184



Correspondence



if I remember rightly, extended to the rump. From the shortness of

their tails I concluded that they were Weavers, and not Whydahs,

but they may have been P. macruma, although in Butler’s book the

illustration of this Whydah shows the yellow on the upper part of the

back only, and the tail is shown longer than in my birds. One of these

birds came into partial colour after I had had it a few months, getting

the yellow areas as in the adult, but retaining the brown eclipse plumage

in the rest of the body. It remained like this until it was killed by a rat

about a twelve-month later. These birds built several nests in rushes

about a foot above the water, but as I was unable to get hens I was not

able to breed them.


This summer I visited Hamlyn’s soon after he had received a

consignment of South African birds, and amongst several other Weavers

that are unknown to me I bought one showing yellow on the back.

This bird is about the size of a Napoleon Weaver, and has now come into

full colour, being an exact reproduction of the others on a small scale.

Can this be P. co/pensis ? Butler gives the size of the Cape Bishop as

6 t 7 q- in., and that of the Napoleon Weaver as 4-| in. My bird is certainly

no bigger than the Napoleon, so there is a considerable discrepancy in

the size. I am awaiting with interest to see what the others may be

'when they come into colour.


Wm. Shore Baily.


Boyers House, Westbuey.



SEPOY FINCH RECOVERING ITS COLOUR

Sirs, — A. friend of mine here who has had a Sepoy Finch for the past

ten years lost the bird about six weeks ago ; the bird has been recaptured

to-day (10th November) and has almost entirely recovered its geranium-

red colour, which disappeared at the first moult some twelve or thirteen

years ago. The bird had originally belonged first to Ezra then to Astley.


M. Amsler.



UNRELATED COMPANIONS


Sirs, — A strange friendship, as recorded by Wm. Shore Bailey on p. 90,

shows a condition of affairs in bird life which it seems to me would be

very difficult to surpass for interest — a male Quail preferring a Courser



