106 TROPICAL NATURE, AND OTHER ESSAYS. 



the most vivid reds, blues, and yellows, in endless com- 

 binations. The African species are usually black or 

 greenish-black, with masses of intense crimson, yellow, 

 or white, mixed in various proportions and patterns ; 

 while the American species combine both styles of 

 colouring, but the tints are usually more delicate, and 

 are often more varied and more harmoniously inter- 

 blended. In the Messrs. Marshall's fine work 1 all the 

 species are described and figured ; and few more in- 

 structive examples can be found than are exhibited in 

 their beautifully-coloured plates, of the endless ways in 

 which the most glaring and inharmonious colours are 

 often combined in natural objects with a generally 

 pleasing result. 



We will next group together three families which, al- 

 though quite distinct, may be said to represent each other 

 in their respective countries, the toucans of America, the 

 plantain-eaters of Africa, and the hornbills of the East 

 all being large and remarkable birds which are sure 

 to attract the traveller's attention. The toucans are the 

 most beautiful, on account of their large and richly- 

 coloured bills, their delicate breast-plumage, and the 

 varied bands of colour with which they are often adorned. 

 Though feeding chiefly on fruits, they also devour birds' 

 eggs and young birds ; and they are remarkable for the 

 strange habit of sleeping with the tail laid flat upon 

 their backs, in what seems a most unnatural and in- 

 convenient position. What can be the use of their 

 enormous bills has been a great puzzle to naturalists, 

 the only tolerably satisfactory solution yet arrived at 



1 A Monograph of the Capitonidce or Scansorial Barbels, by C. F. T. 

 Marshall and G. F. L. Marshall. 1871. 



