274 FOREIGN FINCHES IN CAPTIVITY. 



development of the young ; this is the more annoying to me, because 

 up to the present time no other breeder has been able to congratulate 

 himself upon a successful hatch. The living youngster was fed by two 

 females, but I never noticed that the old male troubled himself about 

 the nest or the young one. The latter in its young clothing was very 

 like the old female, only much paler whitish-grey. After its flight it 

 proved itself a lazy, thoroughly voracious bird, which, after about a 

 year, exhibited a wonderful, almost ghostly, appearance ; this I should 

 certainly not have the courage to assert, if Messrs. Leuckfeld, B. 

 Hendschel, and several other observers, had not had the same experience 

 with imported young Paradise Whydahs." 



Dr. Russ then proceeds to mention that the young Whydah used 

 to greatly terrify the small Ornamental Finches by plunging in 

 amongst them with his feathers swelled out, which made him appear 

 considerably larger and almost entirely white. 



Of this very handsome species I obtained a male early in the 

 year 1889; which died in 1892,35 already stated. In 1893 I obtained 

 two others in undress uniform, both of which appear to be hens ; and 

 in 1895 two pairs, the males in full colour. 



Adult Paradise Whydahs are usually peaceable, even somewhat 

 timid when out of colour, and rarely aggressive like the Pin-tailed 

 Whydah, at any time, according to my experience. On one occasion, 

 however, my first bird was very unwillingly the cause of universal 

 terror in my bird-room ; for, in slipping through the branches near 

 the ceiling, his long tail caught in a crooked twig and, as he 

 attempted to fly, it jerked him back, so that he hung head down- 

 wards. Bvery time the wretched captive made a struggle to escape 

 from his miserable plight, there was a general panic ; the reversal of 

 the natural position of the poor Whydah seemed to have rendered 

 him an object of superstitious horror. Happily, I soon discovered and 

 released him, when peace was immediately restored. In sober truth, 

 when I first observed the Whydah wildly flapping and spinning round 

 at the end of one plume, I was at a loss to know what he .was, but 

 as he wearied of his struggles and hung quietly, I recognized the fact 

 that the tail was bearing the bird instead of the reverse. In 1897 I 

 had an exceptional and unpleasant experience with a male Paradise 

 Whydah out of colour, it having acquired a taste for entering the 

 nests of Zebra Finches and murdering the young. After considerable 

 exertion I captured the assassin, and placed it with a crowd of 

 Weavers, but I suppose the chasing about which it got before I could 

 catch it affected its heart, for it died two or three days afterwards. 



