will pay to transport Humming Birds by aeroplane whenever this is possible, thereby avoiding having to resort to forcible feeding of delicate birds during transport. If covering long distances by rail, this will be absolutely necessary, but rather difficult. Our Humming Birds turned out to be an excellent show. They have been mentioned repeatedly in the newspapers and have attracted many visitors. The following species lived from the 17th May, 1935, to the 5th June, 1945, in the Copenhagen Zoo : — 1. Discosura longicauda Gmelin. 2. Agyrtria brevirostris Lesson. 3. Agyrtria lactea Lesson. 4. Chlorostilbon au. aureiventris D’Orbigny and Lafresnaye. 5. Chlorostilbon aureiventris egregius Heine. 6. Thalurania watertoni Bourcier. 7. Thalurania glaucopis Gmelin. 8. Chrysolampis mosquitus Linnaeus. 9. Bellona christata Linnaeus. 10. Sericotes holosericeus Linnaeus. 1 1 . Heliactis bilopha Temminck. 12. Heliomaster squamosis Temminck. 13. Bygmornis pygmaeus Spix or Phaetornis rufiventris Cabanis and Heine. 14. An unknown species. Especially good results were obtained with the following species, AXEL RE VENTLOW— -HUMMING BIRDS AT COPENHAGEN 77 mention only being made of those which lived for more than one year with us : — • Discosura longicauda Gm. 55 55 55 Agyrtria lac tea Less. Chlorostilbon au aureiventis D’Orb. & Lafr Chlorostilbon aureiventris egregius Heine Chrysolampis mosquitus L. Bellona christata L. Sericotes holosericeus L. 55 e P „ 55 Agyrtria brevirostris Less year 32 days 226 „ 1 1 „ 99 » 2 „ 40 „ 7 156 „ 1 „ 180 „ 1 „ 244 „ 2 „ 137 „ 2 „ 228 „ From 18.6.37 t° 5-6.45. 1 7 JJ I 35 7 >> I „ 122 33 I „ 348 „ I 3, 272 ,3 i „ 3l6 » 1 „ 325 » I 55 7 5? 1 „ 7 » 1 3, 18 „ 1 „ 104 33 1 >, 19° » 1 » 210 „ 3 years 329 „ 3 » 344 » 3 » 346 » 1 year 76 „ 2 years 24 ,, 3 » 322 „ 3 » 332 » That is to say that of the seventy-four Humming Birds kept here in Copenhagen twenty-eight birds ( = 38 per cent) lived here for more than one year ; eight birds (=11 per cent) more than two years, and five birds (=7 per cent) more than three years. One bird (= about 2 per cent) lived here for more than seven years. In view of the small experience hitherto made with regard to the keeping of these species, the result is to be considered rather satisfactory. One Bellona christata L. attained the greatest longevity here, viz. 3 years 346 days, and one Chlorostilbon aureiventris egregius Heine nearly eight years (from the 18th June, 1937, to the 5th June, 1945). It was, of course, incomprehensible to me why so many apparently healthy and lively Humming Birds died suddenly and unexpectedly since the month of June, 1940. I investigated the food and everything most carefully, but was unable to find any acceptable cause. Therefore I asked our veterinary surgeon, Mr. A. Bang-Olsen, at the Royal Veterinary College in Copenhagen, to examine microscopically a Bellona christata L., which died on the 1st June, 1940. Mr. Bang Olsen ascertained that the animal was full of tape-worms, no less than ten worms being found in this bird. Later on Mrs. Elise W esenberg-Lund , 78 AXEL REVENTLOW — HUMMING BIRDS AT COPENHAGEN M.A. (Zoological Museum, Copenhagen), determined these tape¬ worms as belonging to the Taenia group. The Swiss, Mr. Fuhrmann, has described a Taenia species found in Humming Birds as Anonchotaenia trochili. It is assumed that some of the birds that died suddenly after the ist April, 1940, also had these tape- worms. On the 1 st January, 1945, I have therefore only one Humming Bird left, viz. one Chlorostilbon aureiventris egregius Heine. This bird is living peaceably together with two Blue Honey-eaters ( Cyanerpes syaneus L.) in the Humming Bird cage. In order not to run any risk I have only placed two such birds in the cage, as I first wish to see whether these will die of tape- worms too. With regard to the Chrysolampis mosquitus that died on the 30th July, 1939, I wish to add the following comments : The bird frequently had fits (the first time on the 1 ith February, 1939). The animal threw its head back, fluttered wildly about in the cage, finally dropped to the bottom with closed eyes and rapidly turned round about itself. The bird was removed from the cage without delay and taken to a dark and cool place. After some minutes the fit was over. When the cage door was opened suddenly and the bird was frightened thereby, the fits immediately returned. Various other Chrysolampis mosquitus L. have had these fits too. In definite species I have not observed similar attacks. With regard to the equipment of the Humming Bird cages with vegetation and plants in flower, Monstera deliciosa , with its numerous air-roots, has turned out to be excellent and frequently used as perches by the Humming Birds ; the same thing applies to stone-ferns as, for instance, Nephrolepis whitmanni , various Erica , Begonia , and Solanum capricastrum, and hendersonii. The plants are sprinkled once or twice a day with plenty of water. Some of the water should always be left on the green leaves, and it is a lovely sight to watch the tiny birds when bathing, nay wallowing therein. A somewhat constant tempera¬ ture of minimum 20° and maximum 230 C. is to be recommended. By insertion or removal of a glass plate the Humming Bird cage may be divided or enlarged. I consider it important to give the Humming Birds as much space as possible for flight as, in this case, they will not quarrel much. To facilitate the drinking for newly arrived, delicate, or moulting birds a little clamp has been attached to the feeding vessel (see fig. 2). Healthy and strong Humming Birds will rarely sit when drinking, nor will they voluntarily come down to the bottom of the cage. The clamp may be moved to and fro — according to the size of the bird. Long-billed Humming Birds have naturally to be seated at some distance from the drinking vessels. The transport cages (Fig. 3) have to be cleansed most carefully, otherwise the plumage will stick together and prevent the Humming Avi. Mag. 1948. W' - v" , ^ ,< . ^ a~y* \* . - ;xx ^ 'Mrra'^j:?M Copyright ] [ Axel Reventlow Fig. 3. — Transport Gage for Humming Birds (model Gordier) Made by Natives in Brazil. Copyright] [Axel Reventlow Fig. 4. — Tame Leptocoma zeylonica. To face p. 78. ■ J. DELAGOUR - NEW BUDGERIGARS AND BENGALEES IN JAPAN 79 Bird from flying. During transport the birds perch on soft stems. The cage floor is covered with a cellophane plate, which is easily kept clean. I further wish to mention Leptocoma zeylonica L. (Fig. 4), which was under my care for some time. This bird died from an eye disease, no doubt, due to avitaminose. At any rate, later on I have been more successful, when applying more vitaminous food. During transport to Europe the bird no doubt obtained insufficient vitamins. Small birds as, for instance, Flower-peckers (Dicaeum), with eye diseases have been restored to health by me by giving them food of a high vitamin content. A few drops of orange juice in the fluid food may be recommended for Humming Birds. In a later article I will give an account of my experiences on the feeding of Humming Birds. * * * NEW BUDGERIGARS AND BENGALEES IN JAPAN By Jean Delagour War, privations, bombing, defeat, and invasion have not entirely stopped the ancient course of Japanese avicultural achievements. Count G. Revedin, the Italian Representative at the Tokyo head¬ quarters, and an old bird-lover, has sent me recently a coloured chart issued by the Japanese Society of Cage Bird Breeders represent¬ ing forty new varieties of Bengalees and eight of Budgerigars. Four of the latest are sensational in that they are crested, one even has a mane of curled feathers along the neck and on the upper back ; the crests of the other three differ in shape. These crests resemble those of Crested Canaries, and also of the Bengalees which have been obtained in Japan ten or more years ago. The other four Budgerigars show a white cap and the under parts have large white spots. They are of the green, blue, and grey forms. Twenty of the Bengalees are white with various even black marks and spots. The other twenty are plain-coloured, buff, black, cinnamon, or white ; not only most of them are crested, but they also possess manes and frills combined in various ways much as in domestic pigeons. Count Revedin writes also that Blue-masked Lovebirds are com¬ moner to-day in Japan than the normal green ones and that both varieties sell at the same price ; a few pairs of white ones have recently been bred from the blues. Prices of all the different new varieties of birds still are very high. 8o CHANGE OF COLOUR IN PLUMAGE WITHOUT A MOULT GHANGE OF COLOUR IN PLUMAGE WITHOUT A MOULT Report of Discussion at Meeting of British Aviculturists5 Club A discussion on the possibility of colour change without a moult was held at the B.A.C. meeting on 10th March, 1948, with Miss Barclay-Smith in the Chair. Dr. Jeffery Harrison opened the discussion. After some introductory remarks he gave a brief historical review of what has been, and apparently still is, one of the greatest of ornithological controversies. Tracing back the origin to a Captain Gartright in 1792, the views of Hunt, a keeper of the London Zoo in 1833, Gatke, the famous Heligoland ornithologist. Chapman, Allen, Millais, and others were considered. After mentioning the findings of Dr. Bahr, in 1910, about the Black-headed Gull, Dr. Harrison dealt in detail with Witherby’s review of Millais5 British Diving Ducks , in which there was a complete account of the controversy to that date. The evidence was so definitely against the possibility of a colour change without moult that the theory fell into disrepute from then, except for one lone supporter in Abel Chapman, the Northumberland naturalist. Dr. Harrison went on to relate how it was that he had become con¬ vinced that the theory was in fact correct, at any rate in wading birds, and he gave a demonstration on the Knot, Black-tailed Godwit, and Redshank, illustrating his remarks with specimens and three series of feathers taken at various dates ranging from freshly-moulted autumn to fully-developed spring plumage. Black pigment could be seen developing in the normal winter coloured feather towards the early spring ; later, pale chestnut could be noticed forming, until the whole feather took on the appearance of an anaemic spring example, which later came into colour and was fully formed. Some of these feathers were already worn, and all had empty quill bases, so that there could be no question of any recent moult. Dr. Harrison then said : “ This was the evidence that I brought forward at a meeting of the British Ornithologists5 Club recently.1 I was followed by Mr. B. W. Tucker, who is a well-known ornithologist and one of the chief antagonists of the theory. I am in complete agree¬ ment with him when he says that the only proof will be to keep a bird in captivity, mark an individual feather and photograph it at different stages. He argued that the demonstration consisted of different individual feathers from different individual birds and that there was no proof whatever — or even very good prima facie evidence — that the 1 Full details of all the above have already been published in the Bulletin of the British Ornithologists Club, Volume 68, pp. 40-48. CHANGE OF COLOUR IN PLUMAGE WITHOUT A MOULT 8l colour or pattern of any given feather had ever been different from what we now see. I have examined a large number of individual birds, especially Redshanks, and I do not agree that this is correct, because they all pass through the stages I have shown, and all at roughly the same time of the year. If these feathers were always the same, as Mr. Tucker has argued, then similar plumaged birds should be met with all through the spring. But this is not so ; for instance, Knots with black markings on their backs and nothing further are only found in February and March, after which they have all advanced further into spring plumage. There are, of course, the few exceptions which do not assume any spring plumage at all. These are often non-breeding birds which do not complete their full migration, and are not relevant to the discussion. “ In criticizing one of my main points, that some of the spring feathers have worn tips, and therefore cannot be new feathers, Mr. Tucker stated : 4 No doubt in some individuals some feathers of the new plumage may begin to come in much earlier than others, and there is no reason why such precociously formed feathers should not be quite appreciably abraded before the main moult sets in.5 This again is not in accord with my findings, and after all, I have examined a large series of skins. Abraded feathers are very common in these species in the month of May, too common to account for them all as ‘ precociously formed feathers ’, which applies something unusual and, although I freely admit that I do not know how long it takes for a feather to become abraded, I do not believe that freshly-moulted spring plumage could become abraded by May. “ I must add that in spite of Mr. Tucker’s remarks, my faith in the correctness of the theory remained unshaken. I do think that where people have gone astray in the past is that they have only studied birds in the later stages of transition, in April and May, when moult obscures the finer colour changes. Examples in January and February show perfectly clearly the early stages of colour change, and should be apparent to anyone who studies the feathers carefully. <£ For the loan of specimens with which I was able to work out my views I have to acknowledge with gratitude the help of the British Museum, South Kensington, and my father, Dr. J. M. Harrison. When I gave my talk to the British Ornithologists’ Club, I ended by saying that it seemed to me, on the basis of the evidence produced, that the feather was not really an inert structure, even after it was fully formed, but was capable of undergoing various changes. What these changes are has yet to be discovered, but I expected that they would be found to be some complicated biochemical change, leading to an alteration in pigment. You can imagine how pleased I was when Lieut.-Commander Staples came forward two months later with a most excellent theory in full support of my views.” 82 CHANGE OF COLOUR IN PLUMAGE WITHOUT A MOULT Lieut. -Commander C. P. Staples then advanced his theory how such a change could take place and said : “ When a feather is fully formed it is to all intents and purposes a dead structure, and once it hardens or cornifies its base seals up so that nothing can enter it from the body of the bird. “ These two claims are relied on by the experts, who repudiate colour change in birds. As the microscope discloses no channel of entry into the feather base they say that nothing can enter, and so a change is impossible in a definitive feather. Surely, if such an opening did exist it would be a sorry state of affairs for a bird. The feather shaft would be filled with blood or other fluid, while it would be an unfortunate bird whose feathers continued to enlarge and grow. In either event, the power of flight would be lost. Actually, the structure of a feather, dead, rigid, and hollow, serves its purpose very well, but structure is one thing and the colouring that is superimposed on structure is another. “ I disagree with the experts in that I contend that you can have a colour change in a feather without a defined channel of entry through its base. Primary changes, that is a transition from one coloured pigment to another, I do not think can occur but tonal changes can and in fact do. By tonal changes, I mean deeper gradations of the same pigment which, in the case of melanin, involves all the greys, browns, and blacks — a wide range of shades. “ We all know that feathers possess a slight oil content. We also know that food of an oily nature affects the colouring of feathers at the moult. Linseed deepens colours ; hempseed improves the tones of the Goldfinch but sometimes darkens the Bullfinch ; the rosy hues of Flamingoes are deficient or absent when the birds are deprived of a crustacean diet, but restored when such a diet is provided and an oily vehicle is necessary in colour-feeding Canaries and others with artificial colouring agents if even assimilation is to be obtained. It also seems to be well established that oil in the diet continues to affect by absorption even after the moult, and it is thus reasonable to assume that, although it may be a dead structure, a feather can still absorb oils and fats. A microscope is not necessary to see a small drop of oil permeating a piece of parchment, and the physical natures of parch¬ ment and the cortex of feathers are similar. Hence, I see no reason why a physiologically active substance, oil-borne, cannot permeate feather structure and thus effect a change in colour tone. No channel of entry will be necessary, for the cortex itself will absorb the oily substance in the same way as parchment does. “ Oil only affects body contour feathers — it appears to have no impression on quill feathers, that is to say the primaries and secondaries of the wings and the large feathers of the tail. Look at the colour-fed Canary — its quills remain pale yellow. Why is this so ? Simply because quill feathers are attached to bone, while body contour CHANGE OF COLOUR IN PLUMAGE WITHOUT A MOULT 83 feathers are embedded in fat, and oil is absorbed by fat and not by bone* Consequently, colour changes without a moult are limited to the body contour feathers. The quills are the instruments of flight, to have them softened by secretions of oil would be a disadvantage. “ The changes that occur in birds appear just prior to the mating and breeding seasons and are patent to us all. There is a general improvement both in sheen and texture and colours tend to deepen or clarify. You, as aviculturists, speak of birds coming into colour, we, as field naturalists, say they are acquiring breeding plumage. We both mean the same thing. The changes are more noticeable in feathers carrying the fat or lipochrome pigments, that is the reds and yellows and, indirectly, the greens. Green itself is not a pigment but a structural colour on a yellow lipochrome base, the prismatic surface of the feather causes the green colour. The coming up in colour of the blaze of the Goldfinch, the improved yellows and deepened chestnuts of the Yellow Bunting, and the clarification of the red of the Bullfinch are common examples. “ Is it an established fact that birds are induced to commence and carry out the sequences of the breeding cycle by hormonic secretions ? It is too much to suggest that other secretions from the fat parts of the birds permeate feathers at the same time and so improve their colouring at a season when improvement is essential from a biological point of view. Whether such secretions are connected with these hormonic secretions is a matter for conjecture, but I would point out that some birds change the colours of their bills at the same time by internal secretions. I think you will agree that this conception is the logical result of the chain of circumstances that go to make up the rhythmic breeding cycle of birds. Thus I claim that oily secretions from the fat parts of birds in which the body contour feathers are situated improve texture and tone, just as linseed oil improves the surface and graining of wood, and hair-oil deepens the colouring and adds lustre to the human hair. “ But what about the melanin pigments, the greys, browns, and blacks. The pigment melanin is believed to be formed in the blood¬ stream and to be akin to the hormone adrenalin, which is a secretion of the supra-renal glands near the kidneys. Though it differs from the fat lipochromes in its origin it is found in association with these in the same feather and occurs in amorphous granules. But melanin is also commonly formed by a chemical process in nature. This arises through the oxidation of the free animo-acid tyrosine, which is to be found in all sprouting seeds, in the protein content of hempseed and, this is important, is present in the cortex of all epidermal structures, including feathers. Tyrosine is colourless, but if it be mixed in the atmosphere with the fat enzyme or ferment tyrosinase — which is also colourless — oxidation is induced and the tyrosine changes to garnet-red, then to 84 CHANGE OF COLOUR IN PLUMAGE WITHOUT A MOULT reddish-brown, then brown, and finally black, which is ultimate melanin. If you expose a cut apple or potato to the air you see these changes occur ; similar changes are apparent in the gills of some toad¬ stools which pass from pink to purplish-black as the seeds ripen. It is also the chemical source of the sepia cloud exuded by the marine squid. So you can see it is a very common source of melanin. “ A concentrated diet of a very oily type of hempseed sometimes induces melanism in a Bullfinch. The hempseed previously imported from south-east Europe contained 35 per cent of oil and seems to have been the potent form. I am of the opinion that this is caused by tyrosine and tyrosinase, which are the only common denominators, coupled with the fact that the Bullfinch gets inactive, greedy, and overfat on a diet of hemp. Thus, you get a state of dis-equilibrium, with a consequent overspill of these two substances, with the formation of excessive melanin as the result. The Goldfinch and the Redpoll, on the other hand, although avid hempseed eaters, always remain active and so work off any tendency to fatness that a diet of hempseed might induce. The Red Cardinal in captivity sometimes darkens like the Bullfinch and for the same reason. “ Such a chemical reaction would account for the changes in melanin markings which Dr. J. G. Harrison has found in wader’s feathers, particularly as their oily diet of mollusca and Crustacea would be an asset to such reaction. It would also account for the appearance of grey markings on feathers previously clear of marking and, moreover, answer part of the extraordinary change which occurs in the plumage of the cock Snow Bunting in spring, all of which cannot be answered by the simple explanation of abrasion. If this were so why does not the hen Snow Bunting change in like manner ? “ This brings me to the question of abrasion, which is claimed by many as the only way in which colour changes are brought about in existing feathers. Abrasion of the soft tips of feathers undoubtedly occurs with nearly all birds, otherwise they would not need to replace feathers annually. But I cannot agree that abrasion in the sense of a wearing away of the feather tips by outside agencies is a satisfactory conception by itself. This means that coming into colour is a haphazard, happy-go-lucky sort of affair, dependent entirely on the effects of sand, wood, twigs, and other wearing away factors of a bird’s habitat from time to time. Thus it is fortuitous in action, yet it is exact in fulfilment, for no matter where a bird lives, whether wild or caged, no matter when it moults, late or early, no matter what may be its choice of habitat, each acquires nuptial plumage at the right moment. Moreover, it seems such a wasteful proposition from the biological point of view that an otherwise virile male should depend for a compatible mate on the chance effect that outside agencies may have had on its plumage. If abrasion is a mere rubbing away, why CHANGE OF COLOUR IN PLUMAGE WITHOUT A MOULT 85 then does the Great Tit become cleaned up before the Blue Tit in the wild. They resort to the same habitats and undergo the same stresses of weather and environment. Take the Linnet and Yellow Bunting — equally compatible and sharing similar habitats, yet the former is invariably in colour before the latter and goes to nest earlier just as the Great Tit commences its spring song before the Blue Tit. Each bird comes into colour when ready to mate and breed and that is the crux of the matter. “ Now if I am right about fatty secretions permeating feathers, surely they would tend to accelerate the dropping away of worn and unwanted feather tips and so time the culmination of abrasion and abrasive moult to the sexual maturity of the bird. There are some aspects of abrasive moult in caged birds that lend support to this. Take Linnets, Twites, and Redpolls, where the male in the wild state discloses by abrasion those secondary sexual characters of red flushes, the Twite on the rump, the other two on the breast and flanks. What happens in captivity ? They never abrade out in their proper tone — they generally remain bronze or old gold. “ While the wild bird seems to improve the half moon of colour which lies beneath the brown tips, the captive bird does not, the colour remains static. The distinction lies, I suggest, in their different circum¬ stances. The wild bird is always faced with the competition of pro¬ miscuous males just as anxious as he is to mate and breed, while the captive bird is not so faced. Hence the latter is to a certain extent inhibited, its secretions are less intense, and its secondary sexual characters of red flushes become suppressed in consequence. Similarly, the cock Snow Bunting never abrades out into the full black of the wild specimen on back and wing coverts. “ If you have followed me thus far you will appreciate that I claim that body contour feathers can undergo a slight colour change without a moult as the result of a fatty secretion with or without a physio¬ logically active substance in association. The colour of melanin pigmentation may be similarly changed, greys become browns and browns blacks, or previously blank areas disclose melanin through the oxidation of tyrosine. Lipochrome colours would be deepened and effect a considerable improvement in the depth of prismatic colours by improving the tone of the underlying yellow lipochrome or black melanin, as the case may be. Furthermore, the effect of a secretion would be to hasten the dropping off of the light tips of feathers which obscure colours until they are abraded away and be the means of bringing into view secondary sexual plumage characters at the right moment and when the bird is best fitted to mate. “ To prove all this by experiment is not easy, particularly as an organic, free-flowing oil, comparable to that excreted by living fat is not to be got. I have found, however, that light inorganic oils can be 7 86 CHANGE OF COLOUR IN PLUMAGE WITHOUT A MOULT absorbed by the cortex of feathers. But one does find some indirect corroboration of this conception in two directions. First, the use by birds of the preen gland. They normally resort to this for the dressing of their quill feathers and not their body contour feathers and, in point of fact, the preen gland is absent in the flightless birds and suppressed in some forms of parrots that climb rather than fly. Assumedly the body contour feathers receive their quota of oil from the body. On the other hand, post-mortem changes in bird skins also disclose that fading occurs in body contour feathers while the colours of quills remain constant — which suggests that a drying out process takes place in body contour feathers. “ I do not suggest a primary change of colour, for it would be quite illogical to contemplate heavy re-pigmentation of feathers at the same time as a bird is undergoing the functional changes and stresses of the breeding cycle, quite apart from the fact that the deposition of new pigment in a grown feather is mechanically improbable. Pigments as such are not free flowing. Melanin can only pigment a feather while the feather is connected to the blood stream while lipochrome pigments can only pigment feathers when soft and in fat as fat and not a secretion from fat. “ I hope that this subjective treatment of the question of colour change without a moult will lead to a useful and instructive discussion. I have mentioned some changes and would like to hear of more that you, as expert and observant aviculturists, have noticed, and also whether any of you has had experience of induced melanism in the Bullfinch. “ I am especially appreciative of the honour you have done me in asking me along to-night to continue the discussion so ably initiated by Dr. J. G. Harrison, and of having the opportunity of meeting members of the B.A.C., for I hold that ornithologists and aviculturists should work more closely together in furtherance of their common interest — an appreciation and love of birds and all that that implies.” Sir Philip Manson-Bahr, in a very entertaining speech, adorned by freely-adapted quotations from Tennyson, pointed out the necessity of a correct, well-balanced diet for birds as well as for human beings. He said that in humans it was possible for the colour of the skin and hair to undergo slight colour changes. The stage could be brought about, for instance, by a protein deficiency. Body cells adapted to specialized functions were liable to change, or even entire withering away, and such changes could be brought about by diet ; he instanced some of the unfortunate inmates of the concentration camps at Belsen and Buchenwald who, although rescued alive, were doomed to die because, owing to long deprivation and consequent disuse, the cells adapted to absorb certain essential food substances were no longer present in the body. Sir Philip said he was of the opinion that plumage CHANGE OF COLOUR IN PLUMAGE WITHOUT A MOULT 87 could assume a colour change without a moult and continued : “ Much interest has been aroused in recent years in the discovery of 6 growth factors 3 in medicine. One especially, which has been applied to the treatment of human disease since 1946, is pteroylglutamic acid, more familiarly known as folic acid, or folvite. “ As so often happens it did not come out of the blue, but has a some- what romantic history. It is probably a vitamin. For a long time it was purely of scientific interest and was used by bacteriologists to encourage the growth of certain bacteria in the laboratory, but soon its action was investigated in monkeys, in which certain definite symptoms were produced when fed on a diet deficient in folic acid. It then became known as Vitamin M. At this time the main source of supply was garden spinach, from which it could be isolated by a most laborious and tedious process. Soon, however, it was found to be present in small quantities in liver and in yeast. In 1 945 it was synthesized and is being manufactured on a large scale in America. “ When applied to human disease it has proved most beneficial in certain types of anaemia and especially to the mysterious malady known as sprue, but in the last year it has been applied to animals and in America it has been shown to be a growth factor in chickens, turkeys, and pigs. It is generally thought to be essential for nutrition and to be concerned fundamentally with production of blood cells, as well as with the actual absorption from the alimentary tract. Quite recently, it has been discovered that it is concerned with the feathering of chicks and turkey poults and in hens with ovulation. In this country it is a very expensive drug, as it is manufactured in the land of dollars, where, we are assured, it is now being fed by chicken farmers to their hens to boost their egg-output. Folic acid must also be an important factor in the feathering of wild birds as it is present in all young plants and in germinating seeds, and is probably essential for the nutrition of the growing shaft. In the papers which have so far appeared the illustrations depicting the growth of the scapulary and secondaries of the wing are most convincing. “ It may well prove to be that folic acid is concerned, through its action on the blood, not only with the growth, but also with the colouration of plumage. “ The subject of nutrition is fundamental ; it is also very complex. It is obviously dependent on absorption from the intestinal tract, especially from the small intestine. Any agent, whether chemical or bacterial, which damages the absorptive surface of the small intestine also interferes with nutrition. Alterations in the type of bacteria living on the gut may profoundly affect the whole body, because these micro- organisms are concerned with the synthesis of several vitamins which are essential to the proper functioning of the complex machinery of nutrition. And so it comes about that any gross change in the nature 88 CHANGE OF COLOUR IN PLUMAGE WITHOUT A MOULT of the food supply or bacterial contamination can bring about profound changes in the constitution of a bird, as well as of man, and that in the former these may be reflected in growth, colouration, and texture of feathers, and in the latter in the appearance of the skin and in the texture and colouration of the hair.” Mr. Allen Silver intimated that as a layman he must observe some caution in the matter, but he always welcomed anything which would stir up the pedants and cause them to look into and, if necessary, refurbish summaries of detail that had been accepted as unalterable. He first dealt with the artificial custom of colour-feeding cage birds : pointing out that once a bird had fully grown its new plumage (except for a chance feather growing at the time) it was useless to try to colour- feed it until the moult ensued. It was customary to carry out this process slightly before, during, and slightly after the period usually assumed to cover the duration of a complete moult. He said one could not colour-feed a white bird, as there was no zooxanthin in its plumage to stain, but that the colour of the soft parts, bills, tarsi, eyelids, ear lappets could be changed at all periods of the year by using colour- food. Moreover, so far-reaching was its effect when used that the pale yolks of hens’ eggs became blood-red after a brief feeding of a small proportion of this matter in their mash. He had found this substance had no effect on the yellow feathers of Parrots, but as these birds generally lacked a gall-bladder he thought that might be accountable for the fact that in these cases the use of colour-food was non-effectual. In allusion to certain European or British birds, he said in the case of Goldfinches with no light tips to the frontal red head feathers it was obvious that these areas of colour which were sandy-red just after the moult gradually changed almost to arterial crimson by June ; and although the huffish tips in Bramblings, Chaffinches, Redstarts, Stonechats, etc., were doubtless in part abraded, he was not sure that in part, even though small, there was not some colour change from the base upwards to account for the solid colour areas of slate, black, or red, as the case might be, which were conspicuous among such birds in the breeding season. Commander Staples had advocated co-operation between aviculturists and ornithologists, and had urged frequent examination of the formers’ birds. He was in complete agree¬ ment that there should be all possible co-operation, but pointed out that aviculturists were, perhaps naturally, usually somewhat unwilling to handle their birds more often than was absolutely necessary, owing to the possibility of adversely affecting any breeding operations. Sir Godfrey Davis gave his experience with Avadavats in India. On occasions when it had been necessary to keep them indoors they had invariably quickly lost their fiery-red colour and turned a rusty-brown. A short spell out of doors, with sunshine and daily sprayings, soon restored the colour. CHANGE OF COLOUR IN PLUMAGE WITHOUT A MOULT 89 Mr. Lynch also dealt with colour-feeding and its various aspects. He said he had recently been colour-feeding his Cornish Chough : and although it was in full plumage it had changed very noticeably. After some ten days it was much darker and the plumage had taken on a new lustre. Miss Knobel said that during the Great War her three Amazon Parrots, fed on substitute foods, had turned yellow ; but on the deficiencies in their diet being made good they had regained their normal colour. The Hon. Anthony Chaplin alluded to the colour change of the North American Indigo Bunting and thought he remembered that the late Dr. A. G. Butler gave to the Natural History Museum a series of skins from the “ Linnet ” phase to the blue phase (nuptial dress) which demonstrated colour change in actual feathers. He also referred to a series of Humming Bird skins, Topazapella (Guiana King Humming Bird) in the Paris Museum, in which the metallic colours occurred gradually on the plain coloured feathers themselves. Dr. Harrison explained, however, that in Humming Birds and some other species with iridescent plumage, the apparent colouring was not due to pigmentation but to the structure of the feathers, which acted as minute prisms in refracting white light and reflecting its constituent colours. Presumably the birds whose feathers were only partly metallic were immature and had not yet developed these peculiarities of feather structure. Dr. Tom Hare said that he was surprised that this matter of unalterable appearance in a feather should form a source of con¬ troversy. The appearance of the skin in birds and animals in its departure from the normal was an indication of the state of health of the creature, and this, together with nails, bills, etc., was continually growing and being replaced. He referred to the changes of colour which might occur in hair attached to its follicle, and he saw no reason why feathers attached to their nuclei should not be able to change in hue. Feathers were not entirely dead, but forming part of a living organism remained living structures. The meeting concluded with a speech by Mr. Buisman who expressed his pleasure in being able to attend the discussion. In Holland the keeping of softbills was prohibited, and even the keeping of hardbills was allowed to only a very limited extent. On his return he proposed to bring to the notice of Dutch ornithologists how important and interesting were matters associated with Aviculture. He hoped that it would be the means of at least some being allowed to keep birds for observation purposes, as it was evident that the prohibition now in force was inimical to scientific progress. A. A. P. 90 LEWIS M. CAMPBELL - AVICULTURE IN AUSTRALIA AVICULTURE IN AUSTRALIA By Lewis M. Campbell, Secretary, Avicultural Society of Australia In a rash moment I offered the Editor an article on this subject and now the bird has come home to roost. At the outset I would like to explain that I am unable to speak of the greater part of Australia at first hand, since I have not had the good fortune to visit any of the other States since I became interested in aviculture. What follows, then, is, to a very large extent, my impression gained from corre¬ spondence and conversations with members of my Society from other States and with members who have visited those States. As a generalization one may say that the aviculturist in Australia is a man of limited means, which usually means that his area available for aviaries is also limited. Even those with the means and area available for enlargement of their aviaries are finding it almost impossible to do so owing to the scarcity of netting and shelter material: The result is that an average collection consists of Australian Finches or Parrots or a mixture of both with a sprinkling of foreigners. All generalizations, however, are subject to exceptions and there are some notable ones to this, large collections with a good variety of foreign birds, mainly Parrots and Pheasants. Under the climatic conditions prevailing on the mainland it is possible to keep most birds in good condition in outdoor aviaries with open flights throughout the year ; in the south, however, some tropical foreigners and some birds from the rain jungles of Northern Australia require more protected conditions. Experience has shown that winter losses are heavy unless the shelters are properly sited and absolutely draught free or that the flights are planted with well grown trees and shrubs to give adequate natural protection. Prices of Australian birds have risen a little during and since the war, but not out of proportion to other commodities. The price of seed was controlled until the end of last year, and since control has been removed there has been a sharp upward rise, though this again has not been to an unreasonable degree under the circumstances. I will not tantalize you by quoting prices, for even with the increases you would think we are living in an aviculturist’s paradise for both birds and seed. In each of the capital cities, and some others, Bird Societies are flourishing. Most of them are mainly concerned with Canaries and Budgerigars and are showing societies. It is evident from the show catalogues that I have seen that Finches, Parrots, and other birds occupy only a place of minor importance as compared with Canaries and Budgerigars in these societies. So far as I am aware my own Society is the only non-showing one in Australia, but it is evident LEWIS M. CAMPBELL - AVICULTURE IN AUSTRALIA 91 from its growth in all States that there is a considerable body of bird- keepers interested in the care and breeding of birds apart from their show-bench possibilities. The great majority of aviculturists here are content to breed true to type, but there are a few who like to explore the possibilities of hybridizing and colour mutations. At the moment there are only two avicultural publications issued in Australia ; both commenced in the same way as roneoed sheets for distribution among the members of the issuing society, but they have since developed along different lines. One of these is Bird World , issued under the aegis of the Australian Avicultural Association located in Sydney, and the other Australian Aviculture issued to members of the Avicultural Society of Australia, whose headquarters are in Melbourne. Those responsible for the production of Bird World decided to convert it to a commercial proposition and have had their troubles in establish¬ ing and financing it. In their endeavours to meet these troubles they have progressively widened the scope of the journal from one concerned with aviary birds, including Canaries and Budgerigars, until it has now become a live hobbies journal. We, being less optimistic or energetic, have progressed more slowly and cautiously and the expansion of the journal has been regulated by the funds available from members5 subscriptions. The result has been that our journal, although retaining a modest appearance, is growing in size and provides as much or more avicultural information than Bird World. To date, owing to the growth of membership, it has not been necessary to increase the almost nominal subscription to finance the journal. The effect of the war, so it seems to me, has been to increase interest in aviculture, not so much, perhaps, in the way of new recruits as amongst those already interested in the keeping of birds. Prior to the war, crews of ships running from India, China, and other countries used to supplement their pay by bringing to Australia hundreds of such birds as Pekin Robins, Strawberry Finches, Spice Finches, Java Sparrows, and Silverbills, which they sold at very low rates. Australian Finches and some Parrots could also be obtained in quantities very cheaply. The result was that aviaries could be kept stocked and losses replaced at little cost. There was a tendency for some to take the easy course and to depend on replacements rather than breeding to maintain their collections. With the outbreak of war the supply of birds from overseas ceased, as did, to a very great extent, the trapping of Australian birds. The effect was that bird-keepers, faced with the depletion of their aviaries, became much more interested in breeding and thus insensibly became aviculturists. During the war the Commonwealth Health Authorities became 92 LEWIS M. CAMPBELL - AVICULTURE IN AUSTRALIA very conscious of the possibility of the introduction of certain stock and other diseases not already established in Australia, and issued very stringent regulations governing the import of live stock — possibly over stringent in some respects. The consequence is that it is now practically impossible for the private aviculturist to import birds from abroad. This position has had an interesting result in Adelaide, one of our leading centres of aviculture. There aviculturists can obtain unlimited quantities of termites or “ white ants 55 as they are popularly called. It is generally considered that the availability of this live food accounts for the success of Adelaide aviculturists in breeding Australian and foreign Finches and softbills. Being true aviculturists, never happy unless they are trying to coax a difficult or new species to breed, they began to look about for new worlds to conquer when no more foreigners were available. So they have turned their attention to Australian softbills. Some species of these, of course, have been bred previously, but our softbills are practically a virgin field for aviculturists. Last season four species were successfully bred and some others tried. So far I have not heard what developments have occurred this season, but I am sure there will have been further successes in this field as competition is keen there to be a “ first ” breeder. To sum up aviculture in Australia is still well within the reach o* a man of modest means and is in a very healthy condition. All societies seem to be in a sound position and to be doing useful work among their members by talks and lectures at their meetings. The educational side is extended to a wider field by medium of the two journals published and the information they convey is encouraging their readers to extend their collections, their experiments, and their researches. JEAN MARIE DERSCHEID - EXOTIC KINGFISHERS IN CAPTIVITY 93 EXOTIC KINGFISHERS IN CAPTIVITY By Jean Marie Derscheid [Translated and reprinted from Notes Avicoles et ornithologiques , Editees par Aviornis, by permission of the Editor. (This article was written by the late Dr. Derscheid during his imprisonment in Brussels.)] Although its beauty of plumage makes the special efforts needed to accustom it to a life in captivity worth while, one is obliged to admit that as a general rule our European Kingfisher (Alcedo atthis ispida L.) must be considered as of little use for cages and aviaries. Its unsociable and intractable character, its almost invincible savage¬ ness, and above all the almost unsurmountable difficulty of providing it with the necessary food (particularly live fish) to induce it to eat willingly makes, for the majority of aviculturists, the attempts at taming this bird, even young specimens taken from the nest, not worth the difficulties and the inevitable troubles and complications which have to be overcome. The European species is in fact suitable only for those who are past masters in the art of keeping delicate and recalcitrant birds in good condition.1 It is also interesting to note here that the drawbacks and difficulties are much less in the case of certain exotic species of Kingfishers ; the difference is due in part to the more calm and confiding character of these birds ; but above all to the fact that their food, which is highly specialized, can be more varied and includes things more easily obtained and supplied in good condition than a stock of live fish. This is above all the case of the members of the sub-family of the Halcyones which in the wild state feed mainly on large insects, small vertebrates (lizards, small snakes, mice, etc.), on molluscs and crustacean all caught in the most varied places (sometimes far from any water) ; it is relatively easy to induce these birds progressively to content themselves in captivity with a diet consisting largely of raw meat cut in strips or little pieces, with the addition of mealworms, cock¬ chafers, grasshoppers, and young sparrows and mice in the case of the largest species, and of ants’ eggs and flies or worms in the case of the smallest. Certain specimens can eventually be induced to take a paste similar to that given to insectivorous birds, but it is always necessary to include a proportion of raw meat in their food. K. Neunzig advises, with reason, that the little pieces of meat should be rolled in some roughage (for example, crushed hemp, dried ant eggs, hair, etc.) before giving it to them ; this gives the birds a chance to regurgitate the indigestible matter as they do in the wild, like the birds of prey ; 1 We must mention all the same that the indigenous Kingfisher has already figured with success in one of the Annual Exhibitions of the Ornithological Circle of Brussels ; I also recollect that an Austrian aviculturist has achieved nesting and complete rearing in an aviary which is undoubtedly a veritable victory. 94 JEAN MARIE DERSCHIED - EXOTIC KINGFISHERS IN CAPTIVITY in addition it has the advantage of preventing the raw meat from becoming dirty or even tainted as the birds carry it about from place to place in their cage before eating it. The Giant Kingfishers or exotic Alcedinida are hardly more sociable and accommodating than their European cousins ; it is practically never possible to keep several specimens together, or to put them with other birds whose lives they soon make insupportable if they are not sufficiently strong to put them to death immediately. In certain cases like the Kookaburras (Genus Dacelo) there is no diffi¬ culty in keeping a pair, or even several, in one enclosure so long as it is sufficiently large. These Kookaburras, or Giant Kingfishers (in English : Laughing Kingfisher ; in German : Riesenliest or Jagerliest) are perhaps the most frequently imported alive of all the members of the whole family. They are almost always represented in the collections of Zoological Gardens by one or more examples which do not fail to attract the attention of visitors, not by their plumage (which is black, grey, or brown relieved with white), but by their tameness, their intelligence, and above all by their deep calls which are like the peals of laughter of a formidable human voice. The genus includes four species in Papua, but is chiefly found in Australia, from whence comes the one which is most frequently seen in Europe (. Dacelo gigas (Boddaert) and which is the giant of the whole family, measuring about 45 cm. long. These birds become astonishingly tame and quickly learn to know the people who look after them. Less amusing in manner and less easy to tame than the foregoing are the smaller Kingfishers which come from time to time from Australia or New Guinea, Malaysia, and the Indies ; on the other hand, they have the advantage of a more highly coloured plumage, which is sometimes extraordinarily brilliant. Some species have up to the present very rarely reached Europe and have not figured in the collections of the principal zoos or the big private collections. Others, on the contrary, are imported at more frequent intervals and one can acquire good specimens from time to time at prices which are very moderate for the value and interest of these birds. This is especially the case with the Sacred Kingfisher (. Halcyon sanctus Vigors and Horsfield) which comes from Australia and the rest of Oceania and Malaysia as far west as Sumatra. It owes its specific name to the fact that several tribes hold it in religious veneration ; it is con¬ sidered as the messenger or living symbol of Thor, God of War, by certain Polynesians. It is a very beautiful bird whose plumage shows a pleasing contrast between the white, washed with ochre, colour of the eyebrows, wide ring round the neck and the underparts, and the bright luminous blue of the top of the head, lower part of the back and the rump. The wings, the feathers of the tail, and the top JEAN MARIE DERSCHIED - EXOTIC KINGFISHERS IN CAPTIVITY 95 of the mantle are a bluish-green mixed with black, a large patch of black decorates the side of the head from the base of the beak to the ear and extends in a narrow line on the nape. The sexes are similar. The Sacred Kingfishers, like most of the Halcyones, differ from the true Kingfishers in that they nest in the holes of hollow trees and not at the end of burrows dug in the earth. In the wild state they not only frequent the banks of waterways and the sea (particularly the clumps of mangroves) of the coast, but also quite dry regions, such as the savannahs of the interior of the islands, and the steppes studded with eucalyptus and acacias. This beautiful species, frequently seen in Zoological Gardens, sometimes appears in the collections of private aviculturists and to my knowledge was recently in the collection of one of the most experienced aviculturists in rare birds in Belgium, Monsieur Leigeois. Among other members of the genus Halcyon which are occasionally imported is the most eastern species Halcyon smyrnensis (L.), which figures on the list of indigenous birds of the south-east of Europe, but is especially characteristic of the Indian region, ranging from Asia Minor to the south of China. It is remarkable for the coral red colour of the beak. The Paradise Kingfishers (Genus Tanysiptera) are without doubt the most beautiful representatives of the family ; they combine with a colouring which is gorgeous but delicately shaded, a slender¬ ness of form which is lacking in certain of their relatives whose appearance is more stumpy ; in the Tanysiptera originating principally in the Malaysian and Papuan regions the wings are quite pointed and the tail elongated, the two median feathers of which are much longer than the others and are rachet or spoon shape at the tips, a queer characteristic which is met with in very different groups of birds (Momotidae, Coraciidae, Paradiseidae, Dicruridae, Trochilidae, Palaeornithinae), but which are all arboreal. These Kingfishers are rare in captivity. Of equally singular appearance are the Pelargopsis or Stork King¬ fishers, of which some isolated specimens appear from time to time on the European market, usually coming from Singapore or Celebes. The beak is of very characteristic shape and generally vivid in colour (blood red) ; these birds can easily be accustomed to a diet with a basis of raw meat, but it is a good thing to give them small fish — dead or alive — from time to time. The same remark applies to the Kingfishers of the genus Ceryle , which generally have less brilliant colouring which is not usual in this family ; white, black, and grey usually dominating in their plumage. Most of the species of this genus are peculiar to America, but there is one ( Ceryle rudis (L.)) whose habitat includes a large part of Africa and South Asia, from where it sometimes wanders to the countries of the Mediterranean. I have had the opportunity of watching this 96 JEAN MARIE DERSCHEID - EXOTIC KINGFISHERS IN CAPTIVITY species in a wild state in large numbers on the banks of the lakes in Central Africa ; one can observe that this bird has not the jealous and surly disposition of the other Kingfishers, and they can often be seen fishing in company in little parties of five or six birds. It is rarely imported alive into Europe. Central Africa, and the Belgian Congo in particular, moreover possess Kingfishers about which everything remains to be discovered as to their behaviour in captivity ; some of them of a size little larger than that of the Colibris , rival the latter in the gorgeousness of their plumage where the most iridescent colours, emerald green, turquoise blue, sapphire, blend with the deepest tones of reddish brown and tawny, with a rare intensity. These small species have a largely insectivorous diet, which makes it easier to acclimatize them and above all facilitates their feeding during their transport by boat to Europe. Let us hope that some day some aviculturist returning from Africa will be tempted to undertake such an interesting importation. The private importations of this genus, especially the rare King¬ fishers of New Guinea and the neighbouring archipelagoes, have given completely satisfactory results and enriched the collections of some aviculturists — Mr. Ezra among others — with specimens of high value. They are unfortunately still too exceptional and this proves that the birds of this family have still not gained the popularity which they merit, especially among aviculturists in our country. I hope I have been able to show them in these few lines that the special difficulties to be faced in keeping these magnificent birds in cage or aviary do not justify avoiding them. * * * BRITISH AVICULTURISTS’ CLUB The eleventh meeting of the Club was held at the Rembrandt Hotel, Thurloe Place, South Kensington, S.W. 7, on Wednesday, 12th May, 1948, at 6 p.m., followed by a dinner. Chairman : Mr. D. Seth-Smith. Members of the Club present : Miss F. E. Bacon, Miss P. Barclay- Smith (Vice-Chairman), P. W. Beauchamp, T. Crewes, B. H. Dulanty, O. E. Dunmore, A. Ezra (Patron), C. L. Faudell, J. F. M. Floyd, C. F. Harding, Dr. Tom Hare, R. E. Heath, H. J. Indge, Miss E. Maud Knobel (Club Hostess), M. C. Lyell, G. C. Lynch, H. Murray, K. A. Norris, Sydney Porter, A. A. Prestwich (Hon. Secretary), D. H. S. Risdon, A. E. Sibley, E. N. T. Vane, R. C. Witting. Guests : Mrs. Tom Hare, A. C. Lyell, Miss M. M. Macfarlane, G. E. Weston. Members of the Club, 25 ; guests, 4 ; total, 29. The Chairman, in opening the meeting, said he wished to draw the attention of members to the special dinner on 22nd June, in NOTES 97 honour of Mr. Lee S. Crandall and Mr. Freeman M. Shelly. The Committee was doing everything possible to make the occasion a memorable one, and it was hoped that members would attend in force to meet the Club’s distinguished guests. Miss Barclay-Smith showed a Japanese coloured chart of crested, frilled, and mottled Budgerigars and Bengalees, sent by M. JeanDelacour. Mr. K. A. Norris showed coloured slides of birds he had photo¬ graphed on the Pembroke coast, Skomer and Grassholm. Amongst the more interesting were Dipper, Buzzard, at both tree and cliff eyries, Chough, Great Black-backed Gull and Oyster-catcher nesting on the mainland ; of Gannets and Kittiwakes on Grassholm ; and of Peregrine Falcon, Herring, Great and Lesser Black-backed Gulls, Kittiwake, Razorbill, Guillemot, Puffin and Shag on Skomer ; also illustrations of the really remarkable flora of the island and of the common toad and the Skomer Vole, a species which has become modified through isolation on the island. The Chairman, moving a vote of thanks to Mr. Norris, said he had rarely seen a more interesting series of photographs. Mr. Norris was known as an ardent aviculturist, but it was obvious that he was, in addition, a front rank photographer and a very observant ornitho¬ logist. Carried with acclamation. A summary of Mr. Norris’s remarks will appear in the next number of the Avicultural Magazine. Arthur A. Prestwich, Hon. Secretary and Treasurer. * * * NOTES Avicultural Society of South Australia : The Medal Awards Dr. Alan Lendon kindly sends information that the medal of the Avicultural Society of South Australia has just been awarded for the following breeding successes during the year ending February, 1948 : — White-browed Babbler ( Pomatostomus superciliosus) . R. W. B. Afford. Yellow- vented Blue Bonnet ( Psephotus xanthorrhous) . A. H. Lendon. White-browed Wood Swallow ( Artamus superciliosus ). R. W. McKechnie. Masked Wood Swallow {Artamus personatus). R. W. McKechnie. White-fronted Chat {Epthianura alhifrons). F. F. Welford. Crimson Chat {Epthianura tricolor ). A. G. Owen-Smyth. Southern Yellow Robin {Eopsaltria australis ). F. Bass6. The Silver Medal for the most outstanding breeding achievement, 1947-8, was awarded to F. Basse for the Southern Yellow Robin. Dr. Lendon writes : “ As you will see all the birds bred are Australian, and with the exception of the Blue Bonnet, all are softbills. As a result of the restrictions on importations many fanciers have turned to the native softbills, many of which are most attractive, which have been almost completely neglected in the past. There are very few Australian Finches and Parrots left now that have not been bred locally, and many of the foreign Finches that were imported in pre-war days were bred, and those that weren’t have died out. A nice shipment of African Finches, including such rarities as Twin-spots (Green) and Black-cheeked Waxbills was recently obtained by a local fancier under a special permit, and it is greatly to be hoped that he will succeed in establishing many of these species.” 98 NOTES Additions to the London Zoo. January, 1948. The arrivals during the month numbered eleven. The most interesting was a Blue-throated Brown Sunbird ( Cyanomitra cyanolaema ) from the Gold Coast. Other newcomers were Stone Curlew, Common Guillemot, Common Scoter, and Gannet. Taken on the strength at Whipsnade were twenty-three Jungle Fowl and three North American Turkeys, bred in the Park during 1947 ; and three Common Sheld-Duck and eight Pintail, received in exchange. February, 1948. The registered additions during the month were eleven : two Indian White-eyes, two Stock Doves, two Wood Pigeons, one Grey Lag Goose, one Bar-headed Goose (male), one Puna Teal (female), one Ghiloe Wigeon (female), and one Black-headed Gull. Apart from transferences from Regent’s Park the only new arrival at Whipsnade was an Emperor Goose. A. A. P. Breeding Splendids in California. Members interested in Grass Parrakeets will be pleased to know that Mr. David West, of Montebello, California, is succeeding in his efforts to build up a stock of Splendids. At present he has four breeding pairs and three younger pairs. Last year two breeding pairs reared seven fine young, four reared by one pair and three by the other. Two other pairs nested, but the eggs were infertile, probably owing to the immaturity of the males. Apart from the Splendids at Montebello probably the only birds of this species in the United States are pairs Mr. West sent to Mr. F. H. Rudkin, Jr., of Fillmore, California, and Chicago’s Brookfield Zoo. A. A. P. News from the Cameroons Members will be interested to learn of the progress made by John Yealland and Gerald Durrell in the Cameroons. Writing on 12th February, Yealland says : “ Durrell and I are at present about 180 miles north of Victoria and we have some nice birds and animals. The natives say they know Swindern’s Love-bird when I show them a water colour sketch of it. Plenty of Blue Plantain-eaters here, but the natives are hopeless at catching things in the trees. However, the Plantain-eaters are, I believe, nesting now, so I might get some young ones and hand-rear them. I’ve four species of Sun-bird — the Collared, Grey-chinned, Blue-throated Brown, and Olive-bellied ; also some Orange-breasted Akalats, one Blue-shouldered Robin-Chat, and a good many other various insectivorous birds.” C. S. Webb has just left for the Cameroons ; and with Tom Goodwin and Andrew Wilson collecting in Kenya, Tanganyika, and Uganda, and Sydney Porter wintering in the Transvaal, the Avicultural Society is, at present, very well represented in Africa. A. A. P. Parson Finch X Long-tailed Grassfinch Hybrids Eric Rowe, Port Elizabeth, South Africa, writes that he has had considerable success in breeding the above cross. The original hybrid was mated to a hen Grass- finch, and during the past two years forty young have been bred. The young ones are now breeding inter se and so far twenty have been reared. He says “ the peculiar part about it is that half the chicks have a blood red beak and the other half have a yellow beak. The red-beaked are very similar to a Heck’s Grassfinch, but I’ve never owned a Heck’s, so none of us, including the Wild Bird Judge, can tell where the red comes from — it makes the bird look very, very pretty Winkles for Softbills A correspondent in Cage Birds says he offered some winkles to his Thrush. They were eaten with apparent enjoyment, and henceforth they will be supplied regularly. It would be interesting if any member who has tried this “ sea-snail ” as a supple¬ mentary item would give his experience. — A. A. P. CORRESPONDENCE 99 A Weaver X Canary Hybrid. Mr. E. G. Rowe, of Port Elizabeth, South Africa, writes that he has bred a hybrid which he claims is a cross between a Madagascar Weaver cock and a Canary. The young one was found dead when fully fledged and flying. Five eggs in a second nest disappeared, and, at the time of writing (16th February, 1948), the Canary was starting to build again, but Mr. Rowe thought it was then too late in the season for the attempt to come to anything. A. A. P. Special Meeting of British Aviculturists9 Club A special meeting of the British Aviculturists9 Club will be held on Tuesday, 22nd June, 1948, at 6 p.m,» at the Rembrandt Hotel, Thurloe Place, South Kensington, S.W. y, and will be followed by a dinner in honour of Mr. Lee S. Crandall, General Curator, New York Zoological Society, and Mr. Freeman M. Shelly, Director, Philadelphia Zoological Garden, who will both speak on aviculture in the U.S.A. Monsieur Jean Delacour will also be present. The meeting and dinner are open to all members of the Avicultural Society, and those wishing to be present should com¬ municate with the Hon. Secretary of the Club, A. A. Prestwich, Chelmsford Road, Southgate, N. 14. * * * CORRESPONDENCE It would appear that “ Alpha 95 has not made himself exactly popular with his suggestions respecting the Magazine, and the sooner he recants and stops treading on other Members’ toes — although this was not the end to which he was appealing ! — the sooner we can all settle down and let the Editor and Secretary get on with their work again, the better. “ Once upon a time 99 “ Alpha 99 was Hon. Secretary to the Foreign Bird Club, and he had more than a passing acquaintance with the Editorial duties of Bird Notes, to which he was in the early days a fairly regular contributor, so he happens to know that the duties of these two offices are by no means a sinecure — not because Members are unwilling to help, but just because they are apt to be a little forgetful. As it may happen that any and every Member may be condemned for his “ wrong 59 doings, “ Alpha,99 although he has no wish to force himself into the limelight, asks to be allowed to withdraw his anonymity and to sign himself, Haslemere, Rectory Lane, Sidcup, Kent. J. A. Swan. Miss E. MAUD KNOBEL’S ACCOUNT as TREASURER of the AVICULTURAL SOCIETY From ist January, 1947, to 31st December, 1947. *X3 0^0 0 « O O O O 0 0 0 CO 0 m Is- H CO r^co O O LO 01 10 M CO CO 0 M hH p-l 05 O O CO IF) M O O 01 _ CO ►N A O iOh M 05 O CO r- M o o O m o S2 • o N bo II '3d R co gl B © -d s PQ o flO bo^_ ’2 § o o Pm *+3 bo Sn Q, _ . 0 0 .s >> bO g I fl 2 ^ I rt « b0“Pn S3 2 *C es 50 0 d Aw 0 ■S 43 .S PQ «$ 43 & O fl 1-4 CO CO 10 0 m ~ 01 co oi CO CO A 0 eo uo COw « r-- to ^ M 0 0^00 woo H NCO CO I''* 01 CO o • PQ mco r^oo o> ^ ^ ^ 44 u fl i2 3 R R R 03 ^ « a ts-s o PS a «. "3 -9 PQ 3 0 aS q y S 0 o| O «* -Q A 0 -Q 2 vP ’3 o'- © HN y 01 GQ -d 2 ” § 21^1 +-» w 43 T3 O « H 3 3 p 3 S W S ■§ ca & H 3 » -a R 0 8> J B S o 3 ci > d 0 S3 > 8 < 'a a w 3 •3 0 §.a \0 a- H«s OJ I ^ "I C3 S3 3 *"H tQ la ^ o 43 TS 0 •» In gl 0 $ i *a PQ >s ■M o o 05 0 43 « ■M 4h 43 T3 ^ T3 a 0 3 S3 > C3 PQ 0 0 § 9 $ .11 U ^ O ^ 0 d P <| wS 0 0 « 6 > y O S3 ^ 13 0 45 •3 0 S-S 6S S g 0 > q 0 p4 . g ■ 0 -M fl B^S M - 1 W 0 o 3 *§ J n ^ so o* , * S o 3 0 0 > > CS d 43 43 'fr 3 42 0 0 CANDIDATES FOR ELECTION J. W. H. Anderson, 381 Musgrave Road, Durban. Proposed by Sydney Porter. Geo. Bellars, 55 Ripley Road, Overport, Durban. Proposed by Sydney Porter. P. A. Billingham, Holmecroft, Wetherby Road, Bardsey, Nr. Leeds. Proposed by F. Dallow. Mon. M. F. Danhier, President Cercle Ornithologique de Belgique, 182 Chaussee de Charleroi, Brussels, Belgium. Proposed by Phyllis Barclay-Smith. Claude Hooke, P.O. Box 265, Napa, California, U.S.A. Proposed by E. Maud Knobel. Nicholas Melides, Attach^ de Presse et Secretaire Aupr£s de la Delegation Hellenique h la I.A.R.A., 19 Pembridge Crescent, W. 2. Proposed by E. Maud Knobel. W. H. Muir, The Alton, 12 Browns Street, New Milns, Ayrshire, Scotland. Proposed by P. Glover. Mon. Paul Regibo, 83 Avenue Louis Bertrand, Bruxelles, Belgium. Proposed by D. H. S. Risdon. Joseph L. Sloan, Park Superintendent, Salt Lake City Department of Parks and Public Property and Public Recreation, Salt Lake City 1, Utah, U.S.A. Proposed by Jean Delacour. NEW MEMBERS Pradyuman K. Desai, Takhteshwar Plot, Bhavnagar (B.S. Ry.), Kathiawar, India. Miss Virginia Dolbey, 37 Grosvenor Square, W. 1. Major C. C. Geertsema, A.D.C. to H.R.H. Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands, Boschwyk Soestdijk, Holland. Hon. Robert Gerard, M.B.O.U. Abbey House, Binham, Fakenham, Norfolk. R. H. Gibson, RR 2, Box 336, St. Helena, California, U.S.A. Edwin John Tilleard Housden, Mulberry Hill, Baughurst, Hants. H. G. Mack, c/o Gibson Manufacturing Co., Ltd., Guelph, Canada. Mrs. Phillips, i i Gloucester Gate, N. W. 1 . Joseph Sykes, 167 North High Street, Musselburgh. CHANGES OF ADDRESS C. Buckingham Jones, to c/o National Provincial Bank Ltd., Wood Street, Swindon, Wilts. J. Dalborg Johansen (Veterinary Surgeon), to Graabrodreplads 6, Odense, Denmark. Charles P. Guy, to Craddock Home Farm, Craddock, Nr. Cullompton, Devon. J. G. Laidlay, to Holmwood, Perth, Scotland. Peter Mackeln, to Estancia “ La Tomass,” Miramonte, F.C.S., Argentine Republic. F. Shaw Mayer, c/o Commonwealth Bank of Australia, Lae, New Guinea, via Australia. Kenneth J. Smith, to Wychwood, Harbour View Close, Parkstone, Dorset. Philip W. Turner, to Flore House, Higham Lane, Nuneaton, Warwickshire. DONATIONS F. Shaw- Mayer . 100 J. F. M. Floyd . 5 0 S. Porter . .100 MEMBERS’ ADVERTISEMENTS The charge for Members' advertisements is one penny per word. Payment must accompany the advertisement , which must be sent on or before the soth of the month , to Miss E. Maud Knobel, 86 Regent’s Park Road, N.W. i. All members of the Society are entitled to use this column , but the Council reserves the right to refuse any advertisements they consider unsuitable. FOR SALE Hand-reared 1948 greylag geese, pairs or odd birds. — Mrs. Tyser, Gordonbush, Brora, Sutherland. Absolutely Indispensable to Aviculturists . . . “ AVICULTURE,” Vol. I, £1 Os. 9 d. ( Vols . II and III*but of print.) A mine of information on birds of all kinds compiled by leading authorities on every branch of aviculture. * ” Index Guide to the Avicultural Magazine, 1894-1930.” By E. H. 5s. To be obtained from: MESSRS. STEPHEN AUSTIN & SONS, LTD., 1 FORE STREET, HERTFORD, HERTS. For back numbers of the Avicultural Magazine apply also to the Publishers at the above address. ★ The originals of the plates published in the Avicultural Magazine may be, in most cases, purchased ; apply to the Secretary : MISS KNOBEL, 86 REGENT’S PARK ROAD, LONDON, N.W.l. STEPHEN AUSTIN AND SONS, LTD., PRINTERS, HERTFORD. AVICULTURAL MAGAZINE CONTENTS PAGE Motmots in Captivity {with coloured plate) , by Jean Marie Derscheid Council Meeting ........... Prospect and Retrospect, by A. A. Prestwich ...... Sea-bird Colonies on Skomer and Grassholm, by K. A. Norris Breeding of Queen Alexandra Parrakeets, by H. D. Astley .... Queen Alexandra’s Parrakeet — Historical Notes, by A. A. Prestwich . The New Bird Pavilion at the Antwerp Zoo {with plates) , by P. Barclay-Smith Lebanese Interlude, by D. Goodwin ....... The President’s Garden Party, by R. C. Witting ..... British Aviculturists’ Club {with plates) ....... Coloured Zebra Finches, by Dr. A. R. Robertson ..... A Study in Self-preservation, by P. W. Beauchamp ..... Notes ............. ioi 105 106 108 IIO 1 12 114 Il8 123 125 131 133 135 VOL. 54 No. 4 PRICE 5/- JULY-AUG, 1948 THE AVICULTURAL SOCIETY Founded i8g4 President : A. EZRA* Esq., O.B.E. MEMBERSHIP SUBSCRIPTION is £1 per annum, due on ist January each year, and payable in advance. Life Membership, £15. Subscriptions, Changes of Address, Names of Candidates for Membership, etc., should be sent to — The Honorary Secretary and Treasurer , A. A. PRESTWICK, Tel. : Palmers Green 4484. Chelmsford Road, Southgate, N. 14. THE AVICULTURAL MAGAZINE is published bi-monthly and sent free to members. Members joining at any time during the year are entitled to back numbers for the current year on the payment of subscription. ALL MATTER FOR PUBLICATION IN THE MAGAZINE SHOULD BE ADDRESSED TO— The Editor , MISS PHYLLIS BAR CLAY - SMITH, 51 Warwick Avenue, Tel. : Cunningham 3006. London, W. 9. The price of the Magazine to non-members is 5.?. post free per copy, or £1 10 s. for the year. Orders for the Magazine, extra copies, and back numbers (from 1917) should be sent to the publishers, Messrs. Stephen Austin & Sons, 1 Fore Street, Hertford. Tel. : Hertford 2546-8. POST-MORTEM EXAMINATIONS Rule i. A short account of the illness should accompany the specimen. All birds to be sent as fresh as possible to Mr. W. Lawrence, The Zoological Society of London, Regent’s Park, London, N.W. 8. Rule 2. A fee of 10s. and a stamped addressed envelope must be enclosed with the bird. Rule 3. No body or skin of any bird will be returned under any circumstances whatever. Avic. Mag. 1947. Motmots AVICULTURAL MAGAZINE THE JOURNAL OF THE AVICULTURAL SOCIETY Vol. 54. — No. 4. — All rights reserved. JULY-AUGUST, 1948 MOTMOTS IN CAPTIVITY By Jean Marie Derscheid Translated and reprinted from Aviornis, Encyclopedie international de VElevage , No. 2-3, May-October, 1943, by permission of the Editor. (This article was written by the late Dr. Derscheid during his imprisonment in Brussels.) The little family of Motmots (Momotidae, or, as some authors call them, the Prionotidae) , with its peculiar characteristics, has always particularly interested me, as much from the point of view of their zoological peculiarities as for their behaviour both in the wild state and captivity. They are all semi-tropical birds, that is to say they originate in that large natural biographical region which comprises a part of Mexico, the Antilles, and Central and South America and which in its special¬ ized flora and fauna differs as an homogenous entity from the semi-arctic region (North America) where the animals and plants more resemble the forms of the north of the Old World (Palearctic). The Motmots, which are birds of medium, or small, size belong to a group which the old ornithologists placed under the name of passerine syndactyles or passerine levirostres ; the first of these terms alludes to a very specialized characteristic, that is to say the three toes of the foot which point forwards are joined together differing from the thick thumb which points backwards ; this coalescing can, according to the case, have one, two, or even three phalanges and is evidently in keeping with a strictly aboreal kind of life ; this morphological character is again found not only in the other families of passerine syndactyles (Bee-eaters or Meropedae, Kingfishers or Alcedinidae, Hornbills or Bucerotidae, Hoopoes or Upupidae), but also in other groups of vertebrates specially adapted to an arboreal life, where the foot must form a sort of pincer sufficiently rigid to grip the branches with force but without fatigue (such is the case of 8 AUG 1 1 1948 101 102 J. M. DERSGHEID - MOTMOTS IN CAPTIVITY certain monkeys and also with several reptiles, such as the Chameleons). It is evident that the member thus modified ceases to be suitable for assisting easy progress on the ground, except on rare occasions and with obvious reluctance, which corresponds to the awkwardness shown by the movements. It may be emphasized that this anatomical provision does not in the least facilitate jumping from branch to branch, or climbing, and it is not found in the true climbing birds (Parrots, Treecreepers, for example) or in the birds that hop (passerine singing birds) where the toes are generally free, quite independent, and ready to be adapted to a large variety of supports. The group of levirostres, in which many ornithologists of the last century, following Cuvier, placed the Motmots, was formed by the grouping of the non-singing passerines which had usually large or very large beaks, though fine, and of thin texture and unfitted for tearing prey to pieces (as do the raptores), or crushing hard seeds like the hardbill passerines or the psittiacine birds. The levirostres include the closely related families of the Motmots (Rollers, Kingfishers, Hornbills) but one must take into consideration that the same character of the shape of the beak is found in birds of evidently very different origin, as for example certain zygodactyles (Toucans and certain Cuckoos and Barbets particularly). However it may be decided to place these birds systematically, one can always recognize the Motmots by their feet, with three anterior toes joined together and the enlarged “ palm ”, and by their relatively large but fine beak with its slightly curved tip. Contrary to what is shown by their relatives of the old world, Bee-eaters (Meropidae) which they resemble in characters of structure and in habits, the edges of the beak are not straight and smooth, but toothed like a saw, a peculiarity which is found in various groups of fruit-eating birds (Toucans, Hornbills, etc.). The tip of the beak is not curved in a hooked point, which is an easy means of distinguishing the Motmots from their other relatives the Rollers (Coraciidae). We have already said that the Motmots are closely adapted for an arboreal life, linked with their perching habits ; they are essentially birds of the forest and their general coloration, where various shades of green are always the dominating note, is evidently in keeping with this particular habitat and plays a protective role. Travellers who have studied Motmots in their native countries describe them as being difficult to see in the dense vegetation, added to this their temperament is remarkably calm ; they never betray their whereabouts by their movements, but spend hours almost immovable on the same branch which serves them as an observation post. They have a curious habit which consists of apparently playing with their tails, and amuse themselves without apparent reason by balancing movements from J, M. DERSCHEID - MOTMOTS IN CAPTIVITY IO3 left to right or see-sawing backwards and forwards. This tail composed of ten or twelve rectrices, moreover, presents a remarkable appearance, the lateral pairs of feathers are of various lengths which gives the whole a tiered appearance ; while the pair of median rectrices is definitely longer than the neighbouring feathers. The part which protrudes is bare of barbs for a certain length, but ends in a little round or elliptical rachet which the ornithologists call a spatulate tail ; the question has been discussed for a long time as to whether the feathers already have this appearance from their growth after each moult, or whether the bare space is caused by subsequent action of the bird destroying the barbs of this part of the rectrices with its beak. It seems that so far as Motmots in captivity are concerned one could have well shown that the central feathers of the tail have a normal appearance after their growth, but that the barbs of the “ critical zone ” are particularly fragile and frail and are quick to wear out and disappear when the bird has for a certain time cleaned and smoothed these feathers by passing them between the toothed edges of the beak (as it does, moreover, with the other feathers). Motmots are birds that nest in holes either in the earth (burrows like those of the Kingfishers and Bee-eaters) or more often in hollow trees like the Rollers, Kookaburras, and Hornbills ; like all these birds the eggs are white and not numerous (two to four) and the young remain a relatively long time in the nest. The two parents — whose plumage is, moreover, identical — take it in turns to brood the eggs and share the care of the young. The rest of the year it appears that the Motmots usually live a solitary life ; they have not, at any rate, the sociable instincts of the Bee-eaters and the families appear to break up more quickly than those of the Hornbills, Hoopoes, and Rollers, which one sees flitting about in small parties for months. The diet of the Momotidae is distinctly mixed and comprises on one hand a large proportion of juicy fruits and tender soft berries and on the other of numerous small living animals ; chiefly insects of all kinds, but also many little vertebrates such as lizards, small snakes, mice, even sometimes young birds. The living prey is seized (and the same is the case with the Rollers) by the same method as used by the Flycatchers. The bird immobile, but attentive, on its perch, marks its victim with its eye, darts from its observation post, captures it in flight, and returns to take up its position on the same branch against which the prey is generally hammered or killed with sharp blows of the beak before being devoured. In captivity the food of Motmots does not present any difficulties ; it is composed of a paste (the mixture for Thrushes or Nightingales is perfect) and of fresh or dried fruit according to the season ; figs and dates cut into pieces, dried raisins and sultanas swollen by soaking io4 J. M. DERSCHEID — -MOTMOTS IN CAPTIVITY them in tepid water, berries of elder, service tree, even of the juniper, bananas cut in pieces, apples, pears, gooseberries, grapes, all are accepted with pleasure by the birds. It is a good thing besides to give them, once or twice a week, some animal food, alternating, for instance, raw meat (absolutely fresh !) cut in thin strips and insects (meal-worms, cockroaches, cockchafers). For the largest species a young mouse or a little Sparrow occasionally are a treat. The smallest species of Motmots (although rarely imported) certainly would appreciate fresh or dried ants’ eggs. Several authors have regarded Motmots in captivity as being of little interest on account of their too quiet dispositions, and for the long hours which they spend immobile on their perches. It is certainly a serious reproach in the eyes of those who do not wish to keep more than a small number of birds, but nevertheless to have every satisfaction ; more lively subjects, most of all good singers or certain Parrots, better supply the needs of this category of aviculturist. On the other hand, the Motmots are excellent subjects to include in a large and varied collection of living birds ; in a room with many birds in cages their tranquillity cannot but be appreciated, on the contrary, as a restful quality. Their calls, which are not too frequent, are sonorous and fluting and not at all raucous. Their name is onomatopoeic ; others have described it as a soft resonant call rather like the syllables “ hou-tou, hou-tou ”. In spite of their not very sociable disposition they have not the surly and belligerent nature of most of their relations (Rollers, King¬ fishers) and one can put several specimens together without risk, or let them share an aviary with other species of the same, or of about the same, size. They support, in perfect health, life in a cage for many years providing their quarters are sufficiently large (70 cm. long is in my opinion the minimum for a single Motmot, and 1 m. long for a pair) and the food suitable and sufficiently varied. I am nevertheless convinced that the best means of keeping and studying these beautiful birds in captivity is by giving them the same treatment which one usually does for pairs of large Parrots, that is to say an aviary sufficiently large for each ' pair of birds with proportionate shelter, and well lighted (warmed during the winter unless the birds pass the bad weather in a cage indoors). With such conditions I am convinced that there would be nothing to prevent Motmots breeding in captivity and thereby enabling one to study all their habits closely and in detail ; as nesting boxes the trunk nest boxes of the big Parrots hung in a shady part of the aviary would certainly suffice. All the same, it does not seem that the possibility of breeding these birds has fempted aviculturists sufficiently well equipped to undertake it with chance of success ; and most of the Motmots which arrive in Europe appear to get stranded in the cages of Zoological Gardens, the last places where anyone appears to bother about experiments of COUNCIL MEETING 05 this kind. One of the difficulties certainly lies in the similarity of the sexes, with the result that it is almost impossible to find reproductive couples without trial. A greater experience of the birds of this family would perhaps reveal a means of distinguishing the males from the, females. Several species of Motmots appear from time to time (never in large numbers) on the European market ; they do not differ from each other except by origin, size, and certain details of coloration in the plumage. The species shown in the illustration, the Brazilian Motmot ( Momotus momota (L)), is by far the most frequently imported. Its plumage of a beautifully deep olive green, darker on the back, is relieved by spots of rusty brown on the throat, flanks, and lower tail coverts, and by the black colour of the sides of the head, wings, and tail, the large feathers being edged with blue or green. The forehead, eyebrows, and a strip surrounding the black band from the side of head to the nape are of a magnificent colour of a brilliant turquoise blue. The total length of the birds can be as much as 50 cm., of which more than half is the tail. It is the only species of Motmot which up to the present I have been able to include in my own collection — already many years ago — but I hope to have the opportunity one day of studying more completely in an aviary the behaviour of these interesting birds. * * * COUNCIL MEETING A Special Meeting of the Council was held at the Rembrandt Hotel, South Kensington, on Tuesday, 22nd June, 1948, at 5 p.m. 1. Miss E. Maud Knobel tendered her resignation as Hon. Secretary and Treasurer. This was accepted with very great regret. 2. Miss E. Maud Knobel was elected a Vice-President in recognition of her many years of selfless service to the Society. 3. Mr. A. A. Prestwich was appointed Hon. Secretary and Treasurer. io6 A. A. PRESTWIGH - PROSPECT AND RETROSPECT PROSPECT AND RETROSPECT By Arthur A. Prestwich After twenty-six years a new name appears bn the cover as Hon. Secretary and Treasurer. Some, especially amongst the older members, will probably from force of habit send their subscriptions to Miss Knobel, but they are asked to try and remember not to do so. During her long term of selfless service to the Society Miss Knobel has written many thousands of letters, and indefatigable though she has been she now feels she has done enough in that direction, so spare her the needless trouble of forwarding them to me. I consider myself very fortunate in succeeding a Secretary such as Miss Knobel, as I am taking over the affairs of a well-organized and financially sound Society. I will have, in addition, the benefit of drawing on her great experience. How different is the position now to the state of affairs when she first assumed office ! Her predecessor had recently died and everything was in complete confusion. The finances of the Society were “ in the red ” and at her first Council Meeting it was necessary to appeal for funds to carry on. The Council rose to the occasion and subscribed liberally, otherwise Miss Knobel’s tenure of office might have been twenty-six years shorter ! Since then Miss Knobel has nursed the finances of the Society, so that to-day there is a respectable balance at the bank. This balance is not an indication that further donations are not required. They very definitely are, for it must be borne in mind that in the main the accumulated funds are due to the fact that for the past seven years the Avicultural Magazine has been a bi-monthly. When the happy day eventually comes and it can once more appear monthly, the high costs of production will inevitably make very considerable inroads into any reserves. Members often inquire whether there is any chance of the Magazine reverting to monthly publication. The answer, regrettably, is that there is little likelihood. Apart from the paper situation, which is not absolutely insurmountable, the main difficulty lies in the great shortage of “ copy ”. Only those closely associated with the Editor know the effort needed to produce each number. Qn several occasions it has been felt that at long last all sources have been tapped and not nearly enough material obtained for a number. But still, somehow, another number appears and the continuity remains unbroken. If members would but realize the difficulties of editing they would read their Magazines thoroughly from cover to cover. The Editor makes a point of including in the Magazine only such matter as should be of direct interest to members, and it is sometimes a little disheartening to find that some members, at least, skip quite a lot of the contents. The shortage of material is in no way due to apathy A. A. PRESTWIGH - PROSPECT AND RETROSPECT 107 or lack of enthusiasm on the part of members, but to the fact that the vast majority have almost no birds about which to write. And this leads to two further questions frequently asked. Are we likely to get any birds ? And is the Avicultural Society making any efforts towards this end ? The reply is that the Executive has done, and is doing, everything possible, but, unfortunately, so far with a conspicuous lack of success. Birds of any description may only be imported under licence from the Board of Trade. The Board of Trade steadfastly refuses to grant licences to any other than, or on behalf of, accredited Zoos and scientific institutions ; and then only for limited numbers of softbills and hardbills of special interest, rarity, etc. It is impossible to obtain any satisfactory reason for the present attitude. Each of several Ministeries suggests that the decision does not rest with it alone. The Board of Trade mumbles something about the Ministry of Food, and they say it’s the Ministry of Transport, who, to complete the circle, say it’s the Board of Trade ; so one is back where one started. A typical example of what might be called obstruction. A few months ago a member resident in Sarawak offered to send the Society a collection of fifty specimens of a local Starling, for free-distribution amongst our members. It was not a particularly interesting species, but the consignment was to be in the nature of an experiment. If it arrived safely it was proposed to send other varied and better collections. The position was explained to the Board of Trade, but they refused to make any concession from their ruling that “ Licences are not being issued at the present time to cover importations of this nature, and it is regretted the Department are unable to make any exception in the circumstances of your case ”. It is all the more galling, therefore, when one hears of a well-known London dealer being granted import licences for large numbers of birds, but only conditional on their re-export. One recent consignment of nearly a thousand was passed on to Belgium. Surely the need for currency is not so desperate that not even a small proportion of the birds passing through this country could remain. As they say in Lancashire : “ It isn’t always dark at 4 o’clock,” and seemingly we must be patient yet a little longer. But it’s hard, very, very hard ! [An appreciation of Miss KnobeVs work , with portrait, will be published in the September /October number of the Magazine. — Ed.] 108 K. A. NORRIS - SEA-BIRD COLONIES ON SKOMER AND GRASSHOLM SEA-BIRD COLONIES ON SKOMER AND GRASSHOLM By K. A. Norris Summary of the paper read at B.A.C. Meeting, 12th May, 1948. Grassholm lies 1 7 miles out from St. Davids and is a barren rock of 22 acres in extent with no fresh water. Access is difficult owing to treacherous tides and one of the most dangerous currents in the world known as the Wild Goose Race. It is the home of the only Gannet colony on the English and Welsh coast. Gannets were known to be established there over a century ago and it is believed that the colony was first formed by birds from the colony which originally existed on Lundy and which was destroyed by constant persecution from the inhabitants of that island. In 1886, 250 nests were recorded on Grassholm. In 1914, 300. 1922 — 800-1,000 pairs nesting and perhaps 3,000 birds on the island. 