83



on the floor, and occasionally occupying a short period of

comparative repose by performing each others’ toilet. They

frequently bathed, soaking themselves until they were unable to

fly. Kept thus, no birds could have been less troublesome than

the Ornamented Dorikeets: a very simple diet sufficed to keep

them in splendid health, and with a good layer of sawdust

on the floor, a weekly cleaning was all that the aviary required.

Their diet consisted of canary and hemp-seed (which they took

readily), a saucer of bread and milk every morning, and a piece

of banana or other fruit later in the day. The male bird was

bold, and would fly on to the food-saucer and help himself while

I held it, but he showed no liking for human society and would

never allow familiarities ; the hen was shyer.


On the approach of Spring, the male bird’s attentions to

his lady became marked and demonstrative : he constantly drove

her about the aviary, and, for a time, she would fly from him,

then, relenting, would rest tranquilly on a bough, while he

performed the most grotesque antics which she, doubtless, thought

charming. His love-making consisted of a peculiar dance, or

rather a series of jerky movements of the head and body,

puffing out his body feathers, putting out his tongue, and uttering

various clucking and hissing noises. During the time of court¬

ship he would never, if he could prevent it, allow the hen to feed

herself. Whenever she tried to reach the food-vessels he drove

her away, and after helping himself called her to him and fed her

with regurgitated food. I watched them closely, and I believe, for

days together, the hen received nothing but what the cock gave

her; but as she remained plump and well, there seemed no reason

for interference.


When I thought the pair ready to nest, I provided them

with a small barrel artistically covered with bark, hung rather

high and secluded by surrounding branches. They at once set

to work on this, pulled off every atom of bark, and bit every

twig off the surrounding boughs. They took possession of the

barrel and spent much of their time scuffling about inside it: the

hen always spent the night in it, the cock usually roosting on the

top or in the entrance-hole.


To my great disappointment, they never got any further

than this : both birds were in splendid health and condition,

they paired, and during the whole of the Summer appeared to be

on the point of nesting, but no eggs were laid, and on the

approach of Autumn their manifestations of affedtion became

less demonstrative, though they still appeared greatly attached

to each other.



