SYLVIIN^E. 141 



FAMILY XVIII. SYLVIIN^]. SYLVIINE 

 BIRDS OR WARBLERS. 



Body slender ; neck short ; head rather large, ovate. 

 Bill short, straight, slender, tapering, rather broader than 

 high at the base, compressed toward the end, its outlines 

 very slightly convex, the notch of the upper mandible ob- 

 solete or faint. Mouth of moderate width ; both man- 

 dibles moderately concave ; tongue of moderate length, 

 emarginate and papillate at the base, narrow, grooved 

 above, horny, thin-edged, its point slit and lacerated ; 

 oesophagus of moderate width, and without dilatation ; 

 stomach elliptical, with the lateral muscles strong, the 

 epithelium thin, tough, arid longitudinally rugous ; intes- 

 tine short, and rather wide ; coeca very small. Trachea 

 with four pairs of inferior laryngeal muscles. Eyes of 

 moderate size. Nostrils small, oblong, operculate. Aper- 

 ture of ear large, elliptical, or roundish. Feet of mode- 

 rate length ; tarsus slender, much compressed, distinctly 

 scutellate before, thin-edged behind, with two longitudi- 

 nal plates ; toes four, moderate, slender, the first compa- 

 ratively stout, the lateral about equal ; claws arched, ex- 

 tremely compressed, acute. Plumage soft and blended ; 

 wings of moderate length, more or less rounded, of eigh- 

 :een quills ; tail moderate, of twelve feathers, even, round- 

 sd, or emarginate. 



The Sylviinse are birds of small size, none of them 

 much exceeding the Nightingale. They are distinguished 

 from the Saxicolinse by being less robust, by having the 

 bill narrower at the base, and the tarsi more slender. 

 They are active, lively, and, in general, remarkable for 

 the variety, softness, and modulation of their notes, seve- 

 ral of them being among the most celebrated songsters. 

 They feed on insects, larvae, soft fruits, and sometimes 

 seeds. Most of them, owing to their being essentially in- 



