dark brown down the centre; irides blackish brown; bill blackish gray; legs and feet olive-gray. Gould's Birds of Australia. | On my lad's attempt to climb the tree, eight or ten birds flew in succession from various parts, where they had been concealed before. The tree, however, was too smooth to be climbed, and as we watched beneath for the birds to return, one and another came, but charily, and entered their respective nests. Although several other cocoa-nuts were close by, I could not discern that any one of them was tenanted but this, and this so numerously; whence I inferred the social disposition of the bird. At some distance we found another tree, at the foot of which lay the dried fronds, spadices, and spathes, which had been, in the course of growth, thrown off, and in these were many nests. They were formed chiefly in the hollow spathes, and were placed in a series of three or four in a spathe, one above another, and gallery along the side, communicating with each. The materials seemed only feathers and silk-cotton (the down of the Bombax); the former very largely used, the most downy placed within, the cotton principally without; the whole felted closely, and cemented together by some slimy fluid, now dry, were evidently old ones, for the Bombax had not yet perfected its cotton, and hence I infer that these birds continue from year to year to occupy the same nests, until they are thrown off by the growth of the tree. The entrance to the nests, which were sub The PALM SWIFT. (Tachornis pharnicobia.) We are told by Mr. Gosse, in his interesting work on the Birds of Jamaica,' that this delicately formed little Swift, conspicuous even in flight, from the broad belt of white across its black body, is a very common species in Jamaica, where it resides all the year. It is thus described: - Irides dark hazel beak black; feet purplish fleshcolour; claws horn-colour; inside of mouth flesh-colour, tinged in parts with bluish. Head smoke brown, paling on the sides; back, wings, tail-coverts, and tail sootyblack, unglossed, or with slight greenish reflections on the tail. Across the rump a broad band of pure white, the black descend-agglutinated together, but with a kind of ing into it from the back, in form of a point; sometimes dividing it. Chin and throat silky white, the feathers brown at the base; sides smoky black, meeting in a narrow, illdefined line across the breast; medial belly white. Thighs, under tail-coverts, and inner surface of wings smoky black. "Over the grass-pieces and savannas of the low-probably the saliva. All the nests lands, the marshy flats at the seaward mouths of the valleys, as well as the pens of the mountain slopes, this swift-winged sylph daily urges its rushing course in parties of half a dozen to fifty or a hundred, often mingled with other Swallows, performing mazy evolutions, circling and turning, cross-globular, was near the bottom." Another ing and recrossing, now darting aloft, now sweeping over the grass, till the eye is wearied with attempting to follow them. The length of its wings, which is scarcely less than that of the whole bird, renders it a fleet and powerful flyer; an attentive observer will be able to indentify it, when mingling in aerial career, by a more frequent recurrence of the rapid vibration of the wings, the momentary winnowing, by which a fresh impetus is gained. There is a very interesting structure in the sternum of this bird, which, as far as I know, is unprecedented. The sternum, though void of emarginations, possesses two oblong foramina of large size, one on each side of the middle of the ridge, and a round one perforating the ridge itself near the front margin. As all three are closed by the usual membrane, the object may be, the decrease of weight by the abstraction of bone, while the surface for the attachment of the muscles of flight remains undiminished." Our author then proceeds with an interesting description of their nests. "I observed," says he, "several small Swallows flying above some cocoa-nut palms; they uttered, as they flew, a continued twittering warble, shrill but sweet, which attracted my attention. I commenced a careful search, with my eye, of the under surface of the fronds and spadices of one, and at length discerned some masses of cotton projecting from some of the spathes, which I concluded to be their nests. This conjecture proved correct; for presently I discovered a bird clinging to one of these masses, which I shot, and found to be this white-rumped Swift. opportunity afterwards presented itself, and Mr. Gosse became better acquainted with the habitations of the Palm Swift; and he thus describes the nests he had in his possession: "They have a singularly hairy appearance, being composed almost exclusively of the flax-like cotton of the Bombax, and when separated, are not unlike a doll's wig. They are in the form of those watchfobs which are hung at beds' heads, the backs being firmly glued by the saliva to the under surface of the fronds, the impressions of the plaits of which are conspicuous on the nest when separated. The thickness is slight in the upper part, but in the lower it is much increased, the depth of the cup descending very little below the opening. The cotton is cemented firmly together as in the