La forme el L'emplacemenl du nid, le nombre e1 



ta couleur des œufs. 



Les cuises de l'extinction de FregilllpUS soid 



« I hâve known the bird you ask me aboul since child- 

 « hood, namelj the Fregilapus varius (old writefs càlied il 



l. capensis), which has in fact entirelj disappeàred... 

 « When I was a boj tliis bird lived in the forests of the 

 « interior of the island and never sel foot nor w ing in t<>w ris 

 « or inhabited places. Il remained faithful to the forests 

 « whcre il was bred, which it enlivened with its clear notes. 

 « I used to linnt it then at an âge when one is pitiless. I 

 « canseeitnow, a liltle larger than the white blackbird, 

 « \\ ith a white crest en the hcad in the rase of the maie, the 

 « wings a blackish grey on the upper surface, the beak and 

 « l'eet yellowish. Bj no mcaiis shy, il was nol frightëned 

 ■ even by thesound of firearms, and after a regular slaughter 

 « one went off with dozcns of thèse poor victims in one's 

 « game-ba^. 



« Aller len \ears spent in Paris I did not find a single one 

 u in the forests w liere formerly they ilew about in lloeks. 

 " \ll ruthlesslj destroyed. I shall never forgive myselffo'r 

 " the part, slight though it was, which I took in thematter. 

 « I Josl m\ tasle for sport and the best bag wouïd not 

 « tempt me... We will no\\ eonsider the feeding habits of 

 « Uns bird. Having raised several in the aviaiy, I can risk 

 « talking about it though 1 never saw one feeding in the 

 « wild state. In m\ aviai \ ils fond consisted of bananas, 

 « potatoes, and choux-choux. Sechium edule (boiled). But 

 « when left toits own instincts, it must, hke the other 

 <• winged deni/.ens of the forest, hâve eaten insects as is 

 « done by its companion in the forests. the Bourbon 

 « Blackbird (Hyjjsipetes olivaieusj. and as is the habit of most 

 « fruit-eating birds ». N. Manders. An investigation into 

 the validity of mùllerian and other forms of mimicry, 

 with spécial référence to the Islands of Bourbon, Mauritius. 

 and Ceylon. Proc Zool. Nor. London, 1911, p. i''.)'.i . 



