THE WHITE-RUMPED CHAT 73 



of their movements, and their habit of flying on 

 in advance as one approaches, and then settling 

 again on some prominent point till a nearer approach 

 sends it on again with a flick of its tail till it 

 finds another suitable perching spot. In the most 

 out-of-the-way desolate places, where not one blade 

 of vegetation shows itself, and all is yellow sand and 

 hard grey rock baking in the sun, there you will as 

 likely as not find Chats of one kind or another, the 

 only living thing, seemingly, in this great dreary 

 expanse ; the dreariness never, however, seems to 

 affect them. No one has ever seen a Chat in low 

 spirits ; it is always happy and lively, a very Mark 

 Tapley amongst birds. 



10 



