300 FOREIGN FINCHES IN CAPTIVITY. 



fiercely chattering ; and does its utmost to drive it away ; if successful, 

 it returns quietly to work ; still, however, warning off all visitors with 

 its wings. 



Dr. Russ says that he obtained two pairs of this species ; one, a 

 very old pair, he confined in a large cage, and the birds at once set 

 to work at their weaving, and plaited building-material thickly over 

 one side of the wire-work. The younger pair he turned into his bird- 

 room. " The male of the younger pair very early practised its skill 

 as a weaver. It did not choose flexible, slender twigs, but a strong 

 fork of the branch. Here it plaited a girdle-like wreath, standing 

 almost upright, of long dry grass-stems, together with cotton and bast- 

 threads, and this it extended in such a way that it formed a globular 

 cell, with a proportionately small round entrance-hole. At first the 

 female sat near at hand, apparently quite unconcernedly. Both of 

 them, as a rule, were very shy, and rather than trust themselves down 

 below, where the building materials lay in a heap, the male preferred 

 to wait, sitting upon a projecting branch, until one of the other birds, 

 no matter whether larger or smaller, came past with a stalk, which it 

 then suddenly snatched from the bearer and flew with it to its building. 

 That, however, is the only act of violence which I can personally 

 charge it with. When the nest was nearly ready, the hen began 

 diligently to join in the work. I cannot, however, confirm the 

 observation that both do this conjointly and pass the stalks to one 

 another ; rather, each stuck to its own stalk, and plaited it alternately 

 in from outside and inside, meanwhile, slipping hurriedly from one 

 point to another. Moreover, the definition to weave (and consequently 

 Weaver-bird) is not quite correct ; since the nest consists of a little 

 basket, which is plaited with marvellous dexterity, care and symmetry. 

 The bents, threads, strips of bast and agave fibres are so placed and 

 intertwined with astounding regularity, that they run close to and 

 between one another, encircle the twigs of the forked branch, and 

 produce the true globular nest, freely suspended. Moreover, the Blood- 

 billed Weavers use agave fibres preferably, still they do not .despise all 

 kinds of threads and bents, yet they but rarely take fresh grass-leaves: 

 woollen threads, however, they leave untouched, if they can get any- 

 thing else. When nest-building, both sexes of the pair are by no 

 means quarrelsome, indeed nothing like so touchy as the Ornamental 

 Finches. The male frequently and repeatedly gives utterance to his 

 harsh shack, schak, schak, and pursues the female with quivering wings, 

 as though begging for reciprocal love. In fear and alarm they have 

 a different, also monosyllabic and Sparrow-like cry, and the call-note 



