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Mr. L. M. Seth-Smith,



and one frequently hears them calling, sometimes becoming very

persistent in their endeavours to attract attention. I have tried

to follow them, but have never yet found a bees’-nest through

their means. On one occasion, my men were cutting a line

through forest when they came to a tree with a strong bees’-nest

in it; after some hesitation and many stings (I personally kept

in the background) grass and leaves were brought up, a smoky

fire lighted below and the tree was cut down by some spirits

more plucky than the majority. The next day, when passing the

spot, I saw a good many bees going in and out, but the hole had

been enlarged and the honey extracted, and probably the bees

were more infuriated than ever. While watching, to my great

surprise, a Honey Guide ( Indicator variegatus) flew out of the

hole. It had been right in among the angry bees, and one would

think not a welcome intruder. I can only surmise that its skin,

which is almost as tough as leather, is able to withstand the bees’

stings, though how it protects its eyes and more vulnerable parts

I cannot say.


The nest of the Hammer-headed Stork ( Scopus umbretta)

is well-known to most of our readers, either from books or from

the nest, out of which a young bird was (last season) reared in

the Zoological Gardens. I have only once come across this nest

in Uganda, placed in the fork of a tree some thirty feet from the

ground. The nest had been taken possession of by a pair of

Kestrels ( Cerchneis cirdesiacus') which had a fine brood of three

young ones in March of this year. One of these young birds

found its way later to the Zoological Gardens, being the first of

its species received there, but, unfortunately, it did not survive

more than a few weeks.


The stately Crested Crane (Balcaiica pavonina) is common

in parts of Uganda, and is to be seen round about most of the

Government stations. It makes a lovely pet, and quite an orna¬

ment to one’s garden. I brought one up from quite a chick when

last in Uganda, and it used to go about with my chickens. Later

on, when full grown, it still stayed about and, although others of

its species were frequently close at hand, it never seemed to have

any inclination to join them, but every night slept on the roof

of my bungalow, sometimes, on a brilliant moonlight night,



