FOREIGN BIRDS FOR CAGE AND AVIARY. 



" They build on the outskirts of forests, constructing 

 their nests towards the ends of branches, at heights of 

 from 10ft. to 50ft. from the ground. The nest is a 

 neat cup, some 4in. or 5in. in diameter, and perhaps 3in. 

 in height, composed chiefly of moss and lined with black 

 moss-roots and fibres. In some of the nests that I have 

 preserved a good deal of grass-leaves and scraps of lichen 

 are incorporated in the moss. The cavity is deep, from 

 2^in. to 3in. in diameter and not much less than 2in. 

 in depth. 



" They lay two or three eggs ; not more, so far as I yet- 

 know." 



In Thr Ar'trultural Mayaziiir, N.S., Vol. L, 

 pp. 255-262, Mr. Reginald Phillippe has given an 

 account, illustrated by a coloured plate, of a pair of this 

 species in his possession. He says : " The sexes are 

 alike ; nevertheless it is seldom that I cannot distin- 

 guish my male from the female. During the first year 

 the difference was usually unmistakable, the male being 

 the larger and thicker bird, and the crest longer and 

 more wavy ; and he was mucli more bold and enterpris- 

 ing." Anybody who is fortunate enough to secure 

 examples of this bird should read Mr. Phillipps' 

 account. He tells us that Mr. K \V. Harper locked 

 eleven specimens in England in 1902, but one was shot 

 and another drowned and nobodv knows whether or not 

 the others survived the succeeding winter. 



GOLDKX-EYKD BABBLER (PlJCtOrlds ft IK' II -<i <}. 



Rufous-brown above ; more cinnamon on wings ; the 

 tail with ill-defined darker bands ; lores and an eyebrow 

 streak and entire under-surface of body white ; a bright 

 orange ring encircling the eye ; wings and tail below 

 dusky greyish ; bill black, with deep yellow nostrils ; 

 feet pale yellow ; irides dark brown. The sexes are 

 much alike. 



Jerdon observes (''Birds of India," Vol. II., pp. 15, 

 16):- "This species of Babbler is universally spread 

 throughout India, extending to Burmah, and, from the 

 .name, perhaps to China. It has been sent from Nepal 

 by Hodgson; is not rare in Bengal and the N.W.P. : 

 is said to be common in Sindh, and I have seen it in 

 every part of the South of India. It is also found in 

 Ceylon, and it is very common in Upper Burmah. It 

 frequents low jungles, or the skirts of forests, long 

 grass, hedge-rows, and even comes occasionally into 

 gardens. Though sometimes to be met with singly, it 

 is generally seen in small parties of five or six, flying 

 from bush to bush before you, and trying to conceal 

 itself in some thick clump. It has a low chattering note 

 when at rest, and when flying from bush to bush a loud 

 sibilant whistle. I have on several occasions heard one, 

 perched conspicuously on a high bush or hedge-row, 

 pour forth a remarkably good song. It feeds mostly on 

 insects, often on ants and small coleoptera. Mr. Blyth 

 remarks that he possessed some of these birds alive, and 

 noticed that they frequently placed one foot upon their 

 food, while they pecked with the bill." 



In Hume's " Nests and Eggs of Indian Birds " there 

 are numerous notes on the nidification of this species, 

 from which I select the following: 



" The Yellow-eyed Babbler breeds throughout the 

 plains of India, as also in the Nilghiris, to an elevation 

 of 5,000ft., and in the Himalayas to perhaps 4,000ft. 

 It lays in the latter part of June, in July, August, and 

 September. Gardens are the favourite localities, and 

 in these the little bird makes its compact and solid 

 nest, sometimes in a fork of the fine twigs of a lime- 

 bush, sometimes in a mango, orange, or apple tree, 

 occasionally suspended between three stout grass-stems, 

 or even attached to a single stem of the huge grass from 



which the native pens are made. I have taken a nest, 

 hung between three reeds, exactly resembling in shape 

 and position the Reed-Warbler's nest (Salicaria arunai- 

 nacea), figured in Mr. Yarrell's vignette at page 313, 

 Vol. L, 3rd edition. 



" The nest is typically cone-shaped (the apex down- 

 wards), from 5in. to 6in. in depth, and 3in. or 4in. in 

 diameter at the base ; but it varies of course according 

 to situation, the cone being often broadly truncated. In 

 the base of the cone (which is uppermost) is the egg- 

 cavity, measuring from 2in. to Sin. in diameter, and 

 from 2in. to 2.5in. in depth. The nest is vert/ com- 

 pactly and solidly woven, of rather broad blades of 

 grass, and long strips of fine fibrous bark, exteriorly 

 more or less coated with cobwebs and gossamer-threads. 

 Interiorly, fine grass-stems and roots are neatly and 

 closely interwoven. I once found some horse-hair along 

 with the grass-roots, but this is unusual. 



" The full number of eggs is, I believe, five. I have 

 repeatedly taken nests containing this number, and have 

 comparatively seldom met with a smaller number of 

 eggs at all incubated." (Pp. 95-6.) 



Mr. Gates writes : " The eggs van- a good deal in size 

 and shape, and very much in colouring. They are 

 mostly of a very broad oval shape, very obtuse at the 

 smaller end. Some are, however, slightly pyriform. and 

 some a little elongated. There are two very distinct 

 types of coloration : one has a pinkish-white ground, 

 thickly and finely mottled and streaked over the whole 

 surface with more or less bright and deep brick-dust 

 red, so that the ground-colour only faintly shows 

 through, here and there, as a sort of pale mottling : in 

 the other type the ground-colour is pinkish-white, 

 somewhat sparingly, but boldly, blotched with irregular 

 patches and eccentric hieroglyphic-like streaks, often 

 Bunting-like in their character, or bright blood or brick- 

 dust red. The eggs of this type, besides these primary 

 markings, generally exhibit towards the large end a 

 number of pale inky-purple blotches or clouds. . . . 

 Combinations of these different types of course occur. 

 but fully two-thirds can be separated distinctly under 

 the first and second varieties. Though much smaller, 

 many of the eggs recall those of the English Robin. 

 The eggs have often a. fine gloss." (P. 98.) 



Four specimens of this species reached our Zoological 

 Gardens in 1868, and in The A-vlciilturnl Maija-'nn'. 

 1st ser., Vol. VIII., pp. 108-10. Mr. E. W. Harper pub- 

 lished an account of his experience of eight examples 

 which he kept in an aviary. As regards the food suit- 

 able for this species, he says : " Dr. Butler's famous 

 mixture of powdered biscuit, ants' cocoons, egg yolk, 

 and dried flies would doubtless suit him excellently as 

 a staple food. Personally, whilst in India, I do as the 

 Indians do: that is to say, pea-meal, well mixed with 

 a little refined butter, forms- the staple diet of nearly 

 all my insectivorous birds. With this is intimately in- 

 corporated, every alternate day. a little raw, finely- 

 minced liver or kidney. Whatever food be given, meal- 

 worms or maggots should form part of the daily menu. 



" Tit-bits of a hard and shelly nature, such as grass- 

 hoppers, cockroaches, dried flies, etc., must be given at 

 intervals to cleanse and stimulate the digestive organs ; 

 for the same reason that beasts and birds of prey require 

 hair, fur, or feathers to keep them in continued good 

 health." 



In '/'//' Avicultural Matjazuir for the year follow- 

 ing, Mr. Reginald Phillipps gave an account, illustrated 

 bv a coloured plate, of a specimen in his possession. 

 It would be well for anybody who might secure a 

 Golden-eyed Babbler to look up these two articles. 



