I'icid N olcs from M aslioiialand . 
59 
C'()Ki)i)\ Bi.KL's : Otiite a luiniber of liule Cordon Bleus 
{listrihia l^hociiirotis) \ isit the oranye trees to prey on a .specic^ 
of minute .sjjicler. 1-ovely little l)ircls are these, seen thus, tlieir 
bhie l)reasts showing very distinctly; they are usually called by 
the colonists " Blue Tits and are often seen in cages, fed. as a 
rule, on crushed mealies, which they apparently thrive on for 
years, with no other item to their dietary to vary the monotony 
of a plain diet and captive existence. 
Osi KicHKs : Perhaps the birds one sees least of are 
the ( )striches: one sometimes sees half a dozen hens and a cock, 
but they grow more scarce every day; unless protected they are 
destroyed on account of their breaking" down the wire fences. 
They are, of course, plentiful on the Central Estates (a preserve), 
and in the wilder i)arts of Mashonaland. I caught sight of 
three hens and a cock near the house one day; evidently they 
had broken down the boundary fence, or got through somehow. 
They let me get within five hundred yards or so. but trotted ofi 
at a good pace directly they thought I was within rifle shot. 
.Morxi) Romx : A very curious and connnon bird rouml 
liere (Mashonaland) is the " Mound Robin." About the si/c 
of a robin — body, wings and tail l)rown. the latter with wliiic 
bar and black tips; head and breast white; mask black. Ii 
seems to spend most of its time on the ant heaps at this time of 
year (August), looking" for a suitable ant heap to nest in. In 
all its actions it resembles a robin. As a mocking-bird it has 
no equal, mimicking everything from the Cordon Bleu's low 
twitter to the sharp shriek of the brown plover. They are \ ery 
amusing birds to watch while nesting ojjerations are going on. 
The hen (lisai)pears down the ant-hill to look for a suitable 
nesting" site, every few minutes popping her head out at the 
top like a jack-in-the-box. The cock meanwhile goes througli 
his varied song of every known Rhodesian bird call-note, to the 
squeak of the bucket being drawn from the well. Sometimes 
he suddenly stops his song and soars slowly in long spiral 
curves up into the sky until he becomes a mere speck, then 
slowly planing" down to earth again, also spirally with outs[)read 
tail like a miniature parachute, singing lustily sometimes, and 
at others waiting until he lands before starting" his ii"nitation song 
of the other birds. 
