Page:Natural History, Birds.djvu/282

Rh back, is suffused with rufous; the under parts are white, beautifully and regularly banded on the sides with black. The end of the beak, as Mr. Yarrell has observed, "when the bird is alive, or recently killed, is smooth, soft, and pulpy, indicating great sensibility; but some time afterwards it becomes dimpled like the end of a thimble. If the upper mandible be macerated in water for a few days, the skin or cuticle may be readily peeled off; and the bones thus laid bare, present a similar appearance. The external surface