430 



THE CHA NN EL-BILL. 



to any great extent, their night being low and short. They are easily tamed, soon become 

 amusing inhabitants of the house, and ran be taught to utter several words. Fortunately for 

 itself, the flesh of the Savannah Blackbird is thought to be very disagreeable, so that it is not 

 killed for the table. 



The nesting of this bird is rather peculiar. It haunts bushes, the skirts of woods, and 

 similar localities, anil builds its nest on the branches of trees. The nest is extremely large, 

 and is said to be in common to several pairs of birds, which live amicably under the same roof 

 like the sociable weaver birds of Africa. 



In size the Savannah Blackbird rather exceeds the generality of its kind, equalling a 

 pigeon in dimensions, the long tail adding to the apparent length. Its color is black, glossed 

 with green. 



Tin: very remarkable 



rird known by the name of Channel-Bill inhabits part of Aus- 

 tralia and some of the Eastern 

 Islands. Its large and curi- 

 ously formed beak gives it so 

 singular an aspect, that on a 

 hasty glance it might almost 

 be taken for a species of tou- 

 can or hombill. 



It is most common in New 

 South Wales, and is migratory 

 in its habits, arriving in Octo- 

 ber and departing hi June. It 

 is a gregarious bird, being 

 seen in little flocks or com- 

 panies varying in number from 

 three to eight, and sometimes 

 living in pairs. The voice of 

 the Channel -Bill is by no 

 means pleasing, and is exer- 

 cised at the approach of rainy 

 weather or the presence of a 

 hawk. In either instance, the 

 bird utters a series of vigorous 

 yells, whicli are well under- 

 stood by those who have 

 studied its habits. 



Although one of the mi- 

 grators, it is slow and heavy 

 of wing. Apparently, it is not 

 easily tamed, for Mr. Gould 

 mentions an instance where 

 one of these birds was wounded 

 and kept alive for two days, during the whole of which time it refused to be reconciled to 

 captivity, screaming and pecking fiercely at its cage and captor. Its food consists of the seeds 

 of the red gum and peppermint, and it also feeds upon beetles, phasmidse, and other large 

 insects of the land which it frequents. 



It is a very handsome and elegantly colored bird. The head and breast are gray, and the 

 spaces around the eyes and nostrils are scarlet. The back is a deep grayish-green, each feather 

 being tipped with black, so as to give that portion of the bird a boldly mottled aspect. The 

 under parts are white tinged witli bull', and faintly barred with grayish-brown. The long tail 

 has the two central feathers black to the very tip, and the others are barred with black and 

 tipped with white. Both sexes are alike in their coloring ; the chief difference being that the 



CHANNEL-BILL.— Scythrops Norce-Hollandia: . 



