. The popular natural history . Zoology. THE WREN. 303 in obtaining specimens as the naked black, whose noiseless and gliding steps enable him to steal upon it unheard or unperceived, and with a gun in his hand he rarely allows it to escape, and in many instances he will even kill it with his own weapons. " The food of the Menura appears to consist principally of insects, par- ticularly of centipedes and coleoptera. I also found the remains of shelled snails in the gizzard, which is very strong and ; The nest of the Lyre-bird is a large, loosely-built, domed structure, com-
. The popular natural history . Zoology. THE WREN. 303 in obtaining specimens as the naked black, whose noiseless and gliding steps enable him to steal upon it unheard or unperceived, and with a gun in his hand he rarely allows it to escape, and in many instances he will even kill it with his own weapons. " The food of the Menura appears to consist principally of insects, par- ticularly of centipedes and coleoptera. I also found the remains of shelled snails in the gizzard, which is very strong and ; The nest of the Lyre-bird is a large, loosely-built, domed structure, com- posed of small sticks, roots, and leaves, and of an oven-like shape, the entrance being in front. The lining is warm and soft, being composed of downy feathers. The egg of this singular bird is quite as curious as its general form, and presents the curious anomaly of an egg as large as that of a common fowl, possessing all the character- istics of the insessorial egg. The general colour of the egg is a deep chocolate tint, marked with purple more or less deep in different speci- mens, and its surface is co- vered with a number of stains and blotches of a darker hue, which are gathered towards the larger end, as is usual in spotted eggs. We are all familiar with the Wren. The long and harsh name of Troglodytes, which has been given to this bird, sig- nifies a diver into caves, and has been attributed to the Wren on account of its shy and retiring habits, and its custom of hiding its nest in some hollow or crevice where it may escape observation. The Wren is seldom to be seen in the open country, and does not venture upon any lengthened flight, but con- fines itself to the hedge-rows and brushwood, where it may often be observed hopping and skipping like a tiny feathered mouse among the branches. It especially haunts the hedges which are flanked by ditches, as it can easily hide itself in such locahties, and can also obtain a plentiful supply of food. By remaining perfectly quiet
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1880, booksubjectzoology, bookyear1884
