146 
AN AUSTRALIAN BIRD BOOK. 
10 308 Grass- Wren, Amytornis textilis, V., C.A., W.A. 
10 Stat. v.r. plains, dense scrubs 6.2 
Upper dark-brown striped white; under paler; flanks rust- 
red; seldom flies; progresses like a rubber ball; tail 
erect; f., sim. Insects. 
309 Striated Grass-Wren (Black-cheeked), A, striatus, 
N.S.W., v., C.A., W.A. Stat. v.r. dense scrubs 6.8 
Like 308, but black stripe on cheek; plumage strongly 
rufous; runs, seldom flies; f., sim. Insects. 
are of the light tawny color that so well matches desert sands. 
It is very diflBcult to get a second look at one, as it hides in the 
grass and scrub, and almost refuses to be flushed. Sometimes it 
nearly allows itself to be walked upon. 
Fourteen of the 17 members of the Wood-Swallow family 
are confined to the Australian region. The White-rumped 
Wood-Swallow extends from Australia through the islands to the 
Andaman Islands; another kind is found in India, Ceylon, and 
Burma. Some kinds are migratory. They appear suddenly in great 
companies, build a flimsy, careless nest in any spot high or low, 
and soon have the young on the wing. They are the "Blue-Birds," 
"Summer-Birds," or "Martins" of our youth. Some of these 
birds have the remarkable habit of hanging in a cluster similar 
to a great swarm of bees. Like Honey-eaters, they take honey 
from the flowering eucalypts. The street trees of Bendigo were 
alive with these birds in May, 1909. The Sordid Wood-Swallow 
