All rig/ify reserved. October, 11)16. 



BIRD NOTES: 



THE 



JOURNAL OF THE FOREIGN BIRD CLUB 



The Breeding of a Hybrid Crimson-crowned 

 Weaver X Red-collared Whydah. 



By W. Shore Baily. 



Last vSeptcmber I was able to send you an account of 

 the rearing of two Red-collared Whydahs in one of my 

 aviaries. This year in the same enclosure I have succeeded 

 in rearing" a young hybrid from a Crimson-crowned Weaver 

 cock, and my old Red-collared Whydah hen. The little hybrid 

 should make a very handsome bird if it lives to obtain full 

 breeding plumage, which I hope that it nxaydo. 



It was the first week in May and in rather cold weather,. 

 that I turned into the aviary two cock Crimson Crowned 

 Weavers, an Orange Weaver cock. Red-shouldered Whydah 

 Cock, and my young Red-collared Whydah- cock, and with 

 them hens Red-collared and Red-shouldered Whydahs and 

 Crimson-crowned Weaver. The other occupants of the aviary 

 were pairs of Yellow \\'eav:'rs, Bronze-wing and Diamond Doves, 

 Zebra Finches. Black-cheeked Lovebirds, and an odd, male 

 Blue-winged Lovebird. The aviary being a large one, they 

 were by no means overcrowded, and did not take long to- 

 settle down. Nothing much happened for the first two 

 months, except the rearing of young Diamond and Bronze- 

 wing Doves, but towards the end of July I found the deserted 

 nest of the Red-shouldered Whydah, containing eggs of both 

 Whydahs. The Red-collared hen had evidently driven away 

 the smaller bird. 1 gathered from this that the Red-collared 

 Whydah hen, does not build her own nest, but depends on 

 the cock doing so, as is the case with the Weavers. My young 

 Red-collar cock was too much bullied by the other birds ut 



