386 



SCANSOKES. BIRDS.- 



THE GKEAT SPOTTED CUCKOO (Coccystcs glanda- 

 rius), a native of Northern and Western Africa, measures 

 about fifteen inches in length, but of this the tail con- 

 stitutes nearly half. This bird is of a grayish-black 

 colour above, with the head dark ash-colour, and 

 adorned with a crest of long feathers, and with nearly all 

 the feathers of the wings tipped with white ; the tail- 

 coverts are long and pointed, and tipped with white, 

 as are also the graduated tail-feathers, of which the 

 two middle ones are brown, and the rest blackish ; the 

 whole of the lower surface is white. Individuals of 

 this species migrate in the summer into the southern 

 countries of Europe ; they are most abundant in Italy 

 and Spain. A single specimen has also been taken in 

 Ireland. 



LE VATLLAWT'S CUCKOO (Coccystes serratus), another 

 African species, is known at the Cape of Good Hope 

 as the Niewe Jaars Voogel, or New-Year's-bird, from 

 a supposition that it only makes its appearance at New- 

 Year's-day. 



THE PIED CBESTED-CTTCKOO (Coccystes melanoleucos), 

 which is generally distributed in India, and especially 

 abundant in Bengal and Ceylon, is black above, and 

 white beneath, with a white spot upon each wing, and 

 the tips of the tail-feathers white. It is about eleven 

 inches in length. This bird frequents the tops of trees, 

 and feeds principally upon caterpillars, and other soft 

 insects. It deposits its eggs in the nests of a species of 

 Malacocercus. Mr. E. L. Layard observed a pair of 

 the latter hovering with great solicitude over a bush, 

 and on his approaching, they flew off, as if wounded, 

 to lead him from the spot ; on examining the bush, he 

 found that the object of their anxious cares was a 

 young Cuckoo of the present species, and on capturing 

 it, the old birds flew about him uttering cries of distress. 



THE ANI (Crotophaga Ani). Several species of this 

 family, inhabitants of South America, and known 

 under the native name of Ani, are distinguished by the 

 form of the bill, which is much compressed, with the 

 ridge of the upper mandible greatly curved, and dilated 

 at the base into a thin sharp plate or crest. The 

 common Ani is about fourteen inches in length, and 

 of a black colour, with a violet gloss ; its tail is very 

 long and graduated. It inhabits the savannahs and 

 the banks of streams in the West Indian islands, and 

 in Brazil and Paraguay, living in small societies in the 

 forests even during the breeding season, when several 

 males and females work together in the formation of a 

 common nest; after the completion of which the females 

 perform the business of incubation and rearing the 

 yoxing in common. The food of this bird and its 

 allies consists principally of insects and their larvse ; 

 it is fond of searching the skins of cattle for the para- 

 sites adhering to them, and may even be seen sus- 

 pended from the tail of a cow, carefully examining the 

 tuft of hairs at its extremity for any insects that may 

 harbour there. Flies and other winged insects are 

 captured by it on the wing. It also feeds partially 

 upon fruits and berries. 



THE COUEOLL (Leptosormis of:r) is an inhabitant of 

 Southern Africa and of Madagascar, in the latter of 

 which countries it is called the Vourong-drion its 

 name of Couroll has been given to it by the French 



ornithologists to express its apparent combination of 

 the characters of the Cuckoos and the Rollers. It is 

 eighteen or nineteen inches in length, of which about 

 half is made up by the long tail ; its colour is a bronzed 

 green above, with the primary quills greenish-black ; 

 the back of the head bears a tuft of bronzed-brown 

 feathers; a black streak runs from the angle of the 

 mouth to the eye ; the neck and the upper part of the 

 breast are of a delicate slaty-gray, and the rest of the 

 lower surface nearly white. The female is said to be 

 reddish-brown, spotted with brown, above, and light 

 red, variegated with black, beneath. This bird resides 

 in the forests, and lives principally upon fruits, but 

 also devours large insects, such as locusts, mantides, 

 and cicadse. It hatches its own eggs, and brings up 

 its own young. 



THE CHANNEL-BILL (ScythropsNovce Hollandice). 

 New South Wales is the native country of this remark- 

 able bird, which, having been placed amongst the 

 Hornbills by some naturalists, and with the Toucans 

 by others, has at last found a permanent resting-place 

 in the family of the Cuckoos. It is a large species, 

 measuring about twenty inches in length, and is fur- 

 nished with a long and powerful bill, of which the 

 upper mandible is strongly channeled on each side a 

 little below the ridge, and has its margins pretty 

 strongly denticulated or festooned for some distance 

 from the point. The plumage is gray, that of the back, 

 wings, and tail being darkest, and having each feather, 

 including the central tail-feathers, tipped with brown- 

 ish-black ; the rest of the tail-feathers bear a broad 

 black band near the apex, the tip itself being white ; 

 the abdomen and lower surface of the wings are buffy- 

 white, with indistinct grayish-brown transverse bars. 

 The eyes are surrounded by a scarlet skin, which 

 descends to the nostrils at the base of the bill, and the 

 bill itself is of a pale-brown colour. 



The Channel -bill is a migratory bird, arriving in 

 New South Wales in October and departing in January ; 

 its winter residence is unknown. The food of this 

 bird consists of insects, especially the large phasmidse 

 and beetles, which its large and strong bill enables it 

 to destroy and devour with facility. Its habits in the 

 breeding season are quite unknown. 



THE YELLOW-BILLED AMEEICAN CUCKOO ( Coccyzus 

 americanus). This bird is a summer visitor to the 

 United States of North America, where it is commonly 

 known as the Cow-bird, from its note resembling the 

 word cow. It passes the winter in the West Indies, 

 and migrates in the spring as far north as Canada. A 

 few specimens have been killed in this country, although 

 it would appear almost impossible for the birds to cross 

 the Atlantic. The Yellow-billed Cuckoo is brownish- 

 gray above, exhibiting greenish, reddish, and bluish 

 tints, according to the direction of the light ; the lower 

 surface is of a silver}' whiteness ; the two middle tail- 

 feathers are light brownish-orange, and the remainder 

 black, tipped with white. The bill is brownish-black, 

 with the base of the upper mandible and the whole of 

 the lower one, except the extreme tip, bright yellow. 



The food of this bird consists principally of cater- 

 pillars, but it also eats fruits of different kinds, and is 

 accused of sucking the eggs of other Hrds. It builds 



