136 BIRD (iALLKHY. 



Family XLIV. CORVID*;. CROWS. 



[Cases By almost common consent the birds of this family are placed at the 



83, 84.] nea( j O f t | )e Class Aves. Pre-eminence must be given to the members 



of the genus Corvus, more especially to the Raven (C. corax) (2793) of the 



' Northern Hemisphere, the bird perhaps best known from the most 



ancient times. 



In the Crow we find the most highly-developed type of wing and 

 foot. In the former every quill and wing-covert is perfectly formed ; 

 and in the latter all the scales on the metatarsi and toes are more 

 strongly indicated than in any other Passerine bird. 



The distribution of the family is nearly universal. 



Three subfamilies are recognised : the True Crows (Corvince), Magpies 

 and Jays (Garrulince) , and the Choughs (Freyilirue} . 



[Case 84.] Of the former the best-known examples are the Raven (2793), 

 Carrion-Crow (2796), Hooded Crow (2797), Rook (2792), and Jack- 

 daw (2801), all well-known British residents; also the Nutcracker 

 (Nucifraga caryocatactes) (2806 , an irregular visitor to England. A 

 remarkable African form is found in Corvultur (2794-5), which has 

 a greatly developed upper mandible. 



Our Magpie (2810) and Jay (2823) represent the second subfamily 

 (Garrulirwe) , with which are also associated various striking Oriental 

 forms, such as Urocissa (2822), Dendrncitta (281 9-20) , and Cissa (281 5-1 6), 

 and the American genera Xanthxra (2831-2) and Cyanocorax (2829-30). 

 [Case 83.] 1^ ie third subfamily, Fregilinee, includes our Common Chough (Gra- 

 culus} (2837) and the Alpine Chough (Pyrrkocorax) (2836). 



Among the more aberrant forms also included in the family we may 

 draw special attention to the curious looking West African Bald-headed 

 Crow (Picatkartes) (2840), the New Zealand Kokako or Wattled Crow 

 (Glaucopis) (2839), and the Huia (Heterolucha acutirostris) (2838). In 

 this New Zealand bird the two sexes exhibit a different form of bill, that 

 of the male being moderately powerful, while in the female it is slender 

 and sickle-shaped. The pair are said to hunt in company, and live on 

 the grubs which burrow in wood. The male attacks the more decayed 

 portions of the wood, chiselling out the concealed grubs like a Wood- 

 pecker, while the female inserts her long bill into holes, into which the 

 hardness of the surrounding wood prevents the male from penetrating. 

 When the male is unable to reach some larva, the female has been 

 observed to come to his aid, and with her longer and more slender beak 

 secure the hidden prey. 



