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AMERICAN ORNITHOLOGY
OR
THE NATURAL HISTORY
OF THE
BIRDS OF THE UNITED STATES^
ILLUSTRATED WITH PLATES
ENGRAVED AND COLOURED PROM ORIGINAL DRAWINGS TAKEN
PROM NATURE.
BY ALEXANDER WILSON.
WITH A SKETCH OP THE AUTHOr’s LIFE,
BY GEORGE ORD, F. L. S. he.
IN THREE VOLS.— VOL. 111.
PUBLISHED BY COLLINS & CO. NEW YORK,
AND
HARRISON HALL, PHILADELPHIA,
1829.
EASTERN DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA, to wit:
Be it remembered, That on the 27th day of April, in the fifty-third year
of the Independence of the United States of America, A. D. 1829, Harrison
Hall, of the said district, hath deposited in this office, the title of a book, the
right whereof he claims as Proprietor, in the words following, to wit:
Jlmerican Ornithology, or the J^atural History of the Birds of the United States.
Illustrated with plates engi'aved and coloured from original drawings taken from
J^alure. By Alexander Wilson. With a sketch of the .Author's Life, by George
Ord, F. L. S. Sfc. In three Volumes. — Vol. III.
In conformity to the Act of the Congress of the United States, entitled “ An
act for the encouragement of learning, by securing the copies of maps, charts,
and books to the authors and proprietors of such copies during the times therein
mentioned.” — And also to the act, entitled, “ An act supplementary to an act,
entitled, ‘ An act for the encouragement of learning, by securing the copies of
maps, charts, and books, to the authors and proprietors of such copies during
the times therein mentioned, and extending the benefits thereof to the arts of
designing, engraving, and etching historical and other prints.”
D. CALDWELL,
Clerk of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
W14
• /
V.3
CONTENTS OF VOL. III.
Page.
Columba migratoria, Passenger Pigeon, - - 1
Carolinensis, Carolina Pigeon, or Turtle Dove, 12
passerina. Ground Dove, - - - 15
Tetrao umbellus, Ruffed Grous - - - 18
Cupido, Pinnated Grous, - - - 24
Perdix Virginianus, Quail or Partridge, - - 39
Introduction to the Water Birds, - - - 45
Plutalea ■Ajuja, Roseate Spoonbill, - - . 49
Ardea minor, American Bittern, - - - 52
Ccerulea, Blue Heron, ... 54
Herodias, Great Heron, - - - -57
Egretta, Great White Heron, - - 64
virescens, Green Heron, - - - - 67
exilis, Least Bittern, - - - 71
Ludoviciana, Louisiana Heron, - - - 73
nycticorax. Night Heron, or Qua-bird, - 75
candidissima, Snowy Heron, - - - 80
Americana, Whooping Crane, - - 85
1‘ioiacea, Yellow-crowned Heron, - - 87
Tantalus Loculator, Wood Ibis, - . _ 90
ruber. Scarlet Ibis, - - - - 92
albus. White Ibis, ... 94
jsTumenius longirostris. Long-billed Curlew, - - 96
borealis, Esquimaux Curlew, - - 99
Scolopax Fedoa, Great Marbled Godwit, - - 102
minor, YVoodcock, - - - 104
Oalinago, Snipe, - - - . - 109
JVbue&oracensis, Red-breasted Snipe, - 112
semipalmata, Semipalmated Snipe, - - 115
vociferus. Tell-tale Godwit, or Snipe, - 118
jlavipes. Yellow-shanks Snipe, - - 121
IV
CONTENTS OF VOL. III.
Page.
Tringa Bartramia, Bartram’s Sandpiper, ~ - 124
solitaria, Solitary Sandpiper, - - - 127
maculata, Spotted Sandpiper, - - 129
semipalmata, Semipalmated Sandpiper, - 132
pMsiWfl, Little Sandpiper, - - - 134
alpina, Red-backed Sandpiper, - - - ise
cinclus. The Pui’re, - - - 138
rufa, Red-breasted Sandpiper, - _ . 140
cinerea, Ash-coloured Sandpiper, - - 142
interpres, Turnstone, .... 145
Charadrius Hiaticula, Ringed Plover, - - 149
Hiaticula, Ring Plover, - - - 152
Wilsonius, Wilson’s Plover, - - 155
vnciferus, Kildeer Plover, - - - 157
Fluvialis, Golden Plover, - - 160
apricarius, Black-bellied Plover, - - 162
Calidris, Sanderling Plover, - - 167
rubidus. Ruddy Plover, - - - 170
Hosmatopus ostralegus, Vied Oyster-ca.tcher, - 172
B'tllus crepitans, Clflppev ViW, - - - - 177
Firg’iKianzis, Virginian Rail, - - 182
Carolinus, Rail, - - - - - 1 85
Gallinula Martinica, Martimco GaWimde, - - 197
Phalaropus Fulicarius, Gray Phalarope, - - 199
lobaius, Brown Phalarope, - - 204
Ftdica ,imericana. Cinereous Coot, - - - 210
Recurvirostra Americana, American Avoset, - 215
Hymantopus, Long-legged Avoset, - 218
Phcenicopterus ruber. Red Flamingo, - - 223
Uria alle. Little Guillemot, .... 227
Colyntbus glacialis. Great Northern Diver, or Loon, 229
Rynchops nigra. Black Skimmer, or Shearwater, - 235
Sterna Hirundo, Great Tern, _ . _ 240
minuta, Lesser Tern, - . - _ £44
aranea. Marsh Tern, - - - 247
plumbea. Short-tailed Tern, . . . £49
Juiiginosa, Sooty Tern, - - - 251
CONTENTS OF VOL. III.
Larus atricilla, Laughing Gull,
Procellaria pelagica, Stormy Petrel,
Mergus Merganser, Goosander, male,
female,
Serrator, Red-breasted Merganser,
albellus. The Smew, or White Nun,
cucullatus. Hooded Merganser,
Anas Canadensis, Canada Goose,
hyperborea. Snow Goose,
Young,
Bernicla, Brant, ...
clypeata. Shoveller,
Boschas, The Mallard,
strepera. The Gadwall,
acuta. Pintail Duck,
Americana, American Widgeon,
obscura. Dusky Duck,
sponsa. Summer Duck, or Wood Duck,
discors. Blue-winged Teal,
crecca. Green-winged Teal,
mollissima. Eider Duck, male, . -
female,
perspicillata. Black, or Surf Duck,
fusca. Velvet Duck,
nigra. Scoter Duck,
rubidus. Ruddy Duck, male,
female,
valisinerea. Canvas-back Duck,
Ferina, Red-headed Duck,
Marila, Scaup Duck, -
Fuligula, Tufted Duck,
Clangula, Golden Eye,
Albeola, Buflfel-headed Duck,
glacialis. Long-tailed Duck, male,
female,
Labradora, Pied Duck,
histrionica. Harlequin Duck,
Page.
253
256
- 265
268
- 269
272
- 274
276
- 283
285
- 287
292
- 295
303
- 305
307
- 310
313
- 317
319
- 322
325
- 326
328
- 330
332
- 339
340
- 351
353
- 356
360
- 363
365
- 368
369
- 37J
CONTENTS OF VOL. UL
Page.
Vlotiis anhinga. Darter, or Snake Bird, - - 373
female, - - 376
378
General Index,
AMERICAN ORNITHOLOGY.
ORDER IV. COLUMB^. COLUMBINE.
GENUS 48. COLUMBA. PIGEON.
SPECIES 1. C. MIGRATORIJi.
PASSENGER PIGEON.
[Plate XLIV.— Fig. 1.]
Catesb. I, 23. — Linn. Syst. 285. — Turton, 479. — Arct. Zool.
p. 322, JVb. 187. — Brisson, i, 100. — Buff, ir, 527. — Peale’s
Museum, JV*o. 5084.*
This remarkable bird merits a distinguished place in the an-
nals of our feathered tribes; a claim to which I shall endeavour
to do justice; and though it would be impossible, in the bounds
allotted to this account, to relate all I have seen and heard of
this species, yet no circumstance shall be omitted with which
I am acquainted, (however extraordinary some of these may
appear) that may tend to illustrate its history.
The Wild Pigeon of the United States inhabits a wide and
extensive region of North America, on this side of the Great
Stony mountains, beyond which to the westward, I have not
heard of their being seen. According to Mr. Hutchins, they
abound in the country round Hudson’s Bay, where they usually
remain as late as December, feeding, when the ground is cov-
ered with snow, on the buds of juniper. They spread over the
whole of Canada— were seen by captain Lewis and his party
near the Great Falls of the Missouri, upwards of two thousand
five hundred miles from its mouth, reckoning the meanderings
* Columba migraloria, Lath. Ind. Orn. p. 612, J^o. 70.
VOL. III. — B
I
2
PASSENGER PIGEON.
of the river — were also met with in the interior of Louisiana,
by colonel Pike; and extend their range as far south as the gulf,
of Mexico; occasionally visiting or breeding in almost every
quarter of the United States,
But the most remarkable characteristic of these birds is their
associating together, both in their migrations, and also during
the period of incubation, in such prodigious numbers as almost
to surpass belief; and which has no parallel among any other
of the feathered tribes, on the face of the earth, with which
naturalists are acquainted.
These migrations appear to be undertaken rather in quest of
food, than merely to avoid the cold of the climate, since we find
them lingering in the northern regions around Hudson’s Bay
so late as December; and since their appearance is so casual and
irregular; sometimes not visiting certain districts for several
years in any considerable numbers, while at other times they
are innumerable. I have witnessed these migrations in the Ge-
nessee country — often in Pennsylvania, and also in various parts
of Virginia, with amazement; but all that I had then seen of them
were mere straggling parties, when compared with the congre-
gated millions which I have since beheld in our western for-
ests, in the states of Ohio, Kentucky, and the Indiana territory.
These fertile and extensive regions abound with the nutritious
beech nut, which constitutes the chief food of the Wild Pigeon.
In seasons when these nuts are abundant, corresponding multi-
tudes of Pigeons may be confidently expected. It sometimes
happens that having consumed the whole produce of the beech
trees in an extensive district, they discover another at the dis-
tance perhaps of sixty or eighty miles, to which they regularly
repair every morning, and return as regularly in the course of
the day, or in the evening, to their place of general rendezvous,
or as it is usually called the roosting place.. These roosting
places are always in the woods, and sometimes occupy a large
extent of forest. When they have frequented one of these pla-
ces for some time, the appearance it exhibits is surprising. The
ground is covered to the depth of several inches with their dung;
PASSENGEK PIGEON.
3
all the tender grass and underwood destroyed; the surface strew-
ed with large limbs of trees broken down by the weight of the
birds clustering one above another; and the trees themselves,
for thousands of acres, killed as completely as if girdled with
an axe. The marks of this desolation remain for many years on
the spot; and numerous places could be pointed out where for
several years after, scarce a single vegetable made its appearance.
When these roosts are first discovered, the inhabitants from
considerable distances visit them in the night, with guns, clubs,
long poles, pots of sulphur, and various other engines of destruc-
tion. In a few hours they fill many sacks, and load their horses
with them. By the Indians, a Pigeon roost, or breeding place,
is considered an important source of national profit and depen-
dence for that season; and all their active ingenuity is exercised
on the occasion. The breeding place differs from the former in
its greater extent. In the western countries above mentioned,
these are generally in beech woods, and often extend in nearly
a straight line across the country for a great way. Not far from
Shelby ville in the state of Kentucky, about five years ago, there
was one of these breeding places, which stretched through the
woods in nearly a north and south direction, was several miles
in breadth, and was said to be upwards of forty miles in extent!
In this tract almost every tree was furnished with nests, wher-
ever the branches could accommodate them. The Pigeons
made their first appearance there about the tenth of April, and
left it altogether, with their young, before the twenty-fifth of
May.
As soon as the young were fully grown, and before they left
the nests, numerous parties of the inhabitants, from all parts of
the adjacent country, came with wagons, axes, beds, cooking
utensils, many of them accompanied by the greater part of their
families, and encamped for several days at this immense nursery.
Several of them informed me, that the noise in the woods was
so great as to terrify their horses, and that it was difficult for
one person to hear another speak without bawliilg in his ear.
The ground was strewed with broken limbs of trees, eggs, and
4
PASSENGER PIGEON.
squab Pigeons, which had been precipitated from above, and
on which herds of hogs were fattening. Hawks, Buzzards, and
Eagles, were sailing about in great numbers, and seizing the
squabs from their nests at pleasure; while from twenty feet up-
wards to the tops of the trees the view through the woods pre-
sented a perpetual tumult of crowding and fluttering multitudes
of Pigeons, their wings roaring like thunder; mingled with
the frequent crash of falling timber; for now the axe-men were
at work cutting down those trees that seemed to be most crowd-
ed with nests ; and contrived to fell them in such a manner,
that in their descent they might bring down several others; by
which means the falling of one large tree sometimes produce
two hundred squabs, little inferior in size to the old ones, and
almost one mass of fat. On some single trees upwards of one
hundred nests were found, each containing one young only, a
circumstance in the history of this bird not generally known to
naturalists. It was dangerous to walk under these flying and
fluttering millions, from the frequent fall of large branches, bro-
ken down by the weight of the multitudes above, and which in
their descent often destroyed numbers of the birds themselves;
while the clothes of those engaged in traversing the woods were
completely covered with the excrements of the Pigeons.
These circumstances were related to me by many of the most
respectable part of the community in that quarter; and were
confirmed in part by what I myself witnessed. I passed for se-
veral miles through this same breeding place, where every tree
was spotted with nests, the remains of those above described.
In many instances, I counted upwards of ninety nests on a
single tree; but the Pigeons had abandoned this place for ano-
ther, sixty or eighty miles off, towards Green river, where they
were said at that time to be equally numerous. From the great
numbers that were constantly passing over head, to or from that
quarter, I had no doubt of the truth of this statement. The mast
had been chiefly consumed in Kentucky, and the Pigeons, every
morning, a little before sun-rise, set out for the Indiana territory,
the nearest part of which was about sixty miles distant. Many
PASSENGER PIGEON.
5
of these returned before ten o’clock, and the great body gen-
erally appeared on their return a little after noon.
I had left the public road, to visit the remains of the breed-
ing place near Shelby ville, and was traversing the woods with
my gun, in my way to Frankfort, when about one o’clock the
Pigeons, which I had observed flying the greater part of the
morning northerly, began to return in such immense numbers
as I never before had witnessed. Coming to an opening by the
side of a creek called the Benson, where I had a more uninter-
rupted view, I was astonished at their appearance. They were
flying with great steadiness and rapidity, at a height beyond
gunshot, in several strata deep, and so close together, that could
shot have reached them, one discharge could not have failed of
bringing down several individuals. From right to left as far as
the eye could reach, the breadth of this vast procession extend-
ed; seeming every where equally crowded. Curious to deter-
mine how long this appearance would continue, I took out my
watch to note the time, and sat down to observe them. It was
then half past one. I sat for more than an hour, but instead of a
diminution of this prodigious procession, it seemed rather to in-
crease both in numbers and rapidity; and, anxious to reach
Frankfort before night, I rose and went on. About four o’clock
in the afternoon I crossed the Kentucky river, at the town of
Frankfort, at which time the living torrent above my head
seemed as numerous and as extensive as ever. Long after this 1
observed them, in large bodies that continued to pass for six or
eight minutes, and these again were followed by other detached
bodies, all moving in the same south-east direction, till after six
in the evening. The great breadth of front which this mighty
multitude preserved, would seem to intimate a corresponding-
breadth of their breeding place, which by several gentlemen who
had lately passed through part of it, was stated to me at several
miles. It was said to be in Green county, and that the young
began to fly about the middle of March. On the seventeenth of
April, forty-nine miles beyond Danville, and not far from Green
river, I crossed this same breeding place, where the nests for
6
PASSENGER PIGEON.
more than three miles spotted every treej the leaves not being
yet out, I had a fair prospect of them, and was really astonished
at their numbers. A few bodies of Pigeons lingered yet in dif-
ferent parts of the woods, the roaring of whose wings were
heard in various quarters around me.
All accounts agree in stating, that each nest contains only one
young. * This is so extremely fat, that the Indians, and many
of the whites, are accustomed to melt down the fat for domestic
purposes as a substitute for butter and lard. At the time they
leave the nest they are nearly as heavy as the old ones 5 but
become much leaner after they are turned out to shift for them-
selves.
It is universally asserted in the western countries, that the
Pigeons, though they have only one young at a time, breed
thrice, and sometimes four times, in the same season; the cir-
cumstances already mentioned render this highly probable. It
is also worthy of observation, that this takes place during that
period when acorns, beech nuts, &c. are scattered about in the
greatest abundance, and mellowed by the frost. But they are not
confined to these alone; buckwheat, hempseed, Indian corn,
holly berries, hack berries, buckle berries, and many others
furnish them with abundance at almost all seasons. The acorns
of the live oak are also eagerly sought after by these birds, and
rice has been frequently found in individuals killed many hun-
dred miles to the northward of the nearest rice plantation. The
vast quantity of mast which these multitudes consume, is a se-
rious loss to the bears, pigs, squirrels and other dependents on
the fruits of the forest. I have taken from the crop of a single
Wild Pigeon, a good handful ol the kernels of beech nuts, inter-
mixed with acorns and chestnuts. To form a rough estimate of
the daily consumption of one of these immense flocks, let us first
attempt to calculate the numbers of that above mentioned, as
seen in passing between Frankfort and the Indiana territory.
* It seems probable that our author was misinformed on this head, as it
lias been stated to us that the Passenger Pigeon, in common with all the
other known species of the genus Columba, lays two eggs.
PASSENGER PIGEON.
7
If we suppose this column tohave been one mile in breadth (and
I believe it to have been much more, ) and that it moved at the
rate of one mile in a minute; four hours, the time it continued
passing, would make its whole length two hundred and forty-
miles. Again supposing that each square yard of this moving
body comprehended three Pigeons, the square yards in the
whole space, multiplied by three, would give two thousand two
hundred and thirty millions, two hundred and seventy-two
thousand pigeons! An almost inconceivable multitude, and yet
probably far below the actual amount. Computing each of these
to consume half a pint of mast daily, the whole quantity at this
rate, would equal seventeen millions four hundred and twenty-
four thousand bushels per day ! Pleaven has wisely and graci-
ously given to these birds rapidity of flight, and a disposition to
range over vast uncultivated tracts of the earth; otherwise they
must have perished in the districts where they resided, or de-
voured up the whole productions of agriculture, as well as
those of the forests.
A few observations on the mode of flight of these birds must
not be omitted. The appearance of large detached bodies of
them in the air, and the various evolutions they display, are
strikingly picturesque and interesting. In descending the Ohio,
by myself, in the month of February, I often rested on my oars
to contemplate their aerial manoeuvres. A column, eight or ten
miles in length, would appear from Kentucky, high in air, steer-
ing across to Indiana. The leaders of this great body would
sometimes gradually vary their course, until it formed a large
bend of more than a mile in diameter, those behind tracing the
exact route of their predecessors. This would continue some-
times long after both extremities were beyond the reach of
sight, so that the whole, with its glittery undulations, marked
a space on the face of the heavens resembling the windings of
a vast and majestic river. When this bend became very great,
the birds, as if sensible of tbe unnecessary circuitous course they
were taking, suddenly changed their direction, so that what was
in column before became an immense front, straightening all its
8
PASSENGER PIGEON.
indentures, until it swept the heavens in one vast and infinitely
extended line. Other lesser bodies also united with each other,
as they happened to approach, with such ease and elegance of
evolution, forming new figures, and varying these as they uni-
ted or separated, that I was never tired of contemplating them.
Sometimes a Hawk would make a sweep on a particular part of
the column, from a great height, when almost as quick as light-
ning, that part shot downwards out of the common track, but
soon rising again, continued advancing at the same height as
before, this inflection was continued by those behind, who on
arriving at this point, dived down almost perpendicularly, to a
great depth, and rising followed the exact path of those that
went before. As these vast bodies passed over the river near
me, the surface of the water, which was before smooth as glass,
appeared marked with innumerable dimples, occasioned by the
dropping of their dung, resembling the commencement of a
shower of large drops of rain nr hail.
Happening to go ashore one charming afternoon, to purchase
some milk at a house that stood near the river, and while talk-
ing with the people within doors, I was suddenly struck with
astonishment at a loud rushing roar, succeeded by instant dark-
ness, which, on the first moment, I took for a tornado about to
overwhelm the house, and every thing around in destruction.
The people observing my surprise, coolly said, ‘‘It is only the
Pigeons;” and on running out I beheld a flock, thirty or forty
yards in width, sweeping along very low, between the house
and the mountain or height that formed the second bank of the
river. These continued passing for more than a quarter of an
hour, and at length varied their bearing so as to pass over the
mountain, behind which they disappeared before the rear came
up.
In the Atlantic states, though they never appear in such un-
paralleled multitudes, they are sometimes very numerous; and
great havoc is then made amongst them with the gun, the clap-
net, and various other implements of destruction. As soon as
it is ascertained in a town that the Pigeons are flying numer-
PASSENGER PIGEON.
9
ously in the neighbourhood, the gunners rise en masse; the
clap-nets are spread out on suitable situations, commonly on an
open height, in an old buckwheat field; four or five live Pigeons,
Avith their eyelids sewed up, are fastened on a moveable stick
— a small hut of branches is fitted up for the fowler at the dis-
tance of forty or fifty yards; by the pulling of a string, the stick
on which the Pigeons rest is alternately elevated and. depressed,
which produces a fluttering of their wings similar to that of birds
just alighting; this being perceived by the passing flocks, they
descend with great rapidity, and finding corn, buckwheat, &c.
strewed about, begin to feed, and are instantly, by the pulling
of a cord, covered with the net. In this manner ten, twenty,
and even thirty dozen, have been caught at one sweep. Mean-
time the air is darkened with large bodies of them moving in
various directions; the woods also swarm with them in search
of acorns; and the thundering of musquetry is perpetual on all
sides from morning to night. Wagon loads of them are poured
into market, where they sell from fifty to twenty-five and even
twelve cents per dozen; and Pigeons become the order of the
day at dinner, breakfast and supper, until the very name be-
comes sickening. When they have been kept alive, and fed for
some time on corn and buckwheat, their flesh acquires great
superiority ; but in their common state they are dry and black-
ish, and far inferior to the full grown young ones, or squabs.
The nest of the Wild Pigeon is formed of a few dry slender
twigs, carelessly put together, and with so little concavity, that
the young one, when half grown can easily be seen from below.
The eggs are pure white. Great numbers of Hawks, and some-
times the Bald Eagle himself, hover about those breeding places,
and seize the old or the young from the nest amidst the rising
multitudes, and with the most daring effrontery. The young,
when beginning to fly, confine themselves to the under part of
the tall woods where there is no brush, and where nuts and
acorns are abundant, searching among the leaves for mast, and
appear like a prodigious torrent rolling along through the woods,
every one striving to be in the front. Vast numbers of them
VOL. III. — c
10
PASSENGER PIGEON.
are shot while in this situation. A person told me, that he once
rode furiously into one of these rolling multitudes, and picked
up thirteen Pigeons, which had been trampled to death by his
horse’s feet. In a few minutes they will beat the whole nuts
from a tree with their wings; while all is a scramble, both above
and below, for the same. They have the same cooing notes
common to domestic Pigeons; but much less of their gesticula-
tions. In some flocks you will find nothing but young ones,
which are easily distinguishable by their motley dress. In
others they will be mostly females; and again great multitudes
of males, with few or no females. I cannot account for this in
any other way than that during the time of incubation the males
are exclusively engaged in procuring food, both for themselves
and their mates; and the young being unable yet to undertake
these extensive excursions, associate together accordingly. But
even in winter I know of several species of birds who separate
in this manner, particularly the Red-winged Starling, among
whom thousands of old males may be found, with few or no
young or females along with them.
Stragglers from these immense armies settle in almost every
part of the country, particularly among the beech woods, and
in the pine and hemlock woods of the eastern and northern
parts of the continent. Mr. Pennant informs us, that they breed
near Moose fort at Hudson’s Bay, in N. lat. 51°, and I myself
have seen the remains of a large breeding place as far south as
the country of the Chactaws, in lat. 32°. In the former of these
places they are said to remain until December; from which cir-
cumstance it is evident that they are not regular in their migra-
tions, like many other species, but rove about, as scarcity of
food urges them. Every spring, however, as well as fall, more
or less of them are seen in the neighbourhood of Philadelphia;
but it is only once in several years that they appear in such for-
midable bodies; and this commonly when the snows are heavy
to the north, the winter here more than usually mild, and acorns,
&c. abundant.
The Passenger Pigeon is sixteen inches long, and twenty-four
PASSENGER PIGEON.
11
inches in extent; bill black; nostril covered by a high rounding
protuberance; eye brilliant fiery orange; orbit, or space sur-
rounding it, purplish flesh-coloured skin; head, upper part of the
neck, and chin, a fine slate blue, lightest on the chin; throat,
breast and sides, as far as the thighs, a reddish hazel; lower part
of the neck and sides of the same resplendent changeable gold,
green and purplish crimson, the latter most predominant; the
ground colour slate; the plumage of this part is of a peculiar
structure, ragged at the ends; belly and vent white; lower part
of the breast fading into a pale vinaceous red; thighs the same,
legs and feet lake, seamed with white; back, rump and tail-co-
verts, dark slate, spotted on the shoulders with a few scattered
marks of black; the scapulars tinged with brown; greater coverts
light slate; primaries and secondaries dull black, the former tipt
and edged with brownish white; tail long, and greatly cunei-
form, all the feathers tapering towards the point, the two mid-
dle ones plain deep black, the other five, on each side, hoary
white, lightest near the tips, deepening into bluish near the
bases, where each is crossed on the inner vane with a broad spot
of black, and nearer the root with another of ferruginous; pri-
maries edged with white; bastard wing black.
The female is about half an inch shorter, and an inch less in
extent; breast cinereous brown; upper part of the neck inclin-
ing to ash; the spot of changeable gold green and carmine much
less, and not so brilliant; tail-coverts brownish slate; naked or-
bits slate coloured; in all other respects like the male in colour,
but less vivid, and more tinged with brown; the eye not so
brilliant an orange. In both, the tail has only twelve feathers.
SPECIES 2. COLUMBJl CJiROLINENSIS.
CAROLINA PIGEON, OR TURTLE DOVE.
[Plate XLIIL— Fig. 1.]
liiNN. Sijst. 286. — Catesb. Car. 1, 24. — Buff. ii. 557. PI. Enl.
\75. — La Tourterelledela Caroline, Bkisson,i, ] 10. — Turton,
479. — Jlrct. Zool. ii, JVb. 188.^*^ — Peale’s Museum, JVo. 508S.
This is a favourite bird with all those who love to wander
among our woods in spring, and listen to their varied harmony.
They will there hear many a singular and sprightly performer;
but none so mournful as this. The hopeless woe of settled sor-
row, swelling the heart of female innocence itself, could not as-
sume tones more sad, more tender and affecting. Its notes are
four; the first is somewhat the highest, and preparatory, seem-
ing to be uttered with an inspiration of the breath, as if the af-
flicted creature were just recovering its voice from the last con-
vulsive sobs of distress; this is followed by three long, deep
and mournful moanings, that no person of sensibility can listen
to without sympathy. A pause of a few minutes ensues; and
again the solemn voice of sorrow is renewed as before. This
is generally heard in the deepest shaded parts of the woods, fre-
quently about noon, and towards the evening.
There is, however, nothing of real distress in all this; quite
the reverse. The bird who utters it wantons by the side of his
beloved partner, or invites her by his call to some favourite re-
tired and shady retreat. It is the voice of love, of faithful con-
nubial affection, for which the whole family of Doves are so
celebrated; and among them all none more deservingly so than
the species now before us.
* Columla CarnJinensis, LkTH. Ind. Orn. p. dlS, J^o.tl. C. Canadensis? Id.
ib. JVb. 72. ,
TURTLE DOVE.
13
The Turtle Dove is a general inhabitant, in summer, of the
United States, from Canada to Florida, and from the sea-coast
to the Mississippi, and far to the westward. They are, howev-
er, partially migratory in the northern and middle states; and
collect together in North and South Carolina, and their corres-
ponding parallels, in great numbers, during the winter. On the
second of February, in the neighbourhood of Newbern, North
Carolina, I saw a flock of Turtle Doves of many hundreds; in
other places, as I advanced farther south, particularly near the
Savannah river, in Georgia, the woods were swarming with
them, and the whistling of their wings were heard in every
direction.
On their return to the north in March, and early in April,
they disperse so generally over the country, that there are rare-
ly more than three or four seen together, most frequently only
two. Here they commonly fly in pairs, resort constantly to the
public roads, to dust themselves, and procure gravel; are often
seen in the farmer’s yard, before the door, the stable, barn and
other outhouses, in search of food, seeming little inferior in
familiarity at such times to the domestic Pigeon. They often
mix with the poultry, while they are fed in the morning, visit
the yard and adjoining road many times a day, and the pump,
creek, horse-trough and rills for water.
Their flight is quick, vigorous, and always accompanied by
a peculiar whistling of the wings, by which they can easily be
distinguished from the Wild Pigeon. They fly with great
swiftness, alight on trees, fences, or on the ground indiscrimin-
ately; are exceedingly fond of buckwheat, hemp seed, and In-
dian corn; feed on the berries of the holly, the dogwood and
poke, buckle berries, partridge berries, and the small acorns of
the live oak, and shrub oak. They devour large quantities of
gravel, and sometimes pay a visit to the kitchen garden for peas,
for which they have a particular regard.
In this part of Pennsylvania they commence building about
the beginning of May. The nest is very rudely constructed, ge-
nerally in an evergreen — among the thick foliage of a vine — in
an orchard, on the horizontal branches of an apple-tree, and in
14
TURTLE DOVE.
some cases on the ground. It is composed of a handful of small
twigs, laid with little art, on which are scattered dry fibrous
roots of plants, and in this almost flat bed are deposited two
eggs, of a snowy whiteness. The male and female unite in feed-
ing the young, and they have rarely more than two broods in
the same season.
The flesh of this bird is considered much superior to that of
the Wild Pigeon; but its seeming confidence in man, the ten-
derness of its notes, and the innocency attached to its character,
are with many its security and protection; with others, how-
ever, the tenderness of its flesh, and the sport of shooting, over-
come all other considerations. About the commencement of
frost, they begin to move oflf to the south; numbers, however,
remain in Pennsylvania during the whole winter.
The Turtle Dove is twelve inches long, and seventeen inches
in extent; bill black; eye of a glossy blackness, surrounded with
a pale greenish blue skin; crown, upper part of the neck and
wings a fine silky slate blue; back, scapulars and lesser wing-
coverts ashy brown; tertials spotted with black: primaries edg-
ed and tipt with white; forehead, sides of the neck and breast,
a pale brown vinous orange; under the ear feathers a spot or
drop of deep black; immediately below which the plumage re-
flects the most vivid tints of green, gold and crimson, chin pale
yellow ochre; belly and vent whitish; legs and feet coral red,
seamed with white; the tail is long and cuneiform, consisting
of fourteen feathers; the four exterior ones on each side are
marked with black about an inch from the tips, and white thence
to the extremity; the next has less of the white at the tip; these
gradually lengthen to the four middle ones, which are wholly
dark slate; all of them taper towards the points, the two middle
ones most so.
The female is an inch shorter, and is otherwise only distin-
guished by the less brilliancy of her colour; she also wants the
rich silky blue on the crown, and much of the splendor of the
neck; the tail is also somewhat shorter, and the white with
which it is marked less pure.
SPECIES 3. COLUMBA PASSERINE.
GROUND DOVE.
[Plate XL VI. — Fig. 2, Male — Fig. 3, Feniale.'\
Linn. SysU 285. — Sloan. Jam. ii. 305. — Le Cocotzin, Fernandez,
24. — Buff, ii, 559. PI. Enl. 243. — La petite Tourterelle, Briss.
I, 113. — Turt. Syst. 478. — Columba minuta, Ibid, p.479.* —
Jlrct. Zool.p. 328, JSTo. 191. — Catesb. i, 26.t
This is one of the least of the Pigeon tribe, whose timid
and innocent appearance forms a very striking contrast to the
ferocity of the Bird-killer of the same plate. Such as they are
in nature, such I have endeavoured faithfully to represent them.
I have been the more particular with this minute species, as no
correct figure of it exists in any former work with which I am
acquainted.
The Ground Dove is a native of North and South Carolina,
Georgia, the new state of Louisiana, Florida, and the islands of
the West Indies. In the latter it is frequently kept in cages; is
esteemed excellent for the table, and honoured by the French
planters with the name of Ortolan. They are numerous in the
sea islands on the coast of Carolina and Georgia; fly in flocks
or coveys of fifteen or twenty; seldom visit the woods, prefer-
ring open fields and plantations; are almost constantly on the
ground, and when disturbed fly to a short distance and again
alight. They have a frequent jetting motion with the tail; feed
on rice, various seeds and berries, particularly those of the
Tooth-ache tree,t under or near which, in the proper season,
they are almost sure to be found. Of their nest or manner of
breeding I am unable, at present, to give any account.
♦Prince Musignano considers this synonyme is incorrect.
f Columba Passerina, Lath. Ind. Orn.p. 611, JVo. 67. C. minuta, id. p. 612, Ah 68.
t Xanthoxylum Clava Herculis.
16
GROUND DOVE.
These birds seem to be confined to the districts lying south
of Virginia. They are plenty on the upper parts of Cape F ear
river, and in the interior of Carolina and Georgia; but I have
never met with them either in Maryland, Delaware, or Penn-
sylvania. They never congregate in such multitudes as the
common Wild Pigeon; or even as the Carolina Pigeon or Tur-
tle Dove; but, like the Partridge or Quail, frequent the open
fields in small coveys. They are easily tamed; have a low ten-
der cooing note, accompanied with the usual gesticulations of
their tribe.
The Ground Dove is a bird of passage, retiring to the islands
and to the more southerly parts of the continent on the approach
of winter, and returning to its former haunts early in April. It
is of a more slender and delicate form, and less able to bear the
rigours of cold, than either of the other two species common
in the United States, both of which are found in the northern
regions of Canada, as well as in the genial climate of Florida.
The Dove, generally speaking, has long been considered as
the favourite emblem of peace and innocence, probably from
the respectful manner in which its name is mentioned in vari-
ous parts of Scripture; its being selected from among all the
birds by Noah to ascertain the state of the deluge, and return-
ing to the ark, bearing the olive leaf as a messenger of peace
and good tidings; the Holy Ghost, it is also said, was seen to
descend like a dove from heaven, &c. &c. In addition to these,
there is in the Dove an appearance of meekness and innocency
very interesting, and well calculated to secure our partiality in
its favour. These remarks are applicable to the whole genus;
but are more particularly so to the species now before us, as
being among the least, the most delicate and inoffensive, of the
whole.
The Ground Dove is six inches and a quarter long; bill yel-
low, black at the point; nostril covered with a prominent mem-
brane, as is usual with the genus; iris of the eye orange red;
front, throat, breast and sides of the neck, pale vinaceous pur-
ple; the feathers strongly defined by semicircular outlines, those
GROUND DOVE.
17
on the throat centred with dusky blue; crown and hind-head a
fine pale blue, intermixed with purple, the plumage like that
on the throat strongly defined; back cinereous brown, the sca-
pulars deeply tinged with pale purple, and marked with detach-
ed drops of glossy-vPue, reflecting tints of purple; belly pale
vinaceous brown, becoming dark cinereous towards the vent,
where the feathers are bordered with white; wing quills dusky
outwardly and at the tips; lower sides, and whole interior vanesi,
a fine red chestnut, which shows itself a little below their cqv-
erts; tail rounded, consisting of twelve feathers, the two middle
ones cinereous brown, the rest black, tipt and edged with white;
legs and feet yellow.
The female has the back and tail-coverts of a mouse colour,
with little or none of the vinaceous tint on the breast and throat,
nor any of the light blue on the hind-head ; the throat is speck-
led with dull white, pale clay colour, and dusky; sides of the
neck the same, the plumage strongly defined; breast cinereous
brown, slightly tinctured with purple; scapulars marked with
large drops of a dark purplish blood colour, reflecting tints of
blue; rest of the plumage nearly the same as that of the male.
VOL. III. — D
GENUS 56. TETRAO.
SPECIES 1. T. UMBELLUS.
RUFFED GROUS.
[Plate XLIX.]
Jlrct. Zool. p. SOI, •A'o. 179. — Puffed Heath-cock, or Grous, Edw.
248. — La Gelinote Inipee de Pensylvanie, Biiiss. i, 214. — PL
Enl, 104. — Buff, ii, 9.81,— Phil. Trans, 62, 393. — Tvrt. Sysi.
454. — Peale’s Museum, JV'o. 4702.
This is the Partridge of the eastern states, and the Pheas-
ant of Pennsylvania, and the southern districts. It is represent-
ed in the plate of its full size; and was faithfully copied from a
perfect and very beautiful specimen.
This elegant species is well known in almost every quarter
of the United States, and appeal’s to inhabit a very extensive
range of country. It is common at Moose fort, on Hudson’s
bay, in lat. 51°; is frequent in the upper parts of Georgia; very
abundant in Kentucky and the Indiana territory; and was found
by captains Lewis and Clarke in crossing the great range of
mountains that divide the waters of the Columbia and Missouri,
more than three thousand miles, by their measurement, from
the mouth of the latter. Its favourite places of resort are high
mountains, covered with the balsam pine, hemlock, and such
like evergreens. Unlike the Pinnated Grous, it always prefers
the woods; is seldom or never found in open plains; but loves
the pine-sheltered declivities of mountains, near streams of wat-
er. This great difference of disposition in two species, whose food
seems to be nearly the same, is very extraordinary. In those
open plains called the barrens of Kentucky, the Pinnated Grous
was seen in great numbers, but none of the Ruffed; while in the
high groves with which that singular tract of country is inter-
RUFFED GROUS.
19
spersed, the latter, or Pheasant, was frequently met with; but
not a single individual of the former.
The native haunts of the Pheasant being a cold, high, moun-
tainous and woody country, it is natural to expect that as we
descend thence to the sea shores, and the low, flat and warm
climate of the southern states, these birds should become more
rare, and such indeed is the case. In the lower parts of Caro-
lina, Georgia and Florida, they are very seldom observed; but
as we advance inland to the mountains, they again make their
appearance. In the lower parts of New Jersey we indeed oc-
casionally meet with them; but this is owing to the more north-
erly situation of the country; for even here they are far less nu-
merous than among the mountains.
Dr. Turton, and several other English writers, have spoken
of a Long-tailed Grous, said to inhabit the back pai'ts of Virgi-
nia, which can be no other than the present species, there being,
as far as I am acquainted, only these two, the Ruffed and Pin-
nated Grous, found native within the United States.
The manners of the Pheasant are solitary; they are seldom
found in coveys of more than four or five together, and more
usually in pairs or singly. They leave their sequestered haunts
in the woods early in the morning, and seek the path or road,
to pick up gravel, and glean among the droppings of the horses.
In travelling among the mountains that bound the Susquehanna,
I was always able to furnish myself with an abundant supply of
these birds, every morning, without leaving the path If the
weather be foggy, or lowering, they are sure to be seen in such
situations. They generally move along with great stateliness,
their broad fan-like tail spread out in the manner exhibited in
the drawing. The drumming, as it is usually called, of the
Pheasant, is another singularity of this species. This is per-
formed by the male alone. In walking through solitary woods
frequented by these birds, a stranger is surprised by suddenly
hearing a kind of thumping, very similar to that produced by
striking two full-blown ox-bladders together, but much louder;
the strokes at first are slow and distinct; but gradually increase
20
RUFFED GROUS.
in rapidity till they run into each other, resembling the rumbl-
ing sound of very distant thunder, dying away gradually on the
ear. After a few minutes, pause this is again repeated; and in a
calm day may be heard nearly half a mile off. This drumming
is most common in spring, and is the call of the cock to his fa-
vourite female. It is produced in the following manner. The
bird, standing on an old prostrate log, generally in a retired
and sheltered situation, lowers his wings, erects his expanded
tail, contracts his throat, elevates the two tufts of feathers on
the neck, and inflates his whole body, something in the manner
of the turkey cock, strutting and wheeling about with great
stateliness. After a few manoeuvres of this kind, he begins to
strike with his stifiened wings in short and quick strokes, which
become more and more rapid until they run into each other as
has been already described. This is most common in the morn-
ing and evening, though I have heard them drumming at all
hours of the day. By means of this, the gunner is led to the
place of his retreat; though to those unacquainted with the sound,
there is great deception in the supposed distance, it generally
appearing to be much nearer than it really is.
The Pheasant begins to pair in April, and builds its nest early
in May. This is placed on the ground at the root of a bush, old
log, or other sheltered and solitary situation, well surrounded
with withered leaves. Unlike that of the Quail, it is open above,
and is usually composed of dry leaves and grass. The eggs are
from nine to fifteen in number, of a brownish white, without any
spots, and nearly as large as those of a pullet. The young leave
the nest as soon as hatched, and are directed by the cluck of the
mother, very much in the manner of the common hen. On be-
ing surprised, she exhibits all the distress and affectionate ma-
noeuvres of the Quail, and of mostother birds, to lead you away
from the spot. I once started a hen Pheasant, with a single young
one, seemingly only a few days old; there might have been
more, but I observed only this one. The mother fluttered before
me for a moment, but suddenly darting towards theyoung one,
seized it in her bill, and flew off along the surface through the
RUFFED GROUS.
21
woods, with great steadiness and rapidity, till she was beyond
my sight, leaving me in great surprise at the incident. I made
a very close and active search around the spot for the rest, but
without success. Here was a striking instance of something more
than what is termed blind instinct, in this remarkable deviation
from her usual manoeuvres, when she has a numerous brood. It
would have been impossible for me to injure this affectionate
mother, who had exhibited such an example of presence of
mind, reason and sound judgment, as must have convinced the
most bigotted advocates of mere instinct. To carry off a whole
brood in this manner, at once, would have been impossible, and
to attempt to save one at the expense of the rest would be un-
natural. She therefore usually takes the only possible mode of
saving them in that case, by decoying the person in pursuit of
herself, by such a natural imitation of lameness as to impose on
most people. But here, in the case of a single solitary young
one, she instantly altered her plan, and adopted the most simple
and effectual means for its preservation.
The Pheasant generally springs within a fewyards, with aloud
whirring noise, and flies with great vigour through the woods,
beyond reach of view, before it alights. With a good dog how-
ever, they are easily found; and at some times exhibit a singu-
lar degree of infatuation, by looking down, from the branches
where they sit, on the dog below, who, the more noise he keeps
up, seems the more to confuse and stupify them, so that they
may be shot down, one by one, till the whole are killed, without
attempting to fly off. In such cases, those on the lower limbs
must be taken first, for should the upper ones be first killed, in
their fall they alarm those below, who immediately fly off. In
deep snows they are usually taken in traps, commonly dead
traps, supported by a figure 4 trigger. At this season, when sud-
denly alarmed, they frequently dive into the snow, particularly
when it has newly fallen, and coming out at a considerable dis-
tance, again take wing. They are pretty hard to kill, and will
often carry off a large load to the distance of two hundred yards,
and drop down dead. Sometimes in the depth of winter they
22
RUFFED GROUS.
approach the farm house, and lurk near the barn, or about the
garden. They have also been often taken young and tamed, so
as to associate with the fowls; and their eggs have frequently
been hatched under the common hen; but these rarely survive
until full grown. They are exceedingly fond of the seeds of
grapes; occasionally eat ants, chestnuts, black berries, and various
vegetables. Formerly they were numerous in the immediate
vicinity of Philadelphia; but as the woods were cleared, and
population increased, they retreated to the interior. At present
there are very few to be found within several miles of the city,
and those only singly, in the most solitary and retired woody
recesses.
The Pheasant is in best order for the table in September and
October. At this season they feed chiefly on whortle-berries,
and the little red aromatic partridge-berries, the last of which
gives their flesh a peculiar delicate flavour. With the former
our mountains ai’e literally covered from August to November;
and these constitute at that season the greater part of their food.
During the deep snows of winter, they have recourse to the buds
of alder, and the tender buds of the laurel. I have frequently
found their crops distended with a large handful of these latter
alone; and it has been confidently asserted, that after having fed
for some time on the laurel buds, their flesh becomes highly
dangerous to eat of, partaking of the poisonous qualities of the
plant. The same has been asserted of the flesh of the deer, when
in severe weather, and deep snows, they subsist on the leaves
and bark of the laurel. Though I have myself eat freely of the
flesh of the Pheasant, after emptying it of large quantities of
laurel huds, without experiencing any bad consequences, yet,
from the respectability of those, some of them eminent physi-
cians, who have particularized cases in which it has proved
deleterious, and even fatal, I am inclined to believe that in
certain cases where this kind of food has been long continued,
and the birds allowed to remain undrawn for several days, until
the contents of the crop and stomach have had time to diffuse
themselves through the flesh, as is too often the case, it may be
RUFFED GROUS.
23
unwholesome, and even dangerous. Great numbers of these
birds are brought to our markets, at all times during fall and
winter, some of which are brought from a distance of more than
a hundred miles, and have been probably dead a week or two,
unpicked and undrawn, before they are purchased for the table.
Regulations prohibiting them from being brought to market,
unless picked and drawn, would very probably be a sufficient
security from all danger. At these inclement seasons, however,
they are generally lean and dry, and indeed at all times their
flesh is far inferior to that of the Quail, or of the Pinnated Grous.
They are usually sold in Philadelphia market at from three
quarters of a dollar to a dollar and a quarter a pair, and some-
times higher.
