The BENTEOT of Japan, or TENIA of Le Vaillant (_Crypsirhina varians_), is
about the size of a Thrush, though it appears much larger, owing to the
extent of the long tail. Its soft plumage is principally of a jet black,
and gleams with a green or purple sheen; only the forehead, bridles, and
throat are pale black, and entirely without lustre; the quills are black,
the four centre tail-feathers green, as are also the outer webs of the
exterior feathers; the inner webs are of a dull black, the beak and feet
are black. Horsfield tells us that this bird is by no means rare in Java,
but frequents such very retired spots as to be but seldom met with; it
avoids the inhabited parts of the country, and only appears occasionally
upon the borders of its favourite thickets, to which it retreats at the
first approach of danger. Its flight is unsteady and awkward, and its
gait upon the ground equally clumsy. It lives principally upon insects of
every description, and its powerful claws would seem to indicate that it
can also plunder the nests of its feathered associates. Fruit has been
found in the crop of this species.
* * * * *
A very similar group, TEMNURUS, is distinguished from that just
described by the shape of the tail-feathers, the ends of which present
the appearance of having been cut off at a right angle. The SAW-TAIL
(_Temnurus truncatus_), inhabiting Cochin China, is the most perfect
representative of this section. Its plumage is of an uniform black, and
its length about fourteen inches.
The KITTAS (_Cissa_) are met with in Southern and Eastern Asia. They bear
so great a resemblance to the Jays in their mode of life and general
deportment, that we have no hesitation in assigning to them a place here,
instead of following in the steps of some naturalists who class them
with the Thrushes. The Kittas are a race of extremely beautiful birds,
elegant in form and brilliant in plumage; their beaks are thick, strong,
and almost as long as the head, curving from the base, and bent upwards
towards the tip; the feet are large and strong, the toes powerful and of
medium length, with formidable claws; the wings are round, their fourth
and fifth quills being longer than the rest; the tail is either short
and rounded or very long and graduated; in the latter case the central
feathers extend far beyond those at the sides.