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Dr. A. G. Butler



space a cock Goldfinch sometimes becomes unreliable, breaking the

eggs.


Petronia dentata and albigularis. Unpaired hens: they built

a neat nest, but dropped many infertile eggs on the floor of the cage.


Sycalis flaveola. Formerly I used to breed this species every

year : I also bred hybrids between it and S. pitlzelni, and in 1898 I

bred several hybrids between a Canary and a hen of this species :

unfortunately only one (a female bird) survived the moult and with

each successive moult became more and more like its mother, never¬

theless a cock Saffron-finch associated with it ignored it utterly.


Sycalis arvensis —built in 1907, but the hen died without

laying, possibly egg-bound.


Serinus flaviventris. An old hen of this species paired with

a cock Canary in 1912 ; built, but laid only one egg which she

reared :—a fine cock bird, hardly distinguishable from cf S. flaviven¬

tris , but with Canary song.


Serinus icterus. Built and laid on several occasions in my

aviaries, but the eggs invariably disappeared, apparently eaten by

the cock bird.


Serinus leucopygius. Built and laid, but the hen generally

died from egg'-binding before the clutch was complete. A hen paired

with a Canary hatched young, which however died before they were

fledged.


Alario alario. Built a nest and laid in August, 1901, but

failed to hatch.


Acanthus cannabina. Of course I have bred hybrids between

this species and a Canary.


Pyrrhula europcea. This species built, laid and incubated in

one of my aviaries ; but died on the nest just as the young hatched :

I handed them over to the tender mercies of a Canary which failed

to rear them : perhaps this was as well, for I believe it was the

same bird which, after bringing up an infant Goldfinch, plucked it

so unmercifully that it died.


Emberiza citrinella. Built a beautiful nest in 1889, but was

disturbed and did not lay.


Gyanospiza cyanea. Paired with Canary which built and

laid in 1896 ; the Indigo Finch wonld not let her sit, but repeatedly

pulled out the nest so that nothing resulted.



