The BLUE ALCYON (_Cyanalcyon Macleayi_), one of the most beautiful birds
of Australia, is blackish blue on the head, as far as the nape; the mantle
is bright blue; the wings and tail are black, shaded with blue; the entire
under side of the roots of the primary and secondary quills, a broad band
round the throat, and an oval spot behind the nostrils, are white; the
iris is dark brown, the beak black, and the tarsus blackish grey. The
female is less brightly coloured than her mate, and has an irregular,
broken line of white around her throat. This species is seven inches long;
the wing measures six inches and one-sixth, and the tail two and a half
inches.
"This beautiful bird," says Gould, "far surpasses any other Australian
Kingfisher in the brilliancy of its plumage. Like the other members of
the genus to which it belongs, it is rarely if ever seen near water, and
evinces so decided a preference for the open forests of the interior
of the country that it has obtained the name of the Bush Kingfisher.
It is generally dispersed about in pairs, and feeds on small reptiles,
insects, and their larvæ. Its usual note is a loud "pee-pee," uttered with
considerable rapidity. It incubates in November and December, sometimes
forming its nest in the hollow trunks of trees, and at others excavating
for itself a hole in the nest of the tree-ants, which present so singular
and prominent a feature in the scenery of the country. The nest of these
birds is easily discovered, for on the approach of an intruder they
at once commence flying about in a very wild manner, uttering a loud,
piercing cry of alarm. The eggs, three or four in number, have a pearly
white shell, and are round in form."
* * * * *
The GIANT ALCYONS (_Paralcyon_, or _Dacelo_) are readily distinguishable,
not only from their size, but by their long flat beak, which is broad and
flat at its base, straight at the culmen, compressed at its sides, and
slightly hooked at the tip of the projecting upper mandible; the tarsi are
short, but powerful, and the toes very long and thick; the wings, in which
the second and third quills are of almost equal length, are of moderate
size, and blunt; the broad tail is also of medium length. The rich, lax
plumage is of comparatively quiet hue.