102 Jean Delacour—Notes on Field Ornithology and


impression. Everywhere the same picturesque hills, covered with

tree ferns and other beautiful vegetation, rise high above the rich coast,

between the blue, clear sea and sky. I only spent a short time in all

these islands, but in Martinique, where I stayed two weeks in November,

and two weeks again in April, thanks to the kind hospitality of the

Governor, I could visit all points of interest in the island and become

acquainted with what I think is one of the most charming spots in

the world.


In the West Indies birds are not plentiful, but the fauna is very

peculiar and interesting. These islands lost most of the larger forms

of bird life soon after their discovery ; the beautiful Macaws and

Amazons have disappeared everywhere, except in Dominica, St. Lucia,

and St. Vincent, sparsely populated colonies, where the fine Versicolor,

Guildings, August, and Bouquet’s Amazons still exist in small numbers.

The smaller birds had held their own till recently, when the dreadful

Mongoose was introduced to fight and destroy the poisonous Snakes,

the terrific “ Fer-de-Lance The result has been the almost complete

destruction of the ground-breeding and living birds. The Partridge-

Pigeons ( Geotrygon ), several Troupials and Thrushes are now doomed

to near extinction. There is no bird market in Martinique, and

indigenous birds are very seldom kept in captivity. I saw in cages

a few canaries, Parrots, and small birds from Cayenne or Venezuela.

Nevertheless aviaries are not uncommon, and a few amateurs keep and

breed very good foreign birds and even mammals.


The commonest bird of Martinique is the so-called “ Blackbird ”

(Merle), who belongs to the genus Quisqualus and is really a relative

of the Troupials. It is of the size of a Starling, and has rather similar

habits. The males are glossy black ; the females and young dark

brown. These birds are found as well in the towns and villages as

in the plantations ; they avoid the wooded hills. A feature of these

birds is their quaint and pretty call, which can hardly be termed

a song, and their boat-shaped tail. They nest in colonies on trees,

where they build huge nests of twigs. I brought home two pairs

of Martinique Quisquales (Quisqualus inflexirostris) ; they now live

in an outdoor aviary, where I hope to breed them. They are kept

on the same lines as Starlings and Mynahs.



