304 COMMON BEASTS OF AN INDIAN GARDEN 



kinds of trees lure them down to squabble with the 

 mynas and other birds who find the feast equally 

 attractive. 



Palm-squirrels are very easily tamed, especially 

 when taken young, and are very attractive pets in 

 spite of the mischief that they are apt to do owing 

 to their ungovernable desire to be constantly gnaw- 

 ing at something. Their habits in captivity clearly 

 show that much of their nest-building is pure house- 

 building, quite independent of any prospective 

 family end. One, that for a long time inhabited 

 an aviary in my verandah, built a most elaborate 

 sleeping-room in a wooden box, and, as one side 

 of the latter in contact with the wiring had been 

 previously completely gnawed away, it was easy 

 to study all the steps in the progress of the work. 

 The nest was entirely built up of coarse cotton 

 threads taken from a cover that was thrown over 

 the wiring at night. The threads were made up 

 into clues and flocks, and the latter were then piled 

 together in the form of a hollow ball, with a small 

 round opening at 'one side leading into a central 

 cavity, in which the architect spent his nights and 

 many hours of the day. 



The only squirrels that are uninteresting in 

 captivity are the flying species, whose nocturnal 

 activity renders them so dull and drowsy during the 

 day, that, to any one who had only seen them in 

 confinement, it would be hard to imagine them 



