INSESSOllES. 145 



hence it is, that when engaged in pursuit of the insects which 

 tlie serenity and warmth of the weather have enticed from their 

 hirking-places among the fohagc, to sport in higher regions, 

 tliis species displays itself to the greatest advantage. But the 

 greatest peculiarity in the habits of this bird is its manner 

 of hanging together in clusters from the branch of a tree, 

 like a swarm of bees. 



The season of incubation is from September to December. 

 The situation of the nest is much varied ; I. have seen one 

 placed in a thickly-foliaged bough near the ground, while 

 others were in a naked fork, on the side of the bole of a tree, 

 in a niche formed by a portion of the bark having been 

 separated from the trunk, &c. The nest is rather shallow, of 

 a rounded form, about five inches in diameter, and composed 

 of fine twigs neatly lined with fibrous roots. I observed that 

 the nests found in Tasmania were larger, more compact, and 

 more neatly formed than those on the continent of Australia. 



The eggs are generally four in number ; they differ much 

 in the disposition of their markings ; their ground-colour is 

 dull white, spotted and dashed with dark umber-brown : in 

 some a second series of greyish spots appear as if beneath the 

 surface of the shell ; their medium length is eleven lines, and 

 breadth eight lines. 



Head, neck, and the whole of the body fuliginous grey ; 

 wings dark bluish black, the external edges of the second, 

 third, and fourth primaries white ; tail bluish black, all the 

 feathers, except the two middle ones, largely tipped with 

 white ; ii'ides dark brown ; bill blue, with a black tip ; feet 

 mealy lead- colour. 



The sexes are alike in the colouring of their plumage, and 

 are only to be distinguished by the female being somewhat 

 smaller in size. 



The young have an irregular stripe of dirty white down the 

 centre of each feather of the ui)per surface, and are mottled 

 with the same on the under part of the body. 



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