94 



FOREIGN BIRDS FOR CAGE AND AVIARY. 



ablv berries ; nidificates in open nests among rocks ; 

 breeds twice (December and April), and lays two 

 whitish eggs, tolerably densely speckled with yellowish- 

 brown." 



C. A. Lloyd ("Timehri," New Series, Vol. IX., p. 

 231/1895) observes : " We fell in with a young Indian 

 and his wife, the latter carrying a ' quake ' containing a 

 beautiful male Cock-of-the-Rock (Rupicola crocea) in 

 splendid plumage, which we offered to purchase, but 

 which she refused to sell. She told us, however, that 

 we could secure the birds in great numbers hard by, 

 :and that this month (March) was their nesting season. 

 We decided on camping at a settlement not far off to 

 try and procure specimens, with their nests and eggs. 

 Accordingly, on reaching the village, we halted for the 

 'balance of the afternoon, and, in company with one of 

 -our men, started off at once in search of their building- 

 place, which we soon found, and succeeded in taking 

 a couple of nests. They each contained two speckled 

 *ggs, a little larger than those of a Pigeon. The nests 

 are placed on the bare rocks, and constructed of palm- 

 Hbres stuck together by a kind of gum. These were 

 the only two nests that we found with eggs, although 

 -we saw many deserted ones. The birds feed on the 

 fruit of a palm, which seems to be a species of 

 ^Enocarpus, and, judging from their harsh cries around 

 us, they must have been very plentiful, but we never 

 caught sight of one. The Macoushis call the bird 

 iKavanara." 



Two examples of this large and handsome species 

 were presented to the Regent's Park Gardens in 1866, 

 one in 1868, one was purchased in 1875, two in 1877, 

 one in 1878, and the last two examples (males) were 

 presented in 1885; yet, oddly enough, Dr. Rues seems 

 to have entirely overlooked the species ; whilst of other 

 < 'otnnjidie he describes several which have never been 

 imported. 



BANDED CHATTERER (Cotinga cincta). 



Bright sky-blue ; wings and tail black ; throat, breast 

 '(excepting a narrow belt of blue) and centre of abdomen 

 bright magenta-purplish; under wing-coverts black 

 washed with blue ; bill and feet black. Female above 

 blackish, the feathers edged with bright buff; below 

 rufescent buff, the feathers with central black spots; 

 wing-feathers with buff margins to inner webs. Hab., 

 South-east Brazil. (Sclater.) 



Burmeister says (" Systematische Uebersicht," Vol. 

 II., p. 431) : "This species, certainly the most beau- 

 tiful of all, inhabits the coastal forest region 

 -of Brazil, and extends down as far as Rio de 

 Janeiro, but scarcely any farther ; it was once 

 brought to me by my collectors in both sexes at 

 New Freiburg, but too much shot about for me to be 

 able to preserve the skins. The Prince zu Wied 

 obtained his specimens at Rio St. Matthaiis and Rio 

 Mucuri, and again later at Bahia. According to him 

 the bird does not nest in those localities, but in the 

 interior, only arrives there in the cold season of the 

 year (May to October), and then hunts for berries 

 through the forests, utters a short, loud call-not*, and 

 in its behaviour entirely resembles our Waxwing. 

 There it bears the name "Crejoa or Kirna, from which 

 the scientific name Cotinga appears to be derived." 



In Prince zu Wied's own account very little addi- 

 tional information is given; he says it has not a 

 pleasant voice, is very stupid and easy to shoot, feeds 

 on various berries and fruits, and is very good eating. 

 I have not been able to discover anything about its 



nidification. 



* I must confess that I fail to see the resemblance myself. 



A. a. B. 



Russ says that it is extremely rarely met with in the 

 bird-market, and always singly. Specimens were pur- 

 chased by the London Zoological Society in 1875 and 

 1877. and one reached the Berlin Gardens in 1891, re- 

 specting which Mr. Meusel observes that it improved. 

 in IprilliaiiLv and beauty each year, attaining its -most 

 perfect plumage in 1895. 



Russ describes two other species of Cotinga, neither 

 of which appears ever to have been imported ; he also 

 gives quite a long account of the Snowy Bell-bird 

 (Chasmorhynchus /</>< //.-); why, I do not understand. t 



NAKED-THROATED BELL-BIRD. 

 {Chasmorhynchus nu<li<-<i~iii* . 



White; sides of head and throat naked, greenish, 

 and dotted with scattered black bristles ; bill dark 

 brown ; feet brownish flesh-coloured ; hides clear 

 brown. Female above olive-green ; the crown to the 

 nape black-brownish ; the parts which are naked in the 

 cock clothed with small yellowish-green feathers ; 

 under-parts yellowish ; each feather with a yellowish- 

 green shaft-stripe; feet darker flesh-coloured. Hab., 

 S.E. Brazil. 



Burmeister remarks (" Systematische Uebersicht," 

 Vol. II., p. 427) : " The Ferrador, as the Brazilians 

 of the tract which I travelled over call this 

 bird, is there everywhere known, on account of 

 its loud far-sounding voice, which has considerable 

 likeness to the sound of a cow-bell or the tone 

 of a hammer striking upon an anvil ; more- 

 over, it sometimes rises somewhat, or, again, drops, 

 and consists of single sounds repeated at intervals. 

 It lives deep in the interior of the forest, is sluggish, 

 occurs singly or in pairs, and never occurs in the 

 vicinity of human settlements. Its chief resorts are the 

 mountain woodlands of the narrow valleys of the 

 coastal region ; it is not to be met with near the sea- 

 shore." 



" The food, of the bird consists preferably of fleshy 

 berries, with which its crop, is filled to its greatest 

 capacity; yet it also feeds upon insects, lint only by 

 way of" variety. So far nobody is acquainted with its 

 nest." 



In The Ibis for 1905, pp. 174-5, Dr. E. A. Goeldi 

 confirms the statement that berries form a normal part 

 of .the natural food of this Bell-bird, but he throws no 

 additional light upon its wild life. 



Other writers upon the wild Life of this species seem 

 to have confined their observations chiefly to the 

 character of its pong. 



As regards its food in captivity Mr. Ernest Dulitz 

 seems to have fed his specimen on various, fruits, such 

 as china-orange, raisins, etc., sometimes mixed witn 

 boiled rice; it appeared to despise mealworms. During 

 the moult Brehm chiefly fed the specie^ on a mess of 

 mashed cooked potato, 'carrot, or parsnip, and 1 boiled 

 Malayan rice, with fruit daily as variety, but especially 

 bananas. 



The Naked-throated Bell-bird has repeatedly reached 

 the London Zoological Gardens nce 1866. and certainly 

 as lately as 1899, when the note of the bird is remarked 

 upon in T/if I hi* as differing from that of C. niveus. 



SNOWY BELL-BIRD (Chasmorhynchus 



"Snow-white; (head with a long thinly-feathered 



caruncle arising from the front; bill and feet black; 



whole length 10.5 inches, wing 6.5, tail 4. Female : 



Above green, beneath yellowish, variegated with green ; 



t At that time it had only just arrived at the London. 

 Zoological Gardens, 



