i8 
PICARIAN BIRDS. 
Central and South America, where they are represented by some twenty-four 
species, ranging as far south as Southern Brazil and Paraguay. They are all 
birds of moderate size, with metallic blue or green colours above, and the breast 
and abdomen either bright yellow, scarlet, or blood-red. The females differ from 
the males in their duller plumage and the colour of the tail; the latter being 
either chestnut, grey, or blackish, whereas in the males it is as brilliant as the 
rest of the upper-parts, being either green, blue, or purple. The habits of these 
trogons seem everywhere to be the same; the birds affecting forest-districts, 
and feeding almost entirely on fruit and berries. They are described as rather 
stupid, and not even startled by the report of a gun, so that a whole flock may be 
shot out of the same tree. Most of the species go about in pairs, but are occa¬ 
sionally seen in small flocks, sometimes frequenting the lower branches of trees, 
but more often the middle and higher levels, where they sit motionless, or utter 
their curious notes at intervals. Mr. Richmond mentions that when in Nicaragua, 
a trogon flew into his house; but in most parts of South America these birds are 
inhabitants only of the virgin forests, extending their range to a considerable 
altitude on some of the mountains. In Peru, Mr. Stolzmann met with several 
species, on some of which he has given short notes. The only example of 
T. caligatus obtained during his travels was shot from a considerable height on 
a tree, when he had heard its cry repeated at intervals for the space of a couple 
of hours; it resembled the words cow-cou-cow-cou-co-co-co-co, the second half 
being uttered in a lower tone than the first. Of another kind ( T. melanurus), 
his companion, Mr Jelski, writes that it was not rare, and allowed of an easy 
approach, flying off to take up another perch in the neighbourhood of its previous 
one, always uttering its note cou-cou-cou-cou-cou. Its flight resembles that of a 
magpie, and the beating of the wings is distinctly heard; from time to time it 
called ke-ke-ke, lowering the tail at the same time, seldom flying more than a 
distance of fifty paces at a time, and preferring the lower branches of the trees. 
In Costa Rica, Mr. Nutting met with three species of trogons, which seem to differ 
somewhat in habits. Of the Massena trogon ( Tmassena ) he writes: “ I have 
never seen the species associating in flocks as the others do. On the contrary, it 
seems to be rather a silent bird, preferring the deep recesses of the tropical 
forests. Its note is a kind of clucking noise, hard to describe; and its native 
name is Aula. In common with all the species of the genus, it seems to be 
rather a stupid bird, hardly ever taking alarm at the approach of man”; the 
black-headed trogon (T. melanocephalus), very abundant in Costa Rica, being 
often seen in flocks of a dozen or more, and commonly found in the dry open 
woods away from water. It has a sort of chattering note, low and soft. In the 
same situations is also found T. caligatus, which is the only species giving utter¬ 
ance to a clear, distinct whistle. 
African Trogons Africa fbe trogons are represented by three species belonging 
to the genus Hapcdoderma, and characterised by the naked space 
behind the eye, as also by the colour of the tail, which is the same in both sexes, 
the three central pairs of tail-feathers being purplish or greenish, without any 
black bands at the end of the central ones. The Narina trogon (H. narina) ranges 
from Bogosland in North-Eastern Africa throughout East Africa to Natal, extend- 
