36 Bird Notes from the Zoological Gadens.


a greyish colour, not blue like the adult birds; it also refused to

roost any longer with its foster-mother in the sheltered sleeping-

place provided, but every night went up 011 to quite a high

bough and spent the night in the open. It is now practically

full-grown and nearly as large as its parents. I believe this to

be the first time this species has been bred in confinement.


The old hen Guineafowl laid six more eggs and began to sit

on August 15th. I was determined to see if she would rear them

herself, so did not take them away and I have never known any

bird sit tighter or better, and on September 8th she was walking

about followed by four beautiful chicks.


Expecting them to hatch about this date, I had, on the

previous day, removed the cock bird, fearing that he might

interfere with the young ones ; however on going to look at them

early the following morning we found that he had flown back

over the wall—both the old birds are full-winged—and was

brooding the chicks himself. He proved to be a most careful and

solicitous parent, more often brooding the young ones than the

hen.


Both old birds were very savage, flying furiously at anyone

who daie to go too near, and the hen on the slightest approach of

a possible danger, would at once collect her chicks under her ;

but alas, the hot weather changed, and the rain for which every¬

one, except myself, had been longing, came, and with it a spell

of very cold, damp weather, and, one by one, when only three

days old, the little Guineafowls died off; and although we moved

them, with the old ones, into a heated dry house, it was then too

late and we lost the lot; their now fully fledged half-brother

evincing much curiosity at the little corpses of his brothers and

sisters lying on the ground.



BIRD NOTES FROM THE ZOOLOGICAL GARDENS.


By The Curator.


By exchange with the New York Zoological Society we

have received another consignment of American birds, amongst

which may be mentioned a pair of Tawny Thrushes (. Merula

tamaulipensis'), a pair of Derby Tyrants ( Pilangus derbia?ius)

closely allied to the well-known Sulphury Tyrant, and a pair of



