P I C U M N U S. 



439 



dible, and whitish on the under ; and the feet are 

 lead colour. 



It e</- winged Picuculi (Z). rubicundta"). This is also 

 of Paraguay, and the smallest and handsomest in its 

 plumage of the whole genus. Its total length is five 

 inches. The upper parts are brown, lightly glossed 

 with gold ; the sides of the head spotted with brown 

 and white ; the smaller coverts of the wings and the 

 tail feathers are carmine red ; the larger coverts 

 brown with red borders, and the lower parts mottled 

 with brown and white ; the bill is black above, and 

 whitish below. 



White-throated Picuculi (!}. albii-ollh'). This spe- 

 cies is of Brazil, and measures six inches in length. 

 The upper parts and the breast are brown, streaked 

 longitudinally with white ; top of the head black, 

 spotted with russet ; wings russet-brown ; bill and 

 feet also brown. 



Such are a few of the species ; and, in the state of 

 our information respecting the economy of the birds, 

 an enlargement of the details would afford no useful 

 informal ion. 



PICUJMNUS. A genus of birds, containing three 

 or four birds with zygodactylic feet, which were once 

 confounded with the woodpeckers, though they* are 

 perfectly distinct. They are very small birds, most 

 of (hem being less than ibur inches in length, and the 

 very largest not much more. 



The characters of this genus are : the bill straight, 

 conical, pointed at the tip, higher than broad, and 

 without any distinct crest ; and the two mandibles 

 are of equal size and strength, and entire in their 

 margins without any notch ; the nostrils are basal 

 and lateral, linear in their form, and concealed by 

 feathers which project forward from the front ; the 

 tarsi are short, and the toes three or four, always two 

 to the front, and consequently one or two to the rear ; 

 the front ones are united as far as the fin-t articulation, 

 but the hind ones are entirely free ; the wings are 

 much rounded ; and the shafts of the tail feathers are 

 flexible, so that I he tail cannot be used as a means of 

 support upon the bark of trees, as it is in the preced- 

 ing species and the woodpecker?. It is worthy of 

 remark, that both these birds and the woodpeckers 

 should have such a variety in the genus ^ that some 

 should have four tors and some only three, though it 

 does not appear that there is any considerable differ- 

 ence of habit connected with the different structure. 

 Very little is known indeed of the habits of these 

 birds ; but it is said that they are found on the steins 

 of bushes rather than those of trees, and that they 

 perch crosswise. It is probable that, with this differ- 

 ence in the magnitude of the plants upon which they 

 climb and seek their food, their general manners do 

 not did'er greatly from those of the other insectivo- 

 rous climbers to which they are allied ; and it is even 

 said that they dig into the bark in the decayed places 

 of trees, something after the manner of woodpeckers. 

 They are found only in the woody parts of tropical 

 countries, though they are more abundant in America 

 than on the eastern continent. They have not been 

 observed in Africa or continental Asia, though one 

 species at least has been ascertained to inhabit the 

 Sunda Isles. They have no general English name, 

 having generally been regarded by English describers 

 as small woodpeckers. 



P. abnormis. The specific name is given to tiiis 

 one, because it has only three toes, in a state so 

 developed, as to be of much use in climbing. The 



internal toe behind is nothing but a little callosity, 

 marking the place of the toe, as in the three-toed 

 woodpeckers. This is the smallest known species ; 

 and it is a very little bird, being only three inches in 

 length, which is three quarters of an inch shorter 

 than the golden-crested wren, the smallest of British 

 birds. Indeed it is so very small, that it can with 

 difficulty be seen in the thick forests, where it finds 

 its food. The upper parts are beautiful green, clouded 

 with ash colour on the hindhead ; the forehead, the 

 space on the eyes and the cheeks, are marroon brown, 

 with a circle of naked red membrane surrounding the 

 eye ; the rump and under parts are russet, with re- 

 flections of yellow ; the coverts are black, and the 

 bill is black on the upper part, and reddish white on 

 the under ; the feet are reddish brown. Notwith- 

 standing its diminutive size, it is a gaily attired little 

 creature, but we know scarcely any thing 1 of its habits. 



P. viimdus. This is rather larger than the Javese 

 species ; but we believe it was named before that was 

 discovered. It is a native of the forests of tropical 

 America, and is probably much more extensively 

 distributed than has been hitherto ascertained. Its 

 length is about three inches and a quarter ; and like 

 all the American species, it has four toes on each foot. 

 The upper parts are brown, powdered over with 

 a number of brown and white spots ; and the cheeks 

 and rump brownish, powdered in nearly the same 

 manner ; the forehead, and part of the top of the 

 head, are exceedingly bright red ; the quills are 

 brown, and so are the coverts, but the margins of the 

 first are paler than the middle of the feathers, and 

 those of the last are darker ; the under parts are 

 yellowish brown, streaked with dark brown ; and the 

 feet are lead colour. 



P. exilis. This species has been brought from 

 Brazil, but it is highly probable that it occurs in many 

 other parts of America. It is larger than the pre- 

 ceding one, though still a quarter of an inch shorter 

 than our golden-crested wren ; the upper parts are 

 brownish ash ; the top of the head black, delicately 

 marked with very small white spots ; the forehead, 

 the nape, and the cheeks are orange red, passing into 

 whitish on the sides of the neck ; the primary quills 

 have the exterior borders brown, the middle coverts 

 are whitish, and the tail feathers black and brown ; 

 the under parts are whitish, the bill brown, with black 

 at the base of the lower mandible, and the feet are 

 russet. 



P. cirratus. This also is from South America, and 

 it is the largest of the known species, measuring fully 

 four inches in length ; the upper parts are brown, with 

 the margins of the quills and wing coverts paler. 

 The top of the head is furnished with long feathers, 

 which are capable of being erected into a large and 

 rather handsome crest. These feathers are intense 

 black, finely spotted with pure white. The forehead 

 is bright red ; the cheeks are cream colour, with a 

 white eye-streak, and a brown spot, on the ear covert ; 

 the tail feathers are blackish, with a white band on 

 each exterior, one mottled with black, and half the 

 two middle feathers is entirely white ; the under 

 parts are whitish, clouded with brownish, and streaked 

 with deep brown on the flanks ; the bill is whitish in 

 the greater part of its length, but black at the tip, 

 and also at the base of the lower mandible. 



The species above enumerated include all that are 

 contained in this singular genus ; and the birds are 

 peculiarly interesting, as coniDOsing the last and 



