l62 cassell's book of birds. 



prey. At the appearance of dusk they retire to pass the night together upon a favourite tree. Whilst 

 perched they seem to be of very indolent and quiet disposition, but whilst in flight their appearance is 

 striking and remarkable, as they constantly open and close their long tails, after the fashion of a pair 

 of scissors, during the whole time that they are upon the wing, a circumstance from which they derive 

 their name. Insects constitute their principal fare, and these they capture in the same manner as 

 other members of their family; they also pursue and devour many small birds, and, according to 

 Nuttall, frequently consume berries. The nest, which is usually concealed in a thickly-foliaged bush, 

 is open above, and formed of delicate twigs, snugly lined with a bed of fibres, wool, or feathers ; the 

 eggs are white, mottled with reddish brown, these markings being thickest at the broad end. As 

 autumn draws to a close the Scissor Birds congregate with other species in large parties, previous to 

 setting forth upon their migrations. Schomburghk tells us that such of these flocks as he observed 

 leaving the country, settled upon the trees from about three to five o'clock in the afternoon, and 

 remained there for the night, resuming their southern course at the first dawn of day. 



THE ROYAL TYRANT. 



The Royal Tyrant {Megalophus rcgius), so called from the tiara-like crescent that adorns its 

 head, and its great beauty of plumage, has a slenderly-formed body and pointed wings, in which the 

 third and fourth quills exceed the rest in length, the first and second being comparatively short ; the 

 tail is moderately long, and quite straight at its extremity ; the beak, which is flat and spoon-shaped, 

 terminates in a sharp hook ; the feet are short ; the toes, of which the two exterior are united at the 

 base, are powerful, and armed with short blunt claws. The plumage is soft and downy, and upon the 

 top of the head is prolonged into a broad flowing crest ; at the base of the beak it is replaced by 

 bristles ; five very long bristles also decorate the cheek-stripes. The upper part of the body is of a 

 beautiful light brown, while the entire under surface and tail are bright reddish yellow ; the throat 

 is whitish; the quills are deep brown or blackish, with a light edge upon the inner web; the 

 wing-covers are tipped with pale yellow; the tiara is of a gorgeous flame-colour, or carmine-red, 

 each feather having a black spot at its tip, surrounded in the male by a light yellow line. These 

 spots gleam with a blue metallic lustre, and the crest extends as far as the nape ; the eye is light 

 brown, the upper mandible brown, the lower one light yellow ; the feet are pale flesh-pink, and the 

 long bristles black. In the young the plumage is almost entirely brown, mottled upon the breast, and 

 spotted on the back ; the crest is very small, and of an orange-yellow. The length of this species is 

 six inches ; the wing measures three and a half, and the tail two and a half inches. 



The Royal Tyrant inhabits the primitive forests of Brazil and Guiana, where it frequents the 

 most shady recesses, and leads a quiet and solitary life, usually preferring the tops of the trees. 

 Notwithstanding the preference it shows for retired spots, it is frequently caught by the natives, on 

 account of its great beauty. We learn from Burmeister that the capture of the male is rendered 

 comparatively easy, by the fact that a brooding female has no sooner lost her mate than she consoles 

 herself with another. The natives, who are aware of this peculiarity, when they find a pair shoot the 

 male, and then wait patiently until his successor makes his appearance, when he is also killed. We 

 have it on good authority that a female Royal Tyrant will in this manner take to herself as many as 

 a dozen of these ill-fated partners. The eggs are oval, and have light violet shells, marked with 

 brownish or blood-red spots, and streaked with the same shade at the narrow end. We have no 

 account of the nest built by this species. 



The STILTED FLY-CATCHERS {Fluvicolm) constitute a group of South American birds 

 differing in many particulars from the Tyrant Shrikes. The members of this group are recognisable 



