Practical Bird-Keeping.



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look ungraceful as the birds stand on the weeds, or even on the

ground: but one point is to be noted about these feet, that the long'

hind-toe is very weak and easily gets bent forward permanently. While

the birds thus affected still walk well, I always turned loose on the

Calcutta Museum tank all that went that way, along with other

weaklings, some of which did well and stayed even when not clipped.

Thus I was able to see them feeding : they ate chiefly water-snails,

turning over the leaves to get them, but would take paddy-rice

thrown in. Water-snails, by the way, are appreciated by a large

variety of water-birds; among my own specimens, I saw them

regularly eaten by ducks, both surface-feeders and divers, flamingoes,

and coots. They also come in handy for land-birds, and being so

easily collected and kept, should not be neglected by aviculturists.


To return to Jacanas; I found them, though peaceful in con¬

fined quarters, rather unsociable on the tank, the large strong hens

especially keeping their “ worse halves” aloof. In an aviary with

other water-birds they should do well, but if no water-plants are

in the pool some artificial floating leaves of thin wood should be

provided to make them feel more at home, as they are really “ lily-

trotters,” not mud-larks or beach-combers like other waders.


I will add, in conclusion, a few notes on another out-of-the-

way wader I was the first to introduce—a Pratincole — though the

general management of these does not differ to any important extent

from that of small waders generally as laid down by Mr. Barnby

Smith in this series, because it just shows how one may pick up a

good bird casually. It was when I was on the East African coast

twenty years ago, and out with Mr. Macalister of Mombasa, in

whose name I presented the bird to the Zoo. He shot and winged

it, breaking the fore-arm, and we took it home alive. I cut off the

broken part of the wing, placed it in a rough box-cage and fed it on

grasshoppers, but it soon left off feeding, so I had to cram it for

some days, but ultimately got it on to eating raw meat by itself on

board ship, and it reached the Zoo safely to thrive in Quantrill’s

care. It was the Madagascar Pratincole (Glareola ocularis) not

previously known from Africa.


I may mention that, opportunities having been lacking, I had

never kept anything more difficult than a blackbird before this trip,



