84 



THE OSPREY. 



The Hut. 



"I had now full eniploynient in the prepara- 

 tionof my treasure, and I gave orders to my 

 people not to shoot many of the birds. The 

 nest I had seen first was the nearest one to my 

 halting- place. One morninf^ I took colours, 

 brushes, pencils, and gun, and went to the spot. 

 I there made the sketch which I now publish 

 (fig-. 1). While I was there neither host nor 

 hostess were at home. I could not wait for 

 them. My hunters saw them entering- and go- 

 ing- out, when they watched their movements to 

 shoot them. I could not ascertain whether this 

 bower was occupied by one pair or by several 

 pairs of birds, or whether the sexes were in 

 equal or unequal numbers — whether the male 



ingf manner, resting- on the ground, leaving- an 

 aperture for the entrance. Thus is obtained a 

 conical and ver^' regular hut. When the work 

 is complete manj' other branches are placed 

 transversely in various wa^'s, to make the whole 

 quite firm and impermeable. A circular gallery 

 is left between the walls and the central cone. 

 The whole is nearl}' 3 feet in diameter. All the 

 stems used by the Amblyornis are the thin stems 

 of an Orchid (Dendrobium), an epiphyte form- 

 ing larg-e tufts on the mossy branches of great 

 trees, easily bent like straw, and generally 

 about 20 in. long. The stalks had the leaves, 

 which are small and straight, still fresh and liv- 

 ing on them; which leads me to conclude that 

 this plant was selected b^' the bird to prevent 

 rotting and mould in the building, since it keeps 



Hut of the Gardener Bird, Amblvonus inoriiatus. 



alone was the builder, or whether the wife as- 

 sisted in the construction. I believe, however, 

 that such a nest lasts for several seasons. 



"The Amblyornis selects a fiat even place 

 around the trunk of a small tree, that is as thick 

 and as high as a walking-stick of middle-size. 

 It begins by constructing at the base of the tree 

 a kind of a cone, chiefly of moss, of the size of 

 a man's hand. The trunk of the tree becomes 

 the central pillar, and the whole building is sup- 

 ported by it. The height of the pillar is a little 

 less than that of the whole of the hut, not quite 

 reaching 2 feet. On the top of the central pillar 

 twigs are then methodically placed in a radiat- 



alive for a long time, as is so often the case with 

 epiphytical Orchids. 



"The refined sense of the bird is not satisfied 

 with building a hut. It is wonderful to find that 

 the bird has the same ideas as a man, that is to 

 sa^', what pleases the one gratifies the other. 

 The passion for flowers and gardens is a sign of 

 good taste and refinement. I discovered that 

 the inhabitants of Arfak, however, did not fol- 

 low the example of the Amblyornis. Their 

 houses are quite inaccessible from dirt. 



The Gakden. 



"Now let me describe the garden of the Am- 



