The Natural History of Cage Birds Part 20

This bird owes its name to its plumage. It is five inches and a half in length, of which the tail measures two. The beak is greyish brown, the iris nut brown; the feet brown; the head and neck are violet, the circle round the eyes is red; the upper part of the back and the scapulars are yellowish green, the lower part, the rump, and all the under part of the body are of a fine red; the lesser wing-coverts violet brown with a red tinge, the greater of a dull green; the pen-feathers brown, some bordered with grey, others with red; the tail-feathers are also brown, but the two middle ones are of a changeable red, and the outer border of the others is of the same colour.

The upper part of the body of the female is of a dull green, the under part yellow green; her pen-feathers are brown edged with green, as are also the tail-feathers.

As the plumage of this bird does not come to perfection before the third year, there must naturally be several varieties. During the first year the male and female are of the same colour; the head of the male does not become a violet blue till the second year, and the rest of its plumage is then a blue green, as are also the edges of the quill and tail-feathers, which are elsewhere brown.

The female at this time is of a fine changeable blue. If to these differences arising from age are added the two moultings which take place every year, we shall not be surprised rarely to meet with two birds alike. There is besides another variety, having the under part of the body yellowish, except a red spot on the breast; and again another, which in the time of moulting is entirely white.

OBSERVATIONS.--These birds are found from the frontiers of Canada to Guiana and Brazil; none, however, are seen in Carolina less than one hundred and thirty miles from the sea. They only show themselves in summer, and build princ.i.p.ally on orange or similar trees. English and Dutch sailors take home many of these birds, and it has been said that in England they have succeeded in making them breed in aviaries in gardens, s.p.a.cious enough to contain orange trees, on which they have constructed their nests. When in a cage they are fed on millet, canary-seed, endive, and poppy-seed, on which they may be preserved from eight to ten years. Their song is soft and agreeable.

THE CHAFFINCH.

[Ill.u.s.tration]

Fringilla Coelebs, LINNaeUS; Le Pinson commun, BUFFON; Der Buch-Fink, BECHSTEIN.

This delightful songster of spring, famed for the sprightliness of its warbling,--this favourite of most of our bird-fanciers, is so generally known that I should be tempted to suppress its description if the uniformity of this work and the wish to render it complete, did not impel me to give it. This will also offer some particulars worthy the attention of the naturalist.

The pa.s.sion for this bird is carried to such an extent in Thuringia, and those which sing well are sought for with so much activity that scarcely a single chaffinch that warbles tolerably can be found throughout the province. As soon as one arrives from a neighbouring country whose notes appear good, all the bird-catchers are after it, and do not give up the pursuit till they have taken it. This is the reason why the chaffinches in this province are so indifferent songsters: the young ones have only bad masters in the old ones, and they in their turn cannot prove better.

This bird is six inches and one-third in length, of which the tail measures two and three quarters. The beak is conical, pointed, and white in winter; but as soon as spring, the season of pairing and song, arrives, and till the time of moulting, it is of a deep blue, and one may know by this whether it has sung or not. The iris is chestnut brown; the legs, nine lines high, are dusky; the claws are very sharp, and grow so fast in a cage that it is necessary to cut them every six weeks, if you do not wish to see the poor bird some day caught by them, and perish miserably unless rescued. The forehead is black, the top of the head and nape of the neck are greyish blue, in very old males deep blue, and then thick downy hairs are perceived.

After moulting, at the beginning of winter, the colours become lighter, the front of the head is only deep brown; the top and the nape of the neck a changeable greyish and olive brown; the red brown of the breast is brighter; this is also the plumage of the young ones in the second year, particularly if of the last brood; they are called grey-heads, by bird-catchers, who can easily distinguish, in the spring, the young from the old males, and very much prefer them, because, if properly caught, they may be taught to improve their song when confined in the house; while the others never learn, or change very little, at least rarely, the song they have acquired in their wild state.

The female is very different, being smaller, while the head, neck, and upper part of the back are greyish brown, and all the under part of the body is a dusky white, rather reddish grey on the breast; and the beak, greyish brown in spring, becomes greyish white in winter.