case of the others, but externally it is allowed to hang in filamentous locks, having a woolly but not altogether a ragged appearance. A few feathers are intermixed, but only singly, and not in any part specially. One specimen is double, two nests having been constructed so close side by side, that there is but a partition wall between them. Many nests had eggs, but in throwing down the fronds all were broken but one, which I now have. It is pure white, unspotted, larger at one end, measuring 13-20ths of an inch by 9-20ths. The average dimensions of the nests were about five inches high, and three and a half wide." collectors to Moths of the genus Hepialus. SWIFT (MOTHS]. A name applied by SWORD-FISH. (Xiphias.) A genus of Acanthopterygian fishes, the distinguishing It characteristic of which is a long pointed beak, constituting one third of its whole length, and shaped like a straight sword; being a most powerful offensive weapon. They are placed by Cuvier among the Scomberida, or Mackerel family. The common Sword-fish (Xiphias gladius) is sometimes more than twenty feet long, the beak included. swims with greater swiftness than almost any inhabitant of the deep, and is possessed of vast muscular strength. It attacks, and generally puts to flight, the smaller cetaceous animals, notwithstanding its food is usually vegetable. Its flesh is good; and in some countries the fishery is an object of import ance. It is taken with the harpoon, and part in the economy of nature: to them appears intrusted the subjugation of those innumerable minute insects which lurk within the buds, the foliage, or the flowers of plants; and, thus protected, escape that destruction from swallows, to which they are only ex SYLVIA BORTENSIS. posed during flight. The diminutive size of such insects renders them unfit for the nourishment of the thrushes and the larger insectivorous birds, while their number and variety only become apparent when the boughs are shaken and their retreat disturbed. How enormous then would be their multiplication, had not nature provided other races of beings to check their increase! No birds appear more perfectly adapted for this purpose than the Warblers." The same writer then notices their arrival, for the most part, on the first appearance of spring. when the insect world is called into life and activity by the renewal of vegetation; and their departure towards autumn, when the insect hosts diminish, and consequently no longer require the agency of these little birds to keep their numbers within due bounds. He remarks also, that as different localities are assigned to different tribes of insects, so a similar diversity of haunts is allotted to different groups of Warblers. [See WARBLER.] COMMON SWORD-FISH.-(XIPHIAS GLADIUS) usually tears the net, if enclosed. It has not unfrequently happened that a Swordfish has struck a ship, and driven its sharp weapon through the planking. It is very abundant in the Mediterranean, but less so in the Atlantic. Notwithstanding its formidable weapon, its great strength, and its almost incredible celerity, a small crustaceous animal penetrates the flesh of the Sword fish, and sometimes so torments it, that it dashes itself on the shore with mortal violence. In the Mediterranean it is regularly pursued by the fishermen : and its flesh is much esteemed in some places as an article of food. The female approaches the shores in the latter part of spring or beginning of summer. Mr. Gray has described a fine species of Sword-fish from the Cape of Good Hope, in which the skin is strengthened with bony spicula. It is nearly cleven feet long, and having been found in Table Bay during the visit of Sir John Herschel (the astronomer), has been named Tetrapturus Herschelii, in compliment to him. It belongs to a genus subdivided from Xiphias by its pos-generic character is thus described:- Bill sessing ventral fins; the caudal fin is furnished on each side with two small prominent crests. The specimen is in the collection of the British Museum. SYNALLAXIS. The name given to a genus of birds by Vieillot, placed by Mr. Swainson in the family of Certhiade. Their short, strong, and straight; both mandibles of equal thickness, and much compressed: wings short, and much rounded; the primaries scarcely exceeding the tertials: tail broad and long, either granulated or cuneated; the webs loose, the shafts rather rigid, the tips lanceolate: feet very large: tarsus lengthened: the claws slender, acute, and slightly curved. The SYNALLAXIS GARRULUS is given as an example of the genus. Colour of the plumage: brown; beneath whitish; feathers on the front of the head rigid, pointed, and rufous; lines before and behind the eye whitish; tail rounded. This bird is remarkable for its very singular nest, which in the woodland scenery of Bahia (Brazil) forms a striking object. It is built SYLVIA: SYLVIADA. The Sylviada, or Warblers, are a family of small birds, with rather long and slender bills, with the tip slightly curved and toothed; and it contains a large proportion of the species which are most remarkable for their power of song. "The chief peculiarity," observes Mr. Swainson, "which runs through this numerous family, is the very small size and delicate structure of its individuals. Excepting