Order II. PASSERES. 



Tribe III. Dentirostres. 



Family IV. Ampelidje. 



The fifth Subfamily, 



DICRURINYE, or Drongo Shrikes, 



have the Bill of various lengths, broad at the base, with the culmen more or less keeled, and curved to 

 the tip ; the sides compressed ; the Nostrils usually concealed by short compact plumes ; and the Gape 

 furnished with strong bristles; the Wings long, with the fourth and fifth quills generally the longest; 

 the Tarsi and Toes short, and strongly scutellated. 



Artamus Vieill* 



Bill moderate, strong, with the sides compressed, and the culmen elevated at the base, rounded, and 

 curved from the base to the tip, which is slightly emarginated ; the gape scarcely bristled ; the nostrils 

 lateral, small, rounded, pierced in the substance of the bill, and the opening partly hidden by the short 

 frontal plumes. Wings very long and pointed, with the first quill rudimental, and the second the 

 longest. Tail moderate and slightly forked. Tarsi short and strong, the length of the middle toe 

 and covered with transverse scales. Toes short, the outer one united at the base to the middle, and the 

 lateral ones equal ; the hind toe as long as the middle, strong, and armed with a strong curved claw. 



The countries of these birds are, India, its Archipelago, Australia, and Madagascar. " They are generally observed," 

 says Mr. Jerdon, " in the wooded country, seeking their food, which consists of soft-winged insects, in the air. Some- 

 times they are seen in flocks like swallows, at other times in small groups, one every now and then darting from its 

 perch on the top of a palm tree, and making a short circuit in the air after insects, and then reseating itself, though 

 not generally on the same tree. They at times skim over the surface of the water, and return to rest on a low branch, 

 which overhangs it. Their flight is rapid, elegant, and remarkably like that of the swallow." They appear to migrate 

 in flocks to new localities in search of insects ; and seeds also form a portion of their subsistence. It has been remarked 

 of one species, that it has the peculiar habit of suspending itself in perfect clusters like a swarm of bees : a few birds 

 congregate together " on the under side of a dead branch, while others of the flock attach themselves one to the other, 

 in such numbers that they have been observed nearly of the size of a bushel measure." The nest is usually placed in a 

 fork of a tree, or in a hollow caused by the rotten portion of a large branch separating from the trunk. It is composed 

 of twigs, lined with fibrous roots or grass. The eggs are generally three or four in number. 



1. A. leucorhynchus (Gmel.) Vieill. PI. enl. Q. f. 1. — Loxia 

 melaleuca Forst. Icon. ined. 40. ; Lanius dominicanus Gmel. Kittl. 

 Kupf. der Vogel. t. 30. f. 1. 



2. A. leucogaster (Valenc.) Wagl. Ann. du Mus. Hist. Nat. iv. 

 t. 7. f. 2. . — Leptopteryx leucorhynchus Horsf. 



3. A. fuscus Vieill. N. Diet. d'Hist Nat. xvii. p. 297. — Ocyp- 

 terus rufiventer Valenc. Ann. du Mus. iv. t. 7. f. 1. 



4. A. cinereus Vieill. N. Diet. Hist. Nat. xvii. p. 297., Valenc. 

 Ann. du Mus. t. 9. f. 2., Gould, B. of Austr. pi. 



5. A. sordidus (Lath.) Lamb. Icon. ined. ii. t. 30. — Turdus 

 tenebrosus Lath. Lamb. Icon. ined. ii. t. 38. ; Artamus lineatus 

 Vieill. ; Ocypterus albo-vittatus Cuv. Reg. An. t. S. f. 2., Valenc. 



Ann. du Mus. t. 8. f. 2., Kittl. Kupf. der Vogel. t. 30. f. 2., Gould, 

 B. of Austr. pi. 



6. A. minor Vieill. N. Diet. Hist. Nat. xvii. p. 298. — Ocypterus 

 fuscus Valenc. Ann. du Mus. iv. t. 9. f. 1.. Gould, B. of Austr. pi. 



7. A. UucopygiaUs Gould, Proc. Z. S. 1842. p. 17., Gould, B. of 

 Austr. pi. 



8. A. personatus Gould, Proc. Z. S, 1840. p. 149., Gould, B. of 

 Austr. pi. 



9... A. superciliosus Gould, Proc. Z. S. 1836. p. 142., Gould, B. 

 of Austr. pi. 



10. A. viridis (Gmel.) Vieill. PI. enl. 32. f. 2. 



11. A. leucocephalus (Gmel.) PI. enl. 374 



* Established by Vieillot (1816) in his Analyse, p. 41. Ocypterus of Cuvier (1817) and Leptopteryx of Dr. Horsfield (1820) are 

 synonymous. 



