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suddenly darting off to catch some insect, but always alighting on the

ground, pulling up suddenly with outspread tail, and sometimes returning

to the same spot.


The birds always became very excited when I came near, and began

calling out whenever I came into the field, sometimes beginning when I

was about a hundred yards off. The hen was by far the bolder of the two,

calling out loudly and defiantly and coming within a yard or two of me :

the cock preferred to keep from six to eight yards off. I have seen these

birds again this and last year, but have not seen their nest. These notes

were taken at the time of the occurrence. H. L. Sich.



THE BLUE MOUNTAIN LORIKEET.


Sir,—A s one who has kept the Blue Mountain four years, may I

venture to give my experience ?


(a) . In my judgment they want no heat. They are as hard as nails,

and mine were out of doors winter and summer.


(b) . Never give them any slops, as suggested last month. I believe

that it is the ‘ slops’ that kill them. Notice how bad and soft in feather

they are at the Zoo, where they are fed, poor beggars, on bread and milk !

If fed on canary-seed, and given half an apple per diem, with water to

drink, the)' will live for years. Mine never had a fit, and I attribute it

solely to natural feeding ; and I had them four years.


(c) . They are very spiteful birds, and will brook no rivals in their

enclosure.


fd). They are very shy and difficult breeders.


(e). The male has a more cruel looking head than the hen, and is a

bigger and brighter coloured bird altogether. If a true pair they will

be always together and feeding each other. C. D. Farrar.


[Does Mr. Farrar seriously mean to tell us that to feed Brush-tongues

on a diet of dry canary-seed and fruit is “ natural feeding ? ” We much

doubt whether dry seed is ever eaten by Lorikeets in a wild state. The

addition of milk-sop , properly prepared, has been proved by many experienced

aviculturists to be well nigh indispensible to Lorikeets, and, although the

comparatively hardy “ Blue Mountain ” may live for years, as indeed Mr.

Farrar’s have done, on a diet of dry seed and fruit, the more delicate and

rare species would, in all probability, succumb to such treatment within

a few months. Ripe fruit is absolutely essential to the Brush-tongued

Parrots, which will sometimes live on this alone for a time, and we strongly

suspect that the apple that Mr. Farrar gave his birds each day kept them

alive and well, and that very little canary-seed was eaten. Such active

birds as Lorikeets are hardly likely to keep in good feather in the small

Zoo. cages; nevertheless their food in the Parrot-house agrees with them

so well that they often live there for a number of years.—E d.]


[Mr. Farrar has missed my point. I wrote of warmth in connection

with the breeding of the species. I have kept a good many Lorikeets,

including the Blue Mountain, and, so far as my experience goes, female

Lorikeets usually seem to find that our climate, taken au naturel, is too cold

for egg production. Perhaps, if Mr. Farrar were to try a little heat, he