The Pheasant or Partridge of New England, is eighteen in-
ches long, and twenty -three inches in extent; bill a horn colour,
paler below; eye reddish hazel, immediately above which is a
small spot of bare skin of a scarlet colour; crested head and neck
variegated with black, red brown, white and pale brown; sides
of the neck furnished with a tuft of large black feathers, twenty-
nine or thirty in number, which it occasionally raises: this tuft
covers a large space of the neck destitute of feathers; body above
a bright rust colour, marked with oval spots of yellowish white,
and sprinkled with black; wings plain olive brown, exteriorly
edged with white, spotted with olive; the tail is rounding, ex-
tends five inches beyond the tips of the wings, is of a bright
reddish brown beautifully marked with numerous waving
transverse bars of black, is also crossed by a broad band of
black within half an inch of the tip, which is bluish white,
thickly sprinkled and specked with black; body below white,
marked with large blotches of pale brown; the legs are covered
half way to the feet with hairy down, of a brownish white co-
lour; legs and feet pale ash; toes pectinated along the sides, the
two exterior ones joined at the base as far as the first joint by
a membrane; vent yellowish rust colour.
The female and young birds differ in having the ruff or tufts
of feathers on the neck of a dark brown colour, as well as the
bar of black on the tail inclining much to the same tint.
SPECIES 2. TETRAD CUP IDO.
PINNATED GROUS.
[Plate XXVIL— Fig. 1.]
Linn. Syst. i, f. 274, 5. — Lath. ii,p. 740. — Jlrct. Zool. — La Ge-
linote hupee PJhnerique, Briss. Orn. i, p. 212, 10. — Urogalus
minor, fuscus cervice, plumis alas imitantibus donata, Catesb.
Car. .dpp.pl. 1. — Tetrao lagogus, the Mountain code, or Grous,
Bartram, p. 290. — Heath-hen, Prairie-hen, Barren-hen. —
Peale’s .Museum, M'o. 4700, male — 4701, female.
Before I enter on a detail of the observations which I have
myself personally made on this singular species, I shall lay be-
fore the reader a comprehensive and very circumstantial me-
moir on the subject, communicated to me by the writer. Dr.
Samuel L. Mitchill of New York, whose exertions, both in his
public and private capacity, in behalf of science, and in eluci-
dating the natural history of his country, are well known; and
highly honourable to his distinguished situation and abilities.
That peculiar tract generally known by the name of the Brushy
plains of Long Island, having been, for time immemorial, the
resort of the bird now before us, some account of this particular
range of country seemed necessarily connected with the subject,
and has accordingly been obligingly attended to by the learn-
ed professor.
“New Fork, Sept. 19th, 1810.
•‘Dear Sir,
“It gives me much pleasure to reply to your letter of the
twelfth instant, asking of me information concerning the Grouse
of Long island.
PINNATED GROUS.
25
“The birds which are known there emphatically by the name
of Grouse, inhabit chiefly the forest-range. This district of the
island may be estimated as being between forty and fifty miles
in length, extending from Bethphage in Queen’s county to the
neighbourhood of the court-house in Suflblk. Its breadth is not
more than six or seven. For although the island is bounded by
the Sound separating it from Connecticut on the north, and by
the Atlantic ocean on the south, there is a margin of several
miles on each side in the actual possession of human beings.
“The region in which these birds reside, lies mostly within
the towns of Oysterbay, Huntington, Islip, Smithtown, and
Brook-haven; though it would be incorrect to say, that they
were not to be met with sometimes in Riverhead and South-
hampton.— Their territory has been defined by some sportsmen,
as situated between Hempstead-plain on the west, and Shinne-
cock-plain on the east.
“ The more popular name for them is Heath-hens. By this
they are designated in the act of our legislature for the preser-
vation of them and of other game. I well remember the pass-
ing of this law. The bill was introduced by Cornelius J. Bog-
ert, esq. a member of the assembly from the city of New York.
It was in the month of February, 1791.
“The statute declares among other things, that the person
who shall kill any Heath-hen within the counties of Suflblk or
Queens, between the first day of April and the fifth day of Oc-
tober, shall for every such oflence, forfeit and pay the sum of
two dollars and a half, to be recovered with costs of suit, by any
person who shall prosecute for the same, before any justice of
the peace, in either of the said counties; the one half to be paid
to the plaintilF, and the other half to the overseers of the poor.
And if any Heath-hen so killed, shall be found in the possession
of any person, he shall be deemed guilty of the oflence, and suf-
fer the penalty. But it is provided, that no defendant shall be
convicted unless the action shall be brought within three months
after the violation of the law.*
* The doctor has probably forgotten a circumstance of rather a ludicrous kind
VOL. III. E
26
PINNATED GROUS.
“ The country selected by these exquisite birds requires a
more particular description. You already understand it to be
the midland and interior district of the island. The soil of this
island is, generally speaking, a sandy or gravelly loam. In the
parts less adapted to tillage, it is more of an unmixed sand.
This is so much the case, that the shore of the beaches beaten
by tbe ocean, affords a material from which glass has been pre-
pared. Siliceous grains and particles predominate in the region
chosen hy the Heath-hens or Grouse. Here there are no rocks,
and very few stones of any kind. This sandy tract appears to
be a dereliction of the ocean, but is nevertheless not doomed to
total sterility. Many thousand acres have been reclaimed from
the wild state, and rendered very productive to man. And
within the towns frequented by these birds, there are numer-
ous inhabitants, and among them some of our most wealthy
farmers.
‘‘But within the same limits, there are also tracts of great
extent where men have no settlements, and others where the
population is spare and scanty. These are however, by no
means, naked deserts. They are, on the contrary, covered with
trees, shrubs and smaller plants. The trees are mostly pitch-
pines of inferior size, and white oaks of a small growth. They
are of a quality very fit for burning. Thousands of cords of both
sorts of fire-wood are annually exported from these barrens.
Vast quantities are occasionally destroyed by the fires which
through carelessness or accident spread far and wide through
the woods. The city of New York will probably for ages de-
rive fuel from the grouse-grounds. The land after having been
cleared, yields to the cultivator poor crops. Unless therefore
that occurred at the passing of this law; and which was, not long ago, related
to me by my friend Mr. Gardiner, of Gardiner’s island, Long island. The bill
was entitled “ An Act for the preservation of Heath-hen and other Game.’’ The
honest chairman of the assembly, no sports-man I suppose, read the title “ An
Act for the preservation of Heathen and other Game !” which seemed to aston-
ish the north members, who could not see the propriety of preserving Indians,
or any other Heathen.
PESTNATED GROUS.
27
he can help it by manure, the best disposition is to let it grow
up to forest again. Experience has proved, that in a term of
forty or fifty years, the new growth of timber will be fit for the
axe. Hence it may be perceived, that the reproduction of trees,
and the protection they afford to Heath-hens would be perpetual;
or in other words, not circumscribed by any calculable time;
provided the persecutors of the latter would be quiet.
“Beneath these trees grow more dwarfish oaks, overspread-
ing the surface, sometimes with here and there a shrub, and
sometimes a thicket. These latter are from about two to ten
feet in height. Where they are the principal product, they are
called in common conversation brush, as the flats on which they
grow are termed Brushy plains. Among this hardy shrubbery
may frequently be seen the creeping vegetable named the par-
tridge-berry covering the sand with its lasting verdure. In
many spots the plant which produces hurtle-berries, sprout up
among the other natives of the soil. These are the more impor-
tant, though I ought to inform you that the hills reaching from
east to west, and forming the spine of the island, support kal-
mias, hickories, and many other species; that I have seen aza-
lias and andromedas as I passed through the wilderness; and
that where there is water, crane-berries, alders, beeches, map-
les, and other lovers of moisture, take their stations.
“This region, situated thus betw'^een the more thickly . in-
habited strips or belts on the north and south sides of the island,
is much travelled by wagons, and intersected accordingly by a
great number of paths.
“As to the birds themselves, the information I possess scarce-
ly amounts to an entire history. You, who know the difficulty
of collecting facts, will be the most ready to excuse my defici-
encies. The information I give you is such as I rely on. For
the purpose of gathering the materials, I have repeatedly visited
their haunts. I have likewise conversed with several men who
were brought up at the precincts of the grouse-ground, who had
been witnesses of their habits and manners, who were accus-
,28
PINNATED GROUS.
tomed to shoot them for the market, and who have acted as
guides to gentlemen who go there for sport.
Bulk. — An adult Grouse when fat weighs as much as a barn
door fowl of moderate size, or about three pounds avoirdupoise.
But the eagerness of the sportsman is so great, that a large pro-
portion of those they kill, are but a few months old, and have
not attained their complete growth. Notwithstanding the pro-
tection of the law, it is very common to disregard it. The re-
tired nature of the situation favours this. It is well understood
that an aiTangement can be made which will blind and silence
informers, and that the gun is fired with impunity, for weeks
before the time prescribed in the act. To prevent this unfair
and unlawful practice, an association was formed a few years
ago, under the title of the Brush club, with the express and
avowed intention of enforcing the game-law. Little benefit,
however, has resulted from its laudable exertions; and under a
conviction that it was impossible to keep the poachers away,
the society declined. At present the statute may be considered
as operating very little toward their preservation. Grouse, es-
pecially full-grown ones, are becoming less frequent. Their
numbers are gradually diminishing; and assailed as they are on
all sides, almost without cessation their scarcity may be viewed
as foreboding their eventual extermination.
‘‘ Price. — Twenty years ago a brace of Grouse could be
bought for a dollar. They now cost from three to five dollars.
A handsome pair seldom sells in the New Yoi'k market now a
days for less than thirty shillings [three dollars, seventy-five
cents], nor for more than forty [five dollars]. These prices in-
dicate indeed the depreciation of money, and the luxury of eat-
ing. They prove at the same time, that Grouse are become
rare; and this fact is admitted by every man Avho seeks them,
whether for pleasure or for profit.
“ Amours. — The season for pairing is in March, and the
breeding time is continued through April and May. Then the
male Grouse distinguishes himself by a peculiar sound. When
he utters it, the parts about the throat are sensibly inflated and
PINNATED GROUS.
29
swelled. It may be heard on a still morning for three or more
miles; some say they have perceived it as far as five or six.
This noise is a sort of ventriloquism. It does not strike the ear
of a bystander with much force; but impresses him with the
idea, though produced within a few rods of him, of a voice a
mile or two distant. This note is highly characteristic. Though
very peculiar, it is termed tooting-, from its resemblance to the
blowing of a conch or horn from a remote quarter. The female
makes her nest on the ground, in recesses very rarely discov-
ered by men. She usually lays from ten to twelve eggs. Their
colour is of a brownish, much resembling those of a Guinea-hen.
When hatched, the brood is protected by her alone. Surround-
ed by her young, the mother bird exceedingly resembles a do-
mestic hen and chickens. She frequently leads them to feed in
the roads crossing the woods, on the remains of maize and oats
contained in the dung dropped by the travelling horses. In that
employment they are often surprised by the passengers. On
such occasions the dam utters a cry of alarm. The little ones
immediately scamper to the brush; and while they are skulking
into places of safety, their anxious parent beguiles the spectator
by drooping and fluttering her wings, limping along the path,
rolling over in the dirt, and other pretences of inability to walk
or fly.
^^Food. — A favourite article of their diet is the heath-hen
plum, or partridge-berry before mentioned. They are fond of
hurtle-berries, and crane-berries. Worms and insects of several
kinds are occasionally found in their crops. But in the winter
they subsist chiefly on acorns, and the buds of trees which have
shed their leaves. In their stomachs have been sometimes ob-
served' the leaves of a plant supposed to be a winter green; and
it is said, when they are much pinched, they betake themselves
to the buds of the pine. In convenient places they have been
known to enter cleared fields, and regale themselves on the
leaves of clover; and old gunners have reported that they have
been known to trespass upon patches of buckwheat, and pick
up the grains.
30
PINNATED GROUS.
Migration. — They are stationary, and never known to
quit their abode. There are no facts showing in them any dis-
position to migration. On frosty mornings and during snows,
they perch on the upper branches of pine-trees. They avoid
wet and swampy places; and are remarkably attached to dry
ground. The low and open brush is preferred to high shrubbery
and thickets. Into these latter places, they fly for refuge when
closely pressed by the hunters, and here, under a stiff and in-
penetrable cover, they escape the pursuit of dogs and men.
Water is so seldom met with on the true grouse-ground, that it
is necessary to carry it along for the pointers to drink. The
flights of Grouse are short, but sudden, rapid and whirring. I
have not heard of any success in taming them. They seem to
resist all attempts at domestication. In this as well as in many
other respects, they resemble the Quail of New York, or the
Partridge of Pennsylvania.
‘•^Manners. — During the period of mating, and while the fe-
males are occupied in incubation, the males have a practice of
assembling, principally by themselves. To some select and
central spot where there is very little underwood, they repair
from the adjoining district. From the exercises performed there,
this is called a scratching-place. The time of meeting is the
break of day. As soon as the light appears, the company as-
sembles from every side, sometimes to the number of forty or
fifty. When the dawn is past, the ceremony begins by a low
tooting from one of the cocks. This is answered by another.
They then come forth one by one from the bushes, and strut
about with all the pride and ostentation they can display. Their
necks are incurvated; the feathers on them are erected into a
sort of ruff; the plumes of their tails are expanded like fans;
they strut about in a style resembling, as nearly as small may
be illustrated by great, the pomp of the turkey-cock. They
seem to vie with each other in stateliness; and as they pass each
other frequently cast looks of insult, and utter notes of defiance.
These are the signals for battles. They engage with wonderful
spirit and fierceness. During these contests, they leap a foot or
PINNATED GROUS.
31
two from the ground, and utter a cackling, screaming and dis-
cordant cry.
“ They have been found in these places of resort even earlier
than the appearance of light in the east. This fact has led to the
belief that a part of them assemble over night. The rest join
them in the morning. This leads to the further belief that they
roost on the ground. And the opinion is confirmed by the dis-
covery of little rings of dung, apparently deposited by a flock
which had passed the night together. After the appearance of
the sun they disperse.
“ These places of exhibition have been often discovered by
the hunters; and a fatal discovery it has been for the poor
Grouse. Their destroyers construct for themselves lurking holes
made of pine branches, called hough-houses, within a few yards
of the parade. Hither they repair with their fowling-pieces in
the latter part of the night, and wait the appearance of the birds.
Watching the moment when two are proudly eyeing each other,
or engaged in battle; or when a greater number can be seen in
a range, they pour on them a destructive charge of shot. This
annoyance has been given in so many places, and to such ex
tent, that the Grouse, after having been repeatedly disturbed,
are afraid to assemble. On approaching the spot to which their
instinct prompts them, they perch on the neighbouring trees,
instead of alighting at the scratching place. And it remains to
be observed, how far the restless and tormenting spirit of the
marksmen, may alter the native habits of the Grouse, and oblige
them to betake themselves to new ways of life.
“They commonly keep together in coveys, ot packs, as the
phrase'is, until the pairing season. A full pack consists of course
of ten or a dozen. Two packs have been known to associate. I
lately heard of one whose number amounted to twenty-two.
They are so unapt to be startled, that a hunter, assisted by a
dog, has been able to shoot almost a whole pack, without mak-
ing any of them take wing. In like manner the men lying in
concealment near the scratching places, have been known to
discharge several guns before either the report of the explosion.
32
PINNATED GROUS.
or the sight of their wounded and dead fellows would rouse
them to flight. It has further been remarked, that when a com-
pany of sportsmen have surrounded a pack of Grouse, the birds
seldom or never rise upon their pinions while they are encir-
cled ; but each runs along until it passes the person that is nearest,
and then flutters off with the utmost expedition.
“ As you have made no inquiry of me concerning the orni-
thological character of these birds, I have not mentioned it,
presuming that you are already perfectly acquainted with their
classification and description. In a short memoir written in
1803, and printed in the eighth volume of the Medical Reposi-
tory, I ventured an opinion as to the genus and species.
Whether I was correct is a technical matter, which I leave you
to adjust. I am well aware that European accounts of our pro-
ductions are often erroneous, and require revision and amend-
ment. This you must perform. For me it remains to repeat my
joy at the opportunity your invitation has afforded me to con-
tribute somewhat to your elegant work, and at the same time
to assure you of my earnest hope that you may be favoured
with ample means to complete it.
‘‘Samuel L. Mitchill.”
Duly sensible of the honor of the foregoing communication,
and grateful for the good wishes with which it is concluded, I
shall now, in further elucidation of the subject, subjoin a few
particulars properly belonging to my own department.
It is somewhat extraordinary that the European naturalists,
in their various accounts of our different species of Grous,
should have said little or nothing of the one now before us,
which in its voice, manners, and peculiarity of plumage, is the
most singular, and in its flesh the most excellent, of all those
of its tribe that inherit the territory of the United States. It
seems to have escaped Catesby during his residence and differ-
ent tours through this country, and it was not till more than
twenty years after his return to England, viz. in 1743, that he
first saw some of these birds, as he informs us, at Cheswick,
the seat of the earl of Wilmington. His lordship said they came
PINNATED GROUS.
33
from America; but from what particular part could not tell.*
Buffon has confounded it with the Ruffed Grous, the common
Partridge of New England, or Pheasant of Pennsylvania ( Te-
trao umbelhis;) Edwards and Pennant have, however, discov-
ered that it is a different species; but have said little of its note,
of its flesh, or peculiarities; for, alas! there was neither voice,
nor action, nor delicacy of flavour in the shrunk and decayed
skin from which the former took his figure, and the latter his
description; and to this circumstance must be attributed the
barrenness and defects of both.
That the curious may have an opportunity of examining to
more advantage this singular bird, a figure of the male is here
given as large as life, drawn with great care from the most
perfect of several elegant specimens shot in the Barrens of
Kentucky. He is represented in the act of strutting, as it is
called, while with inflated throat he produces that extraordinary
sound so familiar to every one who resides in his vicinity, and
which has been described in the foregoing account. So very
novel and characteristic did the action of these birds appear to
me at first sight, that, instead of shooting them down, I sketch-
ed their attitude hastily on the spot; while concealed among a
brush-heap, with seven or eight of them within a short distance.
Three of these I afterwards carried home with me.
This rare bird, though an inhabitant of different and very
distant districts of North America, is extremely particular in
selecting his place of residence; pitching only upon those tracts
whose features and productions correspond with his modes of
life; and avoiding immense intermediate regions that he never
visits. Open dry plains, thinly interspersed with trees, or par-
tially overgrown with shrub-oak, are his favourite haunts.
Accordingly we find these birds on the Grous plains of New
Jersey, in Burlington county, as well as on the Brushy plains
of Long Island — among the pines and shrub-oaks of Pocano, in
Northampton county, Pennsylvania — over the whole extent of
the Barrens of Kentucky — on the luxuriant plains and prairies
^'‘Catesb. Car. p. 101, App.
VOL. III. — F
34
PINNATED GROUS.
of the Indiana territory, and Upper Louisiana; and according
to the information of the late governor Lewis, on the vast and
remote plains of the Columbia river. In all these places pre-
serving the same singular habits.
Their predilection for such situations will be best accounted
for by considering the following facts and circumstances. First,
their mode of flight is generally direct, and laborious, and ill
calculated for the labyrinth of a high and thick forest, crowded
and intersected with trunks and arms of trees, that require
continual angular evolution of wing, or sudden turnings, to
which they are by no means accustomed. I have always ob-
served them to avoid the high-timbered groves that occur here
and there in the Barrens. Connected with this fact is a circum-
stance related to me by a very respectable inhabitant of that
country, viz. that one forenoon a cock Grous struck the stone
chimney of his house with such force as instantly to fall dead
to the ground.
Secondly, their known dislike of ponds, marshes, or watery
places, which they avoid on all occasions, drinking but seldom,
and, it is believed, never from such places. Even in confine-
ment this peculiarity has been taken notice of. While I was in
the state of Tennesee, a person living within a few miles of
Nashville had caught an old hen Grous in a trap; and being
obliged to keep her in a large cage, as she struck and abused
the rest of the poultry, he remarked that she never drank; and
that she even avoided that quarter of the cage where the cup
containing the water was placed. Happening one day to let
some water fall on the cage, it trickled down in drops along
the bars, which the bird no sooner observed, than she eagerly
picked them off, drop by drop, with a dexterity that showed
she had been habituated to this mode of quenching her thirst;
and probably to this mode only, in those dry and barren
tracts, where, except the drops of dew, and drops of rain,
water is very rarely to be met with. For the space of a week
he watched her closely to discover whether she still refused to
drink; but, though she was constantly fed on Indian corn, the
PINNATED GROUS.
35
cup and water still remained untouched and untasted. Yet no
sooner did he again sprinkle water on the bars of the cage, than
she eagerly and rapidly picked them off as before.
The last, and probably the strongest inducement to their
preferring these plains, is the small acorn of the shrub-oak; the
strawberries, buckle berries, and partridge berries with which
they abound, and which constitute the principal part of the
food of these birds. These brushy thickets also afford them ex-
cellent shelter, being almost impenetrable to dogs or birds of
prey.
In all these places where they inhabit they are, in the strictest
sense of the word, resident; having their particular haunts, and
places of rendezvous, (as described in the preceding account,)
to which they are strongly attached. Yet they have been known
to abandon an entire tract of such country, when, from what-
ever cause it might proceed, it became again covered with
forest. A few miles south of the town of York, in Pennsylva-
nia, commences an extent of country, formerly of the character
described, now chiefly covered with wood; but still retaining
the name of Barrens. In the recollection of an old man born
in that part of the country, this tract abounded with Grous.
The timber growing up, in progress of years, these birds
totally disappeared; and for a long period of time he had seen
none of them; until migrating with his family to Kentucky, on
entering the barrens he one morning recognized the well known
music of his old acquaintance the Grous; which he assures me
are the very same with those he had known in Pennsylvania.
But what appears to me the most remarkable circumstance
relative to this bird is, that not one of all those writers who have
attempted its history has taken the least notice of those two
extraordinary bags of yellow skin which mark the neck of the
male, and which constitute so striking a peculiarity. These ap-
pear to be formed by an expansion of the gullet as well as of
the exterior skin of the neck, which, when the bird is at rest,
hangs in loose pendulous wrinkled folds, along the side of the
neck, the supplemental wings, at the same time, as well as when
36
PINNATED GEOUS.
the bird is flying, lying along the neck in the manner repre-
sented in one of the distant figures in the plate. But when these
bags are inflated with air, in breeding time, they are equal in
size and very much resemble in colour, a middle sized fully ripe
orange. By means of this curious apparatus, which is very
observable several hundred yards off, he is enabled to produce
the extraordinary sound mentioned above, which, though it
may easily be imitated, is yet difficult to describe by words. It
consists of three notes, of the same tone, resembling those pro-
duced by the Night Hawks in their rapid descent; each strongly
accented, the last being twice as long as the others. When
several are thus engaged, the ear is unable to distinguish the
regularity of these triple notes, there being at such times one
continued bumming, which is disagreeable and perplexing, from
the impossibility of ascertaining from what distance or even
quarter it proceeds. While uttering this the bird exhibits all
the ostentatious gesticulations of a turkey-cock; erecting and
fluttering his neck wings, wheeling and passing before the
female, and close before his fellows, as in defiance. Now and
then are heard some rapid cackling notes, not unlike that of
a person tickled to excessive laughter; and in short one can
scarcely listen to them without feeling disposed to laugh from
sympathy.- These are uttered by the males while engaged in
fight, on which occasion they leap up against each other, ex-
actly in the manner of turkeys, seemingly with more malice
than effect. This bumming continues from a little before day-
break to eight or nine o’clock in the morning, when the parties
separate to seek for food.
Fresh ploughed fields, in the vicinity of their resorts, are
sure to be visited by these birds every morning, and frequently
also in the evening. On one of these I counted, at one time,
seventeen males, most of whom were in the attitude repre-
sented in the plate; making such a continued sound as I am
persuaded might have been heard for more than a mile off. The
people of the Barrens informed me, that when the weather
became severe, with snow, they approach the barn and farm-
PINNATED GROUS.
37
house; are sometimes seen sitting on the fences in dozens; mix
with the poultry, and glean up the scattered grains of Indian
corn; seeming almost half domesticated. At such times great
numbers are taken in traps. No pains, however, or regular plan
has -ever:. been persisted in, as far as I was informed to domes-
ticate these delicious birds. A Mr. Reed, who lives between
the Pilot Knobs and Bairdstown, told me, that a few years ago,
one of his sons found a Grous’s nest, with fifteen eggs, which
he brought home, and immediately placed below a hen then
sitting; taking away her own. The nest of the Grous was on the
ground, under a tussock of long grass, formed with very little
art and few materials; the eggs were brownish white, and about
the size of a pullet’s. In three or four days the whole were
hatched. Instead of following the hen, they compelled her to
run after them, distracting her with the extent and diversity
of their wanderings; and it was a day or two before they seemed
10 understand her language, or consent to be guided by her.
They were let out to the fields, where they paid little regard to
their nurse; and in a few days, only three of them remained.
These became extremely tame and familiar, were most expert
fly catchers; but soon after they also disappeared.
The Pinnated Grous is nineteen inches long, twenty-seven
inches in extent, and when in good order, weighs about three
pounds and a half; the neck is furnished with supplemental
wings, each composed of eighteen feathers, five of which are
black, and about three inches long, the rest shorter, also black,
streaked laterally with brown, and of unequal lengths; the head
is slightly crested; over the eye is an elegant semicircular comb
of rich orange, which the bird has the power of raising or re-
laxing; under the neck wings are two loose pendulous and
wrinkled skins, extending along the side of the neck for two-
thirds of its length, each of which, when inflated with air, re-
sembles, in bulk, colour and surface, a middle sized orange;
chin cream-coloured; under the eye runs a dark streak of brown;
whole upper parts mottled transversely with black, reddish
brown and white; tail short, very much rounded, and of a plain
38
PINNATED GROUS.
brownish soot colour; throat elegantly marked with touches of
reddish brown, white and black; lower part of the breast and
belly pale brown, marked transversely with white; legs covered
to the toes with hairy down, of a dirty drab colour; feet dull
yellow, toes pectinated; vent whitish; bill brownish horn colour;
eye reddish hazel. The female is considerably less, of a lighter
colour; destitute of the neck wings, the naked yellow skin on
the neck, and the semicircular comb of yellow over the eye.
On dissecting these birds the gizzard was found extremely
muscular, having almost the hardness of a stone; the heart
remarkably large ; the crop was filled with briar knots, contain-
ing the larvae of some insect, — quantities of a species of green
lichen, small hard seeds, and some grains of Indian corn.
GENUS 57. PERDIX.
SPECIES P. VIRGINIA NUS.
QUAIL, OR PARTRIDGE.
[Plate XLVIL— Fig. 2.]
Arct. Zool, 318, JSTo. 185. — Catese. App. p. 12. — Virginian
^uail, Turt. Syst. p. 460. — Maryland Q. Ibid. — Le Perdrix
d^Amerique, Buiss. i, 23], — Buff, it, 447.*
This well-known bird is a general inhabitant of North Ame-
rica, from the northern parts of Canada and Nova Scotia, in
which latter place it is said to be migratory, to the extremity
of the peninsula of Florida; and was seen in the neighbourhood
of the Great Osage village, in the interior of Louisiana. They
are numerous in Kentucky and Ohio; Mr. Pennant remarks
that they have been lately introduced into the island of Jamaica,
where they appear to thrive greatly, breeding in that warm
climate twice in the year. Captain Henderson mentions them
as being plenty near the Balize, at the Bay of Honduras. They
rarely frequent the forest, and are most numerous in the vici-
nity of well cultivated plantations, where grain is in plenty.
They, however, occasionally seek shelter in the woods, perch-
ing on the branches, or secreting among the brush wood; but
are found most usually in open fields, or along fences sheltered
by thickets of briars. Where they are not too much persecuted
by the sportsmen, they become almost half domesticated; ap-
proach the barn, particularly in winter, and sometimes in that
severe season mix with the poultry, to glean up a subsistence.
They remain with us the whole year, and often suffer extremely
* Tetrno Virginianus, Linn. Syst. ed. 10, p. 161. T. Marilandicm, id. ib. —
Perdix Virginiana, Lath. Ind. Orn. p. 650. P. Marilanda, id p. 651. — Caille de la
Lmhiane, Buff. PI. Enl. 149.
40
PARTRIDGE.
by long hard winters, and deep snows. At such times the arts
of man combine with the inclemency of the season for their
destruction. To the ravages of the gun are added others of a
more insidious kind. Traps are placed on almost every planta-
tion, in such places as they are known to frequent. These are
formed of lath, or thinly split sticks, somewhat in the shape of
an obtuse cone, laced together with cord, having a small hole
at top, with a sliding lid, to take out the game by. This is
supported by the common figure 4 trigger, and grain is scat-
tered below, and leading to the place. By this contrivance ten
or fifteen have sometimes been taken at a time. These are
sometimes brought alive to market, and occasionally bought up
by sportsmen, who, if the season be very severe, sometimes
preserve and feed them till spring, when they are humanely
turned out to their native fields again, to be put to death, at
some future time, secundem artem. Between the months of
August and March, great numbers of these birds are brought to
the market of Philadelphia, where they are sold from twelve
to eighteen cents a-piece.
The Quail begins to build early in May. The nest is made
on the ground, usually at the bottom of a thick tuft of grass that
shelters and conceals it. The materials are leaves and fine dry
grass, in considerable quantity. It is well covered above, and an
opening left on one side for entrance. The female lays from fif-
teen to twenty-four eggs, of a pure white without any spots.
The time of incubation has been stated to me by various per-
sons at four weeks, when the eggs were placed under the
domestic hen. The young leave the nest as soon as they are
freed from the shell, and are conducted about in search of food
by the female; are guided by her voice, which at that time
resembles the twittering of young chickens, and sheltered by
her wings, in the same manner as those of the domestic fowl;
but with all that secrecy and precaution for their safety, which
their helplessness and greater danger require. In this situation
should the little timid family be unexpectedly surprised, the
utmost alarm and consternation instantly prevail. The mother
PARTRIDGE.
41
throws herself in the path, fluttering along, and beating the
ground with her wings, as if sorely wounded, using every arti-
fice she is master of, to entice the passenger in pursuit of herself,
uttering at the same time certain peculiar notes of alarm, well
understood by the young, who dive separately amongst the
grass, and secrete themselves till the danger is over; and the
parent, having decoyed the pursuer to a safe distance, returns,
by a circuitous route, to collect and lead them oflT. This well
known manoeuvre, which nine times in ten is successful, is
honourable to tbe feelings and judgment of the bird, but a
severe satire on man. The affectionate mother, as if sensible of
the avaricious cruelty of his nature, tempts him with a larger
prize, to save her more helpless offspring; and pays him, as
avarice and cruelty ought always to be paid, with mortification
and disappointment.
The eggs of the Quail have been frequently placed under the
domestic hen, and hatched and reared with equal success as her
own; though, generally speaking, the young Partridges being
more restless and vagrant, often lose themselves, and disap-
pear. The hen ought to be a particularly good nurse, not at all
disposed to ramble, in which case they are very easily raised.
Those that survive, acquire all the familiarity of common
chickens; and there is little doubt that if proper measures were
taken, and persevered in for a few years, that they might be
completely domesticated. They have been often kept during
the first season, and through the whole of the winter, but have
uniformly deserted in the spring. Two young Partridges that
were brought up by a hen, when abandoned by her, associated
with the cows, which they regularly followed to the fields, re-
turned with them when they came home in the evening, stood
by them while they were milked, and again accompanied them
to the pasture. These remained during the winter, lodging in
the stable, but as soon as spring came they disappeared. Of
this fact I was informed by a very respectable lady, by whom
they were particularly observed.
It has been frequently asserted to me, that the Quails lay oc-
VOL. III. — G
42
PARTRIDGE.
casionally in each other’s nests. Though I have never myself
seen a case of this kind, I do not think it altogether improbable,
from the fact, that they have often been known to drop their
eggs in the nest of the common hen, when that happened to be
in the fields, or at a small distance from the house. The two
Partridges above mentioned' were raised in this manner; and
it was particularly remarked by the lady, who gave me the
information, that the hen sat for several days after her own eggs
where hatched, until the young Quails made their appearance.
The Partridge, on her part, has sometimes been employed to
hatch the eggs of the common domestic hen. A friend of mine,
who himself made the experiment, informs me, that of several
hen’s eggs which he substituted in place of those of the Part-
ridge, she brought out the whole; and that for several weeks
he occasionally surprised her in various parts of the plantation,
with her brood of chickens; on which occasions she exhibited
all that distressful alarm, and practised her usual manoeuvres for
their preservation. Even after they were considerably grown,
and larger than the Partridge herself, she continued to lead
them about; but though their notes, or call, were those of com-
mon chickens, their manners had all the shyness, timidity and
alarm of young Partridges; running with great rapidity, and
squatting in the grass exactly in the manner of the Partridge.
Soon after this they disappeared, having probably been de-
stroyed by dogs, by the gun, or by birds of prey. Whether the
domestic fowl might not by this method be very soon brought
back to its original savage state, and thereby supply another
additional subject for the amusement of the sportsman, will
scarcely admit of a doubt. But the experiment, in order to se-
cure its success, would require to be made in a quarter of the
country less exposed than ours to the ravages of guns, traps,
dogs, and the deep snows of winter, that the new tribe might
have full time to become completely naturalized, and well fixed
in all their native habits.
About the beginning of September, the Quails being now
nearly full grown, and associated in flocks, or coveys, of from
PARTRIDGE.
43
four or five to thirty, afford considerable .sport to the gunner.
At this time the notes of the male are most frequent, clear and
loud. His common call consists of two notes, with sometimes
an introductory one, and is similar to the sound produced by
pronouncing the words “ Bob White.” This call may be easily
imitated by whistling, so as to deceive the bird itself, and bring
it near. While uttering this he is usually perched on a rail of
the fence, or on a low limb of an apple-tree, where he will
sometimes sit, repeating at short intervals “ Bob White,” for
half an hour at a time. When a covey are assembled in a
thicket or corner of a field, and about to take wing, they make
a low twittering sound, not unlike that of young chickens; and
when the covey is dispersed, they are called together again
by a loud and frequently repeated note, peculiarly expressive
of tenderness and anxiety.
The food of the Partridge consists of grain, seeds, insects,
and berries of various kinds. Buckwheat and Indian corn are
particular favourites. In September and October the buckwheat
fields afford them an abundant supply, as well as a secure shel-
ter. They usually roost at night in the middle of a field on
high ground; and from the circumstance of their dung being
often found in such places, in one round heap, it is generally
conjectured that they roost in a circle, with their heads out-
wards, each individual in this position forming a kind of guard
to prevent surprise. They also continue to lodge for several
nights in the same spot.
The Partridge, like all the rest of the gallinaceous order,
flies with a loud whirring sound, occasioned by the shortness,
concavity, and rapid motion of its wings, and the comparative
weight of its body. The steadiness of its horizontal flight, how-
ever, renders it no difiicult mark to the sportsman, particularly
when assisted by his sagacious pointer. The flesh of this bird
is peculiarly white, tender and delicate, unequalled, in these
qualities, by that of any other of its genus in the United States.
The Quail as it is called in New England, or the Partridge,
as in Pennsylvania, is nine inches long, and fourteen inches in
44
PARTRIDGE.
extent; the bill is black; line over the eye, down the neck, and
whole chin, pure white, bounded by a band of black, which
descends and spreads broadly over the throat; the eye is dark
hazel; crown, neck, and upper part of the breast, red brown;
sides of the neck spotted with white and black, on a reddish
brown ground; back, scapulars and lesser coverts, red brown,
intermixed with ash, and sprinkled with black; tertials edged
with yellowish white; wings plain dusky; lower part of the
breast and belly pale yellowish white; beautifully marked with
numerous curving spots or arrow heads of black; tail ash,
sprinkled with reddish brown; tegs very pale ash.
The female differs in having the chin and sides of the head
yellowish brown, in which di’ess it has been described as a dif-
ferent kind. There is, however, only one species of Quail at
present known within the United States.
INTRODUCTION
TO THE
WATER BIRDS.
We now enter upon the second grand division of our subject,
Water Birds j and on that particular class, or order, usually
denominated Grallse, or Waders. Here a new assemblage of
scenery, altogether different from the former, presents itself for
our contemplation. Instead of rambling through the leafy laby-
rinths of umbrageous groves, fragrance-breathing orchards,
fields and forests, we must now descend into the watery morass,
and mosquitoe-swamp; traverse the windings of the river, the
rocky cliffs, bays and inlets of the sea-beat shore, listening to
the wild and melancholy screams of a far different multitude;
a multitude less intimate indeed with man, though not less use-
ful; as they contribute liberally to his amusement, to the abun-
dance of his table, the warmth of his bed, and the comforts of
his repose.
In contemplating the various, singular and striking, peculi-
arities of these, we shall every where find traces of an infinitely
wise and beneficent Creator. In every deviation of their parts
from the common conformation of such as are designed for the
land alone, we may discover a wisdom of design never erring,
never failing in the means it provides for the accomplishment of
its purpose. Instead therefore of imitating the wild presumption,
or rather profanity, of those who have censured as rude, defec-
tive or deformed, whatever, in those and other organized beings,
accorded not with their narrow conceptions; let it be ours to
search with humility into the intention of those particular
conformations; and thus, entering as it were into the designs of
46
INTRODUCTION.
the Deity, we shall see in every part of the work of his hands
abundant cause to exclaim with the enraptured poet of nature,
“O Wisdom infinite! Goodness immense!
And Love that passeth knowledge!”
In the present volume, the greater part of such of the Waders
as belong to the territories of the United States, will be found
delineated and described. This class naturally forms an inter-
mediate link between the Land birds and the Web-footed,
partaking, in their form, food and habits, of the characters of
both; and equally deserving of our regard and admiration.
Though formed for traversing watery situations, often in com-
pany with the Swimmers, they differ from these last in one
circumstance common to Land Birds, the separation of the toes
nearly to their origin; and in the habit of seldom venturing
beyond their depth. On the other hand, they are furnished
with legs of extraordinary length, bare for a considerable space
above the knees, by the assistance of which they are enabled
to walk about in the water in pursuit of their prey, where the
others are obliged to swim; and also with necks of corresponding
length, by means of which they can search the bottom for food,
where the others must have recourse to diving. The bills of
one family (the Herons) are strong, sharp pointed, and of con-
siderable length; while the flexibility of tbe neck, the rapidity
of its action, and remarkable acuteness of sight, wonderfully fit
them for watching, striking, and securing their prey. Those
whose food consists of more feeble and sluggish insects, that lie
concealed deeper in the mud, are provided with bills of still
greater extension, the rounded extremity of which possesses
such nice sensibility, as to enable its possessor to detect its prey
the instant it comes in contact with it, though altogether be-
yond the reach of sight.
Other families of this same order, formed for traversing the
sandy sea-beach in search of small shell-fish that lurk just below
the surface, have the bills and legs necessarily shorter; but
INTRODUCTION.
47
their necessities requiring them to be continually on the verge
of the flowing or retreating wave, the activity of their motions
forms a striking contrast with the patient habits of the Heron
tribe, who sometimes stand fixed and motionless, for hours
together, by the margin of the pool or stream, watching to
surprise their scaly prey.
Some few again, whose favourite food lies at the soft oozy
bottoms of shallow pools, have the bill so extremely slender and
delicate, as to be altogether unfit for penetrating either the
muddy shores, or sandy sea-beach; though excellently adapted
for its own particular range, where lie the various kinds of food
destined for their subsistence. Of this kind are the Avosets of
the present volume, who not only wade with great activity in
considerably deep water; but having the feet nearly half- web-
bed, combine in one the characters of both wader and swimmer.
It is thus, that by studying the living manners of the difier-
ent tribes in their native retreats, we not only reconcile the
singularity of some parts of their conformation with divine wis-
dom; but are enabled to comprehend the reason of many others,
which the pride of certain closet naturalists has arraigned as
lame, defective and deformed.
One observation more may be added: the migrations of this
class of birds are more generally known and acknowledged than
that of most others. Their comparatively large size and im-
mense multitudes, render their regular periods of migration (so
strenuously denied to some others) notorious along the whole
extent of our sea-coast. Associating, feeding, and travelling
together in such prodigious and noisy numbers, it would be no
less difficult to conceal their arrival, passage and departure, than
that of a vast army through a thickly peopled country. Consti-
tuting also, as many of them do, an article of food and interest
to man, he naturally becomes more intimately acquainted with
their habits and retreats, than with those feeble and minute
kinds, which offer no such inducement, and perform their mi-
grations with more silence, in scattered parties, unheeded or
overlooked. Hence many of the Waders can be traced from
48
INTRODUCTION.
their summer abodes, the desolate regions of Greenland and
Spitzbergen, to the fens and sea-shores of the West India islands
and South America, the usual places of their winter retreat,
while those of the Purple Martin and common Swallow still
remain, in vulgar belief wrapt up in all the darkness of mys-
tery.
Philadelphia^ March \sty 1819.
DIV. II. AVES AQUATICS. WATER BIRDS.
ORDER Vir. GRALL^. WADERS.
GENUS 64. PLATALEA. SPOONBILL.
SPECIES. P. JiJAJJl.
ROSEATE SPOONBILL.
[Plate LXIIL— Fig. l.J
Jlrct. ZooL. JVo. 338. — Lath. Syn. v. 3, 1 6, JV*o. 2. — La Spatule
couleur de Rose, Briss. Orn, v, p. 356, 2, pi, 30,— PL Enl. p.
11 6. — Buff, vii, 456.— Pealf.’s Museu'in, JVo. 3553.
This stately and elegant bird inhabits the seashores of
America, from Brazil to Georgia, It also appears to wander
up the Mississippi sometimes in summer, the specimen from
which the figure in the plate was drawn having been sent me
from the neighbourhood of Natchez, in excellent order; for
which favour I am indebted to the family of my late benevolent
and scientific friend, William Dunbar, esq., of that territory.
It is now deposited in Mr. Peale’s museum.
This species, however, is rarely seen to the northward of the
Alatamaha river; and even along the peninsula of Florida is a
scarce bird. In Jamaica, several other of the West India islands,
Mexico, and Guiana, it is more common, but confines itself
chiefly to the seashore, and the mouths of rivers. Captain Hen-
derson says, it is frequently seen at Honduras. It wades about
in quest of shell-fish, marine insects, small crabs and fish. In
pursuit of these, it occasionally swims and dives.
There are few facts on record relative to this very singular
bird. It is said that the young are of a blackish chestnut the
VOL. Ill, — H
50
ROSEATE SPOONBILL -
first year; of the roseate colour of the present the second year;
and of a deep scarlet the third. *
Having never been so fortunate as to meet with them in their
native wilds, I regret my present inability to throw any farther
light on their history and manners. These, it is probable, may
resemble, in many respects, those of the European species, the
White Spoonbill, once so common in Holland. t To atone for
this deficiency, I have endeavoured faithfully to delineate the
figure of this American species, and may perhaps resume the
subject, in some future part of the present work.
The Roseate Spoonbill, now before us, measured two feet
six inches in length, and near four feet in extent; the bill was
six inches and a half long, from the corner of the mouth, seven
from its upper base, two inches over at its greatest width, and
three quarters of an inch where narrowest; of a black colour for
half its length, and covered with hard scaly protuberances, like
the edges of oyster shells: these are of a whitish tint, stained
with red ; the nostrils are oblong, and placed in the centre of
the upper mandible; from the lower end of each nostril there
runs a deep groove along each side of the mandible, and about
a quarter of an inch from its edge; whole crown and chin bare
of plumage, and covered with a greenish skin: that below the
under mandible dilatable, as in the genus Pelicanus; space
round the eye orange; irides blood red; cheeks and hind-head
a bare black skin; neck long, covered with short white feathers,
some of which, on the upper part of the neck, are tipt with
crimson; breast white, the sides of which are tinged with a
brown burnt-colour; from the upper part of the breast proceeds
a long tuft of fine hair-like plumage, of a pale rose colour; back
® Latham.
t The European species breeds on trees, by the sea-side; lays three or lour
white eggs, powdered with a few pale red spots, and about the size of those
of a hen; are very noisy during breeding time; feed on fish, muscles, &c. which,
like the Bald Eagle, they frequently take from other birds, frightening them by
clattering their bill; they are also said to eat grass, weeds, and roots of reeds:
they are migratory; their flesh reported to savour of that of a goose; the young are
reckoned good food.
ROSEATE SPOONBILL.
51
white, slightly tinged with brownish; wings a pale wild-rose
colour, the shafts lake; the shoulders of the wings are covered
with long hairy plumage of a deep and splendid carmine; upper
and lower tail coverts the same rich red; belly rosy; rump paler;
tail equal at the end, consisting of twelve feathers, of a bright
brownish orange, the shafts reddish; legs, and naked part of the
thighs, dark dirty red; feet half webbed; toes very long, parti-
cularly the hind one. The upper part of the neck had the plu-
mage partly worn away, as if occasioned by resting it on the
back, in the manner of the Ibis. The skin on the crown is a
little wrinkled; the inside of the wing a much richer red than
the outer.
GENUS 69. ARDEA. HERON.
SPECIES 1. A. MINOR.
AMERICAN BITTERN.
[Plate LXV.— Fig. 3.]
Le Butor de la Baye Hudson, Briss. v, p. 449. 25. — Buff, vii,
p. 430. — Edw. 136. var. Jl. — Lath. Syn. iii, p. 58.— -Peale’s
Museum, No. 3727.
This is a nocturnal species, common to all our sea and
river marshes, though no where numerous; it rests all day
among the reeds and rushes, and unless disturbed, flies and
feeds only during the night. In some places it is called the In-
dian Hen, on the sea coast of New Jersey it is known by the
name of Dunkadoo, a word probably imitative of its common
note. They are also found in the interior, having myself killed
one at the inlet of the Seneca Lake, in October. It utters at
times a hollow guttural note among the reeds; but has nothing of
that loud booming sound for which the European Bittern is so
remarkable. This circumstance, with its great inferiority of
size, and difference of marking, sufficiently prove them to be
two distinct species, although hitherto the present has been
classed as a mere variety of the European Bittern. These
birds, we are informed, visit Severn river, at Hudson’s Bay,
about the beginning of June; make their nests in swamps, lay-
ing four cinereous-green eggs among the long grass. The young
are said to be at first black.
