336 Mr. c, f. m. swynnerton on thu 



femoralis, Horatopyga, and weevil 128, and the ticks over Mylabris oculata and 

 Zonocerus elegaiis?^ 



Exp. 138. — In the evening I fed her on grasshoppers, etc., until she obstinately 

 refused to touch another or a P. angolanus, but readily accepted, crushed and ate a 

 weevil {Iphisomus sp.). A small Cetoniid, Leucocelis ichthyurus, did not crush 

 easily, so was tossed away, but a Longioorn, Cymatura hifasciata, with pale yellow 

 bars was subjected to a very pi-olonged crushing indeed and finally swallowed. 

 The bird now became restless, moving up and down the perch and from one perch 

 to another and frequently shaking her head. It seemed to me that she possibly 

 regretted the acceptance of the Gymaiura, but I had unfortunately not another to 

 offer. It is noteworthy in any case that she accepted the Cymatura so readily, 

 though she had when much hungrier refused Mylabris oculata ; evidently such 

 resemblance as exists between those two insects is only calculated to deceive at a 

 distance. The bird then refused without tasting a cockroach and P. cebrene. She 

 retained the appearance of being perturbed. 



Ten minutes later, as she had settled back into her usual somewhat lethargic 

 state, I reoffered the cockroach, which was crushed well and thrown away, the bird 

 going on to eat with the greatest readiness an Iphisomus, a P. cebrene, and even a 

 P. angolatius. 



[The Iphisomus and Cymatura bi/asciata (if not regretted) were preferred to the 

 bitter grasshoppers, to P. angola?ius, and to Leucocelis ichthyurus, and the weevil 

 at any rate was preferred also to the cockroach.] 



Exp. 139. — January 14. Refused for a time, then tasted and rejected a 

 driver-ant [Dorylus sp.) and thrice accepted an isopod, rolled up in a glossy, 

 hard, black ball, which each time shot away from her bill as soon as pressure was 

 applied. After the third failure she refused to touch it again, eagerly ate a 

 Mycalesis campina, refused, then tasted, and at once rejected a Mylabris oculata, 

 refused a Zonocerus elegans, showing a marked dislike to its smell whenever I 

 brought it near. 



She was now on an unaccustomed perch with no enlarged opening in the wire 

 opposite for the admission of large offerings, and, as I could not tempt her away 

 by showing it at the usual place, I had difficulty in getting to her a large dung-beetle, 

 Catharsius rhinoceros $ . On my dropping it from above she cleverly caught it in 

 falling, but it slipped from her bill on her commencing to crush it, and I could not 

 induce her to catch it again. 



She then tasted and rejected Alesia bidentaia, accepted a large Xanthospilopteryx 

 stiperba with no smell at all, and subjected it to unusually prolonged crushing, in 

 the course of which she several times half swallowed it, but at once brought it 

 forward into the bill again and tasted it with redoubled care. Finally, after nearly 

 swallowing it, she brought it up for the last time and threw it away and refused 

 to taste it again. On my reoffering it with wings removed it was accepted, but 

 evidently recognized by taste and was once more thrown away and ignored on 

 re-presentation. The bird then refused a Mylabris (No. 22), but on my continuing 

 to offer it tasted and rejected it, persistently refused without tasting a Zonocerus 



