5 
herein reviewed. The following genera all make handsome cage birds but 
are by no means plentiful on the bird market: Melanbucco, '1 richolcema, 
Gymnobncco, Heliobucco, Simlorhis, Barbalula, S/ictolcema, Calot hainphus, 
MegalcP.ma, Choloihea, Cyanops, Mesobucco, XanlholcBma, and others, com- 
prising some no species. Thns it will be seen how nnnierous are these 
desirable and gorgeous birds, and also how few of them have been 
introduced to English aviculture. 
Itbe BuDs of (Bambia. 
By E. HopKiNSON, D.S.O., M.A., M.B. 
Having been asked by the Editor to write something more 
on the Birds of Gambia for Bird Notes, I can only oflfer extracts 
from the note book I have kept during my seven years stay out 
here, and only hope that these rougli joltings, and in many cases 
vain repetitions, will not bore my readers too much. 
I commence witli the WEAVERS, the family which con- 
tains the typical West African cage birds, and which is therefore 
likely to be of more immediate interest to the members of the 
F.B.C. 
As a sort of preface I will quote from what I originally 
wrote on the stibject in Bird Notes some years ago, following this 
by my notes on the individual species. 
Tiie members of this family which occur in this country 
seem easily divisible into three main groups (although however 
these overlap each other to some extent), according to their 
favourite natural haunts. 
(1) Birds which frequent the native towus, and seem every- 
where to enjoy the society of man, namely, the Common Fire- 
finches, the Combassous, some of the large Yellow Weavers 
{^Hyphantorjiis') and the Textor or Buffalo Weavers. 
(2) Birds of the cultivated or cleared ground round the 
towns ; Whydahs and Weavers when out of colour. Bronze and 
Magpie Mannikins, Cordon Bleusand most of the other Waxbills, 
the Vinaceous Firefinch for instance being an exception, as this 
bird seems never to be found far from bamboo bush, though it 
frequents clearings which are in the neighbourhood of such 
places. 
(3) Birds of the rice fields and long grass of the swamps ; 