These birds, when disturbed, rise with a hollow kwa, and
are then easily shot down, as they fly heavily. Like other night
birds their sight is most acute during the evening twilight; but
their hearing is at all times exquisite.
AMERICAN BITTERN.
53
The American Bittern is twenty- seven inches long, and three
feet four inches in extent; from the point of the bill to the extre-
mity of the toes it measures three feet; the bill is four inches long,
the upper mandible black, the lower greenish yellow; lores,
and eyelids yellow; hides bright yellow; upper part of the
head flat, and remarkably deprest; the plumage there is of a
deep blackish brown, long behind and on the neck, the general
colour of which is a yellowish brown shaded with darker; this
long plumage of the neck the bird can throw forward at will,
when irritated, so as to give him a more formidable appearance;
throat whitish, streaked with deep brown; from the posterior
and lower part of the auriculars a broad patch of deep black
passes diagonally across the neck, a distinguished characteristic
of this species; the back is deep brown barred and mottled with
innumerable specks and streaks of brownish yellow; quills
black, with a leaden gloss, and tipt with yellowish brown; legs
and feet yellow, tinged with pale green ; middle claw pectinated;
belly light yellowish brown streaked with darker, vent plain,
thighs sprinkled on the outside with grains of dark brown; male
and female.nearly slike, the latter somewhat less. According to
Bewick, the tail of the European Bittern contains only ten
feathers; the American species has invariably twelve. The in-
testines measured five feet six inches in length, and were very
little thicker than a common knitting-needle; the stomach is
usually filled with fish or frogs.
This bird when fat is considered by many to be excellent
eating.
SPECIES 2. ARBEJi CMRULEA.
BLUE CRANE, OR HERON.
[Plate LXII. — Fig. 3.]
Ayct. Zool.J^o. 351. — Catesby, i, 76. — Le Crabier bleu, Buff.
Yii, 398. — Sloan. Jam. ii, 31o. — I.ath. Syn. v. 3, p. 78, JVo. 45,
— p. 79, var. A. — Ardea ccerulescens, Turt. Syst. p. 379. —
Peale’s Museum, JVo. 3782.*
In mentioning this species in his translation of the Sy sterna
Naturse, Turton has introduced what he calls two varieties,
one from New .Zealand, the other from Brazil; both of which,
if we may judge by their size and colour, appear to be entirely
different and distinct species; the first being green with yellow
legs, the last nearly one half less than the present. By this
loose mode of discrimination, the precision of science being al-
together dispensed with, the whole tribe of Cranes, Herons, and
Bitterns may be styled mere varieties of the genus Ardea.
The same writer has still farther increased this confusion, by
designating as a different species his Bluish Heron {A. cseru-
lescens,) which agrees almost exactly with the present. Some
of these mistakes may probably have originated from the figure
of this bird given by Catesby, which appears to have been drawn
and coloured, not from nature, but from the glimmering recol-
lections of memory, and is extremely erroneous. These remarks
are due to truth, and necessary to the elucidation of the history
of his species, which seems to be but imperfectly known in
Europe.
The Blue Heron is properly a native of the warmer climates
of the United Stales, migrating thence, at the approach of win-
ter, to the tropical regions; being found in Cayenne, Jamaica,
* Heron bleudtre de Cayenne, Buff. PI. Enl. 549, adult.
BLUE HERON.
55
and Mexico. On the muddy shores of the Mississippi, from
Baton Rouge downwards to New Orleans, these birds are fre-
quently met with. In spring they extend their migrations as
far north as New England, chiefly in the vicinity of the sea;
becoming more rare as they advance to the north. On the sea-
beach of Cape May, I found a few of them breeding among the
cedars, in company with the Snowy Heron, Night Heron, and
Green Bittern. The figure and description of the present were
taken from two of these, shot in the month of May, while in
complete plumage. Their nests were composed of small sticks,
built in the tops of the red cedars, and contained five eggs of a
light blue colour, and of somewhat a deeper tint than those of
the Night Heron. • Little or no difierence could be perceived
between the colours and markings of the male and female.
This remark is applicable to almost the whole genus; though
from the circumstance of many of the yearling birds differing
in plumage, they have been mistaken for females.
The Blue Heron, though in the northern states it is found
chiefly in the neighbourhood of the ocean, probably on account
of the greater temperature of the climate, is yet particularly
fond of fresh water bogs, on the edges of the salt marsh. These
it often frequents, wading about in search of tadpoles, lizards,
various larvffi of winged insects, and mud worms. It moves
actively about in search of these, sometimes making a run at its
prey; and is often seen in company with the Snowy Heron,
figured in the same plate. Like this last, it is also very silent,
intent and watchful.
The genus Ardea is the most numerous of all the wading
tribes, there being no less than ninety-six different species enu-
merated by late writers. These are again subdivided into par-
ticular families, each distinguished by a certain peculiarity.
The Cranes, by having the head bald; the Storks, with the or-
bits naked; and the Herons, with the middle claw pectinated.
To this last belong the Bitterns. Several of these are nocturnal
birds, feeding only as the evening twilight commences, and
reposing either among the long grass and reeds, or on tall trees,
56
BLUE HERON.
in sequestered places, during the day. What is very remarka-
ble, those night wanderers often associate, during the breeding
season, with the others; building their nests on the branches of
the same tree; and, though differing so little in external form,
feeding on nearly the same food, living and lodging in the same
place; yet preserve their race, language, and manners as per-
fectly distinct from those of their neighbours, as if each inhabit-
ed a separate quarter of the globe.
The Blue Heron is twenty-three inches in length, and three
feet in extent; the bill is black, but from the nostril to the eye,
in both mandibles, is of a rich light purplish blue; iris of the
eye gray, pupil black, surrounded by a narrow silvery ring;
eyelid light blue; the whole head and greater part of the neck,
is of a deep purplish brown; from the crested hind-head shoot
three narrow pointed feathers, that reach nearly six inches be-
yond the eye; lower part of the neck, breast, belly and whole
body, a deep slate colour, with lighter reflections; the back is
covered with long, flat, and narrow feathers, some of which are
ten inches long, and extend four inches beyond the tail; the
breast is also ornamented with a number of these long slender
feathers; legs blackish green; inner side of the middle claw pec-
tinated. The breast and sides of the rump, under the plumage,
are clothed with a mass of yellowish white unelastic cottony
down, similar to that in most of the tribe, the uses of which
are not altogether understood. Male and female alike in colour.
The young birds of the first year are destitute of the purple
plumage on the. head and neck.
SPECIES 3. ARBEJi HERODMS.
GREAT HERON.
[Plate LXV.— Fig. 2.]
Le Heron hupe de Virginie, Buiss. v, p. 41 6. 1 0. — Lc. Grand Heron
d'Amerique, Buff, vii, p. 385. — Larger crested Heron, Catesf.
App.pl. \0,fig. 1. — liATH. Sijn. iii,p. 85. — Arcf. Zool. M). 341.
— Pealk’s Museum, Mo. 3629.
The history of this large and elegant bird having been long
involved in error and obscurity,* I have taken more than com-
mon pains to present a faithful portrait of it in this place; and
to add to that every fact and authentic particular relative to its
manners which may be necessary to the elucidation of the sub-
ject.
The Great Heron is a constant inhabitant of the Atlantic
coast from New York to Florida; in deep snows and severe wea-
ther seeking the open springs of the cedar and cypress swamps,
and the muddy inlets occasionally covered by the tides. On
the higher inland parts of the country, beyond the mountains,
they are less numerous; and one which was shot in the upper
parts of New Hampshire, was described to me as a great curio-
sity. Many of their breeding places occur in both Carolinas,
chiefly in the vicinity of the sea. In the lower parts of New
Jersey they have also their favourite places for building, and
rearing their young. These are generally in the gloomy soli-
* Latham says of this species, that “ all the upper parts of the body, the belly,
tail and legs are brown;” and this description has been repeated by every subse-
quent compiler. Buffon, with his usual eloquent absurdity, describes the He-
ron as “ exhibiting the picture of wretchedness, anxiety and indigence; condemn-
ed to struggle perpetually with misery and want; sickened with the restless crav-
ings of a famished appetite;” a description so ridiculously untrue, that, were it
possible for these birds to comprehend it, would excite the risibility of the
whole tribe.
VOL. III. — I
58
GREAT HERON.
tildes of the tallest cedar swamps, where, if unmolested, they
continue annually to breed for many years. These swamps are
from half a mile to a mile in breadth, and sometimes five or six
in length, and appear as if they occupied the former channel of
some choked up river, stream, lake, or arm of the sea. The ap-
pearance they present to a stranger is singular. A front of tall
and perfectly strait trunks, rising to the height of fifty or sixty
feet without a limb, and crowded in every direction, their tops
so closely woven together as to shut out the day, spreading the
gloom of perpetual twilight below. On a nearer approach they
are found to rise out of the water, which, from the impregnation
of the fallen leaves and roots of the cedars, is of the colour of
brandy. Amidst this bottom of congregated springs, the ruins
of the former forest lie piled in every state of confusion. The
roots, prostrate logs, and in many places the water, are covered
with green mantling moss, while an undergrowth of laurel,
fifteen or twenty feet high, intersects every opening so com-
pletely, as to render a passage through laborious and harrassing
beyond description; at every step you either sink to the knees,
clamber over fallen timber, squeeze yourself through between
the stubborn laurels, or plunge to the middle in ponds made by
the uprooting of large trees, and which the green moss conceal-
ed from observation. In calm weather the silence of death
reigns in these dreary regions; a few interrupted rays of light
shoot across the gloom; and unless for the occasional hollow
screams of the Herons, and the melancholy chirping of one or
two species of small birds, all is silence, solitude and desolation.
When a breeze rises, at first it sighs mournfully through the
tops; but as the gale increases, the tall mast-like cedars wave
like fishing poles, and rubbing against each other, produce a
variety of singular noises, that, with the help of a little imagi-
nation, resemble shrieks, groans, growling of bears, wolves and
such like comfortable music.
On the tops of the tallest of these cedars the Herons construct
their nests, ten or fifteen pair sometimes occupying a particular
part of the swamp. The nests are large, formed of sticks, and
GREAT HERON.
59
lined with smaller twigs, each occupies the top of a single tree.
The eggs are generally four, of an oblong pointed form, larger
than those of a hen, and of a light greenish blue without any
spots. The young are produced about the middle of May,
and remain on the trees until they are full as heavy as the old
ones, being extremely fat, before they are able to fly. They
breed but once in the season. If disturbed in their breeding
place, the old birds fly occasionally over the spot, sometimes
honking like a Goose, sometimes uttering a coarse hollow grunt-
ing noise like that of a hog, but much louder.
The Great Heron is said to be fat at the full moon, and lean
at its decrease; this might be accounted for by the fact of their
fishing regularly by moonlight through the greater part of the
night, as well as during the day; but the observation is not uni-
versal, for at such times I have found some lean as well as
others fat. The young are said to be excellent for the table, and
even the old birds, when in good order, and properly cooked,
are esteemed by many.
The principal food of the Great .Heron is fish, for which he
watches with the most unwearied patience, and seizes them
with surprising dexterity. At the edge of the river, pond or
seashore he stands fixed and motionless, sometimes for hours
together. But his stroke is quick as thought, and sure as fate to
the first luckless fish that approaches within his reach; these he
sometimes beats to death, and always swallows head foremost,
such being their uniform position in the stomach. He is also an
excellent mouser, and of great service to our mendows in de-
stroying the short- tailed or meadow mouse, so injurious to the
banks. He also feeds eagerly on grasshoppers, various winged
insects, particularly dragon flies, which he is very expert at
striking, and also eats the seeds of that species of nymphae usu-
ally called splatter docks, so abundant along our fresh water
ponds and rivers.
The Heron has great powers of wing, flying sometimes very
high, and to a great distance; his neck doubled, his head drawn
in, and his long legs stretched out in a right line behind him.
60
GKEAT HERON.
appearing like a tail, and probably serving the same rudder-like
office. When he leaves the sea coast, and traces on wing tlie
courses of the creeks or rivers upwards, he is said to prognos-
ticate rain; when downwards, dry weather. He is most jealous-
ly vigilant and watchful of man, so that those who wish to
succeed in shooting the Heron, must approach him entirely
unseen, and by stratagem. The same inducements, however,
for his destruction do not prevail here as in Europe. Our sea
shores and rivers are free to all for the amusement of fishing.
Luxury has not yet constructed her thousands of fish ponds, and
surrounded them with steel traps, spring guns, and Heron
snares. * In our vast fens, meadows and sea marshes, this stately
bird roams at pleasure, feasting on the never-failing magazines
of frogs, fish, seeds and insects with which they abound, and
of which he probably considers himself the sole lord and proprie-
tor. I have several times seen the Bald Eagle attack and tease
the Great Heron; but whether for sport, or to make him dis-
gorge his fish, I am uncertain.
The common Heron of Europe [Jirdea major) very much
resembles the present, which might, as usual, have probably
been ranked as the original stock, of which the present was a
* “ The Heron,” says an English writer, “ is a very great devourer of fish,
and does more mischief in a pond than an otter. People who have kept Herons
have had the curiosity to number the fish they feed them with, into a tub of wa-
ter, and counting them again afterwards, it has been found that they will eat up
fifty moderate dace and roaches in a day. It has been found (hat in carp ponds
visited by this bird, one Heron will eat up a thousand store carp in a year; and
will hunt them so close as to let very few escape. The readiest method of de-
stroying this mischievous bird is by fishing for him in the manner of pike, with
a baited hook AVhen the haunt of the Heron is found out, three or four small
roach, or dace, are to be procured, and each of them is to be baited on a wire,
with a strong hook at the end, entering the wire just at the gills, and letting it
run just under the skin to the tail; the fish will live in this manner for five or six
days, which is a very essential thing: for if it be dead, the Heron will not touch
it. A strong line is then to be prepared of silk and wire twisted together, and is
to be about two yards long; tie this to the wire that holds the hook, and to the
othei 'end of it there is to be tied a stone of about a pound weight; let three or
four of these baits be sunk in dilferent shallow parts of the pond, and in a night
ortw'o’s time the Heron will not fail to be taken with one or other of them.”
GREAT HERON.
61
mere degenerated species, were it not that the American is
greatly superior in size and weight to the European species, the
former measuring four feet four inches, and weighing upwards
of seven pounds 5 the latter three feet three inches, and rarely
weighing more than four pounds. Yet with the exception of
size, and the rust coloured thighs of the present, they are ex-
tremely alike. The common Heron of Europe, however, is not
an inhabitant of the United States.
The Great Heron does not receive his full plumage during
the first season, nor until the Summer of the second. In the first
season the young birds are entirely destitute of the white plu-
mage of the crown, and the long pointed feathers of the back,
shoulders, and breast. In this dress I have frequently shot them
in Autumn. But in the third year, both males and females have
assumed their complete dress, and, contrary to all the European
accounts which I have met with, both are then so nearly alike
in colour and markings, as scarcely to be distinguished from
each other; both having the long flowing crest, and all the or-
namental white pointed plumage of the back and breast. Indeed
this sameness in the plumage of the males and females, when
arrived at their perfect state, is a characteristic of the whole of
the genus with which I am acquainted. Whether it be different
with those of Europe, or that the young and imperfect birds
have been hitherto mistaken for females I will not pretend to
say, though I think the latter conjecture highly probable, as the
Night Raven {Jlrdea Nycticorax) has been known in Europe
for several centuries, and yet in all their accounts the sameness
of the colours and plumage of the male and female of that bird
is no where mentioned; on the contrary, the younger yearling
bird has been universally described as the female.
On the eighteenth of May I examined, both externally and
by dissection, five specimens of the Great Heron, all in com-
plete plumage, killed in a cedar swamp near thfe head of Tuck-
ahoe river, in Cape May county, New Jersey In this case the
females could not be mistaken, as some of the eggs were nearly
ready for exclusion.
62
GREAT HERON.
' Length of the Great Heron four feet four inches from the
point of the hill to the end of the tail, and to the bottom of the
feet five feet four inches; extent six feet; bill eight inches long,
and one inch and a quarter in width, of a yellow colour,^ in
some blackish on the ridge, extremely sharp at the point, the
edges also sharp, and slightly serrated near the extremity; space
round the eye from the nostril, a light purplish blue; irides
orange, brightening into yellow where they join the pupil;
forehead and middle of the crown white, passing over the eye;
sides of the crown and hind head deep slate or bluish black,
and elegantly crested, the two long tapering black feathers be-
ing full eight inches in length; chin, cheeks, and sides of the
head white for several inches; throat white, thickly streaked
with double rows of black; rest of the neck brownish ash, from
the lower part of which shoot a great number of long narrow
pointed white feathers that spread over the breast and reach
nearly to the thighs; under these long plumes the breast itself,
and middle of the belly is of a deep blackish slate, the latter
streaked with white; sides blue ash, vent white; thighs and ridges
of the wings a dark purplish rust colour; whole upper parts of
the wings, tail, and body a fine light ash, the latter ornamented
with a profusion of long narrow white tapering feathers, orgi-
nating on the shoulders or upper part of the back, and falling
gracefully over the wings; primaries very dark slate, nearly
black; naked thighs brownish yellow; legs brownish black, tinc-
tured with yellow, and netted with seams of whitish; in some
the legs are nearly black. Little difference could be perceived
between the plumage of the males and females; the latter were
rather less, and the long pointed plumes of the back were not
quite so abundant.
The young birds of the first year have the whole upper part
of the head of a dark slate; want the long plumes of the breast
and back; and have the body, neck, and lesser coverts of the
wings considerably tinged with ferruginous.
On dissection the gullet was found of great width, from the
mouth to the stomach, which has not the two strong muscular
GREAT HERON.
63
coats that form the gizzard of some birds; it was more loose, of
considerable and uniform thickness throughout, and capable of
containing nearly a pint; it was entirely filled with fish, among
which were some small eels, all placed head downwards; the
intestines measured nine feet in length, were scarcely as thick
as a goose-quill, and incapable of being distended; so that the
vulgar story of the Heron swallowing eels which passing sud-
denly through him are repeatedly swallowed, is absurd and
impossible. On the external coat of the stomach of one of these
birds, opened soon after being shot, something like a blood ves-
sel lay in several meandering folds, enveloped in a membrane,
and closely adhering to the surface. On carefully opening this
membrane it was found to contain a large round living worm,
eight inches in length; another of like length was found coiled in
the same manner on another part of the external coat. It may
also be worthy of notice, that the intestines of the young birds
of the first season, killed in the month of October, when they
were nearly as large as the others, measured only six feet four or
five inches, those of the full grown ones from eight to nine feet
in length.
SPECIES 4. ARDEJi EGRETTJi.
GREAT WHITE HERON.
[Plate LXI. — Fig. 4.]
PnALv.h Museum, JVo. 5754; Young, 3755.*
This tall and elegant bird, though often seen, during the
summer, in our low marshes and inundated meadows; yet, on
account of its extreme vigilance, and watchful timidity, is very
difficult to be procured. Its principal residence is in the regions
of the south, being found from Guiana, and probably beyond
the line, to New York. It enters the territories of the United
States late in February; this I conjecture from having first met
with it in the southern parts of Georgia about that time. The
high inland parts of the country it rarely or never visits; its
favourite haunts are vast inundated swamps, rice fields, the low
marshy shores of rivers, and such like places; where, from its
size and colour, it is very conspicuous, even at a great distance.
The appearance of this bird, during the first season, when it
is entirely destitute of the long flowing plumes of the back, is
so different from the same bird in its perfect plumage, which it
obtains in the third year, that naturalists and others very ge-
nerally consider them as two distinct species. The opportuni-
ties which I have fortunately had, of observing them, with the
train, in various stages of its progress, from its first appearance to
its full growth, satisfies me that the Great White Heron with, and
that without, the long plumes, are one and the same species, in
different periods of age. In the museum of my friend Mr. Peale,
there is a specimen of this bird, in which the train is wanting;
' £rdea alba, Linn. Syst. Ed. 10, p. 144.
GREAT WHITE HERON.
65
but on a closer examination, its rudiments are plainly to be per-
ceived, extending several inches beyond the common plumage.
The Great White Heron breeds in several of the extensive
cedar swamps in the lower parts of New Jersey. Their nests
are built on the trees, in societies; the structure and materials
exactly similar to those of the Snowy Heron, but larger. The
eggs are usually four, of a pale blue colour. In the months of
July and August, the young make their first appearance in the
meadows and marshes, in parties of twenty or thirty together.
The large ditches with which the extensive meadows helow
Philadelphia are intersected, are regularly, about that season,
visited by flocks of those birds; these are frequently shot; but
the old ones are too sagacious to be easily approached. Their
food consists of frogs, lizards, small fish, insects, seeds of the
splatter-dock, (a species of Nymphsi) and small water 'snakes.
They will also devour mice and moles, the remains of such
having been at different times found in their stomachs.
The long plumes of these birds have at various periods been
in great request, on the continent of Europe, particularly in
France and Italy, for the purpose of ornamenting the female
head-dress. When dyed of various colours, and tastefully fashion-
ed, they form a light and elegant duster and mosquitoe brush-
The Indians prize them for ornamenting their hail’, or top-
knot; and I have occasionally observed these people wandering
through the market place of New Orleans, with bunches of those
feathers for sale.
The Great White Heron measures five feet from the extremi-
ties of the wings, and three feet six inches from the tip of the
bill to the end of the tail; the train extends seven or eight in-
ches farther. This train is composed of a great number of long,
thick, tapering shafts, arising from the lower part of the shoul-
ders, and thinly furnished on each side with fine flowing hair-
like threads, of several inches in length, covering the lower
part of the back, and falling gracefully over the tail, which it
entirely conceals. The whole plumage is of a snowy white-
ness, except the train, which is slightly tinged with yellow
VOL. III. — K
66
GREAT WHITE HERON.
The bill is nearly six inches in length, of a rich orange yellow,
tipt with black; irides a paler orange, pupil small, giving the
bird a sharp and piercing aspect; the legs are long, stout, and
of a black colour, as is the bare space of four inches above the
knee; the span of the foot measures upwards of six inches; the
inner edge of the middle claw is pectinated; the exterior and
middle toes are united at the base for about half an inch, by a
membrane.
The articulations of the vertebrae are remarkably long; the
intestines measure upwards of eight feet, and are very narrow.
The male and female are alike in plumage; both, when of full
age, having the train equally long.
SPECIES 5. ARBEA VIRESCENS.
GREEN HERON.
[Plate LXL— Fig. 1.]
Jlrct. Zool. JVb. 349. — Catesby, i, 80. — Le Crabier vert. Buff.
VII, 404. — liATH. Syn. v. 3, p. 68, JV'o. 30. — Peale’s Museum,
J^o. 3797.
This common and familiar species owes little to the liberality
of public opinion, whose prejudices have stigmatized it with a
very vulgar and indelicate nickname; and treat it on all occasions
as worthless and contemptible. Yet few birds are more indepen-
dent of man than this; for it fares best, and is always most nu-
merous, where cultivation is least known or attended to; its fa-
vourite residence being the watery solitudes of swamps, pools
and morasses, where millions of frogs and lizards “ tune their
nocturnal notes” in full chorus, undisturbed by the lords of
creation.
The Green Bittern makes its first appearance in Pennsylvania
early in April, soon after the marshes are completely thawed.
There, among the stagnant ditches with which they are intersec-
ted, and amidst the bogs and quagmires, he hunts with great cun-
ning and dexterity. Frogs and small fish are his principal game,
whose caution, and facility of escape, require nice address, and
rapidity of attaclc. When on the look-out for small fish, he stands
in the water, by the side of the ditch, silent and motionless as a
statue; his neck drawn in over his breast, ready for action. The
instant a fry or minnow comes within the range of his bill, by
a stroke quick and sure as that of the rattle-snake, he seizes his
prey, and swallows it in an instant. He searches for small crabs,
and for the various worms and larvae, particularly those of the
dragon-fly, which lurk in the mud, with equal adroitness. But
the capturing of frogs requires much nicer management. These
GREEN HERON.
wary reptiles shrink into the mire on the least alarm, and do not
raise up their heads again to the surface without the most cau-
tious circumspection. The Bittern, fixing his penetrating ejm on
the spot where they disappeared, approaches with slow stealing
step, laying his feet so gently and silently on the ground as not
to be heard or felt; and when arrived within reach stands fixed,
and bending forwards, until the first glimpse of the frog’s head
makes its appearance, when, with a stroke instantaneous as light-
ning, he seizes it in his bill, beats it to death, and feasts on it at
his leisure.
This mode of life, requiring little fatigue where game is so
plenty, as is generally the case in all our marshes, must be par-
ticularly pleasing to the bird; and also very interesting, from the
continual exercise of cunning and ingenuity necessary to cir-
cumvent its prey. Some of the naturalists of Europe, however,
in their superior wisdom, think very differently; and one can
scarcely refrain from smiling at the absurdity of those writers,
who declare, that the lives of this whole class of birds are ren-
dered miserable by toil and hunger; their very appearance, ac-
cording to Bufibn, presenting the image of suffering anxiety and
indigence.*
When alarmed, the Green Bittern rises with a hollow guttu-
ral scream; does not fly far, but usually alights on some old
stump, tree or fence adjoining, and looks about with extended
neck; though sometimes this is drawn in so that his head seems
to rest on his breast. As he walks along the fence, or stands
gazing at you with outstreached neck, he has the frequent habit
of jetting the tail. He sometimes flies high, with doubled neck,
and legs extended behind, flapping the wings smartly, and trav-
elling with great expedition. He is the least shy of all our He-
rons; and perhaps the most numerous and generally dispersed:
being found far in the interior, as well as along our salt marshes;
and every where about the muddy shores of our mill-ponds,
creeks and large rivers.
*Hist. Nat. ties Oiseaux, tome xxii, p. 343.
GREKNHERON.
69
The Green Bittern begins to build about the twentieth ol"
April; sometimes in single pairs in swampy woods; often in
companies; and not unfrequently in a kind of association with
the Qua-birds, or Night Herons. The nest is fixed among the
branches of the trees; is constructed wholly of small sticks, lined
with finer twigs, and is of considerable size, though loosely put
together. The female lays four eggs, of the common oblong
form, and of a pale light blue colour. The young do not leave
the nest until able to fly; and for the first season, at least, are
destitute of the long pointed plumage on the back; the lower
parts are also lighter, and the white on the throat broader. Du-
ring the whole summer, and until late in autumn, these birds
are seen in our meadows and marshes, but never remain during
winter in any part of the United States.
The Green Bittern is eighteen inches long, and twenty -five
inches in extent; bill black, lighter below, and 5^ellow at the
base; chin and narrow streak down the throat yellowish white;
neck dark vinaceous red; back covered with very long tapering
pointed feathers, of a hoary green, shafted with white, on a
dark green ground; the hind part of the neck is destitute of plu-
mage, thM it may be the more conveniently drawn in over the
breast, but is covered with the long feathers of the throat, and
sides of the neck that enclose it behind; wings and tail dark
glossy green, tipt and bordered with yellowish white; legs and
feet yellow, tinged before with green, the skin of these thick
and moveable; belly ashy brown; irides bright orange; crested
head very dark glossy green. The female, as I have particular-
ly observed, in numerous instances, differs in nothing as to co-
lour from the male; neither of them receive the long feathers
on the back during the first season.
There is one circumstance attending this bird, which, I re-
collect, at first surprised me. On shooting and wounding one, I
carried it some distance by the legs, which were at first yellow,
but on reaching home, I perceived, to my surprise, that they
were red. On letting the bird remain some time undisturbed,
they again became yellow, and I then discovered that the action
GRfiBN HERON.
70
of the hand had brought a flow of blood into them, and pro-
duced the change of colour. I have remarked the same in those
of the Night Heron
SPECIES 6. ARBEA EXILIS.
LEAST BITTERN.
[Plate LX V.— Fig. 4.]
Lath. Syn. v. iii, p. 66, JVo. 28. — Peale’s Museum, JSTo. 3814.
This is the smallest known species of the whole tribe. It is
commonly found in fresh water meadows, and rarely visits the
salt marshes. One shot near Great Egg Harbour was presented
to me as a very uncommon bird. In the meadows of Schuylkill
and Delaware below Philadelphia, a few of these birds breed
every year, making their nests in the thick tussocks of grass, in
swampy places. When alarmed they seldom fly far, but take
shelter among the reeds or long grass. They are scarcely ever
seen exposed, but skulk during the day; and, like the preced-
ing species, feed chiefly in the night.
This little creature measures twelve inches in length, and
sixteen in extent; the bill is more than two inches and a quarter
long, yellow, ridged with black, and very sharp pointed; space
round the eye pale yellow; irides bright yellow; whole upper
part of the crested head, the back, scapulars and tail very deep
slate reflecting slight tints of green; throat white, here and there
tinged with bufif; hind part of the neck dark chestnut bay, sides
of the neck, cheeks, and line over the eye brown buff; lesser
wing-coverts the same; greater wing-coverts chestnut, with a spot
of the same at the bend of the wing, the primary coverts are
also tipt with the same; wing quills dark slate; breast white>
tinged with ochre, under which lie a number of blackish feath-
ers; belly and vent white; sides pale ochre; legs greenish on
the shins, hind part and feet yellow; thighs feathered to within
a quarter of an inch of the knees, middle claw pectinated; toes
tinged with pale green; feet large, the span of the foot measur-
72
LEAST BITTERN.
ing two inches and three quarters. Male and female nearly
alike in colour. The young birds are brown on the crown and
back. The stomach was filled with small fish; and the intestines
which were extremely slender, measured in length about four
feet.
The Least Bittern is also found in Jamaica and several of the
West India islands.
SPECIES 7. ^RDEA LUDOVICMNA.
LOUISIANA HERON.
[Plate LXIV.— Fig. 1.]
Pkalh’s Museum, A'b. 3750.
This is a rare and delicately formed species; occasionally
found on the swampy river shores of South Carolina, but more
frequently along the borders of the Mississippi, particularly be-
low New Orleans. In each of these places it is migratory; and
in the latter, as I have been informed, builds its nest on trees,
amidst the inundated woods. Its manners correspond very much
with those of the Blue Heron. It is quick in all its motions,
darting about after its prey with surprising agility. Small fish,
frogs, lizards, tadpoles, and various aquatic insects, constitute
its principal food.
There is a bird described by Latham in his General Synop-
sis, vol. iii, p. 88, called the Demi Egret* which from the
account there given, seems to approach near to the present spe-
cies. It is said to inhabit Cayenne.
Length of the Louisiana Heron from the point of the bill to
the extremity of the tail twenty-three inches; the long hair-like
plumage of the rump and lower part of the back extends several
inches farther; the bill is remarkably long, measuring full five
inches, of a yellowish green at the base, black towards the point,
and very sharp; irides yellow; chin and throat white, dotted
with ferruginous and some blue; the rest of the neck is of a light
vinous purple, intermixed on the lower part next the breast with
dark slate-coloured plumage; the whole feathers of the neck are
long, narrow and pointed; head crested, consisting first of a
VOL. III. — L
* See also Buffon, vol. vii, p. 378.
74
LOUISIANA HERON.
number of long narrow purple feathers, and under these seven
or eight pendent ones, of a pure white, and twice the length of
the former; upper part of the back and wings light slate; lower
part of the back and rump white, but concealed by a mass of
long unwebbed hair-like plumage, that falls over the tail and
tips of the wings, extending three inches beyond them; these
plumes are of a dirty purplish broAvn at the base, and lighten
towards the extremities to a pale cream colour; the tail is even
at the tip, rather longer than the wings, and of a fine slate; the
legs and naked thighs greenish yellow; middle claw pectinated;
whole lower parts pure white. Male and female alike in plu-
mage, both being crested.
SPECIES 8. ARDEA NYC TIC OR AX.
NIGHT HERON, OR QUA-BIRD.
[Plate LXL— Fig. 2.]
Jlrct. ZooL JV'o. 556. — Le Bihoreau, Buff, vii, 435. 439, tab. 22.
PL EnL758, 759. 899. — Lath. Syn. v. 3, p. 52, JV'o. 13,— p. 53,
Vouiig, called there the Female. — Peale’s Museum, JV. 3728,
—Young, JVo. 3729.
This species, though common to both continents, and known
in Europe for many centuries, has been so erroneously describ-
ed by all the European naturalists, whose work I have examined,
as to require more than common notice in this place. For this
purpose, an accurate figure of the male is given, and also ano-
ther of what has, till now, been universally considered the fe-
male, with a detail of so much of their history as I am personally
acquainted with.
The Night Heron arrives in Pennsylvania early in April,
and immediately takes possession of his former breeding place,
which is usually the most solitary, and deeply shaded, part of
a cedar swamp. Groves of swamp-oak, in retired and inundat-
ed places, are also sometimes chosen; and the males not unfre-
quently select tall woods, on the banks of the river, to roost in
during the day. These last regularly direct their course, about
the beginning of evening twilight, towards the marshes, utter-
ing, in a hoarse and hollow tone, the sound Qua, which by
some has been compared to that produced by the retchings of a
person attempting to vomit. At this hour, also, all the nurse-
ries in the swamps are emptied of their inhabitants, who disperse
about the marshes, and along the ditches and river shore, in
quest of food. Some of these breeding places have been occupi-
ed every spring and summer, for time immemorial, by from
76
NIGHT HERON.
eighty to one hundred pairs of Qua-birds. In places where the
cedars have been cut down for sale, the birds have merely re-
moved to another quarter of the swamp; but when personally
attacked, long teased and plundered, they have been known to
remove from an ancient breeding place, in a body, no one knew
where. Such was the case with one on the Delaware, near
Thompson’s point, ten or twelve miles below Philadelphia;
which having been repeatedly attacked and plundered by a bo-
dy of Crows, after many severe rencounters the Herons finally
abandoned the place. Several of these breeding places occur
among the red-cedars on the seabeach of Cape May, intermix-
ed with those of the Little White Heron, Green Bittern, and
Blue Heron. The nests are built entirely of sticks, in conside-
rable quantites, with frequently three and four nests on the same
tree. The eggs are generally four in number, measuring two
inches and a quarter in length, by one and three quarters in
thickness, and of a very pale light blue colour. The ground,
or marsh, below is bespattered with their excrements, lying all
around like whitewash, with feathers, broken egg-shells, old
nests, and frequently small fish, which they have dropt by ac-
cident and neglected to pick up.
On entering the swamp, in the neighbourhood of one of these
breeding places, the noise of the old and the young would almost
induce one to suppose that two or three hundred Indians were
choking or throttling each other. The instant an intruder is
discovered, the whole rise in the air in silence, and remove to
the tops of the trees in another part of the woods; while parties
of from eight to ten make occasional circuits over the spot, to
see what is going on. When the young are able, they climb to
the highest part of the trees; but, knowing their inability, do
not attempt to fly. Though it is probable that these nocturnal
birds do not see well during the day, yet their faculty of hear-
ing must be exquisite, as it is almost impossible, with all the
precautions one can use, to penetrate near their residence, with-
out being discovered. Several species of Hawks hover around,
making an occasional sweep among the young; and the Bald
NIGHT HERON.
77
Eagle himself has been seen reconnoitring near the spot, pro-
bably with the same design.
Contrary to the generally received opinion, the males and fe-
males of these birds are so alike in colour, as scarcely to be dis-
tinguished from each other; both have also the long slender
plumes that flow from the head. These facts I have exhibited
by dissection on several subjects, to different literary gentlemen
of my acquaintance, particularly to my venerable friend, Mr.
William Bar tram, to whom I have also often shown the young,
represented at fig. 3. One of these last, which was kept for
some time in the botanic garden of that gentleman, by its voice
instantly betrayed its origin, to the satisfaction of all who ex-
amined it. These young certainly receive their full coloured
plumage before the succeeding spring, as on their first arrival
no birds are to be seen in the dress of fig. 3, but soon after they
have bred, these become more numerous than the others. Ear-
ly in October they migrate to the south. According to Buffbn,
these birds also inhabit Cayenne; and are found widely dispersed
over Europe, Asia, and America. The European species, how-
ever, is certainly much smaller than the American ; though, in
other respects, corresponding exactly to it. Among a great
number which I examined with attention, the following descrip-
tion was carefully taken from a common sized full grown male.
Length of the Night Heron two feet four inches, extent four
feet; bill black, four inches and a quarter long, from the corners
of the mouth to the tip; lores, or space between the eye and
bill, a bare bluish white skin; eyelids also large and bare, of a
deep purple blue; eye three quarters of an inch in diameter, the
iris of a brilliant blood red, pupil black; crested crown and hind-
head deep dark blue, glossed with green; front and line over the
eye white; from the hind-head proceed three very narrow white
tapering feathers, between eight and nine inches in length: the
vanes of these are concave below, the upper one enclosing the
next, and that again the lower; though separated by the hand,
if the plumage be again shook several times, these long flowing
plumes gradually enclose each other, appearing as one; these
78
NIGHT HERON.
the bird has the habit of erecting when angry or alarmed; the
cheeks, neck, and whole lower parts, are white, tinctured with
yellowish cream, and under the wings with very pale ash; back
and scapulars of the same deep dark blue, glossed with green,
as that of the crown; rump and tail coverts, as well as the whole
wings and tail, very pale ash; legs and feet a pale yellow cream
colour; inside of the middle claw serrated.
The female differed in nothing as to plumage from the male,
but in the wings being of rather a deeper ash; having not only
the dark deep green-blue crown and back, but also the long
pendent white plumes from the hind-head. Each of the females
contained a large cluster of eggs, of various sizes.
The young (fig. 3. ) was shot soon after it had left the nest,
and difiered very little from those which had been taken from
the trees, except in being somewhat larger. This measured
twenty-one inches in length, and three feet in extent; the ge-
neral colour above a very deep brown, streaked with reddish
white, the spots of white on the back and wings being triangu-
lar, from the centre of the feather to the tip; quills deep dusky,
marked on the tips with a spot of white; eye vivid orange; bel-
ly white, streaked with dusky, the feathers being pale dusky,
streaked down their centres with white; legs and feet light
green; inside of the middle claw slightly pectinated; body and
wings exceedingly thin and limber; the down still stuck in slight
tufts to the tips of some of the feathers.
These birds also breed in great numbers in the neighbourhood
of New Orleans, for being in that city in the month of June, I
frequently observed the Indians sitting in market with the dead
and living young birds for sale; also numbers of Gray Owls
[Strix nebulosa), and the White Ibis [Tantalus albus,) for
which nice dainties I observed they generally found purchasers.
The food of the Night Heron or Qua-Bird, is chiefly compos-
ed of small-fish, which it takes by night. Those that I opened had
a large expansion of the gullet immediately under the bill, that
narrowed thence to the stomach, which is a large oblong pouch,
and was filled with fish. The teeth of the pectinated claw were
NIGHT HERON.
79
thirty-five or forty in number, and as they contained particles
of the down of the bird, showed evidently, from this circum-
stance, that they act the part of a comb, to rid the bird of ver-
min, in those parts which it cannot reach with its bill.
Note. In those specimens which I have procured in the
breeding season, I have taken notice that the lores and orbits
were of a bluish white; but in a female individual, which I shot
in East Florida, in the month of March, these parts were of a
delicate violet colour.
The Brown Bittern of Catesby, (Vol. i, pi. 78) which has
not a little confounded ornithologists, is undoubtedly the young
of the Night Heron. Dr. Latham says of the former, ‘‘ we be-
lieve it to be a female of the Green Heron. — They certainly
differ,” continues he, “as Brisson has described them; but by
comparison, no one can fail of being of the opinion here advanc-
ed.” If the worthy naturalist had had the same opportunities
of comparing the two birds in question as we have had, he
would have been as confident that they are not the same, as we
are — G. Ord.
SPECIES 9. JlRBEJi CJINBIDISSIMA.
SNOWY HERON.*
[Plate LXII.-Fig. 4.]
Tukt. 8yst. p. 380. — Lath. Syn. v. 9,p. 92, JYo. 61. — Pbale’s
Museum, JV’o. Sr85.
This elegant species inhabits the seacoast of North America,
from the isthmus of Darien to the gulf of St. Lawrence, and is,
in the United States, a bird of passage; arriving from the south
early in April, and leaving the middle states again in October.
Its general appearance, resembling so much that of the Little
Egret of Europe, has, I doubt not, imposed on some of the na-
turalists of that country, as I confess it did on me.t From a
more careful comparison, however, of both birds, I am satisfied
that they are two entirely different and distinct species. These
differences consist in the large flowing crest, yellow feet, and
singularly curled plumes of the back of the present; it is also
nearly double the size of the European species.
The Snowy Heron seems particularly fond of the salt marsh-
es during summer; seldom penetrating far inland. Its white
plumage renders it a very conspicuous object, either while on
wing, or while wading the meadows or marshes. Its food con-
sists of those small crabs, usually called fiddlers, mud worms,
snails, frogs and lizards. It also feeds on the seeds of some spe-
cies of nymph®, and of several other aquatic plants.
On the nineteenth of May, I visited an extensive breeding
place of the Snowy Heron, among the red cedars of Sommer’s
beach, on the coast of Cape May. The situation was very seques-
tered, bounded on the land side by a fresh water marsh or pond,
* Named in the plate, by mistake, the Little Egret.
t “ On the American continent, the Little Egret is met with at New York and
Long island.” Lath, v, 3, p. 90.
SNOWY HERON.
81
and sheltered from the Atlantic by ranges of sand-hills. The ce-
dars, though not high, were so closely crowded together, as to
render it difficult to penetrate through among them. Some trees
contained three, others four, nests, built wholly of sticks. Each
had in it three eggs of a pale greenish blue colour, and measur-
ing an inch and three quarters in length, by an inch and a quar-
ter in thickness. Forty or fifty of these eggs were cooked, and
found to be well tasted; the white was of a bluish tint, and al-
most transparent, though boiled for a considerable time; the
yelk very small in quantity. The birds rose in vast numbers,
but without clamour, alighting on the tops of the trees around,
and watching the result in silent anxiety. Among them were
numbers of the Night Heron, and two or three Purple-headed
Herons. Great quantities of egg shells lay scattered under the
trees, occasioned by the depredations of the Crows, who were
continually hovering about tbe place. On one of the nests I
found the dead body of the bird itself, half devoured by the
Hawks, Crows, or Gulls. She had probably perished in defence
of her eggs.
The Snowy Heron is seen at all times, during summer, among
the salt marshes, watching and searching for food; or passing,
sometimes in flocks, from one part of the bay to the other.
They often make excursions up the rivers and inlets; but return
regularly, in the evening, to the red cedars on the beech, to
roost. I found these birds on the Mississippi, early in June, as
far up as fort Adams, roaming about among tbe creeks, and
inundated woods.
The length of this species is two feet one inch; extent three
feet two inches; the bill is four inches and a quarter long, and
grooved; the space from the nostril to the eye orange yellow,
the rest of the bill black; irides vivid orange; the whole plu-
mage is of a snowy whiteness; the head is largely crested with
loose unwebbed feathers, nearly four inches in length; another
tuft of the same covers the breast; but the most distinguished
ornament of this bird is a bunch of long silky plumes, proceed-
ing from the shoulders, covering the whole back, and extending
VOL. III. M
SKOVVY HERON.
beyond the tail: the shafts of these are six or seven inches longy
extremely elastic, tapering to the extremities, and thinly set
with long slender bending threads or fibres, easily agitated by
the slightest motion of the air — these shafts curl upwards at the
ends. When the bird is irritated, and erects those airy plumes,
they have a very elegant appearance; the legs, and naked part
of the thighs, are black; the feet bright yellow; claws black, the
middle one pectinated.
The female can scarcely he distinguished by her plumage,
having not only the crest, but all the ornaments of the male,
though not quite so long and flowing.
The young birds of the first season are entirely destitute of
the long plumes of the breast and back; but, as all those that
were examined in spring were found crested and ornamented
as above, they doubtless receive their full dress on the first
moulting. Those shot in October measured twenty-two inches
in length, by thirty-four in extent; the crest was beginning to
form; the legs yellowish green, daubed with black; the feet
greenish yellow; the lower mandible white at the base; the
wings, when shut, nearly of a length with the tail, which is
even at the end.
The little Egret, or European species, is said by Latham and
Turton to be nearly a foot in length; Bewick observes, that it
rarely exceeds a foot and a half; has a much shorter crest, with
two long feathers; the feet are black; and the long plumage of
the back, instead of turning up at the extremity, falls over the
rump.
The young of both these birds are generally very fat, and es-
teemed by some people as excellent eating.
Note. — Catesby represents the bill of this bird as red, and
this error has been perpetuated by all succeeding ornithologists.
The fact is, that the bills of young Herons are apt to assume a
reddish tint after death, and this was evidently mistaken by
Catesby for a permanent living colour; and represented as such
SNOWY HERON.
83
by an exaggeration common to almost all colourers of plates of
Natural History. We have no hesitation in asserting that a
Heron such as that figured by the author in question does not
exist in the United States. That his Heron is indentical with
ours there can be no doubt, and we are equally satisfied that
his specimen was a bird of the first year. So common did we
find this species along the coasts of the Carolinas, Georgia and
East Florida, during the winter, that they were to be seen eve-
ry hour of the day, and were almost as tame as domestic fowls.
A specimen shot in East Florida was twenty-one inches in
length; the upper mandible, and tip of the lower, were black,
base of the latter flesh coloured, the remainder of bill yellow.
G. Ord
SPECIES 10. ARDEA AMERICANA.
WHOOPING CRANE.
[Plate LXIV.— Fig. 3.]
