460 REPTILES AND BIRDS. 
or river-side Birds, from the bee-eaters and other Fissirostral Birds, 
which, while they resemble each other in many physical charac- 
teristics, differ essentially in their habits; in short, while the one 
haunts the river, feeds upon its inhabitants, and nests upon its margin, 
the other keeps to the woods and forests, feeds upon insects, and 
builds in holes in trees. 
The Ceyx tridactyla, inhabiting the Indian Archipelago, very 
closely resembles the King-fisher of Europe in its habits ; it darts in 
short rapid flight along the surface of lakes and rivulets, emitting 
Fig. 18£2,—Common Bee-eater. 
shrill discordant sounds ; it perches on trees on the river banks, and 
feeds on small fishes and aquatic insects. ‘Their tarsii are smooth, the 
inner toe wanting; in other respects its habits are those of the 
King-fisher. 
The Bee-eaters (AZcrofide) have the beak long, thin, slightly 
curved, and pointed, the mandible having a trenchant edge ; the tarsi 
short ; the wings long and pointed ; the tail well-developed, tapering, 
or forked. ‘They are slender, graceful birds. Their cries, while they 
skim through the air on rapid wing, are incessant. The name of 
Bee-eaters they receive from their principal food, which consists of 
various Hymenoptera, especially bees and wasps. They seize their 