There are some remarkable varieties of this species, one quite white, another with a white collar, a third streaked, spotted, &c. There is no distinction between the wood chaffinches and those of the gardens and orchards, as has been alleged.

HABITATION.--In its wild state, the chaffinch frequents forests, copses, and orchards, and ought to be reckoned among birds of pa.s.sage, though there are always some that remain the winter with us.

The time of pa.s.sage, in autumn, continues from the beginning of October to the middle of November, and in spring during the month of March. These birds perform their journey in large flocks. In the spring the males arrive in separate flights, fifteen days before the females; our bird-catchers know this so well, that as soon as they perceive these they put up their implements, their sport being then over.

In the house, though each may vary the form of the cage to his taste, the best, in my opinion, is an oblong cage nine inches long, seven in depth, and seven in height, with the food and water at the two farthest sides, and the perches placed opposite. A bell-shaped cage does not suit the chaffinch, as it prefers jumping down in front, and swinging itself round, to remaining at the top. If there are several in one room they must be placed so as not to see each other, or their song will be injured. Those only are allowed to range whose song is very inferior, and must be provided with a grated place to retire to, or some branches to perch on. These never sing so well as those in cages, their song appearing to require the greatest attention, and hence there should be nothing to distract them.

FOOD.--When wild, their food in spring is all sorts of insects, which they carry to their young in their beaks; later in the season they eat various kinds of seeds, pine and fir seeds, when they inhabit forests that contain them, linseed, oats, rape, cabbage, and lettuce, which they know well how to procure and sh.e.l.l.

In the house they are fed all the year on rape seed, dried in summer, or, which is better, soaked and swelled in water, on which food they appear to thrive. Every day a sufficient quant.i.ty should be soaked for the next, and given them fresh every morning. In the spring they are allowed a little hemp-seed, or the seed of the nettle-hemp (_Galeopsis Tetrahit_), to excite their song, and this plant is therefore very much prized in Thuringia; but these seeds should not be mixed with the rape, as in trying to find them they soon scatter their food; it is best to put it in a separate drawer fastened to the iron wires of the cage, between which it may be slipped. It must not be omitted to supply them with green vegetables, chickweed, lettuce, and the like; and in winter a piece of apple, meal-worms, and ants'

eggs agree with them. They must have fresh water regularly every day, both to drink and bathe in.

Those that range the room live on the different sorts of food they meet with, bread, meat, and all sorts of seeds.

BREEDING.--The nest of the chaffinch is one of the most beautiful of birds' nests, and formed in the most skilful manner. It is the shape of a half globe flattened on the upper part, and so perfectly rounded that it has the appearance of having been turned on a lathe.

Cobwebs[36] and wool fasten it to the branch, bits of moss with small twigs entwined form the ground-work; the lining is composed of feathers, thistle-down, the hair of horses and other animals, whilst the outer covering is formed of the different lichens that grow on the tree in which it is placed, the whole firmly united and well cemented. This outer finish is no doubt intended to deceive an enemy's eye; in fact, it is very difficult, even with great attention, to distinguish the nest from the bark of the branch on which it is fixed.

The female has two broods in the year; she lays from three to five eggs, of a pale bluish grey, spotted and streaked with brown: the first brood (and this is confirmed in general by observations of other birds) rarely produces any but males, the second only females.

Bird-fanciers can distinguish the one from the other before they leave the nest; the breast of the male already discovering a reddish tint, the circle round the eyes being yellower, the wings blacker, and the lines that cross them whiter, though in other respects it resembles its mother. If you wish to be quite sure, pluck some feathers from the breast of the bird you have taken from the nest, in a fortnight they will be replaced, and the presence or absence of red will infallibly decide whether it is male or female. As soon as the tail-feathers begin to appear they must be taken from the nest, to prevent the possibility of their ear being injured by hearing an imperfect song, for scarcely are the wings and tail half grown than these birds begin to warble, and to imitate the song of those around them.

They must be fed on rape seed soaked in water and the crumb of white bread; it is very easy to rear them and preserve them healthy till the time of moulting, but then numbers perish, particularly if not quickly relieved by being given meal-worms and ants' eggs, or any other animal food, as bread boiled in or soaked in boiled milk.

