M2 



Passeres.- 



-BIRDS." 



-Laniid.t:. 



iippaveiitly a migratory species. It is a small bird, 

 of a gray colour above and "while beneath, with the 

 sides of the tail white, and is generally seen in small 

 Hocks consisting of four or five pairs. Its food con- 

 sists of insects, which it seeks upon the branches of 

 the trees. Wiien disturbed, it emits a sharp cry, but also 

 jiossesses a fine mellow note ; for the sake of which it 

 is sometimes kept in confinement. 



THE CAYENNE GREEN SHRIKE {Cijchrhis gida- 

 nnisis), an inliabitarit of tropical South America, is 

 about si.x inches in length, and of a green colour, with 

 the head gray, and the forehead and a stripe on each 

 side of the bead red. In the thick forests, this bird 

 haunts the upper branches of the trees, but is also met 

 witli upon the vast plains or campos of the interior of 

 Brazil, and here dwells contentedly in low bushes. It 

 is a solitary bird, but is active in its habits, constant!)' 

 moving about amongst the branches in pursuit of the 

 insects which constitute its food. 



THE CRESTED SHRIKE-TIT {Falcmculusfrontatus). 

 Among the Australian species of this family, the 

 species of the genus Falcunculus are remarkable as 

 ]iresenting a striking analogical relationship to the 

 Tits. The present species, which is the most abun- 

 dant and best known, is an inhabitant of New 

 South Wales and South Australia, where it iiaunts 

 both the tliick brushes and the trees in the open 

 plains. It is an active and sprightly bird, display- 

 ing great agility in pursuit of the inseois which 

 constitute its food, and wdiich it capturto on tlie 

 branches and trunks of the trees, often stripping olf 

 tlie bark in search of beetles which feed beneath it. 

 In this operation, the great strength of its beak is very 

 serviceable ; and so powerful is this organ that the 

 liird is able to break up and devour even the large 

 Oicadfe which abound in Australia. 



The Crested Shrike-Tit is about six inches in length. 

 Its head is adorned with a crest of black plumes, below 

 wliich on each side is a broad streak of while passing 

 over the eye ; the forehead is white, and a second white 

 streak passes beneath the eye, separated from that 

 above by a broad black band ; the chin and throat 

 are black ; the upper surface is olive-coloured, the 

 quill feathers of the wings and tail are blackish-brown, 

 margined with gray, and the wdiole lower surface is 

 bright yellow. The bill is black, and the feet are 

 bhnsh gray. The only note of this bird is a low 

 piping. The nest, according to M. Verreaux, is 

 firmly attached to the twigs of trees, and composed of 

 small sticks and strips of bark. 



THE WHITE BELLIED SHRIKE-TIT {Falcunculus 

 leucoijasler) is a native of Western Australia, where it 

 represents the preceding species, presenting a close 

 general resemblance to it both Ln appearance and 

 habits. The principal difterences consist in the colour- 

 ing of various parts of the plumage, but especially in 

 the whiteness of the abdomen and legs. 



THE CRESTED BELL-BIRD {Oreoica gutturalis), 

 which is also an inhabitant of Austraha,is about seven 

 inches in length, and of a light brown colour, with 

 the wings and tail darker ; tlie male has the face and 

 chin wliite, the breast marked with a large deep-black 

 crescent of which the horns reach up nearly to the eye 



on each side, and the head adorned with a very full crest, 

 which is deep-black in front and gray behind. The 

 range of this bird extends over the whole southern por- 

 tion of Australia, but it has not yet been found in Van 

 Diemen's Land. In Swan River it is called the Bell- 

 bird by the colonists; the true F.ell-bird of New Soutli 

 Wales {Myzantha melanophrys) being wanting in that 

 colony. It is found in the open parts of the forest, 

 and passes a good deal of its time on the ground. Its 

 note is described by Mr. Gould as a peculiar, mournful 

 piping, and it is also a ventriloquist of great power, 

 its note often sounding as if at a considerable distance, 

 when in reality the bird is perched upon the branch of 

 a neighbouring tree, and then gradually increasing in 

 volume until it appears to be just over the head of the 

 bearer. Its favourite food consists of grubs and cater- 

 pillars, in search of which it frequently resorts to newl}'- 

 ploughed land. The nest of this species is usually 

 placed in a grass tree, and is composed of strips of bark, 

 and lined with dry grass. It lays tln-ee eggs, wliich 

 are generally of a bluish-white coloin-, speckled or 

 streaked and spotted with black. 



THE PORT-JACKSON THRUSH (Colluricincla har- 

 monica) an inhabitant of New South Wales and South 

 Australia, measures about nine inches in length, and is 

 of an olive-brown colour above, with the head and tail 

 grayish, and the M'iogs slaty black ; the lower surface 

 is light brownish-gi-ay, becoming wliite at the vent. It 

 haunts the brushes in all parts of the country in which 

 it is found, and is an active bird, hopping about amongst 

 the branches and feeding upon cateri)illars, grabs, and 

 other insects. Whilst engaged in the pursuit of its 

 prey, the bird gives utterance to a number cf powerful 

 swelling notes, louder than those of the European Song- 

 thrush, but less varied, and not so well combined into 

 a song. The nest is placed in various situations, such 

 as the hollow bole of a small tree, the decayed branch of 

 a larger one, or on the ledge of a rock; it is cup-shaped, 

 composed of strips of bark and leaves, and lined with 

 root-fibres. The eggs, which are three in number, are 

 pearly white, with a few larger blotches of light-brown 

 and bluish-gi-ay. 



Several nearly allied species are found in difierent 

 parts of Australia; thus the Buff-bellied Thrush 

 (C. mjiventris) inhabits the Swan River colony, where 

 it is known as the Thrush by the settlers ; the Brown 

 Thrush (C. h-unnea) occurs at Port-Essington ; and 

 Selby's Thrush (C. Selbii) in Van Diemen's Land. 



THE SPOTTED BATARA {Thamnopliilus naiius). — 

 Numerous species of Shrikes belonging to the genus 

 Thamnojihilus have been found in the tropical parts of 

 South America ; they differ from the ordinary Shrikes 

 in the greater length and slenderness of the bill, which 

 is also less strongly hooked at the tip. They have been 

 called Bataras, from the name applied by theGuaranis 

 to the species common in their couiitrj'. 



The Spotted Batara, one of the earliest known s)ie- 

 cies, is rather more than six inches in length. It is 

 black above, with white spots on the back and wing- 

 coverts ; the quill feathers are margined with white, 

 and those of the tail have white tips ; the lower surliice 

 is ash colour. This bird inhabits Cayenne and Brazil, 

 dwelling amongst the bushes, usually in pairs, and 



