BIRDS. 331 



bee-eater inhabit this continent ; but for these we must 

 refer the reader to Le Vaillant and other writers. 



Amid the infinitely varied forms and colours which cha- 

 racterize and adorn the feathered race, we know of none 

 more worthy of admiration than those exhibited by the 

 great family of the kingfishers. The size and length of the 

 bill are indeed somewhat disproportioned to the dimensions 

 of the body ; but the shininjj silky lustre of the plumage, 

 and the finely varied hues of the most brilliant green and 

 blue, contrasted with ditfe rent shades of orange, black, and 

 brown, render this genus one of the most showy and at- 

 tractive within the range of the ornithological system. 

 The continent which forms the subject of our present dis- 

 quisition is rich in the genus. We shall at present, how- 

 ever, mention only the Smyrna kingfisher {A. SmyV' 

 nensis), which, when in perfect plumage, is one of the most 

 brilliant of the feathered race. — " The lucid blue of the 

 wings," says Dr. Shaw, " scarcely yielding in lustre to 

 those of the splendid butterfly called Papilio Menelaus." 

 Its colours seem to vary in different individuals. Several 

 fine species of this extensive genus occur in the island of 

 Madagascar. 



Among the more remarkable of the African birds we 

 must not omit to mention the species of the genus Buceros, 

 commonly called hornbills. These occur also in Celebes 

 and the Philippine Islands, but many species are peculiar 

 to Africa. The hornbills may be said to occupy the same 

 station in the old world as the toucans do in the new. 

 Both are alike distinguished by the enormous size of their 

 bills, and by a mixture in their dispositions of the carni- 

 vorous with the frugivorous propensities. The African 

 hornbill (B. Africanus) is entirely black, and nearly as large 

 as a turkey. The only other species of this singular genus 

 which we shall mention, is the crowned hornbill (J5. corO' 

 natus). Compared with the preceding it is a very small 

 bird, scarcely equalling the dimensions of a magpie. Le 

 Vaillant saw a flock of more than five hundred of these 

 birds assembled in company with crows and vultures, and 

 preying on the remains of slaughtered elephants. The 

 crowned hornbill is figured by Mr. Swainson in the third 

 volume of his beautiful illustrations. 



We shall now take a brief view of the scansorial or 



