;9A 



JNIr, G. L. Bates o?i the 



in the nest; one nest was brought with a male bird with 

 large breeding-organs, which had been imprisoned by the 

 drawing tight of a noose put loosely over the neck oF 

 the nest while the bird was away. Along with one of 

 the nests two hen birds were brought, said to have been 

 caught t02;etlier in the nest : one shewed the usual evidences 

 of sitting, the other did not. These nests were like those 

 o( Estrilda atricapilla already described (' Ibis/ 1909, p. 52). 



Text-fitr. 17. 



ABC 



A. Mouth of young Hi/pniv/os scliJojfU (from a sketch by the author), 

 see p. 591. B. Mouth of nestling E^trilda nonnuln, see p. 593. 

 C. Mouth of young Estrilda melpoda (from a sketch by the author), 

 see p. 595. 



None came to me with such an additional nest joined to it as 

 that there described ; but in one case I was told that there 

 had been such an additional nest which was not brought. 

 In this case the eggs were in the main nest, and the addition 

 was empty : the boy called it the place where '^ the cock bird 

 sleeps. '^ Another of these nests of Estrilda nonnula shown 

 to me had a sort of rudimentary or unfinished addition at its 

 base. 



One of the nests above referred to contained, besides the 

 mother bird, five young and naked nestlings. The mouth 

 of one of these, that was preserved in spirit, is here figured. 

 Note in the figure (17 B) also the "egg-tooth" on the tip 

 of the bill. 



The number of eggs brought in a nest varied from three 

 to six. Nineteen eggs that were measured vary in length 



