Egy- Collecting in (Ite BuslweUl. 21. 



has been chopping trees. So fearful are they that one will 

 not follow them as far as the actual nest, that they practise 

 a mild deception, leading one first to one old tree, then to 

 another, chattering hard and peering into the trunk to spur 

 one on ; this may result in one taking a veiy erratic course 

 before the actual bees^ nest is reached. When wishing to 

 indicate the nest, they chatter softly and usually take a bee 

 on the wing as it enters or leaves the nest, and then remain 

 silent. In places where bees^ nests are numerous one can 

 often induce these birds to show one quite a number of 

 nests, by lapping the tree to show the bird that the nest has 

 been marked, and calling it ; if in the humour, it will fly on 

 in the direction one takes and soon stop at another tree, 

 acting as it always does when the nest is reached. One may 

 often see these birds, and yet, talk to them as seductively as 

 one will, they will take no notice. It was at the pan that I 

 first learnt to distinguish the whistle of the bird, which is 

 loud and clear, sounding something like " Twitche^ twitche' 

 twitche'.'" In following one of these birds I found a pair 

 of Dendromus hennetti and their nest ; and as one of the 

 eggs taken from the nest was fresh and the other two 

 ] artly incubated, it is not unlikely that it is that of the 

 Honeyguide. 



Lesser Honeyguide {Indicator minor). — The Lesser Honey- 

 guide is also common in the bushveld, and in habits does not 

 differ from the larger species. I have not so far heard it 

 utter any other note than the chatter it makes when wishino- 

 to guide one to a bees' nest. On the 10th November, 1907, 

 I witnessed a little comedy that is worth recording. Having 

 taken a clutch of eggs of a Barbet (Tricholcema leucomelaii), 

 I sat down not far ofE for a few minutes' rest. An excited 

 twitter caused me to look up, and I found that a Honeyguide 

 was about to enter the Barbet's nest, not knowing that the 

 nest had been cut open on the opposite side. The instant it 

 attempted to climb through the hole one of the Barbets 

 attacked it, driving it away and pursuing it through tho 

 trees. Before they were out of sight the mate of the 



