AYES. 349 



straight, generally toothed and hooked, gape generally with bristles ; wings 

 generally moderate ; tail more or less lengthened ; tarsi and feet strong ; 

 claws curved and sharp. 



A family consisting of about one hundred and fifty birds, which represent 

 the strongest rapacious characters of the Dentirostres. -No others have 

 the bill so strongly toothed as those of the genus Lanius, which fact 

 induced Linnaeus to arrange them as rapacious birds. 



These birds are distributed throughout the world. 



Sub-fajji. 1. LaniincB, Butcher Birds, or Shrikes. Bill strong, rather 

 short, curved, much compressed, hooked, and generally strongly toothed ; 

 wings generally long and rounded ; tail moderate ; tarsi and feet rather 

 short and robust ; claws curved and acute. 



This sub-family is distributed over the whole surface of the globe. All 

 the species are of remarkably predaceous habits, preying upon insects, 

 reptiles, and even other birds, which, it is said, they destroy by strangling. 

 Some of the species impale insects on thorns for the purpose of securing 

 them while feeding. The butcher bird of Europe, Lanius exubitor {pi. 102, 

 fig. 20), is well known, being a very common bird in France, and 

 generally distributed throughout the continent. The red-backed shrike, 

 L. cnllurio {pi. 102, fig. 19), is another European species of frequent 

 occui'rence. 



The North American species best known are the northern butcher bird 

 {L. septentrionalis) and the Louisiana butcher bird (L. liidovicianus). 

 The former inhabits the whole territory of the United States, and is ahiiost 

 as rapacious as the small hawks. He is rather a handsome bird, wnth fine 

 grey and white plumage, and is known in some districts by the name of 

 the winter mocking-bird, having some resemblance to the bird indicated. 

 The Louisiana species is similar in general appearance and habits, and is 

 almost restricted to the Southern States. 



Several other species are natives of Asia and South America. 



Suh-fam. 2. ThamnophilincB, or Bush Shrikes. Bill lengthened, straight, 

 compressed, hooked at the tip, gape more or less bristled ; wings moderate, 

 rounded ; tail long, rounded ; tarsi and feet moderate. Size various. 



Africa and South America are the countries inhabited by the bush 

 shrikes, though one genus found in New Guinea is arranged here. 



The South American species inhabit the vast forests of that portion of 

 this continent, and are said to live almost exclusively on beetles and other 

 hard-shelled insects. The sti'iped shrike {Thamnophilus doliatus) and the 

 spotted shrike {T. ncBvius) are common species. 



The African birds of this sub-family (genus Laniarius) generally have 

 considerable beauty of plumage, the prevailing colors being fine black and 

 scarlet; the Barbary shrike, L. harharus {pi. 102, fig. 18), and the olive- 

 colored shrike {L. olivaceus), are frequently met with. The species 

 from New Guinea belong to the genus Cracticus ; they are similar in 

 general habits and history to the others of this sub-family. One of the 

 most common species is the black and white shrike, C. varius {pi. 102 



fig. 16). 



553 



