Homes Without Hands: Being a Description of the Habitations of Animals, Classed According to Their Principle of Construction

Dr. Smith remarks that the nests of certain Pyrgitæ—i. e. little birds which are popularly called sparrows in South Africa—are armed in a similar manner, but with sticks and twigs, instead of grass.

The Mahali is a very sociable bird, being seldom seen alone, and usually assembling in flocks, which sometimes congregate on the ground, and at others assemble in the branches. It is equally sociable in the disposition of its nests, twenty or thirty of these curious structures being often found gathered closely together on the branches of a single tree. Although its colors are not brilliant, it is a pretty bird, the back being of that peculiar brown which is called "liver" by dog-fanciers, and the under parts white, a long patch of snowy white also passing over each cheek. It is about as large as our common starling, the total length being rather more than six inches.

PERHAPS the most singular-looking nest made by these birds is that of a rather small, yellow-colored species (Ploceus ocularius), a figure of which may be seen in the left-hand lower corner of the illustration. This nest looks very like a chemist's retort, with the bulb upward—or, to speak more familiarly, like a very large horse-pistol suspended by the butt. The substance of which it is made is a very narrow, stiff and elastic grass, scarcely larger than the ordinary twine used for tying up small parcels, and interwoven with a skill that seems far beyond the capabilities of a mere bird.

The following account of Weaver Birds engaged in nest-making has been forwarded to me by Captain Drayson, R.A., who has frequently watched the whole proceedings:

"The bird that builds these nests is colonially termed the Yellow Oriole. The ingenious little creature is nearly as large as a thrush, and is of a bright yellow color, except the ends of the wings, which are of a brownish hue. It is gregarious; and when a good locality has been found, several hundred nests will be suspended from some dozen trees, within a few yards of each other. The most pliant branches are invariably selected, from which the nest is suspended; and in all cases the end of the nest overhangs the stream, so that any additional weight would bring the nest into the water.

"The birds make a great disturbance when building, there being usually a regular fight in order to secure the best places. In building, the birds first commence by working some stout flags or reeds from the branch, so as to hang downward. They then attach the upper part of the nest to the branch, so as to form the dome-like roof. By degrees they complete the globular bulb, still working downward, and, lastly, the neck is attached to the body of the nest. Great skill is required to keep the neck even and open, and yet no machine could accomplish the work better than do these ingenious little architects. The upper part of the nest is very thick and firmly built, more than twice as thick as the neck, and the material of which it is made is far stronger. In some instances I have seen one nest attached to another; and when this is the case, the second builder strengthens the first nest, and then attaches his own work thereto.

"Should by chance a hawk or monkey venture into the vicinity of a colony of birds, it is chased and chirped at by hundreds of these little creatures, who make common cause against the intruder, and quickly drive him off. During the building of the nests, the river side is a most interesting place, as the intelligence and diligence of the birds are most remarkable."

If the hand be carefully introduced up the neck of one of these nests, its admirable fitness for the nurture of the young birds is at once perceived. When merely viewed from the outside, the nest looks as if it would be a very unsafe cradle, and would permit the young birds to fall through the neck into the water. A section of the nest, however, shows that no habitation can be safer, and even the hand can detect the wonderfully ingenious manner in which the interior is constructed. Just where the neck is united to the bulb, a kind of wall or partition is made, about two inches in height, which runs completely across the bulb, and effectually prevents the young birds from falling into the neck.

Although the nests are seen in considerable numbers, the feathered architect does not seem to be a particularly sociable bird, seldom being seen in flocks, and, as a general fact, the male and female associate together and keep all other birds at a distance. The eggs are generally three in number, very pale blue with a few brownish spots, the spots being chiefly gathered toward the larger end. The parent birds are very assiduous in their household cares, and each sits alternately until the eggs are hatched. So absorbed are they in their task that they can be captured alive, merely by grasping the lower end of the neck with one hand, and then cautiously introducing the other hand into the nest. Perhaps this want of caution may arise from the nature of the nest, and the birds being free from all ordinary danger; and if the nest had been open, like that of most birds, the inhabitants would probably be as timid as is usually the case with birds when disturbed in their nests.

Below the first-mentioned nest, and nearly in the lower centre of the illustration, may be seen the beautiful nest of the GOLD-CAPPED WEAVER BIRD, Ploceus icterocephalus, the figure being drawn from a specimen in my own collection. The nest of this bird is notable for the extreme neatness and compactness of its structure, for it can endure a vast amount of careless handling, and still retain its beautiful contour. The nest was taken from the banks of a river near Natal, and was suspended from two reeds, so as to hang over the water, and at no great distance from the surface.

