Chapter XVII: Introduction (16)

The Ethiopian genus _Agapornis_ shares with the Neotropical _Psittacula_ the appellation Love-bird, due to their habit of sitting huddled together, their mutual caresses, and their intense devotion to each other. If one dies, its mate not uncommonly pines away. _A. roseicollis_ of South Africa is green above and yellower below, the forehead being red, the cheeks and throat rose-coloured, the rump and median rectrices blue; the lateral tail feathers exhibit blue tips, red bases, and a black band. It is found in flocks near water, flying quickly, uttering shrill, rapid notes, feeding on berries and the like, and commonly breeding in Weaver-birds' nests. _A. cana_ of Madagascar, introduced into the neighbouring islands, has the head, neck, and breast grey; _A. taranta_, of North-East Africa, the forehead red, the rump and tail green; _A. pullaria_, of West Equatorial Africa, the face orange-red. The sexes differ only in these three species, wherein the under wing-coverts are black in the male, but green in the female, which lacks the grey or red, and in the third case has the face yellowish.

Two dozen members of _Palaeornis_ range from Senegambia to Abyssinia, the Mascarene Islands, India, Ceylon, the Burmese Countries, South China, and the Great Sunda Islands. _P. eupatria_, the Rose-banded Parakeet or Alexandrine, and _P. torquata_, the Rose-ringed Parakeet, are similar species from the Indian Region; they are green, with rose-coloured nuchal collar, black neck-stripes, bluish median and yellow and green lateral rectrices, all tipped with yellow, and in the former a red wing-patch. The female shews no pink or black. These birds frequent both hills and plains, being often found in societies; they have a loud musical note, feed on fruits and grain, and lay some four eggs on the chips in a hole cut out by themselves.

{369}The genus _Eclectus_, extending from the Moluccas with the Tenimber Islands to the Solomon Archipelago, has green males and red females. _E. pectoralis_ of Papuasia is green, with red sides, blue remiges and lateral rectrices edged with green, and yellow-tipped tail. The female differs in having the head, chest, and upper parts bright red, the end of the tail lighter, the breast, abdomen, edge of the wing and a dorsal band blue.

_Dasyptilus pesqueti_ of New Guinea is black, with the tail-coverts, abdomen, sides, much of the wings, and a lateral band on the occiput red; the crown- and nape-feathers are narrow and pointed, the face and throat nearly naked and black. It lives at considerable altitudes in couples or small companies, eating fruit, and uttering a loud, harsh cry. _Coracopsis vasa_, the Vasa or "loud-voiced" Parrot of Madagascar, sacred to royalty in one of the tribes, and its lesser compatriot, _C. nigra_, are blackish-brown, with grey wings, rump, and tail, and yellowish naked orbits. The small flocks are partly terrestrial, but fly high; the cry is shrill; the food consists of seeds and other fruits and roots. _C. vasa_ has been introduced into Réunion, _C. comorensis_ and _C. sibilans_ inhabit the Comoros, _C. barklyi_ the Seychelles.

That clever talker, _Psittacus erithacus_, the Grey Parrot, which ranges across Equatorial Africa, is ashy-grey, with black primaries, red tail, and whitish naked face. It walks well, and climbs admirably by the aid of its beak, flying with chattering screams at considerable elevations, consorting in large companies, and probably nesting in holes in trees. _P. timneh_ is not known to talk.

_Poeocephalus robustus_ of Southern Africa is green, with brownish head, neck, remiges and rectrices; it has vermilion thighs, bend of the wing, and, occasionally, forehead; and naked orbits. The habits call for no special mention. _Caica melanocephala_ of Guiana and Amazonia is green, with yellow cheeks, throat, sides and tip of the tail, a rufous nuchal collar, whitish lower parts, black primaries margined with blue, and green and black naked orbits. _Gypopsittacus vulturinus_ of the Lower Amazons is chiefly green, yellow feathers tipped with black covering the throat, and forming a band at the back of the naked but hairy black head; the thighs are yellow stained with red; the upper wing-coverts blue margined with green, except the lesser, which are orange and red; the primaries are blue and black; the secondaries greener; the rectrices green and yellow, tipped with blue.

{370}The two score members of _Chrysotis_, commonly termed Amazons, range from Central America to Argentina. _C. aestiva_, not found north of Brazil, has the plumage mainly green with black edgings, the forehead and lores blue, the crown, cheeks, and throat yellow, the primaries black, blue, and green. The secondaries exhibit red outer webs, the lateral tail-feathers red bases and yellowish tips. Entirely yellow varieties rarely occur in the wild state, but are often produced artificially. These birds breed in holes in high trees, and fly in small flocks, which utter screaming cries, and feed on plantains, berries, oranges, and so forth.

_Psittacula_ contains the green Love-Birds of Central and Tropical South America; they are sometimes tinged with yellow, and have blue on the rump and wings in the male.

_Myiopsittacus monachus_, the Monk or Loro, of Bolivia, Paraguay, Uruguay, and Argentina, is green, with grey throat, breast, and head, except the occiput; a blue tinge shewing on the wings, and yellow on the lateral rectrices. It is very common and tame near Buenos Aires, being devoted to favourite spots, and playing havoc with garden fruit, which it pecks and leaves hanging, while at times companies feed on thistle-seeds or devastate grain-fields. {371}Its flight is swift but unsteady, with rapid strokes of the wing and folded tail; yet it mobs Birds of prey, while its noisy chatter disturbs the other woodland species. A nest of thorny twigs, used for shelter throughout the year, is usually woven round the end of some branch, and has a vestibule and an inner chamber, which are repaired before the thin-shelled eggs, from six to eight in number, are laid. Though the entrance, with its overhanging eaves, is in the side or beneath, Opossums and Ducks occasionally take possession. A tree may contain several of these dwellings, which often jointly form a mass sufficient to fill a cart, though not communicating with one another.[223] _Cyanolyseus patagonus_, of Argentina and Patagonia, is brownish-olive, with red on the belly, yellow on the rump and flanks, blue on the primaries, green on the secondaries, and a whitish gorget. The flight is strong though wavering; the cry loud, short, but pleasing; the food consists of shoots, buds, and seeds; the breeding places are holes in banks. _Conurus carolinensis_, of Florida, Arkansas, and the Indian Territory, is green, with paler lower parts, yellow head and upper neck, orange forehead and cheeks. It frequents wooded creeks or swamps, feeding on cypress-seeds, beech-mast, and so forth, and breeding in company in holes in trees without any nest. Nearly thirty species of the genus range from Mexico and the West Indies to Bolivia and Argentina, _C. guarouba_ of North-East Brazil being yellow with green remiges, _C. solstitialis_ of Guiana and Brazil mainly reddish-yellow with blue and green wings and tail.

