4 



YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOO. 



of caterpillars, particularly such as infest apple trees. The 

 same insects constitute the chief part of their own sustenance. 

 They are accused, and with some justice, of sucking the eggs 

 of other birds, like the crow, the blue jay, and other pillagers. 

 They also occasionally eat various kinds of berries. But, from 

 the circumstance of destroying such numbers of very noxious 

 larvas, they prove themselves the friends of the farmer, and 

 are highly deserving of his protection. 



The yellow-billed cuckoo is thirteen inches long, and 

 sixteen inches in extent ; the whole upper parts are of a 

 dark, glossy drab, or what is usually called a quaker colour, 

 with greenish silky reflections ; from this must, however, be 

 excepted the inner vanes of the wings, which are bright 

 reddish cinnamon ; the tail is long, composed of ten feathers, 

 the two middle ones being of the same colour as the back, 

 the others, which gradually shorten to the exterior ones, are 

 black, largely tipt with white ; the two outer ones are scarcely 

 half the length of the middle ones. The whole lower parts 

 are pure white ; the feathers covering the thighs being large, 

 like those of the hawk tribe ; the legs and feet are light blue, 

 the toes placed two before and two behind, as in the rest of 

 the genus. The bill is long, a little bent, very broad at the 

 base, dusky black above, and yellow below ; the eye hazel, 

 feathered close to the eyelid, which is yellow. The female 

 differs little from the male ; the four middle tail-feathers in 

 her are of the same uniform drab ; and the white, with which 

 the others are tipt, not so pure as in the male. 



In examining this bird by dissection, the inner membrane 

 of the gizzard, which in many other species is so hard and 

 muscular, in this is extremely lax and soft, capable of great 

 distension ; and, what is remarkable, is covered with a growth 

 of fine down, or hair, of a light fawn colour. It is difficult to 

 ascertain the particular purpose which Nature intends by this 

 excrescence ; perhaps it may serve to shield the tender parts 

 from the irritating effects produced by the hairs of certain 

 caterpillars, some of which are said to be almost equal to the 

 sting of a nettle. 



