THE ARISTOCRACY OF THE CREST 109 



breasted form inhabits West Australia ; and a third 

 species, known as the Yellow Shrike-Tit, was re- 

 cently discovered in the far nor'-west. As the names 

 signify, each of the trio has its distinctive coloring, 

 but their relationship is very marked in the matter 

 of size (about that of a Sparrow), general build 

 (particularly the sturdy beak) , and sprightly crest, 

 this ornament acting admirably in setting off the 

 pretty plumage. 



Each Shrike-Tit's mode of life, too, is much the 

 same. The greater part of their time is spent high 

 up in the trees, either attacking leaf insects, or, with 

 their splendidly strong bills, waging war on the 

 many borers which live beneath the bark. (Only 

 once have I seen one of these birds emulating the 

 Bell-Bird by working on the ground.) When an 

 observer has paid some attention to the Shrike-Tits 

 he can soon locate them in forest country by hear- 

 ing the sound of hard beaks hammering on trees in 

 much the same way as Wood-peckers in other coun- 

 tries for which reason the birds were the "Yellow- 

 hammers" of our boyhood days. Among the leaves 

 the presence of the hard-working little acrobats is 

 denoted by a crackling sound, resembling that 

 created by a feeding Parrot. Indeed, the beak of 

 this crested enthusiast is just as strong as that of 

 a Rosella. 



I was about to say that if the Shrike-Tit is not 

 rare the same cannot be said of the nest. But the 

 nest of any well-distributed bird can hardly be rare ; 

 the point is that it is extremely well hidden. In 

 those early days I had often wondered where the 

 shapely yellow-and-grey bird with the black and 



