37S Mr. G. A. K. Mnrshall on 



17. ExrERiMEXTS ON A Captive Mungoose with Bird- 

 food. Warning Characters and distasteful 

 Qualities in South African Birds. (G. A. K. M.) 



[Although tliis section is strictly speaking ontsidc tlie 

 scope of the present memoir, it is so closely associated 

 that I have ventured to include it. 



Mr. Frank Finn noticed that his mungoose, Crossarchns 

 fascintus, " HTpipcaved to be unwilling to attack birds, though 

 it did not seem to find them unpalatable" ("Natural 

 Science," vol. i,No. 10, December 1892, p. 746).— E. B. P.] 



Salisliury, Jan. 24, 1900. — I have been recently giving 

 my mungoose some wild birds, and I was mucli interested 

 to note the result. It ate a dove {Twtnr capicola), 

 standard wing night-jar (Cosnietorius vcxillarius), dwarf 

 goose {Ncttcqnis auritns), moorhen (Gallinula cMoropus), 

 and wheatear {Saxicola inleata) ; while it emphatically 

 refused an owl {Ado capenais), kestrel (Ccrchncis rnpi- 

 ro/o7V7^\s), buff-backed egret (Jlcrodi as lucidus), hobby (Faico 

 suhlmko), and drongo (Buchanga assinii/is). Its dislike of 

 the smell of the conimon and conspicuous blue-and-black 

 drongo was very mai'ked, especially as it was hungry at 

 the time, and I had plucked the bird clean ; it made one 

 or two attempts to eat the meat, but finally gave it up. 

 In the case of this bird and the egret we would therefore 

 seem to have a case of true warning coloration. This is 

 also probably the case with the wood-hoopoes (Irrisor 

 and Rhino'pomastus), which are very conspicuous both in 

 voice and colour — the latter being in both genera black 

 shot with metallic tlark-blue or green, with a large white 

 speculum in the wing, and a long tail. 



^alifiliury, June 26, 1900. — As to distastofvdness in 

 birds I must further mention our wood-hoopoes, Irrisor 

 virid'is and rjiinopomastus cyanomclas, both of which emit 

 a strong unpleasant smell. They are both metallic greenish- 

 blue birds with long fan-like tails and a conspicuous white 

 bar on the wings, differing principally in the shape and 

 colouring of the beak. They are also both very noisy, 

 frequently uttering their harsh, chattering cries, and 

 espe^'ially when alarmed. Another bird which has well- 

 known distastefnl ([ualities is the ground horn-bill {Biicorax 

 caffcr). Indeed the Zulus use it on that account for rain- 

 making ; they will kill one and throw it into a river, for 

 they say its smell makes the river sick, so that it calls 



