TURDICE. 



157 



SUB-FAMILY IV 



Oriolin^. 



The Orioles. 



Gen. Chakac. — Bill as long as the head, broad at the base, and compressed on 

 the sides, with the eulmen more or less elevated at the base and curved at 

 the tip, which is emarginated ; the nostrils lateral, basal, exposed, and 

 partly covered by a membrane ; the wings long, vrith the first three quills 

 equally graduated, and the third or fourth the longest ; the tarsi short and 

 strongly scaled; the toes moderate, and the lateral toes usually unequal. 



Fig. 64..— the wedge-billed okiole. 

 ( OrioluH acrorhynchus. ) 



These migratory birds are met witli in all parts of 

 the world ; they are usually found solitary or in pairs^ 

 but occasionally in small flocks^ frequenting the 

 skirts of forests, gardens, and orchards, in quest of 

 various kinds of fruit and insects. Their flight is 

 undulating, as they fly from one tree to another, to 

 search the foliage for caterpillars. They emit a loud, 

 mellow, plaintive cr}^ The nest is sometimes saucer- 



