﻿188 



ON THE CLASSIFICATION OF BIRDS. 



tion. It appears to be composed of several leaves, like 

 those of some kind of hazel, and an inner nest, formed 

 of dry bents, fibres, and hairs, suspended from a tree 

 by the main leaf, to which the others are fastened. In 

 this are figured two young birds, but with bills stouter 

 than in the warbler genus, the colour of them being 

 rufous above and white beneath. By the side of the 

 nest are painted two ferruginous or rufous coloured 

 eggs. The name in (on) the drawing (is) Baya." * 

 These notices are interesting as far as they go, but on 

 the most curious part of their structure (particularly of 

 that which is in the writer's possession) they are alto- 

 gether silent. By what process were these leaves t€ drawn 

 together ? " Were they actually sewed, as some authors 

 assert? — were they interlaced ? — or were they fastened 

 by any resinous substance ? This point, which regards 

 the most interesting part of the fabric, is altogether 

 passed over. By what species, or even genera, these 

 nests were constructed, must be left to future discovery. 

 We strongly suspect these curious foliculated nests are 

 made by many oriental birds. We have been also 

 assured, by an officer who had passed several years in 

 India, and had paid much attention to its natural his- 

 tory, that the greatest part of the sunbirds (Cinnyris) 

 of that continent build their nests much in the same 

 manner as those we have just described. 



(l6l.) There is still another sort of suspended nests, 

 mentioned by Barrow t, as fabricated by a species of 

 Loooia, or grosbeak (probably of the modern genus 

 Euplectes), which, unluckily, he neither describes or 

 names. It seems always to build on a branch extend- 

 ing over a river or pool of water. The nest is shaped 

 exactly like a chemist's retort ; is suspended from the 

 head; and the shank, of eight or nine inches long, at 

 the bottom of which is the aperture, almost touches the 

 water. It is made of green grass, firmly put together, 

 and curiously woven. 



* " This name 1s given to the Philippine grosbeak ; but the nest of that is 

 described as being in the shape of a long-necked bottle, and made of grass, 

 quite different from the Baya here described." — Latham. 



+ Travels in Africa, 4to, p. 323. 



