Correspondence. 253


Both these Lories were one of a pair, the other bird being plump and

in good condition, and in each case still living. My feeding is plain

biscuit finely powdered, upon which is poured boiled milk, grapes, banana,

and canary-seed for those that will eat it.


Until the birds showed great exhaustion, they looked quite well and

the feathers were close and bright, and they took plenty of exercise in

their aviaries. I should add that the sop is only slightly sweetened, and

that not every day, as I fancy the sugar is not very good for their livers.


Is there any means of guarding against this cause of death, or is it an

occurrence that must be looked for now and then ? K. J. Brook.


The following reply was forwarded to Mr. Brook : —


If your Lories were healthy when received, death should not have

occurred from the cause you mention ; there must have been something

wrong.


As far as my experience goes — ancient history now — different species

of Lories and Lorikeets occasionally need different treatment; I am under

the impression that your birds are Eos riciniata, or some near relative.


On looking back over my books, I find that here Eos riciniata was

very fond of stewed apples with plenty of juice, of banana (cut up), and of

fig cut up into very small pieces. As regards the latter, I have a garden

saucer in which I place canary, millet, and Indian millet seeds, mixed

together, and with this seed I mix dry biscuit (H. and P.'s " Tea ") crumbled

small (of which E. R. was very fond) ; and on the top was placed the fig.

To this day I follow the same course (for the pair of Varied Lorikeets I

wrote about in July, 1903, which are still alive and well) ; only instead of

the fig I give cut up sultanas, and grocer's currants (previously soaked), the

best obtainable of each. I have a note that at one time E. R. voluntarily

took to canary seed, which it duly shelled. Once my Varied Lorikeets had

an extraordinary' craze — which lasted some months — for spray millet (they

fly loose, and help themselves to what they have a mind to), tearing to

pieces every spray I put out : — but I cannot positively say that they ate any.

Eos riciniata was fond also of red (garden) currants and raw apple. The

juice served with stewed pears (as a treat) is much esteemed by some of

these birds.


I have always supplied rather fluid biscuit-milk (boiled) sop, sweetened

with a little castor sugar, which I have supposed, rightly or wrongly, to be

less likely to affect the liver than brown sugar. Also water, in which most

of them occasionally wash.


All the food, water, etc., should be placed 011 some high shelf in a

quiet place, not only for the purpose of keeping it uncontaminated by mice,

but also because Eos riciniata, like many others of this class of bird, is shy

of going to the ground when in an aviary.


The fault I find with your feeding is that you do not give enough-

variety. Over and over again I have noticed how the taste (to use a



