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 Chapter One Notes - 1

Essentials of Strategic Management 5th

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CHAPTER ONE

BASIC CONCEPTS OF STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT

MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS (The letter after each item number is the correct answer)

1B Which is NOT one of the strategic questions that an organization must ask itself?

a. Where is the organization now?

b. How can functional and operational areas be improved?
c. If no changes are made, where will the organization be in one year?
d. If the evaluation is negative, what specific actions should management take?
e. If no changes are made, where will the organization be in 10 years?

2D Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of strategic decisions as mentioned in the text?

a. directive
b. consequential
c. rare
d. continuous

3A Strategic planning within a small organization

a. may be informal and irregular.

b. must be elaborate to allow for future growth.
c. should be formalized and explicitly stated
d. should be done by the president only.
e. is unnecessary and a waste of time.

4D An organization that is skilled at creating, acquiring, and transferring knowledge and at modifying its
behavior to reflect new knowledge and insights

a. asks if it should be or not be.

b. is operating in Phase 1 of strategic management.
c. has a mechanistic structure.
d. is a learning organization.
e. is crazy.

5B Research suggests that strategic management evolves through four sequential phases in corporations. The
first phase is

a. externally-oriented planning.
b. basic financial planning.
c. internally-oriented planning.
d. forecast-based planning.
e. strategic management.
6A Research done by Henry Mintzberg suggests that strategy formulation

a. is an irregular and a discontinuous process.

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

2 - Chapter One Notes

b. should be followed unswervingly to ensure success of the plan.

c. is worthless.
d. should be reviewed after a specific interval of time to make sure it is still applicable.
e. is merely a checklist of actions following a logical process.

7B Which of the following is NOT one the five triggering events that are the stimulus for a strategic change?

a. Intervention by the organization's bank

b. Entrance of a new competitor into the industry
c. Change in ownership of the organization
d. New CEO
e. Awareness by management of decreased profitability

8B The corporate mission is best described by which one of the following?

a. A description of the activities carried out by the organization.

b. The purpose or reason for the corporation's existence.
c. A description of top management's responsibilities.
d. A statement of corporate objectives.
e. The philosophy of the founder.

9A A goal differs from an objective because it

a. is open-ended.
b. is quantified.
c. specifies measurable results.
d. is clearly specified.
e. provides a time horizon.

10C As defined in this course, a policy is

a. the purpose or reason for a corporation's existence.

b. a statement of activities or steps needed to accomplish a single-use plan.
c. a broad guideline for making decisions.
d. a comprehensive master plan stating how a corporation will achieve its mission and objectives.
e. a statement of a corporation's programs in dollar terms.

11B Which of the following is an example of an objective?

a. Diversify product line to appeal to more people.

b. Increase sales by 10% over last year.
c. Pay highest salaries to keep high quality employees.
d. Develop and sell quality appliances world-wide.
e. Divide a sales region into a group of sales districts.

12A Which of the following is an example of a strategy?

a. Diversify product line to appeal to more people.

b. Increase sales by 10% over last year.
c. Pay highest salaries to keep high quality employees.

