THE COLLARED BARBET. 129 



on the wing, and to all appearance feeds more on vegetable diet than is the case with its 

 relatives. 



The color of the adult male bird is generally of a rich golden green on the upper parts of 

 the body, including the graceful rounded crest, the head, neck, throat, chest, and long lancet- 

 shaped plumes of the shoulders. The breast and under parts are brilliant scarlet, the central 

 feathers of the tail are black, and the exterior white with black bars. The wonderful plumes 

 which hang over the tail are generally about three feet in length, and in particularly fine 

 specimens have been known to exceed that measurement by four inches, so that the entire 

 length of the bird may be reckoned at four feet. The bill is light yellow. 



As is often the case with birds, where the male is remarkable for the beauty of his plumage, 

 the female is altogether an ordinary and comparatively insignificant bird, at least to human 

 eyes, although beautiful enough in those of her mate. She possesses only the rudiments of a 

 crest or elongated plumes, as may be seen by reference to the engraving, where both sexes are 

 represented. The color of the upper surface is nearly the same as that of the male, although 

 hardly so vivid, and the head, throat, and chest are of a decidedly dull green. The breast and 

 abdomen are grayish-brown, and the under tail-coverts are scarlet. The elongated feathers 

 of the shoulders are not so long as in the male, nor so sharply pointed, nor so vividly colored. 

 The central feathers of the tail are black, and the exterior are white marked with black bars ; 

 the bill is black. The young of the first year, whether male or female, assume this dress, and 

 do not put on their full glory of apparel until they have passed through the moult of the 

 second year. 



BARBETS, OR PUFF-BIRDS. 



THE BARBETS evidently form a connecting link between the trogons and the kingfishers, 

 possessing several of the peculiarities of the former birds, together with some characteristics 

 of the latter. 



In shape they bear a close resemblance to the kingfishers, and none of them are of any 

 great size. Their food consists chiefly of insects, which they chase much after the manner 

 of the woodpeckers, prying into the hollows of trees, and striking away the bark in their 

 endeavors to secure the concealed prey. They can cling to the perpendicular trunk of a tree, 

 and support themselves by the pressure of their short stiff tails against the bark. They also 

 possess some of the habits which belong to the fly-catchers, and taking their perch upon a 

 twig, will wait patiently until an unfortunate insect passes within a short distance, when they 

 will launch themselves on the devoted creature, and return to the identical twig from which 

 they started. 



To all appearance the Barbets are dull and heavy birds, seeming to pass a very unenviable 

 kind of existence ; chained as it were to a single spot, and apparently feeling every movement 

 a source of trouble. But to the Barbet itself, this kind of inactive life constitutes its best hap- 

 piness ; and we should be as wrong to attribute sadness and melancholy to it, as was Buffon 

 when he spoke in such forcible and eloquent terms of the miserable existence passed by wood- 

 peckers. While sitting upon the twig which it has chosen for its perch, the Barbet has a 

 curious habit of puffing out its plumage, so as to transform itself into an almost cylindrical 

 ball of feathers, and has, on account of this odd custom, been termed the Puff Bird. 



THERE are many species of Barbet, one of which, the COLLARED BAEBET, a native of South 

 America, is an example of the typical genus Bucco. It is rather a pretty little bird, the head 

 and neck being of a chestnut-fawn, the chest white, and the under parts of the body the same 

 hue as the head, but of a lighter tint. A well-defined black collar or band runs across the 

 chest, and extends over the shoulders, where it merges into the chestnut-brown of the back, 



VOL. II. 17. 



