156 



VERTEBRATA. 



oludos an iimnenso tinnibor of species, exliibitiiii^ !i groat variety of structure and habit. The} 

 are characterizt'il by having a short, stout, conical bill, with an acute tip, of which the upper 

 mandible has no notch at the extremity. The tongue is rather fleshy, with the tip horny, and 

 usually more or less slit. The a'sophagus forms a small crop, and the stomach a powerful giz- 

 zard, indicating, with the peculiar form of the bill, that the food of the birds consists principally 

 of grain. The toes are of moderate length, armed with long curved claws, that of the hinder toe 

 being oftcu longer than the rest. The wings are rather short, and somcwliat pointed at the ex- 

 tremity, and the tail is composed of twelve 

 feathers. Those birds are active on the 

 wing, their flight being usually effected by 

 a series of jerks or undulations. On the 

 ground they generally progress by hop- 

 ping with both logs at once. They always 

 pair, and their nests are usually beautifully 

 constructed ; some of them arc in fact most 

 elaborate and ingenious structures. 



THE PLOCEIN^ OR WEAVER-BIRDS. 



These birds, the Tesserins of the French 

 — some of which are so renowned for their 

 ingenious architecture — arc mostly inhab- 

 itants of Africa, but a few species are found 

 in India and the islands of the eastern arch- 

 ipelago. They are all small birds ; their 

 food generally consists of insects and seeds; 

 but one species — those of the genus Textor 

 — accompany the buffaloes and perch, on 

 their backs, for the purpose of picking off 

 the parasitic insects that infest them. 



Oemis VIDUA : Vidua. — This includes 

 the WiiiDAii-FiNcii or Widows-Bird — 

 F(?7a'(? of the French — V.i^itradisea. The 

 upper parts are of a deep brownish-black ; 

 1 lower parts pale buff. The bird is about 

 the size of a canary, but in some specimens 

 the tail-feathers of the male are a foot in 

 length. Those of this species are fa- 

 vorites for cages, on account of their ex- 

 traordinary and not ungraceful appearance; 

 they are found in Senegal and South Af- 

 lica. The Red-bellied Wiiidah-Finch, 

 V. crythrorhynchus, is a smaller species, 

 inhabiting Senegal. 



Genus EUPLECTES : Eui->lectes.—1V\% 

 includes a species of which we know but 

 little, except their nests, but these are cu- 

 rious enough. They are most ingeniously 

 woven of grass, in the shape of a chemist's 

 retort, and are suspended from the branch 

 of a tree over a lake, pool, or river, with 

 the mouth down and nearly touching the 

 water. The object of this arrangement is 

 to protect the eggs and young from the monkeys and serpents which abound in these regions. 

 Gemis PLOCEUS : Ploceus. — This includes the Republican Weavers or Sociable Weav- 



THB WIDOW-BIRD. 



