30 THE BIRDS OF CALCUTTA. 



Tortunately, he does not seem to get much damaged in 

 these fights, and at the end of the winter, the bulbul- 

 fighting season, he is released, unless he has proved 

 "himself an exceptional champion and worth reserving 

 ior future triumphs. It is a shame to make use o 

 his courage in this way, for he is really a plucky 

 bird, and will even beat ofE a crow from his nest 

 although not more than half as large again as a 

 sparrow himself. The said nest is an open one placed 

 in a bush, and lias nothing particularly remarkable 

 about it. The eggs, however, are very pretty, being 

 pinky-white with red spots, a common colour in the 

 family. Young Bulbuls taken just as their tails 

 'begin to grow are easily reared and become very 

 ■tame, making most charming pets ; I had one which 

 was allowed full liberty, and was at times quite a 

 nuisance by its determination to follow me about. 

 The Bulbul, indeed, seems to have a warm heart, 

 although as above noted not fussily affectionate with 

 its kind ; a well-known English authority on cage 

 birds has recorded that a male Bulbul in his 

 possession had his paternal instincts so quickened by 

 witnessing the rearing of a brood of American blue 

 robins {Sialia sialis) in the same aviary that he 

 insisted on taking a helping hand, and even murder- 

 ously attacked the real father for not altogether 

 lesigning in his favour. This, indeed, might be 



