12 CURIOUS NESTS IN AFRICA. 



of emergency, these small birds can build a nest. 

 A Canary was observed to commence her labours 

 about five o'clock in the morning, from which time, 

 till near seven, she worked so hard that it was 

 completely finished; she had been often disturbed 

 before, in consequence of building in inconvenient 

 places, which probably induced her to use more than 

 ordinary despatch in this nest, availing herself of 

 early hours, before people were likely to see and 

 interfere. 



An African traveller speaks of some singular 

 nests built by birds, which he describes as resem- 

 bling our Goldfinch; but he probably mistook them 

 for a family of birds nearly allied to them, and 

 known to inhabit the Cape of Good Hope. For, 

 although Bishop Heber found Goldfinches* at the 

 foot of the Snowy Mountains, in India, and in 

 some other parts, where they are caught and sold 

 for about two shillings each, we are not aware that 

 they are known in Africa. The account of the nest, 

 however, is very curious, and at all events, illus- 

 trates the social manners of a set of little birds, like 

 " brethren dwelling together in unity." A tree at a 

 little distance from our wagon, says the traveller who 

 noticed the factt, had two remarkable nests in it. 

 The one was about four yards in circumference, and 

 the other three, and about a yard in depth. They 

 were built of coarse grass. One of these nests had 

 seventeen holes in the bottom, by which the birds 



* The Goldfinch of the East Indies is the Carduelis carri- 

 ceps, a bird much resembling, but not exactly the same as our 

 British species. 



-j- Campbell's Travels in Africa. 



