iS6 Whydahs 



The names in the first List have been collected from time to 

 time for a i^ood many years from many sources. 



While on this subject a few words on the name 

 " Whydah " itself will not be out of place. This appears to be 

 the most generally used and the best name for these birds, 

 though " Widow", " Widow-bird " runs it a good second. 

 Professor Newton in the ' Dictionary of Birds ' supported 

 (p. 1030) the use of the latter name, as the earliest, having been 

 introduced in 1745 by Edwards, who wrote (I quote from the 

 Dictionary) that " the Portuguese call this bird the Widow from 

 its colour and long train". Whydah " on the other hand is a 

 name of Latham's, first used in 1783 (Sh.iv.13). In spite 

 however of " Widow's " priority, I prefer " Whydah ", not 

 only because it has the majority of modern supporters behind 

 it, but also for its African origin and sound, which seem to fit 

 the birds so much better than does the rival name. 



The following is a list of the chief modern works in which 

 the Whydahs are dealt with and to which I shall so continually 

 be referring, as too I hope my readers will also. After each I 

 give in brackets the abbreviation used in my references. 

 Shelley's Birds of Africa, vol. iv. 1905. (Sh.). — Deals with all Whydahs. 

 St.\rk .\nd Sclater's Birds of South Africa, vol. i. 1900. — The South 



African Species. 

 Butler's Foreign Finches in Captivity. iSp.^ (Butler. FF.).- — Six of the best 



known as cage birds, with life like coloured plates. 

 Butler's Foreign Birds for Cage and Az'iary. part. i. 1906 circa. (Butler). — 



All known as cage birds. 

 British Museum C.\talogue. vol. .xiii. 1890. (BM. Cat. or C.\i.) 

 British Museum H.\nd List. vol. v. 1909. (H.L.v). The list of species here 

 is the one 1 use, and from it I also take the habitats of the different 

 species. 

 The abbreviations, A.M. and B.N., I need hardly say, refer to the 

 Avicultural Magazine and Bird Ncites respectively, and Ibis needs 

 neither abbreviation or explanation. 



Other older books to which references appear are Gedney's Foreign 

 Cage Birds, — the Foreigners by Wiener — (CassellJ, Swainson's Birds of 

 West Africa (Sw.) and the two German works of Russ (Die Fremdldndisclien 

 Stubenvogel. vol. i.) and Reichenbach (Die Sing%'dgel), the latter valuable 

 for its numerous and in most cases good coloured figures, the former the 

 well-known compendium of all things avicultural. These appear as (Russ) 

 and (Singv.) 



Another atuhority, a recent one, is also German, but it I have not seen 

 and therefore give no references. This is Reichenow's Die Vogel Africas. 

 (1901-05), 



(To be continued). 



