THE



Bvicultural dlbaga3me,


BEING THE JOURNAL OF THE


AVICULTURAL SOCIETY.



VOL. III. — NO. 34. All rights reserved.



AUGUST, 1897.



THE BLUE-WINGED GREEN HONEYSUCKER.


By Russell Humphrys.


The Blue-winged Green Honeysucker or Bulbul (Chloropsis

hardwickii ),* is an inhabitant of the S.E. Himalayas, from Nepal

to Bootan, spreading south to the hill ranges of Assam, Sylhet

and Ci'akan. As will be seen from the illustration this bird is of

most gorgeous plumage, the prevailing colour being a bright,

metallic green, the forehead and crown is yellowish green, the

throat deep purple with a stripe of bright blue from the beak to

the side of the neck, the breast and abdomen are of a rich orange

hue, the tail and flights of the wings being deep blue. The legs

and feet are slate colour, the beak stout and curved. Total

length about seven inches. Contrary to many brightly plum aged

species, these birds are gifted with vocal abilities of a very high

order. As inmates of a bird-room they are perfection, although,

a separate cage is a sine qua non owing to their somewhat bellicose

disposition.


The male represented in the illustration has been in my

possession some twelve months, and whether I was unusually

lucky in obtaining an abnormally healthy bird, or whether it is a

characteristic of the species, I am unable to say, but of all the

birds that have at one time or another occupied my aviaries,

none have given less trouble than the Honeysucker. By no

means susceptible to cold, easy to cater for, and of a confiding

though timid disposition, this bird is, par excellence, an interesting

study for aviculturists.


These birds should be kept in roomy cages, provided with

several perches of different sizes, and a large tin for bathing

should always be available. Am I correCt in stating that some

little time ago Mr. Fulljames, in one of his interesting and highly

instructive articles in a contemporary, said that his example

of this species never bathed? Mine, on the contrary, has never


* Also called Phyllornis hardwickii. —Ed.



