i8o FOREIGN FINCHES IN CAPTIVITY. 



taken up and their heads held side by side, when there is no difficulty 

 in discriminating between them). 



I had a pair of this species, in about 1889, which built in a 

 German canary cage in my small Finch aviary, and laid several eggs : 

 there were, however, such constant disputes between the male and 

 female, that they came to nothing ; the hen would not let the cock 

 enter the nest in the day time (indeed his repeated efforts to do so, 

 eventually resulted in her killing him), but if he did not come in 

 directly that she began to call him in the evening, she would leave 

 her eggs and chase him about the aviary. 



The call-note of these birds is particularly doleful, like that of 

 the Parson Finch ; but the love-dance of the cock bird is one of the 

 most absurd, and, at the same time, almost incredible exhibitions 

 which I have seen among the Ornamental Finches : he stretches his 

 neck upwards to an extravagant height, draws in the breast and 

 expands the chest and abdomen, stands very upright, and with de- 

 pressed head, a long grass-bent in his beak : then bobs up and down 

 on his perch, to the accompaniment of his queer song. It would be 

 impossible, looking at the bird in repose, to imagine that he could 

 thus alter his entire appearance until he almost resembled an oil-flask. 

 My artist made a coloured sketch of him whilst he was thus making 

 himself look ridiculous. (Vide plate). 



After the death of the male bird, the female used to spend half 

 the day in flying about restlessly, calling for him and then moping; 

 soon she grew listless, failed to take exercise, and in the course of a 

 month or two she died. I have heard that it is a peculiarity of some 

 bad wives that, after they have worried their husbands into their 

 graves, they are always lamenting their loss, and wondering what 

 crime they can have committed to be thus left widows : thus it was 

 with my female Diamond Sparrow. 



Mr. Gould says : " I found this species plentiful in South 

 Australia, and in every part of New South Wales that I visited; and 

 it was equally numerous on the Liverpool Plains, the sides of the 

 River Mokai, Namoi, &c. It is a showy attractive species, and passes 

 much of its time on the ground, where it procures its food, which 

 consists of the seeds of various kinds of grasses, &c. The nest is 

 frequently built among the large sticks, forming the under surface of 

 the nest of the smaller species of Eagles, and that, too, during the 

 time the Eagle is incubating, both species hatching and rearing their 

 progeny in harmony ; this I witnessed in several instances, and have 

 taken the eggs of the Eagle and of the Finch at the same time, as 



