. Bird notes . ^ bird with thebig bill, so I mixed up dried files, ants eggs, andbiscuit with a little potato, in the hope of weaning itfrom its expensive tastes, and was very glad to find ittook to the little cannon balls of mixture I made forit. When it gets weary itself of tossing great lumpsdown its throat, it opens its great bill for you to con-tinue the operation, uttering at the same time shortlittle croaks. This bird never wearies of being is quite content so long as one is talking to it,stroking it, or playing about with it, and it will throw. AFRICAN BLACK HORNBILL. (Sphago
. Bird notes . ^ bird with thebig bill, so I mixed up dried files, ants eggs, andbiscuit with a little potato, in the hope of weaning itfrom its expensive tastes, and was very glad to find ittook to the little cannon balls of mixture I made forit. When it gets weary itself of tossing great lumpsdown its throat, it opens its great bill for you to con-tinue the operation, uttering at the same time shortlittle croaks. This bird never wearies of being is quite content so long as one is talking to it,stroking it, or playing about with it, and it will throw. AFRICAN BLACK HORNBILL. (Sphagolohus atratus-j To face page 2^0. 251 its great head back nearly to its tail for one to strokeits throat. It is certainly a most weird bird with itslong broad bill, and I think it must be the ugliest birdone could wish to see. Except for its soft beautifuleyes, which almost speak, it has not one redeemingpoint. In Wonders of the Bird World, (Dr. BowdlerSharpe) is the following description of the nesling ofthe Hornbills:— Here we find tlie female resorting to the hole ofa tree and laying her eggs, one or two in number,while the male plasters the hole up and takes upon the support of his wife and child. Anythingmore fraught with disastrous consequences to thefamily can scarcely be imagined, for if the poor hard-working husband is shot or otherwise killed the im-prisoned wife and baby run considerable risks ofstarvation. There would seem, however, to be a spiritof co-operation among Hornbills, for even if thefemale cannot free herself from t
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