40 
field Notes from Mashonaland. 
find my " wind," and I was within a few feet of her the whole 
time. Days like these make one feel alive again. 
One day I got a nest of a black weaver which I can't 
place* — it is entirely black with an orange patch on its back (Oh ! 
how I longed for a Thorburn-Book of South and East African 
birds, so that one could see what they were at a glance). The 
post was l)uilt among a lot of other weavers' (Scarlet Bishops') 
nests, and exactly resembled theirs except that it was rather 
larger and stouter: it contained three eggs, a full clutch, so a 
Dutch naturalist told me: two of the eggs were blue with purple 
and brown blotches at the thick end ; the other was a clear 
sky-blue. 
Tlie Purple Kingfisher is common too round here, but 
is very local. A lovely bird this — about as large as the Hedge 
Accentor: bright violet-purple on head, back, wings and tail: 
breast dull orange-red, fading to buff at the vent; brown eye; 
and coral beak and legs. They are very shy, hard to approach, 
and consequently to make notes of them is almost impossible. 
Secretary Birds (Scrf^eniarius sccrctarius) are plentiful 
everywhere, and, I think, now they are " protected " birds their 
numljers have considerably increased to what they used to be. 
They are to be met with in parties (family parties) of six to eight, 
two old birds and last year's young, except just before and 
during the breeding season, when they go about in pairs, 
hunting for lizards, mice, snakes, etc. : they appear to be sociable 
birds. Their flight is very peculiar, and when they want to 
leave the ground rim for twelve to fifteen yards with extended 
wings, before they finally take to flight : it is so gradual that it 
is hard to realise when they actually are flying: perhaps the best 
description is to liken them to an aeroplane, both on leaving the 
earth and landing. They make good pets, become remarkably 
tame, and follow one about like dogs. Occasionally they go 
for long spiral-flights, rising higher and higher, but appear to 
do so without effort, for one seldom sees their wings move, and 
except that they get gradually higher in the air, one might 
imagine they were susjjended by some invisible wire and being 
gradually drawn up to the skies until, to the naked eye, they 
appear no larger than bumble bees. 
* Prolxibly the Golden- (Yellow) backed Weaver— Ed., B,N, 
