48 WILD LII-^E IN CHhNA. 



Half an houi's watching of the Ince bird will suffice to 

 prove that its tail, in keeping with the rest of its body, is a 

 miracle of lightness. There are a good manj- of these birds 

 nowadays in the Shanghai gardens of the western district, 

 and in the country, wherever there is tree-cover enough, they 

 ma^' be seen. Indeed they have an extremeh- wide range, 

 some occasionally getting into England. They are keen 

 hunters. Sometimes they take their prey in the air, but at 

 other times are not above picking a Hy off the bark of a tree 

 or pursuing it amongst the leafy branches. For this reason 

 they care less for an open space than the common flycatcher 

 does, although for them, too, a too-thick cover is useless. 

 The reader who wishes to make the acquaintance of this 

 fairy-like little creature should find a neighbourhood where 

 trees are plentiful. Bamboos will do, as at the hills. And 

 then, having the good fortune to discover a rendezvous, get 

 quietly under cover and watch. He will be amply rewarded 

 for the time spent. For his surroundings of themselves are 

 delightful — the freshness of the new-clad woods, the bright- 

 ness of the sun, the sense of growing life everywhere dis- 

 cernible, are in themselves charms to lighten gloom itself. 

 Then the birds come, not merely those we are looking for, 

 but many others, one after another in ceaseless succession, 

 some curious at the strange presence they detect, and will- 

 ing to make his closer acquaintance if he will but be still, 

 others resentful of the intrusion, and desirous by warning 

 cries to give notice to all within call to look out. When our 

 fljxatchers do come, we are naturally all eyes. How light 

 they are I We have never seen one weighed, but we should 

 think that one or two ounces at the most would be shown on 

 the scale, and so we understand how it is that the male bird 

 in particular seems rather to flit than to fly. Not but what 

 he can dart rapidly enough on his prey when necessary, but 

 in general his movements are of rather a fluttering nature. 

 If in his white plumage he is far more easily marked, but he 

 is not more beautiful than in the ruddy chestnut. In and 

 out of the bamboos and tree trunks he goes, a thing of joy 

 in life, and of delight to the beholder. We want to know a 

 good deal more about his strange change of colour, for it is 

 certain that there are both white and chestunt males that 

 are equally mature. David tells of a long protracted fight 

 between two such, which ended in a victory for the white. 

 We will not think of dogmatizing on the matter, therefore, 

 but will wait patiently for further knowledge. 



Another beautiful little bird of the flycatcher tribe is 

 sometimes known as the Narcissus flycatcher. He is about 

 the size of a robin, but is clad in a gorgeous robe of black 

 and gold, the yellow predominating. \Vhether or no he is 



