628 CAPRI MULGINiE. 



The feet are very small ; the tarsus partially feathered ; the 

 toes four, with their lower surface broad and flattened ; the an- 

 terior toes connected by basal membranes ; the first toe shortest 

 and directed inwards, the second next, the third much longer 

 than the fourth. Claws moderate, well arched, compressed, 

 acute. 



The plumage is full, very soft, blended ; the feathers ovate 

 or oblong. Wings very long, with the second and third quills 

 longest. The tail long, rounded, even, or forked, of twelve 

 soft feathers. Almost all the species have very strong bristles 

 along the base of the upper mandible ; and some have the 

 feathers of the face radiated like those of Owls. 



The Caprimulginre, named after the genus Caprimulgus, the 

 extreme absurdity of the name of which seems to be its best 

 recommendation, are remarkable for their nocturnal or crepus- 

 cular habits, light and rapid flight, and great activity. They 

 feed on insects, especially nocturnal lepidoptera ; but some, it 

 would appear, are properly frugivorous, living on berries. This 

 circumstance becomes less remarkable when we remember that 

 even among the Hirundinse some, and among the Myiotherina) 

 many, also feed on vegetable substances. The Caprimulginae 

 are especially natives of warm climates ; but a few species mi- 

 grate, like the Swallows. They nestle on the ground, in caves, 

 or in hollow trees, and generally lay two eggs. The young are 

 at first covered with down. 



The genera of which this family is composed are Steatornis, 

 Podargus, ^gotheles, Nyctibius, and Caprimulgus. The first 

 is characterized by a strong bill nearly half the length of the 

 head, the upper mandible curved and denticulate, the wings 

 having the fourth quill longest. Steatornis caripensis, disco- 

 vered by Humboldt in South America, although nocturnal in 

 its habits, feeds on fruit, and not on insects, and is said to bo 

 intermediate between the Crows and Goatsuckers. The genus 

 Podargus also has the bill strong, although short, bristly radi- 

 ating feathers on the face, and rounded wings. Its species in- 

 habit New Holland, Van Diemen's Land, and the Indian 

 Archipelago. iEgotheles and Nyctibius form the transition 

 from these genera to Caprimulgus, of which the characters are 

 given in detail in the following pages. 



