72 
CERTHIAN-®. CERTHIA. 
feathers, generally much rounded. Tongue slender, emar- 
ginate and papillate at the base, very narrow, tapering to a 
lacerated point. Oesophagus of moderate width, without 
crop ; proventriculus bulbiform ; stomach of moderate size, 
oblong, or elliptical, moderately muscular, with the muscles 
distinct ; epithelium dense, longitudinally rugous ; intestine 
short, rather wide ; coeca very small ; cloaca globular. .Tra- 
chea simple, with four pairs of inferior laryngeal muscles. 
GENUS L CERTHIA, Linn. TREE-CREEPER. 
Bill about the same length as the head, very slender, 
arched, much compressed, acute ; upper mandible with the 
dorsal line arched, the ridge narrow, the sides sloping at the 
base, nearly erect in the rest of their extent, the edges 
sharp, arched, without notch, the tip acute ; lower mandible 
with the angle rather long, narrow, and pointed, the outline 
decurved, the sides erect and convex, the edges inclinate, 
the tip acute. Nostrils linear-oblong, operculate. Head 
ovate ; neck short ; body slender. Feet rather short, very 
slender, tarsus rather shorter than the middle toe, very 
slender, much compressed ; toes extremely compressed ; the 
first comparatively large, longer than the middle toe, in- 
cluding the claw ; the inner toe shorter than the' outer ; 
claws long, moderately arched, slender, extremely compres- 
sed, laterally grooved, acute, that of the hind toe very long. 
Plumage long, loose, very soft. Bristles obsolete. Wings 
of moderate length, very broad ; the first quill very short, 
the fourth and fifth longest. T ail long, graduated, of twelve 
moderately stiff pointed feathers. 
115. 1. Certhia familiaris, Linn. Brown Tree-Creeper. 
Plate CCCCXV. Male and Female. 
Upper parts reddish-brown, the head darker, the rump light brown- 
ish-red ; all the feathers with a central dull whitish streak ; wings deep 
brown, the coverts tipped, the secondaries barred at the base with dull 
yellow, of which a broad band, in the midst of a brownish-black space. 
