tinamidæ

pl. [Mod. Lat. tin am ( us ); Lat. fem. pl. adj. suff. -idœ.] Ornithology: A family of Game Birds, with nine genera and thirty-nine species. Bill straight, flattened, with membrane at base, nostrils large; wings short and concave, toes long. They form a very remarkable family, with the general appearance of partridges or hemipodes, but with the tail very small or entirely wanting. They differ greatly in their organization from any of the Old World Gallinge, and approach, in some respects, the Ostriches. They are very terrestrial in their habits, frequenting the forests, open plains, and mountains of the Neo tropical region, from Patagonia and Chili to Mexico, but are absent from the Antilles. Their coloring is very sober and protective, as is the seldom adorned with crests or other ornamental case with many ground-birds, and they plumes, so prevalent in the order to which they belong. ( Wallace .)