Of the fifteen or more large members of _Ara_, _A. chloroptera_, the Red-and-blue Macaw, _A. macao_, which differs in its yellow and green wing-coverts, and _A. militaris_, the Red-and-green Macaw, occur from Mexico and Central America to Bolivia; _A. ararauna_, the Blue-and-yellow Macaw, and _A. severa_, the Green-and-blue Macaw only extend from Panama southwards. The naked flesh-coloured face is crossed by lines of feathers, except in _A. macao_. The four closely allied Brazilian species of _Anodorhynchus_ and _Cyanopsittacus_, or Hyacinthine Macaws, are almost uniform blue. The flight of these gorgeous birds is powerful, their note harsh and screaming, while they crush and eat hard nuts of various kinds.

_Nasiterna pygmaea_, one of some nine Pigmy Parrots, is green, with dusky markings on the upper surface, yellowish crown, reddish forehead and middle of the lower parts; the two median {372}rectrices are blue, the rest chiefly black, with yellow spots on the outer. The female lacks the red and yellow tints. Small flocks of these birds frequent high trees, creeping about them with the aid of their wings and tails, like Tree-creepers, and at midday dozing in fancied security on the lower branches. They feed upon seeds, and are stated by von Rosenberg to lay two eggs, no larger than those of the Long-tailed Tit, in holes in trees.[224]

Sub-fam. 3. _Cacatuinae._–Of the Cockatoos, which are restricted to the Australian Region, the Philippine and the Sulu Islands, _Cacatua galerita_ of Australia and Tasmania, one of the forms with narrow recurved crest-feathers, is white, with the erectile tuft and ear-coverts yellow, the plumage being lax and powdery. _C. leadbeateri_ has a red crest banded with yellow and tipped with white, and a rosy tinge on the head and lower surface. Other species exhibit broad straight white, yellow, or red crests, _C. roseicapilla_ being decidedly pink below and grey above. In this group the bare orbits may be blue, red, grey, or white. These tame and active birds love open wooded country, and often form immense flocks; they fly strongly, hop well, utter loud shrill screams, doze in the heat, feed on roots grubbed up from the ground, seeds and grain, and play havoc with crops of maize and the like. Two or three somewhat pointed eggs are deposited in holes in trees or crevices of rocks. {373}The half-dozen crested members of _Calyptorhynchus_, which are brown or black with a greenish gloss, and a whitish, red, or yellow band across the lateral rectrices, have a more laboured flight and a comparatively low whining cry; they feed on seeds of _Banksia_ and _Casuarina_ and on caterpillars. _Callocephalon galeatum_ is grey, with a scarlet head and crest. In these two Australian genera the supposed females exhibit yellow markings. _Microglossus aterrimus_, the Great Black Cockatoo of North Australia and Papuasia, is greyish-black with a long narrow crest, and naked red and yellow cheeks. It is a retiring bird, found in pairs among high trees in thick forests; the flight is comparatively weak, the note a plaintive whistle; the food consists of seeds of _Pandanus_, _Canarium_, palm-shoots, and the like; the egg is laid on a bed of twigs in a hollow tree. _Calopsittacus novae hollandiae_, the crested Australian Cockatoo-Parakeet, is dark grey, with yellow forehead and cheeks, orange ear-coverts, and white wing-patch. The female has yellow marks on the tail and under parts. By no means shy, the flocks feed chiefly on the ground, while individuals fly well and love perching on dead branches.

Fam. IV. TRICHOGLOSSIDAE.–Sub-fam. 1. _Cyclopsittacinae._–This includes _Neopsittacus_ and _Cyclopsittacus_ of Timor, North-East Australia and Papuasia, which are coloured red, green, blue, and yellow; the peculiarities of structure have already been mentioned.

Sub-Fam. 2. _Loriinae._–_Trichoglossus novae hollandiae_, Swainson's Lory, is blue, with green head and central abdomen; the remaining under parts being red, the sides, nuchal collar and inner webs of the lateral rectrices yellow. Flocks haunt the _Eucalyptus_-forests of Eastern Australia and Tasmania, uttering incessant screams, flying swiftly and directly from tree to tree, settling again with a dash, creeping and clinging around the branches, and extracting honey from the flowers with their brush-tipped tongues, besides eating seeds. From two to four eggs are deposited in holes in trees. The various species of _Trichoglossus_ range from Celebes and Timor to Australia and the New Hebrides. _Ptilosclera versicolor_, of North and West Australia, is green, with yellowish streaks on the body, bluish cheeks and nape, red crown, lores and breast. _Coriphilus taitianus_ of the Society Islands is dark blue, with the lower surface chiefly white; _C. ultramarinus_ of the Marquesas shews a combination of light and dark blue. _Lorius_ extends from the Moluccas to the Solomon {374}Archipelago; _L. lory_ of Papuasia being red, with black crown, blue nape, upper back, central breast and abdomen, and tip of the tail; while the wings and middle portion of the rectrices are green. In habits these three genera seem to resemble _Trichoglossus_. The members of _Eos_ (Red Lory) are red, relieved by blue, except _E. fuscata_, which is dusky, with red and yellow markings; they extend from the Sanghir and Tenimber Islands and the Moluccas to the Caroline and Solomon groups. _Chalcopsittacus_ of Papuasia has purplish-black, olive, or green species, usually varied with red.

