Hens Mated with Wild Cocks. H7 



fighting with the confined male bird by flying up against the 

 wire, the bird inside being by no means loth to accept the 

 challenge. One morning, however, the wild bird was found 

 inside, a nail having given way in one of his flights against 

 the wire netting, being the cause of his unexpected capture. 

 When discovered he had nearly killed the imprisoned cock 

 bird, who was removed, and his adversary substituted. I 

 may remark that those who have tried breeding from wild 

 cocks ^\■ill hardly, I fancy, return to the old system of keeping 

 the cocks in confinement, as I have found that the birds bred 

 from wild cocks are invariably stronger, and consequently 

 easier to rear than those bred in the ordinary way." 



There is no absolute necessity, however, for having recourse 

 to the use of open pens, as the eggs of cut-winged birds, kept 

 in pheasantries of sufficient size, well fed, with a good \'ariety of 

 fresh vegetable food, and suppHed daily with clean -water, 

 usualh" hatch quite well, although the chicks may not be as 

 strong as those reared from eggs gathered out of nests in the 

 open covert. 



The construction of more ornamental and permanent 

 aviaries has now to be spoken of, but will not require much 

 consideration. Fixed a\iaries are far inferior, as regards the 

 health of the birds, to those that are movable ; therefore, if 

 possible, they should always be constructed so as to admit 

 of their being shifted on to new ground as often as is convenient. 

 The great cause of the comparatively small success that 

 attends the rearing of pheasants in our Zoological Gardens 

 arises from the fact that the birds are kept on the same spot 

 year after year, and in aviaries that are not one-tenth of the 

 size required for the health and comfort of the birds. 



The plan of an ornamental aviary necessarily depends 

 on the desires of the owner, and hardly comes within the 

 scope of this work. Mr. Crook, who had much experience in 

 erecting ornamental aviaries, writes as follows respecting 

 their construction : "A neatly constructed lean-to building 

 may be employed, facing south or south-west ; ten feet wide 



