64 BIRD ARCHITECTS 



activity. The wild, weird song indulged in by the males is 

 a very pleasing sound to the South African. The Masked 

 Weaver lays eggs which vary very considerably in colour, 

 being either plain white, plain blue-green, bluish-green 

 spotted with reddish-brown and grey, or cream colour 

 with dark brown and reddish-brown spots. 



The Spotted-backed Weaver (H. spilonotus) is the 

 commonest form in the South-eastern Province of Cape 

 Colony, being exceedingly common in the Albany kloofs. 

 It resembles the Masked Weaver in colour, differing in 

 having the back of a spotted appearance, owing to the 

 feathers being black tipped with yellow. Like the fore- 

 going bird, it nests in colonies, but generally suspends 

 its nest from trees or bushes overhanging water. The 

 eggs vary almost as much as those of the Masked 

 Weaver, but the markings are of a more speckly nature. 



There is a smaller species resembling the Masked 

 Weaver (H. auricapillus) , but of a more brightly tinted 

 yellow, which is found in the Pretoria Bushveld, north- 

 wards to the Zambesi. We discovered it to be fairly 

 plentiful along the Crocodile Kiver, north of the Maga- 

 liesberg range, where it was nesting in colonies in the 

 willow and other trees overhanging the river. The 

 nests appeared to be smaller than those of the Masked 

 Weaver. 



The Yellow Weaver (H. subaureus) has no black on 

 the head, and breeds principally in the reed-beds, con- 

 structing its nest of strips of the leaves of reeds. 



The Bottle- Weaver (Sitagra ocularia) resembles the 

 Masked Weaver, but has only the throat and a streak 

 through the eye black. It is fairly common in the 



