546 



NA TURA L HIS TOR Y. 



large bills it is not easy to see. The story goes that, after plucking the 

 fruit on which they live, they toss it into the air, and their large bills are 

 of use in catching it as it falls, and directing it in the proper course down 

 the throat : but trustworthy travelers deny the existence of this habit, and 

 say that they merely throw back the head and let the morsel roll down 

 into the gullet. In their native forests the toucans go in large flocks, and 



// — 



Fig. 448. — Toucan (Ramphastos picatus). 



their bright colors, like those of many other tropical birds, go far towards 

 enlivening a landscape conspicuous from the scarcity of bright flowers. 

 When they feed, a sentinel is posted ; and when danger is near, he gives 

 the shrill, yelping, warning note tucano, from which the birds derive 

 their name. 



The honey-guides of Africa and the East Indies derive their name from 

 a peculiarity in their habits. They are small birds, which are said to guide 



