57 



successful foreign bird-keeping is a dry ground surface of the 

 aviary, else a fouled wet soil is likely to ferment during milder 

 weather and set up an epizootic. 



Providing one starts with a healthy stock one may keep 

 even the little African Fire-finches, Cordon Bleus, Nonpareils, 

 Lineolated Parrakeels, etc., out all the winter and spring with 

 success. My deaths among birds kept out of doors have not 

 taken place during the coldest weather, but when it has changed 

 from cold to warm or mugginess and wet. I have not noticed 

 any superior advantage in keeping most species in the house. 

 There are, however, exceptions to this even amongst those 

 thoroughly acclimatised to the cold room within doors. Red- 

 faced Love Birds, kept for more than a year exposed in a cage in 

 an open alcove, seemed in the pink of condition until turned out 

 into an open aviary on a fine day in spring, when they suc- 

 cumbed within a week. I will, however, allow that the nights 

 turned chilly and the birds seem to have had no sense of taking 

 cover. 



I do not believe in artificial heat in a bird-room during the 



winter if the birds have got acclimatised to the room. But 



newly-purchased ones frequently succumb to cold, as they often 



do under any conditions. There is no harm in covering them up 



until they get accustomed to their new surroundings and have 



got over the rough usage they have been subjected to during 



their transit from the catcher to the purchaser. Draughts are 



fatal. 



The majority of freshly-imported birds coming from 



dealers die soon after they have been purchased by the avicul- 



turist. The cause of this may be attributed to several factors, 



the principal of which are: — 



(i) Infection contracted at the large bird-market or at the 



dealer's establishment. 



(2) Exposure and bad treatment during transit, which may 



bring on an auto-infection. 



(3) Improper food or a too sudden change in the quality or 



quantity of the food. 

 I. — Infection contracted at the large bird- market or at the 

 dealer's establishment is the principal cause of mortality. It 



