224 GLIMPSES OF INDIAN BIRDS 



Finn in The Birds of Calcutta : *' The purple cock 

 apparently thinks his wedding garment too ex- 

 pensive to be worn the whole year round ; for after 

 nesting he doffs it, and assumes female plumage, 

 retaining only a purple streak from chin to stomach 

 as a mark of his sex. ... I well remember one bird 

 which came to the museum compound after breeding 

 to change his plumage ; he kept very much to two 

 or three trees, singing, apparently, from one particular 

 twig, and even when in undress he kept up his song." 



Since reading the above I have watched purple 

 sunbirds carefully, and have observed that during 

 the months of November and December cocks in 

 full breeding plumage are very rarely seen, although 

 there is no lack of cocks in the eclipse plumage de- 

 scribed by Finn. 



Moreover, a purple sunbird which is being kept 

 in an aviary in England assumes eclipse plumage for 

 a short period each year at the beginning of winter. 

 Thus there can be no doubt that the cock of the 

 purple species does doff his gay plumage after the 

 nesting season, but only for a short period. In January 

 the majority of cocks are in breeding plumage, and, 

 indeed, in some parts of the country nest building 

 begins as early as February. 



