62 
Leclancher or Rainbow Bunting. 
" Two Bird Loveis in Mexico," C. W. Beebe's description of this 
lovely bird in its native wilds : — 
" The most beautiful of all the small birds was a Bunting. We 
" christened him the Rainbow Bunting, but the books call him the 
" Leclancher Bunting. These little finches flitted through the underbrush in 
" pairs, searching for insects and seeds among the leaves or mounting to the 
" top of a small bush and giving voice to their joy in a little ditt)', the 
" attempt at which was most to be admired, for the twittering ended in 
" promise. Their beauty and vivacity evade all description. A pliotograpli 
" would convey nothing of their charm. Try to imagine a little feathered 
" sprite, less than five inches in length, with a crown of apple-green ; cheeks, 
" back, wings, and tail of turquoise-blue ; throat and underparts of clear 
" lemon-\ ellow ; with a band of rlelicate orange across the breast ! His 
■• mate who follows him so faithfully and listens to his pitiful song so 
" admiringly, has the greens and yellows in softened, indistinct hues. 
"Altogether they are cliarmiug little birds, living in a region where their 
" beauty falls only upon such unappreciative eyes of those of Vultures aud 
" Crows. Common in the Colima lowlands. Rare in the lower barrancas of 
" the volcano." 
Prepared as I was by the above description to see a beautiful 
bird, the reality far exceeded what my imagination had pictured, 
and Mr. Beebe's eulogy of this dainty species, is most certainly 
not exaggerated. 
From my own limited observations and a few notes, kindly 
supplied by its owner, I have gathered the following notes, which 
will briefly indicate its demeanour under the conditions of cage 
life :— 
At present it has not attempted anything in the way of 
song, only indulging in a faint chirp when spoken to. 
He is very fond of being noticed and inclined to sulk if 
neglected in this respect, this its owner finds to be cliaracteristic 
of the Bunting family, under the conditions of cage-life, as the 
Nonpareil and Pileated Buntings, both of which she at present 
possesses, exhibit exactly similar features. 
He occupies a cage i8in. square and 22 in. high ; bathes 
occasionally in his water pot, but so far refuses to take an 
orthodox bath. 
His diet consists of canary, white and Indian millet seeds, 
with about three mealworms a day, given at intervals, and which 
he is very fond of 