Sub-fam. 3. _Nestorinae._–This contains only the genus _Nestor_, with five species, of which _N. norfolcensis_ of Norfolk Island, and _N. productus_ of Phillip Island are extinct, while _N. esslingi_ is hardly valid. _N. meridionalis_, the New Zealand Kaka Parrot, is olive-brown, with reddish cheeks and collar, crimson rump, abdomen and under wing-coverts, brown tail and breast, and grey crown. Several races have been described, varying in the amount of red. The Kaka is fearless, social, sprightly, and noisy, though semi-nocturnal and apt to retire to the deep forest during daylight. It utters harsh rasping and chuckling notes, or musical whistles; while it climbs trees with the aid of its beak and feet, and searches the dead wood for insects. It flies in lofty circles, or at times hops about the ground; the food consists largely of juicy fruits, blossoms, and nectar from the Rata (_Metrosideros robusta_) or the New Zealand flax (_Phormium tenax_). In semi-captivity this bird is a good mimic and talker, but terribly destructive to furniture, clothing, and orchard produce; the Maories keep it as a lure, encircling the metatarsus with a bone ring fastened by a cord to the perch. Four oval eggs are laid in hollow trees, in crevices of rocks, or under stumps and roots, occasionally on fragments of bark. _Nestor notabilis_, the Kea of the south island of New Zealand, has olive-green plumage with blackish margins; the wings and tail are varied with blue and yellow, the latter having a brown subterminal band; the rump and under wing-coverts are scarlet. The female is duller. It frequents rugged slopes of high snowy mountains, descending to the lowlands in winter; the small companies soar aloft, fly from peak to peak, or search for insect-food among the stunted vegetation. Tame, inquisitive, and destructive, the natural habits and food resemble those of the Kaka, allowing for the difference of haunts; but this bird will scream or mew, and lays larger and {375}rougher eggs in crevices of rocks. As is well known, the Kea has of recent years become carnivorous, chasing sheep and devouring their flesh. Perching near the tail and clinging to the wool, it digs a deep hole with its powerful beak, and apparently aims at the kidney-fat, the mandible cutting while the hooked maxilla ensures a firm grip. The propensity is said to have originated from the bird pecking at sheep-skins hanging outside country stations. As it sometimes necessitates the abandonment of sheep-runs, or even attacks horses, a price has been set upon its head.

Of fossil Parrots, _Psittacus_ occurs in the Lower Miocene of France, the large _Necropsittacus rodericanus_ in Rodriguez, and the still bigger _Lophopsittacus mauritianus_, known from an old picture to be crested, in the Mare aux Songes in Mauritius.

{376}ORDER XIII. CORACIIFORMES.

The Order Coraciiformes contains the Sub-Orders CORACIAE, STRIGES, CAPRIMULGI, CYPSELI, COLII, TROGONES, and PICI, and includes a large number of arboreal forms with comparatively short legs, which often nest in holes, and have blind and helpless young. The group coincides with the _Picariae_ of Nitzsch and Mr. Sclater, except in so far that the former author included the _Psittaci_, the latter the _Cuculi_, while both kept the _Striges_ separate.

The Sub-Order CORACIAE consists of the Families _Coraciidae_ or Rollers, _Momotidae_ or Motmots and Todies, _Alcedinidae_ or Kingfishers, _Meropidae_ or Bee-eaters, _Bucerotidae_ or Hornbills, and _Upupidae_ or Hoopoes.

Fam. I. CORACIIDAE.–Two Sub-families may be recognised of these Old World birds, (1) _Coraciinae_, and (2) _Leptosomatinae_; the latter containing only the remarkable "Kirombo" of Madagascar.

Sub-fam. 1. _Coraciinae._–Most of the twenty or more species of Rollers are brilliant blue and green, varied with reddish, and bear a resemblance to certain of the Crow-tribe, especially to the genus _Cissa_. The short metatarsus, however, scutellated in front and reticulated behind, is a clear distinction, as in _Cissa_ and so forth it is longer and smooth behind, with elongated scutes anteriorly. It is comparatively long in Ground-Rollers, but they are quite unmistakeable. The bill is strong, decurved, and slightly hooked, being broad and depressed in _Eurystomus_; the toes are moderately stout with curved claws, while the second and third are united basally; the wings are long, broad and rounded, or shorter in Ground-Rollers, with ten primaries and about thirteen secondaries; the twelve tail-feathers vary in length, five species of _Coracias_ having them very long, and one spatulate. The furcula is U-shaped, the syrinx is tracheo-bronchial, the nostrils are hidden by bristly feathers, the tongue is thin and horny, the aftershaft is small, while there is no down on adults or nestlings. The sexes are similar, the young duller.

The genus _Coracias_ ranges over temperate Europe, all Africa, and Central and Southern Asia eastwards to Celebes, where _C. temmincki_ alone occurs. _C. garrulus_, which strays to Britain, and breeds from Sweden and Omsk to North Africa and North India, has the head, most of the wing-coverts, and the lower surface light greenish-blue, a red-brown back, dusky and blue remiges, ultramarine bend of the wing and rump, and greenish {377}tail with light blue on the lateral feathers, the outer pair alone having black tips. In the similar _C. abyssinicus_ the two outer rectrices are elongated and tapering; in the more purple _C. spatulatus_ they are cobalt-blue with black shafts produced into small racquets. _C. naevius_ has an olivaceous back, reddish-lilac head and under parts, a white nuchal patch, white streaks on the breast, blue rump, bend of the wing, lateral rectrices and outer portion of the remiges. The genus _Eurystomus_ occupies Tropical Africa, and extends from India to Manchuria, Australia and the Solomon Islands, occasionally reaching New Zealand. _E. glaucurus_, of Madagascar and Anjuan Island, is bay above and lilac below, with nearly ultramarine wings and cobalt tail tipped with blackish; _E. orientalis_ is bluish-green, with blackish head, remiges and rectrices, some blue on the wing-coverts, an azure patch on the primaries, and a purple throat. _E. australis_ is similar, and is termed the Dollar-Bird from exhibiting its circular light wing-patch when flying.

