on the Chiffchaff as a Cage Bird. 207


advanced, I took the nest and its contents, and carefully placed

it in a small wicker basket. One nestling appeared decidedly

weak — a sort of “parson’s pig” — and this one subsequently died.

I fed them from the first on soaked ants’ eggs — previously

picked over—and small mealworms which I always broke in two

before using. I was fortunate in having a good supply of these

latter from an old mill near by. And what beauties they were !

As fat as they could be, and so active that you would hardly

think the poor skinny, sluggish creatures often supplied by

dealers could possibly be the same insect. The young birds got

along excellently on this diet, varied as much as I could with

caterpillars, flies, etc. As soon as they evinced the desire to

leave the nest, I put the five of them into a flannel cricket cap in

a clean basket. After a few more days, however, when I opened

the lid to feed them, they began to hop out like so many “ Jacks-

in-the-box,” so I transferred them to a warm roomy cage, wired

only in the front, where they soon managed to feed themselves.

But long after they could well do this, they always opened their

little beaks and cried out when anybody approached them.


It seems somewhat inhuman, but I found it an excellent

plan to cut up the mealworms with a pair of scissors into the

dish containing the dry ants’eggs, which adhered to the pieces

of worm, so that both were consequently eaten together. Other¬

wise the birds would never have taken to ants’ eggs alone.

After a time they fed freely 011 these,—either dry, just as bought,

or soaked,—together with preserved yolk of eggs and a free

addition of mealworms.


When the young birds were grown and had moulted they

got in beautiful condition, and became very tame. One cock I

separated from the others, as he was the finest of the brood.

Unfortunately he made his escape through the wires of the cage

into a conservatory, got out of the open window and no doubt

joined his wild brothers, though history does not relate how

he was received by them, or what was his ultimate fate.


I must say I was very pleased with the four remaining.

There was something so neat and trim about the little fellows as

to provoke admiration from any lover of birds. I was per-