Chaffinches that have been reared with care become very familiar, and sing at command, or when one approaches their cage in a friendly manner. If they are wished to learn quickly and accurately, they should be kept in an obscure corner of the room, and only hung up at the windows in May; this is the surest way to prevent their learning any thing imperfect. By these means chaffinches that have been taken full grown have forgotten their former song and adopted a better. The whole artifice consists in keeping the bird in such retirement as will remove everything that might distract it when listening to a fine songster, and take away the wish to sing itself.

There have been examples of chaffinches pairing with female canaries, and it has been said with a female yellowhammer. The distinction between wood and garden chaffinches is unfounded, at least as to species; the eggs of both are of the same whitish pink colour.

DISEASES.--The disorders to which the chaffinch is most subject are the obstruction of the rump gland[37] and diarrhoea. To cure this an old nail or a little saffron should be put in the water.

When the scales on the feet become too large, the upper ones must be cut skilfully with a sharp knife, or else the bird would either lose the use of his limbs or become gouty; but this operation must be performed with great care.

Blindness also is not uncommon, particularly where they are fed much on hemp seed. This does not, however, injure their song, and as it comes on gradually, it does not prevent their finding their food and hopping about the perches. By means of proper care a chaffinch may be preserved twenty years.

MODE OF TAKING.--With good baits the chaffinch may easily be drawn within the area or decoy from Michaelmas to Martinmas, and in spring throughout March. Those that remain the winter, or return early in the year, may be taken in a net baited with oats.

Bird-catchers use in spring lures and lime twigs, and the sport lasts as long as the time of flight, which begins at daybreak and ends at nine o'clock. These birds employ the rest of the day in seeking food in the fields, in resting, and singing. In the same manner are taken linnets, goldfinches, siskins, yellowhammers, and bullfinches.

Some make use of the excessive jealousy of the males to procure those whose song is very superior. As soon as a bird-catcher who likes this way discovers a fine songster wild, he immediately seeks another male that is in the habit of often repeating its natural cry, _fink, fink_, ties his wings, and fastens to his tail a little forked stick, half a finger long, well covered with bird-lime; thus prepared, he fastens him under the tree on which the one he is watching is perched; this no sooner sees and hears the false rival than he becomes enraged, pounces on him like a bird of prey, and is caught with the bird-lime; his attack is often so violent that sometimes the bird of call is killed by the stroke of its adversary. The following is a surer method:--a soft, narrow leather band is fastened round a male, to which is attached a string a foot long, fastened by a peg, which allows it but a short s.p.a.ce to range. This bird, as we have already said, is called, in bird-catchers' language, a percher. A circle of bird-lime is made just beyond its reach, and a cage with a chaffinch, accustomed to sing either in the shade or exposed, is placed under a neighbouring bush; as soon as this last begins his song, which should be a natural one, not any learned in confinement, the chaffinch that is to be procured darts from the tree like an arrow on the percher, which it mistakes for the songster, and remains fixed by the bird-lime. This new prisoner will sing the same year if it is caught before Whitsuntide: if after, it will never sing, but will die, evidently from grief at being separated from its female and young ones. A bird-catcher, cruel as he is stupid, who, without the least reflection, only thinks of gratifying his ridiculous pa.s.sion for bird-catching, may in an hour deprive ten or twelve females of their beloved companions, their protectors, and numerous young ones of their father, purveyor, and support: such thoughtless cruelty is, alas! only too common in Germany. As soon as the young chaffinches have left the nest, the bird-catchers are very active in discovering the places where at noon they are accustomed to drink; there they set perches covered with bird-lime, and by this means many of these little unwary creatures are taken. However little memory one of these birds may have, it is capable of learning a good song, and being more robust than those brought up from the nest, bird-dealers make a good deal of them. They collect a great many, being sure that some will succeed amongst them.

