59 



The Parrot-beaked Buzzard. 



A rare bird, and was shot in a cocoa-nut tree in the Mahaicony. 

 It sights its prey, small birds, from the perch. Another species. 



The Long-legged Snake-eater, 



Leads us back to the abandoned fields. This bird, a large, brown, 

 dirty and ruflfianly-looking animal, is very often seen, particularly on 

 the east sea-coast, undergoing the punishment peculiarly appropriated 

 to bullies, namely, being severely thrashed by fellows much smaller 

 than himself. The Kiskadee, a tyrant shrike, is the little champion 

 who thrashes the Snake-eater. Sometimes two or three of these 

 birds will be seen, always keeping above it, pecking the Hawk most 

 unmercifully, and they seldom fail in bringing it to the ground, when 

 the sight of its powerful talons I presume, reminding them that the 

 better part of valour is discretion, causes them to fly off to some 

 neighbouring tree and set up a glorious "lo Psean" of Kiskadee, 

 Kis-kis-kiskadee over their victory. I have seen this Hawk capture 

 snakes more than once and fly off to its perch to devour the prey. 

 Another species. 



The Crab-eater, 



Frequents the courida trees, from whence it sights its prey on the 

 mud-flat, namely crabs. It pounces upon any unwary crab that quits 

 its hole, and, unlike the Snake-eater, consumes it on the spot where 

 it takes it, and then returns to its look-out. They build a nest of 

 sticks in the courida bush. Another species. 



The Insect-eater, 



Is the most ignoble of all our Hawks. Its feet and claws are sin- 

 gularly weak, and it feeds almost exclusively on beetles and other 

 insects, which it captures on the courida bush, which it frequents. I 

 have opened them and taken a large quantity of the fragments of in- 

 sects out of the stomach. 



The Crested and Booted Eagle. 



A live specimen of this beautiful bird was brought to me as a 

 present by an old servant who had left me a long time, and had been 

 living far up the Demerary river. He unfortunately knew nothing 

 of its habits, and told me that it was the only one he had seen. I 

 have never seen one in the wild state. This bird lived for some days, 

 but would not eat. Apparently, the beautiful semicircular crest of 

 black feathers with a white central star was only elevated when the 

 bird was excited. This however was almost constantly the case, 

 from extreme wildness. The cry was a loud, plaintive, diminishing 

 ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha. This bird certainly has most of the characters 

 of a true Eagle. It is heavy and robust, with a beak somewhat 

 straight at base ; tarsi plumed to the toes ; wings moderately long, 

 with the fourth feather the longest ; and the general air is that of an 

 Eagle. 