1924 — H. M. Salmon and G. C. S. Ingram made a census and recorded 2,000 nests, an increase of 1,700 nests in ten years. In 1933 they again visited the island and estimated the Gannet population at 10,000 birds, including at least 1,500 birds in immature plumage of ages varying from 1 to 4 years. On previous occasions immature birds had not been noted during the nesting season. The nesting ground extends for 360 yards in length and local fishermen state that it increases in breadth at the rate of 15 yards a year. Salmon and Ingram estimate that the annual increase in nesting pairs averages 10 per cent. On the occasion of their visit in 1933 the Gannets were feeding largely on mackerel and the fisherman stated that the nearest shoals at that time were 50 miles from Grassholm. This gives some indication of the great area over which the birds operate when feeding. Gannets have the habit of regurgitating when disturbed, no doubt to lighten themselves before taking to the wing for a hurried retreat, and this habit makes it a simple matter to examine and classify the food being taken. Examination of the stomach content of these and other sea-birds reveals that a great number of diseased fish are eaten, no doubt because they are more easily caught than a healthy and consequently more active fish. In this way sea-birds assist materially in preserving healthy shoals and preventing what would otherwise prove to be a rapid spreading of disease. It is interesting to note that a young Gannet, ringed at Grassholm, K. A. NORRIS - SEA-BIRD COLONIES ON SKOMER AND GRASSHOLM IO9 was recovered off the coast of Morocco, a southerly record for this species. Fifty years ago there was also a colony of over J million Puffins on Grassholm but these birds have now entirely deserted the island apart from an occasional “ resting 55 bird and no satisfactory explana¬ tion appears to have been found for this evacuation. Skomer, a far larger island, some 800 acres in extent and rather nearer the mainland, now has a Puffin population which is almost incalculable. One of the most remarkable sights is the assembly of these quaint little birds at the entrance to their nesting burrows at sunset every evening. Cormorants are scarce but the Shag nests in the many caverns round the island. Fulmars are also to be seen but I am not aware that they nest on the Island. Manx Sheerwaters and Stormy Petrels are common as also are Herring, Great Blackback, Lesser Blackback, and Kittiwake Gulls, and both the Razorbill and Guillemot nest in vast numbers. Buzzard and Peregrine have old established eyries on the island, one pair of the latter occupying a most unusual site in the roof of an old barn. Ravens, Carrion Crows, and Jackdaws and many of the smaller birds such as Rock and Meadow Pipits, Wagtails, Chats, and Warblers are amongst the regular nesting species. It is noticeable that whilst toads and newts are common in and near the fresh water springs on the island, the frog appears to be absent. No doubt the distasteful secretion of the toad has preserved it from the depredation of the Gulls and Buzzards, whereas I have frequently seen frogs being eaten by both these species and, in fact, they appear to be a favourite item of diet to the Buzzard, especially when feeding young. In this part of the country Buzzards also bring great numbers of moles to the nest and also Gull chicks, young Wild Duck in down and, less frequently, very small rabbits. In connection with the sea-birds, particular reference must be made to their specialized colouring and to the fact that the white underparts of a bird swimming on the surface act as a mirror, reflecting the colour below them and thus making them almost invisible to fish and other animal life below the surface of the water. Also to the importance of “ flash ” or reflected light, from the sheen on dark plumage or such white marking as that on the head and beak of the Razorbill. As pointed out by Dr. Francis Ward in his book Animal life under Water , this flash, made when a fishing bird dives beneath the surface of the water, closely resembles the flash caused by light reflection on the scales of shoaling fish and the fish are therefore attracted rather than scared away by the close approach of the bird. No doubt the uneven movement of a sick fish also leaves a trail of 10 H. D. ASTLEY - BREEDING OF QUEEN ALEXANDRA PARRAKEETS “ flash ” which would guide the hunting bird and together with the comparative ease with which it could be captured, would account for the large number of sick and diseased fish found during the examina¬ tion of stomach content to which reference has already been made. * * * BREEDING OF QUEEN ALEXANDRA PARRAKEETS (Spathopterus alexandrae ) By Hubert D. Astley [. Reprinted from the Avicultural Magazine 1912. July, p. 243. \ t Last year I had the great disappointment of losing the one young Queen Alexandra that was hatched, owing to a murderous onslaught from a male Stanley Parrakeet, at least I suspected him, though the case was “ non-proven This year I hope I have been very much more successful. In April all three pairs were nesting, and one hen laid at least ten eggs, but not in a desirable nesting-box, so that the eggs were rolled about, some were cracked, and the rest did not hatch out, for the bird was fidgety. This was what I call Pair No. 3. They are now nesting again (3rd of June). Pair No. 2 were also unsuccessful, for the hen chose too deep a box, and consequently jumped down on to the eggs, broke one or two — she had five — and the yolk stuck to her feathers, so that the other eggs were spoilt. She is now nesting again. Pair No. 1 . Well ! Bravo Pair No. 1 ! ! They selected what I am convinced is the most desirable form of nesting-box for Parrakeets, which I have made at home. Two feet long, with a wooden cup let into the floor of the box at the farthest end from the entrance hole, which is at one side. The box is hung horizontally, that is lengthways on the wall, and the Parrakeets can walk in and settle quietly on their eggs, feeling secure in the dark corner where the depression is made. A nice handful or two of rotten wood is put in, and on this the eggs are laid. The wooden cup is below the level of the floor, and at the other end a door is made, so that if necessary one can look in, besides which it facilitates cleaning out the box when the young have flown. Well ! Pair No. 1 took possession of such a box, which was one hung in a dark corner of a roosting house, about ten feet up on the wall. The hen laid her eggs in April, and as with Nos. 2 and 3, the male was constantly seen to feed her and to mate ; the feeding always taking place first. H. D. ASTLEY — BREEDING OF QUEEN ALEXANDRA PARRAKEETS I I I In the beginning of May the hen kept so closely on her eggs that I began to wonder whether she was alive, so quiet and silent was everything within ; which terrible thought impelled me to mount a ladder to look in the box. As I did so, out she scurried, looking as fresh as paint. As I was up, I thought I would have a peep, opened the door, and there at the farther end, lying in the nest of rotten wood- chips, which had been bitten up very finely, were seven eggs. I hurried down and left the birds to their own arrangements. On the 12th of May, young ones were heard making their scraping raucous call when they were fed, and the male bird took to going into the nest as well as his wife. The noise of the young ones might have been produced by at least five, so that I was full of great hopes. The male is extraordinarily tame, and directly I go in to his apart¬ ment, he settles either on one of my arms, or shoulders, or my head, and will devour mealworms, biting off their heads and squeezing out their insides ! Then he chucks away the skin and greedily demands another. On one of the last days in May, I again looked in, as the hen bird hardly ever appeared, and to my joy found two fine young birds, although I was a little disappointed that five of the eggs were un¬ hatched. However, the two were really very fine and large, and completely feathered, looking like their mother in colour, but more washed out. On the 3rd of June, the old birds were again seen in the act of mating, and the hen began to throw some of the refuse out of the nesting-box, so that I deemed it advisable to remove the young birds, which were still unable to fly, to a big open box with an inch of sawdust at the bottom, and, put them quite low down, so that they would not be injured by falling, for I had visions of their being turned out by their mother and tumbling down ten feet on to a hard cement floor. When I took the young ones out, the male bird fussed round in a great stew, so that I felt confident that he would continue to feed them, although they would not be so very long before they fed themselves. The parent birds have had an abundance of fresh grass seeds, dandelion leaves, etc., as well as gentles and biscuit sop, and if they are as proud of their young ones as I am, they must be very cock-a-hoop birds indeed. I have striven for nine years to breed these* beautiful Parrakeets (Rose- throated Parrakeets as I like to call them !) and I hope I have at last succeeded. If these young ones reach full maturity, they will be the first to do so outside Australia, as far as I know, but I do not think there is much doubt about it. I 12 A. A. PRESTWICH - QUEEN ALEXANDRA’S PARRAKEET The two nestlings left the box on the 6th of June, when they were probably nearly five weeks old. They can now feed off biscuit sop when it is held in front of them (gth June). Their colouring resembles the adult female, except that the forehead is a mauve pink instead of pale blue, and the ceres are pale yellow. The rose-coloured throats are quite as brilliant as in the adult bird. The parents are busy preparing for a second brood. * * * On the 1 2th of June I removed the young birds to a cage in the house ; as it was evident that, although they did not yet crack seeds, they could eat by themselves. For two days they were rather shy ; but when hungry, would greedily devour biscuit sop from a spoon. By the 1 5th they were quite tame, and when let out of the cage would fly about the room, or perch on my hand rapidly fluttering their wings for exercise, calling loudly at the same time. One of them, if I offered him sop when he did not want it, would impulsively peck at my hand, plainly saying ££ take the stuff away ”. If they had been hatched in a wild state, they could not be better grown or more robust. * * * QUEEN ALEXANDRA’S PARRAKEET HISTORICAL NOTES By A. A. Prestwich This delicately coloured Parrakeet was discovered by F. G. Water- house in 1862, during the Sturt Expedition into the interior of Australia. Specimens were sent to John Gould and in the following year he described it and named it Polytelis alexandra ££ in honour of that Princess who, we may reasonably hope, is destined at some future time to be the Queen of these realms and their dependencies, of which Australia is by no means the most inconspicuous ”. Nothing further was heard of the species until 1890, when two living birds arrived in Adelaide, having been taken from the nest by Alex Magarey. A few further specimens were obtained and then in 1894, the Horn Expedition to Central Australia collected a series including a fine adult male. Examination of this bird led A. J. North to record in The Ibis , 1895, 339* “ Generic Characters : Similar to that of the genus Polytelis , except in having the end of the third primary of each wing singularly elongated and terminating in a spatule.” And this feature was sufficient in the view of North to warrant removal from the genus Polytelis and the formation of a genus of its own, Spathopterus . Astley was wont to ridicule museum workers who make new species A. A. PRESTWICH - QUEEN ALEXANDRA’S PARRAKEET I 1 3 and genera on such flimsy grounds, and insisted that the proper place for alexandm was with barrabandi (now swainsonii) and melanura (now anthopeplus ) in the genus Polytelis. His reaction when Gregory Mathews discovered that Spathopterus was preoccupied and considered it necessary to create another generic name, Northipsitta , may be easily imagined ! The Horn Expedition also obtained living examples, as did Winnecke in 1895. And it may well be that the single bird deposited at the London Zoo, nth July, 1895, was from one of these sources. This bird was definitely the first live-arrival in Europe. The Zoological Society shortly after obtained a second bird, and one of these survived for several years. The first Queen Alexandras to be owned by a member of the Avicultural Society was a pair obtained by H. J. Fulljames in 1898. The male did not long survive importation and the female required considerable attention. She eventually completely recovered and was exhibited at the Crystal Palace Show, 1900. There is a coloured plate of this pair by Smit in Avicultural Magazine, 1899, 168. In 1904, Mrs. St. Clair Christophers presented a further bird to the Zoo, and W. Fasey secured a pair. These latter birds had a clutch of four eggs, but Fasey removed them. Astley procured his first pair in 1905, and in the following year the hen produced three clutches of eggs — all infertile. In 1910, he was able to obtain several more birds, and in 1 9 1 1 his stock consisted of two males and five females, four of which laid that year. After his 1912 success, previously described, Astley had nothing to record until 1918, when a clutch of six eggs was hatched, five young ones eventually leaving the nest. He then con¬ tinued to be successful during succeeding years. A good many have been bred by others since, quite a few, I believe, from descendants of Astley’s birds. The most consistent breeder has undoubtedly been our President. In 1931, a pair of imported birds reared a nest of four, and young ones have since been reared at Foxwarren almost annually. In 1939, the aviaries contained fourteen birds, all of which, with the exception of the original pair, were home-bred. Amongst other members to be successful with this species during recent years are W. L. Eaves, H. J. Indge, C. P. Phillips, E. N. T. Vane, Holmes Watkins, and Mrs. Effie Clark — the latter reared no less than nineteen, including a nest of six, during 1947, undoubtedly a record for a private aviculturist. Keston have also bred quite a number and have successfully used Redrumps and Rock Pebblers as foster-parents. The Psittacine Registry shows that at the end of last year there were sixty-nine Queen Alexandras in Great Britain, and it is con¬ fidently anticipated that this number will have increased considerably by the time the present breeding season is over. I 14 P- BARGLAY-SMITH - THE NEW BIRD PAVILION AT THE ANTWERP ZOO THE NEW BIRD PAVILION AT THE ANTWERP ZOO By Phyllis Barclay-Smith My first visit to the Antwerp Zoo after the war was on a grey November day in 1946. Being so near to the station the Zoo had suffered great damage, for in addition to other bombs in the neighbour¬ hood, a flying bomb had fallen on the railway. The lion house had been badly damaged, the winter garden was a wreck, the monkey house had been damaged, and the bird and antelope houses destroyed. The whole place looked sad, shabby, and dilapidated. Many of the mammals and birds were dead, but the birds of prey had all survived as they had been kept alive on rats. In spite of all this destruction, however, a new start had been made, the aquarium was in good shape, and a certain number of mammals had been received from the Congo. The few Parrots and other birds remaining were housed with the reptiles above the aquarium, but I was told of the plans for a new bird house on com¬ pletely modern lines. When I next visited the Zoo on a brilliantly sunny day in May, 1948, the gardens were bright with flowers and new paint, the plans of 1946 had become a reality, and the new bird house was complete. This is a large building in the centre of the gardens, flanked by exterior aviaries. The wire netting of these aviaries is of a new design manu¬ factured in Switzerland, which in no way obscures the/view, and in fact is almost invisible. It is made of a very fine stainless wire of about \ inch, wide mesh, tightly strung after the method of a tennis racquet, and stretched on steel frames. The effect is most remarkable, and though costly (the amount used for* the eight outside aviaries shown in the plate cost approximately £500), it is a cost which is more than justified (see Fig. 1). In the interior of the bird pavilion is a series of warmed halls with brightly lighted side aviaries, the tops of all of which are of glass ; various areas of the main roof are also of glass, but the light is con¬ centrated on the birds. The front of the aviaries is also glass, and they are so arranged that they can be divided into one, two, or three sections by partitions made of vertical wires, thus not obscuring the view of the whole (see Fig. 2). The roofs of the aviaries are also of sloping wire frames. Each aviary has a ventilator at the base of the dividing wall and in each are three shallow drinking pans with running water which can be controlled by a tap outside the back of the compartment. In this way, when the aviary is divided into three, each section contains a drinking pan. The only drawback to these aviaries is that the birds damage their tails by constantly climbing up and down their wire partitions and rubbing their feathers between the wires. Avic. Mag. 1948. Fig. 1. — Exterior Aviaries of Antwerp Zoo Bird Pavilion showing new “ Invisible Wire-netting Avic. Mag. 1948. Copyright ] [Antwerp Zoo. Fig. 2. — Side Aviaries in Main Hall showing Wire Divisions Copyright ] [Antwerp Zoo. Fig. 3. — Method of Cleaning Glass Front of Aviary I . I A vie. Mag. 1948. Fig. 4. — Passage behind Aviaries Avic. Mag. 1948. Copyright ] [ Antwerp Zoo . Fig. 6. — Compartment with Little Egrets P. BARCLAY-SMITH - THE NEW BIRD PAVILION AT THE ANTWERP ZOO I 1 5 The cleaning arrangements are excellent — the whole of the pane of glass in front of the compartment can be let down on a hinge, a wooden shutter being pulled down before the glass is lowered in order to keep the birds from escaping or being frightened (see Fig. 3). Behind the aviaries is a passage into which a door at the back of the aviaries opens. By means of this door the aviaries can be easily cleaned and food given (see Figs. 4 and 5). In addition to the series of side aviaries are some larger com¬ partments planted with shrubs and flowers, the compartment housing the Little Egrets being particularly beautiful (see Fig. 6). The Kookaburras also have a most attractive compartment provided with bright flowers, and this is destined for the Humming Birds when they arrive. There is a comprehensive collection of indigenous birds, all in very good condition, and the collection of Parrots is particularly interesting, including the rare Brazilian Yellow Parrot or Golden Gonure ( Aratinga guarouha) and the following species, Hyacinthine Macaw (. Anodorhynchus hyaeinthus ), Blue-and- Yellow Macaw (Ara ararauna ), Red-and- Yellow Macaw (Ara chloroptera) , Red-and-Blue Macaw (Ara macao ), Severe Macaw (Ara sever a), Illiger’s Macaw (Ara maracana ), Cactus Gonure (Aratinga cactorum ), Mauge’s Gonure (Aratinga chloroptera maugei ), Blue-crowned Gonure (Aratinga hamorrhous) , Yellow-headed Gonure (Aratinga jendaya), Golden-headed Gonure (Aratinga auricapillus) , Petz’s Gonure (Aratinga canicularis) , Black-headed Gonure (Nandayus nenday ), Red-bellied Conure (Pyrrhura vittata ), Quaker Parrakeet ( Myiopsitta monacha ), All-green Parrakeet (Brotogeris tirica ), Orange-winged Parrakeet (Brotogeris chiriri ), Blue-fronted Amazon (Amazona (estiva ), Green-cheeked Amazon (Amazona viridigena ), Festive Parrot (Amazona f estiva), Maximilian’s Parrot (Pionus maxi- miliani), Congo Red-headed Parrot (Poicephalus gulielmi) , Sudan Brown Parrot (Poicephalus meyeri), Grey Parrot (Psittacus erithacus ), Alexandrine Parrakeet (Psittacula nipalensis ), Indian Ring-necked Parrakeet (Psittacula manillensis) , Barraband’s Parrakeet (Polytelis swainsonii ), Red-faced Lovebird (Agapornis pullaria ), Fischer’s Lovebird (Agapornis fischeri), Peach-faced Lovebird (Agapornis roseicollis) , Masked Love¬ bird X Fischer’s Lovebird (Agapornis per sonata X fischeri ), Pennant’s Parrakeet (Platycercus elegans ), Rosella Parrakeet (Platycercus eximius) , Blue-winged Grass Parrakeet (Neophema chrysostomus) , Budgerigar (Melopsittacus undulatus ), Greater White-crested Cockatoo (Kakatoe alba), Bare-eyed Cockatoo (Kakatoe sanguinea gymnopis), Roseate Cockatoo (Kakatoe roseicapilla) , Cockatiel (Leptolophus hollandicus) . At one end of the main hall is a door leading into a dark gallery with a series of brightly lighted compartments. No glass or wire-netting is used to keep the birds in their compartments, but there is a barrier to keep the public from the birds ! The birds are at complete liberty and make no effort to leave their so-called cages. I think it is best to quote I 1 6 P. BARCLAY-SMITH - THE NEW BIRD PAVILION AT THE ANTWERP ZOO a translation of the Director, Mr. Walter Van den bergh’s own account of how he achieved this most interesting experiment (which was pub¬ lished in an article in Aviornis, April, 1 948) . “ It being an established fact that : — “ A diurnal bird released at night in a dark enclosure to which it is strange often kills itself by hitting against the sides. “ In the wild the small carnivores and reptiles succeed in capturing diurnal birds easily at night. “ It is logic to conclude that the vision of a diurnal bird is very limited at night, that darkness immobilizes it, and it is not tempted to plunge into darkness if it is not compelled to do so by physiological or biological needs. “ If we therefore apply the principle of displaying fish such as is practised in the large aquariums, that is to say to create an area of darkness on the public side and increase the lighting of the cage, it is highly probable that by instinct the bird will not risk plunging into the darkness, which allows us to do away with all barriers between the public and the subject shown. “ On 26th October, 1945, the problem to be solved was submitted to the chief of works, the electrician, and the Head Keeper of birds. “ On 30th October our keeper arranged in the cellar of the old, damaged building a cage of 1 • 20 by 1 • 20 metres, made of celotex 1 metre above the ground and with one side open. “ The daylight strip-lighting was not then on the market and we had to content ourselves with shop-window lights, forming a frame of light round the opening to the interior of the cage. The roof had been left detachable in order to allow eventually for supplementary lighting. The interior of the cage was coloured cinnamon. “ The first attempt was made on the 2nd November, 1945, with a Song Thrush ( Turdus musicus musicus) but three days afterwards we found footprints on the floor of the cellar which we had covered with sand. “ The walls of the cellar were white- washed so I had them painted in a dark, dull colour in order to make the darkness more intense. “ This time the result was conclusive. The bird did not again venture outside its cage and also did not show the least alarm when we walked in front of the open side of the cage at a distance of about a metre. “ On 9th November the cage was decorated with flowers in order to give it the appearance of more natural surroundings. “ The attempt was repeated with Green- winged Glossy Starlings (. Lamprocolius chloropterus) which remained from 14th to 22nd November. The experiment was then considered to have succeeded completely. The method was then legally notified and registered in January, 1946. Avic. Mag. 1948. Fig. 7. — Dark Hall showing Lighted Compartments Avic. Mag. 1948. Fig. 8. — Lighted Compartment with Kookaburra P. BARGLAY-SMITH - THE NEW BIRD PAVILION AT THE ANTWERP ZOO I I 7 “ Meanwhile we had begun attempts at lighting the cage by a com¬ bination of day and artificial light, but these attempts were not con¬ clusive. “ Actually, the attempts depended, above all, on the colours used and the physiological and biological effect of the artificial light on the specimen. The wall of the back of the cage was rounded off in such a way as to have no corners and to form a whole with the sides. This created an illusion of infinity. This experiment has also proved that all decoration detracted from the aestheticness of the whole and that neutral colours must be used. “ As the tests had been carried out in a cage, but were to be realized in a gallery with a series of twelve cages, the fact that too much light might penetrate into the gallery had to be borne in mind. This danger was additionally greater as the tests had always been carried out with an intensity of light of i oo watts, whereas for technical reasons we have been obliged to illuminate the birds with 130 watts. “ In point of fact the test fortunately proved to be successful and there is sufficient light in the public gangway, but it is not so much as to induce the birds to leave their enclosures.” The results of Mr. Walter Van den bergh’s experiments are certainly most attractive and interesting and show the birds to their best advantage (see Figs. 7 and 8). This system also affords an interesting means for studying bird psychology. The species in the compartments at the time of my visit included the following : Green- winged Glossy Starlings ( Lamprocolius chloropterus) , Chinese Grackle ( Gracula sinensis :), Collared Turtle Doves (Streptopelia risoria) , Ghopi Grackle ( Gnorimopsar chopi ), $ Alexandrine Parrakeet ( Psittacula nipalensis ), Green Glossy Starling (. Lamprocolius chalybeus ), Indian Jungle Myna ( AEthiopsar fuscus ), Cockatiels {Leptolo- phus hollandicus) , Yellow headed Gonure (Aratinga jendaya ), Indian Green- winged Doves ( Chalcophaps indica), Rose-coloured Pastor ( Pastor roseus). Only one bird, a Jay, proved too bold and left its cage. Though at present there is a single bird, the aim in view is to have a pair in each compartment representing 12 different families. At one side of the building is a well arranged kitchen, with adequate washing facilities, with racks above the sinks for the dishes to drain, ample food storage accommodation, and cans with funnels for the seed. Above the main halls is a light, airy room with a series of aviaries for extra stocks and breeding. An easy and novel institution for Zebra Finches nesting-boxes is an inverted flower-pot fixed to a board, thus enabling the birds to use the hole at the bottom of the pot for an entrance. A large number of the original outside aviaries remain and in some of these a good collection of Pheasants is placed, including the following 9 I 1 8 D. GOODWIN - LEBANESE INTERLUDE species : Impeyan Pheasant (. Lophophorus impejanus), Crimson Horned Pheasant ( Tragopan satyra ), Silver Pheasant ( Gennreus nycthemerus) , Swinhoe’s Pheasant ( Genruzus swinhoii ), Black-backed Kaleege Pheasant ( Gennaus melanotus ), Common Pheasant ( Phasianus colchicus), Japanese Pheasant (. Phasianus versicolor ), Reeves’ Pheasant ( Syrmaticus reevesi), Golden Pheasant ( Chrysolophus pictus). Lady Amherst’s Pheasant ( Chrysolophus amherstice). The Council of the Royal Zoological Society of Antwerp and the Director, Mr. Walter Van den bergh, are to be warmly congratulated on their great achievement, and though Belgium is for the moment a forbidden land for the majority of British aviculturists, it is hoped that before long this ban will be lifted and that many will be able to visit the Antwerp Zoo and see the new bird pavilion for themselves. * * * LEBANESE INTERLUDE By Derek Goodwin For some weeks before my leave was due I had racked my brains, such as they are, to decide between leave camps in Palestine or the Lebanon. The presence or otherwise of birds not commonly found in Lower Egypt was my chief consideration ; but apart from accounts of Eagles, which judging from the descriptions given must have been the direct and by no means decadent descendants of the Roc that carried off Sindbad the sailor, I could gather little information from those of my comrades who had been in either place. Finally, I fear for no better reason than that it was farther away and that which is most remote seems ever most desirable, I decided on the Lebanon. Once passed through the Sinai desert and the train grunting its slow progress through Palestine, the changed character of the bird- life, or at least such of it as could be seen from the windows, soon became apparent. Kites and Hooded Crows, although common, were neither so numerous or so familiar as in Egypt ; the larger Collared Turtle-dove replaced the Palm-dove (which in Palestine would appear to be more strictly a town bird than in Egypt), and every second hedge was alive with Goldfinches. Other birds much in evidence were Skylarks, Crested Larks, Quails, and Lesser Kestrels, the cocks of the last-named species appearing extremely bright — almost blue and orange — -perhaps their rich colours being magnified by eyes attuned to the swarthy Egyptian Kestrel. The Quails I suppose were on migration and must have been present in great numbers judging by the number of pairs seen to take flight, since it is fairly certain that there must have been many more birds on the ground D. GOODWIN - LEBANESE INTERLUDE ' I 1 9 that- did not take fright at the train’s passing. At Haifa station the sight of about thirty Egyptian Vultures fairly took my breath away, since this bird, despite its name, is by no means abundant in the Nile delta ; although if any spot at the desert edge can be baited up for a few days with large bones or other non-portable food an odd Vulture will sooner or later be attracted by the congregated Kites and come down to investigate. This bird incidently has not the repulsive appearance of the large vultures as its neck is fully feathered and the bare facial skin of an attractive golden yellow hue. The white parts of its plumage, seen close at hand, are tinged with dusky fawn, but when seen as it usually is, soaring in brilliant sunlight, it is a thing of jet and ivory, a spotless vision moving with ineffable grace against the blue background of sky. From Haifa the journey continued by truck and as I had the mis¬ fortune to be hemmed in the depths of the vehicle with a score or so of vile bodies between me and the light of day there was not even the occasional sight of a bird to relieve the monotony. It was dark when I arrived at the leave camp, which was on sandy ground adjacent to the shore about four miles south of Beirut. Next morning the first sound I heard on awaking was the vibrant croaking of Ravens. They were, to my surprise, the common camp scavengers, taking the place of the Kite ( Milvus migrans agyptius) and Hooded Crow in Egypt, although much more timid than either of those birds there and doing most of their gleaning at dawn when few people were about. This race of Raven ( Corvus corax laurencei ) shows much brown on head and neck at times ; as none of those that I examined through field-glasses showed the least trace of this I imagine that it is in all probability the result of bleaching by the hot summer sun and probably affects different individuals to a different degree, just as a small percentage of Egyptian Hooded Crows show primaries and secondaries bleached to a chocolate brown in late spring whereas the majority only fade to a dull or slightly rusty black. The first inkling I got that the bird situation was not all it might be was when a pair of reddish brown Crested Larks fled away at my approach. In Libya and Egypt I had known this bird as one of innumerable races, differing in plumage, but all with the constant factor of friendly indifference towards mankind, so that I felt rather as one who has stretched out a hand to a friend only to have it struck away. The reason was soon apparent, as in the course of the day I passed at least a dozen individuals with shot-guns who were potting at every bird, large or small, that exposed itself. After wandering through a most picturesque Armenian village where the only birds much in evidence were Graceful Warblers and the omnipresent House Sparrow, I found the terraced olive orchards alive with Green¬ finches, Goldfinches, Chaffinches, Serins, and Great Tits, but all as 9: 20 D. GOODWIN - LEBANESE INTERLUDE wary and self-effacing as the last old cock Pheasant in .a non-preserved wood. Pushing on farther into higher ground I came at length to a small river, and on descending to its banks saw many White and Grey Wagtails in full breeding plumage. Since I could see no evidences of their holding territory I am inclined to think that they were on migration, but this a mere surmise since I did not observe them sufficiently long or closely to form a valid opinion. The following day I visited Beirut. On every hand one heard the singing of caged Goldfinches, and it was pleasing to see that some of the cages were of reasonable size and their occupants in quite good condition. Palm Doves ( Stigmatopelia senegalensis ) were to be seen everywhere about the roof-tops, their soft cooing laughter sounding through the din of traffic in the streets below. I counted seventy-five that afternoon in one large tree in the main square, but to my surprise never saw a single bird on or near the ground ; in striking contrast to its behaviour in Cairo where it not only forages in every garden and open space, but is frequently seen walking about in the less congested streets. How the Beirut birds got their living I do not know, but since I never saw them even in the outskirts of the town, far less in the surrounding countryside, I imagine they must have been fed on the roof-tops by charitable people. In the narrower streets and bazaars Swallows were very much in evidence, evidently nesting inside inhabited buildings after their usual manner in the Near East. In the bazaar I found a bird-shop. The stock consisted of a beautiful pair of Chukor Partridges in a parrot cage and several dozen fancy Pigeons packed like sardines in rough cages about 4 feet square. Among them were some lovely little Rock-doves, which being too cowed by their imprisonment to think of fighting back, were having a rough time at the hands, or rather beaks, of their companions in sorrow. Rock-Doves are birds I have long coveted but never possessed. At one time one gathers that tame Pigeons of similar type to the wild birds could be purchased for a mere song from any farm dovecote, but now in England even the feral Pigeons in most places show more resemblance to Racing Homers (from which they largely originate) and “ blue rocks 55 are not to be had for love' nor money. It was, however, out of the question to purchase any of those in the bazaar, particularly as having had their primaries and secondaries plucked out (the treatment invariably accorded to wild birds in the Near East on capture, and although cruel, less so in my opinion than the pinioning of adult birds which is often practised in this country) it would have been impossible to turn them loose, had the need arisen, with any hope of their surviving. On the morning of the 7th I saw a most striking aerial display by a pair of Ravens above a wood of small conifers where I was standing. The cock (?) was chasing the hen (?) low over the tree-tops : he kept D. GOODWIN - LEBANESE INTERLUDE 12 uttering a rapid excited “ Ka kar kar kar ”, as he gained on the hen she would utter two odd musical little notes, a sort of “ kok kok ” deep and yet metallic, suggestive of a small gong being quickly struck twice, and as he overtook her would fling over backwards and thrust up her feet like a Kite, sometimes slipping to one side, but more often turning a complete somersault and then flying on in the same direction. I feel tolerably certain that the birds were paired and the affair was not hostile as the pursued kept doubling about in the same area and the pursuer made no real attempts to get to grips with it, and when eventually the birds saw me directly beneath them and scattered in panic, the “ chasee ” circled back to join the other and they flew away together. Later in the morning I found a most delightful spot where a small river joined the sea, and between the shore and the extensive olive orchards behind was an area of rough grass and bushes dotted with pools and suggestive of some English meadow, but for the fact that clumps of date-palms replaced the traditional elms. Over the largest pool scores of Swallows skimmed to and fro drinking and bathing, whilst others perched to dry and preen on the bush-tops, their soft warbling forming a pleasant background to the harsh croaking of frogs and sudden fluting song-snatches of Yellow- vented Bulbuls. There is something particularly appealing about the song of the Swallow, disjointed and inconsequential as it is, it yet contrives to suggest something ineffably pure and tender. Listening to it one can well understand how irresistible must have been the charms of the young lady in the Canterbury Tales who : — “ . . . sang as soft and yerne As doth a swalwe sitting on a berne.” Besides the Swallows there were numbers of very greyish-looking Willow Warblers, presumably of the Siberian race, several parties of Goldfinches, Graceful Warblers, and Yellow- vented Bulbuls that were obviously resident, a cock Stonechat, all by himself so no doubt on his travels since in its winter quarters this bird is almost always to be seen in pairs (at least this is the case with those that winter in Egypt, Malta, and Eastern Libya), and a cock Redstart. The pools inci¬ dentally were full of edible frogs and water-tortoises with snaky olive and yellow striped heads, whilst about the banks were innumerable tree-frogs of a bright and delicate green. Butterflies were much in evidence— Walls, Brimstones, Red Admirals, Clouded Yellows, and, of course, the Painted Lady, omnipresent as its human namesake, though rather more attractive. Coming back along the shore I saw several parties of Kentish Plovers and four Geoffroy’s Sand Plovers. At one point a great mass of flotsam and jetsam had piled up, and here sixty-four Ravens, 22 D. GOODWIN— LEBANESE INTERLUDE about half as many Herring Gulls, and three pariah dogs were scavenging. To my surprise the latter made no attempt to molest the birds and the Gulls and Ravens hardly bothered to move out of their way and showed not the slightest sign of fear, or even interest, when they approached. I visited this area on subsequent occasions, but apart from the fluctuating numbers of the migrant birds saw nothing new except a Pied Kingfisher, the only one I saw at all in the Lebanon. Twice, with ulterior motives, I joined skiing expeditions into the hills. House Sparrows were, to my surprise, very numerous even about isolated buildings right up in the snow-covered mountains. Hooded Grows were also very plentiful, and there were fair numbers of Ravens and Lesser Kestrels. One wondered what the birds managed to find to eat, and why they did not descend out of the snow and ice and biting winds into the sun-drenched valleys below that showed so clearly whenever the mists cleared for a little. On the 1 1 th, wandering through the vast olive orchards along the bank of the river, I suddenly heard the raucous alarm notes of the bird that I like above all others ; it was over four years since I had last seen a Jay, so those readers who also suffer from “ bird-fever 55 will well imagine how excited I felt at the prospect of doing so again. This was, however, no easy matter and half an hour’s crawling among the riverside brambles achieved nothing more than a few odd glimpses of bright wings and snowy rumps, instantly lost again among the grey green foliage. I then noticed a tree that rose high above its neighbours — it was not an olive, but I fear I have no idea of its species — and was moreover very densely foliaged, so I climbed into it, settled myself as comfortably as possible, and waited. No doubt some of the Jays had seen me take up my position, at all events, although there were numbers flying about near at hand, either through chance or design, they never alighted where I could get a reasonable view of them. After some four hours, however, one suddenly hopped up on to the top of an olive tree only about 50 yards away, where for some twenty minutes it rested quietly and I had a splendid view of it. Then some Jays came flying into my tree from behind, spotted me, and at once sheered off in a great fright and proceeded to make the air ring with their noisy alarm. The bird I was watching snapped out of its reverie at once, looked about anxiously — paying particular attention to the ground round about — then, seeing nothing, evidently decided to join its comrades and find out the cause of the commotion, flew straight towards me, lit on a branch immediately above my head and hardly 6 feet away, and after a moment flew off again without having seen me. I can only suppose that the bird was confident that the danger could not be so near and that all its attention was centred on the birds it could see and hear only a little way away. R. C. WITTING - THE PRESIDENT’S GARDEN PARTY 23 Even so it is the only time I have ever known a Jay to be caught napping in such a manner. These birds were of the Syrian form ( Garrulus glandarius atricapillus) which differs from the common bird in having more white about the head and a glossy black crown and nape. In camp I made the acquaintance of a tame Yellow- vented Bulbul that belonged to one of the camp staff. This bird was allowed full liberty and was absolutely fearless, although its plumage was in a rather deplorable state. I learnt from the owner that the bird not only accompanied him to the mess and shared his meals, but was nightly regaled with cake and beer in the N.A.A.F.I. After which information I was only surprised at the continued liveliness and good spirits of the feathered toper. I can never understand why most people find it so vastly amusing to tempt or even coerce birds and mammals into taking intoxicants and other unnatural forms of food, but no doubt I have a warped sense of humour. All too soon my leave came to an end, but on the train journey back I had brief but exceedingly close views of a Marsh Harrier perched at the side of the track — the only time I have ever«seen any species of Harrier other than on the wing, and a cock Red-legged Kestrel that flew from a rockface only a few yards away, and when I saw a Rock Dove dive from the sky into a small and obviously “ get-at-able ”- cave I felt half-inclined to risk jumping from the window to investigate. No doubt most of those who have waded through this article will be wishing that I had ! * * * THE PRESIDENT’S GARDEN PARTY FOXWARREN PARK, 12th June, 1948 By R. C. Witting For many members of the Avicultural Society the supreme test of the English climate is its behaviour on the day of the President’s garden party, and the 1948 gathering will be remembered as one when an unanimous award of full marks could be made to the clerk of the weather for wearing his most benign smile. A motor coach was kindly provided by Mr. Ezra for those travelling from London, whilst others joined the party at the park, whose beauties could be enjoyed in the most favourable conditions possible. After a welcome from our President and Hon. Secretary, the guests were conducted to a paddock containing a pair of the beautiful and rare White-necked Crane, whose two well-grown young ones inspired great admiration. Thence the visitors proceeded to the main aviaries, 124 R. G. WITTING - THE PRESIDENT’S GARDEN PARTY in which, despite some expressions of sadness at their relative depopula¬ tion as compared with the ornithological riches they contained in earlier years, many birds of great interest were inspected — Leadbeater’s Cockatoos, Queen Alexandra’s and Green-winged King Parrakeets, an albino Crow, Jackson’s Whydah-Bird, Rothschild’s Grackle, Bronze-winged Pigeons, Superb Glossy and Rosy Starlings, a cock Amherst Pheasant, and a trio of Mikados, whilst a Pekin Robin, flitting from bush to bush, evoked some expressions of nostalgia for the dear distant days when some may have been mistakenly inclined to despise this charming species asa“ common ” bird. It was gratifying to find that the strain of lutino Ring-necked Parrakeets is represented by numerous individuals. The company was next conducted to the waterfowl ponds, having on the way an opportunity of admiring the saltatory feats of a herd of Blackbuck, with their young, and of numerous Wallabies, including a mother with a young one in her pouch. Those who have only seen either of these creatures in small paddocks can form but a small idea of their grace of movement when they are permitted a large space in which to disport themselves. At Foxwarren they are surely viewed under conditions as nearly approaching perfection as is possible, enjoying, as they do, together with a number of the small Indian deer known as Muntjacs, the freedom of a large part of the park, with hills, dales, and woods, all surrounded by a vermin-proof fence. This digression, in view of its unique interest, may be pardoned in a magazine devoted to birds. Passing from fur to feather, the company next turned their attention to the waterfowl, amongst which Eyton’s Tree-Ducks, Scaup, and full-winged Mandarins and Carolinas were especially noticed, and the fact of eclipse plumage being the rule at this time of the year did little to lessen their attraction. A Blue Eared Pheasant and some Jungle Fowl were also displaying themselves in the vicinity. An adjournment was now made to the house for tea, and it is typical of our host’s kindness and consideration that, observing the attention of some of the party to be drawn by cages at an upper window, he immediately invited his guests to go upstairs and examine the occupants. These proved to be some of the most fascinating birds seen that day, amongst them being a couple of Golden-fronted Fruit- Suckers, a glorious Shama, and two Sun-Birds whose metallic plumage scintillated with a marvellous iridescence in the June sunshine. It was interesting to learn that it had been necessary to protect the windows with wire-netting, because on one occasion a Sparrow Hawk had had the boldness to penetrate right into the room in its search for feathered prey. The numerous objects of interest in this part of the house included a number of paintings of past favourite occupants of the aviaries, amongst which White-and-Blue Kingfishers, Renauld’s BRITISH AVICULTURISTS’ CLUB 125 Ground-Cuckoos, Rothschild’s Grackles, Glittering Pheasants, Pink¬ headed Ducks, and the famous blue Alexandrine Parrakeet were conspicuous, whilst at the head of the stairs a superb tapestry depicting Paradise Flycatchers was much admired. After tea some of the party explored the beautiful garden in front of the house, whilst others enjoyed the extensive panorama from the terrace and listened to Miss Ruth Ezra’s pianoforte playing. It is difficult to exaggerate the debt which the members of the Avicultural Society owe to Mr. and Mrs. Ezra and their family for the care and trouble which they lavish in making these gatherings occasions of the utmost pleasure to their guests! * * * BRITISH AVICULTURISTS’ CLUB The twelfth meeting of the Club was held at the Rembrandt Hotel, Thurloe Place, South Kensington, S.W. 7, on Tuesday, 22nd June, 1948, at 6 p.m., followed by a dinner. Chairman : Miss Phyllis Barclay-Smith. Members of the Club : Dr. M. Amsler, P. W. Beauchamp, Hon. Mrs. G. Bourke, Capt. A. Clarence, T. Crewes, P. L. Dabner, Capt. Jean Delacour, B. H. Dulanty, O. E. Dunmore, A. Ezra (Patron), C. L. Faudell, J. F. M. Floyd, Percy Glover, Tom Goodwin, C. F, Harding, Dr. E. Hindle (Scientific Director, Zoological Society of London), Major E. F. Housden, G. T. lies (Belle Vue Zoo, Man¬ chester), H. J. Indge, Miss E. Maud Knobel (Club Hostess), Miss M. H. Knobel-Harman, M. C. A. Lyell, G. C. Lynch, P. H. Maxwell, K. A. Norris, Mrs. J. N. Phipps, Sydney Porter, A. A. Prestwich (Hon. Secretary), H. J. Rabbin, J. H. Reay, A. H. Scott, Peter Scott, D. Seth-Smith, A. E. Sibley, Dr. E. Sprawson, J. A. Swan, A. W. Tunesi, E. N. T. Vane, Mrs. N. Wharton-Tigar, R. C. Witting. Guests of Honour : Lee S. Crandall (General Curator, New York Zoological Society), Freeman M. Shelly (Director, Philadelphia Zoological Garden). Guests : Jim Bailey, D. Bowles (Dudley Zoo), John Byrne, H. G. Calkin ( Country Life), C. S. Cansdale (Assistant Superintendent, Zoological Society of London), Mrs. C. S. Cansdale, Mrs. D. Carson- Roberts, G. N. Clark, R. A. H. Coombes, F. G. Cozens (Dudley Zoo), Mrs. P. L. Dabner, C. T. Dalgety, Sir G. Tyrwhitt Drake (Maidstone Zoo), W. E. Glegg (Hon. Secretary, British Ornithologists* Club), Mrs. P. Glover, Mrs. C. F. Harding, Miss S. Indge, H. L. Killick, Miss E. Kinnear, N. B. Kinnear (Director, British Museum 126 BRITISH AVICULTURISTS’ CLUB (Natural History) ), A. H. Lyell, Mrs. G. G. Lynch, Dr. W. Mann (General Director, National Zoological Park, Washington),* Mrs. W. Mann, Kenneth Mason ( Daily Graphic ), H. R. Mills (Director, Science Services, British Council), G. S. Mottershead (Chester Zoo), Dr. S. A. Neave (Secretary, Zoological Society of London), Mrs. S. A. Neave, J. Norris, H. W. Parker (Keeper of Zoology, British Museum (Natural History)), Miss B. Russ, Mrs. D. Seth-Smith, Lieut.-Gol. W. P. C. Tenison, Mrs. W. P. G. Tenison, Dr. A. Landsborough Thomson (President, British Ornithologists’ Union), E. H. Tong (Superintendent, Whipsnade Park), Mrs. A. W. Tunesi, Dr. G. M. Vevers (Superinten¬ dent, Zoological Society of London), Mrs. G. M. Vevers, Miss F. Waldron, G. E. Weston. Members of the Club, 41 ; guests, 44 ; total, 85. The Chairman stated that the dinner, in honour of Mr. Lee Crandall and Mr. Freeman Shelly, was a very special one for the British Aviculturists’ Club as it was an endeavour to express the gratitude of the aviculturists in Great Britain to their colleagues in the United States and their admiration for the whole great American nation. They had tried to make the evening a symbol of this and had in consequence chosen for the souvenir menu a bird not very typical of aviculture, the Bald Eagle, the emblem of the United States. No one had as yet qualified for the Society’s medal for breeding this bird in captivity though it had been bred at Buffalo, New York, in 1909. She thanked Mr. G. Clark for kindly specially executing and presenting the drawing. Miss Barclay-Smith said she was very glad that Dr. William Mann, Director General of the Washington Zoo, and Mrs. Mann had also come to England and the Club was greatly honoured by their presence. The Club had, in addition, a number of distinguished guests from Great Britain, the Director, and the Keeper of Zoology, of the British Museum (Natural History), the President of the British Ornithologists’ Union, and representatives of the British Council and the British Ornithologists’ Club. She was particularly glad to welcome Mr. H. G. Calkin, Managing Director of Country Life , who had done so much to help the Avicultural Magazine ; it was entirely owing to the assistance of Mr. Calkin that so many coloured plates had been possible and she would like to take this opportunity of expressing the gratitude of the Society to him. Mr. Calkin was retiring after 47 years with Country Life and in wishing him every happiness Miss Barclay-Smith told him that in his retirement he was by no means going to be allowed to lose touch with the Avicultural Society. The Chairman stated that the indefatigable Hon. Secretary, Mr. Prestwich, had always gone in for quality in his collections but he had surpassed himself this evening in the valuable collection of Zoo officials he had gathered together, representative of the Zoological Avic. Mag. 1948 »p table, left to right : Mr. D. Seth-Smith, Dr. William Mann, Mr. N. B. Kinnear, r. Lee Crandall, Miss Barclay-Smith, Mr. F. Shelly, Mr. A. Ezra, Mrs. Mann, . A. Landsborough Thomson, Mr. H. W. Parker, Mr. H. R. Mills, Mrs. Seth-Smith. Avic. Mag. i 948. Top table, left to right : Mr. W. E. Glegg, Dr. Sheffield A. Neave, Sir Garrard Tyrwhitt Drake, Miss Knobel, Mr. Jean Delacour, Mrs. Neave. BRITISH AVIGULTURISTS’ CLUB 127 Society of London, Whipsnade, Belle Vue (Manchester), Maidstone, Chester, and Dudley. Miss Barclay-Smith then paid a tribute to the work of Mr. Delacour, who was doing so much to bring the aviculturists of the Old and New Worlds together. He was greatly missed in Europe but she hoped he would retain his migratory instinct which impelled him eastwards each summer. Mr. Shelly, Miss Barclay-Smith explained, was visiting Europe for the first time ; and they were greatly honoured and gratified that within two hours of arriving in London he should be with the British Aviculturists’ Club. Miss Barclay-Smith then concluded with the following words- of thanks to Mr. Lee Crandall : “ It is difficult to express to you, Mr. Crandall, just how much we feel and how much we wish to thank you for all you have done. During the war, when Mr. Ezra was being peppered with bombs of all species, Miss Knobel was having her windows blown out every other day, and I was living an unreal life 100 feet below ground helping to produce a secret aero-engine, you constantly wrote us the most encouraging and sympathetic letters — we used to send those letters to each other and when everything seemed so hopeless and difficult and we felt almost in despair at keeping aviculture going at all, those letters inspired us and helped us, more than I can tell you, through those hard days. In addition, you fed us, you fed our birds, and for what I am personally most grateful, you fed the Avicultural Magazine ; in keeping those three component parts of the Society alive you helped in no small measure to keep the Society in being. We are very happy to have you with us to-night and to be able to express to you, though most inadequately, our great gratitude for your kindness and help which we can never forget.” Mr. Lee Crandall, in reply, said he was greatly moved by the Chairman’s words, expressed his thanks to everyone for the kind welcome he had received, and said he was very pleased to be once again in England. He then exhibited a technicolor film of the New York Zoological Park which he said would give a general idea of an American Zoo, as the New York Zoo did not differ greatly from any other Zoo in America. Shots in the film included those of the Sea Lion pond, the Giant Panda which arrived in 1941 and weighed 369 pounds, the Penguin pond, an African Elephant brought from the Congo in 1946, Tortoises, Beaver dams, the Gibbon island, Otters, the duck pond, and Zebras galloping in an enclosure called the African plain, and also the animal hospital. Remarking on the film, Mr. Crandall said that the idea of the public feeding the Sea Lions had been copied from the London Zoo, but for 128 BRITISH AVICULTURISTS’ CLUB the privilege of feeding them visitors had to pay to the extent of five cents per mackerel. With the breeding of Black-footed Penguins the New York Zoo had done very well but had not been successful with King Penguins. Dr. Mann, however, who is an authority on King Penguins, has done very well with them. Speaking of the births in the New York Zoo this year, Mr. Crandall said there had been two rare births, one of a baby Moose the other of a baby Gibbon, the latter being born two weeks before he left the United States for Britain. Mr. Crandall said mammals of special interest now residing in the New York Zoo include the Bongo, which had been there for fourteen years, an Okapi which was received at the same time as the animal now in the London Zoo, Pere David Deer received two years ago from the Duke of Bedford, and three Lesser Pandas received from Calcutta last year. The Pandas had settled down very well although they are usually very difficult to rear in America. The New York Zoological Park, or the Bronx Zoo, he said, was free to the public on four days a week with a small admission fee being charged on Thursdays. The attendance ran to about three million a year. Some of the Zoos in America were closed during the winter as very few people visited them and the expense of keeping them open was very great. Other American Zoos, such as the St. Louis Zoo, depended very largely on trained animals for attracting the public, and St. Louis did a remarkable job in putting on these trained animals. Mr. Crandall remarked that this did not affect the nature of the animals in general, and it was not at all a circus Zoo, but the act was used to draw the public which is necessary for the support of a Zoo. Mr. Crandall then exhibited a second film entitled Strangers from Afar. Many mammals and birds were shown but those of special interest were Duck-billed Platypuses brought to New York by David Fleay last year, which, Mr. Crandall said, had settled there very well, an Echidna, which Mr. Crandall explained was not nearly so rare or so difficult to keep as the Duck-billed Platypuses, a Water Opossum, probably the only one kept in captivity, Tarsiers brought from the Philippines, a Monkey-eating Eagle, a baby Wattled Crane, which was very rare, and the habits and display of the Umbrella Bird. Pictures were also shown of the reconditioned small mammal house and small bird room, and also of the old small mammal house. Mr. Crandall said wire netting had now been replaced by glass, heating and ventilation improved, the animals and birds were doing better than they did before and they could be seen to a better advantage ; the cages were more decorative and the smell which made the small mammal house so unpleasant no longer existed. BRITISH AVICULTURISTS’ CLUB 129 Mr. D. Seth-Smith, proposing a vote of thanks to Mr. Lee Crandall, said : “ I think I may claim to have known Mr. Crandall probably longer than anyone else in this room, for it is not far short of forty years since he started his work in the New York Zoo, and I became Curator of Birds in the London Zoo. We had much in common and used to correspond a good deal. Shortly after his appointment Mr. Crandall came over here to see us and I recollect the visit very well ; it was most delightful as we were able to discuss items connected with our work. “ One incident of this first visit of which Mr. Crandall reminded me when he was last here, some ten years ago, was the day he bought an overcoat. He said that he was still wearing it on occasions, nearly thirty years afterwards. This shows that we were once able to produce good things in this country, even if we cannot do so now. We could, also, at that time produce good birds and some good aviculturists, such as Hubert Astley, Reginald Phillipps, and Mrs. Johnstone, to look after them. We hope, however, things will improve and we are very delighted to hear of the good work being done on the other side of the Atlantic. “ Our Zoo is looking up and we are getting on very well, but, unfortunately, private individuals are unable to do very much at present. We all remember, at least those of us who are old enough to remember, the magnificent collections kept about thirty years ago. Our friends in the United States have not experienced the difficulties which we have had to contend with, and they have really done remarkably well. “ Mr. Crandall went himself to New Guinea and brought back a most wonderful collection of Birds of Paradise, the best in any zoological collection in the world, and we were delighted to read about his experiences there. “ Those of us who are fortunate enough to be members of the New York Zoological Society and receive its publications, find it very pleasant to read the articles contributed by Mr. Crandall. “ We have to-night had a grand show and it was most interesting to learn about the habits and display of the Umbrella Bird. “ We do congratulate Mr. Crandall for what he has accomplished, also our other friends in the United States, and I am sure we all wish to extend our heartfelt thanks to Mr. Crandall for the delightful show he has given us this evening.” Miss Knobel, in seconding the vote of thanks, said : “ We have so many distinguished guests with us that it is indeed a gala night for the Avicultural Society’s Club, but especially are we glad and proud to welcome Mr. Lee Crandall, and feel it is a great honour to have him with us. Of course, we should have loved him far more dearly had he brought us a dozen Blue-birds and I don’t think we 30 BRITISH AVICULTURISTS CLUB would have been particular whether they were Eastern or Western. But I fear all these glories for us are things of the past and we have to content ourselves with happy memories of the ‘ might have beens \ “ I met Mr. Lee Crandall at the Ornithological Congress, which met at Oxford in 1934, and I believe I am right in thinking he was in the same coach as myself when we went to Lord Lilford’s place near Oundle and we had a most perilous journey with a terrible driver. He either accelerated and bumped us into the coach in front or jammed on his brakes and the coach behind bumped into us, so we were continually being thrown backwards and forwards, and he ended in going round the wrong side of an island and getting into trouble with the police. “ Well, ladies and gentlemen, as your Club hostess, I am sure I am speaking for you ’ all in again saying how gratified we are to have Mr. Lee Crandall with us, and I have very great pleasure in seconding the vote of thanks to him.” Mr. Shelley then spoke : “I should like to thank you very much, ladies and gentlemen, from the bottom of my heart for the kind welcome you have shown me to-night. I have not been in your country before and as I said to Miss Barclay-Smith a few moments ago, I am so happy I was able to see Britain from the air as it gave me an opportunity of seeing your countryside. “ Like Mr. Crandall, I am immensely touched by your hospitality. You are a grand bunch. I have many friends in Britain, especially in Nottingham and Birmingham, and we have had the pleasure in Philadelphia of entertaining a number of your people many times. Should any of you come to the States, look us up and we will try and return the hospitality that you have shown us to-night.” Dr. William Mann then said how pleased he was to be present ; he had arrived unexpectedly and had not got his name on the menu, but he was sure he could have had the potatoes named after him ! He had been in London three days and was extremely surprised and delighted to see the progress that had been made, especially as in the days of the war he had read in the papers and been told by friends of the destruction and difficulties the British had had to contend with ; he was sure their sacrifices had not been in vain and would go down in zoological history. Dr. Mann then gave an entertaining account of his experiences with King Penguins, relating how he was supposed to be the King of keeping King Penguins, but that the last consignment had all died on him. Arthur A. Prestwich, Hon. Secretary. A. R. ROBERTSON - COLOURED ZEBRA FINCHES 1 3 1 COLOURED ZEBRA FINCHES By Dr. A. R. Robertson Coloured Zebra Finches are firmly established in South Africa. The term “ coloured ” might not be the correct terminology, but it is the popular name for the latest mutations which have occurred in the Australian Zebra Finch in this country. There are hundreds of cinnamon Zebra Finches and most aviculturists are breeding them freely. These birds are cinnamon in colour and genetically adhere to the rule by which cinnamonism is mostly transmitted to offspring. It is a sex-linked recessive, characteristic. The young, for the first ten days after hatching, have characteristic pink eyes which gradually become black. Cinnamons occur in the white form as well. The silvers are the most interesting, I think, of the three new colours that exist in South Africa. Their name describes their colour. The intensity of their body colour varies as well as the colour of the ear markings. The body colour varies from almost normal to a whitish silver and the ear markings vary from almost normal to a light salmon- pink colour in the lighter shades. There is, however, an exception in some cases, and in one well- known fancier’s aviary is to be seen a dark silver with completely white ear markings. The colour is not sex-linked, but automosal in nature, and silvers are dominant to the wild type of Australian Zebra Finch. There are white silver Zebra Finches, but they appear as a white bird, and in order to prove whether or not they are silver, they have to be test bred. The third, and prettiest colour, is the cream Zebra, which is a combination of the former two colours. It is a cinnamon silver. It is a cream coloured cinnamon, the cock having beautiful cinnamon markings of lighter shade than the ordinary cinnamon for ear markings and for lacing on the side of the abdomen and chest. The history of these mutations is an interesting one. Many years ago, Mr. Frank Mills procured a dark silver cock from the late Mr. Robert Cleugh, and this bird is the foundation of all the cinnamon, silvers, and combinations of these colours in South Africa to-day. Whether the original bird was a carrier of the cinnamon factor or not will always be a matter of conjecture. However, I am inclined to believe from the history of the breeding results that it was not a split cinnamon bird, but that the cinnamon appeared as mutants in Mr. Mills’ aviaries. The first lot of young ones that were bred were silvers from the original cock bird. These birds were all kept in one aviary where they freely interbred, and it was not until at least a year after these birds had been well established that the first cinnamon hen appeared. From then on both cinnamons and creams were easily 32 A. R. ROBERTSON - COLOURED ZEBRA FINCHES bred. At the present moment I have a Zebra Finch cock which is almost black. Its wings are darker than the normal wild type bird. The usual white stripes at the base of the beak are black. The abdomen is black with a few mottled spots here and there. The bird is fertile and it has been mated to a normal split white hen, and there are six young ones almost ready to leave their nest. They appear to be normal in appearance. When they are mature enough a young hen will be mated back to the old cock. Other variations of colour have appeared from time to time. One in particular was attractive enough to be mentioned. That was a variegated Zebra Finch hen with normal coloured cap, normal coloured wings, and a white body. Whether or not the owner is attempting to experiment with this bird is unknown to me. It seems a pity to conclude this article without mentioning some of the activities of aviculturists in South Africa. During the war years we were particularly lucky. There was never a shortage of the common seeds, plain canary, the millets, and manna seed. The prices never really rose above pre-war prices, and the best millet could be bought for not more than J$s. a 200 lb. bag. The importation of foreign birds was very much restricted, but most of the commoner type were always very well represented, e.g. Long¬ tailed Grass Finches, both the yellow-billed and the red-billed variety, were always present in most aviaries. Gouldian Finches, Diamond Doves, Star Finches, Masked Finches, etc., and all the Mannakin species are well established. P. W. BEAUCHAMP - A STUDY IN SELF-PRESERVATION 33 A STUDY IN SELF-PRESERVATION NUTHATCHES AND TREE-CREEPERS LODGE WITH SPARROWHAWKS FOR SAFETY By P. W. Beauchamp, F.Z.S. Kentish woods and commons around Keston and Hayes have a fascination for me and in early spring are full of interest to lovers of nature. As the trees and hedgerows begin to display their shades of green, anemones and bluebells spread their white and blue carpets while our birds fill the air with joyous mating song. Early May is my favourite time for the study of wild life in this district, with notebook and camera much can be recorded by the keen observer, such know¬ ledge, self obtained is indeed a lasting pleasure. Self-preservation in wild bird life has always held an interest for me, survival of the fittest must be a strong point, but to obtain fitness, instinct would predominate and in this article I hope readers of our Magazine will agree with me that it is worth recording just one proof of instinct being first and foremost for survival. On a recent ramble at Keston I was admiring a majestic oak just coming into leaf, when at the base, among dead bracken I noticed small feathers. On closer examination I discovered bones and fur of small rodents, also the wings of a Thrush, evidence of a Hawks’ feeding place. Both the Kestrel and Sparrowhawk are known to breed in this locality, the latter an enemy of our wild birds. I had one glimpse of a handsome pair high overhead but did not see them come near to the oak that day. It is generally known that the Sparrowhawk does not kill or tear up its prey in the vicinity of its nest. When a hen is sitting the male will bring to a nearby tree its victim, kill and tear it up there to feed the hen, also the youngsters, flying back and forth for fresh pieces very quietly and among dense foliage ; no doubt an instinct of self- preservation. On my next visit a few days later I looked around for a likely breeding site somewhere near the large oak, and noticed what looked to be a squirrel’s drey in the second fork of ah older oak, about thirty yards away ; this oak had several decayed limbs although its upper branches were well covered with foliage. Sitting quietly under cover some distance from the tree I caught brief glimpses of both Hawks visiting this mass of sticks many times and so formed the idea they were building or renovating the structure. About a week later with the aid of field glasses I concluded that the hen was sitting as the male came at intervals from the large oak to the nesting site. Here then was a chance to take the eggs and scare away the Hawks, as in this locality many of our choice softbills live and breed and Hawks would not be welcome. To bring a ladder would be an arduous task i34 P. W. BEAUCHAMP - A STUDY IN SELF-PRESERVATION but how would it be possible to reach the nest with no low branches to the old oak. On meditating and looking around I saw two small bluish-grey birds dart through the leaves and disappear about the base of the Hawks’ nest, and after an interval they fly out again. This performance was repeated many times and with the aid of the glasses I identified them as Nuthatches ; surely they would not select a breeding site so very near such an enemy, or was this an act of instinct for self- preservation, so near yet so safe ? As I now had a two-fold urge to investigate I allowed a few more days to pass. On my next visit I noticed a tall silver birch, which was possible to climb and sway over to reach an outer branch of the old oak and so work up to the Hawks’ nest. On reaching my point of cover and watching intently for any movement in the old oak I was interested to spot, by the glasses, two Tree-creepers deftly fly to the base of this old oak and zig-zag up to the first branch, then with a downward flight close to the trunk disappear. Quietly watching, it was seen they returned at intervals with oddments in their slender pointed bills which I concluded was nesting materials. Was this another instance of self-preservation ? Did the Nuthatches and Creepers know Sparrow-hawks were so close to them ? My next visit was an adventure of curiosity — to climb the birch and reach the old oak, first to discover a Tree-creepers nest, then a Nuthatch above and finally the Hawks. Would all three be hatching and possibly rearing their respective young in the same tree ? Here indeed was an interesting situation. Carefully climbing the slender birch, it was possible at about twenty feet to sway over and grasp a protruding branch of the oak and pull myself on to a sturdy limb. On gaining the fork at the trunk I noticed a split in the bark and tucked well into the crevice was quite a bundle of dried grasses, hair and small feathers ; carefully feeling among this I discovered two eggs, these were of a whitish ground colour prettily 'splashed with reddish-brown at one end. Making my way upwards through the now well-covered branches I had no difficulty in discovering the large, rather untidy nest of the Sparrowhawks, when just at that moment out flew a Nuthatch close to my head. This old oak was well suited for breeding sites for such as Nuthatches and Creepers as an old limb had broken away and left a cavity partly covered by the base of the Hawks nest, one side of this cavity was filled in with a very hard substance resembling blackish clay, leaving just a space for such as a Nuthatch to enter. It was not possible to see or feel into the opening but possibly eggs were there. I now looked over the top of quite a bundle of twigs, sticks and dried leaves ; to make quite sure the Hawks were not at home I certainly did not approach quietly. My reward was no birds but three eggs very similar in colour and markings to Nuthatch eggs. It was interesting NOTES 35 to note that all three nests contained eggs with the same ground colour and markings almost identical, though varying considerably in size. Putting the three Sparrowhawk eggs into a paper bag and holding the twisted top in my mouth I began to descend, but in reaching for the birch I swung a little and broke the eggs, otherwise my venture ended safely. On reviewing the situation it was interesting to note all three nesting sites were on the south-east side, just one above the other, the Nut¬ hatches quite screened in their coming and going, while lower down, hidden by branches, the Creepers zig-zagged to and from their nest unobserved. I concluded instinct of self-preservation was very evident in these denizens of our woodlands, as the Hawks were certainly in residence first and the other two sites were chosen later. Would it be possible such birdy instinct could discern safety in close proximity to dodge an enemy, I consider this is so, as small birds continually flying to and fro from adjacent trees would be more easily seen by the Hawks than those using sites directly under, where they could not be seen, when we consider that the male Hawk would be all attention to the hen when on the nest. My last visit to the old oak was a few days ago (the last week of May) just three weeks since first seeing the Hawks building. Through glasses I saw both Creepers continually about the trunk, evidently foraging to feed their young, also one Nuthatch darting in and out of the opening higher up under the Hawks’ nest, but there has been no sign of the latter — possibly they have deserted owing to loss of their eggs. [According to Witherby’s Handbook of British Birds, Owen (Brit. Birds , xxvi, p. 46) has recorded only one instance each of Treecreeper and Nuthatch being taken by Sparrowhawks — Ed.] # sfs * NOTES Corrigenda. Page 83, line 18, For “ Is it ” read “ It is ”. line 20, For “ It is ” read “ Is it ”. Additions to the London Zoo. March, 1948. Among the 28 new arrivals were two Cackling or Alaska Geese (Branta minima ) of western North America. Described by some authorities as a sub¬ species of B. canadensis , this Goose is rarely imported into Europe. Apart from five Impeyan Pheasants (Lophophorus impejanus), two cocks and three hens, there was nothing of special note except a Swinhoe’s Pheasant <$ and an Indian Shama. 136 NOTES April, 1948. The arrivals during the month numbered 82, over half of which were brought from the Gold Coast and presented by Mr. G. S. Gansdale, late of the Gold Coast Forestry Department, who has recently taken up his duties as Assistant Superintendent at Regent’s Park. The collection was very varied and consisted of 1 Grey Parrot ( Psittacus erithacus ), 2 Orange-crowned Parrots ( Poicephalus gulielmi fantiensis), 3 Sierra Leone Green Pigeons ( Vinago calva sharpii), 1 Grooved-billed Barbet ( Pogonorhynchus dubius ), 1 Ahanta Francolin* ( Francolinus ahantensi's ), 1 Swainson’s Glossy Starling* ( Lamprocolius c. chloropterus) , 1 Black-thighed Hornbill ( Bycanistes cylindricus) , 5 Guinea Touracos ( Tauraco persa) , 3 African Golden Orioles ( Oriolus auratus ) $?$? 1 African Cattle Egret ( Bubulcus ibis), 1 Rufous-necked Weaver Bird ( Plesiositagra cucullata ), 2 Yellow White-Eyes* {^ostetops s. senegalensis) , 6 Collared Sunbirds ( Anthreptes collaris ), 1 Superb Sunbird ( Cinnyris superbus superbus) <$, 4 Gold Coast Olive-bellied Sunbirds* ( Cinnyris chloropygius chloropygius) , . 3 Crimson-chested Superb Sunbirds* ( Cinnyris johnnae fasciata ), 1 Green¬ headed Olive Sunbird ( Cyanomitra verticalis verticalis) <$, 5 West African Olive Sunbirds ( Cyanomitra olivacea guineensis), 3 Sun Birds (Sp. inc.), 1 Swamp Palm Bulbul* ( Thescelocichla leucopleura) . Sir Alan Burns added to his already lengthy list of donations by presenting 1 Grey Touraco ( Corythaixoides concolor) , 1 Senegal Violet Plantain Eater ( Musophaga violacea), .! and 1 Guinea ♦Touraco ( Tauraco persa). The Black Swans at Chartwell successfully hatched six cygnets. Unhappily the, female was killed by a fox, so Mr. Winston Churchill deemed it advisable to remove the male and cygnets to a place of greater safety and they were duly deposited at the Zoo. 7 Magellan Jackass Penguins ( Spheniscus magellanicus) were , presented by Mr. Philip Hardy. A. A. P. Reprints of Articles in back numbers of the Magazines. In view of the fact that early numbers of the Avicultural Magazine are not available to many members of the Society and also to the great difficulty in obtaining articles at the present time, (owing to the world shortage of birds in captivity), it has been decided to reprint a series of articles. These articles will be chosen with a view to providing information of interest to aviculturists of the present time and will not deal with birds which are seldom seen in captivity. The first of these articles “ Breeding of Queen Alexandra Parrakeets ” by Hubert D. Astley is published in this number. The Editor will be glad to receive criticisms or comments on this proposal. Acknowledgment The Editor acknowledges with many thanks the painting of Motmots by Monsieur Jean Pierre Derscheid which forms the frontispiece of this number, and also his great generosity in giving a donation of £15 towards the cost of reproduction. * New to the Collection. CANDIDATES FOR ELECTION H. C. Field, 3 St. Edwards Road, Selly Oak, Birmingham 29. Proposed by Mrs. Effie F. C. Clark. J. M. Gill, 20 Lancaster Road, Southall, Middx. Proposed by E. N. T. Vane. John Hosken, c/o James Hosken and Co., 5 Idol Lane, E.C. 3. Proposed by Terry Jones. Edward J. Johnson, Director, Woodland Park Zoological Garden, 5400 Phinney Avenue, Seattle 3, Washington, U.S.A. Proposed by Karl Plath. Harold Leslie Killick, 89 Crest Road, Dollis Hill, Cricklewood, N.W. 2. Pro¬ posed by P. W. Beauchamp. Herbert B. Magg, 131 Berridge Road E., Sherwood Rise, Nottingham. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. Henry J. Mifsud, F.Z.S., 29 Luke Briffa Street, Gzira, Malta. Proposed by Miss P. Barclay-Smith. Captain W. Rattray-Bruce, Warringa, 26 N. Clermont Road, Barnton, Edinburgh. Proposed by Miss D. A. Strombi. Kai Riis-Hansen, Valby Langgade 276, Copenhagen, Valby, Denmark. Proposed by Miss E. Maud Knobel. E. F. Sanguinetti, 240 Madison Avenue, Yuma, Arizona, U.S.A. Proposed by ^ranois H. Rudkin. Frank E. Strange, 61 i S. Broadway, Redondo Beach, California, U.S.A. Proposed by Mrs. Henrietta Cohn. W. Lawson Waddams, 212 Bordesley Green, Birmingham. Proposed by P. A. Birch. H. P. Williams, 2 Burcote Road, Pype Hayes, Birmingham 24. Proposed by P. A. Birch. J. E. Williams, 207 Tile Cross Road, Marston Green, Nr. Birmingham. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. Calvin D. Wilson, M.A., Tracy Aviary, Liberty Park, Salt Lake City 4, Utah, U.S.A. Proposed by Jean Delacour. NEW MEMBERS J. W. H. Anderson, 381 Musgrave Road, Durban, South Africa. Geo. Bellars, 55 Ripley Road, Overport, Durban, South Africa. P. A. Billingham, Holmecroft, Wetherby Road, Bardsey, Nr. Leeds. M. F. Danhier, 182 Chaussee de Charleroi, Brussels, Belgium. Claude Hooke, P.O. Box 265, Napa, California, U.S.A. Nicholas Melides, i Eldersley Towers, Park Road, Redhill. W. H. Muir, The Alton, 12 Browns Street, New Milns, Ayrshire, Scotland. Paul Regibo, 83 Avenue Louis Bertrand, Bruxelles, Belgium. Joseph L. Sloan, Salt Lake City Park, Salt Lake City 1, Utah, U.S.A. REJOINED Hon. Mrs. G. Bourke, Rotherend, Rotherfield Road, Henley-on-Thames. Professor Alessandro Ghigi, Laboratorio di Zoologia Applicata Alla Caccia, Universita di Bologna, S. Giacomo 9, Bologna, Italy. Paul Hansen, Gormsgade 3, 1 . Sal, Odense, Denmark. CHANGE OF DESCRIPTION Sir J. Crawford McCullagh, Bart. CHANGE OF SURNAME Saul C. Cohen to Saul C. Corwin. CORRECTED ADDRESS Payson Vucovich, Rte. 5, Box 846, Hanford, California, U.S.A. CHANGES OF ADDRESS N. G. Allison, to Duxhurst Cottage, Langley Lane, Ifield, Nr. Crawley, Sussex. Ralph Brown, to St. Ola, Doune Road, Dunblane, Perthshire. W. Ferrier Brown, to 85 Yew Tree Road, Southborough, Kent. Capt. Brian Burgis, to Eatonvale Road, Tinana, via Maryborough, Queensland, Australia. D. B. Bush, to 16 Langer Street, Banksia, N.S.W., Australia. Dr. Leslie Housden, O.B.E., to 2 Mulberry Hill, Baughurst, Hants. Harold A. Mitchell, to 2 Strathaven Road, East Kilbride, Ayrshire, Scotland. Kenneth J. Smith, to Zoological Gardens, Ferndown, Dorset. Carl Stromgren, to Box 771, Iowa City, Iowa, U.S.A. T. F. M. Williamson, to R.R.I. Saanichton, Vancouver Island, B.C., Canada. DONATION Jean Pierre Dersgheid . . £15 MEMBERS* ADVERTISEMENTS The charge for Members' advertisements is one penny per word. Payment must accompany the advertisement, which must be sent on or before the 20th of the month , to A. A. Prestwich, Chelmsford Road, Southgate, N. 14. All members of the Society are entitled to use this column, but the Council reserves the right to refuse any advertisements they consider unsuitable. WANTED Lady Londonderry would like to obtain a male Blue-and-Yellow Macaw for mating with a breeding female. Apply, giving full particulars, to Lady London¬ derry, Mount Stewart, Newtownards, Co. Down. FOR SALE Avicultural Magazine, 1926-1937, bound ; 1938-39, unbound ; Audubon, Birds of America ; Bewick, History of British Birds, 2 vols., 1832. — Offers to Mrs. K. Drake, 8 Alexandra Terrace, Penzance, Cornwall. Hand-reared 1948 Greylag Geese, pairs or odd birds. — Mrs. Tyser, Gordonbush, Brora, Sutherland. STEPHEN AUSTIN AND SONS, LTD., PRINTERS, HERTFORD. AVICULTURAL MAGAZINE CONTENTS Maud Knobel, 1922-1948 {with plate), by Dr. Maurice Amsler, f.z.s, . Amazon Parrots, by E. Maud Knobel, f.z.s., m.b.o.u. British Aviculturists’ Club — Dinner in Honour of Miss E. Maud Knobel The 13th International Congress of Zoology . . . . . A Bird Show in Johannesburg, by Sydney Porter .... Breeding of “ Clarin-Jilgaro,” by A. H. Isenberg . . The Psittacine Registry, by A. A. Prestwich ..... The New Hon. Secretary and Treasurer {with plate), by P. B.-S. . Breeding Insectivorous Birds, by Reginald Phillipps The Shama. Historical Notes, by A. A. Prestwich .... Notes . . . . . . . . • . • Correspondence .......... PAGE 137 138 151 155 156 160 1 66 167 168 172 173 176 VOL. 54 No. 5 PRICE 5/- SEPT.-OCT, 1948 THE AVICULTURAL SOCIETY Founded i8g4 President : A. EZRA, Esq., O.B.E. MEMBERSHIP SUBSCRIPTION is £i per annum, due on ist January each year, and payable in advance. Life Membership, £15. Subscriptions, Changes of Address, Names of Candidates for Membership, etc., should be sent to— The Honorary Secretary and Treasurer , A. A. PRESTWICH, Tel. : Palmers Green 4484. Chelmsford Road, Southgate, N. 14. THE AVICULTURAL MAGAZINE is published bi-monthly and sent free to members. Members joining at any time during the year are entitled to back numbers for the current year on the payment of subscription. ALL MATTER FOR PUBLICATION IN THE MAGAZINE SHOULD BE ADDRESSED TO— The Editor , MISS PHYLLIS BARCLAY-SMITH, 51 Warwick Avenue, Tel. : Cunningham 3006. London, W. 9. The price of the Magazine to non-members is 5 s. post free per copy, or £1 10$. for the year. Orders for the Magazine, extra copies, and back numbers (from 1917) should be sent to the publishers, Messrs. Stephen Austin & Sons, 1 Fore Street, Hertford. Tel. : Hertford 2546-8. POST-MORTEM EXAMINATIONS A short account of the illness should accompany the specimen. All birds to be sent as fresh as possible to Mr. W. Lawrence, The Zoological Society of London, Regent’s Park, London, N.W. 8. A fee of ioj. and a stamped addressed envelope must be enclosed with the bird. No body or skin of any bird will be returned under any circumstances whatever. Rule i. Rule 2. Rule 3. A vi. Mag. 1948, E. Maud Knobel, Hon. Secretary and Treasurer, 1922-1948 Avicultural Magazine THE JOURNAL OF THE AVICULTURAL SOCIETY Vol. 54. — No. 5. — All rights reserved. SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER, 1948 MAUD KNOBEL 1922-1948 By Dr. Maurice Amsler, F.Z.S. It was indeed a sad moment for the Avicultural Society when our Hon. Secretary decided to relinquish her post. But it is hardly necessary to remind members that for the past nine years aviculture has for various reasons become increasingly difficult, and it was there¬ fore thought that a business man would be better able to deal with the various authorities who control the distribution of food and the importation of birds. Mr. Prestwich, who has succeeded Miss Knobel as Hon. Secretary, has our gratitude, and also our very best wishes for a venture which seethes with difficulties and interference. It was in 1922 that “ Maudie ”, as she is known to many of us, was asked to become temporary Secretary until someone more suitable could be found ! At that time the Society was in low water and heavily in debt to the printers. Most of us subscribed £10 to float the sinking ship, and such was the yeoman service of our temporary Secretary that we have never since looked back ; neither was anyone foolish enough to suggest any substitute for her services, which have now covered a period of twenty-six years. Actually Miss Knobel has herself proposed over 380 new members, a goodly proportion of our total number. Then, at the end of a quarter of a century of service, the Society gave Miss Knobel a well deserved presentation of a cheque for £252, to which the New Zealand Avicultural Society added another £5 through the kind agency of Mr. Hutchinson, who asked that “ Little New Zealand ” should not be forgotten. A part of these donations was spent on jewellery — not only a good investment, but even to a man’s eyes a very beautiful and well chosen set of ornaments. A gift of a pair of Doves started this little lady on the fascinating road of aviculture at the tender age of two years ; then followed a Canary which lived for twenty years, a good proof of the meticulous care which she has ever since bestowed on her birds and other pets. i37 o 138 E. MAUD KNOBEL - AMAZON PARROTS The Canary was followed by hand-reared Blackbirds, Thrushes, a Magpie, and a Rook, but the most remarkable was most certainly a Sparrow, a species which, although cheeky and fearless in the wild, does not lend itself well to cage life. This bird learned the song of the Canary, and when liberated found himself a mate and reared a family which he brought back to his old cage-home for food. Finally, in 191 1, the first Parrot, a Blue-fronted Amazon, was pur¬ chased, and this started a series of birds of this tribe for which Miss Knobel has become justly famous. Of the forty-two species of Amazons, she has kept twenty-seven, and there have of course been many African Greys, Cockatoos, Parrakeets, Lovebirds, Budgerigars, and so forth — but one with so catholic tastes could not resist such charmers as Shamas (no pun intended), tame Bulbuls, small seed- eaters, Roller Canaries, and a pack of Pekingese. To clinch her position as an authority on Psittacins, she studied skins and skeletons at the Natural History Museum and also at Tring. It was during these investigations that she discovered the sexual differences in the pelves of Parrots. Actually the ischial tuberosities are further apart in females than in males, the explanation tendered being that the larger pelvic outlet in females facilitates the extrusion of the ovum. Through the courtesy of Mr. Pocock these studies were continued and verified at the prosectorium at the Zoo. Although we of the Council will no longer listen to Miss Knobel’s admirable minutes, and her clear expositions of our finance she, of course, remains on that Council, and in the absence of our President we shall doubtless see her in the Chair, for she has most deservedly been elected a Vice-President. * * * AMAZON PARROTS By E. Maud Knobel, F.Z.S., M.B.O.U. Reprinted from the Avicultural Magazine 1926 : August, p. 203; September , p. 223. The family of Amazon Parrots is a fairly large one, comprising some forty-two or more known species. With the exception of one, Guildings, they are mostly green in colour, with other brilliant hues, such as red, blue, and yellow, on the head, wings, tail, etc. They come from Mexico, the southern parts of North America, Central America, South America, as far down as Brazil and some of the adjacent islands. They vary very much in size, some measuring not more than 8 inches, while others may be as big as 21 inches. Individuals of the E. MAUD KNOBEL - AMAZON PARROTS 139 same species sometimes vary considerably in size, due probably to locality. Many are well known, like the Blue-fronted, and are imported in hundreds, or even thousands, every year, to find homes amongst both rich and poor in England and the Continent. Others are extremely rare and seldom if ever imported. Two, the Imperial and Guildings, are almost extinct, and of one, Anattereri , there is not even a skin either at the Natural History Museum or Lord Rothschild’s Museum at Tring. One may divide these Parrots into three groups : (1) Those that have white beaks, which are to be found mostly in Mexico and the southern parts of North America and the islands, Cuba, Dominica, Jamaica, St. Vincent, and the Bahamas ; and I may add here that where a Parrot has a white beak he also has white or yellowish feet. (2) Parrots that have black beaks with a red or yellow spot, found mostly in Central America. (3) Those with black beaks, which come chiefly from Brazil ; birds having black beaks have grey feet. There are exceptions to this rule, but taken as a whole I do not think there are any Parrots with black beaks found in Mexico, nor are there birds with white beaks found in Brazil. The Amazon Parrot in its native state does not build a nest, but lays its eggs in a hole in a tree. The eggs are white and generally two in number. With the exception of the Bahama Parrot, which I believe was bred by the late Mr. Bonhote, none of these Parrots have bred in this country. The question of sexing Parrots has often been a problem, for the plumage in the Amazons is the same in both male and female. Many suggestions have been put forward for determining the sex, such as the shape of the beak, whether long and narrow or thick and broad, the colour of the eye, the shape of the head, whether round or flat, and so on, but none of these have proved very satisfactory. Personally I have always sexed my own birds by feeling the pelvic bones. In the male bird these bones lie so close together that they feel as if they actually touched, but in the female they are wider apart. In a young female they may be very close together, though they never actually touch, but as the bird becomes adult they widen until they may be an inch or more apart, wide enough to allow the egg to pass through. In keeping a number of birds together I have noticed that the only . males I have had are as a rule smaller, more compact birds than the females and the green is of a deeper shade. But male Parrots in this country are extremely rare, and it is not often that one has the chance of seeing the two sexes together. One has to ask why this is — I think there are probably three reasons : First, they are harder to catch if adults ; secondly, they are far more delicate than the females ; thirdly, the traders go for the big, fine looking birds, and leave the smaller ones behind as not being so desirable. 140 E. MAUD KNOBEL - AMAZON PARROTS Most of this group are eminently fitted for cage and aviary life, and make charming pets, even the most fastidious person could hardly say it was cruel to keep a Parrot in captivity. They delight in human society, and are extremely responsive to kindness, and the more a Parrot is petted and played with the more fascinating pet will it become. A Parrot should not be left alone in a room for long at a time, or it will become dull and mope, and if it has nothing to play with will suffer from ennui, and may take to feather plucking for the sake of something to do. Birds treated like this deteriorate in intelligence anc become uninteresting, and are not half so amusing as those that see plenty of society. That is why Parrots do so well at the Zoo ; they not only have a constant stream of visitors, but all sorts of tit-bits are continually being offered to keep them on the qui vive. No one, there¬ fore, should undertake to have a Parrot unless he or she is prepared to devote a certain amount of time to it. Parrots are not only highly intelligent and therefore highly sensitive, but they are very active birds, and need plenty of exercise and amuse¬ ment to keep them in health and spirits. Personally I prefer a square cage with a flat top, with china seed- and water-pots, and I do not think it matters if it is not very big, as long as a bird is constantly let out to exercise its wings. I do not mean by this that he should fly about the room — they are clumsy fliers at the best, and if they have their full wings have a way of dashing into windows and other objects in the room, to the detriment of themselves and everything else. So I keep one wing slightly cut, and if they try to fly they fall on the floor. They very soon learn this, and by the time the wing feathers have grown again the desire to fly has probably left them, and they are quite content to flap their wings on a stand or the back of a chair. For my own Parrots I have a rather heavy steel dog chain hanging from my ceiling with a hook at the bottom on which I hang each cage in turn. Here the birds can climb up and down and exercise their wings to their heart’s content. I may add here that the links of the chain should be so big that there is no possibility of the beak or claws being caught. I also give my birds a small piece of steel chain for them to play with, which I hang on one side of the cage. They will go through it link by link, an occupation which keeps them happy and amused for hours. In all cases steel chains should be used, as brass ones are apt to get verdigris upon them, which is poisonous. Parrots also need something to exercise their beaks upon, and sticks of wood, reels of cotton, etc., make the most delightful playthings. The best wood is willow, beech, poplar, chestnut, and hazel, as these will not splinter. To those living in the country sticks of wood with the bark on are easily supplied ; but to those living in towns the supply of these often presents a real difficulty, and to those I would recommend clothes pegs. E. MAUD KNOBEL - AMAZON PARROTS 141 They are cheap — about a penny half-penny a dozen — they are made of a very hard wood that does not splinter, and one will last a few days. Paper is also very useful, old letters or bits of notepaper they will play with for a long time. When once an Amazon Parrot is acclimatized, it is moderately hardy, and can easily be kept in confinement for many years. The best food mixture I have found consists of equal parts of the best mammoth Spanish Canary seed, sunflower seed, and hemp seed ; add to this in the same quantity a good mixture of poultry corn, containing wheat, oats, dari, and maize. Personally I prefer white or striped sunflower seed, as black is apt to stain the excreta, and I am sure it pays well in all cases to give the very best seed. To this may be added fruit of all sorts, pea nuts, dry biscuit, and mine always have a small piece of toast and butter or marmalade for breakfast and a small piece of cake or sugar for tea. The best fruits are apple, banana, grapes, and cherries, which they seem specially fond of; but strawberries and raspberries I have never found a Parrot care much for. For green food, lettuce, watercress, and peas in the pod, but no green food should ever be given that has had the frost upon it. Coarse sand should be used for the bottom of the cage, which should be cleaned out daily and a clod of earth for them to peck at every few days keeps them in health. Water, of course, should be given, fresh every day, and I always use water that has been kept in a room some hours and not straight out of a cold water tap. For freshly imported birds or delicate birds, it should be slightly warmed. The vessel in which the water is given should be of china and should not only be rinsed out every day, but wiped dry in order to entirely get rid of the slimy deposit that water leaves. Many people have an idea that water is bad, or, at least, unnecessary for Parrots, but when one realizes that these birds come from a country teeming with moisture and full of luscious juicy fruits, such as we know nothing of, to be deprived of water and fed on a hard seed diet is nothing short of cruel. I had a Parrot once that had been treated like this, and had had no water for four years — all it was given was a spoonful or two of tea once a day. She was a fine big bird, but the feathers were hard and dry and had no gloss on them whatever. I had of course to use great caution in giving her water at first or she would have over-drunk herself. I gave just a few sips at a time, until at the end of a week I was able to leave the water in the cage for her to help herself as she pleased. It was really extraordinary at the end of a month how different the plumage had become, the feathers lost all that wiriness and assumed a smooth soft glossy appearance. A Parrot should not be left in a draught even for a few minutes ; at the same time I do not think they should be exposed to the full glare of the sun ; few birds if left to themselves choose to sit in the sun for 142 E. MAUD KNOBEL - AMAZON PARROTS long at a time. They should, I think, too, have their cages covered over at night, leaving an air-hole at the top ; they like the protection from light and it keeps them warm. Most Parrots have strong likes and dislikes, some liking men best while others attach themselves to women ; it used to be thought that this was a matter of sex, male birds liking women and vice versa, but I feel sure that this has nothing to do with it. Why it is, I do not know, but certain it is that you will never find the same Parrot equally attached to both a man and a woman. The same way with children — some love them and get very excited if a child enters the room, others dislike them and are not to be trusted with them. At the same time a Parrot seems to learn more easily from a woman than a man, and they will imitate children in an extraordinary way, laughing and crying and quarrelling exactly as they do ; the high-pitched shrill voices seem to appeal to them rather than the deeper voice of a man. It seems a well-known fact that Parrots more easily pick up sounds outside a house than those inside, and are able without any trouble to imitate cocks crowing, dogs barking, motor-horns, the bleating of sheep, and so on. The best time to teach a Parrot to talk is when he is quiet, and a very good plan is after he is covered over for the night to repeat some ten or twelve times what you wish him to learn, and then without another word leave the room and let him think it over. Some learn very easily while others never get beyond a word or two, but all can make some sort of noise and all can scream at times. If one has a young bird the screaming can be checked to a certain extent by covering over, or putting the cage on the floor, or taking him out and distracting his attention in some way, but an old and inveterate screamer is hard to do with, for he becomes a nuisance to everybody around him, and if there are other Parrots he may teach them to take to this horrid habit. The best time, too, for taming a Parrot is in the evening, they are far gentler then and can be coaxed and handled more easily, whereas in the morning they are often, like some people, inclined to be “ nervy I never let my Parrots come out of their cages by themselves, but always make them step on to my hand first. They soon learn to do this, but it needs a little courage to start the first time with a strange Parrot. Patience and gentleness are the two great factors for training a Parrot and gaining its confidence. Never be in a hurry, and once be hasty you may undo the work of months. But once it is tame there is no end to what it will allow you to do with it — turn it upside down, roll it on its back as if it was a ball of fluff, kiss it all over and, in fact, do just what you like with it, and it will never turn on you, but just play gently with your fingers. E. MAUD KNOBEL - AMAZON PARROTS 143 Sometimes it is a difficult problem to get a Parrot out of the travelling cage or transfer it from one cage to another. It is useful to know he will always go upwards. So if you lie the cage he is in with the door open uppermost, then put the cage he is to go into with the door open downwards, and having the two doors together, you will find he will at once walk into the upper cage. Parrots are long lived and many take a long time before they feel “ at home ” in new surroundings. A newly imported Parrot that has come straight from a dealer generally takes about a month to settle down, but a Parrot that has come from another home may take much longer. I had a bird once that belonged to an old lady, and he was supposed to be a marvellous talker. I heard him several times before I decided to buy him, so I knew he could talk. But having got him home he became dumb, and it was over six months before he even uttered a sound. Then quite suddenly when we were sitting at dinner one night he started, and we were spellbound. He was certainly a wonder¬ ful bird, and from that moment he was all right. Another time I brought home a Parrot and apparently it seemed in the best of health, but for three days it ate nothing and I got most fearfully worried about it. I tried everything I could think of, but nothing seemed any good ; suddenly I had a brain-wave, and it certainly was an inspiration — I took the seed out of the china dish and put it into a zinc one. The trick was done — he fed from that moment, and though I have had that bird since 1917 he still won’t eat his seed except in a zinc dish, though he does not mind the water in a china one. It just shows what conservative creatures they are. The age of a Parrot, especially after a few years, is difficult to tell, but there are certain signs which denote young birds. Very young birds are generally uniformly green all over, showing no blue or yellow on the head, or wherever the predominant colour of the adult bird may be, and no red on the shoulder, but birds as young as that are seldom seen on the market. When they arrive here they have generally moulted out, and show some marks of the adult plumage. But even when moulted out, there are other signs to tell if a bird is young. The eye is paler and does not show the bright orange or red when the pupil is being dilated. In the case of birds with black beaks, the beak is greyer in the young bird, becoming blacker with age, and the nails on the feet are black at first, afterwards turning grey. The feet in young birds feel very soft and supple, in older birds they become hard and rough, and in very old birds extremely so. To my mind there is no more delightful pet than a young Amazon Parrot, preferably a Blue-front, that you can bring up and teach as you like, and they are well worth all the trouble and patience they involve. But it does mean both of these and a certain amount of risk too, to get it accustomed to our food and variable climate. The matter 144 E. MAUD KNOBEL - AMAZON PARROTS of feeding often presents a difficult problem, for when brought over they are mostly fed on a food called farina, if not that then on boiled maize. If only the importers would get them accustomed to hard seed and water before shipping them, I believe the mortality would be considerably reduced. Young birds are often very shy about trying anything new to eat, and it is quite a fallacy to think you can starve a Parrot into eating what he does not want to. He generally prefers to die. If possible it is a good plan to put a young bird near an oft acclimatized one, then when he sees him eating apple or seed or whatever it is he will be tempted to try it for himself. The dealers often adopt the plan of keeping two birds in one cage when they first arrive, as one will copy the other in the way of eating, and they keep each other warm. But the moment they begin to recover from the long journey and to get vigorous they will have to be separated, as they may fight and the stronger will bully the weaker, and they have a way of going for the toes and biting them off, hence the number of Parrots one sees without their full complement. In the case of feeding young birds just imported, or birds that are sick, I find it is no good keeping to any hard and fast rule. They are sometimes as difficult to suit as any human baby, and it is often not a case of what is best for them but what they will condescend to try. The books tell you never to give tea, coffee, slops of any kind, animal food, etc., but what are you to do ? A bird that is ill will not as a rule touch hard seed, one must try something or you will lose your bird. And I may say here that until a bird is actually dead I never despair. They may look dying a dozen times a day and yet pull round. I had a case in point some few years back in a baby Blue-front. She had only just arrived, in fact, had only been here an hour or so when I first saw her. I spotted her at once because of her remarkable plumage and carried her off. She had been fed entirely on farina, and I tried everywhere in London to get this stuff but failed, so I had to resort to all sorts of other things. Bread and milk, bovril and toast, rice-pudding, potato — she would just give a peck at each in turn and then refuse to even try it again. Seed, apple, or banana she would not even try. At last one morning when I uncovered her she looked about as bad as any bird could, and I thought “ Well this is the end ”. I tried all the morning to feed her and induce her to take something, but it was no good. Lunch time came, and on the table was a plain suet pudding. I cut off a piece and put it in her cage, and to my utter surprise she tried it, ate it, and later on I gave her some more and for the best part of a week she lived on plain suet pudding ! At the end of the week she was ready to try hard seed, and to-day is one of the handsomest birds I have ever seen and a very good talker. Well, one has to ask oneself : “ What did the trick ? 95 “ Was it the suet ? 55 I am very much inclined to think it was. Anyhow that suet pudding broke down all hard and fast rules E. MAUD KNOBEL - AMAZON PARROTS 145 with me. One is told that butter is a thing a Parrot must never touch, and yet over and over again I have noticed the first thing a Parrot will go for when let out at a meal time is butter. They seem to crave for it, therefore can it be so bad for them ? Another time I was staying on Dartmoor and early one morning when I was still in bed I had a message that a little girl had come over the moors and wanted to know if the lady was there “ that knew all about Parrots ”, and if she would come at once to a Parrot that was very ill. I went and found the bird lying on its side at the bottom of the cage, with its eyes shut, looking for all the world as if about to give up this life. I took it in my hand and gave it a teaspoon of brandy and warm milk. It opened its eyes. After ten minutes I gave it another spoonful. In a short time it stood up on its feet and we then gave it some warmed bovril and toast which it took and liked. It then got up on its perch. For a week I visited it, and fed it on warmed bovril and toast, boiled potato, boiled rice, and boiled cabbage. At the end of that time it was recovered enough to go back to its hard seed and water. It was a very old bird, and though it died eventually, it lived for some months after I saw it. I have given these two examples for what they are worth. I am not able here to go into the various diseases Parrots may suffer from ; all I want to attempt to do is to suggest a few of the remedies I have found of use in bringing young or sick birds round. Warmth is always a great help. They should be kept in a room that is warmed during the winter and for a newly imported bird I always keep three sides of the cage covered for the first few weeks. I never feel a bird is really acclimatized until it has been through one winter here. But a really sick bird requires to be kept fairly near a fire. So often on getting a young bird home it develops one of two things, either running at the nostrils, which means a cold, and may, if not taken at once, turn to bronchitis or pneumonia, or its digestion goes wrong, and it gets diarrhoea or the reverse, constipation and enteritis. Once it develops enteritis I doubt if there is much to be done ; it is a horrible disease and carries off more birds than almost anything else. But whatever is the matter a bird should be taken in hand at once and not left for a day or so before some remedy is tried. For running at the nostril, bathe the nostril with a piece of cotton¬ wool and a few drops of glyco-thymoline and warm water, taking care it does not go into the eyes ; then put a spot of vaseline on the nostrils. To do this it is best to get the bird out of the cage either on the top or the back of a chair, then with a cloth over the left hand seize it round the neck from the back, holding it just so that it cannot bite, but not tight enough to throttle it, then with the right hand bathe the nostrils, etc. After a few times it seems to like it ; it is soothing and at once clears the air passages. Substituting sawdust in a thick layer for sand 146 E. MAUD KNOBEL - AMAZON PARROTS at the bottom of the cage, and sprinkling this with a few drops of eucalyptus will help to dry up the catarrh, but one has to remember that it is pretty strong stuff and very few drops will suffice. For diarrhoea a few drops of brandy in the water or a small pinch of prepared chalk in the food. If it still continues, take the bird right off seed and give some other food, so as to give the stomach a rest. Toast, which is more digestible than bread, can be given with either warmed bovril or warmed milk, and I may say here that I have never found cow’s milk very good ; I much prefer using Nestle’s, the sweetened kind. Rusk or arrowroot biscuit soaked in it makes a digestible diet, and to this may be added a tiny pinch of chalk. Boiled potato, boiled rice, or porridge can be tried, and apple is a wonderful help. Some birds when they are ill will only eat apple, and I just let them have as much as they like. For constipation, if apple or banana does not help then take them right off seed, and feed as above. Some birds are terribly thin when they arrive, and these should be fattened if possible. Rolled or Quaker oats mixed with the food are very excellent and much liked. Sugar is also a great fattener. Scott’s cod-liver oil emulsion is another splen¬ did food. Some birds love it and will look eagerly for it while it is being prepared, others won’t touch it, and others it does not suit at all, causing sickness. The bottle must be warmed until it will run, then take a teaspoon of it and crumble into it some sponge-cake and give twice a day. When the pupil looks very black and is much dilated, it generally means one of two things, either the bird is in pain or the heart is in some way affected. Putting the bird on a warmed hot-bottle (not too hot) may give relief for the first, and for the latter warmed black coffee with brown sugar they will take in a spoon and like, and it helps to stimulate the heart. In conclusion there are two things to remember in birds that are ill. First that the food must be on a level with them, within easy reach, as a sick bird does not like moving about, or it must be offered to them from time to time, either in a spoon or pot. Secondly, that an ill bird requires feeding little and often, a spoonful or so every two to four hours, and that it should not be left to go all night without something. It is natural that all Parrots should moult some time during the year, that is shed their feathers, but some do it spasmodically, only shedding a feather or two now and again, while others may do an out- and-out moult. There seems no rule as to what time of year one may expect this, as Parrots never seem to settle down to the altered seasons in this country from their own, and even Parrots belonging to the same species may not moult at the same time of year, but one is glad when they do not choose the winter months for this performance. Parrots about to go through a thorough moult generally start by eating enormously, entirely finishing up the contents of the seed-dish, and E. MAUD KNOBEL - AMAZON PARROTS 147 this should be replenished during the day if necessary ; they should have as generous and liberal diet as possible to enable them to make the necessary blood to push out the old feathers and make the new ones ; by doing this one prevents what is known as getting “ stuck in the moult ”. It is curious to note that a bird about to go through the moult always starts by shedding the bastard wing feathers, also that a feather shed in one wing is almost immediately followed by the corresponding feather in the other wing. I conclude my account of this group of New World Parrots with a list and short description of the different species : — Guilding’s Parrot (Amazona guildingi) . — This Parrot is exceedingly rare, in fact a short time ago it was thought to be extinct, but a few examples are known to have survived, and we now see a very good specimen in the Parrot house at the Zoo. It is a large and magnificent bird, and its plumage is a rich mixture of yellow, brown, orange, and blue ; beak white. Habitat , St. Vincent. The Imperial Parrot (A. imperialis) , like the preceding one, is another of the largest and most beautiful of its type. Also thought to be almost extinct, but two years ago the Zoo were fortunate enough to procure a specimen. The back is green, but the head, neck, and breast are a wonderful dark purply red, the collar being almost black purple ; beak horn brown. This Parrot was formerly known as the “ August ” Parrot, Amazona ( Chrysotis ) augusta. Habitat , the Island of Dominica. The St. Lucia Parrot (A. versicolor) is another rare bird ; green, with a blue head and salmon pink breast ; beak black with a light yellow spot. Habitat , the Island of St. Lucia. Bouquet’s Parrot (A. bouqueti). — Another of the big Amazons. Green with a blue head, and bright red on the upper breast ; beak, yellow-white. Habitat , Dominica. The Vinageous Parrot (A. vinacea ) is much smaller than any of the preceding. Green, with a red band on the forehead and lores, red also in the tail and wings, and the breast wine colour ; beak, red with a yellow tip. Habitat , S.E. Brazil and Paraguay. The Guatemala Parrot (A. guatemala) . — A large green bird with the top of the head blue ; beak, horn colour. Habitat , Central America. The Green-headed Parrot (A. vir&nticeps) . — Another big bird very much like guatemala, but the blue on the head is more restricted, and is only on the forehead and lores ; beak, horn colour. Habitat , Costa Rica. The Mealy Parrot [A. farinosa) . — A large green bird with a yellow orange mark on its head which merges into purple black on the nape. The plumage has the appearance of being covered with fine white dust, giving it the name of “ Mealy ” ; beak, white. Habitat, British Guiana. The Plain-coloured Parrot (A. inornata) . — It is green all over 148 E. MAUD KNOBEL - AMAZON PARROTS with slight purple on the nape of the neck. There is red in the wings, but not in the tail ; beak, white horn. Habitat, Ecuador. The Mercenaria Parrot (A. mercenaria). — A much smaller Parrot, dark green above, light green below, red in the wings and tail, and yellow on the edge of the wing ; beak, black with a yellow spot. Habitat, Colombia and Ecuador. The Blue-fronted Parrot (A. (estiva). — These are the most frequently imported, they make very good talkers, and are lively and amusing in their ways, and can be thoroughly recommended as pets. Green with a blue forehead, head, cheeks, and neck yellow, but this may vary very much, and I have seen some Blue-fronts showing no yellow and others no blue. There is red in the wing and tail ; beak, black. Habitat, Brazil. The Orange-winged Parrot {A. amazonica). — Green with the forehead blue, crown and lores yellow, orange in the wing and tail ; beak, black yellow. Habitat , Colombia. The Yellow-shouldered Parrot (A. ochroptera ) is a very pretty Parrot. Green, with the head and top of the shoulders yellow, red in the wing ; beak, white. Habitat, Venezuela. Rothschild’s Parrot (A. rothschildi) . — Very much like the preceding species, but the yellow on the head and shoulder more restricted. Habitat, Bonaire Island. The Yellow-fronted Parrot (A. ochrocephala) . — Green, yellow on the forehead, red in the wings and tail ; beak, black with a pink or yellow spot near the base. Habitat, Venezuela. The Panama Parrot (A. panamensis). — Very like the preceding one, but smaller with less yellow on the head and beak entirely white. This and the Yellow-fronted make very good all-round talkers. Habitat , Colombia and Panama. The Yellow-naped Parrot (A. auripalliata) . — -Green, with a yellow collar, red in the wings and tail ; beak, black. Most of the birds that come over here are young showing no yellow collar, which they do not acquire for some years. They are most desirable and talented birds, but delicate when first imported. Habitat, Western Mexico to Costa Rica. Levaillant’s or Double-fronted Parrot (A. levaillanti) . — A large handsome bird, green5 with the head and neck yellow, a large splash of red or yellow on the top of the wing, and red in the wings and tail ; beak, white. Some of these make wonderful talkers, but are very nervous birds when first they come over. Habitat, Mexico. Natterer’s Parrot (A. nattereri) resembles A. farinosa, but has blue on the front and round the eyes. Very rare. Habitat, Brazil. Dufresne’s Parrot (A. dufresneana) . — A large green bird with an orange forehead, blue cheeks, orange in the wings and tail ; beak, white with a pink spot. Habitat, Guiana. E. MAUD KNOBEL - AMAZON PARROTS 149 Red-topped Parrot (A. rhodocarytha) differs from A. dufresneana in having red on the top of its head instead of green, the lores are yellow, and the cheeks and throat blue ; beak, yellow horn with a red spot. Habitat , South-East Brazil. The Green-cheeked Parrot (A. viridigena). — Green, with the front, lores, and crown red. A blue violet band runs from the eye to the side of the neck ; beak white. Habitat, East Mexico. Finsch’s Parrot (A. finschi) is a Parrot of medium size, green, with the forehead and lores deep red, the crown pale purple, the feathers on the breast are green edged with black ; beak, white. Habitat , West Mexico. The Diademed Parrot (A. diademata) differs from the preceding one in having a small spot of dark purple on the crown, the nape of the neck has also a deep purple band, lores and forehead with a red band, a red spot on the chin ; upper beak whitish, lower mandible black. Habitat , Brazil. S alvin’s Parrot (A. salvini) differs from the last in having pale lilac colour all over the top of the head and neck, lores crimson, some¬ times a yellow streak under the eye ; beak, white horn. Habitat , the Orinoco to the Amazon. Lesson’s Parrot {A. lilacina ) is another closely allied species, but a very much smaller Parrot, frontal band and lores red, crown of the head lilac mixed with red, cheeks bright light green ; beak, black. Habitat , Ecuador. The Yellow-cheeked Parrot (A. autumnalis) . — Green, the frontal band and lores red, crown violet, cheeks yellow, a red spot on the chin ; beak, yellow horn. Habitat , Mexico. The Yellow-crowned Parrot (A. xanthops ). — A small Parrot, dark green with the crown of the head and cheeks yellow, inclining to orange. A yellow band across the abdomen ; beak, white with a black ridge running down the upper mandible. Habitat , Central Brazil. The Blue-faced or Red-tailed Parrot (A. braziliensis) is a fairly large Parrot, green edged with black, the frontal band and crown pinky red, cheeks bright violety blue, red in the tail with the outer feathers purple blue, underneath carmine ; beak, light brown. Habitat , Brazil. Bodini’s Parrot (A. bodini). — Green, with the frontal band red, ear coverts purple blue, the rump scarlet ; beak, black. Habitat , Venezuela. Hagenbeck’s Parrot (A. hagenbecki) is also closely related. The Festive Parrot ( A . f estiva) .