188 



ALCEDINIDiE, KINGFISHEl'.S. GEN. 113. 



113. Genus CERYLE Boie. 



'Belted Kingfit^her. Upper parts, broad pectoral bar, and sides under the 



wings, dull blue witli fine black shaft lines; lower ej'clid, spot before eye, 



a cervical collar and nuder parts except as 

 said, pure white ; the ? with a chestnut 

 bellj^-band, and the sides of the same color ; 

 quills and tail feathers black, speckled, 

 blotched or barred ou the inner webs with 

 white ; outer webs of the secondaries and 

 tail feathers like the back ; wing coverts 

 frequently sprinkled with white ; bill black, 

 pale at base below ; feet dark, tibisE naked 

 below ; a long, thin, pointed occipital crest ; 

 plumage compact and oily to resist water, 

 into which- the birds constantly plunge after 

 their finny prey. Length a foot or more ; 

 wing about 6 ; tail 3 J ; whole foot IJ- ; 

 culmen about 2^. North America, com- 

 mon everywhere, resident or only forced 



southward by freezing of the waters^ Wils., iii, 59, pi. 23, f. 1; Nutt., 



i, 594; AuD., iv, 205, pi. 255 ; Bd., 158 alcyon. 



Cabaniff' Kingfisher. Glossy green ; a cervical collar and the under parts 



white; $ with a rufous, ? with an imperfect, greenish, pectoral bar; cj[uills 



and tail feathers black, partly 



like the back, with numerous 



white spots, mostly paired. 



Small ; about 8 ; Aving 3J ; 



tail 2J. Valleys of the Eio 



Grande and Colorado, and 



southward. Cass., 111. 255; Bd., 159, and Mex. Bound. Surv. ii, pi. 7; 



Coop., 339. amekicana var. cabanisii. 



/ 



Fig. 123. Belted King-nsliev. $ . 



Fig. 121. Cabanis' Kiugflsher. 



Family CUCULIDiE. Cuckoos. 



Feet zygodactyle by reversion of the fourth toe. This character, in connection with 

 those given below, will answer present purposes ; and in my ignorance of some of the 

 exotic forms, I cannot attempt to give a full diagnosis. The familj' is a large and 

 important one. It comprehends quite a iinmber of leading forms showing peculiar 

 minor modifications ; these correspond in great measure with certain geographical 

 areas of faunal distribution, and are generally held to constitute subfamilies. Three 

 or four such are confmed to America ; about twice as many belong exclusivel}' to the 

 Old World ; among them are the CuciiUnai, or typical cuckoos allied to the Euro- 

 pean C. canprus, famous, like our cowbird, for its parasitism. This section com- 

 prehends the great majority of the Old World species ; the Couinoe are a peculiar 

 Madagascar type ; others rest upon a special condition of the claws or plumage. 

 There are about two hundred current species of the familj^ 



