EAST AFRICAN BIKDS. 84l 



Spermestes sp., either cucullata Swains, or scutata Heugl. 



Green -headed Mannikin. Two and four eggs respectively 

 (Kabete, 24. v. 15); two eggs (Soko Nassai, 22. v. 16); one egg 

 (Morogoro, 30. iv. 17) ; two eggs (Nairobi, 7. v. 19). 



I have frequently found the hen-birds sitting on their eggs in 

 the deserted nests of other species of Weaver, which the}^ do to 

 save themselves the trouble of building. A nest was situated in 

 a very exposed thorn-bush on an exposed hillside at Kabete. 

 Two of the eggs wei'e peifectly fi'esh and two were perfectly bad, 

 so much so that they exploded when pricked with a pin ; the fifth 

 egg was empt}^, with a very small hole in its side such as might 

 have been made by a bird's claw, and the contents removed by ai\ts. 

 Another of these weaver-finches was sitting on its eggs in the 

 nest of a weaver [Ploceus xantlwps ?) which had been built in 

 sedges growing in the waters of a, SAvamp at Soko IN assai ; yet 

 another had adopted the retort-shaped nest of another species of 

 Ploceus, Avhich was situated in a banana-palm, about 10 feet from 

 the ground, growing on the banks of the river at Morogoro. 



Ur^ginthus bengalus angolensis Linn. 



One egg of the Blue-breasted Waxbill in a nest (Lumbo, 

 28.x. 18). 



Ur.eginthus niassensis Reichw. Niassa-land Bengali. 



On the outward voyage to East Africa, when at Lorenzo 

 Marques, I made a note in my diary that a small blue bird had 

 built its nest in a thorn-bush just above that of a wasp, and 

 speculated whether it had been done for protection. I forgot 

 the incident entirely until indexing my notes three years later, 

 . The species Avas probably U. h. angolensis. Two years later, at 

 Morogoro, I found many nests of U. niassensis. In nineteen 

 cases out of twenty these Avere built over the paper nests of wasps, 

 so that one could not approach one's hand through the thorns 

 before the A\'asps began to threaten and fly round. I watched a 

 pair of these birds building over a. wasp's nest, and so am certain 

 that it is not the Avasps which build beneath the bird's nest for 

 the sake of shelter from the rain, though doubtless the arrange- 

 ment is mutually beneficial. At Mombasa, I have seen the same 

 thing Avith U. b. hrunneigularis, but at Nairobi, Avhere one of 

 these charming little blue weavers is very common, I never 

 recollect having seen its nest above a Avasp's. The same at 

 Lumbo, Avhere U. h. angolensis was very abundant and its old 

 nests were to be seen in almost eA'ery thorn-bush. 



I was very interested in coming across this paragraph in Belt's 

 'The Naturalist in Nicaragua.' "A yelloAv and broAvn flycatcher 

 builds its nest in these bushes, and generally places it alongside 

 that of a banded Avasp, so that Avith the prickles and the wasps it 

 is Avell guarded " (p. 222). 



Five, four, and tAvo eggSAvere found in three nests on 13. iii. 17, 

 and three eggs in a nest on 30. iii. 17 (Moi^ogoro) 



