Practical Bird-Keeping. 41


the Hawfinch (Coccolhraus/es vulgaris), the article on which appears in this

number.


If any Member knows of any previous instance of either of these

species having been bred in this country will he kindly communicate with

the Hon. Sec.



PRACTICAL BIRD-KEEPING.


IX.—LIVING FOOD FOR INSECTIVOROUS BIRDS.


By Dr. A. G. Butlkk.


All aviculturists who have attempted to breed insect-eating

birds have spoken of the difficulty of obtaining a sufficient

quantity of suitable food for this purpose : this is partly due to

want of knowledge of those insects, their larvae, or pupae, which

are suitable for the purpose ; partly to ignorance of the best

methods of obtaining these in abundance. I therefore propose

in the present paper to indicate first what kinds to select and

then to explain how they can be acquired.


Spiders are not true insects, but all of them are much

sought after by insectivorous birds and are greedily devoured :

they are moreover the best, medicine for ailing birds and have

saved the lives of not a few of my pets when they were too ill

to be tempted by any other food. Four or five of the common

garden spider (Epeira diademala), or failing these two or three

examples of a common greenhouse spider (Fegenaria atrica), or

even the repulsive looking house-spider (71 domestical) with its

wide spread of legs will speedily restore a sickly bird to health

and activity.


Birds have not the slightest fear of spiders, but rush upon

them with the greatest eagerness as soon as they are offered,

even that ugly little beast (Dysdera ca?nb>idgei) being most

attractive to avian taste. Harvest-spiders ( Phalangidea ) are also

accepted, although not with the same enthusiastic pleasure.


When one considers that the food of spiders consists

entirely of insects, one can understand that when eating an

Arachnid a bird gets insect-food in a concentrated form ; there¬

fore, although I was scoffed at some years ago for speaking of

spiders as a sort of bird’s Bovril, I don’t think the comparison

was in the least degree a ridiculous one.



