Part 2

The families which, according to natural arrangement, seem to constitute a third division of the great class of birds are principally characterised by the conditions under which they procure their food, viz., by searching for it in situations where it can only be obtained by diligent investigation or laborious exertion. Their diet is usually of a very mixed description, consisting partly of insects and partly of materials derived from the vegetable creation. Many of them were at one time considered to subsist entirely upon the honeyed juices of the fruits and blossoms, among which they spend the greater part of their lives; and, although it is now generally admitted that the insects which abound in the nectared chalices whence they draw their supplies constitute a principal article of their nutriment, they are not the less on that account to be regarded as riflers of the saccharine stores laid up for their use in many a beautiful cup temptingly held forth for their enjoyment. Such are the Honeysuckers and the gorgeously decorated Humming Birds, whose sumptuous garb would seem literally intended to "gild refined gold and paint the lily." A second important group, constituted likewise for the purpose of preying upon insects, has been specially adapted to climb the trunks of trees in search of the innumerable hosts of destroyers that lurk beneath the bark, or in the crevices of wood in progress of decay. These constitute an extensive family, well exemplified by the Woodpeckers; while others, furnished with beaks and feet of very diverse structure, search everywhere for the particular kind of nourishment upon which they are destined to subsist.

The name we have selected for this extensive division of the feathered creation was first employed by Reichenbach, although not exactly in the same sense as that in which we are going to apply the term, neither can we hit upon any single character whereby all the species included under this denomination can be easily designated; nevertheless, however they may differ among themselves, there is a certain conformity in their structure, and a general resemblance in their habits, which will probably be appreciated when we have put the reader in possession of the details contained in the following pages.

We shall, therefore, at once commence their history, by describing them under the following headings.

THE CLIMBERS.

The CLIMBING BIRDS (_Scansor_) are for the most part recognisable by their slender though powerful body, short neck, and large head. The long or medium-sized beak is either strong and conical, or weak and of a curved form; the feet are short, and the long toes either arranged in pairs or placed together in the usual manner, and armed with long, hooked, and sharp claws. The moderate-sized wing, which is usually rounded at its extremity, and occasionally of great breadth, is never slender or pointed; the formation of the tail is very various. Anything like a general description of the plumage possessed by the different groups of this order would be impossible; some, glittering with gay and even resplendent colours, dart through the air like living gems, whilst others are clad in such dull and sombre livery as to be scarcely distinguishable from the earth or trees upon which they are formed to live. The various representatives of the _Scansor_ may be said to occupy almost every region of our earth; some groups are migratory, and leave their native lands annually with the utmost regularity, whilst others remain throughout the entire year within a certain limited district. Woods and forests are the localities principally occupied by these birds, though they are by no means incapable of ascending rocks, or seeking for their food upon the ground, over the surface of which they run with considerable facility. Their flight is good, but it is upon the trees alone that the _Scansor_ exhibit the full beauty and ease of their movements. All the members of this order consume insects, and many devour fruit, berries, seeds, honey, and the pollen of plants. As regards their powers of song they are by no means gifted; indeed, the most highly endowed amongst them rarely rise above the utterance of a few pleasing notes during the breeding season. The construction of the nests of the _Scansor_ varies so considerably that we shall confine ourselves to speaking of them in their appropriate places.

It is usual among systematic writers to associate many of the birds which we have included in the present order as slender-billed forms of one or other of the preceding divisions, more especially those usually denominated TENUIROSTRES, and perhaps we shall be harshly judged for our departure from the usual custom; be that as it may, the resemblance between some of the Climbing Birds and some Singing Birds is undeniable, and it is upon that ground that we treat of them in this place.

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The TENUIROSTRAL species are distinguishable from all others by the slenderness of their beak, which is usually more or less curved, and by the feebleness of their feet, the toes of which are not arranged in pairs. They may be grouped as follows:--

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The FLOWER BIRDS (_Certhiola_) constitute a small group of South American species, remarkable for the great beauty of their plumage. All possess a slender body, moderate-sized wing, containing nine primaries (of which the second, third, and fourth are the longest), and a somewhat soft-feathered tail, of medium length. The beak is also of moderate size, much arched at its base, and curved slightly inwards at its margins. The tongue is long, divided, and thread-like at its tip, but not protrusible; the foot is short and powerful. The sexes are readily distinguishable by the diversity of their coloration, the plumage of the male being blue, and that of the female usually green. All the members of this group closely resemble our singing birds in their habits and mode of life; they subsist upon insects, seeds, corn, and berries, in pursuit of which they hop from branch to branch, with ever restless activity. According to the Prince von Wied, they regard fruit of various kinds, particularly oranges, with especial favour, and, when these are ripe, constantly venture into the gardens, even close to dwelling-houses, with all the fearlessness of the Domestic Sparrow; at other seasons they prefer to keep within the shelter of well-wooded thickets. Their song, we believe, consists of but a single note.

