THE GOLD-CAPPED WEAVER BIRD. 123 



larius). This nest looks very like a chemist's retort, with the 

 bulb upwards — or, to speak more familiarly, like a very large 

 horse-pistol suspended by the butt. The substance of which it 

 is made is a very narrow, stiif and elastic grass, scarcely larger 

 than the ordinary twine used for tying up small parcels, and 

 interwoven with a skill that seems far beyond the capabilities 

 of a mere bird. 



If the hand be carefully introduced up the neck of one of 

 these nests, its admirable fitness for the nurture of the young 

 birds is at once perceived. When merely viewed from the out- 

 side, the nest looks as if it would be a very unsafe cradle, and 

 would permit the young birds to fall through the neck into the 

 water. A section of tlie nest, however, shows that no habitation 

 can be safer, and even the hand can detect the wonderfully 

 ingenious manner in which the interior is constructed. Just 

 where the neck is united to the bulb, a kind of wall or partition 

 is made, about two inches in height, which runs completely 

 across the bulb, and eifectually prevents the young birds from 

 falling into the neck. 



Another of this group is the Gold-capped Weaver Bird, 

 Ploceus icier ocephalus. The nest of this bird is notable for the 

 extreme neatness and compactness of its. structure, for it can 

 endure a vast amount of careless handling, and still retain its 

 beautiful contour. A specimen in my collection was taken 

 from the banks of a river near Natal, and was suspended from 

 two reeds, so as to hang over the water, and at no great distance 

 from the surface. 



The whole structure is apparently composed of the same plant, 

 namely, a kind of small reed, but the materials are taken from a 

 different portion of the plant, according to the part of the nest 

 for which they are required. The whole exterior, as well as the 

 walls, are made of the reed-sterns, woven very closely together, 

 and being of no trifling thickness. There is a considerable 

 amount of elasticity in the structure, and the whole nest is so 

 strong that it might be kicked down stairs, or be thrown from 

 the top of the Monument, without much apparent deterioration. 

 The interior, however, is constructed after a very different 



