MERULID/E. 



163 



ANALOGIES OF THE MERULIDjE. 



Orders. Analogies. Families. 



Insessores . Feet formed both for perching and walking : omnivorous . . Merulince. 



Raptores . . Bill with a prominent tooth, & abruptly hooked: insectivorous . MyotherintB. 



Natatores . Feet remarkably short .... ... Brachypodince. 



Grallatores. Wings long, pointed ; tail short: feed on soft substances . . Oriolinae. 



Rasores . . Bill horny, hard, generally entire ; feet very strong . . Crater opodinae. 



The analogies in the two first columns are sufficiently evident : the third also 

 is satisfactory ; the fourth is somewhat obscure ; but the fifth is so particularly 

 beautiful, that it deserves further illustration. The short convex wings ; the 

 broad, spreading tail ; great difficulty in flight ; a size superior to all others in 

 their respective circles, are the typical distinctions of these two groups ; even the 

 nostrils are formed upon the same principle ; the membrane, by which the aper- 

 ture is defended, and which in other birds is soft and pliable, in these assumes 

 the appearance of a hard scale, as if covered by a prolongation of the horny sub- 

 stance of the beak. The loud, harsh, and disagreeable notes of both groups is 

 another singular point of resemblance, which almost completes the picture. 



We next proceed to compare our groups with those of the tribes of Insessores. 



Conirostres . Wings lengthened ; bill gradually arched, slightly notched . Merulinae. 



Dentirostres. Bill abruptly hooked, with a prominent tooth Myotherince. 



Fissirostres . Feet very short ; rictus bristled: insectivorous Brachypodince. 



Tenuirostres . Feet short ; rictus smooth : nectarivorous or frugivorous Oriolinae. 

 Scansores . . Claws acute, formed for clinging to vegetables .... Crater opodince. 



The analogies of the Orioles, scarcely perceptible when viewed in direct reference 

 to the Grallatores, now become more satisfactory. These birds, with the whole 

 of the Tenuirostres, are remarkable for the soft and delicate nature of their food ; 

 and both, in unison with such habits, have the rictus entirely smooth. The Tenui- 

 rostres sip the nectar of flowers ; the Oriolince feed upon the fruits. The reader 

 may have remarked, that some peculiar habits of the Crater opodinm could not be 

 explained by their analogy to the Rasores ; the latter living in plains, and seldom 

 perching, whereas the former are scarcely ever seen upon the ground ; — but this 

 is at once explained by their relation to the Scansores; both groups being, in 

 different degrees, scansorial, and living on the upright stems of vegetables. 



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