The Hickman courier. [volume] (Hickman, Ky.) 1859-current, 1878-12-27
Rearing Wild Birds.

found it essential to success in rearing
birds from the nest to watch the parent
bird and find what food it selected for its
Young. That of all the fnches, sparrows
and wrens was naked skinned worms and
grasshuppers. The indigo finch, which
/ at first failed ts rear, | found was fed
solely with white grssshopper q. e, with
grasshoppers which had just moulted);
alter which l found it very easy TO raise,
and that it proved to be a very excellent
cage bird. All the vireos fed readily
upon small grasshOppers and large-sizsd
worms, ana in every c3se died a ter
being fully grown, from my inability to
make the proper change in their food.
The fuChes and sparrOws would take to
seed-e ting as soon as they lett the nest
and their bills were hardened. Wrens,
under my observsi ion, Ied their V ung
almost exclusively with small smooth
larvR, tak en- rom the under sides of the
leaves of curl ant bushes, brambles, etc
and | have sat for a long time and
counted the worms brought to a nest
the average being five worms in two
minutes. This was nest OF the COM
mon house wren, when the supply of
food was abundant in a Deighboring row
of currant bushes. These were also
easily reared in the nest. All the young
birds took naturally to water when fully
grown except the ground or grass finch,
POcetGs qranlineus, which would bathe
only in fine sand, but would keep itself
in excellent condition and was a very
interesting cage bird. Tee common rice
bird, or bobolink, was very easily raised
I'D on grasshoppers, took to eating seed
readily, became as tame and plal fui as q
Ettt hny fg1i f1k 70 10
become excessiv, ly fat, and would then
often have epileptic fits, recurring at fre-
quent intervals, death always following.
The cat bird was an inveterate mimic,
attempting to do and sing whatever it
saw or heard done by the other birds in
its compartment of the cage. The wren
was a thorough busybody and studious
of nature, investigating with a very
knowing and inquring look every corner
aud crevIce of the cage and every act of
its associates. a pair of biue-birds kept
themselves inviolate from all the other
birds and were models and full OF lover
like attentions to each other. They
selected place where the pair could
perch themselves closely together, and
spent large part of their time in atten-
tons to each other. The nuthatch,
when full grown, delighted to find
grain of Indian corn, which 1t pushed
into any crack or creVice where it would
fit closely, and then would amuse itself
by nammeriDg away at it until it was
broken into framents suitable for its food.
The cowbird was an inveterate gOr-
mandizer. 1t could not be fed enough
to stop its ciamor for more, and often go
fully crammed was it that the last worm
or grasshopper stuck IN its throat, but it
would still beg for more, as if starving.
Taking the offered food, and finding it
/ self unable to swallow it, it would throw
it away with sudden JERK OF the head,
but still ask for more. Any thing in the
shape of animal food that it could swal-
law was gobbled down; and this affecta-
ton OF starvation, and its large size,
sufficiently explain the dwaring of the
other occupants OF the nest in which ii
is fosters child. It would eat or waste
all that any two birds could gather.