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Exploring the Variety of Random
Documents with Different Content
 These constitute a small family of Scansorial birds allied to the
Cuckoos, and, like the latter, they are parasitic, and lay their eggs in
other birds’ nests. Eleven species are known, of which eight are
peculiar to Africa, one is found in the Himalaya Mountains, one in
the Malayan Peninsula, and one in Borneo. The Asiatic members of
the group are extremely rare, and our knowledge of the habits of
these birds is derived from a study of the African species: so that it
is not yet known whether the Asiatic Honey Guides deserve the
name of Indicator, which is applied to the birds on account of their
being “indicators,” or “pointers out,” of Bees’ nests containing honey.
Dr. Kirk thus described their habits in the Zambesi district:—“The
Honey Guide is found in forests, and often far from water, even
during the dry season. On observing a man, it comes fluttering from
branch to branch in the neighbouring trees, calling attention. If this
be responded to—as the natives do by whistling and starting to their
feet—the bird will go in a certain direction, and remain at a little
distance, hopping from one tree to another. On being followed, it
goes farther; and so it will guide the way to a nest of Bees. When
this is reached, it flies about, but no longer guides; and then some
knowledge is required to discover the nest, even when pointed out
to within a few trees. I have known this bird, if the man, after taking
up the direction for a little, then turns away, come back and offer to
point out another nest in a different part. But if it does not know of
two nests, it will remain behind. The difficulty is that it will point to
tame Bees in a bark hive as readily as to those in the forest. This is
natural, as the Bee is the same; the bark hive—‘Musinga,’ as it is
named—being simply fastened up in a tree, and left for the Bees to
come to. The object the bird has in view is clearly the young Bees. It
will guide to nests having no honey, and seems equally delighted if
the comb containing the grubs be torn out, when it is seen pecking
at it.” Many of the natives of South Africa believe that the bird will
occasionally guide the traveller, through sheer malice, to a Leopard
or an Elephant; but on this point there seems some little doubt, to
judge from a letter of Mrs. Barber, an accomplished lady and good
observer in South Africa:—“What I wrote to you in a former letter is
the opinion of many old bee-hunters in this part of the country, who
have no faith in the popular belief that leading to the Leopard is
done on purpose. My nine brothers, who were all brought up in this
country, were all of them great hunters, as well as sportsmen; and
during all the years of their experience, while they were living at
Tharfield, where Bees’ nests were exceedingly plentiful, and where
they were constantly in the habit of following these birds, never
once did the Honey Guide ever lead them purposely to any noxious
animal. Many times, in following the bird through dense woods, have
they started various kinds of creatures; but if they did not neglect
the bird for the purpose of hunting, she would continue her flight
towards the Bees’ nest, regardless of the startled animals. One of
my brothers once, while following a Honey Guide through a dense
forest near the Kowie, passed directly through a drove of wild Pigs.
They were, of course, more frightened than he was, and rushed
about in every direction; but my brother knowing the popular belief,
and wishing to test it, took not the slightest notice of the wild Pigs,
but passed on, keeping his eye on the bird, who went steadily on
her way, until she arrived at the nest she intended to show,
regardless of the Pigs. I have other reasons for not believing the
story. Why should the Honey Guide waste her time in leading people
to Leopards, Jackals, Wolves, and so forth? These creatures are not
her natural enemies; she would gain nothing by doing it—no
advantage whatever; and I have ever found that in nature there is
nothing done in vain, or in an empty, purposeless manner. There is
always a reason for the peculiar habits and actions of birds and
animals of all kinds; and therefore, why should a bird which does not
even rear her own young, and has not the care of a nest, fear or
care about these animals? Why should the Honey Guide, unlike all
animals, do this thing without any reason for doing it? And again,
when the bird has arrived at the nest she intends to show, there is
an alteration in the notes of her voice. An old bee-hunter knows this
in an instant, and knows when he ought to commence searching for
the nest. Now, this alteration never takes place when animals of
various kinds are startled in passing through the forest while
following the bird. Hence I conclude that she does not intend to
show where these creatures are, or the alteration in her voice would
take place.” Some of the Indicators are not of the same use in
guiding to Bees’ nests, and are consequently held in less repute.
They are all birds of similar coloration, being generally of a dull grey,
tinged with yellow or olive, and they vary considerably in size, the
larger species, such as I. major and I. sparrmanni, measuring about
eight inches in length; while the smallest species, I. exilis, from the
Gaboon, does not exceed four inches. Although coming very close to
the Cuckoos in the natural classification, the small bill, the thick-set,
stout plumage, and the nine primaries in the wing, in addition to
their peculiar habits, easily distinguish the Honey Guides as a
separate family.
 THE FOURTH FAMILY OF THE ZYGODACTYLE
PICARIAN BIRDS.
THE PLANTAIN-EATERS (Musophagidæ).
These may be called a strictly Ethiopian family of birds, every
single member being found in Africa, and nowhere else. They have
very much the appearance of game-birds, and are all remarkable for
their beautiful crests, which they are able to elevate or depress at
will. Although belonging to the Scansorial, or climbing birds, they do
not always keep their toes in pairs, but being of a lively disposition
they hop continually from bough to bough, and the outer toe is seen
as often placed in front with the others as it is directed backwards
along with the hind toe. With the exception of the Grey Plantain-
eaters, all the other species have beautiful red primaries; and the
writer was informed by the late African traveller, Jules Verreaux, that
the bird often gets caught in violent showers during the rainy
season, when the whole of this brilliant red colour in the wing-
feathers gets washed out, and the quills become pinky-white, and
after two or three days the colour is renewed, and the wing resumes
its former beauty.

