Pet Birds of Bengal/Husaini-Piddah (Indian Blue-throat)

Another Robin, known as the Husaini Piddah or Nilkanthi, is Cyanecula suecica—the Indian Blue-throat.

​This bird is a winter visitant all over India and leaves for the far North at the end of the cold season. Returning in September, it spreads over the whole of IndiaField Notes as far south as Ceylon. It is extremely common in Lower Bengal. It prefers, as its foraging ground, thick grass-jungle near water and, more specially, reedy places like sugar-cane plantations, and fields with corn or long grass. In Lower Bengal, it lives on the edges of jheels and in damp paddy fields, where it is usually seen moving about under the shelter of grass growing on the bunds between the fields. It is terrestrial in its habits, seldom perches but remains mostly on the ground, and with an upraised tail runs about very fast, like a wagtail, with alternate steps, stopping now and then to pick up an insect. But, occasionally, it is seen to hawk flies in the air. It is very shy and when seen, disappears into low cover. Though its tail-play is not as frequent as the birds already ​described, it spreads the tail wide at times like a fan and gives it an upward jerk in the characteristic Robin-like fashion.

Certain travellers have spoken very highly of the excellence of its song. It is said to be a very good mimic and, in its wild haunts, it mocks other birds. Seated in a bush with distended throat and, with its bill working rapidly, it gives out a strain of blended notes which may easily ​mislead one to imagine that the whole bird-world is engaged in a musical concert. Its vocal performance reaches the acme of perfection during the mating season. It then indulges in a "song-flight", pouring forth its piercing music not only while it flies upwards with its wings and tail outspread, but sings also while descending. Unhappily for India, the bird hies for its Northern resort before its nuptial display begins. The glints of the many colours which adorn its breast and body can only be seen at their best during this 'song-flight'; they are meaningless when in India the bird cowers, in its fear of man, in a thick cover.

This bird is caged very seldom. It has a sweet voice, and in company with wagtails, it can, I think, add to the beauty of aviaries. It is certainly difficult to reconcile the Husaini Piddah to cage-life. On several occasions, I tried to accustom it to captivity and I was notCage-life unsuccessful. When first caught, it should never be introduced into an ​aviary, for, in that case it goes on hunger-strike till it dies of sheer exhaustion. It should be lodged in a rectangular cage of split bamboos with compartments in it. A tame bird, preferably a wag-tail, should be introduced in each of the compartments on its immediate right and left, so that the free and easy manners of the tame birds will make the new bird shake off its fright due to new surroundings. The feeding cups of the new captive should be placed adjacent to those of its neighbours; so that, when it will see the other birds taking food of their own accord, it will gradually follow suit. It should be fed forcibly by hand at first, for it refuses absolutely to take any food except insects for the first few days.

The whole of the upper body in the male is brown; the tail is chestnut on the basal half; the chin and throat are bright sky-blue with aColoration chestnut patch in the middle. Bordering this blue is a narrow black band, ​underneath which is a broader band of chestnut. The rest of the lower plumage is buffish white. But the bird is seldom to be found in full costume. The quantity of blue and chestnut in the throat varies a good deal and sometimes a few blue feathers are the only distinguishing marks of a male. The females are of a dull colour but the chestnut on the tail is always present. The young are blackish with tawny streaks.