The whole structure is apparently composed of the same plant, namely, a kind of small reed, but the materials are taken from a different portion of the plant, according to the part of the nest for which they are required. The whole exterior, as well as the walls, are made of the reed-stems, woven very closely together, and being of no trifling thickness. There is a considerable amount of elasticity in the structure, and the whole nest is so strong that it might be kicked down stairs, or be thrown from the top of the Monument, without much apparent deterioration. The interior, however, is constructed after a very different fashion. Instead of the rough, strong workmanship of the exterior, with its reed-stems interlacing among each other, as if woven by human art, and its pale yellow hue, the inside exhibits a lining of flat leaves, laid artistically over each other so as to form a soft, smooth resting-place, but not interlacing at all, being held in their place by their own elasticity. Their color is of a pale bluish-gray, and the contrast which they present to the exterior is very strongly marked. In size the nest is about as large as an ordinary cocoa-nut—not quite so long, though broader.

Mr. Swainson mentions that in one specimen of the nest made by this bird there was a peculiarity about the opening. "The aperture is lateral, but not upon the top, so that it serves the purpose of a window to the inmates, who are sheltered overhead by the convex top of the nest. There is something very ingenious in the construction of this opening, which is not, as it at first appears, round, but semicircular, the arch being bound round with a stronger band than usual, and the plane or base much stronger, and composed of straight pieces of the stalks of the grass, evidently for the purpose of giving to that part on which the birds perched greater strength and substance."

In the right-hand lower corner of the illustration is a nest of another species of Weaver Bird, the pretty TAHA WEAVER, Euplectes Taha.

This species, though plentiful, is rather limited in range, and, according to Dr. Smith, is not seen southward of lat. 26°. Northward of that line, however, it was found in numbers, associating in large flocks, and generally haunting the neighborhood of rivers. In some places the trees that grew near the rivers were filled with crowds of the Taha Weaver Bird. In some localities, where the ground is cultivated, the Taha Weaver is more plentiful than is liked by the natives, for it is very destructive among the gardens; and, in places where it is very numerous, a continual watch must be kept lest the crop should be utterly destroyed. An allied bird, Euplectes oryx, is equally destructive in the summer months.

Although the Taha Weavers are mostly found among trees, at the commencement of the breeding season they leave the branches and retire to the reeds that fringe the river sides, and upon these reeds they build their pensile nest. The plumage of the Taha Weaver varies greatly according to the season of the year, the yellow of the summer coat being freely interspersed with brown dashes in the winter. Even the beak is said to change its color, and to be lighter in the summer than in the winter.

As in the illustration of African Weaver Birds so many nests and their architects are introduced, I will give a brief summary of its contents.

In the right-hand upper corner are seen the curious nests of the Mahali Weaver, accompanied by the birds themselves. Just below the Mahali are several rows of nests pendent from boughs. These are the homes of the Spotted Weaver, and are represented as attacked by monkeys, which are being ducked for their pains, and will not succeed in reaching the nests. The monkey is the vervet, Cercopithecus pygerythrus, commonly called the green monkey, and is of the species that so frequently accompany organ-grinders in this country. Assailing and bickering at the monkeys are several other species of Weavers. Some of the Spotted Weavers are defending their homes, and are aided by three other species, Ploceus subaureus, known by its lighter hue; Hyphantornis textor, distinguished by its dark bill; and Zeator erythrorhynchus, known by its light bill.

Rather in the background, and in the centre, are some nests of Ploceus Capensis, woven with a palm-leaf. In the left-hand lower corner is the long, retort-shaped nest of the pretty Yellow Weaver; in the corresponding right corner is the Taha Weaver; and hanging over the water at the bottom of the illustration is the habitation of the Yellow-capped Weaver.

In Jamaica there is a bird which would not allow any illustration of its size and beauty, but is nevertheless a most interesting species. This is the PALM SWIFT (Tachornis phœnicobia), easily known by the broad white belt on its black body, something like the white band on the common house-martin.

As is implied by its generic name, the Palm Swift is celebrated for its very great speed, which it exhibits by its darting flight over the grass savannas. As, moreover, it resides in Jamaica throughout the whole year, it gives every opportunity for observing its habits.

The nest of this bird is very curious, and always pensile; and, though it can never be mistaken for that of any other bird, it is built after a very diverse fashion. Usually it is fastened to the spathe of the common cocoa-nut palm, being cemented to the leaf so firmly, that if it be pulled away by force, the outside integument of the leaf comes away also. The nest is ingeniously hidden in the leaf, so that it would not be noticed by an ordinary observer, were it not that in some cases the bird is so very liberal of its materials that their superabundance betrays its presence. The nest is made of cotton and feathers, the cotton forming the exterior and the feathers the lining. The walls of the nest are very strong, though flexible, and something like felt, being firmly compacted, and containing an enormous mass of downy feathers, in the middle of which the eggs are laid.