THE FIRST SUB-FAMILY OF THE MUSOPHAGIDÆ.—

THE MUSOPHAGINÆ, OR TRUE PLANTAIN-EATERS.

THE WHITE-CRESTED PLANTAIN-EATER (Corythaix musophaga).

 WHITE-CRESTED PLANTAIN-EATER.

This is perhaps the best known of the whole family of these

curious birds, being the commonest species in South Africa, where it
is plentiful in the forest districts of the Knysna, and the south coast
as far as Natal, and the wooded districts of the Eastern Transvaal. It
is known by the name of the Louri, or Lory, and the following brief
account of its habits is given by Mr. Layard:[251]—“The Plantain-eater
feeds on fruits, and frequents the highest trees, rarely, if ever,
descending to the ground, over which it can, however, travel with
great rapidity if brought down by a shot. The motions of this species
are very graceful and light, and performed with an ease and rapidity
that delight the eye of the beholder. Strange to say, though we
inquired carefully, we never could obtain any information respecting
the nidification of this beautiful and common bird. Mr. Atmore,
however, states that the eggs are white; but this must be from
hearsay, as he writes: ‘How difficult it is to find these forest birds’
nests! The Lories are breeding now, but for the life of me I cannot
find a nest. The young ones go in troops, and are delicious eating;
the old ones in pairs. We never shoot specimens out of a troop
except for the pot.’ An old forester told him that the eggs were
white, both the latter and the nests being like those of Pigeons. Mr.
Rickard says: ‘I once found an egg in a bird I shot at East London
(January 27th); it was pure white, and the size of a tame Pigeon’s.’
Mr. Bowker writes: ‘I once found a Louri’s nest. It was just like a
Dove’s, built of sticks laid horizontally, and about the size of a large
dinner-plate, placed about ten feet from the ground in the centre of
a round bush. The old bird flew out as I walked up. I found five
young birds in the nest; they were almost full-grown, but their tails
rather short and stumpy, crest just showing, but I cannot remember
whether the red on the wing was showing or not. On my getting up
to the nest they all flew out, and were killed by my Dogs before I
could come to the rescue. The bush was twenty or thirty yards from
the edge of a large forest, and I was rather surprised at this nest, as
I had been told they built in hollow trees.’” In size this species is
about nineteen inches long; the general colour is green, with a
broad white tip to the feathers of the crest, the abdomen and vent
are blackish, the quills brilliant carmine.
The false Touracoes, as Dr. Sclater calls them, do not possess the
red colouring of the wings, but are for the most part of a uniform
grey colour. The best known species is

THE GREY PLANTAIN-EATER (Schizorhis concolor).

