Notes on the Birds of the Waianae Mountains. " 45 



the year were exceedingly uoisy, being engaged in the preliminary 

 battles or trials of valor which later in the season lead to their 

 mating and nesting. It might be well here to say that at no time 

 during our protracfted stay in the field, did we see a Mina in any 

 way molest one of the native birds, nor did I find a nest which 

 gave an}^ signs of having been disturbed by one. My observations 

 lead me to believe that the introdudliou of the Mina has had little 

 or nothing to do with decrease in the numbers of the native avi- 

 fauna, notwithstanding a popular belief to the contrary. 



Carpodacus mexicanus obscurus McCall. 



A number of the bulky globular nests of the so-called "Rice- 

 bird" were coUecfted. The birds themselves were but seldom seen 

 in the mountains during the heat of the day, though they were 

 verj^ abundant about our camp early in the morning and again at 

 nightfall. They evidently leave the forest in the morning to go to 

 the low rice and pasture lands not far distant to feed, returning to 

 the mountains to roost. I was not able to detect any decided 

 preference in the matter of sele(5ting a nesting site. They seem to 

 easily adjust themselves to their adopted surroundings, using any 

 of the several species of trees that offered a forked limb that suited 

 their taste, without any notice being taken as to its height from 

 the ground. 



Munia nisoria (Temm.). 



The little "Chinese Sparrow" was not to be passed by without 

 being seen on a few occasions, and two specimens were colledled. 

 They are by no means as common in this range as in the moun- 

 tains and valleys back of Honolulu. 



Vestiaria coccinea Forster. 



The liwi is by far the rarest of the five species of mountain 

 birds yet to be found on Oahu. It is to be regretted that hours of 

 patient search in the deep, quiet, shady valleys where the few 

 specimens met with seemed to prefer to be, only resulted in our 

 securing six specimens, — three adults (both sexes) and three valu- 

 able immature specimens. No nests were taken, though I saw 

 indications of their mating. As 3'et the eggs of this species are 

 unknown to science. However, Mr. Scale has elsewhere (see 



. [237] 



