CHRYSOPTILUS. 157 



Chrsoptilus. The lateral ridge of the upper man- 

 dible, in the common green Cayenne Woodpeckers, 

 all of which are middle sized birds, is so close to 

 the culmen as almost to join it, while in the other 

 species from South America, it is nearly obsolete. 

 In Dendromus on the contrary, this ridge is almost 

 half way between the culmen and the margin, 

 although always nearer to the former, and not, as 

 in Dendrobates, to the latter ; this character, added 

 to the superior length, however slight, of the an- 

 terior toe, will readily enable the ornithologist to 

 discriminate Dendromus from its more immediate 

 allies. Having now attempted to explain, in a 

 familiar manner, the little group to which the re- 

 mainder of our African woodpeckers belong, we 

 shall at once proceed to the species. 



