CHATTERERS. 



141 



Fig 75.— The Bohemian Ch^vtterek {Ampehs gamila). 



Sjib-Fainily III. 

 THE CHATTERERS PROPER. AMPELIN.^. 



General Char.acteristics.— Bill more or less long, with the gape very wide, the 

 culmen rather depressed and curved to the tip, which is emarginated, the sides com- 

 pressed towards the apex ; the gonys long and ascending ; the nostrils lateral, 

 mostly exposed, and somewhat oval ; the wings moderate, with the second to the 

 fourth quills generally the longest ; the tail generally short and even ; the tarsi 

 mostly short ; and the toes long, the outer toe slightly united at the base. 



The birds composing this sub-family inhabit the northern parts 

 of Europe, Asia, and North America, and are migratory, accord- 

 ing to the seasons, making their appearance in more temperate 

 latitudes on the approach of winter, and returning to their north- 

 ern haunts in the summer. They are usually met with in small 

 parties, but sometimes assemble in large flocks, consisting of 

 many hundreds, especially when on their migrations. Their food 

 consists of various kinds of fruit ; and as the fruits become scarce 

 they feed on insects, capturing them in the same way as the fly- 

 catchers. Their nest is placed in the fork of a tree some few feet 

 from the ground ; it is composed of coarse grass, lined within with 

 fine materials, on which are deposited three or four eggs. 



