100 



THE OOLOGIST 



makes one hesitate to risk a poor shot, in 

 momeutary expectation of getting a better 

 chance. At length, it dived into the recess- 

 es of a large yucca, where it stood motion- 

 less just one instant too long. I did not 

 see it fall, and feared I had missed, till, on 

 gaining the spot, I found the body of the 

 once sprightly and vivacious bird hanging 

 limp in a crevice of the thick fronds. As 

 I smoothed its disordered plumage, and 

 strolled back to camp, I felt the old-time 

 glow which those wlio are in the secret 

 know was not entirely due to the exercise 

 I had taken. 

 Elliott Coues. Birds of Colorado Vallei/. 



The Gigantic Kingfisher of New 

 Holland (Dacelo gigantea). 



rPHIS remarkable bird is a native of New 

 -*- Holland. The plumage is full and soft ; 

 and the feathers of the head are enlongated 

 into a crest. The bill is large, long, pow- 

 erful, and swollen at the sides ; the edge of 

 the upper mandible is bowed in near the 

 point, which latter is acute and bends over 

 the point of the lower mandible. The tar- 

 si are stout ; the toes armed with sharp 

 claws ; the wings are rather long, advanc- 

 ing when folded halfway down the tail — 

 this is long, broad, and somewhat rounded. 

 The eyes have a forward situation, being 

 placed close to the base of the beak, impart- 

 ing a sharp, cunning and even fierce ex- 

 pression to the face, and well depicting the 

 disposition of the bird, which is daring and 

 rapacious. Among the wooded mountain 

 districts in many parts of Australia, and es- 

 pecially those which border the Murrum- 

 bidgee River, this species is very common, 

 and may be observed sitting on the watch 

 for its prey, which consists of insects, small 

 quadrupeds and reptiles. Ever and anon 

 it breaks out into a singular and abrupt 

 laugh, somewhat resembling the syllables 

 yah-yah-yah, commencing in a low and 

 gradually rising to a high and loud tone, 

 startling when heard amidst the solitudes 

 of the woods. From this wild and discord- 



ant cry it has obtained from the colonists 

 the title of the " laughing or feathered jack- 

 ass." The natives call it gohera or gogob' 

 era. One seldom laughs without being an- 

 swered by a second, and among diurnal 

 birds it is the first which is heard in the 

 morning, and the last at the close of even- 

 ing ; it rises with the dawn, when the woods 

 re-echo with its gurgling laugh, and at sun- 

 set they are heard again in dissonant cho- 

 rus. 



Unqualified for plunging in the stream, 

 this bird is vigilant in the pursuit of rep- 

 tiles and insects. Snakes are said to be a 

 favorite food, and it may often be seen fly- 

 iug to a tree with one of these reptiles in 

 its beak, holding it just behind the head. 

 Generally the snake is killed before being 

 carried away : but sometimes the bird is 

 observed on the branch to break the rep- 

 tile's head in pieces with its strong sharp 

 beak. Occasionally, it is asserted, the Gi- 

 gantic Kingfisher will kill young chickens 

 and carry away eggs ; but its services in 

 destroying reptiles compensate the settler 

 for these petty depredations. We have 

 seen specimens of this bird in captivity : 

 generally they sat quietly on their perches, 

 earnestly watching all around them, and 

 now and then uttering their abrupt laugh ; 

 on food being presented, they became high- 

 ly excited, traversed the cage, repeatedly 

 mingling their voices, and manifesting by 

 every action the utmost eagerness and spir- 

 it. The general color above is olive brown ; 

 beneath whitish, with obscure dusky bars 

 on the breast ; top of the crest, brown ; a 

 white belt above each eye goes round the 

 occiput ; and a broad white collar extends 

 from the throat over the sides of the neck ; 

 the tail is banded with black and ferrugin- 

 ous — white at the tip. Its total length is 

 eiirhteen inches. 



The Golden Eagle, once seen frequently 

 in the eastern portions of the United States, 

 has gradually retreated before the rapid 

 population of the country to the most inac- 

 cessible places in the mountains. 