—Green, with a narrow frontal band of red, blue round the eye and on the throat, rump scarlet, wings a lovely blue ; beak, horn black. Habitat , East Peru. The Green-rumped Parrot (A. chloronota ) differs from f estiva in 150 E. MAUD KNOBEL - AMAZON PARROTS having the rump green ; beak, dark brown. Habitat , the Amazon Valley. The Red-fronted Parrot (A. vittata), one of the smaller Parrots. Green, with a narrow frontal band of scarlet. The plumage is dark myrtle green, each feather eged with black ; beak, white. Habitat , Porto Rica. Pretre’s Parrot (A. pretrei ) is a gawdy bird of green with splashes of red on the forehead, crown, and under the eye. A large splash of red on the top of the shoulder and down the wing and thighs ; beak, orange yellow. Habitat , East Brazil. The Tucuman Parrot (A. tucumana ) differs from the preceding by showing much less red. It is smaller, with the forehead red, and has yellow and red round the ankles ; beak, white. Habitat , Tucuman, Argentina. The Spectacled Parrot {A. albifrons). — A small Parrot, green with a white front, blue on the top of the head, red round the eyes, and a large splash of red down the wing ; beak, yellow. Habitat , Central America. The Yellow-lored Parrot (A. xanthlora ), the smallest and one of the most beautiful of all the Amazon Parrots. Green, with a white forehead merging into blue on the crown of the head, lores yellow, red round the eye, ear coverts black, red on the top of the shoulder ; beak, yellow. Habitat , Yucatan. Salle’s Parrot (A. ventralis). — A small dark green Parrot, with white forehead and lores, ear coverts black ; the abdomen has a patch of red ; beak, white, Habitat , San Domingo. White-fronted Parrot (A. leucocephala) . — The plumage is bronzy green with the front and crown of the head white, ear coverts black, the cheeks and throat and top of the breast are salmon pink ; beak, white. Habitati Cuba. The Cayman Parrot (. A . caymenensis) is very much like the preceding species, but the salmon pink is a deeper colour and more extended down the breast ; beak, white. The Bahama Parrot (A. bahamensis). — Also very like the two previous Parrots, but is a very beautiful bird. Green, each feather edged with black, white on the head and round the eyes, cheeks and breast salmon pink ; beak, white. The Jamaica Parrot (A. agilis). — A small Parrot, green all over with red in the wings and tail ; beak, horn brown. The Red-throated Parrot (A. collaria). — Another of the small specimens and very beautiful, green with the forehead white, merging into pale blue, pale blue under the eye and the throat and upper breast pale pink, ear coverts black ; beak, white, yellow at the base. Habitat , Jamaica. BRITISH AVICULTURISTS* CLUB 15 BRITISH AVICULTURISTS5 CLUB DINNER IN HONOUR OF MISS E. MAUD KNOBEL The thirteenth meeting of the Club was held at the Rembrandt Hotel, Thurloe Place, South Kensington, S.W. 7, on Wednesday, 8th September, 1948, at 6 p.m., followed by a dinner. Chairman : Dr. M. Amsler. Members of the Club : Miss Frances Bacon, Miss P. Barclay-Smith (Deputy Chairman), P. W. Beauchamp, A. Ezra (Patron), J. F. M. Floyd, R. E. Heath, Dr. W. C. Osman Hill, H. J. Indge, Terry Jones, Miss E. Maud Knobel (Club Hostess), Miss M. H. Knobel-Harman, K. A. Norris, A. A. Prestwich (Hon. Secretary), D. H. S. Risdon, D. Seth-Smith, J. A. Swan, E. N. T. Vane, Mrs. N. Whar ton-T igar , R. C. Witting, Mrs. L. Younger. Guests : Jim Bailey, Mrs. P. W. Beauchamp, Miss E. Bevington, G. S. Cansdale, Mrs. G. S. Cansdale, R. A. H. Coombes, H. Fenton, Mrs. H. Fenton, Miss H. Gentry, Walter Goodfellow, R. S. Jenyns, Mrs. R. S. Jenyns, E. R. W. Lincoln, Miss M. M. Macfarlane, C. T. Morny, Mrs. G. T. Morny, Dr. D. W. Seth-Smith, Dr. G. M. Vevers, Mrs. G. M. Vevers, Mrs. D. A. Williams. Members of the Club, 21 ; guests, 20 ; total, 41. The Chairman said that before opening the meeting he would like, on behalf of the Club, to welcome the guests, Dr. and Mrs. G. M. Vevers, Mr. and Mrs. G. S. Cansdale, and Mr. Walter Goodfellow. He was pleased to see the “ Second Generation ” represented by Mrs. Claud Morny (nee Aline Ezra) and Dr. D. W. Seth-Smith. Also he wished to thank Mr. G. N. Clark for the excellent drawing of Guilding’s Parrot reproduced on the special menu card. The Chairman then said that it gave him especial pleasure to occupy the Chair on this occasion, as the dinner was in honour of Miss Knobel. He thought he was justified in claiming to be Miss Knobel’s avicultural friend of longest standing. He then dealt briefly with Miss Knobel’s long association — over a quarter of a century — with the affairs of the Society, and said he wondered how many members realized how much they owed to. her selfless service. He touched on some of her avicultural achievements, and stressed the success she had had in keeping rare Amazons. Finally, he said, all members must feel gratified that Miss Knobel had accepted a Vice-Presidency of the Avicultural Society. After the toast “ Miss Knobel ”, the guest of honour in a charmingly simple speech thanked the members and guests for the honour they had accorded her in attending. Referring to her term of office, she said she had experienced difficulties, especially in the early days, but, nevertheless, she had loved every day of it, and it had been the means 152 BRITISH AVTCULTURISTS’ CLUB of her making innumerable friends. She had not sought reward, but if she had, the present demonstration of regard would have more than repaid her. Miss Knobel showed a further series of slides, A Peep at Japan and the Japanese, exquisitely hand-coloured by her father, the late Dr. E. B. Knobel. Mr. A. Ezra showed a large collection of slides to illustrate A Shooting Expedition in Central Asia. He said : “ The pictures I am showing were taken by me on a shooting expedition in Central Asia in 1902. Starting from Calcutta, I travelled by train to Rawalpindi, and from there a drive of 200 miles brought me to Srinagar, the capital of Kashmir. Here I made all arrange¬ ments for food, followers, and transport. Soon after leaving Srinagar we successfully tackled two mountain passes. These were the Tragbal Pass, 11,700 feet, and the Burzil Pass, 13,500 feet. On the way to Gilgit I spent a few days after markhor, ibex, and bears. We did the journey of 150 miles, from Gilgit to the Pamirs, in fifteen days, the progress being so slow on account of the difficult nature of the country. The mountain- tracks in places were most precipitous and dangerous. These tracks were often conducted round the edge of precipices overhanging the river by artificial ladders and ledges built out from the cliff, with stones laid upon supports of branches fitting into holes in the rocks. The most unsafe looking bit was where a log not more than 6 inches wide was thrown across, with one end of it resting on a rock jutting out 20 feet above, and the lower end on some stones. Under this there was a sheer drop of about 2,000 feet into an angry river. Without the help of the fine Hunza men who were sent with us, we should have had the greatest difficulty in getting over this terrible country safely. We had our first view of the Pamir region from the top of the Killik Pass (16,700 feet). Here we stood at the point where three great Empires meet — Russia to the north, to the east the boundaries of the Chinese Empire, and India to the south. After shooting a few Ovis poli in some of the valleys in the Ghinese Pamirs, I went on to the Russian Pamirs where I shot some more. As no one ever shoots in the latter place, game was most plentiful, and one day I saw as many as 200 Ovis poli rams in a small valley. From here I worked my way down to the plains of Kashgar ia, and it was a treat to come down from those awful altitudes and to see trees and flowers again. For over six weeks I had not been lower than 12,000 feet, and most of the time well over 14,000 feet. Leaving Kashgar at the beginning of August, I went to the Thian Shan Mountains in search of Wapiti — travelling through Maralbashi, Aksu, and Koksu — a distance of 576 miles. After shooting the Asiatic Wapiti in the Koksu Valley I went on to Kuldja, from where a drive of 850 miles in a tarantass (a four-wheeled carriage without springs) BRITISH AVTCULTURISTS CLUB 153 CLARK Guilding’s Parrot (. Amazona guildingi) (Design used on Souvenir Menu at B.A.G. Dinner in honour of Miss E. Maud Knobel, 8th September, 1948.) 11 154 BRITISH A VIGULTURISTS 5 CLUB brought me to Tashkent in Russian Turkestan in 15 days. Since leaving the railway at Rawalpindi and reaching the railway at Tashkent I travelled 2,583 miles in seven months, having walked and ridden 1,533 miles and driven 1,050 miles. Of course this does not include the enormous distances covered in search of game. From Tashkent I took the train to Samarcand and Bokhara, spending a couple of days at each of these interesting old places. A journey of 40 hours from Bokhara by train brought me to Krasnovodsk. Here I crossed the Caspian Sea to Baku in about sixteen hours, and there I visited some interesting naphtha wells. From Baku I took the express to Moscow and Petrograd, making a stay of a few days at each place. Thence to Paris and home, bringing to an end a most interesting and enjoyable expedition.” While not, of course, of an avicultural nature, the slides proved of the greatest interest, and included several of Vultures scavengering. Mr. Ezra said that on one occasion the carcass of a tiger was com¬ pletely devoured in seven minutes. Then followed some half-dozen slides of Mr. Ezra’s remarkable performing Ring-necked Parrakeet. This bird was in his possession for nineteen years and was about twenty-five years old at the time of its death. Amongst its many and varied accomplishments were twirling a lighted torch, using a bow and arrow, ringing a prayer bell, and threading small beads. Meetings and Dinners during the 1948-9 session have been arranged for the following dates : — 10th November, 1948. 1 2 th January, 1949. 9th March, 1949. nth May, 1949. Arthur A. Prestwich, Hon. Secretary . THE I3TH INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS OF ZOOLOGY 1 55 THE 13th INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS OF ZOOLOGY The 13th International Congress of Zoology, held in Paris from 2 1 st July to 27th July, 1948, was attended by some six hundred members, representative of 36 different countries. The meetings were held in the Sorbonne and were divided into ten different Sections. Most of the papers dealing with birds were in Section V, Systematics and Ecology of Vertrebrates , where the following reports were presented : “ De V importance des caracteres biologiques dans la systematique des Oiseauxf by Jean Delacour (with Ernst Mayr), and “ Conceptions recentes sur la biologie des migrations aviennesf by Dr. F. Bourliere. The following communications were also presented : “ Variations locales dans la population de quelques especes d'Oiseauxf by N. Mayaud ; “ Dynamique des populations aviennesf by Dr. Bourliere ; “ Des phenomenes concomitants de la migration chez Z onotrichia leucophrysf by Miss B. Blanchard. Communications on “ The geographical distribu¬ tion of Chinese Birds by Tso-Hsin-Cheng,” and “ Recent Studies in bird migration ( the role of the day length in the animal stimulus and the evolution of the migration) ”, by A. Wolfson, were not presented owing to the absence of the authors. A communication on the researches as to the effect of light on birds, presented on behalf of Mr. W. Van den bergh by Dr. Frechcop, Brussels Natural History Museum, showed the experiments being carried on at the Antwerp Zoo (described in the July-August number of the Avicultural Magazine). In Section VIII. — Applied Z°°l°gy and Parasitology Reports were presented on “ Denrobage repulsif des semences pour la protection contre les Oiseaux et son interet economique ”, by M. Giban, and “ Some problems connected with the Woodpigeon ( Columba polumbus L.) and its control in Britain ”, by the Hon. Miriam Rothschild. A communication, “ La fauconnerie actuelle en Tunisief by Dr. Mathis, described the catching, training, and maintaining of hawks in Tunisia. On the opening day the delegates were officially received at the Hotel de Ville by the Municipality of Paris. On Thursday afternoon, 22nd July, a reception was given by the National Research Foundation at its country headquarters at Gif-sur- Yvette, and on Friday an excursion was made to Versailles. On Sunday the Chateau of Chantilly was visited and on the closing day a visit was made to the Zoological Park, at Vincennes, at the termination of which the delegates were received by the Director, and Professors of the Museum, in the Hall of the Grand Rocher. The proceedings terminated with a banquet at the Hotel Lutetia. The Avicultural Society was represented by the editor of the Avicultural Magazine, Miss Phyllis Barclay-Smith. 156 SYDNEY PORTER - A BIRD SHOW IN JOHANNESBURG A BIRD SHOW IN JOHANNESBURG By Sydney Porter ji The South African and Foreign Wild Bird Club held its champion¬ ship show in the City Hall in Johannesburg on 9th and 10th January of this year and I had the pleasure of being shown round by Dr. Wolf, a well-known aviculturist of that city and a member of the Avicultural Society. It is a good many years since I saw so many gems of South Africa’s avifauna displayed together. Some species I had never seen alive before and I had certainly never seen such a galaxy of African seed- eaters under the same roof. Imagine forty-six Violet-eared Waxbills, all in perfect condition, contained in two classes and twenty-five Melba Finches in another two, besides hundreds of other seed-eaters in condition such as we seldom see them in Europe. There was a host of rarities, the most outstanding of which was a wonderful aviary bred Lilac-breasted Roller whose colours must be seen to be believed and a finger tame South African Hoopoe and three exquisite Sunbirds, a Malachite, and two Greater Double-collared. The softbill classes were very disappointing considering the vast number of attractive softbills found in the Union. One would have expected to have seen at least some Glossy Starlings, Bush Shrikes, and Kingfishers of which there are so many brilliant species in South Africa. Of the remaining softbills there were three Levaillants Barbets, but only one in really good condition, a Knysna Touracou, a lovely but timid bird looking very much out of its element, two Layard’s Bulbuls and a number of Zosterops or Gape White-eyes. There were a few African Parrots, three or four good African Greys, a Cape Parrot ( Poicephalus robustus angolensis ) , a very attractive species of which I came across quite a few in captivity. It is the common parrot of South Africa and individuals vary a great deal in character. Two birds I came in contact with had outstanding personalities and their linguistic abilities were quite equal to any Grey. I saw quite a few for sale in the Durban market and had it been possible to have brought them back to England I would certainly have purchased a couple. There was a single Meyer’s Parrot, quite a number of Peach-faced Lovebirds, also Masked, Black-cheeked and quite a few West African Red-faced. Besides these were a few exotics, Lemon-crested and Leadbeater’s Cockatoos, a Swainson’s Lorikeet, a pair or two of Bourke’s and a Gockatiel. The vast concourse of seed-eaters included many old favourites which we knew in those seemingly far off halcyon pre-war days when aviculture reached its zenith in regard to the number and variety of SYDNEY PORTER - A BIRD SHOW IN JOHANNESBURG 1 57 species imported into Great Britain. We shall never see those days again (which is perhaps a good thing) owing to restrictions put on their export from the various countries from which they originated. There were nineteen entrants in the first class for Cape Canaries (i Serinus c. canicollis) and a very fine bird belonging to Dr. Wolf not only carried off the first prize, but was also awarded a special cup. Beside the foregoing the next eight classes were devoted to the Serin family. In a class to itself was the very rare Symon’s Drakensbery “ Linnet 55 (Spinus symonsi ), while in another class was a rather uncommon bird, the Cape Siskin, known locally as the Totta Siskin. The local nomen¬ clature is apt to be rather misleading to the stranger. The bird known to us here as the Black-throated Singing Finch (S. a. atrogularis ) is called the “ Peach Canary 55 in South Africa, of which there were eleven in one class, and the “Black-headed Canary”, well known in England as the Alario Finch, was also well represented. In a class on its own was a “King Black-head”. This is the rare Damaraland Alario and differs from the common bird in having the forehead, eyebrows, a line through the eye, a spot on the ear-coverts and the chin and throat pure white ; quite a striking looking little bird. Twelve Green Singing Finches made up one class. These were much larger birds than those we used to see imported from West Africa. Another class contained ten “ Bull Seisies ”. These I recognized as Sulphury Seed-eaters. These too were much larger and brighter than any we saw in Europe in those nostalgic pre-war days. Twelve classes contained no less than 174 Waxbills, many old favourites amongst them, including the forty-six Violet-ears already mentioned, of which several were aviary-bred birds. Dr. Wolf men¬ tioned that these Waxbills feed more upon insects than upon seed and are not nearly as granivorous as the other Waxbills. Indeed most South African aviculturists feed these birds mainly on small white termites which are easily obtained and are a godsend to keepers of small and delicate Finches and softbills in South Africa. In a class on its own was a single Red-winged Finch, a rare relative of the Melba Finch, a bird which I saw in its native state in the mountain forests of the Drakensberg Mountains in the Northern Transvaal. It was good to see examples of the once familiar Lavender Finch, these were the Cape variety which is a rather rare and uncommon bird, found in the coastal forests of Natal. It is a much darker species than the West African one, has the tail black and lacks the white spots of the other bird. It is very difficult to accustom it to captivity and very few aviculturists possess examples. There were three classes for Fire Finches, the Little Ruddy from the Transvaal, the Jameson’s, and the larger Natal Ruddy. The class for Blue-breasted Waxbills contained twenty-three entries and all were 1 58 SYDNEY PORTER - A BIRD SHOW IN JOHANNESBURG in superb condition, making it hard work for my friend Mr. Bellars, of Durban, who was the judge, to make the awards. A class devoted to Quail Finches contained several pairs of these charming little ground birds. A bird I had never seen before was the Zanzibar Mannakin, a bird rather like the well-known Black-headed Mannakin except that it had striped sides. Some of the class names were rather confusing to say the least to the overseas visitor unused to the local vernacular. Thus “BaitMannetjie” seemed to have no connection with anything avian. However, this turned out to be a class for the beautiful little Scaly-headed Weavers, a bird not richly coloured but extremely handsome with its pale fawn grey plumage finely pencilled with black. “ Rice-bird ” was also rather a misnomer as one naturally expected to see Java Sparrows, but these turned out to be more old favourites, Red-headed Finches. Class No. 1 91 was headed Flop ”. This I thought could hardly be a flop seeing that it contained five entries. On inquiry I found that “ Flop ” was the local name for the Long- tailed Whydah, so called because of its strange flopping nuptial flight. South African fanciers state that there are two varieties of this bird, one which has straight tail feathers and another which has wavy feathers. It was very interesting to see the two types together. The one had a perfectly straight tail and the other looked as if the long feathers had been permanently waved. In a class for Paradise Whydahs were also two species, firstly the Common and also the much rarer Broad-tailed in which the tail feathers are much shorter and very much wider than the other species. The Paradise Whydah was bred last year by an aviculturist in the Transvaal, an unusual achievement when one realizes the peculiar breeding habits of this bird. For many years nothing was known of the breeding habits of the sub-family Viduinae comprising the Pin-tailed, the Queen, and the Paradise Whydahs and the Combasous or Steel Finches. No nests or eggs had ever been found and fanciers in England wondered why when they had healthy pairs of these birds that they never attempted to breed. My friend Dr. Austin Roberts, the well- known South African ornithologist, who only recently met with a rather tragic death, suggested that these birds were parasitic, but he was laughed at by European ornithologists for making such a seemingly ridiculous statement. However, it was found out after close ornithological investigation that these birds make no nest of their own, but are parasitic on various species of Waxbills. The Queen Whydah parasitizes the Violet-eared Waxbill, the Pin-tailed the St. Helena Waxbill, and the Paradise the Melba Finch. A pair of Paradise Whydahs being in the same aviary as several pairs of Melba Finches, the hen “ Paradise ” laid her eggs in the nest SYDNEY PORTER - A BIRD SHOW IN JOHANNESBURG 159 of a Melba Finch removing those of the rightful owner. Three young were reared, this being the first time that any of the Viduniae Finches have been reared in captivity. There were three species of the Gombasou or Steel Finches, one with red beak and legs, another with white beak and red legs, and another with white beak and white legs. It is not known what species this bird parasitizes, but I rather think it is the Bronze- winged Mannakin as I always saw them in the company of these Finches in a wild state during the breeding season. There were classes for Red-collared, Yellow-shouldered, White¬ winged Whydahs and also the beautiful Crimson and Cape Weavers. These latter rather resemble the well-known Napoleon Weaver, but has never been freely imported into England. Rock, Cape, and Yellow-breasted (or Red-backed Yellow) Buntings each had their own classes and one for the latter contained no less than thirteen specimens. It is one of the most beautiful of the Bunting family and is distributed over the savanna country in South Africa. There was a single example of the African Silverbill being entered “ not for competition ”, a once well-known bird which has now practically disappeared from South African aviculture. A few Mannakins were on exhibition including the large and small Magpie Mannakins, known locally as the Tri-coloured Nun and Tri-coloured Mannakin respectively and scientifically as Amauresthes fringilloides and Lepidopygia. n. nigriceps . There was also a single example of a one time favourite and a very common bird about the rest camps in the Kruger National Park, the little Bronze-winged Mannakin. It is many years since this bird was offered for sale in Great Britain. Two kinds of Larks only were on view but lam not sure of the species as South African Larks are so much alike. One I think was Gray’s Lark and the other a pair of Smith’s Lark Finches. In a class marked “ Choak ” or Comoro Weavers were several of the Hyphantornis Weavers, mainly the Masked, a very common bird about the homesteads in the Transvaal. The show was notable for its display of exotic Finches, chiefly Australians, of which there was a splendid collection of Gouldians. In the almost perfect climate of Natal and parts of the Transvaal these birds breed very freely as do most of the other Australian Finches which are very popular in South Africa. Besides these were many other species of Finches from the Antipodes, Heck’s and Common Grass Finches, Cherry, Painted, Masked, Blue-faced Parrot, Ruficauda, Diamond, and Zebra, these latter had seven classes to themselves and comprised many varieties not seen in England including White, Silver, Fawn, Cinnamon, a strange looking White-eared kind and a very peculiar semi-melanistic type. Amongst American birds were a number of Red-crested Cardinals, 5J 160 A. H. ISENBERG - BREEDING OF “ CLARIN-JILGARO American Goldfinches, and a single Pileated Finch. Amongst the hybrids, in which I wasn’t greatly interested, was a rather unique cross, the progeny of a hen Zebra Finch and a cock Ruddy Waxbill. This cross was unintentional, the owner having a very fine Ruddy Waxbill which he wished to use for show purposes he separated it from the others in his possession and put it in an aviary with Zebra Finches. The bird on exhibition being the result. It had the whole of the breast finely spotted. There were many Ribbon-Red-headed Finch hybrids. In the Dove classes I noticed the Cape Masked, known as the Namaqua in South Africa and several varieties of the Australian Diamond Dove including the normal type, Silvers and Fawns. On exhibition were Chinese painted Quail and two pair of the local Harlequin. Amongst the foreigners were a number of European Finches, Green¬ finches, Goldfinches, Bullfinches, and a single English Sparrow. All these looked pale and washed out except one outstanding Goldfinch which carried off the premier award in its class. * * * BREEDING OF “ CLARIN-JILGARO ” By A. H. Isenberg In the Spring of 1945 I received a female Glarin ( Myadestes unicolor) in a shipment from Mexico. After a few weeks of acclimatization and rest I hung her cage in the large aviary wherein my fine old male had been living for some three years. The male at once became very excited, flying on to the hen’s cage and going through all his flirtations. It was a pretty sight watching him sing to her with raised and lowered tail, wings quivering, and many times rising into the air several feet above the cage and “ float ” down quivering and singing a lovely song, his feathers all puffed out and wings working overtime. After three days of this introduction I released the female, and again the male went through all his tricks of courting. The hen would at times raise her tail and utter a soft whisper song, the while quivering her wings. Within a week a nest was completed on the ground at the base of a thick bamboo clump. The nest was built of old leaves, rootlets, grass, horsehair, etc., lined with some hair and more grass, the male assisting in the structure and carrying of materials. The birds used quite a lot of old rotten leaves that were quite wet. No eggs were laid, or at least I did not find any in this nest. A male Loochoo Robin proved quite annoying, and the nest was subsequently abandoned. The second nest was soon started and this time built in A. H. ISENBERG - BREEDING OF “ CLARIN-JILGARO ” l6l the shelter of the aviary, on top of a ledge about 7 feet from the floor ; again no eggs were found. Two more attempts were made, both on the ground, one well concealed beneath a heap of dried grass, sticks, and leaves. The last nest being quite unconcealed. No eggs ! or did some bird do away with them ? This aviary I thought at the time to be well mouse-proofed ; last winter I did catch a few mice in it. Perhaps these pests ruined all attempts on the ground ? The other inmates of this aviary were White-eyes, Alcippes, Waxwings, Ptilogonys (Mexican Silky Flycatchers), Painted Quail, Warblers, a Yuhina, and that Loochoo. All of these are not known to be nest robbers, as the White-eyes had no trouble rearing several broods. From the first day (May, 1945) the male fed the female many worms, flies, and moths with much ardour. The male would take these insects on the wing from my fingers, sometimes taking up to ten mealworms. Each worm or moth, etc., would be seemingly swallowed and then brought up again into a pouchlike cavity at the base of the lower bill before feeding the hen. The female would receive the food from the male the while both birds would quiver their wings. A most interesting performance to observe. Even after the nesting season was at an end, the male continued to feed the hen until late in November. His beautiful song was often heard. In 1946 pretty much the same story can be told except that only three nests were built and still no eggs. During January of 1947 the hen unfortunately died and with her my immediate hopes of rearing Solitaires. In May of 1947 I was compelled to make a trip to New York, but a week before I left a hen Jilgaro ( Myadestes obscurus) was released into the same aviary with the male Glarin. To my astonishment it was love at first sight with pretty much the same performance as heretofore related. Leaving all the birds in the expert hands of my wife, I went off to New York, thinking little of the success that later took place with Glarin x Jilgaro. Upon my return on 10th June, on entering the Glarin’s aviary the hen Jilgaro was nowhere about, but the male Glarin took worms from my fingers at once, and these he “ swallowed ” and brought up again into that “ pouch ”. Imagine my excitement as he flew straight to the shelter, and there I found him feeding the hen Jilgaro on a nest ! This nest was securely built on the same ledge that the former hen Glarin had used in the shelter. Later that day I found the hen off the nest, and I simply had to peek, and to my great joy three speckled eggs were found. It was about five days later that I noticed a change in the behaviour of both birds. The hen left the nest at more frequent intervals (the male did not assist in incubation), whereupon the male would feed 1 62 A. H. ISENBERG - BREEDING OF “ CLARIN-JILGARO ” the hen, but would retain some of the worms and fly to the nest. I could “ see ” him singing a whisper song and sink his head into the nest very gently, and something that wiggled got food from his mouth. To those of you who have experienced a first ” breeding my feelings can well be understood. I did not dare look into the nest that day, but the next I could wait no longer. Two naked young were seen and one egg, which I removed as it proved to be rotten. The male seemed to do most of the feeding, and after each feeding he would wait for the young’s excretion, which he would swallow and then fly off, but I did not see him eject these droppings. Incubation lasted twelve to fourteen days, the eggs being dull white with rusty brown spots, more at the large end, . The young advanced rapidly, one being somewhat larger than the other. I looked into the nest twice a day, which the parents did not seem to mind a bit. On or about the twelfth day after hatching the parents threw the smaller one out of the nest, and when I put the young one back the old birds again pushed him overboard, which left me but one alternative, and I took the little Clarin-Jilgaro into our house for hand rearing. Two days later the same thing happened to the other young, and this time I saw the old male pushing it out. After closely watching for an hour or more, I discovered that the old birds were not feeding the young one, so I decided again to take this one indoors. The young were well feathered, and the predominant blue-grey colour was heavily spotted with tan or beige spots, the wings were greenish-brown, tails quite short still. The rearing of these two presented no problem, as they gaped at once and were quite hungry all the time. My wife and I fed them with mealworms (mostly the white ones and the grub stage ones), moths, cream-cheese, elder¬ berries, soaked dried currants, and a bit of banana. It may be of interest to note here that the adults always went for the white meal¬ worms first and the grubs, only taking the yellow ones after the others were gone. While the young were still quite small the old male would take very small mealworms. They did not go very strongly for grasshoppers, but all day long the old male was hawking insects and actually getting quite a few. Solitaires are delightful birds to rear by hand, as they do remain very tame even when fully grown. The adults made one more feeble attempt to build, without result, and the male continued to feed the hen well into November. At this date, 15th February, 1948, the male is not yet feeding the hen ; as a matter of fact they keep far apart and the hen is singing quite a bit, which she does not do later and njost part of the year. At last I learned for certain that female Solitaires do sing, and further proof A. H. ISENBERG - BREEDING OF “ CLARIN-JILGARO ” 1 63 of this was given me by Mr. Griswold, Curator of Birds at the Phila¬ delphia Zoo. Mr. Griswold once kept a Clarin a number of years that sang quite nicely, but never very loud, nor as loud as some he had kept. Upon the death of this bird a post mortem proved the bird to have been a female. I did not hear my female Clarin sing beyond the usual whisper song. Now the two young birds are fully adult, having lost all their juvenile plumage, and coming through the moult in fine shape. The wings are greenish-brown, almost a dark olive-green, and the rest of the plumage decidedly more on the blue-slate colouring than a pure Clarin. One bird will remain a bit smaller than the other, but both are singing very loudly, leading me to believe that both are males. The song, alas ! cannot be compared with the adult Clarin, nor is it like a Jilgaro. However the two birds are not yet a year old, and the song may change, especially after hearing the “ old-man 55 it is hoped. Some notes are repeated over and over again, but they both have the Clarin whisper song down pretty well. Although I do not particularly like a cross breeding, this one was a last resort operation, and it worked. I am leaving Clarin-Jilgaro parents together again this year to see what happens, although I do have another hen Clarin who unfortunately has but one good eye. I have only known of two possible breedings of Solitaires in captivity before, one supposedly in Russia about fifty years ago and the other in Germany, but whether the young matured is questionable. ioth March the male is again feeding the hen and perhaps next month nesting will commence. It would be an interesting experi¬ ment, space and aviaries permitting, to try to breed one of the young males to a hen Clarin ? I wonder if in Mexico this Clarin X Jilgaro cross ever takes place in the wild state ? My tale of this hybrid seems to have no ending, but since I have been so slow in writing this article, and since the year has advanced I may as well relate the breeding results of 1948 to date also. First I would like to record some of the hardships that I have experienced in keeping these Solitaires. During the past twelve years I have had a dozen or more of each of the species this article covers, and almost all finally died of that horrible “ unbalanced ” disease, i.e. the birds cannot sit straight on the perch, sometimes will fall off and flutter about as if terribly frightened. A post-mortem on one bird disclosed a liver disorder. The curator of birds at the St. Louis Zoo hinted that too many sweets can cause this. I had been feeding pound cake daily plus soaked seedless raisin and currants, apples, bananas, soft food (insectile mixtures), honey 164 A. H. ISENBERG - BREEDING OF “ CLARIN-JILGARO ” and water, and all berries in season. I first removed all cake, and for several months I had no further trouble and was quite happy over the results ; I wondered if it could be that simple. It wasn’t ! Suddenly one Jilgaro became unbalanced after months of perfect health, and this bird by the way never had cake, but ate many raisins and currants. The raisins were removed and only currants plus the general insectile mix (soft food, made of Spratt’s Mocking Bird Food, grated carrot, ants’ eggs, and dried flies) were given, and only a limited amount of currants. For three days some Eno’s fruit salts was put into the drinking water, and the bird seemed to improve. Now, after some three weeks of this diet, the bird again appeared quite normal. This bird was kept in a large box cage in the green¬ house since its arrival and sings at times, especially when water is turned on. I wonder now if the raisins could have caused all the trouble ? These Thompson seedless raisins are high in sugar content and the skins may be a bit too much for Solitaires as a steady diet. My nice old male Glarin (the breeding one) had two slight attacks of" unbalance ” even in the large outdoor aviary, and upon removing all raisins, cake, and honey water he became normal again. I have replaced the cake and honeywater, as most of the other inmates require them, and the Glarin has been perfect. From this one would conclude that a steady diet of raisins causes this trouble in my Solitaires. I have no experience with Townsends’ Solitaires, but the Cuban never troubled me so. It may be of interest why the name Glarin is used instead of Glaring. This I learned during a motor trip through Mexico some three years ago last March. The Mexicans call him Glarin (pronounced Glareen), the plural being Clarines (Glarinays). The Glarin is the foremost cage- bird of the Mexican people, and one sees thousands of them in cages all over Mexico, although I only heard two wild ones sing and saw but one in a pine forest at about 8,000 feet elevation. I was delighted and amazed at the bird-mindedness of the Mexican people, but here I must stop, as I could go on and on about this trip and all the wonderful birds I saw, both at liberty and caged. Another time, perhaps, I may write my memoirs of this trip. Now back to Clarin- Jilgaro. During the last week of March (1948) the pair began building a nest and again on the same ledge under the shelter. 2nd April the first egg was laid ; 3rd April found the hen on the floor of the shelter badly egg-bound and unable to move, the male the while quite solicitous and close by. Picking the hen up, without a struggle from her, I took her indoors and treated her with a drop of castor oil down her throat and an enema of sweet and castor oils, then placing her over the spout of a steaming kettle, which she seemed to appreciate. After some minutes of this treatment the cage was placed on top of A. H. ISENBERG - BREEDING OF “ CLARIN-JILGARO ” 1 65 a tropical aquarium, the warmest spot in our house, the temperature being about 80 degrees F., and left her there. It was a good six hours before the egg arrived and broken. Toward evening the bird seemed to be quite normal and very restless in the small cage, so against my better judgment I risked turning her out again with her mate once more. The male was very excited and treated her with great respect and sympathy, sitting quite close to her until too dark for me to watch. 5th April another egg was laid and sitting in earnest began. One young hatched 19th April, the other egg having disappeared. Both birds fed the young until it left the nest on the 3rd May, when the male seemed to take over, also feeding the hen at times. Three or four days prior to the young leaving the nest the hen began rebuilding the nest ; with the young in it. The rim of the nest was built up much higher than when first built in March. 5th May the first egg was laid and then one a day until four were in the nest. Sitting began about the 9th. On the 7th the one young was seen to be sitting on the eggs, helping mama perhaps, but did not stay long. By 8th May the young one was quite lively and was seen in various parts of the aviary. The male alone fed the young after it left the nest, and gave it mealworms (mostly the white ones), cream cheese, frozen blue-berries (which were, of course, defrosted and washed before given to the birds), and dried currants soaked over¬ night in water. Frequently the old bird would be seen on the floor of the shelter picking up bits of grit or sand, and perhaps old dried flies or ant eggs, and then fly to the young one and feed it. I have seen this Glarin taking small flowers and eating them. Once in a while a rainworm is taken. Moths are a great favourite and, of course, the u white mealworms ” and also in grub form. 20th May, all four eggs hatched, and old birds very busy feeding young, also my wife was kept busy taking mealworms to the aviary every hour. About three days after the young had hatched I noticed the male was looking rather badly and was trying to throw up all day. Fortunately this only lasted one day, but I wonder if the large family had something to do with it ? Glarins swallow the nestling excretions, and I have never seen my male eject afterwards, four babies may have been a bit too much for him. All went well, and on 3rd June the babies began leaving the nest. That evening the nest was empty and the old male now had his “ beak ” full with five young to feed, as the first young was still begging. After a week of this the old male was seen to take after the first young, so I removed that young one. The hen had started building another nest again before the four young took off, but this time across the shelter on another ledge at the same height. Two eggs were seen by 5th June ; on the sixth the 1 66 A. A. PRESTWICH - THE PSITTACINE REGISTRY hen was again egg-bound and similarly treated successfully. I returned her to her spouse on the morning of the 7th. Three eggs were in the nest on the 8th, and two young hatched on 20th June. These two left the nest this morning, 3rd July, and believe it or not, the hen has a new nest back on the old ledge, and no doubt eggs are in it now, but I trust my fellow aviculturists have long since had enough of Glarin x Jilgaro. Seven young so far this year is quite a Solitaire (y) record, and the two from last year are beauties, both males and singing well. One more interesting observation was made in that the young are gently tapped on the forehead by the father when they do not at once open their beaks for the food that the “ old man ” wishes to put in them. [Clarin ( Myadestes unicolor) = Grey Solitaire. Jilgaro ( Myadestes obscurus) — Mexican Solitaire.] * * * THE PSITTACINE REGISTRY By A. A. Prestwich Last autumn the first Psittacine Registry and Census was made. Members responded very well and returns were received from almost every breeder. Outside sources were, of course, rather more difficult to cover and many birds of the commoner species were not registered. This year it is hoped that the response in that direction will be greater. It is important that every possible bird should be included in the census, so that a true picture of the relative numerical strengths of the various species can be made. The Registry has been the means of pairing up quite a few odd birds, but it has not proved as useful in this respect as was originally anticipated. It was found that breeders already had their birds paired in an extraordinarily satisfactory manner and there were comparatively few odd birds. The majority of members have not kept their records up to date. Very few, for instance, have sent in any reports on this season’s breedings. If the Registry is to be of real value it is important that particulars of new acquisitions, transferences, young reared, deaths, etc., should be sent in. And, as it has previously been pointed out, in these days of austerity, all breedings are of interest, no matter how commonplace they may seem. Therefore, it is specially requested that details of the season’s results are given in the space provided on the back of the registration form inserted in the present number. A vi. Mag. 1948. Arthur Alfred Prestwich, Hon. Secretary and Treasurer, 1948. To face p. 167, THE NEW. HON. SECRETARY AND TREASURER 1 67 THE NEW HON. SECRETARY AND TREASURER The Avicultural Society has been most fortunate in finding in Mr. A. A. Prestwich a most worthy successor to that great Hon. Secretary and Treasurer, Miss E. Maud Knobel (who must have broken all records of length of service of Hon. Secretaries in her 26 years of work for the Avicultural Society). Mr. Prestwich first joined the Society in 1928, and since the war has taken a more and more active part in the work of the Society ; he was elected to the Council in 1 946 and to the Executive Committee in 1948 ; and in 1947 he undertook and organized the running of the Psittacine Registry and Census. The formation of the British Aviculturists’ Club in 1946 was entirely Mr. Prestwich’s idea and enabled members to get to know each other personally and exchange views in a way never before possible. Owing to his tactful and energetic management the Club has become one of the most successful and popular activities of the Society, and Mr. Prestwich’s happy facility for making all members feel welcome has contributed in no small way to this end. The Club has held several important dinners, some of an international character, and though, typically, Mr. Prestwich has always preferred to remain in the background on these occasions, he was the guiding spirit which ensured their success. Mr. Prestwich is an experienced aviculturist in addition to being a good all round ornithologist, and has a great knowledge of the literature of these subjects, his library being one of the most important in the country. Mr. Prestwich is a Fellow of the Linnean, Zoological, Royal Geographical, and Royal Horticultural Societies ; Fellow of the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland ; Member of the British and Royal Australasian Ornithologists’ Unions, South African Ornitho¬ logical Society, Bombay Natural History Society, Avicultural Societies of America and Australia, and La Societe Ornithologique de France. The Society can certainly look forward to even greater successes in the future under Mr. Prestwich’s efficient guidance, and it is hoped that all members will give him the full support which he so justly deserves. P. B.-S. 1 68 REGINALD PHILLIPPS BREEDING INSECTIVOROUS BIRDS BREEDING INSECTIVOROUS BIRDS By Reginald Phillipps Reprinted from Avicultural Magazine, June, i8g8, p. 137 In responding to Mr. St Quintin’s invitation to say a few words about the breeding of the Shama, I may commence by remarking that I have always a certain number of large, often rapacious, birds — formerly I had a great many — and that, as my space is very limited, breeding with me has been almost an impossibility, and rarely attempted except when the birds insisted upon tempting their fate. Moreover, my outdoor aviary, although provided with plenty of shelters, is simply a little walled-in garden (an ordinary cats’ play¬ ground) covered over with wire netting to a height of over nine feet, so that the inmates and their nests are much exposed to the weather ; for most birds in a natural garden-aviary will roost and build in the shrubs, and rarely will take to artificial nesting-places or structures (see, for instance, How the Birds Learn , vol. iii, p. 174). Again, strange as it may seem, I could hardly obtain such a creature as a mealworm, and the few I did obtain only at fancy prices. And I was commonly absent from home from morning till night, the birds being left pretty much to take care of themselves, so that my experiences in this particular direction have been incomplete. Some of the Mynahs used to nest very freely ; the most energetic and persevering were a male Acridotheres cristatellus and a female A. tristis ; many eggs were laid, and mostly stolen by the male, but a few young were hatched and partially reared. Artificial food only was supplied, with which the parents were dissatisfied ; mealworms and cockroaches would have saved the young. But the nest of all others I look back upon with sorrow and regret contained four as strong young White Jackdaws as ever were hatched. The male, who stole the first egg as soon as laid, had been removed, and the female would not feed the young on artificial food. I can still hear her voice as I opened a window looking on to the aviary before starting to the city ; she asked me for food for her babes in a pathetic and reproachful tone ; but I gave her nothing to her liking and the young died of starvation. I am satisfied that the White Jackdaw is not an albino, nor an artificial production like the White Java Sparrow, but a distinct variety or race which breeds true to colour coming from the Continent ; but I have not been able to ascertain the locality whence those annually imported actually come. Of course, mealworms, cockroaches, etc., would have saved these birds, and the plumage would have settled the question. Several times with birds I have had an opportunity which I have failed to avail myself of, and the opportunity has never REGINALD PHILLIPPS - BREEDING INSECTIVOROUS BIRDS 1 69 been offered again — a warning to my fellow-aviculturists. In succeed¬ ing years the female Jackdaw would never allow the male to approach her (one year she mated with a Chough, but the eggs were not fertile) ; and I have had other instances where brother and sister obtained a divorce : — was this accident, or a natural instinct to avoid inbreeding and a degenerate progeny ? The female Shama is now a common bird in this country, but years ago it was as fabulous as the Roc, and many were the mysterious reasons given for its non-appearance. I may mention, in connection with the food question now being discussed in our pages, that my first female died in a fit owing to the special food I used to have prepared for my birds not having been sufficiently cooked. I have long since ceased to give a servant an opportunity of killing my birds by negligence. My next female I imported direct from Calcutta. A pair of Shamas were sent over, but the male disappeared shortly before the steamer entered the Thames. According to the official report, it was killed by the rats. I examined the cage and found that the rats could not possibly have got hold of it. A sovereign was to have been paid to the butcher, the caretaker of all birds and beasts on board ship, for each bird received alive ; but somebody had evidently offered more than the sovereign, and so the butcher let the “ rats ” have it. I mention this as there seems to be strong evidence that this is not an uncommon occurrence when rare birds are imported unaccompanied by a responsible person. However, the despised female, of course the one I valued most, arrived safely on September 29th, 1892. On April 26th following, this bird, who was shut up separately from a male, but in the same bird-room, commenced carrying hay about. On May 5th it was clear that the birds wanted to pair, when, on the following morning, a sad calamity occurred. The male chanced to fly on to the front of his house when the old Chinese Blue Pie, a very spiteful bird, who still survives, darted down and tore off the centre toe of the left foot. Later in the month the birds were introduced to the garden, and, on the 19th, both were set free. The male’s delight was unbounded ; and right bravely did he disport himself before the lady of his love, but his bad foot rather quickly cooled his ardour. As evening drew on, he went to roost in a balsam poplar close to the side of the aviary, the female not being far off. In the night I was awakened by one of the most painful sounds I know, the cry as of a bird in the talons of a hawk. With more speed than clothes, I rushed out. A cat had climbed up the outside of the aviary, and the male, after the unfortunate manner of birds in real or fancied peril, had flown on to the wire netting. Years previously, however, I had learned by bitter experience that a single wire is practically useless as a protection against cats. The wires were double, and some three inches apart, one being of J in. 12 170 REGINALD PHILLIPPS - BREEDING INSECTIVOROUS BIRDS ' mesh. As an additional safeguard, the aviary was and is surrounded by a cat’s-claw protection ; and up to this point the cat had climbed, but higher it could not go. So the Shama, although within a foot of the cat, was safe ; the horrid eager look of the beast I can picture to myself now, as it strained itself against the wire between me and the sky ; and the poor bird was paralysed with terror. I carried both of the Shamas back to the house, placing them in the male’s old home which would be familiar to his eye, but he lay on the ground all night in an almost helpless condition. When are our legislators going to mete out justice in the matter of cats ! Why should there be one law for the cat-owner and another for the aviculturist ? What justice or reason is there in allowing people to let their cats loose to trespass in other persons’ gardens and feed on their pets ? They should be required to keep their cats within their own domains or to take the consequences. As soon as the birds had recovered from the shock, once more they were placed in the garden, and, more wise than before, they roosted in safe places and were disturbed no more. Several times the female commenced to build ; but the cold weather seemed to cause much pain in the male’s foot, or perhaps he had not recovered from the cat scare ; anyway he was not responsive, and the nesting was again and again discontinued. The place selected was on a shelf nearly four feet from the ground, running along under a shed. It transpired afterwards that two nests were built, about two feet apart, in different partitions of the same shelf. In building, the plucky little woman, who seemed fully to understand that her mate was bad — a state of affairs which seldom fails to bring out the best qualities in the sex — carried at first only dead leaves, chiefly ivy and euonymus, the other available dead leaves being those of the rhododendrons, which she would not touch ; she also took up straw and hay, finally lining the second nest with the finest hay ; moss, hair, etc., she would | not look at. The foundations of the nests were very large ; Robins’ and Redstarts’ nests are often built on the same plan. In some respects, perhaps, it was more like to the nest of the Nightingale than to that of any other British bird. While all this was going on, the male looked on approvingly, sang occasionally, and from time to time made miserable the lives of an Australian Black-breasted Peewit, another very old friend who still enjoys the best of health, and a common Lapwing, the only other occupants of the aviary, who eventually had to be removed. Judging from appearances, for I kept away from the nest, the first egg was laid on June 6th, 1893, and the female commenced to sit on the 9th, on four eggs as transpired later. On June 20th I noticed the female fly across the aviary from her nest with something in her bill ; the male immediately darted at REGINALD PHILLIPPS - BREEDING INSECTIVOROUS BIRDS I 7 I her and seized the “ something ”, and a tug-of-war ensued. This “ something ” turned out to be the first-born ; the excited mother had by an accident carried out the nestling along with the shell, and it was forthwith torn to pieces between the two birds and, if I recollect rightly, devoured by them. Twice again that day and once on the following morning did the female fly across the aviary to the same spot bearing the discarded shells. For the first few days the young were fed by the female, later by the male also. Not only did the parents refuse to carry artificial food of any kind to the young, but, as is too often the case, they themselves wholly gave up eating artificial food ; and this circumstance adds greatly to the difficulty of rearing a brood of insectivorous birds. It is impossible for me to obtain insects here in London, and the young Shamas were reared on cockroaches, mealworms, and gentles. I tried to breed “jumpers ” in cheese, but they were not appreciated. The gentles I discontinued after a time, as they seemed to be more heating than the mealworms. At first small cockroaches were taken to the nest from preference, but later the mealworms were preferred. Unfortunately I could obtain but a very limited supply of cockroaches, and had to rely mainly on mealworms. The gentles and mealworms I placed in bran, in large open saucers over a foot in diameter. The three surviving young left the nest on 2nd July, well feathered but unable to fly. The noise the two old birds made that day was astounding, the female mad to entice the young away from the adjoining aviary and its rapacious occupants (a Hunting Cissa being especially desirous of “ assisting ” the mother), while the male, on the highest perch, whistled defiance at the world. The more he whistled, the more the neighbours crowded into the gardens around (it happened to be Sunday) ; and the more they came the more the bird whistled and sang. In feeding the young, excepting quite at first, the parents would not be bothered with carrying small creatures to their nest ; these they swallowed, and carried only the larger ones. If I persisted in supplying only small mealworms or cockroaches, they would not budge until they had collected several of these in their bills. The enormous cockroaches which I saw that female Shama give to her young after they had left their nest would have convinced me, if I had had need of convincing, of the needlessness of cutting up meal¬ worms to give to young birds. The mouth of the young bird while being fed was like the vortex of a whirlpool. The female would endeavour to tilt a big cockroach head foremost into the open mouth : if successful, it was caught in the vortex and disappeared in a twinkling ; but if the insect happened to get crossways or was not caught fairly in the vortex, it flew off at a tangent, and the performance had to be gone through again. 172 A. A. PRESTWICH - THE SHAMA I supplied the mealworms, etc., alive and uninjured, leaving it tp the parents to kill them, which they did not always do by any means. One reads that the parent Eagle shoves its young out of the eyrie on the sides of the precipice, and then darts under the falling bird for the purpose of supporting it in the air. This is sometimes regarded as a pretty story and nothing more. Story or no story as regards the Eagle, I can say that, as regards the Shama, on the day the young left the nest, I saw the female several times, when trying to get them on to perches in a shrub, fly under them and give them a partial back-up. Until the young left the nest, the parents kept up the delusion that I did not know anything about it. They never went straight to the nest, but every morsel of food was carried round the best part of three sides of the aviary, almost precisely by the same route, a pause , usually being made at two points, and again just below the nest. When the male, who usually performed the office, carried off the excreta, he flew zig-zag hither and thither all over the place, dropping them at the farthest possible point. I need now only add that more delightful pets than these young Shamas could not be, flying after me everywhere, and perching on me anywhere they could find a footing. * * * THE SHAMA HISTORICAL NOTES By A. A. Prestwich The Shama was first described by Gmelin in 1 789. I cannot, how¬ ever, find that it was known to aviculture before 1 880, when some were imported into Germany. It is possible that a few came to England about the same time, but the earliest record I have is of two single males deposited at the London Zoo in July and December, 1885. This most famous of singing birds has always been in great demand, but has never been very plentiful. Chapman used to receive con¬ signments twice a year, and these often consisted of fifty or sixty birds, all reputed to be hand-reared. This was sometimes far from the case, as they were wild and rough. The Shama is widely distributed in India, Burma, Ceylon, Siam, the Malays, and China, and is divided into various races. The birds usually imported were Indian or Malay, with a few from Java about I932‘ Judging by the writings of some continental authors the Shama is NOTES 73 comparatively easy to breed and successes have been numerous, with up to three broods in succession. Neunzig says they breed best in a large bird-room, and that they have also been bred in a cage. Continental aviculturists, more especially German, have in the past obtained extraordinary results in bird-rooms, and they may have been successful in breeding Shamas under these conditions, but in England it has been found essential, if full success is to be obtained, to allow the parents controlled liberty while they have young in the nest. Even so, their breeding is by no means commonplace, and I have the names of only eleven fully successful breeders, although several others have come near to success. Reginald Phillipps was, of course, the first, in 1893, as recorded above. The next was probably the Rev. C. D. Farrar, who, in Avicultural Magazine, 1903, 407, gives this bird in the list of the species he had bred in the previous seven years. In connection with this list Farrar, with his customary modesty, wrote “ I fancy that the list has never been beaten by one individual ”. Hubert Astley was successful in 1912, with nests of four and five reared in quick succession (R.jV., 1912, 333 ; Avicultural Magazine, 1912, 288). He had the parents and their nine young in one aviary, and made the extraordinary mistake of leaving them together during an absence abroad. The result was that the old male killed four of his sons, and harried one or two of his daughters ; and to complete the disaster the old female died during her moult. Possibly the most successful breeder was G. E. Low, who in 1917 had eleven young ones reared in three nests by one pair. He has/ written fully on the successes and gave series of photographs of some of the young ones at various ages in B.JV., 1917, 150, 204; Avicultural Magazine, 1917, 266, 351 ; 1918, 137. B. C. Thomasset was also very successful, rearing seven in 1929. Other breeders to enjoy varying degrees of success during the past twenty years are Captain R. Waud, A. Ezra, Mrs. K. Drake, A. Sherriff, Dr. M. Amsler, and the Rev. O. E. Brooks. There are at present just a very few Shamas in this country. It is perhaps a little unlikely that any breeding results will be recorded, but their owners are very experienced aviculturists, and one can be sure it won’t be for the want of trying. * * * NOTES The Society’s Medal. Medals are once more available. Will those members who have been awarded medals and not received them, please notify the Hon. Secretary with the least possible delay. 174 NOTES Additions to the London Zoo May, 1948. During the month there were 144 new arrivals, nearly a hundred of which were received in exchange from the Calcutta Zoological Garden and were brought home by Overseer L. M. Flewin. The collection was very varied and included 2 Golden-fronted Fruitsuckers ( Chloropsis aurifrons ), 4 Hardwicke’s Fruitsuckers ( Chloropsis hardwickii ), 2 Great Indian Hornbills ( Dichoceros bicornis) , 2 Chattering Lories (Domicella garrula), 3 Banded Parrakeets ( Psittacula alexandri fosciata) , 4 White Pelicans ( Pelecanus onocrotalus) , 12 Greater Flamingos ( Phanicopterus antiquorum), 9 Bar-headed Geese (A user indicus ) , 3 Spot-billed Ducks (Anas pacilorhyncha) , 40 Indian Chukors ( Alectoris grceca chukar), 3 Impeyan Pheasants ( Lophophorus impejanus ) 3 Red Jungle Fowl (Gallus gallus bankiva)<$<$¥, 3 Javan Jungle Fowl ( Gallus varius) 2 Sonnerat’s Jungle Fowl (Gallus sonneratii ), 2 Common Peafowl (white var.) (Pavo cristatus ) . An important collection from the Falkland Islands was presented by Harold Bennett, It consisted of 4 King Shags (Phalacrocorax albiventer Lesson), 3 Rock Shags (Phalacrocorax magellanicus Gmelin) , two species new to the Collection ; 5 King Penguins (Aptenodytes patagonica) , 3^Rock Hopper Penguins (Eudyptes crestatus) ; and 9 Megallan Jackass Penguins (Spheniscus magellanicus ), from the Straits of Magellan. Mrs. M. G. Sevastopulo presented a Royal Starling (Cosmopsarus regius ), the survivor of a supposed pair she originally obtained twenty-five years ago ; the other died last winter. An albino Rook (Corvus frugilegus ) was presented by J. H. Turner, and 6 Greater Flamingos (Phcenicopterus antiquorum) by Ibrahim Kadry Bey. 2 Black-footed Penguins (Spheniscus demersus) were hatched in the Gardens. The additions to Whipsnade were mainly transfers from Regent’s Park, but the following were hatched in the Park, 3 Ostriches (Struthio camelus), 4 Greater Snow Geese (Chen hyperborea atlantica) , 10 Canada Geese (Branta canadensis) , 4 Hybrid Snow X Blue Snow Geese (Chen hyperborea X C. carulescens) ; and 1 Common Rhea (Rhea rothschildi) $, was received in exchange. June, 1948. The registered additions during the month were thirty in number. A small collection of Gold Coast Sunbirds, consisting of 2 Gold Coast Olive-bellied (Cinnyris chloropygius chloropygius) , 4 Buff-throated (Chalcomitra adelberti adelberti), and 2 West African Olive (Cyanomitra olivacea guineensis) was presented by John Bowden. A Red-topped Parrot (Amazona rhodocorytha) was presented by P. H. Maxwell, a Yellow-collared Parrakeet (Barnardius semitor quotas) by R. Denny, and Buzzards (Buteo buteo) by Glyn B. Jones and P. Sandors. An Australian Sheld-duck (Casarca tadornoides) <$ was received in exchange. Several birds hatched in the Menagerie were taken on the strength ; 1 Queen Alexandra’s Parrakeet, 2 Rosella Parrakeets, and 1 Night Heron. Whipsnade . — The following were bred in the Park : 2 Common Peafowl, 2 Manchurian Cranes, 2 Quaker Parrakeets, and 1 Swinhoe’s Pheasant. July, 1948. There were many excellent birds amongst the seventy-seven new arrivals, but none of very great rarity. A Dusky Parrot (Pionus sordidus) and a Yellow- fronted Parrot (Amazona ochrocephala) were presented by H. G. Gregory Smith ; a Golden-naped Parrot (Amazona auro-palliata) by Brig.-General W. W. Warner, and a Green-cheeked Parrot (Amazona viridigenalis) was purchased. On his return from Sierra Leone, J. W. Lester presented a Dusky Bulbul (Pycnonotusa barbatus) , 2 Rufous-necked Weavers (Plesiositagra cucullata ), 9 Common Fire Finches (Lagonosticta senegala) , and 1 2 Bronze-winged Mannakins (Spermestes cucullatus) . Welcome arrivals from Holland were 10 Spoonbills (Platalea leucorodia) presented by Major C. C. Geertsema. The only other birds of special note were two Indian Pied Hornbills (Anthracoceros malabaricus) , purchased. - Whipsnade. — The following were recorded as “ Hatched in the Park ” : 1 Swinhoe’s Pheasant, 3 Impeyan Pheasants, 5 Common Rheas, and 1 Sarus Crane. A. A. P. A Venerable Cockatoo One of our members here in Australia had been ill and to while away the hours was given a bundle of magazines. Amongst them was a copy of the Irish Times Pictorial , 24th January, 1948. NOTES 175 Opening it, his eye fell right upon (of course) a bird — a bird. Yes, it’s a large Sulphur-crested Cockatoo. A microphone is before it and two men are listening near. The bird is saying the words, “ Any water.” Surely, thinks our ailing member, I can remember a Cockatoo at the Dublin Zoo that used to say “ Any water ” and “ Any amount of water ”, but that’s thirty years ago. Could it possibly be the same one ? Away goes an Air Mail letter to the Head Keeper of the Zoological Gardens, Phoenix Park, Dublin. Three weeks later back comes the reply, “ Yes, it is the same bird. He still says ‘ any water’, broadcasts, and he is g8 years of age ! ” H. M. B. Australia. A Pair of Rare Amazons at Whipsnade Zoo. We now have amongst the inmates of our Parrot House two rarely imported Amazons. The female I obtained from Palmer early in June and presented to the Society, and the male has recently been purchased by the Zoo and is beginning to settle down. They were at first thought to be the Red-crowned Amazon ( Amazona rhodocorytha) of South-east Brazil, but after examining the skins in the Bird Room of the Natural History Museum, I have come to the conclusion that our supposed male Red- crowned Amazon is really the Green-cheeked Amazon (. Amazona viridigena ) from Eastern Mexico. These two Amazon Parrots are very similar in plumage but vary slightly from one another. There are seven specimens of rhodocorytha at the Natural History Museum, which show a little variation on the head and hind neck. The Red- crowned has not been represented in the Regent’s Park collection for over ten years. Miss Knobel tells me she had one in 1922, which she sold to Mrs. Dalton Burgess for her Parrot collection, also Mr. Whitley has had it in his collection at Primley. In the Proceedings of the Zoological Society for 1 880, page 68, there is a coloured plate of the head of this bird, when it was thought to be the young of Dufresne’s Amazon. The following is a description of rhodocorytha , taken from the British Museum Catalogue of Birds , vol. xx, pp. 296-7 : — Adult male. Green ; pileum, or the anterior part of it, red ; feathers of the occiput and hind neck with brown-red or maroon edges ; lores yellow ; cheeks and throat tinged with blue at the tips of the feathers ; a red speculum on the wings ; rest of the wing as in C. dufresneana ; tail also like that of the last-named species, but the lateral feathers have a red patch towards the tips of the inner webs ; upper mandible whitish, reddish towards the base ; lower mandible horn-dusky ; feet yellowish grey; iris orange-red. Total length 14-5 inches, wing 9, tail 4-7, bill 1*4, tarsus 0-75* Toung. Sinciput slightly tinged with red ; speculum smaller and confined to two secondaries ; red patches on the inner webs of the lateral tail-feathers towards the tip much smaller and less defined than in the adult bird. P. H. Maxwell. Hybrid Macaws in the Edinburgh Zoo. It may be of some interest to record the recent death of one of the three hybrid Macaws in the Scottish Zoological Park of which I gave a short description last year (A.M., 1947, pp. 66-7). The skin of this bird, a female with ovaries not in active condition (? sterile) , is at present under taxidermy at the Royal Scottish Museum and is, I understand, to be forwarded to S. Kensington. As there is some confusion at the Zoo over the specific identity of the father of. this bird, it may be well for me to point out, as I did in the above-mentioned contribution, that the male parent is a specimen of Ara chloroptera, not of A. macao as assumed in the designation “ Red and Blue Macaw ”. Perhaps some time a note on the specific differences between these two well-marked forms would make a welcome contribution to some future “ Parrot number ”. But as someone at the B.M. may get busy on this hybrid skin, I feel it as well to get these data correct before they begin. W. G. Osman Hill. 76 CORRESPONDENCE CORRESPONDENCE BREEDING CRESTED BUDGERIGARS I sometimes wonder how often a novice breeds a really rare variety of Budgie, i and it never comes to light until years later. Well, such has been the case with our Crested Budgies. It all started back in 1939, when I had a small aviary with a few choice pairs of birds which I was breeding under the controlled system, as j ; a very good friend of ours started me off in the right way. That year we had appear in our young a Whiteblue hen which had the cutest little crest somewhat like the crest of a Gockatiel, but in miniature form. We did not think much about it, and the next season we mated her with a Normal cock, and found that this time we had some more Crested in both cocks and hens. We sold the babies just like normal birds, and found that some people liked them very much, and we gave a friend j of ours a pair of Crested Whiteblues which I believe she still has as cage pets. During the war years we had to dispose of all of our birds, as we moved into our own home — ] that is my husband and I — and we could not get our large aviary moved, and I sold all my Crested too. The breeders who got the Crested did not seem to realize their i possibilities either, as they did not do much with them in the way of improvement, and so when we started up in our birds again, we obtained some of our Crested j . back again, and now we are experimenting with them, as we find them most interest¬ ing. Last season we were working on the principle of breeding Crested to Crest-bred the same as Crested Canaries, and we got the two types of Crested, the ones with the little miniature Gockatiel crest and those with a crest like a Crested Canary This season we decided to experiment further, so we tried breeding Crested to Crested, and in this mating we got three types — the Cap Crest, the Canary Crest, and also some which had the Canary crest in front and behind that a little miniature | crest which it can raise and lower at will like a Gockatiel, and along the neck there j is a mane of curled feathers. We now have the Crested in Whiteblue, Cobalt, Skyblue, Cinnamonwings, and White-wing Blues. Next season we will go into the Albinos, Lutinos, and Opalines as well as the Yellow-wing Greens with our Crested factor, as there seems to be a wide field of experimenting with these birds, and it is really fascinating to see what the outcome of different matings will bring. There used to be quite a few of the Crested Budgies in Vancouver, but we have found that there is only the odd one here and there except for the ones which we now have in our aviaries. In time they would have just vanished had we not taken up breeding again, so we hope to have some very unique varieties next season. (Mrs.) Virginia Knight. Lakeview Aviaries, 3718 Sperling Avenue, Burnaby, B.C., Canada. CANDIDATES FOR ELECTION G. N. Clark, Park House, Park Place Villas, London, W. 2. Proposed by Miss P. Barclay-Smith. Gordon Ephgrave, 33 Greenfields Road, Reading, Berks. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. H. Fogg, 7 Elmbridge Road, Perry Barr, Birmingham. Proposed by P. A. Birch. Alfred Julius Jorgenson, Box 7496, Johannesburg, South Africa. Proposed by G. Bellars. E. J. Kingston, 12 Stotfold Road, Kings Heath, Birmingham. Proposed by P. A. Birch. J. R. Lowes, Keeper’s Lodge, Terling, nr. Chelmsford, Essex. Proposed by G. Weaver. Richard S. Mackensen, Yardley, Pa., U.S.A. Proposed by Dr. Dillon Ripley. E. A. Pillinger, P.O. Westville, Via Durban, Natal, South Africa. Proposed by G. Bellars. S. N. Pinfield, 95 Pinfold Lane, Wolverhampton. Proposed by P. A. Birch. Sidney James Scott, Box 333, Kimberley, South Africa. Proposed by G. Bellars. H. Stretch, 39 Kingsway, Alkrington, Middleton, Manchester. Proposed by A. Martin. NEW MEMBERS H. C. Field, 3 St. Edwards Road, Selly Oak, Birmingham 29. J. M. Gill, 20 Lancaster Road, Southall, Middx. John HoSken, c/o James Hosken and Co., 5 Idol Lane, E.C. 3. Edward J. Johnson, Director, Woodland Park Zoological Garden, 5400 Phinney Avenue, Seattle 3, Washington, U.S.A. Harold Leslie Killick, 89 Crest Road, Dollis Hill, Cricklewood, N.W. 2. Henry J. Mifsud, F.Z.S., 29 Luke Briffa Street, Gzira, Malta. Captain W. Rattra y-Bruce , Warringa, 26 N. Clermont Road, Barnton, Edinburgh. Kai Riis-Hansen, Valby Langgade 276, Copenhagen, Valby, Denmark. E. F. Sanguinetti, 240 Madison Avenue, Yuma, Arizona, U.S.A. Frank E. Strange, 61 i S. Broadway, Redondo Beach, California, U.S.A. W. Lawson Waddams, 212 Bordesley Green, Birmingham. H. P. Williams, 2 Burcote Road, Pype Hayes, Birmingham 24. J. E. Williams, 207 Tile Cross Road, Marston Green, nr. Birmingham. Calvin D. Wilson, M.A., Tracy Aviary, Liberty Park, Salt Lake City 4, Utah, U.S.A. REJOINED H. M. Borbidge, Innis Fail, Sunbury, Victoria, Australia. ADDITIONAL ADDRESSES Miss Joan Evans, Townsend, Middle Wallop, Hants. Baroness Cederstrom, March Hare Lodge, Newmarket. P. B. Webb, Barney’s Brae, Randalstown, Co. Antrim. CORRECTED ADDRESSES Dr. Leslie Housden, O.B.E., to Mulberry Hill, Baughurst, Hants. Harold A. Mitchell, to 2 Strathaven Road, East Kilbride, Lanarkshire. CHANGES OF ADDRESS J. E. Dexter, to Lamorna, Ongar Road, Pilgrims Hatch, nr. Brentwood, Essex. E. G. W. Hunt, to io Quirke Street, Minehead, Somerset. C. W. Janson, to i 6 Wilton Crescent, London, S.W. i. Nicholas Melides, to The Old Stable House, Redhill, Surrey. Miss Jean Reed, to “ Cerfbois ”, R.F.D., East Haddam, Connecticut, U.S.A. DONATION Anonymous . . £i MEMBERS’ ADVERTISEMENTS The charge for Members * advertisements is one penny per word. Payment must accompany the advertisement , which must be sent on or before the soth of the month , to A. A. Prestwigh, Chelmsford Road, Southgate, N. 14. All members of the Society are entitled to use this columny but the Council reserves the right to refuse any advertisements they consider unsuitable . Advertiser may be able to supply from India, early in 1949, a few Indian Hill Pheasants, also Parrots. — Anyone interested write to “ Indian Pheasants”, c/o Hon. Secretary, The Avicultural Society, Chelmsford Road, Southgate, London, N. 14. Duplicate Avicultural and Ornithological Literature for sale or trade. — Carl Stromgren, Box 771, Iowa City, Iowa, U.S.A. STEPHEN AUSTIN AND SONS, LTD., PRINTERS, HERTFORD. Cl \fy wkf-J Wm*- Division. of Bird* AVICULTURAL k-i MAGAZINE CONTENTS PAGE Notes on the Behaviour of the Male Rosy-billed Duck ( with coloured plate), by Jean Pierre Derscheid ......... The Swans, by J. Delacour ......... The Society’s Medal . . . The Breeding of the Ruddy Sheld-duck ( Tadorna casarca ), by H. Manfield . Eclipse Plumage and Nuptial Plumage in the Old Squaw, or Long-tailed Duck (Clangulahyemalis) , by Vesta Stresemann ...... Waterfowl Notes from the Eastern United States, by Dillon Ripley . The Andean Crested Duck ( Anas cristata alticola) (with plate), by Terry Jones Notes on some Waterfowl at the Sanctuary of St. Lucia, Zululand, by Sidney Porter ............ Some Recent Additions to the Collection of the Severn Wildfowl Trust, by Peter Scott . . . . . . . British Aviculturists’ Club ......... Review ............ Personalia ............ Notes Index 177 180 185 186 188 194 196 199 202 206 208 209 210 211 VOL. 54 No. 6 NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 1948 PRICE 5/- THE AVICULTURAL SOCIETY Founded 1894 President : A. EZRA, Esq., O.B.E. MEMBERSHIP SUBSCRIPTION is^i per annum, due on ist January each year, and payable in advance. Life Membership, £15. Subscriptions, Changes of Address, Names of Candidates for Membership, etc., should be sent to — The Honorary Secretary and Treasurer , A. A. PRESTWICH, Chelmsford Road, Southgate, N. 14. Tel. : Palmers Green 4484. THE AVICULTURAL MAGAZINE is published bi-monthly and sent free to members. Members joining at any time during the year are entitled to back numbers for the current year on the payment of subscription. ALL MATTER FOR PUBLICATION IN THE MAGAZINE SHOULD BE ADDRESSED TO— The Editor , MISS PHYLLIS BARCLAY-SMITH, 51 Warwick Avenue, Tel. : Cunningham 3006. London, W. 9. The price of the Magazine to non-members is 5 s. post free per copy, or £ 1 10 s, for the year. Orders for the Magazine, extra copies, and back numbers (from 1917) should be sent to the publishers, Messrs. Stephen Austin & Sons, 1 Fore Street, Hertford. Tel. : Hertford 2546-8. POST-MORTEM EXAMINATIONS Rule i. A short account of the illness should accompany the specimen. All birds to be sent as fresh as possible to Mr. W. Lawrence, The Zoological Society of London, Regent’s Park, London, N. W. 8. Rule 2. A fee of ioj. and a stamped addressed envelope must be enclosed with the bird. Rule 3. No body or skin of any bird will be returned under any circumstances whatever. Avic. Mag, Male Rosy-billed Ducks Displaying ( Meiopiana peposacd) Avicultural Magazine THE JOURNAL OF THE AVICULTURAL SOCIETY Vol. 54.— -No. 6.— All rights reserved. NOVEMBER-DECEMBER, 1948 NOTES ON THE BEHAVIOUR OF THE MALE ROSY-BILLED DUCK (. Metopiana peposaca) By Jean Pierre Dersgheid If ornithology can be considered to-day as the most developed science of its kind, it is without doubt because, besides the “ pure scientists 55 who have undertaken patiently to explore this sphere, there has always been an attraction for nature lovers towards the jewels that are birds. It is certainly the origin of the large amount of informa¬ tion given by the large collections and the innumerable small personal observations. As a consequence of this ornithology enters a new phase, on a higher level. That where, after having described the species externally, and having produced the maximum of generalization in that way, one will have to analyse them internally. The work will have to be done in greater depth and it is here that, more than ever, aviculture can give its valuable aid, if the investigations are made in a rational way. In fact, the study of bird behaviour is becoming essential at the present time to confirm or refute the theories previously set forth. To study bird behaviour is, of course, more difficult than the descrip¬ tion of their forms, colours, even some particular character. What will be asked of aviculture is not only information about the special habits of one subject or another, but to determine as completely as possible the character of the species, let us say how behaviour corre¬ sponds to their structure, the result of their composition. It is from the moment work is rationally started in that direction that aviculture will be able to give its full contribution. A question of technical order immediately arises : that of the methods to be used in order to reveal the series of characters pertaining to one species. •77 JUS 6 1849 is 178 J. P. DERSGHEID - THE MALE ROSY-BILLED DUCK The methods will vary according to the information desired. If this is of a psychological nature, for instance, I think such a result can be obtained by placing the subject or better, the subjects representa¬ tive of a species, in a series of different situations and conditions, so that these will provoke in them some reactions which will divulge the basis of the species’ psychology. On this line of investigation I thought it would be interesting to relate some observations I have been led to make by the special conditions in which two male Rosy-billed Duck are kept here. These birds constitute the remains of the collection made at the “ Armendy Farm ” by my father, Dr. J. M. Derscheid, and completely destroyed during the war. They are therefore alone on a fairly large sheet of water. Their isolation in such a situation decided me to settle some points of their behaviour. I shall relate the observations in the order of the increasing complica¬ tion of conditions in which the subject has been placed. The behaviour of the lonely male is not without interest. Let us say first of all that the bird can be made very tame and to come very near the people it recognizes. At the same time, though, it will never get far from the banks. It likes, moreover, to choose a spot of the bank and stay there for hours, its bill under its wing, but the eye vigilant. One has often discussed the subject as to whether the surface feeding ducks are, or are not, more intelligent than the diving ducks (Avic Mag., May-June, 1942, pp. 69-79, etc.). Without giving any solution to that problem, the discussion of which gives rise to very complex questions, it is perhaps interesting to give an example here of the initiative of a diving duck “ which has forgotten how to dive ”, as say Messrs. Stevens. The Rosy-bill certainly possesses a good memory of topology, and sufficient reasoning to lead him from one point to another despite obstacles. I had closed very carefully a small pond A where the bird par¬ ticularly liked to go ; the bird which I had taken out and put , on the new pond B could not reach pond A except at point P which necessitated it taking a long turning, as is shown in the diagram. The next day I found it back on pond A : it had taken an indirect route of 123 yards, along a wall W and a house H, instead of a direct route of 3 yards, if this had been possible. One can see therefore it was not lacking in sagacity. (See diagram on p. 179.) As to its manner of feeding, one should not forget that the Rosy- bill has an eminently aristocratic character, a Roman senator’s psychology, which prevents it from struggling too much. But any person likely to give it some food is immediately remarked, even at distances of the order of 100 yards ; though this might not seem very extraordinary, I am not quite sure any other member of the tribe would do likewise. But what is specific to the Rosy-bill is the way J. P. DERSCHEID - THE MALE ROSY-BILLED DUCK 79 60 it operates : it launches itself cleanly, and immediately takes the right direction, straight to the target, without any hesitation or distraction. Its speed is considerable for its size, and it can go to 20 inches per second. Meanwhile the bird will keep its dignity, the neck slightly bent forwards, shaking its head laterally from time to time as some people do to fit their collars. When arrived at its destination, without losing its calm, the drake delicately seizes the piece of bread that has been thrown in the water. It is certainly that purity of movement and self-control that con¬ stitutes one of the main attractions of this Duck. I have to say something about its attitude in case of danger or surprise ; when on the ground, the drake erects its long neck vertically, giving inter¬ mittently sudden short upward movements of the bill and head. This precedes its flying away. If it cannot fly, being pinioned or injured, when pursued the bird will run with small steps, its feathers bristled up, its short tail opened in a fan, and its bill half-opened. On water, in case of surprise, the male Rosy-bill will utter one of its two character¬ istic notes. One I will try to describe as a long deep and little sonorous “ zweee-err ”, during which it adopts one of the two following positions : swimming swiftly away, the neck erected vertically, or hunched up, motionless, swelling its feathers, its head between its “ shoulders ”. I shall finish the analysis of these conditions by saying that the drake never dives like proper diving duck, such as Tufted ducks for instance, except when it is incited to do so by the example of females of its species, which seem to have kept the habit, or probably any diving duck. Thus seldom will it dive spontaneously and then, as do the surface feeding ducks, by forcing itself down gradually. The male Rosy-bill does not hate the company of the male of the same species, but the two specimens will not. give up a certain suspicion and jealousy, even though with other ducks, they will keep to them¬ selves. They will not fail, on the other hand, to provoke each other and display. It is in such circumstances I have been able to discern their two different notes : the two birds stopped suddenly on the water, facing each other ; one ran wild, as far as dignity allowed it, stretching i8o J. DELAGOUR - THE SWANS its neck aggressively (see plate) and whistling its deep “ hih-herr ”, while the other, keeping its temper, with still more dignity than his rival, rolled itself up and swelled as much as possible, uttered the “ zweee-er ” note mentioned above. Then, strained to the utmost, they came nearer to each other, with retracted heads, touched one another’s flanks, and even bills, after which, as highly civilized beings who understand the futility of a battle, they made away, satisfied not to have given up. A good bath calmed their nerves. I want to mention here the attitude of the bird in the paroxysm of its display, though I only saw it once done with the intention of being a rival : the drake, after having stretched its neck on the surface of the water, throws it suddenly backwards and touches its back with the top of it, as do the Goldeneyes. With ducks of the species of the Mallard and its related domestic races, the behaviour of the Rosy-bill will not always be the same : towards the domestic bird, for instance, Khaki Campbells, it will not show the least interest, but sometimes even a certain hostility. One of its queer customs is to take advantage of their position when they are head down and tail up, looking for food, to charge down on them. It is the only occasion when it seems to lose its calm. Is it humour or prudery ? Towards the wild Mallards, I think it really has curiosity, if not an attraction, which makes it mix up with them when they alight. Strange enough, the contact with these birds seems immediately to arouse its mistrust and savageness. After their departure, it will take a time to bring back its confidence. I hope to relate some more observa¬ tions on this handsome species a little later, as I shall be able, through the kindness of Mr. Terry Jones, to provide my two solitary birds with the mates for which they have been waiting for so long a time. * * * THE SWANS By J. Delacour It is customary to call Swans the largest members of the waterfowl family ( Anatida ). They have a long neck and short legs, are well adapted to spending their active time on the water, in which they feed on submerged plants and seed. They also eat grass and grain. Swans look their best and are at their greatest ease on the water, although they do not usually dive. They walk rather clumsily, but they fly well. J. DELAGOUR — -THE SWANS 181 All swans belong to one genus, Cygnus , and they really are nothing but big, specialized geese. One curious South American species, the Goscoraba, forms a link between the Swans and the Whistling ducks, or Tree ducks. It is pure white with black tips to the wings, a crimson bill and high, thick, crimson legs and feet. In habits as in aspect, it recalls altogether the Swans and Whistling ducks. Their chicks show faintly in white and pale grey the characteristic head- markings of the young Whistling ducks. There are in the world eight different sorts of swans which are grouped in five species, as several are so closely related that they con¬ stitute sub-species only. Five are pure white, one blackish grey, another one white with black head and neck. Swans are monogamous and pair for life. The female alone incubates the eggs, with the exception of the Black Swan, the male of which shares this duty with his mate. All male swans guard the nest and help to rear the young. Eggs usually number four to six, but larger clutches are not infrequent. Downy chicks are pale grey, and immatures show a great deal of brownish grey in their plumage. Both sexes are alike in colour ; the male is usually larger. All the pure white Swans live in the northern hemisphere in cold or temperate countries. The best known of these species is the Mute Swan ( Cygnus olor ), because it has long been half-domesticated, having become a common denizen of ornamental waters all over the world. It is particularly abundant and popular in England in a semi-feral state. The Mute Swan is large and heavy (wing length 23J inches as an average). It is easily recognized by the pinkish-orange bill and the black knob on the forehead. Its habits and behaviour are well known, particularly the way it raises the wings in anger and defiance, a posture that only the Black Swan imitates. Contrary to the other white Swans, it curves the neck gracefully. The voice is low and snorting, at times shrill, but never trumpeting. In common only with the Black-necked Swans of South America, Mute Swans have a habit of carrying their chicks on the back, under their wings. In a wild state, the species inhabits, or inhabited, northern and middle Europe, and central Asia to south-eastern Siberia. It is only locally migratory. It probably already occurred in England when it became semi-domesticated. As it used to live in temperate districts, which soon became settled by man, this tendency to domestication and its ornamental value have happily saved the species from destruction in the more western parts of its territory. The other five white Swans, more primitive and goose-like, are all very similar in shape, differing mostly in size and in the presence and extent of yellow on their black bill. They are best considered as forming two holarctic species, both having representatives throughout the northern hemisphere. The two larger forms are the Whooper of 82 J. DELACOUR — THE SWANS Europe and Asia ( Cygnus cygnus cygnus ), and the Trumpeter of North America ( Cygnus cygnus buccinator ). The smaller group includes the North American Whistler ( Cygnus columbianus columbianus) , Bewick’s (Cygnus columbianus bewickii) of northern Europe and north-eastern Asia, and Jankowski’s (Cygnus columbianus jankowskii) of eastern Siberia. They all have similar habits. They do not raise their wings but spread them laterally in anger, and they move their heads up and down with a sinuous and brusque motion of the neck. They often call and their voice is bugle-like, the larger Trumpeter having a loud, deep tone, the Whooper a clearer ring, the Whistler a high pitch, and Bewick’s Swan a softer note. To give an idea of their respective sizes, here is the average size of their wing tips : — Inches. Trumpeter 26-18 Whooper • 23-77 Whistler • 21-65 Jankowski’s 21*20 Bewick’s 20-70 An adult male Trumpeter weighs some 30 pounds, while a Bewick’s is under 15. The Trumpeter and the Whooper have a proportionally longer bill, neck, and body ; they have a complicated, circumvoluted windpipe. The three smaller Swans are cobbier and rounder ; their neck is shorter and their windpipe shorter and simpler. Trumpeter Swans (the largest of all) used to live in great numbers in western and mid-western North America. They have now been reduced to about 1,000 by indiscriminate shooting in the recent past, but they are slowly coming back since protection has been afforded to them. Their last stronghold in the United States is Red Rock Lakes, Montana, and the neighbouring country, including the Yellowstone National Park. A project is now operating to increase the population under control and re-establish the species in some parts of its old territory. Trumpeters migrate only locally in search of food and open water. They proved to be easy to rear in captivity in suitable climates. The principal charac¬ teristics are the completely black, long, and powerful bill, and the deep, loud voice. Whooper Swans breed from Greenland to Japan, migrating in winter to the warmer parts of southern Europe, North Africa, Asia Minor, Persia, and northern India. They still are rather numerous and they also breed well in captivity. Smaller and lighter than Trumpeters, they differ markedly in the colours of the bill, which is bright yellow from the forehead to beyond the nostrils. Whoopers and Trumpeters will interbreed easily. Whistling Swans are still common. They nest in Arctic America and J. DELACOUR - THE SWANS 83 spend the winter in the southern United States, being highly migratory. Their rather short bill is black, usually with two yellow spots near the base, which are sometimes lacking. There are no records of their breeding in captivity, but hybrids with the Whooper have been obtained. Bewick’s Swans much resemble the Whistlers, but they have a big yellow patch at the base of the bill, rounder and smaller than in the Whoopers. They nest in Arctic Russia and western Siberia, migrating to western, central, and southern Europe, and east to India. Very similar, Jankowski’s Swans are larger, with a little more yellow on the bill, and replace them in eastern Siberia, wintering in Japan and China. Both these Swans have bred in captivity on rare occasions. They still exist in large numbers in their Arctic haunts. The so-called David Swan, the type of which has been lost, is probably an immature jankowskii. Black-necked Swans ( Cygnus melancoriphus) inhabit the cold and temperate parts of South America. They are beautiful birds, the size of Bewick’s Swans, but longer and slimmer in shape, white with black head and neck. The blue-grey bill is surrounded by a big crimson caruncle, and they have long and narrow white eyebrows. These fine swans breed well in confinement. For over fifteen years in my park at Gleres a pair reared every year three or four young, which they carried on the back most of the time during the first two weeks. The voice is a musical whistle. Australian Black Swans ( Cygnus atratus), which have been acclimatized in New Zealand, are a dark, mottled, blackish-grey, with white flight feathers. They have a very long neck and the bill is a brilliant crimson. The wing-coverts are wavy in shape and they raise them when they are excited, as do the Mute Swans. Their voice is a high-pitched, modulated bugle. They breed freely in captivity, both sexes incubating, a habit which the Whistling ducks only share with them within the whole waterfowl family. Only very occasionally the cygnets are carried on their parents’ back. In the wild state Swans live in flocks during the autumn and winter, but when the spring nesting season approaches, breeding birds separate in pairs that jealously guard their chosen territory. According to species and habitat, this territory may vary from a few square yards (as can be seen in the Abbotsbury Swannery, Dorset) to many acres. A large territory is the more normal case. In defence of this domain, male Swans will fight furiously, and the stronger bird often drowns the loser. The combative habit is reinforced in captivity to the point that angry Swans positively become dangerous to children. Unless the area where they are kept is very extensive, it becomes necessary to isolate each pair on a pond or in a pen. Unmated birds, however, live amicably together the year round. I see every summer at Red Rocks Lakes fifty or sixty such non-breeding Trumpeters in a bunch, 184 J. DELACOUR - THE SWANS although they look quite adult. There is no doubt that the lack of available nesting space prevents them from establishing a home and raising a family. To-day, the housing shortage is not the exclusive privilege of human beings . . . Trumpeters are very jealous and pugnacious, and each breeding pair appropriates a large area where no other Swans, or even Geese, are tolerated. I have long known the hot temper of Trumpeters through experience in captivity. Some I once had free in the park at Cleres became so savage that they would run up the hills chasing White Rheas, which they stupidly considered competitors just because they were also large white birds. This propensity of all birds to believe that individuals of their own colour and pattern are competitors, therefore enemies, is particularly in evidence with Swans. It is even more important to them than similarities in shape, size, and habits. At liberty and in semi-captivity, where birds can also display their true natural behaviour, I have noticed it time after time. White Swans will persecute Snow Geese in preference to other Geese which, however, are also attacked. Black-necked Swans show a particular hatred for European Sheld-ducks because they also possess a black head and neck and much white in the plumage. Black Swans dislike especially dark- coloured Geese. It is important to remember this when Swans are to be associated with other species of waterfowl. They usually ignore and leave alone the smaller Geese, Sheld-ducks, Ducks, and Teal, although nesting pairs may kill even ducklings. It is all a question of space and also of the individual temperament of each bird. My breeding Black¬ necked Swans never bothered much about ducks, and very prolific pairs of Blacks, which used to attack me savagely, lived in perfect peace with Paradise Sheld-duck, wild Muscovies, and all sorts of ducks. Others would murder anything alive which ventured to approach them. Non-breeding birds are not dangerous, however, and when it is desired to keep a number of Swans together for show on a moderate¬ sized lake with other waterfowl, I would recommend what I had done at V illers-Britonneux in Picardy, my old place that was destroyed in 1918. I had there on a pond for many years a dozen Swans of various species, all females. They looked just as fine as males, and they lived in complete peace. In public zoos, where it often becomes a problem to manage swans on small artificial lakes, I would recommend the use of females only. The sex can often be recognized by the size and behaviour of the birds, and it is easily proved by the examination of the reproductive organs. The future of Swans in the modern world would be dark indeed if adequate conservation measures were not taken in time. The breeding haunts in the Far North of the Whistler, Whooper, Jankowski’s, and Bewick’s, until lately inaccessible, are now being intruded upon and disturbed. This is a very serious threat. Their nesting territories THE SOCIETY’S MEDAL 185 should be properly preserved and made safe for them. Otherwise, they will soon dwindle down and disappear, even if sufficient protection is afforded them during migration and in their winter quarters. There is no time to waste in organizing the protection of northern waterfowl in the Arctic regions. The Trumpeters and the Mutes, which breed farther south in territories now settled by human beings, have con¬ sequently disappeared from most of their former range. They would have been entirely wiped out if semi-domestication and local protection had not saved in time what remained of them. But their position is not yet satisfactory. The Black Swan is holding his own in the marshes of Australia, where it enjoys some measure of protection and it now abounds in New Zealand. But the situation of the Black-necked Swan, and also that of the strange Goscoraba, is causing worries. During the war they had been much persecuted for their skin, the downy parts of which were used for powder puffs, while the domestic goose skins, usually employed, could not be shipped from Europe. It is to be hoped that the slaughter has now ceased, but our Argentine and Chilean friends are strongly urged to adopt measures for the con¬ servation of these two fine species before they are too far gone. Zoological gardens and private bird farms have also their part to play in saving the Swans by establishing under control an adequate breeding stock of all the species and sub-species. * * * THE SOCIETY’S MEDAL The Council proposes to award the Society’s Medal to : — Mr. Alfred Ezra, for breeding the Green-winged King Parrakeet, Aprosmictus chloropterus . Described in Avicultural Magazine, Sept.-Oct., 1945, p. 130. Mr. Sydney Porter, for breeding the Kea, Nestor notabilis. Described in Avicultural Magazine, March-April, 1947, p. 50. If any previous breeding in the United Kingdom and Ireland of either of the above species should be known to any member or reader they are requested to communicate at once with the Hon. Secretary 1 86 H. MANFIELD - THE BREEDING OF THE RUDDY SHELD-DUGK THE BREEDING OF THE RUDDY SHELD-DUCK ( Tadorna casarca) IN THE GARDENS OF THE ROYAL ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY, ADELAIDE, SOUTH AUSTRALIA By H. Manfield (Head Keeper of Birds) My reason for writing of the breeding of the Ruddy Sheld-duck {Tadorna casarca) is to know just when is a duck too old to breed and lay fertile eggs, or whether any reader has had a duck produce young when more than 15 years old. Domestic ducks are usually not con¬ sidered profitable after about four years. The pair on which I am about to write were imported by the above Gardens from Mr. R. Stevens, of Walcot Hall, England, about the year 1933 ; the age of the birds then was not known to me. A pair of Cape Sheld-ducks ( Tadorna cana) arrived about the same time (I remember the two pairs arrived in perfect condition), and of this pair the male is still living ; the female died only last year, 1947. The pair of Ruddy never looked like breeding in spite of everything tried ; they were even placed on the largest pond we have, the Flamingo enclosure, and fed on a special laying mash with boiled minced liver added, and often fed warm. But nothing ever happened, and in the year 1944 the male, having gone blind, died and was thought then to have lived to a good age for a duck. So it looked as though Adelaide Zoo would never breed Ruddy Sheld-ducks, as there were not any others in Australia that we knew of ; but to our surprise in 1945 the Director, Mr. V. Haggard, who was on a visit to Melbourne, Victoria, and called on one of our old and esteemed bird friends, a Mr. Alan Jacques, of Bolwyn (by the way, I called on him last year and he told me he was nearly ninety years old and still well and attending his birds), and found a solitary Ruddy, and a male too. Mr. Haggard was able to secure it by exchange and soon it was railed to Adelaide and placed in the pen with the duck ; but she was not very friendly and had to be separated and we thought at first they were two of a kind. But still they did not look alike, so after a few days were again introduced to each other and later settled down and turned out a good pair. Still nothing happened until spring — in fact; the end of spring, 1946, when one day, to my surprise, I noticed the duck coming out of a rock-nest we had made while the male stood looking on. Later I made an investigation and noticed a hollow scratched out. A couple of days later I discovered she had laid her first egg ; then three were seen ; looking later I discovered there was only one egg left ; this told us rats had found the nest and were eating the eggs. This, of course, proved very disappointing, and we had to try and find out some way of removing H. MANFIELD - THE BREEDING OF THE RUDDY SHELD-DUGK 1 87 the eggs as they were laid, and at the same time try and get the duck to sit. Then I dropped on an idea which might work, and did prove successful. I had a nest of Muscovy eggs that a duck had sat on for about seven weeks, and placed three of the old eggs in the Ruddy’s nest. Next day the fresh egg was removed and the rats started on the old eggs ; you can imagine the smell, it was just terrific ; and I was afraid the Sheld-duck would not return to the nest. However, she continued to lay, and as the rats broke the bad eggs they were replaced, as I had quite a few in a nest. The duck went on until eleven were laid and then began to line the nest with down, so the bad eggs were removed and the good eggs put back, and the rats never came back to disturb her again. All went well, and after about 30 days two young left the nest with the proud parents. On looking in the nest I discovered a third egg chipped, but it died from exposure, and all other eggs were infertile. The two ducklings were successfully reared and turned out a true pair. Next year, 1947, the duck laid again ; this time nine eggs were laid, of which three hatched and six were infertile, and the young reared again ; the rats never came back egg-eating. The young turned out this time to be three females, making our flock now two males and five females, which is certainly much more encouraging than in 1944, when it looked like our Ruddy Sheld-ducks dying right out. This year, 1948, the pair look as fit as ever, and providing our winter is not too severe with frosts — as the water on the ponds often has ice a quarter of an inch thick— should be all right. The young are very easy to rear and do well on a food made up with oatmeal, hard-boiled egg pushed through a sieve, a little raw minced meat chopped very fine, and lettuce cut up. The young spend much time on the water catching flies, etc. When a month old they are given a mash made with bran and pollard, with a little meat meal added with a little wheat fed in the water. The young are pinioned when they are just hatched and leave the nest, it is much more humane when done so young, and they do not even bleed. The enclosure is about 16 feet wide and 40 feet deep, with a pond 6 feet in diameter, and flowering plum trees provide shade in the summer. I may say here that the Ruddy Sheld-duck is a most charming bird and is much admired by visitors, and it will be interesting to see just how long this duck will live and go on producing young. This reminds me of what an old friend always says, “ that birds will not always have the mates we provide for them,” and it proved right in the case of Ruddy’s first mate. 1 88 V. STRESEMANN - THE OLD SQUAW, OR LONG-TAILED DUCK ECLIPSE PLUMAGE AND NUPTIAL PLUMAGE IN THE OLD SQUAW, OR LONG-TAILED DUCK (< Clangula hyemalis) By Vesta Stresemann If one studies the plumages of a considerable number of species of ducks, one finds an astonishing variety of plumage ranging from an insignificant ashy or grey-brown to the most elaborate composition of colour, form, and pattern. Either extreme, the inconspicuous plumage or the ornamental one, is 'worn throughout the whole year by those species that moult only once annually. Such birds moult from one inconspicuous plumage to another or from one colourful one to another. No experimental experience is so far available that would indicate whether birds of such species are able to develop a different type of plumage under special conditions. Another large group of species of ducks, and this includes all the Palearctic River Ducks, moults twice annually. The males wear a colourful ornamental plumage part of the year and an inconspicuous eclipse plumage during the rest of it. One is inclined to consider the simple eclipse plumage as the “ normal ” plumage of the species since both female and juvenile plumages are very similar to it. The ornamental plumage of the male would then have to be considered as a temporary specialization of the normal condition. Experiments, however, have shown that actually the opposite is true. It is the orna¬ mental plumage which is genetically fixed, and it requires a hormonal inhibition in order to change it into the eclipse plumage. The significance of the ornamental and the eclipse plumages as nuptial and protective plumages is obvious. One might therefore presume that the normal condition among ducks would be to have an ornamental plumage during the breeding season (May to August) and to be camouflaged throughout the greater part of the year by an eclipse plumage. This condition is realized in the Ruddy Duck ( Oxyura jamaicensis) , and the Cotton Teal ( JVettopus coromandelianus) , but not in any other species. On the contrary, by far the majority of species of ducks wear the ornamental plumage throughout the greater part of the year. It almost looks as if the drake “ wants 55 to wear the species5 specific ornamental plumage as long as possible and to have it replaced only during the 'short period when this is really needed. This is the time when all the wing feathers are shed simultaneously and the birds are unable to escape by flight. It is during this period that there is a great selective advantage in being completely inconspicuous. The period of the losing of the wing feathers is obviously the most V. STRESEMANN - THE OLD SQUAW, OR LONG-TAILED DUCK 1 89 important event in the moult of the ducks, since the wing is the most essential portion of the whole plumage. The wing feathers must be of very solid construction and require a great deal of material. Their growth constitutes therefore a considerable drain upon the bird’s reserves. The feathers of the wing are therefore formed only once a year. There can be little doubt that the wings belong to the orna¬ mental plumage. At any rate, it appears absurd to assume that the bird would wear an eclipse wing in its highly evolved specific plumage. If such were the case the bird would never have a complete e< nuptial dress The period during which the body produces sub-standard eclipse feathers cannot possibly be also that of the growth of the wing feathers. One may safely assume that it is during the days of the wing moult that the change occurs which enables the body to produce feathers of the ornamental type, while immediately before that it produced only eclipse feathers. The moult into the ornamental plumage often follows very soon that into the eclipse plumage. This means that the efficacy of the hormone which causes the body to produce eclipse feathers ends at the moment at which the wing feathers begin to develop. The Moult of the Old Squaw The facts reported above will now be applied to the moult of the Old Squaw. This species appears to be different from all other ducks, since it is reputed to have three or even four different plumages in the course of a single year. F. Salomonsen {Journal fiir Ornithologies 1941, p. 283) states : “ The moult of the Old Squaw is highly peculiar ; there is no other duck that has a sequence of plumages of equal complexity.” The ornamental plumage of Clangula hyemalis is the plumage worn in winter which is characterized by a white head and neck and white scapulars. This was definitely established by Sutton in his study of this species {Auk, 1932, pp. 42-5 1). The following parts of this orna¬ mental plumage are moulted in April or May (i.e. before the breeding season) and replaced by eclipse feathers : the scapulars and all, or a considerable part, of the plumage of the head and neck down to the breast. Following this there is a three-month pause in the moult. Late in July or early in August (i.e. after the breeding season), this moult is continued and the remaining white feathers of the head and neck are replaced by dark ones and the white “ wing-pouch 551 is replaced by dull, grey eclipse feathers. The four elongated scapulars are moulted once more ; they are replaced by feathers which are duller, blunter, shorter, and weaker than those grown in the spring. 