on some Field Notes in South Africa. 99


cavern on the Malmain River ; I had to swim through another

small cave first, which was tenanted by scores of loathsome

bats, which smelt abominably and flew into my hair in their

fright, and then came to a large cavern in which I got a nest of

this bird as well as a couple of just fledged Speckled Pigeons

(Columba phceonota).


These Pigeons are very easy to tame. At a German

missionary’s I saw a small flock that had complete liberty and

were nesting in boxes under the verandah roof just like tame

Pigeons. The missionary told me he had pies of the young

squabs at frequent intervals.


A very nice little bird, quite common near Mafelcing,

and also near Kimberley, was one of the Finch-Larks; the

species I was not quite certain of and cartridges were too

expensive to waste on birds of its size, but dozens could

quite easily be caught. The Cape Long-Claw (Macronyx

capejisis~), like a Lark with a } r ellow bib and a cry like a young

kitten, was common everywhere in the Colony.


The Cape Dove (CEna capejisis ) and the Cape Turtle-Dove

(Turtur capicola ) are to be found in every cattle-kraal in the

country. In Cape Colony I have seen the latter in dozens.


One species of Hemipode, with a breast spotted like a

Thrush, is not uncommon between Zeerust and Mafeking;

probably it is Turnix hottentotta. I have often seen it flushed by

a screen of scouts several times ; each time it flew a shorter

distance and finally squatted ; and once I put my hat over a

squatting bird and examined it before turning it loose. The

first bird I saw looked like a sport or variety of the Common

Quail which I was out shooting at the time. They look quite a

light cream colour when flying, and I was very disappointed

when I shot it and recognised it.


The only other birds I got of interest were three j^oung

Pearl-Spotted Owlets ( Glaucidiumperlatum ). A native found them

in the downy stage in a hole of a tree, and gave them to me. I

fed them on locusts, grasshoppers and bits of birds, and finally

gave them to the Pretoria Zoological Gardens, where I believe

they all died from a surfeit of raw meat.