The members of these two genera are active, noisy, and pugnacious, though shy; they are usually diurnal, but are occasionally observed hawking for insects at dusk; when disturbed they attempt to hide in some neighbouring tree, while they also roost or take refuge from the heat among the foliage. The flight is swift, though not sustained, the wings being closed from time to time; at the courting season the male darts through the air with many a turn and twist, expanding and contracting his tail; and both sexes have the habit of rolling or turning somersaults in their course, and of puffing out their cheeks and throat. The note is a harsh "rack-rack-kack" or "racker-racker," uttered while perched or flying; the food, largely procured when hopping on the ground, and frequently jerked into the air before being swallowed, consists of small reptiles, frogs, beetles, worms, slugs and grasshoppers, if not of grain. Rollers frequent wooded country up to an altitude of about two thousand feet, in pairs or moderate-sized flocks; they occasionally sit huddled together on some branch, but love to perch on tall bare trees or wires, whence they energetically challenge Hawks and Crows. The four or five oval glossy white eggs are sometimes laid on a mass of roots, grass, hair, and feathers, in cavities in walls or under eaves of buildings; but more usually with little or no bedding in holes in trees or banks. In the breeding season the cock summons the hen from her nest, if danger threatens, while both parents {378}dash at an intruder, or settle near him, jerking the head and tail. Many adults are slaughtered for decorative purposes.

The Ground-Rollers, _Atelornis_, _Uratelornis_, _Geobiastes_ and _Brachypteracias_, are curious forms, peculiar to Madagascar. _A. pittoïdes_ has green upper parts with a ruddy tinge, white bars across the short primaries, a fine blue head and tail, except for the two brown median rectrices, and a reddish-fawn lower surface divided by a blue band from the white throat. _A. crossleyi_ has a rufous head and black gular stripes. _Uratelornis chimaera_ is a nearly allied form. _Geobiastes squamigera_ has the upper back reddish-brown, the lower green; the head and under parts are buff, with black scale-like markings, and a black line down the crown. The primaries are brownish, the tail shews a curious combination of green, blue, black, and brown. _Brachypteracias leptosomus_ is yellowish-green above, with bluish margins to the feathers, and a purplish-brown head and neck, while the brownish tail has a subterminal black and a terminal white bar; it is white below, banded or striped with chestnut and black. These forest-species are almost entirely terrestrial and crepuscular, running about in solitary fashion in the dusk, and carefully examining the ground for insect-food, or scratching for worms and the like; occasionally they fly to a low branch, jerking the tail as they alight. The eggs are said to be white.

Sub-fam. 2. _Leptosomatinae._–This contains only _Leptosoma discolor_, the Kirombo or Vorondreo of Madagascar and the Comoro Islands, which has a big crested head; a long, slightly hooked bill, overhung at the base by recurved loral feathers; linear nostrils, placed far forward and covered by a horny plate; metatarsi scutellated on both aspects; and a partly reversible outer toe. The wings are moderate, having ten primaries and twelve secondaries; the long, square tail has twelve feathers; the tongue is tapering, horny and channelled; a large aftershaft is present, and there is a considerable powder-down patch on each side of the rump. The head is grey, glossed with copper and green, the neck duller; the upper parts are shining green and coppery-red, the under parts grey with white abdomen. The slightly larger female is reddish-brown above, with buff markings and only a dull gloss; the head is chiefly black, and the lower surface fawn-coloured spotted with black. This curious bird is very noisy throughout the day, uttering its note, which resembles the {379}syllables "tu-hou" thrice repeated, either while hovering in the air or while ascending or descending in vertical fashion. Meanwhile the wings are struck against the body, and the throat puffed out like a bag. It is found in the forests in flocks of about a dozen, perching and squatting lazily on the branches, and scarcely moving when its neighbours are shot; the food consists mainly of grasshoppers, chamaeleons, and lizards; the nest is said to be made of rushes and placed in holes, the eggs to be white. One female is often accompanied by several males. The Malagasy consider that the "Reò" brings ill-luck, and make it the theme of various tales and chants.[225]

Fam. II. MOMOTIDAE.–The Motmots and Todies fall naturally between the Rollers and Kingfishers, but are also closely connected with the Bee-Eaters, which do not occur in the New World. They compose the Sub-families (1) _Momotinae_ and (2) _Todinae_, the former ranging from South Mexico and the Antilles to Paraguay, while the latter are restricted to the Greater Antilles.

{380}Sub-fam. 1. _Momotinae._–Motmots have loose-webbed green, blue, cinnamon, and black plumage; the sexes being barely distinguishable, and the young similar to the adults, but with less developed tail. The length varies from six and a half inches to twenty. The head is generally rather narrow; the bill is Crow-like, with a few rictal bristles, and has the margins of the mandibles more or less serrated; in _Prionirhynchus_ it is unusually broad and strongly keeled. The scutellated metatarsus is of no great length, the third digit being united to the fourth for about a third of its extent; the wings are rather short and rounded, with ten primaries and eleven secondaries. The tail-feathers are generally twelve, though _Baryphthengus_ has only ten; they are very distinctly graduated, as is well seen from beneath, the median pair being much elongated with racquet-tips, except in _Hylomanes_, _Aspatha_ and _Baryphthengus_. The furcula is U-shaped; the tongue is long, thin and frayed out towards the apex into laminae which point forwards; the syrinx is tracheo-bronchial; the aftershaft is small; while neither adults nor nestlings possess down.

