1897.] MR. SC'LATER ox THE EGG Of CARIAMA CEISXATA. 813 



of Hippopotamus aviphibius, which were remarkable as being suffi- 

 ciently tiirae to allow the keeper to ride on their backs and thus 

 placed to feed thera from his hand. 



The most noticeable Mammals in the Zoological Garden of 

 Moscow were a fine adult female of the Persian Beer (C'eruus maral), 

 accompanied by a young fawn, very distinctly spotted on the back 

 (see Trans. Zool. Soc. vol. vii. p. 336, pi. xxix.). There was also a 

 young male of this beautiful Deer, and a young female Saiga 

 Antelope (Saiga tatarica). 



in the renovvned Zoological Garden of Berlin there was, as always, 

 much to be inspected and admired. The Garden was fortunate in 

 possessing one of the few pairs of the old stock of Nubian Giraffes, 

 Qiraffa camdopardalis, still existing in European menageries. 

 These animals were fifteen or sixteen years old, but still in excellent 

 form and condition. The male showed the median born very pro- 

 minently (c/. de Winton, P. Z. S. 1897, p. 276) ; in the female it was 

 barely observable. Amongst the Antelopes, Mr. Sclater bad noticed 

 fine examples of Gazella cuvieri $ , Ceplialojihusharveyi from German 

 East Africa, Buhalis lichtensteini, and Cobv^ unctuosus ( c? , $ et 

 vit.). The new Bird- bouse contained a large series of examples 

 of Passerine and other birds, many of which Mr. Sclater had not 

 seen alive before. Amongst these were Oriolus trailli, 0. melano- 

 cephalus, Crateropus squamiceps, RuticiUa leucocep>hala, Artamus 

 sordidus, and Pceocephalus versteri. There were also many fine 

 Ci-anes, Storks, and Herons to be seen (Ardea sihilatrix, Ardea 

 gularis, &c.), for which a new House was in preparation. The 

 series of the larger Birds of Prey comprised fine examples of 

 Spizaetus coronatus and S. beUicosus, and two quite adult examples 

 of Haliaetvs braniclcii with perfectly white tails. In the same com- 

 partment as the last was a nearly adult specimen of H. pelagicus, 

 showing at a glance the striking diversities of these two large- 

 billed Sea-eagles. 



Mr. Sclater exhibited an egg of the Cariama {Canama cristata\ 

 laid in the Societfs Gardens on the 18th of August last, and 

 remarked that it was not so pointed and not so much spotted as 

 those described and figured by Prof. Newton in 1889 ', but other-, 

 wise agreed with them in its characters. 



Mr. Sclater read the subjoined notes from Mr. Arthur Thomson, 

 the Head-Keeper, on this subject : — 



" Two Cariamas which were thought to be a pair were put to- 

 gether during the past summer in the large cage at the west end 

 of the Eastern Avairy, where a large flat basket had been fixed in 

 one corner as a suitable nesting-place. Birch-twigs &e. were scat- 

 tered about the cage and the birds (which proved to be a pair) soon 

 began to carry them into the basket. The female laid two eggs in 

 July and cornmenced to sit on the Slst. Both birds took turns 

 on the nest, and 1 have seen the female drive the male on to the 



' SeeP.Z.S. 1889, p. 25, pi. i. 



