134 My Indian Consignment. 



l^urtly opened wings, turning liis iiead and poking his beak 

 through the bars to tickle the heads of his neighbours. The 

 Hanging Parrakeets on his other side would have none of it, 

 but Stuffy seemed to enjoy it very much, though lie always 

 seemed a bit nervous at the start of a bout. This would 

 go on sometimes for twenty minutes at a time. According 

 to our standard of beauty the bird had no special vanity to 

 display. One could have understood it, had he possessed 

 axillary plumes; perhaps his ancestors once had them, or his 

 descendants will have them. I wish he had a chance of de- 

 scendants in captivit5^ People asked if I was going to 

 breed from the incongruous pair. I can hardly think of a less 

 likely hybrid. 



I should not think he would stand great cold, though 

 I had him in an unheated room with a door always open when it 

 was snowing outside. I would not tru^t him again with a 

 smaller bird; verb. sap. His plumage is greenish, lighter 

 below, with Iblack streaks. Sizeji 7 inches, including a tail of two 

 and a Ijill of 1.8 inches. Gates states that the nest is an 

 open cup of vegetable fibres felted together, mingled with 

 dead leaves, and lined with grass. It has a wide range, and 

 occurs up to 5,000 feet. I believe it is fairly common in 

 some parts, so I hope others will come home. I ought to 

 apologise again, but will try to make up for tlie length of 

 this by cutting down the writing about the remaining bird 

 figured. 



The Larger Red -headed Grow -Tit {Scacorhynchus 

 rujiceps) is the only one of their curious family and my bird 

 (now presented to the Zoo) is the only one of his species 

 I have seen alive, and that I never saw wild as he, (or may b& 

 she) wa3 brought to me, with several Laughing Thrushes, in 

 a loosely -woven grass bag. Gur first acquaintance was pain- 

 ful as he got first grip; I couldn't see into the bag, and the 

 Gurkha coolies thoroughly enjoyed the joke of not telling me 

 there was a biter in the bag. Several men had been caught 

 with the same joke. I thought it was a Parrot from the feel, 

 but concluded it must be a rare one from the size and. hung 

 on, though I fancy I 'liad little choice, as the bird was fright- 

 ened and in the dark. He did not let go at once even when 



