56



Cranes in Captivity.



bird attaching itself exclusively to one nestling and devoting the

whole of its attention to that one in particular. It is a most

interesting sight to see the assiduity with which the adult birds

will methodically search through a paddock for insects, with the

young ones following them, leaving hardly a square yard unexamined;

directly an insect is seen it is caught up by one of the parents and

given into the mouth of the particular young one it is specially

looking after. The young only remain in the nest for about four

days after they are hatched, and from that time onwards the old

birds brood the young ones in dry situations wherever the grass

may be short, not always using the same place every night but

moving from place to place as fancy takes them. At this time

these Cranes are very intolerant of rain, and are most solicitous

that the young should not get wet by always selecting at such a

time a spot close to the bole of a tree as their sleeping' place in

order that the young can get proper shelter under the branches.

The young seem to be entirely dependent on the old birds for at

least a fortnight, and until that period has elapsed I have never seen

them attempt to pick up anything for themselves; just after the

second week the old Cranes commence giving the young wheat

grains, and once they have succeeded in getting well on to this

they will thrive rapidly. It is the first three weeks of their lives

that is the most difficult period of their existence as they subsist

entirely on small soft insects found on the grass stems and foliage

of their enclosure, and unless there is a plentiful and constant

natural supply of this kind of food they will invariably die. But

once they have got over the first month they will make astonish¬

ing progress, so much so that a careful eye must be kept on them

in case they escape from their paddock, for they can fly before the

uill feathers are fully grown. If they do, they are not likely to get

right away, for they will in all probability return to the old birds,

but it may give their owner a nervous half-hour watching them as

they soar round at an elevation of about 150 yards in a circle nearly

a mile in diameter, wondering all the while whether they will come

back or not.


Another species of Crane, well worthy of the serious atten¬

tion of those interested in these birds, is the Australian Crane, the



