THE COLY. 
157 
the Mirafra Sahota, a species found towards the tropic of 
Capricorn^ to be fond of doing this; while the ^^Clapart 
Lewerk^' of the Dutch colonists {Brachonyx apiata), a 
pretty species not unlike ours^ is often seen on the sand-flats 
to the eastward of Table Bay^ rising almost perpendicularly 
to a considerable height in the air^ striking its w^jiags toge- 
ther with considerable violence^ and thus producing sharp 
sounds, to which it owes its Dutch name ; it descends with 
equal straightness. The doctor also figures a lark [Alauda 
ferruginea) which whistles delightfully about sunrise, soar- 
ing into the air, though it is generally when seated on a 
bush that his musical powers are displayed. 
The CoLiD^, or Colics, consist of a few species of birds, 
natives of Africa and Asia, which have a short, conical, com- 
pressed beak ; the tail feathers are long and graduated, and 
only ten in number ; the hind toe, as in the swifts, can, at 
the will of the bird, be directed forwards like the other toes; 
their feathers are fine and silky, and generally of an ash co- 
lour. The colics are much attached to trees, about which 
they climb much after the manner of parrots ; they are very 
sociable, flying from one tree to another in a long row ; in 
climbing they are assisted by their beak and stiff tail : they 
feed chiefly on buds and berries ; they are said to sleep sus- 
