124: 



SUBKINGDOM VEETEBRATA. 



Fig. 206. 



m - struct in a tree a huge, 



sloping roof, impervious to 

 rain. Beneath this, side by 

 side, each female makes her 

 nest, three or four inches in 

 diameter, weaving it to the 

 roof. When completed, the 

 lower surface of the umbrel- 

 la-like structure appears per- 

 forated by small openings, 



Ploctussodus, Sociable Weaver-bird. *. j ike the ce llg O f a bee-hive, 



all the birds living together in perfect harmony. 



Paradiseidae. The 

 Paradise-birds are na- 

 tives of New Guinea and 

 the adjacent islands. The 

 apoda * (footless) is the 

 most beautiful. The 

 brilliant plumed tufts 

 beneath its wings and 

 the bright emerald green 

 of its head and neck are 

 particularly striking. 



Menuridse . The 

 Lyre-birds of Australia 

 are noticeable for the 

 shape of the tail and 

 their habit of making 

 small round hillocks, on 

 which the male is con- 

 tinually trampling 

 while gracefully erecting and spreading 

 its plumes. 



* The bird was eo named from the absurd belief pre- 

 vailing, when it was first introduced to the civilized world, 

 that it had no feet, the cunning natives being accustomed 

 to cut them off, and to assert that the bird hung to the trees 

 by its plumes, and that it passed the breeding-season in 

 Paradise, fed on dew. 



Paradise a apoda, 



Emerald 

 Bird of Paradise. |. 



