346 DESCRIPTION OF THE MUSEUM. 



Of all the birds of this numerous genus, the 

 azure thrush of Java attracts most attention : its 

 breast is of a velvet black, and its back of an 

 ultramarine blue. This beautiful bird was sent 

 us by MM. Diard and Duvaucel. We have also 

 the white-breasted thrush from Senegal (turdus 

 leucogaster), the back of which is of the most 

 vivid crimson ; and the New Guinea thrush, com- 

 monly known under the name of the magpie 

 of paradise, beautiful on account of the magni- 

 ficence of its plumage ; its tail is three times 

 longer than the body, its head has a double tuft, 

 and the colours of its throat and neck shine with 

 metallic lustre. 



The lyra (inenura magnified), which inhabits 

 the rocky parts of New Holland, is placed in this 

 case. The tail of this singular bird is composed 

 of three sorts of feathers : twelve of these, which 

 are very long with slender and scanty beards, 

 form the principal part ; the two in the middle 

 longer than the others, are stiff, and only bearded 

 on one side ; and the two outer are curved like 

 the frame of a lyre. The female does not present 

 the same characters. Both are of the size of a 

 pheasant. 



On the two last shelves in this case are the 

 grakle^genus (gracula) . The most common spe- 

 cies (paradisea tristis, Gm.) is famous for the 



