THE



Hvtcultural flfoagasine,


BEING THE JOURNAL OF THE


AVICULTURAL SOCIETY.



VOL. II.—NO. 18.



All rights reserved.



APRIL, 1896.



MY AVIARIES AND THEIR INMATES.


By R. A. Todd.


Perhaps the experiences of my first season as an aviculturist

may be of some interest to other members of our Society who

are also beginners in this fascinating hobby.


I started operations in May, in an octagonal open-air

aviary of about nine feet in diameter and ten feet to the apex of

the roof. Years ago, this had accommodated an Eagle, but was

now tenantless and quite out of repair. I covered it with

half-inch wire netting, boarding in the sides and top towards

the north and east, placing various nesting appliances on the

boarded sides among branches of box, fir, and }^ew—these,

however, lost their leaves and became bare and thin very early

in the season. I have seen furze recommended for this purpose

and shall try it next season, it will no doubt form a denser cover.

A cement basin in the centre held the water for bathing and

drinking; a pipe from a twenty-gallon cistern, outside, filled

every morning, permitting of a fresh supply being turned on at

intervals during the day, a second pipe carrying off the surplus ;

I found a good scrubbing out necessary two or three times during

the hot weather, to keep the cement clean. Round this basin I

planted a ring of grass about a foot wide : birds seem very fond

of grass, besides probabty finding many small insedts among it,

and I consider it a very important feature of the aviary.


Here, on the nth of May, I turned out sixteen pairs of

Ornamental Finches. The cold weather that followed was fatal

to Cordon Bleus and Bengalese, but Waxbills (including the

Sidney Waxbill) Nuns, Zebra, Ribbon, Parson and Saffron

Finches were unharmed. I subsequently added a cock Nonpareil

and Indigo Finch. Among the original occupants were also a pair

of Budgerigars: the hen was soon killed, as I imagined by the

cock, and as the latter seemed spiteful to the smaller birds, I had

to remove him.



