WARBLERS. 



The Malurus cyaneus (named by the colonists the Superb Warbler, 

 Blue Wren, &c.) is an inhabitant of New South Wales, where its favourite 

 haunts arc of a wild and sterile character, thinly covered with low scrubby 

 brushwood, near the borders of rivers and ravines. These birds are of a very 

 wandering disposition, but seldom travel far beyond the district where they 

 were bred. During the winter they associate in small flocks, but as spring 

 advances they separate into pairs, the male at this period undergoing a most 

 remarkable change of plumage ; indeed, its whole character and nature seem 



Fig. 52.— The Yellow Mi- 



s {MrS'tliirus citrinus). 



to receive a new impulse. The little creature now displays great vivacity, 

 proudly showing off its gorgeous attire, and pouring forth an animated song 

 almost unceasingly, until the female has completed her work of incubation. 

 Two if not three broods are reared in a season. The song is a hurried strain, 

 something like that of the European wren. 



Other species {Orthotomus) are inhabitants of the continent of India and 

 the Indian Archipelago, where they may be seen on cultivated ground in pairs 

 or small flocks, or actively hopping about upon low shrubs, seeking for grubs 

 and insects, all the while jerking up their tails over their backs in a very sin- 

 gular manner. Their song is a single note often repeated. Their flight is 

 undulating and rather rapid. The nest of one species is constructed of the 

 leaves of the mango sewn together with cotton thread and fibres, the interior 

 being hncd with cotton, on which the female deposits three or four eggs. 



The members of another group {Drynioica), mostly inhabiting the continent 

 of Africa, frequent open spaces abounding in long grass, and the reeds and 

 herbage on the margins of rivers and pools ; these make their nest in low 

 flushes or among reeds, constructing it of moss, fibres, and the cotton of plants. 



