Caff e- Birds of Calcutta. 437 



Family P i t t i d Ji. 

 A few specimens of Pitta brachyura — hand-reared birds — 

 occasionally come into Mr. Rutledge's hands, but this 

 species is certainly not common in cages. Although not a 

 songster^ it makes a very nice pet, owing to its tameness 

 and amusing gestures. 



Family V icm m. 



The only Woodpecker caged here, and that but rarely, is 

 the common Brachypternus «M?Ym^iMs, hand-reared specimens 

 of which get very tame and thrive well in confinement. 

 From the readiness with which they partake of plantains, I 

 fancy that the species must he naturally more or less of a 

 fruit-eater. The outer hind toe (third toe) is certainly 

 reversible in this species — and, indeed, in some other Wood- 

 peckers that I have noticed — for it often points laterally 

 forwards when the bird is moving about in a cage. Nestlings 

 of this species have a warty pad on the hough, and shuffle 

 about on it without the aid of the toes. 



Family CAPiTONiDiE. 



I have more than once seen a statement in print that 

 Barbets do not thrive well in captivity ; but this is quite a 

 mistake, at all events as regards most Indian forms. The 

 first Barbet 1 ever saw alive was an example of Cyanops 

 asiatica, which lived for at least six years in the London 

 Zoological Society's Parrot-house. This species is the easiest 

 of all to keep, both hand-reared and wild-caught birds being 

 exposed for sale in the Tiretta Bazaar, where some may prac- 

 tically always be found. Several individuals may safely 

 be placed together in one cage, which is not the case with 

 other Barbets, and a great many must reach Europe ; indeed, 

 the bird is only kept for export, and is certainly not unfre- 

 quently on sale in England. A few specimens of Megalcema 

 marshallorum and of There'iceryx zeylonicus are occasionally 

 seen here, and M. virens sometimes arrives from China. 

 The Coppersmith {Xantholaema licBmatocephala) is often 

 brought in to the dealers, but never lives long, as they will 



