42 Favourite Foreign Birds. 



bird of a soft chestnut-brown all over except the 

 head and upper part of the neck, which are creamy 

 white, and the under-tail coverts, which are black. Male 

 and female, are alike. It has not bred in England. 



THE BLACK-HEADED NUN, Munia malacca, is the 

 counterpart of the last species, except that its head 

 is black ; it also wants the dark under-tail coverts. 



THE THREE-COLOURED NUN, Munia sinensis, is 

 another bird belonging to this group. It has a leaden- 

 grey bill; black head, neck, and shoulders; white breast 

 and sides ; brown back, wings, and tail ; and black 

 vent and under-tail coverts ; legs and feet lead colour. 



FIG. ii. THE SILVERBILL. 



All the foregoing are quiet, amiable little creatures 

 that delight to live in company, and will sit in rows 

 side by side without moving for an hour at a time, 

 each singing in dumb show, one after the other, 

 while all the rest listen most attentively to what is, 

 no doubt, an audible melody to them. 



THE SILVERBILL, Munia cantans (illustrated ^at 

 Fig. n), is a small bird, about the size of a wren, 

 but with a larger tail and more slender form. It 

 differs from the other members of the family by the 

 possession of an audible and exceedingly sweet song, 