This is also found in South Africa, but in different districts to the

White-crested Plantain-eater. Where the range of the latter ceases
that of the present bird begins, and it is found throughout the
Matabele country and the Transvaal as far as the Zambesi, and
westwards through Damara Land to Angola. Mr. Andersson writes:
—“It is partial to localities abounding in large trees; and when
prominently perched, with crest erect, it is not unlike a gigantic Coly.
It also climbs and flies like the Colies, which it strongly resembles in
its general habits. It is usually found in small flocks, and feeds on
berries and seeds, especially those of mistletoe and of other
parasitical plants, and also on fruits, young shoots, and insects. The
Damaras call this species ‘Ongoro-oroquena,’ from the extraordinary
and almost human cry with which it frequently startles the traveller
who is passing near its perch. It is sometimes very easy to approach
these birds, whilst at other times they are so shy that they will defy
the utmost exertions which may be made to obtain them. On
January 5th, 1867, I obtained three eggs of this species, of a dull
bluish-white colour, at Omapja, from a boy, who told me that the
nest which contained them was composed of sticks roughly put
together, and situated in a tree at some distance from the ground;
and on March 1st I met with a nest in Ondonga placed in a tree, but
at no great elevation, which also contained three eggs, much
incubated.” Dr. Exton, also, who has been through the Matabele
country, writes as follows:—“In travelling through the Bechuana
country one often comes upon a party of five or six of these birds,
hiding from the mid-day heats under the sheltered portions of dense
foliage near the centre of a large tree. Whilst yet undisturbed, the
crest lies flat on the head, and can only be seen as a tuft projecting
from the occiput. But their first act on becoming aware of an
intruder is to run along the branches, either to the summit of the
tree or to the extremity of a branch commanding a good look-out,
where, with crest fully erected and well thrown forward, they keep
up a constant reiteration of their note. If but little alarmed they
move rapidly from branch to branch, frequently jerking up the crest,
and assuming an attitude of attention. Again, after flight from one
tree to another, on alighting, they first rest on a branch, with the
body somewhat horizontal and the tail drawn nearly to the
perpendicular, as if assuring themselves of their equilibrium, and
then raising the body, elongating their neck, and at the same time
elevating the crest, they seem to take an observation as to the
security of their new position. So much is this a habit of the bird,
that during the conversational difficulties of my earlier intercourse
with the Bechuanas, when inquiring for the nest of Schizorhis (the
native name of which is ‘Ma-quaai’), as soon as it dawned upon the
mind of a native what bird I meant he has imitated its note,
accompanied by a sudden jerking up of the hand, with his fingers
extended to the utmost, as if at the same time to mimic the
elevation of the crest. Dr. Sclater mentions that ‘Mr. J. J. Monteiro,
speaking of the Grey False Touraco (S. concolor), as observed in
Benguella, expressly states that the crest-feathers are always carried
erect.’ In my own experience, the observation of Schizorhis was an
every-day occurrence; and, as I have stated, when undisturbed (also
when in flight) very little of the crest is to be seen, but is invariably
carried erect on the least alarm. I may here mention a peculiar
scream of S. concolor. I was one day walking along a low ridge of
rocks, from which I flushed an Owl—the common Bubo maculosus—
that flew to some distance to a clump of trees. Presently I heard an
agonised scream, such as is made by a young Antelope when seized
by a Dog; and so exact a repetition of the sound was it that even my
Dogs were deceived by it, and rushed off in the direction whence it
came. I also sent a Kaffir boy, and presently followed myself, when I
discovered it was the frightful scream of Schizorhis, of which a party
were collected round the Owl I had previously disturbed, and whose
presence appeared to be the exciting cause. At a later period I had a
second opportunity of verifying this observation.”
 COLIES.

THE SECOND SUB-FAMILY OF THE MUSOPHAGIDÆ.

—THE COLIINÆ, OR COLIES.
Like the foregoing sub-family, the Colies are confined to Africa.
They have decided affinities with the true Plantain-eaters, but are
distinguished at a glance by their long tails, the feathers of which
are much pointed, and become smaller and narrower towards the
outside of the tail. They are most dexterous climbers, as was well
seen in the captive specimens of the Chestnut-backed Coly, which
were brought by Cameron from Angola, and lived for some time in
the London Zoological Gardens.

THE WHITE-BACKED COLY (Colius capensis).

