PENDULOUS NESTS 261 



Three out of the seven chambers were found to be 

 in actual use, each containing eggs. Another species, 

 the Yellow-crowned Weaver {F. spilonotus), inhabiting 

 Africa, builds a nearly globular nest, attached by two 

 woven ropes to the supporting branch, with an 

 entrance either on the side or near the bottom. To 

 this nest no special entrance tube appears ever to 

 be attached. Some other species belonging to the 

 genus Hyphantornis exhibit a considerable amount 

 of ingenuity in the construction of their nests. These 

 are retort- shaped, and are suspended with the short 

 neck downwards, and from a casual examination 

 might be considered most unsafe receptacles for 

 eggs and young birds. But closer inspection will 

 reveal the curious fact that across the entrance to 

 the bulb-like chamber a safety wall or guard has 

 been woven, several inches in height, thus insuring 

 absolute safety for the contents. Other nests made 

 on the same inverted retort plan or model are made 

 by the Pensile Weavers peculiar to Madagascar. 

 These nests are about twelve inches in length, the 

 entrance tube being about four inches in diameter. 

 All the Weaver-birds work at their nests in a very 

 similar manner. Many of the species are gregarious, 

 or, at least, social, during the breeding season, and 

 numbers of nests may frequently be seen swinging 

 in company from the same trees, and even occasion- 

 ally one nest will be actually suspended from another. 

 Weaver-birds are one of the most striking features in 



