84 INSECTIVOROUS BIRDS 



the Emu-Wrens will find their swamps reclaimed, and they 

 will need to go further east, which for them will be a 

 stronghold for a century and many generations. Mr. 

 Howitt tells us " the men of the Kurnai tribe used to 

 regard the Emu-Wrens as their brothers, and the women 

 of the tribe the Blue Wrens as their sisters." The black 

 brother and sister have almost gone, the brown brother has 

 his days numbered, but the blue sister will remain while 

 a rural aspect exists. 



Nest. — Dome-shaped and made of grass. It is much 

 more compact than that of the Blue Wren {M. cyaneus) ; 

 better finished, and much more artfully concealed in the 

 grass and scrub. (G. E. Shepherd, Victorian Naturalist^ 

 xiv., No. 10.) 



Eggs. — Three to a sitting ; similar to those of M. 

 cyaneus, described above, but much smaller. [Length, 6|- 

 lines ; breadth, 4 J lines. — Ramsay, '^ Ibis'' (1863).] 