Motmots are not shy birds, though they inhabit dense forests and seldom visit the outskirts; they prefer the vicinity of streams, where they may be seen, solitary or in pairs, flitting before the traveller from tree to tree, or sitting motionless on the lower branches, whence they make sudden dashes to secure their prey. This consists of insects caught in the air, small reptiles, or fruit; but in captivity they will eat bread, raw meat, small birds and mammals, often rapping live creatures on the ground or on their perch before swallowing them, as is done by Todies, Kingfishers, and Hornbills. The flight is brief, while the short legs are ill-adapted to the ground. The long, soft, "flute-like" note recalls that of the Hoopoe, and may be syllabled Hu-tu, this being a native name in some parts; it is most commonly heard at dawn, while the bird's habit of jerking its tail up and down as it utters each syllable is comparable to that of Barbets and Toucans. Three or four round, creamy-white eggs are deposited, without any nest, in holes in trees or banks, probably bored by the birds themselves; both sexes being said to incubate in turn. Motmots with racquet-tipped rectrices have been shewn to produce that shape by nibbling off the vanes.[226]

_Urospatha martii_, ranging from Costa Rica to Amazonia, is {381}oil-green above, with a blue tinge on the blackish primaries and the end of the tail, the two median rectrices being much elongated and having terminal blue racquets; the under parts and head are cinnamon, the cheeks black, while a tuft of long black feathers adorns the neck below. _Eumomota superciliaris_ of Central America is green above, with cinnamon mantle and blue remiges and rectrices tipped with black, the two median tail-feathers having elongated bare shafts with broad racquet-tips, half blue and half black. On the sides of the head are black bands and light blue eyebrows, while the throat is black with long blue lateral feathers, and the abdomen chestnut. _Momotus brasiliensis_, extending from Guiana to Northern Brazil, is somewhat similar in colour, but has little red on the back; the head is cobalt-blue with black on the crown and sides; the under parts are green with a rufous tinge. The long throat-feathers are black with light blue edges. _Aspatha gularis_ of Guatemala is bright green above, and has a yellowish breast; the abdomen and throat are pale blue, with a black tuft at the base of the latter; the sides of the head are reddish-fawn with black ear-coverts. The tail is normal.

Sub-fam. 2. _Todinae._–This includes four diminutive species of the genus _Todus_, structurally resembling the Motmots; the tail, however, being short and square, the wings abbreviated with only ten secondaries, the beak flattened and but faintly serrated, and the rictal bristles well-developed. The long metatarsus is {382}covered with one scale; the marginal laminae of the tongue point backwards.

Todies frequent hilly districts and woods, and especially the vicinity of ravines, being very active on their feet, and taking short rapid flights from branch to branch when disturbed. They used to be considered close allies of the Flycatchers, probably owing to their habit of darting out upon their prey from some branch, to which they return immediately. They sit with upturned bill and head drawn in, their wings vibrating and their plumage puffed out, and when thus perched they are so unsuspicious that they may sometimes be caught with a butterfly-net, or even with the hand. The pugnacious males chase each other, clattering their bills, and, while courting, ruffle themselves up and droop their wings. The three or four globular white eggs are laid in a hole low down in the face of some bank, which is excavated to a considerable depth and commonly turns at right angles; the terminal chamber usually containing a slight nest of fibres, grass, moss, or cotton. In captivity Todies make engaging pets.

The coloration is green, with a bright red throat, yellowish-white or pinkish under parts, and yellow, green, or pink feathers on the flanks. The bill is dull red. _Todus viridis_ inhabits Jamaica; _T. subulatus_ Hispaniola; _T. multicolor_, which has a blue spot on each cheek, Cuba; _T. hypochondriacus_ Porto Rico. The length varies from three and a half to four and a half inches.

Fam. III. ALCEDINIDAE.–The Kingfishers, with the Sub-families (1) _Halcyoninae_, or Wood-Kingfishers, and (2) _Alcedininae_, or Water-Kingfishers, are remarkable not only for the aberrant species found among them, but also for their peculiar forms and particularly brilliant colours, at once strikingly contrasted and tasteful. The head looks disproportionately large, an appearance often heightened by the crest and the long, stout bill. This feature in the Alcedininae is compressed and sharp-pointed, with keeled culmen and upcurved genys; in the Halcyoninae it is broader and rounder, and sometimes grooved. In _Syma_ the maxilla is {383}serrated, as in the Momotidae; in _Carcineutes_ and _Dacelo_ it exceeds the mandible, and in _Melidora_ it is hooked. The feeble metatarsi are scutellated or rarely reticulated; the third and fourth toes are joined for most of their length, the second and third for one joint, all being broad below; the claws are sharp and curved. _Ceyx_ and _Alcyone_ have the second digit aborted. The wings are short and rounded, yet powerful, the primaries being eleven in number, with the outer much reduced, the secondaries from eleven to fourteen; the tail is commonly abbreviated, but in _Tanysiptera_ has a median pair of greatly elongated racquet-tipped feathers; that genus, moreover, possesses but ten rectrices instead of twelve. The furcula is U-shaped, the syrinx is tracheo-bronchial, there is no aftershaft, the adults are uniformly downy, the nestlings are naked. The tongue is rudimentary, though said to shew an approach to that of the Motmots in _Pelargopsis_. The sexes may be similar or dissimilar, even in the same genus; the young are like their parents, or somewhat duller. The colours of the Family are most variable, a combination of blue, green, and chestnut being frequent, while almost uniform red, or black and white, are not uncommon; the beak may be black, red, yellow, or parti-coloured. About twenty genera, with some hundred and fifty species, occupy nearly the whole globe, though by far the greater number are found from Celebes to Papuasia, while _Ceryle_ alone is American.

