BIRDS — COLOPTEEIDAE. 163 



Family COLOPTEEIDAE. The Flycatchers. 



This family, which connects the non-melodious hirds with the Oscines, or true singers, 

 embraces rather small and even diminutive species, with a bill variously shaped, but generally 

 bent down abruptly at the tip, before which is a slight notch. The small circular nostrils are 

 situated close to the forehead. The gape is usually provided with stiff bristles, which are 

 sometimes highly developed. The wings are of moderate length ; the first primary always 

 more than one-half the second, usually nearly as long ; some of the primaries often curiously 

 attenuated, sometimes abbreviated. The feet are rather strong ; the tarsi covered behind with 

 small plates, or warts, or granulations in several series, sometimes entirely naked, sometimes 

 encircled, except on the inner face, by a single series of plates. The tail always has twelve 

 feathers. 



This extensive family contains c*hiefly genera which have been variously combined with the 

 singing birds, but have been mainly brought together in their present relationships in conse- 

 quence of the" researches of Muller and others. It embraces several sub-families, of which, 

 however, only two have any reference to the fauna of the tinited States. The characters of the 

 sub-families are given by Burmeister at considerable detail. This author divides the American 

 forms into Ampelinae, Fiprinae, Tyranninae, Platyrhynchinae, and Fluvicolinae, to which 

 Cabanis adds Todinae, Psarinae, Coracininae, and Phytotominae. It is not necessary to give 

 the characters of all these sub-families here, as we have only to do with the Tyranninae and 

 Psarinae, united into one by Burmeister on account of their close relationship and numerous 

 common characters, the chief of which are the following : 



Common characters. — Bill strong and straight, generally almost as long as the head; 

 the distance from the nostril to the tip of bill usually not more than that to the anterior 

 corner of the eye ; bill conical and vaulted, somewhat depressed, the tip abruptly bent 

 down. Nostrils free, round, and open, nearer the gape than the culmen, not concealed 

 by the bristles (usually well developed) which line the rictus and base of the bill. 

 Wing rather long and acute ; the primaries often attenuated or abbreviated. Tail 

 usually emarginated ; leg rather strong and high, covered behind with several series 

 of granulations, or with plates nearly encircling the leg. Basal joints of outer and 

 middle toes more or less united. 



Psarinae. — Second primary in the male much shorter than the first and third ; 

 anterior face of the tarsus with a row of plates, which do not extend more than 

 half round the leg. The posterior half covered with a reticulation of small 

 plates ; sometimes naked internally. 

 Tyranninae. — Outer primaries frequently attenuated at the tips, but the second 

 never shorter than both the first and third. Anterior and external face of tarsi 

 covered with plates, which completely encircle the bone, except along or near 

 the central line of the inner face ; the intervening space either naked or with 

 small plates, only occasionally a separate series on the posterior face of the tarsi. 

 Toes, especially the inner, cleft to the base. 



