The Roller 3j 



themselves, it is necessary to separate lliciii as soon as they arc fully grown." 



A friend of mine attempted to keep some of these birds in an aviar>', the 

 centre of wliich consisted of a dec]) tank, with central fountain, in which fish were 

 swimming about ; he, however, found it difficult and expensive to obtain sufficient 

 fish to supply their needs, consequently they hardly had enough to keep thcni in 

 vigour : in addition to this the cats in the neighbourhood used to clamber over 

 the aviary at night making the birds dash frantically about and cut their heads in 

 their efforts to force a way through the wirework : thus one by one they got 

 drowned, being apparently too weak after a plunge to rise from the water. I do 

 not think he kept any of them alive for more than three weeks. 



In the first volume of the Avicultural Magazine, pp. 65-67, is a very interesting 

 article by Mr. C. P. Arthur on rearing and keeping Kingfishers ; he has probabh'- 

 been as successful as anyone with these birds, but he does not recommend them 

 as pets for several reasons ; one being that these birds never learn to recognize 

 the fact that they cannot fly through wire netting, so that they make straight for 

 any object beyond it until stopped by the wire against which they flutter helplessly 

 breaking their wings and tail feathers. In the second place he saj'S that thej* are 

 liable to fits (for which doubtless unnatural food is to blame) ; thirdly their cage 

 soon becomes offensive ; fourthly they are not long-lived ; and lastly they have no 

 song. 



Swaysland, who has also been tolerabh' successful, strongly objects to the 

 practice frequently adopted of putting the meat, egg, worms, etc., into a vessel of 

 water for the birds to fish out, as he says that the young birds constantl}' tumble 

 into the water, get soaked, and often die from cold. 



FAMILY CORACIID^. 



THE Rollers are birds of large size and brilliant colouring which, on account 

 of their somewhat Cor\dne aspect were formerly associated with the Ja3-s 

 (in India they are still supposed to be Jays by the unscientific). Later their 

 affinity to the Bee-eaters was pointed out, and Seebohm actually placed them in 

 the family MeropidcE. Huxley associated both groups with the Kingfishers, 

 Hoopoes, and Cuckoos, and it has been shown that in the characters afforded by 

 their digestive organs and muscles they approach the Nightjars. 