1 “ Wing-pouch ” is suggested as an English equivalent of the German “ Trag- federn ” for the long feathers of the sides of the breast and flanks jwhich cover and protect the folded wing in order to keep it dry. 190 V. STRESEMANN - THE OLD SQUAW, OR LONG-TAILED DUCK A few of the smaller scapulars are also moulted at this period.1 This is followed by the moult of the wing feathers and of the whole remainder of the plumage behind below the breast line, including the tail with its two much-elongated central feathers. After some while all eclipse features are changed for ornamental feathers. The moult can be summarized as follows : Moulted once a year. — The entire plumage posterior to the breast line, except scapulars and “ wing pouch ”, i.e. back, breast, belly, tail, upper and under tail coverts, and the wing. Moulted twice a year. — All parts of the plumage in front of the breast line, i.e. head and neck, upper back and upper breast, also “ wing pouch ”, and some of the smaller scapulars. Moulted three times a year. — The four elongated scapulars and part of their smaller ones. The only feather tract that produces three different generations of feathers in a single year is thus that in which the elongated scapulars are rooted. This is indeed a peculiar, and so far as known a unique, excep¬ tion. Together with the interruption of the moult in June, it has led to the idea that the drake Old Squaw has three different plumages (see Schioler, 1926, and Lonnberg, 1926). The resumption of feather growth after a period of interrupted moult does not mean at all that a new plumage is assumed. The period during which the change of plumage must be completed does not seem to have any definite limitation. Many of the Palaearctic migrants, for example, divide their principal moult into two periods. They moult part of their plumage (usually the entire body plumage) before migra¬ tion, while the remainder of the plumage (usually wing and tail feathers) is not moulted until several weeks later in the winter quarters (as in Hirundo , Delichon , and Riparia). One should therefore use the formal term “ plumage ” only for that dress in which are combined all feathers of equal physiological composition which the body is able to produce. If one wants to give a name to the spring stage in the moult of the Old Squaw, one can use the term “ semi-eclipse ” plumage, coined by Millais in 1913, 2 for we are dealing here with a half-finished eclipse plumage which is not completed until July or August (Sutton, Auk, 1932). Leaving the scapulars out of consideration one can say that only those feathers are moulted in summer that had been “ forgotten ” in spring. The change of colouring of head and neck is completed in those individuals in which this did not occur in spring. At this stage also the “ wing pouch ”, until now composed of light ornamental feathers, is moulted because 1 A good coloured illustration of this plumage stage is found in Schioler, 1926, plates 21 and 32 ; also in Lonnberg, Fauna och Flora , 1927, Heft 1 . 2 Millais, however, applied this term to the complete eclipse-plumage as acquired in July /August. « V. STRESEMANN THE OLD SQUAW, OR LONG-TAILED DUCK 1 9 1 the moult of the wing feathers is now impending. “ Wing pouch ” and scapulars are “ those feathers which — newly perfected and cryptically coloured — take over the protection of the wing when this has lost all of its flight feathers and coverts and is densely covered with sensitive pin feathers ” (Stresemann, 1940, p. 297). This fact gives us perhaps an explanation for the existence of three feather generations in the scapular tract. Since the loss of the wing feathers is a most decisive event for a bird, and since the proper care of the wing is immensely important, it becomes obligatory for the scapulars to moult in preparation for the impending moult of the wing. Undoubtedly the primary moulting period of the scapulars is in August after the breeding season and immediately before the loss of the wing feathers. It is thus the second generation of scapulars, that is formed in the spring, which is the exception, and not the third. The appearance of the feathers supports this assumption. The feathers of the second generation still resemble in form those of the ornamental plumage ; only the colour and length indicate some inhibition. The advancement of the beginning of moult to before the breeding season is the particular phenomenon which distinguishes the Old Squaw from all other species of ducks. The advantage of darkening the plumage before the return into the breeding territory is explained by Sutton as correlated with a change from “ ice-filled bays ” to “ rock- rimmed inland ponds 55 (Sutton, p. 45). If it is this need for protective coloration which releases the spring moult, it becomes apparent why the scapulars are changed. These white stripes on the dark back are undoubtedly the most conspicuous features of the bird. In the course of the year there are thus two special reasons for a moult of the scapulars ; in spring because the bird must now appear all dark, in summer because the proper period has now come for that moult of the scapulars which precedes the wing moult. The spring moult does not affect the “ wing pouch ” because it is not essential that it is darkened. On the second occasion (post-breeding moult), however, the “ wing pouch 55 is involved because of the linkage of its moult with that of the wing feathers. All the feather tracts of the bird, including those of the wings, react to the main moulting stimulus of the year which provides the ornamental plumage. Salomonsen’s opinion that the change of the feathers of the back, abdomen, wings, and tail still belongs to the moult into the eclipse plumage is without a doubt erroneous (all feathers which grow after Salomonsen’s stage S.D. belong to the ornamental plumage). The beautiful white and the blackish-brown feathers of the under parts surely do not grow under the influence of an hormonal inhibition. The elongated central tail feathers do not fit at all into an eclipse plumage. Such feathers are, in all species of birds which are thus adorned, the most conspicuous character of an ornamental plumage. 192 V. STRESEMANN - THE OLD SQUAW, OR LONG-TAILED DUCK Salomonsen considers that a “ breeding plumage 55 (our semi¬ eclipse plumage) follows the ornamental plumage which is worn through the winter. This plumage is indeed worn throughout the breeding season, but the name is misleading since in birds 44 breeding plumage ” has always been used synonymously with 44 nuptial or ornamental plumage We cannot concur with Salomonsen’s opinion that this semi-eclipse plumage and, in particular, the markings of the head have a significance in courtship (hence Salomonsen’s term “ nuptial plumage ”). The heads of all ducks seem to moult in such a manner that the growth of feathers proceeds from definite lines gradually over a definite area. Salomonsen himself describes this very succinctly (p. 289) : 44 The spots on the sides of the neck push themselves forward under the eyes.” Only if the feathers moult from white to black, the lines of feather growth appear for short periods but disappear again with progressive moult. (It is not true that the striping of the head appears and then the moult makes a pause.) A hormonally-controlled plumage, such as that into which the drake Old Squaw moults in the spring, leaves a great range to individual variation. It is therefore risky to interpret details of this pattern as having a specific intentional function. The number of white feathers on the head and neck which the drake may wear into the summer varies greatly. In some birds, all the white feathers are already replaced by dark ones by the beginning of May, as is shown in the Berlin Museum in exemplary fashion by a drake killed on 9th May, 1936, at Rossitten. Salomonsen figures an equally dark head of a specimen taken 3rd May. At present it cannot be decided whether the degree of completion of the eclipse plumage in spring depends on the hormonal level or on the age of the individual. One can assume, however, that old drakes undergo a more complete moult in spring than younger ones. The younger specimens tend in all species of ducks to carry over feathers from one plumage into the next. The later in life a duck becomes sexually mature the more numerous are the stages between juvenile and adult plumage (f.i. Eider Duck). We may accordingly expect to find in the Old Squaw many 4 4 mixed ” individuals, since it is one of those species which do not reproduce until their third year. Could not this be the explanation for the 44 fourth plumage ” or 44 fall plumage ” described by Salomonsen ? In our opinion, such drakes in 44 fall plumage ” must be young birds. They could be either birds in the first winter that already acquire the brown breast shield of the fully adult drake but not yet the complete patch on the sides of the neck, or birds in the second winter that still retain the juvenile colour of the patch on the sides of the neck. Salomonsen (p. 323) says of the moult into the first winter plumage : 44 The juvenile feathers of the underside always remain unmoulted, only a few scattered feathers of V. STRESEMANN - THE OLD SQUAW, OR LONG-TAILED DUCK 1 93 the upper breast may be exchanged for new black-brown ones, but a brown breast shield is never attained.” How can we know this ? How can we know that with the moult into the second winter plumage “ every difference between young and adult birds disappears 55 ? (Salomonsen, p. 325.) According to Salomonsen himself (p. 327) females in the second winter still differ from adult ones. Furthermore, if we ask for what reason the birds should attain a special fall plumage on the head, it would be exceedingly difficult to find an answer. If the faintly indicated patch on the sides of the neck really indicates a moulting stage passed through by all birds every fall, then the dark feathers on the neck of the eclipse plumage would have to be replaced by white ones and these again at once by black ones, and all this within a period of not more than four weeks. It is hard to believe that the drake would indulge in this unreasonable luxury at the time of the wing growth when all the available energy is required for the formation of the wing feathers. We do not believe in a special fall plumage in the Old Squaw, for which there seems to be no biological justification. All that has been said so far about moults and plumages refers to the drake of Clangula. The females like the males moult into the eclipse plumage in two stages. They likewise begin in April or May to acquire a darker plumage, and after a pause continue with this around the end of July to early August. The scapulars likewise have three genera¬ tions of feathers each year.1 The interruption of the moult in the females is even longer owing to preoccupation with incubation and the care of the young. We refrain from using for the female Old Squaw the terms proposed by E. Stresemann (1940) for the plumages of female ducks (“ breeding plumage ”, “ resting plumage ”) since they would lead to confusion in this species. The use of the terms “ ornamental ” and “ eclipse ” plumage used by Salomonsen is as justified in the ducks as in the drake of this species since the two plumages of the female are clearly different. Summary The sequence of plumages in the Old Squaw does not differ materially from that of other species of ducks. The male has an ornamental and an eclipse plumage like all ducks with a double moult. The eclipse plumage is attained in two stages which are separated by a cessation of moult. The first of these stages of moult into the eclipse plumage is in spring (April to June) before the breeding season. 1 A good coloured illustration of the female in complete eclipse plumage (8th August) , with dark brown-grey wing pouch and with the short scapulars, has been published by Lonnberg in Fauna och Flora , 1926, no. 5. Females in semi-eclipse plumage only (still with white wing pouch) are shown on plate 30 of Schioler, 1926. 14 194 DILLON RIPLEY - WATERFOWL NOTES FROM EASTERN UNITED STATES In July and August the moult into the eclipse plumage is continued and completed. The moult into the ornamental plumage follows almost immediately. The Old Squaw differs from all other ducks so far investigated by annually having three separate generations of the four elongated scapulars (and of some smaller ones). An intermediate type is grown in spring which is worn during the period between the loss of the long white scapulars of the ornamental plumage and the acquisi¬ tion of the short brown ones of the full eclipse plumage. This is the only unique feature in the moult of the Old Squaw. The so-called “ fall plumage 55 of Salomonsen is interpreted as a plumage of immature drakes. The females are like the males as regards the stages of the moult and the three generations of scapulars. * * * WATERFOWL NOTES FROM THE EASTERN UNITED STATES By Dillon Ripley The spring of 1948 was a poor one for waterfowl breeders in the eastern United States as it seems to have been elsewhere. The unusually cold winter with its heavy continuous snowfall was followed by a much delayed spring. In Connecticut there was over 100 inches of snow, and the ice was not off the ponds until the end of March. High pressure areas with accompanying cold winds were the rule through a good part of April. The alternating lows were accompanied with heavy rains and cloudy conditions. As a result of all this, breeding among captive birds got off to a slow start and was unusually spasmodic. Many birds were observed displaying and breeding which still failed to make nests or lay. The only breeder who seems to have been unaffected by this state of affairs was Mr. Mackensen, of Yardley, Pennsylvania, who succeeded in having an excellent season. His son has reported to me that the first indications were inauspicious. Dogs broke into the Mackensen breeding pens during the winter and killed all but seven duck. Consequently they had to depend entirely on birds of the year which had been raised the previous spring. In spite of this handicap, the almost continual rain, and the difficulty due to the rain that many duck had in building and maintaining nests, young were successfully reared in the following species : Wood Duck, Mandarin, Pintail, Redhead (Pochard), Gadwall, American Wigeon, and Cinnamon Teal. In addition Canada, Egyptian, and Magellan Geese reared young and Black Swan also. DILLON RIPLEY - WATERFOWL NOTES FROM EASTERN UNITED STATES 1 95 My friend Mr. Livermore, of Redding, Conn., a member of the Society, found, as I did, that his principal problem was infertility of eggs. Presumably this must partly be attributed to the season. Although he had eggs from a large number of species, his collection must be one of the most comprehensive in the country, few hatched and of these even fewer were reared. Among the more interesting of these were Wild Muscovy Duck and Australian Mallard, and among the geese Western Canadas, Blue Snow, and Egyptians. The rain continued well into the rearing season and wrought havoc among young Woods and Mandarin, which we find here very sensitive to thunder showers in their first week or ten days. As this has been my first season of using a larger pond, I am still in an experimental stage as regards rearing. Vermin, primarily Grows, accounted for every one of my young ducks which I attempted to allow the mothers to rear themselves. Again, Crows were responsible for a deal of nest robbing, and infertility did the rest. As usual the least wanted were the most successful, and I am now the proud possessor of eight young Mallard x Indian Spotbill cross ! Two incidents of interest may bear telling here. I have had a small flock of Cackling Geese, the miniature Aleutian Island population of the common Canada Goose, for some time. There has always been a single Cackling gander which has stayed most of the time by himself, only occasionally flocking with his six relatives. After the breeding season I placed on the pond an old mated pair of Barnacles, not having had any of that species previously on the pond. The Barnacles were naturally rather frightened and swam about by themselves for a time while other species of Geese passed them in disdain or occasionally called and gestured threateningly. Suddenly my solitary Cackling saw them and, swimming up, proceeded to attack the female Barnacle and to mate swiftly and efficiently with her. The old Barnacle gander was a little distance away and apparently too dazed to come to his mate’s assistance. Later, however, he must have established his supremacy for the Cackling is again solitary. By chance I happened to watch a pair of Ringneck Duck (an American Pochard) mate on the pond and was astonished to observe the male, after copulation, leave the duck’s back by springing into the air a short distance directly out of the water, an unexpected and exuberant gesture not related in any way to the normal display. 196 TERRY JONES - THE ANDEAN CRESTED DUCK THE ANDEAN CRESTED DUCK {Anas cristata alticola) By Terry Jones The chequered history of this pair of duck is perhaps worth record¬ ing. Alastair Morrison arrived in England in 1939 with a number of waterfowl which he had Collected in South America. Amongst the birds was this Northern race of the Crested Duck which he had collected in the Peruvian highlands. Mr. Lewis bought a pair for his collection at Leckford and others went to Dr. Derscheid and to Monsieur Delacour at Cleres. Our female died before the war and our male during the war was inadvertently sold to Lilford and, thanks to Mr. Moody, returned to us. When I came back here after the war we still had the male bird and as there now seemed no hope of getting him a mate I felt he would be of more use to the London Zoo than to me, so off he went to terrorize their pond. In the summer of 1947 Monsieur Delacour came to England and to France. In the Paris Zoo he saw a female Crested Duck, his female, so he persuaded the authorities to send her here, and Dr. Vevers let me have our male back. Then my troubles began. Neither bird had seen its own species for nine years. The drake was convinced he was a Chilean Teal and the duck that she was a Snow Goose. Each bird completely ignored the other and consorted with its adopted relations. They were turned out in the main enclosure with all the peace- loving waterfowl, in spite of Dr. Vevers’s warnings about the drake’s temper. I was anxious to breed them, as they had not previously been bred in captivity and I wanted them to have the best possible chance of doing so. Monsieur had told me that when Cleres was overrun by the Germans the duck had been sitting. As I have said, they ignored each other though both were anxious to obtain mates. I therefore caught them up and put them in a pen by themselves. For a long time they kept as far apart as possible and should the duck come near the drake she was savagely attacked. Months went by and I began to despair of mating them. Then I noticed the duck nervously and always at a safe distance courting the drake. Very slowly he took to her and once they were devoted to each other I again turned them out into the main enclosure. The Crested Duck is a curious species, one minute behaving like a Mallard, and the next like a Sheld-duck. I will now try and describe in detail some of these actions. The typical call note, used, for example, when calling to flighting Mallard, is very similar in the case of the female to the call of the duck Chestnut-breasted Teal. The “ quacks ” have the same spacing and the same slight cadence — “ aap-aap- TERRY JONES — -THE ANDEAN CRESTED DUCK 1 97 apapap,” The voice, however, is distinctly deeper. The drake’s call is the' same as the duck’s in form, but his voice is a rather windy whistle. The duck is much given to “ nattering ”, an endless series of short grumbling notes, when a person she likes is near or when her mate is creating hell for all around her. The duck’s note when courting her mate is very similiar to the note a common Sheld-duck uses on similar occasions. The Sheld-duck swims by - her mate, uttering a series of “ arrups ”, while stretching her neck along the water and at each note slightly raising the angle of her head and beak. The Grested Duck carries her neck stretched upwards with her beak rather below a right angle. At intervals the duck utters the note similar to the Sh eld-duck’s, at each note stretching out her neck, opening her beak, and then withdrawing delicately back again to her former vertical carriage. The whole action is extremely graceful and reminds one somehow of the way an Indian dancer uses her hand and arm when symbolically picking a flower. Sometimes when on land she runs around her mate, using the same display and each time she passes in front of him he extends his neck and opens his beak in a similar manner to her, but in his case in silence. The drake’s display has two main forms, one used on land and the other when on the water. When calling or during display the drake tightens all his plumage as much as possible, giving himself a quite fantastically long and thin outline. When displaying on the water he sits looking extraordinarily long and thin. Sometimes he swims backwards to place himself more favourably in relation to the duck. He keeps repeating an asthmatic “ wheek ” at each note, extending his neck upwards and giving his head a shake. This performance is repeated several times, then suddenly he rears up exactly as does a Mallard, giving the water a lightning bite and pulling his head up along his body. A difficult display to describe, but anyone who has watched a farmyard drake on a pond will know what I mean. When on land the prelude is the same, but the second movement consists of lowering his head to the ground quite quickly by bending only the base of his neck. It always reminds me of a hammer which has been stood on its handle and is falling down. As soon as his beak touches the ground he raises his head again with a lightning movement, swings his face at right angles away from the duck, uttering at the same time a throaty “ wheeoo ”, a noise made by some people when, scaring away cats. The duck occasionally does what I call the feather ripping display, common to females of such diverse species as Ghiloe Wigeon, Rosy-bill, and Carolina. I think it is really a speculum display which is almost always performed by the female, though the male Mandarin and Carolina both use abridged forms of it in their dis¬ plays. I have never seen any Sheld-duck use it, but the female Black¬ necked Swan often performs. The flights of one wing are slightly igB TERRY J ONES-^-THE ANDEAN CRESTED DUCK lowered and at the same time the tertiaries are slightly raised. The bird puts its head behind its wing, quickly running its beak over the flight shafts, producing a noise like tearing cloth. The invitation to mate consists of a raising and lowering of the head and neck, while the pair float facing each other. This is the action of Mallard, the Teals, Pintails, and Wigeons, but not of the Sheld-ducks, which immerse their heads and necks, bringing them to the surface with a jerk, as do the geese and swans. After mating the drake swims rapidly round his mate as does a Mallard. The duck had three nests during the summer and each one was placed amongst rank herbage and not in a box or burrow. The nest was a well-built affair for a duck and lined with down. Unlike any other duck I have kept, she was noisy when on her nest and always gave her position away by her incessant nattering. The eggs, of which there were eight in the first clutch, are creamy white and rather long. In size, shape, and colour they were indistinguishable from those laid by our female Chiloe Wigeon. The ducklings when first hatched are very similar to those of the Common Pintail, but whereas the Pintails as they grow tend to become a more level grey, the lighter patches of the Crested duckling’s become more conspicuous, and as they grow older they more resemble young Sheld-ducklings. They are quite the worst-tempered of any duckling, and even little birds of a week old will seize another duckling and attempt to flog it with their little wing stumps. They are not par¬ ticularly easy to rear and, like the young of the Common Sheld-duck, require a great deal of animal food. I had always reckoned that once a duckling had begun to feather it was past all rearing troubles, but not so the Crested duckling, which seems to have a critical stage at about five to six weeks old. At this stage they seem to completely go off any artificial food, to take very little grain, and manage to survive on green food and all the live food they are given or can find. At the very stage when any normal duckling endeavours to keep its crop perpetually full in order to grow its flight feathers quickly, the Crested ducklings are off their food and finnicky like young Turkeys shooting the red. The first plumage is a fawner and more washed out edition of the adult’s. The old pair had a very strong desire to stake out a territory, no bird, duck, goose, or Waterhen was allowed in it, but as soon as they crossed the boundary the drake gave up his pursuit. When driving off trespassers the drake extends his neck out along the water and swims as fast as he can, the base of his neck is under water ; often he uses his wings to put on a spurt. The Australian Sheld-duck, when breeding in the enclosure simply attacked anything within sight and was quite impossible to keep there, but the Crested ducks even when breeding, would come out of their territory to feed along- Avic. Mag. 1948, Copyright] Andean Crested Ducklings. [Baron Nahum. [To face p. 198 SYDNEY PORTER - WATERFOWL AT THE SANCTUARY OF ST. LUCIA 199 side the other birds and they ignored them. After the other birds learnt about the territory and did not go there they settled down quite happily, but two pairs of Waterhens bred within it and kept him busy from morning till night, which was probably a very useful safety valve for his temper. * * * NOTES ON SOME WATERFOWL AT THE SANCTUARY OF ST. LUCIA, ZULULAND By Sydney Porter By the magic wand of modern transport one can be transplanted in a matter of 72 hours or so into the heart of Zululand to a nature reserve, the kind which one dreams of but seldom expects ever to find, The wild life sanctuary of the Estuary of St. Lucia is a vast con¬ glomeration of about everything known in geographical terms, islands, rivers, lakes, swamps, lagoons, forests, isthmuses, deltas, high forest-covered hills, vast mud- and sand-banks, etc., in fact all that is conducive to varied and abundant bird life. Here, under rigid protection, flourish almost every kind of waterfowl known to inhabit South Africa. Vast flocks of Pelicans, Flamingoes, Spoonbills, Storks, Ibis, Herons, Avocets, and a great many others live out their lives undisturbed by Man as they did long eons ago. In the dense forest patches, which vary from half an acre to many square miles in extent, and on the savanah, live many rare and wonderful species of endemic land birds, huge Hornbills, Touracous, Rollers, Trogons, Glossy Starlings, Sunbirds, and a hundred other kinds, but as our esteemed Editor has asked for a few notes for the waterfowl number of the magazine, I must confine myself with those birds. The White-backed Duck ( Thalassornis leuconotus). — About half a mile from the eastern shores of the Lake of St. Lucia on a narrow isthmus of land between it and the sea and at the base of some forest- covered hills are a series of “ Blue Lily Pools ” as we used to call them. They are quiet still waters, the whole surface practically covered with floating aquatic vegetation, including the lovely blue African water lilies, which grow in great abundance. These are ideal spots for certain types of water birds, yet, strange to say, only one of these “ pans ”, as they are locally called, was inhabited and by a very mixed population. When one arrived there was a general scurry, some of the birds flew away and others dived or hid amongst the reeds. After settling in the shade of a forest tree and making oneself as inconspicuous as possible, the pool came to life again, the Herons, Ibis, and Cormorants which had flown away came back. The Ducks, Jacanas, Grebes, etc., 200 SYDNEY PORTER - WATERFOWL AT THE SANCTUARY OF ST. LUCIA came out of hiding and began to disport themselves on the surface, and in an hour all was normal again. The last of all to be noticed were those strange little birds, the White-backed Diving Ducks, whose plumage blends so well with the surrounding vegetation and who are ready to dive and disappear at the slightest provocation. For the main part they rest quietly and ride low on the water, dozing or nonchalantly preening their plumage, or perhaps sun¬ bathing, lying sideways with one foot stretched behind looking disproportionately large, and covered by one wing seemingly so small for the size of the bird. In their actions and general demeanour they seem more like ’Grebe than Ducks, continually diving with hardly a ripple and staying under the water for long periods. They nest very near to the water’s edge in the dense reeds, or some authorities state, on masses of floating reeds. They are amongst the most aquatic of the ducks and seem hardly ever to come upon the land. This species has very seldom been imported, though I think I re¬ member seeing the Madagascar sub-species in the collection at Walcot. The White-faced Tree Duck ( Dendrocygna viduata) . — On the same quiet lily pool where the White-backed Duck lived there was also a small flock of these Tree Ducks breeding. Most of the birds seemed to have five or six young ones, though one pair (?) had twelve which used to swim head to tail in a long complicated line after one of the adults. I rather think these were the young of two hens. In the rear of this large family was a Gape Dabchick ( Poliocephalus ruficollis capensis) which always fell into the line when it was formed and followed on. As a matter of fact, a Dabchick seemed to attach itself to each family and seemed to play the part of diving instructor ! Whenever the Dabchick dived, so did the young duck. This diving often developed into a frenzy, the ducklings going under every few seconds in exactly the same manner as the Grebe. In fact, so much do the young resemble Grebes that I thought they were young Dab- chicks when I first saw them at a distance. These birds are fairly common around the St. Lucia area and are frequently seen in small parties of from six to eight individuals. They look very dark on the wing and while ordinary duck seem to fly in a horizontal position, these seemed to fly at an angle. These Tree Ducks do a lot of talking to each other in a kind of low whistling conversation. They also do a lot of flying about from one part of the pond to another. I have kept them in England and found them tame and charming birds, but unfortunately very susceptible to frost which affected their feet. Other duck seen were the Red-billed Teal (Pacilonetta erythrorhyncha) , SYDNEY PORTER— WATERFOWL AT THE SANCTUARY OF ST. LUCIA 20 of which I had a pair given to me, but these escaped and were never recaptured ; and also the Yellow-billed Duck (Anas undulata ), which is the South African Mallard and in its habits seems to differ but little from Mallards in general. The European Pelican (. Pelecanus onoerotalus) and Pink-backed Pelican (P. rufescens).— Perhaps the most spectacular of all South African birds, especially when in flight. These huge birds would certainly not be able to hold their own in Southern Africa were it not for the sanctuary of St. Lucia. They are birds which offer far too tempting a target for the average South African, who suffers from an all too ready itching £S trigger finger ”, to resist. Also, the eggs and young are edible- — I was going to say “ morsels ”, but they are pretty big ones— to the average native. Strict protection and an abundance of fish have kept these birds to what must be their orig’nal numerical strength of pre-European days. Huge flocks frequent the lake, the estuary, and the sea-front proper where the Umfalozi River runs into the sea. The Pelicans are highly gregarious and keep in closely packed flocks when resting on much frequented spots on the various islands or on the sand-banks and on the beaches. One very low-lying island towards the head of the lake was very much used by the birds, in company with Sacred Ibis, Grey Herons, Wood Ibis, Spoonbills, etc. As one approaches these spots where the birds are wont to rest, the most overpowering <£ fish market ” smells assails one’s nostrils. Few people seeing Pelicans in zoos or stuffed specimens in museums realize how beautiful these birds are in a state of freedom, for their plumage is a lovely pale salmon pink colour, the feathers being remarkably smooth and satin-like. Some birds do not have this pink bloom, probably second-year young ones, the young ones of the 'last nesting season, have a strange ghostly look, being of a totally uniform monotone of grey, including the feet, beak, face, and eyes. The aerial exercises of the Pelicans are one of the most spectacular things I have ever witnessed in the avian world. Hundreds of these birds gather together high in the sky and go through all manner of aerial manoeuvres. From, a distance it resembles a huge R.A.F. display. There is compact flying in closely massed square formation, this breaks up and the birds form into long frontal lines, small convoys, lines tip to tail, formation flying of threes and fours together wing-tip to wing- tip. The remarkable thing is that one hardly ever sees the birds move their pinions, it is all done by gliding. The birds in the various formations being all the time equidistant from each other. There is nothing haphazard in these exercises, which last for hours at a time. A Pelican, in spite of its bulk, is as graceful as a Seagull in the air and, considering the weight of the bird, it takes but little effort to get airborne. 202 PETER SCOTT— THE SEVERN WILDFOWL TRUST When on the ground or on the water the birds are not unduly timid, but allow one to get within fifty yards or so of them. On the water they gather either in a compact mass or when moving proceed in single file one behind the other. Their fishing is also remarkable. The birds wait about the lake or estuary until a shoal of fish is spotted, they then take to the water and form in a single line, gradually forming into a semi-circle and driving the fish towards the beach, and when these are in the shallow water there is a “ general post ” and each bird seizes what it can. During the hours of relaxation the birds often form into courting couples and generally “ bill and coo ”, which consists of preening each others plumage and holding one anothers’ bills. In a wild state the bills are most beautifully coloured with various markings of pale blue, mauve, yellow, pink ; the huge pouch is bright yellow. The birds breed in the almost inaccessible marshes at the head of St. Lucia Lake. (To be continued.) * * * SOME RECENT ADDITIONS TO THE COLLECTION OF THE SEVERN WILDFOWL TRUST By Peter Scott Currency restrictions and fowl pest precautions make it difficult in these days to build up a collection of waterfowl, but in spite of these there have been some interesting new arrivals in the enclosures at the New Grounds, where the Severn Wildfowl Trust has assembled some 650 ducks, geese, and swans of 86 different kinds. These enclosures are open to the public (except on Sunday mornings, which are reserved for members only) and the steady flow of visitors makes the birds exceptionally tame. To me this is a most important feature of a waterfowl collection, since rare birds are hardly worth keeping if they are always hidden in the shrubbery or only to be seen running up and down the far wire as soon as one appears upon the scene. The collection has recently received a fine shipment of more than fifty birds from across the Atlantic. These were presented to the Trust by various aviculturalists, notably Dr. Dillon Ripley, Mr. Oliver Wells, of British Columbia, and by the Delta Waterfowl Research Station, in Manitoba ; the birds were brought back in the Aquitania by Colonel Niall Rankin. PETER SCOTT - THE SEVERN WILDFOWL TRUST 203 Undoubtedly the most important and interesting of these new arrivals is a fine pair of Philippine Ducks (Anas luzonica) . The status of the bird in the Philippine Islands does not seem to have been worked out, but its range is undoubtedly very limited, and it is the first time so far as is known, that it has ever been brought to Europe alive. It is known locally as the Philippine “ Mallard ” which is not a particularly appropriate name since, although clearly related to the Mallard, it is much more distantly related than the North American Black Duck, the Florida Duck, the Mottled Duck, the Australian Grey Duck, Meller’s Duck, the Spotbilled Ducks, and even perhaps the African Yellowbill. Since none of these are called “ Mallards ” it is obviously inappropriate to the Philippine Duck, which has so much less in common with Anas platyrhyncha. In the Philippine Duck the sexes are more or less alike and the female, although a little less brilliant than the male, has none of the mottled markings of the females of all other surface feeding ducks. In this it seems to be unique in the genus Anas. Both sexes have soft, greyish-buff bodies. At first I took this to be fine vermiculation, but it is a smooth even grey tone, of great beauty. The grey is paler on the neck and there is a sharp line where the red- brown head-colour begins. This is very similar to the colour of a Wigeon’s head ; but the crown and a bold line through the eye are jet black. There is a brilliant green speculum, the legs are dull orange (although described by previous writers — who presumably had only handled skins — as “ blackish ”) and the bill is a fairly bright slate blue (again described as “ blackish-grey ”). It has a rather long tail and very short wings, which give it a curious round-backed look, and the flank feathers are exceptionally long. When the birds first arrived these flank feathers were evidently not completely waterproof and were always drooping into a curious little peak. This still happens when the bird has been washing, but normally the flank feathers lie flat along the sides of the tail. The call appears to be very similar to the Mallard, but the female has a low conversational chirrupping note and the male a low clucking note. So far there has been little to observe in the birds’ behaviour except to note with regret that both — but especially the female — are rather bad tempered with other species feeding near them. They seem to be well paired and should breed. In any event the display will be especially interesting as a pointer to the relationships of this curious and beautiful species. The arrivals from North America include a number of other interesting ducks : a trio of Black Ducks ( Anas rubripes) , a pair of Indian Spotbills (Anas pcecilorhyncha) bred by Dr. Dillon Ripley this year in Connecticut, and two pairs each of the closely allied Cinnamon and Blue-winged Teal (Anas cyanoptera and Anas discoirs). It is particu- 204 PETER SCOTT - THE SEVERN WILDFOWL TRUST larly pleasant once more to have a breeding stock of these two attractive little Teal here in this country. Nine Canvasbacks {Ay thy a valisineria) and seven Redheads {Ay thy a americana ) completed the ducks in the shipment. But there was also a fine selection of the North American Geese. The most important were two pairs of the Pacific Black Brent {Branta bernicla nigricans) . As far as I know the only ones previously seen in this country were a pair which I wing-tipped on Tomales Bay, in Northern California, and brought back in 1938. This sub-species is notably darker on the belly than our European Dark-bellied Brent {B. b, bernicla ) and the flanks are much paler, which makes a charac¬ teristic contrast. The back has a sooty brown tinge, but the principal difference is in the white neck ring. In the two European forms the white consist of two flecks — one on each side of the neck. In the Pacific race there is more white and it forms a continuous band round the front of the neck. Colonel Rankin brought no less than four of the seven recognized races of the Canada Goose. Only one of these was new to the collection. This was the Central form of the Honker {Branta canadensis interior ). The pair came from British Columbia and represent a race which intergrades with the typical or Labrador form ( B . c. canadensis). The breast, and indeed the general colouring is a little bit darker than in the typical form. The bird is interesting in that it demonstrates the range of racial variation in a species which is spread across a continent. This central form is not to be confused with the large chocolate- coloured western form {B. c. occidentals) which may possibly be shown to deserve specific rank. This bird has an extremely restricted range, breeding in the Queen Charlotte Islands and wintering on only two or three marshes in Northern California and Washington. Its bill is smaller than that of the ordinary Honker and the black “ neck¬ stocking ” does not stretch so far down the neck. The whole of the body feathering is deep chocolate-brown. For two years we have had a gander of this form at the New Grounds. He was known to be 13 years old when he came. Now he has been joined by three more, a young female and a breeding pair which are her parents. With these came a pair of Lesser Canada Geese {B. c. iencopareia) and two Cackling Geese {Branta minima) which appear to be females. These four birds were apparently wild taken, having been wing-tipped. The Lesser Canadas have joined a family of a brother and four sisters which have been at the New Grounds for two years. They will be useful for fresh blood. The sub-species is one which has a wide dis¬ tribution in the central and Pacific flyways of North America. It is about the size of a White-fronted Goose, or a little smaller, and in colour it is exactly like the Central Canada Goose {B. c. interior). The Cackling Goose is perhaps the most interesting of the races of PETER SCOTT - THE SEVERN WILDFOWL TRUST 205 the Canada Goose. It is a very small dark form with a tinge of cinnamon about the plumage of the breast. In size it is as small or smaller than a Brent Goose, but has rather longer legs and a very elegant carriage. It is one of the most charming of all the geese, and genetically it is one of the most interesting, for it seems to represent the dawn of a species. The bird breeds in Western Alaska and winters in California, and so does the Lesser Canada Goose. But recently the two have been found sharing the same breeding grounds at the mouth of the Yukon, and not, apparently, mixing. There can be no doubt that the Cackling Goose is closely related to the Canada Geese, and yet according to present doctrine two birds which share a breeding ground without interbreeding must be regarded as full species. So what was Branta canadensis minima should now, perhaps, become Branta minima.1 These and four Lesser Snows ( Anser hyperboreus ) completed the ship¬ ment of geese, but the most spectacular of the birds brought by Colonel Rankin were four magnificent Whistling Swans ( Cygnus columbianus columbianus) . These have settled down very well and are particularly interesting when compared with a fine female Whooper recently sent to us in exchange by Mr. Terry Jones. Apart from the new birds from North America, the Trust has recently received a number of Marbled Teal (Anas angustirostris ) from the Persian Gulf. This bird, which has a range throughout southern Europe and western Asia, is quiet but rather charming in appearance, and interesting in that it has a plain pale grey wing, without speculum. The species has not been seen alive in this country for nearly forty years, when a number of specimens were kept in the Lilford collection and also, I believe, at Mr. St. Quintin’s collection at Scampston. In this connection the Severn Wildfowl Trust took particular pleasure in sending a pair of these birds to Mr. A. F. Moody at Lilford, who was previously at Scampston, and who had not seen them for so long. Another recent acquisition at the New Grounds is a group of four Grey-breasted Tree Ducks (Dendrocygna autumnalis discors ). This is the South American race of the Red-billed Tree Duck, and is almost the same except for the greyer breast. The sexes of Tree Ducks are not easy to determine, but it seems possible that these birds make up two pairs. They have settled down well and may sometimes be seen diving in their pond. This is a most comical performance, as they jump 1 Aldridge believes that the Cackling Goose and the very small pale form — Richardson’s Goose (B. canadensis hutchinsii ) from Hudson’s Bay are nonspecific and that the two “ miniature ” forms should be grouped together as B. hutchinsii. This would make the Cackling Goose’s name B. hutchinsii minima. I do not, however, agree that any evidence exists that the size is an older character than the plumage colour. In short, I believe that the two miniature forms were evolved from larger pale birds in the east and larger dark birds in the west. Since no other sub-species of the Cackling Goose has been described this leaves Branta minima as the appropriate name. 206 BRITISH A VICULTURISTS 5 CLUB 6 inches or more into the air before going down. Their cheerful whistle is a perpetual delight. The Trust is aware of its good fortune in acquiring so many new and interesting additions to its collection, and those benefactors who have given so many of the birds should be gratified to know of the pleasure these are now giving to many British ornithologists. * * * BRITISH AVICULTURISTS’ CLUB The fourteenth meeting of the Club was held at the Rembrandt Hotel, Thurloe Place, South Kensington, S.W. 7, on Wednesday, 10th November, 1948, at 6 p.m., followed by a Dinner. Chairman : Miss P. Barclay-Smith. Members of the Club : Miss Frances Bacon, T. Crewes, B. H. Dulanty, A. Ezra (Patron), C. L. Faudell, J. F. M. Floyd, Tom Good¬ win, Frank Grant, G. F. Harding, R. E. Heath, H. J. Indge, Miss E. Maud Knobel (Club Hostess), G. Lynch, H. Murray, K. A. Norris, Sydney Porter, A. A. Prestwich (Hon. Secretary), D. H. S. Risdon, A. E. Sibley, Dr. E. Sprawson, J. A. Swan, E. N. T. Vane, R. G. Witting. Guests of the Club : K. R. Hutchinson, Dr. Elsa Allen. Guests : Jim Bailey, Mrs. Frank Grant, Miss M. M. Macfarlane, J. Norris, Bryan Spurway. Members of the Club, 24 ; guests, 7 ; total, 31. The Chairman said it gave her especial pleasure to be able to welcome Mr. Kenneth Hutchinson, the son of Mr. Rowland Hutchin¬ son, Hon. Secretary of the Avicultural Society of New Zealand, as principal guest of the Club. Many of those present were greatly indebted to Mr. Hutchinson for the many food and seed parcels sent during the war and which were, in fact, still being sent. It was impossible adequately to convey thanks by letter, and she was glad to have this opportunity of publicly thanking Mr. Hutchinson through his son. The Club was always glad to have friends from the other side of the Atlantic and was honoured by such a distinguished guest as Dr. Elsa Allen, wife of Professor Arthur Allen, one of the foremost ornithologists in America. Mr. Spurway, Director of Forestry and Game Warden of Sarawak and Borneo, another representative of the Commonwealth, was also very welcome. Mr. Hutchinson said he was delighted to have this opportunity of conveying the best wishes of the Avicultural Society of New Zealand, a very small daughter, to the parent Society in England. He was pleased to meet in person so many aviculturists who had hitherto been to him but names in the Avicultural Magazine. He then described briefly some of the birds successfully kept and bred in their aviaries in Auckland, and touched on the avicultural conditions at BRITISH AVICULTURISTS’ CLUB 207 present prevailing in New Zealand. Of considerable interest was his description of a mechanical “conveyor” for supplying mealworms, gentles, grasshoppers, etc., to Shamas at regular intervals. Further details of this ingenious device would be welcome. Mr. Spurway dealt with a few of the birds of Sarawak and Borneo and said one of the finest sights he had seen was a covey of seven Bui war’s Pheasants. Also under his protection was the One-horned Rhinoceros, now reduced to but two bachelors. This species had been virtually wiped out owing to the demand by the Chinese for the horn for medicinal purposes. Whatever other birds there were in Sarawak and Borneo the ubiquitous Sparrow was entirely absent. His own personal theory regarding this was that birds arriving in the rigging of ships were quickly killed by ever- watchful Peregrine Falcons. Attempts to establish the Java Sparrow had not been successful. Dr. Elsa Allen said she would like to tender the good wishes of Cornell University. She had brought with her a recording, made by Professor Arthur Allen and herself, of the songs of some American birds. This, entitled “ Birds of the Northwoods ”, included such birds as the Scarlet Tanager, Hermit Thrush, and Whippoorwill. The Chairman commented on the fact that the recorders had succeeded in overcoming extraneous sounds, a matter that presented much difficulty. Mr. Vane proved a very efficient operator. The Chairman warmly thanked the three speakers for their very interesting contributions and proposed votes of thanks. These were duly carried with acclamation. Miss Knobel then caused very considerable amusement by her recital of “ Some of the things the Secretary is expected to know ”. This consisted of collected extracts from letters, etc., received during her long term of office, and ranged from simple matters like giving advice on what to do with a parrot that has laid an egg, and what to do with the egg, to identifying numerous species of birds from very decomposed bodies, the provision of a monthly translation into Italian of the Avicultural Magazine, the supply of coloured plates for papering a room, and the hire of Peacock feathers for a fancy dress dance ! Mr. Lynch showed an Indian Zosterop he had been colour feeding. His purpose was to demonstrate that colour change could take place without a moult. A lively discussion followed in which Mr. Lynch’s real object was virtually overlooked ; an argument developing on whether colour-feeding had improved the bird or not. While generally agreed that the bird was very attractive the consensus of opinion seemed to be that it had not been improved. Mr. Dulanty was particularly vehement in upholding the virtues of the natural bird. Mr. Norris said he had known the species in freedom in India and it then appeared to be more brightly coloured than aviary-moulted specimens ; with this Mr. Ezra agreed. 208 REVIEWS Mr. Lynch then gave a very entertaining description of the omni¬ vorous appetite of his Raven while in the keeping of Mr. Sibley : nothing came amiss, from the Sunday joint to a large haddock, and when it showed designs on the dog it was deemed best to send it to the Zoo. His Touracou also had a large appetite and on one occa¬ sion swallowed whole five Victoria plums, fortunately with no ill-effects. Messrs. Sibley, Lynch, and Vane gave some of their experiences in connection with the production of recent films. All three have had almost incredible demands from the studios, but they have, never¬ theless, managed in part to comply. After the expenditure of much personal time and patience, and great expense on the part of the pro¬ ducers, the results shown to the public were almost negligible. The date of the next meeting is 12th January, 1949. Arthur A. Prestwich, Hon. Secretary. * * * REVIEW Tropical Birds. By Sacheverell Sitwell, 1948 (Batsford, 6j-. 6 d.). Since the war, any book containing coloured plates of birds has sold in thousands — only limited by paper allocation. Somewhat naturally it is the aim of many publishers to produce such a “ best¬ seller 55 . What easier than to select a dozen or so of John Gould’s plates and to add a few pages of descriptive letterpress ? This plan has the advantage that Gould’s work is introduced to very many who otherwise would not have an opportunity of seeing examples. But it is essential that the plates are carefully chosen and that the descriptive matter is written by an authority. The present volume, a Batsford Colour Book, contains sixteen of Gould’s plates and twelve pages of Introduction and Notes on the Plates, contributed, we are told, by Sacheverell Sitwell. The general presentation is excellent and it is interesting to note that it has been printed in the Netherlands. The plates have reproduced remarkably well and consist of Birds of Paradise, Cockatoos, Broadtails, King¬ fishers, etc. Gould produced at least a hundred lithographs of Parrot-like birds, and it is a little surprising to find that one of the plates selected is that of two Fiery Parrakeets ( Platycercus ignitus) described as “ typical of the race ”. This is unfortunate in that P. ignitus is a “ species ” without status, being merely an aberration of the Rosella (P. eximius). Incidentally, the spelling “ Parakeet ” is persistently used throughout. As this is essentially a book of popular appeal, the author may, perhaps, be forgiven his obvious love of metaphor — Birds of Paradise are personalia 209 cancan dancers. Lorikeets “ masquers in the Venetian carnival ” — but it is always undesirable to liken birds to human beings. The literary style is unsuited to a book of this kind, for example, the fulsome description of a Leadbeater’s Cockatoo : — ■ “ I have known one of these birds in captivity, if it can be called captivity where the prisoner was treated as a beloved friend and guest, where its perch was perpetually its owner’s shoulder, and the white and rose petal of this ecstatic being, this messenger of the arts of love and peace, did . really make the green , garden in Gloucestershire under the apple trees, where a race of white doves crooned incessantly or clapped their wings, into a corner of paradise and the terrestrial equivalent of ‘ a more voluptuous region With long persuasion and much argument the cockatoo was cajoled to raise its crest, a tricoloured crest of scarlet, white and yellow, lifting up and spreading out into a fan, a fancrown or tiara, the centre part of the plumes over the white base or crown being scarlet at their base, then yellow tipped with scarlet— white, again, the points or spikes of the tiara, the rose petal effeminacy of the bird’s whole colouring, for of its particular beauty it could be but feminine like rose petals or the fluting of a lovely shell, being corrected and made masculine by the addition of this white-pointed diadem with its bold band of colours. And as though to give proof that after all it is but earthly, this cockatoo, in common with others of its race, gives off from its feathers a fine white dust which can be brushed off, or it will stay in evidence upon the coatsleeve, the tangible relic of this celestial visitant.” Nevertheless, readers are recommended to buy this book, the plates are very good value. A. A. P. * * * PERSONALIA Cecil Webb, the Curator-Collector of the Zoological Society of London, returned in mid-September after several months in the British Cameroons. Amongst the many rarities brought back was a Grey-necked Rock-fowl (. Picathartes areas). It is at present on exhibition in the Tropical Bird House, and it is believed that this is the first shown alive in captivity anywhere. W. J. C. Frost, the indefatigable collector, but recently returned from Singapore with a collection of animals and birds, has left for New Guinea in search of Birds of Paradise, and does not expect to return until next summer. Dr. Dillon Ripley, Associate Curator, Department of Zoology, Yale University, arrived in France on 13th October, en route for Nepal. One of the main objects of his expedition is to search for the Pheasant- Quail ( Ophrysia super ciliosa) . Almost nothing is known about this bird, last reported in the foothills of the Himalayas some seventy years ago. In spite of its small size it is considered to have close affinity to the Blood-Pheasants. David West, who is making great efforts to establish the Splendid Grass Parrakeet in California, has this past season reared fifteen young ones ; also ten Turquoisines and nine Queen Alexandra’s Parrakeets. 15 210 NOTES NOTES Acknowledgments The Editor acknowledges with many thanks the painting of the Rosy-billed Ducks, which has been specially executed for this number by Monsieur Jean-Pierre Derscheid. The Editor acknowledges with gratitude the great work again undertaken by Mr. R. G. Witting in compiling the index to subjects and list of contributors of the present volume of the Magazine. The John Frostick Memorial Cup Members are reminded that this Gup will again be offered for competition at the forthcoming “ Crystal Palace ” Championship Show, at the Royal Horticultural Hall, on 20th, 21st, and 22nd January, 1949. The Psittacine Registry Several members have not yet returned their Registration Forms. Will they please do so with the least possible delay. Additions to the London Zoo September, 1948. There were seventy-five new arrivals during the month. The chief event was the return of Cecil Webb from the British Cameroons with a collection of mammals, reptiles, and birds. There were thirty-two birds, amongst which were nine species and two sub-species new to the Society’s Collection : 1 Grey-necked Picathartes* ( Picathartes oreas), 1 Central African Fire-crowned Bishopt ( Euplectes hordeacea sylvatica ), 3 Black-capped Waxbills ( Estrilda atricapilla) , 1 Blue-billed Malimbus ( Malimbus nitens ), 1 Spectacled Weaver* ( Ploceus ocularis ), 3 Gaboon Blue¬ billed Seed-crackers ( Spermophaga hamatina pustulata ), 5 Cameroon Olive-bellied Sunbirds ( Cinnyris chloropygius liihderi), 1 Tiny Sunbird* ( Cinnyris minullus ), 1 Liihder’s Bush-Shrike* ( Laniarius liihderi), 4 Blue-shouldered Robin-Chats* ( Cossypha cyano- campter ), 1 Snowy-headed Robin-Chat* ( Cossypha niveicapilla melanota ), 1 Gabon Forest Robin* (Stiphrornis erythrothorax gabonensis), 1 Fire-crest Alethe* (Alethe castanea) , 4 White-headed Wattled Plovers* ( Xiphidiopterus albiceps ), 4 Sclater’s Crested Guinea- fowlf ( Guttera edouardi sclateri). One Lammergeyer ( Gypaetus barbatus aureus ) and 5 Red-breasted Geese ( Branta rujicollis) were received in exchange from the Moscow Zoopark ; and 1 Blue-crowned Hanging Parrakeet ( Coryllis galgulus) from Phoenix Park, Dublin : 2 Shaw’s Grey- chinned Sunbirds* ( Anthreptes rectirostris tephrolama) were also received in exchange. The Oxford University Exploration Club presented 2 Grey-breasted Helmet Guineafowl (white var.) (Numida galeata). Among the “ deposits ” were 1 Gold Coast Olive-bellied Sunbird ( Cinnyris chloropygius) , 1 Green-throated Sunbird* ( Chalcomitra rubescens rubescens), and 1 Indian Black-headed Oriole ( Oriolus xanthornus). Whipsnade. Many birds “ Hatched in the Park during 1948 ” appear in the additions for the month : 32 Carolina Ducks, 2 Mandarin Ducks $, 5 Mallard, 5 Mallard (black var.), 25 Reeves’s Pheasants, 6 Chinese Silver Pheasants, 3 Black¬ breasted Kalij Pheasants, 3 Temminck’s Tragopans, and 2 Edward’s Pheasants. August, 1948. During the month there were no less than ninety-one new arrivals. A collection of 20 wading birds was received in exchange from the Copenhagen Zoo ; included were Redshanks, Grey, Ringed, and Kentish Plovers, Lapwings, Oyster- catchers, Avocets, and Common and Green Sandpipers ( Tringa ocrophus ), the last- named a species new to the collection. Two welcome arrivals were a pair of European Bee-eaters ( Merops apiaster) presented by the Hon. Anthony Chaplin. They are the first to be exhibited in the Gardens since 1913, and their history is interesting. While studying the species in the Camargue, Chaplin one day noticed a great commotion round a nesting-burrow. Closer inspection revealed that a Montpellier Snake was in process of devouring a nest of half-fledged young ones. After disposing of the snake it was found that three had * Species new to the Collection, f Sub-species new to the Collection. NOTES 21 1 already been eaten or killed. Chaplin opened the burrow and took the two remaining young ones for hand-rearing : successfully accomplished on grasshoppers and meal¬ worms. (There is a full account of the event in %oo Life, Autumn, 1948.) A small collection of Paraguayan birds was presented by W. H. Chippendale. It consisted of 1 Magellan Eagle Owl ( Bubo magellanicus) , 2 Carrion Hawks, Sp. inc., 1 Buzzard, Sp. inc., 5 American Black Vultures ( Coragyps atratus) , and 1 Black-faced Ibis ( Theristicus melanopis ). Maurice Portal presented a Great Eagle Owl {Bubo bubo) that he had obtained in Hungary in 1923. Mention may also be made of the following : 1 Long-tailed Glossy Starling {Lampro- tornis caudatus ), 1 Angolan Vulture ( Gypohierax angolensis) , 1 Superb Sunbird {Cinnyris cupreus), 1 Collared Sunbird {Anthreptes collar is) , 1 Secretary Bird {Sagittarius serpentarius) , 2 White-backed Piping Crows {Gymnorhina hypoleuca leuconota), 1 Blue-cheeked Barbet {Cyanops asiatica), 1 Savigny’s Eagle Owl {Bubo ascalaphus), and 1 Domestic X Grey¬ breasted Helmet Guinea Fowl. One Great Black-backed Gull was bred in the Menagerie. At Whipsnade a Common Rhea was hatched in the Park, and a Green-cheeked Amazon and an Ashy-headed Goose were presented by P. H. Maxwell and the Duke of Bedford respectively. A. A. P. Birds from British Cameroons Forest The following birds were brought back to England by Mr. John Yealland on 10th August, 1948 : — ■ 2 Vulturine Fish-Eagles {Gypohierax angolensis). 1 Lizard Buzzard {Kaupifalco m. monogrammicus) . 1 Red-necked Buzzard {Buteo auguralis). 1 West African Wood Owl {Strix woodfordi nuchalis). 1 Black-throated Coucal {Centropus l. leucogaster) . 3 Sclater’s Guineafowl {Gutter a edouardi sclateri). 2 Yellow-casque Hornbills {Ceratogymna elata). 1 Laughing Hornbill {Bycanistes s. sharpii) . 1 Brown-cheeked Hornbill {Bycanistes cylindricus) . 2 Blue-breasted Kingfishers {Halcyon m. malimbica) . 1 Pigmy Kingfisher {Ispidina p. picta) . 1 Yellow-spotted Barbet {Buccanodon duchaillui). 2 Bristle-nosed Barbets {Gymnobucco peli). 2 Speckled Tinker-Birds {Pogoniulus scolopaceus flavisquamatus) . 2 Least Tinker-Birds {Pogoniulus s. sub sulphur eus) . 1 Black Crake {Limnocorax flavirostra). 3 White Spotted Pigmy Rails {Sarothrura pulchra zenkeri) . 2 Forest Robins {Stiphrornis erythrothorax gabonensis) . 7 Gaboon Bulbuls {Pycnonotus barbatus gabonensis) . 2 Simple Leaf-loves {Pyrrhurus simplex) . 2 Pied Crows {Corvus albus) . 1 Blue-billed Seed-cracker {Spermophaga hamatina pustulata) . 2 Grey-headed Negro-Finches {Nigrita c. canicapilla) . 1 Lower Guinea Chestnut-breasted Negro-Finch {Nigrita bicolor brunnescens) . 5 Grey-chinned Sun-birds {Anthreptes tephrolama) . 2 Collared Sun-birds {Anthreptes collaris hypodila) . 2 Cherrick Sun-birds {Cinnyris verticalis cyanocephalus) . 2 Blue-throated Brown Sun-birds {Cinnyris cyanolcemus) . 2 Superb Sun-birds {Cinnyris s. superbus). 1 Olive-bellied Sun-bird {Cinnyris chloropygius luhderi) . 1 Green-throated Sun-bird {Chalcomitra rubescens). 7 Tambourine Doves {Tympanistria t.fraseri). 4 Blue-spotted Doves {Turtur a. afer). 1 Southern Cameroon Lemon-Dove {Aplopelia simplex plumbescens) . 1 Cameroon Odu-Dove {Calopelia puella brehmeri). INDEX TO SUBJECTS Acknowledgments, 136, 210. Acridotheres cristatellus , 1 68. ,, tristis, 168. JEthiopsar fuscus, 1 1 7. Agapornis Jischeri, 1 15. ,, personata, 1 1 5. „ pullaria, 115. „ roseicollis, 115. Agyrtria brevirostris , 70, 73, 76, 77. „ lactea, 70, 76, 77. Akalat, Orange-breasted, 98. Alcedo atthis ispida , 93. Alcippe, 1 61. Alectoris greeca chukar, 1 74. Alethe castanea, 210. Alethe, Fire-crested, 210. Amauresthes fringilloides, 159. Amazon Parrots, 138 (see also under Parrot) . Amazona astiva, 115, 148. „ agilis, 150. „ albifrons, 150. ,, amazonica, 148. ,, auropalliata, 148, 174. „• autumnalis, 149. „ bahamensis, 150. ,, bodini , 149. ,, bouqueti , 147. „ brasiliensis , 149. „ caymanensis, 150. ,, chloronota, 149. „ collaria , 150. „ diademata, 149. ,, dufresniana, 148, 175. ,, farinosa , 147. „ f estiva, 115, 149. ,, finschi, 149. ,, guatemala, 147. „ guildingi,! 47. ,, hagenbecki, 149. ,, imperialis (== august a) , 147. „ inornata, 147. ,, leucocephala, 150. „ levaillanti, 148. „ lilacina, 149. ,, mercenaria , 147. „ natter eri, 139, 148. „ ochrocephala , 148, 174. „ ochroptera , 148. ,, panamensis, 148. ,, pretrei, 1 50. „ rhodocorytha, 149, 174, 175. ,, rothschildi, 148. ,, salvini, 149. ,, tucumana , 150. „ ventralis, 1 50. „ versicolor, 147. ,, vinacea , 147. „ virenticeps, 147. „ viridigenalis, 1 15, 149, 174, 175. Amazona vittata, 150. ,, xantholora, 150. „ xanthops , 149. Anadorhynchus hyacinthinus, 115. Anas angustirostris, 205. ,, cristata alticola, 196. ,, cyanoptera, 203. ,, discors, 203. „ luzonica, 203. ,, poecilorhyncha, 174, 203. „ rubripes, 203. „ undulata, 201. Anser hyperboreus, 205. ,, indicus, 174. Anthracoceros malabaricus, 1 74. Anthreptes collaris, 136, 2 1 1 . „ „ hypodila, 2 1 1 . ,, rectirostris tephrolcema . 210. , , tephrolama, 2 1 1 . Aplopelia simplex plumbescens, 211. Aprosmictus chloropterus, 185. Aptenodytes patagonica, 1 74. Ara ararauna, 1 15. „ chloroptera, 115, 175. „ macao, 115, 175. „ mar ac ana, 115. „ sever a, 115. Aratinga auricapillus , 115. „ cactorum , 115. „ canicularis, 115. „ chloroptera maugei, 115. „ guarouba , 115. hcemorrhous, 115. „ jendaya, 115, 117. „ leucophthalmus, 68. Artamus personatus , 97. ,, super ciliosus, 97. Avadavat (Strawberry Finch), 46, 88, 91. ,, Green, 68. Avicultural Magazine, Special Num¬ bers of, 40, 66. Avicultural Society of South Australia : Medal Awards, 97. Avocet, 36, 199, 210. Ay thy a americana, 204. ,, valisineria, 204. “ Baardmannetjie ” (Scaly-headed Weaver), 158. Babbler, White-browed, 97. Bailey, James, retirement of from London Zoo, 54. Balearica regulorum, 40. Barbet family, 102. ,, Blue-cheeked, 40, 21 1. ,, Bristle-nosed, 2 1 1 . „ Crimson-breasted, 39, 40. „ Grooved-billed, 136. „ Levaillant’s, 156. ,, Yellow-spotted, 21 1. 213 214 INDEX Barnardius semitorquatus , 1 74. Bee-Eater, 36, 210. ,, family, 101, 102. Bellona cristata, 72, 76, 77. Bengalese, 79, 97. Birds of Paradise, 12, 129. „ ,, „ Wallace’s, 14. Bishop, Central African Fire-crowned, 210. „ Orange, 14. Bittern, Little, 36. Blackbird, 55, 138. Blue Bird, 12. Bower-Bird, Satin, 38, 39, 68. Brambling, 88. Branta bernicla bernicla , 204. ,, ,, nigricans , 204. „ canadensis, 135, 174, 204. ,, ,, hutchineii, 205. ,, ,, iencopareia, 204. ,, ,, interior , 204. ,, ,, occidental is, 204. ,, minima, 135, 204. ,, ruficollis, 40, 210. Breeding Results, at Foxwarren Park, 19. „ „ for 1947, 33. ,, ,, Parrakeet, in 1947, 21. British Aviculture, Prospect and Retro¬ spect, 3. ,, Aviculturists’ Club, 34, 65, 80, 96, 99, 108, 125, 151, 206. Brotogeris chiriri, 115. ,, tirica , 115. Bubo ascalaphus, 2 1 1 . „ bubo, 21 1. ,, magellanicus, 21 1. Bubulcus ibis, 136. Buccanodon duchaillui, 2 1 1 . Budgerigars, 68, 79, 97, 115. ,, Breeding Crested, 176. Bulbul, 15. ,, Dusky, 1 74. ,, Gaboon, 21 1. ,, Layard’s, 156. ,, Red-eared, 40. ,, ,, -vented, 68. „ Swamp Palm-, 136. ,, Yellow-vented, 121, 123. Bullfinch, 82, 83, 84, 160. Bunting, Cape, 159. „ Corn-, 59. ,, Indigo, 89. ,, Rainbow-, 31. „ Reed-, 56. „ Rock-, 159. ,, Snow-, 84, 85. „ Yellow, 56, 83, 85. ,, Yellow-breasted (Red-backed Yellow), 159. Buteo augur alis, 2 1 1 . „ buteo, 174. Buzzard, 97, 109, 174, 21 1. Buzzard, Lizard-, 21 1. „ Red-necked, 2 1 1 . Bycanistes cylindricus, 1 36, 2 1 1 . ,, s. sharpii, 21 1. Calopelia puella brehmeri, 2 1 1 . Cameroons Forest, Birds from, 21 1. ,, News from the, 98. Canary, “ Black-headed ” ( = Alario Finch), 157. „ Cape, 157. ,, “ King Black-head ” ( - Damara- land Alario Finch), 157. ,, “ Peach ” ( = Black-throated Singing Finch), 157. Cardinal, Red, 84. ,, Red-crested, 159. Casarca tadornoides , 174. Centropus l. leucogaster, 2 1 1 . Ceratogymna slata , 2 1 1 . Coyle, 95. „ rudis , 95. Chaffinch, 56, 61, 88, 119. Chalcomitra a. adelberti, 174. ,, rubescens, 210,211. Chalcophaps indica, 117. Change of Colour in Plumage without a Moult, 80, 207. Chats, 109. Chat, Crimson, 97. ,, Red-rumped, 59. ,, White-fronted, 97. Chen carulescens, 1 74. ,, hyperborea, 1 74. „ ,, atlantica, 174. Chiff-Chaff, 61. Chloropsis aurifrons, 1 74. ,, hardwickii, 174. Chlorostilbon aureiventris aureiventris, 70, 74, 76, 77- » » egregms, 71, 74, 76, 77, 78. “ Choak ” (Comoro Weaver), 159. Chough, 89, 97, 169. Chrysolampis mosquitus, 71, 73, 75, 76, 77, 78. Chrysolophus amherstia, 118. ,, pictus, 1 18. Cinnyris chloropygius, 136, 174, 210. ,, ,, liihderi, 210,211. ,, cupreus, 211. ,, cyanolamus, 21 1. ,, johanrue fasciata, 136. ,, minullus, 210. ,, superbus, 136, 21 1. ,, verticalis cyanocephalus, 21 1. Cissa, Hunting, 171. Clangula hyemalis, 188. Clarin (Grey Solitaire), 160. “ Clarin-Jilgaro,” Breeding of, 160. Cock-of-the-Rock, Amazonian, 1. „ „ ,, Andean, 2. „ „ „ Scarlet, 1. INDEX 215 Cockatiel, 33, 1 15, 1 17, 156. Cockatoo, A Venerable, 1 74. ,, Bare-eyed, 115. ,, Great White-crested, 1 15. „ Leadbeater’s, 20, 124, 156, 209. „ Lemon- (or Sulphur-) crested, 156, 175* ,, Roseate, 1 15. Columba arquatrix , 40. Combassou, 158, 159. Condor, Californian, 12. Conure, Black-headed, 1 15. „ Blue-crowned, 1 15. „ Cactus-, 1 15. „ Golden-headed, 115. ,, Green or White-eyed, 68. „ Mauge’s, 115. ,, Petz’s, 1 15. ,, Queen of Bavaria’s, or Golden, 34j ”5- ,, Red-bellied, 1 15. „ Yellow-headed, 1 15, 1 17. Coot, Horned, 12. Coragyps atratus , 2 1 1 . Cormorant, 109, 199. Conus albus, 2 1 1 . „ corax laurencei , 1 1 9. „ frugilegus, 174. Coryllis galgulus , 210. Corythaixoides concolor, 1 36. Cosmopsarus regius, 1 74. Cossypha cyanocampter, 210. ,, niveicapilla melanota, 210. Cotingas, 1, 12. Coucal, Black-throated, 2 1 1 . Council Meeting, 105. Crake, Black, 2 1 1 . Crandall, Mr. Lee S., films of New York Zoo, “ Strangers from Afar,” 127. Crane, 20. ,, Eastern Sarus, 40. ,, Grey-necked Crowned, 40. „ Manchurian, 174. ,, Sarus, 174. „ Wattled, 12, 128. „ White-necked, 123. „ Whooping, 12. Crossoptilon, see under Pheasant. Crow, albino, 124. ,, Carrion, 109. ,, Hooded, 118, 1 19, 122. ,, Pied, 2 1 1 . ,, White-backed Piping, 2 1 1 . Cuckoo, 102. „ Renauld’s Ground-, 125. Curlew, Stone-, 98. Cyanerpes cyaneus , 78. Cyanomitra cyanohema, 40, 98. „ olivacea guineensis, 136, 174. „ v. verticalis, 136. Cyanops asiatica , 40, 2 1 1 . Cygnus atratus , 183. Cygnus columbianus bewickii , 182. „ ,, columbianus , 182, 205. „ ,, jankowskii, 182. ,, cygnus buccinator , 182. „ „ cygnus , 182. „ melancoriphus, 183. „ _ olor, 181. Dabchick, Cape, 200. Dacelo gigas , 94. Delichon , 190. Dendrocygna autumnalis discors , 205. ,, viduata, 200. Derscheid, Dr. J. M., tribute to, 35. Dichoceros bicornis , 1 74. Dipper, 97. Discosura longicauda , 70, 75, 76, 77. Domicella garrula , 1 74. Dove, Blue-spotted, 21 1. „ Cameroon Odu, 21 1. ,, Cape Masked, or Namaqua, 160. „ Collared Turtle-, 1 17, 118. ,, Diamond-, 132, 160. ,, Dusky Turtle-, 53. ,, Indian Green-winged, 1 1 7. ,, Necklace, 20. „ Palm-,60,118,120. ,, Red Mountain-, 48. „ Rock-, 120, 123. „ Southern Cameroon Lemon, 21 1. „ Stock-, 98. ,, Tambourine, 21 1. „ Turtle-, 62. Dove and Pigeon Registry in U.S.A., Duck, African Red-billed Pintail, 64. „ American Black, or Dusky, 64, 203. „ Andean Crested, 196. „ Australian Grey, 64, 203. „ Bahama Pintail, 64. „ Barrow’s Golden-eye, 65. „ Black-billed Tree-, 64. ,, Canvas-back, 65, 204. ,, Carolina, 20, 64, 124, 194 (as “ Wood-D.”), 195 (do.), 197, 210. ,, Chilean Pintail, 64. „ Common Eider-, 40, 65. „ „ Pintail, 14, 64, 98, 194, 198. ,, ,, Shoveler-, 64. „ „ White-eyed, 65. ,, Eyton’s or Plumed, Tree-, 14, 64, 124. „ Florida, 64, 203. „ Fulvous Tree-, 64. ,, Gadwall, 64, 194. „ Grey-breasted Tree-, 64, 205. „ Hybrid Mallard X Spot-billed, 195- „ Lesser 'Scaup-, 65. ,, Long-tailed (“Old Squaw”), Eclipse Plumage and Nuptial Plumage in, 188. 2l6 INDEX Duck, Madagascar White-eyed, 65. ,, Mallard, 198, 203, 210. „ Mandarin-, 20, 64, 124, 194, 195, 197, 210. ,, Meller’s, 203. „ Mottled, 203. „ Muscovy, 64, 195. ,, New Zealand Brown, 64. ,, Philippine, 203. ,, Pink-headed, 125. ,, Red-billed Tree-, 205. „ ,, -headed, 204. „ Ring-necked, 65, 195. ,, Rosy-billed, 65, 197. ,, ,, Notes on the Behaviour of the Male, 177. ,, Ruddy, 188. „ Scaup-, 65, 124. ,, Sheld-, see Sheldrake. ,, South African Yellow-billed, 64, 201, 203. ,, South American Red Shoveler-, 64. ,, Spot-billed, 64, 174, 203. „ Tufted, 65. ,, White-backed, 199. ,, White-faced Tree, 200. ,, White-winged Wood-, 64. Eagle, Monkey-eating, 128. ,, Vulturine Fish- ( = Angolan Vul¬ ture) ,211. Ectopistes migrator ius , 37. Egret, African Cattle-, 136. „ Little, 62, 1 15. Emblema picta, 47. Eopsaltria australis 97. Epthianura albifrons , 97. „ tricolor , 97. Estrilda atricapilla, 210. Eudyptes crestatus, 1 74. Euplectes hordeacea sylvatica , 210. Eurypyga helias, 50. Ezra, Mr. A., Shooting Expedition in Central Asia, slides shown, 152. Falcon, Peregrine, 97, 109, 207. Finch, Alario, 157. ,, Black-throated Singing, 157. ,, Blue-faced Parrot-, 159. „ Cherry-, 159. ,, Common Fire-, 174. ,, Damaraland Alario, 157. ,, Diamond-, 159. „ Gouldian, 39, 132, 159. „ Green Singing, 157. ,, Grey-headed Negro-, 21 1. „ Grey Singing, 29, 32. ,, Heck’s Grass-, 159. ,, Hybrid Parson X Long-tailed Grass-, 98. ,, ,, Ribbon X Red-headed, 160. „ Jameson’s Fire-, 157. Finch, Large Darwin’s, 40. ,, Lavender-, 14, 157. ,, Little Ruddy Fire-, 157. ,, Long-tailed Grass-; 132, 159. ,, Lower Guinea Chestnut-breasted Negro-, 21 1. ,, Masked Grass-, 132, 159. „ Melba, 39, 68, 156, 157, 158. ,, Natal Ruddy Fire-, 157. ,, Nutmeg- (or Spice-), 46, 91. ,, Painted, 47, 159. „ Pectoral, 39, 47. ,, Pileated, 160. „ Quail-, 158*. „ Red-crested, 12. ,, Red-headed, 158. ,, Red-headed Parrot-, 39, 68. „ Red-winged, 157. ,, Royal Parrot-, 14. ,, Spice- (= Nutmeg), 46, 91. ,, Star- (Ruficauda), 68, 132, 159. „ Steel-, 158, 159. ,, Strawberry- (= Avadavat), 46, 88, 9i- ,, Western Melba, 40. „ Zebra-,17,32,159. „ ,, cinnamon, 13 1, 159. ,, ,, cream, 131. „ „ fawn, 159. „ silver, 39, 68, 131, 159. „ „ white, 159. „ ,, white-eared, 159. Finfoot, Senegal, 50. Flamingo, 82, 199. ,, Greater, 174. “ Flop ” (Long-tailed Whydah), 158. Flower-Peckers ( Dicaum ), 79. Flycatcher, Collared, 36. ,, Mexican Silky, 161. ,, Paradise-, 125. ,, Spotted, 59. Foreign Bird Keeping, The Lighter Side of, 29. For pus calestis, 12. Fowl Pest Regulations, 39. Francolin, Ahanta, 136. Francolinus ahantensis, 136. Frostick, John, Memorial Cup, 67, 210. Fruit-Sucker, Golden-fronted, 30, 124, I74- „ Hardwicke’s, 174. Gadwall, 64, 194. Gallinule, Martinique, 68. Gallus gallus bankiva, 1 74. „ sonneratii, 174. ,, varius, 174. Gannet, 40, 68, 97, 98, 108. Garganey, 64. Garrulus glandarius atricapillus, 123. Gennms melanotus, 1 1 8. „ nycthemerus, 118. INDEX 217 Gennaus swinhoii, 1 18. Geospiza magnirostris, 40. Geotrygon montana, 48. Gnorimopsar chopi, 1 17. Godwit, Black-tailed, 80. Goldcrest, 61. Goldfinch, 61, 82, 83, 84, 88, 1 18, 119, 120, 121. „ American, 160. Goosander, 65. Goose, Abyssinian Blue-winged, 64. ,, Andean, 63. ,, Ashy-headed, 64, 2 1 1 . „ Bar-headed, 63, 98, 174. „ Barnacle-, 63, 195. ,, Barred Magellan, 63. „ Bean-, 63. ,, Black Brent, 204. „ Blue Snow-, 63, 195. „ Cackling or Alaska, 63, 135, 195, 204. „ Canada, 63, 174, 194. ,, Central Honker, 204. ,, Cereopsis or Cape Barren, 64. ,, Dark-bellied Brent, 63, 204. „ Eastern Grey Lag, 63. „ Egyptian, 64, 194, 195. „ Emperor-, 40, 63, 98, ,, Greater Snow-, 63, 174. ,, Greenland White-fronted, 63. „ Grey Lag, 63, 98. ,, Hybrid Snow- X Blue Snow-, 174. ,, Kelp, 18. ,, Lesser Canada, 63, 204. ,, ,, Snow-, 63, 205. ,, ,, White-fronted, 63. ,, Light-bellied Brent, 63. ,, Magpie-, 64. ,, Maned, 64. ,, Orinoco, 64. ,, Pink-footed, 63. ,, Red-breasted, 40, 63, 210. ,, Richardson’s, 205. ,, Ross’s Snow, 63. ,, Ruddy-headed, 20, 64. ,, Spur-winged, 64. ,, Swan-, 63. ,, Upland or Magellan, 63, 194. „ Western Canada, 63, 195, 204. ,, White-fronted, 63. Grackle, Chinese, 117. ,, Chopi, 1 1 7. ,, Rothschild’s, 20, 124, 125. Gracula sinensis, 1 1 7. Grebes, 12, 199. Greenfinch, 57, 61, 119, 160. Grus antigone, 40. Guillemot, 97, 98, 109. Guinea Fowl, Grey-breasted Helmet, 40. 210 ,, „ Hybrid Domestic X Grey¬ breasted Helmet, 2 1 1 . Guinea Fowl, Sclater’s Crested, 210, 21 1. Gull, Black-headed, 80, 98. ,, Great Black-backed, 97, 109, 211. „ Herring-, 97, 109, 122. ,, Kittiwake, 97, 109. ,, Lesser Black-backed, 97, 109. ,, Yellow-legged Herring-, 60. Gutter a edouardi sclateri, 210, 2 1 1 . Gymnobucco peli, 2 1 1 . Gymnorhina hypoleuca leuconota, 211. Gypaetus barbatus aureus, 210. Gypohierax angolensis, 2 1 1 . Halcyon m. malimbica, 2 1 1 . ,, sanctus, 94. „ smyrnensis, 95. Harrier, Marsh-, 36, 123. Hawk, Carrion-, 2 1 1 . Heliactis bilopha, 74, 76. Heliomaster squamosis, 76. Heron, 199, 201. ,, Great White, 36. „ Night-, 174. „ Purple, 36, 57, 62. Hirundo, 190. Honey-Eater, Blue, 78. Hoopoe, 36, 62, 1 01, 156. Hornbill, Black-thighed, 136. ,, Brown-cheeked, 2 1 1 . „ family, 101, 102, 199. ,, Great Indian, 174. ,, Indian Pied, 174. ,, Laughing, 2 1 1 . ,, Yellow-casqued, 21 1. Humming Birds, 40. „ Details on the Keeping of, in Copenhagen, 69. ,, Guiana King, 89. “ Hungarian Featherland,” Mr. High- am’s film, 36. Ibis, 199. ,, Black-faced, 2 1 1 . ,, Sacred, 201. „ Wood-, 201. Ispidina ‘p. picta, 2 1 1 . Jacanas, 199. Jackdaw, 60, 109, 168. Jay, 1 17. _ „ Syrian, 122. Jay-Thrush, 39, 68. Jilgaro (= Mexican Solitaire), 161 ^ seq. Jungle-Fowl, Hybrid Sonnerat’s X Javan, 24. „ Javan, 174. „ Red, 24, 26, 98, 124, 174. ,, Sonnerat’s, 174. Kakatoe alba, 1 15. ,, roseicapilla, 115. INDEX 2l8 Kakatoe sanguinea gymnopis, 1 15. Kaupifalco m. monogrammicus , 2 1 1 . Kea, 185. Kestrel, 134. „ Egyptian, 118. „ Lesser, 62, 1 18, 122. „ Red-legged, 123. Kingfishers, 101, 102. ,, Exotic, in Captivity, 93. Kingfisher, Blue-breasted, 2 1 1 . „ European, 93. ,, Giant or Laughing, 94, 115. „ Paradise-, 95. „ Pied, 122. „ Pigmy, 21 1. „ Sacred, 94. „ Stork-, 95. ,, White and Blue, 124. Kite, Egyptian, 58, 118, 119. Kittacincla macroura indica, 40. Knobel, Maud, Hon. Secretary and Treasurer 1922-48, 137. „ Dinner in honour of, 1 5 1 . Knot, 80, 81. Kookaburra, 94, 115. Lagonosticta senegala , 1 74. Lammergeyer, 210. Lamprocolius chalybeus, 1 17. ,, chloropterus, 116, 117, 136. Lamprotornis caudatus, 211. Laniarius liihderi, 210. Lapwing, 170, 210. Lark, Crested, 118, 119. „ Gray’s, 159. ,, Short-toed, 59. „ Sky-, 59, 61, 1 18. Lark-Finch, Smith’s, 159. Leaf-Love, Simple, 2 1 1 . Lebanese Interlude, 118. Lepidopygia n. nigriceps, 159. Leptocoma zeylonica, 79. Leptolophus hollandicus, 115, 117. Lighting of Aviaries, Experiments in, at Antwerp Zoo, 116-17. Limnocorax flavirostris, 211. Linnet, 57, 61, 85. ,, Symons’s Drakensberg, 157. Lophophorus impejanus, 118, 135, 174. Lorikeet, Swainson’s, 156. Lory, Chattering, 174. Lourie, Hartlaub’s, 52. Love-Bird, Black-cheeked, 4, 7, 156. ,, Fischer’s, 4, 7, 115. „ Hybrid Masked X Fischer’s, 1 15. „ Masked, 4, 7, 38, 68, 156. „ „ blue, 79. ,, Nyassa, 4. „ Peach-faced, 4, 115, 156. „ Red-faced, 115, 156. „ Swinderen’s, 98. Macaw, Blue and Yellow, 115. „ Hyacinthine, 115. ,, Hybrid, in Edinburgh Zoo, 175. „ Illiger’s, 1 15. „ Red and Blue, 38, 115. ,, Red and Yellow, 115. ,, Severe, 115. Magpie, 138. Malimbus, Blue-billed, 210. Malimbus nitens, 210. Mallard, 198, 203, 210. ,, Australian, 195. Mannikins, 132. „ Black-headed, 158. „ Bronze-winged, 159, 174. „ Magpie-, 159. ,, Three-coloured, 38. „ Tri-coloured, 159. ,, Zanzibar, 158. Medal, The Society’s, 173, 185. Melopsittacus undulatus, 115. Merganser, Red-breasted, 65. Merops apiaster, 2 1 o. Metopiana peposaca, 177. Milvus migrans agyptius, 1 19. Momotus momota, 105. Monaul — see under Pheasant. Motmot, Brazilian, 105. Motmots in Captivity, 101. Musophaga violacea, 136. Myadestes obscurus, 16 1. ,, unicolor, 160. Myiopsitta monachus , 1 15. Mynah, Indian Jungle-, 1 1 7. Mynahs, 168. Nandayus nenday, 115. Neophema chrysostomus, 115. Nestor notabilis, 185. Nettopus coromandelianus, 188. Nigrita bicolor brunnescens, 211. ,, c. canicapilla, 21 1. Norris, K. A., slides of birds on Pem¬ broke coast, 97. Northipsitta, 1 13. Numida galeata, 40, 210. Nuns (Mannikins), 46. Nun, Tri-coloured (= Magpie-Manni¬ kin), 159. Nuthatch, 134. “ Old Squaw ” (Long- tailed Duck), 188. Ophrysia superciliosa , 209. Oriole, African Golden, 136. „ Golden, 36. ,, Indian Black-headed, 210. Oriolus auratus, 136. ,, xanthornus, 2 to. Ostrich, 174. OtocompsQ, emeria, 40. Owl, Great Eagle-, 2 1 1 . „ Magellan Eagle-, 2 1 1 . INDEX 219 Owl, Savigny’s Eagle-, 21 1. ,, West African Wood-, 21 1. Oxyura jamaicensis, 188. Oyster-Catcher, 97, 210. Parrakeet Breeding Results, 1947, 21. „ Alexandrine, 20, 1 1 5, 1 1 7, 1 25. „ All Green, 1 15. ,, Banded, 174. „ Barnard’s, 22, 33. ,, Barraband’s, 115. „ Blue-crowned Hanging, 210. ,, Blue-winged Grass-, 115. „ Bourke’s, 34, 156. ,, Crimson-winged, 20, 22, 33. ,, Derbyan, 34, 68. „ Elegant Grass-, 39. „ “ Fiery ”, 208. ,, Golden-mantled Rosella, 21, 33, 4°- ,, Green-winged King-, 19, 20, 124, 185. ,, Hybrid Blue-winged X Turquoisine, 39. „ King-, 22, 34, 38, 68. ,, Mealy Rosella, 21, 33, 40. „ New Zealand, 39. „ Orange-winged, 115. ,, Paradise-, 12. „ Pennant’s, 22, 34, 38, 1 15. ,, Princess of Wales or Queen Alexandra’s, 12, 20, 21, 34, 37, 49, 124, 174, 209. „ „ „ Breeding of, no. „ ,, ,, Historical Notes on, 112. „ Quaker, 115, 174. „ Red-rump, 34, 40, 1 13. „ Ring-necked, 20, 34, 115, 154. „ „ lutino, 34, 39, 124. „ Rock Peplar, 34, 68, 113. ,, Rosella, 115, 174, 208. „ Rose-ringed, 47. ,, Splendid, 12, 209. ,, ,, breeding of, in California, 98, 209. „ Stanley, 21, 38, 39, 68, no. ,, Turquoisine, 43, 209. ,, Yellow-collared, 174. ,, Yellow-vented Blue Bonnet, 97. Parrots, 102. Parrot, Amazon, 89, 138. „ „ Blue-fronted, 115, 138, 139, I43? 144, 148. ,, Bahama, 139, 150. ,, Blue-faced or Red-tailed, 149. ,, Bodin’s, 149. „ Bouquet’s, 147. ,, Brown-headed, 67. ,, Cape, 156. „ Cayman Island, 150. ,, Congo Red-headed, 115. „ Diademed, 149. Parrot, Dufresne’s, 148, 175. „ Dusky, 1 74. „ Festive, 115, 149. ,, Finsch’s, 149. „ Golden-naped (or Yellow-naped) , 148, 174. ,, Green-cheeked, 115, 149, 174, 175, 211. „ „ headed, 147. ,, ,, rumped, 149. „ Grey, 115, 136, 138, 156. ,, Ground-, 41. ,, Guatemala, 147. „ Guilding’s, 138, 139, 147. ,, Hagenbeck’s, 149. „ Imperial, 139, 147. „ Jamaica, 150. „ Kea, 185. ,, Lesson’s, 149. ,, Levaillant’s, or Double-fronted, 68, 148. ,, Maximilian’s, 115. „ Mealy, 147. ,, Mercenary, 148. ,, Meyer’s, 156. „ Natterer’s, 148. „ Orange-crowned, 136. „ „ -winged, 148. ,, Panama, 148. ,, Plain-coloured, 147. ,, Pretre’s, 150. ,, Pygmy (Micropsitta) , 67. ,, Red-fronted, 150. ,, ,, -throated, 150. ,, ,, -topped, or Red-crowned, 149, 174, 175. „ Rothschild’s, 148. ,, St. Lucia, 147. ,, Salle’s, 150. ,, Salvin’s, 149. ,, Spectacled, 150. ,, Sudan Brown, 115. „ Tucuman, 150. „ Vinaceous, 147. ,, White-fronted, 150. ,, Yellow-cheeked, 149. „ „ -crowned, 149. ,, ,, -fronted, 148, 174. „ „ -lored, 150. ,, ,, -naped, or Golden-naped, 148, 174. ,, „ -shouldered, 148. Parrotlet, Celestial, 12. Partridge, Chukor, 20, 120, 174. Pastor, Rose-coloured (Rosy Starling), 1 17, 124. Pastor roseus, 1 17. Pavo cristatus, 1 74. Peafowl, 20. ,, Black-shouldered, 24, 26. „ Hybrid Black-shouldered X Specifer, 24. 220 INDEX Peafowl, Indian, 24, 26, 174. ,, Specifer, 24, 26. ,, White, 24, 26, 174. Peewit, Australian Black-breasted, 170. Pelargopsis, 95. Pelecanus onocrotalus, 174, 201. ,, rufescens, 201. Pelican, Pink-backed, 201. ,, White or European, 174, 201. Penguin, Black-footed, 128, 174. ,, Galapagos, 68. „ King-, 128, 130, 174. ,, Magellan Jackass-, 136, 174. ,, Rock-Hopper, 1 74. Personalia, 209. Petrel, Fulmar, 7, 109. ,, Storm-, 109. Pezoporus wallicus, 41. Phaethornis rufiventris, 76. Phalacrocorax albiv enter, 1 74. ,, magellanicus, 174. Pharomachrus mocino costaricensis, 40. Phasianus colchicus, 118. ,, versicolor, 118. Pheasant, Amherst, or Lady Amherst’s, 13, 23, 24, 25, 1 18, 124. „ Bel’s, 24, 25. ,, Black-backed Kaleege, 118. ,, Black-breasted Kaleege, 210. ,, Blue Eared (= Blue Crossoptilon) , 13, 24, 26, 124. ,, Blyth’s Tragopan, 24, 25. ,, Brown Eared p= Brown Cros¬ soptilon), 13, 24, 26. ,, Bulwer’s, 24, 26, 207. ,, Cabot’s Tragopan, 13, 24, 25. ,, Chinese Koklas, 13. ,, Chinese Monaul, 13. ,, Chinquis, see Grey Peacock-. ,, Common, 13, 118. ,, ,, white, var., 24. ,, Copper (Soemmering’s), 24, 25. ,, Crested Argus, 26. ,, Crimson Horned (= Satyr Tra¬ gopan), 24, 25, 1 18. ,, Edward’s 23, 24, 25, 210. „ Elliot’s, 13, 24, 25. . ,, Germain’s Peacock-, 24, 26. ,, Glittering, 125. ,, Golden, 12, 23, 24, 25, 38, 118. ,, Grey Peacock (= Chinquis), 23, 24, 26. ,, ,, ,, var. bakeri, 26. ,, Horsfield’s, 24, 25. ,, Hybrid Blyth’s X Satyr, 24. ,, ,, Imperial X Silver, 24. ,, Imperial, 14. ,, Impeyan, 23, 24, 25, 68, 118, 135, *74- ,, Japanese, 118. ,, Kaleege, mixed, 24. ,, Lineated Kaleege, 24, 25. Pheasant, Malayan Argus, 26. „ ,, Crested Fireback, 24, 26. ,, Mikado-, 13, 20, 23, 24, 25, 68, 124. „ Palawan Peacock-, 24, 26. ,, -Quail, 209. „ Reeves’s, 13, 24, 25, 118, 210. „ Registry, 22. ,, Satyr Tragopan, see Crimson Horned. „ Silver, 13, 14, 23, 24, 25, 38, 118, 210. ,, Soemmering’s, 25. ,, Temminck’s Tragopan, 23, 24, 25, 210. ,, White Crossoptila, see White Eared. „ White Eared, 13, 24, 26. Pheasants, Broken Bones in, 38. Philacte canagica , 40. Phcenicopterus antiquorum, 1 74. Picathartes oreas, 209, 210. Pie, Chinese Blue, 169. Pigeon, Australian Crested, 20, 55. ,, Bronze-winged, 20, 124. „ Olive, 40. „ Passenger-, 6, 37. ,, Registry in U.S.A., 37. „ Sierra Leone Green, 136. ,, Snow-, 20. ,, Triangular-spotted, 20. ,, Wood-, 98. Pintail, African Red-billed, 64. ,, Bahama, 64. ,, Chilean, 64. ,, Common, 64, 98, 198. Pionus maximiliani , 1 15. ,, sordidus , 174. Pipit, Meadow-, 61, 109. ,, Rock-, 109. „ Tawny, 36. „ Tree-, 55, 56. Plantain-Eater, Blue, 98. ,, Senegal Violet, 136. Platalea leucorodia, 174. Platycercus elegans, 115. ,, eximius, 115, 208. ,, ignitus, 208. Plesiositagra cucullata, 136, 174. Ploceus manyar striatus, 40. ,, ocularis, 210. Plover, Geoffroy’s Sand-, 12 1. ,, Grey, 210. ,, Kentish, 36, 121, 210. „ Ring-, 210. ,, White-headed Wattled, 210. Pochard, American Red-headed, 65, 194. ,, Common, 65. ,, Red-crested, 65, 68. ,, South African, 65. Podica senegalensis, 50. Poecilonetta erythrorhyncha, 200. INDEX 22 I Pogoniulus scolopaceus fiavisquamatus, 2 1 1 . „ s. sub sulphur eus, 21 1. Pogonorhynchus dubius , 136. Poicephalus cryptoxanthus , olim fuscicapillus, 67. » gulielmi, 1 15. „ ,, fantiensis, 136. ,, meyeri, 1 15. ,, robustus angolensis , 156. „ senegalus, 67. Poliocephalus ruficollis capensis, 200. Polytelis alexandra, 1 12. ,, swainsoniiy 113,115. Pomatostomus superciliosus , 97. Porphymla martinicus , 68. Post Mortem Examinations, 37. President’s Garden Party, 123. Psephotus xanthonous , 97. Pseudonigrita cabanisi, 27, 67. Psittacine Registry, The, 166, 210. Psittacula alexandri fasciata, 174. ,3 manillensis , 1 1 5. „ nipalensis , 1 15, 1 17. Psittacus erithaeus, 115, 136. Ptilogonys , 161. Puffin, 97, 109. Pycnonotus barbatus, 1 74. „ „ gabonensis, 21 1. Pygmornis pygmaus, 74, 76. Pyrrhura vittata , 115. Pyrrhurus simplex , 2 1 1 . Pytilia melba citerior , 40. Quail, 1 18. „ Chinese Painted, 160, 161. ,, Harlequin-, 160. „ Pheasant-, 209. __ Quetzal, 2. Rail, White-spotted Pigmy, 21 1. Raven, 109, 1 19, 121, 122, 208. Razor-Bill, 97, 109. Redpoll, 84, 85. Redshank, 80, 81, 210. Redstart, 88, 121, 170. „ Black, 61. Reprints of Articles in Back Numbers of the Magazine, 136. Review — Tropical Birds (Sacheverell Sitwell), 208. Rhea, Common, 174, 211. ittm rothschildi, 1 74. Rhinoceros, One-horned, 207. Rhodospingus gruentes, 12. “Rice-Bird” (Red-headed Finch), 158. Riparia, 190. Robin, 61, 170. ,, Gaboon Forest-, 210, 21 1. ,, Loo-Choo, 1 60. „ Pekin, 20, 55, 91, 124. „ Southern Yellow, 97. Robin-Ghat, Blue-shouldered, 98, 210, Robin-Chat, Snowy-headed, 210. Rock-Fowl, Grey-necked, 209= Roller family, 102, 199. „ Lilac-breasted, 156. Rook, 138, 174. Ruff and Reeve, 36. Rupicola peruviana aequatorialis , 2. ,, „ peruviana , 2. „ ,, saturata , 2. ,, rupicola , 1. Sagittarius serpentarius, 40, 2 1 1 . Sandpiper, Common, 210. ,, Green, 210. Sarothrura pulchra zenkeri , 2 1 1 . Scoter, Common, 98. Sea-Bird Colonies on Skomer and Grass- holm, 108. Secretary-Bird, 40, 2 1 1 . Seed-Cracker, Gaboon Blue-billed, 210, 21 1. Seed-Eater, Sulphury, 157. Self-Preservation, A Study in, 133. “ Seisie, Bull” (Sulphury Seed-Eater), *57* ■ Sericotes holosericeus, 73, 74, 76, 77. Serin, 61, 1 19. Serinus a. atrogularis , 157. „ £. canicollis , 157. Severn Wildfowl Trust, Some Recent Additions to the Collection of, 202. Shag, 97, 109. „ King-, 174. „ Rock-, 1 74. Shama, 30, 40, 124, 133, 138, 169, 172. Shearwater, Manx, 109. Sheldrake, Australian, 64, 174, 198. ,, Cape or South African, 64, 186. ,, Common, 64, 98, 197, 198. „ Paradise or New Zealand, 64. „ Radjah, 64. „ Ruddy, 64. „ ,, Breeding of, 186. Show, Johannesburg, 156. „ National Cage-Bird, 38. Shrike, Luhder’s Bush-, 210. Silver-Bill, 46, 91. African, 159. Siskin, Cape or Totta, 157. Sitagra nigriceps , 67. Skylark, 59, 61, 1 18. Solitaire, Grey, 166. „ Mexican, 166. Somateria mollissima , 40. South Australia, Royal Zoological Society of, breeding Queen Alex¬ andra’s Parrakeets, 37. Sparrow, House-, 119, 122, 138, 160,207. „ Java, 46, 91, 207. ,, Maltese, 57. „ Spanish, 57. Sparrow-Hawk, 124, 134. INDEX 222 Spermestes cucullatus, 1 74. Spermophaga hamatina pustulata , 210, 2 1 1 . Spheniscus demersus, 1 74. ,, magellanicus, 136, 174. ,, mendelius, 68. Spinus symonsi, 157. Spoonbill, 36, 175, 199, 201. Sporophila , sp., 15. Starling, 61. „ Glossy, 199. ,, Green Glossy, 117. ,, Green-winged Glossy, 116, 117. ,, Long-tailed Glossy, 21 1. ,, Malabar, 20. „ Pagoda-, 20. ,, Purple-headed, 68. ,, Rosy (= Rose-coloured Pastor), 1 17, 124. „ Royal, 32, 174. ,, Superb Glossy, or Spreo, 14, 20, 32, 124. „ Swainson’s Glossy, 136. Stigmatopelia senegalensis, 120. Stilt, Black-winged, 36. Stiphrornis erythrothorax gabonensis, 210,211. Stonechat, 61, 88, 121. Stork, 36, 199. Streptopelia risoria , 1 1 7. Strix woodfordi nuchalis, 211. Struthio camelus, 1 74. Sugar-Bird, Yellow- winged, 32. Sula bass ana, 40, 68. Sun-Bird, 46, 124, 199. „ Blue-throated Brown, 40, 98, 21 1. „ Buff-throated, 174. ,, Cameroon Olive-bellied, 210. ,, Gherrick, 2 1 1 . ,, Collared, 98, 136, 21 1. „ Crimson-chested Superb, 136. „ Gold Coast Olive-bellied, 136, 174, 210. ,, Greater Double-collared, 156. ,, Green-headed Olive, 136. „ Green-throated, 210, 21 1. ,, Grey-chinned, 98, 2 1 1 . ,, Malachite, 156. ,, Olive-bellied, 98, 2 1 1 . ,, Shaw’s Grey-chinned, 210. ,, Superb, 40, 136, 21 1. ,, Tiny, 210. „ West African Olive, 136, 174. Sun-Bittern, 50. Swallow, 120, 121. Swan, Bewick’s, 63, 182, 183, 184. „ Black, 63, 136, 181, 183, 185, 194. ,, Black-necked, 63, 181, 183, 184, 185, 197- ,, Coscoroba, 63, 181, 185. ,, David, 183. ,, Jankowski’s, 182. ,, Mute, 181, 185. ,, Trumpeter, 182, 184, 185. Swan, Whistler, 182, 184, 205. ,, Whooper-, 63, 182, 205. Swans, The, 180. Swan-Goose, 63. Syrmaticus reevesi, 118. Tadorna earn, 186. ,, casarca, 186. Tanager, 29, 199. ,, Scarlet (N. American), 207. ,, Spotted Emerald, 31. Tanner, Edward, appointed Overseer at London Zoo, 54. Tanysiptera, 95. Tauraco hartlaubi, 40. ,, persa, 136. Teal, 198. „ American Blue-winged, 64, 203. ,, Australian Grey, 64. „ Cape, 64. „ Chestnut-breasted, 17, 64, 68, 196. „ Chilean, 64. ,, Cinnamon, 64, 194, 203. „ Common, 64. „ Cotton-, 188. „ Falcated, 62. ,, Formosa or Baikal, 64. ,, Garganey-, 64. ,, Marbled, 205. „ Puna, 64, 98. ,, Red-billed, 200. „ Sharp-winged, 64. „ Versicolor, 64. Tern, Black, 36. Thalassornis leuconotus, 199. Thalurania glaucopis, 71, 76. ,, watertoni, 70, 76. Theristicus melanopis, 2 1 1 . Thescelocichla leucopleura, 136. Thrush, Blue Rock-, 60, 61. ,, Hermit-, 207. ,, Orange-headed Ground-, 55. „ Song-,55,61,116,138. „ Tickell’s, 40. Tinker-Bird, Least, 2 1 1 . „ Speckled, 2 1 1 . Tit, Blue, 85. „ Great, 85, 1 19. Topaza pella, 89. Toucan family, 102. Touraco, 199, 208. ,, Donaldson’s, 39, 68. „ Grey, 136. „ Guinea, 136. ,, Hartlaub’s, 40. ,, Knysna, 156. Tragopan, see under Pheasant. Tragopan satyr a, 1 18. Treasurer’s Accounts, 100. Tree-Creeper, 102, 134. Tringa ocrophus , 210. Trogon, Southern Resplendent, 40. INDEX 223 Turdus unicolor , 40. Turkey, North American, 98. Turtur a. afer, 21 1. Twin-Spot, Green, 97. Twite, 85. Tympanistria tympanistria fraseri , 2 1 1 . Tyrant-Bird, 12. Umbrella-Bird, 2, 128. Vinago calva sharpii, 1 36. Vulture, Angolan (= Vulturine Fish- Eagle) ,211. ,, Black, 21 1. „ Egyptian, 119. Wagtail, 57, 109. ,, Grey, 61, 120. „ White, 61, 120. Warbler, 109, 161. ,, Graceful, 119, 121. ,, Moustached, 36. ,, Sardinian, 58. „ Spectacled, 59. ,, Willow-, 12 1. Waterfowl at the Sanctuary of St. Lucia, Zululand, Notes on, 199. ,, Notes from the Eastern United States, 194. ,, Registry, The, 62. Waxbill, Black-capped, 210. „ Black-cheeked, 97. ,, Blue-breasted, 157. ,, Hybrid Ruddy X Zebra-Finch, 160. ,, Orange-breasted, 68. „ ,, -cheeked, 38. ,, St. Helena, 38, 68, 158. ,, Violet-eared, 68, 156, 157, 158. Waxwing, 55, 161. Weaver-Bird, 30, 46. ,, Black-capped Social, 27, 67. „ Gape, 159. ,, Comoro, 159. „ Crimson, 159. Weaver-Bird, Indian Manyar, 40. ,, Madagascar, 99. „ Masked, 159. „ Napoleon, 159. ,, Rufous-necked, 136, 174. ,, Scaly-headed, 158. ,, Spectacled, 210. ,, Spot-backed, 67. „ X Canary Hybrid, 99. Wheatear, 57. Whippoorwill, 207. White Eye, 161. „ Gape, 156. ,, Indian, 40, 98. ,, Yellow, 136. Whydah-Bird, Giant, or Long-tailed, 30, 158. ,, Jackson’s, 124. ,, Paradise, 158. ,, Pin-tailed, 158. ,, Queen, 68, 158. ,, Red-collared, 159. ,, ,, -shouldered, 29. ,, White-winged, 159. ,, Yellow-shouldered, 159. Wigeon, American, 64, 194. ,, Chilo£, 64, 98, 197. ,, Common, 64, 198. Winkles for Softbills, 98. Wood-Swallow, Masked, 97. ,, White-browed, 97. Xantholama hamacephalus, 40. Xiphidiopterus albiceps, 2 1 o. Yuhina, 161. Zoo, Antwerp, New Bird Pavilion at, 1 14. ,, London, Additions to, 40, 68, 98, 136, 174, 210. Zoology, 13th International Congress of, 155- Zosterops, 39, 46, 156, 161, 207. ,, palpebrosa , 40. ,, s. senegalensis, 136. * * * Periodicals received in Exchange for the Avicultural Magazine Great Britain : British Birds. Cage Birds. The Ibis. “ Our Zoo News ” (Chester Zoological Gardens). Australia. Bulletin of the Avicultural Society of Australia. 224 PERIODICALS received in exchange for the avic. magazine Belgium : Aviornis. Le Gerfaut. Z oo 5 the Ornithologie Magazine of La Societe Royale de Zoologie d’Anvers. Denmark : Dansk Ornithologisk Forenings Tiddskrift. Stuekultur. France : UOiseau. La Terre et la Vie. Germany : Der gefiederten Welt. Netherlands : Ardea. South Africa : The Ostrich. U.S.A. : Animal Kingdom , the Magazine of the New York Zoological Society. The Auk. Aviculture. Fauna , the Magazine of the Zoological Society of Philadelphia. The Wilson Bulletin. Zoologica. CANDIDATES FOR ELECTION E. F. Benjamin, Sunny Cot, Trowbridge Road, Bradford-on-Avon, Wilts. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. Mrs. J. Dalziel Birrell, Green Hill House, Otford, Kent. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. Frank Buck, 324 S. Bishop Street, San Angelo, Texas, U.S.A. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. Herbert Gurth Calkin, M.B.O.U., Meadows, Waggon Road, Hadley Wood, Herts. Proposed by Miss P. Barclay-Smith. Dr. T. S. Daniels, Room 21, Elgin House, Prince’s Avenue, Benoni, Transvaal, S. Africa. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. Frank Fancutt, 86 Linden Drive, Alvaston, Derby. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. Alton V. Freeman, Miami Rare Bird Farm Inc., P.O. Box 100, Kendall, Florida, U.S.A. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. John Frederick Galland, Kapala Estate, Bedong P.O., Kedah, Malaya. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. W. M. Gardner, 294 Broad Lane, Kings Heath, Birmingham, 14. Proposed by P. A. Birch. Dennis G. Gibbs, 49 Portland Road, Toton, Notts. Proposed by Mrs. Effie Clark. G. de Goederen, Orteliuskade 74, Amsterdam, Holland. Proposed by Dr. J. H. J. M. Vallen. O. Hale, Laithfield, Digswell, Welwyn, Herts. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. G. J. Irving, 2 Grove Road, Egremont, Cumberland. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. G. Steel, The Cottage Aviaries, 24 Mariners Cottages, South Shields, Co. Durham. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. Mrs. C. H. Wakefield, 139 Senic Drive, Palomar Park, Redwood City, California, U.S.A. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. Mrs. G. A. Willsher, 37 Springfield Road, Thornton Heath, Surrey. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. NEW MEMBERS G. N. Clark, Park House, Park Place Villas, London, W. 2. Gordon Ephgrave, 33 Greenfields Road, Reading, Berks. H. Fogg, 7 Elmbridge Road, Perry Barr, Birmingham. Alfred Julius Jorgenson, Box 7496 Johannesburg, South Africa. E. J. Kingston, 12 Stotfold Road, Kings Heath, Birmingham, 14. J. R. Lowes, Keeper’s Lodge, Terling, nr. Chelmsford, Essex. Richard S. Mackensen, Yardley, Pa., U.S.A. E. A. Pillinger, P.O. Westville, Via Durban, Natal, South Africa. S. N. Pinfield, 95 Pinfold Lane, Wolverhampton. Sidney James Scott, Box 333, Kimberley, South Africa. H. Stretch, “ Hillcote,” Manor Road, Salisbury, Wilts. REJOINED Mrs. Robert Elwes, Little Congham, Kings Lynn. Roland Green, M.B.O.U., The Studio, Hickling Broad, Norfolk. G. S. Mottershead, Zoological Gardens, Chester. Miss H. Voy, Lynchets, Longbridge Deverill, Warminster, Wilts. CORRECTED ADDRESS M. Braun de Ter Meeren, L’Hesidelle, Archennes, par Grez-Doiceau, Belgium. CHANGES OF ADDRESS Guy Falkner, to Mooi River, Natal, South Africa. Hon. Robert Gerard, to Blakesware, Ware, Herts. E. Marshall, to c/o The Devon General Omnibus Go’s Depot, Woolbrook, Sid- mouth, Devon. R. T. Moore, to Meadow Grove Place, Flintridge, Pasadena 2, California, U.S.A. H. Stretch, to “ Hillcote,” Manor Road, Salisbury, Wilts. MEMBERS1 ADVERTISEMENTS The charge for Members’ advertisements is one penny per word. Payment must accompany the advertisement , which must be sent on or before the soth of the month , to A. A. Prestwich, Chelmsford Road, Southgate, N. 14. All members of the Society are entitled to use this column , but the Council reserves the right to refuse any advertisements they consider unsuitable . Avicultural Magazine, 1902 and 1903, bound red cloth, £1 each ; 1925-1930, in parts, £3 the six volumes. Apply to the Hon. Secretary. Avicultural Magazine, complete from 1895 (first) to last, with index. All volumes bound to 1940. Offers over £45 to Sweetnam, Enborne Rectory, Newbury. Many other avicultural books (including Butler’s “ Foreign finches in captivity”, plates by Frohawk, Seth-Smith’s “ Parrakeets ”, Tavistock’s “Parrots”, Jerdon’s “ Birds of India ”). List on application. STEPHEN AUSTIN AND SONS, LTD., PRINTERS, HERTFORD. THE AVICULTURAL MAGAZINE BEING THE JOURNAL OF THE AVICULTURAL SOCIETY FOR THE STUDY OF BRITISH AND FOREIGN BIRDS IN FREEDOM AND IN CAPTIVITY EDITED BY PHYLLIS BARCLAY -SMITH, F.Z.S. VOL. LV JANUARY, 1949, to DECEMBER, 1949 Hertford STEPHEN AUSTIN & SONS, Ltd. 1949 CONTENTS Title-page ......... i Contents .......... iii Alphabetical List of Contributors ..... v List of Plates ......... viii Officers for the Year 1950 ...... 1 List of Members ........ 3 Rules of the Avicultural Society ..... 17 The Society’s Medal ....... 20 Magazine ......... i Index . . . . . . . . . .231 ALPHABETICAL LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS Barclay-Smith, Phyllis (“ P. B-S.”) Presentation of Black Swans to H.M. Queen Elisabeth of Belgium, 154. Ringing Scheme for Waterfowl, 180. Visit to Cleres in May, 1950, 194. Beever, G. Reminiscences of a Pheasant Fancier, 206. Boosey, Edward The Origin of the Yellow Redrump Parrakeet, 12. Sexing Blue-fronted Amazons, 113. Giant Whydahs, 196. Borbidge, H. M. Lorikeets at Liberty, 22. Bush, D. P. Breeding Successes in Australia, 34. Campbell, Lewis M. An Invitation from Australia, 1 12. Chawner, E. F. My Kite, 96. Christie, Georgina. Notes on a Few African Birds, 182. Coombes Ita “ I. C.” Review — Birds of a Valley (Philipson), 36. Crandall, Lee S. The Congo Peacock in Captivity, 208. Delacour, Jean Belgian Aviaries, 29. The Re-birth of Cleres, 62. The Hawaiian Goose, or Nene, in Europe, 130. M. A. Decoux’s Collection at Gery, Haute Vienne, Francej 56. The Kaleeges, Silver Pheasants, Firebacks, and their Allies, 213. Dulanty, B. H. Breeding Waxbills Again, 9. Durrell, Gerald M. Grey-necked Picathartes, 229. Falkner, Guy The Black-capped Social Weaver, 40. Floyd, J. F. M. Bubo, Bubo, Bubo and Co., 87. Review — Predatory Birds of Great Britain (Eric Parker), 1 10. Ghigi, Professor A. The Mutation obscurus in the Lady Amherst Pheasant, 209. Goodwin, Derek Notes on Two Jays, 132. Some Notes on Common and Golden Pheasants, 221. VI ALPHABETICAL LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS Griffiths, W. The Minivets of India, 1 26. Hachisuka, The Marquess The Steller’s and Black Sea-Eagles, 93. Another Hybrid Heron from Japan, 181. Hallstrom, E. Breeding Successes in Australia, 31. Heyst, A. F. C. A. van Breeding Results at Amersfoot, Holland, 1948, 24. High Commissioner of New Zealand, Official Press Dept. Survival of the Notornis, 139. Hill, W. G. Osman, M.D., F.Z.S. The “ Red and Blue ” Macaws, 66. Review — Bird Biology for Beginners (B. Vesey-Fitzgerald), 145. Hirst, R. S. The Pheasant Registry, 196. Hodges, J. R. Some Notes on the Birds of New Zealand, 25. Jones, Terry Pheasants in Captivity, 210. Laga, S. The Rearing of a Satyr Tragopan X Swinhoe Pheasant Cross, 219. Lendon, Alan Australian Parrots in Captivity, 14, 44, 115, 162. Lowe, Rev. J. R., M.A. The Rearing of a Wild Missel Thrush, 188. Lowes, Jos. R. The Rearing of Ornamental Pheasants and Waterfowl, 203. McKechnie, R. W. The Wood-Swallows of South Australia, 6. Martin, D. Breeding Successes in Australia, 32. Mavrogordato, J. C. A Desert Eagle-Owl, 79. Porter, Sydney Notes on Birds seen at Pretoriouskop, Kruger National Park, Transvaal, 1 . Prestwich, A. A. (“ A. A. P.”) British Aviculturists’ Club, 34, 74, 106, 146, 190, 226. Personalia, 37, 75, 109, 145, 192, 227. Additions to the London Zoo, 38, 77, 112, 148, 194, 229. Snow- and Lapland Buntings, 38. Swans on the Thames, 38. The National Cage-Bird Show, 39. The Duke of Bedford’s Birds, 39. Ravens at the Tower, 39. ALPHABETICAL LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS VII Avian Imports, 40, 76. Avicultural Society of South Australia : Medal Awards, 76. The “ Crystal Palace ” Show, 77. Grey Parrot bred at Brighton, 78. Eagle-Owls, 100. Roseate Cockatoo X Greater Sulphur-Crested Cockatoo Hybrid, 1 1 1 . “ Centenarian ” Macaw Lays Eggs, 1 12- Breeding News from all Quarters, 128, 189. An Experiment in Breeding Grey Parrots, 140. Rock Pebbler : an Early Breeding Record, 147. Lilford Library Sale, 195. Review — Audubon’s American Birds (Sacheverell Sitwell), 228. The Hawaiian Goose : Early History in England, 230. Breeding Records of Jays, 230. Probert, R. Breeding Successes in Australia, 33. Raol, Shri Dharmakumarsinhji Birds of Prey as Companions, 8 1 . Ripley, Dillon Experiences with Owls, 98. Risdon, D. H. S. Little Owls, 90. Robertson, A. R., M.B., Gh.B. Breeding Successes in South Africa, 158. Salomonsen, Finn Some Notes on the Moult of the Long-tailed Duck ( Clangula hyemalis ), 59. Sedley, H. Death of Vice-President of Avicultural Society of America, 147. Seth-Smith, David, M.B.O.U. (“ D. S-S.”) Reviews — Birds in Britain (Frances Pitt), 109. The Art of Bird Photography (Hosking and Newberry), 192. Birds of Britain (Macdonald), 193. Age of a Sparrow, 1 1 1 . The Amherst Pheasant, 197. Teague, P. W. “ Dayo,” my Pet Barn-Owl, 105. Weaver, George A. J. The Bird Collection at Dudley Zoo, 41. A Pet Kestrel, 85. Bird Plumage on Hats, 196. The Pheasant Registry, 1949, 199. Webb, G. S. Some Notes on the Grey-necked Picathartes, 149. Witting, R. C. The President’s Garden Party, 142. Yealland, John Mycosis in Birds, 20. Avian Imports, 40. Mistaken Identity of Plate of Common King-Parrakeet, 148. Vlll LIST OF PLATES LIST OF PLATES Giant Bustard ....... Blue Mountain Lorikeets and Regent Bower-Bird (models made in wood, wire, and tin by H. M. Borbidge) Dudley Zoo : Paddocks in the Old Moat Desert Eagle-Owl ...... Black Sea-Eagle (specimen in Seoul Zoo, Korea) Steller’s Sea-Eagle (specimen in Uyeno Zoo, Japan) Barnard’s, Mallee, or Ring-necked Parrakeet * Grey-necked Picathartes ..... The Grey-necked Picathartes in the Tropical House at the London Zoo ...... Yellow Rosella or Yellow-rumped Parrakeet . * Amherst Pheasant ...... Cock Amherst Pheasant Displaying Cock and Hen Congo Peacock in New York Zoo . Cock Satyr Tragopan x Swinhoe’s Pheasant cross . facing page i 23 41 79 95 95 1 r5 i49 35 33 33 33 33 153 l66 *97 198 208 219 * Denotes a coloured plate. THE AVICULTURAL : SOCIETY : FOR THE STUDY OF FOREIGN & BRITISH BIRDS IN FREEDOM &. CAPTIVITY for the Year 1949 President EZRA, O.B.E. Vice-Presidents D.S.O., J. Spedan Lewis, J. Delacour Miss E. Maud Knobel Council Dr. M. Amsler B. H. Dulanty Dr. W. C. Osman Hill F. Terry Jones K. A. Norris Mrs. L. N. Phipps D. H. S. Risdon A. H. Scott Peter Scott, M.B.E., D.S.C. Capt. C. Scott-Hopkins D. Seth-Smith Preb. J. E. Sweetnam E. N. T. Vane Mrs. N. Wharton-Tigar The Hon. Secretary and Treasurer The Editor Executive Committee A. Ezra, O.B.E. The Hon. Secretary Miss E. M. Knobel. and Treasurer D. Seth-Smith The Editor Hon. Secretary and Treasurer A. A. Prestwich Chelmsford Road, Southgate, London, N. 14 Editor Miss Phyllis Barclay-Smith 51 Warwick Avenue, London, W. 9 Auditor W. B. Keen & Co., Chartered Accountants STEPHEN AUSTIN AND SONS, LTD. PRINTERS, HERTFORD List of Members of the AVICULTURAL SOCIETY. ist JANUARY, 1949 SPECIAL NOTICE. — It is particularly requested that Members will give notice to the Hon. Secretary of any error in their addresses or descriptions in this List in order that it may be corrected. The date attached to each name is that of the year of election or restoration to the Membership. * Life Members. HONORARY MEMBERS 1937 Barclay-Smith, Miss Phyllis, F.Z.S., M.B.O.U. ; 51 Warwick Avenue, London, W. 9. 