Picus. BIRDS. SCAN SORES. 91 



to Barrington, it is stated, that k ' The Bev. J\Ir Stafford was walking in 

 Glossopdale, in the Peak of Derbyshire, and saw a cuckoo rise from its nest, 

 which Avas on the stump of a tree, that had been some time felled, so as much 

 to resemble the colour of the bird. In this nest were two young cuckoos, 

 one of which he fastened to the ground, by means of a peg and line, and 

 very frequently, for many days, beheld the old cuckoo feed there her young 

 ones.'"— Phil. Trans. 1772, 299. The egg, which varies in colour and mark- 

 ings, is deposited in the nest of the dupe dame, after she has laid one or two 

 eggs. When the young cuckoo is hatched, it becomes restless, and ceases 

 not until it has ejected from the nest the eggs or young of its foster-parent. 

 It is fed by the dupe with maternal care, until able to provide for itself. 

 (See Jenner, Phil. Trans. 1788, p. 219.) When in a young state, the irides 

 are liver-brown, the plumage brown with dark spots ; the feathers on the 

 forehead margined with white ; beneath, yellowish-white, with transverse 

 black bars. In this state, or before acquiring the plumage of maturity, it 

 has been termed Cuculus hepalicus. — The food of the cuckoo consists of insects, 

 especially caterpillars, both smooth and hairy. It arrives in April. The old 

 ones depart in the beginning of July, and the young, hatched at or before 

 that period, seem to leave us in succession. 



Gen. LVI. PICUS. Woodpecker. — Bill long, straight, 



angular and compressed ; nostrils covered by deflected 



bristles ; the first quill short ; the tail-feathers stiff ^and 

 pointed. 



12£. P. viridis. Green Woodpecker. — Plumage, above, 

 green ; beneath, grey ; the crown red. 



Will. Orn. 93. Sibb. Scot. 15. Linn. Syst. i. 175. Penm Brit. Zool. i. 

 240. Temm. Orn. i. 391 — E, Itain-fowl, High-hoo, Hew-hole, Awl- 

 bird, Yappingall, Yaffer, Popinjay ; IV, Cnocell y coed, Delor y drew ; 

 G, Lasair choille — In wooded districts. 



Length 13|, breadth 21^ inches; weight 7 ounces. Bill black; irides 

 grey ; feet greenish. Feathers at the base of the bill, and around the eves 

 black. Lower part of the back and rump gamboge-yellow. Quills 19, barred 

 with dusky black and yellowish-grey. Tail-feathers 10, with green and 

 brown bars. Female, with less red on the head and black round the eyes, 

 and the mustaches (which in the male are red) are black. — Nest in the hoies 

 of trees. Eggs 5, bluish-white. Young with little red on the head, the 

 plumage inclining to grey, with spots of that colour on the back. The mu- 

 staches are spotted with black and white. 



123. P. major. Greater spotted Woodpecker. — Plumage, 

 above, black ,- scapulars, and beneath, white. 



Will. Orn. 94. Linn. Syst. i. 176. Penn. Brit. Zool. i. 243. Temm. 

 Orn. i. 395 — E, Whitwall ; IV, Delor fraith — In wooded districts. 

 Length 9i, breadth 12 inches; weight 3 ounces. Bill black ; irides red; 

 feet dark grey. Front grey, crown black, the nape crimson. Cheeks and 

 ear-covers white. A black stripe from the gape to the nape, with a branch 

 descending on the neck. A white patch on each side of the hind neck. Quills 

 20, black, with white spots. Tail-feathers 10, the four middle ones black, the 

 rest white with black spots. Vent crimson. The female wants the red on 

 the nape. — Nest, a hole in a decayed tree. Eggs 5, bluish-white. The young 

 have the front grey, the crown red, and the nape black ; the plumage above 

 with a brownish tinge, and beneath with black dots. In this state it is the 



