226 Tlip Ne^Hno (>f tlip TnilifDi Wlilte-pije. 



The Nesting of the Indian White-eye. 



{Zostr)o])s paJjichrosa) . 

 By Wesley T. Page, F.Z.S., Etc. 

 I may he wrong, but I think my pair of this charm- 

 ing species were the only living specimens in this country 

 at the time of their arrival, tliough in the past they may have 

 been brought over in small quantities. But it is the African 

 species tiiat is b.est Icnown (o English aviculturi.sts, and ,so 

 far as I can ascertain the present is tlie fii-.st time Z. paJpe- 

 hrosa has been bred in captivity. 



In Mai'cli of this year our esteemed ineniber, Lieut. 

 Kennedy was visiting tliis country, and my friend and 

 fellow member, Capt. Perreau, took this opportunity of 

 sending me a present of some rare Indian species— owing 

 to ^veather conditions two White -eyes were the sole survivors — 

 in parenthesis I may remark that Lieut. Kennedy kindly 

 presented me with three Croy-headed Ouzels (Menda caslanca), 

 and I afso acquired a pair of Streaked Laugliing .Thruslies 

 {Trochalopternm lineatnw), and save for the loss of the 

 certain female of M. castavca, all arc doing welL 



They andved Just before Easter, and were at once 

 turned into my very recently completed outdoor aviary (see 

 plafo and j)lan). where they at once made them-elves at home, the 

 White-eyes especially deli.^liting me l)y their both wren- and 

 tit -like habits and demeanour, lieing smaller and more slender 

 than the African species, and very fragile in appearance— 

 however, they certainly are not fragile, quite the reverse, 

 and no birds in the aviary have borne with more equanimity 

 the cold spells they have had to contend with on and off since 

 arrival. 



As regards diet nothing seems to come amiss to Ihom — 

 to meet the needs of a mixed series, seeds, milk sop, live 

 insects, insectile mixture and ripe fruit arc supplied. The 

 White-eyes take a little of all, swallowing millet seed whole, 

 but the main diet is milk sop, fruit, and live insects, from 

 sunrise to sunset — except for very brief intervals of rest, 

 they are on the forage for live food, both in the long grass 

 and running creeper -like about the branches of the trees 

 in their enclosure, or clinging tit -like to the slenderest twig 

 in their eager search for prey. 



