44 Feeding and Keeping Ihirdbills. 



Yellow, Cirl and other biintint^s; Cardinals in variety; Alario, 

 Pileated, Cuban. Olive, Red-crested, Guttural, Lined, Reddish, 

 Saffron, White-throated, and Singing- Finches, Cape Canary, 

 Serins in variety (the whole of the genus Scrinus), Seed-eaters, 

 Seed-Finches, Chaffinch; all (English and Foreign) Bullfinches, 

 Linnets, Greenfinches, and vSiskins; Twites, 'Redpolls, Song- 

 Sparrows, etc. 



I think the above lists should make clear, even to the 

 Novice, the various groups included in these two main families 

 of Hardbii.ls. Further, I hope the various menus given under 

 the respective headings for mixed collections, aviaries, and 

 cages will enable the veriest iyro to keep them successfully, and 

 also enable them to avoid needless loss when making" a start, or 

 when receiving a new species. 



Menu for aviary, in zvhicJi a mixed collection, Ploceidae 

 AND Fringillidae, is kept : First, — It is best to have sufficient 

 seed-hoppers to enable one to supply each kind of seed separate- 

 ly, as this is a much less wasteful method than supplying all in 

 one general mixture. Again it is important wdien buying seed to 

 get only the best and to reject any sample that is dusty or has 

 the slightest musty odour. Further, I have found that for 

 foreign species a smallish canary seed is far better than that sold 

 as giant canary seed; but what you get must be plump, clean and 

 sweet. 



To meet the needs of both these Families of hardbills, 

 both English and Foreign species, you must supply the 

 following : — 



Seeds : The following I advise to be supplied separately, 

 viz: canary, white millet, Indian millet, and millet sprays. 

 As mixtures (i) 2 parts each sunflower and saffiower. and i part 

 hemp. (2) Wild seed mixture as bought. (3) 2 parts linseed 

 and I part maw seed. Note: All mixtures should be com- 

 pounded by measure, not by weight. 



Greenfood : For foreign species nothing surpasses 

 flowering and seeding grass, which by residents in the country 

 (home and southern counties at any rate ) is obtainable all the year 

 round : in frosty weather it can be gathered and kept indoors 

 (stems or roots in water) for six to twelve hours before it is sup- 

 plied to the birds. General garden weeds, also in the flowering 



