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190 Foreign Finchcs in Ca/^tivily.
same time almost incredible exliibitions which I ha\'e seen among the Ornamental
Finches : he stretches his neck upwards to an extravagant height, draws in the
breast and expands the chest and abdomen, stands very npright and with depressed
head, a long grass bent in his beak: then bobs np and down on his perch, to
the accompaniment of his queer song. It M-onld be impossible, looking at the
bird in repose, to imagine that he could thus alter his entire appearance until he
almost resembled an oil-flask. IM}' artist made a coloured sketch of him whilst
he was tluis making himself look ridiculons. ( Vide plate.)
After the death of the male bird, the • female used to spend half the da}' in
fljaug about restlessl}', calling for him and then moping; soon she grew listless,
failed to take exercise and in the course of a month or two she died. I have
heard that it is a peculiarity of some bad wives that, after they have worried
their husbands into their graves, they are alwa^-s lamenting their loss, and
wondering what crime the}' can have committed to be thus left widows : thus it
was with my female Diamond Sparrow.
Mr. Gould says :—" I found this species plentiful in South x'Vustralia and in
every part of New South Wales that I visited ; and it was equally numerous on
the Liverpool Plains, the sides of the River Mokai, Namoi, &c. It is a show}-
attractive species, and passes much of its time on the ground, where it procures
its food, which consists of the seeds of various kinds of grasses, &c. The nest
is frequently built among the large sticks forming the under surface of the nest
of the smaller species of Eagles, and that too during the time the Eagle is incubating,
both species hatching and rearing their progen}' in harmony ; this I
witnessed in several instances, and have taken the eggs of the Eagle and of the
Finch at the same time, as mentioned in the folloAving extract from m}-
j o u r n a l O c t . 23, Found the nest of the Spotted-sided Finch placed under and
among the sticks of a Whistling Eagle's flialiastur ?- sphenuriisj nest, in which
latter the old bird was then sitting. Mj' black companion Natt}' ascended the
tree, a high swamp oak fCasmarinaJ on the bank of the Dartbrook, and brought
down the eggs of both birds. The little Finches were sitting on the small twigs
close to their rapacious but friendlj' neighbour." At other times the nest of this
Finch is placed on the leafy branch of a gum or apple-tree. It is of a large size,
and is constructed of grasses of various kinds, in form it is nearly spherical, with
a short pendant spout on one side, through -sidiich the bird obtains access to the
interior ; the eggs are white, rather long in shape, and five or six in number."
The young for the first j'ear has the bill black, except at the base, where
it is flesh-colour; the band across the breast and the flanks greyish-brown, the
The Diamond Sparrow.
latter being barred indistinctl}' with black and greyish-white ; in other respects
the plumage nearly resembles the adult."
Mr. North observes ;—" This beautiful bird is plentifully dispersed over New
South Wales and Victoria, and is still to be found breeding close to Sydney.
The nest, like all other members of the genus is composed of dried wiry grasses,
(See., spherical in form with an elongated neck, used for ingress and egress, it is
usually placed low down in the thick foliage of a Synearpia, Eueatyptus, or
Angophora in New South Wales. Eggs pure white, five or six in number for a
sitting, lengthened in form, being nearly equal in size at both ends." " September
and the three following months constitute the breeding season of this species."
Dr. Russ says of the Diamond Finch:—"Not so gracefully active as the
little Astrilds, quieter and more restful, like most of the Amandines ; unusually
confiding, permits its beautiful plumage to be closely admired. A deep flutelike
call-note and a monotonous bass note as a love-song. Coiirliiig: a measured
courtesying, head directed downwards, so that the beak almost rests upon the
breast and then the wonderful bass sounds ring out and the long-drawn flutesound
of the female. On their arrival from their native country usually almost
entirely bare of feathers and emaciated ; they however soon recover under careful
treatment and regain health and magnificent plumage. Nesting eontrivances:—
Little nesting baskets sewn over with linen in Llartz-cages, or other kinds of
retreats to slip into when it is cold, soft grass stalks, feathers, &c., being
provided. They nest in various receptacles ; built in my Bird-room in Hartzcages,
hollow branches of trees, little boxes, often openly in a bush, or on a
cage. They drag hay and pieces of straw with strips of bast, into a great untidy
heap, lined with feathers, cotton-wool aud hair. Laying two to five eggs.
Both sexes incubate in turn; duration twelve days. Entire brood completed in
about five weeks. Young plmnage:—Crown, nape, neck and back brown grey;
croup delicate, but lively red; throat, breast, abdomen and under tail-coverts
greyish-white ; breast-band, sides and tail dark blackish-grey; bill, black, waxy
skin bluish wdiite. Recognizable by its figure and red croup. Change 0/ colour:—
On the uniformly coloured sides ash-grey dots appear; then gradually the black
intensifies near the beak as far as the e3'e and on the upper part of the breast ;
the underside becomes more purely white, the upper part of the body darker,
the red stronger, the black deeper and the white spots become round ; the beak
first begins to get red at the base. Breeding is not easy, some pairs do not
nest at all or only after years. This species also I was first to breed; then
in many Bird-rooms, by C. Hendschel, at Innleitenmtihle, Emil Kratz of
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