iv INTRODUCTION.
“ The Trogons may dispute the palm of beauty with the humming-birds. Their
plumage in certain parts shines with metallic brilliancy, and exhibits all the colours of
the rainbow. On other parts, the tints, though opake, are not less rich and splendid;
but a very short neck, feet disproportioned to their figure and hulk, and a long and broad
tail, injure the harmony of their form, and give them a heavy port and aspect. Their long
attenuated feathers, with barbs disarranged and luxuriant, make them appear more bulky
than they really are. These too are so feebly implanted, that they fall at the slightest
agitation. Their skin is so delicate that it will tear at the slightest tension.
“ These birds are solitary and extremely jealous of their freedom. They never frequent
inhabited or open tracts. They delight in the silence of deserts, where they even
fly the society of their consimilars. The interior of the thickest forests is their chosen
abode for the entire year. They are sometimes seen on the summit of trees ; but in general
they prefer the centre, where they remain a portion of the day without descending to
the ground, or even to the lower branches. Here they lie in ambush for the insects
which pass within their reach, and seize them with address and dexterity. Their flight
is lively, short, vertical and undulating. Though they thus conceal themselves in the
thick foliage, it is not through distrust; for when they are in an open space, they may
be approached so nearly as to be struck with a stick. They are rarely heard to utter
any cries, except during the season of reproduction, and then their voice is strong, sonorous,
monotonous, and melancholy. They have many cries, from the sound of one of which
their name is derived.
“ All those whose habits are known nestle in the holes of worm-eaten trees, which
they enlarge with their bills, so as to form a comfortable and roomy residence. The
number of eggs is from two to four, and the young are born totally naked; but their
feathers begin to start two or three days after their birth.
“ The occupation of the male during incubation consists in watching for the safety
of his companion, bringing her food, and amusing her with a song, which, though we
should call it insipid, is to her, without doubt, the expression of sensibility. Some of
INTRODUCTION. v
the Couroucons express the syllable pio, repeated many times in succession with a powerful,
yet plaintive tone. Their accent-almost reminds one of the waitings of a child who has
lost its' way, and it is thus that they Cry to each other amidst the silence of the forests.
As soon as the young are able to provide for themselves, they separate from their parents
to enjoy that solitude and isolation which appear to constitute the supreme happiness of
the species. Their aliments are Composed of larvae, small worms, caterpillars,, coleóptera,
and berries; which they swallow entire.-
“ The male, at various ages, the female, and the young, differ in their plumage,
which has given rise to the institution of more species than are really iri existence.”
This account of their habits I am not only in a great measure enabled to confirm
from thè information I have obtained .respecting them while engaged upon the present
Monograph; but -also to add a‘ few facts, which although trifling, and in some degree
contradictory to the preceding account, will not be uninteresting. My friend Mr. John
Natterer, who has had many opportunities of observing these birds in a state of nature,
informs me that he has seen them, though very rarely, congregating together, and more
than one. species in company; a circumstance which he considers may be accounted for
on the principle that-instinct leads them by sòme migratory movement to abandon one
district at a certain season of the year in search of another, where food is more abundant.
These migrations, however, cannot be extensive, inasmuch as their wings are not adapted for a
lengthened flight ; besides which, every new district of any great extent presents us with its
peculiar species; for example, none of the species inhabiting Mexico have been found in the
Brazils, and vice versa.
The members of this family appear on general survey to be divided between America,
including its islands, and the islands of the Indian Archipelago ; two or three species only
having 1 yet been discovered on the continent of India, and those principally inhabiting
the countries bordering the Indian Seas. The great nurseries for these birds in the Old World
are the, islands of Ceylon, Sumatra, Java, Borneo, &c., while over the whole continent of Africa