THE HORNBILLS 



1831 



. first section by the elongation of the central pair of feathers in the tail. 

 Wedge-Tailed . . 



Hornbills * n tne case ^ t ^ le S enus Berenicomis of Malaysia, as well as m the 



West African Ortholophus, the tail is very much elongated, and forms a 



graceful appendage of graduated feathers, which have conspicuous white tips. To 



this section of the hornbills belong the members of the genus Lophoceros, which is 



peculiar to Africa, and contains seventeen species. They are all small birds, com- 



YELI.OW-BII.LED HORNBILI,. 



pared with the general run of the species of Bucerotidcs, and their mode of life seems 

 to be somewhat different from those of the big hornbills of the east, though they 

 have the some habit of plastering up the female in a tree at the season of incuba- 

 tion. They are often found on the ground, and feed on berries, seeds, and insects; 

 Mr. Andersson stating that he has found considerable quantities of sand in their 

 stomachs, picked up by the birds when on the ground. Of the yellow-billed horn- 

 bill (L. melanoleucas) the above-named naturalist remarks that it " is the most com- 

 mon of the hornbills in the middle of the southern parts of Damaraland. It is 



