The EUROPEAN or COMMON SILK-TAIL, BOHEMIAN CHATTERER, or WAX-WING
(_Bombycilla garrula_) is eight inches long and thirteen and a half
broad. The plumage is almost entirely reddish grey, darkest upon the
back, and shading into greyish white beneath; the brow and rump are
reddish brown; the chin, throat, bridles, and a streak over the eyes
black; the primary quills are greyish black, spotted with gold on the tip
of the outer, and edged with white upon the inner web; the secondaries
are furnished with parchment-like or horny plates at their extremities,
which are bright red; the tail-feathers are blackish at their lower
portion, light yellow towards their extremities, and terminate in horny
plates, resembling those upon the secondary quills. In the female the
colours are fainter, and the horny appendages much less developed than in
the plumage of her mate. The young are almost entirely dark brown, with
light edges to many of the feathers; the brows and a stripe that passes
from the eyes to the back of the head, a streak across the light reddish
yellow throat and the rump are whitish, while the lower tail-covers are
of a dusky rust-red.
[Illustration: THE COLLARED OR WHITE-NECKED FLY-CATCHER (_Muscicapa
albicollis_).]
[Illustration: THE SILK-TAIL, BOHEMIAN CHATTERER, OR WAX-WING
(_Bombycilla garrula_).]
The Common Silk-tail is an inhabitant both of Northern Europe and
of North America, but is found only occasionally in some parts of
Asia, being replaced in that continent by its Japanese congener, the
_Bombycilla phœnicoptera_; while in America the CEDAR BIRD (_Bombycilla
cedrorum_) is more numerously met with. In the northern portions of
Europe, birch and pine forests constitute its favourite retreats, and
these it seldom quits, except when driven by unusual severity of weather
or by heavy falls of snow to seek refuge in more southern provinces.
Even in Russia, Poland, and Southern Scandinavia it is constantly to
be seen throughout the entire winter; indeed, so rarely does it wander
to more southern latitudes that in Germany it is popularly supposed to
make its appearance once in seven years. On the occasion of these rare
migrations, the Silk-tails keep together in large flocks, and remain in
any place that affords them suitable food until the supply is exhausted.
Like most other members of the feathered creation inhabiting extreme
climates, these birds are heavy and indolent, rarely exerting themselves
except to satisfy their hunger, and appearing unwilling to move even to a
short distance from their usual haunts. With their companions they live
in uninterrupted harmony, and during their migrations testify no fear of
man, frequently coming down to seek for food in the villages and towns
they pass over, without apparently regarding the noisy bustle of the
streets. Even during their winter journeyings, they settle frequently,
and pass the entire day indolently perching in crowds upon the trees,
remaining almost motionless for some hours together, only descending
in the morning and evening to procure berries, in search of which they
climb from branch to branch with considerable dexterity. Their flight is
light and graceful, being effected by very rapid strokes of the wings.
Upon the ground they move with difficulty, and rarely alight upon its
surface, except when in search of water. Their call-note is a hissing,
twittering sound, very similar to that produced by blowing down the
barrel of a key. The song, though monotonous and gentle, is uttered by
both sexes with so much energy and expression as to produce a pleasing
effect, and may be generally heard throughout the entire year. Insects
unquestionably constitute the principal food of the Silk-tails during
the warmer months, but in winter they subsist mainly upon various kinds
of berries. So voracious is this species, that, according to Naumann,
it will devour an amount of food equal to the weight of its own body in
the course of twenty-four hours. When caged, it sits all day long close
to its eating-trough, alternately gorging, digesting, and sleeping,
without intermission. Until the last few years we were entirely without
particulars as to the incubation of the Silk-tail, and have to thank
Wolley for the first account of the nest and eggs. This gentleman, who
visited Lapland in 1857, determined not to return to England until he had
procured the long-desired treasure, and, after great trouble and expense,
succeeded in collecting no fewer than 600 eggs. All the nests discovered
were deeply ensconced among the boughs of pine-trees, at no great height
from the ground; their walls were principally formed of dry twigs and
scraps from the surrounding branches; the central cavity was wide, deep,
and lined with blades of grass and feathers. The brood consists of from
four to seven, but usually of five eggs, which are laid about the middle
of June; the shell is blueish or purplish white, sparsely sprinkled with
brown, black, or violet spots and streaks, some of which take the form of
a wreath at the broad end (see Fig. 25, Coloured Plate IV.) The Silk-tail
readily accustoms itself to life in a cage, and in some instances
has been known to live for nine or ten years in confinement, feeding
principally upon vegetables, salad, white bread, groats, or bran steeped
in water.
* * * * *
The MANAKINS (_Pipræ_) constitute an extensive family of most beautiful
and gaily-plumaged birds, inhabiting America, Southern Asia, and New
Holland. Almost all the members of this group are of small size, few
being larger than a Pigeon, and all are clothed in soft, silky feathers,
glowing with the most brilliant hues. Their bodies are compact; their
wings short, or of moderate length; their beak short, broad at the base,
arched at the culmen, and slightly hooked and incised at its extremity.
The feet are powerful, the tarsi rather long, and the toes comparatively
short. The plumage, always compact and thick, varies much in its
coloration, according to the age and sex. All these birds inhabit forests
and woodland districts, some few frequenting hilly or mountainous tracts,
while the greater number are only seen in lowland regions. Most of them
are extremely lively and social, passing their time in flying in small
parties about the summits of forest-trees, and attracting the attention
of travellers as much by the peculiarity of their cry as by the glowing
tints of their plumage. They live almost exclusively on fruits of various
kinds, sometimes on such as are of considerable size. Kittlitz mentions
having upon one occasion seen a Manakin flying with such difficulty
as to arrest his particular notice, and having brought down the bird
with his gun, he found on examining the stomach that it contained a
half-digested palm-nut. "How it was possible," he says, "for the bird
to have swallowed a fruit nearly as large as its own body appeared to
me most extraordinary, but close investigation showed me that the gape
of this species, like that of a snake, is capable of great extension. I
am, however, still at a loss to explain how the juices of the stomach
were enabled to demolish so huge a morsel." Some few species also devour
insects.
* * * * *
The ROCK BIRDS (_Rupicola_) comprise some of the largest species in the
entire family. Their bodies are powerful; their wings, in which the
fourth quill exceeds the rest in length, are long; the tail is short,
broad, straight at the tip, and almost covered by the long feathers upon
the rump. The tarsi are robust, the toes long, and armed with thick,
long, and very decidedly hooked claws. The feathers upon the back are
broad, with either sharp tips or angular extremities; those upon the
brow, top of the head, and nape, form an upright crest or plume.