•JiO 



VERTEBRATA. 



These Uiiiteil States species of cuckoo arc common in Mexico and South America; in tlicse 

 roijions there arc several other species : among them is the Mangrove Cuckoo, C. seniculus^ or C. 

 minor, an inliahitant of Cayenne, but often visiting the Southern States. 



The ,<iinrot/i(rl>nc or (irouml-Cttckuos inhabit tropical America, live much on the ground or in 

 low bushes, and feed on insects, worms, and seeds. One species, the SauroUura vctala, inhabits 

 the West Indies, and is fifteen inches long. 



The Chaparral-Cock, Prairie-Cock, or Paisano, Geococcyx 3fexicanus, figured by Cassin, is 

 about twenty inches long, the tail being eleven inches; the head has an erectile crest; found in 

 California, Xcw Mexico, Texas, and Mexico. 



The genus CEXTllOPUS includes several species of what arc called Lark-hcded Cuckoos, frova 

 their having the claw of the hind toe elongated, as in the larks; they are also called Pheas- 

 ant-Cuckoos, from the great length of their tails. These are found in Africa, India, and the Asi- 

 atic Islands; they seek their food on the ground, and sometimes devour small reptiles. 



The Indicatorince or Honey-Guides are a group of small birds of this family, inhabiting the 

 forests of Africa, India, and Borneo. They are fond of honey, and Avhen they discover a hive of 

 wild bees stored with this, they flatter around it, and thus direct the honey-seekers to it. It was 

 formerly said that it would guide them through the woods to the honey, but this is no doubt a 

 fiction. The common species of Southern Africa, Indicator major and mi)ior, construct bottle- 

 shaped, pendent nests, with the opening downward. 



THE GREAT BLACK WOODPECKER. 



THE GREEN WOODPECKER. 



THE PICED^ OR WOODPECKERS. 



These are strong and vigorous birds, possessing a long, sharp bill, with which they bore into 

 the bark of trees and the decayed parts of the limbs and trunks, in search of insects, as well as 

 carve out holes for their nests. They live in forests, and run up and down the trees, often ascend- | 

 ing in spiral lines, and continually tapping the surface, to discover the hiding-place of insects and J 



