THE AMADAVAT 



" ^^^\ ENTLEMEN," said a Cambridge professor 



a to his class, " I regret that owing to the 



^^ forgetfulness of my assistant, I am unable 



to show you a specimen of the shell of the 

 mollusc of which we are speaking. You have, however, 

 but to step into the parlour of any seaside lodging- 

 house and on the mantelpiece you will see two of the 

 shells in question." Every undergraduate immediately 

 knew what the shell was like ; so will my readers at 

 once recognise the bird of which I write when I inform 

 them that the amadavat is the little red bird with white 

 spots that occurs in every aviary in India. The bird is, 

 indeed, not all red, but the bill is bright red and there 

 are patches of this colour all over the plumage more in 

 the cock than in the hen, and more in the former in the 

 breeding season than at other times. Thus the general 

 effect is that of a red bird ; hence the native name Lai 

 munia, which, being interpreted, is the red munia. This 

 is the proper English name of the bird, although fanciers 

 frequently call it the red waxbill. Men of science know 

 it as Spor&ginthus amandava. I may say here that the 

 name avadavat or amadavat is derived from Ahmeda- 

 bad, whence great numbers used to be exported, for th e 

 bird is a great favourite in England. 



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