HOOPOE. 29 



the middle reddish-asli, and ending in a dusky tint towards 

 the tip. The nostrils, which are oval and transparent, are 

 close to the forehead, and partly covered by the feathering. 

 The iris is dark brown. 



The legs are not large, but are strongly made : the tarsi 

 are feathered in front above the knee and naked behind ; 

 the space from the knee to the foot is short, and coarsely 

 scaled, as are also the upper surfaces of the toes ; the claws 

 are remarkable for being almost spoon-shaped, grooved, and 

 sharply edged. The colour of the legs is a blueish-gray, 

 and the claws are horn-colour. 



On the top of the head the Hoopoe has two rows of 

 elongated blunt-pointed feathers, the longest of which mea- 

 sures as much as two inches on the crown, and shorten 

 towards the nape and the forehead. These feathers are gene- 

 rally laid flat, or down towards the back, but the bird has the 

 power of raising them, so as to form a most beautiful crest, 

 by means of two very strong muscles placed just under the 

 skin of the head. These feathers, when raised, turn in their 

 sockets in such a manner that the upper side of the webs 

 appear to lie side by side of each other. The colour of the 

 crest- feathers is a pale rusty yellow, which is darkest towards 

 their edges : the tip of each of these feathers is black, which 

 is divided by white from the yellow. The entire face of the 

 bird is pale or faded rusty yellow, and is almost white at the 

 chin and throat, where the feathers are broader and shaggy. 

 The back of the head and neck are of the same colour, but 

 rather paler, and tinged with red. On the breast the colour 

 becomes more faded, and loses itself finally in the white of 

 the under parts. The cheeks and temples are tinged with ash- 

 colour. On the lower part of the neck the rust-colour be- 

 comes mixed with a purplish ash-colour ; and this extends over 

 the back, and is terminated by a black band reaching across 

 the back : below this another lesser black band separates it 