ATTRACTIVE QUALITIES.--The first of these is undoubtedly the song of the bird; but our amateurs are not less attentive to the different notes that express its pa.s.sions and wants. The note of tenderness, and which is also thought to indicate a change of weather, is _trif, trif_: its call, or the rallying note it makes use of on its pa.s.sage, and which so often draws it within the snares of our bird-catchers, is _ak, ak_, repeated several times; the cry _fink, fink_, which it often repeats, and from which its German name is derived, appears, if we may so call it, to be mechanical and involuntary. But what makes it appear to still more advantage among other birds are its clear and trilling tones, that seem almost to approach to words; in fact, its warbling is less a song than a kind of _battement_, to make use of a French word, and is expressed in German by the word _schlag_ (trill), which is used to designate its song as well as the nightingale's.

Some chaffinches have two, three, four, and even five different _battemens_, each consisting of several strains, and lasting several minutes. This bird is so great a favourite in Germany, that not a single tone of its voice has escaped the experienced ears of our bird-fanciers. They have observed its nicest shades, and are continually endeavouring to improve and perfect it. I confess I am myself one of its warmest admirers; I have constantly around me the best songsters of its species, and if I liked I could write a good sized volume on all the details of its music, but I will confine myself to that which bears most on this subject.

The song of the chaffinch bearing an evident relation to articulate sounds, its has been thought to distinguish its different variations by the final syllable of the last strain. The most admired in Thuringia are the following, which I shall give in their order, and in their different degrees of superiority.[38]

1. _The Double Trill of the Hartz_ in Lower Saxony is composed of six strains, rather long, the last of which is ended by dwelling on the two final syllables, which I shall express here by the word "_weingeh_[39]." I doubt if ever a bird in its wild state has executed this so perfectly as I heard it at Ruhl[40] and at my own house. Art has certainly created it. It is with difficulty that a chaffinch attains it, if, with the best abilities, it has not been instructed from its earliest youth. Rarely can it give it complete without leaving any part out. On this account a high price must be given for the little prodigy that sings it through, full, entire, and in all its strength.

2. _The Reiterzong_, or rider's pull, first heard among the mineral mountains of Saxony and Voigtland, has been known but a short time in Thuringia. It may be heard from a chaffinch in its wild state, but those that have been instructed execute it in a fuller, stronger, and less precipitate manner. This song consists of four strains, the first of which commences in a high key, and gradually descends. When in perfection there is a cadenced pause before the two last syllables, which articulate tolerably clearly _reitzing_ with a _zap_ or clapping, as our amateurs express it. An amateur who has never heard the double trill of the Hartz would not believe that a chaffinch could sing in a superior manner to this; however, in this, as in many other things, each has his taste.

3. _The Wine Song_ is divided into four kinds, 1. the fine, or Langsfeld wine song[41], is very beautiful, but little known except in two or three places in Thuringia. It is composed of four strains, and to be perfect ought to resemble a hautboy, the two last syllables articulating "_weingeh_." This song has never been heard from a wild chaffinch, but is one accidentally produced in the house, and endeavoured to be propagated by education.

2. The bad wine song is not in itself disagreeable, but it is so named when compared with the former. It is composed of three strains, of which the penultimate ought to sound _zap_ five times, and the two last syllables articulate "_weingeh_." When once a wild chaffinch has been heard to utter this in Germany it is not long ere it is caught.

3. The sharp wine song is not ended by "_weingeh_," but "_weingieh_."

It is subdivided into the common sharp, such as is sometimes heard in the woods, and the Ruhl sharp, which is an entirely artificial song, confined to Ruhl and a few other villages of Thuringia. It has but two strains, of which the first syllables ought to sound as though flowing into each other, and the penultimate to have an accent.

4. _The Brautigam_, or bridegroom song, is also divided into good and bad: the good is only heard in the house, and consists of two simple strains; it begins _piano_, afterwards _forte_, and, continuing _crescendo_, ends in the most brilliant sound. After the double trill of the Hartz it appears to my ear the finest of all. The bad is occasionally heard in the woods, and is composed of three strains; but though not devoid of sweetness, does not please so much as the former.

