PASSERINiE. 
189 
We should distinguish from among the others the Regent Oriole of authors {Sericulus regens, Lesson), the plu- 
mage of which is line silky black, with velvety feathers of a bright orange-yellow on the head and neck, and a great 
spot of the same colour on each wing. [The female is brown, spotted with dull white. Paradiscjus aureus, Shaw, 
» should range along with it.] 
The Goulins {Gymnops, Cuv.) — 
Have the same strong beak as the Orioles, the nostrils rounded and scaleless, and not surrounded hy 
any membrane, and a great part of the head naked of feathers. 
The Grey Goulin (Gracula calva, Gm.), &c.— Some of them have prominences on the beak, as the Corhicalao of 
Vaillant {Merops corniculatus, Shaw) : in these, “ which constitute the Tropidorynchus of Swainson,” the tongue is 
pencillated as in the Philedons. 
The Lyre-tail {Mcenura, Shaw), — 
The size of which has occasioned some authors to range it among the Poultry, pertains obviously to 
the order of Passerince, having the toes separated (excepting the outer and middle ones along the first 
phalanx), and approximating the Thrushes by the form of its beak, which is triangular at base, 
elongated, a little compressed, and notched towards the tip ; the nostrils being large and membranous, 
and in part covered by reflected feathers, as in the Jays. The great tail of the male is remarkable for 
the three sorts of feathers which compose it ; namely, the twelve ordinary, with very fine and widely 
separated barbs, two medial, each garnished on one side only with a vane, and two exterior, curved 
like the letter S, or like the frame of a lyre, the internal barbs of which, large and serrated, resemble 
a broad riband, whereas the external are very short, lengthening only towards the tip. The female 
has only twelve tail-feathers of the ordinary structure. 
This singular species {M. lyra, Auct.) inhabits the rocky districts of New Holland ; its size is somewhat less 
than that of a Pheasant. [It frequents the most retired parts of the country, and runs very fast upon the ground, 
but its cumbrous tail is said to disable it from flying in a direct line. The order of Birds to which it strictly 
belongs is sufficiently indicated by its being a songster. They are said to sing for a couple of hours in the morning, 
beginning when they quit the valleys, till they attain the summit of a hill, where they scrape together a small 
hillock, as they exhume the grubs on which they feed : on this they afterwards stand,* with the tail spread over 
them ; and in this situation imitate the notes of every bird within hearing, till after a while they return to the 
low grounds.] 
The Slender-billed Passerin.® {Motacilla, Lin.) — 
Compose an excessively numerous family, characterized by the beak, which is straight, slender, and 
awl-shaped. When slightly depressed at the base, it approaches that of the Flycatchers ; and when 
compressed and a little curved at the point, that of the straight-billed Shrikes. Some endeavour has 
been made to divide them as follows. 
The Chats {Saxicola, Bechst.) — 
Have the beak a little depressed and rather wide at base, which allies them to the last small tribe of 
Flyeatchers. They are lively birds, rather high upon the legs. The European species build on or 
near the ground, and subsist on insects. [They grade from the Rock-thrushes {Petrodncla), and like 
them are remarkable for always perching on the summits of objects. 
Three inhabit the British isles.] 
The Stone Chat {Mot. rubicola, Lin.). — A small bird, [with a short tail ; black on the upper parts and throat in 
summer, with a dark reddish breast, some white on the sides of the neck, wings, and tail ; the female browner : in 
winter the black is more or less concealed by brown margins to the feathers ; and the young are at first speckled 
with whitish. This species is resident throughout the year in Britain, and is common in furze-brakes and covert- 
less situations. It has little song, which, as in the following, is often delivered on the wing. 
The others are summer- visitants, of rare occurrence in the winter months. 
The Whin Chat {Mot. rubetra, Lin.), resembles the last in form, and is more delicately coloured, with a conspi- 
cuous white streak over the eye, and black patch on the cheek. It also inhabits furze -brakes, and is more gene- 
rally diffused in grassy places than the Stone Chat : is a monotonous songster. 
The Wheatear Chat {Mot. oenanthe, Lin.). — Larger than the preceding, with the crupper and basal half of the 
tail-feathers conspicuously white, the rest of the tail, wings chiefly, and a band through the eyes, black, and the 
body fulvous : the female is browner, and the young spotted with whitish. This species inhabits still more open 
situations, as chalk-downs and ploughed fields, and particularly the sea-shore. Its flesh is often eaten. 
There are numerous others]. 
The Robins {Sylvia, Wolf and Meyer ; Ficedula, Bechstein ; {Bandalm, Boie ; Rubecula, Brehm ; 
Erythacus, Swains.] ) — 
Have the beak merely a little narrower at the base than the preceding. They are solitary birds, which 
generally nestle in holes, and live on worms, insects, and berries. 
