218 CONIROSTRES. 



a few minutes and whistling, and then flying off 

 again. Their song is rich, varied, and pleasing ; they 

 have, however, several harsh notes, often heard in 

 the jungles. 



The Mina-hird {Gracula religiosa) is a native of India 

 and the Indian islands, where it is highly valued for its 

 powers of imitation ; indeed, it easily learns to repeat, 

 not only words, but whole phrases, and that with sur- 

 prising distinctness. Marsden says that it has the faculty 

 of imitating human speech more perfectly than any other 

 bird. In captivity, the Mina is lively, confident, and 

 docile ; it is about the size of a Thrush, and lives indis- 

 criminately on insects and fruits. The Jungle Mina is 

 often seen in cages in the South of India, where it is very 

 highly prized, both for its powers of song and speech. 



Another species, called — 



The Paradise Grakle {Gracula tristis), also a native of 

 India and the Phihppine islands, is very voracious, and 

 particularly fond of locusts and grasshoppers. In con- 

 nection with these birds, BufFon relates the following in- 

 structive anecdote. "The Isle of Bourbou, where they 

 were unknown, was overrun with locusts, which had been 

 unfortunately introduced from Madagascar, their eggs 

 having been imported in the soil brought with some plants 

 from that island. In consequence of this, the governor and 

 the intendant deliberated anxiously on the means of ex- 

 terminating these noxious insects, and for that purjiose 

 caused several pairs of G-rakles to be introduced into the 

 island. The plan promised to succeed, but unfortunately 

 some of the colonists observing the birds eagerly thrusting 

 their bills mto the earth of the new-sown fields, imagined 

 that they were in quest of the grain, and reported that 

 instead of proving beneficial, the Grakles would, on the 

 contrary, be highly detrunental to the country. The case 

 was considered in form. On the part of the birds it was 

 argued that they raked in the newly-plouglied fields, not 

 for the sake of the grain, but of the insects, and were 

 therefore worthy of protection. They were, however, 

 proscribed by the council, and in the space of a few hours 

 after the sentence was pronounced, not a Grakle was to 

 be found in the island. This prompt execution was. 



