Page:Natural History, Birds.djvu/177

164 two laterally disposed toes, while the other two are pointing forwards. They live either in pairs, or in families, according to the season; nest, like the Parrots, in the hollows of decayed trees, where they lay four eggs of a delicate whiteness.

The generic characters of the Touracos are the following:—The beak short, rather small, high, and greatly compressed; the frontal feathers reposing over, and concealing the nostrils: the ridge (culmen) high, and curving downwards to the tip: the lower mandible narrow: both mandibles distinctly notched at the tip, and finely serrated. The wings short, rounded; the first three quills graduated. The tail long, broad, and rounded at the extremity. The feet short, and strong; the middle toe longer than the tarsus; the lateral toes equal; the hind toe shortest; the external toe capable of being turned one fourth of the way backward. The claws short, thick, and much compressed.

The Touracos are among the most charming of birds, having not only brilliance of colour to recommend them, but great elegance of form, and grace of motion. Their long and broad tail, and their high pointed crest, add much to their beauty. Their colour is almost always rich green, set off with gorgeous crimson or purple on the expanded wing. One of the most lovely of the known species, which now amount to seven in all, is the Fire-crested Touraco (Corythaix erythrolophus, .) of Western Africa, an individual of which species lived for some time in the gardens of the