TODUS, 
as now defined, witli but one exception, are exclu- 
sively restricted to the tropical latitudes of America ; 
they are all very small birds, the largest not being 
equal to a robin, while the smallest is more diminu- 
tive than the gold-crest. The whole group is re- 
markable for three peculiarities: 1. the excessive 
shortness of the wings and tail ; 2. the great com- 
parative length and feebleness of the tarsi ; and, 
lastly, the elongated boat-shaped form of the bill. 
Of these the first is the most universal ; and when 
we compare these characters with those belonging to 
the same members in the birds of the genus Musci- 
capa, we can have no doubt of their being employed 
in a very different manner. This brings with it 
the inference, that the todies do not seize their prey 
in the same manner as the flycatchers. Upon this 
point, in the absence of better information, we can 
say something from personal knowledge. Whenever 
we observed the black-capped tody in the woods of 
Brazil, where it is by no means scarce, we always 
found it hopping among the branches and the foliage 
of trees, pursuing its search to the extreme twig, 
much in the same way as our tom-tits. If its ap- 
