56 JIIIU) IIAI.I.EKV. 



this pourii is I'etaincd in iidiilt birds tlirougliout the year or devclupcd 

 al'rcsli each season. A female of the (jrcat Bustard witli lier down)' 

 nestlings may be seen on the floor of Case 'i'.l 



The largest of all is the Paauw or Kori IJnstard ( E'ipodotis kori) (592) . 

 from the plains of Afriea : and among the forms eharactcrised by orna- 

 mental plumes on the crown and neck \vc may draw- attention to 

 Miicqneen's Bustard already mentioned above, and the Lesser Floiican 

 or Likh {Si/ji//i'o//s /i/rrit/i) (588l, nhicli is further remarkable for its 

 aenmiiint(> fli"ht-feathers. 



Order XIII. OPISTIIOCO.MIFORMRS. 

 family OpisTiiocoMin v. Hoatzin'. (Plato X.) 



[Talile- The singular South American bird known as the Iloatzin [Optatho- 

 l"";' '" coiiiiis hoasi/i) (594) is the oulv representative of this Order, and has 



pf Bnv." l)ecn referred by different natnralists to the ( Jame-Birds and other 

 groups. Ill spite of its external resemblance to the C4uans, it is perhaps 

 more nearly allied to the Rails, while certain points of struetare seem 

 to indicate considerable affinity to the Cuckoos. It inhabits the banks 

 of the Amazon and other great South American rivers, extending as far 

 sontli as Bolivia. The skeleton presents many remarkable modifications, 

 the stf)'nuin being unlike that of any other species of bird. The keel 

 is much reduced and its posterior termination is fiattened-out into a 

 broadened surface which supports the greater part of the weight of 

 the body when the bird is at rest. The cnormons size of the crop has 

 probably caused the curious modifications which the furcula, sternum, 

 and pectoral muscles have undergone. The food consists of leaves and 

 fruit, and the birds after death have a very unpleasant odmir which 

 prevents tlicm being used as food. In spite of their large wings the 

 flight of these birds is very feeble and awkward, and wiien distuibed they 

 only fly for a very short distance. The nestlings, which can both see 

 and crawl soon after they are hatched, have a well-developed claw on 

 the pollex and index fingers of the wings by means of which they creep 

 about among the branches assisted by the bill and feet. They can also 

 swim and dive well. The nest, a loose platform of spiny twigs, is 

 placed on branches overhanging the water, and the eggs closely resemble 

 those laid by the Coru-Crake and other Rails. 



Order XIV. GRUIFORMES. Ckane-likk Birds. 

 ^ [Cases 'j^'iii^ Order includes the Cranes and a number of allied but some- 

 ' "" ' what aberrant forms. In general external appearance they resemble 