1946 Derscheid, Jean-Pierre, F.Z.S. ; Armendy Farm, Sterrebeek (Brabant), Belgium. 1921 de Southoff, George, C.M.Z.S. ; 9-1 1 Via S. Spirito, Florence, Italy. 1916 Knobel, Miss E. Maud, F.Z.S., M.R.I. ; 86 Regent’s Park Road, London, N.W. 1. 1923 Roberts, Miss Ida ; Aberfeldi, Davey Street, Hobart, Tasmania. 1894 Seth-Smith, David, F.Z.S., M.B.O.U. ; “ Brabourne,” 7 Poyle Road, Guildford, Surrey. MEMBERS 1944 Alder, Edward ; 49 Swinburne Road, Abingdon, Berks. 1939 Alderson, P. Howard ; no King’s Court Road, Streatham, S.W. 16. 1929 Allen, Miss Geraldine Russell ; Davenham Hall, Northwich, Cheshire. 1925 Allen, M. T., M.A., F.Z.S. ; Ravenswood, Northwood, Middlesex. 1931 Allison, N. G. ; Duxhurst Cottage, Langley Lane, Ifield, Nr. Crawley, Sussex. 1947 Alsaker, Dr. Norman S. ; 8th Floor, Wyoming, 175 Macquarie Street, Sydney, Australia. 1908 Amsler, Maurice, M.B., M.R.C.S., L.R.C.P., F.Z.S. ; Delmonden Manor, Hawkhurst, Kent. 1923 Anderson, Alister ; Woodside, Beith, Ayrshire. 1948 * Anderson, J. W. H. ; “ Roukenglen,” 381 Musgrave Road, Durban, South Africa. 1947 Appleyard, R. ; Ixworth, Nr. Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk. I943 Avery, H. A., F.Z.S. ; 1 West Drive, Queens Park, Brighton 7, Sussex. 1948 Bacon, Miss Frances Edith ; 18 Owen Mansions, Queen’s Club Gardens, W. 14. 1904 Bamford, William ; Bridgecroft, 70 Kent Road, Harrogate. 1932 Banks, Geoffrey ; Oakwood Lodge, Sutton Road, Barr Beacon, Walsall. 1928 Barclay, Evelyn W. ; Colney Hall, Norwich. 1934 Barlass, J. C. ; 51 St. Annes Road East, Lytham St. Annes, Lancs. 1919 Barnard, T. T., M.C., M.A., F.Z.S. ; Furzebrook, Wareham, Dorset. mar 3 - »9ft 4 LIST OF MEMBERS 1945 Baty, I. ; 21 North Road, Ponteland, Newcastle-on-Tyne. 1947 Beauchamp, P. W., F.Z.S. ; 16 Chantry Lane, Bromley, Kent. 1923 Beever, G. ; Green Royd, Fenay Bridge, Huddersfield. 1926 Bell, W. Dennis ; Chiltern House, Ghiltern Road, Chesham Bois, Bucks. 1948 Bellars, Geo. ; 55 Ripley Road, Overport, Durban, South Africa. 1949 Benjamin, E. F. ; Sunny Cot, Trowbridge Road, Bradford-on-Avon, Wilts. 1935 Bennett, J. C., F.Z.S. ; 24 Rectory Gardens, Worthing, Sussex. 1946 Bennett, Mrs. J. C. ; 24 Rectory Gardens, Worthing, Sussex. 1906 Beresford-Webb, G. M. ; Norbryght, South Godstone, Surrey. 1938 Berridge, Mrs. E. W. ; Bydrews Place, East Farleigh, Maidstone, Kent. 1939 *Bhavnagar, Prince Saheb Dharmakumarsinhji of ; Dil Bahar, Bhav- nagar State, India. 1948 Billingham, P. A. ; Holmecroft, Wetherby Road, Bardsey, Nr. Leeds. 1945 Birch, P. A. ; 18 1 Tennal Road, Harborne, Birmingham 32. 1948 Birrell, Mrs. J. Dalziel ; Green Hill House, Otford, Kent. 1929 Blackburn, Frank ; Lower Hall, Kirkheaton, Huddersfield. 1940 Bonny, J. W. ; Springfield, 166 Whitegate Drive, Blackpool, Lancs. 1921 Boosey, E. J. ; Brambletye, Keston, Kent. 1925 Borbidge, Harry M. ; Innisfail, Sunbury, Victoria, Australia. 1 91 1 Bourke, Hon. Mrs. G. ; Rotherend, Rotherfield Road, Henley-on-Thames. 1948 Bowles, D. ; The Dudley Zoological Society, Dudley. 1947 Bradford, P. A. ; Honiton Inn, Exeter, Devon. 1947 Bragg, F. C. ; Grasmere, Hartley Road, Exmouth. 1938 Brennan, C. H. ; Old Castle House, Canterbury. 1947 Brind, Mrs. Florence May ; Glenthorne Lodge, The Glen, Walmer, Kent. 1933 Brookes, Miss F. C. ; Massam Hall, Old Leake, Boston, Lines. 1938 Broughton, Major the Hon. Henry, F.Z.S. ; Bakenham House, Engle- field Green, Surrey. 1931 Brown, E. J. ; 29 Dean Road, Bitterne, Southampton. 1946 Brown, Ralph ; St. Ola, Doune Road, Dunblane, Perthshire. 1924 Brown, W. Ferrier ; 85 Yew Tree Road, Southborough, Kent. 1923 Brunton, J. D. ; Inveresk Lodge, Musselburgh, Scotland. 1947 Bruyneel, J. ; Domaine de Steynockerzeel, R6gie, Belgium. 1942 Bryce, Mrs. Peter Cooper ; Hope Ranch, Santa Barbara, Calif., U.S.A. 1928 Buchanan, A. ; Viewbank, 33 Townhill Road, Dunfermline. 1949 Buck, Frank ; 324 S. Bishop Street, San Angelo, Texas, U.S.A. 1939 Bucknall, Douglas S., F.Z.S. ; Casal Dos Pinheiros, Monte Estoril, Portugal. 1945 Burgis, Brian ; Eatonvale Road, Tinana, via Maryborough, Queensland, Australia. 1946 Bush, D. B. ; 16 Langer Street, Banksia, N.S.W., Australia. 1947 *Bute, Rt. Hon. the Marquess of ; Karnes Castle, Isle of Bute. 1942 Buxton, J. Leavesley, F.Z.S. ; Brightlea, 227 Streetsbrook Road, Solihull, Birmingham. 1948 Byrne, J. ; 128a Cavendish Road, Clapham, S.W. 12. 1949 Calkin, Herbert G., M.B.O.U. ; Meadows, Wagon Road, Hadley Wood, Herts. 1933 Campey, A. D. ; 1 17 Grovehill Road, Beverley, Yorks. 1918 Carr, Percy ; Ormond Lodge, Newbold-on-Stour, Nr. Stratford-on- Avon. LIST OF MEMBERS 5 1942 Cave, Lt.-Gol. F. O. ; Stoner Hill, Peters field, Hants. 1935 Cederstrom, Baroness ; March Hare Lodge, Newmarket. 1899 Chawner, Miss E. F., F.Z.S. ; The White House, Leckford, Stockbridge, Hants. 1930 Chichester, Mrs. H. G. ; Galgorm Castle, Ballymena, Northern Ireland. 1914 Christie, Mrs. G. ; Kellas, By Elgin, Morayshire. 1945 Clarence, Capt. A. A. ; Nunton House, Nr. Salisbury. 1948 Clark, G. N., F.Z.S. ; Park House, Park Place Villas, London, W. 2. 1942 Clark, Mrs. G. T,, F.Z.S. ; Maidsmere,” Finstall, Bromsgrove, Worcs. 1938 Clements, O. E., L.D.S., R.G.S.(Eng.) ; 15 Mercers Road, Holloway Road, N. 19. 1942 Corwin, Saul C. ; 165 Broadway, New York 6, New York, U.S.A. 1947 Coombes, R. A. PL, F.Z.S., M.B.O.U. ; Sea Bank, Bolton-le-Sands, Carnforth, Lancs. 1926 Cotterell, Sir Richard, Bart. ; Garnons, Hereford. 1925 Cowley, H. ; The Manor House, Bubbenhall, Coventry. 1947 Cowlishaw, A. G. ; The Chalet, Aylesbury Street, Bletchley, Bucks. 1933 Cox, Mrs. B,, F.Z.S. ; Barncrosh, Castle Douglas, Scotland. 1938 Crandall, Lee S., C.M.Z.S. ; New York Zoological Society, 185th Street and Southern Boulevard, New York, 60, N.Y., U.S.A. 1946 Crewes, T. ; “ Walton Croft,” Manor Way, Beckenham, Kent. 1929 Crofts, Robert T. ; 85 Reeves Street, Cross Heath, Newcastle, Staffs. 1948 Cummings, W. D. ; Holworth Cottage, Seafield Road, Angmering-on-Sea, Sussex. 1928 Cura, L., F.Z.S. ; Water End, Hemel Hempstead, Herts. 1939 Dabner, P. L. ; 56 Arkwright Road, Sanderstead, Surrey. 1946 Dalborg-Johansen, J. ; Graabradreplads 6, Odense, Denmark. 1937 Dallow, F., M.B.E. ; 13 Hillindon Road, Stretford, Manchester. 1948 Danhier, M. F. ; 182 Chaussee de Charleroi, Brussels, Belgium. 1948 Daniels, Dr. T. S. ; Room 21, Elgin House, Prince’s Avenue, Benoni, Transvaal, South Africa. 1932 Darnton, Mrs. I. ; Sissinghurst Court, Cranbrook, Kent. 1947 Davidson, Capt. Alister James ; Balnagask, Aberdeen. 1927 Davis, Sir Godfrey, I.C.S., F.Z.S. ; 26 Hillway, Holly Lodge Estate, Highgate, N. 6. 1941 Davis, H. H, ; Little Stoke, Patchway, Bristol. 1934 Dawson, Hon. Mrs. I. M. ; Redcroft, Datchworth Green, Herts. 1948 Day, Edward B. ; Hill House, Tetbury, Gloucester. 1917 Decqux, A. ; Gery, Aixe-sur-Vienne, Haute- Vienne, France. 1948 de Goederen, G. ; Orteliuskade 74, Amsterdam, Holland. 1916 Delacouk, Capt. Jean, F.Z.S., M.B.O.U. ; The American Museum of Natural History, Central Park West at 79th Street, New York 24, New York, U.S.A. 1903 Dennis, Mrs. H. E. ; Lower Nash, Nutbourne, Pulborough, Sussex. 1930 de Pass, Gerald V., F.Z.S. ; The Old Kennels, Satwell, Nr. Henley- on-Thames. 1932 de Pledge, Miss Beryl Isabel, F.Z.S. ; 9 Beaufort Mansions, Beaufort Street, Chelsea, S.W. 1948 Desai, Pradyuman K. ; Takhteshwar Plot, Bhavnagar (B.S.Ry.), Kathia¬ war, India. .1945 Dexter, J. E., M.M. ; Lamorna, Ongar Road, Pilgrims Hatch, Nr. Brentwood, Essex. 6 LIST OF MEMBERS 1947 Dillon, A. M. P. M. ; 25 Strathearn Road, Wimbledon Park, S.W. 19. 1948 Dolbey, Miss Virginia ; 37 Grosvenor Square, W. 1. 1924 *Dooly, Thomas L. S. ; Whimbrel, Kirklake Road, Formby, Nr. Liverpool. 1945 Douglas, R. J. ; 94 Cathedral Road, Cardiff. 1946 Douthwaite, H. ; 458 Victoria Avenue, Blackley, Manchester 9. 1947 Dover, G. W. ; 12 Trinity Terrace, Abergavenny, Mon. 1947 Dring, W. T., F.Z.S. ; East Park Street, Chatteris, Cambs. 1947 Dufour, Col. John ; 167 Avenue de Belgique, Antwerp, Belgium. 1939 Dulanty, Brian H. ; Fisheries Cottage, Chorley Wood, Herts. 1922 Dunmore, Oscar E. ; 22 Kingsway Road, Leicester. 1930 Dunster, Capt. J. E. ; Bucklebury Village, Nr Reading, Berks. 1945 Durrell, G. M. ; 52 St. Albans Avenue, Bournemouth. 1927 Duyzend, P. ; Koppelweg 151, Huize, “ Casarca,” Zeist, Holland. 1936 Eaves, W. L., F.Z.S. ; The Nook, Eastern Green Road, Coventry, Warwickshire. 1937 Edwards, Geo. Hampden ; Bryn-Gaseg, Llarfihangel G.M., Nr. Corwen, Merionethshire . 1926 Elwes, Mrs. Robert ; Little Congham, King’s Lynn. 1935 Englebach, Dr. Pierre ; Siemreap, Cambodia, Indo-China. 1948 Ephgrave, Gordon ; 33 Greenfields Road, Reading, Berks. 1929 Evans, Miss Joan ; Townsend, Middle Wallop, Hants. 1912 Ezra, Alfred, O.B.E., F.Z.S., M.B.O.U. ; Foxwarren Park, Cobham, Surrey. 1949 Fancutt, Frank, F.Z.S. ; 86 Linden Drive, Alvaston, Derby. 1936 Farquhar, Mrs. B. ; The Cottage, Gaddesby, Leicestershire. 1946 Faudell, C. L. ; Orchard Cottage, Wexham Street, Nr. Stoke Poges, Bucks. 1948 Fenton, H., F.Z.S. ; 48 Porchester Terrace, London, W. 2. 1948 Field, H. C. ; 3 St. Edwards Road, Selly Oak, Birmingham 29. 1945 Flood, Cedric L., F.Z.S. ; Superintendent, The Royal Zoological Society of Ireland, Phoenix Park, Dublin. 1935 Floyd, J. F. M., B.A., M.B.O.U. ; High Bridge Mill, Cuckfield, Sussex. 1948 Fogg, H. ; 7 Elmbridge Road, Perry Barr, Birmingham. 1925 Fooks, F. E. ; Cleres, Seine Inferieure, France. 1932 Fooks, H. A. ; Kestrels, Holmshurst, Burwash, Sussex. 1937 Foster, H. F. B. ; Park House, Drum Oak, Aberdeenshire. 1948 Freeman, Alton V. ; Miami Rare Bird Farm, P.O. Box 100, Kendall, Florida, U.S.A. 1945 Freeman, Charles R. ; The Caversham Aviaries, 7 Valentine Crescent, Caversham, Reading, Berks. 1908 Frost, W. J. C. ; c/o Zoological Society, Regent’s Park, N.W. 8. 1947 Frostick, W. B. ; 26 Minster Precincts, Peterborough, Northants. 1929 Furner, A. C. ; Oakdene, 115 Whitaker Road, Derby. 1948 Galland, John F. ; Kapala Estate, Bedong P.O., Kedah, Malaya. 1916 Garcke, Mrs. C. ; Felhurst, Grand Avenue, Hove, Sussex. 1941 Gardner, A. H. ; 21 Kingsland Road, Strathfield, Sydney, N.S.W., Australia. 1935 Gardner, E. ; c/o Grindlay’s Bank, Ltd., Mint Road, P.O. Box 93, Bombay, India. LIST OF MEMBERS 7 1948 Gardner, W. M. ; 294 Broad Lane, King’s Heath, Birmingham 14. 1948 Geertsema, Major C. C. ; Boschwyk, Soestdyk, Holland. 1948 *Gerard, Hon. Robert, M.B.O.U. ; Blakesware, Ware, Herts. 191 1 Ghigi, Professor Alessandro, G.M.Z.S., M.B.O.U. ; Labarotio di Zoologia Applicara Alla Caccia, University di Bologna, S. Giacomo 9, Bologna, Italy. 1948 Gibbs, Dennis G. ; 49 Portland Road, Toton, Notts. 1948 Gibson, R. H. ; RR 2, Box 336, St. Helena, California, U.S.A. 1948 Gill, J. M. ; 20 Lancaster Road, Southall, Middx. 1946 Gillen, John ; Ballycraigy, Ballymena, Co. Antrim, N. Ireland. 1928 Glenister, A. G., F.Z.S., M.B.O.U. ; The Barn House, East Blatchington, Seaford, Sussex. 1931 Glover, P. H., F.Z.S. ; Broadlands, Fareham, Hants. 1933 Goodall, A. W. ; 33 Stuart Avenue, Hunts Cross, Liverpool. 1945 Goodwin, Derek ; Toft, Monk’s Road, Virginia Water, Surrey. 1920 Goodwin, Tom ; Aves, Kiln Lane, Ripley, Surrey. 1945 Gordon, Mrs. Beatrice Hood Claeson, F.Z.S. ; Cluny Castle, Mony- musk, Aberdeen. 1923 *Gosse, Mrs. James ; 9 Park Terrace, Park Side, South Australia. 1935 Grant, Frank ; Parklands, Stoughton Lane, Evington, Leicester. 1926 Green, Roland, M.B.O.U. ; The Studio, Hickling Broad, Norfolk. 1946 Griffiths, W. ; Downs End, 152 Worple Road, Wimbledon, S.W. 19. 1917 Groves, Hon. Mrs. McGarel ; Battramsley House, Lymington, Hants. 1928 Gubbay, Mrs. Maurice ; c/o A. Ezra, Foxwarren Park, Cobham, Surrey. 1908 Gulbenkian, C. S. ; Ling House, 10-13 Dominion Street, E.C. 2. 1947 Gulliver, V. S. ; 33 Vale Road, Aylesbury, Bucks. 1948 Gumbrell, E. G. ; Westleigh, Frampton Cotterel, Nr. Bristol. 1927 Gurney, Miss Diana ; North Runcton Hall, King’s Lynn. 1942 Guy, Charles P. ; Craddock Home Farm, Craddock, Nr. Cullompton, Devon. 1939 Hadden, Norman G. ; Underway, West Porlock, Somerset. 1941 Haggard, V. D. ; Zoological Gardens, Adelaide, South Australia. 1948 Hale, O. ; Laithfield, Digswell, Welwyn, Herts. 1943 Hallstrom, E. J. L. ; 462 Willoughby Road, Willoughby, Sydney, N.S.W., Australia. 1937 Halverson, A. W. ; 5705 West Erie Street, Chicago 44, Ill., U.S.A. 1926 Hampe, Alex ; 13 a Grub am Forst bei Coburg, Bavaria, American Zone, Germany. 1946 Hansen, Paul ; Gormsgade 3, I. Sal, Odense, Denmark. 1946 Harding, C. F. ; Winida, 192 Hounslow Road, Feltham, Middx. 1948 Hardy, George, Jr. ; 5122 Douglas Road, New Westminster, B.C., Canada. 1942 Hare, Tom, M.D., B.V.Sc., M.R.C.V.S. ; 529a Finchley Road, London, N.W. 3. 1928 Harman, Miss Knobel, F.Z.S. ; 19 Connaught Square, London, W. 2. 1947 Harris, Major J. H., M.C., T.D. ; Spinneys, Five Ashes, Sussex. 1945 Harvey, A. W. H. ; Rydal, Long Rock, Penzance, Cornwall. 1946 Haverschmidt, Fr. ; 14 Waterkant, Paramaribo, Surinam, Dutch Guiana. 1946 Hayward, Mrs. D. A. ; Invermay, Highland Avenue, Brentwood, Essex. 1947 Heath, R. E., B.A., M.B.O.U. ; 2 Pembroke Court, Edwardes Square, 6 LIST OF MEMBERS 1934 Henderson, Miss Oona, F.Z.S. ; Hurst Close, Bracknell, Berks. 1945 Henry, B. R., M.B., B.Ch., D.H.P. ; Four Winds, Comber, Belfast. 1939 Hill, W. C. Osman, M.D., Ch.B., F.L.S., F.Z.S. ; Department of Anatomy, University New Buildings, Teviot Place, Edinburgh. 1945 Hindle, E., M.A., Sc.D., F.R.S., F.L.S., F.Z.S. ; 91a King Henry’s Road, London, N.W. 3. 1929 Hirst, A. ; Box 262DD, G.P.O., Sydney, N.S.W., Australia. 1926 Hirst, R. S., F.Z.S. ; Swincliffe House, Gomersal, Nr. Leeds. 1947 Hodges, J. R. ; 11 Deane Way, Eastcote, Ruislip, Middx. 1922 Hollas, Mrs. K. E., F.Z.S. ; Parsonage Farm, Highworth, Wilts. 1930 *Hollond, Miss Gladys M. B. ; Great Ashfield House, Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk. 1943 Holloway, J. ; 59 Holyrood Gardens, Stag Lane, Edgware, Middx. 1946 Hooke, C. ; P.O. Box 265, Napa, California, U.S.A. 1906 Hopkinson, Emilius, C.M.G., D.S.O., M.A., M.R.C.S., M.B.Oxon, F.Z.S., M.B.O.U. ; Wynstay, Balcombe, Sussex. 1928 Horne, Douglas P. ; Audley Lodge, Addlestone Park, Surrey. 1948 Hosken, John H. ; c/o James Hosken and Co., 5 Idol Lane, E.C. 3. 1934 Housden, Major E. F., M.C., T.D., F.Z.S. ; Hillside, Harrow-on-the-Hill. 1 948 Housden, Edwin J. T. ; Mulberry Hill, Baughurst, Hants. 1933 Housden, Leslie, O.B.E. ; Mulberry Hill, Baughurst, Hants. 1942 Hovell, S. ; 29 Wood Lane, Long Sutton, Spalding, Lines. 1947 Hughes, J. L. ; 48 Frogmore Street, Abergavenny, Mon. 1947 Hunt, E. G. W. ; 10 Quirke Street, Minehead, Somerset. 1939 Hurlburt, Dr. W. E. ; Vineland, Ontario, Canada. 1947 Huyton, A. E. ; 55 Victoria Road, Great Crosby, Liverpool 23. 1940 Iles, Gerald, F.Z.S. ; Zoological Gardens, Belle Vue, Manchester 12. 1939 Indge, H. J., F.Z.S., M.B.O.U. ; Trimstone, Thorpe, Nr. Egham, Surrey. 1948 Irving, G. J. ; 2 Grove Road, Egremont, Cumberland. 1926 Isenberg, A. H. ; P.O. Box 88, 647 Runnymede Street East, Palo Alto, California, U.S.A. 1947 Jackson, Capt. P., M.C., M.A., B.Sc. ; Brook House, Brook’s Drive, Timperley, Nr. Altrincham, Cheshire. 1947 James, Clayton M. ; Cedar Hill Bird Farm, Landover, Maryland, U.S.A. 1942 J anson, Charles W. ; 16 Wilton Crescent, London, S.W. 1. 1930 Jarvis, Miss I. F. ; The Old Manor, Salisbury. 1947 *Jasdan, H. H. Yuvraj Shree Shivraj Khaghar ; The Palace, Jasdan (Kathiawar), India. 1948 Johnson, Edward J. ; Woodland Park Zoological Gardens, 5400 Phinney Avenue, Seattle, 3, Washington, U.S.A. 1938 Jones, C. Buckingham ; Dibrugarh, Upper Assam, India. 1933 Jones, F. T., F.Z.S. ; Leckford Abbas, Stockbridge, Hants. 1 934 Jones, S. B. ; 265 Northway, Maghull, Nr. Liverpool. 1948 Jorgenson, Alfred Julius ; Box 7496 Johannesburg, South Africa. 1946 Kern, W. R. ; P.O. Box 848, 609 South Russell Avenue, Monterey Park, California, U.S.A. 1927 Kerr, J. E. ; Harviestoun, Dollar, Scotland. 1948 Killick, H. L. ; 89 Crest Road, Dollis Hill, Cricklewood, N.W. 2. LIST OF MEMBERS 9 1938 King, Harold ; 80 Bedale Road, Sherwood, Nottingham. 1948 King, Mrs. L. H. ; Orchard House, Rud ding ton, Nr. Nottingham. 1948 Kingston, E. J. ; 12 Stotfold Road, King’s Heath, Birmingham 14. 1936 Kinsey, Eric G. ; Box 76, Manor (Marin County), California, U.S.A. 1948 Kirkaldy, Mrs. M., F.Z.S. ; The Grove, Warley Mount, Brentwood, Essex. 1948 Knight, Mrs. M. ; 3718 Sperling Avenue, Burnaby, B.C., Canada. 1946 Knight, Mrs. S. M. Maxwell ; The Homestead, Park Road, Gamberley, Surrey. 1942 Kreydt, R. V. ; 1205 Putnam Street, Olean, N.Y., U.S.A. 1947 Labdom, B. ; Millberne, Cullompton, Devon. 1929 Laidlay, J. C. ; Holmwood, Perth, Scotland. 1937 Lake, G. D. ; Audreys, Burghfield Common, Reading, Berks. 1945 Lamb, A. ; Mount Pleasant, Hexham, Northumberland. 1932 Langham, Sir Charles, Bart. ; Tempo Manor, Co. Fermanagh, Ireland. 1919 Law, Dr. Satya C., M.A., Ph.D. ; 50 Kailas Bose Street, Calcutta, India. 1943 Lawrence, F. W. ; 44 Park Avenue, Bush Hill Park, Enfield, Middx. 1930 Lax, J. M. S. ; Southfield, Crook, Co. Durham. 1946 Lemon, Miss E. ; c/o Royal Bank of Canada, Granvill and Hastings Branch, Vancouver, B.C., Canada. 1947 Leslie, John ; 34 Amroth Avenue, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. . 1924 Lewis, J. Spedan, F.Z.S. ; Longstock House, Stockbridge, Hants. 1946 Lewis, W. O. ; Milnsbridge, Bicton Heath, Shrewsbury. 1941 Livermore, J. W. ; 130 East End Avenue, New York 28, N.Y., U.S.A. 1923 Lodge, George E., F.Z.S., M.B.O.U. ; Hawkhouse, Upper Park Road, Gamberley, Surrey. 1939 *Low, G. Carmichael, M.A., M.D., F.R.G.P., F.Z.S., M.B.O.U. ; 7 Kent House, Kensington Court, W. 8. 1927 Lowe, Rev. J. R. ; The Vicarage, Coin Street, Aldwyn, Fairford, Glos. 1948 Lowes, J. R. ; Keeper’s Lodge, Terling, Nr. Chelmsford, Essex. 1947 Lumsden, Lt.-Col. William V. ; Sluie, Nr. Banchory, Aberdeen, Scotland. 1948 Luning, Mrs. Nicholas T. ; 50 Sheridan Road, Oakland, Calif., U.S.A. 1946 Lyell, Malcolm C. A. ; 7 Upper Brook Street, London, W. 1. 1947 Lynch, G., F.Z.S. ; 21 Sunnycroft Road, Hounslow, Middx. 1927 Lyon, Capt. The Hon. Michael ; Glamis Castle, Glamis, Forfarshire. 1927 McCormick-Goodhart, L., O.B.E., V.D., F.Z.S. ; Bellapais, Box 186, R.F.D.I., Alexandria, Virginia, U.S.A. 1926 McCullagh, Sir J. Crawford, Bart. ; Lismara, Whiteabbey, Belfast, N. Ireland. 1927 McLintock, Miss M. H. ; The Grove, Catton Grove Road, Norwich. 1948 Mack, H. G. ; c/o Gibson Manufacturing Co., Ltd., Guelph, Canada. 1948 Magkensen, R. S, ; Yardley, Pa., U.S.A. 1948 Mackern, P. G. ; Estancia “ La Tomasa ”, Miramonte, F.C.S., Argentine Republic. 1947 Maitland, Miss M. C. ; North Lodge, Goring-by-Sea, Sussex. 1948 Malisoux, Madame Ivan ; Beez, Namur, Belgium. 1946 Marshall, D. A. ; 2 Fullarton Crescent, Troon, Ayrshire. 1941 Marshall, E. ; c/o The Devon General Omnibus Co.’s Depot, Wool- brook, Sidmouth, Devon. LIST OF MEMBERS 10 1947 Marshall, G. R. ; 9 Barker Avenue, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. 1930 Martin, A. ; 26 Somerford Road, Reddish, Stockport. 1934 Mason, Miss Eva Inglis ; Peppercorn Cottage, Burton, Christchurch, Hants. 1943 Masser, P. ; The Spinney, Coundon, Coventry. 1935 Matthews, Mrs. W. M. ; Glandore, New Park Road, Cranleigh, Surrey. 1908 Maxwell, C. T. ; 1 Shardcroft Avenue, Herne Hill, S.E. 24. 1941 Maxwell, Major Gavin, F.R.G.S., F.Z.S. ; Monreith, Whauphill, Wigtownshire. 1929 Maxwell, P. H., F.Z.S. , M.B.O.U. ; Zoological Society of London, Whipsnade Park, Nr. Dunstable, Beds. 1913 * Maxwell-Jackson, Miss M., F.Z.S. ; Percy House, Scotton, Knares- borough, Yorks. 1922 Mayer, F. W. Shaw ; c/o Commonwealth Bank of Australia, Lae, New Guinea, via Australia. 1948 Meeren, Michel Braun de Ter. ; L’Hesidelle, Archennes, par Grez- Doiceau, Belgium. 1938 Meyer, J. D. ; Berol Lodge, Chappaqua, N.Y., U.S.A. 1948 Mifsud, Henry J., M.B.R.C., F.Z.S. ; 29 Luke Briffa Street, Gzira, Malta. 1937 Milligan, H. ; Upper Manor Farm, Leckford, Stockbridge, Hants. 1929 Milnes- Coates, Sir Clive, Bart., F.Z.S. ; 13 Hyde Park Gate, London, S.W. 7. 1937 Milton, Capt. S. ; 75 Portland Avenue, Gravesend, Kent. 1948 Mitchell, A. ; 16 Albany Street, Hull, Yorks. 1943 Mitchell, H. A. ; 2 Strathaven Road, East Kilbride, Lanarkshire. 1926 Moody, A. F. ; Lilford, Oundle, Peterborough. 1928 Moore, R. T. ; Meadow Grove Place, Flintridge, Pasadena 2, Calif., U.S.A. 1931 Morrison, A., F.Z.S., M.B.O.U. ; Sarikei, Sarawak. 1948 Morse, Mrs. G. B. ; 901 W. Main, Puyallup, Washington, U.S.A. 1947 Mosford, F. ; The Elms, Churton Heath, Saighton, Nr. Chester. 1929 Mottershead, G. S. ; Zoological Gardens, Chester. 1923 Mountain, Capt. Walton ; Groombridge Place, Groombridge, Kent. 1948 Muir, W. H. ; The Alton, 12 Browns Road, Newmilns, Ayrshire, Scotland. 1932 Murphy, J. H. Blackwood ; (District Commissioner), Melsetter, Southern Rhodesia. 1947 Murray, H. ; Bracken, Cornsland, Brentwood, Essex. 1945 Murray, J. G., M.R.C.V.S. ; Bank House, Ledbury, Herefordshire. 1946 Murray, J. M. ; c/o The Standard Bank of South Africa, Ltd., P.O. Box 10, Nakuru, Kenya. 1939 Murray, R. ; 12 High Road, Camberwell, E. 6, Victoria, Australia. 1946 Myers, G. W. ; 3824 31st Street, Mt. Rainier, Maryland, U.S.A. 1934 Naether, Carl ; 4442 Woodman Avenue, Sherman Oaks, California, U.S.A. 1930 Newill, Dr. D. S., M.D. ; 402 First National Bank Building, Connells- ville, Pa., U.S.A. 1915 Newmarch, C. T., F.Z.S. ; 56 Riddlesdown Avenue, Purley, Surrey. 1925 Nicol, Hamish, F.R.C.S., F.Z.S. ; 18 Christchurch Hill, Hampstead, N.W. 3. 1947 Nicoullaud, J. G. ; 48 Rue Descartes, Chinon, France. 1933 Nightingale, Capt. F. B., F.R.I.B.A. ; c/o The Ministry of Town and Country Planning, 12 Sydenham Terrace, Newcastle-on-Tyne 2. LIST OF MEMBERS II 1947 Noble, R. A. W. ; Little Grange, Canterbury Road, Margate, Kent. 1948 Noordzy, J. H. ; c/o Zoological Gardens, Blydorp, Rotterdam, Holland. 1930 Norcross, H. ; Normanhurst, 22 Mount Road, Middleton, Lancs. 1939 Norris, K. A., F.Z.S. ; Elmstone, 45 Highfield Road, Purley, Surrey. 1945 Olson, Leo B. ; 835 South First Street, De Kalb, Illinois, U.S.A. 1928 Ostrehan, C. ; Kington Rectory, Worcester. 1947 Overend, Miss Eunice ; The New Grounds, Slimbridge, Gloucester. 1944 Palmella, His Excellency, The Duke of, F.Z.S. ; Portuguese Ambassador, 103 Sloane Street, London, S.W. 1. 1906 Pam, Major A., O.B.E., M.A., F.L.S., F.Z.S. ; Wormleybury, Broxbourne, Herts. 1937 Pape, Mrs. A. M. ; Orange Hill, Binfield, Bracknell, Berks. 1934 Partridge, W. R., F.Z.S. ; Larches, Nr. Fladbury, Pershore, Worcester¬ shire. 1929 Pearce, Mrs. A. A., F.Z.S. ; Kernick, Cross Roads, Grayshott, Surrey. 1946 Pearson, R. ; 7 12th Avenue, Nkana, N. Rhodesia. 1940 Peat, R. M., F.Z.S. ; 11 Ironmonger Lane, London, E.C. 2. 1948 Phillips, Mrs. A. ; 11 Gloucester Gate, London, N.W. 1. 1935 Phipps, Mrs. L. N., F.Z.S. ; The Manor House, Minster Lovell, Oxon. 1903 Pickford, R. J. ; Etherley Lodge, Nr. Bishop Auckland. 1948 Pillinger, E. A. ; P.O. Westville, Via Durban, Natal, South Africa. 1948 Pinfield, S. N. ; 95 Pinfold Lane, Wolverhampton. 1934 Pitt, W. S. ; Wildwood, Silverdale Avenue, Walton-on-Thames, Surrey. 1924 Plath, Karl ; 305 S. Cuyler Avenue, Oak Park, Illinois, U.S.A. 1947 Podmore, C. R. ; 352 Carter Knowle Road, Ecclesall, Sheffield 11. 1925 Poltimore, Lady ; Court House, North Molton, N. Devon. 1920 Porter, Sdyney, F.Z.S., M.B.O.U. ; The White Gates, 149 Stenson Road, Derby. 1914 Potter, B. E., M.B., M.R.C.S., L.R.C.P., F.Z.S. ; 39 Devonshire Place, London, W. 1. 1928 Prestwich, A. A. ; Chelmsford Road, Southgate, N. 14. 1946 Prestwich, Mrs. J. A. ; Coltishall, Broad Walk, Winchmore Hill, N. 21. 1943 Pugh, M. C. ; 99 Marlborough Road, Swindon. 1938 Pye, Miss L. ; Arosfa, Church Lane, Wistaston, Nr. Crewe. 1948 Quenby, H. F. ; Standard House, High Street, Baldock, Herts. 1913 Quincey, R. S. de Q,., F.Z.S. ; The Vern, Bodenham, Hereford. 1948 Rabbin, H. J., I.S.O. ; 33 Kingsway, Wembley. 1936 Rampton, A. ; South Lake, Woodley, Berks. 1948 Rattray-Bruce, Capt. W. ; Warringa, 26 N. Clermont Road, Barnton, Edinburgh. 1939 Raven, W. H. ; 29 Cavendish Road, E., The Park, Nottingham. 1943 Rawnsley, A. H. ; Theddingworth Lodge, Nr. Rugby. 1948 Rawson, S. T. ; Oaken Holt, Farmoor, Oxford. 1947 Re ay, J. H. ; Cranmore, The Close, Court Drive, Hillingdon, Middx. 1948 Reed, Miss J. ; Cerfbois, R F D, East Haddam, Connecticut, U.S.A. 1948 Regibo, P. ; 83 Avenue Louis Bertrand, Bruxelles, Belgium. 12 LIST OF MEMBERS 1928 Reventlow, A. ; Managing Director, Zoologisk Have, Kovenhavn F., Denmark. 1946 Ricardo, Mrs. M. G. ; Audreys, Burghfield Common, Reading, Berks. 1948 Riis-Hansen, Kai. ; Valby Langgade 276, Copenhagen, Valby, Denmark. 1937 Ripley, S. D. ; Kilravock, Litchfield, Conn., U.S.A. 1935 Risdon, D. H. S. Redmays, Keston Avenue, Keston, Kent. 1943 Robertson, Dr. A. R. ; Steynol Chambers, 18 Leslie Street, Vereeniging, Transvaal, S. Africa. 1947 Robinson, B. E. ; Field House, Blackborough Road, Reigate, Surrey. 1946 Robinson, D. P. ; 12 Dalmeny Road, Wallington, Surrey. 1936 Rogers, Miss M. C. ; Ingham New Hall, Ingham, Norwich. 1945 Rooney, J. P., M.B.O.U. ; 1514 South 12th Avenue, Yakima, Washing¬ ton, U.S.A. 1946 Roote, C. C. ; 1 16 Cardinals Walk, Scraptoft Lane, Leicester. 1902 Rudkin, F. H. ; R.I., Box 8, Fillmore, California, U.S.A. 1944 Salter, Capt. J. ; c/o Dr. John W. Salter, 724 North Golden West, Temple City, California, U.S.A. 1948 Sanguinetti, E. F. ; 240 Madison Avenue, Yuma, Arizona, U.S.A. 1945 Saunders, R., F.Z.S. ; Regent Parade, Sycamore Road, Amersham, Bucks. 1914 Schuyl, D. G. ; Kralingscheweg 332, Rotterdam, Holland. 1934 Scott, A. H., F.Z.S. ; Blissford Pool, Fordingbridge, Hants. 1946 Scott, Miss P. ; Blissford Pool, Fordingbridge, Hants. 1938 * Scott, P., M.B.E., D.S.C., M.A., F.Z.S., M.B.O.U. ; 8 Edwardes Square, London, W. 8. 1948 Scott, S. J. ; Box 333 Kimberley, South Africa. 1928 Scott-Hopkins, Capt. C., F.Z.S. ; White Cottage, New Milton, Hants. 1943 Secor, W. J. ; 103 Grant Court, Olean, New York, U.S.A. 1907 Seppings, J. W. H., F.Z.S. ; c/o Lloyds Bank, Ltd., Cox and King’s Branch (G 3), 6 Pall Mall, London, S.W. 1. 1940 Shand, Dr. W. Paterson ; 10 Wilson Street, Derby. 1932 Shearing, A. P. ; The Aviaries, Foxwarren Park, Cobham, Surrey. 1944 Shearman, C. S. ; Malverno, Foreign Bird Farm, Pinetown, Natal, S. Africa. 1923 Sherriff, A., F.Z.S., M.B.O.U. ; Edge Hill, 8 Ranulf Road, N.W. 2. 1939 Shertson, W. E. ; Otley Farm, Ipswich, Suffolk. 1946 Sibley, A. E., F.Z.S. ; 15 Windsor Crescent, Harrow, Middx. 1934 Sibley, C. L. ; Sevenfires, 111 Main Street, Nantucket, Mass., U.S.A. 1904 Silver, A., F.Z.S., M.B.O.U. ; Birdsacre, Llantarnam, Mon. 1924 Simpson, H. W. ; 6 Barry Road, Stonebridge, Willesden, N.W. 10. 1937 Simpson, Mrs. M. K. M. ; The Hollies, Limekilns, Dunfermline, Fife. 1932 Simson, Capt. R., O.B.E. ; The New Inn, Kidmore End, Nr. Reading. 1947 Slader, W. T., J.P. ; Pentillie, Honiton Road, Exeter. 1948 Sloan, J. L. ; Salt Lake City Park, Salt Lake City 1, Utah, U.S.A. 1941 Smith, E. W. ; 15 Kingsway Road, Leicester. 1947 Smith, K. J. ; Wychwood, Harbour View Close, Parkstone, Dorset. 1947 Smith, Mrs. N. E. ; Culterty, Newburgh, Aberdeenshire. 1917 Smith, W. P., F.Z.S. ; Bexton House, Knutsford, Cheshire. 1948 Smyth, H. ; 11 Hamilton Street, Homebush, N.S.W., Australia. 1946 Soanes, A. C. ; The Fishery Inn, Elstree, Herts. 1940 Spinks, M. M. ; Tetherstones, Doddington Ridge, Nr. Wellingborough. LIST OF MEMBERS *3 1923 Sprawson, Professor E., M.C., D.Sc., M.R.C.S., F.Z.S. ; Cranford, Welcomes Road, Kenley, Surrey. 1923 Spurway, N. B. ; Delamere, 325 London Road, Leicester. 1945 Spyer, Miss F. ; Brantridge Forest, Balcombe, Sussex. 1939 Squire, E. O. ; Basmead Manor, St. Neots, Hunts. 1948 Steel, G. ; The Cottage Aviaries, 24 Mariners Cottages, South Shields Co. Durham. 1939 Steinbeck, J. W. ; P.O. Box 832, Concord, California, U.S.A. 1947 Stevens, E. H. ; Meridor, Shudy Camps, Cambs. 1932 Stevens, R. ; Walcot Hall, Lydbury North, Shropshire. 1922 Stokes, Capt. H. S., M.C., F.Z.S. ; Longdon, Rugeley, Staffordshire. 1928 Stormonth-Darling, P. ; 7 Egerton Court, Harrington Road, London, S.W. 7. 1948 Strange, F. E. ; 61 1 S. Broadway, Redondo Beach, California, U.S.A. 1948 Stretch, H. ; Hillcote, Manor Road, Salisbury, Wilts. 1930 Strombi, Miss D. A. ; Eastbank House, Brechin, Angus. 1943 Stromgren, G. ; Box 771, Iowa City, Iowa, U.S.A. 1935 Stubbs, Mrs. E. C. ; 4 Beaumont Road, Worthing, Sussex. 1938 Sutton, P., M.R.C.V.S. ; 11 Culverdon Park Road, Tunbridge Wells. 1902 Swan, J. A., F.Z.S. ; Haslemere, Rectory Lane, Sidcup, Kent. 1931 Sweetnam, Rev. Preb. J. E. ; The Rectory, Enborne, Newbury, Berks. 1948 Sykes, J. ; 167 North High Street, Musselburgh, N.B. 1946 Tancred, P. H. ; 19 Hardy Street, Ashfield, Sydney, Australia. 1946 Taylor, J. ; Lower Hilcot, Withington, Glos. 1944 Taylor, J. G. ; St. Anne’s Park View, Toll Hill, Castleford, Yorks. 1945 Taylor, T. G., M.A. ; The Eyrie, Gravel Hill, Emmer Green, Reading. 1930 Teague, P. W. ; Lybrook, Broadway, Worcestershire. 1926 Tennant, Hon. Stephen ; Wilsford Manor, Salisbury. 1946 Terry, Miss M. ; Lumeah, Boulivot, Grouville, Jersey. 1931 Thomas, F. E. ; Barnfield, Dunsfold, Surrey. 1946 *Tinsley, P. C. ; Hurn Hall, Holbeach, Spalding, Lines. 1946 *Tinsley, W. G. ; The Poplars, Holbeach, St. Marks, Lines. 1948 Tiranti, D. ; 6 Albert Mansions, 54 Church Road, Hove. 1947 Tuckwell, D. ; Asleisk, Alves by Forres, Morayshire. 1933 Tuma, F. L. ; Ola Hanssonsgatan 3, Malmo, Sweden. 1939 Tunesi, A. W. ; Elmside, 93 Vicarage Road, Sunbury-on-Thames, Middx. 1928 Turner, H. B. ; Malverleys, Nr. Newbury, Berks. 1942 Turner, P. W. ; Flore House, Higham Lane, Nuneaton, Warwicks. 1934 Tyebjee, Abde Amirudin Shalebhoy ; Malabar Court, Ridge Road, Malabar Hill, Bombay 6, India. 1933 Tyser, Mrs. W. P., F.Z.S. ; Gordonbush, Brora, Sutherland, N.B. 1946 Underwood, A. J. ; The Aviaries, 24 Wellington Street, Kettering, Northants. 1938 Underwood, H. ; The Wheatsheaf Hotel, Burton-Joyce, Notts. 1948 Upson, W. A. ; 56 Garfield Road, Ponders End, Middx. 1899 Valentine, E., F.Z.S. ; 7 Highfield, Workington, Cumberland. 1947 Vallen, J. H. J. M., M.D. ; Antoniuslaan 105, Blerick-Venlo, Holland. 1948 van Dijk, H. ; 97 Korvelseweg, Tilburg, Netherland. 1937 Vane, E. N. T., F.Z.S., M.B.O.U. ; Ridgeway, Joel Street, Pinner, Middx. i4 LIST OF MEMBERS 1934 VAN Heyst, A. F. G. A. ; Koningin, Wilhelminalaan 30, Amersfoort, Holland. 1947 Veitch, Capt. R. W., M.B.E., B.Sc. ; Redridge, Garforth, Nr. Leeds. 1926 Venning, H. G. ; Hawksdown House, Walmer, Kent. 1928 Vierheller, G. P. ; St. Louis Zoological Park, St. Louis 10, Ma., U.S.A. 1947 Vinson, M. ; Hunters, Howbourne Lane, Buxted, Sussex. 1936 Voy, Miss H. ; Lynchets, Longbridge Deverill, Warminster, Wilts. 1948 Vucovich, Payson ; Rte. 5 Box 846, Hanford, California, U.S.A. 1948 Waddams, W. L. ; 212 Bordesley Green, Birmingham. 1947 Wait, F., F.Z.S. ; Bridge House, Hemsby, Nr. Great Yarmouth, Norfolk. 1948 Wakefield, Mrs. G. H. ; 139 Senic Drive, Palomar Park, Redwood City, California, U.S.A. 1936 Waller, H. ; Kittsbury, 64 St. Julian’s Farm Road, West Norwood, S.E. 27. 1935 Warre, Mrs. P. ; Coppid Hall, Stifford, Essex. 1932 Watkins, T. R. Holmes ; Oronsay, The Ellipse, Griffithstown, Mon. 1913 Waud, Capt. L. R., F.Z.S., M.B.O.U. ; Bradley Court, Chieveley, Nr. Newbury, Berks. 1933 Weaver, G. ; 77 Offmore Road, Kidderminster, Worcs. 1928 Webb, C. ; c/o Zoological Society of London, Regent’s Park, N.W. 8. 1929 Webb, P. B. ; Barney’s Brae, Randalstown, Co. Antrim. 1935 Webber, L. C. ; 6 Grandview Parade, Epping, N.S.W., Australia. 1937 * Weber, O. F., Jr. ; 22 East 82nd Street, New York, U.S.A. 1942 Wenke, F. L. ; 1 15 N. 20th Street, Clean, N.Y., U.S.A. 1943 Werner, Mrs. M. ; Farmleigh, Stillorgan, Co. Dublin. 1947 West, D. ; 209 N. 18th Street, Montebello, California, U.S.A. 1932 Wharton-T igar, Mrs. N., F.Z.S. ; The Highlands, Manston, Nr. Ramsgate. 1945 Wheeler, A. L., Jr. ; Box 259 College Station, Texas, U.S.A. 1947 Wheeler, T. E. ; Lynwood, Onslow Avenue, Cheam, Surrey. x947 Wheeler, Mrs. T. E. ; Lynwood, Onslow Avenue, Cheam, Surrey. 1923 * Whitley, H., F.Z.S., M.B.O.U. ; Primley Hill, Paignton, S. Devon. 1935 Whitmore, G. E. ; 168 High Street, West Bromwich, Birmingham. 1930 Wilkins, A. ; Rendcombe, Chesham, Bucks. 1947 Wilkins, Miss D. ; The Manor House, Brize-Norton, Oxford. 1907 Willford, H. ; Sans Souci, Havenstreet, Ryde, Isle of Wight. 1948 Williams, H. P. ; 2 Burcote Road, Pype Hayes, Birmingham 24. 1948 Williams, J. E. ; Green Gates, 207 Tile Cross Road, Marston Green, Birmingham. 1905 Williams, S., F.Z.S. ; St. Helens, Stocker Road, West Bognor Regis. 1945 Williamson, T. F. M. ; R.R.I. Saanichton, Vancouver Island, B.C., Canada. 1947 Willmott, A, R. ; 12 Wahroongaa Road, Murrumbeena S.E. 9, Mel¬ bourne, Australia. 1948 Willsher, Mrs. G. A. ; 37 Springfield Road, Thornton Heath, Surrey. 1939 Wilson, A. M. ; Middlemoor, Presteigne, Radnorshire. 1927 Wilson, A., F.Z.S. ; 233 Argyle Street, Glasgow, C. 2. 1948 Wilson, C. D., M.A. ; Tracy Aviary, Liberty Park, Salt Lake City 4, Utah, U.S.A. 1922 Winter, D. ; Center and Negley Avenues, Pittsburgh 6, Pa., U.S.A. 1937 Witting, R. C., F.R.G.S., F.Z.S., M.B.O.U. ; The Gables, West Horsley, Surrey. LIST OF MEMBERS 75 1940 Wood, J. A. ; 68| Pitt Street, Sydney, N.S.W., Australia. 1945 Wood, W. ; Oak Hall, Hythe, Kent. 1903 Workman, W. H., F.Z.S., M.B.O.U. ; Lismore, Windsor Avenue, Belfast. 1945 Wragg, H. B. ; 131 Berridge Road East, Sherwood Rise, Nottingham. 1947 Yeager, L. ; P.O. Box 761, Tempe, Arizona, U.S.A. 1934 Yealland, J. ; 1 Cemetery Road, Binstead, Isle of Wight. 1932 Younger, Mrs. L. ; 200 Cranmer Court, Sloane Avenue, S.W. 31. 1947 Zidek, V. ; Praha 12, Benesovska 29, Czechoslovakia. LIST OF LIBRARIES, SCIENTIFIC INSTITUTIONS, AND ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETIES WHICH SUBSCRIBE IN ADVANCE FOR THE AVICULTURAL MAGAZINE Alipore Zoological Gardens ; P.O. Alipore, Calcutta, India. Carnegie Dunfermline Trust ; Abbot Street, Dunfermline. Harvard University ; Museum of Comparative Zoology Library, Oxford Street, Cambridge 38, Mass., U.S.A. McGill University ; Redpath Library, McGill University, 3459 McTavish Street, Montreal, P.Q., Canada. Quebec Zoological Gardens ; Charlesbourg, P.Q., Canada. Sheffield City Libraries ; Central Library, Surrey Street, Sheffield. Southport Corporation, Curator of ; Hesketh Park, Southport. Taronga Zoological Park Trust ; Mosman, Sydney, N.S.W., Australia. Toronto University ; R.O.M. Zoology, Museum Building, University of Toronto, Toronto 5, Ontario, Canada. THE AVICULTURAL SOCIETY OF NEW ZEALAND List of Affiliated Members Hutchinson, G. Rowland ; P.O. Box 770, Auckland, C.I., N.Z. Ranston, Dr. H. ; 34 Alexis Avenue, Mt. Albert Auckland, S.W. 2, N.Z. Vallange, P. K. O. ; c/o Dalgety and Co., Ltd., P.O. Box 7, Dunedin, N.Z. THE AVICULTURAL SOCIETY OF AUSTRALIA (ADELAIDE) List of Affiliated Members Basse, Frederick : St. Austell, Burnside Road, Kensington Gardens, Adelaide, S. Australia. Cosgrove, C. C. ; 1 1 Meredyth Avenue, Millswood Estate, Adelaide, South Australia. Dunstone, Dr. ; Woodville Road, Woodville, Adelaide, South Australia. Hamilton, Dr. Wm. ; Portrush Road, Marryatville, Adelaide, South Australia. i6 LIST OF MEMBERS Harvey, S. ; 80 Northgate Street, Millswood, Adelaide, South Australia. Hill, W. W. C. ; 40 Queen’s Street, Alberton, South Australia. Juttner, Dr. F. ; Tanunda, South Australia. Kingdon, J. ; Loxton, South Australia. Lendon, Dr. Alan, M.B., B.S., F.R.C.S., F.R.A.C.S. ; 66 Brougham Place, North Adelaide, South Australia. Lewis, G. ; c/o A. and E. Lewis, Pirie Street, Adelaide, South Australia. Manfield, H. ; c/o Zoological Gardens, Adelaide, South Australia. Penney, W. K. ; Mount Cooper, Anzac Highway, Plympton, Adelaide, S. Australia. Seppelt, Oscar ; 57 Northumberland Street, Tusmar, South Australia. Sewell, H. S. ; 14 Stannington Avenue, Toorak East, Adelaide, S. Australia. White, A. L. ; Chisholm Avenue, Erindale, Adelaide, South Australia. RULES OF THE AVICULTURAL SOCIETY *7 Rules of the Avicultural Society As amended , November ■, 1948. 1. —The name of the Society shall be The Avicultural Society, and its object shall be the study of Foreign and British Birds in freedom and in captivity. Poultry, Pigeons, and Canaries shall be outside the scope of the Society. The year of the Society, with that of each volume of the Society’s Magazine, which shall be known as the Avicultural Magazine, shall commence with the month of January and end on the 31st December following. 2. — The Avicultural Society shall consist of Ordinary, Life, and Honorary Members, and the last shall be restricted in number to ten, and be elected by the Council. 3. — The Officers of the Society shall be elected, annually if necessary, by members of the Council in the manner hereinafter provided, and shall consist of a President, one or more Vice-Presidents, a Secretary, an Editor, a Treasurer, and a Council of fifteen members. The President, Vice-Presidents, Secretary, Editor, and Treasurer shall be ex officio Members of the Council. 4. — New Members shall be proposed in writing, and the name and address of every person thus proposed, with the name of the Member proposing him shall be published in the next issue of the Magazine. Unless the candidate shall within two weeks after the publication of his name in the Magazine, be objected to by at least two Members, he shall be deemed to be duly elected. If five members shall lodge with the Secretary objections to any candidate he shall not be elected, but the signatures to the signed objections must be verified by the Scrutineer. If two or more Members shall object to any candidate the name of such candidate shall be brought before the Council at their next meeting, and the Council shall have power to elect or to disqualify him from election. 5. — Each Member shall pay an annual subscription of £1, to be due and payable in advance on the 1st of January in each year ; and, on payment of the subscription shall be entitled to receive all the numbers of the Society’s Magazine for the current year. Life member’s fee, £15. 6. — Members intending to resign their membership at the end of the current year of the Society are expected to give notice to the Secretary before the 1st of December, so that their names may not be included in the “ List of Members ”, which shall be published annually in the January number of the Magazine. RULES OF THE AVICULTURAL SOCIETY 18 7. — The Magazine of the Society shall be issued on or about the first day of every month, and forwarded, post free, to all the Members who shall have paid their subscriptions for the year ; but no Magazine shall be sent or delivered to any Member until the annual subscription shall have reached the hands of the Secretary or Treasurer. Members whose subscriptions shall not have been paid as above by the first day in November in any year shall cease to be Members of the Society, but may be readmitted, at the discretion of the Council, on payment of the annual subscription. 8. — The Secretary, Editor, and Treasurer shall be elected for a term of five years, and, should a vacancy occur, it may be temporarily filled by the Executive Committee (see Rule 10). At the expiration of the term of five years in every case it shall be competent for the Council to nominate the same officer, or another Member, for a further term of five years, unless a second candidate be proposed by not less than twenty-five Members of at least two years’ standing, as set forth below. In the November number of the Magazine preceding the retirement from office of the Secretary, Editor, or Treasurer, the Council shall publish the names of those members whom they have nominated to fill the vacancies thus created ; and these members shall be deemed duly elected unless another candidate or candidates be proposed by not less than fifteen Members of at least two years’ standing. Such proposal, duly seconded and containing the written consent of the nominee to serve, if elected, in the capacity for which he is proposed, must reach the Secretary on or before the 15th of November. 9. — The Members of the Council shall retire by rotation, three at the end of each year of the Society (unless a vacancy or vacancies shall occur otherwise) and three other Members of the Society shall be recommended by the Council to take the place of those retiring. The names of the three Members recommended shall be printed in the November number of the Avicultural Magazine. Should the Council’s selection be objected to by fifteen or more Members, these shall have power to put forward three other candidates, whose names, together with the signatures of not less than fifteen Members proposing them, must reach the Hon. Secretary by the 15th of November. The names of the six candidates will then be printed on a voting paper and sent to each Member with the December number of the Magazine, and the result of the voting published in the January issue. Should no alternative candidates be put forward, in the manner and by the date above specified, the three candidates recommended by the Council shall be deemed to have been duly elected. In the event of an equality of votes the President shall have a casting vote. If any Member of the Council does not attend a meeting for two years in succession the Council shall have power to elect another member in his place. 10. — Immediately after the election of the Council that body shall proceed to elect three from its Members. These three, together with the Secretary, Treasurer, and Editor, shall form a Committee known as the Executive Committee. The duties of the Executive Committee shall be as follows : — • (i) In the event of the resignation of any of the officers during the Society’s year, to fill temporarily the vacancy until the end of the year. In the case of the office being one which is held for more than one year (e.g. Secretary, Editor, or Treasurer) the appointment shall be confirmed by the Council at its next meeting. RULES OF THE AVIGULTURAL SOCIETY *9 (ii) To act for the Council in the decision of any other matter that may arise in connection with the business of the Society. The decision of any matter by the. Executive to be settled by a simple majority (three to form a quorum). In the event of a tie on any question, such question shall be forthwith submitted by letter to the Council for their decision. The Executive shall not have power (i) To add to or alter the Rules ; (ii) To expel any Member ; (iii) To re-elect the Secretary, Editor, or Treasurer for a second term of office. It shall not be lawful for the Treasurer to pay any account exceeding £10 unless such account be duly sanctioned by another Member of the Executive. It shall be lawful for the Secretary or Editor to pledge the Society’s credit for a sum not exceeding £100. Should a Member wish any matter to be brought before the Council direct such matter should be sent to the Secretary with a letter stating that it is to be brought before the Council at their next meeting, otherwise communications will in the first place be brought before the Executive. A decision of a majority of the Council, or a majority of the Executive endorsed by the Council, shall be final and conclusive in all matters. 1 1 . — -The Editor shall have an absolute discretion as to what matter shall be published in the Magazine (subject to the control of the Executive Committee) . The Secretary and Editor shall respectively refer all matters of doubt and difficulty to the Executive Committee. 12. — The Council (but not a committee of the Council) shall have power to alter and add to the Rules, from time to time, in any manner they may think fit. Five to form a quorum at any meeting of the Council. 13. — -The Council shall have power to expel any Member from the Society at any time without assigning any reason. 20 RULES OF THE AVICULTURAL SOCIETY The Society’s Medal RULES The Medal may be awarded at the discretion of the Committee to any Member who shall succeed in breeding, in the United Kingdom, any species of bird which shall not be known to have been previously bred in captivity in Great Britain or Ireland. Any Member wishing to obtain the Medal must send a detailed account for publication in the Magazine within about eight weeks from the date of hatching of the young, and furnish such evidence of the facts as the Executive Committee may require. The Medal will be awarded only in cases where the young shall live to be old enough to feed themselves, and to be wholly independent of their parents. No medal can be given for the breeding of hybrids, or of local races or sub-species of species that have already been bred.- The account of the breeding must be reasonably full so as to afford instruction to our Members, and must appear in the Avicultural Magazine before it is published or notified elsewhere. It should describe the plumage of the young, and be of value as a permanent record of the nesting and general habits of the species. These points will have great weight when the question of awarding the Medal is under consideration. In every case the decision of the Committee shall be final. The Medal will be forwarded to each Member as soon after it shall have been awarded as possible. The Medal is struck in bronze (but the Committee reserve the right to issue it in silver in very special cases) and measures o.\ inches in diameter. It bears on the obverse a representation of two birds with a nest containing eggs, and the words “ The Avicultural Society — founded 1894 ”. On the reverse is the following inscription : “ Awarded to [ name of recipient ] for rearing the young of [name of species ], a species not previously bred in captivity in the United Kingdom.” The Council may grant a special medal to any member who shall succeed in breeding any species of bird that has not previously been bred in captivity in Europe. cL OiTiiion of Blr 18, 22, 26, 30, May 4, 7, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 16, 16, 16, 19, 19, 19, 20, 21, 22, 22, 25, 26, 29, 29, 3 1, June 4, 4, 7, 7, 10, 10, 14, 14, 14, 16, 16. April 14, 17, 20, 23- March 27, 29, April 1, 3, 5, 8, 10, 19, 21, 23, 25, 27, June 2, 4, 7, 9, ”, 20, 22, 24, 26. March 30, April 1, 4, 7, 10, 12, 20, 22, 24. Number of eggs Laid. Incubated. 44 34 4 4 21 9 21 9 Number of birds Hatched. Reared. 14 4 4 4 (2cJ, 2$) 30 25 (iod, 15?) Wallich Pheasants, one cock and one hen, adult birds. Satyr Tragopans , one cock and one hen ; cock two years old, hen likely adult. Reeves's Pheasants, one cock and two hens ; cock and one hen one year old, the other hen two years old. Lady Amherst, one cock and one hen, two years old. April 15, 19, 22, 17 24, 26, 28, 30, May 2, 4, 6, 17, 19, 21, 23, 25, 27, 30. April 17, 20, 25, 35 29, 30, May 2, 3, 7, 9, 11, 13, 15, 17, 19, 22, 24, 26, 28, 30, June 1, 8, 12, 13, 15, 18, 20, 22, 24, 26, 28, July 1, 3, 5, 8, 12. April 21, 23, 26, 23 28, May 1, 3, 6, 8, 11, 13, 15, 17, 19, 21, 23, 26, 29, June 14, 15, 17, 19, 21, 24. 17 o i7 20 4 3 (3?) o o 7 3 (3d) 19 (9d,I78?) J. R. HODGES - NOTES ON BIRDS OF NEW ZEALAND 25 1948. Lady Amherst, one cock and two hens, one year old. Carolina Ducks, two males and two females, one year old. Mandarin Ducks, two males and two females, adult birds. Ashy-headed Geese, one male, and one fe¬ male, age unknown. Dates of laying. April 6, 10, 11, 15, 15, 18, 18, 20, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 30, May 1,2,3, 4> 5. 7. 8, 9, 11, 12, 14, 14, 16, 16, 17, 18, 19, 21, 22, 24, 26, 30, June 3, 8, 10, 12, 15, 18, 20, 22, 25, 29, July 1, 3> 5. 8, 12. April 5, 6, 11, 12, 13. *4. 15. 17. 18, 19, 23, 25, 26, 28, 29, 30, May 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 13, 15, 16, 17, 19, 20. June 15 the nest contained 4 eggs, June 17 5 eggs. Number of eggs Laid. Incubated. 53 35 3i 25 o o 5 5 Number of birds Hatched. Reared. o o 22 21 (I3& 8?) o o I I (I*) * * * SOME NOTES ON THE BIRDS OF NEW ZEALAND By J. R. Hodges Millions of years ago a cataclysmic upheaval of the earth completely separated New Zealand from Australia and Asia, cutting off the south¬ ward drift of mammals. As a result New Zealand became a country of interdependent forest and birds. The Maoris introduced the first mammals, the dog and the rat, in about 1350. Four hundred years later Captain Cook, and then the early settlers, brought more mammals into the country, so that, almost immediately, the bird population began to decline. Now so much bush country has been cleared that many species have become extinct or are threatened with this fate. The accounts of the first ornithologists to reach New Zealand are so full of vivid descriptions of interesting, unusual, and beautiful birds, that any visitor interested in ornithology who has read some of these 26 J. R. HODGES - NOTES ON BIRDS OF NEW ZEALAND accounts is bound to be disappointed when he first arrives in the country. There are many introduced species of British birds to be found almost everywhere. Goldfinches, Greenfinches, Redpolls, Chaffinches, Yellow Buntings, Song Thrushes, Blackbirds, Starlings, and Skylarks are all common in the North Island and the ubiquitous Sparrow has become a pest. Other introduced species which have become numerous include the Australian White-backed Magpie and the Mynah. In some areas Rosella Parrakeets occur in large numbers and, near Hunterville, Sulphur-crested Cockatoos breed freely and manage to maintain their numbers in spite of relentless persecution by the farmers. Of the native birds only a few can be described as reasonably common. Fantail Flycatchers and Zosterops can be seen in most gardens even in the largest towns. There are two “ Fantails ”. The black species ( Rhipidura flabellifera ) is quite rare and is found mainly in the South Island, but the Pied Fantail (R. fuliginosa ) is common throughout the Dominion. The pied species has a chestnut breast, brown wings, and a brown and white streaked tail, which is slightly longer than the remainder of the bird and which it spreads into an attractive fan, enabling it to perform remarkable aerial feats. In size the Fantails are slightly smaller than the British Robin. They occur in light bush country rather than in dense forests, are extremely tame and confiding, and can be persuaded to enter homes where they make a comprehensive search for insects. Most, if not all, of their food of flies, mosquitoes, and midges is taken on the wing, and they usually hunt in pairs. The nest is finely woven of twigs, hair, and moss, and is generally suspended from a leafy branch overhanging running water. The eggs are white with brownish spots at the larger end, four form the normal clutch, and usually three broods are reared each year. Their tameness and beauty make them general favourites, and the New Zealander contemplates the Fantail with the same fondness as that with which we regard our Robin. New Zealand Zosterops ( Zosterops halnaturina ) are well known to English aviculturists, but I doubt if there are many in the country to-day. In May and June they arrive in the gardens here in large numbers, and fruit trees become covered with them hunting for insects. With the approach of spring they migrate into the bush to nest. It is thought that they arrived in New Zealand after having been blown across the Tasman Sea in about i860, since when they have become firmly established. It is to be hoped that a few pairs will find their way to England soon, where they should be encouraged to breed in large planted aviaries rather than kept in cages for show purposes alone, which has been done so often in the past. There is much controversy as to which New Zealand Honeyeater is J. R. HODGES - NOTES ON BIRDS OF NEW ZEALAND 27 the better songster, the Bell-bird or the Tui. The Bell-bird ( Anthornis melanura ) is about the size of a Thrush ; its general plumage is yellowish olive, the head is black, and the wings and tail are brownish black. The eye is bright red, the beak is curved and black, and the legs and feet are grey. Its song is probably richer and more varied than that of the Tui. Bell-birds have recently increased rapidly in numbers, but they are shy and can be seen only in secluded wooded areas. Even there they are difficult to observe, for their colouring harmonizes well with their surroundings. They feed mainly on berries and insects. Their flat nest is built not far up from the ground and is constructed of moss and grass lined with feathers. The Tui or Parson Bird ( Prosthemadera nova seelandia) is found throughout the Dominion in fairly large numbers. It is mainly a glossy greenish black with two conspicuous white feather tufts adorning its throat, but its beauty in the sunlight is indescribable. It is a large bird, about the size of a Jackdaw, and in flight its wings make a pleasant rustling sound. Its nest is built at the top of a leafy tree and is an untidy structure lined with Punga (Tree Fern) down. It feeds on nectar, berries, and insects. Sacred Kingfishers [Halcyon sanctus) can be seen frequently during the winter perched on telegraph wires often above busy roads near the towns. Their cream breasts and abdomens, green and blue wings, blue tails and rumps, and blue heads, combined with their typical Kingfisher appearance, make them easy to identify. These birds feed mainly on large insects and seldom on fish. They nest in hollow trees usually near water. The better known Parrot-like birds peculiar to New Zealand are the Kea [Nestor notabilis ), the Kaka [Nestor meridionalis) , the Kakapo [Strigops habroptilus) , and the Red-fronted and Yellow-fronted Parrakeets [Cyanorhamphus nova-zealandia and C. auriceps ). Several examples of the Kea can still be seen in the snow country of the Southern Alps, where they make their nests in rock crevices high up in the mountainous country. The Kaka was once common in forest country but now few, if any, remain to be seen. In size and shape it resembles the Kea, but differs in colour, which is brownish red. It feeds mainly on grubs and it nests in hollow trees. The Kakapo or New Zealand Ground Parrot is remarkable for having lost its power of flight. It is considerably larger than the Kea and Kaka, its plumage is mainly green, and in some respects it resembles a large owl. It is most active at night, runs strongly, and climbs actively. Unfortunately few living specimens remain. Few Parrakeets exist on the Mainland, but they occur in small numbers on Island Sanctuaries, e.g. Kapiti Island. The Red-fronted and Yellow-fronted species make excellent aviary birds, become very tame, are not difficult to keep successfully, and breed freely. 28 J. R. HODGES - NOTES ON BIRDS OF NEW ZEALAND Two species of Cuckoo migrate from the Pacific Islands to New Zealand, where they remain from September to April. They are the Shining and Long-tailed Cuckoos (Lamprococcyx lucidus and Eudynamis taitensis ), both of which lay their single egg in the nest of the pretty and common Grey Warbler. One of the most attractive of all New Zealand birds is the Native Wood Pigeon ( Hemiphaga nova-zjalandid) . It is much larger and considerably more brightly coloured than the British Wood Pigeon. The head is golden green, the upper parts are coppery purple, the tail is greyish green, and the lower breast and abdomen are pure white, contrasting with the red legs and feet. It can be seen occasionally in both the South and North Islands, but it is rapidly becoming more scarce. It builds an untidy platform-like nest of twigs high up in dense foliage. Its food consists almost entirely of berries, and it is important economically as the main distributor of the seeds of forest trees. Of the Rails the commonest are the Pukeko or Swamp Hen ( Porphyrio melanotus) and the Weka or Wood Hen (Gallir alius australis , etc.). The Pukeko is very different from other Rails with its brilliant indigo and black plumage and red legs. It frequents swampy inland areas where it can be observed easily, searching for grubs and young shoots. In flight, which is laboured and heavy, it trails its long red legs behind, and makes a very striking picture. The Wekas, of which there are several species, are mainly brown. Unlike the Pukeko, the Wood Hen has no powers of flight and relies on its ability to run swiftly. Along the coasts of New Zealand can be seen Red-billed Gulls, Shags, Gannets, Petrels, Penguins, Albatrosses, and many other interesting species of sea birds. But it is the birds of the bush and forests, found in no other part of the world, which hold the greatest fascination to the bird-lover, who must sadly contemplate the fact that so many species have disappeared quite recently. Government regulations prohibit the keeping of New Zealand native birds, except Zosterops and Keas, in captivity, and the authori¬ ties will not permit the export of any of these species even to well known Zoological Institutions. There are a few bird sanctuaries, and in many areas suitable trees have been planted to encourage the increase of Tuis and Bell-birds. But still more species are disappearing. The Huia has long been extinct, and soon probably the Saddleback, the Blue- and Orange-wattled Crows, the Tomtits, the beautiful Wrens, the Parrakeets, and many others will have disappeared com¬ pletely. I am convinced that efforts to breed these birds under the best conditions in captivity would meet with a certain amount of success and save at least some species from complete extinction. One or two aviculturists do keep New Zealand Parrakeets in captivity where they breed well and regularly. But these men are breaking the law and risk being prosecuted. At the Hawke’s Bay Acclimatization JEAN DEL AGOUR— BELGIAN AVIARIES 29 Farm, where they are permitted to keep Kiwis, two young birds have been successfully reared, and when I visited the farm recently (Sep¬ tember, 1948) the adult male was incubating another fertile egg. If Kiwis can be preserved under controlled conditions surely many other species can be saved in the same way. * * * BELGIAN AVIARIES By Jean Delacour Early in September, 1948, M. A. Decoux and I were the guests of M. J. Bruyneel, at Steynockerzeel, near Brussels. M. Bruyneel has kept various birds extensively for more than forty years, but he now specializes in Parrots and Parrakeets. For a long time he has acquired and bred many rare species and to-day his collection is a remarkable one. There are hundreds of birds in his aviaries which are placed in many groups throughout a large walled-in garden at the back of his house. These aviaries are of the fixed type, compara¬ tively small, with roomy, deep shelters at the back. That they are suitable is proved by repeated successes with rare and difficult species. M. Bruyneel is a true lover of birds and an expert aviculturist. His birds are beautifully fed and cared for. They receive the best sorts of seeds, green food, and fruit. It is true that there are now few restrictions in Belgium, which makes his task easier than it would be in other countries of Europe. But all through the war he managed to maintain his collection, to breed many birds, and to provide them with the necessary food, a great achievement. A large amount of the seeds and fruit used are grown in his vast kitchen garden. All the better known Australian Parrakeets — Red and Mealy Rosellas, Pennant’s, Stanley’s, Red-rumped, Barraband’s, Rock Pebblers, Crimson-wings — are present, often several pairs of each species. There are many Queen Alexandra’s, Blue- winged, Elegant, Bourke’s, Ground Parrakeets, a few Barnard’s and Port Lincoln, Tur- quoisines, five cock Scarlet-chested, a pair of Yellow Red-rumped, and Many-coloured ; two magnificent pairs of Leadbeater’s, a still finer pair of Moluccan, as well as two newly imported Gang-gangs, represent the Cockatoo family. There are various Lovebirds, including Blue Masked, and also Lories, mostly Red-Collared, a hen Red ( Eos horned) and a hen Purple Cap, which bred successfully for many years with a cock of her own species which died a few years ago. She has since produced a gorgeous hybrid with a male Red- Collared. As hybrids go, there are two pairs of very beautiful birds, the result of a cross between King and Crimson- winged Parrakeets. The males 30 JEAN DELACOUR - BELGIAN AVIARIES have scarlet crown, nape, neck, and breast, the sides of the head bright green, the wing coverts yellow and red ; the markings are even and one could easily mistake them for a true wild species. A hybrid Rock Peplar X Crimson-wing is more like the latter, with the wing coverts spotted yellow and red and a longer tail. The last addition to the Bruyneel’s aviaries has been a larger flight, well sheltered by two walls, where he keeps successfully a varied and lovely collection of Grass Parrakeets. In M. Bruyneel’s company we went to see Mme Y. Malisoux, at Beez, near Namur. The loss of M. Yvan Malisoux, soon after the liberation of Belgium, has deprived aviculture of one of the most intelligent, observant, and capable breeders of Pheasants. Mme Malisoux carries on courageously with a few rare species. To-day she keeps three pairs of Satyrs and three of Blyth’s Tragopans, the latter being the only good stock left in captivity. This year 13 Satyrs and 2 Blyths have been reared; some of the Satyrs belong to the fifth generation bred in captivity. They are extremely well fed and cared for so that they have not deteriorated in the least degree. Mme Malisoux also possesses a pair of Palawan Peacock-Pheasants, and she has recently added Amhersts, Mikado, Grey Peacock Pheasants, from the Leckford collection. During the war birds were kept and reared at Beez quite successfully, particularly the difficult Indian Koklas, which, Mme Malisoux says, gave no trouble at all, a happy exception with these delicate mountain birds. We saw at the Antwerp Zoo an extraordinary hybrid, raised a few years ago from a Satyr Tragopan cock and a Swinhoe’s hen, a queer, long bird, with a short tail, a mottled purplish face, and large patches of dark blue and bright mahogany red in the plumage. The only hybrid produced by a Tragopan ever recorded was one between a Temminck cock and a Koklas hen obtained in France over sixty years ago. We visited again the excellent Antwerp Zoo, which is improving steadily under M. Van den begh’s enthusiastic direction ; the Rotterdam Zoo, very interesting and quite modern ; the Tilbury Zoo, now owned by M. N. van Dijk, and the aviaries, exceptionally clean, suitable and well kept of his brother, M. Henri van Dijk. the famous dealer, the only one in Europe to-day to receive really interesting collections of birds. Where are the days when bird shops in England and in France were full of all sorts of feathered treasures ? But they will return before too long, I hope, and the Avicultural Society is working towards a restoration of more normal, less harsh conditions than those existing since the beginning of the last war. Postcript.- — I have just heard burglars have stolen and killed all of Madame Malisoux’s Tragopans except one pair of Blyth’s and one of Satyrs. A shocking loss. BREEDING SUCCESSES IN AUSTRALIA 31 BREEDING SUCCESSES IN AUSTRALIA In response to inquiries from the Hon. Secretary of the Avicultural Society the following details of breeding successes have kindly been supplied by aviculturists in Australia in December, 1948 : — From Mr. E. Hallstrom, Sydney. In regard to the breeding of Australian and other Parrots, the following list is from memory, and would be underestimated. I have bred forty Macaws, twenty-eight of which were Red-and- Yellow, and have a pair of Blue-and-Gold Macaws with chicks. I have not examined the number. I have also bred ten hybrids which are a cross between the Red-and- Yellow and the Blue-and-Gold, and at the moment have more hybrids in the nest. A pair of Military Macaws are sitting on four eggs ; I am not very hopeful of the result as the male is very old. Many of the previous eggs of this pair have been infertile, but in the last clutch a few were fertile and I am hoping this present batch may bring forth some chicks. I am breeding regularly Black Cockatoos (Banksian). I also have White-tail and Yellow- tail Black Cockatoos, which have laid infertile eggs. I have bred the Gang Gang Cockatoo, Major Mitchell, White Cockatoo, Galah, Blue Mountain Parrot, and Eclectus or Red-sided Parrot. Of the smaller Parrots I have bred Brown’s, Eastern Rosella, Moreton Bay Rosella, a hybrid between the Eastern Rosella and Moreton Bay, Crimson Rosella, Adelaide Rosella, Regent Parrot, Blue Bonnet, Red Rump, Princess Alexandra, dozens of Indian Ringneck, Quaker Parrots (South America), Cockatiels, Blue Wings, King Parrot, Scarlet Chested, Turquoisines, hybrids between the Turquoisine and the Scarlet Chested, Hooded Parrots, Red Collared Lorrikeet, thousands of Budgerigars, hundreds of Peach-faced African Lovebirds, Yellow and ordinary Nyasa by hundreds, African Black Cheeks, Masked Lovebird, Lutino Nyasa, Fischer’s Lovebird, one Yellow-naped Amazon. In addition to these I have bred a Knysna Lourie. This bird is now about one-third grown and is the strangest baby I have ever seen. It left the nest as a tiny fledgling, and although not a quarter of the size of its parents, can find its way back to the nest. The youngster is doing very well, and is well cared for by the parents. I also have some unnamed Parrots from New Guinea, which are breeding at the present moment. The first lot of youngsters, after three weeks, disappeared. The birds have been changed into different aviaries and are now nesting again. I am hoping for better luck with their next effort. 32 BREEDING SUCCESSES IN AUSTRALIA The breeding which I have referred to has taken place over the last fifteen years, and is still going on. I do not keep a record, as I have so much work to do as a refrigerator manufacturer that I do not want to add to this by keeping close records of births of birds. If you wish to have a record of some particular bird or birds I could get one of my staff to follow them through this year if you consider it important enough. My aviaries contain over a thousand Parrots, excluding the Budgerigars and African Lovebirds. As I close this letter I recall a number of small American Parrots which have also been bred success¬ fully in my aviaries. From Mr. D. Martin, Warrnambool, Victoria. I am only too pleased to let you have all the information you require. I have been crossing Parrots for years and have had good hatches each time. I have been crossing large Parrots with small ones and always use the cock of the large species and hen of the small. Here are some of the crosses : — Western Australian King Parrot male X Red Rump (Grass Parrot) female. Laid six eggs, hatched four and reared them, being three males and one female. 18th November, 1946. Yellow Rosella male x Red Rump (Grass Parrot) female. Laid six eggs, hatched two, both being males. 12th December, 1947. Cockatoo Parrot male X Blue-winged Grass Parrot female. Laid five eggs, hatched four, reared three only, one dying at a week old, one male, two females. 2nd December, 1947. Stanley Rosella male x Red Rump (Grass Parrot) female. Laid six eggs, hatched four, reared one only, being a hen ; the three died on the fourth, fifth, and eighth days. 27th November, 1947. I crossed the same birds this year. They have hatched four birds, out of six eggs and have reared the four — two males, two females. 5th November, 1948. African Ringneck male x Crimson Rosella female. Laid six eggs, hatched three, reared three — one female, two males. 20th October, 1948. All eggs not hatched were infertile. Have also bred Apostle Birds in 1946 and 1947. King Parrots, 1946, 1947, and 1948 ; they laid six eggs each year and reared four each time ; 1946 — two males, two females, 1947— three females, one male, 1948 — three males, 1 female. Black-breasted Plover laid four eggs, hatched three, reared one only, others killed by other birds when a few days old in November, 1947. Have bred quite a few more but think I have covered the main breedings. Should you require any others I would be only too pleased to let you have further information. I have seven kinds of Pheasants, Reeves’s Firebacks, Nepals, Goldens, BREEDING SUCCESSES IN AUSTRALIA 33 Amhersts, Ringnecks, and mutants, and have over fifty chicks over two weeks old out to date this year. Have had a 50 per cent hatch and have a number of eggs due out next week. Have fourteen kinds of Parrots, six kinds of Quail, and lots of others. From Mr. R. Probert, Oatley, N.S.W. I have two male Barraband x Princess Alexandra hybrids which were bred by me just on three years ago. The colour at present is orange-red on forehead, rest of head, side of face, neck, and wings, green, as in the Barraband Parrakeet. Throat, chest, and down to vent, orange-red, mixed with some yellow on the chest. Some of the feathers on the belly edged with pale blue. The rump is bright blue and the sides of the body a paler blue. Wing patch yellowish-green, somewhat similar to Princess Alexandra, under tail-coverts pale blue and green. Upper tail green, intermediate in colour between Barraband and Princess. Underside of tail black, edged with pink. Beak red, eye orange-red. Last season I bred two Barraband x Rock Pebbler, but one bird has since died. The other is now twelve months old and is beginning to moult into adult plumage, showing a few reddish-orange feathers on the forehead and throat. The juvenile plumage is green, with a yellowish wing-patch. The bird is apparently a cock. The male parent was, of course, the Barraband in each of the above crosses. The hen Rock Pebbler has eye disease at present, so I could not use her for breeding purposes this year. I also bred two young from a Pileated x Pale-headed Rosella last year. These young may be a pair. The juvenile plumage is dull green on head, neck, side of face, back, and wings. Red across the forehead and pale blue cheek patch. Chest, greenish-blue, but one bird has now moulted out to pale blue on the chest. U nder tail-coverts and around legs red, rump yellowish, with a patch or bar of red. Edge of wing blue. Tail, green above and black and pale blue below, similar to the Pileated. Bill, horn-coloured, and shaped like a Rosella’s, but slightly longer. Eyes brown. The male parent was the Pileated (Red-capped) Parrakeet. At the present time I have four young Pileated Parrakeets in the nest. They are due to fly in about a week’s time. I do not know of anyone breeding these birds previously in New South Wales. The hen of the breeding pair is still in immature plumage and I would think about twelve months old. She came over with a batch of birds from Western Australia (Perth) some months ago and is quite tame. It would appear that she is a bird that has been taken from the nest (in the bush) and hand-reared. I have bred Princess, Scarlet-chested, Hooded, and Indian Ring- necks this season. I have some Varied Lorikeets in my aviaries, but have not had them go to nest so far. 3 34 BRITISH AVICULTURISTS’ CLUB From Mr. D. B. Bush, Banksia, N.S.W. You may be interested to hear that my brother, N. K. Bush, of Peakhurst, N.S.W., has bred the Little Lorikeet ( Glossopsitta pusilla). They have two young out. I think this is the first time they have been bred. * * * BRITISH AVICULTURISTS5 CLUB The fifteenth meeting of the Club was held at the Rembrandt Hotel, Thurloe Place, South Kensington, S.W. 7, on Wednesday, 1 2th January, 1949, at 6 p.m., followed by a dinner. Chairman : Miss E. Maud Knobel. Members of the Club : Dr. M. Amsler, Mrs. G. T. Clark, T. Crewes, B. H. Dulanty, A. Ezra (Patron), J. F. M. Floyd, F. Grant, Dr. E. Hindle, Major E. F. Housden, G. S. Mottershead, H. Murray, K. A. Norris, A. A. Prestwich (Hon. Secretary), D. H. S. Risdon, D. Seth-Smith, Capt. H. S. Stokes, E. N. T. Vane, R. C. Witting. Guests : J. Bailey, Miss V. S. Bonner, G. T. Clark, D. N. Dalton, Mrs. D. N. Dalton, Mrs. F. Grant, C. T. Morny, Mrs. C. T. Morny, J. A. Norris, Mrs. J. A. Norris, Mrs. D. Seth-Smith, Dr. R. Silcock, Mrs. R. Silcock, C. S. Webb. Members of the Club, 19 ; guests, 14 ; total, 33. Mr. Seth-Smith showed a splendid selection from his collection of slides to illustrate Courtship and Display among Birds. The species depicted were Peacock, Amherst, Argus, Rheinart’s Argus, Temminck’s Tragopan, Grey Peacock-Pheasant, Ocellated Turkey, Great, Lesser Superb, and Hunstein’s Magnificent Birds of Paradise, Ruff, Great and Australian Bustards, Andean Goose, King Vulture, Sun Bittern, and Kagu. The displays of many of these species were photographed for the first time by Mr. Seth-Smith, notably that of the Argus, Kagu, and King Vulture, in fact that of the last named is unique. The Sun Bittern was shown not giving a courtship but a warning display. The whole talk and slides were of absorbing interest, and well merited the applause given to the speaker. Considerable discussion followed, in which many members took part. Mr. Webb said he had kept a Sun Bittern in British Guiana as a pet, and had seen it display at a dog, presumably with a view to impressing the dog with its size, and thus using it as a protection. He thought one of the most extraordinary displays was that of Jackson’s Whydah, which as part of its performance makes a series of high jumps of between two and three feet. A bird of this species had been kept at the Zoo for about sixteen years. Mr. Norris considered the behaviour of birds in captivity approxi- BRITISH AVICULTURISTS * CLUB 35 mated those in freedom. He described the “ display ” of his Lead- beaters Cockatoo, but insisted that such exhibitions should be treated with reserve. Mr. Vane stressed the important part aviculture had played and could play in the study of display ; much of what was known was due to the observations of aviculturists. Mr. Seth-Smith had said the Zoo had never succeeded in breeding the Great Bustard owing to infertility, a condition possibly induced by the birds being pinioned. He thought a more likely reason was .a diet deficiency, possibly lack of vitamin E, which could be best supplied in the form of sprouting seed. In his experience Parrakeets, notably Bourke’s, that ate sprouting seed bred successfully, whereas those that did not, often produced infertile eggs. Mr. Ezra remarked that his Cranes were pinioned ; the operation had certainly not affected their fertility, as they bred every year. Mr. Vane then said Mr. Seth-Smith had referred to past breeding successes at the Zoo. He would like to know why greater efforts were not being made now. At Whipsnade during the past year or so great strides had been made in the breeding of Pheasants and Waterfowl. Could not similar efforts be made with Parrakeets ? Dr. Hindle replied that the Zoo’s list of birds bred in the past was formidable. Present-day conditions prevented anything much in the breeding line. The Gardens occupied a comparatively small area, and it was not possible to allot space to aviaries solely for breeding purposes. Apart from which, the enormous number of visitors would make it impossible to provide the necessary seclusion. Whipsnade was not too favourably situated for the purpose of breeding Parrakeets and other birds ; the Park was in a somewhat bleak position. It would be useless to attempt breeding on an extensive scale without properly constructed aviaries, not just shelters. Shortage of material and various restrictions prevented anything being done for the present. Mr. Seth-Smith agreed. Mr. Dulanty observed that some years ago Mr. Teschemaker was very successful in keeping and breeding small insectivorous birds in well-planted, open aviaries without shelters. Mr. Seth-Smith, how¬ ever, pointed out that these were in a far better location in Devon. Well-planted aviaries were, of course, impracticable for Parrakeets. Mr. Vane said that during the past few years, when it had been virtually impossible to construct new aviaries, or for that matter to repair old, aviculturists had found that large, movable aviaries were not essential to ensure the health of the occupants. Some remarkable breeding results had been obtained in quite small, fixed aviaries, and the stamina of the stock maintained. Under these conditions he had bred various species to the third generation, without the slightest deterioration. Dr. Amsler asked Mr. Vane what he considered a desirable length 36 REVIEW of flight, and he replied fifteen to eighteen feet. Dr. Amsler said that some years ago he had a pair of Rosellas in a small aviary, 9 feet by 3 feet by 6 feet high. Seventeen young were reared from clutches of ten and seven, and left together with their parents for want of room until the end of the season. The sight of these nineteen birds in one small flight was almost suggestive of a dealer’s stock-cage. Dr. Kindle asked Mr. Seth-Smith whether he had any theory as to why birds displayed. Mr. Seth-Smith replied that it was mainly to increase the ardour of the female, a sexual stimulant. It was extra¬ ordinary that Birds of Paradise had developed such specialized plum¬ age, and should indulge in such elaborate forms of display, whereas at the other end of the scale birds like the Hedge Sparrow, in which the sexes were almost identical, should have little or no display of any kind. Mr. Floyd and Mr. Murray also took part in the discussion. The next meeting of the Club will be on Tuesday, 15th March, 1949. Arthur A. Prestwich, Hon. Secretary and Treasurer. The Treasurer begs to remind all members who have not already paid that subscriptions (5^.) became due on 1st January, 1949. * * * REVIEW BIRDS OF A VALLEY. By W. R. Philipson. (Longmans. 10s. 6d.) Mr. Philipson’s book is a quiet account of some time spent watching the birds of the Lakeland valley at the southern end of Ullswater. How long he spent in this district is not made clear, although his descriptions cover all the seasons of the year. He gives much space to careful and detailed accounts of the display of many species which nest or migrate through the dale, to the incubation and development of nestlings of some common birds, and the feeding habits of Dipper, Woodcock, and some of the migratory ducks which rest on Brothers Water. Of the two more general chapters the one on migration may be a useful summary for bird lovers, and that on roosting incorporates the author’s own observations from outside the district. Mention is also made of Peregrine Falcon and Raven, but the author does not convey the grandeur of the high fells, where these two are the dominant species. A whole chapter is devoted to the Buzzard ; it would be strange if the birds of this small area should differ from others in the district in failing to decorate their nests with a fresh green sprig ; lastly, Mr. Philipson can be assured that he has not seen the last pair of tree-nesting Buzzards in the Lake District. I. G. PERSONALIA 37 PERSONALIA A. Decoux has been fortunate in obtaining a pair of imported Forsten’s Lorikeets and a pair of the very rare Blue-faced Lorikeet ( Trichoglossus capistratus) . Cecil Webb has been very ill with malaria and various other diseases contracted during his last collecting trip to British Cameroons. Readers will be pleased to know he is now recuperating nicely. Dave Bush expected to bring a collection from Australia for the London Zoo, but the authorities decided it would be safer to wait until the spring. In the meantime, he has been collecting Palm Cockatoos, Birds of Paradise, Tree-Kangaroos, etc., in New Guinea. H. A. Fooks has joined the Nigerian Forest Service and is leaving shortly for Nigeria. He is, however, keeping on his farm in Sussex. He will be pleased to hear from any members interested in obtaining local animals and birds. Mrs. Nancy Edgar Smith last spring reared two Cereopsis Geese. They were full- winged at complete liberty. One has just met a tragic end by flying into a hydro-electric wire. Mrs. Smith had previously reared one young one which went to Peter Scott’s collection. Guy Falkner is now resident in Natal. In a recent letter he says he is hand-rearing a young Mynah. “ They were imported here from India and, like the Grey Squirrel, have taken over from many of the native birds.” He is also rearing a young Pied Starling — entirely African and very local — and a pair of Cape Spotted Pigeons. A pair of Stanley Cranes were nesting on his land, “ very common here.” Francis H. Rudkin, the doyen of American aviculturists but, of course, English by birth, now age 88, still maintains a very extensive collection of Parrot-like birds. In a recent list he gives over 260 Psittacines, in addition to 230 Lovebirds, including twenty-five pairs of Masked, blue variety. Breeding successes this year have been com¬ paratively few, owing to rebuilding the aviaries, but two Leadbeater’s and one Lesser Sulphur-crested Cockatoo were reared. He has recently been elected President Emeritus of the Avicultural Society of America, in succession to the late Mr. W. H. Browning. F. H. R., jun., is coming to England next summer and hopes to meet English aviculturists. A. A. P. 38 NOTES NOTES Additions to the London Zoo. October, 1 948. The new arrivals, apart from transfers from Whipsnade, numbered twenty-two. A small collection was received in exchange from the National Zoological Park, Washington, and consisted of 1 American Crow ( Corvus hrachyrhynchos) , 2 Blue Jays ( Cyanocitta cristata ), 2 Mexican Rose Finches ( Carpodacus mexicanus), 1 Northern Mocking-bird (Mimus poly glottos) , and 4 Bob Whites ( Colinus virginianus) . A Black Kite ( Milvus migrans ) was presented by Mr. R. Stevens, and a Western Bluebird ( Sialia mexicana occidentals) was received in exchange, otherwise there was nothing of special note. Whipsnade. — The registered additions were eighty-six, all with the exception of 1 Cackling Goose $, and 1 Snow Goose <$, bred in the Park during 1948 : 1 Swinhoe’s Pheasant $, 1 2 Golden Pheasants, 2 Lady Amherst’s Pheasants $, 2 Impeyan Pheasants, 4 Ring-necked Pheasants 3 Common Pheasants (dark var.), 7 Indian Chukors, 12 Red Jungle Fowl, 2 Black-winged Peafowl, 6 Common Peafowl, 29 North American Turkeys, 4 Brush Turkeys. November, 1948. There were sixteen new arrivals during the month. The more interesting were 2 Blue-winged Geese ( Cyanochen cyanoptera) from Abyssinia ; 1 Turn¬ stone ( Arenaria interpres ) picked up at Romford ; and 1 hybrid Chinese Silver X Edwards’ Pheasant, bred in the Menagerie. 1 1 o Budgerigars, bred in the Menagerie during 1948, were taken on the strength. Whipsnade. — 1 Ashy-headed Goose, 2 Mikado Pheasants, and 2 Rosy-billed Ducks, were received in exchange ; and 1 Orange-winged Parrot was presented. A. A. P. Snow and Lapland Buntings. Once more I would impress on members the importance of recording in the Magazine all breedings, whether in their own aviaries or in those of acquaintances. I had always supposed these Buntings to be very difficult to breed in captivity, based on the fact that in my files I have only the following records : — “ Snow Bunting. Bred by G. T. Kay, Lerwick, Shetland Isles, in 1942, after twenty years endeavour. Two young ones were hatched 3rd July ; one bird died during the moult in September, and the other in December (account by the breeder in Avicultural Magazine, 1944, 106). “ Lapland Bunting. In 1933 Teschemaker sent Dr. Hopkinson some extracts from his old notebooks, among which is the record of the breeding by him of this Bunting in 1916. Three young were hatched, i8th-20th June, and one of them lived in his aviary for a year or more. Teschemaker wrote that he sent details to Cage Birds, but only to the correspondence column.” Now, quite by chance, I learn that W. H. Smith, of Grimsby, has bred both Buntings on several occasions and apparently has not attached any great importance to the successes. He has had both species in his aviaries for the past ten years and has bred with them most years. Usually it is the second or third year when they commence to breed. Nests are made on the ground in a layer of sand and grit, with tufts of dry grass and heather planted in it. Last year three Lapland and two Snow Buntings were reared, but one Lapland died when it was well on the wing. In view of the foregoing it is possible other breeders have been successful, in which event I would be interested to have particulars. A. A. P. Swans on the Thames. Correspondence with H.M. Keeper of the Swans, the Dyers’ Company, and the Vintners’ Company elicited the facts that at the last Swan Upping birds were marked as follows : — ■ The Crown. — Swans, 500. The Dyers’ Company. — Swans, 40 ; cygnets, 22. The Vintners’ Company. — Swans, 1 09 ; and 6 Black Swans recently received from Western Australia. A. A. P. NOTES 39 The National Cage Bird Show. The National Exhibition of Cage Birds was held at the Royal Horticultural (New) Hall on 2nd, 3rd, and 4th December, 1948. It was organized by Cage Birds and the proceeds are to be divided between the Forces Help Society and the National Council of Aviculture. The Foreign Section attracted 144 entries — an increase of forty-one on last year — and was judged by E. N. T. Vane. The National Award of Merit for the best foreign bird and National Foreign Bird Silver Trophy were awarded to A. Ezra for his Brown-eared Bulbul. The Psittacine classes received better support than last year, forty-seven entries. The class winners were E. F. Benjamin’s Masked Lovebird, W. P. Bland’s Bourke’s Parrakeet, C. Laidman’s Plum-headed Parrakeet (Best Parrot-like Exhibit), A. Ezra’s Green- winged King Parrakeet, and P. A. Birch’s superb pair of Yellow-cheeked Parrots. There were twenty-three entries in the class for common Waxbills, Mannikins, etc., and this was won by T. Crewes’ Golden-breasted Waxbills, followed by P. Barnes’ St. Helena Waxbills and T. Crewes’ Zebra Waxbills. The rarer species of Waxbills and Mannikins class provided a win for T. Crewes’ Chestnut-breasted. A pair of Rufous-necked Weavers won the Whydahs and Weavers class for A. Ezra ; the Parrot Finches and Gouldian class was won by T. Crewes’s Red-headed Parrot Finches. The class for Grassfinches and the rarer small seedeaters provided T. Crewes with his fourth premier award; in addition his birds occupied six of the first seven positions. His leading birds were Melba Finches, Golden-breasted Buntings, and White Java Sparrows : A. Ezra’s Gay’s Finch was second, and prevented a clean sweep. The small insectivorous bird class produced twelve entries, including five Sunbirds. A. Ezra was first and third with Collared and Double-collared, and T. Crewes second with a pair of Zosterops. The class for medium-size insectivorous birds was won by A. Ezra’s Brown-eared Bulbul (Best Foreign Bird), with his Rothschild’s Grackle third, and T. Crewes’ Golden-fronted Fruitsucker second. The best of the larger insectivorous birds was G. C. Lynch’s well-known Donaldson’s Touracou with its companion, the Blue Satin Bower Bird, third, the gap being filled by T. CorralPs Eastern Pie. The remaining class for lutinos, hybrids, etc., was won by J. E. Williams’ Blue¬ winged X Turquoisine Parrakeet, with C. Gunton’s Green Singing Finch X Canary. A. A. P. The Duke of Bedford’s Birds. Members, especially those resident abroad, occasionally inquire whether the Duke of Bedford is still actively interested in aviculture. The Duke’s many activities prevent his devoting the time he would wish to “ this most amiable pursuit ”, but he manages to maintain a small but very interesting collection. The principal birds are : — Solitary Lory, one pair. Goupil’s Lorikeet, three males, one female, and one young one bred last year. Gang-Gang Cockatoo, one pair. Roseate Cockatoo, three males and one female, albino and albino-bred. Queen of Bavaria’s Conure, female. Blue-fronted Amazon, lutino, female. Derbyan Parrakeet, one pair and one sex unknown. Malabar Parrakeet, female. Green-winged King Parrakeet, male. Pileated Parrakeet, one pair. A. A. P. Ravens at the Tower A member recently asked whether there are now any Ravens at the Tower of London. Inquiry at the Constable’s Office revealed that there are at present six birds, the full establishment. A. A. P. 40 CORRESPONDENCE CORRESPONDENCE AVIAN IMPORTS A few days ago I went to the Import Licensing Department of the Board of Trade in order to inquire about the regulations governing the importation of birds and was informed that, apart from a possible exception in the case of those required for scientific research, there is a ban on all birds and snakes. The official view seems to be that any small bird will eat seed, and the order is evidently worded in such a way that quadrupeds (excepting horses and cattle) may be imported freely, together with those of doubtful quadrupedal qualifications, such as monkeys, and so we have the Gilbertian situation of a lizard with four feet being admitted and all legless lizards or snakes being excluded. It is apparently only the small birds that peck away the foundations of the country’s economic structure, for I was told later that permits might be granted for large birds, such as Cranes or Flamingoes, destined for zoos. An hour or so later I went into a dealer’s shop (where, incidentally, I saw three Greater Spotted Woodpeckers and wondered if they conformed to the law by being aviary-bred and close-ringed) and, on inquiring if they had any foreign birds, was offered Silverbills and Mannikins at £2 ioj-. per pair. These were not actually on view but they were, I was assured, recently brought into the country by someone and would soon be in the shop. And so the farce goes on. Binstead, Isle of Wight. John Ye all and. (Mr. Yealland’s experience is similar to that of several other members who have approached the Board of Trade. While steadfastly refusing to grant import licences to any except zoos, they seem entirely unable to give any reason for their attitude. The sympathy of a well-known M.P. has been enlisted and he has taken up the question with the appropriate Department, but without getting a satisfactory reply. He has now formulated a question to be put on the Order Paper and answered on the floor of the House. — A. A. P.) * * * / THE BLACK-CAPPED SOCIAL WEAVER I see Mr. Webb writes in the Magazine that he thinks the Weaver I wrote about was not the Black-capped Social Weaver. I am fairly confident that it is. I watched them through field-glasses and made note of their colour at the time and directly on my return to Nairobi went through the skins at the Corydon Museum and picked out the bird from the notes I had made. Mr. Webb may be right and very likely is. Until someone who is an authority on the Weavers can put me right “ my guess is as good as anyone else’s ”. I sent some photos of the birds at the nests to MissBarclay- Smith when I sent the article but they were too small for reproduction, otherwise they might have cleared the matter up. If I have described the bird inaccurately I must apologize to the readers of the Magazine, but can only state what I saw and the conclusion I came to after examining the skins. M001 River, Natal. 13th December , 1948, Guy Falkner. CANDIDATES FOR ELECTION Reginald M. Adamson, c/o Zoological Society of London, Whipsnade Park, Nr. Dunstable, Beds. Proposed by P. H, Maxwell. A. R. Anderson, 15 Dugdale Street, Birmingham 18. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. Jose Maria Ferran Andreu, Calle Montaner 267-3, Barcelona, Spain. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. R. Best, F.Z.S., Langdale, 42 Petitor Road, Torquay. Proposed by E. N. T. Vane. Miss V. S. E. Bonner, 36 Wilson Street, Winchmore Hill, London, N. 21. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. Donald S. Brock, 5840 Seminary Court, Oakland, California, U.S.A. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. Mrs. David Carlson, 1521 Berkeley Way, Berkeley 3, California, U.S.A. Pro¬ posed by A. A. Prestwich. F. N. Clark, 8 Maurice Road, King’s Heath, Birmingham. Proposed by Mrs. G. T. Clark. G. T. Clark, Maidsmere, Finstall, Bromsgrove, Worcs. Proposed by Mrs. G. T. Clark. Rolf Dahlby, Elveveien 3, Trondheim, Norway. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. Robert J. Hansen, P.O. Box 46, Gonzales, California, U.S.A. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. Major H. R. Hendy, Nyamazani, P.O. Box 46, Mbabane, Swaziland, S. Africa. Proposed by A. F. C. A. van Heyst. Louis Hershey, 189 Washington Street, New York 7, New York, U.S.A. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. Ivo Lazzeroni, 5034 Templeton Street, Los Angeles 32, California, U.S.A. Pro¬ posed by A. A. Prestwich. Frank A. Rethers, 605 Market Street, San Francisco 5, California, U.S.A. Pro¬ posed by A. A. Prestwich. Larry C. Shelton, P.O. Box 363, Harriman, Tenn., U.S.A. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. G. Donald Spaceman, Jr., Hill Farm, Coatesville, Penn., U.S.A. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. Paul V. Springman, P.O. Box 527, Brownsville, Texas, U.S.A. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. Horace J. Stevens, Tustin, California, U.S.A. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. A. E. Thomas, Burnt House, Chigwell, Essex. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. C. R. Verner, Lower Lann, Fonthill Gifford, Tisbury, Wilts. Proposed by Hamish Nicol. Mrs. C. M. Wagner, 1608 W. Second Street, Santa Ana, California, U.S.A. Pro¬ posed by A. A. Prestwich. NEW MEMBERS E. F. Benjamin, Sunny Cot, Trowbridge Road, Bradford-on-Avon, Wilts. Mrs. J. Dalziel Birrell, Green Hill House, Otford, Kent. Frank Buck, 324 S. Bishop Street, San Angelo, Texas, U.S.A. Herbert Gurth Calkin, M.B.O.U., Meadows, Waggon Road, Hadley Wood, Herts. Dr. T. S. Daniels, Room 21, Elgin House, Prince’s Avenue, Benoni, Transvaal, S. Africa. Frank Fancutt, 86 Linden Drive, Alvaston, Derby. Alton V. Freeman, Miami Rare Bird Farm Inc., P.O. Box 100, Kendall, Florida, U.S.A. John Frederick Galland, Kapala Estate, Bedong P.O., Kedah, Malaya. W. M. Gardner, 294 Broad Lane, King’s Heath, Birmingham 14. Dennis G. Gibbs, 49 Portland Road, Toton, Notts. G. de Goederen, Orteliuskade 74, Amsterdam, Holland. O. Hale, Laithfield, Digswell, Welwyn, Herts. G. J. Irving, 2 Grove Road, Egremont, Cumberland. G. Steel, The Cottage Aviaries, 24 Mariners Cottages, South Shields, Co. Durham. Mrs. C. H. Wakefield, 139 Senic Drive, Palomar Park, Redwood City, California, Mrs. G. A. Willsher, 37 Springfield Road, Thornton Heath, Surrey. REJOINED Ralph Frayne, 50 Cantley Lane, Bessacarr, Doncaster. CHANGES OF ADDRESS A. W. Goodall, to 33 Stuart Avenue, Hunts Gross, Liverpool. C. Buckingham Jones, to Dibrugarh, Upper Assam, India. Mrs. A. A. Pearse, to Kernick, Gross Roads, Grayshott, Surrey. Mrs. L. N. Phipps, to The Manor House, Minster Lovell, Oxon. M. C. Pugh, to 99 Marlborough Road, Swindon. D. H. S. Risdon, to Redmays, Keston Avenue, Keston, Kent. Peter Scott, to New Grounds, Slimbridge, Gloucestershire. K. J. Smith, to “ Wychwood ”, Harbour View Close, Parkstone, Dorset. Peter Sutton, M.R.C.V.S., to 1 1 Culverden Park Road, Tunbridge Wells. F. L. Tuma, to Ola Hanssonsgatan 3, Malmo, Sweden. DONATIONS £ *. d. J. Spedan Lewis . .900 Mrs. G. T. Clark . 120 “ Alpha ” . .100 MEMBERS’ ADVERTISEMENTS The charge for Members' advertisements is one penny per word. Payment must accompany the advertisement , which must be sent on or before the 20th of the month , to A. A. Prestwich, Chelmsford Road, Southgate, N. 14. All members of the Society are entitled to use this column , but the Council reserves the right to refuse any advertisements they consider unsuitable . Wanted. — Avicultural Magazine, 1923, bound ; Aviculture , vols. ii and iii ; Bannerman, Birds of Tropical West Africa , 5 vols. ; also other avicultural and ornitho¬ logical books. — Offers to G. de Goederen, Orteliuskade 74, Amsterdam, Nether¬ lands. Wanted, adult hen Ringneck Parrakeet, also 1947 hen Golden Pheasant. For sale or exchange, pure 1948 Golden Pheasants. — A. Mitchell, 16 Albany Street, Hull, Yorks. For Sale, pure Golden Pheasants, pair and odd cock birds, 1947 and 1948 ; also 1947 Edwards’s cock — prices reasonable. — D. A. Marshall, 2 Fullarton Crescent, Troon, Ayrshire. For Sale, Avicultural Magazine, 1935-1947, in parts, perfect condition. Wanted, 1925-1930. — Offers to the Hon. Secretary. STEPHEN AUSTIN AND SONS, LTD., PRINTERS, HERTFORD. AVICULTURAL MAGAZINE CONTENTS PAGE The Bird Collection at Dudley Zoo {with plate), by G. A. J. Weaver . . 41 Australian Parrots in Captivity, by Alan Lendon ..... 44 Some Notes on the Moult of the Long-tailed Duck, by Finn Salomonsen . 59 The Re-birth of Clares, by J. Delacour . 62 The “ Red-and-Blue ” Macaws, by W. C. Osman Hill .... 66 Notes on Birds in Kenya, Uganda, and Tanganyika, by A. Wilson . . 71 British Aviculturists’ Club . 74 Personalia . 75 Notes . 76 VOL. 55 No. 2 PRICE 5/- M ARCH-APRIL 1949 THE AVICULTURAL SOCIETY Founded 1894 President : A. EZRA, Esq., O.B.E. MEMBERSHIP SUBSCRIPTION is £i per annum, due on ist January each year, and payable in advance. Life Membership, £15. Subscriptions, Changes of Address, Names of Candidates for Membership, etc., should be sent to — The Honorary Secretary and Treasurer , A. A. PRESTWICH, Chelmsford Road, Southgate, N. 14. Tel.: Palmers Green 4484. THE AVICULTURAL MAGAZINE is published bi-monthly and sent free to members. Members joining at any time during the year are entided to back numbers for the current year on the payment of subscription. ALL MATTER FOR PUBLICATION IN THE MAGAZINE SHOULD BE ADDRESSED TO— The Editor , MISS PHYLLIS BARCLAY-SMITH, 51 Warwick Avenue, Tel. : Cunningham 3006. London, W. 9. The price of the Magazine to non-members is 5 s. post free per copy, or ■£1 10 s. for the year. Orders for the Magazine, extra copies, and back numbers (from 1917) should be sent to the publishers, Messrs. Stephen Austin & Sons, 1 Fore Street, Hertford. Tel. : Hertford 2546-8. POST-MORTEM EXAMINATIONS Rule i. A short account of the illness should accompany the specimen. All birds to be sent as fresh as possible to Mr. W. Lawrence, The Zoological Society of London, Regent’s Park, London, N.W. 8. Rule 2. A fee of ioj. and a stamped addressed envelope must be enclosed with the bird. Rule 3. No body or skin of any bird will be returned under any circumstances whatever. Avi. Mag. 1949. Copyright ] [Dudley Zoo. Dudley Zoo Paddocks for Flamingoes, Ducks and Geese in the old Moat. AVICULTURAL MAGAZINE THE JOURNAL OF THE AVICULTURAL SOCIETY Vol. 55.— No. 2.— All rights reserved. MARCH-AFRIL, 1949 THE BIRD COLLECTION AT DUDLEY ZOO By George A. J. Weaver, F.Z.S. Dudley Castle is situated in the heart of an industrial area in the Midlands and commands an excellent view of the surrounding countryside. This ancient castle, for centuries the seat of the Earls of Dudley, is mentioned in the Domesday Book, although it is thought to have been in existence some hundreds of years prior to this. The present Earl conceived the idea of creating a Zoo in the castle grounds and ruins, and work commenced in the early 1930’s. On 6th May, 1937, the Zoo was opened to the public under the chairmanship of the late Mr. A. E. Marsh, this position now being held by his son. Mr. E. E. Marsh, and some months ago the Dudley Zoological Society became a public company. As with many such institutions, Dudley suffered badly during the war and by 1946 the enclosures and buildings were in sad need of repair and stock had dwindled to a mere handful. The Society was extremely fortunate about this time in obtaining the services of Mr. D. Bowles, B.Sc., as General Manager, and as a result of his energetic and untiring efforts the Zoo again began to take shape, and to-day it houses a fine collection of exhibits, under far better conditions than it did pre-war. Repairs have been speedily effected, fresh stock acquired (we all know the pitfalls abounding in this direction), and thousands of bulbs have been planted to brighten the gardens in spring. The original features of the Castle have been fully utilized in the planning of the Zoo, as, for example, the moat, which to-day is divided into sections to house seals and waterfowl. Although not a large collection compared with that of Regent’s Park, the birds kept at Dudley are a representative selection and one is greatly impressed by the fine condition in which all specimens appear to be. The manage¬ ment and staff should be complimented on maintaining such good health and general appearance amongst their charges, particularly 41 4 MAY 2-18(19 42 G. A. J. WEAVER — THE BIRD COLLECTION AT DUDLEY ZOO during the present trying times when proper foodstuffs are difficult to obtain. Sharing with ruminants the larger paddocks, some of which must be an acre or more in extent, will be found examples of Sarus, Demoiselle and Crowned Cranes, Black-shouldered Peafowl (which successfully reared chicks last season), and Red Junglefowl. The Sarus has, I believe, been in the collection some fifteen years and is a fine old bird. Another paddock is devoted to four Emus, unfortunately all male birds, which, of course, is a setback where breeding is concerned. However, they prove an interesting exhibit and serve to illustrate to the general public the size attained by some species. The Bird of Prey avairies contain fine examples of Buzzard, Caracara, Bateleur Eagle, Griffon Vultures, Milky Eagle-Owl, Cape Owl, and Brown Owl. The Vultures built a nest in February, 1939, but did not achieve any success in hatching young. The Pheasantry at Dudley is circular in design and is divided into compartments housing outstanding pairs of Impeyans, Blue Crossop- tilons, and Edwards, the first two species being recent acquisitions from Leckford. Others of this family to be seen are Goldens, Silvers, Amherst (pure), Melanistic Mutants, and a few of mixed ancestry. My only regret is that space does not permit the housing of these beautiful birds in more spacious enclosures, an impossibility, alas ! with many of our Zoos. An excellent specimen of a Red-legged Partridge is also on view and deserves mention. There are several ranges of outdoor avairies dotted about the grounds, and amongst these will be found a nice collection of Budgies of various colours. Other compartments contain pairs of Cockatiels, Golden-mantled Rosellas, Redrumps, Indian Ringnecks, Roseate Cockatoos, and Senegals. Another circular building is the Bird House, which is constructed of concrete and contains a fine selection of exotic species, Psittacines being particularly well represented. Here the visitor will find examples of Goffins, Citron-crested, Gang-Gang, Lesser and Greater Sulphur- crested Cockatoos, Stanleys and Alexandrine Parrakeets, Peach-faced Lovebirds, Festives, Yellow-fronted, Blue-fronted, and Red-topped Amazons, a White-fronted Caique, Red and Blue, Red and Yellow, and Illiger’s Macaws, African Greys, and Purple-capped and Black- capped Lories. The last named has recently laid two eggs but unfortunately was not paired. Others of this family expected shortly are Plumheads, Golden-fronted Conures, and Pennants. A large enclosure in the Bird House houses two superb specimens of Hartloub’s Touracou in excellent condition and extremely tame. These birds, together with a pair of Ground Hornbills and various animals, etc., were brought back from Africa by the Head Keeper, Mr. H. Hatch, who also supervised the transportation and safe G. A. J. WEAVER - THE BIRD COLLECTION AT DUDLEY ZOO 43 delivery of a pair of hippos to Regent’s Park. Another large compart¬ ment is devoted to the smaller Finches, including Bishops, Delamere, and Pintail Whydahs, Gordon Bleus, St. Helena Waxbills, Fire Finches, Avadavats, Reichnow’s Weavers, and a Red-crested Cardinal. Perhaps the most novel construction at the Zoo is the section devoted to wildfowl, which, as previously mentioned, is part of the old moat. Grass-covered banks, dotted with bushes, slope down to concrete pools and in the various pens of this section are to be found a nice selection of Ducks, Geese, etc. The ornithologist in particular would immediately be taken by two flawless pairs of Red-crested Pochard, a species rarely encountered by the average bird-watcher unless he be in the happy position that enables him to travel far afield and seek out such rarities. Colour is provided in these pens by Mandarins and Carolinas, while other species of Duck include Gape Teal, Ruddy Sheldduck, Rosybill, Falcated Teal, Wigeon, and Pintail. A fairly wide variety of Geese are also on view, consisting of Spur- wings, Greater White and Blue Snow Geese, Barheads, Egyptian, Abyssinian, Canadian, Chinese, and Emden. Pairs of Black and Mute Swans are also on show, other water-loving species including Flamingoes, White Pelicans, Gannets, and Common Gulls. Apart from a number of domestic and fancy Pigeons there are a few Turtle Doves, a Red Mountain Dove, Olive Pigeons, and a pair of Bronze-winged Pigeons. Other birds not yet mentioned include Ravens, Linnets, Jackdaws, Goldfinches, Guinea Fowl, and some fancy Bantams and Ducks. The above list contains some ninety odd different species, the total number of birds being somewhere in the region of 230. This is a great improvement since 1946, and with further additions expected, will provide excellent interest to the aviculturist and ornithologist who can find the time to pay Dudley Zoo a visit. 