Excerpts from a Bird Fancier's Notebook Buffalo, Sparrow, Social and Sporopipes Weavers

Abstract

Introduction by Josef Lindholm

For many Americans, our introduction to Arthur Douglas was either through the now semi-legendary First International Birds in Capriviry Symposium in Seattle in 1978, or the eventual publication of the paper he presented in the proceedings of that conference. "Feeding Solrbills -An I Iistorical Synopsis" (Douglas, 1981 a) is a remarkable and very enrertaining survey of softbill diets from the Sixteenth Century to the present. le has a bibliography of 39 references. To those previously unfamiliar with him, the paper introduces its author as an aviculrurnl historian of note. Mr. Douglas's reputation as an authority on softbilled diets was further bolstered by subsequent articles on the subject in A.FA. Watcbbirdand in the short-lived, bur very interesting l loneycrccper (Douglas, 1981b, 198fo&b, l987a-d

British aviculturisrs have a far longer

acquaintance. l\lr. Douglas's first article for Cagebirds ( now Cage and Auiary Birds), on the use of Caddisfly larvae as bird food, having appeared in 19.ct2. From 1965 into the 1970"s he wax a familiar contributor to that magazine, a regular column being his '".)ouings from Texas", illustrated with his own in imitable ca noons.

,\Ir. Douglas has lived in Dallas, Texas, since 19'i'i, having arrived from the Channel Island oflersey to start the art department of the recently established St. xlark's School, nO\Y widely recognized as a distinguished prep school. .\Ir. Douglas had been invited partially in consideration of his command of a wide array of subjects, and over the years he taught English literature, Spanish, and, as one would expect, natural history. His courses in the latter field had an early emphasis on ecology, and for three years he served as Science Departmental Chairman. I le organized St. ,\lark's collection of living plants and animals, and continues to be responsible for the school's aviaries, green houses and other facilities. though he retired from teaching some time ago.

The notebooks from which these excerpts are taken were triggered by a visit .\Ir. Douglas made to \X'ool\\·orrh·s in those unrestricted clays before the Newcastle 's Quarantine of 1 r:z. As he tells the StOr):

'"I was in \\'ool\\'orrh·s. and they had some common imported finches. There \\·as one that l couldn't recognize. It was mousy-grey all over, and had a black beak. I could sec it was a Munia of some kind. l had read about the Dusky Munia nnd other rare species, and I thought that this might be one of them. so I asked the girl in charge of the pet section. 'What kind of bi re.I is that in the corner?' Thern's finches.' she said. I said, "Yes. I know they're finches. hut this particular one. this little grey one .. / "\\'ell,· she informed me, 'there's Canaries. and there's Parakeets. and there's Finches. Thern's Finches.' I thought, 'Well, were a fine pair. She doesn't know the common finches and 1 don 't know them either. It's time that I knew a bit more about them. I thought. 'I'll go through the back issues of Cagebirdsxiw) any other publications that I may have, and J'll list all the finches that are mentioned there. I'll sec if I can get them clear in my mine.I. To make sure, I'll draw a picture ofeach kind.

'"I started by making rather careful colored drawings of Weaverbirds. l expected to finish the whole enterprise by

the time my summer vacation was over
(I still had four or f ive weeks to go). In
fact, I worked on-and-off for about three
yea rs ... The finished notebook eventually
ran to four notebo ks. It is still not
complete, and I don't think it ever will
be ... "

 

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