148 Keep/77 f) of SnffhiJJs in Cages 



on the live-food, and leave the stock-food alone. Another 

 splendid adjunct is wasp-gruh, and a few of these might also 

 be added with advantage to the food. As these live foods 

 are very stimulating, the use of mealworms, if the birds have 

 been used to any, must be discontinued during the whole time 

 they are fed upon additional live food. As a matter of fact 

 I lam rather inclined to discourage the use of mealworms ; at 

 any rate they should be given sparingly, and only at a time 

 when the birds are actually in song, and then, according to size 

 of bird, from 6 to 24 a day will do no harm. On the other 

 hand, if birds are largely fed on same, mischief, particularly! 

 foot trouble, is sure to follow. Being very stimulative and 

 fattening, some birds will get such a craving for mealworms 

 as almost to refuse other food, and once a bird has become 

 unduly corpulent, it is one of the most difficult problems to 

 reduce the bulk and restore the equilibrium. Stout birds 

 as a rule do not enjoy good health, and very seldom sing. 

 Whilst on this subject I may state my personal experience 

 with two birds which are very much given to over feeding 

 during the 'winter months, and in consequence not long lived, 

 and further how I overcame the difficulty. The two birds 

 in question are the Garden "Warbler and Icterine Warbler, and 

 the 'guardian angel has been fruit and plenty of exercise. 

 Nearly all Warblers will eat fruit in the autumn, so I thought 

 I would try it also on the two above mentioned, although none 

 of the authorities I consulted made a mention of it. All are 

 agreed that both these birds are rather voracious and over- 

 feed during the winter months: they eat nearly all day long, 

 which makes them very corpulent by January or February, 

 amd as that is their time of moulting, either they do not moult 

 at all, or die in the attempt. The question therefore was how 

 to keep them in a good state of health to get over the moult. 

 To this end I first of all put them in a large cage, ktept 

 the food vessels far apart, so as to induce exercise, and then 

 tried a fruit diet, leaving curds and eggs out of the 

 stock-food. Both birds throve well, and the Icterine Warbler 

 is now in his third year of captivity, looking as well as ever.' 

 All healthy soft -bills should be in song from Becemb-er 

 —January, to June— July. They do not break into full song 

 at once, but conimence softly at first, increasing their volume 



