in captivity in lower bengal. 227 



Treatment in health. 



Housing. — All of them have been found to do well in a large 

 aviary ; the great Indian barbet takes no little time to become thoroughly 

 acclimatised in the plains ; for the first few months it looks shabby and 

 even sickly, so that it is undesirable to introduce it on arrival straight 

 into a place where it must hold its own with other birds. 



Food. — Consists of fruits, seeds, buds and insects ; in captivity they 

 thrive excellently on satoo, plantains and other fruits and minced meat. 



Breeding. — None of them have ever bred in captivity, but both the 

 blue-faced and the crimson- breasted barbets often breed in a wild state 

 within the garden, generally selecting a decayed branch of a tree, in 

 which they find it easy to make holes. On one occasion a number of them 

 bred in a cocoanut-palm grove : the breeding season lasts from March to 

 June. 



Transport. — If it can be helped, the great Indian barbet should 

 not be brought down to the plains during the summer or even in the 

 rains ; early in winter is the proper time to bring it down from the hills. 



Treatment in sickness. 



Nothing particular is known about their ailments; they often die 

 from causes which are common to most other birds. 



Observation on the habits of Barbets. 



Barbets generally are arboreal in habits, but of the several species 

 exhibited in this garden, the great Indian barbet appears to be the most 

 fond of keeping to the topmost perch of the aviary, rarely, if ever 

 descending to the ground, or even to the lower perches ; it is also an 

 inactive bird, so that it may not be unfrequently seen sitting motionless 

 in one place for hours together ; its cry is loud and monotonous, but very 

 characteristic. Once begun, it goes on calling for an hour or more ; it is 

 rather solitary in habits, and does not associate with other birds, either of 

 the same or other species ; the most active members of this group of 

 birds are the crimson-breasted barbets; compared with their size, they 

 have an extraordinarily loud note ; the blue-faced barbets may sometimes 

 be seen tapping hard at the dead trunk of a tree inside an aviary ; none 

 of the barbets have ever been noticed to climb like the woodpecker, 



(99) THE EUEOPEAN HOOPOE. 

 (UPUPA EPOPS— Z*»».) 

 Hindi and Bengali — Hud-hud. 

 The characteristic feature of this bird is its large ornamental crest. 

 As, however, the bird is well known, no description is necessary. 



Hab. — Found in the Himalayas and various other parts of India, 

 including Bengal ; also in Assam, Burmah, and most other parts of 

 Asia, Europe and North Africa. 



During the rains and winter hoopoes may sometimes be seen within 

 the garden in a wild state, and specimens have now and then been cap- 

 tured, and attempts made to tame them, but hitherto without success. 



p 2 