Jrct. Zool. No. 339. — Catesby, i, 75. — Lath, hi, p. 42. — La
Grue d'Jlmerique, Bmss. v, p. 382. — pl. Enl. 889.— Peale’s
Museum, No. 3704.t
This is the tallest and most stately species of all the feathered
tribes of the United States; the watchful inhabitant of extensive
salt marshes, desolate swamps, and open morasses, in the neigh-
«bourhood of the sea. Its migrations are regular, and of the
most extensive kind, reaching from the shores and inundated
tracts of South America to the arctic circle. In these immense
periodical journeys they pass at such a prodigious height in the
air as to be seldom observed. They have, however, their rest-
ing stages on the route to and from their usual breeding places,
the regions of the north. A few sometimes make their appear-
ance in the marshes of Cape May, in December, particularly
on and near Egg island, where they are known by the name of
Storks. The younger birds are easily distinguished from the
rest by the brownness of their plumage. Some linger in these
marshes the whole winter, setting out north about the time the
ice breaks up. During their stay they wander along the marsh
and muddy flats of the seashore in search of marine worms,
sailing occasionally from place to place, with a low and heavy
jiight, a little above the surface; and have at such times a very
formidable appearance. At times they utter a loud clear and
piercing cry, which may be heard at the distance of two miles.
They have also various modulations of this singular note, from
* This bird belongs to the genus Grus of Pallas,
t Grns JJmericana, Ord’s ed. vol. viii, p. 20.
WHOOPING CRANE.
85
the peculiarity of which they derive their name. When wounded
they attack the gunner, or his dog, with great resolution; and
have been known to drive their sharp and formidable bill, at
one stroke, through a man’s hand.
During winter they are frequently seen in the low grounds and
rice plantations of the southern states, in search of grain and in-
sects. On the tenth of February I met with several near the
Waccamau river, in South Carolina; I also saw a flock at the
ponds near Louisville, Kentucky, on the twentieth of March.
They are extremely shy and vigilant, so that it is with the great-
est difficulty they can be shot. They sometimes rise in the air
spirally to a great height, the mingled noise of their screaming,
even when they are almost beyond the reach of sight, resem-
bling that of a pack of hounds in full cry. On these occasions
they fly around in large circles, as if reconnoitring the country
to a vast extent for a fresh quarter to feed in. Their flesh is said
to be well tasted, nowise savouring of fish. They swallow
mice, moles, rats, &c. with great avidity. They build their
nests on the ground, in tussocks of long grass, amidst solitary
swamps, raise it to more than a foot in height, and lay two pale
blue eggs, spotted with brown. These are much larger, and of
a more lengthened form, than those of the common hen.
The Cranes are distinguished from the other families of their
genus by the comparative baldness of their heads, the broad flag
of plumage projecting over the tail, and in general by their su-
perior size. They also differ in their internal organization from
all the rest of the Heron tribe, particularly in the conformation
of the windpipe, which enters the breast bone in a cavity fitted
to receive it, and after several turns goes out again at the same
place, and thence descends to the lungs. Unlike the Herons, they
have not the inner side of the middle claw pectinated, and, in
this species at least, the hind toe is short, scarcely reaching the
ground.
The vast marshy flats of Siberia are inhabited by a Crane very
much resembling the present, with the exception of the bill and
86
WHOOPING CRANE.
legs being red; like those of the present, the year old birds are
said also to be tawny.
It is highly probable that the species described by naturalists
as the Brown Crane {Jirdea Canadensis), is nothing more than
the young of the Whooping Crane,'* their descriptions exactly
corresponding with the latter. In a flock of six or eight, three
or four are usually of that tawny or reddish brown tint on the
back, scapulars and wing coverts, but are evidently yearlings
of the Whooping Crane, and differ in nothing but in that and size
from the others. They are generally five or six inches shorter,
and the primaries are of a brownish cast.
The Whooping Crane is four feet six inches in length, from
the point of the bill to the end of the tail, and when standing
erect measures nearly five feet; the bill is six inches long, and
an inch and a half in thickness, straight, extremely sharp, and
of a yellowish brown colour; the irides are yellow; the forehead,
whole crown and cheeks are covered with a warty skin thinly
interspersed with black hairs; these become more thickly set
towards the base of the bill; the hind head is of an ash colour;
the rest of the plumage pure white, the primaries excepted,
which are black; from the root of each wing rise numerous large
flowing feathers projecting over the tail and tips of the wings;
the uppermost of these are broad, drooping, and pointed at the
extremities, some of them are also loosely webbed, their silky
fibres curling inwards like those of the ostrich. They seem to
occupy the place of the tertials. The legs and naked part of the
thighs are black, very thick and strong; the hind toe seems rare-
ly or never to reach the hard ground, though it may probably
assist in preventing the bird from sinking too deep in the mire.
* This ij an error into which our author was led in censequenee of never hav-
ing sefen a specimen of the bird in question {Ardea Canadensis, Linn. — Grtis
Freli Hudsonis, Briss.) Peale’s museum at present contains a fine specimen,
which was brought by the naturalists attached to Major Long’s exploring party,
who ascended the Missouri in the year 1820. Bartram calls this Crane the Grus
pralensis. It is known to travellers by the name of Sandhill Crane.
SPECIES 11. ARDE^ VIOLACEA.
YELLOW-CROWNED HERON.
[Plate LX V,— Fig. 1.]
I.iNN. Syst. I, p. 238. !6. — Lath. Syn.wi, p. 80. — Le Crabier de
Bahama, Briss. v, p. 481. 41. — Crested Bittern, Catesb. i, pi,
79. — Le Crabier gris defer. Buff, vii, p. 399. — Jlrct. Zool, JVb.
352. — Peale’s Museum, JVb. 3738.*
This is one of the nocturnal species of the Heron tribe, whose
manners, place and mode of building its nest, resemble greatly
those of the common Night Heron {Jirdea nycticoraxf) the
form of its bill is also similar. The very imperfect figure and
description of this species by Catesby, seems to have led the
greater part of European ornithologists astray, who appear to
have copied their accounts from that erroneous source, otherwise
it is difficult to conceive why they should either have given it
the name of yellow-crowned, or have described it as being only
fifteen inches in length; since the crown of the perfect bird is
pure white, and the whole length very near two feet. The name
however, erroneous as it is, has been retained in the present
account, for the purpose of more particularly pointing out its
absurdity, and designating the species.
This bird inhabits the lower parts of South Carolina, Georgia,
and Louisiana in the summer season ; reposing during the day
among low swampy woods, and feeding only in the night. It
* We add the following synonymes. — Jirdea violacea, Lath. Ind. Orn. p. 690,
JVo- St),— Jirdea Cayanensis, Id. p. 680, JVd. 17 — Gen. Syn. iii, p. 80. JVo. 46.
— Cayenne JJ'ighl Heron, Id. p. 56,5Vb. 16. — Bilioreau de Cayenne, PI. Enl. 899-
— Jirdea vxolacea, Gmel. Syet, i. p- 631, .AT). 16. — Jirdea Cayenensis, Id. p. 626,
JS'o. 31.
88
YELLOW-CROWNED HERON.
builds in societies, making its nest with sticks among the
branches of low trees, and lays four pale blue eggs. The species
is not numerous in Carolina, which, with its solitary mode of
life, makes this bird but little known there. It abounds on the
Bahama islands, where it also breeds, and great numbers of the
young, as we are told, are yearly taken for the table, being ac-
counted in that quarter excellent eating. This bird also extends
its migrations into Virginia, and even farther northj one of them
having been shot a few years ago on the borders of Schuylkill
below Philadelphia.
The food of this species consists of small fish, crabs and liz-
ards, particularly the former; it also appears to have a strong
attachment to the neighbourhood of the ocean.
The Yellow-crowned Heron is twenty-two inches in length,
from the point of the bill to the end of the tail; the long flowing
plumes of the back extend four inches farther; breadth from tip
to tip of the expanded wings thirty-four inches; bill black, stout,
and about four inches in length, the upper mandible grooved
exactly like that of the common Night Heron; lores pale green;
irides fiery red; head and part of the neck black, marked on
each cheek with an oblong spot of white; crested crown and up-
per part of the head white, ending in two long narrow tapering
plumes of pure white, more than seven inches long; under these
are a few others of a blackish colour; rest of the neck and whole
lower parts fine ash, somewhat whitish on that part of the neck
where it joins the black; upper parts a dark ash, each feather
streaked broadly down the centre with black, and bordered
with white; wing quills deep slate, edged finely with white;
tail even at the end, and of the same ash colour; wing coverts
deep slate, broadly edged with pale cream; from each shoulder
proceed a number of long loosely webbed tapering feathers, of
an ash colour, streaked broadly down the middle with black,
and extending four inches or more beyond the tips of the wings;
legs and feet yellow; middle claw pectinated. Male and female,
as in the common Night Heron, alike in plumage.
I strongly suspect that the species called by naturalists the
YELLOW-CROWNED HERON.
89
Cayenne Night Heron {Jlrdea Cayanensis,) is nothing more
than the present, with which, according to their descriptions,
it seems to agree almost exactly.
VOL. HI. — N
GENUS 70. TANTALUS. IBIS.
SPECIES 1. TANTALUS LOCULATOR,
WOOD IBIS.
[Plate LXVL— Fig. 1.]
Le grand Courli d’^merique, Briss. v, p. 358. 8. — Couricaca,
Buff, vii, 276. PL Enl. 868. — Catesb. i, 81. — Jlrct. Zool.
JV’o. 360. — Lath. Syn. iii, p. 104. — Peale’s Museum, 3862.
The Wood Ibis inhabils the lower parts of Louisiana, Caro-
lina, and Georgia; is very common in Florida, and extends as
far south as Cayenne, Brazil, and various parts of South America.
In the United States it is migratory; but has never, to my know-
ledge, been found to the north of Virginia. Its favourite haunts
are watery savannahs and inland swamps, where it feeds on
lish and reptiles. The French inhabitants of Louisiana esteem it
good eating.
With the particular manners of this species I am not person-
ally acquainted; but the following characteristic traits are given
of by it Mr. William Bartram, who had the best opportunities
of noting them.
“ This solitary bird,” he obeserve.s, “ does not associate in
flocks; hut is generally seen slone, commonly near the banks of
great rivers, in vast marshes or meadows, especially such as are
covered by inundations, and also in the vast deserted rice plan-
tations; he stands alone, on the topmost limh of tall dead cypress
trees, his neck contracted or drawn in upon his shoulder.s, and
his beak resting like a long sithe upon his breast; in this pen-
sive posture, and solitary situation, they look extremely grave,
sorrowful and melancholy, as if in the deepest thought. They
are never seen on the seacoast, and yet are never found at a
WOOD IBIS.
91
great distance from it. They feed on serpents, young alligators,
frogs, and other reptiles,”*
The figure of this bird given in the plate was drawn from a
very fine specimen, sent from Georgia by Stephen Elliott, esq.
of Beaufort, South Carolinaj its size and markings were as fol-
low.
Length three feet two inches; bill nearly nine inches long,
straight for half its length, thence curving downwards to the
extremity, and full two inches thick at the base, where it rises
high in the head, the whole of a brownish horn colour; the un-
der mandible fits into the upper in its whole length, and both
are very sharp edged ; face and naked head and part of the neck
dull greenish blue, wrinkled; eye large, seated high in the head;
irides dark red; under the lower jaw is a loose corrugated skin,
or pouch, capable of containing about half a pint; whole body,
neck and lower parts white; quills dark glossy green and purple;
tail about two inches shorter than the wings, even at the end,
and of a deep and rich violet; legs and naked thighs dusky green;
feet and toes yellowish sprinkled with black; feet almost semi-
palmated and bordered to the claws with a narrow membrane;
some of the greater wing coverts are black at the root, and shaft-
ed with black; plumage on the upper ridge of the neck gener-
ally worn, as in the present specimen, with rubbing on the back,
while in its common position of resting its bill on its breast, in
the manner of the White Ibis (see fig. 3).
The female has only the head and chin naked; both are sub-
ject to considerable changes of colour when young; the body
being found sometimes blackish above, the belly cinereous, and
spots of black on the wing coverts; all of which, as the birds
advance in age, gradually disappear, and leave the plumage of
the body, &c. as has been described.
* Travels, &c. p. 150.
SPECIES 2. TANTALUS RUBER.
SCARLET IBIS.
[Plate LXVI.— Fig. 2.]
Le Couiii rouge du Rresi/, Briss. v,p. 344, 12, jig. 1, 2. — Buff.
VIII, p. 35. — Red Curlew, Catesby, i, 84. — Lath, hi, p. 106. —
Arct. Zool, No. 361. — Peale’s Museum, No. 3864, 3865 Fe-
male.*
This beautiful bird is found in the most southern parts of
Carolina; also in Georgia and Florida, chiefly about the seashore
and its vicinity. In most parts of America within the tropics,
and in almost all the West India islands it is said to be common;
also in the Bahamas. Of its manners little more has been col-
lected than that it frequents the borders of the sea and shores
of the neighbouring rivers, feeding on small fry, shell fish, sea
worms and small crabs. It is said frequently to perch on trees,
sometimes in large flocks; but to lay its eggs on the ground on
a bed of leaves. The eggs are described as being of a greenish
colour; the young when hatched black, soon after gray, and be-
fore they are able to fly white, continuing gradually to assume
their red colour until the third year, when the scarlet plumage
is complete. It is also said that they usually keep in flocks, the
young and old birds separately. They have frequently been
domesticated. One of them which lived for some time in the
Museum of this city, was dexterous at catching flies, and most
usually walked about, on that pursuit, in the position in which
it is represented in the plate.
* AVe add the following synonymes:— 2VMUaius fiiifte)-, Lath. Ind. Orn. p. 70S,
No. 2. — T.fiiscus, Id. p. 705, No. 8. — Gmel Sijst. i, p. 651, No. 5, No. 7. — Le
Ccurly hrun du Bresil, Briss. v, p. 341. — Byown Curlew, Catesby, i, S3,
Young. — Courly rouge du Bresil, de Cage de deux ans, PL Enl. 80. — Id. de Page
de trois ans, 81.
SCARLET IBIS.
93
The Scarlet Ibis measures twenty-three inches in length, and
thirty-seven in extent; the bill is five inches long, thick, and
somewhat of a square form at the base, gradually bent do^vn-
wards and sharply ridged, of a black colour, except near the
base, where it inclines to red; irides dark hazel; the naked face
is finely wrinkled, and of a pale red; chin also bare and wrin-
kled for about an inch; whole plumage a rich glowing scarlet,
except about three inches of the extremities of the four outer
quill feathers, which are of a deep steel blue; legs and naked
part of the thighs pale red, the three anterior toes united by a
membrane as far as the first joint.
Whether the female differs in the colour of her plumage from
the male, or what changes both undergo during the first and se-
cond years, I am unable to say from personal observation. Be-
ing a scarce species with us, and only found on our most remote
southern shores, a sufficient number of specimens have not been
procured to enable me to settle this matter with sufficient cer-
tainty.
Jv'ofc. It would appear that this species inhabits the western coast of America.
In the Appendix to the History of Lewis and Clark’s Expedition, Vol. n, p. 514,
under date of March 7, the Journalist says, “ A bird of a scarlet colour, as large
as a common pheasant, with a long tail, has returned; one of them was seen to-
day near the fort.” As all long legged birds fly with their legs in a horizontal
position, the legs of that above mentioned must have been mistaken for a tail.
G. Ord.
SPECIES 3. TANTALUS ALBUS.
WHITE IBIS.
[Plate LXVL— Fig. 3.]
Le Courli blanc du Bresil, Buiss. v, p. 339, 10. — Buff, viii, p.
41. Cuurly blanc d^Jlmerique, PI. Enl. 915. — White Curlew,
Cat ESBY, r, pi. 82. — Lath. Syn. iii, j)' 1 1 1, tA^o. 9. — Jlrct. Zool.
No. 363.*
This species bears in every respect, except that of colour, so
strong a resemblance to the preceding, that I have been almost
induced to believe it the same, in its white or imperfect stage
of colour. The length and form of the bill, the size, conforma-
tion, as well as colour of the legs, the general length and breadth,
and even the steel blue on the four outer quill feathers, are ex-
actly alike in both. These suggestions, however, are not made
with any certainty of its being the same; but as circumstances
which may lead to a more precise examination of the subject
hereafter.
I found this species pretty numerous on the borders of lake
Pontchartrain, near New Orleans, in the month of June, and
also observed the Indians sitting in market with strings of them
for sale. I met with them again on the low keys or islands off
the peninsula of Florida. Mr. Bartram observes that ‘Hhey
fly in large flocks or squadrons, evening and morning, to and
from their feeding places or roosts, and are usually called Spa-
nish Curlews. They feed chiefly on cray fish, whose cells they
probe, and with their strong pinching bills drag them out. ” The
low islands above mentioned abound with these creatures and
small crabs, the ground in some places seeming alive with them,
so that the rattling of their shells against one another was in-
* Tantalus albus, Lath. Ind- Orn. p. 705, JVo. 9. — Gmel. Syst. p. 651. JVb. 6.
WHITE IBIS.
95
cessant. My venerable friend, in his observations on these birds
adds, “It is a pleasing sight at times of high winds, and heavy
thunder storms, to observe the numerous squadrons of these
Spanish Curlews, driving to and fro, turning and tacking about
high up in the air, when by their various evolutions in the
different and opposite currents of the wind, high in the clouds,
their silvery white plumage gleams and sparkles like the bright-
est crystal, reflecting the sunbeams that dart upon them between
the dark clouds.”
The White Ibis is twenty-three inches long, and thirty-seven
inches in extent; bill formed exactly like that of the scarlet
species, of a pale red, blackish towards the point; face a reddish
flesh colour and finely wrinkled; irides whitish; whole plumage
pure white, except about four inches of the tips of the four
outer quill feathers, which are of a deep and glossy steel blue;
legs and feet pale red, webbed to the first joint.
These birds I frequently observed standing on tbe dead limbs
of trees, and on the shore, resting on one leg, their body in an
almost perpendicular position, as represented in the figure, the
head and bill resting on tbe breast. This appears to be its most
common mode of resting, and perhaps sleeping, as in all those
which I examined the plumage on the upper ridge of the neck
and upper part of the back, was evidently worn by this habit.
The same is equally observable on the neck and back of the
Wood Ibis.
The present species rarely extends its visits north of Carolina,
and even in that state is only seen for a few weeks towards the
end of summer. In Florida they are common; but seldom remove
to any great distance from the sea.
GENUS 71. NUMENIUS, CURLEW.
SPECIES 1. N. LONGIROSTRIS.
LONG-BILLED CURLEW.
[Plate LXIV.— Fig. 4.]
Peale’s Museum, JVo. 3910.
This American species has been considered by the naturalists
of Europe to be a mere variety of their own, notwithstanding
its difference of colour, and superior length of bill. These dif-
ferences not being accidental, or found in a few individuals, but
common to all, and none being found in America corresponding
with that of Europe, we do not hesitate to consider the present
as a distinct species, peculiar to this country.
Like the preceding, this bird is an inhabitant of marshes in
the vicinity of the sea. It is also found in the interior; where,
from its long bill and loud whistling note, it is generally known.
The Curlews appear in the salt marshes of New Jersey about
the middle of May, on their way to the north ; and in September,
on their return from their breeding places. Their food consists
chiefly of small crabs, which they are very dexterous at probing
for, and pulling out of the holes with their long bills; they also
feed on those small sea snails so abundant in the marshes, and
on various worms and insects. They are likewise fond of bram-
ble berries, frequenting the fields and uplands in search of this
fruit, on which they get very fat, and are then tender and good
eating, altogether free from the sedgy taste with which their
flesh is usually tainted while they feed in the salt marshes.
The Curlews fly high, generally in a wedge-like form, some-
what resembling certain Ducks; occasionally uttering their loud
whistling note, by a dexterous imitation of which a whole flock
may sometimes be enticed within gunshot, while the cries of
LONG-BILLED CURLEW.
97
the wounded are sure to detain them until the gunner has made
repeated shots and great havoc among them.
This species is said to breed in Labrador, and in the neigh-
bourhood of Hudson’s Bay. A few instances have been known
of one or two pair remaining in the salt marshes of Cape May
all summer. A person of respectability informed me, that he
once started a Curlew from her nest, which was composed of a
little dry grass, and contained four eggs, very much resembling
in size and colour those of the Mud Hen, or Clapper Rail. This
was in the month of July. Cases of this kind are so rare, that
the northern regions must be considered as the general breeding
place of this species.
The Long-billed Curlew is twenty-five inches in length, and
three feet three inches in extent, and when in good order weighs
about thirty ounces; but individuals differ greatly in this respect;
the bill is eight inches long, nearly straight for half its length,
thence curving considerably downwards to its extremity, where
it ends in an obtuse knob that overhangs the lower mandible;
the colour black, except towards the base of the lower, where
it is of a pale flesh colour; tongue extremely short, differing in
this from the Snipe; eye dark; the general colour of the plu-
mage above is black, spotted and barred along the edge of each
feather with pale brown; chin, line over the eye and round the
same, pale brownish white; neck reddish brown, streaked with
black; spots on the, breast more sparingly dispersed; belly, thighs
and vent pale plain rufous, without any spots; primaries black
on the outer edges, pale brown on the inner, and barred with
black; shaft of the outer one snowy; rest of the wing pale reddish
brown, elegantly barred with undulating lines of black; tail
slightly rounded, of an ashy brown, beautifully marked with
herring-bones of black; legs and naked thighs very pale light
blue or lead colour, the middle toe connected with the two
outer ones as far as the first joint by a membrane, and bordered
along the sides with a thick warty edge; lining of the wing dark
rufous, approaching a chestnut, and thinly spotted with black.
Male and female alike in plumage. The bill continues to grow
VOL. III. — o
98
LONG-BILLED CURLEW.
in length until the second season, when the bird receives its
perfect plumage. The stomach of this species is lined with an
extremely thick skin, feeling to the touch like the rough har-
dened palm of a sailor or blacksmith. The intestines are very
tender, measuring usually about three feet in length, and as
thick as a Swan’s quill. On the front, under the skin, there are
two thick callosities, which border the upper side of the eye,
lying close to the skull. These are common, I believe, to most
of the Tringa and Scolopax tribes, and are probably designed
to protect the skull from injury while the bird is probing and
searching in the sand and mud.
Note. This species was observed by Lewis and Clarke as
high up as the sources ol the Missouri. On the twenty-second
June they found the females were sitting: the eggs, which are
of a pale blue, with black specks, were laid upon the bare ground.
Hist, of the Exped. vol. i, p. 279, Bvo.
SPECIES 2. N. BOREALIS*
ESQUIMAUX CURLEW.
[Plate LVI. — Fig. 1.]
Jrct. Zool.p. 461, JVb. 364. — Lath. hi. — Turt. Syst. p. 392. —
Peale’s Museum, JV*o. 4003.
In prosecuting our researches among the feathered tribes of
this extensive country, we are at length led to the shores of the
ocean, where a numerous and varied multitude, subsisting on
the gleanings of that vast magazine of nature, invite our atten-
tion; and from their singularities and numbers, promise both
amusement and instruction. These we shall, as usual, introduce
in the order we chance to meet with them in their native haunts.
Individuals of various tribes, thus promiscuously grouped to-
gether, the peculiarities of each will appear more conspicuous
and striking, and the detail of their histories less formal as well
as more interesting.
The Esquimaux Curlew, or as it is called by our gunners on
the seacoast, the short-billed Curlew, is peculiar to the new con-
tinent. Mr. Pennant, indeed, conceives it to be a mere variety
of the English Whimbrel {S.Phseopus)-, but among tbe great
numbers of these birds which I have myself shot and examined,
I have never yet met with one corresponding to the descriptions
given of the TVhimbrel, the colours and markings being differ-
ent, the bill much more bent, and nearly an inch and a half lon-
ger; and the manners in certain particulars very different: these
reasons have determined its claim to that of an independant spe-
cies.
The Short-billed Curlew arrives in large flocks on the sea-
coast of New Jersey early in May from the south; frequents the
* Wilson erroneously arranged this in the following Genus, Scolopax.
100
ESQUIMAUX CURl.EW.
salt marshes, muddy shores and inlets, feeding on small worms
and minute shell-fish. They are most commonly seen on mud
flats at low water, in company with various other waders; and
at high water roam along the marshes. They fly high, and with
great rapidity. A few are seen in June, and as late as the be-
ginning of July, when they generally move off towards the north.
Their appearance on these occasions is very interesting: they
collect together from the marshes as if by premeditated design,
rise to a great height in the air, usually about an hour before
sunset, and forming in one vast line, keep up a constant whis-
tling on their march to the north, as if conversing with one an-
other to render the journey more agreeable. Their flight is then
more slow and regular, that the feeblest may keep up with the
line of march, while the glittering of their beautifully speckled
wings, spax’kling in the sun, produces altogether a very pleas-
ing spectacle.
In the month of June, while the dew-berries are ripe, these
birds sometimes frequent the fields in company with the Long-
billed Curlews, where brambles abound, soon get very fat, and
are at that time excellent eating. Those who wish to shoot them,
fix up a shelter of brushwood in the middle of the field, and by
that means kill great numbers. In the early part of spring, and
indeed during the whole time that they frequent the marshes,
feeding on shell-fish, they are much less esteemed for the table.
Pennant informs us, that they were seen in flocks innumera-
ble on the hills about Chatteux bay, on the Labrador coast,
from August the ninth to September sixth, when they all dis-
appeared, being on their way from their northern breeding place.
— He adds, “they kept on the open grounds, fed on the empe-
trum nigrum, and were very fat and delicious. ” They arrive
at Hudson’s Bay in April, or early in May; pair and breed to
the north of Albany fort among the woods, return in August to
the marshes, and all disappear in September.* About this time
they return in accumulated numbers to the shores of New Jer-
sey, whence they finally depart for the south early in November.
* Phil. Trans. LXII, 411.
ESQUIMAUX CURLEW.
101
The Esquimaux Curlew is eighteen inches long, and thirty-
two inches in extent; the bill, which is four inches and a half
long, is black towards the point, and a pale purplish flesh co-
lour near the base; upper part of the head dark brown, divided
by a narrow stripe of brownish white; over each eye extends a
broad line of pale drab; iris dark coloured; hind part of the neck
streaked with dark brown, fore part, and whole breast, very
pale brown; upper part of the body pale drab, centred and bar-
red with dark brown, and edged with spots of white on the ex-
terior vanes; three first primaries black, with white shafts; rump
and tail-coverts barred with dark brown; belly white; vent the
same, marked with zigzag lines of brown; whole lining of the
wing beautifully barred with brown on a dark cream ground ;
legs and naked thighs a pale lead colour.
The figure of this bird, and of all the rest in the same plate,
are reduced to exactly one-half the size of life.
Note. — Mr. Ord. in his reprint of the 8th. vol. expresses
his doubts of this species being the Esquimaux Curlew {N. bo-
realis) of Dr. Latham; as this ornithologist states his bird to be
only thirteen inches in length, and in breadth twenty-one; and
the bill two inches in length.
Prince Musignano, in his observations on the nomenclature
of Wilson’s Ornithology, states that he has ascertained the N.
borealis, Lath, to be a distinct species, and promises to figure
it in his American Ornithology. He considers Wilson’s bird
{N. borealis) to be the N. Hudsonicus of Latham.
GENUS 72. SCOLOPAX. SNIPE.
SPECIES 1. SCOLOPAX FEDOA*
GREAT MARBI.ED GODWIT.
[Plate LVI. — Fig. 4. — Female.’]
Jlrct. ZooL p. 456, JVo. 371. — La Barge rousse de Baie de Hudson,
Buff, vii, 507. — Peale’s Museum, Xo. 40l9.t
This is another transient visitant of our seacoasts in spring
and autumn, to and from its breeding place in the north. Our
gunners call it the Straight -hilled Curlew, and sometimes the
Red Curlew.X It is a shy, cautious, and watchful bird; yet so
strongly are they attached to each other, that on wounding one
in a flock, the rest are immediately arrested in their flight, mak-
ing so many circuits over the spot where it lies fluttering and
screaming, that the sportsman often makes great destruction
among them. Like the Curlew, they may also be enticed with-
in shot, by imitating their call or whistle; hut can seldom be
approached without some such manoeuvre. They are much less
numerous than the Short-billed Curlews, with whom, however,
they not unfrequently associate. They are found among the
salt marshes in May, and for some time in June, and also on
their return in October and November; at which last season
they are usually fat, and in high esteem for the table.
The female of this bird having been described by several
writers as a distinct species from the male, it has been thought
proper to figure the former; the chief difference consists in the
* This bird belongs to the genus Limosa of Brisson.
t Scotopax Fedoa, Linn. Syst. ed. 10, p. 14G, JVo. 8. S. hxmastka? Id. p. 147>
.Yo. 14. — Edwards, pi. 137, 138. — Limosa rufa, Briss. v, p. 281, pi. 25, fig. 1.
i It is better known under the name of Merline.
GREAT MARBLED GOD WIT 103
undulating bars of black with which the breast of the male is
marked, and which are wanting in the female.
The male of the Great Marbled Godwit is nineteen inches
long, and thirty-four inches in extent; the bill is nearly six in-
ches in length, a little turned up towards the extremity, where
it is black, the base is of a pale purplish flesh colour; chin and
upper part of the throat whitish; head and neck mottled with
dusky brown and black on a ferruginous ground ; breast barred
with wavy lines of black; back and scapulars black, marbled
with pale brown; rump and tail-coverts of a very light brown,
barred with dark brown; tail even; except the two middle fea-
thers, which are a little the longest; wings pale ferruginous, ele-
gantly marbled with dark brown, the four first primaries black
on the outer edge; whole lining and lower parts of the wings
bright ferruginous; belly and vent light rust colour, with a tinge
of lake.
The female differs in wanting the bars of black on the breast.
The bill does not acquire its full length before the third year.
About fifty different species of the Scolopax genus are enu-
merated by naturalists. These are again by some separated in-
to three classes or sub-genera; viz. the straight-billed, or Snipes;
those with bills bent downwards, or the Curlews; and those
whose bills are slightly turned upwards, or Godwits. The whole
are a shy, timid and solitary tribe, frequenting those vast marsh-
es, swamps and morasses, that frequently prevail in the vicini-
ty of the ocean, and on the borders of large rivers. They are
also generally migratory, on account of the periodical freezing
of those places in the northern regions where they procure their
food. The Godwits are particularly fond of salt marshes; and
are rarely found in countries remote from the sea, '
SPECIES 2. SCOLOP^X MINOR.
WOODCOCK.
[Plate XLVIII.— Fig. 2.]
Arct. Zoul. p. 463, JSTu, 365. — Turt. Syst. 396.*
This bird, like the preceding,! is universally known to our
sportsmen. It arrives in Pennsylvania early in March, some-
times sooner; and I doubt not but in mild winters some few re-
main with us the whole of that season. During the day, they
keep to the woods and thickets, and at the approach of evening
seek the springs, and open watery places, to feed in. They soon
disperse themselves over the country to breed. About the be-
ginning of July, particularly in long continued hot weather,
they descend to the marshy shores of our large rivers, their fa-
vourite springs and watery recesses, inland, being chiefly dried
up. To the former of these retreats they are pursued by the
merciless sportsman, flushed by dogs, and shot down in great
numbers. This species of amusement, when eagerly followed,
is still more laborious and fatiguing than that of Snipe-Shooting;
and from the nature of the ground, or cripple as it is usually call-
ed, viz. deep mire, intersected with old logs, which are cover-
ed and hid from sight by high reeds, weeds and alder bushes,
the best dogs are soon tired out; and it is customary with sports-
men, who regularly pursue this diversion, to have two sets of
dogs, to relieve each other alternately.
The Woodcock usually begins to lay in April. The nest is
placed on the ground, in a retired part of the woods, frequently
at the root of an old stump. It is formed of a few withered leaves,
and stalks of grass, laid with very little art. The female lays
* Scolopax minor, Lath. hid. Orn. p. 714, No. 2. Gen. Sijn. 3, p. 131.
t That is, the common Rail, which precedes the Woodcock in the original edi-
tion.
WOODCOCK.
105
four, sometimes five, eggs, about an inch and a half long, and
an inch or rather more in diameter, tapering suddenly to the
small end. These are of a dun clay colour, thickly marked with
spots of brown, particularly at the great end, and interspersed
with others of a very pale purple. The nest of the Woodcock
has, in several instances that have come to my knowledge, been
found with eggs in February; but its usual time of beginning to
lay is early in April. In July, August and September, they are
considered in good order for shooting.
The Woodcock is properly a nocturnal bird, feeding chiefly
at night, and seldom stirring about till after sunset. At such
times, as well as in the early part ot the morning, particularly
in spring, he rises by a kind of spiral course, to a considerable
height in the air, uttering at times a sudden quack, till having
gained his utmost height, he hovers around in a wild irregu-
lar manner, making a sort of murmuring sound; then descends
with rapidity as he rose. When uttering his common note on
the ground, he seems to do it with difficulty, throwing his head
towards the earth, and frequently jetting up his tail. These
notes and manoeuvres are most usual in spring, and are the call
of the male to his favourite female. Their food consists of va-
rious larvae, and other aquatic worms, for which, during the
evening, they are almost continually turning over the leaves
with their bill, or searching in the bogs. Their flesh is reckoned
delicious, and prized highly. They remain with us till late" in
autumn; and on the falling of the first snows, descend from the
ranges of the Alleghany, to the lower parts of the country, in
great numbers; soon after which, viz. in November, they move
off to the south.
This bird, in its general figure and manners, greatly resem-
bles the Woodcock of Europe, but is considerably less, and very
differently marked below, being an entirely distinct species.
A few traits will clearly point out their differences. The lower
parts of the European Woodcock are thickly barred with dusky
waved lines, on a yellowish white ground. The present species
has those parts of a bright ferruginous. The male of the Ame-
VOL. III.-^P
106
WOODCOCK.
rican species weiglis from five to six ounces, the female eight:
the European twelve. The European Woodcock makes its first
appearance in Britain in October and November, that country
being in fact only its winter quarters; for early in March they
move off to the northern parts of the continent to breed. The
American species, on the contrary, winters in countries south
of the United States, arrives here early in March, extends its
migrations as far, at least, as the river St. Lawrence, breeds in
all the intermediate places, and retires again to the south on the
approach of winter. The one migrates from the torrid to the
temperate regions; the other from the temperate to the arctic.
The two birds, therefore, notwithstanding their names are the
same, differ not only in size and markings, but also in native
climate. Hence the absurdity of those who would persuade us,
that the Woodcock of America crosses the Atlantic to Europe,
and vice versa. These observations have been thought necessa-
ry, from the respectability of some of our own writers, who
seem to have adopted this opinion.
How far to the north our Woodcock is found, I am unable
to say. It is not mentioned as a bird of Hudson’s bay ; and being
altogether unknown in the northern parts of Europe, it is very
probable that its migrations do not extend to a very high lati-
tude; for it may be laid down as a general rule, that those birds
which migrate to the arctic regions in either continent, are very
often common to both. The head of the Woodcock is of singu-
lar conformation, large, somewhat triangular, and the eye fixed
at a remarkable distance from the bill, and high in the head.
This construction was necessary to give a greater range of vi-
sion, and to secure the eye from injury while the owner is search-
ing in the mire. The flight of the Woodcock is slow. When
flushed at any time in the woods, he rises to the height of the
bushes or under wood, and almost instantly drops behind them
again at a short distance, generally running off for several yards
as soon as he touches the ground. The notion that there are two
species of Wooodcock in this country probably originated from
wooDcodfk.
107
the great diflference of size between the male and female, the
latter being considerably the larger.
The male Woodcock is ten inches and a half long, and six-
teen inches in extent; bill a brownish flesh colour, black towards
the tip, the upper mandible ending in a slight nob, that projects
about one-tenth of an inch beyond the lower,* each grooved,
and in length somewhat more than two inches and a half; fore-
head, line over the eye, and whole lower parts, reddish tawny;
sides of the neck inclining to ash; between the eye and bill a
slight streak of dark brown; crown, from the forepart of the
eye backwards, black, crossed by three narrow bands of brown-
ish white; cheeks marked with a bar of black, variegated with
light brown; edges of the back, and of the scapulars, pale blu-
ish white; back and scapulars deep black, each feather tipt or
marbled with light brown and bright ferruginous, with nume-
rous fine zig-zag lines of black crossing the lighter parts; quills
plain dusky brown; tail black, each feather marked along the
outer edge with small spots of pale brown, and ending in nar-
row tips of a pale drab colour above, and silvery white below;
lining of the wing bright rust; legs and feet a pale reddish flesh
colour; eye very full and black, seated high, and very far back
in the head; weight five ounces and a half, sometimes six.
The female is twelve inches long, and eighteen in extent;
weighs eight ounces; and differs also in having the bill very near
three inches in length; the black on the back is not quite so in-
tense; and the sides under the wings are slightly barred with
dusky.
The young Woodcocks, of a week or ten days old, are co-
vered with down of a brownish white colour, and are marked
from the bill, along the crown to the hind-head, with a broad
*Mr. Pennant, (Arct. Zool. p. 463.) in describing the American Wood-
cock, says, that the lower mandible is much shorter than the upper. From
the appearance of his figure, it is evident that the specimen from which
that and his description were taken, had lost nearly half an inch fi’om the
lower mandible, probably broken off by accident. Turton and others have
repeated this mistake.
108
VVOODCOCK.
stripe of deep brown; another line of the same passes through
the eyes to the hind-head, curving under the eye; from the back
to the rudiments of the tail runs another of the same tint, and
also on the sides under the wings; the throat and breast are con-
siderably tinged with rufous; and the quills, at this age, are just
bursting from their light blue sheaths, and appear marbled as in
the old birds; the legs and bill are of a pale purplish ash colour,
the latter about an inch long. When taken, they utter a long,
clear, but feeble, pee.p, not louder than that of a mouse. They
are far inferior to young Partridges in running and skulk-
ing; and should the female unfortunately be killed, may easily
be taken on the spot.
SPECIES 3. SCOLOPJiX GALLINAGO:
SNIPE.
[Plate XLVIL— Fig. 1.]
This bird is well known to our sportsmen; and, if not the
same, has a very near resemblance of the common Snipe of Eu-
rope. It is usually known by the name of the English Snipe,
to distinguish it from the Woodcock, and from several others of
the same genus. It arrives in Pennsylvania about the tenth of
March, and remains in the low grounds for several weeks; the
greater part then move off to the north, and to the higher in-
land districts to breed. A few are occasionally found, and con-
sequently breed, in our low marshes during the summer. When
they first arrive, they are usually lean; but when in good order
are accounted excellent eating. They are, perhaps, the most
difficult to shoot of all our birds, as they fly in sudden zig-zag
lines, and very rapidly. Great numbers of these birds winter
in the rice grounds of the southern states, where, in the month
of February, they appeared to be much tamer than they are usu-
ally here, as I frequently observed them running about among
the springs and watery thickets. I was told by the inhabitants,
that they generally disappeared early in the spring. On the
twentieth of March I found these birds extremely numerous on
the borders of the ponds near Louisville, Kentucky; and also
in the neighbourhood of Lexington in the same state, as late as
* In consequence of Wilson’s doubts, whether this bird was the S. Galhnago
or not, he gave no synonymes. The Prince of Musignano, convinced that it was
a distinct species, adopted for it the name of Brehmii, under the impression that
it was identical with the Snipe lately discovered in Germany, and described un-
der the above mentioned name. It appears to be neither the Gallimgo not the
Brehmii, but a bird peculiar to our country: In Mr. Ord’s supplement to Wilson’s
Ornithology, it is classed under the name of Scoloj)ax delicata.
no
SNIPE.
the tenth of April. I was told by several people, that they are
abundant in the Illinois country, up as far as lake Michigan.
They are but seldom seen in Pennsylvania during the summer,
but are occasionally met with in considerable numbers on their
return in autumn, along the whole eastern side of the Allegha-
ny, from the sea to the mountains. They have the same soar-
ing irregular flight in the air in gloomy weather as the Snipe
of Europe; the same bleating note, and occasional rapid descent;
spring from the marshes with the like feeble squeak; and in
every respect resemble the common Snipe of Britain, except
in being about an inch less; and in having sixteen feathers in
the tail instead of fourteen, the number said by Bewick to be
in that of Europe. From these circumstances, we must either
conclude this to be a different species, or partially changed by
difference of climate; the former appears to me the more pro-
bable opinion of the two.
These birds abound in the meadows, and low grounds, along
our large rivers, particularly those that border the Schuylkill
and Delaware, from the tenth of March to the middle of April,
and sometimes later, and are eagerly sought after by many of our
gunners. The nature of the grounds, however, which these
birds frequent, the coldness of the season, and peculiar shyness
and agility of the game, render this amusement attractive only
to the most dexterous, active, and eager, of our sportsmen.
The Snipe is eleven inches long, and seventeen inches in ex-
tent; the bill is more than two inches and a half long, ffuted
lengthwise, of a brown colour, and black towards the tip, where
it is very smooth while the bird is alive, but soon after it is kil-
led becomes dimpled like the end of a thimble; crown black,
divided by an irregular line of pale brown; another broader one
of the same tint passes over each eye; from the bill to the eye
there is a narrow dusky line; neck, and upper part of the breast,
pale brown, variegated with touches of white and dusky; chin
pale; back and scapulars deep velvetty black, the latter elegant-
ly marbled with waving lines of ferruginous, and broadly edg-
ed exteriorly with white; wings plain dusky, all the feathers.
SNIPE
111
as well as those of the coverts, tipt with white; shoulder of the
wing deep dusky brown, exterior quill edged with white; tail-
coverts long, reaching within three-quarters of an inch of the
tip, and of a pale rust colour spotted with black; tail rounded,
deep black, ending in a bar of bright ferruginous, crossed with
a narrow waving line of black, and tipt with whitish; belly pure
white; sides barred with dusky; legs and feet a very pale ashy
green; sometimes the whole thighs, and sides of the vent, are
barred with dusky and white, as in the figure in the plate.
The female differs in being more obscure in her colours; the
white on the back being less pure, and the black not so deep.
SPECIES 4. SCOLOPAX NOVEBORACENSIS.
RED-BREASTED SNIPE.
[Plate L VIII.— Fig. 1.]
Arct, Zool. p. 464, JVo. 368. — Pkale’s Museum, JVb. 3932.*
This bird has a considerable resemblance to the common
Snipe, not only in its general form, size and colours, but like-
wise in the excellence of its flesh, which is in high estimation.
It differs, however, greatly from the common Snipe in its man-
ners, and in many other peculiarities, a few of which, as far as
I have myself observed, may be sketched as follows. The
Red-breasted Snipe arrives on the seacoast of New Jersey ear-
ly in April; is seldom or never seen inland: early in May it pro-
ceeds to the north to breed, and returns by the latter part of
July, or beginning of August. During its stay here it flies in
flocks, sometimes very high, and has then a loud and shrill
whistle, making many evolutions over the marshes; forming,
dividing, and reuniting. They sometimes settle in such num-
bers, and so close together, that eighty-five have been shot at
one dischai’ge of a musket. They spring from the marches
with a loud twirling whistle, generally rising high, and mak-
ing several circuitous manoeuvres in air, before they descend.
They frequent the sand-bars, and mud-flats, at low water, in
search of food; and being less suspicious of a boat than of a per-
son on shore, are easily approached by this medium, and shot
down in great numbers. They usually keep by themselves,
being very numerous; are in excellent order for the table in
September; and on the approach of winter retire to the south.
We add the following Synonymes; — Scolopax noveboracensis. Lath. Ind. Om.
p. 723, Wo. 32. — S. grisea, id. p. 724. Wo. 33. Temm. Man. d’ Orn. p. 679. Gmbi..
Syst. p. 658, Wo. 27, adult in winter plumage. S. noveboraceneis, Id. p 658, Wo.
?8, adult in summer plumage.
RED-BEEASTED SNIPE.
113
I have frequently amused myself with the various action of
these birds. They fly very rapidly, sometimes wheeling, coursing
and doubling along the surface of the marshes; then shooting
high in air, there separating; and forming in various bodies,
uttering a kind of quivering whistle. Among many which I
opened in May, were several females, that had very little ru-
fous below, and the backs were also much lighter, and less
marbled with ferruginous. The eggs contained in their ovaries
were some of them as large as garden peas. Their stomachs
contained masses of those small snail shells that lie in millions
on the salt marshes: the wrinkles at the base of the bill, and
the red breast, are strong characters of this species, as also the
membrane which unites the outer and middle toes together.
The Red-breasted Snipe is ten inches and a half long, and
eighteen inches in extent; the bill is about two inches and a
quarter in length, straight, grooved, black towards the point,
and of a dirty eelskin colour at the base, where it is tumid and
wrinkled; lores dusky; cheeks and eyebrows pale yellowish
white, mottled with specks of black; throat and breast a red-
dish buflr colour; sides white, barred with black; belly and vent
white, the latter barred wuth dusky; crown, neck above, back,
scapulars and tertials, black, edged, mottled and marbled with
yellowish white, pale and bright ferruginous, much in the same
manner as the common Snipe; wings plain olive, the seconda-
ries centred and bordered with white; shaft of the first quill
very white; rump, tail-coverts and tail (which consists of twelve
feathers) white, thickly spotted with black; legs and feet dull
yellowish green; outer toe united to the middle one by a small
membrane; eye very dark. The female, which is paler on the
back, and less ruddy on the breast, has been described by Mr.
Pennant as a separate species. *
These birds doubtless breed not far to the northward of the
United States, if we may judge from the lateness of the season
when they leave us in spring; the largeness of the eggs in the
*See his Brown Snipe, Arct. Zool. No. 369.
VOL. III. — Q
114
RED-BREASTED SNIPE.
ovaries of the females before they depart, and the short period
of time they are absent. Of all our sea-side Snipes it is the most
numerous, and the most delicious for the table.
From these circumstances and the crowded manner in which
it flies and settles, it is the most eagerly sought after by our
gunners, who send them to market in great numbers.
SPECIES 5. SCOLOP^X SEMIPALMATJi.
SEMIPALMATED SNIPE.
[Plate LVI.— Fig. 3.]