5. _The Double Trill_ is formed of two long strains, divided by a cadenced pause, which is named the shake. They distinguish, 1. the common, subdivided into four; _a_, the strong, _b_, the clear, _c_, the long, and _d_, the short. These are heard sometimes in the woods and orchards; but chaffinches that sing _a_ or _b_ soon become the prey of our bird-catchers. 2. The double trill of Iambach[42]; this is only to be acquired in the house, and is so deep and powerful that one can scarcely conceive how the larynx of so small a bird can produce such sounds. It begins _piano_, and swelling its tones successively in _crescendo_, makes of the _trilling_ a strain of five piercing tones, afterwards repeats "_pfaff_" four or five times, and ends by dwelling on "_Rudidia_." A chaffinch that possesses this song, either alone, or united with the good bridegroom's song, such as are educated in Iambach, sells here for eighteen French francs.

6. _The Gutjahr_, or good year song, is so named from the two last syllables, and is also divided, 1. into the common, that has but two strains, of which the second ought to roll five times before articulating "_gutjahr_." It is not uncommon in our woods. 2. The good year of the Hartz, which has been acquired in the house, and consists of two very singular strains, in my opinion not very agreeable. Chaffinches are very rare now which sing this, united to that of the wine song of Ruhl, or the sharp song, and their price is consequently high. They are rarely found but at Ersenach and Ruhl.

7. _The Quakia song_ is so called from its last syllables, and is double or single, one with one strain, the other with two. This song was formerly very much admired. It was heard in the woods and house, but it is now lost, as all the wild chaffinches that sung it have been taken, and those in confinement have been taught in preference the good wine song: I believe I possess the only bird that is now to be found which sings this. To be admired, the quakia must be united with the double trill. This my chaffinch sings also.

8. _The Pithia_ or _Trewethia_, is a very uncommon and agreeable song, which is never heard but in the depths of the Thuringian mountains. The bird-catchers of the villages about the forests of Hesse seek for birds that possess it, and actively pursue the songsters. It is first a sonorous strain, followed by several repet.i.tions of the word "_zack_." Some birds unite to it the common sharp wine song, and are more valued. The last syllables ought to sound "_trewididae_."

These eight varieties, or rather melodies, are those most thought of in Saxony and Hesse. I have said that some of them are heard in the woods; but it is very rarely that they are sung with so clear and strong a voice, or that they are so long and perfect. A chaffinch that knows only one of these varieties generally sings it slowly, and introduces a greater number of syllables. Its voice, in fact, executes it with more strength and depth; if it adds to the last strain the sound "_fink_," which our bird-catchers translate by _amen_, it is of the highest value, no price will be taken for it.

There are a dozen varieties in all; but as they are not uncommon, and what are everywhere heard, they are less admired; they have even been given in contempt the name of _plain_.

One thing worth remarking is that the song of the chaffinch varies almost as much as the countries it inhabits. It is not the same in Thuringia as in the Hartz, and the taste of amateurs differs equally[43]. In Austria several named melodies are admired, but I have never heard them.

The chaffinch has so great a facility in learning, that it not only imitates perfectly the song of another chaffinch near which it has been placed from youth, but being hung near a nightingale or canary it learns several parts of their songs, and would no doubt give them completely if its larynx were so formed that it could render notes so long and sustained; in fine, a great difference in memory is observed in these birds, as well as in all others of the singing species. Some require six months to learn an air that others catch on first hearing, and can repeat almost immediately; these can scarcely retain one of the songs given above; those can imitate three, four, and, should you wish it, five different ones. There are also some that cannot give one song without a fault, and we find others that will add to it, perfect it, and embellish it.

One thing peculiar to chaffinches is the necessity of teaching them their song every year, and this in the manner proper for them, during the four or five weeks this exercise lasts. They first utter a murmur, or weak warbling, to which they add at first, in an under voice, one or two, and afterwards several syllables of their song; they are then said to _record_. A chaffinch that takes only a week or fortnight to repeat this lesson for fully bringing out its voice, is reckoned among the geniuses of its species. It is known that other birds whose power of singing is confined to a particular season, also warble feebly, and mingle with their warbling some foreign notes, especially harsh and confused sounds; but none produce sounds so peculiar, and that have so little relation to their own song. If we pay a little attention, however, we shall find that this exercise is intended less to awaken the memory than to render the throat, stiffened by a tolerably long state of inaction, more pliant, and to bring back its natural flexibility.