MUSOPHAGINJ£. 
after it has been disturbed be well marked, it will rarely be discovered by the hunter. When conscious of danger, it 
remains perfectly motionless, and, as its usual position is parallel to the branch upon which it rests, there is little to 
facilitate the discovery. In moving from one part of a branch to another, it generally runs along it, either ascending 
or descending according to circumstances, and it often pursues a similar course while removing from one side of a tree 
to the other. 
1. T. persa (Linn.) Edwards’s Birds, pi. 7. — Corythaix Buf- 
foni Swains. ; Opaetlius africanus Shaw. 
2. T . purpureus (Less.) — Corythaix Buffoni Vieill. Jard & 
Selby’s III. On. t. 122. ; C. senegalensis Swains. Birds of W. Afr. 
i. pi. 21. 
3. T. albocristatus Strickl. PI. enl. 601. — Spelectes corythaix 
Wagl. ; Opaetlius Persa Vieill. 
4. T. erythrolophus (Vieill.) N. Diet. d’Hist. Nat. xxxiv. 306. — 
Opaethus paulina Temm. PI. col. 23., Gal. des Ois. t. 49. 
5. T. leueotis (Rupp.) Zool. Atlas, t. 3. 
6. T. macrorhynchus (Eras.) Proc. Z. S. 1839, p. 34. 
7. T. giganteus (Vieill.) N. Diet. d’Hist. Nat., Le Vaill. Tour. t. 
19. — Musophaga cristata Vieill. ; Corythaix gigas Steph. ; Crax 
cyaneus Griff. An. Kingd. Birds, iii. pi. p. 
8. T. porphyreoloplms (Vigors), Proc. Z. S. 1831. 93. — Cory- 
thaix Burchellii A. Smith, Zool. S. Afr. pi. 35., Jard. & Selby’s 111. 
Orn. n. s. pi. 46. 
Schizorhis Wagl.* 
Bill short, with the culmen scarcely higher than broad at the base, much arched to the tip, and the 
lateral margins sinuated and nearly smooth ; the nostrils lateral, exposed, and placed near the basal 
portion of the culmen, with the opening longitudinal. Wings moderate and pointed, with the fourth, 
fifth, and sixth quills the longest. Tail long, and nearly equal, with the feathers broad. Tarsi shorter 
than the middle toe, robust, and covered in front with broad transverse scales. Toes long, the lateral 
toes nearly equal, the outer one scarcely versatile, the base united, and the margins bordered with a 
membrane ; the claws rather strong and curved. 
The continent of Africa is the peculiar country for the species of birds that form this genus, and Dr. A. Smith 
informs us that the favourite resort of the S. concolor seemed to be the immediate banks of rivers, where it was seen 
either perched upon the highest branches of the trees which occurred in those situations, or flitting to and fro among 
them in search of the fruits, which constitute its principal food. It is a bird of short flight, and, when disturbed and 
driven from any particular haunt, it seldom passes the nearest tree without alighting, unless it may think itself not 
sufficiently removed from the source of danger. When flying, it sometimes flaps its wings with considerable quickness 
and vigour, but more generally it soars along with them completely extended, and even scarcely moves them until it 
has actually perched. When at rest, and without any suspicion of danger, it has a clumsy dull appearance, with its 
head sunk to its shoulders, and at such times it utters occasionally a harsh cry resembling “ mea.” When excited, 
however, by the appearance of an object of suspicion, or its attention is arrested by any unusual noise, it exhibits a very 
opposite and elegant appearance ; its crest, which in a state of rest is generally recumbent, then becomes erected, while 
its head, if not its whole body, is moved in various directions, as if endeavouring to discover the cause of its alarm ; and 
at such times its cries are harsher and more frequent. The individuals first discovered were extremely shy and 
watchful, but as the travellers advanced in the country, where specimens were more abundant, less caution was 
observed, and there were days when they might have shot at least forty or fifty individuals had it been desirable. Be- 
sides the remains of fruits, the wings and other parts of grylli were found in the stomach of several which were examined. 
1. S . africana (Lath.) Le Vaill. Tour. t. 20. — Musophaga 
variegata Vieill. ; M. senegalensis Licht. Gal. des Ois. t. 48., Swains. 
B. of W. Afr. i. t. 20. 
2. S. zonarius (Rupp.) Faun. Abyss, t. 4. 
3. S. personata (Riipp.) Proc. Z. S. 1842. 8. 
4. S. leucogaster (Rupp.) Proc. Z. S. 1842. 9. 
5. S. con color (Smith), Report of S. Afr. Exp. App. Chizaerhb 
Felicise Less. 
* This genus was originally established under the name of Chizaerhis by Wagler in 1827, but in 1829 he changed it to the above 
word. In 1834 Dr. A. Smith proposed a division with the name of Corythaixoides , which he changed to Coliphimus in 1836. It is coequal 
with the one adopted. 
June, 1845. 
