232 



CASSEI.LS BOOK OF BIRDS. 



" The Tapacolo," continues the same writer, " is very crafty. When frightened by any person, it 

 will remain motionless at. the bottom of a bush, and will then, after a little while, try, with much 

 address, to crawl away on the opposite side. It is also an active bird, and continually making a noise. 

 These noises are very various and strangely odd ; some are like the cooing of Doves, others like the 

 bubbling of water, and many defy all similes. The country people say it changes its cry five times in 

 the year; according to some change of season, I suppose." 



THE LYRE BIRD. 



The Lyre Bird {Menura superba) has, perhaps, excited more controversy among ornithologists, 

 respecting its classification, than any other of the remarkable members of the feathered creation 



THE TAPACOLO {Pteroptochus megapodius). 



inhabiting Australia. This difference of opinion has arisen from its unusual size, and the very 

 peculiar formation of its tail. The body is slenderly built, the neck of moderate length, the 

 head comparatively large and well-formed, the wings short, the tail very long, and the tarsus 

 high. The beak is straight, except at the tip, which is slightly hooked, very perceptibly incised, 

 and broader than it is high at the base ; the nostrils are large, oval, situated near the 

 middle of the bill, and partially covered with a skin. The first five quills in the much-arched 

 wing are graduated ; the sixth, seventh, eighth, and ninth are the longest, and of nearly equal 

 size. The very beautiful lyre-shaped tail possessed by the male is composed of sixteen feathers, 

 whilst that of the female is of the ordinary form, and contains but twelve. The plumage of the 

 Menura is thick, lax, and almost hair-like on the back and rump, but prolonged into a crest on the 

 top of the head ; the base of the beak is covered with bristles. The length of the body of the male is 

 fifteen inches, that of his tail twenty-three, whilst his mate does not exceed thirteen inches ; the 



