226 Correspondence. 



be made as light as possible, and all the work not crowded 

 into the last week, as under such conditions, the quality of 

 the contents of the magazine must suffer. 



Donations are also needed to the Illustration Fund if 

 Uienumberandqualityof the illustrations are to be maintained. 



Correspondence 



INTEREST AND DISAPPOINTMENT. 



Sir.— My Silver-earcKMesias (JA-.s-;,; r.iijfitUuirix) built :i nest in late 

 May, laid and steadily incul)ated a clutch of three eggs ; both sexes shared 

 the duties of incubation and relieved eacli other at regular intervals, and 

 pretty equally bore the Inirden of the work. The nest is rather massive, 

 constructed of hay, shavings, and a few dead leaves, very neatly fashioned 

 and fastened to the pine branches hammock-wise. It is a deep nest, and the 

 birds almost disappear within it when sitting. On June 20th they hatched 

 out three chicks, which they fed from the crop on mealworms, I was in 

 great hopes of their being reared for all went well for two days, but alas ! 

 on the 23rd they were all dead— they were just getting their eyes open and 

 the feather tracts were developing. I saw their parents feeding them just 

 before going to roost on the 22nd. The cock wants to so to nest again, but 

 I rather hope the hen will refuse, she is not very keen on it. As far as I 

 coukl see they fed the young entirely on mealworms (just as the Pekin 

 Robins did with their brood for the first week) nipping and mashing them 

 in their beaks tirst. They would not touch green fly or ants' eggs or soft 

 food. 



It is very curious how hard they are to rear ; so many aviculturists 

 h ive had l)roods, and the old birds are so easily kept in health and beauty. 

 The Mesias < ggs are like those of the Greenfinch and tl.e Pekin Robin— blue 

 blotched with red. 



Next door to the ]\Iesias, the Blue Sugai'birds [Duciiis caijana) are 

 (June 8th) building a very dainty little nest of tow and cotton wool. The 

 hen does the work, but the cock follows her everywhere and encourages her 

 with ereat fervour. They are building in a thick Cypress bough in the flight 

 part of their aviary. These birds are finger tame. Two eggs were laid, enor- 

 mously large for the size of the bird: long, white, heavily spotted and blotched 

 with red. On the morning of the 19th, I found her dead oji the floor of the 

 flight -I suspect apoplexy. Had any young been hatched I meant to try 

 green fly, for the adults are very fond of it, audit appeared a likely food for 

 the young I shall replace her as soon as opportunity offers, but all hopts 

 of breeding the species have gone for this year, and I have lost a charming 

 pet. [Mr. Ai-mstein has had youi^g hatched out on several occasions in his 

 aviaries, biit up to the present none have lived to leave tlie nest, tliough 

 several have been partially fledged.-=-Ed}. 



I have just i)rocined from I\Iajor Horsbrugh's Indian consignment a 

 pair of little Black-chinned Yuhinas, and very jolly little folk they arc too, 

 though in i)oor feather, having been much i)lucked by Zosterops, which were 



