Mr. L. E. Taylor — Notes from Cape Colony. 85 



that the birds find their nests by recognizing their mates 

 or the birds belonging to the nest in the immediate vicinity 

 of their own, and it is at any rate obvious that they are made 

 painfully aware of their mistake when they alight near the 

 wrong nest. 



About 200 tons of guano are collected on Bird Island yearly, 

 and after the rocks have been scraped bare of guano, feathers, 

 rubbish, and clay are spread over the rocks to give the 

 birds a foundation for their nests in the following year, 

 as it is thought that they might otherwise desert the spot. 



Bradypterus sylvaticus. — Last year I obtained two 

 specimens of this little-known Warbler at Knysna. They ar(; 

 found only in very thick forest and are extremely difficult to 

 procure. Although belonging to one of the genera com- 

 prising the Reed Warblers, they are never, as far as I know, 

 found near reeds. 



Phlexis victorini. — I found this Warbler to be very plen- 

 tiful in many localities round Knysna, but I think that it is 

 without exception the most difficult bird I ever tried to procure 

 a specimen of. The reason for this is its extreme tameness 

 and its habit of creeping about in the " feiu bosch '' ; one 

 might follow it for days and never get a shot which w^ould 

 not blow it to pieces. I do not agree with Dr. Stark, who 

 says that it has a somewhat feeble song. For the size of the 

 bird it has, in my opinion, an extremely powerful note, com- 

 parable with that of some of the Sunbirds. 



Lagonosticta rubricata. — I obtained three specimens of 

 this Waxbill at Knysna and Keurbooms River in the same 

 District, and I also saw one male near Grootvaders Bosch in 

 the Swellendam District. It has not been previously recorded 

 west of Grahamstown, so that its range is now considerably 

 extended. 



Graucalus c^sius. — I shot one of these Cuckoo-Shrikes 

 in the forest of Grootvaders Bosch, this being probably its 

 extreme western range. It is a common species in the 

 Knysna Forest. 



Lanius collurio. — I obtained a pair of these Shrikes at 



7* 