 The Colies are known in the Cape Colony by the name of
Muisvogel, or Mouse-bird, and they are not uncommon, ranging
about in small families of from six to eight individuals. Mr. Layard
says that they fly with a rapid, though laboured flight, generally at a
lower level than the object at which they aim, and on nearing the
latter they rise upwards with a sudden, abrupt curve. They creep
among the branches like Parrots, and hang suspended head
downwards, without inconvenience; and it is said that they invariably
sleep in this position, many of them congregated in a ball. The nest
was found by Mr. Andersson in Damara Land, between September
and December. It was placed in a small bush, and was composed
externally of grass and twigs, lined internally with softer grass, and
the eggs were dull white, and, according to his observations, always
three in number. Mr. Andersson states that the bird “is gregarious in
its habits, being found in flocks by day, and also when roosting at
night. Its flight is short and feeble, seldom extending beyond the
nearest bush or tree, on reaching which it usually perches on one of
the lower branches, and then gradually glides and creeps upwards
through the foliage, using both bill and feet for that purpose. It is
essentially a fruit-eating bird, but I believe when hard pressed for its
regular food it does not despise insects and the young shoots of
plants. Its flesh is palatable.” The Colies as a rule are dull-coloured
brown birds, but they have a long crest. The present species is
perhaps the handsomest, being ash-coloured, and having the lower
back and rump purple glossed with red, while a white line, bordered
on each side by a broad black one, extends from beneath the
shoulders to the rump. The bill is bluish-white, and the feet bright
red. The length of the bird is thirteen or fourteen inches.
THE FIFTH FAMILY OF THE ZYGODACTYLE PICARIAN
BIRDS.—THE WOODPECKERS (Picidæ).
These are perhaps the most typical of all the yoke-footed or
climbing birds, as they are most expert climbers, being aided in the
latter operation not only by their long toes, which are arranged as
usual in this order in pairs, but by their stiffened tail, which enables
them to climb with great rapidity up the perpendicular trunks of
trees. If they wish to descend a little way they do not turn and come
down head-foremost, as a Nuthatch would do, but they let
themselves down by a few jerks, still keeping an oblique position,
with the tail downwards. The bill in almost every member of the
family is wedge-shaped, and very powerful, and with this organ a
Woodpecker taps vigorously at the bark, which he sometimes also
prises off to get at the grubs or insects underneath. These latter, as
they endeavour to escape, have little chance against the intruder,
who, in addition to the stout bill which discloses their place of
concealment, possesses a peculiar tongue, which is capable of being
protruded to a long distance, is furnished with minute barbs at the
end, and is covered with a glutinous fluid from which the insects are
unable to free themselves. The Woodpeckers nearly all procure their
food in the above manner, but occasionally frequent the ground, and
the Green Woodpecker (Gecinus[252] viridis) commits great ravages
among ant-hills. The resting-place is generally a hole excavated by
the bird itself in a hollow tree, and the eggs are white. Among the
most aberrant of the Woodpecker family are the Wrynecks
(Iÿnx[253]), of which one species is well known in England under the
name of the “Cuckoo’s mate.” The Wrynecks are all birds of beautiful
mottled plumage, and do not have a stiffened tail like a true
Woodpecker. They are found in Europe, in India, North-Eastern and
Southern Africa. Woodpeckers, on the other hand, are extremely
plentiful in the New World, and are distributed all over Africa,
Europe, and Asia, but are not found in the Australian region, no
Woodpecker occurring beyond the Island of Celebes in the Moluccas.
 Fig. 1.—“HYOID” BONE OF ADULT FOWL.
(After W. K. Parker.)
(ch) Cerato-hyals; (bh) the so-called Basi-
hyal; (b.br) Basi-branchial, or Uro-hyal; (c.br,
e.br) together form the thyro-hyal.
 One great peculiarity in the anatomy of the Woodpeckers is the
structure of the tongue, and its relation to the hyoid bone and its
horns, or cornua. (For a description of this part in the Mammalia, see
Vol. I., p. 168.) In Birds the hyoid bone is a much more complex
structure than in the Mammalia. Besides forming the basis of the
otherwise mainly muscular substance of the tongue, it is continued
backwards in most birds as a double chain of bones, each pair of
which bears a separate name significant of its importance; and the
whole is apparently quite distinct from the skull above and from the
larynx below. Its composition in the common fowl is best rendered
intelligible by reference to the accompanying woodcut (Fig. 1). It
represents the entire hyoid apparatus divested of all muscular and
other surrounding tissues. The upper part of the figure is that
nearest to the tip of the tongue, and the references to the lettering
become clear in the course of the subsequent description.
 Fig. 2.—SIDE VIEW OF DISSECTION OF HEAD OF COMMON GREEN
WOODPECKER.
(Half natural size. After Macgillivray.)
(u, l) Upper and Lower Mandibles; (t) Barbed Tip of Tongue; (th.h.)
Thyro-hyal Bone of Right Side, with its Muscle and Sheath; (o) Right
Orbit; (n) Right Nostril; (s.g.) Right Salivary Gland; (m, m) Muscles of
Neck; (œ) Œsophagus; (tr) Trachea; (r.m.) Rectractor Muscles of Tongue
wound round Trachea.

