S92 BIBDS OF ILLINOIS. 



i'AMiLY CUCTJLID^.— The Cuckoos. 



Chab. Bill compressed. UHUully iiinri' or less U-nKthonpil and with dcfurvcd culmeu. 

 Itlctal brlstlos few or none. Nostrils exiiosej, uo uiisul tufts. TiiU luiieiind soft, of rliclit 

 to twelve feathers. Toes in pairs, deeply eleft or not united, the outer anterior too 

 usually versatile, hut dlreeted rather laterally than baeltward. 



"The Cueulidie form a strongly marked group of birds, easily dis- 

 tinguished among the Zi/nodarti/li by the characters given above. 

 The outer toe is versatile, but in the American fonns is more 

 lateral than posterior, in the skin standing sideways, or even an- 

 terior, more frequently than behind." {Hist. N. Am. B.) 



Of the several subfamilies which have been recognized by authors, 

 only three belong to eastern North America, and of these two are 

 mere stragglers from other regions. They may be characterized 

 as follows : 



Coooyzinee, Fneo covered with feathers; bill elongated, more or less cylln- 

 ilrieal. .atraisht or curved. Tail of ten feathers. 

 Bill aliout the length of the head, or not longer; curved. Loral feathers 



soft. Legs weak, tarsus shorter than the toes. Arboreal Cocci/ztis. 



Bill longer than the head; straight. Loral feathers still, bristly. Torsi 



much longer than the toes. Terrestrial Oeococcur. 



CrotophaginsB. Face naked; liiU much compressed, with a sharp crest. 



Tail ■jf eight feathers. Bill shorter than and nearly as high as the head. Crotophaoa. 



Only Cocvyzus has a cliiim to special notice in this connection, 

 Crotophaga and Geococcyx being "extrahmital" so far as this work 

 is concerned, although the latter approaches rather near, having 

 been obtained in the western poi-tion of the Indian Territory 

 (Kiowa Agency) and in Southwestern Kansas. 



Genus COCCYZUS Vieillot. 



Coccuzus Vieillot. Analyse, 1816, 28. Typo, Cnculus americanua Linn. 



"Gen. Chab. Head without crest; feathers about base of bill soft; nearly as long 

 as the head, deeurved, slemler, and attenuated towards the end. Nostrils linear. Wings 

 lengthened, reaching the middle of the tail; the tertlals short. Tail of ten graduated 

 feathers. Foet weak; tarsi shorter than the middle too. 



