HOMES OF TOUCANS 



205 



FIG. 59. HEEL-PAD OF SEVENTEEN-DAY-OLD ARACARI TOUCAN 

 o. Side view of pad of left leg. 6. Bottom view of left pad. c. Bottom view of right pad. 



of the body feathers were bluish with the exception of those 

 of the under parts. At a point half way down the neck, the 

 feather tract bifurcated, one of these pectoral branches end- 

 ing beneath the wing and the other continuing down the 

 inside of the thighs. I mention these because of their pale 

 yellow pigment, prophetic of the adult coloration. A hint of 

 red pigment was visible on the breast feathers, correspond- 

 ing, however, only to the half-concealed line of scarlet 

 which, in the full-grown birds, lies between the black and 

 yellow of the under parts. There was no trace in the nest- 

 ling of the very conspicuous scarlet belly band and the patch 

 of the same color on the lower back. These are characters 

 which have evidently been evolved rather recently. 



Ten primaries were well sprouted, the 1st much the 

 shortest, the 6th longest, although the 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th 

 were of almost equal length (1st, 7 mm.; 6th, 18 mm.). 

 There were fourteen remaining flight feathers grading in 

 size from the outer secondary inward (outer, 14 mm.; inner, 

 the 24th, 2 mm. ) . The secondaries were uniformly stouter 

 than the primaries. The coverts were short, not projecting 



