392 



THE ZOOLOGIST. 



to this writer that I would have no dealings with him or others in 

 a similar business. — Egbert Warren (Ardnaree, Monkstown, 

 Co. Cork). 



Chinese Bird-Trap. — This primitive trap is used very successfully 

 by Chinese up the West Eiver, in Kwangsi Province, and no doubt 

 in other parts of China. It seems to be much employed for 

 catching the so-called Pekin Eobin {Coi^sychus saularis), a small 

 black-and-white bird much sought after as a songster, and often seen 

 in cages. The trap is constructed entirely (including the spring) of 



vegetable material which grows everywhere in the country. The 

 platform [a) is made of a slender bamboo bent into an oval, the 

 hinder part serving as a handle by which to carry the trap, whilst 

 the larger anterior part is covered with plaited straw or sedge to 

 form the platform. The spring (b) is a thick roll of twisted creeper 

 or vine-stem, through which are thrust the two ends of the bamboo 

 bent to form the frame on which is plaited the cover (c) of straw or 

 sedges; the ends of the spring are firmly lashed to the bamboo 

 around the edge of the platform. The catch arrangement is the 

 ordinary figure 4, and on it is stuck a bait in the shape of a live 

 grasshopper. The traps we examined had very good springs, and 



