48 



(3) Birds of the licefields and long grass of the 

 swamps ; Whydahs, (especially the Yellow-backed 

 Whydah), and Weavers when nesting and in full 

 plumage ; some of the Waxbills, particularly the 

 Orange-cheek, and in this group I think the 

 Silverbill must also be included, but this is such 

 an unpretentious little bird that I cannot feel sure 

 that I have ever seen one wild, though the flocks 

 of small brown birds, which haunt the long grass 

 round manj^ of the swamps, must, I think, be these 

 birds, or else Quail Finches (^Ortygospiza). 



The breeding season of all these birds, in Gambia 

 at any rate, seems to be during the rains, but their 

 nests may be seen nearly all the year round, in trees, 

 bushes or reeds, mostly woven of tough grass, and so 

 well-made and so strongly fixed in position as to 

 withstand the violence of the fiercest tornado. 



In the winter all the Weavers I have seen are 

 quite out of colour, but among the Whydahs some 

 individuals, at least, appear to keep their colour all 

 the year round, as indeed they frequently do in 

 captivity. I have often seen both Combassous and 

 Paradise Wln'dahs in full colour as late as February, 

 though some of the latter have often lost their long 

 tails. The Bishops, when out of colour, gather in 

 immense flocks, which during the dry season haunt 

 the fields to feed on the dropped millet seeds or 

 other seeds and grasses. If disturbed the flock 

 rises with a loud whirr of many wings, and it is then 

 that one of the numerous Hawks, which are alwa3\s in 

 evidence here, has an opportunity of obtaining an easy 

 meal. Down he swoops at four or five times the 

 speed of the flying swarm, and picks out his victim 

 from their midst, almost before they have realised the 



M}' classification is based on tliat of Capt. Slielle}', tlie first volume 

 of wliose Birds on Africa, has supplied a solid foundation for my notes, and 

 to whom I express my thanks. E. H. 