Arct. Zool. p. 469, J^o. 380. — Peale’s Museum, JSTo. 3942.t
This is one of the most noisy and noted birds that inhabit
our salt marshes in summer. Its common name is the Willet,
by which appellation it is universally known along the shores
of New York, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland, in all of
which places it breeds in great numbers.
The Willet is peculiar to America. It arrives from the south,
on the shores of the middle states, about the twentieth of April,
or beginning of May; and from that time to the last of July, its
loud and shrill reiterations of Pill-ivill-willet, Pill-will-willet,
resound, almost incessantly, along the marshes; and may be
distinctly heard at the distance of more than half a mile. About
the twentieth of May the Willets generally begin to lay.! Their,
nests are built on the ground, among the grass of the salt marsh-
es, pretty well towards the land, or cultivated fields, and are
composed of wet rushes and coarse grass, forming a slight hol-
low or cavity in a tussock. This nest is gradually increased
during the period of laying and sitting, to the height of five or
six inches. The eggs are usually four in number, very thick
at the great end, and tapering to a narrower point at the other
than those of the common hen; they measure two inches and
one-eighth in length, by one and a half in their greatest breadth,
* This and the five following species belong to the genus Tetanus of Bechstein.
t Scolopax Semipalmala,'L\Tii. Syn. in, p. 152, No. 22. — Id. Ind. Orn.p. 722,
No. 27. — Gmel. Syst. i, p. 659, No. 331.
t From some unknown cause, the height of laying of these birds is said to be
full two weeks later than it was twenty years ago.
116
SEMIPALMATED SNIPE.
and are of a dark dingy olive, largely blotched with blackish
brown, particularly at the great end. In some the ground co-
lour has a tinge of green; in others of bluish. They are excel-
lent eating, as I have often experienced when obliged to dine
on them in my hunting excursions through the salt marshes.
The young are covered with a gray coloured down; run off soon
after they leave the shell; and are led and assisted in their search
of food by the mother; while the male keeps a continual watch
around for their safety.
The anxiety and affection manifested by these birds for their
eggs and young, are truly interesting. A person no sooner en-
ters the marshes, than he is beset with the Willets, flying around
and skimming over his head, vociferating with great violence
their common ciy of Pill-ivill-willet; and uttering at times a
loud clicking note, as he approaches nearer to their nest. As
they occasionally alight, and slowly shut their long white wings
speckled with black, they have a mournful note, expressive of
great tenderness. During the term of incubation, the female of-
ten resorts to the seashore, where, standing up to the belly in
water, she washes and dresses her plumage, seeming to enjoy
great satisfaction from these frequent immersions. She is also
at other times seen to wade more in the water than most of her
tribe; and when wounded in the wing, will take to the water
without hesitation, and swims tolerably well.
The eggs of the Willet, in every instance which has come
under my observation, are placed, during incubation, in an al-
most upright position, with the large end uppermost; and this
appears to be the constant practice of several other species of
birds that breed in these marshes. During the laying season,
the Crows are seen roaming over the marshes in search of eggs,
and wherever they come spread consternation and alarm among
the Willets, who in united numbers attack, and pursue them
with loud clamours. It is worthy of remark, that among the
various birds that breed in these marshes, a mutual respect is
paid to each other’s eggs; and it is only from intruders from the
SEMIPALMATED SNIPE. nV
land side, such as Crows, Jays, weasels, foxes, minxes and man
himself, that these affectionate tribes have most to dread.
The Willet subsists chiefly on small shell-fish, marine worms,
and other aquatic insects, in search of which it regularly resorts
to the muddy shores, and flats, at low water; its general ren-
dezvous being the marshes.
This bird has a summer, and also a winter, dress, in its co-
lours differing so much in these seasons as scarcely to appear to
be the same species. Our figure in the plate exhibits it in its
spring and summer plumage, which in a good specimen is as
follows:
Length fifteen inches, extent thirty inches; upper parts dark
olive brown, the feathers streaked' down the centre and crossed
with waving lines of black;' wing-coverts light olive ash; the
whole upper parts sprinkled with touches of dull yellowish
white; primaries black, white at the root half; secondaries white,
bordered with brown; rump dai'k brown; tail rOunded, twelve
feathers, pale olive, waved with bars of black; tail-coverts white,
barred with Olive; bill pale lead colour, becoming black towards
the tip; eye very black; chin white; breast beautifully mottled
with transverse spots of olive, on a cream ground; belly and
vent white, the last barred with olive; legs and feet pale lead
colour; toes half- webbed.
Towards the Fall, when these birds associate in large flocks,
they become of a pale dun colour above, the plumage being
shafted with dark brown, and the tail white, or nearly so. At
this season they are extremely fat, and esteemed excellent eat-
ing. Experienced gunners always select the lightest coloured
ones from a flock, as being uniformly the fattesh
The female of this species is generally larger than the male
In the months of October and November they gradually disap-
pear.
SPECIES 6. SCOLOPAX VOCIFERUS.
TELL-TALE GODWIT, OR SNIPE.
[Plate LVIIL— Fig. 5.]
Stone Snipe, Jlrct. Zool.p. 468, Xo. 376. — Turt. Syst.p. 396. —
Peale’s Museum, JVb. 3940.*
This species, and the preceding, are both well known to our
Duck-gunners, along the seacoast and marshes, by whom they
are detested, and stigmatized with the names of the greater and
lesser Tell-tale, iov their faithful vigilance in alarming the
Ducks with their loud and shrill whistle, on the first glimpse
of the gunner’s approach. Of the two the present species is by
far the most watchful ; and its whistle, which consists of four
notes rapidly repeated, is so loud, shrill and alarming, as in-
stantly to arouse every Duck within its hearing, and thus dis-
appoints the eager expectations of the shooter. Yet the cunning
and experience of the latter, is frequently more than a match
for all of them, and before the poor Tell-tale is aware, his
warning voice is hushed for ever, and his dead body mingled
with those of his associates.
This bird arrives on our coast early in April, breeds in the
marshes, and continues until November, about the middle of
which month it generally moves off to the south. The nest, I
have been informed, is built in a tuft of thick grass, generally
on the borders of a bog or morass. The female, it is said, lays
four eggs, of a dingy white, irregularly marked with black. '
These birds appear to be unknown in Europe. They are
simply mentioned by Mr. Pennant, as having been observed
in autumn, feeding on the sands on the lower part of Chatteaux
* Scolopax melanoleuca, Gmel. Syst. J,p. 659, JVo. 32. — Lath. Jnd. Orn. p. 723,
JV'o. 28. — Spoiled Snipe, Lath. Syn. in,p- 149, var. A. Totanus melanoleucos,
Ord, reprint, vii, p. 61.
TELL-TALE GODWIT, OR SNIPE.
119
Bay, continually nodding their heads; and were called there
Stone Curlews.*
The Tell-tale seldom flies in large flocks, at least during
summer. It delights in watery bogs, and the muddy margins
of creeks and inlets; is either seen searching about for food, or
standing in a watchful posture, alternately raising and lowering
the head, and on the least appearance of danger utters its shrill
whistle, and mounts on wing, generally accompanied by all the
feathered tribes that are near. It occasionally penetrates inland,
along the muddy shores of our large rivers, seldom higher than
tide water, and then singly and solitary. They sometimes rise
to a great height in the air, and can be distinctly heard when
beyond the reach of the eye. In the Fall, when they are fat,
their flesh is highly esteemed, and many of them are brought
to our markets. The colours and markings of this bird are so
like those of the preceding, that unless in point of size, and the
particular curvature of the bill, the description of one might
serve for both.
The Tell-tale is fourteen inches and a half long, and twenty-
five inches in extent; the bill is two inches and a quarter long,
of a dark horn colour, and slightly bent upwards; the space
round the eye, chin and throat, pure white; lower part of the
neck pale ashy white, speckled with black; general colour of the
upper parts an ashy brown, thickly spotted with black and dull
white, each feather being bordered and spotted on the edge
with black; wing quills black; some of the primaries, and all of
the secondaries, with their coverts, spotted round the margins
with black and white; head and neck above streaked with black
and white; belly and vent pure white; rump white, dotted with
black; tail also white, barred with brown; the wings, when
closed, reach beyond the tail; thighs naked nearly two inches
above the knees; legs two inches and three quarters long; feet
four-toed, the outer joined by a membrane to the middle, the
whole of a rich orange yellow. The female differs little in plu-
Arct. Zool. p. 468.
120 TELL-TALE GODWIT, OE SNIPE.
mage from the male; sometimes the vent is slightly dotted with
black, and the upper parts more brown.
Nature seems to have intended this bird as a kind of spy, or
centinel, for the safety of the rest; and so well acquainted are
they with the watchful vigilance of this species, that, while it
continues silent among them, the Ducks feed in the bogs and
marshes without the least suspicion. The great object of the
gunner is to escape the penetrating glance of this guardian,
which is sometimes extremely difficult to effect. On the first
whistle of the Tell-tale, if beyond gunshot, the gunner aban-
dons his design, but not without first bestowing a few left-hand-
ed blessings on the author of his disappointment.
SPECIES 7. SCOLOPAX FLAVIPES.
YELLOW-SHANKS SNIPE.
[Plate LVIIL— Fig. 4.]
Jirct. Zool.p. 46S, JV*o. 878. — Turt. Syst. 895. — Feale’s Museum,
JVo. 3938.*
Or this species I have but little to say. It inhabits our sea-
coasts, and salt marshes, during summer; frequents the flats at
low water, and seems particularly fond of walking among the
mud, where it doubtless finds its favourite food in abundance.
Having never met with its nest, nor with any person acquaint-
ed with its particular place or manner of breeding, I must re-
serve these matters for further observation. It is a plentiful
species, and great numbers are brought to market in Boston,
New York, and Philadelphia, particularly in autumn. Though
these birds do not often penetrate far inland, yet on the fifth of
September I shot several dozens of them in the meadows of
Schuylkill, below Philadelphia. There had been a violent north-
east storm a day or two previous, and a large flock of these, ac-
companied by several species of Tringa, and a vast number of
the Short-tailed Tern, appeared at once among the meadows.
As a bird for the table the Yellow-shanks, when fat, is in con-
siderable repute. Its chief residence is in the vicinity of the sea,
where there are extensive mud-flats. It has a sharp whistle, of
three or four notes, when about to take wing, and when flying.
These birds may be shot down with great facility, if the sports-
man, after the first discharge, will only lie close, and permit
the wounded birds to flutter about without picking them up; the
* Gmel. Syst. I, p. 659, No. 31. — Lath. Syn. iii, p. 152, No. 24. — Ind. Orn-
p. 723, No. 29. ''
VOL. III. R
122
YELLOW-SHANKS SNIPE.
flock will generally make a circuit and alight repeatedly, until
the greater part of them may be shot down.*
Length of the Yellow-shanks ten inches, extent twenty; bill
slender, straight, an inch and a half in length, and black; line
over the eye, chin, belly and vent, white; breast and throat
gray; general colour of the plumage above dusky brown olive,
inclining to ash, thickly marked with small triangular spots of
dull white; tail-coverts white; tail also white, handsomely barred
with dark olive; wings plain dusky, the secondaries edged, and
all the coverts edged and tipt, with white; shafts black; eye also
black; legs and naked thighs long and yellow; outer toe united
to the middle one by a slight membrane; claws a horn colour.
The female can scarcely he distinguished from the male.
Note. — Mr. Ord in his reprint gives the following more mi-
nute description, of a female, shot on the twenty-second of April;
‘‘length upwards of ten inches, breadth twenty inches; irides
brown; bill slender, straight, an inch and a half in length, and
black, mandibles of equal length, the upper bent downwards at
the tip; throat, lower parts, thighs, and under tail-coverts, white
— the last are generally marked on their exterior vanes with
brown; those next to the tail barred with the same; lower part
of the neck, with the breast, gray, the feathers streaked down
their centres with dusky; head and back part of the neck black,
the plumage edged with gray, in some specimens edged with
brown ash, upper parts black, with oblong spots of white, in-
termixed with pale brown feathers; rump brown, edged with
white; upper tail-coverts white, barred with brown; the tail is
composed of twelve feathers, -white, barred with ashy brown, the
upper feathers, in some, gray brown, marked on their vanes,
though not across, with brown and white; wings, when closed,
extend somewhat beyond the tail; primaries and secondaries
dusky; shaft of first primary whitish above, the rest of the shafts
* These birds are very common, in the early part of May, on the muddy-flats
of our rivers, particularly in the vicinity of Philadelphia, and are that period in
good condition.
YELLOW-SHANKS SNIPE. 123
brown above, in .some black, all white below; lesser wing-co-
verts dusky, slightly edged with white, and in some spotted
with brown on the exterior vanes; secondaries slightly edged
with white; legs bare above the knees upwards of an inch; length
of tarsus two inches; outer toe connected as far as the first joint
to the middle one, the membrane of the inner toe quite small;
legs and feet yellow ochre; the claw of the middle toe has the
appearance of having a supplemental nail at its base. A young
male shot at the same time, had its upper parts mixed with cine-
99
reous.'
GENUS 73. TRINGA. SANDPIPER.
SPECIES 1. T. BARTR^MM.
BARTRAM’S SANDPIPER.
[Plate LIX.— Fig. 2.]
Pkalk’s Museum, J\‘o. 4040.*
This bird being, as far as I can discover, a new species, un-
described by any former author, I have honoured it with the
name of my very worthy friend, near whose Botanic Gardens,
on the banks of the river Schuylkill, I first found it. On the
same meadows I have since shot several other individuals of the
species, and have thereby had an opportunity of taking an ac-
curate drawing, as well as description of it.
Unlike most of their tribe, these birds appeared to prefer run-
ning about among the grass, feeding on beetles, and other wing-
ed insects. There were three or four in company; they seem-
ed extremely watchful, silent, and shy, so that it was always
with extreme difficulty I could approach them.
These birds are occasionally seen there during the months of
August and September, but whether they breed near, I have
not been able to discover. Having never met with them on the
seashore, I am persuaded that their principal residence is in the
interior, in meadows, and such like places. They run with
great rapidity, sometimes spreading their tail, and dropping
their wings, as birds do who wish to decoy you from their nest;
when they alight, they remain fixed, stand very erect, and have
two or three sharp whistling notes as they mount to fly. They
are remarkably plump birds, weighing upwards of three-quar-
ters of a pound; their flesh is superior, in point of delicacy, ten-
* Totnnus BartramkiS, Temm. J\fan. d'Orn. p. 650.
BARTRAM’S SANDPIPER.
125
derness and flavour, to any other of the tribe with which I am
acquainted.
This species is twelve inches long, and twenty-one in extent;
the bill is an inch and a half long, slightly bent downwards, and
wrinkled at the base, the upper mandible black on its ridge, the
lower, as well as the edge of the upper, of a fine yellow; front,
stripe over the eye, neck and breast, pale ferruginous, marked
with small streaks of black, which, on the lower part of the
breast, assume the form of arrow heads; crown black, the plu-
mage slightly skirted with whitish; chin, orbit of the eye, whole
belly and vent, pure white; hind-head, and neck above, ferru-
ginous, minutely streaked with black; back and scapulars black,
the former slightly skirted with ferruginous, the latter with
white; tertials black, bordered with white; primaries plain black;
shaft of the exterior quill snowy, its inner vane elegantly pec-
tinated with white; secondaries pale brown, spotted on their
outer vanes with black, and tipt with white; greater coverts
du.sky, edged with pale ferruginous, and spotted with black;
lesser coverts pale ferruginous, each feather broadly bordered
with white, within which is a concentric semicircle of black;
rump and tail-coverts deep brown black, slightly bordered with
white; tail tapering, of a pale brown orange colour, beautifully
spotted with black, the middle feather centred with dusky; legs
yellow, tinged with green; the outer toe joined to the middle
by a membrane; lining of the wings elegantly barred with black
and white; iris of the eye dark, or blue black, eye very large.
The male and female are nearly alike.
Note. — Whether the bird described by Temminck, {Man.
cVOrn.p. 650.) is identical with this species, will admit of some
doubt; although this excellent ornithologist says, that “ les in-
dividus d’ Europe et ceux d’Amerique ne different point. ”
Bartram’s Sandpiper is known to our shooters by the name of
Grass Plover. It breeds in low grounds, in the state of New
Jersey. When watching its nest, it is fond of sitting upon fen-
ces; and on alighting, it throws up its wings in the manner of
126
BARTRAM’s SANDPIPER.
the Willet. In the early part of August it begins to migrate;
it then flies high, and may be easily recognized by its whistling
notes, which resemble those of the Tell-tale. In the middle
of June I observed this species in the vicinity of Burlington,
New Jersey; but I could not discover its nest. G. Ord.
SPECIES 2. TRINGA SOLITARM.
SOLITARY SANDPIPER.
[Plate LVIIL— Fig. 3.]
Peai.e’s Museum, Mo. 7763.*
This new species inhabits the watery solitudes of our high-
est mountains during the summer, from Kentucky to New York;
but is no where numerous, seldom more than one or two being
seen together. It takes short low flights; runs nimbly about
among the mossy margins of the mountain springs, brooks and
pools, occasionally stopping, looking at you, and perpetually
nodding the head. It is so unsuspicious, or so little acquainted
with man, as to permit one to approach within a few yards of
it, without appearing to take any notice, or to be the least alarm-
ed. At the approach of cold weather, it descends to the muddy
shores of our large rivers, where it is occasionally met with,
singly, on its way to the south. I have made many long and
close searches for the nest of this bird, without success. They
regularly breed on Pocano mountain, between Easton and Wil-
kesbarre, in Pennsylvania, arriving there early in May, and
departing in September. It is usually silent, unless when sud-
denly flushed, when it utters a sharp whistle.
This species has considerable resemblance, both in manners
and markings, to the Green Sandpiper of Europe ( Tringa Och-
ropus); but differs from that bird in being nearly one-third less,
and in wanting the white rump and tail-coverts of that species;
it is also destitute of its silky olive green plumage. How far
north its migrations extend I am unable to say.
The Solitary Sandpiper is eight inches and a half long, and
fifteen inches in extent; the bill is one inch and a quarter in
* Totanus glareohis, Ord’s reprint, vii, p. 57. — Tolaims chloropygius, Vieili, —
Prince Mnsignano, Gen. M Jl. Birds.
128
SOLITARY SANDPIPER.
length, and dusky; nostrils pervious, bill fluted above and be-
low; line over the eye, chin, belly and vent, pure white; breast
white, spotted with pale olive brown; crown and neck above
dark olive, streaked with white; back, scapulars and rump, dark
brown olive, each feather marked along the edges with small
round spots of white; wings plain, and of a darker tint; under
tail-covert spotted with black; tail slightly rounded, the five
exterior feathers on each side white, broadly barred with black;
the two middle ones, as well as their coverts, plain olive; legs
long, slender, and of a dusky green. Male and female alike in
colour.
SPECIES 3. TRINGA MACULARM.
SPOTTED SANDPIPER.
[Plate LIX. — Fig. 1.]
Arct. Zool. f. 473, Mo. 385. — Let Grive ePeau, Buff, viii, 140. —
Edw. 277. — Peaub's Museum, Mo. 4056.*
This very common species arrives in Pennsylvania about
the twentieth of April, making its first appearance along the
shores of our large rivers, and, as the season advances, tracing
the courses of our creeks and streams towards the interior.
Along the rivers Schuylkill and Delaware, and their tributary
waters, they are in great abundance during the summer. This
species is as remarkable for perpetually wagging the tail, as
some others are for nodding the head; for whether running on
the ground, or on the fences, along the rails, or in the water,
this motion seems continual; even the young, as soon as they
are freed from the shell, run about constantly wagging the tail.
About the middle of May they resort to the adjoining corn fields
to breed, where I have frequently found and examined their
nests. One of these, now before me, and which was built at
the root of a hill of Indian corn, on high ground, is composed
wholly of short pieces of dry straw. The eggs are four, of a
pale clay or cream colour, marked with large irregular spots of
black, and more thinly with others of a paler tint. They are large
in proportion to the size of the bird, measuring an inch and a
quarter in length, very thick at the great end, and tapering sud-
denly to the other. The young run about with wonderful speed
as soon as they leave the shell, and are then covered with down
* Tringa Tnncukno, Gmel. SysJ. i,j>. 672, JV'o. 7. — Lath. Jnd. Orn.p.7S4, M>.
29, — Totanus macular ius, Temm. Man. tVOrn.p. 656.
VOL. III. S
130
SPOTTED SANDPIPER.
of a full drab colour, marked with a single streak of black down
the middle of the back, and with another behind each ear.
'I'hey have a weak, plaintive note. On the approach of any
person, the parents exhibit symptoms of great distress, coun-
terfeiting lameness, and fluttering along the ground with seem-
ing difficulty. On the appearance of a dog, this agitation is
greatly increased; and it is very interesting to observe with
what dexterity the female will lead him from her young, by
throwing herself repeatedly before him, fluttering off, and keep-
ing just without his reach, on a contrary direction from her
helpless brood. My venerable friend, Mr. William Bartram,
informs me, that he saw one of these birds defend her young,
for a considerable time, from the repeated attacks of a ground
squirrel. The scene of action was on the river shore. The pa-
rent had thrown herself, with her two young behind her, be-
tween them and the land; and at every attempt of the squirrel
to seize them by a circuitous sweep, raised both her wings in
an almost pei'pendicular position, assuming the most formidable
appearance she was capable of, and rushed forwards on the
squirrel, who, intimidated by her boldness and manner, instantly
retreated; but presently returning, was met, as before, in front
and on flank, by the daring and affectionate bird, who with her
wings and whole plumage bristling up, seemed swelled to twice
her usual size. The young crowded together behind her, appa-
rently sensible of their perilous situation, moving backwards
and forwards as she advanced or retreated. This interesting
scene lasted for at least ten minutes; the strength of the poor
parent began evidently to flag, and the attacks of the squirrel
became more daring and frequent, when my good friend, like
one of those celestial agents who, in Homer’s time, so often
decided the palm of victory, stepped forward from his retreat,
drove the assailant back to his hole, and rescued the innocent
from destruction.
The flight of this bird is usually low, skimming along the
surface of the water, its long wings making a considerable angle
downwards from the body, while it utters a rapid cry of loeet
SPOTTED SANDPIPER.
131
weet weet as it flutters along, seldom steering in a direct line
up or down the river, but making a long circuitous sweep,
stretching a great way out, and gradually bending in again to
the shore.
'Fhese birds are found occasionally along the sea marshes, as
well as in the interior; and also breed in the corn fields there,
frequenting the shore in search of food; but rarely associating
with the other Tringse. About the middle of October they leave
us on their way to the south, and do not, to my L'nowledge,
winter in any of the Atlantic states.
Mr. Pennant is of opinion that this same species is found in
Britain; but neither his description, nor that of Mr. Bewick,
will apply correctly to this. The following particulars, with the
figure, will enable Europeans to determine this matter to their
satisfaction.
Length of the Spotted Sandpiper seven inches and a half,
extent thirteen inches; bill an inch long, straight, the tip, and
upper mandible, dusky, lower orange; stripe over the eye, and
lower eye-lid, pure white; whole upper parts a glossy olive,
with greenish reflections, each feather marked with waving
spots of dark brown; wing quills deep dusky; bastard wing bor-
dered and tipt with white; a spot of white on the middle of the
inner vane of each quill feather, except the first; secondaries
tipped with white; tail rounded, the six middle feathers green-
ish olive, the other three, on each side, white, barred with black;
whole lower parts white, beautifully marked with roundish
spots of black, small and thick on the throat and breast, larger
and thinner as they descend to the tail; legs a yellow clay co-
lour; claws black.
The female is as thickly spotted below as the male; but the
young birds, of both sexes, are pure white below, without any
spots; they also want the orange on the bill. These circumstan-
ces I have verified on numerous individuals.
SPECIES 4. TRINGA SEMIPALMATA.
SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPER.
[Plate LXIII.— Fig. 4.]
Peai.e’s Museum, t/Vo. 4023.
This is one of the smallest of its tribe; and seems to have
been entirely overlooked, or confounded with another which
it much resembles ( Tringa pusilla,) and with whom it is often
found associated.
Its half- webbed feet, however, are sufficient marks of dis-
tinction between the two. It arrives and departs with the pre-
ceding species; flies in flocks with the Stints, Purres, and a
few others; and is sometimes seen at a considerable distance
from the sea, on the sandy shores of our fresh water lakes. On
the twenty-third of September, I met with a small flock of these
birds in Burlington bay, on lake Champlain. They are numerous
along the seashores of New Jersey; but retire to the south on
the approach of cold weather.
This species is six inches long, and twelve in extent; the bill
is black, an inch long, and very slightly bent; crown and body
above dusky brown, the plumage edged with ferruginous, and
tipt with white; tail and wings nearly of a length; sides of the
rump white; rump and tail-coverts black; wing quills dusky
black, shafted and banded with white, much in the manner of
the Least Snipe; over the eye a line of white; lesser coverts tipt
with white; legs and feet blackish ash, the latter half- webbed.
Males and females alike in colour.
These birds varied greatly in their size, some being scarcely
five inches and a half in length, and the bill not more than three
quarters; others measured nearly seven inches in the whole
length, and the bill upwards of an inch. In their general ap-
SEMIPALMATEl) SANDPIPER.
pearance tliey greatly resemble the Stints or Least Snipe; but
unless we allow that the same species may sometimes have the .
toes half-webbed, and sometimes divided to the origin, and this
not in one or two solitary instances, but in whole flocks, which
would be extraordinary indeed, we cannot avoid classing this
as a new and distinct species.
/
SPECIES 5. THINGS PUSILLA.
LITTLE SANDPIPER.
[Plate XXXVII.— Fig. 4.]
Lath. Syn. v, p. 184 — 32. — Jlrct. Zool. ii, 397. — Cinclus
dominicensis minor, Buiss. v, p. 222. 13. t. ^5. f. 2. — Turt.
Syst.p. 410. — Peale’s Museum, JVo. 4138.
This is the least of its tribe in this part of the world, and in
its mode of flight has much more resemblance to the Snipe than
to the Sandpiper. It is migratory, departing early in October
for the south. It resides chiefly among the sea marshes, and
feeds among the mud at low water; springs with a zig-zag irre-
gular flight, and a feeble twit. It is not altogether confined to
the neighbourhood of the sea, for I have found several of them
on the shores of the Schuylkill, in the month of August. In
October, immediately before they go away, they are usually
very fat. Their nests or particular breeding places I have not
been able to discover.
This minute species is found in Europe, and also at Nootka
sound on the western coast of America. Length five inches and
a half; extent eleven inches; bill and legs brownish black; upper
part of the breast gray brown, mixed with white; back and upper
parts black; the whole plumage above broadly edged with bright
bay and yellow ochre; primaries black; greater coverts the same,
tipt with white; eye small, dark hazel; tail rounded, the four
exterior feathers on each side dull white, the rest dark brown;
tertials as long as the primaries; head above dark brown with
paler edges; over the eye a streak of whitish; belly and vent
white; the bill is thick at the base, and very slender towards
the point; the hind toe small. In some specimens the legs were
LITTLE SANDPIPER.
135
of a dirty yellowish colour. Sides of the rump white; just below
the greater coverts the primaries are crossed with white.
Very little difference could be perceived between the plumage
of the males and females. The bay on the edges of the back,
and scapulars, was rather brighter in the male, and the brown
SPECIES 6. TRINGA ALPINA.
RED-JBACKED SANDPIPER.
[Plate LVI.— Fig. 2.]
Dunlin, nirct. Zool. jj. 476, AT?. 391. — Bewick, ii, p. 113. — La
lirunnette. Buff, vn, 493. — Peace’s Museum, J^o. 4094.*
This bird inhabits both the old and new continents, being
known in England by the name of the Dunlin; and in the United
States, along the shores of New Jersey, by that of the Red-back.
Its residence here is but transient, chiefly in April and May,
while passing to the arctic regions to breed; and in September
and October, when on its return southward to winter quarters.
During their stay they seldom collect in separate flocks by them-
selves; but mix with various other species of strand-birds, among
whom they are rendered conspicuous by the red colour of the
upper part of their plumage. They frequent the muddy flats,
and shores of the salt marshes, at low water, feeding on small
worms and other insects which generally abound in such places.
In the month of May they are extremely fat.
This bird is said to inhabit Greenland, Iceland, Scandinavia,
the Alps of Siberia; and in its migrations the coasts of the Cas-
pian sea.t It has not, till now, been recognized by naturalists as
inhabiting this part of North America. Wherever its breeding
place may be, it probably begins to lay at a late period of the
season, as in numbers of females which I examined on the first
of June, the eggs were no larger than grains of mustard seed.
Length of the Red-back eight inches and a half, extent fifteen
inches; bill black, longer than the head, (which would seem to
rank it with the Snipes) slightly bent, grooved on the upper
* Tringa alpina. Lath. Ind. Orn. 736, J^o. 37, — Lt Cinc/e, Buff. PL Enl. 852.
t Pennant.
RED-BACKED SANDPIPER.
137
mandible, and wrinkled at the base; crown, back and scapulars,
bright reddish rust, spotted with black; wing-coverts pale olive;
quills darker; the first tipt, the latter crossed, with white; front,
cheeks, hind-head, and sides of the neck, quite round, also the
breast, grayish white, marked with small specks of black; belly
white, marked with a broad crescent of black; tail pale olive,
the two middle feathers centred with black; legs and feet ashy
black; toes divided to their origin, and bordered with a slightly
scalloped membrane; irides very dark.
The males and females are nearly alike in one respect, both
differing greatly in colour even at the same season, probably
owing to difference of age; some being of a much brighter red
than others, and the plumage dotted with white. In the month
of September, many are found destitute of the black crescent
on the belly; these have been conjectured to be young birds.
Note. — After an attentive examination of many of these birds
on the coast of Cape May, in the month of April, I am perfectly
convinced, that the hitherto supposed two species, the present
and the Purre, constitute but one species, tbe latter being in
immature plumage. In some instances, I found the Purres were
beginning to get the broad band of black on the belly, and the
black thickening with ruddy feathers, appearing almost perfect
Black-bellied Sandpipers.
Wilson’s MSS.
VOL. III. T
TRINGA CINCLUS*
THE PURRE.
[Plate EVIL— Fig. 3.]
Linn. Syst. 251. — Jlrct. Zool. p.475,e Souchet, Briss. vi, p. 329. 6. pi. 32. Jig. 1. — Buff, ix, 191. —
PI. Enl. 971. — Jlrct. Zool. JSTo. 485. — Catesb. i, pi. 96, female.
— La’I'h. Si/n. HI, p. 509. — Pe/lLfIs Museum, J^o. 2734.*
If we except the singularly formed and disproportionate size
of the bill, there are few Ducks more beautiful, or more ele-
gantly marked than this. The excellence of its flesh, which is
uniformly juicy, tender, and well tasted, is another recommen-
dation to which it is equally entitled. It occasionally visits the
seacoast; but is more commonly found on our lakes and rivers,
particularly along their muddy shores, where it spends great
part of its time in searching for small worms, and the larvae of
insects, sifting the watery mud through the long and finely set
teeth of its curious bill, which is admirably constructed for the
purpose; being large, to receive a considerable quantity of mat-
ter, each mandible bordered with close-set, pectinated rows,
exactly resembling those of a weaver’s reed, which fitting into
each other form a kind of sieve, capable of retaining very mi-
nute worms, seeds, or insects, which constitute the principal
food of the bird.
The Shoveller visits us only in the winter, and is not known
to breed in any part of the United States. It is a common bird
* We add the following Synonymes. — Jinas clyptata, Gmei. Sysl. i, p. 518,
No. 19. A. Mex'icana, Id. p. 519, JSIo. SI? — J}. 7-ubens, Id. So- 82. — Lath. hid.
Orn. p. 856, Ifo. 60; p. 857, JVb. 61, TVo. 62. Gen. Syn. iir, p. 511, JVo. 56; p.
512, J^o. 57. Blue-wing shoveller, Catesbt, i, pi. 96, female. — Br. Zool. No.
280, No. 281. — Le Soiichel du Jilexique, Bmss. Ti,p. 337. Le Canard Sauvage
du Mexique, Id. p. 327. No. 5. — Canard Souchel, Temm. Man. d'Orn. p. 842.
— Bewick, ii, p. 310, 313. Peaie’s Museum, No. 2735, female.
SHOVELLER.
293
of Europe, and, according to M. Baillon, the correspondent of
Buffon, breeds yearly in the marshes in France. The female is
said to make her nest on the ground, with withered grass, in
the midst of the largest tufts of rushes or coarse herbage, in the
most inaccessible part of the slaky marsh, and lays ten or twelve
pale rust coloured eggs; the young, as soon as hatched, are con-
ducted to the water by the parent birds. They are said to be
at first very shapeless and ugly, for the bill is then as broad as
the body, and seems too great a weight for the little bird to
carry. Their plumage does not acquire its full colours until af-
ter the second moult.
The Blue winged Shoveller is twenty inches long, and two
feet six inches in extent; the bill is brownish black, three inches
in length, greatly widened near the extremity, closely pecti-
nated on the sides, and furnished with a nail on the tip of each
mandible; irides bright orange; tongue large and fleshy; the in-
side of the upper and outside of the lower mandible are groov-
ed so as to receive distinctly the long separated reed-like teeth;
there is also a gibbosity in the two mandibles, which do not
meet at the sides, and this vacuity is occupied by the sifters
just mentioned; head and upper half of the neck glossy, change-
able green; rest of the neck and breast white, passing round
and nearly meeting above; whole belly dark reddish chestnut;
flanks a brownish yellow, pencilled transversely with black,
between which and the vent, which is black, is a band of white;
back blackish brown, exterior edges of the scapulars white; les-
ser wing coverts and some of the tertials a fine light sky-blue;
beauty spot on the wing a changeable resplendent bronze green,
bordered above by a band of white, and below with another of
velvetty black; rest of the wing dusky, some of the tertials
streaked down their middles with white; tail dusky, pointed,
broadly edged with white; legs and feet reddish orange, hind
toe not finned.
With tlie above another was shot, which differed in having
the breast spotted with dusky, and the back with white; the
green plumage of the head intermixed with gray, and the bel-
294
SHOVELLER.
ly with circular touches of white; evidently a young male in
its imperfect plumage.
The female has the crown of a dusky brown; rest of the head
and neck yellowish white, thickly spotted with dark brown;
these spots on the breast become larger, and crescent-shaped;
back and scapulars dark brown, edged and centered with yel-
low ochre; belly slightly rufous, mixed with white; wing nearly
as in the male.
On dissection the labyrinth in the windpipe of the male was
found to be small; the trachea itself seven inches long; the in-
testines nine feet nine inches in length, and about the thickness
of a crow quill.
SPECIES 5. >aN^S BOSCHAS.
THE MALLARD.
[Plate LXX.— Fig. 7.]
Lath. Syn. iii, p. 489. — Bewick, 291. — Le Canard Sauvage,
Briss. VI, 2^.518. 4. — Buff, ix, p. 115. pi. 7, 8. — Peai.e’s Mh'
sewn, tM a. 2864.*
The Mallard, or common Wild Drake, is so universally
known as scarcely to require a description. It measures twen-
ty-four inches in length, by three feet in extent, and weighs
upwards of two pounds and a half;! the bill is greenish yellow;
irides hazel; head and part of the neck deep glossy changeable-
green, ending in a narrow collar of white; the rest of the neck
and breast are of a dark purplish chestnut; lesser wing coverts
brown ash, greater crossed near the extremities with a band of
white, and tipt with another of deep velvetty black; below this
lies the speculum, or beauty spot, of a rich and splendid light
purple, with green and violet reflexions, bounded on every
side with black; quills pale brownish ash; back brown, skirted
with paler; scapulars whitish, crossed with fine undulating lines
of black; rump and tail coverts black glossed with green, ter-
tials very broad and pointed at the ends; tail consisting of eigh-
teen feathers, whitish, centred with brown ash, the four middle
ones excepted, which are narrow, black glossed with violet, re-
* Jlnas Boschas, Gmei. Syst. i, p. 638, JVo. 40. — Jnd. Orn, p. 850, JVo. 49.-^
.Bret, Zool. JVb. 494. — Br. Zool- JVo. 279. — Le canard Sauvage, PI. Enl. 776,
male; 777, female. — Peale’s Museum, No. 2865, female.
t Mr. Ord shot a male on the Delaware, in the month of April, which
weighed three pounds five ounces; and he saw them in Florida, in the win-
ter, when they are fatter than in the spring, of greater weight. In the
month of March he shot two females, in East Florida, weighing two pounds
each.
296
THE MALLARD.
markably concave, and curled upwards to a complete circle;
belly and sides a fine gray, crossed by an infinite number of
fine waving lines, stronger and more deeply marked as they
approach the vent; legs and feet orange red.
The female has the plumage of the upper parts dark brown
broadly bordered with brownish yellow; and the lower parts
yellow ochre spotted and streaked with deep brown; the chin
and throat for about two inches, plain yellowish white; wings,
bill, and legs, nearly as in the male.
The windpipe of the male has a bony labyrinth, or bladder-
like knob puffing out from the left side. The intestines mea-
sure six feet, and are as wide as those of the Canvas-back. The
windpipe is of uniform diameter until it enters the labyrinth.
This is the original stock of the common domesticated Duck,
reclaimed, time immemorial, from a state of nature, and now
become so serviceable to man. In many individuals the gene-
ral garb of the tame Drake seems to have undergone little or
no alteration ; but the stamp of slavery is strongly imprinted in
his dull indifferent eye, and grovelling gait; while the lofty look,
long tapering neck, and sprightly action of the former, bespeak
his native spirit and independence.
The common Wild Duck is found in every fresh water lake
and river of the United States in winter; but seldom frequents
the seashores or salt marshes. Their summer residence is the
north, the great nursery of this numerous genus. Instances
have been known of some solitary pairs breeding here in au-
tumn. In England these instances are more common. The
nest is usually placed in the most solitary recesses of the marsh,
or bog, amidst coarse grass, reeds, and rushes, and generally
contains from twelve to sixteen eggs of a dull greenish white.
The young are led about by the mother in the same manner as
those of the tame duck; but with a superior caution, a cunning
and watchful vigilance peculiar to her situation. The male at-
taches himself to one female, as among other birds in their na-
tive state, and is the guardian and protector of her and her fee-
ble brood. The Mallard is numerous in the rice fields of the
THE MALLAED.
297
southern states during winter, many of the fields being covered
with a few inches of water, and the scattered grains of the for-
mer harvest lying in abundance, the ducks swim about and feed
at pleasure.
The flesh of the common Wild Duck is in general and high
estimation; and the ingenuity of man, in every country where
it frequents, has been employed in inventing stratagems to
overreach these wary birds, and procure a delicacy for the ta-
ble. To enumerate all these various contrivances would far ex-
ceed our limits; a few, however, of the most simple and efiec-
tive may be mentioned.
In some ponds frequented by these birds, five or six wooden
figures, cut and painted so as to represent ducks, and sunk, by
pieces of lead nailed on their bottoms, so as to float at the usu-
al depth on the surface, are anchored in a favourable position
for being raked from a concealment of brush, &c. on shore.
The appearance of these usually attracts passing flocks, which
alight, and are shot down. Sometimes eight or ten of these
painted wooden ducks are fixed on a frame in various svvimming
postures, and secured to the bow of the gunner’s skiflf, project-
ing before it in such a manner that the weight of the frame sinks
the figures to their proper depth; the skiff is then drest with
sedge or coarse grass in an artful manner, as low as the water’s
edge; and under cover of this, which appears like a party of
ducks swimming by a small island, the gunner floats down
sometimes to the very skirts of a whole congregated multitude,
and pours in a destructive and repeated fire of shot among them.
In winter, when detached pieces of ice are occasionally floating
in the river, some of the gunners on the Delaware paint their
whole skiff or canoe white, and laying themselves flat at the
bottom, with their hand over the side silently managing a small
paddle, direct it imperceptibly into or near a flock, before the
Ducks have distinguished it from a floating mass of ice, and ge-
nerally do great execution among them. A whole flock has
sometimes been thus surprised asleep, with their heads under their
wings. On land, another stratagem is sometimes practised with
VOL. III. — Q q
298
THE MALLARD.
great success. A large tight hogshead is sunk in the flat marsh,
or mud, near the place where Ducks are accustomed to feed at
low water, and where otherwise there is no shelter; the edges
and top are artfully concealed with tufts of long coarse grass and
reeds, or sedge. From within this the gunner, unseen and un-
suspected, watches his collecting prey, and when a sufiicient
number offers, sweeps them down with great effect. The mode
of catching Wild Ducks, as practised in India,* China,t the is-
land of Ceylon, and some parts of South America, f has been
often described, and seems, if reliance may be placed on those
accounts, only practicable in water of a certain depth. The
sportsman covering his head with a hollow wooden vessel or
calabash, pierced with holes to see through, wades into the wa-
ter, keeping his head only above, and thus disguised, moves in
among the flock, which take the appearance to be a mere float-
ing calabash, while suddenly pulling them under by the legs,
he fastens them to his girdle, and thus takes as many as he can
conveniently stow away, without in the least alarming the rest.
They are also taken with snares made of horse hair, or with
hooks baited with small pieces of sheep’s lights, which floating
on the surface, are swallowed by the ducks, and with them the
hooks. They are also approached under cover of a stalking horse,
or a figure formed of thin boards or other proper materials, and
painted so as to represent a horse or ox. But all these methods
require much watching, toil, and fatigue, and their success is but
trifling when compared with that of the Decoy now used both in
France and England,|| which, from its superiority over every oth-
er mode, is well deserving the attention of persons of this country
residing in the neighbourhood of extensive marshes frequented
by Wild Ducks; as, by this method, Mallard and other kinds
may be taken by thousands at a time. The following circum-
stantial account of these decoys, and the manner of taking Wild
* Naval Chron. vol. ii, p. 473. t Du Halde, Hist, China, vol. ii, p. 142.
I Ulloa’s Voy. i, p. 53. || Particularly in Picardy, in the former
country, and Lincolnshire in the latter.
THE MALLARD.
299
Ducks in them in England, is extracted from Bewick’s History
of British Birds, vol. ii, p. 294.
“In the lakes where they resort,” says the correspondent of
that ingenious author, “ the most favourite haunts of the fowl
are observed: then in the most sequestered part of this haunt,
they cut a ditch about four yards across at the entrance, and
about fifty or sixty yards in length, decreasing gradually in
width from the entrance to the farther end, which is not more
than two feet wide. It is of a circular form, but not bending
much for the first ten yards. The banks of the lake, for about
ten yards on each side of this ditch (or pipe, as it is called) are
kept clear from reeds, coarse herbage, &c. in order that the
fowl may get on them to sit and dress themselves. Across this
ditch, poles on each side, close to the edge of the ditch, are
driven into the ground, and the tops bent to each other and tied
fast. These poles at the entrance form an arch, from the top
of which to the water is about ten feet. This arch is made to
decrease in height, as the ditch decreases in width, till the far-
ther end is not more than eighteen inches in height. The poles
are placed about six feet from each other, and connected togeth-
er by poles laid lengthwise across the arch and tied together.
Over them a net with meshes sufficiently small to prevent the
fowl getting through, is thrown across, and made fast to a reed
fence at the entrance, and nine or ten yards up the ditch, and
afterwards strongly pegged to the ground. At the farther end
of the pipe, a tunnel net, as it is called, is fixed, about four
yards in length, of a round form, and kept open by a number
of hoops about eighteen inches in diameter, placed at a small
distance from each other, to keep it distended. Supposing the
circular bend of the pipe to be to the right, when you stand with
your back to the lake, on the left hand side a number of reed
fences are constructed, called shootings, for the purpose of
screening from sight the decoy-man, and in such a manner,
that the fowl in the decoy may not be alarmed, while he is
driving those in the pipe: these shootings are about four yards
in length, and about six feet high, and are ten in number. They
300
THE MALLARD.
are placed in the following
manner —
From the end of the last shooting, a person cannot seethe lake,
owing to the bend of the pipe: there is then no farther occasion
for shelter. Were it not for those shootings, the fowl that re-
main about the mouth of the pipe would he alarmed, if the per-
son driving the fowl already under the net should be exposed,
and would become so shy as to forsake the place entirely. The
first thing the decoy-man does when he approaches the pipe, is
to take a piece of lighted turf or peat and hold it near his mouth,
to prevent the fowl smelling him. He is attended by a dog
taught for the purpose of assisting him: he walks very silently
about half way up the shootings, where a small piece of wood
is thrust through the reed fence, which makes an aperture just
sufficient to see if any fowl are in ; if not, he walks forward to
see if any are about the mouth of the pipe. If there are, he
stops and makes a motion to his dog, and gives him a piece of
cheese or something to eat; upon receiving it he goes directly
to a hole through the reed fence, (No. 1.) and the fowl imme-
diately fly off the bank into the water; the dog returns along the
bank between the reed fences and the pipe, and comes out to
his master at the hole (No. 2.) The man now gives him an-
other reward, and he repeats his round again, till the fowl are
attracted by the motions of the dog, and follow him into the
mouth of the pipe. This operation is called working them. The
man now retreats farther back, working the dog at different
holes till the fowl are sufficiently under the net: he now com-
mands his dog to lay down still behind the fence, and goes for-
ward to the end of the pipe next the lake, where he takes off
his hat and gives it a wave between the shooting; all the fowl
under the net can see him, but none that are in the lake can.
The fowl that are in sight fly forward; and the man runs for-
ward to the next shooting and waves his hat, and so on, driv-
THE MALLAllD.
301
ing them along till they come to the tunnel net, where they
creep in: when they are all in, he gives the net a twist, so as to
prevent their getting back: he then takes the net off from the
end of the pipe with what fowl he may have caught, and takes
therh out one at a time, and dislocates their necks and hangs
the net on again; and all is ready for working again.
“In this manner five or six dozen have been taken at one
drift. When the wind blows directly in or out of the pipe, the
fowl seldom work well, especially when it blows in. If many
pipes are made in a lake, they should be so constructed as to
suit different winds.
