DIVISIONS OF BIRDS, 289 
CHAPTER XXX. 
DIVISIONS OF BIRDS. 
BIRDS may be variously divided, but for our present purpose 
it is most convenient to regard them as divided into the follow- 
ing eight orders :— 
I. Natatores or Swimming Birds, characterised by having 
the feet webbed, and the legs short and placed far back ; whilst 
the body is closely covered with feathers, and with a thick coat- 
ing of down next the skin. (#2. Ducks, Geese, Pelicans.) 
Il. Grallatores or Wading Birds, characterised by having 
very long legs, which are destitute of feathers from the lower 
end of the tibia downwards. The toes are usually long and 
straight, and are never connected to one another by membrane. 
(Ex. Curlews, Snipes, Herons, Storks.) 
Ill. Cursores or Running Birds, characterised by having very 
short wings, which are not used in flight; the breastbone is 
without a ridge or keel; the legs are very robust; and the hind 
toe is wanting or rudimentary. (x. Ostriches and Emeus.) 
IV. Rasores or Scratching Birds, characterised by usually 
having strong feet, with powerful blunt claws, used for scratch- 
ing. The upper mandible of the bill is strongly curved and 
vaulted, and the nostrils are pierced in a membranous space at 
its base, and are covered by a cartilaginous scale, (2%, Fowls, 
Pheasants, Pigeons.) 
V. Scansores or Climbing Birds, characterised by having a 
climbing foot, in which two toes are turned backwards and two 
forwards. (x. Woodpeckers, Parrots, Cuckoos.) 
VI. Lnusessoves or Perching Birds, characterised by having 
short and slender legs, with three toes in front and one behind, 
the whole foot being adapted for perching. (Ax. Larks, Linnets, 
Swallows, Crows, Humming-birds.) 
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