388 CORACIIFORMES CHAP. 
the syrinx is tracheo-bronchial, the aftershaft is rudimentary ; 
while there is no down in adults or nestlings. 
The flight of Bee-eaters is rapid and Swallow-like, and they 
have a habit of sitting on dead branches or even upright sticks, 
from which they dart in pursuit of their prey, to return again 
promptly after the manner of Flycatchers. They skim actively 
over the surface of the earth,sail aloft in circles,or float with shghtly 
upturned wings in the air; while they rest among the foliage at 
mid-day, and not uncommonly roost in a row on some branch 
at night. Occasionally they may be seen dusting themselves 
like Larks. Nyctiornis is less energetic, and loves dense forest- 
shades or woods of lofty trees, as does JMMeropogon; but the 
other forms prefer more open country, and frequent the neigh- 
bourhood of swamps or rivers, as well as arid districts. d/erops 
is constantly seen in flocks, J/elittophagus less often; Nyctiornis, 
with rare exceptions, lives singly or in pairs. The last-named 
sometimes will not stir even when shot at, and none of the 
Family are by nature shy. The note is, according to circum- 
stances, a loud harsh whistle or a soft flute-like sound; but 
Nyctiornis utters a deep croak, ending in a churring noise, 
puffing out the gular plumes meanwhile and nodding the head 
up and down. The birds are not ordinarily noisy. It 1s when 
hawking in the air that the brilhant colours are most strikingly 
displayed, the snap of the bill being at such times distinctly 
audible; insects are also picked off the backs of cattle, and, 
more rarely, captured on the ground; while J/erops philippinus, 
and no doubt other species, bruise their prey against their 
perch. The name Bee-eater is well deserved, for in Spain 
Merops apiaster is a perfect pest to the bee-keeper, catching the 
workers as they enter and leave the hives. The indigestible 
portions of the food are cast up as pellets, often found in the 
nest. The four to six round, glossy white eggs are deposited in 
holes in banks, or even in tunnels bored vertically downwards in 
level ground, which extend to a depth of from three to ten feet. 
Merops superciliosus and M. nubicus alone are said to make a 
shght nest of straw and feathers, the members of this genus 
and of MMelittophagus often forming large colonies. The flesh 
is palatable, while the plumage is in great request for decorative 
purposes. 
The sexes are similar, the young duller, with the rectrices 
