THE



121



Avicultural Magazine,


BEING THE JOURNAL OF THE


AVICULTURAL SOCIETY.



Third Series .— Vol. V.—No. 4. —All rights reserved. FEBRUARY, 1914.



THE SUN-BITTERN.


Eurypyfga helias.


By D. Seth-Smith, F.Z.S.


(Curator of Birds, Zoological Society of London).


This very elegant and graceful species is more often seen in

Zoological Gardens than in private collections of living birds, but it

is one that would well repay the attention of aviculturists if only it

could be procured. It is but seldom imported however, and always

commands a high price.


That enterprising and reliable dealer Herr August Fockelmann,

of Hamburg, received a consignment some few months ago, of which

the Zoological Society of Fondon procured a pair. These were

placed in a compartment of the Western Aviary, next to that in

which was a male example of the same species which has lived in

the Gardens for some time.


The latter bird saluted the new arrivals through the wire

partition with a series of displays of his wonderfully marked wings,

but whether this was a sign of pleasure or disapproval I am not

certain. I am inclined to think the latter, was the case, for the

“ display ” of this bird, when I have seen it, has not been one of love,

but one evidently intended to frighten away the object to which it is

directed. The sexes are alike in plumage, and I doubt if there is

any definite sexual display. I was very anxious to obtain a photo¬

graph of the Sun-Bittern with wings expanded, so one morning I had

a Kag'u run through into the compartment in which lived the then

solitary male of this species. The Sun Bittern commenced to display



