542 COL. TEEBUBT AND MB. O. THOMAS ON [June 18, somewhat from the other bird. Briefly speaking, it did not begin throwng off its feathers until the summer was somewhat advanced, and took less time to complete its moult than the Aru-Island bird. Habits in captivitif. — Besides being active and vigorous, as stated by Wallace, the Great Bird of Paradise is amusing and demon-strative, possessing many of the characteristics of a Magpie and Bhimraj {Dissemurus j)aradiseus), but is liable to be stupid and helpless when the economy of its ordinary mode of life is in any way disturbed. At least such has been observed to be the case with the Aru-Island bird. It behaved in a very strangely stupid manner when let out in a large and lofty aviary a few days after its arrival. Perhaps the vastness of the place bewildered and frightened it. It, however, recovered its equanimity shortly after being placed in its old and accustomed cage. It is very fond of dancing, but want of company evidently acts as a check upon this passion. It has a loud and deep note, which it constantly utters Mith infinite variation and modulation. It maintains excellent health upon diet consisting of a teacupful of bread and milk in the morning, half a papya-fruit in the forenoon, and a few grasshoppers or cockroaches the last thing in the afternoon. Its low subdued chuckles and grunts while taking the insects from off the fingers of the keeper clearly show its great insectivorous propensity. It very much enjoys a shower-bath, administered by a garden syringe, twice a week during summer. The smaller bird (said to have been from the southern part of New Guinea) was less demonstrative ; but this might have been its individual peculiarity. 3. On the Mammals of Aden. By Col. J. W. Yerbury and Oldfield Thomas. [Eeceived May 29, 1895.] The present paper is based on the collections made by Terbury at and near Aden in February and March of this year, and, as there has been remarkably little recorded about the mammals of this southern point of Arabia, we have added to the list two species not represented in the collection, but mentioned by other authors, and have thus made the paper contain a complete list of the mammals as yet known to occur in the district of Aden. The only two papers that we know of mentioning Aden mam-mals are : — (1) MoNTiCELLi, r. S. "Note Chirotterologiche." ■ (1887.) [Description of Vespertilio dogalensis, and record from Aden of Hipposiderus tridens, Nycteris thebaica, Rhinopoma micro-phyllum, and Xaniliarpyia straminea.'] (2) Matschie, p. " Ueber einige von Herrn Oscar Neumann bei Aden gesammelte und beobachtete Saugethiere." -(1893.) [Notice of Papio hamadryas, Xaniliarpyia straminea, Scoto-philus schlieffeni, and Hystriv " africoi-australis"^ 1 Ann. Mus. Genov. (2) v. p. 517. '■' SB. Ges. nat. Freuad. 1893, p. 24.
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