SOME USEFUL AUSTFALIAN BIRDS. 19 



bird, and tiny bush ally ! I do not for a moment suggest that the man on> 

 the land is not entitled to protect his crops of field or garden, but there 

 are thousands of square miles of forest, plain, swamp, lake, and mountain in 

 Australia, where wild creatures do no harm, but add to the beauty of nature. 

 It should be our aim to stop all wanton destruction in such places, but such 

 an aim can only be achieved by so educating our people that they appreciate 

 the value, the interest, and the beauty to be discovered in the little creatures 

 of the fields. 



The Classification Adopted in this Work. 



In order that the descriptions of our birds in the following pages may be 

 more convenient, a classification consisting of three main sections, according 

 to the environment of the bird, has been adopted, as follows : — 



Section I.^ — -Birds of the Garden, Orchard, and Fields 



Section II. — Bix-ds of the Forests and Brushes. 



Section III. — Birds of the Inland Plains, Swamps, Open Forests, and 

 Scrubs. 



Obviously these sections must overlap somewhat. For example, some 

 birds found in the coastal forests of New South Wales maj' also be found in 

 the suburban gardens of Sydney, or again others may be found equally at 

 home in the box forests of the western plains. Where this is the case, the 

 bird is described under one or other of the headings, and reference is made 

 in the text to its range. 



