KEEL-BREASTED BIRDS. 279 
The Flycatchers (Zyrannide) are a large family of 
strictly American, insectivorous birds, with broad, triangu- 
lar, abruptly-hooked bills, and small feet adapted for perch- 
ing and grasping. Their notes are simple. The king- 
bird (Zyrannus Carolinensis) may be selected out of a mul- 
titude of forms as a typical species. Their general color 
is a blackish ash, the tail black with white tip, the breast 
and lower portions white. They attain a length of nearly 
nine inches, and prey upon insects, securing them upon 
the wing. The nest is placed in a tree, and formed of 
artificial objects, as tow, strings, wool, and lined with 
fibers of wood, horse-hair, etc. The eggs, six in number, 
are reddish white, marked with brown streaks. The male, 
during the breeding-season, and at all times, is extremely 
bold. It feeds its mate, and attacks crows, eagles, and 
hawks with the greatest fury, ultimately driving them 
from the vicinity. They migrate south earlier than other 
birds. 
The lyre-bird (Aenura superba), of New South Wales, 
is an ally of the flycatchers, and a giant among them. 
The male has a lyre-shaped development of the tail-feath- 
ers nearly two feet in length, composed of sixteen feathers. 
The female is a small, unattractive bird. ‘The nest is com- 
posed of moss, twigs, and grasses, and covered by a dome- 
shaped roof. The two eggs are white, speckled with red. 
The Larks (A/audide) are chiefly Old World birds, 
four species only being found in America. The bill is 
short, the nostrils concealed by the feathers, the hind 
claw long and straight, the singing apparatus well devel- 
oped, and all are remarkable singers. 
The skylark (A/auda arvensis) is an immigrant to this 
country, and common in Europe and Asia. While singing 
it rises in the air with seeming bounds till far out of sight, 
uttering a rich, melodious carol. The nest is formed in 
ton. For songs of birds set to music, see ‘‘ American Naturalist,” vol. 
xiii, p. 27.) 
