Breeding Shanwhs—A Talc of Woe. 
217 
week old. 
At this time I left home for about three weeks, and dtiriru; 
my absence the old pair a,i;ain went to nest. Three eygs were 
laid, and then the hen. (] think the hens only were responsible for 
removing- the yonnj;- on every occasion) thinking- to further 
simplify matters, on this occasion threw out one of the eggs. 
after sittintj for about a week. 
She then ceased to sit alto^'ether. and that finished the 
jiropiramme of both pairs for this season, as, although I had 
reintroduced the cock in the other aviary, there was no further 
attem])t at breeding, and l)oth cocks are now commencing to 
moult. 
As a result of the four nestings of two pairs of birds T 
was therefore left with one young one on the wing — not a 
creditable performance — and neither I nor the parents are in 
the least proud of it. 
My ill luck, however, hadn't yet deserted me. as I found 
the sole remaining young bird dead in the adjoining aviarv 
to-day (5th August) where she had been with some other birds 
for about six weeks. T was greatly puzzled to account for her 
death, as she showed no signs of illness, and appeared to be in 
the best of form, but on holding a postmortem, the catise-- 
sttrelv a very strange one- -was revealed — a piece of stout white 
twine, such as parcels are commonly tied with, tt i>iclics long. 
with a dotible knot at one end which entirely filled the gizzard 
and which the unfortunate little bird could not by any means 
have got rid of. Where she ])icked it up I don't know, and how 
she swallowed it I am never likely to be able to discover, btit 
this tragedy is a fitting termination to mv other misforttines, of 
which T think it may be admitted T have had an undue share this 
season. 
I may add that the food supplied consisted of live ants' 
cocoons, cockroaches, gentles and mealworms, and the parents 
were never without an ample supply of at least two of thi-; 
selection at a time. They had their respective quarters entirely 
to themselves, and were treated on exactly the same lines as last 
season. 
Can it be that the fact of having two pairs nesting within 
ten yards, although out of sight of one another, was responsible 
for the throwing out of the young? I rather incline to the 