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The BLUE BIRDS (_Cæreba_) are at once recognisable by their long, thin beak, which is compressed at its sides, and slightly notched near its very sharp tip; the wing is long and pointed, its second and third quills, which are of equal size, exceeding the rest in length. The moderate-sized tail is straight at its extremity; the legs are weak, and the tongue, which is tolerably long, composed of two lobes, terminating in fringed margins.

THE SAI, OR BLUE CAEREBA.

The SAI, or BLUE CAEREBA (_Cæreba cyanea_). The prevailing colour of this beautiful species is a brilliant light blue, shading towards the top of the head into resplendent blueish green; the upper part of the back, wings, and tail, as well as a stripe surrounding the eye, are black, and the inner margins of the wings yellow. The eye is greyish brown, the beak and foot bright orange-red. The plumage of the female is siskin-green on the upper parts of the body, and pale green beneath; the throat is whitish. The length of this species is four inches and two-thirds, the wing measures two inches and a quarter, and the tail one inch and a quarter.

These beautiful birds are met with throughout the greater part of South America, and are especially numerous about Espirito Santo. The Prince von Wied found them in large numbers inhabiting the forests near the coast, and tells us, that except during the breeding season, they live in small parties of six or eight, which disport themselves among the topmost branches of the trees, frequently associating with Tangaras, and such other of the feathered inhabitants of their leafy retreats as are about their own size. Fruit, seeds, and insects constitute their principal means of subsistence, and in pursuit of these they display an agility and dexterity fully equalling that of our own Titmouse. The voice of the Sai is only capable of producing a gentle twitter. Schomburghk mentions that large numbers of a very similar species are destroyed by the natives, who employ the gay and glossy feathers as personal ornaments.

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The PITPITS (_Certhiola_) have a high slender beak, which curves gently towards its sharp tip; their wings are long, their tail short, and their tongue divided into two parts, each of which terminates in a brush of thread-like fibres.

THE BANANA QUIT, OR BLACK AND YELLOW CREEPER.

The BANANA QUIT, or BLACK AND YELLOW CREEPER (_Certhiola flaveola_), is blackish brown on the upper parts of the body, and of a beautiful bright yellow on the under side and rump; a line that passes above the eyes, the anterior borders of the primary quills, the tips of the tail, and its two outer feathers are white; the throat is ash-grey, the eye greyish brown, the back is black, and the foot brown. The female is blackish olive on the back, and pale yellow on the under side; in other respects her plumage resembles that of her mate. The length of this species is three inches and five-sixths; the wing measures two inches and one-sixth, and the tail one inch.

"Scarcely larger than the average size of Humming Birds," writes Mr. Gosse, "this little Creeper is often seen in company with them, probing the same flowers, and for the same purpose, but in a very different manner. Instead of hovering in front of each blossom, a task to which his short wings would be utterly incompetent, the Quit alights on the tree, and proceeds in most business-like manner to peep into the flowers, hopping actively from twig to twig, and throwing his body into all positions, often clinging by his feet with his head downwards, the better to reach the blossoms with his curved beak and pencilled tongue; the minute insects which are concealed in the flowers are always the objects of his search. Unsuspectingly familiar, these birds resort much to the blossoming shrubs of enclosed gardens. The soft, sibilant note of the Quit is often uttered while the bird peeps about for food. The nest is frequently built in those low trees and bushes from whose twigs depend the paper nests of the brown wasps, and in close contiguity with them. On the 4th of May, as I was riding to Savannah-le-Mar, I observed a Banana Quit with a bit of silk cotton in her beak, and, on searching, found a nest just commenced in a sage bush (_Lautana camara_). The structure, though incomplete, was evidently about to be a dome, and so far was entirely constructed of silk-cotton. A nest now before me is in the form of a globe, with a small opening in the side. The walls are very thick, composed of dry grass, intermixed irregularly with the down of Asclepias. This nest I found between the twigs of a branch of Bauhinia that projected over the high road, near Content, in St. Elizabeth's. The two eggs were greenish white, thickly but indefinitely dashed with red at the broad end."

