268 BIRDS. CHELIDONES. 



H. Senegalensis, Lin. Plumage black, shining with blue ; beneath 

 and rump rufous ; quills and tail-feathers black. 8^ inches long. 

 Inhabits Senegal. Shaw, x. 93. 



Gen. 2. CYPSELUS, Illig. Hirundo, Lin. 



Bill very short, triangular, broad at the base, inconspicuous, de- 

 pressed ; gape as far as under the eyes ; upper mandible hook- 

 ed at the tip ; nostrils cleft longitudinally, at the upper part 

 of the bill, open, arid the raised margins furnished with small 

 feathers ; legs very short, with the four toes directed forwards, 

 and quite divided ; the toes and claws short and thick ; wings 

 very long ; tail with ten feathers. 



The birds of this genus present many analogies with the preceding. They are 

 even more active and unwearied in their movements, and their flight seems to be 

 continuous, and with but little motion of their wings. They are rarely seen to rest 

 even upon elevated places, and never on the ground. 



C. alpinus, Tern. (Hirundo Melba, Lin.) White-bellied Swift. 

 Grayish brown above, with the throat and belly white ; legs covered 

 with brown feathers. 8| inches long. Europe. Shaw, x. 74. 



C. murarius, Tern. (Hirundo apus, Lin.) The Swift. Throat of 

 a white ash-colour ; rest of the plumage blackish brown ; tarsi 

 covered with small feathers; bill black. 7^ inches long. Inhabits 

 Europe. B Selby, Illust. pi. 42, fig. 4. 



C. comatus, Tern. Plumage of a copper-green, with the wing-coverts, 

 quills, and tail-feathers green ; a line above and beneath the eyes, 

 and tip of the greater wing-coverts white. 6 inches long. In- 

 habits Sumatra Tern. PL Col. 268. 



C. longipennisj Tern. Green black above ; with the quills and tail 

 obscure ; back grayish on the lower parts ; body beneath ash- 

 coloured. 8J inches long. Inhabits Java. Tern. PI. CoL 83. fig. 1. 



Gen. 3. CAPRIMULGUS, Lin. 



Bill slightly curved, very small, and depressed at the base ; 

 mouth extremely wide ; nostrils basal, wide, closed by a mem- 

 brane surmounted by feathers ; tail round or forked, of ten 

 feathers; legs short, the anterior toes united to the first joint; 

 middle claw long, and serrated on the edge, but smooth in 

 some of the foreign species ; hind toe reversible. 



This genus has its name from the ancient but erroneous notion of the species suck- 

 ing the teats of the she-goat. They are shy and solitary, come forth chiefly in the 

 evening, prey on nocturnal moths and insects, and lay their eggs on the ground. 

 Their eyes and ears are large, like those of the owl. 



C. Europeans, Lin. European or Nocturnal Goatsucker. Upper 

 parts varied with black, cinereous, brown, rust-colour, and white, 

 under parts reddish-white, with brown bands ; legs short, scaly, 

 and feathery below the knee. The male is distinguished by a 

 large, oval, white spot, near the end of the first three quill-fea- 

 thers, and another on the outer tail-feathers 10 inches long. In^ 

 habits Europe. B Selby, Illust. pi 42* 



