12 
GUIDE BOOK TO THE BRITISH MUSEUM. 
&c. The Choughs are found in the elevated mountains of the Old 
World, and prey on insects and berries ; as the red-legged crow and 
Alpine crow. These are occasionally found in Great Britain, &c. The 
Birds of Paradise are natives of New Guinea ; their habits are perfectly 
those of the crow, as the greater paradise bird, king paradise bird, 
magnificent paradise bird, &c. 
Case 65. The Shining Thrushes are found in Africa, Asia, and Aus- 
tralia, and they feed on fruits and insects ; as the satin bower bird : 
these birds form artificial arbours of twigs, which they decorate with 
shells, bones, stones, and other articles, and through which they run in 
playful chase after each other ; also the splendid thrush, brilliant thrush, 
&c., of Africa and India. The Grakles live in troops in the islands of 
the Indian Archipelago, searching for insects and fruits among the 
banana ; as the minor grakle and bald grakle. The beef-eaters are in- 
habitants of Africa, where they live on the larvae of a parasitical insect 
which they compress out of the skin of the rhinoceros by means of their 
bill ; as the African beef-eater. 
Case 66. The Starlings are found in both hemispheres, and they 
feed on the larvae which attack cattle ; they fly in large and crowded 
flocks ; as the rose-coloured thrush of Europe, occasionally found 
in Great Britain ; and Malabar grakle, pagoda grakle of India, &c. ; 
cockscomb grakle of South Africa ; common stare of Europe and 
Great Britain; Sardinian stare of Europe, &c., and the Louisiana 
stare of North America, & c. The Quiscalince inhabit New Guinea, 
but especially North and South America ; as the gorget paradise 
bird of New Guinea, purple grakle and boat-tailed grakle of South 
America, &c. 
Case 67. The Icteric Orioles are also peculiar to America, and 
live in flocks, feeding on grain and insects ; as the black and yellow 
oriole, crested oriole, icteric oriole, and banana oriole, &c. The Age- 
laince , like the preceding series, are also found in North and South Ame- 
rica, generally in flocks among the cattle. Some of the species have 
a peculiar habit of laying their eggs in other birds’ nests, as the cowpen 
oriole, red-winged oriole, &c. 
Case 68. The Weavers, which inhabit Africa and India, and feed 
on grain. They form their nest of interwoven blades of grass ; as the 
Philippine grosbeak, weaver oriole of Africa, &c. The hawfinches have 
a powerful bill, which enables them to feed on hard fruits, &c. ; as the 
haw grosbeak of Europe and Great Britain, blue grosbeak of North 
America, crimson-breasted grosbeak of Africa, ground sparrows of 
Galapagos, and widow birds of Africa, &c. 
Cases 68, 69. The Tanagers, which are peculiar to the New 
World, are remarkable for their beauty of plumage, and feed on 
grain, berries, and insects ; as the red tanager and summer tanager of 
North America ; red-breasted tanager, bishop tanager, golden tanager 
of South America, &c. 
Cases 69, 70. The True Finches, which generally live in small 
flocks, feed on grain, and sometimes on insects ; as the house sparrow, 
tree-finch, goldfinch, linnet, siskin, greenfinch, chaffinch, &c., of 
Europe, and found in Great Britain ; wax-billed grosbeak, fasciated 
grosbeak of Africa ; cowry grosbeak, white-headed grosbeak of India, 
&c. ; sea-side finch, yellow-winged finch, song-finch of North America, 
