THK RKD-CRKSTKD CARDINAL. 75 



songster is glad to be a prisoner. As a cage-bird this Finch enjoys an 

 extraordinary popularity ; and a stranger in Buenos Ayres, seeing the 

 numbers that are exposed for sale, by the bird-dealers in the markets of 

 that city, might fancy that a Cardinal in a cage is considered a necessary 

 part of the menage of every house in the country. This large supply of 

 caged-birds comes from South Brazil, Paraguay, and the north-eastern 

 part of the Argentine country, where the Cardinals are most abundant 

 and unite in large flocks. Probably they are not snared, but taken when 

 young from the nest, as most of the birds exposed for sale are in 

 immature plumage." 



The best seeds on which to feed this and the other South American 

 Cardinals are canary, oats, small sunflower seeds, melon seeds (of which 

 they are very fond), millet, thistle and a little hemp.* Thistle seeds are 

 a favourite food with them in their wild state. 



I kept my first pair of Red-crested Cardinals in an aviary with a 

 Rosella Parrakeet, and a pair of Grey-headed Love-Birds. The cock 

 bird had a bad time of it, as both Parrakeet and Love-Birds were 

 constantly going for him : eventually matters came to a crisis, the hen 

 Love- Bird began to make a practice of disappearing into a nesting log, 

 and the Cardinal, I suppose, began to wonder what she did it for, and 

 when she slipped into the hole in the log, he would fly across and take a 

 peep into the hole to see what had become of her ; this used to greatly 

 irritate the Grey-head, nor can one blame him for his indignation. One 

 morning when I entered my bird room and glanced round, I discovered 

 the two birds, Grey-head and Red-head, in deadly combat, and in spite of 

 its superior size and strong pointed beak, the latter had already had 

 very 'much the worst of the fray ; his feathers were lying about, nearly all 

 his toes had been bitten through, and his thigh was severely wounded 

 and bleeding profusely : he was well nigh spent when I went and picked 

 him up ; so I had to cage him up separately : he soon recovered his 

 spirits, but not his claws, and thus he lived for fully a year longer. 



The Love-Birds never attacked the hen, and as for the Rosella, he 

 seemed to think her a queer sort of female of his own species ; for he was 

 always making up to her, bowing and dancing to her and pawing her 

 back in a clumsy fashion ; treatment to which she showed her dislike, by 

 pecking at him somewhat viciously : this love-making between so ill- 

 assorted a pair was one of the most laughable sights I think I ever 



* Some fauciers have objected to this seed, under the mistaken notion that it affects the 

 colouring ; if they could see my birds, they would have to retract their own assertions, which can 

 hardly be based on personal experience. Canary, with a little hemp, are sufficient to keep them 

 in health. A.G.B. 



