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EGG-EATER AT WORK. 
Fic. 46.—An Egg-eater doing his best to find a way into a Weaver bird’s nest. This is the nest of Smith’s 
Weaver Bird (Sitagra capensis) which youngsters know as a Bottle Fink. This crafty Fink builds its 
nest at the extreme end of a branch, so that its enemies, the wild cats and snakes, may not be able 
toreachit. Asan additional security, it makes a long tube to the nest so that, even if a cunning serpent 
should reach its home, as was the case in this instance, it could not get inside, because if it tried to 
climb down the tube, it would fall off to the ground. The second picture shows an Egg-eater robbing 
the nest of a Warbler in an ‘‘ Evergreen” bush, his head and neck are inside the nest. The third picture 
shows an Egg-eater, from Natal. This specimenis 2 feet 10 inches long. Its upper parts are of a dull 
reddish-brown colour, with a slight tinge of olive. The under-parts are light yellow. This is one of the 
varieties of Dasypeltis scabva. In the corner of the picture is seen a portion of the backbone, and 
also a section of the gullet, showing a few of the gular teeth protruding. 
