the Indian Baya Bird, 221 



be entirely deserted by the old birds at any part of the year ; 

 the young ones probably separate from them, and form new 

 colonies, as, at certain seasons, they are to be seen by them- 

 selves in large flocks. 



The following passage is quoted, in the Architecture of 

 Birds, as an " account from a gentleman long resident in 

 India : " — " As to the separate chambers, also, it may be 

 observed, that the fact of their existence is indisputable ; and 

 I think it is equally certain that they are not occasioned by 

 adding new nests to old ones, as such additions would at once 

 be discernible, from the difference occasioned in colour and 

 texture by exposure to the inclemencies of the weather." 

 P. 252. This account I cannot reconcile with my own ex- 

 perience, and must suppose that the nests there noticed are 

 not those of the Loxia philippina, but of some other Loxia. 

 The following is a description of the bird which builds the 

 nest I have sketched and described: — Length 5| in., 

 breadth 9 in. Bill dusky olive, under part of the lower man- 

 dible greenish yellow, nearly six tenths of an inch long, and 

 four tenths in depth at the base, bulky and strong, nearly 

 conical, both mandibles of the same size, and having their 

 edges much bent inwards. Eyes small, irides yellow. Lores, 

 cheeks, and throat dark brown ; the rest of the head bright 

 yellow. Feathers of the neck and shoulders yellow tinged 

 with olive (of the sides of the neck tinged with reddish), with 

 a dark brown dash down the middle of each. Wings dark 

 brown, the quills having narrow, the prime coverts broad, 

 and the secondary coverts heart-shaped, yellow edges. The 

 lower part of the throat and the breast are bright yellow, 

 passing into very pale dull reddish on the belly and tibiae. 

 The rump and vent are dull light reddish mixed with dashes 

 of brown. Tail brown, rounded, about 1^ in. long; the 

 closed wing passes its base a little. Feet and claws pale 

 brownish; the latter long, rather slender, and much bent. 

 The third and fourth quills are equal and longest. 



The specimen described was a male in full plumage ; but 

 scarcely any two are exactly alike ; most of them are plainer 

 and duller in their colours, and many of the females and 

 young birds have little or no yellow on the head or breast. 



The baya is very docile, easily tamed, and taught to fly 

 off the finger and return again at a signal ; to dart after a 

 ring or small coin dropped into a deep well, and catch it 

 before it reaches the water ; to fetch and carry ; and to per- 

 form other similar tricks. 



Vale of Alford, Aberdeenshire, A Subscriber. 



Sept. 28. 1832. 



