232 



The day was bright and hot and they seemed to be enjoying themselves. 

 On our way back I caught a glimpse of what I took to be a Falcon, pro- 

 bably a Merlin, but it was out of sight before I could get the binocular on 

 to it, and did not show itself above the edge of the plateau again. In the 

 evening I noted a party of twenty-one Peewits in a flock on an isolated 

 piece of moor and about a dozen Pied Wagtails flying and settling on ground 

 where one would rather expect to see Curlews or Grouse. They seemed to 

 be choosing a place for roosting as this was at 9 p.m., but their restlessness 

 might have been due to my prying into their doings. Thus ended my first 

 week's observations. 



(To be continued). 



fl!>\> Hvianes. 



By H. Wili.ford. 



My interest in aviculture was first aroused some seven or eight years 

 ago, although no doubt had circumstances allowed it might have come 

 earlier. 



My first birds were a pair of Golden Pheasants, or about the first, to 

 which for some years I added from time to time, until I think I had most of 

 the better known species, viz., Impeyan, Scemuierring's, Peacock, Siamese, 

 Fireback, Svvinhoe and Tragopan, also the commoner kinds, such as, 

 Reeve's, Versicolor, Elliott, etc., but except with the latter I cannot say 

 that I met with much success in breeding. 



One day, however, some three years ago, I visited a friend's aviaries, 

 and I was so struck with his birds, that from that day I have suffered from 

 an acute form of bird fever. 



I gradually parted with my old friends, the pheasants, and started in a 

 small way to keep Foreign Finches and Parrakeets. My first aviary con- 

 sisted of a shed about 12 x 6 and flight 12 x 18 ft. In this aviary I kept a 

 very mixed lot of birds, mostly finches, and here I succeeded in breeding 

 Zebra Finches, Cutthroats, Diamond Doves (ten from one pair) and Red- 

 billed Weavers. 



This Spring, 1908 (the bird fever becoming more acute), I decided to 

 build a sort of wilderness aviary, for finches, cardinals, etc. I first chose a 

 nice sheltered piece of ground about 51 feet square, levelled and turfed, and 

 planted it with shrubs, but owing to my late start, it was too late in the 

 year for me to have any large trees moved, and so I had preforce to be con- 

 tent with those grown in large pots. 



This fall, however, I have planted this aviary with well grown trees 

 and shrubs, including the following, Portugal Laurels, Box, Bamboo, 

 Variegated Pampas Grass, Spruce, Lupin Tree, Douglassi, Fir, Veronica, 

 Cupressus, and Flowering Currant Bushes ; and also trees that my gardener 

 calls " Marsh Mallow," but I do not know if this is the correct name, the 



