CRANES AND STORKS 



rare occurrence among animal pigments, by having a 

 spectrum with absorption bands. It furthermore con- 

 tains copper. It is a highly interesting fact in view of 

 the supposed relationships of the Musophagidce, as the 

 family is termed, to the cuckoos, that the same pigment 

 has been found in a cuckoo. 



THE GOLDEN CROWNED CRANE 



This bird, the handsomest though not the largest of 

 the cranes, sensu stricto, is one of those birds which may 

 certainly be found in one of the outside paddocks of 

 the Zoo. In fact, cranes generally are a strong feature 

 in the Gardens, and nearly all the known species have 

 been exhibited. A great many may usually be seen 

 at any given time, and thus the visitor can note the 

 points in which this crane differs from its allies. It has, 

 as in cranes generally, a sharp and longish beak, though 

 not so long as in the typical cranes of the genus Grus ; 

 its legs again are long, but not so long as in the typical 

 cranes. It has, however, what no other crane has, a 

 tuft of golden coloured feathers, consisting merely of 

 the stems of the feathers without their lateral branches, 

 the barbs, upon the crown of the head, whence of course 

 its popular name. The cranes, as a race, could only be 

 confounded with the storks, to which their long and 

 pointed bills ally them. But this apparent likeness, 

 as well as the fact that both groups of birds have long 

 legs, is not a sufficient reason for placing them near 

 together in the face of certain profound differences. 

 Even by external characters it is easy to draw a line 

 between the storks and cranes. The latter have a 

 small hind toe, and the nostrils are far forward on the 

 beak ; in storks the hind toe is large and the nostril 

 is at the base of the beak. Internally there are im- 

 portant differences, especially in the skull. In the 

 stork tribe the bony palate is continuous across the 



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