The habits in the Family are as diverse as the styles of plumage. The Water-Kingfishers love shady haunts by quiet lowland streams, where the fishes which form their chief diet abound; in such situations they may be seen sitting patient and motionless on some favourite overhanging bough or projecting stone, from which they dart out like an arrow upon their prey. If successful, they return immediately to their perch, on which they beat the fish before jerking it down the throat. At other times they hover over the water with vibrating pinions, or dive perpendicularly with closed wings. They are not, however, entirely piscivorous, but eat insects and small crustaceans, especially when they seek the sea-shore, as do several species of _Halcyon_, _Alcedo_, and _Ceryle_, including our native Kingfisher, chiefly towards winter. In tropical countries reeds and sugar-canes serve for perches. The flight is straight and quick, but not long sustained; the note is either high-pitched, and of two or three syllables, which may be {384}likened to "tit-it-it," or is loud and harsh; it is most frequently heard as the birds skim over the streams in the anxious time of breeding, while the young have similar cries, and are very noisy just before leaving the nest, which they render extremely foul. The eggs are laid in holes in perpendicular river-banks, disused gravel-pits and the like, or even in cavities in walls or rotten stumps, the circular tunnel usually penetrating to a depth of two or three feet, and forming an enlarged terminal chamber. The number of eggs varies from four to ten in different species; they are round, white, glossy, and thin-shelled, and look very pink when they are fresh; they usually lie on a bed of fish-bones, consisting chiefly of vertebrae, not uncommonly deposited before laying begins. _Ceryle rudis_ is stated to make a nest of grass, _C. amazona_ one of sticks and straw, the former at times breeding in colonies. The male has been known to assist in incubation, which lasts a fortnight or more; while two broods are occasionally reared in the season, especially in warmer climates. The Wood-Kingfishers prefer shady forest-regions, not necessarily near water, but also frequent the vicinity of houses; their food consists of insects caught in the air, caterpillars, reptiles, frogs, crustaceans, worms and molluscs, though they occasionally eat fish. The nests, placed in holes in trees or banks, are said in some cases to be of a few straws, dry leaves, or moss. The genus _Dacelo_ and its allies, including the largest forms of the Family, are natives of Australia and New Guinea, where they often inhabit very dry situations. They will even eat small mammals or birds, bruising them before deglutition, and lay two or three white eggs in holes in trees without any nest. The note is an extraordinary loud gurgling or barking sound, from which they are called "Laughing Jackasses."

Kingfishers are difficult to keep in captivity, while hard frosts cause much mortality, though the use of the feathers for artificial flies or for ornament adds to the scarcity. The males are at times very pugnacious. Many fables are connected with the Family; for instance, _Ceyx_ and _Alcyone_ were said to have been changed by Zeus into Kingfishers, while Aeolus, father of Alcyone, kept the weather calm in midwinter (the fourteen halcyon days), when the birds formed a floating nest upon the deep. A dried specimen, if hung up, was supposed to act as a weathercock with its bill, as Shakespeare intimates.

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Sub-fam. 1. _Halcyoninae._–_Tanysiptera sabrina_ of the Moluccas, one of the members of a large and very beautiful genus, is white, except for the crown and wing-coverts, which are bright blue, and the cheeks, nape, remiges, upper back and scapulars, which are bluish-black. The two median rectrices have bluish shafts with white racquet-tips; the bill is red. _T. nympha_ of New Guinea differs in its blue tail, vermilion rump and under parts. _Cittura cyanotis_ of Celebes has a rufous head and chestnut tail, a brown back with partially buff scapulars, bluish-black wings with blue coverts, a blue eye-streak (black in the female), a lilac under surface, and a dark red bill. _Halcyon coromandus_ of Eastern Asia is brown with a lovely lilac tinge above and a sky-blue rump, the lower parts being orange-rufous, and the bill red. _H. cyaniventris_ of Java is rich blue above; the head and wing-coverts are mainly black, the lower parts ultramarine, the throat and cheeks rufous, extending as a collar to the nape; the bill is dark red. _H. semicaeruleus_ of Arabia, West and East Africa, has a whitish head and under parts, with a chestnut {386}abdomen; the upper parts are black, with azure lower back, tail and wing-quills, the bill is red. _H. saurophagus_ of Papuasia and the Moluccas is blue, with white head and under surface, and black bill. _H. nigrocyaneus_ of the former region is black and blue, with white throat, pectoral band and dorsal markings, the bill being black. The female is whiter below. _H. lindsayi_ has dingy green upper parts with buff spots, and a black eye-stripe surmounted by an azure band, both of which extend round the back of the head; the neck and throat are cinnamon divided by a blue stripe, the under parts white mottled with green; the bill is black. The blue parts are green in the female.

_Dacelo gigas_, the "Laughing Jackass" or "Settlers' Clock" of Australia, is mainly brown above with a white stripe on each side of the head; the tail is rufous and black, the rump of the same colour in the female, greenish-blue in the male; the lower surface is dirty white, the bill blackish. _Clytoceyx rex_ of New Guinea has an immensely thick, blunt, and rather short bill; it is brown above, with a rufous collar, blackish back and neck-stripes, light azure rump, greenish tail and wing-quills; below it is light chestnut with white throat. _Carcineutes pulchellus_ of the Malay countries, Sumatra, and Java has the forehead, cheeks, and collar chestnut, the crown azure, the upper parts black with blue and white bands, the under parts rufous with white throat, the bill red. The female is rufous with black bars above, and white with black spotting below. _Syma torotoro_ of Papuasia is greenish, with blue tail and rump, orange-rufous head and under parts, and a black collar. The crown is black in the female. The serrated bill is yellow. The genera _Ispidina_ and _Ceyx_ furnish the pygmies of the Family, varying from about four to six inches in length; the coloration in the former is usually blue and black above and chestnut below, with a red bill; but _I. madagascariensis_ of Madagascar is entirely rufous, except for some white on the neck and lower surface. _C. euerythra_, of the Malay countries and the Philippines, which is red with a lilac tinge above, has several similar congeners; here again, however, blue, black, and orange are not uncommon hues.

Sub-fam. 2. _Alcedininae._–_Alcyone azurea_ of Australia has dark azure-blue upper parts, reddish-orange lower surface with lighter throat, and a whitish patch on the sides of the neck. _Corythornis cristata_ is ultramarine with light chestnut under {387}parts, the crest being green with black transverse stripes, and the bill black. _Alcedo ispida_ of Britain, the whole of Europe, and the greater part of Asia, has greenish-blue upper parts, brighter blue head and tail, chestnut under parts and broad eye-streak, white throat and patches at the side of the neck, and black bill, often orange at the base. _A. beryllina_ of Java and Lombok differs in being entirely greenish-blue above, and white with a blue chest-band below. _Ceryle_ is the sole genus found in the New World, though it occurs also in South-East Europe, most of Asia and Africa; _C. alcyon_, the Belted Kingfisher, alone reaches the Northern United States and Canada. The half dozen large crested species are generally black and white, relieved by chestnut or grey, but _C. amazona_ and its nearest allies are dull green above.

_Pelargopsis gurial_ of India and Assam, one of the "Stork-billed Kingfishers," has a brown head, yellowish-fawn collar and under parts, dull green mantle and tail, greenish-blue lower back, and red beak.

