THE PARADISE JACAMAR. 137 



THE TINY KINGFISHER is found, according to Gould, in Northern Australia and New- 

 Guinea, and is a remarkably beautiful little creature. 



In its habits it is very shy, and seems to prefer the deepest thicket as its place of resi- 

 dence, so that it cannot easily be approached without taking the alarm, and, indeed, is but 

 seldom seen at all, even by those who give their attention wholly to the search after objects of 

 natural history. Its voice, however, will often betray its presence, as it is fond of hearing 

 itself talk, and frequently utters a shrill piping note, which can be heard at a considerable dis- 

 tance, and cannot be mistaken for the voice of any other bird. Although it is able to fly with 

 considerable swiftness, it is not very powerful on the wing, its flight being strangely unsteady. 



In its habits it resembles the European Kingfisher, catching and feeding on fish in much , 

 the same manner. 



The general color of the Tiny Kingfisher is a most intense blue, which, with few excep- 

 tions, is spread over the whole of the upper surface. Upon the eyes and below the ear-coverts 

 there is a rather large white patch, the primary feathers of the wings are blackish brown, and 

 the secondaries blue, edged with shining green. The throat, chest, and abdomen are of a 

 beautifully pure white, contrasting boldly with the deep blue of the upper parts of the body. 



ANOTHER species, the AZIJRE KINGFISHER (Alcyone azurea), is closely allied to the tiny 

 Kingfisher, and is also a native of Australia, but inhabits a different locality, being found in 

 New South Wales and Southern Australia. 



The nest of this bird is made in holes in the banks, and is simply composed of the dis- 

 gorged bones, scales, and other indigestible portions of the fishes which have been rejected 

 after the manner of most carnivorous birds. The number of eggs is rather large, being from 

 five to seven. The young are remarkably noisy, and whenever the parent birds pass the 

 entrance of the hole the young Kingfishers immediately think themselves hungry, and set up 

 a clamorous appeal for food. It is a very remarkable fact that the young birds assume the 

 plumage of the adult at their first moult, and being always rather precocious, soon manage to 

 get their own living. 



The food of this bird consists chiefly of fish and aquatic insects. It is solitary in its habits, 

 being never seen assembled in numbers, and appearing to exercise a watchful jurisdiction over 

 a certain amount of land which it chooses to consider as its own property. The intrusion of 

 a stranger is instantly resented, and as the temper of the bird is naturally quarrelsome, it is 

 no uncommon event to see a pair of them engaged in conflict, dashing to and fro like angry 

 meteors, and whirling through the air in transports of rage. The general color of the Azure 

 Kingfisher is bright ultramarine blue above, buff upon the neck, chest, and abdomen, and 

 pure white upon the chin. 



J AC AM A RS. 



THE curious birds which are popularly known by the name of JACAMARS, are all natives 

 of the New World, and, as might be imagined from the metallic brilliancy of their plumage, 

 are denizens of the tropical regions of their native land. 



In all these birds the bill is straight, long, rather compressed, pointed, with a decided 

 keel on the upper mandible, and with the corners of the mouth defended by some bristle-like 

 hairs. As will be seen, the toes are varied in number, some species possessing only three toes, 

 while the remainder are furnished with four toes as usual. The two front toes are united only 

 as far as the claws, and the thumb or "hallux" is either very short or altogether absent. 

 They are insect-eaters, and greatly resemble the trogons in many of their habits. 



THE PARADISE JACAMAR is a striking little bird, on account of the beautiful colors with 

 which its plumage is decorated, its graceful form, and the long forked tail. It is but a small 

 bird, being not as large as an ordinary thrush, but its plumage is so beautiful in its coloring 



VOL. tt-ffl. 



