Cnclioos. 
SCAXSOKES. 
The term Scansores is applied to tliat tribe of birds 
which indicate,' by the structui’e of their feet and 
other characters, the grasping and climbing qualities 
which distinguish them from all others, and are so 
prominently conspicuous in the typical groups. Their 
powers of grasping, holding on, and climbing are so 
highly developed, that they may be considered the typi- 
cal group of the perching birds. The powers of their 
feet are not divided ; they have no facility of progress 
upon the ground, but their feet are exclusively formed 
for making way among the branches of, and climbing 
about trees. The general disposition of the toes is in 
pairs, that is, two before and two behind ; but there 
are several modifications of form in feet having the 
toes so disposed, each being accompanied by a cor- 
responding difierence of function. Thus the Parrot’s 
foot is termed prehensile: the soles are remarkably 
broad, and the toes divided to their origin ; the two 
exterior toes are the longest, one of which is decidedly 
in front, while the other, although almost always di- 
rected backwards, can nevertheless be brought half- 
way in front, so as to make a curve outwards. If 
a Parrot were to grasp a perfectly round fruit, its four 
toes would hold it at four points of its circumference, 
and at four equal distances ; thus it is that these birds 
have the most varied powers of prehension in their 
