146 B UTCIIER-BIRDS. 



FAMILY V. 

 THE BUTCHER-BIRDS. LANIID^E. 



General Characteristics. — Bill more or less long, strong, and straight, with the 

 culmen curved, and the sides compressed to the tip, which is generally hooked and 

 emarginated ; the gonys long and ascending ; the gape sometimes furnished with 

 short bristles ; wings moderate, rounded, or pointed ; tail more or less lengthened, 

 and usually rounded ; the tarsi strong, and more or less long ; toes moderate, with 

 the hind toe long and broadly padded beneath; the claws long, curved, and very 

 acute. 



The majority of the species belonging to this family are inha- 

 bitants of the eastern hemisphere, a few only being found in the 

 New World. Their food consists of insects, worms, and mollusca; 

 but many of them, not content with such humble fare, kill and 

 devour the smaller birds and quadrupeds. In fact, the hooked 

 tip of the bill, the strong tooth-like fangs with which the upper 

 mandible is armed, and the curved and acute claws, seem at once 

 to indicate that the character of these birds is more predacious 

 than that of their nearest allies. By Linnaeus, and several of the 

 older naturalists, they were classed with the Accipitres ; indeed, 

 the shrikes almost equal the falcons in ferocity and daring. From 

 their perch upon a bough they will suddenly dart upon their prey, 

 which they kill with their beak, not with their feet. They have, 

 moreover, the singular habit of impaling their victims upon a thorn, 

 or hanging up small birds by the tendons of their wing : hence 

 they have received the name of " Butcher-Birds." They resemble 

 the thrushes, with which they insensibly blend, and, like them, are 

 generally met with in woods and coppices. These birds live in 

 companies, fly with unequal and precipitate flight, uttering sharp 

 cries ; they construct their nests wi h much neatness upon trees, 

 and lay five or six eggs. Some possess the faculty of accurately 

 imitating the notes of the birds living in their vicinity. 



This family comprehends the Butcher-Birds and the Bush 

 Shrikes. 



