Avicultural Magazine


BEING THE JOURNAL OF

THE AVICULTURAL SOCIETY

FOR THE STUDY OF

FOREIGN & BRITISH BIRDS

IN FREEDOM & CAPTIVITY



Third Series.—V ol. XI.— No. 12 .—All rights reserved. DECEMBER, 1920.



NOTES ON THE WALL-CREEPER


By W. H. St. Quintin


How many aviculturists must regret the old pre-War days, and

perhaps some of us think that we did not then always make the best use

of our opportunities (I refer only to aviculture !). I can’t help feeling

that if I had taken a little more pains with a beautiful pair of Wall-

creepers (Tichodroma muraria), which came into my possession in

July, 1913, I might have succeeded better with them. They had been

moulted out twice, I was told, in an aviary on Lake Constance. The

female was in very heavy moult, and her movements were considerably

handicapped for several weeks, but by the end of November I noted that

she was as active as the male. I realized from the first that opportunity

for exercise was all-important, and 1 tried to provide a substitute for

perpendicular rocks by setting up planks and slabs of wood at various

angles, on which gravel and stones were fixed by cement, crevices and

holes being imitated to the best of my ability. It was easy to take these

down to be cleaned when necessary, which was an advantage. The birds

used these sham rocks freely, showing their lovely crimson wings as they

moved about in characteristic fashion, by short leaps. Unlike the

Woodpeckers and true Creepers, they made no use of the tail as a support

(the feathers of which are too slender and soft for such a purpose).


But still there was something wanting. I now see that I ought to

have arranged two or more masses of real or imitation masonry, with


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