164 



FOKEIGN BIRDS FOR CAGE AND AVIARY. 



one came into the full colour -with bright vermilion 

 underparts, the other had the underparts of a deep 

 sandy huffish colour. The brighter cock died on 

 April 30th, 1907, and on May 12th I turned the surviv- 

 ing pair into my smaller outdoor aviary in the hope of 

 breeding the sp'ecies. They were exceedingly active, 

 always together, frequently examined the straw hat and 

 other nesting-receptacles, but never went to nest. I did 

 not bring them indoors again until October 7th, but 

 neither the early frosts nor fogs seemed to inconvenience 

 them, and I am sure that the five months in the open air 

 greatly invigorated them. The cock died April 14th, 1908. 



In 'Germany the Pintailed Nonpareil was bred by 

 Lieut. Hauth 'in 1886. 



GOULDIAN FINCH (Poephila mirabilis). 



The male red-head has the top of the head to beyond 

 the middle, the face and cheeks carmine-red, edged out- 

 wardly by a narrow black stripe which unites with a 

 black patch covering the chin and centre of throat ; 

 beyond this conies a line of almost metallic cobalt-blue, 

 shading on the back of the head into peacock-green, 

 and on the neck and back into golden-green ; the night 

 feathers are blackish-grey, Avith pale and partly green 

 tinted edges to the outer webs ; the upper tail-coverts 

 are almo:st metallic peacock-green, shading into cobalt- 

 blue ; the tail has the two centre feathers black, 

 elongated and tapering to a fine point, the remaining 

 feathers blackish with pale tips ; under tail feathers 

 white ; the breast is completely covered by a broad 

 belt of intense violet-ultramarine, which in life can 

 onlv be compared with the colouring of the most bril- 

 liant blue pansies ; the belly is bright saffron-yellow ; 

 the legs and beak flesh-pink, the latter tipped and 

 tinted with rosy carmine. The female is altogether 

 duller and paler than the cock, the edging of the crown 

 and gorget pale green ; the carmine frequently much 

 more restricted, sometimes only represented by a few 

 feather-fringes ; the neck, back, and upper wing-coverts 

 more olive, the lower back and upper tail-coverts pale 

 emerald-green ; the central tail feathers decidedly 

 shorter ; the breast rosy-lilac, the hind chest and abdo- 

 men pale yellow in the centre and fading to white on 

 the vent. Hab. , Northern and North-Western Australia. 



This beautiful bird 'has three varieties, in which the 

 face is either black (P. gmildio'), carmine red (P. mira- 

 bilis), or yellow (P. armitiana). They are in no sense 

 species, because, in the first place, a red-faced male 

 and black-faced female were shot by Dr. Ramsay's col- 

 lector from the same nest in a wild state ; in the second 

 place, when sexes of iboth forms are associated in the 

 same large aviary the black-faced hen usually deserts her 

 presumed natural mate and joins the male red-faced 

 variety ; and lastly, because Dr. Ramsay bred all three 

 varieties from a pair of black-faced birds in his aviary 

 at Sydney. In addition to these facts, it is noteworthy 

 that there is considerable variation in the amount of 

 carmine on individual red-heads, and especially in the 

 female sex. Some hens only have a few red feathers on 

 the blaclr, many have a fairly large red patch surrounded 

 bv black, and a few have the red as well developed 

 as in the best-marked cock birds. 



The dome-shaped nest is, in a state of freedom, 

 usually situated in a tree or bush not far from the 

 ground, and the white eggs are frequently five in 

 number. In captivity it is by no means easy to breed 

 unless kept in a large 'garden aviary. I believe that in 

 such an enclosure Mr. Meade Waldo was successful in 

 rearing young out of doors even at Christmas time ; he 

 consequently considers the species very hardy. 



Mr. Reginald Phillipps was, I believe, the first to 



breed it in this country and in a room, the birds having 

 two large flight-cages at their disposal and being per- 

 mitted to fly across from one to the other. In outdoor 

 aviaries it has been bred by various aviculturists, but 

 unfortunately, for a good many years, I was obliged tt> 

 attempt breeding it in warmed indoor aviaries, and I 

 failed every time. In a moderately warm aviary under 

 cover the Gouldian Finch, if allowed to breed in the 

 winter, usually succumbs to egg-binding ; but this is, 

 unhappily, often the case in the height of summer. 



Altogether I suppose I have purchased, at different 

 times, at least fifteen pairs of Gouldian Finches. In 

 1896 I secured a batch of eight birds in nestling 

 plumage : of these, five died in moult, leaving me three 

 cock blackheads in perfect plumage ; one of these died 

 in 1898 and a second in 1900 ; the remaining bird lived 

 on until July 26th, 1902. As its age increased this 

 bird became more and more melanistic with every moult. 

 At its death it was so remarkable in colouring that I 

 presented it to the Natural History Museum, and pub- 

 lished a full account of it (The Ibis, 1903, pp. 674-676). 

 On May 25th, 1905, I purchased two pairs, one of the 

 red4ieaded variety (P. mirabilis), the other of the black- 

 headed variety (P. g&uldice). I turned P. mirablli* 

 with P. gouldice into a 16-foot aviary indoors and 

 P. gouldioe with P. mirabilis into a 30-foot aviary in 

 the garden. The hen indoors died egg-bound, and was 

 replaced on August 2nd, but it also died shortly after- 

 wards. The pair outside went to nest in an old straw 

 hat tacked on the wall, but at first without result; later 

 they again nested in the same receptacle, and early in 

 September I heard young birds. They remained so long 

 in the nest that I feared they must have died, but on 

 October 9 two vigorous youngsters flew ; they were as 

 large as their parents, but of course in the greenish mul 

 grey livery of the nestling, and with the characteristic 

 blue bead-like warts at the base of their beaks. On 

 the 13th both young birds could feed themselves. 



After several sharp frosts, during which I have seen 

 my Gouldians bathing as soon as the ice had melted" 

 on their water-pan, and thoroughly enjoying it, I even- 

 tuallv got scared by the commencement of the Novem- 

 ber fogs and brought them indoors. Meanwhile my 

 cock P. mirabilis indoors had died. The two youngsters 

 were long coming into colour ; the male, however, Avas 

 fully coloured by June 17th, 1906, but the female not 

 until August 16th. The male typical P. mirabilis, the 

 female tvpical P. goiildice. 



In February, 1906, I purchased a magnificent pair of 

 P. mirabilis, hoping to breed from them, but they both 

 died just as the weather became mild enough to turn 

 them out, so I .had to start again -with my old pair. 

 They again reared two young ones, but I left them oat 

 too late, and the young cock was killed by the Novem- 

 ber fogs ; the young hen came into colour in the summer 

 of 1907. In the latter year my old cock bird broke his 

 wing and died just when the season was commencing, 

 and thus for the time stopped my efforts to breed a stock 

 of this lovely Finch. 



There is not the least doubt that after a season in the 

 open air the old birds are greatly inA T isorated. and that 

 the young bred out of doors are as hardy as any species. 

 Seen indoors, the Gouldian Finch seems a dull, heavy, 

 apathetic little creature, but outside it is swift on the 

 wins, lively in its manners, has a cheery little chirp, is 

 confiding, and in all respects delightful. 



Messrs. Payne and Wallace haA-e printed an interest- 

 ins; account of their method of capturing Gouldian 

 Finches in a email pamphlet : an extract has been pub- 

 lished in TJif, Arimltiiral Magazine. 



I believe that, when kept warm. Gouldian Finches livff 



