ROSE-COLOURED PASTOR. 211 



THE ROSE-COLOURED PASTOR, STARLING, 

 DIPPER, AND THRUSHES. 



r I "\HB two birds occnpying tlio first places in our present group 

 belong to the Graculince, a family allied to the Crows on the one 

 hand and the Thrashes on the other. They have compact bodies, 

 shortish necks, rather slender and nearly straight beaks, and wines 

 and tails of moderate length. The elegant Rose-coloared Pastor is 

 only a rare visitor to our shores, while its less brilliantly attired but 

 handsome relative, the Starling, is a constant resident in all parts of 

 the country, and one of the most familiar of British species. The 

 first belongs to the genus ThremmapMlus, (a name deriveil from two 

 Greek words, signifying the friend of cattle,) and the second to the 

 genus Stumus. 



Next we have the Dipper, a member of the Mijrmotherince, or Ant- 

 catcher family. The habits of this singular bird have been a fruitful 

 source of contention among naturalists for many years past. Some 

 assert that upon diving it is able to remain beneath the surface of the 

 water without any perceptible muscular effort, and that it can walk 

 at the bottom with the same ease that it can upon dry laud, while 

 others deny its power of remaining submerged, except by the constant 

 and rapid action of its wings. The question as to whether or not the 

 bird feeds upon the spawn of fish has also been the cause of much 

 discussion. In general form the Dipper resembles a Thrush with 



