Marquess of Tavistock-—Further Notes for 1931



29



had been getting on her husband’s nerves and he chattered irritably

each time she flew out. The crisis arrived on the afternoon before the

night on which the first egg was due to appear. On some trivial excuse

the hen came off yet again. It was too much for the cock’s patience,

and he fairly lost his temper and attacked his partner furiously, driving

her about until she was quite exhausted and, hitting the wire heavily,

fell to the ground. I shut him into the aviary shelter and very nearly

removed him altogether, but trying them together half an hour later

I found that his anger had cooled down. She, however, was too bruised

and upset to go back to the nest, and during the course of the night

laid her egg from the perch and broke it. Two days later, however,

she took to the nest properly and although the cock addressed a few

unpleasant remarks to her if, in his opinion, she came off too frequently

to feed, there was no more real trouble.


A pair of Stanleys came more or less into breeding condition, but

never really settled down. Later I tried the cock at liberty as he was

rather a poor specimen, but though he returned a few times to his

aviary, he soon strayed—a most unusual occurrence for a mated

Broadtail.


A pair of Barnards did nothing at all, though in excellent health.

I rather think that the hen is sterile from age. The Barnardius

crommelincB whose sex was for a long time uncertain, finally decided

to be a cock, but was unsuccessful in inducing his partner to do more

than explore her log.


My old breeding pair of Crimson-wings reared four fair young.

One strayed and was lost the first day it was given its liberty. The

others are still about. The adult cock, however, was lost in the

strangest and most inexplicable way. He was one of my oldest trained

liberty birds and so intelligent that I could get him in or out of an aviary

at almost any time I chose. For many seasons at Warblington, and

last winter here, he had enjoyed his liberty when not engaged in

domestic duties and being, for a Crimson-wing, an unusually devoted

husband, he never left his mate’s aviary for more than a few minutes.

This autumn, as usual, I turned him loose one calm day and he flew

quietly off in company with his last year’s young one. I never saw

or heard of him again ! I can only assume that the young hen, whose



