106 F. Finn— r/ie Feet of Birds in Flight. ' [March, 



take eacli of these groups in detail as to this point. In Hoopoes I have 

 been unable to get a sight of the feet of a bird flying at large, but by 

 buying specimens of Uptipa epops in the Calcutta Bazaar, and letting 

 tliem out in my quarters, I found that the feet are constantly kept 

 drawn up to the body, as the bird flies— never extended behind, at 

 least in a room. In Hornbills, on tlie other hand in spite of the sup- 

 posed alliance of these birds to the Uptipidas, the feet appear to be 

 extended behind in flight. I saw this very distinctly at any rate in two 

 specimens of the common black-and-white Anthracoceros ; the bird in 

 eacli case was a tame one, but flying out of doors. With regard to 

 Rollers, I have suspected, from watching birds at liberty, that the 

 common Goracias indlca carries its feet behind ; but I could not be 

 certain till I let out a tame bird I had in my bedroom, and found that 

 tliough the feet were at first allowed to hang like a crow's when start- 

 ing, they were undoubtedly stretched out behind the bird when well 

 under way. 



Of Kingfishers I have observed more than one species. A Ceryle 

 rudis I brought up from the nest and allowed to fly about at liberty 

 for this very observation, distinctly carried its feet behind, as also do 

 Alcedo ispida and Halcyon smyrnensis, as I have been able to observe 

 with wild birds ; though the former takes a lot of watching to determine 

 a point like this ! The Laughing Jackass [Dacelo gigas) carries the legs 

 behind also, as I made out with the keeper's assistance in the fine aviary 

 at the London Zoological Gardens, when in England on leave last year 

 (1897). 



With Barbets my only observations that were at all satisfactory 

 were made on a specimen of Thereiceryx zeylonicus in a very large 

 compartment of the Bird House in the Calcutta Zoological Gardens. 

 Here this bird constantly kept its feet drawn up to the body when on the 

 wing. Some Blue-cheeked Barbets (Gyanops asiaticus) in a smaller com- 

 partment in another house, did the same, but for reasons to be presently 

 given I do not set so much value on this observation. 



Of Woodpeckers I have observed only two individuals of our common 

 Gold-backed Woodpecker {Brachypternus anrantius) ; a young female I 

 kept myself and let oat both in the open and in my room, and a male in 

 the large aviary in the Zoological Gardens above referred to. Both 

 birds carried tlie feet drawn up to the body like the Barbets, or like 

 Passerine birds. In the case of Cuckoos I have observed, with wild 

 birds, that both the Koel {Eudynamis honorata) and the Crow-pheasant 

 (Gentropus sinensis) cany their feet behind when well under way. I 

 have seen this particularly well in the case of the last species, whose 

 feet in flight have exactly the same position behind as I have seen in 



