368 ilED-BILLED TOUCAN. 



scarlet colour, and so is the lower mandible, ex- 

 cept at its base, which is purplish: the red, both 

 on the upper and under chap, is clouded more or 

 less in different parts with black ; so that the 

 point of the lower mandible is black : a black list 

 passes almost round the bill near its base, which 

 separates the red from the other colours: between 

 the head and bill there passes a narrow black line, 

 of separation all round the base of the bill, in the ! 

 upper part of which the nostrils are placed, which 

 do not shew themselves, being almost covered with 

 feathers, which occasioned our first natural his- 

 torians to say it was without nostrils, and set them 

 on straining their wits to supply that want some 

 other way : round the eyes, on each side of the 

 head, is a space of blueish skin void of feathers, 

 above which the head is black, except a white spot 

 on each side, joining to the base of the upper 

 mandible of the bill : the hinder part of the neck, 

 the back, wings, tail, belly, and thighs are black ; 

 the under side of the head, the throat, and begin- 

 ning of the breast, are white: between the white 

 on the breast and the black on the belly is a space 

 of red feathers in form of a new moon, having its 

 points upwards : the covert-feathers under the tail 

 are red, and those above the tail yellow: the legs, 

 feet, and claws are of an ash-colour," 



In the above specimen the tail, which is black, 

 was wanting ; but Edwards supplied that part to 

 his own figure from a drawing of the same bird by 

 Madam Merian, preserved in the British Museum. 

 The Red-billed Toucan, like the rest of its tribe, is 



