538 MR ALFRED EZRA ON 



The pair of Indian horns shown were those of the " Delhi" 

 variety of the domesticated Indian Buffalo (JBos bubalus), of 

 which there are several local varieties — viz. Deccani, Kathiwar, 

 and others. The specimen was of unusual form — massive at the 

 base, with a compressed spiral growing backward. 



Mr. Holding also exhibited a print from a German colonial 

 paper showing another variety of these long-horned cattle from 

 Ruando, N.W. Africa, Avhere considerable herds are owned by 

 the Sultan. 



Humming-birds in Captivity. 



Mr. Alfred Ezra, F.Z.S., exhibited a living specimen of 

 Ricordi's Humming-bird {Sporadinus ricordi) and made the 

 following remarks : — 



" This little bird was brought over from Cuba by a dealer 

 twelve months ago in almost a dying state. Having been fed 

 only on sugar and water on the voyage, he was extremely weak 

 and not able to move from his perch. His feathers were stuck 

 together with the sticky syrup, and the bird looked miserable, 

 not being able to make use of his wings. The first thing I did 

 was to wash him (a difficult matter with such a little mite) in 

 warm water with a drop of brandy in it, and after drying him 

 thoroughly he was put back into a cage near a fire. In half an 

 hour he was buzzing about in the cage and looked much happier. 

 I fed him as I do my sun-birds, and he took to the food at once. 

 For the first three nights I kept the light on for him to feed by, 

 and in a week's time the bird began to pick up, and grew 

 stronger every day. About November last he Avent through a 

 partial moult, and again this April he went through a very 

 heavy moult and got over it perfectly. He is kept in a fair- 

 sized wire cage, and is given his freedom in a large room every 

 morning for an hour, when he darts about at a terrific pace 

 and enjoys it immensely, returning to his cage when he has had 

 enough. It is astonishing to see how he will never knock himself 

 against the window as most birds would do, but will always pull 

 up just in time, no matter what pace he is flying at. Besides the 

 syrup, which is his chief food, he will eat grapes and aphides, but 

 I do not think the latter are essential, he having clone quite well 

 without them for all the long winter months. All his food is 

 taken on the wing, which gives him plenty of exercise, and I am 

 sure my success is due to this. He will not eat the aphides 

 unless they are flying about, and I have never seen him pick one 

 up, even if he sees them crawling on his perch. If some are 

 lying at the bottom of the cage he will fly at a great pace close 

 to them, and when they fly up he will swallow them one after 

 another quickly. The bird is sprayed with tepid water every 

 morning, no matter what the weather is like, and then he will 

 wash himself by flying in and out of the damp leaves of a small 