In the Eastern Hemisphere the Flower Birds are represented by--

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The HONEYSUCKERS (_Nectarinia_). These are small and delicately-constructed birds, adorned with plumage of the most brilliant hues; their body is compact, their beak thin, slightly curved, and sharply pointed. The moderately long wing contains ten primary quills. The formation of the tail is very varied, being either straight, rounded, or wedge-shaped at its extremity; its two centre feathers occasionally extend considerably beyond the rest. The tongue is long, very protrusible, and divided at its tip; the feet are high, and the toes slender. The coloration of the plumage varies not only in the two sexes, but also at different seasons; the feathers are moulted twice in the year, and only exhibit their gay tints during the period of incubation; towards the end of the season the males are clad in the same sombre hues that belong to the females and young. The Honeysuckers inhabit the whole of Africa, Asia, and Oceania, the first-mentioned continent being especially rich in species. Everywhere their glowing colours entitle them to be regarded as the most striking ornaments of the woods, groves, or gardens they inhabit, whilst their intelligence renders the study of their habits extremely interesting. During the greatest part of the year they live in pairs, which occasionally associate into small parties during the breeding season. The nests of the Honeysuckers are constructed with great skill, and are usually suspended from thin branches or twigs. The eggs, which are few in number, are of a pure white.

THE ABU-RISCH.

The ABU-RISCH (_Hedydipna metallica_) represents a group recognisable by their slightly-curved beak, scarcely equalling the head in length; their comparatively short wings, in which the second, third, fourth, and fifth quills are of equal length; and their wedge-shaped tail, the two centre feathers of which are usually considerably prolonged. The male is of a metallic green on the head, throat, back, and shoulder-covers; the under side is bright yellow, a line upon the breast and the rump have a violet sheen; the quills and tail-feathers are blackish blue, the eye brown, and the beak and feet black. The back of the female is of a light olive-brown, and her under side sulphur-yellow; her quills and tail-feathers have light edges. The young resemble the mother, but are of a paler hue. The length of this species is six inches, of which three and a half belong to the centre tail-feathers, the rest do not exceed thirteen and a quarter; the wings measure two inches and one-sixth. The Abu-Risch is met with in all such parts of Africa as afford it the shelter of its favourite mimosa-trees, upon and around which it may literally be said to spend its whole existence. Early in the morning, and towards the close of the day, it usually perches quietly among the branches, and only displays its full vivacity during the noontide heat, when it flutters rapidly from blossom to blossom, in search of food, singing and chirping briskly as it flies in cheerful companionship with its almost inseparable mate. The song of the male is pleasing, and accompanied by a great variety of gesticulations and attitudes, calculated to exhibit his crest and plumage in all their varied beauty to the admiring gaze of the female, who usually endeavours to imitate her partner, but, owing to the comparative dullness of her colours, with a far less imposing result. In Southern Nubia the breeding season commences in March or April. The nest, which is variously formed, is neatly and skilfully woven with cotton-wool and similar materials, and lined with hair or spiders' webs. This pretty little structure is usually suspended from the end of a branch, at no great height from the ground, and is entered by an aperture at the side, frequently so situated that the leaves of the branch overhang and shade the entrance hole. Both parents work busily in constructing this snug apartment for their young, and have seldom completed their labours in less than a fortnight's time. The eggs, which are oval in shape, and white, are incubated by the female alone.

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The FIRE HONEYSUCKERS (_Æthopyga_), the Indian representatives of the above group, are recognisable by the comparative thinness of their short but distinctly curved beak. In their wings the fourth quill exceeds the rest in length; the tail is wedge-shaped at its sides, and furnished with two long and slender feathers in its centre. The plumage of the male is enlivened by brightly-tinted stripes on the cheeks, while that of the female is sombre, and almost of uniform tint.

THE CADET.

The CADET (_Æthopyga miles_), one of the most beautiful members of this family, is blood-red on the back; the throat and upper part of the breast are of a somewhat paler crimson; the top of the head is violet, with a bright, metallic, green lustre. The nape is deep olive-yellow, and the belly pale greenish yellow; a steel-blue line, that becomes gradually broader, passes from the corners of the mouth to the sides of the neck; the quills are brown, edged with olive; the two centre tail-feathers are glossy violet-green, and those of the exterior brown, with a purple sheen on the outer web. The eye is dark brown, the upper mandible black, the lower one brown, and the foot greyish black. The female is olive-green on the back, and yellowish green on the under side. The wing measures two inches and three-eighths, and the tail three inches.

The Cadet inhabits the northern and eastern parts of India, and is often met with in the Himalayas at an altitude of 2,500 feet above the level of the sea.

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The BENT-BEAKS (_Cyrtostomus_) are distinguishable by their very decidedly curved beak, which equals the head in length, is blunt at its margins, and slightly incised towards its very sharp tip; the tarsus is comparatively high, the tail short and rounded, and the wings, in which the fourth and fifth quills are the longest, of moderate size. The plumage is of an olive-green on the upper parts of the body, and brightly coloured in the region of the throat.

THE AUSTRALIAN BLOSSOM RIFLER.