44 A. LENDON - AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY By Alan Lendon, Adelaide {Continued from p. ig) (i) Cockatiel (. Leptolophus hollandicus) Synonyms. — Cockatoo Parrot, Quarrion (in Queensland and in parts of New South Wales), Weero (in Western Australia). Distribution. — Occurs over most of Australia ; is commoner in the northern parts and is rarely seen near the coast in the south. Description. — The adult male is a slim, crested Parrot, whose pre¬ vailing colour is grey, relieved by a broad white band on the outer wing-coverts. The forehead, face, and base of the crest is yellow and the ear-coverts are orange ; the tip of the crest is greyish-black. The adult female has duller orange ear-coverts and a rather dirty yellow face, the grey of the under parts and rump is freckled with creamy yellow and the tail feathers are also similarly spotted, the two lateral ones being more yellow than grey. Immatures resemble the female on leaving the nest, but young males usually show a slightly brighter yellow on and around the face ; they usually assume the adult facial colouration when about five or six months old, but retain the speckled tail feathers until the first complete moult. Variations. — Several subspecies have been described, but minor variations are common in a number of birds from any given locality, especially in the hens. Coloured Plates. — Good plates are not common ; that in Greene (vol. i, p. 33) portrays the colouring of the male fairly accurately but gives the bird a fore-shortened appearance. Roland Green’s plate in Mathews (vol. vi, p. 239) is quite good, except that the male has rather a pale face, while that of the female is too grey, and does not show the dirty yellow tinge. Field Notes. — I have seen this bird in South Queensland on several occasions, either in pairs or in what appeared to be small family parties from the presence of a single adult male in the group. Aviary Notes. — A very well known aviary bird, which has been kept and bred extensively, both in Australia and abroad. It is an excellent bird for a mixed collection as it agrees well with other Parrots and also with birds of other orders. It is one of the few Parrots that can be bred in a mixed collection, as a pair will often quietly but firmly appropriate a log and are usually able to defend it successfully against the most aggressive of the broadtails ; it can also be bred in a colony, provided there is not an excess of cock birds and that reasonable space is provided. A. LENDON - AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY 45 My first experience in breeding this species was in 1935-6. A pair obtained in August of the former year nested in November and hatched two young from a clutch of five eggs ; only .one of these survived and it left the nest in mid-January ; it proved to be a cock and had attained adult facial plumage in July. Three further young were hatched in March but did not survive long. In the spring of 1936 four eggs had been laid by 20th September and five young were seen on 13th October, these were all reared and left the log between the 1 2th and 19th November. A second clutch was started immediately thereafter, but none of this or a subsequent clutch laid in January were reared successfully. In the spring of 1937 eggs were laid in the middle of August and four young left the nest between the 10th and 1 7th October. The second clutch, consisting of six eggs, was completed by the end of October ; all of these were hatched and reared, the last leaving the nest on Christmas Eve. Since then I have bred a good many Cockatiels, but seldom more than two or three to a clutch. The birds have usually had three or four clutches each season, but have invariably spoilt one or more by laying before the young of the previous clutch have left the nest. On these occasions the young have frequently been badly plucked about the head and face ; presumably the parents have resented their presence in the nest after having laid again. It is well known that the cock Cockatiel shares the duties of incuba¬ tion, sitting from early morning to late afternoon while the hen carries on for the remainder of the twenty-four hours. Both sexes feed the young but I cannot recall ever having seen a cock feed his mate. It has always been my opinion that the Cockatiel is more closely related to the Cockatoos than to the true Parrots, partly on account of both sexes brooding and partly because of the sexual differences in plumage which are, to my mind, analogous to those which occur in the Black Cockatoos, especially in the two red- tailed species. The Avicultural Society of South Australia deemed the Cockatiel ineligible for its medal, as it was known to have been bred on numerous occasions prior to the Society’s foundation in 1928. It is strange that a bird which has bred so freely in captivity and become domesticated in several countries has not produced any mutations ; I have been informed that a fawn or cinnamon sport has been bred in a country town in this state, but I have not been able to verify this statement. A cock Cockatiel when first introduced to a hen, especially if he has led a bachelor existence for some time, usually indulges in a rather comical display consisting of a series of rather absurd looking hops while following the hen along the ground, and accompanied by a low warbling variant of the usual shrill call note. Apart from this . preliminary courtship, I have never seen a cock display to his mate, and although devoted to each other and indulging frequently in 46 A. LENDON - AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY mutual preening, they are quite easily consoled after the loss of a mate and readily pair up when a newcomer is introduced. (2) Red-sided Parrot ( Lorius pectoralis ) Synonyms. — Red-sided Eclectus, Rocky Parrot (by the residents of Cape York). Distribution. — Confined as far as Australia is concerned to a portion of Cape York Peninsula, North Queensland, but also found in New Guinea and some of the adjacent islands. Description. — The adult male is a large short- tailed Parrot, of a predominantly bright green colour, relieved by a patch of red on the sides of the body which extends under the wing. The upper mandible is red with a yellow tip and the lower is black. The adult female is strikingly different, being mainly of a reddish crimson colour, except for a purplish blue abdomen and a blue band across the upper back. The mandibles in this sex are black. The immature birds of each sex closely resemble the adults, being only slightly duller in coloration. Variations. — It is extremely doubtful if the Australian bird can be separated from the one found in New Guinea. Coloured Plates. — The plate in Greene (vol. iii, p. 89) is a fairly good representation of the two sexes. That by Roland Green in Mathews (vol. vi, p. 248) is not very good, inasmuch as both birds are shown in rather unnatural postures and the male is drawn in a position which does not exhibit the conspicuous red flanks, whilst the blue of the female is much too violet in shade. Gronvold’s plate in The Emu (vol. xiv, plate F) is a reasonably good representation of a male. Field Notes. — I have not seen this bird, but observed the closely allied Grand Eclectus (L. roratus) on Morotai ; they are usually seen singly, and had a slow flapping flight and uttered their harsh call note at intervals while flying. Aviary Notes. — Although I kept a hen Grand Eclectus for several weeks on Morotai, I have no personal experience of the species under review as, although I once owned a pair, I exchanged them before actually taking delivery of them. These birds have been represented in the Adelaide Zoo collection almost continuously since 1908, and although many eggs have been laid and several young have hatched complete success has never been achieved. In Taronga Park Zoo, Sydney, several pairs of these birds have been kept together in the one aviary for many years and a considerable number of young have been reared, but I think I am correct in saying that, apart from a few of the first breedings, the young have been removed from the nests and hand-reared after A. LENDON - AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY 47 reaching a certain stage of development. For further details the reader is referred to the articles by Patten in Avicultural Magazine, 1939, P- 288, and 1944, p. 123. It would appear that the hen bird alone incubates and that the cock feeds the hen but has not been observed to feed the young ; this latter point, however, requires corroboration. I have no record of birds obtained in Australia being kept in captivity other than on Gape York ; all the published observations deal with birds obtained from New Guinea or their aviary-bred descendants. (3) Red-cheeked Parrot ( Geoffroyus geoffroyi) Distribution. — As far as Australia is concerned, this bird is only known from Cape York Peninsula, but an apparently identical bird is found in New Guinea and some of the near-by islands. Description. — A medium-sized short-tailed, mainly green Parrot in which the male has the face, forehead, and throat pinkish-red and the crown and back of the head a bluish-violet. The beak in this sex is red, with a yellowish tip. The female differs from the male in that she has the whole of the head and face of a brownish-grey colour and the beak is black. The immatures are said to resemble the female and judging by the analogy of a closely allied species the young males should show a pinkish tinge on the head. Variations. — Like the foregoing species, it is probable that this bird cannot be separated from the New Guinea form. Coloured Plates. — These are few in number. That of a pair by Roland Green, in Mathews (vol. vi, p. 253), is quite good, and the plate by Gronvold, which appeared in The Emu (vol. xiv, plate F), when the bird was first discovered in Australia, is reasonably good of a male. There is also a plate of the male of the closely allied, if not identical, bird from the Aru Islands, in the Avicultural Magazine, 1931, p. 181. Field Notes. — I have not had an opportunity of seeing this species, but the closely allied species (G. cyanicollis ) was common on Morotai and I have recorded my observations on its habits in the Avicultural Magazine, 1946, p. 209. Aviary Notes. — I have never seen this bird in captivity. Gayley records that a few specimens, obtained from New Guinea, were kept in Taronga Park Zoo for a short time and I remember that the Adelaide Zoo had correspondence just prior to the 1939-1945 war with a person in Central Queensland who claimed to have a pair. The few records of members of this genus in captivity in England stress the extreme delicacy of the birds, possibly on account of unsuitable feeding ; my impression is that the genus is probably a fruit-eating one. 48 A. LENDON - AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY Before passing on to the next genus, reference should be made to a large black and red Parrot which has been seen on Cape York on several occasions but has never been collected. The writer is of the opinion that this will eventually be proved to be the strange Pesquet’s Parrot ( Psittrichas fulgidus , olim Dasyptilus pesqueti), of New Guinea, figured in Avicultural Magazine, 1936, p. 175, which has been imported into England and several of which have been exhibited in Taronga Park Zoo in recent years. (4) Barraband Parrakeet ( Polytelis swainsonii) Synonyms. — Superb Parrot (R.A.O.U. Checklist, 1926). Green Leek (name commonly used in districts where it occurs). Distribution. — Occurs only in parts of Victoria and New South Wales and appears to be practically confined to the vicinity of the upper Murray River and its tributaries. Description. — The adult male is a slim, long-tailed Parrot of a predominantly bright green colour, the forehead and throat are orange- yellow and there is a crescent of scarlet below the yellow on the throat. The female is a much duller green and lacks the yellow and red adornments ; she has, however, a few red feathers on the legs, and the inner webs of the tail-feathers, apart from the central pair, are pink. The immatures resemble the female, but the green of the young males is of a slightly brighter shade, especially on the head, and there is often a suspicion of rose where the red crescent will ultimately develop, and a few young males show a distinct yellowish wash on the forehead and throat. It is not always possible to sex individual juveniles, but some of each sex can usually be picked out with certainty from a clutch. Adult male plumage is attained by a slow moult which usually begins when the young birds are between six and nine months old and is not completed in most cases until the birds are from twelve to fifteen months old. Variations. — There do not appear to be any valid subspecies. Coloured Plates. — Boosey’s illustration of a male in Tavistock (p. 98) is the best that I am aware of ; Roland Green’s, in Mathews (vol. vi, p. 261), is quite good of the female but not as good of the male ; Gronvold’s in Seth-Smith (p. 122) is poor, whilst the plate in Greene (vol. i, p. 67) portrays the male plumage accurately but does not adequately convey the bird’s slim lines. Field Notes. — My only personal acquaintance with this species consists of seeing a pair in flight while motoring from Melbourne to Sydney in November, 1933. Mr. F. Lewitzka, of Enfield, S.A., informs me that while in camp at Wagga, New South Wales, he observed these birds on many occasions and noticed them feeding on straw which had been used for thatching huts. A. LENDON - AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY 49 Aviary Notes . — This species is a most desirable aviary bird, being hardy, long-lived, and peaceful in a mixed collection. Newly trapped birds are extremely timid and very unsteady, and take a considerable time to quieten down ; in any case, this species seldom becomes as tame and confiding as do most examples of the other two members of its genus. Barrabands particularly resent being handled and keep up a continuous squawking when so treated or even when placed in a confined space, such as a travelling cage. My early experiences in breeding this species were with a pair consisting of a cock in adult plumage and of uncertain age obtained in 1937 from the late Mr. Wachsmann, of Sydney, and a hen bred by Mr. Waddel, of Melbourne, in 1937 and obtained from him in 1939. This pair had been kept segregated since the hen was acquired but it was not until 1945 that any attempt at breeding occurred. In October of that year a clutch of five eggs was laid ; young were first heard on 10th November and five could be counted on the 19th. The first two left the nest rather prematurely on 13th December, the temperature on that day being well over the century. On the following day, which was equally hot, a third youngster was out of the nest on the ground and the remaining two, although almost fully feathered, were dead in the log. The third young bird died the following day but the two eldest survived and appeared from the first to be a true pair. Mr. Koenig, of Ararat, Victoria, obtained these birds from me and subsequently informed me that the cock was coming into colour by the end of October, 1946, and was fully coloured by the end of March, 1947. In 1946 the old pair again laid five eggs in October ; on this occasion all were hatched and duly reared and proved to be one cock and four hens as was thought to be the case soon after they first left the nest ; the cock bird in this case was not as obvious as the bird of the previous year, but he was nearly in full colour when I parted with him when he was nine months old. In 1947 the hen started her clutch in October with a soft-shelled egg, but thereafter incubated steadily, and it was not until the middle of November that I had an opportunity of inspecting the nest and found that it contained one addled egg and another containing a fully developed dead embryo. The old hen died suddenly in February, 1948, and the cock, who had not moulted satisfactorily, only survived her by a few months. This season (1948) I mated one of the hens bred in 1946 to an unrelated cock, and at the time of writing (end of November) they have three large young in the nest. This species, judging by its disposition, would almost certainly breed if several pairs were kept together in a sufficiently roomy aviary ; in fact, I think I have read of success being achieved under such 50 A. LENDON - AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY conditions. I have no record of this bird ever being other than single brooded. The male usually feeds the hen when she leaves the log for the first week or two after the young hatch, but thereafter he usually helps the hen by feeding the young directly. The display and the hen’s gestures when she wishes to be fed by her mate are quite comical and are well described in Tavistock (pp. 254-5). Breeding records in South Australia are not very common. The A.S.S.A. medal was awarded in 1939 to Mr. Banyer, of Blackwood, and the species has bred in the Adelaide Zoo on a couple of occasions. Barrabands are extremely susceptible to ophthalmia (eye disease), and, although cures are claimed, in most cases that I have observed the disease has seemed to reach a chronic state with some persistent swelling of the lids. Paralysis of the legs occurs occasionally and, if not fatal, leaves the victim hopelessly crippled. (5) Rock Pebbler Parrakeet (. Polytelis anthopeplus) Synonyms. — Regent Parrot (R.A.O.U. Checklist, 1926), Smoker Parrot — the name most commonly used both in Victoria and Western Australia, Black-tailed Parrakeet — the earliest name. Distribution. — Confined to the region of the lower Murray River and the adjoining mallee country of New South Wales, Victoria, and South Australia ; also found over a wide area in South-Western Australia. Description. — A rather large, plump, long-tailed Parrot. In the adult male the predominant colour is a rich mustard-yellow ; the mantle is an olive-green and there are some dark carmine markings on the inner wing-coverts, while the tail is a very dark blue-black. The female is similarly patterned, but the yellow is replaced by an olive-green and the tail is green with the inner webs of all but the central feathers a pale rose-pink. The young resemble the female on leaving the nest, but the young males in a clutch can usually be identified by the slightly yellower tinge in the green coloration particularly on the head. They begin a slow moult at about the age of six months, when the bright yellow feathers begin to appear on the head and breast, full adult male plumage being usually reached when the bird is about fourteen or fifteen months old. Variations .• — The Western Australian birds form a good subspecies (westralis), the males being greener and never attaining the bright yellow shade of the Eastern form while the females are brighter and less of an olive-green shade. Colour Plates. — The plate of a male in Greene (vol. iii, p. 65) is very good except that the tail is a little too short. The plate in Mathews (vol. vi, p. 266), by Roland Green, is only fair ; the male A. LENDON-— AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY 51 figured, although an eastern bird, is not bright enough, and the colouring of the tail gives an erroneous impression ; the female is quite good, although looking rather more like the eastern form than the western which it is supposed to be. Field Notes.- — My only acquaintance with this bird in the field is a recent one in that I noticed three birds, apparently one male and two females, from the window of a train near Southern Gross, Western Australia. In flight they certainly give the impression of being predominantly yellow birds. Aviary Notes. — A quiet, attractive aviary bird, soon becoming relatively fearless and always very inoffensive in a mixed collection. Young birds taken from the nest and hand-reared make pleasing pets and excellent whistlers. My early breeding successes with this species were with a pair, which consisted of a cock which was in adult plumage when I obtained him in 1938 from a local birdshop and a hen obtained for me during 1940. It was not until 1944 that any success was obtained, although some interest in a log had been evinced in the previous year. In 1944 the first egg of a clutch of four was laid on 25th September, and three young were seen on 22nd October, the fourth egg having disappeared. One of the young birds died when a week old, but the remaining two survived and both left the nest on 27th November, one being a little more mature than the other. These proved to be two cocks, as was thought likely when they were first fledged, and had attained full adult plumage at the age of fourteen months. In 1945 the same pair of birds had a clutch of five eggs in late September, and hatched them all, but only reared three, two dying when quite large and the survivors leaving the nest in late November ; these were correctly diagnosed as two cocks and a hen. In 1946 the clutch of five was commenced in mid-September ; four were hatched, but the youngest left the nest prematurely and, although replaced repeatedly, it was ultimately found dead on the ground ; the remaining three were successfully reared and proved to be all hens, although not accurately diagnosed on this occasion. In 1947 five young were hatched, one died early, and the remaining four were successfully reared. The old pair’s career was terminated by the hen’s death in the winter of 1948 after an unsatisfactory moult. A new hen was obtained shortly afterwards, and at the time of writing (late November) a fine brood of six young have just left the nest. Rock Pebblers have been bred on a good many occasions in South Australia, S. J. Harry, of Brighton, securing the A.S.S.A. medal in x934> although G. H. A. Lienau bred them prior to the establishment of the Society during World War I. Other successes have been those of H. J. Packer, I. Banyer, and the Adelaide Zoo. Rock Pebblers seem to be invariably single brooded, as I can find 52 A. LENDON - AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY no definite record of two clutches having been laid in the one season. The male assists with the feeding of the young as soon as the female ceases to brood them more or less continuously, usually about the tenth to twelfth day ; prior to this he usually feeds his mate when¬ ever she leaves the nest. The display is somewhat like that of the Barraband, but not usually so elaborate ; the hen, about the time of laying, frequently importunes her mate to feed her in the same way as a Barraband hen does. Rock Pebblers are prone to eye disease, but it is by no means as frequently seen in them as in the case of Barrabands. (6) Queen Alexandra Parrakeet ( Polytelis alexandrae ) Synonyms. — Princess of Wales Parrakeet, Rose-throated Parrakeet, Spinifex Parrot, Princess Parrot (R.A.O.U. Checklist, 1926). Distribution. — Little is known of its exact range, it has been found spasmodically in various parts of Central Australia and the interior of Western Australia. Description. — A slim Parrot with a very long tail, clothed in pastel shades. In the adult male the crown of the head is light blue, the mantle is olive, the wing-coverts yellowish-green, and the rump violet. The throat is pink, the breast and abdomen greyish-green with some pink on the thighs and the under tail-coverts are olive-green. The central tail-feathers are very long and olive in colour, all the others have the inner webs rose-pink. The third primaries have the peculiar spatulate elongation, which is often abraded and lost some time prior to the moult ; I have no definite record regarding the age at which this feature is first acquired. The adult female never has the spatule, and her tail is never as long as is that of the male. In addition, the rump is always rather slaty in colour, the blue on the head is replaced by a greyish-mauve, and the wing-coverts are greener. The beak, which is a coral-red in the male, is darker in the female. Immatures tend to resemble the female, but the pink on the throat and thighs is considerably brighter and more of a puce shade ; they are not very easy to sex, but the young males have larger, flatter heads and tend to be a little brighter on the crown. Adult plumage is acquired rather slowly and more or less imperceptibly between the age of twelve and fifteen months. Variations. — No valid subspecies are described, but it would appear that not all males acquire the vivid violet colour on the rump. Coloured Plates. — These seldom do justice to the bird’s exquisite colouring. Roland Green’s plate in Avicultural Magazine, 1935, p. 120, is probably the best, but it makes the mantle and breast appear somewhat brownish in shade ; the same artist’s plate in Mathews A. LENDON - AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY 53 (vol. vi, p. 271) portrays one of the duller birds and does not show the spatules on the wings. Field Notes. — -Very few ornithologists have seen this bird in the field and I have not been one of the fortunate few. It would appear to be a naturally fearless bird from all accounts. Mention has frequently been made of its alleged habit of resting along a thick branch instead of perching in the ordinary manner ; this peculiarity is certainly not noticeable in captivity. Aviary Notes. — This species has always been extremely popular and much sought after as an aviary bird, and in the last twenty years has been bred so freely in Australia generally, and in South Australia in particular, that it can now be regarded as domesticated. Its delicate colouring, elegant shape, and tameness have always had a wide appeal for bird-lovers, but individuals and pairs have been singularly variable in their behaviour and readiness to breed in captivity. My personal experiences with this species have been very dis¬ appointing, as the following account will show. My first pair were obtained late in 1935 and were extremely tame ; the hen laid three eggs late in October of the following year and then proceeded to produce, with increasing difficulty, a series of soft-shelled eggs, which eventually proved fatal to her. A new hen, obtained late in November, 1936, laid two eggs early in the following month but broke them both ; two more eggs followed and were incubated, but although one of these was fertile, it failed to hatch. During the next three seasons no eggs were laid although the hen came into breeding condition in September of both 1938 and 1939. The cock was changed prior to the 1940 season but without any improvement in results. In 1941, however, five good young birds were reared, and it was hoped that the tide had turned at last. Success was short-lived, however, for although eggs were laid in 1942 they were ejected from the log, and in 1943 no eggs appeared at all. In 1944 a clutch of five was commenced late in September, but only two eggs proved fertile ; of these, only one hatched and the youngster survived a few days only, probably because the hen stopped brooding it at night far too soon. For the 1945 season a new cock bird was tried, the immediate result being a series of soft-shelled eggs. Later in the season another soft-shelled egg was followed by a good one, which was incubated but proved infertile. August, 1946, saw the introduction of a new hen, an aviary-bred bird nearly two years old. She came into breeding condition almost at once and laid a clutch of five early in September, one of them on the ground. Only two of the remaining four were fertile and one of these hatched early in October, the other failing to emerge from the shell. This solitary youngster was reared successfully. High hopes were entertained in 1947 when the hen started laying in mid-September, but she became egg-bound with her fifth egg and, although she 54 A. LENDON - AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY continued to sit after eventually laying this egg, the other eggs were spoiled and none of them hatched. I thought she was going to lay again late in October, but nothing eventuated. The present season (1948) started poorly, the first egg, laid in mid-September, being soft-shelled ; however, four good eggs followed, but only two of these were fertile and only one hatched and was eventually reared. Before this bird left the nest the hen had started to lay again ; this time four out of the clutch of six were fertile and duly hatched, and at the time of writing (mid-December) four young birds are progressing satis¬ factorily. From the foregoing it will be seen that my experiences with this species have been anything but smooth, and although many aviculturists have reliable breeding pairs, such as the famous one at the Adelaide Zoo (vide Avicultural Magazine, 1947, p. 58), many others can recount experiences similar to mine and also com¬ plicated by egg-eating hens and non-feeding cocks. The eggs of the Queen Alexandra are unique amongst those of Australian Parrots by virtue of their highly glossed appearance. The A.S.S.A. medal for breeding this species was awarded in 1928 to F. P. Kell ; there are, however, several earlier records of which the first appears to be that of Zietz, in 1899. More often than not the species appears to be single-brooded although there are plenty of hens that invariably have two nests in a season. Individual cocks vary enormously in their habits, some being assiduous feeders, both of their mates and young, whilst others are of no help whatever and are sometimes even a hindrance to the hen in her task. The display is somewhat like that of the Barraband, but is even more ludicrous to human eyes ; cocks, when displaying, are able to erect a few feathers in the frontal region in the form of a tiny crest. Fortunately this species does not seem to be nearly as susceptible to eye disease as are its near relatives. Community breeding has been successfully practised on a number of occasions but plenty of nesting sites and a spacious aviary are necessary to avoid undue interference ; generally speaking, segregated pairs are more satisfactory. (7) King Parrakeet (. Aprosmictus scapularis) Synonyms . — Australian King Parrot (as opposed to the other members of the genus occurring in the islands to the north of Australia), Scarlet and Green Parrot. Distribution. — The coastal belt of Eastern and Southern Australia, from Cairns in North Queensland to about 100 miles to the east of Melbourne in Victoria. Mainly a bird of the well-timbered, hilly country. A. LENDON - AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY 55 Description. — A heavily built large Parrot, with a long wedge-shaped tail. The adult male has the head and underparts scarlet, the back and wings are dark green, relieved by a light green stripe or “ butter¬ fly 55 on the wings, the rump is dark blue, as also is a narrow band across the back of the neck, and the tail is black. The upper mandible is orange-red with a blackish tip. The adult female differs in having the head, breast, and tail green, the rump is a duller, rather greenish blue, and there is only occasionally a faint “ butterfly ” stripe on the wings ; the upper mandible is black. Immature birds resemble the female on leaving the nest. I have never found them easy to sex, but Tavistock (Avicultural Magazine, 1932, p. 295) states that “ they can be sexed quite easily within a few weeks of leaving the nest, as the bills of the females quickly darken while those of the males are of a yellowish colour ; young hens also are more slender than their brothers, with smaller heads, and they have much less red on the abdomen and lower breast ”. Adult male plumage is obtained by a slow moult which starts when the bird is something over fifteen months old and is not completed until the bird is between 2J and 2\ years old. Variations. — The birds from the northern extremity of the range have been given subspecific rank [minor) ; they are said to be smaller with the red colouring of a darker shade ; whether this is a constant feature I am unable to say. Coloured Plates. — Not many good plates exist. Roland Green’s, of a pair, in Mathews (vol. vi, p. 291), is very good. The plate of a male in Greene (vol. i, p. 93) is poor in that there is too much blue on the mantle and tail and the pale green wing-band is not shown. Field Notes. — I have seen this bird on several occasions in the Dandenong ranges, near Melbourne. Wild birds can usually be seen in the Sir Colin Mackenzie Sanctuary, near Healesville, Victoria ; they are fairly tame and are attracted by the food provided for the inmates of the Sanctuary. Aviary Notes. — This species is reasonably hardy and long-lived in captivity but, although gaudily coloured, it is a rather sluggish and somewhat uninteresting inhabitant of an aviary. It is rather a heavy, clumsy flier and needs a large enclosure to be seen at its best. It has, however, the advantage of being relatively peaceful and unaggressive in a mixed collection. Kings are one of the species that I have not yet succeeded in breeding ; a hen that I had from 1936 to 1947 with two different mates used to raise my hopes by coming into breeding condition in November. In 1946 I felt certain she was going to lay as she spent a lot of time in a large log, but nothing eventuated. A new hen was obtained in 1947, and although she gave no indication of breeding that year she came into breeding condition early in November the following year 56 A. LENDON - AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY and proceeded to lay four eggs either from the perch or on the ground, being quite disinterested in the two large logs provided. Only one of these eggs was unbroken and it was placed under a pair of Adelaide Rosellas but it proved infertile. Kings are notoriously difficult to satisfy as regards nesting accom¬ modation, they appear to favour a very long log, the bottom of which is resting on the ground. On a good many occasions they have been known to lay in a seed tray or a box on the ground, or even in a hollow that they have scratched out on the ground and success has been achieved under these apparently unfavourable conditions. The medal of the A.S.S.A. was awarded in 1940 to Mrs. Isaacson for breeding this species for the first time in South Australia. Her birds were housed in a relatively small, entirely covered, shed-like aviary and had been there about three years before nesting. They chose a log about 5 feet from the ground, laid late in November, and hatched and successfully reared two young birds which left the nest towards the end of January. Apart from the foregoing, I am only aware of the three following successes in South Australia. A single bird was bred in the Adelaide Zoo in 1940, and in 1946 Mr. I. Banyer, of Blackwood, reared two young birds, the father of which was still in immature plumage without any sign of the red head whatsoever. I am not aware of any other recorded breeding of this species with an uncoloured male, though presumably it occurs in the wild state. The male bird referred to came into full colour in a much more rapid moult than usual shortly after the young were fledged, and the same pair have bred again since then. Mr. H. Bradley, of Plympton, appears to have been the most successful local breeder. Having kept a pair of these birds for many years, they proceeded to come good with a vengeance and reared four young in 1946 and five in each of the two succeeding years. The display of this species is described at length in Tavistock (p. 244). Shortly before the onset of the moult, the scarlet coloration fades appreciably to an almost brick-red. Other than at the time of the moult, birds showing this colour are invariably old or in poor health. (8) Crimson-winged Parrakeet ( Aprosmictus erythropterus ) Synonyms. — Red-winged Parrot (R.A.O.U. Checklist, 1926), Blood¬ winged Parrot. Distribution. — Its range extends from the Kimberley district in North-western Australia through the Northern Territory to Queensland and Northern New South Wales. It has also been recorded from Southern New Guinea but there appears to be some doubt as to whether the bird found there is identical with the Australian or with A. LENDON— AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY 57 the Timor species. In Australia the bird favours mainly open timbered country. Description. — A moderately large Parrot with a rather short, wedge- shaped tail. The adult male has the head and underparts a vivid light green, the mantle is a peculiar purplish-black colour, the rump is a vivid blue, and there is a broad crimson band on the border of the wing. The adult female is often a slightly larger bird and is a duller green, without the dark mantle and with a lighter blue rump ; there is a band of red on the margin of the wing which varies considerably in width but is always much narrower than in the male. Immatures closely resemble the female and are extremely difficult, if not impossible, to sex with any certainty. The width and extent of the red wing-bar is quite unreliable as evidenced by the experience of a well-known local Parrot fancier who attempted not long ago to sex a brood of four young Crimson-wings ; he put rings on the birds he believed to be young cocks, judging by the extent of the red bar, and time proved him to be exactly 100 per cent wrong ! A recent close inspection of another brood of four young birds made me think that the intensity of the blue on the rump might be a guide to sex, but I have not had the opportunity of following up this hunch. Adult plumage is not attained by the cocks until they are over two years old ; frequently, however, their sex is revealed by the appearance of a few dark feathers on the mantle or extra red ones on the wing when they are between fifteen and. eighteen months of age. This, however, is not invariably the case, and many aviculturists have kept a bird for many months believing it to be a hen only to be ultimately disillusioned by the eventual appearance of one of these tell-tale feathers. Variations . — Northern birds are said to be smaller with a deeper shade of crimson on the wings, but I have grave doubts as to the constancy of this difference and as to whether it warrants the establish¬ ment of a subspecies. Coloured Plates. — Roland Green’s plate, in Mathews (vol. vi, p. 279), is an excellent portrayal of the two sexes. Greene’s plate (vol. i, p. 71) is quite good of an adult cock. Field Notes. — During a few hours spent in Darwin late in 1 945 I was delighted to see a single bird of this species. Its flight is buoyant and erratic and quite unlike the heavy, rather laboured flight of the King ; in fact, I consider that they are erroneously placed in the same genus. Aviary Notes. — Once established, this species is relatively long-lived in captivity, but newly trapped birds are always delicate and doubtful propositions and even aviary-bred birds are apt to be upset by a move. Cocks are often very spiteful, not only towards their mates but also towards other nearly related species, although they will seldom cross swords with a Broadtail. Individuals vary very considerably in their 5 58 A. LENDON - AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY behaviour towards their own mates, but most cocks indulge in a certain amount of wife-beating, especially in the breeding season ; apart from the loss of a few feathers little harm seems to result in most cases. This species makes a most attractive aviary bird on account of its brilliant colouring, and being active birds they consequently make a good display in a mixed collection. Crimson-wings are another species that I have been relatively unsuccessful with both as regards longevity and breeding. However, a pair, of which the cock was obtained in 1937 and the hen the following year, were more satisfactory in both respects than most of my earlier acquisitions. They first nested in 1941, laying in a log which was standing vertically on the ground and rearing two young, which proved eventually to be hens. The following year they laid a number of eggs, none of which were hatched, and in 1943 the hen died egg-bound and her mate did not survive much longer. Another pair, which I brought home from Queensland early in 1944, lived until quite recently, but although considerable interest was usually evinced early in the spring of each year no eggs were ever laid. Crimson-wings frequently come into breeding condition early and also start to moult correspondingly early, and I often wonder if these birds are derived from the Northern Territory and are following the usual habits of Northern Rosellas and Hooded Parrakeets in this respect. The A.S.S.A. medal for breeding this species was awarded to the late E. Baxter Cox in 1935 ; the records of this breeding have unfortunately been lost. A good many subsequent successes with the species have been recorded but I know of none in which the cock has been an uncoloured bird. Like Kings, Crimson-wings are sometimes difficult to satisfy as regards a nesting site, and in many cases they seem to prefer a deep log extending to ground level. Reports suggest that this species is, in part at any rate, a nectar- feeder, and I have often wondered whether this fact accounts for the delicacy of newly trapped birds. The display of the Crimson-wing is fully and excellently described in Tavistock, on pp. 250-1. {To be continued) FINN SALOMONSEN - THE MOULT OF THE LONG-TAILED DUCK 59 SOME NOTES ON THE MOULT OF THE LONG¬ TAILED DUCK ( Clangula hyemalis) By Finn Salomonsen The sequence of plumages in the Long-tailed Duck ( Clangula hyemalis) is very complicated and has long aroused the interest of ornithologists. For many years Scandinavian students have maintained the existence of three annual moults, a view which has not until recently been generally accepted. A few years ago I published a study on this subject (Journ. f Ornith ., vol. 89, 1941, pp. 282-337) based on the unique material of about 650 skins in the Zoological Museum of Copenhagen. I came to the conclusion that the moulting phenomena in this peculiar bird was still more complicated than hitherto suspected, and that it was most convenient to divide the annual sequence of plumages into four, viz. the well-known 44 ornamental or winter-dress ”, the 44 nuptial or summer-dress ”, the “ eclipse-dress ”, and the new 44 autumn-dress ”. However, it was expressly emphasized that no feather-germ produced more than three annual generations of feathers. My results gave rise to the following remarks from Messrs. Delacour and Mayr in their modern treatise of the Duck tribe ( Wilson Bull., vol. 58, 1946, p. 107) : 44 These are rather startling conclusions, but we lack the material to discuss them critically.” In spite of a still more pronounced deficiency of material, Mrs. Vesta Stresemann has not put the same restraint on herself as the said authors, but has recently published a paper of some length in the December issue of Avicultural Magazine (“ Eclipse-Plumage and Nuptial Plumage in the Old Squaw or Long-tailed Duck,” vol. 54, no. 6, 1948, pp. 188- 194), the main theme being a criticism of my results. As I do not agree with the conclusions in the paper by Mrs. Stresemann, I think it advisable to add some comments and to answer some of the questions asked for by the authoress, especially as my paper, written in a German Journal, is probably not easily accessible to English readers. Mrs. Stresemann reproaches me (p. 189) that I have included the moult of the wing in the eclipse-moult. 4 4 It appears absurd that the bird would wear an eclipse wing in its highly evolved specific plumage.” I did not lay any stress on this point, but have only followed the common usage in conformity with Witherby, Schioler, etc., who all have used the same procedure. The wing-moult continues the eclipse- moult in the Ducks and is therefore united with this as one 44 moult ” by most authors, but Mrs. Stresemann is no doubt right in her assumption that the hormonal balance necessary for producing ornamental feathers is reached just before the wing moult, with the 60 FINN SALOMONSEN - THE MOULT OF THE LONG-TAILED DUCK consequence that the new wing must be looked upon as a part of the ornamental — not of the eclipse — plumage. Mrs. Stresemann maintains the view that feathers produced under different physiological conditions cannot be regarded as belonging to one and the same dress, and on the basis of this viewpoint the wing moult naturally cannot be united with the eclipse moult. However, such a clear-cut distinction is too theoretical and would make it impossible to admit the existence of all compound plumages. No students would, e.g. deny the develop¬ ment of a certain “ summer-dress ” in the Guillemot ( Uria aalge ), although only the head moults in spring and more than four-fifths of the feathers of the summer dress are retained from the winter dress. In many species which moult during a long period the appropriate threshold of certain hormones influencing the feather pattern is reached in the course of the moult (e.g. in the Ptarmigan), and this circumstance accounts for the variegated aspect of the final plumage. In such cases it would be irrelevant to claim that the feathers belonging to this very dress should be produced under the same physiological conditions. So I should rather leave this complicated question open, and in the meantime use the division adopted by Witherby, etc., concerning the wing moult in the Ducks. Mrs. Stresemann further is of the opinion that the nuptial or summer plumage, for which she adopts Millais’ term cc semi-eclipse ”, is not a special dress, but only the half-finished eclipse-plumage. Nevertheless, she is aware that the scapulars are moulted twice, both during the summer-moult as well as during the eclipse-moult. I have maintained the two plumages in question only on the basis of this double moult of the scapulars, and no one has ever postulated any double moult of other areas of the plumage. However, it appears to me that this is sufficient to admit the existence of two plumages. How else is it possible to describe a plumage with two different sets of feathers of a certain, definite region ? Gould it be called “ eclipse plumage ‘ A ’ and ‘B’ ” ? This would be especially absurd in this species, in which the scapulars form such a dominant part of the plumage, and the two generations of scapulars are so strikingly different that they no doubt have different biological tasks. To unite the summer plumage and the eclipse plumage in the Long-tailed Duck would be to deny facts. The explanation of the biological value of the summer-plumage by the authoress is exactly the same as I have given in my paper, pp. 33 1-2, so I certainly agree. Mrs. Stresemann only does not concur with my opinion that this dress should have a significance in courtship. I have, however, emphasized that the epigamic value of this plumage is subordinate to the cryptic one and said literally : “ The development of small epigamic characters is very well compatible with the primary cryptic value of the summer plumage ” (p. 332). When bearing in FINN SALOMONSEN - THE MOULT OF THE LONG-TAILED DUCK 6 1 mind that the establishment of the plumage is entirely pre-nuptial, that the courtship-display with its various antics takes place in this plumage, and that the scapulars and the ocular patch are very conspicuous and contrasting in their coloration, it is obvious that the summer dress must have an epigamic function too. The main point in the argument of Mrs. Stresemann is the rejection of the autumn plumage. Without having examined a single specimen in this dress my critical investigation of a large series of material is entirely condemned. Birds in this dress may — according to Mrs. Stresemann — either be young birds or birds in second winter. “ How can we know they are not young birds ? ” she asks. Having handled hundreds of these birds it is easy for me to answer this question. The difference between the autumn-plumage and the juvenile and first- winter dresses are clear-cut ; there is a large gap between them which is not bridged by any specimen, i.e. there are no intermediates. Besides, some males in autumn-plumage have kept remnants of the eclipse- plumage, as described pp. 309-3 n in my paper. So they could not be young birds ! It is as easy to explain why the autumn-plumage cannot be the second-winter dress. If it were so it would be worn the whole winter, but it is only found during the autumn ; not a single individual clad in the autumn-plumage has been found later than November (almost a hundred ad. from December to March examined). Moreover, all adult males from the period 25th September to 25th November (a total of 13 specimens examined) wear the autumn plumage, some still with remnants of the eclipse plumage, others showing various stages of the moult into the winter plumage ; even in the first half of December many birds have not yet quite finished the winter moult. This appears from the diagram on p. 317 in my paper. Not in a single case was a direct moult from eclipse- to winter-plumage observed. What can we deduce from all this ? When all adult males examined have a definite plumage in the autumn — and only in the autumn — the conclusion must be that all adult males actually exchange the eclipse-plumage with the autumn-plumage and from this moult into the ornamental or winter-plumage ; no other explanation is possible. In 1944 I examined the entire material of Long- tailed Duck in various Swedish museums, a total of about 100 specimens. In all details they a*greed with my previous material. I found three adult males collected in the autumn months, viz. from Sigtuna, 17th October, 1926 (in Zool. Inst, of Uppsala), and two from October in the private collection of Mr. Tage Adolfsson, Bohus-Bjorko, all three specimens wearing the autumn plumage. Mrs. Stresemann expresses her opinion as follows : “ We do not believe in a special autumn plumage for which there seems to be no biological justification.” To reject facts because they at present appear 62 J. DELACOUR - THE RE-BIRTH OF CLERES to be inexplicable has nothing, to do with science. There are other dresses in Ducks which seem to be completely useless, without any biological value, e.g. the plumage, more or less suppressed, which follows the male juvenile plumage in many Ducks, and as a rule is shed very soon, being replaced by the first ornamental plumage. This dress was described by Schioler in most surface-feeding Ducks and in the genus Aythya (also mentioned in the descriptions in Witherby’s Handbook , vol. 3), and I have recently described it also in the genus JVetta (Dansk Ornith. Foren. Tidsskr., vol. 39, 1945, p. 209). Only in the Shoveler this plumage is kept for some time as a real “ first- winter plumage ”. I believe that this plumage, as well as the autumn- plumage of the Long-tailed Duck is a remnant of a phylogenetic older stage which is now receding and which no longer serves any biological function. There is no doubt much more to learn about the complicated moult of the Long-tailed Duck, but what we need are critical and painstaking studies in the field and in the museum, not mere speculations. * * * THE RE-BIRTH OF CLERES By J. Delacour Now and then a letter arrives from some corner of the world asking me for news of Cleres. Has it been totally wrecked in the war, and have any of the birds survived the ordeal of invasion ? I now realize that I never yet have written the whole story for this magazine where, along the years, news of my collections, big and small, can be found, whether I kept birds at Villers before 1918 or later on at Cleres, including the accounts of their destruction. When I saw Cleres on 7th June, 1940, for the last time until the autumn of 1 946, the grounds had already been bombed heavily twice, and many animals and birds had been killed ; but for craters and damaged trees, the park still looked lovely, with hundreds of creatures all about the place. The German troops that arrived the next day caused, so I am told, little trouble ; they even saw that the birds were cared for. But things soon took a turn for the worse. Birds and animals were killed for fun or for the pot ; for example, my four precious breeding pairs of Andean Geese were eaten at Christmas time by soldiers ! Food became scarce ; Monsieur G. Olivier, who had kindly assumed the ungrateful charge of preserving Cleres during the absence of Mr. Fooks, now a refugee in England as I was myself in America, had to dispose of a large part of the stock. Some birds were sold to dealers, others deposited at the Paris Zoos and J. DELACOUR - THE RE-BIRTH OF CLERES 63 with Monsieur F. Edmond-Blanc. Valuable species, however, were kept at Cleres, particularly Waterfowl, and the Gibbons. But destruction at the hands of the occupants was increasing, and my friends asked Professors Stresemann and Ghigi to intervene ; this they did promptly and successfully. During eighteen months Cleres was neither occupied nor disturbed any more. But the situation deteriorated in 1943 and Cleres was reoccupied. Civilians, drafted for the establishment of V 1 bombs’ launching rails in the vicinity, were stationed by the hundreds in our grounds. They proved more destructive than any troops before, breaking the fences and slaughtering animals and birds. In 1944, the German soldiers were demoralized and became more obnoxious ; they kept dogs and horses in the park, and they did much harm. But M. Olivier and Andre Brohart, the capable and devoted head-gardener, managed to repair the worst damage and to save a great deal. There were still Deer, Gibbons, and rare birds. Even Red-breasted Geese, Gape and Sharp-winged Teal bred during those years. More damage was done by bombs in 1944 and 1945, this time by Allied planes, and two terrible craters, 50 feet across, were made in the higher part of the park by German Vi bombs crashing soon after they had been launched. My friends were proud to have saved a nice lot of animals and birds when, on the very last day of the occupation, practically all were destroyed. It was a very bad stroke of luck ; S.S. troops, who had been prevented from crossing the Seine for several days by Allied bombing, managed to pass the river one foggy morning, and they went straight to Cleres. Partly hunger and partly spite, they shot with tommy-guns everything alive they could find, just before they left for good. When Mr. Fooks was allowed to come to Cleres in 1945, one Muntjac, one Crane, some Junglefowl, a Swan, and a few Ducks only remained. Mr. Fooks had reported that, empty and spoiled as it was, Cleres could be restored. I then decided that he should return, which he was eager to do, and resume managing the estate as he had done so well in the past twenty-five years. Despite tremendous difficulties, which further occupation by Allied troops did not alleviate although they proved helpful and considerate, most of the park, the gardens, and the aviaries were soon put into order. When I returned in September, 1946, I was agreeably surprised at the results of Mr. Fooks’ work. The place looked much as before in a general way, and it was already fairly well stocked, thanks to the generosity of two of my English friends, Mr. Spedan Lewis, who had presented a fine collection of Pheasants and Waterfowl, and Major A. Pam, who had given many Wallabies and Geese. Also Professor A. Urbain, Director of Paris Museum, had returned birds which he had kept for us during the war, and loaned many others and some animals. It may be said here that I have bequeathed Cleres and the adjoining property to the National 64 J. DELACOUR - THE RE-BIRTH OF CLERES Museum in order to ensure its future as far as can be done in these troubled times. Mr. Fooks came to New York and brought home a large collection early in 1947. Cleres was officially reopened on 25th May, 1947, by M. Andre Marie, Vice-Premier and Minister of Justice, accompanied by all the authorities of Normandy, the British and American Consuls, the Director of the National Museum, and the delegates of numerous scientific institutions and societies ; many of my friends were there, among them Miss Barclay-Smith, Dr. Hindle, and Mr. Peter Scott, from England ; Mme J. M. Derscheid, Colonel and Mme J. Dufour, from Belgium. To me it was a very moving occasion. Since that day Cleres has been a public park, where visitors are admitted every day and may wander as they please, the gate takings paying for most of the upkeep. It is gratifying to state that they seem to appreciate it and cause little trouble. In the present circumstances, such an arrangement is the only way open to maintain the collections and to keep up the park. The days when such activities could be privately financed hobbies are, I am afraid, gone for ever. As I have said previously, the general aspect has remained the same. The chateau, completely burnt inside, does not show any scars outside. The gardens are as usual, the rarer plants, which had disappeared, being gradually replaced. The main aviaries have been done up, as also a good part of the pheasantries, the rest being damaged beyond repair. The various pens inside the park have been re-established, and the general fencing reconditioned. The tropical houses and indoor bird galleries, however, are a total loss, and it is hardly worth while reconstructing them as long as fuel and special foods are not available ; it would also be almost impossible to procure to-day the rare small birds for which they had been planned. Across the road the deer park is again well stocked with Pseuxaxis presented by M. Edmond-Blanc, but the enclosures and pens where so many Cranes, Rheas, Cassowaries, Ostriches, Geese, etc., used to live and breed have completely vanished, the fences and houses having been removed during the war. The rat-proof duckery alone has been partly repaired, and we hope to restore everything gradually. Given time and peace, Cleres may one day regain its past splendour. The collections, of course, are not yet up to the old standard. But they have made a good start and are progressing year by year. A number of rare species are again represented. Blackbucks and Moufflons from Vincennes, Wallabies from Wormley, Chinese Water- deer from Woburn roam the park with Reeves’ Muntjacs which have been recaptured in the neighbouring woods. A couple of Barbary Apes live at liberty, but Gibbons have not yet been procurable. There are Rheas, Emus, Sarus, Demoiselle, and Crowned Cranes, also Wild J. DELAGOUR - THE RE-BIRTH OF CLERES 65 Turkeys and Red Junglefowl. The latter are the genuine wild birds and, owing to being shot at during the war, they have become so shy that they cannot be approached, flying off at 50 yards. They appear to be the only pure stock left in Europe. Flamingoes, Black-necked Swans, many Peafowl, Pheasants, Geese, and Ducks have been sent recently from the United States, as well as a good collection of Doves bred in California. The five kinds of Peafowl are now represented ; there are Blue and Brown Eared Pheasants, Monals, Temminck’s Tragopans, Grey and Germain’s Peacock Pheasants, Siamese Firebacks, Cheers, Sonnerat’s Junglefowl, Edwards, Mikado, Versicolor, Elliot’s, and all the commoner species of Pheasants. I could even obtain a pair of the rare Imperial Pheasant, which I discovered in Indo-China in 1923 ; there are still a few of them in American aviaries, all descendants from the original pair which bred at Cleres for the first time in 1925 ; it is nice to see them again where their ancestors lived before. There are four species of Swans and a good collection of Geese, including Cereopsis, Ashy-headed, Ruddy-headed, Emperor, and Red-breasted, South African, and Paradise Sheldrakes, Fulvous Tree Ducks and all the more usual species of Ducks and Teal, and an old Sharp wing which survived all the trouble. Among the Doves, most of the Australian species are represented, including the pretty Brush Bronze¬ wing, Philippine Cuckoo-Doves, Grayson’s, Bleeding-hearts, and African Blue-headed ( puella ). Budgerigars of many new colours, Fischer’s Lovebirds make a good show in some of the aviaries, while a pre-war pair of King Parrakeets, which spent several years in a cage in Paris, have bred the last two seasons. There are also Stanleys, Crimson-wings, and a few other Parrakeets, two or three Amazons, and some Macaws. Other aviaries are well stocked with Glossy Starlings, Weavers, Whydahs, Waxbills, and other seed-eating birds from Senegal, easy to obtain in France at present. In spite of great difficulty with labour and food, a number of birds have been reared the last three years. It is easy to imagine what an effort it was necessary to make to rehabilitate Cleres. The credit for it goes almost entirely to Mr. Fooks, whose skill, courage, and devotion have overcome all obstacles. Although fate has decided, so it seems, that I shall spend the greatest part of my later years across the Atlantic, I would not consider the idea of abandoning Cleres once it was certain that its revival was not a hopeless proposition. I am still much attached to it, and I cannot forget that I spent the best years of my life in making it the sort of place that I had always dreamed to have for a home, surrounded with the best that nature has to offer within a frame of order and beauty. As a home, Cleres hardly exists for me to-day ; but the site remains, picturesque and harmonious. If I never again can completely enjoy 66 W. G. OSMAN HILL - THE “ RED-AND-BLUE ” MACAWS it as I did in the past, since so much I loved is missing, others can derive pleasure from it. It was, I think, my duty to preserve Geres to the utmost of my power for the country and for lovers of nature and art at large. The maintenance of the park and of the historic buildings also is important for many who, directly or indirectly, derive their livelihood from it. I am glad to say that my endeavour has been appreciated. I was touched by the gratitude and understanding of the people, and by the appreciative and helpful co-operation given us by the public authorities at Rouen and in Paris, and by friends abroad. I spent many happy years at Geres, and it is with a somewhat nostalgic but real pleasure that I return there for short periods. In many ways, it is painfully different to-day, but it has kept a great deal of its former charm, and glorious memories still dwell under its tall trees, along its transparent waters, and in its ancient stones. And gorgeous birds still live, call, sing, and nest in the romantic old park. * * * THE “ RED-AND-BLUE ” MACAWS By W. C. Osman Hill, M.D., F.Z.S. Three species of large Macaws to which the above title is applicable have received scientific names. One of these, the smallest, is Ara tricolor Bechstein, which was confined to Cuba and the Isle of Pines and is now extinct (Rothschild, 1907). It was at first thought to be a variety of A. macao, but apart from this supposition it need not further trouble us here. The confusion I wish to clear up relates to the two larger surviving species — A. macao Linn, and A. chloroptera Gray, both of which may and have been described either as “ red-and- blue ” or “ red-and-yellow ”, yet they are very distinct. The confusion arose long ago and is probably attributable to the fact that the early naturalists had to content themselves with dried skins for reference, though this should not have prevented them from recognizing the striking differences in colour of plumage. I will discuss the two in order of their recognition by ornithologists. (1) Ara macao Linn., 1758 First named by Linnaeus in 1758, the species was by him described (Syst. Nat., p. 96) as Psittacus macrourus ruber , remigibus supra coeruleis , subtus rufis , genis nudis rugosis. The last quality — naked cheeks — fixes the type, for in the other species the cheeks, though largely naked, are distinctly marked by parallel tracts of small red feathers separated by intervening bare skin. Linnaeus later adds tectricibus pluribus luteis, 67 W. C. OSMAN HILL - THE “ RED-AND-BLUE ” MACAWS a feature which is constantly linked genetically with the naked cheeks. These characters therefore conclusively fix the name macao to the large red Macaw with completely naked cheeks and much yellow on the central feathers of the dorsal aspect of the wing. Unfortunately, Linnaeus states that he based his description on a bird referred to by Marcgrav (1648) under the native (Tupi) name of araracanga ; but on consulting the latter author (p. 206) I find that he states that the bird had green on its wing. Linnaeus must have had other evidence — possibly captive specimens — he had casually observed and mentally registered the fact that some, at least, of these large red birds had yellow wings. This is, of course, mere surmise though it is obvious that confusion had already arisen. Latham (1781) was aware of two different large red Macaws, one of which he terms the red-yellow-and-blue Macaw which is clearly the macao of Linnaeus’s description, the other being labelled merely the “ red-and-blue ”. Shaw (1812), on the contrary, recognized but a single red Macaw which he terms A. macao , or scarlet Macaw. His figure, though uncoloured, depicts the Macaw of Linnaeus’s descrip¬ tion. Shaw’s description is taken verbatim from Edwards (1743). He realized the existence of plumage variations, but attributed these to age factors. Nevertheless, we have Spix, in 1824, describing as a “ new ” species, under the name Arara macao , a Macaw coccineo-rubra , genis periophthal- miisque large nudis, plumuloso-rugosis , and tect. alarum maiores immac. virides , all of which features are applicable to the bird noted by Marcgrav and referred to by Latham as red-and-blue Macaw, but which do not pertain to Linnaeus’s macao. Spix, however, recognized the Linnean macao under the title A. aracanga , noting the tectfices alarum majores aureo-Jlava and also the fact that supra et subtus miniaceus (i.e. cinnabar-coloured) and rugae genarum piloso-albae in reference to the sparse, short, white hair-like plumes on the cheeks, in contrast to the feathered tracts of the other species. Spix, then, knew the two birds, but mixed up the names. He had plenty of later imitators ! Wied (1832), for instance, shortly followed with a description of “ die roth Arara mit griinen Fliigeldeckfedern ” and rows of red feathers on its cheeks as P. macao L., but rightly claims the bird to be the araracanga of Marcgrav. He was obviously misled by his precursor Spix over the scientific name. He mentions, by the way, that the Cuban A. tricolor is probably a variety of the araracanga. In the same year Lear’s plates (1832) depict the red-and-yellow Macaw answering to the description of Linnaeus’s macao under the name Macrocercus aracanga , i.e. with naked cheeks, central wing feathers yellow with green edges, the central rectices red with blue tips, and the lateral ones reddish-chocolate with blue tips, the most lateral pair blue throughout. 68 W. G. OSMAN HILL - THE “ RED-AND-BLUE 5 5 MACAWS Brehm (1842) recognized two red Macaws, but persists in the transposition of their names. His Macao At a is shown dark red with green centres on the wing-feathers and with scattered red feathers on the naked cheeks. He shows a black-tipped upper mandible. His Araracanga-Papagei , on the other hand, is figured red with much yellow on the wing-feathers, though this shades to green along their margins. The face is shown quite naked and the tip of the bill dusky with a smaller pigmented triangle at its base than in his “ macao ”. Clearly this second bird is the red-yellow-and-blue Macaw of Latham and the Psittacus macao of Linnaeus. The next important work in this connection is the Ornithologie bresilienne of Descourtilz who, like Brehm, under the title Ara aracanga describes the yellow-winged, naked-cheeked Macaw. His figure shows no black tip to the bill. He does not mention the green- winged Macaw. Pelzeln (1867), in a similar work, mentions both birds under correct specific names, using the generic name Sittace. Unfortunately, he gives the Portuguese title of arara vermelha to the wrong bird, i.e. to S. chloroptera (Gray). Reichenow’s well-known monograph (1878-1883) more or less corrects the position and gives adequate descriptive and pictorial evidence of the two birds. He, too, uses the generic name Sittace and describes S. macao as “ hellr other Ara ”, giving also the French : name as ara rouge , and the English “ red-and-blue ” Macaw as distinct from “ dunkelrother Ara ”, ara aux ailes verts, but spoiling the account ; by the English “ red-and-yellow ” Macaw for S. chloroptera. Moreover, | he uses the name Aracanga for S. macao which is not in accordance with Marcgrav’s first usage. Salvador’s British Museum Catalogue (1891) adds little, but under the synonymy of A. macao is listed the red-and-blue Macaw of Edwards and the red-yellow-and-blue of Latham. The best published account overtopping not only all those listed so far but also those that have appeared since, is Penard and Penard’s (1908) De Vogeln van Guyana. This applies both to descriptions and figures. Ara macao is termed Scharlakenroode-Ara with English equivalent “ blue-and-red Macaw ” whilst A. choloroptera is labelled Bloedroode Ara, anglice “ green-and-red Macaw ”. Four years later, in the List of the birds of South America , Lord Brabourne and Chubb (1912) revert to “ scarlet macaw ” for A. macao, using the term “ red-and-blue ” Macaw for a species to which it had never previously been applied, i.e. Illiger’s Macaw (A. maracana ). A. chloroptera is further confused by calling it “red-and-yellow”. Chubb (1916) perpetuated these mistakes in his later publication, but Cory (1918) partly corrected the position by relabelling A. chloroptera “ red-blue-and-green macaw ”, though retaining “ red-and-blue ” for A, maracana . This disquisition on the names applied to A. macao may suitably W. G. OSMAN HILL - THE “ RED-AND-BLUE ” MACAWS 69 be terminated by reference to the present-day standard work of the Marquess of Tavistock.1 Here, the larger A. macao is wisely referred to as “ red-and-yellow ” whilst for A. chloroptera the rather ambiguous “ red-and-blue ” is perpetuated. It is noted that immature specimens of A. macao have more green on the wing than the adults. (2) Ara chloroptera G. R. Gray, 1859 Marcgrav must be credited with the first recognition of the green¬ winged red Macaw, yet despite Linnaeus’s assertion that he based his macao on Marcgrav’s bird, the fact remains that Linnaeus’s description is not applicable thereto. This Macaw received its scientific name Ara chloropterus [sic] from Gray only in 1859. But it is debatable whether or not Gray’s name should be regarded as nomen nudum. It appears merely as an item in a list and is not accompanied by a description — unless the English vernacular title “ green-winged Macaw ” be regarded as adequately distinguishing the bird. Probably it does, and it is pretty clear which bird Gray had in mind ; neverthe¬ less, it does not conform to what is ordinarily understood by a description, though possibly sufficient to satisfy Article 25 of the International Rules in so far as “ green-winged ” is an “ indication ”. Sclater (1859) at once accepted Gray’s name modifying the spelling to suit better the generic name Ara. The only earlier names are hrasiliensis used by Brisson in 1 760 — usually regarded as non-binomial. The specific name aracanga ought by rights to be available, since it derives from Marcgrav, but unfortunately, from Gmelin (1788) onwards, it has been transferred to the Macaw whose proper name is macao , which name has priority. Since Gray’s time all ornithologists who have recognized the bird have employed his name. Muddle, however, has been omnipresent with regard to vernacular names, especially in English. Though German writers have fairly consistently recognized the present species as dunkelrother Ara in contrast to the hellr other Ara (for A. macao ) in English the terms red-and- blue, red-and-yellow, green-and-red, or red-blue-and-green have been promiscuously employed, whilst some of these have also been used for the previous species and, one at least, for a totally different bird from either of those at present under consideration ! ( Vide supra.) Personal Observations and Recommendations It is pretty clear that two birds of similar size and generally similar in appearance have been long confused, yet are quite distinct. These 1 I omit Green (1884) since he deals only with A. macao , which he terms “ red- and-blue Macaw ”. 70 W. C. OSMAN HILL - THE “ RED-AND-BLUE ” MACAWS are adequately labelled scientifically as Ara macao and Ara chloroptera and they may be distinguished as follows : — Size .... General colour of plumage Central wing feathers Inner rectrices Outer rectrices Cheeks . Upper rhamphotheca Iris There is no evidence that the two kinds interbreed in nature, and they have always been regarded as distinct species, not as geographical variants of one form.1 They do, however, interbreed in captivity, for Mr. G. S. Mottershead informs me that in 1947 three eggs were laid by a female A. chloroptera that had lived in the same aviary as a male A. macao. One of these was infertile, but the other two were hatched, one baby being killed almost at once, but the other lived for six weeks. The babies were very small, “ no bigger than a man’s thumb.” What are we to call these Macaws in English ? In the first place, the name “ red-and-blue ” ought to be scrapped for obvious reasons. In fact, all these cumbersome descriptive titles based on different colours linked by the conjunction “ and ” are undesirable. For A. macao the name Scarlet Macaw is to be recommended ; it has been used before ; it corresponds well with the German hellroiher Ara , the French Ara rouge , and the Portuguese Ara vermelha. For A. chloroptera we cannot do better than perpetuate Gray’s “ Green- winged Macaw ”. 1 Peters (Check list) refers to a subspecies A. chloroptera major of chloroptera, presum¬ ably larger than the typical form described by Bertoni in 1901 (An. dent. Paraguayos (i), no. 1, p. 52, to which I have not had access). A. macao. Slightly the larger (total length, 36 inches). Scarlet. Yellow tipped with green (greener in immature bird). Scarlet, with purplish blue tinge at base and tip. Blue with some reddish- chocolate at base. Naked with sparse, whitish piles. Whitish horn colour with large triangular black area at base of its lower margin. Tip often black also. Yellowish- white “ Hoch- gelb ” according to Reichenow. A. chloroptera. Slightly the smaller (total length, 34 inches). Crimson. Median wing coverts olive- green, greater blue ; in¬ nermost greater upper wing coverts and scapu¬ lars olive-green, more or less tinged with blue. Dark red with blue tip. Maroon at base, with blue tip. Naked tract traversed by six or seven curved rows or dark red short feathers coursing forwards and curving upwards be¬ neath the eye. (This is a different arrangement from the tracts of black feathers seen on the cheeks of A. ararauna.) Similar but with smaller area of black at base. Straw-yellow.” A. WILSON - BIRDS IN KENYA, UGANDA, AND TANGANYIKA 7 References to Literature Bertoni. 1901. Ann. Cient. Paraguayos (1), 52. Brabourne, Lord, and Chubb, C. 1912. A List of the Birds of South America. Brehm, C. L. 1842. Monographic der Papageien, Jena. Chubb, C. 1916. Birds of British Guiana , London. Cory, C. B. 1918. Cat. Birds of the Americas , Pt. II, No. 1. Chicago. Descourtilz, J. T. 1852. Ornithologie bresilienne ou Histoire naturelle des oiseaux du Bresil. Rio de Janeiro. Edwards, G. 1743. Natural History of Birds. London. Gray, G. R. 1859. List of the Specimens of Birds in the Collection of the British Museum , Pt. Ill, sect. 2, Psittacidae, 26. - 1870. Handlist , ii, 144. Green, W. J. 1884. Parrots in Captivity , G. Bell, London, II, 69-74. Latham, J. 1781. General Synopsis of Birds. London. Lear, E. 1832. Illustrations of the family Psittacidae. London. Linnaeus, C. 1758. Syst. Nat. ed. X, 96, Holmiae. Marcgrav, G. 1648. In Piso, G. Historia rerum naturalium Brasiliae, Amstelodami. von Pelzeln, A. 1867. Zur Ornithologie Brasiliens, Wien, 254-5. Penard, F. P., and Penard, A. P. 1908. De Vogels van Guyana , Paramaribo. Peters, J. L. 1946. Check-list of Birds of the World , III, 182. Rexchenow, A. 1878-1883. Papageien, Kassel. Rothschild, Hon. W. i 907. Extinct Birds. Salvadori, T. 1891. Catalogue of Birds in the British Museum , XX. Sclater, P. L. 1859. Proc. Z°°l- Soc. Bond ., 453. Shaw, G. 1812. Gen. £00/., Aves, VIII, pt. 2, 336-9. Spix, J. B. 1824. Avium species novae , Monachii. Tavistock, Marquess of. n.d. Parrots and Parrot-like Birds. von Wied, Prince Max. 1832. Beitrage zur Naturgeschiehte von Brasilien , IV, 38. Acknowledgment I have to express my appreciation to Miss P. M. Thomas, Librarian, Tring Museum, for her assistance with the earlier literature on the South American Parrots. ❖ * * NOTES ON BIRDS IN KENYA, UGANDA, AND TANGANYIKA By Andrew Wilson Shortly before I left Glasgow for East Africa in January, 1947, a friend, a retired district commissioner in Uganda, said to me, “ Africa is a country where you will change your mind about many things.” I now know how right he was, for my two visits to “ The Dark Continent”, January to March, 1947, and January to April, 1 948, demonstrated that much that I thought to be quite simple turned out to be not so simple as one was led to believe. For instance, I held the common belief that tropical Finches, the common kind that were imported in their thousands before the war, could be caught by the hundreds, that they went about in huge flocks, and all you had to do was to set your traps, and, Hi Presto ! you had more birds than you had cages to house. 72 A. WILSON - BIRDS IN KENYA, UGANDA, AND TANGANYIKA How different we found the real picture. With a few exceptions which I will mention later, most of the birds we saw were in ones and twos, and although we covered nearly 6,000 miles by car, we could never say that birds of any kind were plentiful. So that the old adage “ Birds of a feather flock together 55 did not apply at the time of the year when we were there. Lest I be misunderstood, I hasten to say that we did see some wonder¬ ful birds in their wild state. The following list will indicate that East Africa holds some wonderful birds, birds that are a joy to behold, birds that are like living jewels when in flight, birds that are a feast for the eyes, birds that would bring joy to many in aviaries in this country, if- — and it’s a great big if- — the stupid regulations and orders that have now become part of our everyday life did not prevent them from being imported unless for Zoos and for medical research purposes. Here is the list. Fire Finches, Senegal Waxbills, Melba Finches, Gordon Bleus, various Wydahs including the Delemere, Violet and Grenedere Waxbills, Spreo, Royal and Violet-eared Glossy Starlings, Shrikes, Barbets, White-eyes, Puff backs, Cuckoos, Turocous, Blue Jays, Hoopoes, Bee-eaters, Doves, Egrets, Bulbuls, Swifts and Swallows, Herons, Wagtails, Golden Orioles, Weaver Birds, Nightjars, Wood¬ peckers, Vultures, Hawks, Eagles, Owls, Guinea Fowl — three species — Secretary Birds, Crowned Cranes, Quails, Cormorants, Storks, Tick Birds — on the necks of Giraffes and cattle — Ostriches, Flamingoes, . Francolins, Hornbills, White-necked Crows, Harriers, Ibis, King¬ fishers, Ducks, Hammerkops, and last, but not least, numerous species of Sunbirds. As I have already said, we found most of these in ones and twos ; for instance in most compounds we were almost sure to find a pair of Sunbirds, usually Malachite [Necterinia famosd) , the probable reason * for one pair only being on account of the quarrelsome disposition of these beautiful little birds. Then, wherever we found wild fig trees growing we always found Mouse Birds ( Colius striatus ), and it was easy to see why they got their name. They run up and down the branches like mice, using their tails in the same fashion as Woodpeckers, hanging on to the ripe fruit, sometimes in upside-down positions like Tits. They are certainly most interesting birds to watch. It’s a pity they don’t do well in aviaries, not because they are difficult to keep, but on account of the fact that their tails get destroyed on the wire netting and this takes away their feature of particular attraction. My wife and I stayed for a period at Shanzu Beach Hotel, 1 o miles from Mombasa, where a never-ending source of amusement was the group of Weavers that monopolized two palm trees that grew on the foreshore, a few yards from the door of our room, or “ Banda A. WILSON - BIRDS IN KENYA, UGANDA, AND TANGANYIKA 73 These industrious birds started work at dawn, repairing, adding to, and building new nests ; nests that are indeed works of art in structure and in shape. The last job at dusk appeared to be feeding the young ; when this was finished silence reigned supreme, such a contrast to the activities and noise of daytime and as sudden as if one switched off an electric light ; nor does the simile end there for there is little twilight in Africa. We were fortunate in finding a group of Crowned Cranes, about 200, in a clearing a few miles from Nairobi. They were feeding on grass, grasshoppers, and other insects. When not thus engaged they performed dances that put one in mind of clowns in a circus. When disturbed they took to the air, got into line of formation as if under the orders of a sergeant-major, flew around in a circle and landed in an adjoining field allowing us to get near enough to take a cine picture. This picture, however, did not come out because the native who did the developing used hypo for developing and developer for fixing. It may be of interest to give particulars of how the natives catch these Cranes. A hole, sufficient to hold two “ Boys 55 is dug, then covered over with brushwood to resemble the surrounding ground. For a few days grain is scattered near the hole thus encouraging the birds to feed at this spot. One day two natives get into the hole, cover it over as formerly, wait until the birds come near enough, grasp them by the legs and pull them into the hole. Seldom are more than two a day caught by this method. The Cranes appear to get wise to it and steer clear of the hole for days or even weeks. Regarding Flamingoes, I was informed that owing to the fact that all East African Flamingoes feed on the small plants, Snails, fish, etc., of a particular kind that are only found in the swamps at the edge of the soda lakes,1 it is impossible to keep them alive in captivity ; that unlike Egyptian Flamingoes they will not thrive on shredded shrimps, soaked grain, or meat scraps. Whether this is so or not I cannot answer, but it is the common belief in East Africa, so common that no one appears to have tried the experiment ; in point of fact I was astonished at the lack of interest in aviculture, as we know it in this country. In all my search I only found one private person with an aviary and therein were a very indifferent pair of Green Budgerigars. A few dealers have aviaries with the larger types of birds, Turocous, Cranes, Ostriches, etc., housed near leopards, hyenas, etc. I would account for this lack of interest in the smaller beautiful birds to the fact that everyone’s attention appears to be focused on the big game that abounds in Kenya, Uganda, and Tanganyika, the shooting of which appears to be a greater conquest than keeping the magnificent feathered creatures alive in aviaries. 1 Most of the lakes in Kenya contain a large proportion of soda. 6 74 BRITISH AVICULTURISTS5 CLUB BRITISH AVICULTURISTS5 CLUB The sixteenth meeting of the Club was held at the Rembrandt Hotel, Thurloe Place, South Kensington, S.W. 7, on Tuesday, 15th March, 1949, at 6 p.m., followed by a dinner. Chairman : Dr. M. Amsler. Members of the Club : Miss P. Barclay-Smith (Vice-Chairman), Miss K. Bonner, T. Crewes, B. H. Dulanty, O. E. Dunmore, A. Ezra (Patron), J. F. M. Floyd, Tom Goodwin, Frank Grant, R. E. Heath, Dr. E. Hindle, Terry Jones, Miss E. M. Knobel (Club Hostess), Miss M. H. Knobel-Harman, G. S. Mottershead, K. A. Norris, A. A. Prestwich (Hon. Secretary), D. H. S. Risdon, A. E. Sibley, E. N. T. Vane, R. C. Witting, H. Wallace Wood. Guest of Honour : Mme. Jeanne Derscheid. Guests : Mrs. Carson-Roberts, R. A. H. Coombes, R. D. Etchecopar, Miss Ruth Ezra, Mrs. Frank Grant, Roland Green, K. A. Norris, C. S. Webb. Members of the Club, 23 ; guests, 9 ; total 32. The Chairman said it gave him very great pleasure to welcome Mme. Jeanne Derscheid as a Guest of Honour. The articles of the late Dr. Derscheid were well known to all readers of the Avicultural Magazine. What impressed him so much was the wonderful courage of the man, who could not only write articles on birds, but also illustrate them while under the terrible conditions of imprisonment. Dr. Derscheid held a unique place in the affections of British avi- culturists, and the Club was honoured and proud to pay tribute to his memory through Mme. Derscheid. The Club presented a bouquet of red carnations, tied with the Belgian national colours, to Mme. Derscheid as a token of regard. Another very welcome guest was M. R. D. Etchecopar, Secretaire general, La Societe Ornithologique de France. M. Etchecopar said he felt very flattered to be asked to attend, especially as he was not an aviculturist but an ornithologist. He described briefly the difficulties experienced in producing UOiseau during the war, but thought that in future this journal would be published at regular intervals. Mr. K. A. Norris showed a selection of his remarkable, hand- coloured slides. The series represented the birds of marshland and foreshore in Holland. Some idea of the ground covered may be gathered from the following : Little Black Tern, Purple Heron, Montagu’s Harrier with nest of three young ones in varying stages of development, Long-eared and Short-eared Owls brooding, Avocet, Redshank, Black-tailed Godwit, Ruff in display and Reeve, Kestrel and nest on ground in heather, Kentish Plover, Ringed Plover and PERSONALIA 75 young, Heron colony in the centre of Rotterdam, and a rookery of some two thousand pairs of Cormorants near Rotterdam. The Chairman, thanking Mr. Norris, said it was one of the finest and most interesting exhibitions he remembered seeing, and he warmly congratulated him on his skill and success as a photographer. These remarks were reflected in the sustained applause accorded Mr. Norris. The date of the next meeting is Wednesday, 11th May. It is hoped that M. Jean Delacour will be present. Many members do not seem to appreciate the importance of the meeting notice cards. At most of the dinners there are members who have not expressed their intention to be present. To enable the Secretary to complete the organization of the dinners the cards must be used. Arthur A. Prestwick, Hon. Secretary. * * * PERSONALIA The Duke of Palmella, Portuguese Ambassador, has presented four Spanish Blue Magpies to the London Zoo. The Duke brought them from Sesimbra, south of Lisbon, when he returned to this country earlier in the year. Sydney Porter, the much-travelled, has i been wintering in California. He has been staying with F. H. Rudkin, jun., and has visited many of the larger aviaries. At the last time of writing he was waiting for the snows to clear on the mountains before going up to endeavour to see the now very scarce California Condor. A. H. Scott has, as usual, been wintering in Switzerland. Writing from Grans-sur-Sierre, he says : 4 4 This is the most bird-less Swiss resort I’ve yet struck. Hundreds and hundreds of rowan trees all loaded with berries, though leaves are gone, and not a bird to eat them. Even above 6,ooo ft. there are usually Bullfinches to eat them off. Years ago I caught some in St. Moritz, and brought them back to England.” Dave Bush, writing at the end of January, says : “Just returned from New Guinea. We leave for London, via Africa, on the Nestor from Sydney about 9th February. I suppose it will be about the end of March when we arrive in London. Had a very nice trip and brought back the following varieties of stock, some of which were secured by Fred Shaw Mayer : Great Palm Cockatoos, Eclectus, Alpine, Fig or Double-eyed Parrots, White-rumped Lories, Varied Lorikeets, 76 NOTES Blue-capped Keets, Caldwell’s and MacGregor’s Bower Birds, Hawks, Cassowaries, Brush Turkeys, six species of Birds of Paradise, Horn- bills, Pesquet’s Parrots, Blue-face Parrot Finches, and Tree Kangaroos. Jean Delacour plans to leave New York for Paris on 2nd May, and all being well will attend the B.A.C. meeting on iith May. He also hopes to be at Foxwarren Park on 28th May. Dr. E. Hopkinson, believed to be the original of Edgar Wallace’s Sanders of the River , celebrated his 80th birthday on 31st March, 1949. Dr. Hopkinson has been a member of the Society since 1906 and a Vice-President for the past twenty-five years. B. H. Dulanty headed the National Council of Aviculture deputation to the House of Commons on 16th March to suggest amendments to the Pet Animals Bill. The deputation, which also included C. R. Free¬ man and E. N. T. Vane, was given a sympathetic hearing by Brigadier C. H. M. Peto. A. A. P. * * ❖ NOTES Avicultural Society of South Australia : The Medal Awards. Dr. Alan Lendon has kindly sent information that the Medal of the Avicultural Society of South Australia has been awarded for the following breeding successes during 1948 : — C. K. Knuckey, for Yellow Seed-eater ( Serinus sulphuratus) . C. K. Knuckey, for Natal Fire Finch ( Lagonosticta ruhricata). C. K. Knuckey, for Rock Bunting ( Fringillaria tahapisi). C. K. Knuckey, for Rufous-backed Mannikin ( Spermestes nigriceps). A. H. Lendon, for Golden-mantled Rosella ( Platycercus splendidus). A. H. Lendon, for Pileated Parrakeet {Purpureicephalus spurius ). The Silver Medal for the outstanding breeding achievement of the year was awarded to Dr. Lendon for the Pileated Parrakeet. Dr. Lendon writes : — “ All Mr. Knuckey ’s breedings were from the shipment of African birds received by him in 1947 and referred to in my previous letter (A.M., 1948, 97) ; there are still several others that he may succeed in breeding. In contrast to last year, you will notice that no softbills were bred. Mr. McKechnie twice hatched a young Southern Scrub Robin ( Drymodes brunneopygius) , but on each occasion the young bird disappeared on the day of hatching.” A. A. P. Avian Imports. Several readers have inquired whether it is possible to clarify the situation regarding the importation of birds. The following extracts are from a recent letter from a very high-ranking official of the Board of Trade and explain the reasoning behind their policy : — “ The restrictions on these imports are due to the ever-present problem of our balance of payments. The amounts involved may not seem large but these small items, when taken together, tend to add up to quite a substantial sum. Once we NOTES 77 commence to relax upon the import restrictions there is the problem of deciding which items merit first consideration and I think you will agree that birds and pets could not come very high on the list. “ There is a particular difficulty in the case of seed-eating birds in that supplies of bird seed are insufficient to meet current needs and these supplies can only be increased at the expense of other types of feeding-s tuffs. The same sort of problem arises, to a limited degree, on imports of other types of pets. “ Some import licences are issued for imports intended for educational or research purposes, such as the imports by zoos, but these relate in the main to transactions which do not call for any expenditure of foreign currency. Also imports are permitted for total re-export provided the business results in a currency profit to this country : this is in keeping with our policy to foster entrepot trade but the benefits of such trade would be largely dissipated if we were to allow some of the imports to remain in this country, also we obviously could not permit a tolerance of this nature in the case of birds and pets without considering a similar concession on other commodities, and the loss of potential currency earnings would be corre¬ spondingly increased. “ . . . (regarding) the facilities already accorded to imports of quadrupeds from the British Empire. The volume of these imports, apart from agricultural live¬ stock, is not large and generally they relate to types which serve a useful purpose in our economy : the policy is kept under review and further restrictions will be imposed should these prove necessary.” A. A. P. Additions to the London Zoo. December , 1948. — There were nineteen new arrivals during the month. The more noteworthy were a Cinnamomeous Kestrel ( Falco cinnamominus) , caught on board ship off S. America ; 2 American Kestrels (Falco sparverius ), received in ex¬ change from the National Zoological Park, Washington ; 2 Little Crakes (Porzana pared) , 1 Water Rail ( Rallus aquaticus) ; and 2 Black-footed Penguins, bred in the Menagerie. Whipsnade. — 4 North American Turkeys, 20 Mallard, and 70 Red Jungle Fowl were recorded as bred in the Park during 1948. January, 1949. — The sixteen new arrivals included one Gaboon Speckled Tinker Bird (Pogoniulus scolopaceus flavisquamatus) , a species new to the collection, deposited ; 2 Brown Pelicans (Pelecanus occidentalis ) received in exchange from the Royal Zoological Society of Ireland ; 4 Spanish Blue Magpies ( Cyanopica cyanus cooki) presented by the Duke of Palmella ; 2 Japanese White-necked Cranes ( Megalornis leucauchen ) presented by Mr. A. Ezra ; and 1 Black-footed Penguin ( Spheniscus demersus) bred in the Menagerie. A. A. P. The “ Crystal Palace ” Show. The seventy-sixth “ Crystal Palace ” Championship Show of Cage Birds was held at the Royal Horticultural Hall, Westminster, on 20th, 21st, and 22nd January, 1949- The fourteen classes for foreign birds attracted 1 1 3 entries and were judged by Mr. D. H. S. Risdon. The Championship Trophy winners were : — Foreign Parrot-like : Mr. C. Laidman, Plum-headed Parrakeet. Foreign Seedeater : Mr. T. Crewes, Golden-breasted Buntings. Foreign Insectivorous : Mr. H. J. Indge, Bengal Pitta. The winners of first prizes were : Mr. P. H. Alderson, Levaillant’s Amazon ; Mr. R. Best, Peach-faced Lovebirds ; Mrs. D. K. Draper, Golden-mantled Rosellas ; Mr. H. J. Indge, Barraband’s Parrakeets ; Mr. H. J. Indge, Queen Alexandra’s Parrakeets ; Mr. C. Laidman, Plum-headed Parrakeet ; Mrs. D. K. Draper, St. Helena Waxbills ; Mr. S. N. Pinfield, Tricoloured Mannikins ; Mr. T. Crewes, Red-headed Parrot Finches ; Mr. T. Crewes, Golden-breasted Buntings ; Mr. T. Crewes, Zosterops ; Mr. H. J. Indge, Bengal Pitta ; Mr. T. Corrall, Occipital Blue Pies ; Mr. J. E. Williams, Turquoisine X Blue-winged Grass Parrakeet. 78 NOTES Mr. J. Clinton Bond, late Curator of the McMahon Museum, Quetta, sent a number of non-competitive exhibits, five Eastern Goldfinches, four Pink-winged Desert Finches, and a pair of Red-mantled Rose Finches. The two first named were all males, but I am given to understand a number of females had been kept at home. The only exhibit from abroad was a Venezuelan Siskin X Roller Canary, flown from Paris. This “ Red Canary ” proved a great attraction, but for some unknown reason it was labelled as having an “ Abyssinian Siskin ” as a parent. A. A. P. The John Frostigk Memorial Cup. T. Crewes was the winner of this Cup at the <{ Crystal Palace ” Show. His* four nominated foreign birds scored 27 points ; three firsts and one second. Grey Parrot Bred at Brighton. Considerable interest was caused at the recent National Show by a young Grey Parrot exhibited by H. A. Avery. It was labelled “ Bred at Brighton ” ; and its parents were also on show. Avery then gave me brief particulars and in confirmation writes as follows : — “ Regarding the young African Grey, this was born in about April, 1946, and is probably about thirty-two months old. It was born out of doors in a secluded and sheltered aviary. The parents made the nest on the ground after I had removed the nesting-boxes — having made six previous attempts, all of which were very disappointing, I eventually decided to give them a rest. I had two pairs of Greys in flights adjoining, and the six previous attempts were made with these four birds. This last nest contained two eggs ; one with chick dead in shell, practically fully developed, and the other produced the bird you saw at the Show. I left the parents to themselves only placing daily a supply of soft and ordinary food.” This noteworthy breeding success was, of course, about a year after E. J. Boosey’s. A. A. P. * * * CANDIDATES FOR ELECTION M. Barnard-Hankey, Plush Dorset. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. J. L. Bronson, 617 West 143 Street, New York 31, N.Y., U.S.A. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. J. W. Clemitson, 25 St. Paul’s Gardens, Whitley Bay, Northumberland. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. G. H. Crone, “ Vyverhof,” Lage Vuursche, Holland. Proposed by A. F. C. A. van Heyst. C. af Enehjelm, Hogholmens Djurgard, Helsingfors, Finland. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. Elmer A. Heft, Green Lake, Wisconsin, U.S.A. Proposed by John W. Livermore. Charles G. Jones, 516 Summit No., Seattle 13, Washington, U.S.A. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. Dr. Leo Kober, IX/71 Hofergasse 18/3, Vienna, Austria. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. Mrs. E. Leonhart, 1637 Grand Avenue, Piedmont 11, Ala. Co., California, U.S.A. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. Lieut.-Col. G. Lomer, D.S.O., T.D., Scallet’s Wood, Sidley, Bexhill-on-Sea, Sussex. Proposed by Peter Scott. N. J. Munden, Wilmer Lodge, Epsom Road, Guildford, Surrey. Proposed by E. J. Boosey. Calvin Ragan, P.O. Box 7, Bell, California, U.S.A. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. Mrs. M. Ruth Sayles, 48 Everett Street, East Orange, New Jersey, U.S.A. Pro¬ posed by A. A. Prestwich. W. J. Sheffler, 4731 Angeles Vista Boulevard, Los Angeles, California, U.S.A. Proposed by Sydney Porter. Lawrence N. Taylor, Shadowhurst Farm, Glen Moore, Pa., U.S.A. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. Walter Van den bergh, Soci6t6 Royale de Zoologie d’ Anvers, 26 Place Reine Astrid, Antwerp, Belgium. Proposed by Miss P. Barclay-Smith. Thomas Nel, 97 Small Street, Vryheid, Natal, South Africa. Proposed by C. S. Shearman. NEW MEMBERS Reginald M. Adamson, c/o Zoological Society of London, Whipsnade Park, Nr. Dunstable, Beds. A. R. Anderson, 15 Dugdale Street, Birmingham 18. Jose Maria Ferran Andreu, Cooperativa de Avicultores, Rambla de los Estudios, 8-2° ia, Barcelona, Spain. R. Best, F.Z.S., Langdale, 42 Petitor Road, Torquay. Miss V. S. E. Bonner, 36 Wilson Street, Winchmore Hill, London, N. 21. Donald S. Brock, 5840 Seminary Court, Oakland, California, U.S.A. Mrs. Davtd Carlson, 1521 Berkeley Way, Berkeley 3, California, U.S.A. F. N. Clark, 8 Maurice Road, King’s Heath, Birmingham. G. T. Clark, Maidsmere, Finstall, Bromsgrove, Worcs. Rolf Dahlby, Elveveien 3, Trondheim, Norway. Robert J. Hansen, P.O. Box 46, Gonzales, California, U.S.A. Major H. R. Hendy, Nyamazani, P.O. Box 46, Mbabane, Swaziland, South Africa. Louis Hershey, 189 Washington Street, New York 7, New York, U.S.A. Ivo Lazzeroni, 5034 Templeton Street, Los Angeles 32, California, U.S.A. Frank A. Rethers, 605 Market Street, San Francisco 5, California, U.S.A. Larry C. Shelton, P.O. B 363, Harriman, Tenn., U.S.A. G. Donald Spaceman, Jr., Hill Farm, Coatesville, Penn., U.S.A, Paul V. Springman, P.O. Box 527, Brownsville, Texas, U.S.A. Horace J. Stevens, Tustin, California, U.S.A. A. E. Thomas, Burnt House, Chigwell, Essex. C. R. Verner, Lower Lann, Fonthill Gifford, Tisbury, Wilts. Mrs. C. M. Wagner, 1608 W. Second Street, Santa Ana, California, U.S.A. READMITTED John A. Griswold, The Zoological Society, 34th Street and Girard Avenue, Philadelphia 4, Pa., U.S.A. CHANGES OF ADDRESS Miss F. E. Bacon, to Little Morven, Dormansland, Surrey. Ralph Brown, to The Pleasants, Aberdour, Fife, Scotland. C. S. Gulbenkian, to 214 Oxford Street, Oxford Circus, London, W. 1. C. P. Guy, to c/o York House, Albert Street, Droitwich. Mrs. K. Hollas, to Hothersall Hall, Ribchester, Nr. Preston, Lancs. J. H. Noordzij, to Lumeystraat 15, Rotterdam, Holland. Randolph J. Pickford, to c/o The Manager, Midland Bank Ltd., 629 Attercliffe Road, Sheffield 9. W. H. Raven, O.B.E., to The Mill House, Newbold-on-Stour, Nr. Stratford-on- Avon. Paul Regibo, to 50 Rue du Goverment Provisoire, Brussels, Belgium. Dr. A. R. Robertson, to P.O. Box 1, Vrede, O.F.S., South Africa. Mrs. E. G. Stubbs, to “ Brightlands ”, Uplands Avenue, High Salvington, Worthing. W. Lawson Waddams, to 34 Thurlston Avenue, Sheldon, Birmingham 26. DONATIONS A. Lamb .... Miss E. F. Chawner E. Valentine Geo. Hardy, Jr. . £ s. d. 220 1 o o I o o I 00 MEMBERS* ADVERTISEMENTS The charge for Members' advertisements is one penny per word. Payment must accompany the advertisement , which must be sent on or before the 20th of the months to A. A. Prestwich, Chelmsford Road, Southgate, N. 14. All members of the Society are entitled to use this column , but the Council reserves the right to refuse any advertisements they consider unsuitable . FOR SALE Avicultural Magazine, i 902-4-6-7-8-9- 1 1 - 1 2- 1 4- 1 5- 1 6- 1 7- 1 8-2 6-2 7-28- 29-30, bound; all parts 1922 unbound. Foreign Birds , 1936-1941, bound in two vols. ; 1942-7, unbound. Birds of British Burmah , Oates, two vols., 1883 ; Birds of British Indias Handlist, Stuart-Baker, 1923 ; Wright’s Book of Poultry , Cassel, 1879. The collection, £50. E. Marshall, c/o Devon General Depot, Sidmouth, Devon. Female Hooded Crane, tame and in perfect condition ; offers wanted. 