420 



PASSERINE BIRDS. 



FlG. 346. GREY SHRIKE. , 



FAMILY OF FISSIROSTRES.* 



The Fissirostres are distinguished by their beak, 

 which is short, wide, horizontal, flattened, slightly 

 hooked, without any notch, and very deeply cleft, 

 the opening of the mouth is thus very wide, and 

 they easily capture the insects they pursue on the 

 wing. These birds are exclusively insectivorous; 

 they are also migratory, and are found in all parts of 

 the world. This family is divided into two tribes 

 namely, the Diurnal Fissirostres, with a dense plu- 

 mage, and a beak that opens to beneath the eyes ; 



* Fissus, cloven; rostrum, a beak cleft-beaks. 



