File:The American Museum journal (c1900-(1918)) (18157718262).jpg

Title: The American Museum journal
Identifier: americanmuseumjo18amer (find matches)
Year: c1900-(1918) (c190s)
Authors: American Museum of Natural History
Subjects: Natural history
Publisher: New York : American Museum of Natural History
Contributing Library: American Museum of Natural History Library
Digitizing Sponsor: Biodiversity Heritage Library

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A whydah bird on the papyrus. — I was interested in the wealth of bird life in British East Africa, especially in the strange appearance and habits of the whydah finches. During the breeding season of this species of the Kamiti River, the female remains dull-colored and short-tailed, but the male takes on a shining dark color, with tail feathers more than twice the length of the rest of the bird, and curled at the tips. (The heavy tail is a distinct handicap in flying.) The time of the mere zoological collector is past; every man in the field from now on should be- come a trustworthy observer and recorder of natural history facts. The work of the camera is more valuable than that of the rifle, but most valuable of all is observation of the life histories and habits of the creatures of the wilderness
Text Appearing After Image:
The whydah bird's dance ring. — The grassland next the papyrus swamp for cue and one half miles along the Kamiti River was everywhere dotted with dance rings. In the early morning and evening the dark-colored male birds were to be seen in the grass, continually bouncing two feet into air, wings spread, tail hanging down, and dropping stiffly back again,—up and down, up and down, as they slowly danced around the rings. The whydahs make the dance rings (about two feet in diameter) by snipping off the long grass at the roots, leaving a central tuft 328

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