OF SOUTHERN AUSTRALIA. 139 



TRICOLOURED CHAT, 



Kplithiaiiiira tricolor, Gld. 



Ef-thi-a-nfi I'd trl'kul-or. 

 Ephthos, perhaps languid; oura, tail; tri, triple; color, colour. 



Ephthianura tricolor, Gould, " Birds of Australia," fol., vol. iii., 



pi. 65. 



Geographical Distribution. — Areas 2, 6, 7, 9. 



Key to the Species. — Male — Crimson on forehead, crown, breast, and 

 upper tail coverts; throat white; bill slender, about equal in 

 height and breadth at nostrils. 



Female — Crown, breast, and upj^er tail coverts faint red. 



Young male — Upper tail coverts only red (strong red). 



The four species of Chats, without doubt, take a high 

 place among the most beautiful bird forms of southern 

 Australia. As remarked previously, they are confined to 

 Austraha, no representative of the genus being present in any 

 other part of the world. 



With the exception of the White-fronted Chat, which is 

 fairly plentiful in the extreme south, the genus cannot be said 

 to be common outside the warmer areas of the Commonwealth. 



They are essentially tropical forms, offering, like many 

 tropical birds, brilhant colouration ; one appearing mostly 

 crimson, and another a rich golden yellow. All agree in that 

 they associate in flocks. The two brilliantly coloured 

 members, occasionally the three, may be found breeding in 

 the same districts. 



The Tricoloured Chat summers in the south, but with the 

 advance of winter migrates to the north, where it finds more 

 abundant insect Hfe amid the tropical lands of Queensland. 



Anyone who sees this bird for the first time will readily 

 endorse the expressions of admiration for its beauty to be 

 found in the writings of Austrahan naturahsts. When first 