“Duck and Mallard are taken from August to June. Teal
or Wigeon, from October to March. Becks, Smee, Golden Eyes,
Arps, Cricks, and Pintails or Sea Pheasants, in March and April.
“Poker Ducks are seldom taken, on account of their diving
and getting back in the pipe.
It may be proper to observe here, that the Ducks feed during
the night, and that all is ready prepared for this sport in the
evening. The better to entice the Ducks into the pipe, hemp
seed is strewed occasionally on the water. The season allowed
by act of parliament for catching these birds in this way, is from
the latter end of October till February.
“Particular spots or decoys, in the fen countries, are let to
the fowlers at a rent of from five to thirty pounds per annum;
and Pennant instances a season in which thirty-one thousand
two hundred Ducks, including Teals and Wigeons, were sold
in London only, from ten of these decoys near Wainfleet, in
Lincolnshire. Formerly, according to Willoughby, the Ducks,
while in moult and unable to fly, were driven by men in boats,
furnished with long poles, with which they splashed the water
between long nets, stretched vertically across the pools, in the
shape of two sides of a triangle, into lesser nets placed at the
point; and in this way, he says, four thousand were taken at one
driving in Deeping-Fen; and Latham has quoted an instance of
two thousand six hundred and forty-six being taken in two days,
near Spalding in Lincolnshire; but this manner of catching them
while in moult is now prohibited.”
302
THE MALLARD.
REFERENCES TO THE CUT.
No. 1. Dog’s hole, where he goes to unbank the fowl.
2. Reed fences on each side of the mouth of the pipe.
3. Where the decoy-man shows himself to the fowl first, and after-
wards at the end of every shooting.
4. Small reed fence to prevent the fowl seeing the dog when he goes
to unbank them.
5. The shootings.
6. Dog’s holes between the shootings, used when working.
7. Tunnel net at the end of the pipe.
8. Mouth of the pipe.
SPECIES 6. ANAS STREPERA.
THE GADWALL.
[Plate LXXI. — Fig. 1, Male.']
Le Chipeau, Briss. vi, p. 339. 8. pi. 55. jig. 1. — Buff, ix, 187. —
PL Enl. 958. — ^rct. Zool. p. 575. — Lath. Syn. iii, p. 515. —
Peale’s Museum, JVo. 2750.*
This beautiful Duck 1 have met with in very distant parts of
the United States, viz. on the Seneca lake in New York, about
the twentieth of October, and at Louisville on the Ohio, in Feb-
ruary. I also shot it near Big Bone Lick in Kentucky. With
its particular manners or breeding place, I am altogether unac-
quainted.
The length of this species is twenty inches, extent thirty-one
inches; bill two inches long, formed very much like that of the
Mallard, and of a brownish black; crown dusky brown, rest of
the upper half of the neck brownish white, both thickly spec-
kled with black; lower part of the neck and breast dusky black,
elegantly ornamented with large concentric semicircles of white;
scapulars waved with lines of white on a dusky ground, but
narrower than that of the breast; primaries ash; greater wing-
coverts black, and several of the lesser coverts immediately
above chestnut red; speculum white, bordered below with black,
forming three broad bands on the wing of chestnut, black, and
white; belly dull white; rump and tail coverts black, glossed
with green; tail tapering, pointed, of a pale brown ash edged
with white; flanks dull white elegantly waved; tertials long,
and of a pale brown, legs orange red.
The female I have never seen. Latham describes it as follows :
* vJnas strepera, Gmei. Sysl. i, p. 520, JVb. 20. — Ind. Orn. p. 849, JVo. 69. —
Temm. Man. d’Orn. p. 837. — Bewick, ii, p. 314. — Peale’s Museum, JVo.
2751, female.
304
THE GADWALL.
“differs in having the colours on the wings duller, though
marked the same as the male; the breast reddish brown spotted
with black; the feathers on the neck and back edged with pale
red; rump the same instead of black; and those elegant semi-
circular lines on the neck and breast wholly wanting.”
The flesh of this duck is excellent, and the windpipe of the
male is furnished with a large labyrinth.
The Gad wall is very rare in the northern parts of the United
States; is said to inhabit England in winter, and various parts
of France and Italy; migrates to Sweden, and is found through-
out Russia and Siberia. *
It is a very quick diver, so as to make it difficult to be shot;
flies also with great rapidity, and utters a note not unlike that
of the Mallard, but louder. Is fond of salines and ponds over-
grown with reeds and rushes. Feeds during the day, as well as
in the morning and evening.
Note. A male specimen shot by Mr. Ord in East Florida, in
the month of February, had its crownof a pale ferruginous, mixed
with brown; head and neck yellowish white, barred and mottled
with brown; back, outer scapulars, vent and flanks, brown, with
pale zigzag lines; some of the inner scapulars reddish and cine-
reous brown; upper and under tail-coverts velvet black; legs
and feet yellow ochre, part of the webs dusky. Weight two
pounds.
This species is very rare on the Delaware; but in East Flo-
rida it is common. On the fresh water ponds, in the vicinity of
the river St. John, Mr. Ord shot many of them; and found them
in good condition, and excellent eating.
’ Latham.
SPECIES'!. ANAS ACUTA.
PINTAIL DUCK.
[Plate LXVIIL— Fig. 3.]
Z,e Canard a longue queue, Bris. vi, p. 369. 16. pi. 54. jig. 1, 2. —
Buff, ix, p. 199. pi. 13. — Pi. Enl. 954. — Arct. Zool. No. 500. —
L/Vth. Syn. ni,p. 526. — Peale’s Museum, No, 2806.
The Pintail, or as it is sometimes called, the Sprigtail, is a
common and well known Duck in our markets, much esteemed
for the excellence of its flesh, and is generally in good order.
It is a shy and cautious bird, feeds in the mud flats, and shallow
fresh water marshes; but rarely resides on the seacoast. It sel-
dom dives, is very noisy, and has a kind of chattering note.
When wounded they will sometimes dive, and coming up con-
ceal themselves under the bow of the boat, moving round as it
moves. Are vigilant in giving the alarm on the approach of the
gunner, who often curses the watchfulness of the Sprigtail. Some
Ducks when aroused disperse in different directions; but the
Sprigtails when alarmed cluster confusedly together as they
mount, and thereby afford the sportsman a fair opportunity of
raking them with advantage. They generally leave the Dela-
ware about the middle of March, on the way to their native re-
gions the north, where they are most numerous. They inhabit
the whole northern parts of Europe and Asia, and doubtless the
corresponding latitudes of America. Are said likewise to be
found in Italy. Great flocks of them are sometimes spread along
the isles and shores of Scotland and Ireland, and on the interior
lakes of both these countries. On the marshy shores of some of
the bays of lake Ontario they are often plenty in the months of
October and November. I have also met with them at Louis-
ville on the Ohio.
VOL. III. — R r
306
PINTAIL DUCK.
The Pintail Duck is twenty-six inches in length, and two feet
ten inches in extent; the bill is a dusky lead colour; irides dark
hazel; head and half of the neck pale brown, each side of the
neck marked with a band of purple violet, bordering the white,
hind part of the upper half of the neck black, bordered on each
side by a stripe of white, which spreads over the lower part of
the neck before; sides of the breast and upper part of the back
white, thickly and elegantly marked with transverse undulating
lines of black, here and there tinged with pale buff; throat and
middle of the belly white tinged with cream; flanks finely pen-
cilled with waving lines, vent white, under tail coverts black;
lesser wing coverts brown ash, greater the same, tipt with
orange, below which is the speculum or beauty spot of rich
golden green bordered below with a band of black, and another
of white; primaries dusky brown; tertials long, black, edged
with white, and tinged with rust; rump and tail coverts pale ash
centered with dark brown; tail greatly pointed, the two middle
tapering feathers being full five inches longer than the others
and black, the rest brown ash edged with white; legs a pale lead
colour.
The female has the crown of a dark brown colour; neck of a
dull brownish white, thickly speckled with dark brown; breast
and belly pale brownish white, interspersed with white; back
and root of the neck above black, each feather elegantly waved
with broad lines of brownish white, these wavings become ru-
fous on the scapulars; vent white, spotted with dark brown; tail
dark brown spotted with white; the two middle tail feathers
half an inch longer than the others.
The Sprigtail is an elegantly formed, long bodied Duck, the
neck longer and more slender than most others.
SPECIES 8. ^N^S AMERICANA.
AMERICAN WIDGEON.
[Plate LXIX.— Fig. 4.]
ho Canard Jensen, FI. Enl. 955. — Buff, ix, f. 174. — .irct. Zool.
No. 502. — Lath. Syn. iii, p. 520. — Peale’s Museum, No. 2798.
This is a handsomely marked and sprightly species, very
common in winter along our whole coast, from Florida to Rhode
Island; but most abundant in Carolina, where it frequents the
rice plantations. In Martinico great flocks take short flights
from one rice field to another during the rainy season, and are
much complained of by the planters. The Widgeon is the con-
stant attendant of the celebrated Canvass back Duck, so abun-
dant in various parts of the Chesapeake Bay, by the aid of
whose labour he has ingenuity enough to contrive to make a
good subsistence. The Widgeon is extremely fond of the tender
roots of that particular species of aquatic plant on which the
Canvass back feeds, and for which that Duck is in the constant
habit of diving. The Widgeon, who never dives, watches the
moment of the Canvass back’s rising, and before he has his eyes
well opened, snatches the delicious morsel from his mouth and
makes off. On this account the Canvass backs and Widgeons,
or as they are called round the bay. Bald pates, live in a state
of perpetual contention. The only chance the latter have is to
retreat, and make their approaches at convenient opportunities.
They are said to be in great plenty at St. Domingo and Cayenne,
where they are called Vingeon or Gingeon. Are said some-
times to perch on trees. Feed in company and have a centinel
on the watch, like some other birds. They feed little during the
day, but in the evenings come out from their hiding places, and
are then easily traced by their particular whistle or whew whew.
This soft note or whistle is frequently imitated with success, to
308
AMERICAN WIDGEON.
entice them within gunshot. They are not known to breed in
any part of the United States. Are common in the winter
months along the bays of Egg Harbour and Cape May, and also
those of the Delaware. They leave these places in April, and
appear upon the coasts of Hudson’s Bay in May, as soon as the
thaws come on, chiefly in pairs; lay there only from six to eight
eggs; and feed on flies and worms in the swamps; depart in
flocks in autumn.*
These birds are frequently brought to the market of Balti-
more, and generally bring a good price, their flesh being ex-
cellent. They are of a lively frolicksome disposition, and with
proper attention might easily be domesticated.
The Widgeon or Bald pate measures twenty-two inches in
length, and thirty inches in extent, the bill is of a slate colour,
the nail black; the front and crown cream coloured, sometimes
nearly white, the feathers inflated; from the eye backwards to
the middle of the neck behind, extends a band of deep glossy
green gold and purple; throat, chin, and sides of the neck be-
fore, as far as the green extends, dull yellowish white, thickly
speckled with black; breast and hind part of the neck hoary bay,
running in under the wings, where it is crossed with fine waving
lines of black, whole belly white; vent black; back and scapu-
lars black, thickly and beautifully crossed with undulating lines
of vinous bay; lower part of the back more dusky; tail coverts
long, pointed, whitish, crossed as the back; tail pointed, brown-
ish ash, the two middle feathers an inch longer than the rest,
and tapering; shoulder of the wing brownish ash, wing coverts
immediately below white, forming a large spot; primaries
brownish ash, middle secondaries black glossed with green,
forming the speculum; tertials black edged with white, between
which and the beauty spot several of the secondaries are white.
The female has the whole head and neck yellowish white,
thickly speckled with black, very little rufous on the breast; the
back is dark brown. The young males, as usual, very much
like the females during the first season, and do not receive their
* Hutchins.
AMERICAN WIDGEON.
309
full plumage until the second year. They are also subject to a
regular change every spring and autumn.
Note. — A few of these birds breed annually in the marshes
in the neighbourhood of Duck creek, in the state of Delaware.
An acquaintance, brought me thence, in the month of June, an
egg, which had been taken from a nest situated in a cluster of
alders; it was very much of the shape of the common Duck’s
egg; the colour a dirty white; length two inches and a quarter,
breadth one inch and five-eights. The nest contained eleven eggs.
This species is seen on the Delaware as late as the first week
of May. On the thirtieth of April last, I observed a large flock
of them, accompanied by a few Mallards and Pintails, feeding
upon the mud-flats, at the lower end of League Island, below
Philadelphia. In the fresh water ponds, situated in the neigh-
bourhood of the river St. John, in East Florida, they find an
abundance of food during the winter; and they become excess-
ively fat. It is needless to add that they are excellent eating.
G. Ord.
SPECIES 9. JiNJiS OB SC UR Jl.
DUSKY DUCK.
[Plate LXXIL— Fig. 5.]
Arct. Zool. JV’o. 4<)9.~LArH. Sijn. in, p.545. — Peale’s Museum,
JVo, 2880.
This species is generally known along the seacoast of New
.Jersey and the neighbouring country by the name of the Black
Duck, being the most common and most numerous of all those
of its tribe that frequent the salt marshes. It is only partially
migratory. Numbers of them remain during the summer, and
breed in sequestered places in the marsh, or on the sea islands
of the beach. The eggs are eight or ten in number, very near-
ly resembling those of the domestic duck. Vast numbers, how-
ever, regularly migrate farther north on the approach of spring.
During their residence here in winter they frequent the marsh-
es, and the various creeks and inlets with which those exten-
sive flats are intersected. Their principal food consists of those
minute snail shells so abundant in the marshes. They occasion-
ally visit the sandy beach in search of small bivalves, and on
these occasions sometimes cover whole acres with their num-
bers. They roost at night in the shallow ponds, in the middle
of the salt marsh, particularly on Islands, where many are
caught by the foxes. They are extremely shy during the day; and
on the most distant report of a musquet, rise from every quar-
ter of the marsh in prodigious numbers, dispersing in every di-
rection. In calm weather they fly high, beyond the reach of
shot; but when the wind blows hard, and the gunner conceals
himself among the salt grass in a place over which they usual-
ly fly, they are shot down in great numbers, their flight being
then low. Geese, Brant, and Black Duck are the common game
DUSKY DUCK.
311
of all our gunners along this part of the coast during winter;
but there are at least ten Black Duck for one Goose or Brant,
and probably many more. Their voice resembles that of the Duck
and Mallard ; but their flesh is greatly inferior, owing to the
nature of their food. They are, however, large, heavy bodied
Ducks, and generally esteemed.
I cannot discover that this species is found in any of the re-
mote northern parts of our continent; and this is probably the
cause why it is altogether unknown in Europe. It is abundant
from Florida to New England; but is not enumerated among
the birds of Hudson’s Bay, or Greenland. Its chief residence
is on the seacoast, though it also makes extensive excursions
up the tide waters of our rivers. Like the Mallard they rarely
dive for food, but swim and fly with great velocity.
The Dusky, or Black Duck, is two feet in length, and three
feet two inches in extent; the bill is of a dark greenish ash,
formed very much like that of the Mallard, and nearly of the
same length; irides dark; upper part of the head deep dusky
brown, intermixed on the fore part with some small streaks of
drab; rest of the head and greater part of the neck pale yellow
ochre, thickly marked with small streaks of blackish brown;
lower part of the neck, and whole lower parts, deep dusky,
each feather edged with brownish white, and with fine seams
of rusty white; upper parts the same, but rather deeper; the
outer vanes of nine of the secondaries bright violet blue, form-
ing the beauty spot, which is bounded on all sides by black;
wings and tail sooty brown; tail feathers sharp pointed; legs
and feet dusky yellow; lining of the wings pure white.
The female has more brown on her plumage; but in other re-
spects differs little from the male, both having the beauty spot
on the wing.
Note. — Of all our Ducks this is perhaps the most sagacious
and the most fearful of man. In the neighbourhood of Phila-
delphia they are found in great numbers, they are notwithstand-
ing hard to be obtained, in consequence of their extreme vigi-
312
DUSKY DUCK.
lance, and their peculiar habits. During the day they chiefly
abandon the marshes; and float in considerable bodies on the
Delaware, taking their repose, with the usual precaution of em-
ploying wakeful sentinels, to give notice of danger. In the
evening they resort to the muddy flats and shores, and occupy
themselves throughout the greater part of the night in seeking
for food. When searching out their feeding grounds, every in-
dividual is on the alert; and on the slightest appearance of an
enemy the whole mount and scatter, in such a manner, that,
in a flock of a hundred, it would be difficult to knock down
more than two or three at one shot. Their sense of smelling is
uncommonly acute, and their eyesight, if we may judge from
their activity at night, must be better than that of most species.
When wounded on the water, they will immediately take to the
shore, if in the vicinity, and conceal themselves under the first
covert, so that one accustomed to this habit can have no diffi-
culty in finding them. G. Ord.
SPECIES 10. ^NAS SPONSA.
SUMMER DUCK, OR WOOD DUCK.
[Plate LXX. — Fig. 3, Male.'\
Le Canard d’Etd, Bkiss. vi, p. 351. 11. pi. 52. Jig. 2. — Le beau
Canard huppd, Buff, ix, p. 245. — PI. Enl. 980. 981. — Summer
Duck, Catesby, I, pi. 97. — Edw. pi. 101. — .drct. Zool. JS'’o. 943.
— Lath. Syn. iii, p. 546. — Peale’s Museum, JVo. 2872, male,
2873, female.*
This most beautiful of all our Ducks, has probably no supe-
rior among its whole tribe for richness and variety of colours.
It is called the Wood Duck, from the circumstance of its breed-
ing in hollow trees; and the Summer Duck, from remaining
with us chiefly during the summer. It is familiarly known in
every quarter of the United States, from Florida to Lake On-
tario, in the neighbourhood of which latter place I have myself
met with it in October. It rarely visits the seashore, or salt
marshes; its favourite haunts being the solitary deep and muddy
creeks, ponds, and mill dams of the interior, making its nest
frequently in old hollow trees that overhang the water.
The Summer Duck is equally well known in Mexico and
many of the West India islands. During the whole of our winters
they are occasionally seen in the states south of the Potowmac.
On the tenth of January I met with two on a creek near Peters-
hurgh in Virginia. In the more northern districts, however,
they are migratory. In Pennsylvania the female usually begins
to lay late in April or early in May. Instances have been known
where the nest was constructed of a few sticks laid in a fork of
the branches; usually, however, the inside of a hollow tree is
selected for this purpose. On the eighteenth of May I visited
* .^nas sponsa, Gmel. Syst. i, p. 539, JVo. 43. — Ind. Orn. p. 876, JVo. 97.
VOL. III. S S
314
SUMMER DUCK.
a tree containing the nest of a Summer Duck, on the banks of
Tuckahoe river, New Jersey. It was an old grotesque white
oak, whose top had been torn off by a storm. It stood on the
declivity of the bank, about twenty yards from the water. In
this hollow and broken top, and about six feet down, on the
soft decayed wood, lay thirteen eggs, snugly covered with down,
doubtless taken from the breast of the bird. These eggs were of
an exact oval shape, less than those of a hen, the surface exceed-
ingly fine grained, and of the highest polish and slightly yel-
lowish, greatly resembling old polished ivory. The egg mea-
sured two inches and an eighth by one inch and a half. On
breaking one of them, the young bird was found to be nearly
hatched, but dead, as neither of the parents had been observed
about the tree during the three or four days preceding; and were
conjectured to have been shot.
This tree had been occupied, probably by the same pair, for
four successive years, in breeding time; the person who gave
me the information, and whose house was within twenty or
thirty yards of the tree, said that he had seen the female, the
spring preceding, carry down thirteen young, one by one, in
less than ten minutes. She caught them in her bill by the wing
or back of the neck, and landed them safely at the foot of the
tree, whence she afterwards led them to the water. Under this
same tree, at the time I visited it, a large sloop lay on the stocks,
nearly finished, the deck was not more than twelve feet distant
from the nest, yet notwithstanding the presence and noise of
the workmen, the ducks would not abandon their old breeding
place, but continued to pass out and in as if no person had been
near. The male usually perched on an adjoining limb, and kept
watch while the female was laying; and also often while she
was sitting. A tame Goose had chosen a hollow space at the
root of the same tree, to lay and hatch her young in.
The Summer Duck seldom flies in flocks of more than three
or four individuals together, and most commonly in pairs, or
singly. The common note of the drake ispeet, peet; but, when
standing centinel, he sees danger, he makes a noise not unlike
SUMMER DUCK.
315
the crowing of a young cock, oe eek! oe eek! Their food consists
principally of acorns, seeds of the wild oats, and insects. Their
flesh is inferior to that of the Blue-winged Teal. They are fre-
quent in the markets of Philadelphia.
Among other gaudy feathers with which the Indians orna-
ment the calumet or pipe of peace, the skin of the head and
neck of the Summer Duck is frequently seen covering the stem.
This beautiful bird has often been tamed, and soon becomes
so familiar as to permit one to stroke its back with the hand. I
have seen individuals so tamed in various parts of the Union.
Captain Boyce, collector of the port of Havre-de- Grace, informs
me that about forty years ago, a Mr. Nathan Nicols, who lived
on the west side of Gunpowder creek, had a whole yard swarm-
ing with Summer Ducks, which he had tamed and completely
domesticated, so that they bred and were as familiar as any
other tame fowls; that he (Capt. Boyce) himself saw them in
that state, but does not know what became of them. Latham
says that they are often kept in European menageries, and will
breed there.*
The Wood Duck is nineteen inches in length, and two feet
four inches in extent, bill red, margined with black; a spot of
black lies between the nostrils, reaching nearly to the tip, which
is also of the same colour, and furnished with a large hooked
nail; irides orange red; front, crown, and pendent crest rich
glossy bronze green ending in violet, elegantly marked with a
line of pure white running from the upper mandible over the
eye, and with another band of white proceeding from behind the
eye, both mingling their long pendent plumes with the green
and violet ones, producing a rich effect; cheeks and sides of the
upper neck violet; chin, throat, and collar round the neck pure
white, curving up in the form of a crescent nearly to the pos-
terior part of the eye; the white collar is bounded below with
black; breast dark violet brown, marked on the fore part with
minute triangular spots of white, increasing in size until they
Gen. Syh. iii, p. 547.
316
SUMMER DUCK.
spread into the white of the belly; each side of the breast is
bounded by a large crescent of white, and that again by a broader
one of deep black; sides under the wings thickly and beautifully
marked with fine undulating parallel lines of black, on a ground
of yellowish drab; the flanks are ornamented with broad alternate
semicircular bands of black and white; sides of the vent rich light
violet; tail-coverts long, of a hair-like texture at the sides, over
which they descend, and of a deep black glossed with green;
back dusky bronze, reflecting green; scapulars black; tail taper-
ing, dark glossy green above, below dusky; primaries dusky,
silvery hoary without, tipt with violet blue; secondaries greenish
blue, tipt with white; wing-coverts violet blue tipt with black;
vent dusky; legs and feet yellowish red, claws strong and hooked.
The above is as accurate a description as I can give of a very
perfect specimen now before me, from which the figure in the
plate was faithfully copied.
The female has the head slightly crested, crown dark purple,
behind the eye a bar of white; chin, and throat for two inches,
also white; head and neck dark drab; breast dusky brown,
marked with large triangular spots of white; back dark glossy
bronze brown, with some gold and greenish reflections. Spe-
culum of the wings nearly the same as in the male, but the fine
pencilling of the sides, and the long hair-like tail-coverts, are
wanting; the tail is also shorter.
SPECIES 11. AN^S DISCORS.
BLUE-WINGED TEAL.
[Plate LXVIIL— Fig. 4, Ma/e.]
La Sarcelle d^'Jlmerique, Biuss. vi, p. 452. 35. — Buff, ix, p. 279.
— Pl.Enl. 966. — Catfish. i,pl. 100. — While faced Duck, Lath.
Syn. iii,p. 502. — Jirct. Zool. dVo. 503. — Peale’s Jl/Msewm, a/Vo.
2846.*
The Blue winged Teal is the first of its tribe that returns to
us in the autumn from its breeding place in the north. They
are usually seen early in September, along the shores of the
Delaware, where they sit on the mud close to the edge of the
water, so crowded together that the gunners often kill great
numbers at a single discharge. When a flock is discovered thus
sitting and sunning themselves, the experienced gunner runs
his batteau ashore at some distance below or above them, and
getting out, pushes her before him over the slippery mud, con-
cealing himself all the while behind her; by this method he can
sometimes approach within twenty yards of the flock, among
which he generally makes great slaughter. They fly rapidly,
and when they alight drop down suddenly like the Snipe or
Woodcock, among the reeds or on the mud. They feed chiefly
on vegetable food, and are eagerly fond of the seeds of the reeds
or wild oats. Their flesh is excellent; and after their residence
for a short time among the reeds, becomes very fat. As the
first frosts come on, they proceed to the south, being a delicate
bird, very susceptible of cold. They abound in the inundated
* .^nas discors, Gmel. Syst. p. 535, No. 37. — Lath. Ind. Otn. p. 854, «A'o. 55.
— Biue-mnged Teal-, Catesh. pi. 99. female. — La Sarcelle de Virghne, Biiiss.
VI, p. 455, J^o. 36. — La Sarcelle Soucrourou, Buff, ix, p, 279. — PI- Eiil.
403, female.
318
BLUE-WINGED TEAL.
rice fields in the southern states, where vast numbers are taken
in traps placed on small dry eminences that here and there rise
above the water. These places are strewed with rice, and by
the common contrivance called a figure four, they are caught
alive in hollow traps. In the month of April they pass through
Pennsylvania for the north; but make little stay at that season.
I have observed them numerous on the Hudson opposite to the
Kaatskill mountains. They rarely visit the seashore.
This species measures about fourteen inches in length, and
twenty-two inches in extent; the bill is long in proportion, and
of a dark dusky slate; the front and upper part of the head are
black, from the eye to the chin is a large crescent of white, the
rest of the head and half of the neck is of a dark slate richly
glossed with green and violet, remainder of the neck and breast
is black or dusky, thickly marked with semicircles of brown-
ish white, elegantly intersecting each other; belly pale brown,
barred with dusky, in narrow lines; sides and vent the same
tint, spotted with oval marks of dusky; flanks elegantly waved
with large semicircles of pale brown; sides of the vent pure
white; under tail coverts black; back deep brownish black, each
feather waved with large semi-ovals of brownish white; lesser
wing coverts a bright light blue; primaries dusky brown; se-
condaries black; speculum or beauty spot, rich green, tertials
edged with black or light blue, and streaked down their mid-
dle with white; the tail, which is pointed, extends two inches
beyond the wings; legs and feet yellow, the latter very small;
the two crescents of white before the eyes meet on the throat.
The female differs in having the head and neck of a dull dusky
slate instead of the rich violet of the male, the hind head is also
whitish. The wavings on the back and lower parts more indis-
tinct; wing nearly the same in both.
SPECIES 12. AN^S CRECCJi.
GREEN-WINGED TEAL.
[Plate LXX.— Fig. 4, Mz/e.]
Lath. Sijn. iii, 554.— -Bewick’s Br. Birds, ii,p. 338. — Peale’s
Museum, JVo. 2832.*
The naturalists of Europe have designated this little Duck by
the name of the American Teal, as being a species different
from their own. On an examination, however, of the figure
and description of the European Teal by the ingenious and ac-
curate Bewick, and comparing them with the present, no dif-
ference whatever appears in the length, extent, colour, or mark-
ings of either, but what commonly occurs among individuals
of any other tribe; both undoubtedly belong to one and the same
species.
This, like the preceding, is a fresh water Duck, common in
our markets in autumn and winter; but rarely seen here in
summer. It frequents ponds, marshes, and the reedy shores of
creeks and rivers. Is very abundant among the rice plantations
of the southern states; flies in small parties, and feeds at night.
Associates often with the Duck and Mallard, feeding on the
seeds of various kinds of grasses and water plants, and also on
the tender leaves of vegetables. Its flesh is accounted excel-
lent.
The Green winged Teal is fifteen inches in length, and twen-
* Anas crecca, Gmei. Sijsi. i, p. 532, No. 23. — Anas Carotinensis, Id. p. 633,
No. 103. — Ind. Orn. p. 872, No. 100; p. 874, No. 101. — Common Teal, Gen-
Syn. Ill, p- 561, No. 88 — American Teal, Id. p. 534, No. 90 — European Teal,
Arct Zool. II, p. 305, P. 4to. American Teal, Id. No. 504. Br. Zool. No. 290.
— L.t petite Sarcelle, Bniss. i,p. 436, No. 32, p]. 40, fig". 1. — Buff, ix, p.
265, pi. 17, 18. — PI. Enl. 947. Temm. Man. d'Orn. p. 846. Peale’s Museum,
2832, female.
320
GREEN-WINGED TEAL.
ty-four inches in extent; bill black, irides pale brown, lower
eye lid whitish, head glossy reddish chestnut; from the eye
backwards to the nape runs a broad band of rich silky green
edged above and below by a fine line of brownish white, the
plumage of the nape ends in a kind of pendent crest; chin black-
ish ; below the chestnut, the neck, for three quarters of an inch
is white, beautifully crossed with circular undulating lines of
black; back, scapulars, and sides of the breast white, thickly
crossed in the same manner; breast elegantly marked with round-
ish or heart shaped spots of black on a pale vinaceous ground,
variegated with lighter tints; belly, white; sides waved with
undulating lines; lower part of the vent feathers black; sides of
the same brownish white, or pale reddish cream; lesser wing
coverts brown ash, greater tipt with reddish cream; the first
five secondaries deep velvetty black, the next five resplendent
green, forming the speculum or beauty spot, which is bound-
ed above by pale bufiT, below by white, and on each side by
deep black; primaries ashy brown; tail pointed, eighteen feath-
ers, dark drab; legs and feet flesh coloured. In some a few
circular touches of white appear on the breast, near the shoul-
der of the wing. The windpipe has a small bony labyrinth
where it separates into the lungs; the intestines measure three
feet six inches, and are very small and tender.
The female wants the chestnut bay on the head, and the band
of rich green through the eye, these parts being dusky white
speckled with black; the breast is gray brown, thickly sprinkl-
ed with blackish, or dark brown ; the back dark brown, waved
with broad lines of brownish white; wing nearly the same as
in the male.
This species is said to breed at Hudson’s Bay, and to have
from five to seven young at a time.* In France it remains
throughout the year, and builds in April, among the rushes on
the edges of ponds. It has been lately discovered to breed also
in England, in the mosses about Carlisle.! It is not known to
* Latham.
t Bewick.
GREEN-WINGED TEAL.
321
breed in any part of the United States. The Teal is found in
thp north of Europe as far as Iceland; and also inhabits the Cas-
pian sea to the south. Extends likewise to China, having been
recognized by Latham among some fine drawings of the birds
of that country.
VOL. III.-— T t
SPECIES 13. ^NAS MOLLISSIMA.
EIDER DUCK.
[Plate LXXI. — Fig. 2, Male.'\
L’Oye d duvet, ou I’Eider, Briss. vi, p, 294. pi. 29, 30. — Buff, ix,
p. 103. pi. 6. — PL Enl. 209. — Great Black and White Buck,
Edvv. pi. 98. — Bewick, ii, p. 279. — Jlrct. Zool. JV* j. 480. — Lath.
Syn. HI, p. 470. — Peale’s Museum, JV'b. 2706.*
The Eider Duck has been long celebrated in Europe for the
abundance and excellence of its down, which for softness,
warmth, lightness, and elasticity surpasses that of all other Ducks.
The quantity found in one nest more than filled the crown of a
hat; yet weighed no more than three quarters of an ounce;t and
it is asserted that three pounds of this down may be compressed
into a space scarce bigger than a man’s fist; yet is afterwards so
dilatable as to fill a quilt five feet square. J
The native regions of the Eider Duck extend from 45° north
to the highest latitudes yet discovered, both in Europe and Ame-
rica. Solitary rocky shores and islands are their favourite haunts.
Some wandering pairs have been known to breed on the rocky
islands beyond Portland in the district of Maine, which is per-
haps the most southern extent of their breeding place. In En-
gland the Fern Isles, on the coast of Northumberland, are an-
nually visited by a few of these birds, being the only place in
South Britain where they are known to breed. They occur
again in some of the western isles of Scotland. Greenland and
Iceland abound with them, and here, in particular places, their
nests are crowded so close together that a person can scarcely
walk without treading on them. The natives of those countries
* Anai moUissima, Gmei. Syst. i, p. 514, .A/b. 15. — Ind. Orn. p, 845, Mi. 35.
t Pennant. t Salem. Orn. p. 416.
EIDER DUCK.
323
know the value of the down, and carry on a regular system of
plunder both of it and also of the eggs. The nest is generally
formed outwardly of drift grass, dry sea weed, and such like
materials, the inside composed of a large quantity of down
plucked from the breast of the female; in this soft elastic bed she
deposits five eggs, extremely smooth and glossy, of a pale olive
colour; they are also warmly covered with the same kind of
down. When the whole number is laid, they are taken away
by the natives, and also the down with which the nest is lined,
together with that which covers the eggs. The female once
more strips her breast of tbe remaining down, and lays a second
time; even this, with the eggs is generally taken away, and it
is said that the male in this extremity furnishes the third quan-
tity of down from his own breast; but if the cruel robbery be a
third time repeated, they abandon tbe place altogether. One
female, during the whole time of laying, generally gives half a
pound of down; and we are told, that in the year 1750, the Ice-
land Company sold as much of this article as amounted to three
thousand seven hundred and forty-five banco dollars, besides
wbat was directly sent to Gluckstadt.* The down from dead
birds is little esteemed, having lost its elasticity.
These birds associate together in flocks, generally in deep
water, diving for shell fish, which constitute their principal food.
They frequently retire to the rocky shores to rest, particularly
on the appearance of an approaching storm. They are numerous
on the coast of Labrador, and are occasionally seen in winter as
far south as the capes of Delaware. Their flesh is esteemed by
the inhabitants of Greenland; but tastes strongly of fish.
The length of this species is two feet three inches, extent three
feet; weight between six and seven pounds; the head is large,
and the bill of singular structure, being three inches in length,
forked in a remarkable manner, running high up in tbe forehead,
between which the plumage descends nearly to the nostril; the
whole of the bill is of a dull yellowish horn colour somewhat
* Letters on IceLand, by Uno Van Troih p. 146.
324
EIDER DUCK.
dusky in the middle; upper part of the head deep velvet black,
divided laterally on the hind head by a whitish band; cheeks
white; sides of the head pale pea green, marked with a narrow
line of white dropt from the ear feathers; the plumage of this
part of the head, to the throat, is tumid, and looks as if cut off
at the end, for immediately below the neck it suddenly narrows,
somewhat in the manner of the Buffel-head, enlarging again
greatly as it descends, and has a singular hollow between the
shoulders behind; the upper part of the neck, the back, scapu-
lars, lesser wing-coverts, and sides of the rump are pure white;
lower part of the breast, belly, and vent black; tail, primaries
and secondaries brownish black, the tertials curiously curved,
falling over the wing; legs short, yellow; webs of the feet dusky.
Latham has given us the following sketch of the gradual pro-
gress of the young males to their perfect colours: “In the first
year the back is white, and the usual parts, except the crown,
black; but the rest of the body is variegated with black and
white. In the second year the neck and breast are spotted black
and white, and the crown black. In the third the colours are
nearly as when in full plumage; but less vivid, and a few spots
of black still remaining on the neck; the crown black, and bifid
at the back part.
“The young of both sexes are the same, being covered with
a kind of hairy down: throat and breast whitish; and a cinereous
line from the bill through the eyes to the hind head.”*
Synopsis, iii, p. 471.
MOLLISSIM^.
EIDER DUCK.
[Plate LXXL — Fig. 3, Female.'\
Peale’s Museum, J\’o. 2707.
The difference of colour in these two birds is singularly great.
The female is considerably less than the male, and the bill does
not rise so high in the forehead; the general colour is a dark
reddish drab, mingled with lighter touches, and every where
spotted with black; wings dusky, edged with reddish; the greater
coverts and some of the secondaries are tipt with white; tail
brownish black, lighter than in the male; the plumage in general
is centred with bars of black, and broadly bordered with rufous
drab; cheeks and space over the eye light drab; belly dusky,
obscurely mottled with black; legs and feet as in the male.
Van Troil, in ^is Letters on Iceland, observes respecting this
Duck, that “the young ones quit the nest soon after they are
hatched, and follow the female, who leads them to the water,
where having taken them on her back, she swims with them a
few yards, and then dives, and leaves them floating on the
water ! In this situation they soon learn to take care of them-
selves, and are seldom afterwards seen on the land; but live
among the rocks, and feed on insects and sea weed.”
Some attempts have been made to domesticate these birds,
but hitherto without success.
SPECIES 14. ANAS PERSPICILLATA.
BLACK, OR SURF DUCK.
[Plate LXVIL— Fig. 1.]
Le grande Macreuse de la Baye de Hudson, Briss. vi, p. 425, 30.
— La Macreuse a large bee, Buff, ix, p. 244. — PL Enl. 995. —
Ewu. 155. — Lath. Syn, iii, p. 479. — Phil, Trans, lxh, v.
4ir. — Pe;ale’s Museum, No. 2788.*
This Duck is peculiar to America, and altogether confined
to the shores and bays of the sea, particularly where the waves
roll over the sandy beach. Their food consists principally of
those small bivalve shell fish already described, spout fish, and
others that lie in the sand near its surface. For these they dive
almost constantly, both in the sandy bays and amidst the tumbl-
ing surf. They seldom or never visit the salt marshes. They
continue on our shores during the winter; and leave us early in
May for their breeding places in the north. Their skins are
remarkably strong, and their flesh coarse, tasting of fish. They
are shy birds, not easily approached, and are common in win-
ter along the whole coast from the river St. Lawrence to Flo-
rida.
The length of this species is twenty inches, extent thirty-two
inches; the bill is yellowish red, elevated at the base, and mark-
ed on the side of the upper mandible with a large square patch
of black, preceded by another space of a pearl colour; the part
of the bill thus marked swells or projects considerably from the
common surface; the nostrils are large and pervious; the sides
of the bill broadly serrated or toothed; both mandibles are fur-
nished with a nail at the extremity; irides white, or very pale
* Anas perspicillttla, Gmel. Syst i,p. 524, No. 25. — /nd. Orn. p. 847, No. 42.
— Pbaie’s JHuseum, No. 2789, female.
BLACK DUCK.
327
cream; whole plumage a shining black, marked on the crown
and hind head with two triangular spaces of pure white; the
plumage on both these spots is shorter and thinner than the
rest; legs and feet blood red; membrane of the webbed feet
black, the primary quills are of a deep dusky brown.
On dissection the gullet was found to be gradually enlarged
to the gizzard, which was altogether filled with broken shell
fish. There was a singular hard expansion at the commence-
ment of the windpipe; and another much larger about three-
quarters of an inch above where it separates into the two lobes
of the lungs; this last was larger than a Spanish hazel nut, flat
on one side and convex on the other. The protuberance on
each side of the bill communicated with the nostril, and was
hollow. All these were probably intended to contain supplies
of air for the bird’s support while under water; the last may also
protect the head from the sharp edges of the shells.
The female is altogether of a sooty brown, lightest about the
neck; the prominences on the bill are scarcely observable and
its colour dusky.
This species was also found by captain Cooke at Nootka
Sound, on the north-west coast of America.
SPECIES 15. ANAS FUSCA.
VELVET DUCK.
[Plate LXXIL— Fig. 3. Male.}
Le grande Macreuse, Briss. vi, p. 423, 29. — Buff, ix, p. 242. —
PL Enl. 956. — .drct. Zool. No. 482. — Bf.wick, ii, p. 286. —
Lath. Syn. iii, p. 482. — Peale’s Museum, No. 2658, Female.*
This and the following are frequently confounded together
as one and the same species by our gunners on the sea coast.
The former, however, differs in being of greater size; in hav-
ing a broad band of white across the wing; a spot of the same
under the eye, and in the structure of its bill. The habits of
both are very much alike; they visit us only during the winter;
feed entirely on shell fish, which they procure by diving; and
return to the northern regions early in spring to breed. They
often associate with the Scoters, and are taken frequently in the
same nets with them. Owing to the rank fishy flavour of its flesh,
it is seldom sought after by our sportsmen or gunners, and is
very little esteemed.
The Velvet Duck measures twenty-three inches in length,
and two feet nine inches in extent, and weighs about three
pounds; the bill is broad, a little elevated at the base, where it
is black, the rest red, except the lower mandible, which is of a
pale yellowish white; both are edged with black, and deeply
toothed; irides pale cream; under the eye is a small spot of white;
general colour of the plumage brownish black, the secondaries
excepted, which are white, forming a broad band across the
wing; there are a few reflections of purple on the upper plu-
* Jlnas Fusca, Gmel. Syst. i, p. 507, No. 6. — Ind. Orn. p. 848, No. 44. — Ca-
nard double Macreuse, Temm. Man. d’Orn. p. 858.
VELVET DUCK.
329
mage; the legs are red on the outside, and deep yellow sprinkl-
ed with blackish on the inner sides; tail short and pointed.
The female is very little less than the male; but differs con-
siderably in its markings. The bill is dusky, forehead and
cheeks white, under the eye dull brownish; behind that a large
oval spot of white; whole upper parts and neck dark brownish
drab; tips of the plumage lighter, secondaries white; wing quills
deep brown; belly brownish white; tail hoary brown; the throat
is white, marked with dusky specks; legs and feet yellow.
Latham informs us that this species is sometimes seen on the
coast of England, but is not common there; that it inhabits Den-
mark and Russia, and in some parts of Siberia is very common.
It is also found at Kamtschatka, where it is said to breed, going
far inland to lay; the eggs are eight or ten, and white; the males
depart, and leave the females to remain with the young until
they are able to fly. In the river Ochotska they are so nume-
rous that a party of natives, consisting of fifty or more, go off
in boats and drive these ducks up the river before them, and
when the tide ebbs fall on them at once, and knock them on
the head with clubs, killing such numbers that each man has
twenty or thirty for his share.*
* Hist. Kamtschatka, p. 160.
VOL. III. U U
SPECIES 16. ^NAS NIGE^.
SCOTER DUCK.
[Plate LXXII.— Fig. 2.]
Le Macreuse, Biuss. vi, p. 420. pi. S8. Jig. 2.— Buff, ix, p. 234. pL
16. — FI. Enl. 978. — Bewick, ii, p. 288. — .Arct. Zool. JV*o. 484.
— Lath. Syn. iii,p. 480. — Peale’s Museum, JV*o. 2658;*
This Duck is but little known along our seacoast, being more
usually met with in the northern than southern districts; and
only during the winter. Its food is shell fish, for which it is
almost perpetually diving. That small bivalve so often mention-
ed, small muscles, spout fish, called on the coast razor handles,
young clams, &c. furnish it with abundant fare; and wherever
these are plenty the Scoter is an occasional visitor. They swim,
seemingly at ease, amidst the very roughest of the surf; but fly
heavily along the surface, and to no great distance. They rarely
penetrate far up our rivers, but seem to prefer the neighbour-
hood of the ocean; differing in this respect from the Cormorant,
which often makes extensive visits to the interior.
The Scoters are said to appear on the coasts of France in
great numbers, to which they are attracted by a certain kind
of small bivale shell fish called vaimeaux, probably diflfering
little from those already mentioned. Over the beds of these
shell fish the fishermen spread their nets, supporting them,
horizontally, at the height of two or three feet from the bottom.
At the flowing of the tide the Scoters approach in great num-
bers, diving after their favourite food, and .soon get entangled
in the nets. Twenty or thirty dozen have sometimes been taken
in a single tide. These are sold to the Roman Catholics, who
* Jlnasnigra, Gmei. Sijst. i, p. 508, Ao. I. — Ind. Ont. p. 848, .Vo. 43. — Tbmjt.
Man. d’Orn. p. 856 — Peale’s Musexm, .A/’o. 2659, female.
SCOTER DUCK.
331
eat them on those days on which they are forbidden by their
religion the use of animal food, fish excepted; these birds, and
a few others of the same fishy flavour, having been exempted
from the interdict, on the supposition of their being cold blood-
ed, and partaking of the nature of fish.*
The Scoter abounds in Lapland, Norway, Sweden, Russia,
and Siberia. It was also found by Osbeck, between the islands
of Java and St. Paul, Lat. 30 and 34, in the month of June.t
This species is twenty-one inches in length, and thirty-four
in extent, and is easily distinguished from all other Ducks by
the peculiar form of its bill, which has at the base a large ele-
vated knob, of a red colour, divided by a narrow line of yellow,
which spreads over the middle of the upper mandible, reaching
nearly to its extremity, the edges and lower mandible are black;
the eyelid is yellow, iris dark hazel; the whole plumage is
black, inclining to purple on the head and neck; legs and feet
reddish.
The female has little or nothing of the knob on the bill; her
plumage above a sooty brown, and below of a grayish white.
* Bewick.
t Voy. i, p. 120.
SPE CIES 1 7. ^NySS P UBID US.
RUDDY DUCK.
[Plate LXXI. — Fig. 5, Mult Male,'\
Peale’s Museum, J^o. 2808.
This very rare Duck was shot, some years ago, on the river
Delaware, and appears to be an entire new species. The speci-
men here figured, with the female that accompanies it, and
which was killed in the same river, are the only individuals of
their kind I have met with. They are both preserved in the
superb Museum of my much respected friend, Mr. Peale, of
this city.
On comparing this Duck with the description given by Latham
of the Jamaica Shoveller, I was at first inclined to believe I
had found out the species; but a more careful examination of
both satisfied me that they cannot be the same, as the present
differs considerably in colour; and besides has some peculiari-
ties which the eye of that acute ornithologist could not possibly
have overlooked, in his examination of the species said to have
been received by him from Jamaica. Wherever the general
residence of this species may be, in this part of the world, at
least, it is extremely rare, since among the many thousands of
Ducks brought to our markets during winter, I have never
heard of a single individual of the present kind having been
found among them.