1948 female Golden Pheasants, £3. Breeding pair Upland Geese, £10. Caracara, £6. A. F. Moody, Lilford, Oundle, Peterborough. Parrots and Parrot-like Birds in Aviculture , Tavistock ; good copy but cover stained, £2 ioj. Apply to the Hon. Secretary. Ornamental Waterfowl. Orders booked for 1949 hand-reared, pinioned stock for autumn delivery ; 40 species kept. Also rare Pheasants ; Blue Crossoptilon, Temminck’s Tragopan, Monal, Mikado, Swinhoe, Edwards, Amherst. Prices on application. — Terry Jones, Leckford Abbas, Stockbridge, Hants. Avicultural Magazine, complete from 1895 (first edition) to date, with Index. Bound up to and including 1946, and all in excellent condition. Foreign Birds for Cage and Aviary (A. G. Butler), parts I and II. Records of Birds Bred in Captivity (Emilius Hopkinson). Best offer over £40. — H. Underwood, The Wheatsheaf Hotel, Burton Joyce, Notts. STEPHEN AUSTIN AND SONS, LTD., PRINTERS, HERTFORD. OiTlaloa of Blra, AVICULTURAL MAGAZINE uess Hachisuka BIRDS OF PREY NUMBER CONTENTS A Desert Eagle Owl ( with plate), by J. G. Mavrogordato . Birds of Prey as Companions, by Raol Shri Dharmakumarsinhji A Pet Kestrel, by George A. Weaver Bubo Bubo Bubo and Co., by J. F. M. Floyd Little Owls, by D. H. S. Risdon The Steller’s and Black Sea-Eagles {with plate), by The Marq My Kite, by E. F. Chawner . Experiences with Owls, by Dillon Ripley Council Meeting ..... The Society’s Medal .... Eagle-Owls, by Arthur A. Prestwich “ Dayo,” My Pet Barn Owl, by P. W. Teague British Aviculturists’ Club Personalia Reviews Notes Correspondence Statement of Accounts VOL. 56 No. 3 PAGE 79 8i 85 87 90 92 PRICE 5/- 98 100 100 100 105 106 109 109 hi 112 1 14 MAY-JUNE 1949 THE AVICULTURAL SOCIETY Founded 1894 President : A. EZRA, Esq., O.B.E. MEMBERSHIP SUBSCRIPTION is £1 per annum, due on 1st January each year, and payable in advance. Life Membership, £15. Subscriptions, Changes of Address, Names of Candidates for Membership, etc., should be sent to — The Honorary Secretary and Treasurer , A. A. PRESTWICH, Chelmsford Road, Southgate, N. 14. Tel.: Palmers Green 4484. THE AVICULTURAL MAGAZINE is published bi-monthly and sent free to members. Members joining at any time during the year are entitled to back numbers for the current year on the payment of subscription. ALL MATTER FOR PUBLICATION IN THE MAGAZINE SHOULD BE ADDRESSED TO— The Editor , MISS PHYLLIS BARCLAY-SMITH, 51 Warwick Avenue, Tel. : Cunningham 3006. London, W. 9. The price of the Magazine to non-members is 55. post free per copy, or £1 1 or. for the year. Orders for the Magazine, extra copies, and back numbers (from 1917) should be sent to the publishers, Messrs. Stephen Austin & Sons, 1 Fore Street, Hertford. Tel. : Hertford 2546-8. POST-MORTEM EXAMINATIONS Rule i. A short account of the illness should accompany the specimen. All birds to be sent as fresh as possible to Mr. W. Lawrence, The Zoological Society of London, Regent’s Park, London, N.W. 8. Rule 2. A fee of ior. and a stamped addressed envelope must be enclosed with the bird. Rule 3. No body or skin of any bird will be returned under any circumstances whatever. Desert Eagle Owl {Bubo ascalaphus desertorum ) Avicultural Magazine THE JOURNAL OF THE AVICULTURAL SOCIETY VdL 55. — No. 3 t-All rights reserved . MAY-JUNE, 1949 A DESERT EAGLE OWL By J. G. Mavrogordato The Desert Eagle Owl {Bubo ascalaphus desertorum) is, even for an Owl, an exceptionally handsome bird. It is one of the smaller Eagle Owls, and its coloration harmonizes, as one would expect, with its desert habitat. The general ground colour of its plumage is “ old gold ”, brindled with dark sepia, and spotted with white. It is, of course, eared, and has strikingly handsome eyes of a glorious orange colour. In the Sudan it lives on the little rocky hills (jebels) with which the scrub-covered desert is interspersed. These jebels are normally waterless and practically devoid of vegetation, but contain an infinity of caverns and caves of every shape and size. The surrounding country is arid scrub, that is, sand or gravel dotted more or less sparsely with thorn bushes and an occasional tree. The jebels with which I am myself familiar lie within two or three miles of the Nile, to the North of Omdurman. The numerous castings scattered about an occupied jebel provide a fairly accurate clue to the feeding habits of this Owl. Rodents (rats, mice, jerboas, jerbilles) not unnaturally provide the bulk of its food. Scorpions are, however, a surprisingly common ingredient in the castings. Feathers are rare, but I have found Sand Grouse feathers, and suppose that these Owls sometimes find an opportunity of pouncing on a jugging bevy of Sand Grouse. Little seems to be known of their nesting habits, and it required three years of intermittent search of jebels known to. be occupied by resident Eagle Owls before I found (in April, 1948) the fledgeling which I now have. Even so I cannot claim to have found the actual nest, for the little cave into which the young Owl retreated on my approach showed no greater signs of occupation than any of the surrounding caves, and I could find no trace of any other member of the family. Although not yet able to fly this Owl was a strong runner, and 79 7 8o J. G. MAVROGORDATO - A DESERT EAGLE OWL 1 suspect had reached the stage when he was inclined to wander about the rocks to relieve his boredom. This young bird is of a somewhat nervous disposition, and when first taken used to indulge in a good deal of beak-snapping ; he can give a shrewd bite with his beak, but has never made any aggressive use of his feet. His appetite is small for his size ; or at least for his apparent size, for he weighs only i-| lb. For reasons of convenience, I found it necessary in Khartoum to change his diet from fur to feather, and used to feed him on House Sparrows, Golden Sparrows, Pigeons, or Doves. Feeding time was at dusk every evening, and a suitable ration appeared to be about four Sparrows, half a Pigeon, or two-thirds of a Dove (the ubiquitous Mourning Dove). During his holiday at the London Zoo (which kindly offered him hospitality during my leave), his daily ration, I am told, consisted of three or four white mice. Though I give him water (in a shallow Pigeon bath), I cannot say if he drinks, but he certainly paddles. In Khartoum I kept him in a lean-to aviary, about 4 yards long by 2 yards wide by 2 yards high, floored with sand and having a small rock-built cavern in one corner. At first he used to retreat into his cavern when alarmed, as well as for a siesta during the heat of the day, but latterly he seemed to prefer sitting on a perch outside, unless the heat was extreme. In fact, as with the adult Owls, which are in the habit of sitting out on rocks in the full light of the sun in the mornings and evenings, bright sunlight seems to cause him no incon¬ venience or distress, and he can certainly see tolerably well in it. In England, having no aviary available, I used to keep him in a shed at night, and on fine days pegged him out in a sheltered corner of the garden on a bow-perch, to which he was attached by jesses, swivel, and leash, like a trained hawk. This method appeared to suit him very well, and the constant handling involved served to keep him a good deal tamer than if he had been left to his own devices in an aviary. I cannot, of course, prophesy how this Desert Owl would stand an English winter ; it could probably tolerate mere cold, but would have to be carefully protected from damp and draughts. My own bird, however, missed the experience, as he returned with me to Khartoum at the end of October. RAOL SHRI DHARMAKUMARSINHJI BIRDS OF PREY AS COMPANIONS 8 1 BIRDS OF PREY AS COMPANIONS By Raol Shri Dharmakumarsinhji In India there is a great variety of birds of prey which breed in many parts of the country, and during the autumn and winter seasons there are large migrations of birds which invade the plains regularly. It would take too long to mention all these birds, except those which are well known for their use in falconry, which has achieved a high standard in India. I am sorry to say that to-day the art of falconry is vanishing rapidly in India, and there are few who can really appreciate the finer points of this sport. In this article I do not wish to discourse on the art of falconry, but to give an idea of some birds of prey as human companions. As a Hawk grows older in captivity we trouble less about making it perform, and she becomes more attached to her master as time progresses. Moreover, in spite of the companionship of a bird to a man, one often expects some sort of display or work worthy of the bird’s ability, which may be quite voluntary and irrespective of the fundamentals of the art of falconry. Let us take the Goshawk. She has been condemned by many except the Oriental falconers who prize her most, but not without reason. Once a man becomes attached to his Goshawk I do not think he will sell her for a thousand ! The sentimental value in the East is something that should be understood by the West. The per¬ formance of the Hawk may be little, but the sentiment value great. The Taj Mahal, with its splendour and architectural beauty, amazes everyone, but I was told that an American visitor asked how many bedrooms it had got ! The difference between a Goshawk and a Peregrine mainly lies in its size, shape, and performance, as much as between a good gun dog and a classic greyhound. In general, for that matter, the East cannot appreciate the Englishman’s dog and the way he keeps it. As a companion there is no Hawk to excel the Goshawk or the Baz ; unhooded she remains at all times with cat-like eyes. It is we who have to study her. In my memory there have been a number of Goshawks that have passed through my hands, but there are only some that have remained as true companions, the reason being that it has not been customary to intermew our Hawks, and until then the real friendship relation between man and Hawk does not arise. Moreover, when a performance is to be seen and shown to visitors the Hawks are keyed up and require careful handling. I well recollect a male Goshawk which would come back to my fist at almost any distance on my calling him, which very much amused many of my falconer friends, who in banter termed him a Falcon. Thereafter, I was often questioned as to how I managed this method of training, but I could give only one answer, that I knew the Hawk and he knew me and a real friendship existed between us two. 82 RAOL SHRI D H ARM AKUM ARSIN HJI - BRIDS OF PREY AS COMPANIONS The “ Baz ” as a companion gives immense pleasure, especially during morning and evening walks, and one does not have to think of the multitude of falconry do’s and dont’s and to speak of drugs. I have often taken out a Baz day in and day out as a companion in the countryside, and it is a delight to watch her eyes picking up each and every small movement ; a hare has often crossed the path, and before one knows it the Baz has either tackled it, missed it, or not even attempted, depending on her mood, and I have never been dis¬ appointed. Sometimes she has merely chased a hare and taken her exercise, and then as I have extended my arm from a distance and called her she has come to my fist or has often come running on the ground towards me to be picked up. In fact, I have never troubled about these pseudo-flights until my wife complained about fresh meat ! Besides, I might say that some of these flights ended in unusual success, which made me wonder as to the length of flight and ability of a Goshawk. I can well recollect one chase when my “ Khandan ” Baz was on my fist. One evening while walking over a black cotton field I put up a hare and my Baz, leaving my fist, made a number of attempts which failed, but the wind being favourable she did not give up, and at the end of my walk I was amazed to find the hare caught in her firm grip. The distance from where the hare got up to where it was killed must have been about 300 yards. I may tell you, however, that all Goshawks, however well trained they may be, will not attempt such long flights, but there are as many individual traits in Hawks as in man, and they can be readily recognized. Goshawks get fairly attached to their masters, as do some Falcons, and they will come to the fist without any bait, unless they are too fat. I have kept many kinds of birds of prey, and I feel there is much prejudice against the Goshawk in the Western countries. Yes, she is a moody Hawk I admit, with a bad temper, but is she not courageous and a happy companion ? I have always felt that Western falconers have not sufficiently studied the Goshawk. I hope I am. wrong. If I were asked which bird of prey I would prefer for a long friend¬ ship I should certainly say a good Baz. Perhaps the short flight of the Goshawk is not so exciting, but the companionship is valued greater. A Goshawk will take to you better, and there are less chances of losing her. While hunting she will run around bushes and in and out of hedges like a dog affording full amusement. She will indicate a Francolin in a bush when you cannot see it, give you exercise, make you think, and be much more amiable, coming to your fist frequently. A Goshawk once attached to you will hate from the keeper’s hand as soon as she sees you ; in short, she enjoys being on your fist. If you wish to reap the real benefit of a companion Hawk, keep a Goshawk, study her, and let her behave naturally, for she will be in truth a friend all your life. Perhaps I would be going RAOL SHRI DHARMAKUMARSINHJI - BIRDS OF PREY AS COMPANIONS 83 too far if I said that Hawks will respond to their masters under any conditions. However, I have dwelt on the Goshawk too long. Now I shall come to the Peregrine, nay, the Shahin, for she surpasses it in tempera¬ ment and fidelity. The Shahin is called the “ Amir 55 in the East, a fitting designation with the complexity of its meaning, though in short it means a noble Falcon and a noble Falcon she is. Neverthe¬ less, I bow my head to the Peregrine for courage and perseverance. I will now tell you of a Shahin I had, which became so attached to me that when I used to take her out in a car unhooded she would still be quiet, in spite of the many jolts on the bad road. After her release she had the habit of soaring to such an unearthly height as to be out of sight, and to make us rather nervous of losing her ; but she invariably returned when she was satiated with sunning herself. Notwithstanding, one day, I very well remember my patience having given out. Having called so much as to give me a sore throat and being disappointed at her not returning, I decided to leave her where she was, and told my co-falconer to give up hope and get quickly into the car. No sooner had I started the engine and moved the car some yards than I saw my Shahin next to me on the ground waiting to be taken up to be fed. She thought that we had forsaken her, and she dropped to earth as we started to move home, so as not to be left behind. Lost Shahins are well known for their reappearance at the site where they have been released, which they do much more frequently than Peregrines. Moreover, they become quickly attached to their masters. In spite of these admirable qualities they do not fetch a better price than the Peregrine. Similar to the Shahin the Peregrine is an excellent companion, expressing happiness by croaks and gestures and the eyes convey much. Out of the many fine qualities that she possessed a striking one is that of while pursuing a quarry to keep strictly to one selected bird out of a flock throughout the flight and I have had Peregrines which showed this. I even noticed this peculiarity, with surprise, in Duck-hawking and I cannot exactly account for it. But you must admit that it is a trait which must be much admired, especially when in the face of easier quarry being available at the time. In fact, this trait of singling out a particular bird once she has decided upon it is seen in many kinds of Falcons, and is quite rightly considered a very good point by Eastern falconers. Some falconers go as far as to say that they can predict this and other good qualities of the birds by their colour and markings. It is interesting to note how some birds of prey quickly associate ideas by visual signs. While hawking with Sakers it is often the case that a hare is flushed in a field of standing cotton without the Falcons 84 RAOL SHRI DH ARM AKUM ARSIN HJI — -BIRDS OF PREY AS COMPANIONS perceiving it, and so keen are the birds at the time that they leave the falconer’s fist unhooded automatically, without seeing the quarry. So when accompanied by horses the riders chase the hare into more open ground, and knowing that the leading horseman is following the hare, the Falcons follow in the direction of the leading rider, even though he may be a great distance away, until the hare comes into view. I have also seen the Saker Falcon hovering over or swooping at the bush in which the hare has taken refuge at the time when the rider has appeared on the scene. Such is the intelligence of birds of prey, some of which is acquired by experience. In falconry birds of prey well understand that man is a friend. Falcons and Hawks understand the dangers of Eagles robbing their prey, and it is instinctive to them to take shelter immediately after they have captured their prey. I have often had tame Falcons dragging and sometimes carrying their prey towards me in order to escape the anticipated attacks of wild birds of prey. They also do this to evade the intense heat. This has been very well filmed by some of my friends. Falcons and Hawks are intelligent birds, and if association of ideas are rightly inculcated in them, they become most interesting companions. To say a few words on Eagles. The Golden Eagle does not usually occur in the plains ; nevertheless, it is perhaps the ideal of falconry. However, we get some Eagles which can be well trained. Eagles are generally noted for their ferocity and bad temper, but once they have been reclaimed are quiet as lambs. I had a Tawny Eagle which would enjoy sitting in my lap like a broody hen, and show all the affection of a Parrot. By mentioning this, please do not be misled that I suggest the Eagle as a pet. With exception of the poor appetite of Eagles, they make most amusing companions. They will follow you a mile, walking or flying in the hope of getting a morsel. Being cumbersome birds, one does not see in them the agility of the smaller Falcons and Hawks, but they are intelligent birds, and if we are prepared to carry their weight, they will certainly enjoy human companionship. Eaglets make good friends, but are not so useful in the art of falconry. A young Tawny Eagle which I had gave out all the yells and screams of friend¬ ship sufficient to attract an entire town. Well-trained Eagles become docile but, like a caged lion which has drawn fresh blood, they become rather unruly when on fresh prey. At this moment some instinctive urge makes them sudden strangers, and they require careful handling. Eagles which have been in the mews for some time, and have been given full liberty, do not readily leave their precincts, and they become regular visitors, yelling and screaming for meat, and woe betide your poultry and ducks. Wild Tawny Eagles become very tame, and I do not know why they cannot be easily bred in large aviaries. A female Tawny Eagle which I had caught and reclaimed , GEORGE A. WEAVER - A PET KESTREL 85 became so tame that when she was given full liberty, never left my compound for many months together. She sustained herself on the bones and titbits from the kitchen. However, she was regularly mobbed by Crows, of which she took no notice. I am afraid the end was rather a tragic one, for a wild Eagle seized her, and the fight resulted in her being so badly wounded that I was compelled to destroy her. After that I had often felt that giving freedom to tame birds of prey was a sort of cruelty. However, trained Hawks which are freed at the end of the season are fattened, and when they regain the urge of the wild, are let loose. The smaller Falcons, such as Red¬ headed Merlin and the Hobby, make amusing pets, as do Sparrow- hawks, Shikras, black winged Kites, and Kestrels. I imagine, in tropical India, birds at liberty suffer much more than in colder climes. Nevertheless, intermewed small Hawks make excellent companions, provided one has an elementary knowledge of how to keep birds of prey, and one may even try to go as far as enticing them to breed in captivity. One Hobby that I had, I remember, would soar for a considerably long time, and then swoop at the lure with sardonic impertinence, only to rise up into the sky to look back at me as if to say “You have no control over me ”. At the end of her exercise she would quietly settle on the small lure without any fear of being taken up. [Note. — Baz = Female Goshawk.] * * * A PET KESTREL By George A. Weaver Some years before the war I became the owner of a fine male Kestrel, and during the time it was with me it grew exceedingly tame and confiding. A friend of mine found this bird lying beneath an electric pylon, having presumably accidentally collided with the overhead cables. Thinking it dead, my friend brought the bird along to me as a possible specimen for mounting, but whilst holding it in my hand I was surprised to see it come to life and promptly seize the fleshy part of my finger. I opened my hand, anticipating that the Kestrel would take wing, but apart from scrambling unsteadily to its feet and releasing my sorely tried finger it made no effort to 86 GEORGE A. WEAVER - A PET KESTREL leave. I gave it a careful examination and could find no sign of fractured bones, so having an enclosure vacant I placed the bird inside and left it to settle down. The problem that next faced me was food. It was Sunday and the joint as yet uncooked ! With little difficulty I persuaded my mother to cut me a portion, which in size would dwarf the present-day ration, and cutting it into small pieces I proceeded to the aviary. Placing the food in front of the Kestrel I retired some distance and awaited results. I was disappointed, for apart from taking a disinterested glance in that direction the bird fell to contemplating its new surround¬ ings. I again approached, and picking up a piece of meat waggled it in the Kestrel’s face. After one or two half-hearted pecks he suddenly took it in his beak, transferred it to his claws, and commenced tearing off small morsels and devouring them hungrily. After that it was plain sailing, and I never again experienced trouble in feeding. His diet of butcher’s scraps was varied as much as possible with fur and feather to aid digestion, and beetles, spiders, and cockchafers were also greatly appreciated. On every appearance I would be greeted with a “ mew ”, varied sometimes with a cry not unlike a cat bent on some nocturnal mischief. Gradually the Kestrel regained the use of his wings, and the day arrived when I decided to give him his liberty. Opening the aviary door I saw him at last take wing, and with a farewell mew he vanished from my ken. For some days after he revisited my garden before finally taking to the wilds and freedom, but I never regretted my action, for I personally consider that except for exhibition or hawking all birds of this family are unsuited to captivity. The Kestrel builds in a variety of places, and I have found their nests on cliff ledges, old Magpies’ nests, holes in trees, and in disused buildings. If required, young should be taken a day or so before they are ready to leave the nest. They are apt to become surly if taken too soon, and are very subject to fits of screaming. A large enclosure is necessary if the bird is to be seen at its best, and one may be lucky, as I was, to observe at close quarters the wonderful hovering powers peculiar to this species. J. F. M. FLOYD — -BUBO BUBO BUBO AND GO. 87 BUBO BUBO BUBO AND CO. By J. F. M. Floyd She was twins, when I first set eyes on her, crammed into a coop up Haverstock Hill way. Who could resist those glorious orbs of fire ? Luckily I was able to resist them in duplicate, for by their equality in hugeness the birds were unlikely to be a pair, and by their ferocious demeanour obviously not hand-reared. So one of her came in a box and was tipped into an empty two-stalled stable, where she still is ; it must have been in 5 36 or ’37. An inflexible sort of character, she remains to this day as wild as ever- — that is, she seldom waits for my near approach. Having heard other folk on their Eagle Owls, especially when nesting, I used to carry a rolled newspaper by way of a truncheon, harmless but alarming, when I went in, but I have never seen her for a moment what you could call aggressive ; just bill-snapping and bluff, making herself look like a fan with her wings and mantle. She gives visitors a show of flying over their heads from gable to gable, until she pops through the window into an outside flight constructed against the back. This never was an ideal affair, but by planting tall privet bushes behind one end I endeavoured to give her that comfortable feeling of shut-in-ness, a niche to which to set her back to. For a long time we never caught her out in this flight, so painfully sewn together of wire and extra strong wire mesh, but I used to listen at night with a window open in great expectation of her first hoot. If only the Eagle Owl hooted to scale in the Brown Owl’s vein ! When it came it fell far short of that, just a “ hooo ” now and again, not at all impressive, though it could be heard across the lake on the high road. However, the only notes I can find in diaries all too sketchy are vocal ones. Here is 27th March, 1938 : “ The E. Owls (pair ?) have been much more noisy of late at night, not merely a single 4 Hoooo ’ as usual, but a double c Who-hoooooo ’ and much louder, and more frequent.” Here’s a hiatus ! I wonder how many aviculturists keep detailed diaries, writing them up in the small hours. We put our trust in memory ! The “ query pair ” means I had been along to Fockelmann and ordered a male Owl that would breed. The query implies a wonder as to whether he was a man of his word. He was, as I rather expected. He, the Owl, came as from Munich Zoo, and bred there ; a model bird in every way. While “ she ” was flying pendulum overhead, he would stay on a perch and allow me to stroke his head with never a snap of the bill ; much too good for her. The suspected nest was actually in a dark corner under the manger of the far stall ; the upper half of the stable door being open and 88 J. F. M. FLOYD - BUBO BUBO BUBO AND GO. wire-netted. All kinds of rubbish and Owl fluff galore in which eggs were hidden, and I didn’t try to count, but stole out on tiptoe. Beware when your handbook says “ lays in scrape in ground ”, it understates ; in the breeding season the hen can dig , e.g. under a door. So your apartments, Eagle Owl, must be made proof everywhere at ground level. There is no point in being exclusive about it, quite the reverse. Many a time the night has been punctuated by the crash of a pounce, the rattle of corrugated on a former hen-house embodied in the flight, and the squeal of a rat. I’m afraid the rats went on squealing, for these raptors deserve no credit on humanitarian grounds ; it sounded as if the Owl held the rat and cogitated, or just did nothing. A rat was dessert in those nights of plenty or not even that. Something to be put by and eventually removed by us. Appetites are small, a rabbit would only lose its head, the choice bit, in the days when the big hen lived alone. I do not know the mouse-measure for an Eagle Owl, she doesn’t feed to order ; but for a Spotted Eagle (A. pomarina , I think, a young bird said to come from Austria) quartered under the mill it is eight housemice, consecutive, after a day at threshing a rick-— not seldom a mousey gold mine. In an attic over the shop where I got the little Eagle there was a huge young Golden or Sea Eagle perched on a towel-horse, quite untrammelled. One had to brush past to look at some Pacas, but it did not mind a bit ; a very great temptation. It went on the stage — at least was loosed in her boudoir by a Star, I was told, but soon returned. My Eagle eats anything, anything remotely part of an animal, or does it refuse a Rook or a Jackdaw ? Memory again. I am told that Owls are dainty feeders ; during the war they had to do with a lump of passe sausage-meat when nothing else turned up, or even wartime sausages that were just a bit too far gone. There must have been blank days. Good enough feather-building stuff withal, Q^.E.D. It is convenient that the head of any prey is the tit-bit of birds of prey ; they are well content with the heads of poultry, one a day for Falcon, Eagle Owl, or Eagle, and a Turkey’s head lasts two days. During one season there used to be a Jay, I suppose a former pet, often to be seen about the apple boughs inside the flight, quite at ease. It took little notice of me and none of the Owls, who ignored it, and lived on pickings, but I fancy it never stayed inside to roost. An otter hung about, outside so far as I know, sometimes disturbed by G. of an evening on his rounds, and leaving its tracks in the snow. One hard winter, not the last, we had a tame wild Heron — or rather two ; but one, a large immature bird, was exclusive of the other, though second-comer. They haunted the cages and got what they could reach ; one used to come round one corner of an aviary and see a Heron slip round the other, and a Heron actually used to go J. F. M. FLOYD - BUBO BUBO BUBO AND GO. 89 through the open mill door after mice, and once to mutilate a casualty left inside, a Peacock. The young were a trio in buff-grey down, dimly visible under the manger, standing upright together. I don’t remember that the cock showed any anxiety, and the hen behaved as usual or dodged outside through the window, but I crept away and left them very much to themselves. If the hen had been tame she might have been dangerous. They grew fast into vast fledgelings, all eyes, more bizarre when their ear tufts were added, odd bits of fluff persisting on top. They ought to have been hand-reared. One of them got as large as their mother, and two were smaller, a hen and two cocks most likely. I shut them off from the old birds, and imagined they would be as amicable as Owls in a zoo. The following year there was another nest in the same place and three more hatched, but the war was in full swing, and the supply of fowls’ heads very indifferent, and they vanished in the downy stage, which was just as well. In one of my absences there was a sad scene when their attendant, or rather his wife, came one morning. The two smaller birds lay headless, and the young hen lived alone. Their food ought to have been divided and each seen to cover its own portion, but under the circumstances that was too much to expect. At last there was only one Owl in the stable, as at present, when I came on leave. There were bits of the male’s wings lying about, poor amiable bird ; of course, he may have died. The hen seems as good as ever. On 13th February of this mild year she began to hoot leisurely, steadily, oo-er-hooo ooer-hooo. My Aplomado Falcon {F. fusco-coerulescens Vieill, South America) almost lived to see the war out. There is a plate, 121, in Temminck’s Coloured Plates under F. femoralis. At first I had two of the same size, hand-reared birds just off a boat. The same old mistake of one cage and thinking birds liked each other’s company. Of course, one died. The other wintered out each winter perfectly well, in a deep compartment of an aviary wired in front facing south, roofed only at the back, so as to admit some rain. There was a question raised in Ibis not long ago, “ Do birds play ? ” This bird used often to stalk and grab invisible mice along its perch with every sign of glee, and would pounce on your twiddled finger any time you liked. Once I gave it a mouse alive, thinking that would be the quickest way to kill it, but the wretch took it up in one foot to its perch, and held it so in chancery for quite a long time. He (?) used to squeal a lot for his own entertainment or in greeting, and was willing to enter into a duet. Another war casualty was a Kittiwake. This was brought in a basket, in immature plumage, with a black bill and bold black eyes, by a boy who found it in the Cuckfield cemetery after a winter storm. 9° D. H. S. RISDON - LITTLE OWLS I wondered if the white stones attracted it, shining through the murk. It was unable to stand up, but when warmed at the kitchen fire began by taking a few sardines and soon came round. From the start it took command of the kitchen as far as the dogs were concerned, a peck on the nose to the spaniel and a jab or two for one or two fox- terriers, and that was that. It went through its allotted moult to maturity in an aviary with a pond, where it could dominate a single Silver Gull and even at first a pair, but eventually the pair got the upper hand and led it a life so they had to be separated. Minced meat and bits of fish suited it well, but it failed to survive when hound- meal had to be substituted. At the date of reading these proofs, 28th April, the little Eagle has been calling all day for quite a month, and not from hunger, for the value of fowl’s lights remains nil, whatever the tone of the market. He (?) is in breeding condition, I think : his appetite about doubled. * * * [LITTLE OWLS By D. H. S. Risdon Our Editor has asked me to contribute something to the Birds of Prey Number, but as Little Owls are the only raptorial birds I have kept my remarks will have to be confined to the pair of these birds which I had for some years. I came by them originally quite by accident. I was in a pet shop one day and, as was usual in such intriguing places, in the mood to buy anything interesting that took my eye, when the assistant, who knew my taste for something a bit out of the ordinary, produced a parrot cage containing two Little Owls. They were obviously young birds of the year and in good condition, so I bought them on the spot. Having got them home, their immediate housing became a problem, as my aviaries were full, and they had to have a place to themselves. Eventually a compromise was made, however, and they occupied a large flight which they shared with two Jays, a young grey squirrel, two hand-reared wild rabbits, and some guinea pigs. The flight was some 30 feet long, 11 feet wide, and 10 feet high. I had some fears for the young guinea pigs, but strange to relate the Owls never molested them even at night. Owls have always intrigued me with their beautifully patterned plumage, their wonderful eyes, and their slow, deliberate movements when at rest. Whilst the Little Owls were by no means the loveliest, D. H. S. RISDON - LITTLE OWLS 91 their pale yellow eyes, small size, and neat shape, and particularly their quaint habit of bobbing up and down when looking at one, made them great favourites all the time they lived with me. Although reputed to be hand-reared, they lost all tameness when turned into the aviary. I provided them with a sleeping box and they would sit at or near the entrance to this most of the day, dis¬ appearing inside at one’s approach, rather like Lovebirds do. If one sat quietly in the aviary for some time, however, they would eventually come out again and stand on one leg with usually one eye half closed, like a couple of graven images. As soon as one moved they would be instantly on the alert, with both eyes wide open, staring intently at one. If one bobbed up and down they would appear to copy one’s movements, crouching low and then drawing themselves up to their full height. The next instant they were back in their roosting box where, if you opened the front and looked in, they would throw themselves on their backs, displaying their talons in self defence, the while uttering a rasping sort of screech. They had remarkable strength in their talons for such small birds, and their needle-sharp claws could easily pierce the skin of one’s hand, as I knew to my cost ! Their feeding was in those happy pre-war days quite simple. Raw beef cut into small lumps was their main diet, supplemented with all the mice and Sparrows I could catch. I used to keep mouse traps baited with bread and set under bramble bushes in the garden, well covered to hide them from wild birds, and it was surprising the numbers of field mice and voles I used to catch, which kept the Owls well supplied. They could dismember a young rat and eat it piecemeal, but full- grown mice were swallowed whole. Sparrows were partially plucked before being eaten. The Owls had a wider gape than one would suspect from their small beaks, and had a peculiarly reptilian way of gulping down a mouse until only the hind feet and tail protruded from their mouths, these eventually being disposed of with a final twist of the neck. A few hours later an oblong pellet about 2 inches in length, con¬ sisting of fur and bones tightly packed together, would be all there was to show of their meal. Occasionally they would cast up pellets of what appeared to be bits of leaves and green stalks. Why they ate this I do not know, unless it was to give them “ roughage ” on the days when no mice were forthcoming with their attendant fur and bones. Quite soon after I had them I thought they were a true pair. One was a good deal smaller than the other, as is usual with birds of prey, and the small one was altogether less aggressive than his mate. The following spring my surmise proved correct, as they went to 92 D. H. S. RISDON - LITTLE OWLS nest. Their sleeping box, of which the dimensions were about 1 2 inches by 1 2 inches by 1 2 inches, had the usual hole in one side near the top, and was one-third filled with earth. This they scratched and scraped into a hollow at the back of the box, and eventually three round, white eggs, not quite so big as those of a Pigeon, appeared. If I remember rightly, they were laid on alternate days. The hen sat assiduously for several weeks, and then one by one the eggs vanished. Whether they got broken and the shells were removed by the parents, or whether the young hatched and were eaten as soon as they emerged, a common occurrence I believe with raptorial birds in captivity, I do not know. My Little Owls were keen on bathing, and would occasionally take a tub during the day. As is well known, they are more diurnal than most Owls, and mine were certainly about during the hours of daylight. They were much more active at dusk and on moonlight nights, however, when they could be seen flitting about in the gloom and their yelping cries were often heard during the night. As mentioned before, they never molested even baby guinea pigs, and were well behaved with their other companions. Their staring yellow eyes seemed to have an unnerving effect on certain mammals, however, in particular my pet grey squirrel and a young Rhesus monkey. The squirrel occupied the same enclosure as the Owls, and normally each ignored the other. Occasionally, however, the squirrel would be bounding round the aviary from perch to perch, as was his wont, and would accidentally find himself face to face with one of the Owls. The bird would puff itself up with clicking bill, every feather quivering with menace. For a moment Nutkin would hesitate with flattened ears and flickering brush, wondering whether to call the Owl’s bluff, only to lose his nerve at the last moment and turn tail, muttering and gnashing his teeth. The monkey, too, whose cage adjoined the Owls’ aviary, could not stand those unwinking yellow eyes which stared right into his simian soul. At first he would try and smack his lips at them as a placatory gesture, but when they still continued to stare he would lose his temper and curse them as only a monkey can. Still the Owl was not impressed, until with a slow blink it would turn its head and stare in another direction. THE MARQUESS HAGHISUKA - THE STELLER’S AND BLACK SEA-EAGLES 93 THE STELLER’S AND BLACK SEA-EAGLES By The Marquess Hachisuka The largest Eagles found in the cold and temperate north are the Sea-Eagles. Our familiar White- tailed Sea-Eagle (Haliaetus alhicilla ), is a dull grey bird ; only its white tail in the adult is conspicuous. But we find a beautiful Steller’s Sea-Eagle (H. pelagicus ), only in the north-eastern corner of the Far East. This Eagle breeds around Kamchatka and is found wintering in Amurland, Korea, and Japan, but it is rarely found south of this region and some stay all the year round in their breeding ground. Like the White-tailed, Steller’s Sea-Eagle is very fond of salmon and other large fish which abound in large rivers, lakes, and coasts. So the little Commander Islands are one of its noted localities. There are many hot springs spouting near the coast of Kamchatka where water never freezes and many Ducks choose to stay there rather than to migrate southward during the winter. In large trees growing on the shores of these lakes several Steller’s rest and wait for Ducks and fish. As its name implies, the Sea-Eagle, unlike the Golden Eagle, seldom catches its prey in the air or on the land, but it is really at home on a big sheet of water and occasionally Gulls and young seals are also added to its menu. Marquis Yamashina reported that on Torishima, one of the Seven Islands of Izu lying south of Honshu, Steller’s preyed solely upon another Steller’s, the Steller’s Albatross (. Diomedea albatrus). This Albatross unfortunately only comes to Torishima to breed during the winter, and only at this particular season the Eagle appears from the north. To me Steller’s Sea-Eagle is not only magnificent for its size but is truly beautiful among birds of prey. The large portion of its shoulders, ample feathered talons, and slightly pointed tail are snowy white which contrasts strikingly with the uniform rich brown of the remaining portion of the body. Added to this, the massive bill and toes are bright yellow in a matured bird. In captivity Steller’s makes a very fine show. It is tame and sociable (several may be kept together) and is quite lively. The shrieking cries of the Tokyo zoo specimens are heard for' a long distance in the Uyeno park. Many zoo animal collectors who came to Japan years ago sought this Eagle, and if dealers were notified a sufficient time in advance, Steller’s was no more difficult to get than Lidth’s Jay or Swinhoe’s Pheasant. Steller’s has a close cousin which is the Black Sea-Eagle (. H . pelagicus niger) . Only the tail of this eagle is white, and the remaining body is dark chocolate brown which looks quite black in a cage. 94 THE marquess haghisuka — the steller’s and black sea-eagles A well-known home of the Black Sea-Eagle is Korea, though Jankowsky reported it in Sidemi near Vladivostok and Godlewsky found it on the beach at Onon, in Dauria ; but these records are quite old and more recent specimens were all captured in Korea. Yet it remains a very rare bird, for only a dozen to fifteen specimens have been captured within the last sixty years. We know that the range of the Black Eagle is within that of Steller’s. This overlapping distribution and similarity in size and plumage to a great extent makes the systematic position of this Eagle still somewhat of an unsolved mystery. The late Dr. Hartert in his famous book considered it as a distinct species, because the particular specimens he examined had more massive bills ; but he confessed when we saw a specimen together in Marseilles on our way to Africa that there are not sufficient specimens in museums to justify his classification. The Japanese “ Hand-List ” considered it a sedentary sub-species of Steller’s in this restricted range, but to me the Black Eagle appears a melanistic form of Steller’s. Among Hawks and Eagles melanism is common. Chocolate coloured individuals are found all over the world, and among certain species melanism persists more in one district than the other. For instance in the Gabar Goshawk {Metier ax gab ar), of Africa, dissimilarity between the grey normal and black phase is so profound that until recently, when more complete field observations were made, people thought they were two distinct forms. A less known, but equally good, example is Sanford’s White-breasted Sea-Eagle {H. leucogaster sanfordi) from the Solomon Islands. When we know more about the Korean Black Sea-Eagle, its status may come out the same as the Gabar Goshawk or the White-breasted Sea-Eagle, but whatever its systematic position may prove to be in the future, niger will remain a very interesting form of Eagle. My treatment of niger as a sub-species of Steller’s is only tentative. The first discovery of this Eagle was made by Pere Heude, a French missionary at Zikawei, near Shanghai, who in 1884 obtained a young one taken out of the nest in Korea. He reared his bird, enjoyed observing plumage changes and finally it died in 1908. So we see that Pere Heude’s type specimen remained for twenty four years his close companion, a most enviable experience no one can repeat now-a-days. In spite of their rareness in their native land and in museums several Black Eagles have been brought over to some European zoos. One of the two birds brought over to Hamburg was acquired by the London zoo, and its coloured plate appeared in the Proc. £°°L Soc. in 1896. There is also a record of it in the Berlin zoo. A stuffed black bird in the Marseilles museum died in the zoo of that city in 1897. M. Lavauden published an account of it with a photo in 1924. My first acquaintance with a Black Sea-Eagle was in Korea in 1926 Avic. Mag. 1949. To face p. 95. Black Sea-Eagle Steller’s Sea-Eagle (specimen in Seoul Zoo, Korea) (specimen in Uyeno Zoo, Japan) THE MARQUESS HACHISUKA - THE STELLER’S AND BLACK SEA-EAGLES 95 when Monsieur Delacour, his mother and I visited the Seoul zoo. We admired a fine specimen of niger with a snowy white tail and sulphury yellow bill and toes. I was much interested in this Eagle, and its photograph was taken and given me by Mr. Shimokoriyama, the director of the Seoul zoo. The accompanying plate of niger is the one we saw at Seoul, and I believe it is the first photograph of a live adult ever published. The fate of this bird was tragic ; it died in a perfect plumage about a year later, and Mr. Shimokoriyama kindly sent the skin to me in Tokyo. Unfortunately, however, it was during the hot season, and owing to the carelessness in a taxidermist’s shop this beautiful skin was completely destroyed by insects. At my request Mr. Shimokoriyama ordered Korean bird catchers to get me one and finally sent one Eagle to Tokyo which I kept about seven years. The Koreans seem to know something about the habit of this Eagle and captured it without a great difficulty. As the Manchus who value tiger’s claws the Koreans prize Eagle’s claws, and my poor bird was not an exception. But it lost two or three claws before the Director interfered to save the bird. When my Eagle a rived, its plumage was chocolate black all over, and its light greenish bill was an unmistakable sign of immaturity. It became very tame, and as years went by its bill turned to yellow, and white started appearing on the tail feathers and it became purer and purer. But it was rather to my regret that its shoulders also had white freckled feathers instead of turning to black. This plumage meant that my niger reached maturity and showed some touch of Steller’s on the shoulder. One year Mr. Hagenbeck brought his circus to Japan and visited my aviary. He was very much impressed with my Eagle and was very anxious to take it back to Germany if I were ready to part with it. Hagenbeck left some animals in my pen, and my Korean Black Sea- Eagle left Japan as a member of the world famous circus. Postscript. — When the above article reached the Editor, Miss Barclay- Smith kindly tried to find out further details about my Eagle in Germany, and on her behalf Mr. Robert Goombes wrote to Hagen- beck’s Zoo for information. The reply was that the Eagle with defective claws which he had from me was killed during an air raid in 1 943, and that, strangely enough, if Mr. Hagenbeck’s memory can be trusted, this particular bird had absolutely the same plumage as the typical Steller’s. Miss Barclay-Smith’s letter informing me all this gave me a great surprise, but I incline to believe the fact is true. In the first place there is no one more familiar with the Black Sea- Eagle than Mr. Shimokoriyama, who was a long time Director of the Korean Zoo (only repatriated last year). I received a bird which appeared to him to be niger , but after several years it turned into somewhat intermediate plumage. However, I always took it to be nearer niger than pelagicus. During the course of about ten years in 8 9^ E. F. CHAWNER - MY KITE Germany it apparently became a typical Steller’s. These years of observation are very valuable, although it has not been carried out by one person, because such long observation on the plumage change in any bird is not often carried out. Now, Hagenbeck’s report makes me believe more strongly that niger is a mere colour phase and not a subspecies. Readers will be interested to know of a somewhat similar example in a Japanese bird which went through a colour change during its lifetime. It is the Varied Tit, Pams varius. This cinnamon-coloured Tit occasionally produces hepatic, albinistic, and melanistic phases, but the hepatic is the commonest of the three. Marquis Kuroda and Mr. Momiyama found that, after keeping hepatic individuals in company with normal coloured birds on the usual diet, the particular individuals turned into normal types and Marquis Kuroda reported an extraordinary case of a hepatic bird which turned into melanism ; gun metal colour. A coloured drawing of these birds was published in Tori , vol. ix, pi. v, 1937. * * * MY KITE By E. F. Chawner Many years ago I spent a spring in St. Jean de Luz, then a pleasant country village with one “ Pension ” run by an English lady. I made inquiries about the local birds, particularly the birds of prey which have always been my favourites, but could not get much information beyond a vague rumour that there were White Owls, which I soon verified, one Barn Owl came round the pension every evening, and that in spring “ Milans royals 55 nested in the mountains. These I found out meant the Black Kites, common on the borders of Spain, and I thought, but without much hope, that a pair would be desirable to add to my small collection of birds if I could procure young speci¬ mens. Fortune favoured me, for I learnt from one of the tradesmen who supplied the Pension that someone had a pair of young birds and would part with them for a small sum, as he was tired of them. Two days later the butcher negotiated a deal, and the next day I heard that he had brought the birds. I hastened to inspect them, and was confronted with a pair of screaming scarecrows, without a whole feather between them, dirty to a degree, and evidently half starved. The boy had driven them in front of him, and rather unnecessarily told me that they could not fly, and were “ tres vilains ”. I was taken aback, and wondered what my family would say when I reached home, but I had not the heart to refuse the poor wretches, so bought them for a few francs. The next week I started for home with the Kites in a basket. I was travelling by night, but the screams attracted E. F. CHAWNER — MY KITE 97 more attention than I desired, and I had to submit to many inquiries from porters and railway officials before it was decided that the Englishwoman, being mad (as it was well known they all were), might be allowed to proceed on her way— ££ a good riddance 35 they probably thought ! I wondered rather nervously what anyone else would say who might enter the same compartment, and one lady did change into another, but then fortune favoured me, for a lady with a small yapping dog entered, and we agreed that she would not object to my birds if I would tolerate her dog. That was a night ! The dog yelped incessantly and the Kites screamed and fought. Fortunately no one else boarded our compartment and we got to Paris unchallenged, but I had made up my mind that one Kite would be all I could expect my long-suffering family to put up with, and that as the station was close to the Jardin des Plantes I would deposit the other bird there. I had all the day before me, so having seen to my luggage I made my way to the Jardin and inquired for the bird keeper, who was feeding his birds. After some parleying he consented to accept one (later I received a polite letter of thanks for my gift), and I thankfully parted company knowing that I had done the best for the poor creature. When my Kite and I reached home — I will pass over the remarks made by my family (which were precisely what one would expect) — I installed my bird in a secluded aviary until I could get a block or jesses from the falconer at the King’s House, where the then Deputy Surveyor kept a beautiful falconry. Then my bird was placed on the lawn, and though of course his feathers could not be replaced until the moult, they were at any rate clean and free from vermin. He quickly became tame, and proved the truth of the old saying, ££ Where the Kite breeds look to your lesser linen,” for he would snatch a handker¬ chief or duster and play with it until it was more or less forcibly taken from him. He roosted on a bough at night and would call for his breakfast of rabbit every morning. In time his feathers grew and he became a very fine and handsome bird, though not as richly coloured as the red Kite, and was accepted as a member of the family. He liked to watch a game of croquet, and commented on the strokes with chuckles and remarks. Mowing the lawn was also an event for, of course, he had to be moved out of the way of the mowing machine. His end was a tragedy : one morning he was missing from his bough and the leash was dangling broken. At first we hoped that he might have got loose and flown away, but about a week later his corpse was picked out of a rhododendron bush, and a mangy fox, who about that time was raiding poultry, was doubtless the culprit. He died much lamented — a beautiful gentle creature, who had endeared himself to us all. 8* 9® DILLON RIPLEY - EXPERIENCES WITH OWLS EXPERIENCES WITH OWLS By Dillon Ripley Although by no means an Owl expert, it has fallen to my lot to keep a few Owls at one time or another, which have been a very consider¬ able source of pleasure. Far and away my favourite was a Sumatran Bay Owl which I purchased from an Atjenese in the highlands of north Sumatra in March, 1939. I consider this by all odds the most beautiful of the Owl family. The Bay Owl ( Phodilus b. badius) is a smallish fellow, about ten inches tall. It is placed in a sub-group of the Owls along with the Barn Owl. However, it is much more beautiful than that bird. There is the same white ruff about the facial disk, the feathers tipped with chestnut and blackish. There is the same type of coloration on the head, back, and wings, chestnut with sparse black spots and white spots interspersed with the black on the scapulars and wing feathers. But the underparts are the glory of this bird. As he sits surveying one solemnly on his perch, he presents a front of the most delicate pinkish lilac, delicately spotted with black edged with white. It is a beautiful colour, soft and subtle, and without parallel. I could never call my Owl a “ Bay ” Owl. There seemed to be no sense to the name. To me he was always my Dancing Owl. He became very tame, and whenever I fed him he would give me his little display, gently twisting from side to side, puffed out on his perch, so as to show the full glory of his spacious lilac waistcoat. It reminded me almost of a hula dance. Then he would fall to feeding deliberately and daintily, and leave off his dancing until the next time. To my regret my Dancing Owl was very fond of birds, and while I was in the China ports on the way home I hardened myself and bought wretched Sparrows in the market on which to feed him. But later on he became quite used to meat, provided I included some roughage such as bits of feathers or bone, which he could cough up as pellets. My little Owl never called in captivity, but another one which I shot on the Island of Nias, off the west coast of Sumatra, had a very distinct soft call, “ who wieyou,” the accent coming on the first, ascending syllable of the second word. This species is certainly not by any means a diurnal Owl. It always seemed to me that it was far happier in rather dim light. Of course the species is sensitive to cold, and the following winter, lacking a suitable inside aviary, I had to my great regret to present my Dancing Owl to the Zoo. In Ceylon during the late unlamented war I made the acquaintance of the little Scops Owl (Otus b. bakkamoend) . A small bird in the grey phase, it used to flutter in and out of my “ cadjan 55 hut looking for winged ants, and became entangled one evening in my mosquito net. DILLON RIPLEY - EXPERIENCES WITH OWLS 99 A more welcome addition than the scorpions which were also addicted to my net, I had it placed in a cage and kept it for some time. How¬ ever, whether because I gave it less attention or because its disposition was less amenable, it never became tame as did the little Dancing Owl. This little Scops has a soft muted call, related and resembling in a way our native American Scops, the Screech Owl. My latest Owl has been a large Great Horned [Bubo v. virginianus) , the fiercest of the North American Owls. This is the fourth I have caught on the same pole trap in my waterfowl enclosure in the seventeen years I have had the pond. It has become remarkably tame, and allows one to scratch the nape of its head at feeding time, although it has only been in a cage three months. I suspect it is a year-old bird, still fairly young, although in full plumage. These are magnificent birds with their streaked tawny plumage, piercing yellow eyes, and the impression of power they convey as they stare solemnly at one. It is said that their favourite food is the skunk ( Mephitis ) that odorous creature, and yet I have never seen one which smelt badly of skunk. I suppose they attack skunks from above in such a way that the animals have no successful way of spraying them from their “ stern bastions ”. This is a very commonly kept Owl, and has been bred in captivity by several people, including the “ non¬ pareil 5 5 of Owl keepers, Mr. Spedan Lewis. They do well in a roomy cage, which must have good light litter and drainage in order to avoid the otherwise strong smell of carnivorous birds’ habitations. Nowadays, of course, it is often difficult to find enough to feed such hearty eaters of meat, but in Connecticut we are well supplied with pests in the shape of crows, skunks, jackrabbits, and so on, and so on, to keep an Owl happy provided one keeps a shotgun near. So far we have not had to give my latest acquisition meat from a “ frig ” more than once in ten days. From the point of view of aviculture Owls are all too often neglected, and it seems a pity that this should be so. Certainly few other species are hardier or easier to keep, and to the discerning eye their subtle plumage patterns and symmetry are most rewarding. I suppose that in a way Owls are the cats of the avicultural world. Like cats they keep their own counsel and seldom respond to affection or gentle handling. Like many felines they seem content to be admired from a distance. 100 COUNCIL MEETING COUNCIL MEETING A Council Meeting was held on 6th April, 1949, in the Council Room, Zoological Society of London. There were the following elections and appointments : — Council. — O. E. Dunmore. Hon. Life Members — Miss E. F. Chawner and E. Valentine, in recognition of fifty years unbroken membership. National Council of Aviculture — B. H. Dulanty, A. A. Prestwich, and E. N. T. Vane to represent the Society on the Executive Com¬ mittee. THE SOCIETY’S MEDAL The Society’s Medal has been awarded to Edward J. Boosey, for breeding the Grey Parrot ( Psittacus erithacus). EAGLE-OWLS By Arthur A. Prestwich The Editor’s decision to produce a special Birds of Prey number was extremely ambitious. This very large group of birds has been severely neglected by aviculturists. During the full half-century of the Society, only a mere handful of members, notably Lord Lilford, Bonhote, Meade-Waldo, St. Quintin, Gurney, Moody, Whitiey, Spedari Lewis, and Miss Chawner, have kept them on anything like an extensive scale. Many of us when young tried our novice hand at keeping an Owl, or possibly a Kestrel. Those early ventures almost invariably ended disastrously, and with the resolve “ never, no more ”. Unfortunately, of course, but few aviculturists have facilities for keeping birds of this nature, and even the few seem reluctant to do so. The Striges are perhaps more suitable than the Accipitres for avi¬ culture ; but, even so, only a dozen species have been bred in Great Britain. Barn Owl, Tawny Owl, Eagle-Owl, American Eagle-Owl, Cape Eagle-Owl, Spotted Eagle-Owl, European Scops Owl, White-eared Scops Owl, Snowy Owl, Little Owl, Burrowing Owl, and Jardine’s Pigmy Owl find places in Breeding Records. It must be admitted, however, that one or two are included on somewhat unconvincing evidence. ARTHUR A. PRESTWICH - EAGLE-OWLS 01 The only species to have bred in any numbers and to have become established, even temporarily, are the Eagle-Owls, Bubo bubo and B. virginianus. The present intention is to give summaries of the four species of Bubo that have been known to breed successfully. Eagle-Owl. Great Horned Owl. Bubo bubo (Linne) Edward Fountaine bred Eagle-Owls at Easton, Norfolk, for some twenty-five years. Gurney published an account of the first breeding in 1849 in Zoologist, 1849, 2452, 2566. Fountaine gave a full account of the period 1849-1859 in the Ibis, 1859, 273. The following is a brief summary : The female had been in confinement twenty years before Fountaine procured her, but the male was said to be only one year old. They were housed in a large cage, about eight feet square, and about the same height. “ The period of incubation is thirty days, and one week usually elapses in addition between hatching the first egg and the last.” Eggs laid. 1849 3 1850 3 1851 3 1852 3 1853 3 1854 3 1855 3 3 1856 3 3 1857 2 2 1858 2 2 1859 2 Hatched. Reared. Notes. 3 3 First egg laid on 13th April. 2 2 ,, ,, 10th March. 3 3 „ ,, 10th February. 3 3 ,, ,, 10th February. 3 3 ,, ,, 14th February. 3 3 ,, ,, 20th February. 0 0 „ ,, 3rd February. 0 0 These eggs were destroyed owing to the severity of the weather. The same happened to the second nest at the end of the month. 0 0 First egg laid on 12th January. Destroyed by cold weather. 3 3 First egg laid on 10th February. 0 0 First egg laid end of January. Destroyed by cold weather. 2 2 During February. 0 0 January. Destroyed by cold weather. 2 2 During February. 0 0 First egg laid 10th February, one dead in shell, one addled. sitting — One egg laid 13th April, the other on the 17th. Fountaine says : “ I have proved that many of the first nests were destroyed, not from the coldness of the weather, but because the young birds were egg-bound ; and when I was myself from home, there was no one who understood how to take them out of the shell. I could have saved the young bird this year if I had been at home. I found on one occasion a young bird egg-bound, which it took me three days to take from the shell. This bird lived and was brought up.” In the Ibis, 1859, 473, there is a note by Fountaine : “ A pair of Eagle Owls bred by me in confinement have lately laid three eggs 102 ARTHUR A. PRESTWICH - EAGLE-OWLS and hatched one young bird. This is the first instance that any of the eggs of my birds, produced by individuals bred themselves in confinement, have proved fertile. The female which laid these eggs is ten years old, the cock about half that age.” In the account pre¬ viously quoted, he had written : “ Three pairs of the Owls which I brought up in confinement have at different times laid eggs and sat on them, but the eggs have never proved good.” From i860 to 1864, the story is continued by Henry Stevenson in his Birds of Norfolk , vol. i, p. 47 (1866). After dealing with the earlier successes, he writes : “In i860, a pair of young birds brought up one nestling, but there were none from the old pair. In 1861, two young ones were brought up by the old pair only. In 1862, an old blind female, presented to Mr. Fountaine some time ago, paired off with a male hatched in 1850, and two young birds were brought up. In the same year a young pair also had one nestling, but which was instantly devoured by its unnatural parent in consequence, says Mr. Fountaine, c of my putting a hen’s egg under her to keep her on the nest until she was inclined to sit, and as I forgot to take away the hen’s egg, she hatched it and ate it, and served her own young one the same.’ 1 No young that year from the original pair. In 1863, the blind bird laid, but her eggs proved of no use. The old pair brought up one nestling, and the young pair also had one young one, but the hen bird pulled its head off when about two weeks old, in consequence, it is supposed, of her being alarmed one night by the light of a lantern. In 1864, another young pair nested towards the end of February, and laid three eggs, but from the severity of the weather and high winds all the time, there was not sufficient warmth to hatch them. Neither the original pair, nor the blind female, did anything this year, but another young pair had three good eggs, which should have been hatched in the end of April, but, in Mr. Fountaine’s absence, these were unfortunately taken away under the impression they were bad. In spite of all these disappointments, however, Mr. Fountaine has now in his possession twenty-six of these noble birds, and has given away thirteen others at different times. They are fed on rats, rabbits, and small birds. A young pair of these Owls, in Mr. Gurney’s aviary at Catton, the offspring of Mr. Fountaine’s old pair, also hatched for the first time in 1 860, when they brought up two young ones ; in 1861, two more, and in 1862, three young ones. In 1863, 1 A somewhat similar incident is described in the Bull., B.O.G., xxxiii, p. xxi, vol. v, and Ibis, 1896, 261 : “ Mr. H. M. Wallis exhibited three eggs laid by a Golden Eagle ( Aquila chrysaetus), which had been about thirty years in confinement, and began to lay eggs about fifteen years ago. The eggs having been taken and those of a domestic fowl substituted, the Eagle hatched three of the latter and reared three fine birds, feeding them principally on the flesh of rats. One of these fowls, a cockerel, was slain by his foster-mother, but the others had thriven. A photograph was exhibited, showing the Eagle and the fowls.” ARTHUR A. PRESTWICH - EAGLE-OWLS IO3 three were hatched and two brought up ; and, in 1864, two were reared and presented to Mr. Fountaine, to supply this losses.” Fountaine was apparently breeding them as late as 1875, for J. H. Gurney {Ibis, 1875, 517) writes : “ Mr. E. Fountaine . . . whose success in breeding the European Eagle-Owl in confinement was recorded in the Ibis for 1859 (p. 273), and has been continued with very little intermission since that period.” Sclater {P.£.S., 1869, 626) says bred at the Zoo before 1868 ; other successes there are two bred in 1898, and one in 1899 {P.£.S., Addi¬ tions) . Meade- Waldo ( A.M. , 1900, 76) writes : “ Our first nest this year (1899) was that of the old Eagle Owls, who hatched two young ones on April 3rd — this is fully a month later than usual. Both young were reared : which make ninety-seven reared during my lifetime. Hardly any eggs have been laid but what have been hatched, and no young one has ever died, with the exception of one that was choked ; the old pair going on year after year having their two or three young as regular as clockwork.” Major Flower {P.£.$., vol. 1080, p. 208), says that two presented to the London Zoo, 20th March, 1927, had both been bred in the Meade- Waldo aviaries, one in 1882, the other in 1899. Bonhote ( A.M. , 1910, 263) writes : “ The only young one I have reared is seven years old and still alive and well . . . The old pair . . . persistently refuse to feed their young. In 1904, she had three nests and hatched eight young.” Later, in A.M. , 191 1, 282, he says, “ nests very freely.” Miss Ghawner reared one young one in 1913, from birds bred by Meade-Waldo. The young one passed into the possession of Sir G. Tyrwhitt-Drake. For the five years previous the hen had laid two clutches and incubated them without result. A later young one is mentioned, but there is no confirmation of its being reared. In 1915, however, another young one was fully reared {B.N., 1913? 237 ; 1914, 246 ; .1915* 260 ^ -4.AT. Club , 1913, 32 ; 1914, 69). Whitley had a pair that successfully reared young in 1929 and following years ; three bred in 1929, teste Delacour {A.M. 1930, 261). Dr. Hopkinson ( A.M. , 1931, 314) records two bred in 1930, and says that at the time of his visit in 1931, “ The hen is sitting on half-grown young.” Miss Ghawner (. A.M. , 1928, 277) recording the results for 1928 in the Spedan Lewis Owlery writes : “ Three eggs laid and all hatched ; the third nearly a week after the others. All went well for six weeks, and a plentiful supply of rabbit was given twice daily. But just as the nestlings had begun to feather and were using their wings they all ‘ went light 5 and died in a few days.” Moody says the species “ appears to be a free breeder, very hardy, 104 ARTHUR A. PRESTWIGH - EAGLE-OWLS and long-lived in captivity ” and that a pair was bred at Lilford in 1931, and that they ‘ reared their young 5 in 1932 ” ( A.M. , 1932, 48 ; 1934; 240 ; 1946, 223). American Eagle-Owl. Greater Horned Owl. Bubo virginianus (Gmelin) William Borrer, in his Birds of Sussex , p. xvii (1891) writes : “ Con¬ cerning the Owls formerly in the Keep of Arundel Castle, which I believe were generally supposed to be Eagle Owls, and were men¬ tioned as such by Mr. Knox in O.R. , p. 91, as they were for many years a great attraction to visitors ... I may say that when I saw them many years ago I had no doubt that they were the Virginian species, in which opinion I am confirmed by the following notice in the Beauties of England and Wales , vol. xiv, p. 82, by F. Shoberl, where, speaking of the Keep of Arundel Castle, he says : ‘ The Owls which are kept here were a present to the Duke from North America.’ This was published in 1813. Mr. J. H. Gurney kindly made enquiries for me of the present Duke, who most courteously gave all the information in his power, stating that he believed it to be the fact that the Owls were introduced into the Keep by Charles, the nth Duke, who died in 1815, and that some were still remaining when he himself came to the title in i860, but that during his minority they gradually disappeared from the Castle, though two were remaining in a garden in the town up to the end of 1869. Mr. Mostyn, the Duke’s agent, kindly forwarded me a letter from an old man, for many years the custodian of the Owls, who states that they occasionally bred in the Keep, producing but one egg in the season, and hatching it ; but in 1859 one bird laid three eggs, which produced three fine young, which grew to maturity. One of the Owls, which had long been known as c Lord Thurlow ’, at last laid an egg, which was the subject of considerable amusement. Mr. Gurney had a cutting from the West Sussex Gazette of 1859, stating that one of the Arundel Owls, believed to be the original c Lord Thurlow ’, had just died, supposed to be about a hundred years old.” Miss Chawner reared one young one in the Spedan Lewis Owlery at Wargrave in 1928 ; A.S. Medal (A.M., 1928, 97, 195 ; 1929, 101, 198). In the 1928 volume (p. 251), G. H. Gurney gives some extracts from his grandfather’s diary for 1873 ; from these it appears that two young were hatched, but whether they were actually reared to maturity is not stated. Cape Eagle-Owl, Bubo capensis A. Smith Bred at the Zoo in 1905, four reared, teste Report. P. W. TEAGUE - DAYO, MY PET BARN OWL IO5 Spotted Eagle-Owl, Bubo africanus (Temminck) First bred by Bonhote in 1901 ; three eggs were laid, two hatched ; one young one lived only a few hours, but the other was fully reared ; A.S. Medal (see A.M., 1902, 39, 53, and photo of young one five weeks old ; 1910, 263). * * * “DAYO,” MY PET BARN OWL By P. W. Teague. Many years ago I kept a Barn Owl as a pet. It was in full adult plumage when given to me and I should say from its beautiful condition and lovely plumage that it was a young cock bird, and under a year old. The name 44 Dayo 99 was given to him, probably because he would come to me in daylight when called, and he was an interesting and most useful pet for he kept our stable loft free from rats and mice, as we had no cats. For a time he was kept in a good sized box cage and later on he was given the freedom of our stable loft where he lived for about three years, and later on given his complete freedom. 44 Dayo 95 got very tame and would come when his name was called and would perch on my hand or shoulder, and take his food from my hand. He was always very gentle and never once attempted to claw or savage anyone — although he knew a stranger and would keep out of sight when possible. He usually slept on the wall ledges just under the roof, and would occasionally give me quite a start if I happened to go to the loft for hay or chaff. Silently and suddenly appearing from 44 nowhere 5 9 — 4 4 Dayo 99 would perch on my shoulder or head without the slightest warning, for these owls are quite silent when in flight. 44 Dayo 99 was fed on pieces of meat, mice, rats, voles, bits of rabbit, and very occasionally a sparrow. I always gave him a dish of water, but he did not drink much and I never remember seeing any trace of his having had a bath, yet he always appeared clean and in beautiful plumage. Whilst on the subject of Owls, it may be of interest to mention an experience I had recently with that little fiend, the small Grey Owl. I saw two fighting under an apple tree some 50 to 60 yards from the road, so I climbed the railed fence and walked up to the combatants and put my hat over them. I brought both home and put them in a big packing case where they soon renewed their fighting again— so I I06 BRITISH AVICULTURISTS5 CLUB destroyed them. Some may ask why, well, I think more small Grey Owls would be destroyed if they were half as well known as I know them. In broad daylight I have seen these little fiends kill full grown Thrushes, Blackbirds, chickens 4 to 6 weeks old, almost half grown Partridges, Pheasant Chicks, and all kinds of our smaller birds. Like the grey squirrel they do far more damage than good. As it is, our small bird population have far too many enemies without the addition of these destructive aliens. * * * BRITISH AVICULTURISTS5 CLUB The seventeenth meeting of the Club was held at the Rembrandt Hotel, Thurloe Place, South Kensington, S.W. 7, on Wednesday, nth May, 1949, at 6.30 p.m., followed by a dinner. Chairman : Miss Phyllis Barclay-Smith. Members of the Club : Miss Kay Bonner, Gapt. A. Clarence, G. T. Clark, Mrs. G. T. Clark, T. Crewes, O. E. Dunmore, A. Ezra (Patron), J. F. M. Floyd, C. F. Harding, R. E. Heath, Dr. W. C. Osman Hill, Dr. E. Hindle, G. T. lies, Terry Jones, Miss E. Maud Knobel (Club Hostess), Miss M. H. Knobel-Harman, G. C. Lynch, K. A. Norris, Mrs. L. N. Phipps, Sydney Porter, A. A. Prestwich (Hon. Secretary), D. H. S. Risdon, Peter Scott, D. Seth-Smith, A. E. Sibley, E. N. T. Vane, R, C. Witting. Guest of Honour : M. Jean Delacour. Guests : Major J. E. Adlard, Jim Bailey, Miss E. Bevington, Dave Bush, G. S. Cansdale, Miss J. Crone, Jean- Paul Harroy, Mrs. W. C. Osman Hill, N. B. Kinnear, Miss S. Kinnear, R. E. Moreau, Mrs. D. Seth-Smith, E. H. Tong, Mrs. E. H. Tong, W. H. Turner, Mrs. W. H. Turner, C. S. Webb. Members of the Club, 28 ; guests, 18 ; total 46. The Chairman, in welcoming Mr. Delacour as guest of honour pointed out that this was really a contradiction in terms for if anyone was an essential part of the Avicultural Society it was Mr. Delacour ; he was a Vice-President and had been a member of the Society for thirty-three years, twenty-seven of which he had served on the Council which constituted a record, but the Club wished to have an opportunity of expressing their feelings of appreciation. Miss Barclay-Smith then paid tribute to the great work Mr. Delacour had done for avicul¬ ture in general and the Society in particular, and said the Society would not have survived the war years without his constant help and support which he had ceaselessly given in spite of great difficulties. BRITISH AVICULTURISTS’ CLUB 107 She added that aviculture was not purely concerned with the successful keeping and breeding of birds in captivity, but it had its part to play both in the science of ornithology and in bird preservation — Mr. Delacour was the embodiment of all that aviculture should stand for — he was the greatest aviculturist in the world, he was a very distinguished ornithologist and he was President of the International Committee for Bird Preservation. The Chairman concluded by telling Mr. Delacour how glad his friends were to have him among them again and, though they greatly regretted his migration to another continent, so long as he maintained his strong homing instinct which he had so commendably shown he could be forgiven this lamentable lapse. The Chairman then welcomed Mr. Jean-Paul Harroy, the Secretary-General of the newly formed International Union for the Protection of Nature, stating how honoured the Club was by his presence and drawing attention to the great importance of his work. Mr. Delacour expressed his great pleasure at once again being with his friends in England and thanked the Chairman for her kind words. His associations with the Avicultural Society had been a long and close one, and time had not weakened his feelings towards his British colleagues. Every year since 1946 his summer “ migration ” from America had been a little longer ; his present visit in Europe would last three and a half months, a good part of which would be spent on this side of the Channel. He then made the following remarks : “ I want to take this opportunity to point out the importance of avicul¬ ture as an art and as a science. It is no doubt a delightful hobby and for all of us here, successful bird-keeping and breeding are activities from which much pleasure and interest are derived. But it has a greater significance. Aviculture can play a considerable part in saving a number of species which are becoming rare and are threatened with extinction in the near future. The increase of the human populations of the earth and the penetration of the remotest parts of the world, coupled with disorder and lawlessness, which are constantly extending cause increasing destruction and prevent efficient measures of con¬ servation in many regions. Particularly with the larger birds such as game birds, Waterfowl, Pigeons, Parrots, etc., captive stock can be established so that the existence of the species is made safe. Few people realize perhaps that the Swinhoe Pheasants, common to-day in aviaries, all came from a few specimens imported eighty years ago, as also do the Brown Eared-Pheasants, now perhaps extinct in northern China, three specimens only of which were brought to France in 1862 for the first and last time. The importance of propagating rare birds in captivity has now been recognized particularly by the U.S. Govern¬ ment, who have set up projects for the rearing of the Trumpeter Swan, and by the Hawaian authorities, who are now planning to save the native Goose — or Nene — which is dangerously nearing extinction. io8 BRITISH AVICULTURISTS’ CLUB “ Another very important function of aviculture is the recording of data that is difficult and even often impossible to obtain from the observation of wild birds in their haunts. Such truth has been very vividly brought to my notice in the preparation of different works, particularly the recently complex manuscript of The Pheasants of the World , and in the preliminary studies of The Waterfowl of the World , which I am now starting. Very little is known and there is too often nothing recorded of the behaviour, displays, habits, breeding, and incubation of even quite common species, such as, for instance, the Golden Pheasant. The eggs, chicks, and moults of many others are particularly unknown. No description of the chicks of the Koklass, a species which has been reared several times in captivity, can be found in literature and no specimens existed in any collection until quite recently. Aviculturists can fill up these gaps in ornithological knowledge. I beg you to record carefully what your birds are doing, and to preserve and send to museums any available specimens of eggs and chicks. It will contribute to the advancement of zoology more than you might yet realize and it will also help our Editor a great deal in making the Avicultural Magazine ever more interesting and valuable.” Mr. Harroy expressed his great pleasure in being given the oppor¬ tunity to meet such a representative gathering of English aviculturists. He felt specially honoured as he was a fellow guest of that very eminent ornithologist, Jean Delacour. Mr. Harroy gave a brief account of the research work being carried out in the Belgian Congo and extended a warm invitation to members of the Society to visit the Institute for Scientific Research of Central Africa there. Sydney Porter described briefly his recent visit to California. Aviculture, he said, is in a very flourishing state. Apart from the large collections there are many smaller about which one rarely hears, the majority kept by ladies. Some of the better-known are those of F. H. Rudkin, Senr., who although nearly ninety years old, maintains unaided about a hundred aviaries : Eric Kinsey whose vast collection is restricted to California native birds and whose success at breeding, including Woodpeckers, is phenomenal ; Mrs. Gilbert Lee who has bred Grey Parrots to the fourth generation ; and David West who, while still only about twenty, has one of the best collections of Parra- keets in California. It is to be hoped that Sydney Porter himself will give us a full account, so in anticipation we will limit his remarks to the foregoing. Arthur A. Prestwich, Hon. Secretary and Treasurer. * * * PERSONALIA 109 PERSONALIA E. N. T. Vane has recently added pairs of Yellow-cheeked Parrots and Lesser Sulphur-crested Cockatoos (sp. incert) to his collection. They are believed to be true pairs, so developments are expected. E. J. Boosey recently visited Woburn, and writes : “It was thrilling to see among other rarities a flock of, I think, no less than thirty of the lovely Red-breasted Geese.” The Duke of Bedford hopes to move what is left of his collection at Lindfield to Woburn, and also to have a few Parrakeets at liberty. Alex. Hampe, who in pre-war days sent so many rare Chinese birds to aviculturists in England and America, now finds life in Germany very difficult and complicated, even though he is living in the American Zone. He is unfortunately without birds, and says, “ Aviculture in Germany is altogether at the lowest ebb possible.” Readers who have been so fortunate as to see slides from photo¬ graphs by K. A. Norris, will be interested to hear he is now with J. F. M. Floyd in the Camargue. We shall hope to see the results in due course. Incidentally, Norris showed slides to illustrate “ Birds of the Marshland and Sea-shore of Holland 55 at the Scientific Meeting of the Zoological Society of London, on 12th April, 1949. On 1 7th May, Peter Scott left to join an expedition sponsored by the Arctic Institute of North America. Its main object is to study bird life in the Queen Maud Gulf area, north of Canada and some two hundred miles south of the North Magnetic Pole. The greater part of the study will be carried out by air. A. A. P. * * * REVIEWS Birds in Britain. By Frances Pitt. Macmillan and Co., Ltd. 253“. net. There are many books on British birds, but none quite like this one, dealing, as it does, not only with the birds to be found wild in Britain, but also with those that may be met with here in a state of domestica¬ tion. It is quite a large book of some 570 pages, full of matter that is all well worth reading, for Frances Pitt is a first-rate naturalist and what she does not know about birds and beasts, at any rate those of this country, is hardly worth knowing. In Part I we are given a general Review of Birds, their place in nature, structure, distribution, migration, and behaviour. The chapter on structure being particularly useful, explaining, as it does, the great difference between, say, the tails, wings, or feet of the various groups, and their adaptation to particular habits and environment. I 10 REVIEWS Part II deals with the various families, commencing with the Grows. Native British birds very properly receive the most attention, and they are dealt with very thoroughly, but others, even the Parrots, are not neglected. Of that delightful bird, the Avocet, the author expresses the hope that it will re-establish itself as a breeding species in Britain, a hope that is now being realized, for it has bred here during the last two years. This book is very generously illustrated, both in colour and mono¬ chrome. As a frontispiece is a lovely coloured plate of a pair of Goldfinches, by Winifred Austen, while that excellent artist, Roland Green, has contributed no less than sixteen plates, beautifully drawn and coloured, each figuring some five or six species. The photographic illustrations, of which there are a large number, are all very good. One hesitates to suggest that just a few of these might have been omitted, but the book would have been equally valuable had such domestic birds as the Canary and farmyard Ducks and Geese been left out, and we hardly want so many photographs of the Mute Swan, one of which is printed twice over (pages 42 and 344) ; neither do pictures of Parrots, Golden Pheasants, or the Lyre Bird seem quite to fit into a book of this kind ; and if the Satin Bower Bird must be included, it is a pity that the bower should be described in the caption as the “ nest This is a really excellent book, a worthy successor to others from the gifted pen of Frances Pitt who, in addition to the text and many of the photographs, has supplied some useful line drawings. D. S-S. Predatory Birds of Great Britain. By Eric Parker. The British Field Sports Society, 51, Victoria Street, London, S.W. 1. Price, 3 s. post free. Predatory ! That’s enough to make a naturalist’s gorge rise, but Eric Parker is on the right side ; he does his best ; one ought even to recall days when one’s own idea of bliss went with a gun, even a cata¬ pult, and things done one would prefer to forget. However when the writer of the Foreword tries to grow the wings on the Keeper, as virtually Warden of the Dawn Chorus (and it must be admitted that tragedies do happen where the Sparrow-hawk goes his round), one remembers an Osprey settled on a loch in Forfar, when an attempt was being made to reintroduce the Osprey, shot for stuffing by the keeper on a certain estate, and the apology tends to seem naive even academic, keepers doing just as they like in such matters, not un¬ naturally. The transition, or evolution, Keeper to Wild Life Warden, is no doubt taking place and we should all like to see the Keeper’s NOTES 1 1 I position reinforced in dealing with the collector, the present maximum fine of one pound an egg reveals itself as quite inadequate. One would probably say with Major Buxton “ I like an Eagle much better than a Hare, a Harrier much more than a Pipit53 or words to that effect. One has never had the luck to see an Eagle among the Grouse, a Falcon successfully stoop, or even a Sparrow- hawk ; amenities not to be met with every day. It is unfortunate to have associated Eagle and Falcon in such company as the Carrion Grow ; practically nailing them on the dreadful Tree. Indeed the classification here seems arbitrary — you can picture “ Sportsman 35 scratching his head over the Falcons ; Eagle and Eagle go naturally together — Aquila with Haliaeetus, and then Buzzard, but the natural group of Falcons is peppered any old how ; it is not classification by size ; give it up. More than thirty pages of Schedules of Protection, county by county, bird by bird, “ unravelled 35 and set in order by Miss Barclay-Smith, tempt you to the verge of vertigo, should prove most beneficial to our fast vanishing species, and I am glad to know (living in Sussex) that it is only at rabbits they are shooting on a Sunday. Interesting local names are given, translated where possible, in English (nicknames), Welsh and Gaelic (more Bardic, “ Ruddy o5 the Burn, Gleaner of the Hunt ”). Gulls ! That Great Black-back, most imposing ornamental, they have forgotten the old ruffian’s finishing patch of scarlet on yellow bill ; but eighty-odd pages, well and legibly produced, for three shillings post free ! And, drawings by Lodge. Consider the Hobby, highway bound with visor black. This little book could awaken observation, of the living rather than the dead, admiration ! J. F. M. F. * * * NOTES Age of a Sparrow It is always interesting to have records of the age attained by birds, a subject that is often little known. Here is one for the House Sparrow. Miss Drew, of 7 Dovedale Road, East Dulwich, found a nestling Sparrow, fallen out of the nest and injured. It was at first fed with a fountain-pen filler, and became very tame. It could never fly, but became a great pet. It died 14th March, 1949, at the age of 14 years. It survived three bombings, during one of which it was injured with a piece of glass in its eye ! D. Seth-Smith. Roseate Cockatoo X Greater Sulphur-crested Cockatoo Hybrid. Mr. D. Bush, knowing my interest in such matters, kindly informed me that there was a Galah X White Cockatoo hybrid living at the Royal Hotel, Tenterfield, N.S.W. The owner, Mr. J. C. Munro, has been to considerable trouble to trace the breeder of this bird. It appears that twenty-four years ago, the late Mr. John French had I 12 CORRESPONDENCE the parent birds, both good talkers, mated over seven years before they nested in a short, hollow limb. Two young ones were reared, but unfortunately one managed to escape. Mr. Munro describes his Cockatoo as follows “ The hybrid, which is approximately the same size as a White Cockatoo, has plumage of an apricot colour from her beak to the base of the tail. The crest is of a deeper apricot shade, lightening off until the top of the head is pure white. The back and wings are grey splashed with white feathers.” The bird that escaped was a male similar in colouring, but more pronounced, the breast being a vivid orange. A. A. P. Additions to the London Zoo. February , 1949. — There were only two new arrivals during the month : a Lesser Moorhen ( Gallinula angulata ), a species new to the Collection, caught at sea offBeira, Portuguese East Africa, presented by C. W. Benson ; and a Stanley Crane. March , 1949. — The thirty-one additions contained no rarities. The more interesting were a Giant Whydah, a Cinnamon Teal, a Blue-winged Goose, and a Rosy-billed Duck. Ten Golden and ten Reeves’s Pheasants were transferred from Whipsnade. The only new arrivals at Whipsnade were eight Golden Pheasants, one cock and seven hens. A. A. P. “ Centenarian ” Macaw Lays Eggs. A Red and Blue Macaw at the Brighton Aquarium recently gained considerable publicity in the daily Press by virtue of the fact that at the reported age'of 125 years it had laid two eggs. But acceptance of its reputed longevity must be considered with more that a modicum of reserve. Inquiry of the Aquarium management produced the reply : — “ Our Macaw £ Robert 5 was purchased some fifteen months ago from a dealer who had then recently acquired it from a spinster who had just died. The bird was known to have been in her family for at least 125 years and it is quite possible that this bird is considerably older.” A. A. P. * * # CORRESPONDENCE AN INVITATION FROM AUSTRALIA As it seems that the means of travel are gradually becoming more available, it may be that some of your members may be considering to come to this country and see our birds in their natural habitat, since they are not permitted to have the birds sent to them. This Society has members resident in every capital city who would be delighted to welcome and entertain any such visitors, and to help them in any way possible. If any member of the Avicultural Society who is contemplating visiting this country cares to inform me, I shall be very happy to arrange introductions in the various cities. Lewis M. Campbell, Hon. Secretary , the Avicultural Society of Australia. 4 Hawthorn Grove, Hawthorn, Victoria, Australia. CORRESPONDENCE 3 SEXING BLUE-FRONTED AMAZONS I think I have at last discovered the way to sex Blue-fronted Amazon Parrots, and it now seems so obvious that I can’t imagine why I never noticed it before. On the bend of the wing Blue-fronts have a patch of bright colour which is normally entirely hidden by the overlapping breast feathers. During the display, however, the wings are slightly lowered and thrust forward by both sexes, thereby bringing these patches of colour into prominence. At present we have eight Blue-fronted Amazons at Keston, and in each case the colour patches are either pure crimson or crimson at the back shading through orange into bright yellow in front. In both the two nesting pairs the cocks have precisely the same tricoloured wing patches, while in the hens they are pure crimson. I went to have a look at a supposed “ pair ” we have which, despite their bright colouring, I have long suspected might be two hens, and sure enough both have the colour patches pure crimson. A recently obtained Blue-front showed the tri¬ coloured patch, so I put him in the aviary with the above-mentioned couple, and he at once showed every sign of pleasure and displayed to both of them. Finally, a very quiet and retiring Amazon — an alleged cock Blue-front — has just been received. It struck me as temperamentally very unlike a cock bird, and as soon as I had a chance to examine it closely, there, as I expected, were the two pure crimson wing patches. I do not, of course, claim yet that this is conclusive, but it is, at any rate, a very striking coincidence that out of eight Blue-fronts five should have identically the same pure crimson wing patches, and the remaining three tricoloured ones, equally identical. Finally, with regard to the mating up of Amazons. This, I believe, is sometimes considered to be such a tricky business as to necessitate the prospective bride and bridegroom spending weeks in separate cages side by side, before it is safe to put them together. Personally I think this does perhaps apply to African Greys, but not to Amazons, which temperamentally are so utterly dissimilar. My own experience is that any normal male Blue-front which, without previous introduction, is put into an aviary with any normal female Blue-front, takes to her just as quickly as would Roseate Cockatoos under similar circumstances. I say “ normal ”, because, of course, one does, particularly among members of the Parrot tribe, occasionally come across eccentric individuals which, though often friendly enough to human beings, seem to have a fanatical hatred of all other Parrots, regardless of their sex. Such birds are quite unmateable, and are usually, I think, slightly mental, and are best segregated, as they are a very real menace to any other Parrot they are put with. Edward Boosey. The Keston Foreign Bird Farm, Ltd., Keston, Kent. THE AVICULTURAL SOCIETY RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS ACCOUNT Tear ended gist December, ig^8. O mtNQ O CO CO CO CO O CO CO , ,C0 lO (N O H Tf CO -i - O CO CO CO CO CT> m o o o oo mco o ^ o a co •- O O CO m o co ci O »■ CO o o m r^com .g'g s § bp bo 7* G l+H .-H O ^ u bojp Q h a Q* .tJ ^ X -3 £”3 « «&§r fill CT3 U j 3 cS 13 S .S Et8>2^^ a 12 g g-SlS ' G oii o t/2 Ph ffi S pq £ o ^ s c+h «-s ° g’jM §§g v u • bo |u tJ 13 u .w 8> 11 3 o o U ~ 3 o N 3 ^ £ L §*§ 83s .£< b 3 g Cj C O 3 5? > CJ pH pH i^- • • JG 00 -O ^ 3 O O - • .« M CJ M CO m . w •-< CO CO ^3 co o H COlj4 ■'f S3 co o 3 _<0 34 I § I pq § ts \d w Th 05 cS g 33 Si O JHQ 3 • CJ § ■31-2 > S"c jH 3 H ^ N « S bo2 oj c3 cj SSS^Q £§ £ "2 V5 > HTl 3 s3 o s >pq t u o 3 the underparts are white, whereas the belly of my live specimen was buff in colour at the time of capture, but has faded a little since. This bird has the curious habit of puffing out the throat. The only call-note it has made is a low ga-a-a. Obviously the peculiar nesting habits of Picathartes has served it well in the struggle for survival, and to depart from them would seem to involve considerable risk, but that there are individuals willing to experiment is shown by the instance of the nest I found in a depression on a rock shelf. But a bigger departure from the normal is the nest discovered by Mr. Reis in a hollow log. A few days before my departure from British Gameroons the rain eased up, and so I was able to photograph the nesting site, although the forest was still exceedingly gloomy. With an extra rapid pan¬ chromatic film, I had to give an exposure of one second with the stop at 3-8. This will give some idea of the dark conditions prevailing in the forest at midday at a time when the sun was trying to peep through the clouds. I have used the English name Grey-necked Picathartes in view of the fact that “ Grey-necked Bald Crow ” does not now apply. Banner- man in his Birds of Tropical West Africa , in place of Bald Grow, has 154 PRESENTATION OF BLACK SWANS TO QUEEN ELISABETH OF BELGIUM called Picathartes “ Bare-headed Rock-fowl ”. However, as it is not a gallinaceous bird and, as far as the Cameroon species is con¬ cerned, does not necessarily dwell among rocks, but requires a rock- face only for nesting purposes, I see no reason for retaining this name. There is one other species of Picathartes — the Yellow-necked Picathartes (P. gymnocephala) , which was first obtained in the Gold Coast, but has not been seen there for over fifty years. Many years ago a few specimens were collected in the neighbouring territory of Togoland. Latterly it has, quite surprisingly, been recorded some 700 miles further west in the territory of Sierra Leone where, it appears, certain localities are particularly suited to its requirements. The two species of Picathartes are separated by many hundreds of miles which includes the whole of Nigeria. * * * PRESENTATION OF BLACK SWANS TO HER MAJESTY QUEEN ELISABETH OF BELGIUM When on a visit to Belgium in the autumn of 1947, I learnt from Madame G. Derscheid that Her Majesty Queen Elisabeth was very interested in the waterfowl on the lakes at the Palace of Laeken, and that a pair of Black Swans would be a welcome addition, as there were only two old birds, both males, at Laeken. When I returned to England, I told our President about this, and with his usual generosity he immediately agreed that the Avicultural Society should offer to present a pair of Black Swans to Queen Elisa¬ beth, and that he would be responsible for purchasing the birds. At that time Black Swans were extremely scarce, and it was not possible to procure any till a promise was given by Mr. Terry Jones that a pair should be reserved from Mr. Spedan Lewis’s Black Swans when they nested in the autumn of 1948. A brood of five were hatched on 1 7th October, and these were sexed at three months old and a pair chosen. A letter was then sent by the President and Hon. Secretary to Monsieur de Streel, Secretary to the Queen, as follows : — “ As President and Hon. Secretary of the Avicultural Society, whose object is the study of British and foreign birds in freedom and in captivity, we are venturing to approach you. PRESENTATION OF BLACK SWANS TO QUEEN ELISABETH OF BELGIUM 1 55 “ We understand Her Majesty the Queen Elisabeth would like to include some Australian Black Swans on the lake of the Palace of Laeken, and we should be greatly honoured to be allowed to present Her Majesty with these birds. Black Swans have become very difficult to procure since the war, but our Society has been fortunate enough to secure a young pair which could be sent to Belgium this summer. “ We should be particularly honoured and gratified if Her Majesty would graciously accept this modest token of homage of a British Society which consists of 550 members, has been in existence for over fifty years, and is in close touch with the principal British and foreign scientific societies. “ We shall be greatly obliged if you will be so good as to inform us whether you consider that Her Majesty, whose interest in every¬ thing concerning Science and Nature we all know, would be willing graciously to accept these birds which we offer with our humble respects.” The following reply was received : — “ Her Majesty Queen Elisabeth of Belgium has instructed me to convey Her sincerest thanks for your most amiable offer. The Queen will be very pleased receiving from the Avicultural Society a young pair of Australian Black Swans, and accepts your gracious present as a token of sympathy from the Avicultural Society. “ May I suggest you let me know the names of the members of the Avicultural Society who will come to Brussels in the near future. Her Majesty will be pleased to meet them and have the pleasure of seeing you.” The Swans were then, by the kind offices of Mr. Gansdale, sent by air to the Antwerp Zoo, where Mr. Walter Van den bergh, the Director, was good enough to take charge of them for a few days. The Swans were taken to Laeken on 4th June by the Hon. Secretary, Mr. A. A. Prestwich, Miss Kay Bonner, and myself, accompanied by Madame G. Derscheid and Madame J. M. Derscheid. Though Her Majesty had been ill and was confined to her private apartments, she nevertheless expressed the wish to have the Swans presented to her personally, and they were taken to her room in a basket. This very gracious act on the part of Her Majesty was greatly appreciated. The Swans were then released on one of the lakes in the Palace grounds, and after having swum round and investigated the whole place most thoroughly, they settled down well. It is hoped that they will found a dynasty of Black Swans which will be a token of the friendship between Great Britain and Belgium. Our grateful thanks are expressed to Mr. Walter Van den bergh for taking care of the Swans at Antwerp, and for making all the 156 JEAN DELAGOUR - M. A. DECOUX’s COLLECTION AT GERY arrangements for their transport to Laeken, to Mr. G. S. Cansdale for arranging their voyage to Belgium, and above all to Madame G. Derscheid who so kindly negotiated all the arrangements for the presentation to Her Majesty the Queen Mother of Belgium. Phyllis Barclay-Smith. * * ❖ M. A. DECOUX’S COLLECTION AT GERY, HAUTE VIENNE, FRANCE By Jean Delacour M. A. Decoux is one of our oldest members. For over forty years he has kept a very large and choice collection of small birds, Parrakeets and Doves, and his breeding successes, often recorded in this magazine, have been extremely numerous. Of much the same age, M. Decoux and I have been friends of very long standing. I have very often been at his place at Gery, near Limoges, and I was glad to be there with him again last summer. My previous visit had taken place under tragic circumstances in June, 1940 : in the disorderly retreat of those dark days I had the idea to stop with my men at Gery : it would in any case save my friend the trouble of billeting more objectionable soldiers ! I had hardly arrived there when the Fooks family, fleeing the Germans, also arrived, to leave two days later for Bordeaux and St. Jean de Luz, where they found their way out to England for the duration, while I was leaving for Agen, further south, and eventually for America. Through correspondence, and later on when I saw M. Decoux again in Paris and at Cleres, I had heard the reassuring news that his aviaries and birds had not suffered too much during the war. Until the end of 1942, Gery had been situated in the unoccupied zone of France, which later on the Germans never held so tightly as the northern half of the country. Not only was their control much slighter, but their troops only occupied large towns or important strategic points, so that Gery never saw the invaders. The only losses in the bird collection was caused by the lack of proper food and care, which affected mostly insect and fruit-eating birds, all of which eventually died. But the greatest part of the large collection of Finches, Parrakeets, and Doves could be saved. During the past four years, many new birds have come to Gery, while also numbers of young reared there have helped restocking other aviaries. The installations were not damaged. They include about forty-five moveable aviaries for Parrakeets built after the Duke of Bedford’s principles, most of them very large, which are set on the lawns of the big pleasure garden which surrounds the house. A fine JEAN DELAGOUR - M. A. DECOUx’s COLLECTION AT GERY 1 57 block of five compartments, also in the same garden, is inhabited by small birds and Doves. A dozen roomy aviaries for Lories, Doves, and small birds have been built in a neighbouring meadow, and a large flight, the oldest aviary in the place, with five small compartments on either side, all for small birds, is placed along the wall of the kitchen garden. A couple of bird rooms complete the establishment. All the aviaries, except some of the moveable ones, are neatly built of slender steel frames and mouse-proof wire netting, with large brick and concrete shelters and foundations, pleasantly planted with shrubs. A small pond is used for Mandarin and Carolina Ducks. To-day the collection of Parrakeets still is very important. Among the Australian species, all of the more usual ones are present, but I noticed particularly pairs of Brown’s, Barnard’s, Twenty-eights, Bauer’s, Many-coloured, King, Crimson-wing, Barraband’s, Rock Peplars, Queen Alexandra’s Parrakeets, and there still is an old cock Yellow-bellied. The Grass Parrakeets are represented by a number of Bourkes, Elegants and Blue-wings, and several varieties of Budgerigars, Opalines, pure Whites, and Yellows. There are also various Lovebirds, including Blue Masked. The Lory collection consists of Swainsons, Red Collared, Mitchell’s and Yellow breasted ; an old Scaly Lorikeet produces every year hybrids with a Swainson. Some rare odd birds, which it has been impossible to pair off, are a golden-fronted New Zealand Parrakeet, a Musk Lorikeet, and a Latham, bred at Gery many years ago. A pet Red-and-blue Macaw lives at liberty, while a Great Black Cockatoo, very tame and gentle, is kept on a stand in the bird room, which is slowly filling up again with new insectivorous birds, now including Shamas and various Glossy Starlings and Thrushes. The collection of Doves is good and breeds well. There are all the more usual species, among which Diamond, Peaceful, and Crested produce every year many pairs of young. Brush and Common Bronze- wings, Jobi, Grayson’s, Bleeding-heart, and Ashy Ground Doves are among the most interesting. The small bird collection is not to-day, of course, what it used to be, but nevertheless, it is an exciting one. All the West African species of Weavers, Whydahs, and Waxbills, now easily obtainable in France, are there, even some of the rarest such as Quail Finches and various unusual Firefinches. The Australian species are represented by Gouldian, Ruficaudas, Masked and Long-tailed Finches ; there are also some Indian Avadavats and Red-headed Parrot Finches. Zebra Finches nest by the dozen, and include the White and Isobelline varieties. There are even some New World species : Red Cardinals, Nonpareils, Indigo Buntings, Cuban Finches, and some Red Pileated Finches, the latter reared on the spot through many genera¬ tions. 