14 FEIENDS OP THE AGEICULTURIST 



It is a white bird with black wings, a long red bill, and 

 long red legs. Length, about 45 infches. 



The last of the " Locust " Birds is the White-belUed Stork 

 {Abdmia abdimii), a shghtly glossy black bird with a white 

 back and white underparts. Length, about 30 inches. It is 

 also a follower of the locust swarms, and breeds in Northern 

 Africa. 



There is no over-estimating the good all these birds do 

 in devouring large numbers of that terrible scourge to South 

 African agriculture, which according to the locust officer 

 of the Transvaal, has resulted in ever-diminishing numbers 

 of this pest. 



BUNTINGS 



Starting with the Passeres, the Buntings are our next 

 group of friends. 



The Cape Bunting {Fringillaria capensis), or Streep kopje 

 (striped head) as the Boers term it, is a tame and confiding 

 little bird, living amongst the rocky kopjes on the veldt 

 or on stony ridges in the vicinity of dwellings, where it creeps 

 about amongst the crannies looking for the insects which 

 form its staple diet. 



They are rare in Albany, but are more plentiful at Craddock 

 and the Orange Free State ; in the latter country we took 

 many nests, some as late as March. They build a cup- 

 shaped nest in a low bush under a rock and lay three or four 

 pale greenish eggs thickly marked with yellow and red-brown 

 blotches and spots. 



The Bird is of a brownish tint, streaked with black above, 

 and whitish below. The sides of the head are ornamented with 

 four alternate black and white streaks from which it derives 

 its Dutch name. Length, 6 inches ; wing, 3J inches. 



The smaller Eock Bunting (P. tdhapisi) is also rare in 



