40



Notes on the Nesting of Hill Tits.



The first egg was laid on the 28th August and the first bird

hatched out on the 9th September, the third of the three making its

appearance on the 11th September, on which day the whole family

were thrown overboard and deposited in various parts of the aviary.


During incubation the hen took her fair share of the labour

and always sat facing outwards, the cock facing invariably in the

other direction. The cock was very careful never to leave the eggs

uncovered even for a short period, and immediately the hen appeared

made his way to the nest. He always stood on the edge while he

thoroughly puffed out his underneath feathers and then slipped in.


Which of them was responsible for the tragedy I cannot say.

I rather think “ Huggins,” but whoever was the culprit “ Muggins ”

has declared she will have no more futile attempts at rearing a

family, and is now (21st Sept.) in the middle of a rapid moult and

looking thoroughly dissipated. ‘ Huggins,” on the other hand, is as

fresh as paint and looking just as well as when he came through

the moult last year.


I have a pair of Gouldians nesting in the uncovered part of

my aviary. Their first attempt was not a success and they are now

making a second effort. These are the only two pairs of birds I

have in the aviary with the exception of a pair of Cuban Finches.


My aviary is a lean-to wooden structure, with window open¬

ing into it from the house. Two features might be of interest—I

have not heard of their being adopted elsewhere : one is sliding glass

lights, similar to those used to cover garden frames, which cover the

whole open front of aviary, keeping off wind and rain, and can he

removed in summer time either altogether or partially. The other

is waterproof roller blinds in boxes, which can be drawn over the

portions of aviary which are unroofed, at night, thus excluding rain

and visions of cats. As the early morning sun strikes the glass

front the temperature of the aviary becomes appreciably higher than

that of the outside air, an important matter in winter-time. Of

course this arrangement of blinds would not he practicable in a large

aviary, but it is quite feasible in a small one such as mine.