Another woodcut (Fig. 2) shows a side view of a dissection of the

head of the common Green Woodpecker (Gecinus viridis), and a
reference to the explanation of the lettering on it will give a general
idea of the whole.
 The tip of the tongue (t) is a slender, flattened, horny point,
bearing on its sides and upper surface a number of very delicate
bristles, or prickles, directed backwards, an arrangement eminently
useful to the bird for enabling it to extract its insect food from the
recesses to which its beak, by reason of its size and hardness, could
not readily, nor with sufficient quickness, gain access. This tip is
further rendered a more efficient instrument for this purpose by its
being constantly moistened by a very viscid saliva secreted by two
particularly large salivary glands (Figs. 2, 3, and 4, s.g.); and it was
long ago remarked by Sir Charles Bell, in his essay on “The Hand”
(Bridgewater Treatise, 1837), that the same muscles that effected
the protrusion of the tongue exerted a simultaneous pressure upon
these glands, so that the first result of the muscular contraction is to
lubricate the tongue, while the rest of its force is spent in shooting it
out with marvellous rapidity.
 Fig. 3.—UPPER VIEW OF SKULL OF
GREEN WOODPECKER.
(After Macgillivray.)
(th.h, th.h.) Thyro-hyal Bones; (i)
Point of their insertion; (s.g., s.g.)
Salivary Glands.

Behind this barbed and horny tip, the tongue is a slender worm-
like body, of which the core is the anterior prolongation of the hyoid
bone. The fore-part of this core, more like a bristle than a bone, is
known to anatomists as the “glosso-hyal,” and it is immediately
succeeded posteriorly by the “cerato-hyal.”[254] Behind this is the
“basi-hyal ” (Fig. 1, b.h.), the last bone to enter into the formation of
the tongue proper. From this basi-hyal springs the pair of bones—the
“thyro-hyals”—which attain the remarkable degree of development
for which the birds now under consideration are distinguished. From
each side of the hinder portion, then, of this basi-hyal bone diverge
these important “thyro-hyals” (Fig. 1, c.br., e.br.). They, in the
Woodpeckers (compare Fig. 3, th.h.), extend outwards and
backwards to pass one on each side of the neck until they curl
upwards and forwards, converging to meet one another on the
upper part of the back of the head; thence they run along together,
ploughing themselves a furrow in the skull-top till they reach almost
to the right nostril. Each of these curved and highly elastic bones is
surrounded by a delicate sheath, whose inner surface is kept
constantly moist and lubricated by its own secretion; and this sheath
is attached to the bone of the skull at its junction with the upper
mandible, as is shown in the accompanying woodcut (Fig. 3, i).
Fig. 4.—DISSECTION OF HEAD OF GREEN
WOODPECKER VIEWED FROM BELOW.
(After Macgillivray.)
 (l) Lower Mandible; (f) Base of Tongue; (th.h.,
th.h.)Thyro-hyals; (s.g., s.g.) Salivary Glands; (m,
m) Muscles of Neck; (œ, œ) Œsophagus; (tr)
Trachea; (e.m., e.m.) Extrusor Muscles, which
thrust out the Tongue; (r.m.) Retractor Muscles of
Tongue wound round Trachea; (c.tr., c.tr.) Cleido-
tracheal Muscles, binding Trachea to Shoulder-
girdle.

Enclosed in the sheath here spoken of, and along the concavity
of each bone, is a muscle which has a fixed attachment to the crura
of the lower mandible on each side (Fig. 4, e.m., e.m.). The
contraction of this muscle shoots the tongue out in two different
ways. In the Green Woodpecker the extremities of the thyro-hyal
bones are themselves attached to the mandible, while the curvature
of the bones makes a loop that hangs low down on each side of the
neck (see Fig. 2, th.h.). As the muscle is shortened this loop is raised
up, and the free tip of the tongue is consequently projected; and
since the muscle is on the inner, or concave, side of the curve, a
very small shortening on its part makes a great addition to the
apparent length of the tongue. Sir Charles Bell elucidates this action
by comparing the great effect on the curve of a fishing-rod’s flexible
top that a small tightening of the line has. But while this is the case
in many species, there are others in which the sheath alone is
attached to the bones of the forehead, and the bones themselves
slide along inside together with the contracting fibres of the muscle,
thus producing the same result as was obtained in the other case by
the loops hanging low down in the neck.
The tongue, whose length is thus so extraordinarily increased, is
drawn back to its original position within the bill by another pair of
muscles, one on each side, which are attached to the basi-hyal.
These take their origin from the trachea, around which (as shown in
Figs. 2 and 4, r.m.), in many species, they are curiously wound in
their course. And, since the bones are at the point of their greatest
curvature when at rest, it is obvious that this action of withdrawal is
materially assisted by the elasticity of the prolongations of the hyoid
bones themselves; for it is a well-known law that Nature never lets
power run to waste, but always utilises forces of mere elasticity or
rigidity when by their means the expenditure of nervous energy and
muscular contractility can be saved.

