C. S. Webb—Notes on a Collecting Trip to N.E. Tanganyika 215


tossed, about in any. sort of wind the young birds must cling to

the nest almost before they are properly out of the shell, otherwise

they couldn’t possibly remain there.


One of the difficulties of collecting in mountainous regions is

the fact that many species of birds are confined to certain altitudes

which means establishing a collecting base at various altitudes

in order to get a varied assortment.


Among the seed-eating birds obtained must be mentioned the

beautiful Peter’s Spotted Waxbills (Hypargos niveoguttatus),

which are usually to be found in pairs at some distance from

the mountains on the edge of the forest. Not being gregarious

or attracted to a call-bird, the capture of these retiring birds

which skulk in the undergrowth requires a considerable amount

of patience and labour. I found that a number of these birds,

but only the hens, were infected with a small kind of leech in the

eyes. These parasites are only found right inside the eye-sockets

and are not visible from the exterior. One is found usually in

both eyes in the inner corner and extraction is rather a delicate

operation as the eyelid has to be forced back, and with a pair of

tweezers, which have been filed to a very fine point, the butt-end

of the leech can be grasped and the culprit extricated. They

tunnel into a cavity on the inner side of the eye-socket and

sometimes disappear completely when efforts are being made to

dislodge them, and if not removed the bird eventually dies in

every instance. They are quite f in. long when extended and

must cause tremendous discomfort to the birds. It is interesting

to note that it apparently only occurs in Peter’s Spotted Waxbills

and only in this district.


One of the rarest and most difficult birds to get a glimpse of,

let alone capture, is the Red-headed Blue-bill (Spermophaga

ruficapilla cana), a very pretty but quaint looking bird which

is rather a specialized feeder in its wild state, living almost

entirely on the seeds of a large type of forest grass known as

Olyra latifolia. As this grass is dotted about here, there, and

everywhere in the vast mountain forest, it is exceedingly difficult

to come in contact with these rare birds, and their capture was



