CUOULID^ 



173 



Key of the Genera. 



A. Wings long and pointed ; difference between the 



length of the primaries and secondaries 

 greater than the length of the tarsus 

 {Cuculince). 



a. No occipital crest. 



«'. Plumage never metallic ; sexes alike Cuculus, tq. 11^. 



6'. Plumage brilliantly metallic ; sexes dis- 

 similar Chrijsococcyx, p. 184. 



b. A strong crest on the head CoccysteSj p. 192. 



B. AVings short and rounded ; the difference be- 



tween the primaries and secondaries about 

 half the length of the tarsus (Centropince). 



a. Hind claw elongated to twice the length of 



the others, straight and lark-like Centropas, p. 202. 



b. Hind claw curved and normal, not longer than 



the others Ceuthmocliares, p. 210. 



Subfamily I. CUCULIN^. 



Wings long, pointed and flat, not fitting to the sides of the body ; 

 distance between the tips of the primaries and secondaries greater 

 than the length of the tarsus or culmen ; tarsus more or less 

 feathered in front and also covered by the long thigh feathers. 



Fig. 58. Wing of Cuculus gularis. x \. 



Anatomical characters are : the absence of the femoro-caudal 

 muscle in the thigh, and the presence of a simple undivided band of 

 feathers on each side of the naked pectoro-ventral tract. Nearly all 

 the birds contained in this subfamily are of parasitic habits. 