the Humming-birds, we find among these elegant little creatures the smallest birds in the creation. The diminutive Golden-crests, the Nightingale, the Whitethroat, and the Wood-in low trees, formed externally of dried wren, are all well-known examples of genuine Warblers, familiar to the British naturalist. The groups of this extensive family, spread over all the habitable regions of the globe, are destined to perform an important sticks, usually three or four feet long, and resembling at a distance a thick twist of bean-stalks thrown in the branches by accident. Sometimes two of these nests appear as if joined together, and there is an opening on the side, besides one on the top. Both male and female are generally seen near the nest, uttering a shrill, incessant, monotonous chirp, particularly in the morning and evening. SYNBRANCHUS. angular spots. This insect, like the rest of its genus, is seen during the middle and the decline of summer, generally in the hottest part of the day, and chiefly abounding in woods and pastures. It is extremely troublesome to cattle, piercing their skin with the The name of a sublancets of its proboscis, and sucking the division of the Muranida, or Eel-shaped blood in such a manner as to cause considerfishes; characterized by having the gill-able pain. It proceeds from a large, duskyopening entirely single, no pectorals, fins fatty, head thick, snout rounded, operculum cartilaginous, with six rays, stomach and anal perfectly straight, and bladder long and narrow. They are found chiefly in tropical seas. SYNDACTYLI. The name given to a tribe of Perching Birds, including those which have the external and middle toe united as far as the second joint; the word Syndactyli indicating the adhesion of the fingers. The plumage is generally of a brilliant blue or green colour; and very smooth and glossy. [For examples, see BEEEATER and KINGFISHER.] SYNGNATHUS. [See PIPE-FISH.] SYRPHIDE. A family of Dipterous insects, generally of a moderate or large size, and of variegated colours. Many of the species resemble humble-bees, wasps, &c., and are frequently mistaken for them by the inexperienced. The proboscis is long, membranous, elbowed near the base, terminated by two large lobes, and the sucker enclosed in an upper canal; a long horny upper lip, hollow, and notched at the tip; a pair of slender acute maxilla, and a slender pointed tongue; the head is hemispherical, and covered for the most part by the eyes, especially in the males: the front of the head is often produced into a kind of beak, receiving the proboscis when it is folded in inaction. They are all fond of flowers: they fly with amazing swiftness, and many of them, if disturbed from their favourite haunts even for a number of times, will return and continue to hover there again. The larvae of the typical genus Syrphus feed upon all kinds of Aphides, which they often hold up in the air, and suck very quickly : the body of these larvæ is of an elongateconic form, uneven, and sometimes spinose. When ready to metamorphose, they fix themselves to leaves or other substances by a glutinous secretion; the body shortens, and its anterior end, which was the slenderest, becomes the thickest.-The larva of the genus Volucella are also insectivorous, but reside in the nests of Humble-bees and Wasps, upon the larva of which they sub sist. TABANUS: TABANIDE. A genus and family of Dipterous insects, comprising various large flies, pre-eminently distinguished for the tormenting powers which different species possess; piercing the skin, in order to suck the blood, of various quadrupeds, wild and domesticated. The TABANUS BOVINUS of Linnæus is the largest of the British species. It has the appearance of a very large pale brown fly, marked on the back by a series of large, whitish, tri yellowish larva, marked by transverse blackIsh rings: it resides under ground, in moist meadows, &c., and changes to a cylindric, brownish chrysalis; out of which, in about a month, proceeds the perfect insect. TABBY (MOTHS). A name applied by collectors to Moths of the genus A glossa. TACHYPETES. [See FRIGATE-BIRD.] TADORNA. A genus of web-footed birds, founded on the Anas Tadorna of Linnæus. [See SHELDRAKE.] TADPOLE. The Frog in its nascent state. [See FROG.] TADPOLE-FISH, or LESSER FORKED BEARD. (Barbus minor.) A somewhat rare fish of the Gadidae family, measuring about a foot in length, and in its general form and colour bearing some resemblance to the imperfect animal from whom the The head is very large, name is derived. obtuse, and flattened on the crown; the mouth is wide: under the chin there is a small conical barb or feeler; and the lips are rounded and white. Tail wedge-shaped; It has been taken on the scales small. Scottish coast: it spawns in April, and feeds on small insects; but it is too scarce for naturalists to be much acquainted with its history. TENIA. An intestinal worm, belonging to a numerous and, unfortunately, but too well-known a genus. Taenia solium is characterized by an extremely long body, flat, and composed of a number of joints or articulations, which sometimes amount to several hundred; the whole animal occasionally attaining the length of five yards or more. They are thinner anteriorly, and generally have a square head, with