East African birds.



41



plumage,” instead of assuming a plumage similar to that of the

females, they assume a patchy dress, several of the new feathers

being black.


Females do not appear to suffer to anything like the same


extent.


Another Whydah which has gone the same way is Pen-

thetria eqnes, which in normal breeding dress ought to have a

chestnut “ shoulder patch ” and a white bar on the wing. All mine

are now totally black. Coliuspasser laticauda is another bird which

shows similar changes, though not to the same extent. The red

of the head and neck is replaced by orange or yellow mottled

with black.


They are fed on native canary seed—m’wele—and are

given green food and insects when obtainable, and all are well

conditioned.


Another curious case of what is presumably melanism is

that of a Little Ground Dove —Chalcopclia chalcospilos. Normal

plumaged birds have three or four green “ eye-spots ” on the inner

secondaries.


Now one particular bird which I’ve had for two years is

metallic green over the entire upper surface from crown to upper

tail coverts. Is this melanism ? Are not metallic colours due to

refraction and reflection of light, and not to pigment?


All these birds are in outdoor aviaries.



EAST AFRICAN BIRDS.


A member’s correspondent writes :


“ It is very dry now, but the birds are just breeding. Grey

Doves are nesting in the garden, Jackson’s Whydahs feed every day


on the lawn, and there are little Zosterops about. I think P-


will find the nests for me. Besides these, there are numerous

Weavers ; a Weaver and two black-headed frugivorous birds were

feeding on some fruit in our mess-hut this morning.


“ A friend of mine—a Iviangop—who is worried to death by



