^i8 BIRDS 



The Belgian Canary is one of the group which includes 

 the " birds of position." It was produced in Belgium, but 

 now is widely bred on the continent, and also in England 

 and America. It is purely a " fancy " bird, and is bred for 

 shape and position alone, song and color being negligible. 

 This bird represents the curious tendency of breeders the 

 world over to develop grotesque variations. There is noth- 

 ing lovely about the Belgian Canary, and only the initiated 

 can appreciate the care and skill required to produce the 

 strange form so much desired by admirers of the breed. 



The Belgian Canary is essentially long and slender. The 

 body is slim and the back and tail straight, forming a right 

 angle with the perch, when the bird is in position. The legs 

 must be long and straight, allowing the bird to stand well 

 up. The wings must be held tightly, and meet evenly over 

 the back, the points not overlapping. The most striking 

 singularity is the neck, which is extremely long and narrow. 

 When the bird is fully extended, the neck extends forward 

 and downward from the body, at an angle approximating 

 45 degrees, the beak being pointed straight down. Well- 

 bred young birds always assume this position when ex- 

 cited, and the habit is fastened in exhibition birds by con- 

 stant training. It is the aim of breeders to preserve tight- 

 ness of plumage, but the shoulders must be well rounded, 

 and not made to appear uneven by projecting wing butts. 

 The Belgian Canary is an exceedingly nervous bird and 

 should never be handled if avoidable. 



There is one other Continental breed to which we may 

 briefly refer — the Dutch or French Frilled Canary. 

 This is a long, slender bird, somewhat on the style of the 

 Belgian but without the exaggerated pose. Its most strik- 

 ing character lies in the plumage, which is unusually long 

 and wavy and recurved at certain points : the chest, the 

 region of the thighs, the back, the base of the tail and occa- 



