302 



MUSEUM OF ANIMATED NATURE. 



[Trogons. 



of its stomach to consist principally of the Fruit of 

 a certain species of palm, and that it arrives in 

 those districts when its favourite food is ripe, but 

 that when the trees no longer yield an adequate 

 supply it retires to other districts. 



Like the parrots and woodpeckers, the Trogons 

 breed in the hollows of decayed trees, the eggs 

 being deposited on a bed of wood-dust, the work of 

 insects ; they are three or four in number, and white. 

 The young, when first hatched, are totally destitute 

 of feathers, which do not begin to make their ap- 

 pearance for two or three days ; and their head and 

 beak appear to be disproportionately large. They 

 are said to rear two broods in the year. 



Azara, speaking of the Surucua Trogon, a native 

 of Paraguay and the Brazils, informs us that it is 

 seen only in the largest woods, and that, it "gene- 

 rally remains on the upper portions of the trees, 

 without descending to the lower branches or to the 

 earth ; it sits a long time motionless, watching for 

 insects which may pass within its reach, and which 

 it seizes with adroitness ; it is not gregarious, but 

 dwells either in solitude or in pairs; its flight, 

 which is rapid and performed in vertical undula- 

 tions, is not prolonged. These birds are so tame as 

 to admit of a near approach; I have seen them 

 killed with a stick. They do not migrate, and are 

 never heard except in the breeding season ; their 

 note then consists of the frequent repetition of the 

 syllables pee-o, in a strong, sonorous, and melan- 

 choly voice ; the male and female answer each 

 other. They form their nest on the trees, by digging 

 into the lower part of the nest of a species of ant, 

 known by the name of cupiy, until they have made 

 a cavity sufficiently large, in which the female de- 

 posits her eggs, of a white colour, and two, or as 

 some assert four, in number. I have seen the male 

 clinging to a tree after the manner of woodpeckers, 

 occupied in digging a nest with his beak, while 

 the female remained tranquil on a neighbouring 

 tree." 



The American Trogons have their beak of mo- 

 derate size, with serrated (or saw-like) edges, and 

 furnished at its base with bristles; the upper sur- 

 face (of the males at least) is of a rich metallic 

 green, the under parts being more or less universally 

 scarlet or rich yellow. The outer tail-feathers in 

 the majority of the species are more or less barred 

 with black and white. 



In the Indian Trogons" the beak is larger and 

 stouter, with smooth edges, having a tooth near the 

 tip of the upper mandible. The eyes are encircled 

 by a large bare space of richly-coloured skin ; the 

 upper surface is brown, the lower more or less 

 scarlet, and the outer tail-feathers exhibit no ten- 

 dency towards a barred style of marking, excepting 

 in one species, Diard's Trogon (Trogon Diardii), in 

 which the three outer tail-feathers are finely pow- 

 dered with black. 



The African species (Trogon Narina, Le Vaill.) 

 closely approximates to its American relatives ; but 

 its three outer tail-feathers are unbarred. This spe- 

 cies inhabits the dense forests of Caffraria; during 

 the day it sits motionless on a low dead branch, and j 

 it is only in the morning and evening that it displays j 

 activity. Locusts and other insects are its principal 

 food. 



Of all the Trogons none are so magnificent as the 

 Trogon resplendens. This bird, as stated by Mr. 

 Gould, " is to be found only in the dense and 

 gloomy forests of the southern states of Mexico." 

 Little known to Europeans, except within the last 

 few years, the brilliant plumes which fall over the 

 tail (and which, as is the whole of the upper sur- 

 face of the body of this bird, are of the richest 

 metallic golden green) were made use of by the 

 ancient. Mexicans as ornaments on their head- 

 dresses ; and gorgeous must a head-dress be, com- 

 posed of such feathers— soft, flowing, of dazzling 

 lustre, and three feet in length. In later times 

 they have occasionally been transmitted as curio- 

 sities to Europe. Mr. Gould observes that M. 

 Temminck is the first who figured the present 

 species ; but that celebrated naturalist, confounded 

 it with the Trogon pavonius of Dr. Spix, a Brazil- 

 ian species to which it is nearly allied, but from 

 which it differs in having a soft silky crest, of long 

 full feathers, and the plumes of the tail coverts 

 extremely long, whereas in the Pavonine Trogon 

 there is no crest, and the tail-coverts do not 

 extend above an inch or two at most beyond the 

 tail. 



1366.— A Group or Trogons. 

 On the topmost branch are perched a pair, male 

 and female, of the Trogon resplendens. The middle 

 bird towards the left hand is the Trogon pavonius. 

 The lower figure on the left hand is the Trogon 

 Diardii; and that on the right, the Trogon tem- 

 nurus. 



