50 GARDEN AND AVIARY BIRDS. 



than the House-Mynab, and does not come into streets 

 and the actual precincts of houses, though a very usual 

 inhabitant of our gardens, where it must be of considerable 

 service as it is usually seen industriously hunting the 

 grass. It does not indulge in any set song apparently ; 

 but its voice is very sweet and flute-like, and it appears 

 not to have any unpleasant notes whatever a remarkable 

 peculiarity in any bird, and especially in one of this 

 family. 



The Pied Mynah appears to be the most insectivorous 

 of all our Mynahs ; it is constantly haunting for prey on 

 the ground, though, when the red-flowered cotton-tree is 

 in bloom it joins other birds in drinking nectar from the 

 blossoms. In captivity it needs more animal food than 

 other species. I believe it can, when nest-reared, be 

 taught to whistle very well which one would expect 

 from the mellowness of its natural notes. 



Unlike other Starlings, it does not build in a hole, but 

 makes a big untidy nest on the bough of a tree, several 

 pairs often building near each other. The birds must 

 possess remarkable courage to be able to afford to rear 

 their broods in public like this, for the nest is obtrusively 

 obvious to every passer-by. 



The Pied Mynah in captivity is apt to turn more or 

 less black on the light parts of its plumage. I once saw 

 in a cage one of these birds which was pale drab all over 

 the parts which should have been black, the rest with 

 the beak, etc., remaining normal. In the Indian Museum, 

 too, are two skins of the species, one of which is mostly 

 white, and the other entirely so, 



