Notices of New Books , etc.



4i



upon his own extensive knowledge of living birds, he has con¬

sulted all the reliable books that could in any way help him, and

has gone through the splendid series of specimens in the British

Museum. We have the greatest pleasure and confidence in

recommending this little book to our members, and can assure

them that they really ought to have it.



CAGE BIRD TRAFFIC IN THE UNITED STATES.


We have received a pamphlet, published by the United

States Department of Agriculture and written by Mr, Henry

Oldys, relating to the traffic in Cage Birds in the United States,

which is instructive and interesting reading. Aviculture is quite

in its infancy amongst the Americans, and there is very little

interest taken in the breeding of foreign species if we may judge

from the meagre list given of the species that have bred there ;

nevertheless the interest is certainly increasing and there is a

rapidly growing demand for rare birds.


Canaries, of course, form the bulk of the cage birds

imported into the United States, nearly 27S thousand being

received, mostly from Germany, in the year ending June 30th,

1906. In the same year some fifty thousand “miscellaneous”'

birds arrived, of which some 6,000 were Parrots (including

Lories, Parrakeets, &c.). The number of Budgerigars imported

was 5.387, a few of which were of the yellow variety.


The Java Sparrows imported reached a total of 6,285,

Liothrix 4,539.


On the whole the prices of the common foreign birds are

much higher in the United States than in Europe, which possibly

partly accounts for the small amount of interest taken in

aviculture in the United States compared with the Old World.


The author of the report, in concluding, deals with the

opportunity for American enterprise that is presented by the

fact that so many birds can be bred in captivity, and the large

and rapidly growing demand that is springing up for cage birds

in the United States. At present this demand is satisfied by

importation from abroad, but it is suggested that the industry of

raising birds might be established, and the American market



