CHAP. XII.] 
THE ORIENTAL REGION. 
317 
markable forms; among the bee-eaters we have the exquisite 
Nyctiornis with its pendent neck -plumes Qf blue or scarlet ; 
brilliant kingfishers and strangely formed hornbills abound 
everywhere ; while brown-backed trogons with red and orange 
breasts, though far less frequent, are equally a feature of the 
Ornithology. N ext we have the frog-mouthed goatsuckers (Bat- 
trachostomus ), and the whiskered swifts (. Dendrochelidon ), both 
wide-spread, remarkable, and characteristic groups of the Oriental 
region. Coming to the parrot tribe, we have only the long-tailed 
Palccomis and the exquisite little Zoricufas, as characteristic 
genera. We now come to the pigeons, among which the fruit- 
eating genera Treron and Carpopliaga are the most conspicuous. 
The gallinaceous birds offer us some grand forms, such as 
the peacocks (Pam) ; the argus pheasants (Argusianus) ; the fire- 
backed pheasants (Euplocamv.s) ; and the jungle-fowl ( Gallus ), all 
strikingly characteristic ; and with these we may close our sketch, 
since the birds of prey and the two Orders comprising the 
waders and swimmers offer nothing sufficiently remarkable to 
be worthy of enumeration here. 
Reptiles. — Only the more abundant and characteristic groups 
will here be noticed. In the* serpent tribe, the Oligodontid®, 
a small family of ground-snakes; the Homalopsidag, or fresh- 
water snakes ; the Dendrophidae, or tree-snakes ; the Dryiophidm, 
or wliip-snakes ; the Dipsadidse, or nocturnal tree-snakes ; the 
Lycodontidm or fanged ground-snakes ; the Pythonidse, or rock- 
snakes ; the Elapkke, or venomous colubrine snakes (including 
the “ cobras ”) ; and the Crotalidae, or pit-vipers, are all abundant 
and characteristic, ranging over nearly the whole region, and pre- 
senting a great variety of genera and species. Among lizards, the 
Varan idas or water-lizards ; the Seiucidse or “ scinks ; ” the Gecko- 
tidre, or geckoes ; and the Agamidae, or eastern iguanas ; are the 
most universal and characteristic groups. Among crocodiles the 
genus Crocodilus is widely spread, Gavialis being characteristic 
of the Ganges. Among Chelonia, or shielded reptiles, forms of 
fresh-water Testudinkhe and Trionychid® (soft tortoises) are 
tolerably abundant. 
Amphibia. — The only abundant and characteristic groups of 
