174 



CERTHIADiE. 



FAMILY IV.— CERTHIAD.E. 



Rostrum gracile subulatum, rectum nut arcuntum, aciitissimum, 

 aut versus apicetn cuneatum : lingua elongata, acuta : pedes 

 tetradactyli, digiti inceqiiales, hallux validus. 



Beak slender, subulated, straight or bent, very acute, or towards 

 the tip wedge-formed : tongue elongated, acute : Jeet four-toed, 

 tlie toes placed three before and one behind, and unequal, the 

 hind one stout. 



The habits of the Certhiadas greatly resemble 

 those of the last fiimily ; like those birds the typical 

 groups subsist upon insects, which they capture in a 

 similar manner ; while the aberrant feed by the tongue 

 as in the tenuirostral birds. 



GENUS CCXXXI.— DENDROCOLAPTES, Hermann. 



Rostrum mediocre aut elon- 

 gatum, lateratim compres- 

 sum, subrobustum, con- 

 vexum, rectum aut arcua- 

 tum, acutum. 



Reetrices rigidae, acuminatas. 



Digiti exteriores aequales. 

 Dendrocopus, Vieillot. 



Beak moderate or elongated, 

 laterally compressed, some- 

 what robust, convex, 

 straight or bent, acvUe. 



Tail-feathers stiif, acumi- 

 nated. 

 Outer toes equal. 



There is a monograph upon this genus in the 

 Berlin Transactions for the year 1820, by Lichsten- 

 stein : all the species inhabit South America; they 

 resemble each other greatly in plumage, but differ 

 widely in the length and form of the beak. 



