Page:Natural History, Birds.djvu/256

Rh "On hearing the call of the cock, the hens, whose cry in some degree resembles the croak of the Raven, or rather, perhaps, the sound gock, gock, gock, assemble from all parts of the surrounding forest. The male bird now descends, from the eminence on which he was perched, to the ground, where he and his female friends join company."

Of this Family we possess but little information. It is extremely limited in extent, consisting of a few species inhabiting the high mountains or dry plains of South America, or the remotest parts of the Southern Ocean. They resemble the Grouse, but have the nostrils surrounded by a sort of sheath. The typical genus Chionis is often found far out at sea, but chiefly inhabits the rocks washed by the tide, feeding on sea-weeds and shells; hence they have been placed by some naturalists with the wading-birds.

The beak, in the two species which constitute this genus, is strong, broad at the base, but compressed near the tip, with the culmen curving downward; the base is encased in a horny substance, furrowed and notched, which conceals the nostrils. The cheeks are covered with a naked skin. The wings are moderate, the second quill longest, the shoulder armed with a tubercle. The