The Trogons are divided into several subgenera, 

 founded upon tangible characters, doubtless involv- 

 ing a difference, more or less decided, of habits and 



manners. Mr. Gould remarks, for example, that the 

 species of the subgeneric group Calurus, distin- 

 guished by a redundancy of flowing plumage, are 

 not, as may be expected, so well fitted for flight, or 

 for taking their prey on the wing, as are the more 

 closely-plumed species to which the generic name 

 Trogon is now restricted ; accordingly Mr. Natterer 

 informed Mr. Gould that the gorgeous birds of Ihe 

 former group tenant the topmost branches of the 

 loftiest forest-trees, clinging beneath them like par- 

 rots, and feeding more exclusively on fruits and 

 berries. On the other hand, Mr. W. S. Mac Leay 

 states that the singular Trogon inhabiting Cuba 

 (Trogon temnurus, the only example of the sub- 

 genus Temnurus ; Priotelus, G. R. Gray), which 

 approximates to the woodpeckers in the more 

 lengthened form of the bill, in the rigid character 

 of the outer tail-leathers, and in the spotting of 

 the wings, approaches those birds also in its habits, 

 giving a preference to the holes of trees rather than 

 to the branches, and procuring from the bark the 

 larvae and various insects which constitute its 

 food. 



The habits of the Old World species are much 

 less known than those of the American Trogons ; 

 but from the more robust form of their bill and 

 their wide gape, Mr. Gould is inclined to suspect 

 that they feed even still more exclusively on insects 

 than on fruits: independently, however, of the 

 greater strength of the bill, the non-serration of the 

 edges of the mandibles, and the half-denuded face, 

 they may, Mr. Gould remarks, at all times be dis- 

 tinguished by the rich brown colouring of the backs 

 of Ihe males, and by the entire absence of bars 

 across the outer tail-feathers. With respect to the 

 brown colouring of the plumage, there are, he adds, 

 it is true, one or two exceptions from the rule, but 

 none to the absence of the barring of the tail-fea- 

 thers when accompanied by the former characters. 



1367. — Reinwardt's Trogon 

 {Trogon Reinwardtii). This species is an example, 

 of the subgenus Apaloderma, and is a native of 

 Java and Sumatra, where, however, it is rare ; or 

 perhaps a tenant of the remoter solitudes of the 

 forests, and therefore escapes observation. Our 

 pictorial specimens are an adult male and (the 

 lower figure) a young bird. 



Bill bright reddish orange ; top of the head, back, 

 and upper tail -coverts dark green; six middle tail- 

 feathers black, with green reflexions; the bases of 

 the three outer feathers on each side the same co- 

 lour as the middle ones, the remaining portions 

 being white ; centre of the wings and shoulders 

 green transversely rayed wilhflne lines of yellow; 

 primaries black, with the exception of the outer- 

 most web, which is white ; throat yellow ; ear- 

 coverts, sides of the neck, and chest olive brown ; 

 belly and under surface yellow, becoming rich 

 orange on the sides; tarsi yellow; bare skin round 

 the eye blue. Total length, from twelve inches and 

 a half to thirteen inches and a half; tail seven 

 inches and a half; wing five inches and a half. 



Young :— Similar to the adult, particularly in the 

 colours of the back and tail, a circumstance, ob- 

 serves Mr. Gould, which rarely occurs in the family, 

 as in all the Trogons where the plumage of the 

 female differs much from that of the male, the 

 young birds generally resemble the former ; while, 

 as in the present case, where the sexes are nearly 

 alike, the young partake of the adult colouring, 

 differing only in the markings of the wings and the 

 rufous brown tint of the breast. (Gould.) 



1368. — The Narina Trogon 



(Trogon [Apaloderma] Narina). This is the only 

 African species, and is a native of Caffraria ; Narina, 

 whose name it bears, was a Gonaqua Hottentot 

 girl, whose charms and manners appear to have 

 produced a great impression on Le Vaillant (the 

 discoverer of the bird), as he devotes some pages to 

 her in his ' Travels.' 



According to this account of the naturalist, the 

 haunts of the Narina Trogon are the thickest parts 

 of the forest: and there it sits nearly motionless, on 

 a low dead branch during mid-day : in the morning 

 and evening it captures its food, consisting chiefly 

 of locusts, beetles, and other winged insects, with 

 the addition of caterpillars. Its flight is short and 

 rapid; and it darts from its chosen perch on every 

 passing insect, returning to the station which it had 

 left, or settling uear it. During the pairing season 

 the male, which is at other times mute, utters fre- 

 quently a melancholy ciy. The eggs, four in num- 

 ber, nearly round, and of a rosy white hue, are laid 

 in a nest in the hole of a tree, and the female sits 

 for twenty days. Our pictorial specimens are a 

 male and female. 



