RAIN-BIRD. — Saurotliera vetula. 



kill the bird, and tliey are offended if tbey see any one else do so. Sparrman remarks that 

 the present species is seldom seen near Cape Town, as it cannot find a supply of its food 

 so near the habitations of man, and that lie never saw any except on the farm of a single 

 colonist, who had succeeded in hiving some wild swarms by fixing convenient boxes on 

 his grounds. 



One thing is certain, that the Honey Guide is by no means a safe conductor, as it will 

 sometimes lead its follower to the couching-place of a lion or tiger, or the retreat of a 

 poisonous snake. Gordon Gumming, as well as other travellers, testifies to this curioiis 

 mode of conduct. 



The feathers of the Honey Guide are thick, and the .skin is tougher than is usually the 

 case with birds, so that if the irritated bees should attack them, little harm is done unless 

 a sting should penetrate the eye or the bare skin around it. 



Honey Guides are found in various parts of Africa, India, and Borneo, and in all cases 

 their habits seem to be very similar. Two species are very common in Southern Africa, 

 namely, the bird figxired in the engraving, and a smaller species {Indicator minor). The 

 nesting of both these birds is very similar, their homes being pendent from the branches 

 of trees, and lieautifully woven into a bottle-like form, the entrance being downward. The 

 material of which they are composed, is bark torn into filaments. The eggs are from three 

 to four in number, and their colour is a brownish white. Both parents assist in the duties 

 of incubation. 



These birds are veiy soberly clad, the Great Honey-eater being brown above, darker on 

 the wings and tail, and greyish white on the under surface of the body. 



We now arrive at the Ground Cuckoos, all of which are inhabitants of tropical 

 America and the neighbouring islands, and are represented by the IIain-Bied. 



This curious Cuckoo, which is popularly known in Jamaica by the name of Eain-Bird, 

 is tolerably common in the West Indian Islands. 



According to Mr. Gosse, who has given a very interesting account of this species 

 in his "Birds of Jamaica," the Eain-15ird is so inquisitive at the sight of any new 

 object, and so reckless of danger while gratifying its curiosity, that it is often called by 



