THE BEEF-EATERS. 



487 



a singular habit they have of lighting on the backs of ruminating 

 mammalia, and picking off the insects or extracting the larvse of 

 QEstri which infest them — an operation which cattle submit to with 

 great pleasure. Their food is not confined to this alone, for they feed 

 also upon wood-bugs and locusts : hence they are likewise called 

 Locust Hunters. They generally unite in small flocks of six or eight. 

 They are very wild, and take flight with a sharp cry of alarm on any 

 one approaching their haunts. 



Among the congeners of the Beef-eaters may be placed the Coly 



Fig. 203.— The Beef-eater. 



(Co/ius), which, like that bird, is an inhabitant of Africa. They are 

 small, about the size and shape of the Yellow-ammer, and have a tuft 

 on the head. They live in flocks of from twelve to twenty, which 

 nest in common, and feed on fruit and young birds. According to 

 Levaillant, they creep on the branches of trees,. with the head down- 

 wards ; and, strange to say, even sleep in this peculiar position, 

 pressing one against the other. Their flesh is said to be very 

 delicate. 



The Crossbills (Loxiada?) are remarkable for the form of their bill, 

 the mandibles being compressed and re-curved, crossing each other 

 in contrary directions, the terminations being hooked, forming an 



