496 < The Roller-like Birds 



istics beyond a beautiful plumage, it will hardly do to pass over the Wood King- 

 fishers or Kinghunters (Halcyon), of which over seventy species are now recog- 

 nized, these being widely spread over southern Asia, the whole of Africa and 

 the Australian and Indian regions, and Pacific islands. They are distinguished 

 by having rather short, rounded wings and a compressed bill which has a more 

 or less distinct groove along the sides. Many of them do not frequent streams 

 or feed upon fish, but are found often at a great distance from water in the forests, 

 where they feed upon insects, crustaceans, small reptiles, etc., and whence their 

 name of Kinghunters to distinguish them from the piscivorous Kingfishers. 

 Omitting further mention of these and passing over two or three small allied 

 genera, we come to the final genus (Tanysiptera), which comprises the splendid 

 Long-tail or Racket-tailed Kingfishers, of which over twenty species are recog- 

 nized ranging over the Moluccas, the Papuan Islands, and portions of northern 

 Australia. The principal character of this genus is the tail of ten feathers, of 

 which the central pair are greatly elongated, indeed, often extending the length 

 of the body, and terminating in spatulate or racket-shaped expansions. Many 

 of them are very rare birds and but seldom obtained, and Mr. Wallace, the great 

 traveler-naturalist who discovered several species, states that he found them 

 in forests. He also secured specimens sleeping in cavities of the rocky banks of 

 streams; but little is known of their habits. All are extremely beautiful birds, 

 to show which we may describe the Red-breasted Kingfisher (T. nympha) of 

 the interior of northwestern New Guinea. The head is a rich ultramarine, in- 

 clining to cobalt on the nape ; ear-coverts and upper part of the back and scapu- 

 lars jet-black; lower part of back, rump, and upper tail-coverts rich vermilion ; 

 wing-coverts black edged with ultramarine ; tail-feathers deep blue, the exterior 

 ones tipped with white, the two middle ones with rich blue, the spatula long 

 and white with a faint blush of rose; entire under surface rich vermilion; bill 

 and feet, sealing-wax red; eyes black; the total length about eleven inches. 

 Much larger and of quite different coloration is the Morty Islartd Kingfisher 

 (T. doris), which, in addition to the brilliant cobalt head, blue-black shoulders, 

 and black wings, has the upper part of the head pure white, the lower back 

 white edged with light blue, and the tail-feathers white margined with blue, 

 the central pair blue throughout and the entire under surface white ; the bill and 

 feet are bright red. 



THE BEE-EATERS 



(Family Meropldce) 



The Bee-eaters so called from their insectivorous habits constitute 

 a compact and well-marked group of small or medium-sized birds of brilliant 

 plumage and graceful habits, confined in their distribution to the temperate 

 and tropical portions of the Old World. They show evident points of relation- 

 ship with the Rollers, Jacamars, and Kingfishers, agreeing with the latter espe- 

 cially in the form of feet, and in the economy of nature seem to fill the place in 