The Ruddy Duck is fifteen inches and a half in length, and
twenty-two inches in extent; the bill is broad at the tip, the un-
RUDDY DUCK.
333
der mandible much narrower, and both of a rich light blue;
nostrils small, placed in the middle of the bill; cheeks and chin
white; front, crown, and back part of the neck down nearly to
the back, black; rest of the neck, whole back, scapulars, flanks
and tail coverts deep reddish brown, the colour of bright ma-
hogany; wings plain pale drab, darkest at the points; tail black,
greatly tapering, containing eighteen narrow pointed feathers;
the plumage of the breast and upper part of the neck is of a re-
markable kind, being dusky olive at bottom, ending in hard
bristly points of a silvery gray, very much resembling the hair
of some kinds of seal skins; all these are thickly marked with
transverse curving lines of deep brown; belly and vent silver
gray, thickly crossed with dusky olive; under tail coverts white;
legs and feet ash coloured.
Note. — It is a circumstance in ornithology well worthy of
note, that migratory birds frequently change their route, and,
consequently, become common in those districts where they
had been either unknown, or considered very rare. Of the Syl-
via magnolia, Wilson declares that he had seen but two indi-
viduals, and these in the western country; the Muscicapa
cucullata he says is seldom observed in Pennsylvania, and the
northern states; the Muscicapa pusilla, and the Muscicapa
Canadensis, he considered rare birds with us; notwithstanding^
in the month of May, 1815, all of these were seen in our gar-
dens; and the Editor noted the last mentioned as among the
most numerous of the passenger birds of that season.
The subject of this chapter affords a case in point. The year
subsequent to the death of our author this Duck began to make
its appearance in our waters. In October, 1814, the Editor
procured a female, which had been killed from a flock, consist-
ing of five, at Wind-mill Island, opposite to Philadelphia. In
October, 1818, he shot three individuals, two females and a
male; and in April last another male, all of which, except one,
were young birds. He has also at various times, since 1814,
334
RUDDY DUCK.
seen several other male specimens of this species, not one of
which was an adult. In effect, the only old males which he has
ever seen are that in Peale’s Museum, and another in the Cabi-
net of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia.
The Duck figured in the plate as the female was a young
male, as the records of the Museum show; the great difference
between its colours and markings, and those of the full-plumaged
male, having induced the author to conclude it was a female,
although he was perfectly familiar with the fact, that the young
males of several species of this genus so nearly resemble the
other sex, it requires a very accurate eye, aided by much ex-
perience, to distinguish them by their external characters. This
is precisely the case with the present species; the yearlings, of
both sexes, are alike; and it is not until the succeeding spring
that those characters appear in the males which enable one to
indicate them, independent on dissection.
The opinion of our author that this species is not the Jamaica
Shoveller of Latham the editor cannot subscribe to, it appearing
to him that the specimen from which Latham took his descrip-
tion was a young male of the Duck now before us. The latter
informs us that the species appears in Jamaica in October or
November; remains till March; and then retires to the north.
This account coincides with ours: we see the bird on its way to
the south in October; it reaches Jamaica in November; it departs
thence in March, and revisits us, in regular progression, in
April. Where its summer residence is we are not informed;
and we are equally ignorant whether the species is numerous in
any part of our continent or not.
Judging from the descriptions of the Ural Duck of European
writers, there should seem to be a great affinity between that
and the present. Through the polite attention of Mr. Charles
Bonaparte, the editor was enabled to examine a female speci-
men of the former; and as he perceived some differences, he will
here note them. The bill of the Ural Duck, from the angle of
the mouth, is two inches long: that of our Duck is one inch and
RUDDY DUCK.
335
three quarters, it is also less gibbous at the base than in the for-
mer, and it is less depressed above; the tail feathers of the Ural
Duck are guttered their whole length: those of the Ruddy Duck
are slightly canaliculated at their tips; the lateral membrane of
the inner toe of the latter is not half the breadth of that of the
former. In other respects the females of the two species much
resemble each other. In order to draw a just parallel, it would
be necessary to examine a male specimen of the European Bird,
which our cabinets do not possess.
The female is fifteen inches in length; bill to the angle of the
mouth one inch and three quarters long, its lower half very
broad, of a deep dusky olive, the nail resembling a narrow clasp
of iron; nostrils oval, with a curved furrow below them; eyes
small and dark; the upper part of the head, from the bill to the
hind-head, variegated with shining bronze and blackish brown,
the latter crossing the head in lines; cheeks white, mixed with
dusky, and some touches of bronze; lores drab and dusky, mixed
with a small portion of white; neck short and thick, its lower
half above, extending between the shoulders, drab, mixed with
dusky; throat, and whole lower parts, dusky ash, the plumage
tipt with dull white, having a silver gray appearance; the up-
per parts are dusky, marked or pencilled with pale ferruginous,
and dull white; breast slightly tinged with reddish brown; the
wings are small, greatly concave, and, when closed, are short
of the extremities of the tail-coverts about three quarters of an
inch — they are dusky, their coverts finely dotted or powdered
with white; tail dusky, marked at its extremity with a few very
fine dots of reddish white, it extends beyond its upper coverts
two inches and a half; under tail-coverts white; legs and feet
dusky slate; weight sixteen ounces and a half. The gizzard of
the above contained sand and some small seeds. Her eggs were
numerous and tolerably large; hence, as she was shot in the
month of October, it was conjectured that she was a bird of the
preceding year.
The young male, shot in April last, measured fifteen inches
336
RUDDY DUCK.
in length; its irides were dark brown; bill elevated at the base,
slightly gibbous, and blue ash, from the nostrils to the tip mixed
with dusky, lower mandible yellowish flesh colour, marbled
with dusky; crown brown black; throat and cheeks, as far as
the upper angle of the bill, white, stained with bright yellow
ochre; auriculars almost pure white; the black from the crown
surrounded the eyes, and passed round the white of the auricu-
lars; hind-head black, mixed with ferruginous; breast and shoul-
ders bright ferruginous; belly ash and silver white; back and
scapulars liver brown, finely penciled with gray and reddish
white; rump and upper tail-coverts the same ground colour, but
the markings not so distinct; wings light liver brown, the lesser
coverts finely powdered with gray; on the back and scapulars,
the flanks, and round the base of the neck, the brownish red or
bright mahogany coloured plumage, which distinguishes the adult
male, was coming out; inner webs of the tail partly dusky, out-
er webs, for two-thirds of their length, and the tip, dirty ferrugi-
nous; legs blue ash in front, behind, the toes and webs, dusky.
When the tail is not spread, it is somewhat conical, and its
narrow, pointed feathers, are slightly guttered at their tips;
when spread, it is wedge-shaped. The trachea is of nearly equal
diameter throughout; and has no labyrinth or enlargement at its
lower part.
Another young male, shot in October, measured fifteen and
a quarter inches in length, and twenty-three inches in breadth;
bill greenish black, lower mandible yellowish flesh colour, mixed
with dusky; from the bill to the hind-head a deep liver brown,
the tips of the plumage bronzed; whole upper parts dark um-
ber brown, pencilled with pale ferruginous, buff and white; from
the corner of the mouth a brown marking extended towards the
eye; tail dusky, ash coloured at its extremity; legs and feet
dusky ash, toes paler, having a yellowish tinge, webs dusky,
claws sharp.
The shafts of the tail feathers of all these specimens, except
that shot in April, projected beyond the webs; in one specimen
RUDDY DUCK.
337
the shaft of one of the middle feathers projected an inch, and
was ramified into rigid bristles, resembling those of the tail of
Bufibn’s Sarcellea queue epineuse de Cayenne, PI, Enl. 967;
in all the specimens there was the appearance of the tail feath-
ers having been furnished with the like process, but which had
been rubbed olf. Can it be that this Duck makes use of its tail
in climbing up the fissures of rocks, or the hollows of trees?
Its stiff, narrow feathers, notunlike those of the tail of a Wood-
pecker, would favour this supposition. It is worthy of note
that the tail of Mr. Bonaparte’s female specimen, alluded to
above, is thus rubbed.
The plumage of the neck and breast, which Wilson says is
of a remarkable kind, that is, stiff and bristly at the tips, is
common to several Ducks, and therefore is no peculiarity.
The body of this species is broad, flat and compact; its wings
short and concave; its legs placed far behind; and its feet un-
commonly large; it consequently is an expert diver. It flies
with the swiftness, and in the manner, of the Buffel-head; and
it swims precisely as Latham reports the Ural Duck to swim,
with the tail immersed in the water as far as the rump; but
whether it swims thus low with the view of employing its tail
as a rudder, as Latham asserts of the Ural, or merely to conceal
itself from observation, as the Scaup Duck is wont to do when
wounded, and as all the Divers do when pursued, I cannot
determine.
This is a solitary bird; and with us we never see more than
five or six together, and then always apart from other Ducks.
It is uncommonly tame, so much so, that, by means of my skiff,
I have never experienced any difficulty in approaching within
a few yards of it. Its flesh I do not consider superior to that of
the Buffel-head, which, with us, is a Duck not highly esteemed.
I should not be surprised if Buffon’s Sarcelle d queue epin-
euse de Cayenne should turn out to be this species. The char-
acters of the two certainly approximate; but as I have not been
VOL. III. X X
338
EUDDY DUCK.
enabled to settle the question of their identity in my own mind,
T shall, for the present, let the affair rest.
G. OnL
^ms HUB in us.
RUDDY DUCK.
[Plate LXXI — Fig. 6, Female. *]
Peale’s Museum, IN'o. 2809.
This is nearly of the same size as the male; the front, lores,
and crown, deep blackish brown; bill as in the male, very
broad at the extremity, and largely toothed on the sides, of the
same rich blue; cheeks a dull cream; neck plain dull drab, sprin-
kled about the auriculars with blackish; lower part of the neck
and breast variegated with gray, ash, and reddish brown; the
reddish dies off towards the belly, leaving this last of a dull
white shaded with dusky ash; wings as in the male, tail brown;
scapulars dusky brown thickly sprinkled with whitish, giving
them a gray appearance; legs ash.
A particular character of this species is its tapering sharp
pointed tail, the feathers of which are very narrow; the body
is short; the bill very nearly as broad as some of those called
Shovellers; the lower mandible much narrower than the upper.
This a young- male, and not a female.
SPECIES 18. AN^S VJiLISINERM.
CANVAS-BACK DUCK.
[Plate LXX.— Fig. 5.]
Peale’s Museum, JVo. 2816.
This celebrated American species, as far as can be judged
from the best figures and descriptions of foreign birds, is alto-
gether unknown in Europe. It approaches nearest to the Pochard
of England, Jinas ferina, but differs from that bird in being
superior in size and weight, in the greater magnitude of its bill,
and the general whiteness of its plumage. A short comparison
of the two will elucidate this point. The Canvas-back measures
two feet in length, by three feet in extent, and when in the best
order weighs three pounds and upwards. The Pochard, accord-
ing to Latham and Bewick, measures nineteen inches in length,
and thirty in extent, and weighs one pound twelve or thirteen
ounces. The latter writer says of the Pochard, ‘‘ the plumage
above and below is wholly covered with prettily freckled slen-
der dusky threads disposed transversely in close set zig-zag lines,
on a pale ground, more or less shaded off with ash;” a descrip-
tion much more applicable to the bird figured beside it, the Red
Head, and which very probably is the species meant. In the
figure of the Pochard given by Mr. Bewick, who is generally
correct, the bill agrees very well with that of our Red Head;
but is scarcely half the size and thickness of that of the Canvas-
back; and the figure in the Planches Enluminees corresponds
in that respect with Bewick’s. In short, either these writers are
egregiously erroneous in their figures and descriptions, or the
present Duck was altogether unknown to them. Considering the
latter supposition the more probable of the two, I have desig-
nated this as a new species, and shall proceed to detail some
particulars of its history.
CANVAS-BACK DUCK. 341
The Canvas-back Duck arrives in the United States from the
north about the middle of October, a few descend to the Hud-
son and Delaware, but the great body of these birds resort to
the numerous rivers belonging to and in the neighbourhood of
the Chesapeake Bay, particularly the Susquehannah, the Pa-
tapsco, Potowmac, and James’ rivers, which appear to be their
general winter rendezvous. Beyond this to the south, I can find
no certain accounts of them. At the Susquehannah they are
called Canvas-backs, on the Potowmac White-hacks, and on
James’ river Sheldrakes. They are seldom found at a great
distance up any of these rivers, or even in the salt water bay;
but in that particular part of tide water where a certain grass-
like plant grows, on the roots of which they feed. This plant,
which is said to be a species of Valisineria, grows on fresh
water shoals of from seven to nine feet (but never where these
are occasionally dry,) in long narrow grass-like blades of four
or five feet in length; the root is white, and has some resem-
blance to small celery. This grass is in many places so thick
that a boat can with difficulty be rowed through it, it so impedes
the oars. The shores are lined with large quantities of it torn
up by the Ducks, and drifted up by the winds, lying like hay
in wind rows. Wherever this plant grows in abundance the
Canvas-backs may be expected, either to pay occasional visits
or to make it their regular residence during the winter. It oc-
curs in some parts of the Hudson; in the Delaware near Glou-
cester, a few miles below Philadelphia; and in most of the rivers
that fall into the Chesapeake, to each of which particular places
these Ducks resort; while in waters unprovided with this nutri-
tive plant they are altogether unknown.
On the first arrival of these birds in the Susquehannah, near
Havre-de-Grace, they are generally lean ; but such is the abun-
dance of their favourite food, that towards the beginning of
November they are in pretty good order. They are excellent
divers, and swim with great speed and agility. They sometimes
assemble in such multitudes as to cover several acres of the
river, and when they rise suddenly, produce a noise resembling
342
CANVAS-BACK DUCK.
thunder. They float about these shoals, diving and tearing up
the grass by the roots, which is the only part they eat. They
are extremely shy, and can rarely be approached unless by stra-
tagem. When wounded in the wing they dive to such prodigious
distances, and with such rapidity, continuing it so perseveringly,
and with such cunning and active vigour, as almost always to
render the pursuit hopeless. From the great demand for these
Ducks, and the high price they uniformly bring in market,
various modes are practised to get within gunshot of them. The
most successful way is said to be, decoying them to the shore
by means of a dog, while the gunner lies closely concealed in a
proper situation. The dog, if properly trained, plays backwards
and forwards along the margin of the water, and the Ducks
observing his manoeuvres, enticed perhaps by curiosity, gradu-
ally approach the shore, until they are sometimes within twenty
or thirty yards of the spot where the gunner lies concealed, and
from which he rakes them, first on the water and then as they
rise. This method is called tolling them in. If the Ducks seem
difficult to decoy, any glaring object, such as a red handkerchief,
is fixed round the dog’s middle, or to his tail, and this rarely
fails to attract them. Sometimes by moonlight the sportsman
directs his skiff towards a flock whose position he had previously
ascertained, keeping within the projecting shadow of some wood,
bank, or headland, and paddles along so silently and impercep-
tibly as often to approach within fifteen or twenty yards of a
flock of many thousands, among whom he generally makes great
slaughter.
Many other stratagems are practised, and indeed every plan
that the ingenuity of the experienced sportsman can suggest, to
approach within gun shot of these birds; but of all the modes
pursued, none intimidate them so much as shooting them by
night; and they soon abandon the place where they have been
thus repeatedly shot at. During the day they are dispersed
about; but towards evening collect in large flocks, and come
into the mouths of creeks, where they often ride as at anchor,
with their head under their wing, asleep, there being always
CANVAS-BACK DUCK.
343
centinels awake ready to raise an alarm on the least appearance
of danger. Even when feeding and diving in small parties, the
whole never go down at one time, but some are still left above
on the look out.
When the winter sets in severely, and the river is frozen, the
Canvas-backs retreat to its confluence with the bay, occasionally
frequenting air holes in the ice, which are sometimes made for
the purpose, immediately above their favourite grass, to entice
them within gun shot of the hut or bush which is usually fixed
at a proper distance, and where the gunner lies concealed, ready
to take advantage of their distress. A Mr. Hill, who lives near
James’ river, at a place called Herring Creek, informs me, that
one severe winter he and another person broke a hole in the ice
about twenty by forty feet, immediately over a shoal of grass,
and took their stand on the shore in a hut of brush, each having
three guns well loaded with large shot. The Ducks, which were
flying up and down the river in great extremity, soon crowded
to this place, so that the whole open space was not only covered
with them, but vast numbers stood on the ice around it. They
had three rounds firing both at once, and picked up eighty-eight
Canvas-backs, and might have collected more had they been
able to get to the extremity of the ice after the wounded ones.
In the severe winter of 177 9-80, the grass, on the roots of which
these birds feed, was almost wholly destroyed in James’ river.
In the month of January the wind continued to blow from W.
N. W. for twenty-one days, which caused such low tides in the
river that the grass froze to the ice every where, and a thaw
coming on suddenly, the whole was raised by the roots and
cai’ried off by the fresh. The next winter a few of these Ducks
were seen, but they soon went away again; and for many years
after, they continued to be scarce; and even to the present day,
in the opinion of my informant, have never been so plenty as
before.
The Canvas-back, in the rich juicy tenderness of its flesh,
and its delicacy and flavour, stands unrivalled by the whole of
its tribe in this or perhaps any other quarter of the world. Those
344
CANVAS-BACK DUCK.
killed in the waters of the Chesapeake are generally esteemed
superior to all others, doubtless from the great abundance of
their favourite food which these rivers produce. At our pub-
lic dinners, hotels, and particular entertainments, the Canvas-
backs are universal favourites. They not only grace but digni-
fy the table, and their very name conveys to the imagination
of the eager epicure the most comfortable and exhilarating
ideas. Hence on such occasions it has not been uncommon to
pay from one to three dollars a pair for these ducks; and, in-
deed, at such times, if they can they must be had, whatever
may be the price.
The Canvas-back will feed readily on grain, especially wheat,
and may be decoyed to particular places by baiting them with
that grain for several successive days. Some few years since a
vessel loaded with wheat was wrecked near the entrance of
Great Egg Harbour, in the autumn, and went to pieces. The
wheat floated out in vast quantities, and the whole surface of
the bay was in a few days covered with Ducks of a kind alto-
gether unknown to the people of that quarter. The gunners of the
neighbourhood collected in boats, in every direction, shooting
them, and so successful were they, that, as Mr. Beasley informs
me, two hundred and forty were killed in one day, and sold among
the neighbours, at twelve and a half cents a piece, without the
feathers. The wounded ones were generally abandoned, as be-
ing too difficult to be come up with. They continued about for
three weeks, and during the greater part of that time a continu-
al cannonading was heard from every quarter. The gunners
called them Sea Ducks. They were all Canvas-backs, at that
time on their way from the north, when this floating feast at-
tracted their attention, and for a while arrested them in their
course. A pair of these very ducks I myself bought in Phila-
delphia market at the time, from an Egg Harbour gunner, and
never met with their superior either in weight or excellence of
flesh. When it was known among those people the loss they
had sustained in selling for twenty-five cents what would have
CANVAS-BACK DUCK.
345
brought them from a dollar to a dollar and a half per pair, uni-
versal surprise and regret were naturally enough excited.
The Canvas-back is two feet long, and three feet in extent,
and when in good order weighs three pounds; the bill is large,
rising high in the head, three inches in length, and one inch
and three-eighths thick at the base, of a glossy black; eye very
small, irides dark red; cheeks and fore part of the head black-
ish brown; rest of the head and greater pai't of the neck bright
glossy reddish chestnut, ending in a broad space of black that
covers the upper part of the breast, and spreads round to the
back; back, scapulars, and tertials white, faintly marked with
an infinite number of transverse waving lines or points as if
done with a pencil; whole lower parts of the breast, also the
belly, white, slightly pencilled in the same manner, scarcely
perceptible on the breast, pretty thick towards the vent; wing
coverts gray with numerous specks of blackish; primaries and
secondaries pale slate, two or three of the latter of which near-
est the body are finely edged with deep velve tty black, the for-
mer dusky at the tips; tail very short, pointed, consisting of
fourteen feathers of a hoary brown; vent and tail coverts black;
lining of the wing white; legs and feet very pale ash, the latter
three inches in width, a circumstance which partly accounts for
its great powers of swimming.
The female is somewhat less than the male, and weighs two
pounds and three quarters; the crown is blackish brown, cheeks
and throat of a pale drab; neck dull brown; breast as far as the
black extends on the male, dull brown skirted in places with
pale drab; back dusky white crossed with fine waving lines;
belly of the same dull white, pencilled like the back; wings,
feet, and bill, as in the male; tail coverts dusky, vent white
waved with brown.
The windpipe of the male has a large flattish concave laby-
rinth, the ridge of which is covered with a thin transparent
membrane; where the trachea enters this it is a very narrow,
but immediately above swells to three times that diameter. The
intestines are wide, and measure five feet in length.
VOL. III. — y y
346
CANVAS-BACK DUCK.
Note. — It is a circumstance calculated to excite our surprise,
that the Canvas-back, one of the commonest species of our coun-
try, a Duck which frequents the waters of the Chesapeake in
flocks of countless thousands, should yet have been either over-
looked by the naturalists of Europe, or confounded with the
Pochard, a species whose characters are so obviously difierent.
But that this is the fact 1 feel well assured, since I have care-
fully examined every author of repute, to which I have had ac-
cess, and have not been enabled to find any description which
will correspond to the subject before us. The species, then,
we hope, will stand as Wilson’s own; and it is no small addi-
tion to the fame of the American Ornithology that it contains
the first scientific account of the finest Duck that any country
can boast of.
The Canvas-back frequents the Delaware in considerable num-
bers. The Vallisneria grows pretty abundantly, in various
places, from Burlington, New Jersey, to Eagle Point, a few
miles below Philadelphia. Wherever this plant is found there
will the Ducks be; and they will frequently venture within
reach of their enemies’ weapons rather than abstain from the
gratification of their appetite for this delicious food. The shoot-
ers in the neghbourhood of Philadelphia for many years were in
the habit of supplying our markets with this species, which al-
ways bore the name of Red-heads or Red-necks; and their ig-
norance of its being the true Canvas-back was cunningly fos-
tered by our neighbours of the Chesapeake, who boldly assert-
ed that only their waters were favoured with this species, and
that all other Ducks, which seemed to claim affinity, were a
spurious race, unworthy of consanguinity. Hence at the same
time when a pair of legitimate Canvas-backs, proudly exhibit-
ed from the mail-coach, from Havre-de-Grace, readily sold for
two dollars and fifty cents, a pair of the identical species, as fat,
as heavy, as delicious, but which had been unfortunately killed
in the Delaware, brought only one dollar; and the lucky shoot-
er thought himself sufficiently rewarded in obtaining twenty-
five per cent, more for his Red-necks than he could obtain for
CANVAS-BACK DUCK.
347
a pair of the finest Mallards that our waters could afibrd. But
the delusion is now passed; every shooter and huckster knows
the distinctive characters of the Canvas-back and the Red-head;
and prejudice no longer controverts the opinion that this spe-
cies is a common inhabitant of the Delaware; and epicures are
compelled to confess that they can discern no diflerence be-
tween our Canvas-back, when in season, and that from Spesu-
tie, or Carrol’s Island, the notorious shooting ground of the
bon-vivants of Baltimore.
The last mentioned place, though commonly termed an is-
land, is properly a peninsula, situated on the western side of
the Chesapeake bay, a few miles from Baltimore. It is a spot
highly favourable for the shooting of water fowl. It extends for
a considerable distance into the bay; and, being connected to
the main land by a narrow neck, the shooters are enabled to
post themselves advantageously on the isthmus, and intercept
the fowl, who, in roving from one feeding ground to another,
commonly prefer crossing the land to taking a long flight around
the peninsula. In calm weather the shooters have not much luck,
the Ducks keeping out in the coves, and, when they do move,
flying high; but should a fresh breeze prevail, especially one
from the eastward, rare sport may be anticipated; and it is no
unusual circumstance for a party of four or five gentlemen, re-
turning home, after a couple of days’ excursion, with fifty or
sixty Canvas-backs, besides some other Ducks of inferior note.
The greatest flight of Ducks commonly takes place between
daybreak and sunrise, and while it lasts the roaring of the fowl-
ing pieces, the bustle of the sportsmen, the fluttering of the
fowl, and the plunging of the dogs, constitute a scene produc-
tive of intense interest. The dog in most esteem for this amuse-
ment is a large breed, partaking of the qualities of the New-
foundland variety. They trust altogether to their sight, and it
is astonishing what sagacity they will manifest in watching a
flock of Ducks that had been shot at, and marking the birds
that drop into the water, even at a considerable distance off.
When at fault, the motion of their master’s hand is readily
348
CANVAS-BACK DUCK.
obeyed by them; and when unable to perceive the object of
their search, they will raise themselves in the water for this
purpose, and will not abandon the pursuit while a chance re-
mains of succeeding. A generous, well-trained dog, has been
known to follow a Duck for more than half a mile; and, after
having been long beyond the reach of seeing or hearing his
master, to return, puffing and snorting under his load, which
seemed sufficient to drag him beneath the waves. The Editor
having been an eye-witness of similar feats of these noble ani-
mals, can therefore speak with confidence as to the fact.
On the Delaware but few of tliis species, comparatively, are
obtained, for the want of proper situations whence they may
be shot on the wing. To attempt to approach them, in open
day, with a boat, is unproductive labour, except there be float-
ing ice in the river, at which time, if the shooter clothe him-
self in white, and paint his skiff of the same colour, he may so
deceive the Ducks as to get within a few feet of them. At such
times it is reasonable to suppose that these valuable birds get no
quarter. But there is one caution to be observed, which expe-
rienced sportsmen never omit: it is to go always with the cur-
rent; a Duck being sagacious enough to know that a lump of
ice seldom advances against the stream. They are often shot,
with us, by moonlight, in the mode related in the foregoing ac-
count; the first pair the Editor ever killed was in this manner;
he was then a boy, and was not a little gi’atified with his un-
common acquisition.
As the Vallisneria, will grow in all our fresh water rivers,
in coves, or places not affected by the current, it would be worth
the experiment to transplant this vegetable in those waters
where it at present is unknown. There is little doubt the Can-
vas-backs would, by this means, be attracted; and thus would
aflbrd the lovers of good eating an opportunity of tasting a de-
licacy, which, in the opinion of many, is unrivalled by the
whole feathered race.
In the spring, when the Duck-grass becomes scarce, the Can-
vas-backs are compelled to subsist upon other food, particularly
CANVAS-BACK DUCK.
349
shell-fish; their flesh then loses its delicacy of flavour, and al-
though still fat, it is not esteemed by epicures; hence the Ducks
are not much sought after; and are permitted quietly to feed
until their departure for the north.
Our author states that he had had no certain accounts of this
species to the southward of James’ river, Virginia. In the month
of January, 1818, 1 saw many hundreds of these Ducks feeding
in the Savannah river, not far from Tybee light-house. They
were known by tbe name of Canvas-backs; but the inhabitants
of that quarter considered them as fishing Ducks, not fit to be
eaten: so said the pilot of the ship which bore me to Savannah.
But a pair of these birds having been served up at table, after
my arrival, I was convinced, by their delicate flavour, that
they had lost little by their change of residence, but still
maintained their superiority over all the water fowl of that re-
gion. In the river St. John, in East Florida, I also saw a few
scattered individuals of this species; but they were too shy to
be approached within gunshot.
The Canvas-backs swim very low, especially when fat; and
when pursued by a boat, they stretch themselves out in lines,
in the manner of the Scaup Ducks, so that some of the flock are
always enabled to reconnoitre the paddler, and give information,
to the rest, of his motions. When the look-out Ducks appre-
hend danger, the stretching up of their necks is the signal, and
immediately the whole squadron, facing to the wind, rise with
a noise which may be heard at the distance of half a mile.
The guns employed in Canvas-back shooting should be of a
medium length and caliber; and of tbe most approved patent
breech. My experience has taught me that a barrel of three
feet seven inches, with a bore short of seven-eights of an inch,
is quite as effective as one of greater dimensions; and is cer-
tainly more convenient. It may appear a work of supereroga-
tion to speak of the quality of powder to be used in this kind
of sporting; and yet so often are shooters deceived in this arti-
cle, either through penuriousness or negligence, that a word of
advice may not be unprofitable. One should obtain the best
350
CANVAS-BACK DUCK.
powder, without regard to price; it being an indisputable max-
im in shooting, but which is too often forgotten, that the best is
always the cheapest.
SPECIES 19. ^N^S FERINA?
RED-HEADED DUCK.
[Plate LXX. — Fig. 6, Male.']
Peale’s Museum, JSTo. 2710.*
This is a common associate of the Canvas-back, frequenting
the same places, and feeding on the stems of the same grass,
the latter eating only the roots; its flesh is very little inferior,
and it is often sold in our markets for the Canvas-back, to those
unacquainted with the characteristic marks of each. Anxious
as I am to determine precisely whether this species be the Red-
headed Wigeon, Pochard, or Dun j bird of England, I have not
been able to ascertain the point to my own satisfaction; though
I think it very probably the same, the size, extent, and gene-
ral description of the Pochard agreeing pretty nearly with this.
The Red-head is twenty inches in length, and two feet six
inches in extent; bill dark slate, sometimes black, two inches
long, and seven-eights of an inch thick at the base, furnished
with a large broad nail at the extremity; irides flame-coloured;
plumage of the head long, velvetty, and inflated, running high
above the base of the bill; head, and about two inches of the
neck deep glossy reddish chestnut; rest of the neck and upper
* Anas Ferina, Gmei. i, p. 530, No. 31. — Anas rufa, Id. p. 515. — Ind. Orn.
p. 862, No. 77; p. 863, No. 78. — Rufotts necked-Duck, Gen. Syn. iii, p. 477,
No. 32. — Pochard, Id. -p. 523, No. 68. — Red-headed Duck, Lawson’s Carolina,
p. 150. — Bewick, ii, p. 320 — Arct. Zool. No. 491. Br. Zool. No. 284 — Le
Millouin, Baiss. vi, p. 384, Ao. 19, pi. 35. fig. 1; Le Millouin mis. Id. p. 389,
A. young male?; Le Millouin du Mexique, Id. p. 390, No. 20, female. Buff.
IX, p. 216. PI. Enl. 803. Temm. Man. d'Orn. p. 669. — Wieioughbt, p. 367,
§ XI. — Montagu, Orn. Did. — Peaee’s Museum, No. 2711, female.
t Local names given to one and the same Duck. It is also called the
Poker.
352
RED HEADED DUCK.
part of the breast black, spreading round to the back; belly
white, becoming dusky towards the vent by closely marked un-
dulating lines of black; back and scapulars bluish white, ren-
dered gray by numerous transverse waving lines of black; les-
ser wing coverts brownish ash; wing quills very pale slate,
dusky at the tips; lower part of the back and sides under the
wings brownish black, crossed with regular zig-zag lines of whi-
tish; vent, rump, tail, and tail coverts black; legs and feet dark
ash.
The female has the upper part of the head dusky brown, rest
of the head and part of the neck a light sooty brown; upper part
of the breast asby brown, broadly skirted with whitish; back
dark ash, with little or no appearance of white pencilling; wings,
bill, and feet nearly alike in both sexes.
This Duck is sometimes met with in the rivers of North and
South Carolina, and also in those of Jersey and New York; but
always in fresh water, and usually at no great distance from
the sea. Is most numerous in the waters of the Chesapeake;
and with the connoisseurs in good eating, ranks next in excel-
lence to the Canvas-back. Its usual weight is about a pound and
three-quarters, avoirdupois.
The Red-head leaves the bay and its tributary streams in
March, and is not seen until late in October.
The male of this species has a large flat bony labyrinth on
the bottom of the windpipe, very much like that of the Canvas-
back, but smaller; over one of its concave sides is spread an ex-
ceeding thin transparent skin, or membrane. The intestines
are of great width, and measure six feet in length.
SPECIES 20. ^NAS MARILA.
SCAUP DUCK.
[Plate LXIX.— Fig. 3.]
Le petit Morillon ray^, Briss. vi, p. 416. 26. A.~Jlrct. Zool. JVo.
498. — Lath. Syn. iii, p. 500. — Peale’s Museum, M. 2668.
This Duck is better known among us by the name of the
Rhie Bill. It is an excellent diver; and according to Willough-
by feeds on a certain small kind of shell fish called scaup,
whence it has derived its name. It is common both to our fresh
water rivers and seashores in winter. Those that frequent the
latter are generally much the fattest, on account of the greater
abundance of food along the coast. It is sometimes abundant in
the Delaware, particularly in those places where small snails,
its favorite shell fish abound; feeding also, like most of its tribe,
by moonlight. They generally leave us in April, though I
have met with individuals of this species so late as the middle
of May, among the salt marshes of New Jersey. Their flesh is
not of the most delicate kind, yet some persons esteem it.
That of the young birds is generally the tenderest and most
palatable.
The length of the Blue Bill is nineteen inches, extent twen-
ty-nine inches: bill broad, generally of a light blue, sometimes
of a dusky lead colour; irides reddish; head tumid, covered
with plumage of a dark glossy green, extending half way down
the neck; rest of the neck and breast black, spreading round to
the back; back and scapulars white, thickly crossed with wav-
ing lines of black; lesser coverts dusky, powdered with veins
of whitish, primaries and tertials brownish black; secondaries
white, tipt with black, forming the speculum; rump and tail co-
verts black; tail short, rounded, and of a dusky brown; belly
white, crossed near the vent with waving lines of ash ; vent black ;
legs and feet dark slate.
VOL. III. — z z
354
SCAUP DUCK.
Such is the colour of the bird in its perfect state. Young
birds vary considerably, some having the head black mixed
with gray and purple, others the back dusky with little or no
white, and that irregularly dispersed.
The female has the front and sides of the same white, head
and half of the neck blackish brown; breast, spreading round to
the back, a dark sooty brown, broadly skirted with whitish';
back black, thinly sprinkled with grains of white, vent whitish;
wings the same as in the male.
The windpipe of the male of this species is of large diameter;
the labyrinth similar to some others, though not of the largest
kind; it has something of the shape of a single cockle shell; its
open side or circular rim, covered with a thin transparent skin.
Just before the windpipe enters this, it lessens its diameter at
least two-thirds, and assumes a flattish form.
The Scaup Duck is well known in England. It inhabits Ice-
land and the more northern parts of the continent of Europe,
Lapland, Sweden, Norway, and Russia. It is also common on
the northern shores of Siberia. Is very frequent on tbe river
Ob. Breeds in the north, and migrates southward in winter.
It inhabits America as high as Hudson’s Bay, and retires from
this last place in October. *
Note. Pennant and Latbam state that the male weighs a pound
and a half; and the female two ounces more. This is undoubtedly
an error, the female being less than the male, and the latter being
generally the fattest. Montagu says that the species weighs
sometimes as much as thirty-five ounces, which statement comes
nearer the truth than that of the foregoing. On the eighth of
April, of the present year, (1824,) I shot, on the Delaware,
an adult male which weighed two pounds and three quar-
ters. I have frequently shot them of two pounds and a half;
and on the Chesapeake, and on the coast, they are still heavier.
In the Delaware there are several favourite feeding grounds
of the Blue-bill along the Jersey shore, from Burlington to
Latham.
SCAUP DUCK.
355
Mantua creek; but the most noted spot appears to be the cove
which extends from Timber creek to Eagle Point, and known
by the name of Ladd’s cove. Thither the Blue-bills repair in
the autumn, and never quit it until they depart in the spring for
the purpose of breeding, except when driven away, in the win-
ter, by the ice. It is no uncommon circumstance to see many
hundreds of these bii’ds at once constantly diving for food; but
so shy are they, that even with the aid of a very small, and
well-constructed skiff, cautiously paddled, it is difficult to ap-
proach them within gunshot. So very sagacious are they, that
they appear to know the precise distance wherein they are safe;
and, after the shooter has advanced within this point, they then
begin to spread their lines in such a manner that, in a flock of
a hundred, not more than three or four can be selected in a group
at any one view. They swim low in the water; are strong feath-
ered; and are not easily killed. When slightly wounded, and
unable to fly, it is almost hopeless to follow them, in conse-
quence of their great skill in diving. Their wings being short
they either cannot rise with the wind, when it blows freshly,
or they are unwilling to do so, for they are invariably seen to
rise against the wind. In a calm they get up with considerable
fluttering.
The Blue-bills when disturbed by the fishermen along the
Jersey shore, in the spring, resort to other feeding places; and
they are frequently observed a short distance below the Phila-
delphia Navy-yard, particularly at the time when their favourite
snail-shells begin to crawl up the muddy shore for the purpose
of breeding. Though often seen feeding in places where they
can reach the bottom with their bills, yet they seldom venture
on the shore, the labour of walking appearing repugnant to
their inclinations. When wounded they will never take to the
land if they can possibly avoid it; and when compelled to walk
they waddle along in the awkward manner of those birds whose
legs, placed far behind, do not admit of a free and graceful
progression.
SPECIES 21. ^NAS FULIGULA.
TUFTED DUCK.
[Plate LXVII.— Fig. 5.]
Jirct. Zool. p. 5Tfl. — Le petit Morillon, Briss. vi, 411. 26. pi. 37.
1. — Buff, ix, p. 227. 231. pi. 15. — I.ath. Syn. in, p. 540. —
Pf. ale’s Museum, 2904.
This is an inhabitant of both continents; it frequents fresh
water rivers, and seldom visits the seashore. It is a plump,
short bodied Duck; its flesh generally tender, and well tasted.
They are much rarer than most of our other species, and are sel-
dom seen in market. They are most common about the begin-
ning of winter, and early in the spring. Being birds of passage
they leave us entirely during the summer.
The Tufted Duck is seventeen inches long, and two feet two
inches in extent; the bill is broad and of a dusky colour, some-
times marked round the nostrils and sides with light blue; head
crested, or tufted, as its name expresses, and of a black colour,
witli reflections of purple; neck marked near its middle by a
band of deep chestnut; lower part of the neck black, which
spreads quite round to the back; back and scapulars black, minute-
ly powdered with particles of white, not to be observed but on
a near inspection; rump and vent also black; wings ashy brown;
secondaries pale ash or bluish white; tertials black, reflecting
green, lower part of the breast and whole belly white; flanks
crossed with fine zigzag lines of dusky: tail short, rounded,
and of a dull brownish black; legs and feet greenish ash, webs
black, irides rich orange; stomach filled with gravel and some
vegetable food.
* dnas rujitorques, BoxAPAnTE, Journal of the Jicade.my of Jfalural Sciences of
Philadelphia, iii, p. 385; pi. IS. fig. 6, the trachea.
TUFTED DUCK.
357
In young birds the head and upper part of the neck are pur-
plish brown; in some the chestnut ring on the fore part of the
middle of the neck is obscure, in others very rich and glossy,
and in one or two specimens which I have seen it is altogether
wanting. The back is in some instances destitute of the fine
powdered particles of white; while in others these markings are
large and thickly interspersed.
The specimen from which the drawing was taken, was shot
on the Delaware on the tenth of March, and presented to me
by Dr. S. B. Smith of this city. On dissection it proved to be
a male, and was exceedingly fat and tender. Almost every spe-
cimen I have since met with has been in nearly the same state;
so that I cannot avoid thinking this species equal to most others
for the table, and greatly superior to many.
Note. — It is remarkable that our author should not have ob-
served the difference between this species and the fuligula of
Europe ; and still more worthy of note that Mr. Temminck,
whose powers of discrimination are unusually acute, should also
have been misled by the opinions of others, and concluded,
with Wilson, that the Tufted Duck figured in our plate was of
the same species as the Tufted Duck of Europe. The only
apology which we can make for our author is, that he had
never had an opportunity of examining a specimen of the fuli-
gula; otherwise the specific difterences of the two would have
been obvious at the first glance. The bill of the fuligula has
not those white bands or markings which are so conspicuous in
our bird, its neck is also destitute of the chestnut collar; the
speculum of the former is pure white, that of the latter is pale
ash; and, what is a still more striking characteristic, its head is
merely tufted, while the fuligula’ s is ornamented with a pend-
ent crest, of two inches in length.
The credit of having been tbe first to publicly announce our
bird as a new species belongs to Mr. Charles Bonaparte, who,
in the publication quoted at the head of this article, has given
358
TUFTED DUCK.
a comparative description of the two birds, and named the sub-
ject of this article rujitorques.
The American Tufted Duck is said to be common on the
Ohio, and the Mississippi; Messieurs Say and Peale procured
it on the Missouri; Lewis and Clark shot it on the Columbia;*
and myself in East Florida. It is, properly speaking, a fresh
water Duck, although it is sometimes found on the coast. On
the Delaware we observe it in the spring and autumn; and, if
the weather be moderate, we see it occasionally throughout the
winter. With us it is not a numerous species; and is rather a
solitary bird, seldom more than four or five being found together.
It is more common in the month of March than at any other
time. It is a plump, short-bodied Duck; its flesh tender, and
well tasted; but in no respect to be compared to that of the
Canvass-back; it is even inferior to the Mallard.
The American Tufted Duck is seventeen inches long, and
twenty-seven inches in breadth; the bill is broad, of a dull blu-
ish ash colour, the base of the upper mandible marked with a
stripe of pure white, which extends along its edges, and then
forms a wider band across near the tip, which is of a deep black
— this white band changes after death to gray or bluish white;
irides rich orange; a spot of white on the chin; head tufted, and,
with the upper part of the neck, black, with reflections of rich
purple, predominating on the back part of the neck; about the
middle of the neck there is an interrupted band of a rich deep
glossy chestnut; throat, lower part of the neck, breast, back,
scapulars, rump, and tail-coverts, of a silky brownish black;
primaries and wing-coverts brown; tertials dark brown, with
strong reflections of green; secondaries pale ash, or bluish white,
forming the speculum, some tipt with brown and others with
white; back and scapulars powdered with particles of dull white,
not to be observed but on a near inspection, and presenting the
appearance of dust; lower part of the breast, and whole belly,
white, with a yellowish tinge; vent dusky; sides under the
* Hist, of the Exped. vol. ii, p. 195, 8vo.
TUFTED DUCK.
359
wings, and flanks, beautifully marked with fine zigzag lines of
dusky; tail dull brown, cuneiform, and composed of fourteen
feathers; the primaries, wing-coverts, back and scapulars, are
glossed with green; webs of the feet black. The colour of the
legs and feet varies: those of the figure in the plate were green-
ish ash ; those of the specimen above described were pale yel-
low ochre, dashed with black; and those of Mr. Bonaparte’s
specimen were bluish ash. The above description was taken
from a fine adult male, shot by myself on the 1st of April, 1814.
On the 8th of March, 1815, I shot from a flock, consisting
of five individuals, two males; and an adult female in full plu-
mage.
Female: Length sixteen inches and a half; bill darker than
that of the male, without the white at its base, above the nail
with a band of dull bluish white; beneath the eyes a spot of
white; chin and front part of the lores white; throat spotted with
dusky; cheeks and auriculars finely powdered with white; neck
without the chestnut band; head, neck, breast, upper parts of the
back, lower parts of the belly, and vent, a snuff-coloured brown;
belly whitish; lower part of the back dusky; the under tail,-'
coverts pencilled with fine zigzag lines; neck rather thicker
than that of the male, but the head equally tufted; the wings,
feet, legs, tail and eyes, resemble those parts of the male. The
dust-like particles, which are so remarkable upon the back and
scapulars of the male, are wanting in the female.
In young males the head and upper part of the neck are
purplish brown; in some tbe chestnut band of the neck is ob-
scure.
The stomachs of those specimens which I dissected were filled
with gravel and vegetable food. The trachea, according to the
observations of Mr. Bonaparte, resembles that of the fuligula.
This species is in no respect so shy and cunning as the Scaup
Duck, and is more easily shot.
G. Ord,
SPECIES 22. M^S CLJINGULA.
GOLDEN EYE.
[Plate LXVII.— Fig. 6.]
Le, Garrot, Biiiss. vi, p. 416. 27. pi. 57. fig. 2. — Buff, ix, p. 222.
— Arct. Zool. JV*o. 486. — Lath. Syn. iii, p. 555. — Peale’s .Mu-
seum, JV*o. 2921.*
This Duck is well known in Europe, and in various regions
of the United States, both along the seacoast and about the lakes
and rivers of the interior. It associates in small parties, and
may easily be known by the vigorous whistling of its wings, as
it passes through the air. It swims and dives well; but seldom
walks on shore, and then in a waddling awkward manner.
Feeding chiefly on shell fish, small fry, &c. their flesh is less
esteemed than that of the preceding. In the United States they
are only winter visitors, leaving us again in the month of April,
being then on their passage to the north to breed. They are
said to build, like the Wood Duck, in hollow trees.
The Golden-eye is nineteen inches long, and twenty-nine in
extent, and weighs on an average about two pounds; the bill is
black, short, rising considerably up in the forehead; the plumage
of the head and part of the neck is somewhat tumid, and of a
dark green with violet reflections, marked near the corner of
the mouth with an oval spot of white; the irides are golden yel-
low; rest of the neck, breast, and whole lower parts white, ex-
cept the flanks, which are dusky; back and wings black; over
* Le Garrot, PI- Enl. 802. — Morrillon, Arcl. Zool. ii, p. 300, F. — Br. Zool.
jYo. 276, 277.— Lath. Supp. ii, p- 535, M. 26.— Ind. Orn. p. 867, M. 87;
.3. glancion. Id. p. 868, ,\o. 88. — Gmel. Syst. i, p. 523, Jfo. 23; Id. p, 525, J^o.
26- — Texm. Man. d'Orn. i, p. 870. — Bewick, ii, p. 330. — Peaee’s Museum,
2922, female.
GOLDEN EYE.
361
the latter a broad bed of white extends from the middle of the
lesser coverts to the extremity of the secondaries; the exterior
scapulars are also white; tail hoary brown; rump and tail coverts
black; legs and toes reddish orange; webs very large, and of a
dark purplish brown; hind toe and exterior edge of the inner
one broadly finned; sides of the bill obliquely dentated; tongue
covered above with a fine thick velvetty down of a whitish colour.
