SOME OF THE OUTLIERS AMONG BIRDS. 779 



above pointed out. The present writer shares this opinion with 

 him. 



The appearance of the Superb lyre bird is well shown in Fig. 

 10, and the adults attain a size about equal to that of our ruffed 

 grouse {Bonasa), or rather less. It is only the adult male that 

 possesses the extraordinarily developed tail shown in the drawing, 

 although that appendage is quite lengthy in the female, and con- 

 tains sixteen feathers. These birds have a smoky-brown plumage, 

 loose in texture, which inclines to chestnut on the throat and tail 



Fig. 10. The Ltee Bird {Menura superba). Drawn by the autbor. 



coverts. Their wings are rounded and short, while their legs and 

 feet are strongly developed. They spend most of their time on 

 the ground, have a loud call note, but, owing to their great shy- 

 ness and the rocky, broken country they inhabit, are only taken 

 with difficulty. They go in pairs, and Gould says they are most 

 successfully hunted by treeing them with dogs. The bird is four 

 years old before its gorgeous tail is fully matured, but after that 

 it is molted and renewed every season. Its food consists of land 

 snails and various kinds of insects, and its nest is a massive struc- 

 ture usually built on the ground, and has an entrance at the side. 

 Menura lays but one eg,g,, that is large for the size of the bird. 

 It is blotched with purplish brown on a ground color of a pur- 



