Small birds of colour varying with their habitat, they are best known for their metallic beak and talons and their extremely territoric behavior. They gather shiny things and lay eggs in pretty cliff-nests, and woe be to the outsider who attempts to steal from them. They will descend like a flock of hornets, pecking and tearing until the outsider has left or is no longer squirming. Instinct: to protect its nest

• Swarm and harass