MUSCICAPID^L. 



109 



FAMILY I.— MUSCICAPID^. 



Rostrum basi depressum, angulatum, debile, basi setis ornatum, 



apice plus minusve aduncum, et emarginatum ; alee et pedes me- 



diocres. 

 Beak depressed at the base, angulated, weak, its base furnished 



with bristles^ towards the tip more or less hooked and notched; 



wings and legs moderate. 



The Muscicapidse are closely allied to the birds 

 of the last tribe, and like them many of the species 

 dart upon their prey while on the wing : they usually 

 subsist upon insects, the larger species (or those allied 

 to the Laniadse) sometimes attacking weak or sickly 

 birds, while the smaller, or Swallow-like species, ex- 

 clusively devour insects. The affinities of the groups, 

 as well as the genera throughout this family, are very 

 ill defined ; I have therefore introduced the newly - 

 described species of Temminck, Swainson, and others, 

 under the old genus Muscicapa, accompanying those 

 species with a mark of uncertainty whose characters 

 appear to be at variance with those of the genus. 



cm 

 GENUS LVIL— ONYRHYNCHUS, Fischer. 



Rostrum longum, acumina- 

 tum, unguiculatum ; basi 

 setis rigidis, longis, in- 

 structum. 



Nares oblongae, coarctatae. 



Pedes debiles; digiti exte- 

 riores ad tertiam phalan- 

 gem usque concreti, medio 

 longissimo. 



Todus, Cuvier. Muscipeta, Temm. 



Beak long, acuminated, 

 hooked; its base furnished 

 with long stifF bristles. 



Nostrih oblong, coarctate.. 

 Legs weak ; the outer toes 



united to the third joint ; 



the middle one longest. 



