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to their food table, then sulk a bit and if kept any longer they 

 filled up with seed in an aggrieved fashion ; no silliness about 

 these. 



They are strictly arboreal, I have seen them walking about 

 on the ground but very seldom, and doubt their ever doing so in a 

 state of nature ; they looked out of place there. They seldom fly 

 except for exercise and at the courting season ; when they do go 

 ill for flying exercise they are truly lovely. Few birds look and 

 are (according to my experience thoroughly understood) so gentle 

 and few can look so fiendish ; though it is all bluff, their vicious 

 expression seems most effective. With fear and trembling I have 

 watched them in my bird room here, when a large portion of the 

 Indian birds I brought home with me were loose at the same 

 time. Their favourite perch was the wall end of a certain stick. 

 My dear old Musky Lorikeets also liked this perch and often 

 had it owing to the need for frequent stoking up on the part of 

 L. galguhis. My Rosy Pastors also thought they liked this place, 

 but they seldom got nearer the coveted end than the middle of the 

 stick, though they talked a lot, mostly bad language, and full of 

 threats. Still my birds could see they were only bluffing. The 

 Muskies would not hurt anything, but gave the impression of 

 going in for some good-humoured horse play ; their practical jokes 

 on each other and their noisy conversation would make any 

 quiet loving bird avoid their neighbourhood. Anyhow this hardy 

 old couple have always been used to having their own way. Back 

 came the Blue-crowned from having a gorge at the nearest bit of 

 fruit, coining up hand over hand at a great pace over the cages ; a 

 bit of deliberation and the necessary little bit of fly on to the end 

 of the stick is accomplished. The Pastors turn from cussing the 

 Muskies who do not notice their attentions, but continue 

 boisterously chaffing each other, and pour a torrent of abusive 

 language at the inoffensive-looking little birds sitting upright 

 and quite still at the very end of the perch. Then the nearer 

 little bird turns towards the enemy, crouches a bit, stretches out 

 his (or her) neck and opens his beak to an almost incredible 

 extent and stays quite still while the partner gets as near as she 

 is able and backs him up with a similar face. Then he takes a short 

 little run straight along the perch in the same position, quite 