Fam. IV. MEROPIDAE.–The Bee-eaters are extremely brilliant and graceful birds, which range over the temperate and tropical portions of the Old World, being especially plentiful in the Ethiopian Region, and somewhat less so in the Indian. The Palaearctic countries possess only four species, but Celebes alone has three, one of which (_Merops ornatus_) extends through the Moluccas to Papuasia and Australia.

The bill is long and gradually curved, with a culminar ridge and deflected mandible, the maxilla being grooved and more arched in _Nyctiornis_. The short, stout metatarsus, which is weaker in _Merops_, is scutellated anteriorly and reticulated posteriorly; the abbreviated toes–rather longer in _Nyctiornis_–have slender curved claws, and are united in the case of the third and fourth to the last joint, in the second and third to a less extent. The usually short and rounded wings are long and pointed in _Merops_ and _Dicrocercus_; the primaries number eleven, or ten in _Nyctiornis_, and the secondaries twelve or thirteen. The tail of twelve rectrices is even in _Melittophagus_ and _Nyctiornis_, deeply forked in _Dicrocercus_, and square with two elongated and tapering median feathers in _Merops_ and _Meropogon_. The furcula is U-shaped, the tongue is lanceolate, the nostrils are concealed by dense feathers in _Nyctiornis_ and _Meropogon_; {388}the syrinx is tracheo-bronchial, the aftershaft is rudimentary; while there is no down in adults or nestlings.

The flight of Bee-eaters is rapid and Swallow-like, and they have a habit of sitting on dead branches or even upright sticks, from which they dart in pursuit of their prey, to return again promptly after the manner of Flycatchers. They skim actively over the surface of the earth, sail aloft in circles, or float with slightly upturned wings in the air; while they rest among the foliage at mid-day, and not uncommonly roost in a row on some branch at night. Occasionally they may be seen dusting themselves like Larks. _Nyctiornis_ is less energetic, and loves dense forest-shades or woods of lofty trees, as does _Meropogon_; but the other forms prefer more open country, and frequent the neighbourhood of swamps or rivers, as well as arid districts. _Merops_ is constantly seen in flocks, _Melittophagus_ less often; _Nyctiornis_, with rare exceptions, lives singly or in pairs. The last-named sometimes will not stir even when shot at, and none of the Family are by nature shy. The note is, according to circumstances, a loud harsh whistle or a soft flute-like sound; but _Nyctiornis_ utters a deep croak, ending in a churring noise, puffing out the gular plumes meanwhile and nodding the head up and down. The birds are not ordinarily noisy. It is when hawking in the air that the brilliant colours are most strikingly displayed, the snap of the bill being at such times distinctly audible; insects are also picked off the backs of cattle, and, more rarely, captured on the ground; while _Merops philippinus_, and no doubt other species, bruise their prey against their perch. The name Bee-eater is well deserved, for in Spain _Merops apiaster_ is a perfect pest to the bee-keeper, catching the workers as they enter and leave the hives. The indigestible portions of the food are cast up as pellets, often found in the nest. The four to six round, glossy white eggs are deposited in holes in banks, or even in tunnels bored vertically downwards in level ground, which extend to a depth of from three to ten feet. _Merops superciliosus_ and _M. nubicus_ alone are said to make a slight nest of straw and feathers, the members of this genus and of _Melittophagus_ often forming large colonies. The flesh is palatable, while the plumage is in great request for decorative purposes.

The sexes are similar, the young duller, with the rectrices {389}never much elongated; _Meropogon_ and _Nyctiornis_ have the gular feathers broad and lengthened into a tuft.

The Family contains five genera with some thirty-five species, varying in size from fourteen inches in _Merops natalensis_ to about six and half in several forms of _Melittophagus_. _Nyctiornis amictus_, of the Malay countries, is green, with lilac forehead and crown, scarlet cheeks and throat-tuft, and a few greenish-blue plumes at the base of the bill. _Meropogon forsteri_ of Celebes is also green, but has the crown, gular plumes and breast cobalt-blue, the occiput and nape brown, the abdomen dusky, and the lateral tail-feathers reddish-brown margined with green. _Merops apiaster_ has ruddy-brown head, neck, upper back, and broad alar bar, buff lower back, green wings and tail with black tips to the long median rectrices, light blue upper tail-coverts, pale green and white forehead, black ear-coverts, and bright yellow throat, divided from the greenish-blue under parts by a black band. It not unfrequently visits Britain–as the Blue-tailed Bee-eater, _M. philippinus_, is said to have done once–and ranges from South Europe to Central Asia and North Africa, wintering in North-West India and South Africa. _M. viridis_, extending from Senegambia to North-East Africa and Cochin China, is yellowish-green, with a rufous tint on the hind-neck, much buff on the wing- and tail-quills, a black band washed with blue on the fore-neck, and some blue and black on the face. _M. nubicus_ of the northern half of the Ethiopian Region has crimson-pink upper parts, blue-green head and throat, light blue rump and abdomen, {390}rose-pink breast, black markings on the sides of the head, and black tips to the remiges and rectrices. _Melittophagus gularis_ of West Africa is glossy black above, with bright blue on the forehead, rump, wings and median tail-feathers; the throat is crimson, the lower surface black with blue streaks; the wing-quills are for the most part rufous margined with black.

The Old World Families Bucerotidae and Upupidae are united under the latter appellation by Dr. Gadow,[227] who recognises the Sub-families _Bucerotinae_ or Hornbills, _Upupinae_ or Hoopoes, and _Irrisorinae_ or Wood-Hoopoes; but the two aforesaid groups should decidedly be kept separate.

