140 



THE OSPREY. 



when I was there (September and (Jctober 

 answering- to our March and April) was cer- 

 tainly the Cape Dove ( Turtur capicola). The 

 somewhat harsh and gratini;- love-Call of this 

 species could be heard at all times of the day, 

 both in the city and suburbs, although it was 

 not always easy to discover the exact posi- 

 tion of the utterer. The call is something like 

 three sylables 'ka/i-kay-iv/ioo,' with the last note 

 much prolonged. The bird was evidently in- 

 tending- to breed everywhere, like our Wood- 

 Pigeon in the parks of L,ondon and Paris. I also 

 occasionally saw and heard a rather smaller 

 Dove with a much softer and quite difi'erent call, 

 which I take to have been Tidinr scneiialensis. 



"The other birds that I most frequently 

 noticed in the gardens at Capetown were the 

 Cape Sparrow {Passer arcuafiis), the Cape Wag- 

 tail [3/otacilla capi'nsis\, and the Collared Shrike 

 [Lauius col/aris). 



"The Cape Sparrow is certainly not nearly so 

 abundant as its British representative in London, 

 but seems to have nearly similar habits. It was 

 commencing- to breed in the gardens, and builds 

 nests similar to those of its European alh^ The 

 Cape Wagtail maj' be seen pursuing insects on 

 the well-kept grass-plots surrounding" the Parlia- 

 ment House, and is quite tame and familiar. 



"The Collared Shrike, which I saw every day 

 on passing- through the Mmiicipal Gardens up 

 to the Museum, shows its pied plumage well 

 amongst the green foliage of the trees. It is a 

 most ferocious little villain, and if care is not 

 taken it will enter the verandas and kill the pet 

 birds there suspended in their cag-es. Two in- 

 stances of the death of canaries in this way oc- 

 curred during my stay in Capetown. 



"The Olivaceous ThrvMih {Turdns oli-L'aceus), 

 the 'Sprew' Starling- {Aiiiydnis luorio), the so- 

 called Cape 'Robin' [Cossyp/ia caffra), and the 

 Bakbakiri Bush-Shrike (Laniariiis bakbakii-i) are 

 four other species that are occasionally seen in 

 the g-ardens and the town and suburbs, but I 

 should not call an3' one of them abundant. The 

 Olivaceous Thrush picks about on the ground 

 like our Song- Thrush, and the Bush-Shrike has 

 somewhat similar habits, but attracts attention 

 by a variety of sweet whistling- notes and is said 

 to have imitative faculties. 



"A loquat-tree (J'/iotiiiia japoiiica) with ripen- 

 ing fruit is the most likely place to see the Cape 

 Bulbul {Pyciwnotiis capensis). The ridiculous 

 claim of this bird to fig-ure in the British List 

 should be scouted by all sensible persons. It is 

 a strictly local South African species and does 

 not range far north. 



"The pretty Yellow Weaver-bird [Sitagra 

 capensis) I was delig-hted to find busy in con- 

 structing its excessively neat hanging nests in 

 many gardens of the city and suburbs. One 

 small community had selected a willow-tree close 

 to the Public Library, near the celebrated Oak- 

 walk, for the purpose. I never failed to stop as 

 I passed by every day to admire the sprig"htly 

 and active way in which these little birds exer- 

 cised their craft. In another spot the ill-advised 

 builders had selected a bunch of pap3'rus-stalks 

 in an ornamental pond for the seat of their ope- 



rations. So soon as the neat was complete the 

 weight of the structure broke the papyrus down, 

 and Caused the fall of stalk and nest into the 

 water beneath. But the indefatigable birds 

 would take no heed of this event, and com- 

 menced their fruitless work again on an adjoin- 

 ing- stalk. 



"In a g-arden at Sea-point, the marine suburb 

 of Capetown, I was much delighted, on an after- 

 noon in September, to witness the proceedings 

 of a small fiock of Colies (believed to have been 

 CoUus capensis). They were creeping- about in 

 a small tree-like shrub, and having'- searched it 

 thoroug-hly throug-h proceeded to another. 

 Their curious mouse-like climbing- antics and 

 the positions assumed are known to Us from 

 captive specimens in the Regent's Park, but this 

 was ni}* only opportunity of witnessing their 

 evolutions in a natural condition. As the egg-s 

 of this isolated form — one of the most distinctive 

 Ethiopian types of bird life — are not well known, 

 I beg leave to exhibit some specimens of them. 



"On the margin of the pond on Sea-point Com- 

 mon I also noticed specimens of a Pipit [Anthiis 

 sp. inc.) and a shall Shore-Plover {yEgia/ifis), 

 but could not be certain as to the species. 



"Two ascent.^ of the well-known and nlost 

 picturesque mountain which rises to a height of 

 some 2500 feet above Capetown, introduced me 

 to several birds which I had not seen below. 

 The splendid /'ro/ra-shrubs just coming- into 

 flower were the resort of two forms of bird-life 

 which were quite new to me /;/ natura. These 

 were the long-tailed Provierops cafer — another 

 exclusively Ethiopian type — and the Sun-birds 

 [Anfhobaphes and Cinnyris). Promerops appears 

 to have been modified specially to feed on the 

 nectar of the species of Proteaceae which are so 

 abundant on the hills of Southern Africa, but 

 no doubt, it also avails itself of the insects 

 attached to the same flowers. On Table Moun- 

 tain I also observed specimens of a very fine 

 Rock-Thrush — Moniicola explorator, I believe — 

 and an occasional Crow [Corviis scapulatus). Of 

 the latter a single specimen appears to have 

 taken up its abode in the garden of Groot Schuur, 

 in the society of the Rooks which Mr. Rhodes has 

 lately imported from Europe. 



"On the Cape Flats just outside Capetown the 

 Secretary-bird (Serpentai-itis secrefarius) still 

 builds his nest every year, though I did not see 

 it in this locality. A pair of young Secretary- 

 birds now in the Museum Grounds at Capetown 

 were obtained here in 1898, and two eggs were 

 taken from the same nest on the IStli October 

 this year. It is curious that onr familiar Heron 

 (Ardea cinerea) inhabits the 'vle^-s" in the same 

 district, and that the Great Crested Grebe (Podi- 

 cipcs crisfafiis) is a regular breeder there. 



"Finally, I may mention that enormous flocks 

 of the Dominican Gull (Lariis dominicantis) and 

 the Cape Cormorant [Phalacrocorax capensis) 

 frequent the harbor of Table Bay, and are ac- 

 companied by small parties of the Cape Penguin 

 (Sp/ieniscNS deinersiis). Outside the harbour the 

 ships are likewise attended by numerous Giant 

 Petrels {Majacjiiens ceqiiinocfialis) and occasional 

 Albatrosses [Dioniedea melanopJirys)/'' 



