102



Mr. Aug. F. Wiener,



view of plenty of food. The moulting time of birds differs

considerably. Daring the moult a bird requires warmth, quiet,

and a little extra food, feels sickly and is retiring. It is quite

impossible to tempt a temporarily weak and sickly bird by extra

food in an aviary, because the other birds would eat it. Strong,

healthy birds have little or no compassion on a weak one, will

not only rob him of his food, but too often pluck his feathers

and drive him about and not rarely kill him right out.


As regards breeding, there is little chance in any aviary in

which a variety of birds are housed. During the breeding time

the character of birds changes very much. Quite gentle species

often become combative, and innumerable combats follow. A

pair intent on nesting will first take possession of a branch,

or corner, or nesting box, and establish their rights of domicile

by combat. But whilst building their nest other birds will take

a fancy to their choice of" material, steal it and pull the nest to

pieces. If a nest is made in spite of all interruptions and the

laying of eggs has begun, as soon as the hen leaves her nest

some other bird will look into it out of sheer curiosity and is

often tempted by the warm cosy nest to sit in it. This leads

either to the abandonment of the nest by the rightful owners or

to a fight for its possession during which one or more eggs get

easily broken. When the other birds see a broken fresh egg

they will first examine it curiously, then nibble at and taste it

and will quickly acquire the taste for new laid eggs. From that

moment no more eggs are safe. The taste for them quickly

becomes a mania. I have seen birds following a hen that was

about to lay, sitting outside her nest waiting while she was lay¬

ing, driving her away as soon as the egg was laid and instantly

breaking and devouring the egg within a couple of minutes of

its having been laid. Such cannibals must be removed without

delay, or the whole stock will become contaminated. In an

aviary identification of such a culprit is impossible. Birds,

when they want to breed, require above all privacy and seclusion,

if they cannot have that they will fight for it, though either they

themselves or the intruder comes* to grief.


I have more than once seen new birds perfectly dazed and

bewildered when put into one of these aviaries containing a



