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The group now before us is that of the Touracos (Corythaix) and Plantain Eaters (Musophaga.) The Touracos are natives of Africa, where they dwell in the woods, among the branches, feeding on succulent fruits, and possessing great agility. In this respect, as also in their feeble powers of flight, they much resemble the toucans. In captivity their manners are gentle and

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familiar; their voice is sonorous. The beak is short, convex above, laterally compressed, slightly arched, and serrated at the edges; nostrils at the base of the upper mandible. The head is graced with a flattened crest of silky feathers. The wings are short; the tail long, and slightly rounded. The outer toe behind versatile.

The

Touracos breed in hollow trees, where they also roost at night. Four species are known; of these the Corythaix Persa is selected as our example. This beautiful bird is a native of Southern Africa. The general plumage is a

rich bluish green, the quill-feathers being of the richest crimson. In size it equals a wood pigeon or partridge.

The Plantain Eaters (Musophaga) are distinguished from the touracos chiefly by the base of the upper mandible being swollen, so as to rise above and encroach upon the forehead, and by the nostrils being placed in the middle of the beak. One species is all at present recognised (Musophaga violacea.) It is a native of Guinea and Senegal; the fruit of the banana is its principal food. The skin encircling the eyes is naked and red; above this passes a white streak; the general plumage is of a deep violet colour, the back of the head and the quill-feathers being crimson.

In closing our notice of the Zygodactylous order, we would observe that they afford striking and abundant evidences of the wisdom and power of God.

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THE RED-BELLIED TROGON.

[For the description of which, see page 287.]

328

ORDER IV.

THE GALLINACEOUS, OR RASORIAL ORDER.

RASORES, Vigors.

THE general characters of the Rasorial order are sufficiently clear and distinct, so as to render its boundaries settled. The birds comprising it are all granivorous, feeding upon vegetable diet exclusively, or at least nearly so, for in some species the young are fed upon the larvæ of ants, in addition to grain or berries. They are all terrestrial in their habits; some, indeed, exclusively so, being incapable of rising from the ground from the rudimentary condition of their wings. The body is stout, plump, and heavy, and, with certain exceptions, the wings are round and concave, rendering flight slow and laborious. The limbs are generally strong and muscular, and the hind toe, instead of being placed on a level with the anterior part of the foot, as we always see in the birds of the Insessorial order, is more or less elevated on the tarsus, so that in many examples its point only touches the ground, and sometimes not even that; while in others it is wanting entirely. In accordance with the nature of the food, the beak is strong and horny; but at its base there is a space covered with a tough membrane, in which the nostrils are situated.

We have often observed how one group blends at different points into others, and the more rigorous the examination, the more in number and the more palpable will these points of relationship appear. The first family of the present Rasorial order is an illustration; it is that of the PIGEONS, (Columbida.) Its characters are as follow: beak moderate, compressed, furnished at the base with a tumid and soft membrane, in which the nostrils are placed, and more or less bent at the tip. Toes four. Tail generally consisting of twelve feathers.

The Pigeons, or at least the Pigeons properly so called, with one or two exceptions, unite in themselves arboreal and terrestrial habits. Their tarsi are short, and in one genus feathered to the toes. They take up their abode in woods, building high upon the branches, or in the hollows of time-worn trees; their wings are pointed, and their powers of flight of the highest grade; the swift winged falcon must strain itself to overtake them. In these habits of perching and nidification, connected with the shortness of the tarsi, and the vigorous powers of flight, may be traced on the one hand an alliance to various groups of the Insessorial order; while, on the other hand, in food, and manner of taking it, in the structure of the gizzard, and in general anatomical organization, they prove their title to the situation assigned them in the present order, to the more typical forms of which they are strongly linked by a series of gradations.

The family Columbida is spread through every part of the globe; many are migratory. "They pair together with the strictest constancy, the male and female sharing between them their common nest, and the care of the progeny which it contains. The female lays twice a year, and generally two eggs at a time, on which she sits alternately with the male, who takes her place for several hours during the day, while she is absent in search of food. When the young are first hatched, they are unfledged and blind, and consequently unable to provide for themselves. This task the parents fulfil," disgorging at first a milky fluid, (the secretion of peculiar glands in the crop,) adapted to the digestive powers of the nestlings, afterwards grain softened in the crop. Their care over their young is unremitting; these are generally male and female, and, being brought up together, continue united during life.

Four species of Pigeon are indigenous in the British isles; of these the first, and by far the largest, is the RING DOVE, Cushat, or Queest, (Columba Palumbus, LIN.) It is distinguished by the patch of white on each side of the neck, the upper surface being bluish gray,

the under parts vinous ash colour. It remains in England during the whole of the year, and is common in all well wooded districts. It is not susceptible of domestication, and will not even breed in captivity, as many unsuccessful trials have proved. In winter, vast flocks collect together and spread over the open fields during the day in search of food, returning to the woods to roost as night comes on. Their flesh is excellent, and multitudes are sent annually to the London markets.

The second species is the STOCK Dove, (Columba Enas,) a bird resembling the Ring Dove in habits and manners, being a constant inhabitant of woods, and breeding in the hollows of old trees and on the tops of pollards. In size, however, it is much less, and wants the white patch on the neck. The parts above are deep bluish gray; a broad black band terminates the tail; the under parts are gray, with a tinge of purple. The Stock Dove has till lately been considered as the origin of the numerous domestic varieties which ornament our poultry yards, but erroneously; it is essentially a distinct species, differing in habits and instincts.

Our domestic breeds are the descendants of the third species, namely, the Rock Dove, or Biset, (Columba livia,) a bird which, instead of inhabiting woods in the interior of the country, gives a preference, in its wild state, to the rocks which border the sea. It is universally spread in the old world, and is very abundant in the rocky islands of the Mediterranean, and along the northern coast of Africa. In Britain, it breeds on the high cliffs of the shore in Wales, and in the cavernous recesses of the rocks in the Orkneys, and in various other localities. Church steeples and towers near the coast are also among its dwelling-places; and even in the interior of the country, pigeons which have resumed their freedom and independence are often tenants, in company with daws and starlings, of ruined buildings. Though very much resembling the stock dove, the Rock Pigeon may be at once distinguished by the white colour of the rump, and by

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