The AUSTRALIAN BLOSSOM RIFLER (_Cyrtostomus Australis_) is olive-green on the back, and of a beautiful bright yellow on the under side; the throat and upper breast are steel-blue. A short yellow streak passes over the eyes, and beneath this runs a long line of deeper shade; the eye is chestnut-brown, and the beak and feet black. The female is of an uniform yellow on the under side. According to Gould, the body of this species measures four inches and three-quarters, the wing two inches and one-eighth, and the tail two inches and a half.

"This pretty bird," says Macgillivray, as quoted by Gould, "appears to be distributed along the whole coast of Australia, the adjacent islands, and the whole of the islands in Jones's Straits. Although thus generally distributed, it is nowhere numerous, seldom more than a pair being seen together. Its habits resemble those of the _Ptilotes_, with which it often associates, but still more closely those of the _Myzomela azura;_ like those birds, it resorts to the flowering trees, to feed upon the insects which frequent the blossoms, especially those of a species of _Sciodophyllum_. This singular tree, whose range on the north-eastern coast and that of the Australian Sun Bird appears to be the same, is furnished with enormous spike-like racemes of small scarlet flowers, which attract numbers of insects, and thus furnish an abundant supply of appropriate food. The Blossom Rifler is of a pugnacious disposition, as I have more than once seen; it drives away and pursues any visitor to the same tree. Perhaps this disposition is only exhibited during the breeding season. The nests we found at Cape York were pensile, and attached to the twig of a prickly bush; one, measuring seven inches in length, was of an elongated shape, with a rather large opening on one side, close to the top; it was composed of shreds of Melaleuca bark, a few leaves, various fibrous substances, rejectamenta of caterpillars, &c., and lined with the silky cotton of the _Bombyx Australis_. The eggs were pear-shaped, mottled with dirty brown, on a greenish grey ground. Another nest, found at Mount Ernest, Jones's Straits, differs from those seen in Cape York, in having over the entrance a projecting fringe-like hood, composed of the panicles of a delicate grass-like plant. It contained two young birds, and I saw the mother visit them twice in an interval of ten minutes. She glanced past like an arrow, perched at once on the nest, clinging to the lower side of the entrance, and looked round very watchfully for a few seconds before feeding the young, after which she disappeared as suddenly as she arrived."

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The SPIDER-EATERS (_Arachnothera_) are short, compactly-built birds, with extraordinarily long and often strangely-formed beaks, which in most species are very decidedly curved and delicately incised at the margins. The nostrils are covered with a skin, and only open inferiorly, where they terminate in a horizontal slit-shaped aperture. The thread-like tongue, which is very long, and greatly resembles that of a butterfly, consists of two fine tubes, which run side by side, and are closely connected along their under surface; a longitudinal groove is interposed between them above. The arrangement of the bones at the base of the tongue, whereby the lingual apparatus is capable of considerable protrusion, is very similar to that observable in the Woodpecker. The feet are powerful, but of medium length, and the wings (in which the fourth quill is the longest) are of moderate size. The sexes are very similar in the coloration of their plumage, in which brownish green, and more or less lively yellow, grey, or green, predominate.

The Spider-eaters usually frequent the most shady retreats in their favourite woods, and but rarely ascend the branches to more than fifteen or twenty feet from the ground. In the Sunda Islands they are principally met with in the coffee plantations, the brushwood that skirts the mountains, or in the thickets of trees and shrubs that surround the villages. In all these situations they are numerous, and are constantly to be seen as they flit from flower to flower in search of the insects and honey upon which they subsist. Small spiders are said to be eagerly devoured by all the members of this family, hence their name of _Arachnothera_. The flight of the Spider-eaters, which is extremely rapid, and in many respects like that of the Woodpecker, is observed by the natives with a superstitious attention, fully equalling the reverence paid by the Romans to the predictions drawn by their augurs from a similar source.

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The HALF-BILLS (_Hemignathus_) are a group of Spider-eaters that are easily recognisable by the strange formation of their beak; the upper mandible terminates in a sharp point, and is always much longer than the under portion of the bill, sometimes twice its length. The toes, also, are comparatively long, and the foot short. The plumage is usually green upon the back, and of a yellowish tint beneath. All the members of this group inhabit Oceania.

THE BRILLIANT HALF-BILL.

The BRILLIANT HALF-BILL (_Hemignathus lucidus_), one of the most beautiful members of this group, is olive-green upon the entire mantle, shading into grass-green on the top of the head and at the edges of the wings. A stripe over the eyes, and the sides of the head and throat are orange-red; the breast is bright yellow, the belly of a paler shade, and its lower portion greenish grey. In young birds the back and region of the eye are olive-green, the under side light greenish grey, and the belly pale yellow. This species is six inches long, but of this measurement one inch and three-quarters belong to the tail, and one inch and a quarter to the beak; the lower mandible does not exceed eight lines in length. We are without particulars as to the life of this bird, except that it inhabits the Pisang plantations.

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