four Their numerous segments small suckers. are all connected by the nutritive canal, which runs from one end to the other; but the reproductive apparatus is repeated in cach division. That only one can exist in one human body at the same time is a vulgar error. Of all intestinal worms they are the most dangerous, and the most difficult to expel. TÆNIDÆ. The name given to a family of Acanthopterygious fishes, distinguished by their lengthened and flattened bodies, and [See RIBBONhaving very small scales. FISH.] TAGUAN. A species of Pteromys, or Flying Squirrel. TAILOR BIRD. A name applied to more than one species of soft-billed Indian Birds, allied to the Warblers. Some of them, if not all, belong to Dr. Horsfield's genera Orthotomus and Prinia. The first described Tailor Bird (Sylvia sutoria, Latham) is a native of Ceylon, whence its curious nest is very frequently brought. It is for the most part composed of two leaves, one of them being dead; the latter is fixed by the ingenious bird to the living leaf as it hangs from the tree, by sewing both together, like a pouch or purse; this is open at the top, the cavity being filled with fine down; it is suspended from the branch, so as in great measure to secure it from the attacks of Reptiles and monkeys. Col. Sykes has described another interesting Tailor Bird, from the East Indies. This is the Orthotomus Bennetti. It constructs its nest by sewing together the leaves with threads of cotton and with fibres; in some cases, this naturalist found these threads actually knotted at the end. Professor Savi has described the habits of a species of Sylvia (S. cysticola), common in various parts of Italy, which constructs its nest among sedges and reeds which it unites together by real stitches; and the edge of each leaf is pierced by this bird with minute holes, through which it passes threads formed of spiders' web, particularly from the silk of their egg-pouches. These threads, as described by the Rev. Mr. Kirby, are not very long, and are sufficient only to pass two or three times from one leaf to another; there are knots scattered here and there, which in some places divide into two or three branches. TALAPOIN. The name given by Buffon to a species of Monkey, distinguished by its beautiful variety of green, white, and yellow hair. It is the Cercopithecus Talapoin of zoologists. TALBOT. A species of Dog, remarkable for its quick scent, and for its eagerness in pursuit of game. TALEGALLA. A large gregarious Rasorial bird, which, according to Mr. Gould, may be considered, in a degree, as the representative of the Turkey in Australia. The plumage of the upper parts of the body, wings, and tail, blackish-brown; the feathers of the under parts blackish-brown at the base, becoming silvery-gray at the tip; skin of the head and neck deep pink-red, thinly sprinkled with short hair-like feathers; wattle bright yellow, tinged with red where it unites with the red of the neck; bill black: feet brown. It is about the size of a Turkey; and moves about in small companies. When it is disturbed, it readily eludes pursuit by the facility with which it runs through the tangled bush. If hard pressed, or rushed upon by their great enemy, the native dog, the whole company spring upon the lowermost bough of some neighbouring tree, and, by a succession of leaps from branch to branch, ascend to the top, and either perch there or fly off to another part of the brush. It is remarkable that this bird does not hatch its eggs by incubation. It collects together a great heap of decaying vegetables as the place of deposit of its eggs, thus making a hot-bed, arising from the decomposition of the collected matter, by the heat of which the young are hatched. This mound varies in quantity from two to four cart-loads, and is of a perfectly pyramidical form: it is not, however, the work of a single pair of birds, but is the result of the united labour of many; and the same site appears to be resorted to for several years in succession. "The mode," says Mr. Gould, "in which the materials BRUSH TURKEY. (TAITOALLA LATHAMI.) composing these mounds are accumulated is equally singular, the bird never using its bill, but always grasping a quantity in its foot, throwing it backwards to one common centre, and thus clearing the surface of the ground to a considerable distance so completely, that scarcely a leaf or blade of grass is left. The heap being accumulated, and time allowed for a sufficient heat to be en gendered, the eggs are deposited, not side by side, as is ordinarily the case, but planted at the distance of nine or twelve inches from depth, perfectly upright, with the large end each other, and buried at nearly an arm's upwards: they are covered up as they are laid, and allowed to remain until hatched. I have been credibly informed, both by natives and settlers living near their haunts, that it is not an unusual event to obtain nearly a bushel of eggs at one time from a single heap; and as they are delicious eating, they are eagerly sought after. Some of the natives state, that the females are constantly in the neighbourhood of the heap about the time the young are likely to be hatched, and frequently uncover and cover them up again, apparently for the purpose of assisting those that may have