Male :— Bill yellow, with a tinge of blue. : whole 

 of the head, throat, chest, shoulders, back, and 

 upper tail-coverts resplendent green; breast and 

 under surface bright blood-red; the wings brown, 

 the greater coverts and secondaries powdered with 



greyish white, the outer edge of each feather having 

 a tinge of metallic green; two centre feathers of the 

 tail dark purplish green, two next on each side dark 

 olive-green; Ihe three outer on each side dark 

 green at. their base, largely tipped with while ; feet 

 light brownish yellow. 



Female :— Upper surface and tail closely resem- 

 bling those of the male ; round the eye and throat 

 rufous brown, becoming paler on the chest, which 

 is slightly tinted with rosy pink ; lower part of the 

 abdomen and tail-coverts deep rose-red. Total 

 length eleven inches and a quarter: bill one inch 

 and an eighth ; wing five inches and a quarter ; tail 

 six inches and a half; tarsi three-quarters of an 

 inch. (Gould.) 



1369.— The Mexican Trogon 



(Trogon Mexicanus). Old Male: — Beak bright 

 yellow ; throat and ear-coverts black, gradually 

 blending with the green that, covers the chest and 

 the whole of the upper surface. Two middle tail- 

 feathers green with black tips, the two next on each 

 side wholly black ; the three outer on each side 

 black, with white tips; wings black, the whole of 

 which, with the exception of the primaries, is finely 

 dotted with grey; a crescent of white encircles the 

 chest; breast, belly, and under tail-coverts fine 

 scarlet; feet brown. Total length eleven to twelve 

 inches; wing five inches and three-quarters; tail 

 seven inches and three-quarters. Fig. 1370 repre- 

 sents (upper figure) a young male and (lower figure) 

 a female. 



Young Male: — Distinguished from the adult by 

 the grey freckles on the wings being rather stronger, 

 and more inclined to brown on the secondaries ; by 

 the extreme outer edge of the primaries being 

 white ; and by the tail being regularly barred with 

 black and white, which character is most conspicu- 

 ous on the outer edges. 



Female : — Top of the head, throat, chest, and 

 back dark brown, inclining to olive on the upper 

 surface, and to rufous on the chest ; across the chest 

 an obscure band of light, grey, the lower parts scar- 

 let; wings black, slightly freckled with brown on 

 the outer edges of the secondaries and shoulders ; 

 the outer edges of the primaries fringed with white; 

 two middle tail-feathers chesnut-brown, tipped with 

 black ; the two next on each side wholly black ; 

 the remainder strongly barred with black and white 

 for nearly their whole length; bill yellow, clouded 

 with brown. (Gould.) 



Locality. — North of Mexico. 



1371. — The Resplendent Trogon 



(Trogon [Calarus] resplendens). Male and Female. 



Male : — Beak gamboge-yellow ; head covered 

 with long filamentous plumes, forming a rounded 

 crest ; from the shoulders spring a number of lance- 

 shaped feathers, which hang gracefully over the 

 wings; from the rump are thrown off seveial pairs 

 of narrow flowing plumes, the longest of which in 

 fine adults measure from three feet, to three feet four 

 inches; the others gradually diminishing in length 

 towards the rump, where they again assume the 

 form of the feathers of the back — these plumes, 

 together with the whole of the upper surface, 

 throat, and chest, are of a most resplendent golden 

 green ; the breast and under paits are of a rich 

 crimson scarlet ; the middle feathers of the tail 

 black; the sis outer ones white for nearly their 

 whole length, their bases being black; feet brown. 

 Total length from the bill to the end of the tail, 

 twelve to fourteen inches : wing, eight to nine ; 

 tarsi, one ; length of the longest plume, about three 

 feet. 



Female or Young of the year : — These have only 

 rudiments of the long plumes, seldom reaching 

 more than an inch beyond the tip of the tail ; the 

 feathers of the crest more rounded and not fila- 

 mentous : fealhers of the shoulders but slightly 

 lanceolate; outer tail-feathers white barred with 

 black, the centre ones black ; whole of the chest, 

 throat, and head obscure green, remainder of the 

 upper surface bright green; breast and belly grey- 

 ish brown; under tail-coverts fine scarlet; bill 

 black. (Gould.) 



It was of the brilliant feathers of these and other 

 Trogons that the ancient Mexicans made their 

 famous mosaic pictures. They were probably kept 

 in one of the two houses which formed 1he Royal 

 Menagerie of ancient Mexico, one of these houses 

 being aprpopriated to birds which did not live by 

 prey ; the other to birds of prey, quadrupeds, and 

 reptiles. Three hundred men, according to Cortes, 

 were employed to take care of these birds, besides 

 their physicians, who watched their diseases and 

 applied timely remedies. Of the three hundred 

 attendants, some procured their food, others dis- 

 tributed it, others Took care of the eggs at the time 

 of incubation; whilst others, at certain seasons, 

 picked their plumage— lor the king not only de- 

 lighted in the sight of so many species, but was 



