VII PHYTOTOMIDAE—DENDROCOLAPTIDAE 48 3 
in damp, sunless caves, laying two buff eggs with reddish-brown 
and lilac spots; Pyroderus orenocensis deposits similar eggs on 
platforms of sticks placed in tree-forks; Tityra semifasciata 
lines holes in decayed limbs with dry grass to receive its white 
egos; Hadrostomus niger, H. homochrous, and some species of 
Pachyrhamphus, hang big nests of such materials as leaves, 
plant-stalks and wool, with side entrances, from low branches ; 
the two to four eggs, where known, being chocolate, faintly 
marked or unspotted; Phibalura fixes a cup of lichens in 
the crotch of a large tree, laying twice annually two greenish- 
blue eges with neutral markings; Cephalopterus is said to make 
a rough nest of sticks; and Pipreola riefferi to deposit pale 
salmon-coloured eggs, sparingly spotted with reddish-brown. 
Fam. VIII. Phytotomidae—— The Plant-cutters constitute a 
single genus Phytotoma, of four Finch-like species, having strongly 
serrated bills and pyenaspidean (p. 479) metatarsi. The primaries 
number ten, the secondaries nine, the rectrices twelve. P. rara of 
Chili is brown and black, with red crown and lower surface, white 
margins to the wing-coverts, and red-banded lateral tail-feathers ; 
the female has yellowish-brown under parts streaked with black, 
and a brown crown. P. raimondii of North-West Peru is some- 
what like, but has only a narrow red frontlet; P. angustirostris 
of Bolivia is greyer, with white on the secondaries and tail, and 
a browner breast; the hen being chiefly greyish, with black stria- 
tions above and spots below; P. rutila of Argentina and North 
Patagonia is very similar. Flocks or pairs of Plant-eaters are 
found in dry open situations, the former often consisting solely 
of the comparatively unsuspicious males; they sit aloft on bushes, 
but hide when alarmed. The flight is whirring with sudden 
short undulations; the food consists of seeds and other fruits, 
tender shoots, buds and leaves; while the voice is decidedly 
harsh, the alarm-note of the male resembles the bleating of a kid, 
and the female’s cry is cricket-like. The slight, shallow nest of 
twigs and fibres is placed in thick bushes, and contains four 
bluish-green eggs, flecked with brown. The birds are said to 
cut plants off close to the ground without apparent object. 
The four Families that follow are often classed as Tracheo- 
phonae, and have loud voices owing to their tracheal syrinx (p. 22). 
Fam. IX. Dendrocolaptidae.—This group, with over 200 
species, occupies the Neotropical Region, excluding the Antilles, 
