90 The Bird Shore at the Horticultural Hall.


THE BIRD SHOW AT THE

HORTICULTURAL HALL.


By Herbert Goodchild, M.B.O.U.


In the last week-end of Nov., 1912, the twenty-fourth annual

exhibition of the London Cage Bird Association was held. From

the point of view of the number of entries (some 2,200) the event

was a great success, and also from the point of view of species to be

seen, there being some six species of birds that the present writer

had never seen alive before. The judging of the Foreign Bird

Section was in the hands of Mr. D. Seth-Smith, and this had an

advantage over the previous arrangement of Mr. Astley judging, as

with Mr. D. Seth-Smith as judge, we had the pleasure of seeing

some of Mr. Astley’s rarities, one especially, the Blue Niltava,

(Xanthopygia cyanomelcena) securing the coveted prize for the

choicest foreign bird in the Show, and being greatly admired for its

beauty of plumage and condition.


The foreign birds were arranged in seventeen classes, of which

two were for members of the L.C.B.A. only, and one was an “ open

selling class.”


This brief review is not written in any sense to either criticise

or commend the judging, but to give those of our readers who were

not fortunate enough to he present an idea of the number, variety,

and rarity of the birds exhibited.


The total number of entries in the Foreign Section w r as 167,

this excluding Siberian Goldfinches or Bullfinches or the very in¬

teresting “ Continental ” class, which will be dealt with later.


In the first class, for Budgerigars, Love Birds and Hanging

Parrots, the only rarity was Mr. A. Ezra’s Abyssinian Love-bird

(Agapornis taranta), this being the first time I had ever seen one

alive." It is a very plain little bird, and this specimen was in

splendid condition and was awarded first prize.


The next class, for Parrakeets in general, contained the rare

Purple-crowned Lorikeet (Mr. C. T. Maxwell) a species only

recently imported. It is a native of South Australia and got first

prize. A very good male Queen Alexandra Parrakeet of Miss Lydia



[* There has been a specimen at the Zoological Gardens for some time.—ED.]



