THE SPOTTED-BACKED WEAVER BIRD. 223 



away into the thickest underwood, accompanied by its faithful 

 friends. The reader must not suppose that every buffalo has its 

 bird, or that even a herd of buffaloes must necessarily be accom- 

 panied by the Weavers. Sometimes a large party of buffaloes 

 may be without a single bird ; only where buffaloes do not exist, 

 these Weavers are not to be found. 



There are several other birds which are in the habit of attach- 

 ing themselves to animals, such as the well-known zic-zac, which 

 befriends the crocodile ; the beef-eater, which perches upon the 

 rhinoceros; and a congener, which is found upon the buffalo. 

 This last bird, however, pays more attention to the " wurbles," 

 or larvae of the bot-flies, which burrow into the skin, and make 

 such ugly holes in the hide. All these birds feed upon the para- 

 sites and other creatures that are found upon the animal which 

 they affect ; and in every case they become watchful guardians, 

 their own alarm being communicated to the larger animal. 



Toward the upper part of the illustration may be seen a num- 

 ber of roundish nests, hung on branches in several rows. These 

 are built by the Spotted-backed Weaver Bird, and are slight- 

 ly variable in the method of their construction, some having the 

 entrance nearly at the bottom, and others more toward the sides. 

 They are all, however, constructed of similar materials, and the 

 different position of the mouth is evidently intended merely as 

 an accommodation to circumstances. Their eggs are not numer- 

 ous, seldom exceeding four, and their color is delicate green, 

 something like those of our common starling. The bird is not 

 very plentiful, and seems to be rather limited in its range, not 

 appearing westward of the district called Kaffir-land. Its scien- 

 tific name is Ploceus sjrilonotus, and it is sometimes called the Yel- 

 low-crowned Weaver Bird. 



All the pensile birds are remarkable for the eccentricity of 

 shape and design which marks their nests ; although they agree 

 in one point, namely, that they dangle at the end of twigs, and 

 dance about merrily at every breeze. Some of them are very 

 long, others are very short; some have their entrance at the side, 

 others from below, and others, again, from near the top. Some 

 are hung, hammock-like, from one twig to another; others are 

 suspended to the extremity of the twig itself; while others that 

 build in the palms, which have no true branches, and no twigs at 



