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An Old Australian Bird Lover,



A couple of Mr. Wood’s Pigeons are here introduced ; they

are by no means the best he has done, though they are excellent of

their kind. I shall publish others elsewhere — perhaps in Australia.

The beautiful species to the left of the picture is a male of the White

Nutmeg Pigeon of Australia, New Guinea, Papuan, and Aru Islands.

It is here represented in an extremely life-like pose, and it is by no

means difficult to imagine its being alive. This also applies to the

superb specimen of the Papuan Imperial Pigeon, to be seen on its

perch to the right. That is a New Guinea species — a large form,

with a build much like the extinct American Passenger Pigeon.


[We have much pleasure in publishing the photograph

annexed to this paper, demonstrating, as it does, the high level

attained by the American taxidermists. Equally with painting and

sculpture, taxidermy should rank as a fine art, as far removed from

mere “ stuffing ” as a Penguin is from a Humming Bird. The

wonderful life-like pose of both birds leaves nothing to be desired,

and it is here that the knowledge of living birds promoted by avi¬

culture is invaluable. Had so-called “ illustrators ” always worked from

live models there would never have existed those grotesque figures

which still disgrace the pages of too many books. — G. R.]



HOW BIRDS OF PARADISE ARE CAUGHT.


By An Old Australian Bird-Lover.


Recently, Mr. J. E. Ward arrived from New Guinea with a

large and varied collection of this wonderful country’s birds, each

of them a treasure in itself. To see them makes one long to have

them all in one’s aviaries. There were not only a large number of

Birds of Paradise, such as the Great, the King, the Six-wired, the

Magnificent, the Superb, and the Long-tailed, but also six specimens

of the “ Blue Bird ” species (Paraclisornis rudolphi )—the largest

number ever brought alive out of New Guinea by any collector.

There were also beautiful Parrots of all colours, Pigmy Parrakeets in

blue, yellow, black, and white; different species of Rails (some

looking like Sparrows on stilts) ; gorgeously coloured fruit-eating and

some seed-eating Pigeons not much bigger than Starlings. Further,



