WOOD-HOOPOES. 
59 
never seen them stay out longer than to give time to get rid of their droppings, 
and I have never seen either of them on the ground when out. Generally speaking, 
they perch on a tree near at hand, and after sitting a few moments for the purpose 
mentioned, fly back to the nest. Two or three times one of the hens flew out, 
passed her dropping whilst on the wing, and returned to the nest without having 
settled anywhere. They are fed most indefatigably by the cocks, and the number 
of grubs, small worms, and so forth, destroyed by them is very great.” As already 
mentioned, the name hoopoe is doubtless derived from the note of the bird, rather 
than from the fact of its possessing a remarkable crest, whence may come the 
French title, “la huppe.” Swinhoe writes that the notes are produced “by puffing 
out the sides of its neck, and hammering on the ground at the production of each 
note, thereby exhausting the air at the end of the series of three notes, which makes 
up its song. Before it repeats its call it repeats the puffing of the neck, with a slight 
gurgling noise. When it is able to strike its bill, the sound is the correct hoo-hoo- 
hoo, but when perched on a rope, and only jerking out the song with nods of the 
head, the notes most resemble the syllables, hoh-hoh-hoh! ” 
The Wood-Hoopoes. 
Family iRlWiOPJDJE. 
From the members of the preceding family the wood-hoopoes are distinguished 
by the more or less marked metallic gloss on their plumage, the long, wedge-shaped 
form of the tail, which exceeds the wing in length, and the elongated nostrils, 
which are partly concealed by an overhanging flap. These birds are represented 
by three genera, all of which are confined to Africa, and differ from one another 
merely in the degree of curvature of the beak and the contour of the nostrils. 
The species which we select as our example of the family is the purple-tailed 
wood-hoopoe (Irrisor vivid is), which is a bird of considerable size, measuring 
about 14| inches in total length. The colour of the upper surface of the 
plumage is metallic green, somewhat inclining to bronze on the back, and 
with a steely blue tinge on the hinder part of the head and neck; while the 
feathers of the lower portion of the back, as well as the upper tail-coverts, are 
bluish black edged with dark copper. The wings are steel-blue, their primary 
coverts being tipped with white, while the lesser coverts are edged with copper, 
and the primary quills crossed with a band of white consisting of twin spots, the 
outer one smaller than the inner one; the tail is purple, shot with violet, all but 
the central feathers with an oblique subterminal bar of white; the under surface 
glossy steel-blue; the breast and upper part of the abdomen shining metallic-green ; 
the lower abdomen and under tail-coverts glossy purplish black; the bill and feet 
scarlet, and the iris dark hazel. This species is an inhabitant of South Africa, 
whence it ranges as far north as Angola on the west, and to Mombasa on the east 
coast. In North-Eastern Africa, and on the west coast from Senegambia to the 
Niger, its place is taken by the allied species, I. evythrorhynchus, distinguished by 
having the tail greenish blue instead of purple. In habits all the wood-hoopoes 
are very shy and wary, and very active and erratic in their movements, always 
