162 F, Finn — General Notes on Variation in Tiirds. [No. 3, 



The common Troupial (Icterus vulgaris) becomes yellow from amber 

 in confinement if the conditions are unfavourable. 



The Pekin Robin (Liothrix luteus) is apt to fade as to its orange, 

 yellow, and green tones in confinement ; it is also liable, in the plains of 

 India at all events, to melanism, becoming either irreo^ularly splashed 

 with jet-black, or regularly washed or clouded with a dark smoky hue, 

 as if it had bathed in ink. Both these variations occurred in two birds 

 out of about a couple of dozen kept under exactly the same conditions 

 in Calcutta. Their companions manifested no dislike to them. 



The Rosy Starling (Pastor roseus) in confinement in Europe fades to 

 a dirty cream-colour ; in India it gets clouded with black, black edgings 

 appearing on the feathers. A bird of mine, deposited at the Calcutta 

 Zoological Gardens, and treated in the same way as about a dozen 

 others, became almost completely black. The bird was in good condi- 

 tion, with the plumage glossy and sleek, and the colour looked quite 

 natural. As these birds are always quarrelling, it was not easy to make 

 out how its companions regarded it. 



A pair of Striated Finches (Uroloncha striata) kept by a friend of 

 mine in England in an out-door aviary many years ago became during 

 one season heavily mottled with black all over the white belly ; but they 

 afterwards reverted to the normal colour. 



Convei sely, a Black-backed Porphyrio (Porphyria calvus) at present 

 in the Calcutta Zoological Garden has on one occasion moulted out with 

 all the black parts mottled with white ; but it has since become, and 

 remained, black again. 



A male Red Dove (Turtnr tranquebaricus) in the same garden, living 

 under the same conditions as many others of the same species and sex, 

 became nearly all white over the normally vinous red part of the plumage. 



One of many specimens of Turtur damarensis brought by me to 

 the London Zoological Garden in 1892, had last year (1901) when I 

 saw tliem become very largely white in big patches.* 



The male Golden Oriole (Oriolns galhula) of Europe, according to 

 Bechstein, never retains its full yellow hue in confinement, but reverts 

 to the streaky green plumage of the female. 



The red summer plumage of the barred-tailed Godwit (Limosa 

 lapponica) is not always assumed in confinement, for of a pair in the 

 London Zoological Gardens last year (1901) the male was in red colour, 

 but the female showed no sign of it. 



* By some accident these birds have never been registered in the Zoological 

 Society's list, but I am quite certain about the species ; I took specimens of the live 

 Pigeons I brought home, to Count T. SaUadori who kindly identified them, being 

 then at work on the group for the British Mnseum Catalogue of Birds. 



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