THE TWITE. 79 



of Beverley, Yorks., gives the following interesting account of his experiments in 

 breeding Twites in confinement: "A pair of Twites (Acanthis flaviroslris) have 

 this season bred and reared young in my small aviary, and as it is, I believe, a 

 rather uncommon occurrence, a few notes may be acceptable ******. 

 The birds are a very interesting pair, both being abnormally coloured the cock 

 about half white pied, and the hen pure white (the latter may be known to some 

 of my readers, as it has been exhibited at both the Palace and Aquarium shows). 

 They are kept with about half a dozen other Finches in an aviary quite out in 

 the country. 



The hen commenced to build on May i4th, and laid her first egg on the 

 1 7th, laying altogether five eggs and sitting closely after the third was laid. I 

 did not again look at the eggs, but saw the old birds busy feeding on the 2nd 

 of June and following days. I looked in the nest on the 8th, hoping to find some 

 fine young birds, but the nest contained only one poor starved thing which died 

 on the following day : the weather was very stormy at the time they were hatched 

 and I think this was the cause of their doing so badly. 



On the 1 5th I noticed that the hen had nearly completed another nest, and 

 she laid on the i6th and three following days : having a Redpoll nesting at the 

 same time, I gave her two of the Twites' eggs, making up the number for each 

 with infertile eggs ; both birds hatched on the same day ; the two in the Redpoll's 

 nest perished at once, though she is a good feeder, and has reared two broods of 

 her own this season ; the Twite successfully reared hers, and they left the nest 

 on July i Qth, and are now very fine birds, but quite normally coloured ; this I 

 expected, as I have reared a large number during the past few years from both 

 white, pied, and cinnamon Lesser Redpolls, and have inbred them, but have never 

 had one vary in the least from the normal colour.* Young Twites are not nearly 

 so precocious as Redpolls ; they were a long time before they attempted to peck 

 for themselves, and even now (August) clamour to the old ones for food, whereas 

 I have seen young Redpolls a week after leaving the nest shell hard Canary-seed. 

 My birds have no soft food given them, but as much of the flowering top of the 

 dwarf-grass, dandelion, and hard-head tops, thistle, plantain, etc., as they wish, and 

 as many aphides off rose, apple, or plum-trees as I can at the time obtain ; infested 

 branches being put in the aviary for the birds to peck them off. The latter, I 

 consider, are very essential for the successful rearing of Finches in confinement, 

 especially for the first few days after they are hatched." t 



Nevertheless continuous inbreeding is believed to be the principal cause of albinism. A.G.B. 

 t If soft food is given, I do not find aphides to be essential. A.G.B. 



