( xxxii ) 



much trouble in getting it down. I have always imagined 

 (on pure supposition) that Hypsidse were distasteful. If' I 

 can see anything more before posting this, I will add it 

 later." 



''March 23. 



" I have watched the nest at intervals since, but have seen 

 nothing out of the common brought, only larvse, grasshoppers, 

 spiders and so forth, and berries." 



[A later communication from Mr. H, Leslie Andrewes, dated 

 May 4, contained further interesting notes on the habits of 

 these insectivorous birds : — 



" The whole thing, as is usual with these silly birds, came 

 to grief a day or two after my observations, as the nest was 

 tied on anyhow to decaying cannas. I fixed it up for them 

 once or twice, but it capsized one night, and the family dis- 

 appeared. There was uvUmited food for old and young ; the 

 garden was full of grasshoppers (which formed a large part of 

 their food), also caterpillars. For all this, at about every 

 third visit, if not more frequently, the parents stopped to 

 swallow the young birds' excrement. Perhaps I should have 

 made a note of it, but I knew that thrushes did this* — I 

 have seen them do so — and thought it was a more or less 

 universal custom with birds, and so did not mention the fact ; 

 they always swallowed the excrement before flying off. It is 

 a curious habit, and in this case I am sure it was not done 

 from hunger."] 



Professor E. B. Poulton said that the bulbul was probably 



little affected by propei-ties which were a protection against the 



majority of insect-eating birds. Mr. Andrewes' observation 



helped us to a knowledge of the special enemies of specially 



defended insects, and was further evidence of Haase's error 



in applying the unqualified term " immune " to any insect, 



however unpalatable. Monsieur Ohai'les Oberthiir had argued 



"(Etudes de Lepidopterologie comparee" : Fasc. ii, Rennes, Oct. 



1906, p. 25-27) from cases such as these that there is no 



significance in any special defence or the accompanying 



warning (aposematic) colours. This distinguished naturalist, 



* For an observation of the kind alhuled to, see "Nature," vol. Ivii, 

 April 14, 1898, p. 554. 



