ALCEDINIDa; — THE KINGFISHEES. 891 



ging through a soft fine sand bank, their progress is surprising, 

 sometimes making a deep excavation in a single night. The pages 

 of "The American Naturahst" contain several animated controver- 

 sies as to the depth, the shape, and the equipment of these passa- 

 ges. The result of the evidence thus given seems to be that the 

 holes the Kingfishers make are not less than four nor more than 

 fifteen feet in length ; that some are perfectly straight, while some, 

 just before their termination, turn to the right, and others to the 

 left ; and that all have, at or near the terminus, an enlarged space 

 in which the eggs are deposited. Here the eggs are usually laid on 

 the bare sand, there being very rarely, if ever, any attempt to con- 

 struct a nest. The use of hay, dry grass, and feathers, spoken of 

 by the older writers, does not appear to be confii'med by more re- 

 cent testimony. Yet it is quite possible that in certain situations, 

 the use of dry materials may be resorted to, to protect the eggs 

 from a too damp soil." 



