376 Caxakies a.xd Cage-Birds. 



cared for. His plumage is. always in perfect order. Millet and canary seed, with an occa- 

 sional mealworm in winter, and chickweed or flowering grass in summer, will satisfy all 

 his wants. He will live many years in a cage, but to breed him requires much care, much 

 patience, and a somewhat high temperature. The nest will be a great mass of fibres of all 

 sorts, piled up rather loosely, and from three to five eggs will be hatched in eleven or twelve 

 days. The young birds are fed on ants' eggs, mealworms, hard-boiled egg, and scalded 

 seeds, but are rather difficult to rear, as the parent birds are somewhat inclined to throw 

 them out of the nest if the food provided is not quite suitable. The beak of the young 

 is black, and gradually changes to red four to six weeks after the birds are hatched. Male 

 and female are alike, except that the roseate tint of the male is brighter. 



The St. Helena Waxbill has no song, but a rather loud, by no means unpleasant 

 call. When not breeding, the bird is perfectly peaceful and gentle, and even at breeding- 

 time the male birds may quarrel about a good nesting-place, and disturb the incubating 

 hen-birds, but never engage in mortal combat. Under ordinary conditions the St. Helena 

 Waxbill will rarely attempt to breed, and will live in perfect peace with any number of his 

 own species or other small Finches, delighting his owner with his sprightliness, beauty, and 

 graceful movements. 



ORANGE-CHEEKED WAXBILL (Estrelda melpoda), West Africa. 



(Illustration painted from life specimens kindly lent by Mr. E. Hawkins.) 



Aigiiit/ia melpoda (Russ), Fringilla melpoda, Fringilla lippa, Habropyga melpoda, Melpoda lippa. Dealers' name — Orange-clieek. 



French — "Joue Orange." German — " Orangebackchen," " Gelbwangiger Astrild." 



A pair of these very small Waxbills is frequently obtainable in London for a few 

 shillings, and will prove a very good addition to an ornamental aviary in any conservatory. 

 The tints of the bird are mainly light greyish-brown, whilst bright orange patches on the 

 cheeks, extending to the root of the beak and round the eyes, are unmistakable distinguishing 

 marks. The lower part of the body is greyish and brownish-white. On the abdomen there 

 is a diffused patch of orange, gradually shaded towards the chest and sides. The tail is 

 dark brown, with a reddish patch at the root ; the beak coral-red. Male and female are 

 much alike, but the orange is much more pale in the plumage of the female. 



The Orange-cheeked Waxbills are fully as amiable inhabitants of an aviary as any of the 

 other African Astrilds. They are very pretty, very active, and very intelligent. In fact, it 

 has been observed that the Orange-cheeked Waxbill will constitute himself the guardian of 

 the inhabitants of an aviary, and be the first to discover a supposed impending danger. His 

 ever-watchful eye will at once discern the approach of a stranger or anything unusual, 

 and should the birds just then be busy feeding on the floor of the aviary, the Orange-cheeked 

 Waxbill will be the first to seek safety in flight, uttering a note of warning, which induces 

 all the other little birds to follow his example. 



The bird has been bred in Germany more than once or twice, but as many thousands 

 of Orange-cheeked Waxbills are annually imported, it is really not worth the trouble to breed 

 a little bird which can be bought at less than the cost of feeding a nest of young birds. 

 Success in breeding the Orange-cheeked Waxbill is by no means easy, for he requires the 

 high temperature of the other African Waxbills, and his lively and watchful disposition 

 makes him leave the nest very easily. Intending breeders are therefore more often disappointed 

 than rewarded by success. In the aviary the bird will endure as an ornamental inmate for 

 many years, and retain his plumage if kept in an ordinary temperature. Food, &c., the same 

 as the preceding African Waxbills. 



