62 Dr. A. G. Butler,


parents feeding it for a mouth afterwards, and proved to be

a cock.


August 8th I again saw a young Tambourine Dove on the

floor of the aviary, which fluttered away just above the ground

as I approached it. This bird was reared and became so

extremely wild that it was a marvel to me that it did not break

its neck. Directly I opened the aviary door it would fly at full

speed straight for the wire netting and get hurled back head over

heels with the force of the impact. I keep it in a cage now to

calm its fears. The other bird from the same nest died soon

after leaving the nest, and when I found it the flies had been at it.

On the 12th I saw a hen Gouldian Finch peering into a nesting-

receptacle and hoped that my Pintail Nonpareils had gone to

nest. It was a vain hope, for though they often examined several

receptacles and I left them outside until nearly the end of

October, they did nothing.


In this month the Diamond Doves went to nest for the

fourth time, two young leaving it on the 30th ; both were reared.

The parents laid again on September 21st and 22nd, but broke

both eggs and gave up breeding on October 9th.


On September 2Sth I again saw a young Tambourine

Dove on the floor, and on the 30th I saw the pair together, but

on October 2nd the smaller bird (probably the hen) had dis¬

appeared, and I saw it no more ; the other seemed to get on

well for a time in spite of heavy rains, but 011 the 9th I found it

cramped and unable to walk. As it could feed itself I took it

indoors and caged it, putting it into a box of hay every evening ;

it partly recovered and lived until the 23rd. The quills and tail-

feathers attained almost to their full length, but the sheaths were

not shed. Then I found it dead. Thus of six young Tambourine

Doves which left the nest this year only one was reared.


During September my pale form of Hauguest Icterus

vulgaris (Jimoneus') moulted and bore out my statement that the

colouring of these birds when properly treated tends to deepen

in captivity. In fact it is now more deeply coloured than my old

bird, which moulted in October, but is still distinguished by its

more slender build, the small triangular naked patch behind the

eye in place of an orbital ellipse round the eye and the white



