92 
Synopsis of the Birds 
26 . TROGLODYTES. 
Motacilla , L . Gm. Cuv. Ill . Sylvia , jLafA. Temm . Ram 
Troglodytes , Th yothorus, Vieill. 
Bill very slender, subulate, somewhat arched and elon- 
gated, acute, compressed, entire ; mandibles equal: nostrils 
basal, oval, half closed by a membrane, obvious : tongue 
cartilaginous, slender, terminated by two or three small, 
rigid bristles. Feet slender; tarsus longer than the middle 
toe; inner toe free; posterior with a larger nail. Wings 
short, concave, rounded, with a spurious feather ; third, fourth, 
and fifth primaries longest. 
Female and young hardly differ in plumage from the adult 
male. Moult annually. Plumage dull, thick, and long. 
Body rounded. 
Active and eccentric in their movements : tail constantly 
erected. Fond of prying into caves and dark places : hide 
in thickets and brambles. Feed exclusively on insects, which 
they seek among dead branches, wood-piles, &lc. Nest con- 
structed with much art ; eggs rather numerous. 
SUBGENUS I. TROGLODYTES. 
Troglodytes , Vieill . 
Bill slender from the base. Hind toe equal to the inner. 
Spurious feather moderate. 
Almost domestic, building on or near houses. Sing agree- 
ably. 
Found in both continents. 
147. Troglodytes jidon, Vieill. Brown, banded with black ; 
beneath dull grayish, with obsolete bands ; tail long, rounded. 
House Wren , Sylvia domes! ica, Wils . Am. Orn. i. p. 129. 
pi. K.fig. 3. Sylvia farva? Lath . (13.) 
Inhabits throughout the Union during summer: common. 
