WOODPECKERS. 



449 



in their unsociable nature and stolid dispositions, and in the 

 solitary lives they pass in the wildest parts of woods. 'Like them, 

 also, they only go out in the morning and evening to seek the 

 insects and caterpillars which form their principal nourishment. The 

 presence of man does not frighten them ; and this confidence often 

 leads to their death, for they are persistently pursued for their flesh, 

 which is said to be excellent, and also for their very beautiful 

 feathers. Their name Couroucous arises from the cry which they 

 utter at breeding-times. They inhabit the inter-tropical regions of 

 both continents. The most 

 remarkable species is the 

 Resplendent Trogon (Ca- 

 liirus resplendens, Fig. 174), 

 indigenous to Mexico and 

 Brazil. The plumage of 

 this bird is of a magnificent 

 emerald green frosted with 

 gold ; its head is sur- 

 mounted by a beautiful tuft 

 of the same colour. The 

 daughters of the Caciques 

 in the New World formerly 

 used its feathers in their 

 adornment. At the present 

 time Creoles employ them 

 for the same purpose. The 

 most common species is 

 the Cuban Trogon \Prioteli4S 

 1c in minis, Fig. 175). 



Touracoes or Plantain- 

 eaters {Musophagidce), are African birds, of which the general forms 

 bear some analogy to Curassows. They live in forests, and perch 

 upon the highest branches of trees : their flight is heavy and awk 

 ward. 



WOODPECKERS. 



The Birds which compose this family are characterised by a rather 

 long, conical, pointed beak, and by a very extensible tongue. They 

 form two genera, Woodpeckers and Wry-necks. 



Woodpeckers excel in the art of climbing, but they do not 

 perform it in the same manner as Parrots. They accomplish their 

 89 



Fig. 175. Cuban Trogon. 



