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BIRDS

The silver-eye (Zosterops coerulescens)-Plate 52-is repre­sented by five species in Australia. It is often called the "blight bird", because of the vast numbers of aphides it consumes. It is also the chief enemy of case-moth larvae. The damage done by these birds to fruit is far outweighed in the same orchards by their good work earlier in the spring.

The house sparrow (Passer domesticus), especially while very young, ranks second only to the silver-eye as an aphis-killing bird.

The yellow-tailed thornbill, or tomtit (Acanthiza chrysorr-hoa) a friendly little bird, though essentially insectivorous can often be induced to feed on crumbs from one's hand. The bright-yellow feathers at the base of its tail are visible only when the bird is disturbed. It is very agile in flight

The blue wren {Malurus cyaneus)-Plate 52-, so well known to us all, shows a distinct partiality for the cockchafer larva, eating as many as eighty a day for months in succession. It also kills small grasshoppers, winged insects, and caterpillars.

Among our particularly useful birds we should also name the harmonious thrush, the blackbird, the starling, the black-faced cuckoo shrike, the little cuckoo shrike, the swallows, and the scarlet-breasted robin.

All bird-life should be encouraged in the garden, and should be tempted in every possible way to become less timid of man. Food tables and water receptacles for bathing and drinking attract large numbers of birds. They must be placed out of reach of cats where possible, otherwise well out in a clear space where cats will not be able to make an ambush. It is very pleasing to wander in one's garden and be approached by small birds in search of crumbs of bread, biscuit, or cake. If poison baits of bran must be laid for cutworms, it is essential that they be cleared away very early next morning to minimize the chance of birds being poisoned. Actually very few insectivorous birds feed on the ground and so these baits are not as dangerous as one might imagine.

If you have not already a bird bath in your garden, why not obtain one? Not only will hundreds of useful friends come to drink and bathe, but you will have many hours of enter­tainment and amusement as you watch their varied forms of behaviour. Starlings bathe most vigorously, as if to belie their reputation for being dirty creatures. Quite commonly half a dozen of them will be in the bath together, splashing large quantities of water well beyond the bath, so that within a very few minutes two or three gallons have been scattered. They then spend some minutes on a nearby bough, shaking their feathers. The wrens and tits seem to scorn bathing completely, and the minah does not indulge often. The green-eyes rarely alight on the bath, but with frequent repeated sorties they furtively flip the surface of the water. The sparrow is loath to wet much more than his feet except on rare occasions. The blackbird and the thrush, with their beautiful plumage, make most attractive sights while bathing. They are, too, amongst the most frequent visitors to the bath, and remain there for long periods.

See that the bath is at least eighteen inches in diameter, holds several gallons of water, is no more than three inches deep, is in a quiet part of the garden, and is on a pedestal at least three feet high-as a precaution against cats. For the same reason, place the bath well clear of trees and large shrubs. Moisture loving plants, such as azaleas, do well with the frequent splashing.