WRYNECK.

It may be observed that this curious development of the bones of

the tongue is not confined to the Woodpeckers; in the Sun Birds
(Nectariniidæ) of the Old World, and the Humming-Birds
(Trochilidæ) of the New, this same adaptation of means to ends
obtains. Even in the Picidæ themselves many variations have been
noticed, in addition to those above alluded to; for instance, in the
Yellow-billed Woodpecker (Sphyrapicus[255] varius) of North America
the horns of the hyoid do not reach so far as the eye, so that the
tongue, with its bushy tip in this case, is only extensible in a very
slight degree; while in the Hairy Woodpecker (Picus villosus) the
thyro-hyals curve spirally over the right orbit so as to reach entirely
around the eye, to be inserted at its lower posterior margin.
 GREAT BLACK WOODPECKER AND GREAT SPOTTED WOODPECKER.
⇒
LARGER IMAGE

Considerable difference of opinion exists as to the damage done

by Woodpeckers in tapping sound trees, and many a poor bird pays
the penalty of his life for his supposed destructive propensities. Mr.
Waterton argues strongly on the side of the bird, and alleges that
only rotten and unsound trees are attacked for the sake of a nesting
habitation, or for the purpose of getting insects; but that this is not
always the case was proved by the writer himself in the spring of
1878, when a boy was sent up to a hole in a beech-tree in Avington
Park, in Hampshire. The tree was still perfectly sound, so sound,
indeed, that the bird had evidently given up the idea of inhabiting it
for that year, and had betaken himself elsewhere, after having
excavated a round hole to the depth of two or three inches. In the
same tree, a little lower down, was a similar hole, evidently made
the previous year, when the bird had “tapped” the tree, and it was
clear that he had returned again in the succeeding season, and had
tried a little higher up in the trunk, to see if there were any chance
of procuring a domicile. This proceeding must have injured the tree,
and was the work of a Green Woodpecker, or Yaffle, whose laughing
note was heard from another quarter of the park, even as the above
examination was being conducted. In this part of Hampshire, though
the bird is not persecuted by the owner of Avington, Mr. Edward
Shelley, or by his keepers, the Green Woodpecker is rare; but in
certain parts of Huntingdonshire the writer can remember to have
found it very plentiful in his school-days, and it was a never-failing
object in a country walk, flitting from tree to tree in front of the
observer, and always keeping a sharp look-out from the opposite
side of the trunk on which he settled. This species appears in old
pieces of poetry under the various names of Yaffle, Woodwele, or
Woodwale, Whetile, and it is in some places called “Hewhole,”
Woodhacker, &c.[256]:—
 GREEN WOODPECKER.

“The Skylark in ecstasy sang from a cloud,

And Chanticleer crowed, and the Yaffil laughed loud.”
The Peacock at Home.

“The Woodwele sang, and would not cease,

Sitting upon the spray;
So loud he wakened Robin Hood
In the greenwood where he lay.”
Ritson’s Edition of Robin Hood, vol. i., p. 115.
 “There the Jay and the Throstell
The Mavis menyd in her song,
The Woodwale fard or beryd as a bell
That wode about me rung.”
True Thomas.

