SERIEMA.
SECRETARY BIRD.
In the angle of the main building stands a structure almost wholly composed of metal and glass, which is known as the Glass Court. It was designed especially for North American song-birds. The visitor should not overlook the fact that there are cages filled with birds all along both the eastern and western sides of the Large Bird House.
Nearly all the cages of both the exterior and interior of the Main and Parrots’ Halls, are accessible from the back by passage-ways; a convenience that greatly facilitates the work of the keepers in caring for their various charges.
The capacity of this installation as a whole may be judged from the following memorandum of cages:
| APPROXIMATE SIZES OF CAGES OF THE LARGE BIRD-HOUSE | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| INDOORS. | |||
| Main Hall | Central Flying Cage | 15×36×20 feet high | 1 |
| Side Cages | 5×5×9 | 35 | |
| End Cages | 5×12×9 | 2 | |
| Parrot Hall | Side Cages | 6×8×9 | 21 |
| Glass Court | West Cages | 8×9×9 | 6 |
| East & North Cages | 5×6×8 | 16 | |
| OUTDOORS. | |||
| Northeast Cages | 7×12×10 | 2 | |
| East Cages | 6×8×10 | 10 | |
| Southeast Circular Flight Cage | 20×20×2 | 1 | |
| South Cages | 6×8×10 | 3 | |
| Large Western Cages | 15×15×15 | 3 | |
| Smaller Western Cages | 6×9×10 | 14 | |
| Total number of cages | 114 | ||
Regarding the state of health and spirits of the birds in this building, the visitor must be left to judge for himself. It is only fair to state, however, that the death rate here and indeed amongst the birds of the Park generally, is very low.
In view of the great number of avian species inhabiting the Large Bird-House, it is a practical impossibility to give more than a general outline of the groups and leading features of the collection.