Fam. VIII. EURYPYGIDAE.–Two species of _Eurypyga_ are comprehended herein, namely, _E. helias_ of the countries from Venezuela to Bolivia and Central Brazil, and _E. major_ of Central America, Colombia, and Ecuador. These are, like the Kagu, very ancient types, but whereas that bird shows some affinity to _Scopus_, these trend rather towards _Nycticorax_, both being, however, essentially Gruiform. The neck is long and thin, the bill rather slender, with grooves on the maxilla and mandible: the whole leg and foot are as in _Rhinochetus_, but shorter, weaker, and reticulated behind; the wings and tail are even more ample, while the number of primaries and rectrices are the same, but the secondaries are only {266}eleven, and the inner feathers comparatively short. The nostrils are pervious, the tongue is lanceolate, the furcula is U-shaped, the after-shaft is diminutive, and the powder-down patches are abundant, though writers differ as to their extent. _E. helias_–as Prof. Newton says in his excellent account[182]–is not to be described in a limited space otherwise than generally; it has a black head, with a white stripe above and under each eye, and a white throat: the remaining plumage "being variegated with black, brown, chestnut, bay, buff, grey, and white–so mottled, speckled, and belted either in wave-like or zigzag forms, as somewhat to resemble certain moths. The bay colour forms two conspicuous patches on each wing, and also an antepenultimate bar on the tail, behind which is a subterminal band of black. The irides are red; the bill is greenish-olive; and the legs are pale yellow." _E. major_ is larger and more uniform in colour. Both adults and nestlings have copious down, that of the latter being lightish brown with lines and spots of darker brown and white. The sexes are similar. [Illustration: FIG. 56.–Sun-Bittern. _Eurypyga helias._ × ¼.] The "Sun-Bittern," to use its common but misleading name, is found on the larger rivers, where the banks are wooded and swampy; it is shy but easily tamed, and, according to Bates, is kept in captivity by the Brazilians. It walks quietly and circumspectly with horizontal body and outstretched head, and probably flies but little. Like the Kagu, it executes a fantastic dance, but in this case the wings and tail form a semicircle which nearly conceals the body. The note is a soft or plaintive long-drawn {267}whistle, the food consists mainly of small fish and insects, which the bird spears by darting out its head quickly. The nest, said to be made of sticks, grass, and mud, with a lining of the latter, is placed on low branches, and contains several eggs similar to those of the Kagu, but smaller. Both parents incubate and attend to the young, which have several times been reared in the Zoological Society's Gardens in London.[183]