4ir. 



CANARIES, HYBRIDS, AND BRITISH BIRDS 



The Lesser 



Spotted 



WoodpecKer. 



in llio hfsl of cnndilidii on this iliil." They 

 make irilcri'stiii.u prts. iiiid :iic tilso \ ctn' suc- 

 cessful :il cxiiiliilioiis. Iiir which lull m:iluril\-. 

 good colour, (listincl iiKirkin.us. ])(ilccl |ilunKiL;r 

 and sUadiness arc necessary esscniials. A 

 suitalde show caj^e is illustrated on paj^c ll.'>; 

 it is IS inches long, 20 inches hif>h. and 12 

 inches decji : no |)ercli is required, bul il will 

 he ol)scrve<l I hat I he hack and sides of the caf^e 

 are lined with Nirjiinia cork firmly st'cured. 

 This takes Ihc place of ]ierclies. and the hirils 

 prefer (o clind) alioul on this. ,\ similarly 

 construclcd hut larscr cage does for general 

 use. hul it should lie nol less I han 2 feet long. 

 2 feet high, and 1 foot dee|). Both show and 

 living cages unisl he strongly made and wired. 

 and the corners inside tiimed over to ])revenl 

 their occupant making a hole through with its 

 powerful beak. 



The Lesser .Spoiled Woodlieeker. JJcndrticopu.s 

 niiiKir (Xfirldii), is resident south of Yorkshire, 

 and whilst more numerous in 

 man>- districts than the pic- 

 ceding species, is nowlieii' 

 ahundanl. In Scotland it is 

 very scarce and iu Ireland ex'eii rarer. II 

 is generally dishihuled throughout iaunpe. 

 hul less frequently in the soulh. ami alsn 

 ildiahils Soulhern .\sia. II dilfers somewhat 

 from the (ucat Sped ted Woodpecker in 

 flight and call note, hut luceds in the same 

 situations, drilling IkiIis like il in tiees. 

 Though considerably smaller-. Ibis s|)ecies 

 is ralher similar in plumage to the largi'r. 

 I'XcepI lliat llie whiik' ol the tup id llie head (d' 

 the nude is crimson, and llic b-nude bufV\-while. 

 lis food is the same, and iu ca|itivity it sbnuld 

 be Ireated similarly. It is e\cu more sueeesstui 

 at exhibitions than the (deal Spotted, and 

 should be sliiiwii iu a similar- show cage. Iti 

 inches long. I 1 inclus high, and 12 inches deep. 

 It can also be hand reared on Ihe same food. 

 Mr. Sydney I.. Oicks. of I'derboroiigh. hand- 

 reared three of these (taken when aboirt Ihr-ee 

 -weeks old) (ur live ,L;c-rdbs ti-iuu the biij^ht lilur 

 greeii b(jdied M\'. whub is aboirt bah lire si/e id 

 the rrreal lly ( bbrelidt I le). These };<'ntles wcr'e 

 lirst well cleaned in pine sawdust, and one given 

 every half hour, from .'> a.m. to H.'A',) p.m.. 

 impaled on a bent sack medli-. 7 irrches long. 

 This lask lasted lurtil they wer-e ten weeks old. 

 but Ml-, (^ocks remarks, "they wir-c Inn ubl 

 when taken, for. imdoubte(ll\, willr all Diilish 

 lords, eight to leu days old is the brsl a^^e 

 to take bii-ds for band-rearing." \\ herr abb- In 

 fecMl themsehes they were gra(biall\ wiarieil 

 on to Ihe usual insect i\(ir-ous food with a supplx 

 of live gentles. This nest of Miimg wire taken 

 from an ash tree at a height of .'!() feel, ami 

 another from an oak at a heighl of (Id teet. 



The Green 

 WoodpecKer. 



The (ireen Woodpecker, (ifcimis piridis 

 (I)ri'.ssrr), is a fairly corrrrmui resident in most 

 well wooded districts of Kng- 

 biiid, siiuth of Northuniher- 

 land : breeding occasionally 

 irr Ihe Border (bounties, and a very rare acci- 

 dental visitor to Scotland and Ireland. II 

 (lecirrs IhrouglKuit 1-^urope, but not beyond tlu' 

 Mediterranean. Its nesting habits are similar 

 to those of the preceding species, but it is 

 more gaudy in colour. In the adult male the 

 space round the eyes, nasal plumes, and fore 

 part of face are black, with a red lengthened 

 jiateh o\er the lower pari rrmning along the 

 sides of Ihe chin on to the sides of throat ; 

 the to]i of the bead is bright red, running down 

 in a narrow point upon the najie ; the general 

 colour above is yellowish-olive tinted with 

 green, shading on the rum[) to gamboge-yellow; 

 the hinder sides of Ihe face, throat, breast, and 

 under-part are yellowish-grey ; the primaries 

 of the wings are greenish-black, marked on 

 tin- outer webs with square spots of yellowish- 

 white, and at the base of the inner webs with 

 round spots of the same colour. The tail in- 

 clines to black tinted with pale green indis- 

 tiiKtly bordered with a deeper shade. The 

 female is similar to Ihe male, save that it is 

 without the red on the lower sides of the face, 

 and is nol so brilliant in colour. The screaming 

 or laughing-like call of this bird has long earned 

 for it the name of " Yallle." It has the habit 

 cliaracteristic of its sjjecics of clinging to a tree 

 in search of insects, which its long bill and 

 peculiar tongue are particularly adapted to 

 extract from the crevices of the bark. The 

 tail is short, strong, and pointed, being used 

 as a support in climbing. The same kinds of 

 canes and diet as i-eeommeniled for the other 

 Wood)(eekers answer well, but in exiiibiling 

 the larger show cage should be used. Essential 

 points for show are rich colour, the shades 

 distinct, bright and lustrous, combined with 

 good size. ]ierfe(-t plumage, and steadiness. 



The I )ip|)er, 1 loopoe. Kinglisher. and Nightjar, 

 the various Doves. Haxen and id her Crows, 

 Hawks. Owls, Plovers, and many other birds, 

 are amenable to captivity under certain con- 

 ditions, and where space is not at a premium, 

 many of tliese make ileliLjbltuI ]iets. The scope 

 lit this work dors rrot. Imwex i-r'. perruil of our 

 dealing with Ibeirr here, and for the Same 

 reason we ha\e had reluctantly to omit many 

 inleresling birds which occasionally visit these 

 islands. We are deei)ly indebted and grateful 

 to those who have so willingly given their 

 experierrces with xarious bir-ds. and tinrs lu-lped 

 rrs iu our eirdcax our- to make our- text in- 

 structive arret irrlcrest ing to the experienced 

 and inexpcrienei'd alike. 



