33o BIRDS. 



The Hoopoes (Upupa) have an ornament on the head, formed of a double 

 row of feathers, that they can erect at will. 



TRIBE V. SYNDACTYL/E.* 



The birds belonging to this tribe are recognizable by having 

 the external toe almost as long as the middle one, to which it is 

 joined by a membrane that reaches as far as the last joint but 

 one. The principal genera are the Kingfishers, the Bee-Eaters, 

 and the Hornbills, all readily distinguishable by the structure of 

 the beak. 



FIG. 360. BEE-EATER. 



Bee-Eaters (Merops} have the bill of moderate size, cutting, pointed, and 

 slightly curved, without any notch at the end. The common European Bee- 

 Eater (Merops apiaster\ the one found in Europe, has a fawn-coloured back, 

 a deep blue front, and a yellow throat, surmounted with black. It lives upon 

 insects, particularly wasps and bees, which it seizes while on the wing. It 

 constructs its nest on the precipitous banks of streams and large rivers, dig- 

 ging to a considerable depth. 



* fffo, syn, together with ; 5a.KTv\os, dactylos, a finger or toe i.e., having conjoined toes* 