Some Woodpeckers seem to make storehouses against the

winter, by pecking holes in a tree, and an interesting example of a
piece of bark, in which a Red-headed Woodpecker (Melanerpes
formicivorus)[257] had placed a store of acorns, is to be seen in the
British Museum.
Another British species, the Lesser Spotted Woodpecker
(Picus[258] minor), is a bird of different habits, frequenting fruit-
gardens in the autumn, and doing very little damage to trees in the
nesting season. It generally selects the rotten branch of an old
poplar-tree, and hollows out a hole in so perilous a situation that it is
difficult to climb to, and, indeed, the whole bough is often brought
down by the first gale in the ensuing winter. Here its small wedge-
shaped bill speedily makes an excavation, and at some little distance
down in the hollow interior it lays its glossy white eggs on the
touchwood and decaying wood. Both sexes assist in the preparation
of the nest; and in mild winters they sometimes begin with the
commencement of the year to look out for their future home. The
selection of this appears to be a matter of no small anxiety, for
several trees are examined in turn, and often at long distances
apart. The birds at the time of incubation keep up a continual
signalling one to the other, which is produced by a rapid whining
noise caused by tapping on the thinner branches of the dead trees.
This call-note, if it may be called such, is generally heard in the early
morning, and ceases as soon as the nesting operations have finally
commenced. Besides this note, they have also one like the “laugh”
of the Green Woodpecker, but, of course, much reduced in
accordance with the difference in the size of the two birds. The little
Spotted Woodpecker may often be seen hanging on to, and climbing
round, the slender twigs of the outer branches of a tree, and looks
much like a Creeper or a Nuthatch, which it does not greatly exceed
in dimensions.
 THE SIXTH FAMILY OF THE ZYGODACTYLE
PICARIAN BIRDS.
THE TOUCANS (Rhamphastidæ).
[259]

The Toucans, with their clumsy bills, have much the aspect of
Hornbills, which they may be said to represent in South America, to
which continent they are entirely confined, but by this time the
student knows that they have really little to do with each other,
beyond a certain outward similarity, as the Toucans belong to the
Scansorial, the Hornbills to the Fissirostral, section of the Picariæ. It
is not possible to give a long account of the habits of individual
species of Toucans, and a general sketch of their manners and
customs is extracted from the monograph of the Toucans written by
Mr. John Gould.[260] To him the late Prince Maximilian, of Neuwied,
an excellent observer, during his travels in South America writes:
—“The Rhamphastidæ are very common in all parts of the extensive
forests of the Brazils, and are killed in great numbers at the cooler
portion of the year, for the purposes of the table. To the stranger
they are of even greater interest than to the natives, from their
remarkable form, and from the rich and strongly-contrasted style of
their colouring, their black or green bodies being adorned with
markings of the most brilliant hues—red, orange, blue and white—
the naked parts of the body dyed with brilliant colours, the legs blue
or green, the irides blue, yellow, &c., and the large bill of a different
colour in every species, and in many instances very gaily marked.
The colouring of the soft parts is, however, so evanescent, that, to
determine the species with accuracy, they must be depicted during
life or immediately after the birds are killed. Common as these birds
are in their native wilds, it is exceedingly difficult to detect their
breeding-places; it is certain that they deposit their eggs in the
hollow limbs and holes of the colossal trees so abundant in the
tropical forests, but I never was so fortunate as to discover them.
The stomachs of the specimens I examined contained nothing but
the remains of fruits, principally of the softer kinds, for which,
indeed, they have such a liking that they resort in great numbers to
the plantations in the vicinity of their native haunts, and commit sad
havoc among their favourite delicacies. I was informed that they
frequently steal and eat young birds, but no instance of their doing
so came under my own observation, and I never detected the
remains of animal food in their stomachs. Mr. Waterton’s opinion
agrees with mine, that they feed solely upon fruits; but Azara,
among others, states that they also feed upon animal substances.
The specimens we saw in a state of domestication were very
voracious and perfectly omnivorous, but they seem to be purely
frugivorous in a state of nature, a fact which was, indeed, confirmed
by the Brazilian natives whom we questioned on the subject. In their
manners the Rhamphastidæ offer some resemblance to the Crows,
and especially to the Magpies; like them they are very troublesome
to the birds of prey, particularly to the Owls, whom they surround
and annoy by making a great noise, all the while jerking their tails
upwards and downwards. The flight of these birds is easy and
graceful, and they sweep with facility over the loftiest trees of their
native forests, their strangely-developed bills, contrary to
expectation, being no encumbrance to them. The voice of the
Toucans is short and unmelodious, and is somewhat different in
every species. The feathers are used by the Indians for personal
decoration, especially the yellow breasts of the birds, which they
affix to their heads on each side near the temple, and also to the
ends of their bows.”