Bill not hooked, but nearly straight; strong, and constructed for hammering. Thick nasal tufts at base of the bill (except in the Nudinares) … Picidæ.
B. Upper mandible movable or hinged. Tarsus without transverse scutellæ. Bill with a naked skin, or cere, at the base; lower mandible not longer than deep, its end truncated.
c. Tongue short and thick, fleshy.
Bill enormously large, much curved, the upper mandible hooked, both much arched … Psittacidæ.
Family CUCULIDÆ.—The Cuckoos.
Char. Bill compressed, usually more or less lengthened and with decurved culmen. Rictal bristles few or none. Nostrils exposed, no nasal tufts. Tail long and soft, of eight to twelve feathers. Toes in pairs, deeply cleft or not united, the outer anterior toe usually versatile, but directed rather laterally than backward.
The Cuculidæ form a strongly marked group of birds, easily distinguished among the Zygodactyli by the characters given above. The outer toe is versatile, but in the American form is more lateral than posterior in the skin, standing sideways, or even anterior, more frequently than behind.
Modern systematists divide the family into six or more subfamilies, of which two only are American, none of these having more than ten tail-feathers. These may be characterized as follows:—
Coccyginæ. Face covered with feathers; bill elongated, more or less cylindrical, straight or curved. Tail of ten feathers.