44 



FOREIGN BIRDS FOR CAGE AND AVIARY. 



<iurifrons. I have seen very few nests, and of these 

 it can only be remarked that two were deeper than 

 any I have seen nf that bird, one measuring over 1.8in. 

 and the other 2.05in. It builds in the same sort of 

 position also, but selects higher trees, and I have not 

 taken any nest below 25ft., and one or two from very 

 much more lofty sites, whereas C. aurifrons seems to 

 prefer a height of some 12ft. to 20ft. I do not remem- 

 ber seeing any nest of this ('hli>rup.''is which contained, 

 amongst the materials of which it was composed, any 

 green moss. Both birds breed during much the same 

 period. The few eggs I have seen of this handsome 

 (-'hloro/Jfis could not possibly be distinguished from 

 those of C. aurifrons, and differ from those of C. 

 jerdoni only in their much greater size, averaging, as 



they do, 0.91in. by 0.61in. I have one egg 



among these seven which is exceptionally large, mea- 

 suring l.OSin. by 0.7in.. and it is worthy of 

 note that I shou'd h.ive found abnormally large' eggs 

 both of C. aurifrons and C. ftan/wickii, the more 

 especially as I have seen but very small series of both." 



Between the years 1879, when a single example of 

 this species reached the London Zoulogioal Gardens, 

 Russ states that no specimens were imjxjrted until 

 1894, when G. Bosz. of Cologne, received a large con- 

 signment ; whether any of these specimens were for- 

 warded to the London market I don't know, but shortly 

 afterwaids we began to se^e examples at our bird shows. 

 One specimen seems to have come into the hands of 

 Herr F. Weber, who fed it upon soft, sweet, cooked 

 pears, highly sweetened rice and mealworms. It refused 

 ants' cocoons, and looked with disdain at raw meat, 

 but delighted in egg-plums and soft, sweet fruits 

 generally. 



In The Avicultural Magazine for 1897 Mr. Russell- 

 Humphrys has given an interesting account of his 

 lovely and well-known example of this species. Accord- 

 ing to him it is of no use to offer mealworms to C. hard- 

 wifkii, as it will not touch them ; though it is very 

 clever in catching flies. Mr. Humphrys also advocates 

 the use of banana in preference to orange as an article 

 of diet ; his example is a very clever mimic, but this 

 is a well-known characteristic of the species of 

 Chloropsis, and therefore not surprising. The 

 article is well illustrated by a coloured plate by 

 Frohawk. 



CHAPTER V. 



Blue-winged Fhuh -Sucker. 



BABBLERS fCrateropodido'). 



The Bulbuls, which Dr. Sharpe places in his expanded 

 Timi'liidie, aie called by him Babbling Thrushes ; he 

 places the Mocking-birds and Bower-birds in the same 

 family ; but in all their habits the Mocking-birds seem 

 to me to be true Thrushes, while the Bower-birds are 

 aberrant Crows ; with a few modifications, therefore, I 

 prefer to follow the Zoological Society's list. 



The Jay-Thrushes (Dryonasles. Garrular, etc.) are 

 mo"e or less predaceous birds, feeding partly upon young 

 birds and eggs, and probably, I think, upon small 

 rodents, and certainly leptilcs. To keep them in health 

 in captivity it is necessary occasionally to feed them 

 mucii in the same manner as the Crow family, giving 

 them small birds, mice, sparrows' eggs, etc. ; when 

 these cannot be obtained, a little minced raw beef, once 

 a week, should be given, but fur and feather are piefer- 

 able ; in other rgspects they can be fed like true 

 Thrushes, on a good insectivorous food and a little 

 fruit ; when obtainable, grapes are preferred to any 

 other. 



Chinese J.w-Thri-sh (Dnjonastes chinensis). 



Grey; head bluer; front of head, lores and eyebrow- 

 Ftripc, chin and froiit of throat black ; forehead and 

 cheekpntch white ; uppei part of b-jJy, back, and wings 

 with a faint wash of olive brownish ; outer webs of 

 Hights with paler margins inner webs blackish, with 

 1 n.irrow paler margin ; flights be'ow dark ash-grey ; 

 wing-coverts the same; tail-feathers like the rest of the 

 upper surface, but a trifle darker, below bl.ick with 

 narrow pale tips to the feathers; under tail-coverts 

 brownish-grey; bill black; feet brown; iris deep rod- 

 brown. Feniile smaller than male, and with snorter 

 bill. Hab., China and Cpper Burma. 



Ur. Russ states that all that is known of the free life 

 of this bird is that according to Swinhoe its call-note 



