WOODPECKER. 375 



41.— BERBICE WOODPECKER. 



LENGTH thirteen inches and a half. Bill two inches, horn- 

 coloured ; the head, including the sides and the jaws, crimson, the 

 feathers somewhat elongated at the nape, and pointed ; the base of 

 the bill and sides brownish white ; on the under jaw below, and 

 behind the eye, an oval angular spot, about half an inch in diameter, 

 the upper half black, the under white ; chin, throat, the fore part of 

 the neck, and back of it beneath the crest, black ; all the upper parts, 

 wings, and tail brown black ; at each side of the under jaw begins 

 a line of white, growing broader, and passing on each side to the 

 back ; the breast, belly, and thighs dirty buff-colour, crossed with 

 numerous dusky black bars ; vent plain black ; tail cuneiform, the 

 two middle feathers five inches long, the outer three only ; the under 

 wing coverts are white, the inner webs of the quills the same half 

 way from the base ; the wings long, reaching to within an inch of 

 the end of the tail ; legs brown. 



In another specimen the top of the head, and down the middle of 

 the crimson of the crown, black ; but the crimson does not occupy 

 the sides of the head inuch below the eyes ; the space round the eye 

 is black ; and a broad buff-coloured streak, beginning at the nostrils, 

 passes in the direction of the jaw, growing wider, and uniting behind 

 as in the other bird ; the breast and under parts are also the same, 

 but more bright. 



This is a beautiful species, and seems to differ from any yet 

 described, unless it may probably prove the Ipecu of Marcgrave, of 

 which the following is a description : — " This bird is about the big- 

 " ness of a Dove. The length of the neck two inches, of the body 

 " four, of the tail also four; of the legs almost one inch and a half. 

 " It hath four toes in its feet, two standing forwards and two back- 

 " wards, as in Parrots; the head is covered with feathers of a 



