75


for if "Finch " means all Finch-like Birds, why particularise two sub-

families ? vSuch a construction would be as ridiculous as if one were to say

" any other variety of mammal, dog or cat."


The division of the A.O.V. Insectivorous or Fruit-eatin.^ birds into

two classes is a welcome change. The classes for common birds are also a

good notion — there is one for Parrots and one for other birds. The only

alteration of importance in the Parrot classes is the formation of a separate

class for Macaws : this is a welcome and long-needed reform.


Horatio R. Fii,i,mer.



BREAD FOR SOFT-BIIvLED BIRDS.


Sir, — I am i-ather astonished to see one statement in the letter by Mr.

Fulljames in the January No. of the Magazine, namely, that Nightingales

and "Warblers would not eat bread, or would not digest it if they did.


I believe Mr. Fulljames is a subscriber to " British Birds with

their Nests and Eggs," and therefore he must be aware that one of the Night-

ingales which I hand-reared in 1887 was fed partly upon bread from August

18S7 to Atigust 1888, and another from August 1887 to December 1888 ; and I

am sure that hand-reared Nightingales naturally have not the same power

of resisting the influence of adverse circumstances as trapped birds. But,

considering how closel}^ related the Nightingale is to the Robin, and the

fact that the latter bird, during hard winters, feeds niainl}' upon bread

when in the neighboiirhood of towns and villages, it surely seems an un-

warranted supposition that this food cannot be digested by the Nightingale.


From personal experience I can positively assert that the Blackcap

and Garden Warbler do eat bread, and that it does not disagree with them :

my present example of the latter species has twice moulted in my possession,

and is now in perfect health and plumage ; it not only eats bread and

uncooked apple, but swallows a good deal of canary- and millet-seed of its

own free will, 5^et it never looks unhappy or out of sorts.


I think it is a mistake for an aviculturist to assert positively that any

food which is wholesome and nutritions in itself cannot be digested by any

group of birds (at an}' rate until he has given it a fair and impartial trial).

Mr. Fulljames is a man of judgment, and he acted wisely in administering

beef-tea to a sickly bird ; yet he goes out of his waj' to declare that a far

more natural food is indigestible. This curious prejudice against the staff

of life is yevy puzzling to me : I use a considerable quantity of bread every

week and yet my soft-food eaters are healthj'. Surely for a Blue-bird

to have kept in vigour and good condition for nine j^ears, a Liothrix in

moderate health for ten 3ears, a Blackbird in perfect health for nearly five

years, a Pileated Jay for four or five 3-ears (with many others for shorter

terms) should be a pretty good test of the value of bread as one item, in

soft-food mixtures, M'hich is not injurious to health. My English Jay and

my Nuthatch will eat pieces of crumb bread broken from a loaf with relish ;

I have even seen ni}' Superb Tanager do the same, although I rarely offer it

bread alone.


A. G. BuTi^ER.



