The ALARM BIRD (_Schizorhis zonurus_) measures about one foot seven
inches and a half in length, and two feet four inches in breadth; the
wings and tail measure nine inches and a half. The female is larger than
her mate, but resembles him in other respects. In these birds the upper
part of the body is of an uniform brown, and the lower portion light grey
from the breast downwards. The elongated feathers which form the plume
are bordered with white, those of the back, so far as they are visible,
blueish grey; the quills are blackish brown, and all except the first
marked upon their inner web with large, square white spots. The centre
tail-feathers are light brown; the four exterior ones are brown at the
tip, and from thence upwards white, broadly striped with brownish black
at their roots. The eyes are greyish brown, the beak greenish yellow; the
feet are dark grey.
This species appears to be spread over a considerable portion of the
African continent, and travellers mention having seen it in Abyssinia,
about the Blue River, and at the source of the White Nile. The cry of
the Alarm Bird so closely resembles the voice of the monkey, that even
experienced sportsmen are deluded into the belief that they are in the
vicinity of a party of baboons, and find, to their astonishment, that
the loud and peculiar noise is produced by some of these strange birds,
as they sit perched together in pairs or parties on the branches of
a neighbouring tree. When about to utter this cry the birds sit bolt
upright upon the topmost boughs, and after agitating their tails give
forth a sound that penetrates far and wide amidst the surrounding woods.
Their habits are shy and cautious; they testify considerable anxiety at
the approach of man, except when accustomed to his immediate vicinity,
and rarely leave their refuge amongst the trees, except in the morning
and evening, in search of the berries that constitute their principal
food.
[Illustration: THE ALARM BIRD (_Schizorhis zonurus_).]
* * * * *
The COLIES, or MOUSE BIRDS (_Colii_) bear a close resemblance to the
Plantain Eaters, but are distinguished from them by the following
striking peculiarities. All the species belonging to this group are
much alike in appearance; their bodies are rather muscular, and nearly
cylindrical in shape, the tail almost twice as long as the body, the
wings short and almost rounded, the tarsi short, and toes long; the
beak is short, thick, curved from its base downwards, and compressed
at its tip; the upper mandible is furnished with a slight hook. The
distinguishing characteristics of these birds consist in the construction
of the foot, which has four toes all placed in front, but those at the
exterior are capable of being turned either to the side or back of the
foot; and, secondly, in the peculiarity of the plumage, which is so
fine as to resemble the hair upon the back of a small quadruped; the
long feathers which compose the tail are, on the contrary, particularly
stiff, each of them having a very powerful shaft and webs of remarkable
strength; the centre tail-feathers are at least four times as long
as those at the sides; the wings are short and decidedly rounded,
the fourth, fifth, and sixth quills being longer than the rest. The
appellation of Mouse Birds has been given to this group on account of the
mouse-like grey that predominates in their plumage, varied occasionally
with a reddish or dark grey shade.