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of mine wliicli died in the tliird year of tlieir aviary life, showed no previons
signs of illness as some of these little birds do (moping about in corners for weeks
together) ; they simply dropped ont of existence, apparenth* without cause.
Mr. Abrahams, however, informed me that according to his experience, the
Green Anuaduvade was a delicate bird, and he did not think it would live long in
an unheated aviary. It is one of the few Waxbills commonl}- imported, with
^vhich I have not tried the experiment of turning it out; though mv experience
with the commoner Indian Amaduvade greatly tempted me to risk it.*
Jerdou sa3-s of this green Waxbill — " I have seen it in the jungles north of
Nagpore, on the high land near Seonee, on the Paclimarri range of hills, rather
abundant, and on the Vindhian range of hills near Mhow. It has also been found
at Omerkantak, near the source of the Nerbudda, and in other parts of Central
India, and I am told that it occurs in Oudh, and other parts of Northern India,
in the Pindooa Dhoon according to Col. Tytler. It is occasionall3'' caught and
caged at Kamptee, Saugor, and iilhow. It associates in tolerably large flocks, with
a low chirping note, and keeps much to the woods."
The chirping note referred to by Jerdon, is probably its call-note, a high
" ¿si/i-fs//>" ; I have not heard the cock bird sing; or if so, the song cannot have
been sufEciently remai-kable to arrest my attention.
Singularly enough, Gates calls this the " Green ^lunia," though in what its
resemblance to a Mannikin consists it would be hard to say: he writes as follows:
" In the Raipoor district it breeds, I believe, from October to the middle of
January, and probably again in the early part of the rains, in sugar-cane fields,
or perhaps amongst the dense jungle-grass that fringes, in most localities, the
banks of streams and rivers." He then quotes the following interesting notes
from the pen of Mr. F. R. Blewitt:—
" F o r years have I tried to secure the eggs of S.formosa, but without success.
When at Saugor, in the month of Ma}^ in a sugarcane field, a favourite resort of
this Waxbill, my men discovered two nests—one complete, and the other all but
finished—built on, and firmh' attached to, the stalk end of two or three of the
upper leaves. They were somewhat oblong in shape, and very neatly and compactly
made. The interior lining was of fine grass, the exterior of coarse grass and long
strips of only sugarcane leaves, well interwoven with the coarse grass. The men
told me that the birds had deserted the nests, but, on inspection, I had reason to
discredit their statement.
* Since writing tlie above, I have put the hardiness of this Waxbill to the test, and find it absolutely indifferent to cold:
last winter, (1894-5,) the thermometer registered no less than 21 degrees of frost, without affecting this or the commoner
Indian species of Amaduvade-
The Green Amaduvade.
"Two years ago, in January, my men shot, on the banks of a stream here, in
high grass, a young bird that had just left the nest. Every search was made'all
along the bank of the nuddee for nests, but unsuccessfully. It would thus appear
that .S". formosa breeds twice a 3'ear."
Later, however, Mr. Blewitt did succeed in getting eggs. He says :—
" O u the 17th July we were encamped in the open forest country in the
immediate vicinity of the ^vestenl flanks of the hill-ranges of the extreme eastern
section of the Bhundara District."
" In a sugarcane-field of about two acres in extent, on the bank of a broad
hill-torrent, I found four unfinished and three complete nests, each containing five
eggs, of 5. formosar
" T h e nests, one and all, were some five feet from the ground, in the upper
portion of the sugarcane, the stalk forming a side support oppo,site the entrance
The framework of the nest is first strongly and neatly secured by lacings of coarse
grass between two of the cane-leaves, one above and the other below • but as the
building proceeds, three if not four, additional leaves are caught on to the sides
of the nest and firmly interlaced in the exterior material. The inner portion or
lining IS completed last. When finished, the nests are large globular structures
made exteriorly of coarse grass and strips of the cane-leaf itself, the inner cavity
being thickly lined with very fine grass, all somewhat compactly put together."
" T h e entrance-hole, which is prolonged into a short neck, is in^•ariably in the
centre, opposite the sides supported by the cane-stalk, and is well concealed by
projecting grass-fibres."
" F i v e is apparently the normal number of the eggs, and both sexes are
equallj- employed in building the nest and incubating the eggs. One male was
shot busily at ^vork at the short neck of the nest, the female the while sitting on
the eggs. Evidently a ne^v nest is prepared each successive season, and I think
the3- always breed in society, several nests being found in close proximity "
" T h e eggs, as might be expected, are snow-white and entirely devoid of gloss
in shape they are somewhat elongated ovals, some few of them slightK- compressed
to\\-ards one end."
^ The eggs laid by 1113- birds were not specially elongated: in fact they
might ha^•e passed for those of any other of the smaller Weaving Finches • it is
probable therefore tiiat they var3- in shape according to the health of the bird, like
those of most other species.
" First imported into Germany (according to Dr. Russ) in the late summer
of 1873 up to nearlj- the end of 1874 through Hagenbeck's store, this pleasingly
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