Fam. V. BUCEROTIDAE.–The Hornbills derive their name from the immensely developed bill and casque, or helmet, found in such forms as _Buceros_ (p. 395), though the excrescence in _Aceros_ and some species of _Lophoceros_ is rudimentary. It may be mentioned that the huge beak of the Toucans denotes no affinity to this group. The casque–open in front in _Bucorvus_–is more or less filled with cellular bony tissue, or with an almost solid mass of bony columns in _Rhinoplax_; the mandibles are occasionally serrated. The metatarsi are short, save in the terrestrial _Bucorvus_, and are rough and scaly; the toes have broad flat soles, the second and third being united for one phalanx, the third and fourth still further. The powerful wings have eleven primaries, and from ten to sixteen secondaries, while the under coverts do not perfectly cover the base of the quills. The tail has ten rectrices and is usually long, though shorter in _Bucorvus_; it is either square or graduated, and has the two median feathers much elongated in _Rhinoplax_ and _Ortholophus_. The furcula is U-shaped, the tongue rudimentary; the aftershaft is wanting; there is no down on the adults or callow young; and the eyelashes are prominent, a rare feature among birds. In most forms the atlas (p. 5) fuses with the axis.

These arboreal birds, termed "Calaos" in French, frequent deep tall jungle or cultivated districts near rivers, up to five thousand feet; most, if not all, of the species descending from the trees in the morning and evening, when they have been observed bathing in streams, and digging up loose soil with their beaks. _Bucorvus_ spends much of the day upon the ground searching for food.

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The flight, often prolonged to considerable distances, is heavy and slow, the unwieldy body acting as a great drag, though counterbalanced by the pneumaticity, or air-containing nature of the bones, which is perhaps greater in Hornbills than in any other birds. On the wing a sound is generally produced like that of a steam-engine, possibly due to the open nature of the quills; but _Rhinoplax_, _Berenicornis_, _Anorhinus_, and _Anthracoceros malabaricus_ are said to fly noiselessly. In some species the wing-action is regular; in others, rapid strokes alternate with sailing movements on outspread pinions; the head is usually drawn in and the tail depressed; while flocks proceed in single file. Individuals alight heavily, and {392}from their bulk are restricted to the stronger branches, along which they shuffle awkwardly, even assisting themselves with their beak.

Hornbills may be met with singly or in pairs, but ordinarily form parties of five or six, if not of larger numbers, gathering together to feed or to roost at fixed spots, which they leave before sunrise. They are not naturally shy, and if disturbed only resort to some neighbouring tree, where they may be often observed sitting on the boughs during the mid-day hours, with puffed out plumage, open bill, and head sunk upon the back as if overcome by the heat. From time to time while perched they elevate or depress the crest and utter loud yelping cries, not uncommonly flapping their wings and bowing their heads; when feeding they constantly chatter in chorus like Parrots, and vanish with shrill screams if intruders appear. The characteristic note, however, is a harsh, continuous sound, intermediate between the bray of an ass and the shriek of a railway engine; that of _Bucorvus abyssinicus_ has been syllabled "hūm-hūm," and that of _B. cafer_, the "Bromvogel" of South Africa, has been said to resemble a lion's roar, and to be audible for a mile. All the species are apparently most noisy in the morning and evening, or before rain.

Fruits and insects–the latter occasionally hawked for in the air–constitute the normal food, but the larger forms devour small mammals, birds, eggs and reptiles, with grubs, flowers, and young shoots; while _Bucorvus_, which feeds chiefly upon the ground, and hops rapidly, will eat tortoises, mandioc-roots, and so forth. Berries of _Strychnos_ and figs seem greatly in favour. Nearly everything is swallowed entire, with a backward jerk of the head, animals having the life beaten out of them previously, and most substances being tossed up into the air. The male has a most curious habit of casting up the lining of the gizzard with its contents enclosed, possibly to feed the female or young.[228]

A hole in a tree or a cavity at the junction of two branches serves for the nest, wherein the hen is enclosed by a plaster of dung or like material; there, under penalty of death, she remains until she emerges dirty, wasted and enfeebled, when the brood is hatched. From one to four dingy white eggs with coarse pores are deposited upon the débris or a few feathers. Contrary to expectation, observations seem to shew that the female walls herself in; but, however that may be, the cock feeds her through {393}the small opening left, and is even said to knock with his bill to attract her attention as he clings to the bark. He shews great anxiety about his charge, and the hen screams and bites if molested. Various members of the Family expand the tail and inflate the throat when courting; some thrive fairly well as pets; while _Aceros nipalensis_ of India, and _Dichoceros bicornis_, the Homrai, ranging thence to the Malay countries, are said to be excellent eating. The latter is sacred to Vishnu; the immured female of _Rhytidoceros subruficollis_ serves as a type of virtue to the Burmese; and natives believe that the plaster for the holes is composed of gum and earth from the four quarters of the globe. In South Africa the Fingoes think that their cattle will contract disease if Hornbills are shot; Kafirs consider that drought will cease if one of them is sunk under water and drowned; Ovampos pretend that the eggs are too brittle to be handled.

Some nineteen genera may be admitted, from the Ethiopian, Indian, and Australian Regions, with about seventy species, more than thirty of which occur in each of the first two areas; a couple inhabit Celebes, and one ranges over the Moluccas and Papuasia to the Solomon Islands. None inhabit Australia.

The somewhat scanty plumage is usually black, white, and grey; but a greenish or bluish tinge, or rufous heads and lower parts are not unfrequent. Crests are present, except in _Bucorvus_; _Ceratogymna_ has a gular wattle; _Berenicornis_ and _Ortholophus_ exhibit long upcurved loral plumes; while the orbits and throat are more or less naked, and usually of brilliant colours, these with the bill and casque being often a distinguishing mark between the sexes. The last develops gradually in the duller young.

_Rhinoplax vigil_ of the Malay countries, termed the Helmet Hornbill, has a line down the back and the neck naked and red. The casque is yellow in front and red behind, and is much used by Eastern artists for carving and making brooches. _Berenicornis comatus_, of the same districts, has a moderate black keeled casque, and bare blue orbits and throat. The female exhibits less white. _Bycanistes buccinator_ of East Africa has a large blackish furrowed casque and purple naked areas. _Lophoceros nasutus_ of North-East and West Africa, has the bill and rudimentary casque black, with a yellow streak on the maxilla and several oblique yellow ridges on the mandible, the bare orbits apparently grey. In the female the bill shews red in place of black.

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