appeared; while others have informed me that the eggs are merely deposited, and the young allowed to force their way unassisted. In all probability, as Nature has adopted this mode of reproduction, she has also furnished the tender birds with the power of sustaining themselves from the earliest period; and the great size of the egg would equally lead to this conclusion, since in so large a space it is reasonable to suppose that the bird would be much more developed than is usually found in eggs of smaller dimensions, The eggs are perfectly white, of a long, oval form, three inches and three-quarters long by two inches and a half in diameter." It was originally described by Dr. Latham as a vulture under the name of the New Holland Vulture," and at first sight a dried skin has considerable resemblance to that of some. species of the group. In Australia it is called the BRUSH TURKEY, and, as we remarked at the beginning, it is to the Rasorial order, and not the Raptorial, that this singularly interesting genus belongs in the same family with it are birds with similar habits. [See MEGAPODIUS and LEIPOA.] TALPA: TALPIDE. (See MOLE.] TANAGRA. A group of birds of which there are several genera, and numerous species, all peculiar to America, and which are conspicuous for their brilliant colours. They have a conical beak and short wings; representing the Finches, &c. of Europe and Asia in their conformation and habits, and in the nature of their food. TANTALUS: TANTALIDE. The Tantalida are a family of Wading Birds, the chief of which inhabit tropical latitudes, living almost entirely on the swampy banks of rivers and lakes. The genus Tantalus greatly partakes of the character of the Storks and Herons, and is characterized by Cuvier as having the feet, the nostrils and the bill of a stork; but the back of the bill, he observes, is rounded, and its point curved downwards and slightly notched on each side; a portion of the head, and sometimes of the neck, being denuded of feathers. It includes the American Scarlet Ibis (Ibis rubra), of which the following is a description. Length twenty-three inches: bill five inches long, thick, and of a somewhat square form at the base, gradually bent downwards, and sharply ridged; black, except near the base, where it inclines to red. Florida, Alabama, Georgia, and South Carolina; but retire into Mexico, or the Caribbean islands, at the approach of cool weather. They generally associate in numbers, frequenting the borders of the sea, and the banks and æstuaries of neighbouring rivers, feeding on small fry, shell-fish, crustacea, worms, and insects, which they collect at the ebbing of the tide. They are said to be in the habit of perching on trees in companies; but they lay their eggs, which are greenish, on the ground, amidst the tall grass of the marshes, on a slight nest of leaves. When just hatched, the young are black, soon changing to gray, but are nearly white before they are able to fly by degrees they attain their red plumage, which is not complete until the third year. The young and old associate in distinct bands. In the countries where they abound, they are sometimes domesticated, and accompany the poultry. The Ibis shows great courage in attacking the fowls, and will even defend itself from the insidious attacks of the cat. It is generally esteemed as good food; and its rich and gaudy plumage is used by the Brazilians for various ornaments." [See IBIS.] TANYSTOMA. The name of a group of Dipterous insects, comprehending those which have a projecting proboscis, with the last joint of the antennæ undivided. TAPE-WORM. [See TENIA.] TAPIR. The name of a genus of Pachydermatous quadrupeds, of which three species are at present known; two of them being natives of South America, whilst the other inhabits Sumatra and Malacca. In its general form and contour, the Tapir reminds us of the Hog; but it is sufficiently distinguished from that animal by its snout, which is lengthened into a flexible proboscis, that looks like the rudiment of the trunk of the elephant, and partly serves the same pur SCARLET IBIS.-(IBIS RUBRA) Iris dark hazel. The face naked, slightly wrinkled, pale red. Chin bare, wrinkled also. Plumage rich, glowing scarlet, except about three inches of the extremities of the four outer quill-feathers, which are deep steel blue. Legs pale red; the three anterior toes united by a membrane as far as the first joint. "This brilliant and exclusively American species," says Nuttall, in his Ornithology of the United States," &c., inhabits chiefly within the tropics, abounding in the West India and Bahama Islands, and south of the equator, at least as far as Brazil. They migrate in the course of the summer (about July and August) into AMERICAN TAPIR. (TAPIRUS AMERICANUS.) pose. The anterior feet have four toes, but the posterior only three; and these have only their tips cased in small hoofs. The eyes are small and lateral, and the ears long and pointed. The incisor teeth are six in number; the canines small; and the molars are seven on each side of the upper jaw, and six in the lower. The common AMERICAN TAPIR (Tapir Americanus) is the largest animal of South America, and is found in all parts of that continent, though most abundant in Guiana, Brazil, and Paraguay. |