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The Rev. Hubert D. Astley,



glazed along it’s centre, which gives to those parts of the bird a

metallic lustre. This peculiar glossy glaze is most difficult to

reproduce in a water-colour painting.


The wings and tail, which in the shade appear to be

almost black, flash out into a superb and brilliant deep blue in

the sunlight. There are small triangular white spots on the

tips of the feathers of the greater wing coverts. The quills are

black, the bill orange-yellow, but stained with brown on the

upper mandible, whilst the legs and feet are black.


In an aviary, and especially at first sight, the Blue

Whistling Thrush resembles a gigantic Blackbird (Turdus

vieridd), both in movements and appearance, but it has one

very characteristic action of the tail, peculiar to it’s particular

family, I should imagine. Upon settling on a branch, or on

being startled in any way, the tail is jerked up and down two or

three times, and then fanned out laterally, exactly as if a string

was being pulled inside, and also in just such a manner as a

lady’s fan is quickly opened and shut. The whole tail is spread

out somewhat slowly into this broad fan form, to be immediately

shut up again sharply, when it is again extended, and the action

again repeated several times.


A more charming pet I have never possessed, for it

combines extreme rarity (as regards a European cage-bird),

great beauty, audacious tameness, and a charming song.


In addition to this, I do not think the Blue Whistling

Thrush, breeding as it does at a height of 8,000 feet, can be a

delicate bird.


I feed these two on Abrahams’ egg bread, ants’ cocoons

and silkworm cocoons, about which latter I should like to say a

word. In Italy one can buy a large sack for 20 francs, all ready

pounded up, and being quite dry, it will keep any length of

time. It is rather strong smelling ‘ en masse,’ but that is not

noticeable in a small quantity sufficient for a day’s feed. It is

composed of the large cocoons of the silkworms, which are put

aside after the silk has been wound off for the manufactories*.



* It would be more correct to say chrysalides, or pupae; the cocoons are the outer

coverings which are wound off.—A. G. B.