158 A. R. ROBERTSON - BREEDING SUCCESSES IN SOUTH AFRICA It is a comfort to find that not only the large Gery collection of birds, but many others in Central and Western France, particularly in the Vendee, are still flourishing. Most of the bird seeds have always been grown commercially in that district, so that they were still procurable throughout the war and after. Therefore a certain stock of seed-eating birds could be maintained and their breeding continued, without great difficulties. What handicaps French aviculture to-day is the control of bird importations, which requires special permits difficult to obtain from the Finance and Health departments. But altogether the situation, uneasy as it is, has much improved and is not nearly so desperate as it still is in England. * * * BREEDING SUCCESSES IN SOUTH AFRICA By A. R. Robertson, M.B., Ch.B. South Africa should be an aviculturists paradise. There is every inducement in this country for birds to breed. Sunshine all the year round, mild winters with warm sunny days and an abundance of seed and insectivorous food. Most of our aviculturists prefer aviaries, a flight and shelter, and the seedeaters are the most popular birds kept. There is as far as I know only one softbill enthusiast and he is Mr. Gleugh. There is one more exception, Mrs. Galbraith, of Gape Town, who successfully keeps and breeds Knysna Louries. The Waxbill is the most popular of all our native birds and no aviary is complete without a collection of them. Considerable progress has been made in breeding our native birds, and with the increased knowledge of habits and diet there should be a further improvement in breeding successes later. We find that it is easier to breed foreign birds in South Africa than it is to breed our indigenous species. However, there have been some notable successes during the last three years and some of them I believe ought to be mentioned. The most interesting breeding recorded is that of the Paradise Whydah ( Steganura paradisea) . For many years controversies have raged about the breeding habits of the Paradise Widow Bird, the consensus of opinion being that it was parasitic and that its host was one of the Waxbill family. This supposition is correct, and has been borne out by the recent breeding of the P.W.B. in captivity by independent aviculturists in two successive seasons. In both cases the Melba Finch (, Zonogastris melba ) was the host. I am able to give fairly accurate details of this breeding in the aviaries of Mrs. Prinsloo, Evaton, Transvaal, and can state definitely that the breeding by Mr. Cronje of Pretoria was accepted only after the birds had been examined by members of the Avicultural Society. A. R. ROBERTSON - BREEDING SUCCESSES IN SOUTH AFRICA 1 59 Mrs. Prinsloo keeps a mixed African collection comprising mainly the Waxbill family. She has a large aviary approximately 8 feet by 24 feet by 12 feet, consisting of a large flight and a smaller sleeping portion. The sleeping portion is well stocked with cat-bush, a kind of thorny evergreen found in most parts of this country. The flight has a large pepper tree growing in it. The collection is fed on Manna-seed only (small kind of millet), green food to the desired amount, and of course a very generous supply of termites. Antheaps are found by the thou¬ sand, only a matter of yards from the farmstead. In this large collection there were several pairs of Melba Finches, two P.W.B. cocks and only one hen. Three pairs of Melba Finches went to nest at different times during the breeding season. Each time their nest were parasitized by the P.W.B. hen. During the course of the incubation period by the first Melba hen it was noticed that the Paradise hen paid visits to the Melba Finch’s nest. These visits were looked upon as a nuisance because Mrs. Prinsloo was rather keen on breeding Melba Finches. Not a thought was given to the real intention of the Paradise hen. Only when the Melbas left the nest did one realize what had been happening. Three young ones left the nest, two were Melbas, of that there was no doubt, but the third, although it looked like a young Melba Finch, was not one. Its shape was different, its head different, and even though its wings had a green sheen on them it did not possess the one important distinguishing feature, and that is that its tail had the same dull colour as its body and not the deep wine colour of the other two Melba babies. As it grew older and was able to fend for itself it left the Melbas and was to be found only with the Paradise Whydahs which it now resembled very closely. When the second Melba Finch went to the nest I examined the eggs ; there were six in all. Five were almost identical and white, and I presumed Melba eggs, the sixth egg white as well, but larger and longer than the other eggs. From this nest eventually only one Paradise Whydah was reared. The Paradise Whydah did not only confine her maraudings to the nest of Melba Finches but laid eggs in the nests of every Australian Zebra Finch she could find. Her eggs were larger than unfertile eggs of Melba Finches which were kept for comparison. In a third nest of Melbas a third Paradise Whydah bird was hatched out. When they moulted out into the first summer plumage there were two hens and one cock. Mrs. Prinsloo watched the Paradise hen going into the Zebra Finch nests. There was, as far as she was able to see, no attempt at destroying the eggs of the host. Violet-eared Waxbills (Granatina granatina). — Violet-eared Wax- bills are the prettiest and most popular of our Waxbills. As a boy I used to catch hundreds of these pretty little fellows, only to find that in captivity they did not live very long. In the Orange Free State, on 160 A. R. ROBERTSON - BREEDING SUCCESSES IN SOUTH AFRICA the wooded banks of the rivers, they were once plentiful, but with the influx of people and unscrupulous trappers they have become almost extinct in those parts and are to be found only now and again in small swarms. However, in the Bushveld where I spent a holiday on Mrs. Prinsloo’s farm, they were to be seen in hundreds, especially early in the mornings, at the drinking troughs of the cattle, where they were fed in the winter months on manna seed. Not only did one see Violet- ears, but there always came along with them the Melba Finches, Black-cheeked Waxbills, S.A. Ruddy Breasted Waxbills, Pietjie Canaries or Mountain Canaries, Yellow Seedeaters ( Serinus Jiaviventris), and several other birds and mainly softbills, the names of which I did not know. Violet-ears are easy to catch, but one found that the younger birds took to captivity far more easily than the old birds did ; they were able to adapt themselves sooner, and the old birds were always first to die. Violet-ears usually do not live long in captivity, and it is only recently, since Aviculturists have been studying the diets of these birds, that they have been able to keep them longer and also have attempted to breed them in captivity. Several breeding attempts have been made during the last three to four years. In two cases these breedings have been successful to a certain extent. The birds are as much insectivorous as they are granivorous. In 1943 Mr. Ballack bred not less than seven hens and one cock from a pair of Violet-eared Waxbills. During the 1944-1945 season I have had a pair go to nest on several occasions. The eggs have been fertile on all occasions, but only once did this pair of birds rear two young ones successfully. There is something very interesting about the way these young birds have moulted. When they left the nest they were a drab brown colour with black beaks, black tails, and a violet coloured rump. After six weeks they moulted into a prettier brown colour resembling that of an adult hen bird. The beaks became coloured and the violet ear appeared. The birds can be sexed at this stage too, the cocks having a small well-defined black throat patch. From about twelve weeks I have noticed the cocks gradually getting the chocolate colour of the male adult bird. The Violet-eared Waxbills lay white eggs, and this pair in captivity and others I have had go to nest usually lay a clutch of five eggs. The young when they hatch have black skins and the fluff on their heads and backs is a dark grey colour. They have several phosphorescent spots on either side of their beaks. I have noticed that the Melba Finch’s young ones and Violet-ear’s young are absolutely identical, and one wonders if the Paradise Whydah Bird does not parasitize Violet¬ eared Waxbills in their native habitat as well as the Melba Finch. Blue Breasted Waxbills. — These delightful little fellows are easy to keep and breed freely in captivity. They are one of the commoner species of Waxbills and are found in most aviaries. A. R. ROBERTSON - BREEDING SUCCESSES IN SOUTH AFRICA 1 6 They make a dome-shaped nest and lay four to five eggs. The nestlings are usually a dull blackish brown colour. When they leave their nests they have the same colouring as the adults, only a duller colour. They are easy to sex, the hens having the dull grey patch on their abdomen extending up to the chest. The blue colour of the body is not as bright as it is in the males. The Common Grey Waxbill. — These sprightly little fellows are found everywhere and several subspecies have been described. Although they are as common as their name denotes it is only recently that they have started breeding freely in captivity. Most aviculturists find that they can now be likened to the Australian Zebra Finch, for once they start breeding it is difficult to stop them. In one season I can remember breeding over forty of them. They are usually found along the banks of streams and rivulets ; in wintertime always in small swarms, very often hundreds of them together. I have on several occasions observed white ones in the swarms, and when quite a boy I managed to catch one of these albinos. I kept it alive for several months. The Common Waxbill or Rooibekkie is very easily sexed. The cock bird has a black patch which extends from the vent half-way up the abdomen but the hen does not have this black patch at all. They make a double-decker nest, a smaller one on top of the actual nest they breed in, which is supposed to be for the cock to sleep in. In captivity I find that they often breed in boxes and any breeding receptacle one has in the aviary. Pheasants, Partridges and Quails. — Except for the Quail very few of the others are represented in aviaries, and as far as I am able to ascertain only the Red Winged Partridges ( Francolinus levaillanti) and the Coqui Partridge have been bred ; neither of these are firmly established as aviary birds. All of the Quail have been bred excepting the Blue Quail which I have yet to see. It is found in the low veld, little being recorded about it. Another pretty bird to keep in captivity and difficult to keep is the Jameson Ruddy Breasted Waxbill. It has been bred successfully, butlike its cousin, the South African Fire-finch and the little Ruddy Breasted Waxbill, it has not been firmly established. Buntings are always attractive birds in aviaries and we have our representatives here. The two most commonly kept are the Red Backed Yellow Bunting ( Ember iza flaviventris flaviventris) and the Rock Bunting (. Fringillaria tahapsi tahapsi). The former is another one of those difficult birds to keep in an aviary but when acclimatized they live for several seasons. They have been bred in captivity by Mr. Strachan of Johannesburg. Their nests were made of coir and resembled an ordinary Serin type of nest. They are voracious insect eaters. The Rock Bunting is an easier bird to keep ; although it does not breed easily it has been bred on several occasions by different members of the Avicultural Club. 162 ALAN LENDON - AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY The Serins or Canary type of birds paradoxically are usually the easiest to cater for and are the hardiest of our own birds, yet the most elusive when it comes to reproducing their own kind in aviaries. However, most of them have at one time or other been successfully bred. The Cape Canary and Blackhead and Striped Canary have only recently bred. While we have many types of Doves and wild Pigeons very few people keep them as aviary birds. They are, I think, difficult to breed and difficult to keep with smaller birds, which are far more popular as aviary birds. The Cape Rock Pigeon, Turtle Doves, Ring Doves, and Namaqua Doves have been successfully bred at various times. * ❖ * AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY By Alan Lendon, Adelaide {Continued from p. 125 ) (14) Crimson Rosella {Platycercus elegans) Synonyms. — Pennant’s Parrakeet, Red Lory, Lowry. Distribution. — This species has an extensive range in the eastern part of Australia from Cape York in the north down through the eastern portions of Queensland and New South Wales and throughout most of Victoria, with the exception of the drier areas, into the south-east of South Australia. It is also found on Kangaroo Island, where it is rare, and on Norfolk Island, where it is believed to have been introduced. Description. — A large Broadtail whose main colour is crimson, relieved by blue cheek patches, wing margins and tail. The mantle feathers are black edged with crimson and there is a black shoulder patch. The adults of both sexes are very much alike, and the size of the beak and size and shape of the head is the surest indication of sex ; most females are as brightly coloured as the males. Immatures are usually very different from the adults in that the crimson is largely replaced by dark green with the exception of small areas on the crown, throat, and under tail-coverts. As in the adult, the cheeks and wing margins are blue, but the tail is greener and the mantle and shoulder patches are green. Some immatures, however, leave the nest as merely duller editions of the adults, the crimson areas being not as bright and the edges of the mantle feathers being a mixture of red and green ; the shoulder patches also are more green than in the adult. I have been unable to ascertain whether this is a constant feature in some part of the range of the species, but have an idea that it might occur constantly in the northern birds. ALAN LENDON - AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY 63 Like the adults, immatures can be sexed with reasonable certainty by the size and shape of the head and beak. Adult plumage is acquired by the first full moult, which is completed when the bird is about fifteen months old. Prior to this, additional crimson feathers have gradually appeared on the abdomen and a few scattered adult mantle feathers have also been acquired. Variations. — At the northernmost extremity of the range, a smaller, darker bird, which appears to be a valid subspecies {nigrescens) , is found. The Kangaroo Island bird has been given subspecific rank, but examination of skins does not suggest that this is worthy of retention. Coloured Plates. — These are fairly numerous. That by Goodchild in Seth-Smith (p. 160) is really excellent, whilst that by Roland Green in Mathews (vol. vi, p. 304), portraying the northern form ( nigrescens ), is also very good. The plate in Greene (vol. i, p. 141) is fairly good as regards colouration, but gives a wrong impression of the shape of the cheek patches. Gould’s plate has been reproduced in the recently published Tropical Birds , and in addition to a good representation of an adult, shows a young bird in a stage of transition from the green plumage to that of the adult. Field Notes. — I have seen this bird on numerous occasions in various parts of Victoria, and also in New South Wales and Queensland. They are usually seen in pairs or small parties, and a more vivid sight than a pair of fully-plumaged adults is hard to imagine. The species tends to favour hilly country, and does not often appear in more open, flat country. A few birds can often be seen in the eastern end of Collins Street, Melbourne, and they are said to nest in the city buildings ! Aviary Notes. — A favourite aviary bird on account of its hardiness and gaudy colouring, but no more suitable for a mixed collection than any of the other larger Broadtails are on account of its pugnacious nature. I have seldom been without one or more examples of this species in my collection, but it has only been in recent years that I have had sufficient suitable aviaries to enable me to segregate a pair with a view to breeding. A very fine cock bird obtained in 1938, lost his mate as a result of a brawl in 1940, and lived a bachelor existence in a mixed collection, no mate being provided for him until December, 1944. Then he, too, succumbed after a fight in the spring of 1945, and I did not replace him till the beginning of 1946. In that year, I attempted to breed the species for the first time, but although the hen spent a considerable time in the nesting log during September and October, no eggs were laid as far as is known. In January, 1947, I obtained two birds from Sydney, which were reputed to be a breeding pair. In October of that year they began to take an interest in the log provided, and on 22nd of the month, the first egg of a clutch of five 164 ALAN LENDON - AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY was laid. The hen sat very closely, and it was not until 1 7th November that two young were observed, the remaining eggs being infertile. By the end of the month one of the young birds had died, but the remaining one, a male, survived, and left the nest on 20th December, in the almost mature crimson plumage previously described. When disposed of in June, 1948, this bird was in mature plumage except for some green feathers on the wings in the areas which ultimately become black. In 1948, the hen of the same pair laid the first egg of a clutch of six on 24th October, three only being fertile. Two young had hatched on 19th November, and the third the following day. The parents on this occasion proved to be very indifferent feeders, and several times one or more of the young birds were found out of the nest and had to be replaced. The most advanced young bird con¬ tinued to leave the nest very prematurely, and ultimately died on 24th December ; the other two left the nest the following day, and although practically never fed thereafter by the parents, they appeared to thrive for a while, but both died about the middle of January. All three of this clutch left the nest in the crimson plumage, the youngest, a hen, being a little greener on the margins of the mantle feathers than the other two, which were a pair. The medal of the A.S.S.A. was awarded in 1936 for the breeding of this species to the late E. B. Cox ; unfortunately, the details of this achievement have been lost. Apart from the above, I am unaware of any other local successes. There seems to be little doubt that in the wild state, birds of this species frequently breed when less than a year old and before the assumption of full plumage ; I have no record of this having occurred in captivity. (15) Adelaide Rosella (Platycercus adelaidae) Synonym. — Adelaide Parrakeet. Distribution. — Confined to South Australia and extends from the Flinders Range in the north to the tip of Fleurieu Peninsula (Cape Jervis) in the south. The species does not appear to. cross the River Murray, although it approaches to within a few miles of it in places. Description. — A large Broadtail of approximately the same size as the preceding species. The prevailing colour of a typical southern bird is orange-red in varying shades, fading to yellowish on the sides of the breast, and relieved by blue cheeks, wing margins and tail. The mantle feathers are black edged with orange-red and there is the black shoulder patch which is typical of all the Rosellas. Many females differ but little from the males except in the size and shape of the head and beak and some have a greenish tinge to the margins of the mantle feathers. Immatures are mainly an olive-green colour with brick-red areas ALAN LENDON - AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY 1 65 | on the crown, throat, and subcaudals ; the cheeks and wing margins are blue as in the adults, but the tail is green. During the first autumn and winter more red feathers appear, especially on the breast, and a few adult mantle feathers are acquired. Full adult plumage is not attained until the first complete moult, when the birds are about fifteen months old. Immatures can be accurately sexed by the size and shape of the head and beak. I have never seen or heard of a young Adelaide leaving the nest in a semi-mature plumage, like that described for the preceding species. Variations . — This is a very variable species in the southern part of its range, some quite bright red and quite yellowish birds being found in the same locality. Towards Cape Jervis the birds were alleged to be particularly bright and to approach the Crimson Rosella in colouration, and it was considered that some infusion of blood from the adjacent Kangaroo Island birds might have occurred ; several recent visits to the district in question do not support this view, as some quite pale birds were noted amongst the flocks seen, and it would therefore appear that the subspecies fleuriensis is not a valid one. In the Flinders Range the birds are much paler and the breasts are yellow, with only a little red mottling thereon ; this subspecies (. subadelaidae ) was formerly thought to be a variant of the Yellow Rosella {P . flaveolus) . Coloured Plates . — Except in Gould, coloured plates seem to be non¬ existent ; even Mathews does not figure the bird. For the reader who is unfamiliar with the species, it is best to imagine a Crimson Rosella in which the crimson areas of the plumage are replaced by varying shades of brick-red, orange, and yellow Field Notes. — A very common bird in the Mount Lofty Ranges close to Adelaide, and even occurring at times in the parklands around the city. Seen in pairs, family parties, and, especially in the case of young birds, in small flocks. Is frequently seen in orchards, where it does considerable damage. Aviary Notes. — A common cage bird in South Australia but quite rare in other parts of Australia, not being regarded as particularly attractive in colouring by most Parrot-lovers. I still possess a hen bird that was in adult plumage when I obtained her in January, 1936 ; a mate was obtained for her a couple of months later, and they survived in a mixed collection until the cock was killed in a fight in 1943 ; limitations of space and the fact of the species being so common locally had always predisposed against any attempts being made to breed from them, although they had always looked a likely pair. In December, 1944, an immature male of the northern race was obtained, but again in 1945 they were not segregated. In 1946, the erection of additional breeding aviaries gave this species its first chance to reproduce in my collection. Somewhat to my 13 1 66 ALAN LENDON AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY surprise, I found a broken egg in the log on 15th October, and two days later a second egg was laid but this, too, was broken the next day. As the cock was seen emerging from the log he was regarded with suspicion ; it is not known if any further eggs were laid that season. In view of this experience, I substituted a new young cock of the southern race prior to the 1947 breeding season, and in due course the first egg of a clutch of five appeared on 1 6th October ; four of these were fertile. On 14th November three recently hatched young were found dead in the log, the fate of the fourth egg being unknown ; whether the hen did not feed them or whether they were murdered by one or other parent remains a mystery. Feeling that it was so long since the hen had had a chance to breed that she might be out of practice, I decided to give the same pair another chance in 1948, and a clutch of five, of which the first disappeared, was started on 23rd September. The remaining four eggs proved fertile and were incubated steadily, but by 26th October three eggs had disappeared, and the fourth by the next day ; investigation revealed two newly- hatched dead chicks in the log. Another attempt was made in that a clutch of four was commenced on 24th November, and all proved fertile. Two of these were transferred to another Broadtail that was incubating a clutch of clear eggs and she, incidentally, deserted them before they were due to hatch ; the remaining two were incubated by the mother with the usual result, namely death of the chicks shortly after they had hatched on 18th December. To date, therefore, I have not succeeded in rearing Adelaide Rosellas, and it does not look as if I am likely to be successful with the present old hen. The A.S.S.A. deemed the Adelaide Rosella ineligible for a medal award, probably because it was recorded by A. J. Campbell as having been bred by Mr. White, of Reedbeds, many years ago. Apart from this record, the only success that I am aware of is that of H. J. Packer, of Gilberton, who reared two young birds in 1946, but I feel certain that there must have been other successes. Like the preceding species, it seems definite that Adelaide Rosellas breed in the wild state before they have assumed full adult plumage. (16) Yellow Rosella (Platycercus flaveolus) Synonyms. — Yellow-rumped Parrakeet, Murray Rosella. Distribution. — Confined to the vicinity of the Murray River and its tributaries. In South Australia it is said to follow the river as far south as the town of Mannum. How far up the Darling it extends, I am unable to say. It is probably commonest in southern New South Wales in the Murrumbidgee area, and it is also found A vie. Mag. 1949. Copyright ] [C. E. Bryant Yellow Rosella or Yellow-rumped Parrakeet To face p. 166] ALAN LENDON - AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY 1 67 in Victoria following the tributaries of the Murray in a southward direction. Description. — A moderately large Broadtail, being only slightly inferior in size to the two preceding species. The adult male has the head, underparts, and rump a clear pale yellow, the frontal band is red, the cheeks, wing margins, and tail are blue, and the mantle feathers are black edged with pale yellow. The usual black shoulder patch is present. The adult female has a smaller, rounder head, and a smaller beak, also the yellow coloration is slightly duller, and there are invariably a few reddish- orange flecks on the feathers of the throat and upper breast. Immatures leave the nest in a plumage which is mainly a pale yellowish-green, which is lighter on the underparts. They have blue cheeks and wing margins, and a greenish tail, and the red frontal band is present. During the first year of life some of the breast feathers are moulted and replaced by yellower ones, but this change is relatively imperceptible ; in addition, a variable number of adult mantle feathers are acquired. Adult plumage is attained at the first complete moult when the birds are about a year old. Immatures are easily sexed by the size and shape of the beak and head. Variations. — No valid variations appear to be recognizable. Coloured Plates. — Goodchild’s plate in Seth-Smith (p. 160) is really excellent, and Roland Green’s in Mathews (vol. vi, p. 317) is almost equally good. That in Greene (vol. ii, p. 8) is reasonably good and almost certainly portrays an adult hen ; even so, the red on the throat is rather too extensive, as far as can be seen. Field Notes. — I met with this species in the wild state recently for the first time, several pairs being observed at Swan Reach, on the River Murray. It is said seldom to wander far from the eucalypts which follow the courses of various rivers and creeks which ultimately flow into the Murray. Aviary Notes. — This species has always been rare in captivity in South Australia, and is seldom obtained by the local dealers. In May, 1936, I obtained a fine adult cock bird, and in January, 1937, I secured a mate for him in the shape of a tame, obviously hand- reared, hen. This pair were given many opportunities to breed, but although feeding and mating were often observed in the spring, the hen never became really interested in the logs provided for her, and no eggs were ever laid. In 1942, I exchanged the hen for another tame bird, but without any improvement in results either during that year or the following. In 1944, I loaned the cock bird to Mr. H. J. Packer, of Gilberton, who had a hen of the species that had reared hybrids the previous season when mated with a cock Adelaide ; however, his hen did not see fit to lay either that year or the next while mated to my bird. In March, 1946, Mr. Packer returned my bird, having 1 68 ALAN LENDON - AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY had the good fortune to catch another cock bird, obviously an escapee, on his aviaries, and later in that year he succeeded in breeding young from this bird and his old hen, thus securing the medal of the A.S.S.A. Meanwhile, my old pair were reunited, and again did no good in 1946, although looking more promising than in previous years, and after the cock’s death in August, 1947, I secured a new pair, which made no attempt to breed that year. Mr. Packer’s pair had mean¬ while reared two clutches of young, both in 1946 and 1947, and in March, 1948, he was kind enough to let me have them. In the spring they duly went to nest, the first egg of a clutch of six appearing on 1 6th October. All the eggs were fertile, and young were first observed on 12th November ; in all, five hatched and all were reared, the first leaving the nest on 1 7th December, and the last on Christmas Day. The hen laid again almost at once, the second clutch numbering four. Once again, all the eggs were fertile, and young were seen first on 30th January. One egg failed to hatch, although it contained a fully-developed embryo, and of the remaining three, one died when about ten days old. The remaining two, a pair, were reared, leaving the nest on 6th and 8th March, 1949. I have no definite information as to whether this species breeds in the wild state in its first year of life ; judging by analogy, it would seem probable that it does so. ( 1 7) Green Rosella ( Platycercus caledonicus) Synonyms. — Yellow-bellied Parrakeet, Tasmanian Rosella, Mountain Parrot. Distribution. — Confined to Tasmania, where it is widely distributed, and to the larger islands of Bass Strait. Description. — The largest of all the Rosellas, the name Green Rosella being singularly inappropriate, as there is practically no true green in its plumage. The head and under-parts of the adult is a rich golden- olive, the frontal band is red, and the cheeks and wing margins are blue. The mantle feathers are black with very dark green margins, and the rump is a dark olive. The sexes of the adults, and also of the immatures, are easily distinguished in that the head especially, and also the beak are very much larger in the male than in the female, although the general colouring of the latter is only slightly duller. Immatures differ in that the head and underparts are considerably greener and the back feathers are dull green with practically no evidence of the scalloping seen in the adult. As with the already described members of this genus, adult plumage is obtained at the first full moult, which is completed when the birds are about fifteen months old. During the first winter, some of the breast feathers are ALAN LENDON - AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY 1 69 moulted and replaced by yellower ones, and a few adult mantle feathers may appear. Variations. — The birds from King Island ( henriettae ) are said to have more red on the head and to have the subcaudals strongly tinged with red. Though I have seen birds exhibiting this variation on several occasions, I have never been able to discover their origin with certainty, although I always suspected they had come from Tasmania itself, in which case the subspecies is probably not valid. Coloured Plates. — Roland Green’s plate in Mathews (vol. vi, p. 322) figures a pair of the King Island birds, and is an excellent repre¬ sentation of that variation. The only other readily accessible plate that I am aware of is the reproduction of Gould’s original plate in Tropical Birds (pi. 8), which is very good of the typical race, although the bird in the hollow, which looks like a cock, shows an unusual red flecking on the throat, rather reminiscent of a hen Yellow Rosella. Field Notes. — Although I have visited Tasmania on two occasions, I was never fortunate enough to see this bird in the wild state, although it is said to be quite common in many parts of the island. Sharland in Tasmanian Birds , states that it is well distributed, especially in fruit¬ growing areas, also in thick forest country and on the mountains. Aviary Notes. — Although frequently seen in dealers hands prior to World War II, it is now extremely rare in this state, and I am practi¬ cally sure that my pair are the only birds in captivity here at present. In pre-war days it was usually available from Melbourne dealers also. My first hen was obtained in August, 1 936, and was then in immature plumage ; she had attained adult plumage by February, 1937, and was mated with three different cocks, but never showed any particular inclination to go to nest. Just prior to the 1942 breeding season I obtained a new pair, but these were never at all friendly, and early in 1944 the cock lost his heart to a one-legged hen Red-vented Blue Bonnet which had escaped and had remained in the garden. In June, 1944, a new hen, said to be aviary-bred, was obtained from Melbourne, and though the Blue Bonnet was caught and disposed of, the cock would not be consoled, and would have nothing to do with the hen either that season or the following ; in fact, he remained unmated for the rest of his days. In March, 1946, I obtained a new cock, and although he tolerated the hen, he was never very keen on her, and when he fell violently in love with another Broadtail hen in the next aviary, I thought it desirable to make yet another change. The new cock was obtained early in October, and immediately seemed pleased with his mate who responded to his attentions and laid the first egg of a' clutch of four on 6th November. All the eggs were fertile, and two young were seen on 30th November, and a third a few days later, the fourth egg having disappeared. The third chick only lived a few days, but the others flourished until 23rd December, a very 170 ALAN LENDON - AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY hot day, when they were found dead in the nest, with full crops. This was particularly disappointing as other Broadtail young of the same age survived the heat. The father of these chicks died in the autumn of 1947, and a new cock obtained subsequently seemed no keener on the hen than all but one of his predecessors had been, and no results were obtained that season. In 1948, although the pair were not actively hostile towards one another, neither feeding nor mating had been noted, and it was therefore somewhat of a surprise when the hen laid the first of a clutch of five on 15th November. Unfortu¬ nately, these eggs were all infertile, and were replaced by two fertile Adelaide Rosella eggs which the hen deserted a few days before they were due to hatch. The only record that I have of this species being bred in captivity in South Australia is that of Mr. F. Lewitzka, who gained the medal of the A.S.S.A. in 1938, rearing three good young birds which left the nest in mid-December of that year. Green Rosellas look very handsome when they have recently completed their moult, but towards the end of the year they frequently begin to look very ragged, and the breast shows an untidy appearance due to the dark bases of some of the yellow feathers becoming visible in an irregular pattern. Although I can find no positive information on the subject, I would think it highly likely that this species will breed when less than a year old and whilst still in immature plumage. (18) Pale-headed Rosella ( Platycercus adscitus) Synonyms. — Mealy Rosella, Moreton Bay Rosella, Blue Rosella, Blue-cheeked Parrakeet (the northern race). Distribution . — The range of this bird is from Gape York Peninsula in North Queensland down the whole of the eastern part of Queens¬ land into north-eastern New South Wales, where its southern limit does not appear to have been defined. Description. — A medium-sized Broadtail with a yellow head, white cheeks with blue lower margins, blue breast and abdomen, and red subcaudals. The mantle feathers are black edged with bright yellow, the rump is a greyish blue, the wing margins are blue, and there is the usual black shoulder patch. The sexes are very alike, but some males have a very much more vivid blue breast than others, whilst in all females the breast is rather a greyish blue. The size and shape of the head and beak is a help in sexing, but is not as reliable in this species as in many other Broadtails. Immatures leave the nest as duller editions of the adults in every respect. There is often some red or grey feathers on the head and the amount of red may increase with the first partial moult which takes place when the birds are a few months ALAN LENDON - AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY I 7 1 old ; I have been unable to convince myself that this red or grey feathering is a sexual distinction. Full plumage is acquired rather gradually and is not complete until the first full moult at the age of about fifteen months. Variations. — Whilst considerable individual variation occurs amongst birds of this species, particularly in the immatures as already indicated, the birds from the northern extremity of the range, originally described as the Blue-cheeked Parrakeet (amathusiae) , are very distinct and possibly deserve specific rank. They are smaller birds with more blue and less white on the cheeks, and with a pale yellow area across the chest. I have not seen this variety in life, but skins show the difference very clearly. Coloured Plates. — Roland Green’s plate in Mathews (vol. vi, p. 338) is a really excellent representation of the two varieties. Cayley’s plate in The Emu (vol. 30, pi. 14), also portrays both varieties very adequately. The figure in Greene (vol. ii, p. 6) is quite fair although the blue is too bright. Field Notes. — I have frequently observed this bird in the vicinity of Brisbane, and in other areas in Southern Queensland. It is usually to be seen in pairs or in small flocks. In habits, it resembles the other Rosellas, and is often to be seen feeding on the ground. A pair nested in a hollow spout of a tree growing alongside the operating theatre of the army hospital to which I was attached in 1943. Aviary Notes. — A well-known aviary bird, but one which has a bad reputation for delicacy when first purchased, probably only on account of the deplorable conditions under which newly-trapped birds are frequently kept and boxed. My early experience with this species was in accord with the above and about half a dozen trapped birds survived only a relatively short time. An acclimatized hen obtained in January, 1937, proved a much better proposition and went to nest late in September of that year, laying eight eggs, the first two of which were broken. Though she incubated steadily all the eggs proved clear, and this tended to confirm the doubt which had always existed in my mind in regard to the sex of her alleged mate. In the following year a definite cock was not obtained until late in September, and no nesting took place. In 1939, however, a clutch of six eggs was laid in August, three of which were fertile. One young bird was seen on 13th September and another the next day, the third fertile egg failing to hatch. Both these birds died when just over a week old. A second clutch, on this occasion consisting of four eggs, was commenced on 17th October ; one egg was broken, another was clear, the third failed to hatch, and the fourth hatched on 14th November, and the young bird, a hen, was reared and left the nest on 13th December. In 1940, this young bird was mated to a very fine cock, obviously 172 ALAN LENDON - AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY an escapee, that had been caught on the aviaries during the previous year. She commenced a clutch of six eggs in late September, when just nine months old, but these were all infertile. The next two years’ clutches of eight and nine eggs produced no results, and in 1 943 a log was not even provided. In 1944, a clutch of eight was commenced on 1 1 th August, incubation proceeded steadily and young were first seen on 15th September. In all, five hatched, two eggs being clear and the other containing a half-grown embryo. The five were all reared, leaving the nest between 19th and 26th October. As the hen laid an egg on the ground on 1st November, I replaced the log, and a further four eggs were laid therein and incubated until the hen suddenly started to moult and deserted ; on examination, all the eggs were found to contain half-developed embryos. In 1945, the same pair experienced a series of misfortunes. The first clutch of five was com¬ menced in mid-August, but the eggs were spoilt by the nesting material all falling out of the log ; a second clutch of five commenced towards the end of September met with a similar fate. When a new log was pro¬ vided, a third clutch was begun on 31st October. On this occasion six eggs were laid and the first young bird was seen on 29th November ; in all four hatched, but one died during the first week. The other three flourished until Christmas time, when they all succumbed during a spell of very hot weather, though they were within a week of leaving the nest. The following season (1946) a clutch of eight was begun early in August, and although the first two were broken, five of the remaining six proved fertile and four had hatched on 9th September, and the fifth a couple of days later. One of these died in the first week but the remaining four were reared and left the nest between 1 1 th and 15th October. A second clutch of five was started on 27th October and all had hatched by 26th November ; once again, one died early, and the remainder were reared and left the nest about Christmas time. I see from my notes that I thought at first that probably seven of these eight were hens ; actually only five proved to be, but this serves to illustrate the difficulty which can be experienced in sexing this species, both in the immature and in the adult stage. In 1947 the hen died egg-bound in September, having started the clutch with a soft-shelled egg and then producing four satisfactory ones. A new hen was obtained a week later and she went to nest early in October, but her four eggs were all clear. She laid a second clutch of five in mid- November, three of which were good. Young could be heard early in December, and two were later seen, but they only survived a few days, the other fertile egg having failed to hatch. In 1948 the old cock died during the winter and a new one was obtained in time for the breeding season. A clutch of four, of which only two were fertile, was laid late in August. Only one of these hatched and it was deserted by its parents when about a fortnight old. A second clutch, of five, was ALAN LENDON - AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY 173 started on 20th October, four proved fertile and young were seen on 1 8th November ; eventually three were counted, but one died when quite young and the other two, both hens, were reared and left the nest just before Christmas. A third clutch was laid, and two young were seen on 30th January ; one of these died when very young and the other survived until mid-February. This species has been bred in captivity in South Australia on a fair number of occasions, the first recorded being that of Mr. U. F. Coneen, who was awarded the A.S.S.A. medal in 1937. In the United States this species appears to be practically domesti¬ cated ; at any rate, it is said to be the commonest of all the Broad¬ tails in that country. (19) Northern Rosella [Platycercus venustus) Synonyms. — Brown’s Parrakeet, Smutty Rosella. Distribution. — This bird has only been recorded from the Kimberley division of Western Australia and from the northern parts of the Northern Territory. Description. — Apart from the Western Rosella, this species is the smallest of the Broadtails. The plumage pattern is both striking and unusual, and consists of a black head, cheeks which are white in their upper part and blue in their lower, under parts pale yellow with fine black edges to the feathers and scarlet subcaudals. The mantle is black edged with pale yellow, the rump is also pale yellow and the wing margins are blue, and there is the usual black shoulder patch. Adults of both sexes are remarkably alike in colouring and the hen is usually only very slightly duller than the cock. The size and shape of the head and beak is a help in some examples, but quite a number of birds are seen which are extremely difficult to sex. The immatures leave the nest as duller replicas of the adults with all the colours less vivid and less clearly defined ; they, too, can be extremely hard to sex in some instances. Assumption of adult plumage is a gradual and not very noticeable process and appears to take about a year to be completed. Variations. — No valid subspecies have been shown to exist, but individuals vary considerably. Some red feathers scattered through the black of the head are not very uncommon, and one occasionally sees examples with a broad band of scarlet running up the centre of the abdomen. Coloured Plates. — Goodchild’s plate of a pair in Seth-Smith (p. 168) is extraordinarily lifelike, and Boosey’s picture in Tavistock (frontis¬ piece) is also quite good. Roland Green’s plate in Mathews (vol. vi, 174 ALAN LENDON - AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY p. 345) gives both birds rather a ruffled appearance, though the actual colouring is quite accurate. Field Notes. — This is a species that I have not had an opportunity of observing in its natural state. It does not appear to be a common bird anywhere, and is said to be usually met with in pairs or small parties. Aviary Notes. — Always a rare bird in captivity and one which appeals to most Parrot lovers, even though they may be unattracted by the majority of the larger of the Broadtails. I obtained my first example of this species, a hen, from the late Mr. Wachsmann, of Sydney, in January, 1936, but this bird only survived a couple of months in my collection. Later in the same year, the same gentleman was good enough to let me have a pair of these birds. However, the cock bird never liked his mate and always seemed to be attracted by every other hen broadtail in sight until he died suddenly late in 1937. In March of the following year I was fortunate enough to obtain a new cock, and the pair seemed to be satisfactorily mated from the start. The first egg of a clutch of five was laid on 8th August and four of the eggs were fertile. The first young bird was hatched on 3rd September and two more emerged within the next couple of days, but one did not survive long ; the other two flourished until 1 6th September, when they were found dead in the nest, and thereafter both parents immediately started a heavy moult. In 1939, a clutch of four eggs was started on 1 6th August ; of these, three were fertile and young were first observed on 13th September. All these flourished and two left the nest on 14th October, and the third the next day, all being fine specimens. I was extremely uncertain in regard to the sexes of these birds at first, but they eventually turned out to be two hens and a cock. This success gained the medal of the A.S.S.A., being the first breeding by a member, although the species had been bred in the Adelaide Zoo prior to this. In 1940, the first clutch consisted of three fertile eggs laid in mid-June ; three young hatched early in July, but only one survived to leave the nest on 12th August. A second clutch was laid later in that month, but all the eggs were clear, and shortly afterwards the old pair were killed by a pair of Twenty-eights when the latter bit a hole in the wire dividing their adjacent flights, and entered their cage. For some years thereafter the species was not represented in my collection, and it was not until 1945 that I obtained the loan of a pair which were said to have laid numerous clutches of eggs which had always been infertile, probably because the cock was almost devoid of toes as a result of fighting. True to form, a clutch of four was laid in May of that year and incubated steadily without result. The following year clutches of three and four were laid in March and August respectively, without any improvement in results. In January, 1947, I succeeded in obtaining a fine new cock bird, but the hen ALAN LENDON - AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY 75 expressed her disapproval of the arrangement by not even laying that year ! In September, I loaned the cock to an acquaintance who had an unmated hen and the old hen was restored to her former mate to the undisguised joy of both ! Early in 1948, I obtained a pair of the progeny of my loaned cock bird, but one did not survive long, and at the time of writing I now have the hen of this pair and a recently received aviary-bred cock that have settled down well together. Northern Rosellas are early breeders and whilst they do not always have an autumn nest like Hooded Parrakeets usually do, they almost invariably commence nesting operations in mid or late winter. This peculiarity in not adapting themselves to the seasons has been a great trial to overseas aviculturists, but does not appear to be a disadvantage locally. (20) Eastern Rosella (. Platycercus eximius) Synonyms. — -Red Rosella, Rosehill Parrakeet, Golden-mantled Rosella (the northern subspecies). Distribution. — From southern Queensland, where the northernmost limit of its range appears to be unrecorded, through eastern New South Wales and most of Victoria, apart from the Mallee belt, into the south-eastern portion of South Australia, where it extends as far north as Tintinara. A small isolated colony is also to be found in the Adelaide hills, but there is some doubt as to whether these may have been introduced. The species is also found in Tasmania, but apparently does not occur on the Bass Strait islands. It has been introduced into New Zealand. Description.- — A medium-sized Broadtail with extremely gaudy colour¬ ing. The head and upper breast and under tail coverts are scarlet, the cheeks are white, the lower breast is yellow, and the abdomen and rump are pale yellowish green. The mantle feathers are black edged with yellowish green, the wing margins are blue, and the shoulder patch is black. Hens are usually somewhat duller than cocks, but occasionally very bright ones are seen, and these may easily be mistaken for cocks, particularly as the size and shape of the head and beak is not very helpful in this species. However, white spots on the flight feathers appear to be very constant in hens of this species and absent in adult cocks. Immatures leave the nest with all the colours duller, and the red of the head replaced to a considerable extent by green. Particularly is this so in the case of young hens, so that immatures are usually easier to sex than adults. More red feathers are acquired in the first autumn and winter, but full plumage is not assumed till the first complete moult at the age of a little over a year. Variations. — 'The northern variety known as the Golden-mantled I 76 ALAN LENDON - AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY Rosella ( splendidus ) is sufficiently distinct to warrant its being regarded as a species by many authorities. It differs from the typical bird in having the margins of the mantle feathers golden yellow instead of yellowish green, the rump sea-green rather than yellowish green, and the red of the head more of a vermilion shade. This race is found in southern Queensland and northern New South Wales, where it comes as far south as Scone. At Muswellbrook, to the south of Scone, the typical bird ( eximius ) is found, and the same holds good at Merriwa and Gobbora to the west ; in fact, the range of the Golden-mantled bird is roughly limited in a westerly direction by the old New South Wales-Queensland railway. The Tasmanian birds ( diemenensis ) appear to be distinguishable by their larger size and the greater extent of the white cheek patches. Coloured Plates. — Gronvold’s plate in Mathews (vol. vi, p. 352) is an excellent representation of a male of the golden-mantled variety. Greene’s plate (vol. ii, frontispiece) is quite an adequate portrayal of the same subspecies. The pair which are displayed on the dust-cover of Cayley’s Australian Parrots are perhaps the best, easily accessible, representation of the typical birds. Field Notes. — The typical birds are common in most parts of Victoria and in the south-east of South Australia, and seem to favour open, timbered country. I have also observed the golden-mantled race in the vicinity of Toowoomba and Warwick, Queensland. As with all the Rosellas, they are usually seen in pairs or small flocks. Aviary Notes. — Probably the best known of all the Australian Parrots and very commonly kept as a cage bird in Victoria and New South Wales, many hand-reared birds making good whistlers. A showy bird in a mixed collection, but no less pugnacious than any of the rest of the group. Although the species was practically continuously represented in my collection, it was not until 1946 that I possessed sufficient breeding aviaries to warrant devoting space to these relatively common birds. In that year I had a cock Golden-mantled that I had brought back from Queensland in 1943, and a hen of the common variety obtained from a local bird shop. The first egg of a clutch of six was laid on 3rd September, but although the hen sat closely, all the eggs proved clear and were removed towards the end of the month. The hen soon went to nest again, eggs being seen under the sitting bird on 15th October. This time the clutch consisted of five, of which only two were fertile. Two young birds were seen during the first week of November and the first, a hen, left the nest rather prematurely on 2nd December and was replaced ; the other, a cock, made its first appearance on 5th December, and the hen reappeared in much better shape, the next day. On leaving the nest, these birds could scarcely be distinguished from typical young Eastern Rosellas, but when they assumed adult ALAN LENDON - AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY 177 plumage, they were more or less intermediate between the two races in colouring. In 1947 the hen died and another pair of typical Easterns did nothing. The old cock Golden-mantled was mated to a young Golden-mantled hen obtained late in the previous year. This pair were seen feeding on many occasions *in September and October, but did not get any further. In 1948, yet another pair of the common race were tried and the first of five eggs was laid on 3rd October. Young were seen on the last day of the same month and eventually five were counted ; the first left the nest on 27th November, and by 4th December all five had left it, but they all exhibited the unusual habit of returning to it for several days thereafter. This clutch consisted of four hens and one cock. Towards the end of 1947 I had been lucky enough to secure a pair of Golden-mantleds which had laid two clutches of eggs that season while in the possession of Mr. H. J. Packer, of Gilberton, but had been disturbed on each occasion. In 1948 the hen of this pair laid the first of a clutch of four on 25th September ; all proved fertile, and young were first seen on 23rd October, and all were successfully reared, leaving the nest between 23rd and 25th November. Of these, two were obviously hens and another equally obviously a cock, but the fourth, which eventually turned out a hen, was much brighter than her two sisters and was thought to be a cock for a long time. The hen appeared likely to lay again, but was found dead in the log early in December, possibly as a result of egg-binding. The A.S.S.A. did not see fit to grant a medal for the breeding of the Eastern Rosella, four members, Messrs. S. Harvey, V. J. Duignan, E. B. Cox, and Mrs. D. K. Isaacson having achieved almost simul¬ taneous success in 1934. The above-mentioned breeding of the Golden-mantled race was the first on record and gained a medal. (21) Western Rosella (Platycercus icterotis) Synonyms. — Stanley Rosella, Yellow-cheeked Parrakeet. Distribution. — Confined to the south-western corner of Western Australia and not extending farther north or east of a line running through Moora, Wongan Hills, and Merredin. Further south it has not been recorded east of Dundas. Description. — -Easily the smallest of the Rosellas and quite unique in its genus on account of the dissimilarity of the sexes, a feature which has been overlooked to a greater or lesser degree in most ornithological works. In the typical race, the adult male has the head and under parts bright scarlet, the cheek patches bright yellow, and the rump green. The mantle feathers are black edged with green and a variable, often quite inconspicuous, amount of red, the wing margins are blue, I 78 ALAN LENDON - AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY and there is the characteristic black shoulder patch. The adult female is considerably duller than the male, having the scarlet replaced by brick-red which has a large amount of greenish olive mixed with it. Immatures resemble the adult female, but show more green and less red in the plumage and they entirely lack the yellow cheek patches, unlike all other immature Rosellas ; also, the mantle feathers are green without the black centres. Young birds are not easy to sex as in this species there is relatively little difference in the size and shape of the head and beak. During the first autumn and winter some of the green feathers on the head and breast are replaced by red ones, and a few yellow cheek feathers appear and at about this stage young males can be more easily picked out. Full adult plumage is not achieved till the birds are about fourteen months old, when a fairly rapid complete moult takes place. Variations. — The inland birds ( xanthogenys ) differ considerably from the more commonly seen coastal race. The adult male has the red colouring of a duller, rather brickish hue, the cheeks are a paler yellow, the mantle feathers are edged with pale red and show no green, and the green of the rump is much duller. Adult females of this race are not as green as the typical birds and approach the male colouring more nearly. In fact, both sexes of this race are not unlike very small Adelaide Rosellas with pale yellow instead of blue cheeks. Coloured Plates. — This species has been figured relatively seldom and the only female portrayed, as far as I am aware, is in Gould. Roland Green’s plate in Mathews (vol. vi, p. 329) is a splendid repre¬ sentation of an adult male of each race, and there is also an excellent plate of a male of the inland race (. xanthogenys ) by Keulemans in the Catalogue of the Birds of the British Museum (vol. xx) . Field Notes. — I observed the coastal race of this bird on a good many occasions during a tour of the south-west of Western Australia in August, 1948. They were seen in pairs and small flocks, the latter consisting mainly of young birds. Near Kojonup I thought I caught a fleeting glimpse of a pair of the inland race. Aviary Notes. — One of the most popular of the Broadtails on account of its relatively small size and the ease with which it can be bred. In a mixed collection it is perhaps the least quarrelsome of all the Rosellas. From 1936 onwards I possessed a pair which consisted of a male of the common race and an elderly female of the inland sub-species. This hen was fed by the cock each spring and spent a good deal of time ejecting the rotten wood from the nesting logs provided for her, but as far as I am aware, she never laid. A new pair were obtained towards the end of 1942 and the following season a clutch of eggs was laid, and although the cock died shortly afterwards, the hen carried on single-handed and reared three fine youngsters, a cock and two hens. It was not until September of 1944, that I was able to secure a ALAN LENDON - AUSTRALIAN PARROTS IN CAPTIVITY 79 new mate for this hen ; when introduced she appeared anxious to go to nest immediately, and laid the first egg of a clutch of eight on 26th September. All the eggs were fertile and young were first observed on 24th October; eventually it was seen that six had hatched, the other two eggs failing to do so although containing fully-developed embryos. All the young were reared, leaving the nest between 28th November and 5th December, and all were good specimens, except the youngest, which was a little on the small side. Early the following year the hen met with an accidental death and the young bird kept as a mate for the father turned out to be a cock. A new hen was not obtained until after the breeding season was over, and in 1 946 feeding was noted in September, and in October the hen spent a lot of time in the log, but no eggs were ever seen and she was found dead in the nest in mid-November. For the 1947 season a new pair was obtained, and although the cock apparently pulled his upper mandible off in September in trying to disentangle his foot from the wire door catch, he recovered and was seen feeding his mate early in November, and the first of four eggs was laid on 20th of that month ; all were fertile and duly hatched, but one died within the first week. The first two of the survivors left the nest on 13th January, and the third, very prematurely, two days later ; ultimately, this bird developed into a good specimen. In 1948 one of the young cocks of this clutch was mated with his mother, and although he was still in juvenile plumage, two eggs out of the clutch of five commenced on 31st October proved fertile. Two young were seen late in November, and the smaller was found dead in the log on 20th December, the parents having inexplic¬ ably ceased feeding. The other young bird left the nest somewhat prematurely that day, but fared no better, and died a few days later. As the parent birds did not start their moult for several weeks after¬ wards, their sudden desertion was all the more difficult to fathom. The A.S.S.A. medal for the first breeding of this species was awarded in 1936 to Mr. H. J. Packer, of Gilberton. Since that date it has been bred by a fair number of aviculturists in this state. I have always felt that this species formed a link between the Rosellas and the Many-colours and Red-rumps, partly because of the marked difference in the plumage of the sexes, and also on account of the call notes which are soft and melodious and quite unlike the relatively harsh notes of most of the other members of the genus. {To he continued.) 8o RINGING SCHEME FOR WATERFOWL RINGING SCHEME FOR WATERFOWL In response to many requests the Avicultural Society has decided to institute a scheme for the ringing of waterfowl kept in captivity, as quite distinct from the various schemes for ringing wild birds which are in operation in many countries. The rings are primarily intended for use on either full-winged or feather-clipped birds, but can also be used on pinioned birds for purposes of records of pedigrees. As it is essential for the efficient working of the scheme that the rings should bear a well-known address to which reports can be sent, the Zoological Society of London has kindly consented to allow the Avicultural Society to use their address for this purpose. The rings are therefore engraved with a serial number and the words “ Return A.S. c/o Zoo, London ”. The rings are coloured blue in order that escaped birds may be distinguished at a distance and, it is hoped, thereby obviate their being shot. In addition, the scheme should be of help in tracing lost birds, and be a means of keeping a record of pedigrees. So far as Great Britain is concerned, the scheme should do much to reduce the uncertainty regarding reports of rare ducks observed, for in the past doubt has frequently been felt as to whether the birds in question are escapes or genuine new records for this country. It is hoped that all those who keep waterfowl will co-operate in the scheme, and in order to give every encouragement for their wide use the rings are being sold at cost price, the Society bearing all cost of administration, record slips, etc. The rings are at present available for geese and ducks only, and can be obtained in the following sizes : — Size 2/3 for Teal . . . Price 2s. 3 d. per dozen, post free. Size 3 for Wigeon . . Price 2 s. 3 d. per dozen, post free. Size 4 for Mallard, Pintail, etc. Price 2 s. 6 d. per dozen, post free. Size 5 for Geese . . . Price 2 s. g d. per dozen, post free. The scheme is not confined to Great Britain alone and the rings are available to aviculturists of any country. Requests for rings should be addressed to the Hon. Secretary, Avicultural Society, c/o Zoological Society of London, Regent’s Park, London, N.W. 8, from whom all particulars can be obtained. Phyllis Barclay-Smith. MARQUESS HAGHISUKA ANOTHER HYBRID HERON FROM JAPAN 1 8 1 ANOTHER HYBRID HERON FROM JAPAN By the Marquess Hachisuka In the April, 1939, issue of this Magazine, I gave an account of a hybrid Heron reared in Japan. It is therefore of interest to record another hybrid Heron between the Eastern Great White Egret, Egretta alba modesta , which breeds in Japan, and the Philippine Night Heron, Nycticorax caledonicus manillensis from Basilan, the Philippines, which was raised in Uyeno Zoo, Tokyo. In 1929, a Night Heron was put into a large flying cage with an assortment of waterfowl, and a few years later an Egret was intro¬ duced ; no other Herons were in this aviary. They mated in the Spring of 1939, and built a nest at the highest place of the cage. The eggs hatched 12 th June, and about a month later three young happily left the nest. Through observations during nidification, observers agreed that the Night Heron is the male and the Egret the female. It is of great interest to see the stage of growth, because both parents are totally different in shape, size, and colour, the Egret being very large and slender with immaculate white plumage, while the Night Heron is small and roundish in stature, having a spotted plumage in the young and plain roufous with black head in the adult. The general shape of the hybrids is very much like the Egret. They stand tall and keep their necks erect. Their bills are narrower and sharper than the Night Heron’s, but when watching for fish they assume the crouching attitude of the latter species. In the autumn of 1939 the general plumage of the young was light brownish-grey, heavily spotted with white ; that is to say that they were like young caledonicus , only lighter. During the course of the second year the colour gradually became paler and the maculation disappeared. Finally in the spring of 1941, their third year, they assumed a complete adult plumage. The colour at this stage is warm grey on the upper parts, paler below, with faint irregular streaks along the neck. They lack the nuptial train of the Egret during the summer months, but assume throughout the year a pair of long ornamental plumes hanging from the hind head, characteristic of the Night Heron. However, the plumes are much shorter than in the Night Heron and reach only to the upper neck, about the same proportion as in the Little Egret. The colour of these plumes is a stained white. The general shape of the head is more like the Egret, the bill much more slender than in the Night Heron, and the eyes are normal sized like the Egret. On the whole this hybrid, in its shape, size, and colour reminds me of a young Grey Heron in every respect, even in the shape of the bill, except that its general colour is slightly more buffy or pale cinnamon rather than grey. Two of the three hybrids died within 14 1 82 GEORGINA CHRISTIE NOTES ON A FEW AFRICAN BIRDS the first two years, but to-day the remaining one is still enjoying the best of health in its tenth year. Sfe * * NOTES ON A FEW AFRICAN BIRDS By Georgina Christie Having just returned from a three months’ tour in South Africa, during which time I motored over ten thousand miles, I hoped to write an interesting article on the birds for the Magazine. I must start by saying that I have, on the whole, been disappointed at the number and variety that I was able to identify. I carried with me Dr. Leonard Gill’s book on South African birds which was my vade mecum during the whole trip, and without which I should have been at a complete loss, except for a few unmistakables of pre-war importa¬ tion. Starting at the Victoria Falls, the first birds that presented them¬ selves in numbers were Layard’s Bul-buls and Pied Wagtails. The former, rather larger and not quite so attractive as the red- vented species of the East, were very much in evidence, the Wagtails, tame and confiding as they usually are. In the “ Rain Forest ” in front of the Falls were Red-billed Hornbills and Trumpeter Hornbills, the latter very ugly and grotesque looking, not to say alarming, when they suddenly give vent to an ear-piercing blow on their trumpet from a leafy perch. It was very amusing to watch them picking small berries off a tree, which they swallowed whole in large quantities. I also saw the Yellow-billed Hornbill, and later, while in the Kruger National Park, had the good fortune to see a good pair of Ground Hornbills, feeding in the early morning, on the sunny slope of a kopje. These are also exceedingly ugly and awkward creatures when compared with the little sparkling gems of Sunbirds noted further south. The two most common birds to be seen in South Africa, as far as I could judge, are the Red-winged Glossy Starling and the Shrikes of different kinds. Of the latter, the one I saw most of was the Fiscal Shrike : quite a handsome fellow in black and greyish white. The said Starlings are met everywhere in small flocks. They seem to build mostly in rocky ground, of which there is plenty, high up in cliffs on mountains, both inland and around the sea coast. They are attractive birds to my mind, beautifully iridescent with a bright russet under¬ wing, which only shows when flying. I imagined they would make nice pets, and they sing quite well, and have a beautiful mellow call note. I saw several of another kind, which I should have called Mynahs, but there they are classed as “ Pied Starlings ”. Travelling for ten thousand miles one passes through a lot of very GEORGINA CHRISTIE NOTES ON A FEW AFRICAN BIRDS 1 83 barren country, positively arid, without a tree to be seen. An astonishing sight in these parts are the numerous nests which are built on the completely exposed struts of the telephone poles ! More than one kind of bird seems to take advantage of these substitute trees ! Although the nests were not by any means all inhabited, I saw one with a Dove sitting hopefully upon it. As it is often very windy in these open spaces it must take a great deal of patience to establish the foundations of the abode. In fact it is quite an amazing sight ! My first sight of a pair of Greater Double-collared Sunbirds was in the semi-tropical garden of the Mountain Inn, a few miles south of Louis-Trichardt, in the Transvaal. I went out early before the dew had departed from the flowers and the sight of the little gems sparkling in the sunlight provided a thrill not likely to be forgotten. From Bulawayo I motored out to the Matopos to see the grave of Cecil Rhodes, so impressively placed upon the crest of an enormous boulder. When having tea on the stoep of the small inn en route I was charmed to see a pair of Namaqua Doves. Most fascinating of all the species, and just about one-third of the size of an ordinary Turtle Dove, with long pointed tails. They reminded me forcibly of the Australian Grass Finches that I used to breed. One day, with good luck, I spied a fine pair of Secretary Birds stalking along in an open space in the bush. I watched them for some time through field glasses till some natives appeared from the rear and startled them. After looking around in a supercilious way they ran forward to gain momentum, rose slowly, and flapped away. It was indeed a treat to see such curiosities in their own surroundings, in contrast to the wretched single and somewhat bedraggled specimens to be seen in European Zoos. During the drive from the north southwards, especially, I think, in Natal, I saw literally hundreds of what they call “ Long-tailed Widow Birds ”. The term “ Widow ”, I take it, being synonymous with “ Whydah ”. These are a kind of Weaver bird which build among the grasses of swamps. There was neither time nor opportunity to investigate for nests, but they must have been in season, as the cocks, resplendent in their nuptial garb of black and orange, with tails from fifteen to eighteen inches long fluttering in the breeze, hovered over the swamps or sat on the fences and telegraph wires. They were to be seen in stretches of country where no other birds were showing, except perhaps a very common kind of Buzzard which were also fond of resting upon the telephone poles, as being the only available perch for the sole of their foot. In the Drakensberg Mountains I again saw a Double-collared Sunbird cock feeding on nectar from a protea flower, and sparkling in the sun. It was there I saw the first Sacred Ibis, of which I saw a good many further south. 184 GEORGINA CHRISTIE - NOTES ON A FEW AFRICAN BIRDS In the estuary of the River Umvolosi, at St. Lucia Bay, I was intrigued by three Flamingoes feeding in the slush. I think they are quite the quaintest birds alive. Keeping always equidistant with their long necks outstretched downwards and their bills turned upside down in the mud. They all decided to go to sleep at once and stood immobile, equally spaced out, on one leg. They breed further up the estuary, presumably on an island. At the time of my visit the breeding season was on but one was not encouraged to go and see them, which was a disappointment as it was one of the sights I had much wished to have. On one occasion I happened to see a specimen of that strange bird the Hamerkop. These are not very shy although they slink along as though they were ashamed of themselves ; something in the nature of a Landrail. They are strange birds, classed by themselves, and seem to have no definite place in the order of things. I was fortunate to come on a specimen walking round a small pond by the roadside. This was in the vicinity of Outshoorn where there are large Ostrich farms, and I saw innumerable Ostriches grazing in the fields, like, or along with, cattle. They are very inquisitive and when the car stopped several came up to peer in to see if there was anything edible going, because the fields where they were were absolutely parched and lifeless and covered, within reach of the road, with dry powdery dust. In spite of this, the poor things cropped at every available blade, swallowing dust and all regardless. They are really very droll to watch. Talking of Ostriches, there was a very amusing scene one afternoon on the coast of the Gape Point Game Reserve. A party of fishermen were hauling in a large net teeming with silvery fish of about one to two pounds weight. So heavy was the catch that the net could not be brought ashore for fear of breaking and the men decided to leave it in the water till the tide receded. They therefore tied it up and started mending the holes for fear the fish would escape. Every now and then they pulled a fish through a hole, and threw it up on the beach. A pair of semi-tame Ostriches sauntered down and stood eyeing the performance, and when the men withdrew to look to their basket some way off, the pair approached very cautiously and began to peck at the still gasping fish on the sand. Whether they would have actually eaten bits of them or not I do not know, but suddenly one of the men, catching sight of the thieves, came rushing towards them yelling out and throwing stones, whereat the Ostriches turned and ran trying their best to look dignified at the same time. On this occasion they did not wait to hide their heads in the sand ! Round about the Falls and the Kruger Game Reserve, my attention was arrested by curious cries or call notes which I had no means of identifying without seeing the operator. In connection with this I was very much amused by one of the Lesser Bustard tribe, the Black Khorhan, which stood on the top of an anthill emitting a series of GEORGINA CHRISTIE - NOTES ON A FEW AFRICAN BIRDS 1 85 loud clicks such as it was difficult to believe could come from a bird about the size of a Capercailzie hen. Another bird of those regions with a loud peculiar cry was the Grey Lourie or “ Go-away bird ”, of which I heard and saw a few. I also saw a specimen of the Knysa Lourie, which is much more handsome, with his green, red, and blue plumage. One day I got a good view of a fine pair of Hoopoes, and a single one on another occasion. These are somewhat brighter in colour than those frequenting the more northerly zones, such as Egypt. Weaver birds colonies turn up in unexpected as well as expected places. Between the Falls and Gape Point I met various kinds ; Masked, Gape Weavers, Yellow Bishops, and Orange Bishops ; the latter I came across at a very high elevation. Both the Yellow and Orange were hanging about swampy ground, and I suppose they were nesting, as the cocks were in full dress. The Botanical Gardens at Kirstenbosch near Gape Town supplies one of the best fields of observation, especially if one happens to be there at the right season for the flowers. I was too late for most of them but there were still a considerable number of Protea bushes in full bloom and these flowers supply the nectar for Sunbirds and Sugarbirds. The latter are fully represented there by the “ long- tailed ” species, of which I saw several. I have not heard of these in England and presume that they were not imported, as their plumage is quite dull green, more like the females of some of the bright varieties. Never¬ theless they are very attractive and really sing remarkably well, chiefly inside a bush. Their tails are about twelve inches long in the breeding season and look rather embarrassing. Also at Kirstenbosch I had a good close-up view of a pair of Mousebirds. These are very peculiar little things and seem rather aloof. They are put in a class by themselves in the books, as they do not fit into any other group. The ones I saw were a pretty soft dun colour and were supposed to have red legs and feet and, I think, eyes, but I cannot say that I dis¬ tinguished that although I had my glasses on them. On their heads they have a stiff triangular tuft which is always held upright, and a long stiff tail. I felt I would love to possess a pair. I do not know whether they sing, I fancy not, but they have a harsh call. One day, with a stroke of luck, I caught sight of a pair of Malachite Sunbirds in a small village on the coast of Gape Province which struck me as an unexpected place to see such treasures. They were sucking nectar on a high tree. I only saw one more of these, the chief reason being that it was the very dry season, and flowers of any sort were not rampant. In the forest above Kirstenbosch I caught sight of a fascinating pair of Cape Flycatchers. These are very bright little birds more in the nature of a Tit than one’s idea of a Flycatcher. They are shy and rather I 86 GEORGINA CHRISTIE - NOTES ON A FEW AFRICAN BIRDS confined to high trees. Talking of Tits I did not see any alive, but in the Gape Town Museum there is a very good case showing two nests which are amongst the most intriguing imaginable. On a branch, built of what can best be described as “ blanket 55 consisting of fluff and spiders’ webs woven together, the nest, round about the size of a small melon, with a long tunnel of the same material leading in and out, would be impossible to investigate without destroying it. This masterpiece is the work of the Penduline Tit. There are some very good cases of birds in the museum which greatly assisted in identifica¬ tion of the various species encountered. One very pleasant afternoon was spent in the company of Dr. Leonard Gill, the well-known authority on South African Birds. I had hoped that he would be able to show me some specimens of birds that I had not already seen and in particular the Orange-breasted Sunbird. Dr. Gill knew just where, under favourable circumstances, certain birds could be seen. Unfortunately every place was so com¬ pletely dried up, being far on in the summer (January), that the birds were not showing. In spite of that the outing was very enjoyable as there was such a feeling of real professional power in the air. The fact is that during the very dry season the birds migrate to the north from the Gape where the rains produce both water and vegetation with the accompanying flowers and insects. In passing let me say that I have never been in a country where so few noxious insects abound, including flies of every description. This probably only applies to the dry season. This was one of the agreeable surprises of the tour. The Bokmakierie Shrike is a nice bird besides being pretty and has a lovely call note which reminds one of a Bullfinch and has a loud song as well. It is also quite friendly and seems to frequent the low bush around the coast. In the same quarters were what used to be known to the trade as “ African Singing Finches ” in three sizes. Most of those I saw were considerably larger than the kind one used to see in bird shops. There are two or three different birds called Canaries which frequent the coastal bush. They are dark green and not very interesting. The very day after the futile expedition to look for the Orange¬ breasted Sunbird I happened to see a beauty down at Gape Point in the Game Reserve and Bird Sanctuary there. It was a thrill to see it feeding on a Protea flower and later I saw another, far inland at a place called Geres, feeding on the flowers of a white gum tree very high up in the air. This flower is one of their favourites, and I am sure there would have been more birds had it not been for the high wind that was blowing at the time, swaying the trees to such an extent that they really could not feed in comfort. Kingfishers were remarkably scarce. The only species seen were the Angola and the Pied. Of the latter I watched two or three diving after fish in a lagoon near the coast. I spent several weeks around the coast GEORGINA CHRISTIE - NOTES ON A FEW AFRICAN BIRDS 1 87 of the Gape Peninsula and visited two or three fairly prolific “ vleis 55 or freshwater lagoons where there were Flamingoes, Pelicans, Black¬ winged Stilts and Avocets, quantities of Coots, Waterhens, and, in one case, Crested Grebes. One day, on arrival at the “ vlei ”, a small sandbank out from the shore was covered with Terns and five Pelicans were swimming around it. Later five more Pelicans arrived and settled on the island. More and more Pelicans appeared in the sky all settling on the island till there were fifty there and the Terns had all to take off. The Pelicans looked rather like squadrons of aeroplanes in the sky. I presumed that they had been fishing out to sea and had returned inland to digest their catch. Round the sea coast there were innumer¬ able pairs of White-breasted Sand Plover ; rather smaller than our own Ringed Plover, they behave in just the same way. At the time of my visit, a violent wind known as “ The South Easter ” was blowing with the result that some of their eggs were blown along the sand and, I think, several pairs lost their nests by sand blowing over them. In more than one place I saw minute and newly hatched chicks about the size of a walnut. Also on the shore were grown up families of Oyster-catchers. These are jet black all over with orange red beaks and legs, rather larger and heavier than our home species and certainly less wary though they have exactly the same cries. ' One day sitting on the sands in a very secluded bay I had the luck to see about twenty-five Penguins swimming along in front of me. Every now and then they rose to the surface in a body but mostly they swam under water, the waves being so transparent that they were easily visible through the field glasses. There is only one kind of Penguin around the coast — the Jackass or the Black-footed — the most unin¬ teresting, I think, of the family, but these looked very nice seen in their native surroundings. Although I have not mentioned them yet, the birds which really afforded me the greatest thrill to spy besides the Sunbirds were the Blue-breasted and Pink-cheeked Waxbills and White-Eyes. A small flock of White-Eyes frequented the trees of an hotel garden where I was staying on the coast quite close to Cape Town, and the Waxbills I saw amongst the trees in a beautiful shady ravine beside the Montagu Hot Springs. I did not see as many of these as I would have liked owing to the fact that I was travelling too fast and had not sufficient time to devote to bird watching in earnest — in suitable places. In addition to the birds mentioned, I saw several different kinds of Swallows. They sat in large numbers on the telephone wires. Swifts, both large and small, were also numerous but impossible to identify on the wing. Large flocks of Guinea-fowl frequented the open bush and the Game Reserves. Egrets, both large and small (Cattle Egrets or Tick birds being very common), and Herons of various kinds were to be seen around all the lagoons. 1 88 REV. J. R. LOWE - THE REARING OF A WILD MISSEL THRUSH The following completes the list of birds identified : — Bronze Manikin, Boubou Shrike, Magpie Shrike, Pale-winged Starling, Drongo (both square and fork-tailed), Gape Rock Thrush (feeding young), Bully Seed Eater, White-throated Seed Eater, Paradise Flycatcher, Gape Weaver, White-browed Weaver, Pin¬ tailed Widow Bird, Shaft-tailed Widow Bird, Gape Ground Robin, White-fronted Bee Eater, Carmine Bee Eater, Gape Long-billed Lark, Cape Wren Warbler (this is a very energetic and noisy little bird, dodging in and out of the bush, singing at the top of its voice), Cape Sparrow or Mossie (this is a handsome bird and not at all like a Sparrow), Gape Turtle Dove, Laughing Dove, Tambourine Dove, Emerald Spotted Dove, Lemon Dove, several birds of prey, among which were : Spotted Eagle-Owl, Black-Shouldered Kite, Bateleur Eagle, Buzzards, Kestrels, etc., Raven, Pied Grow, Black Grow, Storks, Spoonbill, Wood Ibis, Knysna Red-necked Francolin. * * * THE REARING OF A WILD MISSEL THRUSH By The Rev. J. R. Lowe, M.A. It was in the first week in April that we found him, sitting disconso¬ late and forlorn at the foot of a large beech tree in the garden, and a cut-leaved beech at that. His parents early in March had made no secret of their intention to increase their kind. Father on windy days in January in high brief lovely sentences had that in mind, and now such hopes had been abundantly fulfilled and parental duties gladly undertaken with no thought of family allowances. But there was a problem at the foot of the tree, insufficiently clad for a cold spring day, ridiculous stilt-like legs that persisted in folding up like a deck chair, apologies for wings, twenty feet of bare beech trunk to the nursery, no ladder, and the memory of misguided though kind attempts to return wandering children to other nurseries with hideous results, shrieking parents, children floundering all ways at once and the result an empty nest. No, the problem must be solved another way, after all he was a parishioner of a kind, and I his minister. With no kind of protestation I gathered him up, he was too new and innocent to know what fear was. His parents I knew were shopping in a field not far away. I hurried with the new baby into the Vicarage. He snuggled happily down in a cardboard box lined with soft hay. I have reared a heap of waifs in 40 years from Carrion Grows to Willow Wrens, but never was there so accommodating a child as this small Missel Thrush. For the first fortnight alternate meals every three hours of goat’s milk and bread and a drop or two of cod liver oil and large worms. He hated to start feeding himself, and even to-day he loves to be fed. He A. A. PRESTWICH - BREEDING NEWS FROM ALL QUARTERS 1 89 has never looked back, his staple diet this dry summer has been brown bread soaked in goat’s milk with cod liver oil always. Beetles, centipedes, but not wood lice, are accepted as valuable prizes, tiny bits of raw meat, liver, rabbit, chicken, and cooked white fish are always eaten with relish, in fact the child is omniverous. A charming child, completely fearless, it would be disastrous if he left his little garden aviary. My Siamese cat spends hours staring at him and hoping, while he hardly bothers to chatter at her. What lovely black eyes my waif possesses. The body moult is complete but for head and neck, great black spots on a buff, deeper than anything I have seen in a Missel Thrush before, perhaps it’s the cod liver oil. Occasionally I am offered a straw, or a piece of hay ; does this mean that after all I have an adopted daughter. I have an idea that this is so. Alongside the Missel, a young cock Blackbird, taken from a cat later in June, and entirely unable to support himself, is beginning to put on his sable coat. He is almost as tame as the Missel, but he and his kind are a little hysterical and easily lose their heads. I have dreams of match-making in the spring, though I don’t like hybrids. * * * BREEDING NEWS FROM ALL QUARTERS By A. A. Prestwich Recent reports from members indicate that the past breeding season has been above the average. P. A. Birch reports that : “ White Zebra Finches, Rock Pebblers, G.M. Rosellas, Redrumps, and Yellow Redrumps have all done well. On the debit side a proved breeding hen King died from a burst blood¬ vessel after laying a rather large egg, and a hen Redrump hatched nine eggs but let them all die at about a week old.” Captain R. W. Veitch has had success with two pairs of Alexandrine Parrakeets and writes : “ One pair five years old have reared young for the first time, and one pair nearly twenty years old who have reared young regularly for many years, but missed last year and the previous year. Both pairs have two good young ones out in the flight and feeding themselves.” Keston has had quite a good season, especially with Ringnecks. E. J. Boosey will doubtlessly send his annual report in due course, so I will not anticipate. Miss M. C. Maitland has bred eight Cockatiels and three Stanleys. E. N. T. Vane has done well, and amongst the birds reared are four Noble’s Macaws, three Leadbeater’s Cockatoos, three Turquoisine X Elegant, and a Green-winged King X King Parrakeet. BRITISH AVICULTURISTS’ CLUB 190 William Alden, head keeper of the Parrot House at the London Zoo, is retiring at the end of the year after forty-three years’ service. He has marked his last season by several breeding successes, obtained under far from ideal conditions ; two Queen Alexandra’s, one Green-winged King, and two hybrid Pennant’s X Rosella Parrakeets. The many members of the Society who have experienced innumerable kindnesses from him over a very long period will unite in wishing “ Bill ” Alden and his wife the very best of luck in his retirement. California. — David West writes : “ I have had seven young from a rather odd Bourke mating. A year old cock mated with two hens and both laid and produced young ones. Their first nests contained three and two, while the second nests contained only one each. “ I have recently added five Adelaide Rosellas, probably the only pure-bred stock in the U.S., and two pairs of Mexican Lineolated Parrakeets.” Australia. — Leonard Webber reports : “You may be interested to hear of a new mutation in the Gouldian Finch. So far this year I have bred six 4 Green-headed ’ Gouldians. The birds are not yet through the complete moult, but there is a variation, from plain mid-green to green on black, green and yellow, and a copper metallic hue with green, yellow, red. These birds were from two sets of parents, details of which I will release when the young birds have assumed full adult plumage.” * * * BRITISH AVICULTURISTS’ CLUB The eighteenth meeting of the Club was held at the Rembrandt Hotel, Thurloe Place, South Kensington, S.W. 7, on Wednesday, 14th September, 1949, at 6 p.m., followed by a dinner. Chairman : Mr. D. Seth-Smith. Members of the Club : Major J. E. Adlard, Dr. M. Amsler, Miss P. Barclay-Smith (Vice-Chairman), Miss K. Bonner, G. T. Clark, Mrs. G. T. Clark, B. H. Dulanty, O. E. Dunmore, A. Ezra (Patron), J. F. M. Floyd, A. G. Glenister, R. E. Heath, Major E. F. Housden, G. T. lies, H. J. Indge, Terry Jones, Miss E. M. Knobel (Club Hostess), Miss M. H. Knobel-Harman, P. H. Maxwell, G. S. Mottershead, H. Murray, S. Murray, K. A. Norris, Sydney Porter, A. A. Prestwich (Hon. Secretary), J. H. Reay, D. H. S. Risdon, Professor E. Sprawson, Captain H. S. Stokes, E. N. T. Vane, Mrs. L. Younger. Guest of Honour : Captain G. W. R. Knight and “ Mr. Ramshaw ”. Guests : Miss M. N. Amsler, G. S. Cansdale, Mrs. G. S. Gansdale, Mrs. D. Carson-Roberts, Bernard Ghadwyck, J. D. Constable, Miss J. C. Glenister, D. Goodwin, J. W. Lester, Mrs. J. W. Lester, G. J. BRITISH AVICULTURISTS’ CLUB 91 Morny, Mrs. G. J. Morny, Mrs. S. Murray, M. Reay, F. H. Rudkin, Jr., Mrs. F. H. Rudkin, Jr., Mrs. D. Seth-Smith, Miss M. White, D. M. Williams, Mrs. M. K. Woodford. Members of the Club, 32 ; guests, 21 ; total, 53. The Chairman, opening the meeting, said he had great pleasure in welcoming several important guests : Mr. Gansdale, Superintendent, and Mr. Lester, Curator of Reptiles, London Zoo ; and Mr. and Mrs. Rudkin, Jr., from California. Mr. F. H. Rudkin, Sr., had been a member of the Society for nearly fifty years, and although long resident in California was English by birth. He had formed probably the largest collection of parrakeets in America and this was now shared with his son. He welcomed this opportunity of sending greetings to the father by the son. Another C£ guest ” — a unique “ guest 55 — was “ Mr. Ramshaw ”, accompanied by his assistant, Captain C. W. R. Knight. He was specially interested to see 189. ,, Green Leek (— Barraband’s), 48. ,, ,, Rosella (= Yellow-bellied), 168. 55 55 55 55 55 55 55 55 55 55 55 55 55 55 55 55 55 55 55 55 55 55 55 55 55 55 55 55 Green-winged King, 19, 39, 190, 229. Ground-, 29. Hooded, 31, 32, 58, 129, 148, 175. Housing of, 14. Hybrid African Ring-necked X Crimson Rosella (Pennant’s), 32. ,, Barraband’s X Queen Alex¬ andra’s, 33. „ ,, X Rock Peplar, 33. ,, Blue- winged X Turquoisine, 39- „ Cockatiel X Blue-winged, 32. ,, Crimson-winged X King, 129. „ „ X Rock Peplar, 129. ,, Eastern X More ton Bay Rosellas, 31. „ Green- winged King X King, i89- ,, King X Crimson-winged, 29. „ Mealy Rosella X Red-rumped, 32. „ Pennant’s X Rosella, 190, 194. „ Pileated (Red-capped) X Pale¬ headed Rosella, 33. „ Rock Peplar X Crimson¬ winged, 30. „ Stanley X Red-rumped, 32. ,, Turquoisine X Blue-winged, 77. „ „ X Elegant, 189. „ ,, X Scarlet-chested, 31. ,, Western King X Red-rumped, 32. King-, 17, 31, 32, 54, 65, 157, 189. ,, Mistaken Identity of, 148. Latham (Swift), 157. Lineolated, 190. Malabar, 39. Mallee, 1 1 7. Many-coloured, 29, 129, 157, 179. Mealy Rosella, 29, 129, 170. Moreton Bay Rosella (= Mealy Rosella), 31, 170. INDEX 237 Parrakeet, Murray Rosella ( = Yellow- rumped), 166. ,, Nesting accommodation for, 18. „ Northern Rosella (= Brown’s), 58, 1 73* ,, Pale-headed Rosella (= Mealy Rosella), 170. ,, Pennant’s, 29, 31 (as Crimson Rosella), 42, 162. „ Pileated, 39, 76, 115. „ Plum-head, 39, 42, 77, 129. ,, Port Lincoln, 29, 121. „ Quaker-, 31, 194, 229. ,, Queen Alexandra’s or Princess of Wales, 29, 31, 32, 52, 77, 129, i43> !57> 190, I94> 229. „ Red-fronted, 27. ,, Red Rosella, 29, 129, 175. ,, Red-rumped, 12, 29, 31, 42, 129, 179, 189. „ „ yellow, 12, 29, 189. „ „ „ origin of, 12. ,, Red-vented Blue Bonnet, 169. ,, Regent (= Mealy Rosella), 31. ,, Ring-necked, 16, 17, 31, 32, 42, 189. „ „ lutino, 143, 1 91, 194. ,, Rock Peplar (or Pebbler), 29, 50, 157, 189. ,, ,, ,, an early Breeding Record, I47- „ Rosehill (= Red Rosella), 175 ,, Rosella, 16, 17, 26, 36. ,, Rose-throated (= Queen Alex¬ andra’s), 52. ,, Salwatty King-, 148. „ Scarlet-chested (Splendid), 29, 31, 32, 129- ,, Smutty Rosella (= Brown’s), 173. „ Stanley, 29, 42, 65, 129, 177, 189. „ Swift, 23. „ Tasmanian Rosella (= Yellow- bellied), 168. ,, Turquoisine, 29, 31, 129, 148. „ Twenty-eight, 123, 157. ,, Watering of, 18. ,, Western Rosella (= Stanley) , 177. ,, Yellow-bellied, 157, 168. ,, ,, -cheeked (= Stanley), 177. ,, ,, -fronted, 27. „ „ -naped, 123. ,, Yellow Rosella (= Yellow- rumped), 165, 166. ,, Yellow-rumped, 166. Parrot, Alpine, 75. ,, Amazon, 65. See also under separate species . ,, Australian King-, 54. ,, Banded (= Port Lincoln Parra¬ keet), 12 1. „ Blue-fronted Amazon, 42, 1 1 3. „ „ lutino, 39. Parrot, Eclectus, 75, 191. ,, Festive Amazon, 42. ,, Fig- or Double-eyed, 75. ,, Grand Eclectus, 46. „ Grey, 42, 100, 108, 1 13. ,, ,, bred at Brighton, 78. ,, ,, Experiment in breeding, 140. „ Kaka, 27. ,, Kakapo, 27. „ Kea, 19, 27. ,, King- (Pileated Parrakeet), 115. „ Levaillant’s Amazon, 77. ,, Mountain- (Yellow-bellied Parra¬ keet), 168. ,, Orange- winged, 38. ,, Pesquet’s, 48, 76. ,, Princess (Queen Alexandra’s Parrakeet), 52. ,, Red-capped (Pileated Parrakeet), 115. „ „ -cheeked, 47. ,, ,, -sided Eclectus, 31, 46. ,, ,, -topped Amazon, 42. „ „ -winged (Crimson- winged Parrakeet), 56. „ Regent (Rock Peplar Parrakeet), 50- ,, Rocky (Red-sided Eclectus), 46. ,, Scarlet and Green (King Parra¬ keet), 54. „ Smoker (Rock Peplar Parrakeet), .5?. ,, Spinifex (Queen Alexandra’s Parra¬ keet), 52. ,, Superb (Barraband’s Parrakeet), 48. „ Yellow-cheeked, 39, 109. ,, ,, -fronted Amazon, 42. ,, ,, -naped Amazon, 31. Parrots, Australian, in Captivity, 14, 44, 1 15, 162. Parson-Bird (Tui), 27. Partridge, Chukor, 38, 145, 206, 229. ,, Coqui (Francolin), 161. ,, Red-legged, 42. „ ,, -winged (Francolin), 161. Par us varius, 96. Pavo, 216. Peafowl, 34, 38, 65, 200, 201, 216, 229. ,, Black-winged, 38, 42. „ Congo, 195, 202. ,, ,, in captivity, 208. „ Specifer, 143, 200. ,, White, 200, 227, 229. Pelecanus occid entails, 77. Pelican, 1, 187. „ Brown, 77. „ White, 43, 229. Penguin, 28. ,, Black-footed or Jackass, 77, 187. ,, Gentoo, 128, 194. „ King-, 128. INDEX 238 Pericrocotus brevirostris, 126. ,, erythropy gius, 127. ,, jlammeus, 126. „ peregrinus, 127. „ speciosus, 126. Personalia, 37, 75, 109, 145, 192, 227. Petrel, 28. Phalacrocorax aristotelis, 194. Phasianus colchicus, 218, 221. Phasidus niger, 195. Pheasant, Amherst, or Lady Amherst’s, 24, 25, 30, 33, 34, 38, 42, 197, 199, 201, 210, 229. ,, ,, mutation, obscurus , 209. „ Argus, 34, 216, 224. „ Bel’s, 200, 207. ,, Black-backed Kaleege, 201. „ ,, -breasted Kaleege, 201, 229. ,, Blue Eared (Blue Crossoptilon), 42, 65, 144, 199, 200, 201, 203, 210. „ Blyth’s Tragopan, 30, 201, 212. ,, Bornean Argus, 201. ,, ,, Crested Fireback, 201. ,, Bronze-tailed Peacock-, 201, 216. ,, Brown Eared (Brown Crossop¬ tilon), 65, 107, 199, 200, 201, 210, 212. „ Bulwer’s White-tailed, 207, 216. ,, Cabot’s Tragopan, 201. ,, Cheer, 65, 200, 201. See also Wallich’s. ,, Common, 221. „ ,, dark var., 38, 42, 229. ,, Copper, 201, 210. ,, Crested Argus, 201, 202. „ Crimson Horned (= Satyr Trago¬ pan), 229. „ Edwards’, 42, 65, 201, 203, 207, 210. „ Elliot’s, 65, 199, 200, 201, 216. ,, Fancier, Reminiscences of a, 206. ,, Firebacks, 32, 199, 201, 218. ,, Germain’s Peacock-, 65, 200, 201. ,, Golden, 32, 38, 42, 108, 112, 197, 199, 201, 203, 206, 210, 221, 229. ,, ,, mutation obscurus, 209. „ Grey Peacock-, 30, 34, 65, 1 99, 201 . ,, Horsfield’s, 201. „ Hybrid Amherst X Golden, 197. „ ,, Chinese Silver X Edwards’, 38, 194- „ Satyr Tragopan X Swinhoe’s, 30, 219. ,, ,, Temminck’s Tragopan X Koklas, 30. „ Imperial, 65, 200, 201, 202, 207, 210. „ Impeyan, 24, 38, 42, 200, 201, 229. See also Monaul. „ Koklas, 30, 108, 270. Pheasant, Lewis’s, 210. „ Lineated Kaleege, 201. ,, Malayan Argus, 200, 201. ,, „ Crested Fireback, 200, 201. „ Mikado, 30, 38, 65, 200, 201, 207, 210, 216. „ Monaul, 65, 216. See also Impeyan. „ Mongolian, 229. „ Nepal, 32. ,, Palawan Peacock-, 30, 201, 207. ,, Pallas’s Eared, 229. „ Reeves’s, 24, 32, 112, 201, 203, 210, 222, 229. „ Registry, The, 196, 199. ,, Rheinart’s Argus, 34, 201, 207, 216. „ Ring-necked, 33, 38, 229. ,, Salvadori’s, 202. „ Satyr Tragopan, 24, 30, 200, 201, 212. See also Crimson Horned. ,, Siamese Fireback, 65, 201, 215, 216. „ Silver, 42, 199, 201, 203, 210, 215, 218, 229. „ Swinhoe’s, 24, 38, 93, 107, 199, 200, 201, 203, 212. „ Temminck’s Tragopan, 34, 65, 194, 200, 201, 203, 229. ,, Versicolor, 65, 210. „ Wallich’s (Cheer), 24. ,, White-crested Kaleege, 201. ,, White Eared (White Crossoptilon), 200, 201, 207, 210. Pheasants in Captivity, 210. “ Pheasants of the World ” (M. Dela- cour’s forthcoming work), 202. Pheasants and Waterfowl, Ornamental, Rearing of, 203. Phodilus b. badius, 98. Picathartes, Some Notes on the Grey¬ necked, 149, 229. Picathartes gymnocephala , 1 54. „ oreas, 149, 229. Picathartes, Yellow-necked, 154. Pie, Eastern, 39. „ Occipital Blue, 77. Pigeon, Bleeding Heart, 65, 157. ,, Bronze-winged, 43, 148, 157. „ Brush Bronze- winged, 65, 157. „ Cape Rock-, 162. „ „ Spotted, 37. „ Crested, 148. „ Crowned, 228. „ Loango Fruit-, 195. „ Olive, 43. „ New Zealand Wood-, 28. ,, Wonga Wonga, 148. Pitta, Bengal, 77. Platycercus adelaida, 164. „ „ fleuriensis, 165. ,, ,, subadelaida, 165. „ adscitus, 1 70. INDEX 239 Platycercus amathusia, 1 7 1 . „ caledonicus, 168. „ ,, Henrietta, 169. „ elegans, 162. „ „ nigrescens, 163. ,, eximius, 175. „ ,, diemenensis, 176. „ „ splendidus, 176. „ flaveolus, 165. „ icterotis, 177. „ ,, xanthogenys, 178. ,, splendidus , 76. „ venustus, 173. Ploceus nigerrimus, 195. „ n. nigricollis, 195. „ reichenowi, 229. Plover, Black-breasted, 32. „ Kentish, 74, 148. „ Ringed, 74, 148. „ White-breasted Sand-, 187. Pochard, Red-crested, 43, 229. ,, South African, 148. Podica senegalensis camerunensis, 195. Pogoniulus scolopaceus flavisquamatus , 77. Polyplectron , 216. ,, chalcurum , 216. „ inopinatum, 216. Polytelis anthopeplus, 50. ,, „ westralis, 50. Porphyria melanotus, 28. P organa parva, 77. President’s Garden Party, The, 142. Prosthemadera novce-seelandia , 27. Pseudonigrita arnaudi , 229. Psittacus erithacus, 100. „ macao, 68. Psittrichas fulgidus, 48. Psophia crepitans , 194. Ptarmigan, 60. Pteronetta hartlaubii, 195. Ptilopis leucotis , 229. Puff Backs, 72. Purpureicephalus spurius , 76, 1 15. Pycnonotus tricolor , 229. Pygoscelis papua, 194. Pyrrhurus simplex , 2 1 . Quail, 33, 72, 161. ,, Blue, 161. “ Quarrion ” (Gockatiel), 44. Quelea quelea, 229. Rail, Pukeko, 28. „ Uganda Red-chested, 195. ,, Venezuelan Wood-, 194. „ Water-, 77. „ Weka, 28. ,, Whiteside’s Wood-, 195. Rallus aquaticus, 77. Ramphastos monilis, 194. Raven, 36, 39, 43, 188. Ravens at the Tower, 39. Redpoll, 26. Redshank, 74. Reviews — Audubon's American Birds (Sacheverell Sitwell), 228. Bird Biology for Beginners (Brian Vesey- Fitzgerald), 145. Birds in Britain (Frances Pitt), 109. Birds of Britain (J. D. Macdonald), 193. Birds of a Velley (W. R. Philipson), 36. Predatory Birds of Great Britain (Eric Parker) ,110. The Art of Bird Photography (Eric Hosking and Cyril Newberry), 192. Rhea, 24, 64. Rheinartia , 216. Rhipidura flabellifera, 26. „ fuliginosa, 26. Ringing Scheme for Waterfowl, 180. Robin, 193. ,, American, 229. ,, Cape Ground-, 188. ,, Congo Red-backed Scrub-, 195. ,, Forest-, 21. „ Pekin, 143. ,, Southern Scrub-, 76. Robin-Chat, Blue-shouldered, 21. “ Rock Fowl,” Bare-headed (Pica- thartes), 154. Rook, albino, 148. Ruff, 34, 74. Rupicola rupicola, 1 94. Saddle-Back, 28. Sarothrura rufa eligabetha, 195. Scoters, 20. Secretary-Bird, 72, 183. Seed-Eater, Bully, 188. ,, White-throated, 188. ,, Yellow, 76, 160. Sericulus chrysocephalus , 23. Serinus flaviventris, 1 60. ,, sulphur atus, 76. Shag, 28, 194. Shama, 145, 157. Sheathbill, Yellow-billed, 194. Sheldrake, Paradise, 65. „ Ruddy, 43. ,, South African, 65, 148, 229. Shikra, 85. Shrike, 72. „ Bokmakierie, 186. „ Boubou, 188. ,, Chestnut-crowned Bush-, 21. ,, Doherty’s Bush-, 195. „ Fiscal, 182. ,, Magpie-, 188. Sialia mexicana occidentalism 38. Silver Bills, 40. Siskin, Venezuelan, hybrid X Roller Canary, 78. Sittace chloroptera, 68. 240 INDEX Sittace macao, 68. Skylark, 26. Sorella eminibey, 229. Sparrow, 26, 1 1 1 . „ Gape, 188. ,, Chestnut, 229. ,, White Java, 39. Spermestes nigriceps, 76. Spheniscus demersus, 77. Spoonbill, 188. Spreo superbus, 229. Starling, 26, 193. „ Glossy, 65, 157. ,, Green Glossy, 229. ,, Hartlaub’s Chestnut-winged Glossy, 195. ,, Pale-winged, 188. ,, Pied, 37, 182 (Mynah). „ Red-winged Glossy, 182. „ Royal, 72. „ Spreo, 72. „ Superb Glossy, 229. ,, Violet-eared Glossy, 72. „ Wattled, 229. Steganura paradisea, 1 58. Stephanoaetus coronatus , 1 94. Stilt, Black-winged, 187. Storks, 72, 188. Strigops habroptilus, 27. Strix woodfordii nuchalis, 195. Sugar-Bird, Long-tailed, 185. Sun Bird, Bronze, 195. „ Collared, 39. ,, Double-collared, 39. ,, Greater Double-collared, 183. ,, Kivu Blue-headed, 195. ,, Malachite, 72, 185. „ Olive, 195. „ Orange-breasted, 186. „ Regal, 195. ,, Ruanda Double-collared, 195. ,, Uganda Buff-breasted, 195. Sun-Bittern, 34. Swallow, 72, 187. ,, Wood-, see Wood-Swallow. “Swamp-Hen” (Pukeko Rail), 28. Swan, Bewick’s, 20. „ Black, 38, 43, 148, 229. ,, ,, presentation of, to H.M. Queen Elisabeth of the Belgians, 1 54. ,, Black-necked, 65. „ Mute, 43. ,, Trumpeter-, 107. „ -upping, 38. ,, Whooper-, 194. Swift, 72, 187. Syrmaticus, 216. „ reevesi, 218. Teal, Cape, 43, 63. ,, Cinnamon, 112, 148. „ Falcated, 43. Teal, Grey, 144. „ Sharp-winged, 63, 65. Telephorus dohertyi, 195. Tern, 187. „ Black, 74. Thrush, Cameroons Ground-, 20. ,, Cape Rock-, 188. ,, Kenya Olive, 229. „ Missel, Rearing of a Wild, 188. „ Song-, 26. Tick-Birds (Cattle Egret), 72, 187. Tigriornis leucolopha, 195. Tinker-Bird, Gaboon Speckled, 77. Tit, Penduline, 186. „ Varied, 96. Tomtit (New Zealand), 28. Toucan, Red-billed, 194. Touracou, 72. „ Blue, 194. „ Donaldson’s, 39. ,, Emin’s Black-billed, 195. ,, Hartlaub’s, 42. Tragopan. See under Pheasant. Tragopan satyr a, 219. Treron c. calva, 195. Trichoglossus capistratus , 37. Tricholcema hirsutum chapini, 195. Trumpeter, Grey- winged, 194. Tui, 27. Turacus schuttii emini, 195. Turdoides hypoleuca , 229. Turdus olivaceus elgonensis, 229. Turkey, North American, 38, 65, 77. ,, Ocellated, 34. Turnstone, 38. Turtur afer kilimensis, 195. Tympanistria tympanistria fraseri, 195. Tyto alba affinis, 229. ,, castanops , 128. Uria aalge, 60. Vulture, 72. ,, Falkland Island Turkey-, 194. ,, Griffon-, 42. „ King-, 34. ,, Nubian, 227. Wagtail, 72. „ Pied, 182. Warbler, Aquatic, 103. „ Grey, 28. Water-Hen, 187. Waxbill, 65, 157, 158. ,, Black-cheeked, 160. ,, Blue-breasted, 9, 160, 187. ,, Dufresne’s, 9. ,, Golden-breasted ( Orange-breasted, Zebra-), 9, 39. ,, Grenadier, 72. ,, Grey or Pink-cheeked, 161, 187. „ Jameson’s Ruddy-breasted, 161. INDEX 241 Waxbill, Ruddy-breasted, 160, 161. „ St. Helena, 39, 43, 77. „ Senegal, 72. „ Violet-eared, 72, 159. Waxbills, Breeding Again, 9. Wax wing, 193. Weaver-Bird, 65, 72, 157. „ Black-capped Social, 40. ,, „ -necked, 195. „ Gape, 185, 188. ,, Grey-headed Social, 229. ,, Masked, 185. „ Reichenow’s, 43, 229. „ Red-backed, 229. „ Rufous-necked, 39. ,, Vieillot’s Black, 195. ,, White-browed, 188. “ Weero ” (Cockatiel), 44. White-Eye, 72, 187. See also under Zosterops. Whydah Bird, 65, 72, 157. ,, Delamere’s or Kenya Giant, 43, 72, 196, 229. ,, Giant or Long-tailed, 112, 142, 183, 196. „ Jackson’s, 34, 143. ,, Paradise, 158. „ Pin-tailed, 43, 188. ,, Shaft-tailed, 188. Wigeon, 20, 21, 43. ,, American, 229. Woodcock, 36. “ Wood-Hen ” (Weka Rail), 28. Woodpecker, 72, 108. „ Greater Spotted, 40. Wood-Swallow, Black-faced, 8. „ Dusky, 6. ,, Little, 8. ,, Masked, 7. ,, White-breasted, 8. ,, ,, -browed, 7. Wood-Swallows of South Australia, The, 6. Wren, New Zealand, 28. „ Willow-, 188. Wren-Warbler, Cape, 188. Zonogastris melba, 158. Zoo, Belle Vue, Manchester, colour film of, 227. ,, Craigend Castle, Scotland, opening of, 192. ,, Dudley, The Bird Collection at, 41 . ,, London, Additions to, 38, 77, 112, 148, 194, 229. ,, Vincennes, Zurich, and Bale, colour films of, 227. Zoological Society of New York’s Belgian Congo Expedition, 195. Zosterops, 39, 72, 77. See also White- eye. ,, New Zealand, 26. Zosterops halmaturina , 26. 242 PERIODICALS RECEIVED IN EXCHANGE FOR THE AVIC. MAGAZINE Periodicals received in Exchange for the Avicultural Magazine Great Britain : British Birds. Cage Birds. The Ibis. “ Our Z00 News ” (Chester Zoological Gardens). Australia : Australian Aviculture (official organ of the Avicultural Society of Australia and the Avicultural Society of South Australia). Belgium : Le Gerfaut. Le Monde Avicole. Zoo (La Societe Royale de Zoologie d’Anvers). Denmark : Dansk Ornithologisk Forenings Tidsskrift. Stuekultur. France : VOiseau. La Terre et la Vie. Germany : Die Gefiederte Welt. Netherlands : Ardea. South Africa : The Ostrich. U.S.A. : America's First Z°° (Philadelphia Zoological Garden). Animal Kingdom (New York Zoological Society). The Auk. Aviculture. The Wilson Bulletin. Zoologica. CANDIDATES FOR ELECTION Mrs. Ruth Adams, 6817 State Street, Huntington Park, Calif., U.S.A. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. Herman Bauer, M.D., Beethovenstrasse 5, Beuel-Bonn, Rhine, Germany. Pro¬ posed by A. A. Prestwich. IE. W. Coombs, F.Z.S., 13 1 Wading Street, Gillingham, Kent. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. Philip W. Gauntlett, Bury Farm, Hertingfordbury, Herts. Proposed by G. Weaver. N. Hutchinson, F.Z.S., 20 Middle Row, Leamside, Fencehouses, Co. Durham. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. L. de Jong, Plantage Kerklaan 40, Amsterdam, Holland. Proposed by A. A. Prestwich. W. R. Kingston, Springfields, Betchton, Sandbach, Cheshire. Proposed by G. S. Mottershead. Georges Olivier, M.B.O.U., 6 rue Ch.-Flavigny, Elbeuf (Seine Inferieure), France. Proposed by Miss P. Barclay-Smith. Ronald J. Parren, Lindon House, South Brink, Wisbech, Cambs. Proposed by A. W. Tunesi. A. R. Schoonhoven, Soestdijksche weg 26 Noord, Bilthoven, Holland. Proposed by A. F. C. A. van Heyst. A. F. Sturgis, 740 Sansom Street, Philadelphia, U.S.A. Proposed by A. F. C. A. van Heyst. • ' NEW MEMBERS W. G. Baird, 109 Russell Street, Palmerston North, New Zealand. C. T. Dalgety, M.B.O.U., Radwell Mill, Baldock, Herts. F. L. Gary, Crosswicks, New Jersey, U.S.A. H. J. Harman, 10 Haydon Road, Dagenham, Essex. C. J. Morny, 52 Draycott Place, London, S.W. 3. Major W. H. Payn, M.B.E., M.B.O.U., Hartest Place, Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk. Ray Thomas, 1601 South Hope Street, Los Angeles, Calif., U.S.A. G. van den Brink, Hoorn, 65 Alphen ann den Ryn, Holland. - READMITTED H.G. the Duke of Bedford, Crowholt Woburn, Bletchley, Bucks. Lieut.-Colonel Niall Rankin, F.R.G.S., F.R.P.S., House of Treshnish, Calgary, Isle of Mull, Argyll, Scotland. CHANGES OF ADDRESS R. A. FI. Coombes, to The Zoological Museum, Tring, Herts. Capt. Peter Jackson, to Bourne Farm, Upper Dicker, Nr. Hailsham, Sussex. Carl-Ivar Stromgren, to Maison Suedoise, Cit6 Universitaire, Paris (14®). MEMBERS’ ADVERTISEMENTS The charge for Members 9 advertisements is one penny per word. Payment must accompany the advertisement , which must be sent on or before the 20th of the month , to A. A. Prestwich, Chelmsford Road, Southgate, N. 14. All members of the Society are entitled to use this column, but the Council reserves the right to refuse any advertisements they consider unsuitable. FOR SALE Ornamental Waterfowl. Orders booked for 1949 hand-reared, pinioned stock for autumn delivery ; forty species kept. Also rare Pheasants ; Blue Crossoptilon, Temminck’s Tragopan, Monal, Mikado, Swinhoe, Edwards, Amherst. Prices on Application. — Terry Jones, Leckford Abbas, Stockbridge, Hants. Avicultural Magazine, bound, 1902-18, 1937-45, £1 each ; F.B.L. Magazine , 1936-41, bound, 1942-47, unbound, £3 ; Z°° Magazine , 1936-41, unbound, com¬ plete, £3 ; Water Life, 1946-48, 155., 3 vols. ; Lewis Wright’s Poultry Book, 50 plates, £2. — E. J. L. Marshall, c/o Devon General Garage, Woolbrook, Sidmouth, Devon. 1949 Silver and Golden Pheasants, also pure adult Goldens ; reasonable prices. — D. A. Marshall, 2 Fullarton Crescent, Troon, Ayrshire. FOR SALE OR EXCHANGE Captain Veitch, Garforth, Leeds, wishes to exchange good 1947 cock Stanley for hen ; ditto Mealy Rosella ; 1949 Redrump hen for cock. For sale : Outstanding Alexandrine Parrakeets, 1949 ; Redrumps, Java Doves. Consider exchanges for Lutino Ringnecks, Yellow Redrumps. WANTED UOiseau, 1934-1941, bound or unbound. — Offers to Hon. Secretary. Avicultural Magazine , January, 1923 and January, 1925. — Alan Lendon, 66 Brougham Place, North Adelaide, Australia. Avicultural Magazine, Series 3, vol. vii, No. 9 (or volume), July, 1916 ; Series 3, Vols. xii and xiii, and Series 4, Vols. i-iii (1921-25 inclusive). — Wheldon and Wesley, Ltd., 83-84 Berwick Street, London, W. 1. STEPHEN AUSTIN AND SONS, LTD., PRINTERS, HERTFORD.