290 SUPERB SHRIKE. 



The crest is sometimes observed to be wanting j 

 perhaps in the female specimens. 



SUPERB SHRIKE. 



Lanius superbus. L, niger, gula ruhrctj fascia abdomimlijlax'a, 

 crista front all erecta. 



Black Shrike, with red throat;, yellow abdominal bar^ and up- 

 right frontal crest. 



I^e bee de fer. Vaill. ois, 



This remarkable bird seems allied in some de-^ 

 gree to the Drongo Shrike. Its size is that of a 

 thrush, but stouter bodied: its colour a fine black; 

 but the throat, immediately under the bill, is of a 

 bright scarlet, with a tinge of yellow at the ter- 

 mination of the spot: across the abdomen is a 

 moderately broad yellow band, dashed by a few 

 bright-red streaks, the larger quill-feathers are 

 slightly edged with white, and the rump is of a 

 greenish yellow colour: the bill is very strong, 

 convex, and of an iron-grey colour, and immedi- 

 ately above its base springs an upright crest com- 

 posed of many narrow plumes of very considerate 

 length, those on each side shortening gradually 

 from the tip or middle: the legs are black. This 

 species is said to be a native of the South-Sea 

 inlands. 



