44 PASSERES. TROGONID.E. 



meridional sun, morning and* evening twilight is 

 the season of their activity." 



GENUS TROGON. (LiNN.) 



The Trogons proper, which are confined to the 

 hottest regions of South America, are distin- 

 guished by having the cutting edges of the beak 

 both above and below, cut into notches : the fore 

 toes are united as far as the first joint ; the tarsus 

 is feathered to the toes ; the nostrils are concealed 

 by bristles. 



Shy and recluse in their habits, the Trogons are 

 among the few birds that delight in the lone and 

 sombre recesses of 4he forest. Even here they 

 prefer to sit in the centre of a tree where the 

 foliage is densest, rarely descending to the 

 ground, or even to the lower branches. Azara, 

 speaking of one species (and they seem to be 

 much alike in their manners), observes, that it sits 

 for a long time motionless, watching for insects 

 that may pass within its reach, and which it seizes 

 with adroitness ; it is not gregarious, but dwells 

 either in solitude or in pairs : its flight, which is 

 rapid, and performed in vertical undulations, is 

 not prolonged. These birds are so tame as to 

 admit of a near approach ; and they are even 

 sometimes killed with a stick. They do not mi- 

 grate, and are never heard, except in the breeding 

 season; their note then consists of the frequent 

 repetition of the syllables pee-o, in a strong, son- 

 orous, and melancholy voice ; the male and female 

 answer each other. They form their nest on the 

 trees, by digging into the lower part of the nest of 

 a species of ant or termes, .until they have made a 