The full plumaged female is seventeen inches in length, and
twenty-seven inches in extent; bill brown, orange near the tip;
head and part of the neck brown, or very dark drab, bounded
below by a ring of white; below that the neck is ash, tipt with
white; rest of the lower parts white; wings dusky, six of the
secondaries and their greater coverts pure white, except the
tips of the last, which are touched with dusky spots; rest of the
wing coverts cinereous, mixed with whitish; back and scapu-
lars dusky, tipt with brown; feet dull orange; across the vent a
band of cinereous; tongue covered with the same velvetty down
as the male.
The young birds of the first season very much resemble the
females; but may generally be distinguished by the white spot,
or at least its rudiments, which marks the corner of the mouth.
Yet, in some cases, even this is variable, both old and young
male birds occasionally wanting the spot.
From an examination of many individuals of this species of
both sexes, I have very little doubt that the Morillon of English
writers {Anas glaucion) is nothing more than the young male
of the Golden-eye.
The conformation of the trachea, or windpipe of the male of
this species, is singular. Nearly about its middle it swells out to
at least five times its common diameter, the concentric hoops
or rings, of which this part is formed, falling obliquely into one
another when the windpipe is relaxed; but when stretched, this
part swells out to its full size, the rings being then drawn apart;
this expansion extends for about three inches; three more be-
low this it again forms itself into a hard cartilaginous shell, of
an irregular figure, and nearly as large as a walnut; from the
VOL. in. — 3 A
362 GOLDEN EYE.
bottom of this labyrinth, as it has been called, the trachea
branches off to the two lobes of the lungs; that branch which
goes to the left lobe being three times the diameter of the right.
The female has nothing of all this. The intestines measure five
feet in length, and are large and thick.
I have examined many individuals of this species, of both
sexes and in various stages of colour, and can therefore affirm,
with certainty, that the foregoing descriptions are correct. Eu-
ropeans have differed greatly in their accounts of this bird, from
finding males in the same garb as the females; and other full
plumaged males destitute of the spot of white on the cheek; but
all these individuals bear such evident marks of belonging to
one peculiar species, that no judicious naturalist, with all these
varieties before him. can long hesitate to pronounce them the
same.
SPECIES 23. ^N^S ALBEOLA.
BUFFEL-HEADED DUCK.
[Plate LXVIL — Fig. 2, Male. — Fig. 3, Female.']
La Sarcellede la Louisiane,'BRiss.vi,p.46\,pl.4\,Jig. 1. — Le petit
Canard d grosse t^fe, Buff, ix, p. 249. — Enw. pi. 100. — .irct.
Zool. •N'o. 487. — Catesby, i, 95. — Lath. Sijn. iii, p. 533. —
Peale’s Museum, JV*o, 2730.*
This pretty little species, usually known by the name of the
Butter-box, or Butter-hall, is common to the seashores, rivers
and lakes of the United States, in every quarter of the country,
during autumn and winter. About the middle of April, or early
in May, they retire to the north to breed. They are dexterous
divers, and fly with extraordinary velocity. So early as the latter
part of February the males are observed to have violent disputes
for the females; at this time they are more commonly seen in
flocks; but during the preceding part of winter they usually
fly in pairs. Their note is a short quack. They feed much on
shell fish, shrimps, &c. They are sometimes exceedingly fat;
though their flesh is inferior to many others for the table. The
male exceeds the female in size, and greatly in beauty of
plumage.
The Buffel-headed Duck, or rather as it has originally been,
the Buff aloe-headed Duck, from the disproportionate size of
its head, is fourteen inches long, and twenty-three inches in ex-
tent; the bill is short, and of a light blue or leaden colour; the
plumage of the head and half of the neck is thick, long and
velvetty, projecting greatly over the lower part of the neck;
this plumage on the forehead and nape is rich glossy green
changing into a shining purple on the crown and sides of the
* Le Canard d’hyver, Bbiss.yi, p. 349; La sarcelle de la Caroline, Id. p. 464.
364
BUFFEL-HEADfiD DUCK.
neck; from the eyes backward passes a broad band of pure
white; iris of the eye dark; back, wings and part of the scapu-
lars black; rest of the scapulars, lateral band along the wing,
and whole breast, snowy white; belly, vent, and tail coverts
dusky white, tail pointed, and of a hoary colour.
The female is considerably less than the male, and entirely
destitute of the tumid plumage of the head; the head, neck and
upper parts of the body, and wings, are sooty black, darkest on
the crown; side of the head marked with a small oblong spot of
white, bill dusky; lower part of the neck ash, tipt with white;
belly dull white; vent cinereous; outer edges of six of the secon-
daries and their incumbent coverts white, except the tips of
the latter, which are black; legs and feet a livid blue; tail hoary
brown; length of the intestines three feet six inches; stomach
filled with small shell fish. This is the Spirit Duck of Pennant,
.so called from its dexterity in diving (Arct. Zool. No. 487.),
likewise the Little Brown Duck of Catesby (Nat. Hist. Car.
pi. 98.).
This species is said to come into Hudson’s Bay about Severn
river in June, and make their nests in trees in the woods near
ponds."* The young males during the first year are almost ex-
actly like the females in colour.
* Latham
SPECIES 24. JiN^S GLACMLIS.
LONG-TAILED DUCK.
[Plate LXX. — Fig. 1, Male.'\
Le Canard d longue queue de Terre JSTeuve, Briss. vi, p. 382. 18.
— Buff. IX, p. 202. — PI. Enl. 1008. — Ewo.pl. 280. — Jlrct. Zool.
JVo. 501. — Lath. Syn. iii, 2). 528. — Peale’s Museum, Ab.
2810.*
This Duck is very generally known along the shores of
the Chesapeake Bay by the name of South Southerly, from
the singularity of its cry, something imitative of the sound of
those words, and also, that when very clamorous they are sup-
posed to betoken a southerly wind; on the coast of New Jersey
they are usually called Old Wives. They are chiefly salt wa-
ter Ducks, and seldom ramble far from the sea. They inhabit
our bays and coasts during the winter only; are rarely found in
the marshes, but keep in the channel, diving for small shell
fish, which are their principal food. In passing to and from the
bays, sometimes in vast flocks, particularly towards evening,
their loud and confused noise may be heard in calm weather at
the distance of several miles. They fly very swiftly, take short
excursions, and are lively restless birds. Their native regions
are in the north, where great numbers of them remain during
the whole year; part only of the vast family migrating south to
* Jlnas Glacialis, Gmel, Syst. i, p. 529, ^o. 30; .i. hyemalis, Id. JVb. 29; Mer-
gus furcifer, Id. 548, Jfo. 1. — Ind. Orn. p. 864, JSTo. 82, et var.; Mergus furc’fer.
Id- p. 832, No. 8; Gen. Syn. p. 528, No. 73; Id. p. 529, young male called the
female; Id. p. 631, var. Jl.; Forked Merganser, Id. sup. ii, p. 339, No. S.^—Le
Canard d longue queue d'Islande, Briss. vi, p. 379. La Sarcelle de Ferroe, Id. p.
466, pi. 40. fig. 2. — Buff, ix, p. 278. PI. 1008, old male; 999, yearling. —
Edwards, pi. 280, old male, pi. 156, young male. — Br. Zool. J\'o. 283. — Be-
wick, II, p. 327. — Canard de Millon, Temm. Man. d'Orn. p. 860.
366
LONG^TAILED DUCK-
avoid the severest rigours of that climate. They are common
to the whole northern hemisphere. In the Orkneys they are
met with in considerable flocks, from October to April; fre-
quent in Sweden, Lapland, and Russia; are often found about
St. Petersburgh, and also in Kamtschatka. Are said to breed
at Hudson’s Bay, making their nest among the grass near the
sea, like the Eider Duck, and about the middle of June, lay
from ten to fourteen bluish white eggs, the size of those of a
pullet. When the young are hatched the mother carries them
to the water in her bill. The nest is lined with the down of
her breast, which is accounted equally valuable with that of the
Eider Duck, were it to be had in the same quantity.* They
are hardy birds, and excellent divers. Are not very common
in England, coming there only in very severe winters; and
then but in small straggling parties; yet are found on the coast
of America as far south at least, as Charleston in Carolina, dur-
ing the winter. Their flesh is held in no great estimation, hav-
ing a fishy taste. The down and plumage, particularly on the
breast and lower parts of the body, are very abundant, and ap-
pear to be of the best quality.
The length of this species is twenty -two inches, extent thir-
ty inches; bill black, crossed near the extremity by a band of
orange; tongue downy; iris dark red; cheeks and frontlet dull
dusky drab, passing over the eye, and joining a large patch of
black on the side of the neck, which ends in dark brown; throat
and rest of the neck white; crown tufted, and of a pale cream
colour; lower part of the neck, breast, back, and wings black;
scapulars and tertials pale bluish white, long and pointed, and
falling gracefully over the wings; the white of the lower part
of the neck spreads over the back an inch or two, the white of
the belly spreads over the sides, and nearly meets at the rump;
secondaries chestnut, forming a bar across the wing; primaries,
rump, and tail coverts black; the tail consists of fourteen feath-
ers, all remarkably pointed, the two middle ones nearly four
* Latham.
LONG-TAILED DUCK.
367
inches longer than the others; these, with the two adjoining ones,
are black, the rest white; legs and feet dusky slate.
On dissection, the intestines were found to measure five
feet six inches. The windpipe was very curiously formed; be-
sides the labyrinth, which is nearly as large as the end of the
thumb, it has an expansion immediately above that, of double
its usual diameter, which continues for an inch and a half; this
is flattened on the side next the breast, with an oblong window-
like vacancy in it, crossed with five narrow bars, and covered
with a thin transparent skin, like the panes of a window; an-
other thin skin of the same kind is spread over the external side
of the laybrinth, which is partly of a circular form. This singu-
lar conformation is, as usual, peculiar to the male, the female
having the windpipe of nearly an uniform thickness throughout.
She differs also so much in the colours and markings of her plu-
mage as to render a figure of her in the same plate necessary;
for a description of which see the following article.
LONG-TAILED DUCK.
[Plate LXX. — Fig 2, Female.']
Jnas hyemalis, Linn. Syst. 202. 29. — Lath. Syn. iii, p. 529.*
— Peale’s Muslim, M. 2811.
The female is distinguished from the male by wanting the
lengthened tertials, and the two long pointed feathers of the
tail, and also by her size, and the rest of her plumage, which
is as follows: length sixteen inches, extent twenty-eight inches;
bill dusky; middle of the crown and spot on the side of the
neck blackish; a narrow dusky line runs along the throat for
two inches; rest of the head and upper half of the neck white,
lower half pale vinaceous bay blended with white; all the rest
of the lower parts of the body pure white; back, scapulars, and
lesser wing coverts bright ferruginous, centred with black, and
intei’spersed with whitish; shoulders of the wing, and quills
black; lower part of the back the same, tinged with brown;
tail pale brown ash, inner vanes of all but the two middle fea-
thers white; legs and feet dusky slate. The legs are placed far
behind, which circumstance points out the species to be great
divers. In some females the upper parts are less ferruginous.
Some writers suppose the singular voice, or call, of this spe-
cies, to be occasioned by the remarkable construction of its
windpipe; but the fact, that the females are uniformly the most
noisy, and yet are entirely destitute of the singularities of this
conformation, overthrows the probability of this supposition.
* This is a young male and not a female-
SPECIES 25. AN^S LABRADORA.
PIED DUCK.
[Plate LXIX.— Fig. 6.]
Arct. Znol. J^o. 488. — Lath. Sj/n. in,p. 497. — Peale’s Jl/wsfMm,
JSTo. 2858.*
This is rather a scarce species on our coasts, and is never
met with on fresh water lakes or rivers. It is called by some
gunners the Sand Shoal Duck, from its habit of frequenting sand
bars. Its principal food appears to be shell fish, which it pro-
cures by diving. The flesh is dry, and partakes considerably
of the nature of its food. It is only seen here during winter;
most commonly early in the month of March a few are observ-
ed in our market. Of their particular manners, place, or mode
of breeding nothing more is known. Latham observes that a
pair in the possession of Sir Joseph Banks were brought from
Labrador. Having myself had frequent opportunities of exa-
mining both sexes of these birds, I find that, like most others,
they are subject when young to a progressive change of colour.
The full plumaged male is as follows: length twenty inches,
extent twenty -nine inches; the base of the bill, and edges of
both mandibles for two-thirds of their length, are of a pale
orange colour, the rest black, towards the extremity it widens
a little in the manner of the Shovellers, the sides there having
the singularity of being only a soft, loose, pendulous skin; iri-
des dark hazel; head and half of the neck white, marked along
the crown to the hind-head with a stripe of black; the plumage
of the cheeks is of a peculiar bristly nature at the points, and
* Jlnas Labradora, Gmel. Si/s<. i, p. 326, No. 97. — fnd. Oni. j). SGI, JVo. 74. —
Le Canard Jansen, PI. Enl. 955. — Bupf. ix, p. 174. — Pealb’s Musexim, No.
2199, female.
VOL. in. — 3 B
370
PIED DUCK.
round the neck passes a collar of black, which spreads over the
back, rump, and tail coverts; below this colour the upper part
of the breast is white, extending itself over the whole scapulars,
wing coverts, and secondaries; the primaries, lower part of the
breast, whole belly, and vent are black; tail pointed, and of a
blackish hoary colour; the fore part of the legs and ridges of
the toes pale whitish ash; hind part the same bespattered
with blackish, webs black; the edges of both mandibles are
largely pectinated. In young birds, the whole of the white
plumage is generally strongly tinged with a yellowish cream
colour; in old males these parts are pure white, with the excep-
tion sometimes of the bristly pointed plumage of the cheeks,
which retains its cream tint the longest, and, with the skinny
part of the bill, form two strong peculiarities of this species.
The female measures nineteen inches in length, and twenty-
seven in extent; bill exactly as in the male; sides of the front
white; head, chin, and neck ashy gray; upper parts of the back
and wings brownish slate; secondaries only, white; tertials hoa-
ry; the white secondaries form a spot on the wing, bounded by
the black primaries, and four hoary tertials edged with black;
whole lower parts a dull ash skirted with brownish white, or
clay colour; legs and feet as in the male, the bill in both is
marked from the nostrils backwards by a singular heart shaped
outline.
The windpipe of the male measures ten inches in length, and
has four enlargements, viz. one immediately below the mouth,
and another at the interval of an inch; it then bends largely
down to the breast bone, to which it adheres by two strong
muscles, and has at that place a third expansion. It then be-
comes flattened, and before it separates into the lungs, has a
fourth enlargement much greater than any of the former, which
is bony, and round, puffing out from the left side. The intes-
tines measured six feet; the stomach contained small clams, and
some glutinous matter; the liver was remarkably large.
SPECIES .86. ^NAS HISTRIONICS.
HARLEQUIN DUCK.
[Plate LXXIL— Fig. 4, Male.-]
Le Canard (2 Collier de Terre Neuve, Briss. \i, p. 362. 14.— Buff.
IX, p. 250. — I'l. Enl. 798. — Jlrct. Zool. JST o. 490. — Lath. Syn.
Ill, p. 484.*
This species is very rare on the coasts of the middle and
southern states, though not unfrequently found off those of New
England, where it is known by the dignified title of the Lord,
probably from the elegant crescents and circles of white which
ornament its neck and breast. Though an inhabitant of both
continents, little else is known of its particular manners than
that it swims and dives well; flies swift, and to a great height;
and has a whistling note. It is said to frequent the small rivu-
lets inland from Hudson’s Bay, where it breeds. The female
lays ten white eggs on the grass; the young are prettily speck-
led. It is found on the eastern continent as far south as lake
Baikal, and thence to Kamtschatka, particularly up the river
Ochotska; and was also met with at Aoonalashka and Iceland.!
At Hudson’s Bay it is called the Painted Duck, at Newfound-
land and along the coast of New England, the Lord; it is an ac-
tive vigorous diver, and often seen in deep water, considerably
out at sea.
The Harlequin Duck, so called from the singularity of its
markings, is seventeen inches in length, and twenty-eight in-
ches in extent; the bill is of a moderate length, of a lead colour
*Jnas HiUrionica, Gmel. Sijst. i, p. 534, JVo. 35; .ft.minuta, lb. Ao. 36, fe-
male.— Ind. Orn.p. S49,A'o. 45. — Gen. Syn. iii, p. 4S4, 4S5, female. — Dusky and
Spotted Duck, Edwarbs, pi. 99; Litlte Brown and While Duck, Id.pl. 157, /e-
male. — La Sarcelle de la BayedeHu,dson,liniss.\j, p.469, No. 41,/67na;f. — Temm.
.Man. d'Orn. p. 878.
t Latham.
372
HARLEQUIN DUCK.
tipt with red, irides dark: upper part of the head black; between
the eye and bill a broad space of white, extending over the eye,
and ending in reddish; behind the ear a similar spot; neck black,
ending below in a circle of white; breast deep slate, shoulders
or sides of the breast, marked with a semicircle of white; belly
black; sides chestnut; body above black or deep slate, some of
the scapulars white; greater wing coverts tipt with the same;
legs and feet deep ash; vent and pointed tail black.
The female is described as being less, “ the forehead, and
between the bill and eye, white, with a spot of the same behind
the ear; head, neck, and back, brown, palest on the fore part of
the neck; upper part of the breast and rump red brown, lower
breast and belly barred pale rufous and white; behind the thighs
rufous and brown; scapulars and wing coverts rufous brown;
outer greater ones blackish; quills and tail dusky, the last inclin-
ing to rufous; legs dusky.
The few specimens of this Duck which I have met with,
were all males; and from the variation in tlieir colours it ap-
pears evident that the young birds undergo a considerable
change of plumage before they arrive at their full colours. In
some the white spot behind the eye was large, extending irre-
gularly half way down the neck; in others confined to a round-
ish spot.
The flesh of this species is said to be excellent.
Latham.
GENUS 101. PLOTUS. DARTER.
SPECIES. P. ANHINGA.
DARTER OR SNAKE-BIRD.*
[Plate LXXIV.— Fig. 1, Male.^
Plotiis anhmgu, Linn. Syst. ed. 12, tom. i, p. 218. — Gmel. Syst.
I, p. 580, 1. — Ind. Orn. p. 895, 1. Flatus melanogaster, Id. p.
896, var.B, var. C. — Jinhinga Brasiliensibus Tupinamh. Marc-
GRAv. Hist. JVat. Bras. p. 218. — UJlnliinga, Briss. vi, p. 476.
— Salerne, p. 375. — Buff. Ois. viii, p. 448. Jinhinga noir de
Cayenne, FI. Enl.9Q0. — IChite-bellied Barter, Lath. Gen. Syn.
Ill, p. 622, 1. Black-bellied Barter, Id. p. 624, var. A. pi. 106.
Id. p. 625, var. B. — Colymbus colubrinus. Snake-bird, Bartram,
p. 132. 295. — Peale’s Museum, JVb, 3188, Male.
Head, neck, whole body above and below, of a deep shining
black, with a green gloss, the plumage extremely soft, and
agreeable to the touch; the commencement of the back is orna-
mented with small oblong ashy white spots, which pass down
the shoulders, increasing in size according to the size of the
feathers, and running down the scapulars; wings and tail of a
shining black, the latter broadly tipped with dirty white; the
lesser coverts are glossed with green, and are spotted with ashy
white; the last row of the lesser coverts, and the coverts of the
secondaries, are chiefly ashy white, which forms a large bar
across the wing; the outer web of the large scapulars is crimped;
tail rounded, the two under feathers the shortest, the two upper
feathers, for the greater part of their length, beautifully crimped
on their outer webs, the two next feathers in a slight degree so;
bill dusky at the base and above, the upper mandible brownish
yellow at the sides, the lower mandible yellow ochre; inside
■* Named in the plate Black-bellied Darter.
374
SNAKE-BIRD.
of the mouth dusky; irides dark crimson; the orbit of the eye,
next to the plumage of the head, is of a greenish blue colour,
this passes round, in the form of a zigzag band, across the front
— the next colour is black, which entirely surrounds the eye;
eyelids of a bright azure, running into violet next to the eye
ball; lores greenish blue; naked skin in front black; jugular pouch
jet black; hind-head subcrested; along the sides of the neck
there runs a line of loose unwebbed feathers, of a dingy ash
colour, resembling the plumage of callow young, here and there
on the upper part of the neck one perceives a feather of the
same; on the forehead there is a small knob or protuberance;
the neck, near its centre, takes a singular bend, in order to
enable the bird to dart forward its bill, with velocity, when it
takes its prey; legs and feet of a yellowish clay colour, the toes,
and the hind part of the legs, with a dash of dusky; claws greatly
falcated; when the wings are closed, they extend to the centre
of the tail.
Length from the tip of the bill to the end of the tail two feet
ten inches,* breadth three feet ten inches; bill to the angle of
the mouth full four inches; tail ten inches and a half, composed
of twelve broad and stiff feathers. Weight three pounds and a
half.
The serratures of the bill are extremely sharp, so much so,
that when one applies tow, or such like substance, to the bird’.s
mouth, it is with difficulty disengaged.
The lower mandible and throat, as in the Divers, are capable
of great expansion, to facilitate the swallowing of fish, which
constitute the food of this species. The position of these birds,
Avhen standing, is like that of the Gannets.
The above description was taken from a fine adult male spe-
* The admeasurement of the specimen, described in the first edition of
this work, was made by Wilson himself, from the stuffed bird in Peale’s
Museum. It differs considerably from that described above; but as our
specimen was a very fine one, there is room to conjecture that there was
some error in the admeasurement of the former, ours being described im-
mediately after death.
SNAKE-RIRD.
375
cimen, which was shot by my fellow-traveller, Mr. T. Peale,
on the first of March, 1818, in a creek below the Cow Ford,
situated on the river St. John, in East Florida. We saw some
others in the vicinity, but owing to their extreme vigilance and
shyness, we could not procure them.
From the description of the White-bellied Darter of Latham
and others, which is unquestionably this species, one would be
inclined to conjecture, that the bird figured in our plate, as the
female, is the young male. But this point it is not in my power
to ascertain. The specimens in Peale’s Museum, from which
Wilson took his figures, are labelled male and female. All the
Darters which I saw, while in Florida, were males.
The Snake-bird is an inhabitant of the Carolinas, Georgia,
the Floridas and Louisiana; and is common in Cayenne and
Brazil. It seems to have derived its name from the singular
form of its head and neck, which, at a distance, might be mis-
taken for a serpent. In those countries where noxious animals
abound, we may readily conceive, that the appearance of this
bird, extending its slender neck through the foliage of a tree,
would tend to startle the wary traveller, whose imagination had
portrayed objects of danger lurking in every thicket. Its habits,
too, while in the water, have not a little contributed to its name.
It generally swims with its body immerged, especially when
apprehensive of danger, its long neck extended above the sur-
face, and vibrating in a peculiar manner. The first individual
that I saw in Florida, was sneaking away to avoid me, along
the shore of a reedy marsh, which was lined with alligators,
and the first impression on my mind was that I beheld a snake;
but the recollection of the habits of the bird soon undeceived
me. On approaching it, it gradually sank; and my next view
of it was at many fathoms distance, its head merely out of the
water. To pursue these birds at such times is useless, as they
cannot be induced to rise, or even expose their bodies.
Wherever the limbs of a tree project over, and dip into, the
water, there the Darters are sure to be found, these situations
being convenient resting places for the purpose of sunning and
376
SNAKE-BIRD.
preening themselves; and, probably, giving them a better op-
portunity, than when swimming, of observing their finny prey.
They crawl from the water upon the limbs, and fix themselves
in an upright position, which they maintain in the utmost silence.
If there be foliage, or the long moss, they secrete themselves
in it in such a manner that they cannot be perceived, unless
one be close to them. When approached, they drop into the
water with such surprising skill, that one is astonished how so
large a body can plunge with so little noise, the agitation of the
water being, apparently, not greater than that occasioned by
the gliding of an eel.
Formerly the Darter was considered by voyagers as an ano-
malous production, a monster partaking of the nature of the
snake and the Duck; and in some ancient charts which 1 have
seen, it is delineated in all the extravagance of fiction.
From Mr. William Bartram we have received the following
account of the subject of our history:
“ Here is in this river,* and in the waters all over Florida,
a very curious and handsome bird, the people call them Snake-
birds; I think I have seen paintings of them on the Chinese
screens, and other Indian pictures; they seem to be a species of
Colymbus, but far more beautiful and delicately formed than
any other that I have ever seen. They delight to sit in little
peaceable communities, on the dry limbs of trees, hanging over
the still waters, with their wings and tails expanded, I suppose
to cool and air themselves, when at the same time they behold
their images in the watery mirror. At such times when we ap-
proach them, they drop off the limbs into the water as if dead,
and for a minute or two are not to be seen; when on a sudden,
at a great distance, their long slender head and neck appear,
like a snake rising erect out of the water; and no other part of
them is to be seen when swimming, except sometimes the tip
end of their tail. In the heat of the day they are seen in great
numbers, sailing very high in the air, over lakes and rivers.
* The river St. Juan, East Florida-
SNAKE-BIRD. 375
I doubt not but if this bird had been an inhabitant of the
Tiber in Ovid’s days, it would have furnished him with a sub-
ject for some beautiful and entertaining metamorphoses. I be-
lieve they feed entirely on fish, for their flesh smells and tastes
intolerably strong of it: it is scarcely to be eaten, unless one is
constrained by insufferable hunger. They inhabit the waters of
Cape Fear river, and, southerly, East and West Florida.*
* Bartram’s Travels, p. 132. — MS, in the possession of the author.f
t From Mr. Ord’s Supplementary Volume.
voi. III. — 3
PL O TUS ^NHINGA.
DARTER OR SNAKE-BIRD.
[Plate LXXIV. — Fig. 2, Female.']
ylnhingade. Cayenne, PL .Enl. 959.— -Peale’s Jl/wsewm, JVo. 3189,
P'emale.
The Female Darter measures three feet five inches in length;
and differs in having the neck before of a roan colour or iron
gray, the breast the same, but lighter and tinged with pale
chestnut; the belly as in the male; where the iron gray joins the
black on the belly, there is a narrow band of chestnut; upper
head, and back of the neck, dark sooty brown, streaked with
blackish; cheeks and chin pale yellow ochre; in every other
respect the same as the male, except in having only a few slight
tufts of hair along the side of the neck; the tail is twelve inches
long to its insertion, generally spread out like a fan, and crimped
like the other on the outer vanes of the middle feathers only.
The above is a description of the supposed female Darter,
which is preserved in Peale’s Museum; Wilson’s figure was
taken from this specimen. It was contrary to his practice to
make his drawings from stuffed birds, but as he had never had
an opportunity of beholding this species in a living or recent
state, he was compelled, in this instance, to resort to the Mu-
seum.
The author having written to Mr. John Abbot, of Georgia,
relative to this species, and some others, received from this dis-
tinguished naturalist a valuable communication, from which'the
following extract is made: Both the Darters I esteem as but
one species. I have now by me a drawing of the male, or Black-
bellied, only; but have had specimens of both at the same time.
I remember that the upper parts of the female were similar to
FEMAI,E SNAKE-BIRD.
377
those of the male, except that the colour and markings were
not so pure and distinct; length thirty-six inches, extent forty-
six. These birds frequent the ponds, rivers and creeks, during
the summer; build in the trees of the swamps, and those of the
islands in the ponds; they construct their nests of sticks; eggs
of a sky blue colour. I inspected a nest, which was not very
large, it contained two eggs and six young ones, the latter vary-
ing much in size; they will occupy the same tree for a series of
years. They commonly sit on a stump, which rises out of the
water, in the mornings of the spring, and spread their wings
to the sun, from which circumstance they have obtained the
appellation of Sun-birds. They are difficult to be shot when
swimming, in consequence of only their heads being above the
water.”
Never having seen a specimen of the Black-bellied Darter of
Senegal and Java, I cannot give an opinion touching its identity
with ours. *
From Mr. Ord’s Supplementary Volume.
-ii- -/' ■ -. '!.« ■••' ■•'•i .' (wri'- ^•■•».«/ •:. itifych
*0^ '■ : ■ f i’- )‘ j- >- '''.(IT »<|| •
:w.,.
« V- ■ - ,■■ ; .A.
.rji' ' > iii ■ -.;»i,i!.\'- ;i■■ /• > . •■■ V. V ;,-,^'"i :.;v; .- .
H*-'
,^. . .v>
^■ax.U-
:■ .* a
■■ii r
• ■k :■•/
■ V ,1'v '-^tl
.. • r Xit .1
-J.l' Uj
■I’Vy .v: 1 ;• .A.#, ,
.' .:^
ii ■*
.-,<0*. *■■'■•■
‘ - n s -'
f r' ’Vi ,«i i ir- ■ .;/ •!'•( ' ■ ' ,
• i#4, . ■ ^ ■■ . v'v: r • , ^ . ■. . /
GENERAL INDEX.
VOL.
American Avoset iii
American Bittern ...... iii
American Buzzard i
American Crossbill . • . . . . ii
American Rail ..... ^. iii
American Redstart ...... ii
Young of ditto ..... ii
American Sparrow Hawk . . . . i
Male of ditto . . ‘ . . . i
American Stilt ...... iii
American Tufted Duck .... iii
American Widgeon . . . . . .iii
Anhinga . . . . . . . iii
Ash-coloured Hawk . . . . . . i
Ash-coloured Sandpiper iii
Autumnal Warbler ii
Avoset . . . . . . . iii
Long Legged . . . . . iii
Bald Eagle ....... i
Young of ditto i
Bald-pate Duck ...... iii
Baltimore Oriole ...... i
Female of ditto ..... i
Bank Swallow ...... ii
Barn Owl ....... i
Barn Swallow ....... ii
Barred Owl ....... i
Bartram’s Sandpiper ..... iii
Bay-breasted Warbler ..... ii
Bay-winged Bunting ..... ii
PAGE
215
52
85
157
185
281
285
38
42
218
356
307
373
80
142
368
215
218
46
57
307
201
207
424
124
412
121
124
341
206
380
INDEX.
Belted Kingsfisher
VOL.
ii
PAGE
59
Big Rail
. iii
177
Bittern . .
iii
52
Black and yellow Warbler
ii
365
Black and white Creeper
ii
68
Black-billed Cuckoo
. i
231
Black-bellied Darter
. iii
373
Black-bellied Plover
iii
162
Blackburnian Warbler .
ii
367
Black-capt Titmouse
ii
401
Black-capt Hawk . . . ,
. i
80
Black Duck . . .
iii
326
Black Hawk
i
103
Young of ditto .
i
105
Black-headed Gull
. iii
253
Black-poll Warbler
. ii
384
Female of ditto
ii
386
Black Skimmer
. iii
235
Black throated Blue Warbler
. ii
353
Black-throated Bunting
ii
163
Black-throated Green Warbler
ii
355
Black Vulture ....
i
20
Blue-bill Duck ....
iii
353
Blue-bird
ii
315
Blue Crane .....
. iii
54
Blue-eyed yellow Warbler
ii
351
Blue-gray Flycatcher
ii
287
Blue-green Warbler .
. ii
379
Blue Grosbeak ....
. ii
152
Blue Heron ....
. iii
54
Blue Jay .....
i
189
Blue Linnet ....
ii
262
Blue-mountain Warbler
ii
391
Blue-winged Teal .
,
. iii
317
Blue-winged Yellow Warbler
ii
347
INDEX.
381
VOI.. PAGE
Blue Yellow-back Warbler ... ii 381
Boblink . . . ^ ii 170
Brant iii 287
Broad-winged Hawk i 92
Brown Creeper ii 63
Brown-headed Nuthatch ..... ii 57
Brown Lark ii 313
Brown Phalarope ...... iii 204
Bufiel-headed Duck iii 363
Butcher-bird i 145
Butter-box Duck . . • . . . iii 363
Buzzard ..... . . i 85
Caerulean Warbler ii 361
Canada Flycatcher ii 302
Canada Goose ...... iii 276
Canada Jay i 198
Canvass-back Duck . . . . . iii 340
Cape-May Warbler ...... ii 394
Cardinal Grosbeak ii 145
Carolina Parrot . . . . . . i 153
Carolina Pigeon iii 12
Carrion-crow ....... i 20
Cat-bird ii 126
Cedar-bird, or Chatterer . • . . . ii 138
Chat ........ ii 396
Chewink ii 165
Chestnut-sided Warbler . . . , ii 343
Chimney Swallow ii 426
Chipping Sparrow ii 235
Chuck-will’s-widow ii 435
Cinereous Coot . . . . . . iii 210
Clapper Rail iii 177
Clark’s Crow ...... i 180
Common Rail iii 185
Connecticut Warbler ii 338
382
INDEX.
Coot
VOL. PAGE
hi 185
Cow Bunting
ii
177
Crested Crow
i
189
Crested Titmouse ,
ii
404
Crossbill
ii
157
Crow
i
171
Crow Blackbird
• • . • . i
222
Curlew, Long Billed
• . . . ; hi
96
do Esquimaux
iii
99
Darter, male
iii
373
Female
iii
376
Demi-Egret Heron
iii
73
Diver
iii
330
Downy Woodpecker
. . . . . ii
38
Duck Hawk
• . • . . i
30
Dunkadoo
iii
52
Dunlin
iii
136
Dusky, or Black Duck
iii
310
Eider Duck
. iii
322
Female of ditto
iii
325
English Snipe .
. iii
109
Esquimaux Curlew
iii
99
Ferruginous Thrush
ii
106
Field Martin
ii
265
Field Sparrow
ii
229
Fish Crow
i
182
Fish Hawk
i
67
Flamingo
iii
223
Flicker
ii
19
Fly-up-the-creek
iii
67
Fox-coloured Sparrow
ii
254
Fresh water Mud Hen
• • . . . iii
182
French Mocking-bird
ii
106
Gadwall Duck
iii
303
Gallinule
iii
197
INDEX.
383
VOL.
PAGE
Golden-crested Wren
ii
328
Golden-crowned Thrush
ii
124
Golden-eye Duck ....
iii
360
Golden Plover ....
iii
160
Goldfinch .....
ii
221
Golden-winged Warbler
ii
349
Golden-winged Woodpecker
ii
19
Goosander ......
iii
265
Female of ditto
. . iii
268
Grakle ......
i
219
Grass Plover .....
iii
124
Gray-back Sandpiper . . . .
iii
140
Gray Eagle .....
i
57
Gray Phalarope . . . . .
iii
199
Great American Shrike
i
145
Great Carolina Wren
ii
70
Great-crested Flycatcher
ii
273
Great Egret Heron . . . .
iii
64
Great-footed Hawk . . .
i
30
Great Heron . . . . .
iii
57
Great White Heron
. iii
64
Great-horned Owl . . . .
i
133
Great Marbled Godwit
. iii
102
Great Northern Diver . .
iii
229
Great Tern .....
iii
240
Green Black-capt Flycatcher
ii
303
Green Heron .....
iii
67
Green White-bellied Swallow
ii
422
Green-winged Teal .
. iii
319
Grosbeak ......
. ii
145
Ground Dove ....
. iii
15
Grous .......
24
Guillemot . . . .
. iii
227
Gull .......
iii
253
Hairy-head Merganser
iii
274
VOL. III. 3 D
384
INDEX.
VOL. PAGE
Hairy Woodpecker
ii
35
Hanging-bird . . . . .
201
Harlequin Duck ....
iii
371
Hawk Owl . . . . .
118
Hebridal Sandpiper
iii
145
Hemlock Warbler . . . .
393
Hemp-bird .....
224
Hermit Thrush . . . .
117
Heron ......
iii
56
High-hole . . . . .
19
Hittock
19
Hooded Flycatcher
. ii
300
Hooded Merganser
iii
274
Horse-foot Snipe . . . .
. iii
145
House Wren ....
331
Humming-bird . . . .
76
.Jamaica Shoveller
iii
332
Indigo-bird . . . ' .
262
Ivory -billed Woodpecker
9
Kentucky Warbler . . . .
375
Kildeer Plover ....
iii
157
King-bird . . . . .
265
Kingsfisher .....
59
Kite
98
Laughing Gull ....
253
Lawyer ......
215
Least Bittern ....
71
Le Pape ......
200
Lesser Red-poll ....
256
Lesser Tern . . . . .
. iii
244
Lettuce-bii’d ....
221
Lewis’s Woodpecker
46
Idttle Guillemot ....
. . iii
227
Little Plawk
42
Little Owl .....
129
INDEX.
385
Little Sandpiper
Little White Heron
Log-cock
Loggerhead Shrike
Long-billed Curlew .
Long-eared Owl
Long-legged Avoset
Long-tailed Duck
Female of ditto
Long-winged Goat-sucker
Loon
Lord Duck
Louisiana Heron
Louisiana Tanager
Magpie
Mallard
Manakin
Marsh Blackbird
Marsh Hawk
Marsh Tern .
Marsh Wren
Martin . . . .
Martinico Gallinule
Maryland Yellow-throat
Female of ditto
Meadow Clapper
Meadow Lark
Meadow Mouse
Merganser
Mississippi Kite
Mocking-bird
Mother Carey’s chicken
Mottled Owl
Mourning Warbler
Mouse Hawk
vox. PAGE
iii 134
iii 80
ii 16
i 151
iii 96
i 138
iii 218
iii 365
iii 368
ii 440
iii 229
iii 371
iii 73
ii 219
i 185
iii 295
ii 396
ii 85
i 111
iii 247
ii 73
ii 406
iii 197
ii 325
ii 327
iii 177
ii 306
i 126
iii 265
i 98
ii 94
iii 256
i 140
ii 345
i 111
386
INDEX.
VOL.
PAOE
Mud-hen
iii
177
Myrtle-bird
ii
356
Nashville Warbler
ii
380
Night-hawk
ii
440
Night Heron
iii
75
Nonpareil
ii
200
Northern Diver
iii
229
Nuthatch
ii
52
Old-field Lark
ii
306
Old-wife Duck
. iii
365
Orchard Oriole
. i
209
Oriole
i
201
Osprey
. i
67
Owls
i
114
Oyster-catcher
. iii
172
Painted Bunting
. ii
200
Parrot
. i
153
Partridge
iii
39
Passenger Pigeon
. iii
1
Peregrine Falcon
. i
30
Petrel
iii
256
Pewit Flycatcher
ii
275
Phalarope
iii
199
Pheasant
. iii
18
Pied Duck
. iii
369
Pied Oyster-catcher
. iii
172
Pigeon
iii
1
Pigeon Hawk
i
44
Pileated Woodpecker
. ii
16
Pine-creeping Warbler
. ii
363
Pine Finch
. ii
241
Pine Grosbeak
. ii
154
Pine-swamp Warbler
ii
389
Pinnated Grous
. iii
24
INDEX.
387
VOL.
PAGE
Pintail Duck
. iii
305
Piping Plover
iii
149
Piut . ,
. ii
19
Plover
iii
149
Poke
. iii
67
Prairie Warbler
ii
377
Prothonotary Warbler
. ii
369
Purple Finch
. ii
224
Young of ditto
. ii
227
Purple Grakle
. i
222
Purple Martin
. ii
406
Purre
. iii
138
Qua-bird
. iii
75
Quail
. iii
39
Rail
. iii
185
Raven
. i
164
Red Bat
. i
127
Red-backed Sandpiper
. iii
136
Red-bellied Nuthatch
ii
55
Red-bellied Woodpecker
ii
48
Red-bird
. ii
145
Red-breasted Merganser
. iii
269
Red-breasted Sandpiper
. iii
140
Red-breasted Snipe
. iii
112
Red-breasted Thrush
ii
133
Red-cockaded Woodpecker
ii
44
Red Curlew
iii
102
Red-eyed Flycatcher
ii
297
Red Flamingo
iii
223
Red-headed Duck
iii
351
Red -headed Woodpecker
. ii
27
Red Owl
. i
143
Red-poll Finch
ii
256
Red-shouldered Hawk
i
109
Redstart
ii
281
388
tNDEX.
Redstart, (young male)
VOL.
. ii
PAGE
28
Red-tailed Hawk
. i*
82
Red-winged Starling
. ii
85
Reed-bird . . .
ii
170
Rice Bunting
. ii
170
Ringed Plover
. iii
149
Ring Plover
iii
152
Ring-tailed Eagle
i
64
Robin
. ii
133
Roseate Spoonbill
. iii
49
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
ii
150
Rough-legged Falcon
i
101
Ruby-crowned Wren
. ii
323
Ruby-throated Humming-bird
. ii
76
Ruddy Duck, male
iii
332
female
iii
339
Ruddy Plover
iii
170
Ruffed Grous
iii
18
Rusty Grakle
. i
219
Sanderling
. iii
167
Sand Martin
ii
424
Sandpipers
iii
124
Sand-shoal Duck
iii
369
Savannah Sparrow
ii
251
Female of ditto
ii
252
Scarlet Ibis
iii
92
Scarlet Tanager
ii
208
Scaup Duck
iii
353
Scoter Duck
iii
330
Screech Owl
i
143
Sea Eagle
i
57
Sea-side Finch
ii
247
Semipalmated Sandpiper
iii
132
Semipalmated Snipe
. iii
115
Sharp-shinned Hawk
i
89
INDEX,
389
VOL. PAGE
Sharp-tailed Finch
. ii
249
Shearwater
iii
235
Sheldrake
iii
265
Shore Lark
ii
310
Short-billed Curlew
iii
99
Short-eared Owl
i
131
Short-tailed Tern
iii
249
Shoveller Duck
iii
292
Shrikes
i
145
Skimmer, or Shearwater
iii
235
Slate-coloured Hawk
i
87
Small Green-crested Flycatcher
ii
280
Smew
iii
272
Small-headed Flycatcher
ii
304
Snake-bird
iii
373
Female of ditto
iii
376
Snipe
iii
109
Snow-bird
ii
2S7
Snow Bunting
ii
195
Snow Goose
iii
283
Young of ditto
iii
285
Snow Owl
i
114
Snowy Heron
iii
80
Solitary Flycatcher
ii
291
Solitary Sandpiper
. iii
127
Song Sparrow
ii
233
Sooty Tern
iii
251
Sora
iii
185
South-southerly Duck
iii
365
Sparrow Hawk
i
42
Female of ditto
i
38
Spirit Duck
iii
363
Spoonbill
iii
49
Spotted Sandpiper
iii
129
Sprigtail Duck
iii
305
390
INDEX.
VOL.
PAGE
Starling
ii
85
Stork
. iii
84
Stormy Petrel
. iii
256
Straight-billed Curlew
iii
102
Summer Duck
iii
313
Summer Red-bird
ii
214
Summer Yellow-bird
ii
351
Surf Duck
iii
32 6
Swallows
ii
406
Swallow-tailed Hawk
i
95
Swamp Robin
ii
165
Swamp Sparrow
ii
245
Swift Lizard
i
91
Tanager
. ii
208
Tawny Thrush
ii
120
Tell-tale God wit, or Snipe
iii
118
Tennesee Warbler
ii
373
Tern
iii
240
Thrasher
ii
106
Thrush
ii
94
Tilt
iii
218
Titmouse
ii
401
Towhe Bunting
ii
165
Female of ditto
ii
168
Tree Sparrow
ii
231
Tufted Duck
iii
356
Turkey-buzzard
i
13
Turn-stone . .
iii
145
Turtle Dove
iii
12
Tyrant Flycatcher
ii
265
Velvet Duck
iii
328
Virginian Partridge
. iii
39
Vultures
i
13
Waders
iii
49
Warblers
. ii
315
INDEX.
391
VOL.
PAGE
Virginia Rail
iii
182
Virginia Nightingale
. ii
145
Virginia Red Bird .
ii
145
Warbling Flycatcher
ii
295
Water Thrush . ,
ii
122
Water Pheasant
iii
265
Whip-poor-will
ii
446
Whistling Field Plover
iii
162
White-bellied Swallow
ii
422
White-breasted Nuthatch
ii
52
White-crowned Bunting
ii
204
White-eyed Flycatcher
ii
293
White-headed Eagle
i
46
White Ibis
iii
94
White Nun .
iii
272
White Owl
i
124
White-throated Sparrow
ii
243
White-winged Crossbill
ii
161
Whooping Crane
. iii
84
Widgeon
. iii
307
Wild Pigeon
. iii
1
Willet
iii
115
Wilson’s Plover
. iii
155
Winter Hawk, or Falcon
. i
107
Winter Wren
ii
336
Woodcock .
iii
104
Wood Duck
iii
313
Wood Ibis
iii
90
Woodpeckers
ii
19
Wood-pewee Flycatcher
ii
278
Wood Thrush, or Wood Robin
. ii
111
Worm-eating Warbler
ii
371
Wren
. ii
70
Yellow-bellied Woodpecker
ii
32
Yellow-billed Cuckoo
i
228
VOL. III. 3 E
392
INDEX.
VOL.
PAGE
Yellow-bird
ii
221
Yellow-breasted Chat
. ii
396
Yellow-crowned Heron
. iii
87
Yellow Red-poll Warbler
. ii
383
Yellow-rump Wai'bler
ii
356
Ditto
. ii
359
Yellow-shanks Snipe
. iii
121
Yellow-throated Flycatcher
ii
289
Yellow-throat Warbler
ii
339
Yellow- winged Sparrow
ii
260
Yucker
. ii
19
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Tims. P. Cope,
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Bartholomew Wistar,
John J. Vanderkemp,
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Thos. Amies,
Jesse Y. Castor
Col. J. J. Abert,
Capt. Wm. M. Hunter, U
Nathl. A. Ware,
Dr. Wm. Wetherill,
Gerard Ualston,
Dr. F. S. Beattie,
Thos. C. Rockhill,
Isaac Hays, M. D.
Reuben Haines,
Charles J. Wister,
Mrs. Sarah Collins,
Margaret M. Smith,
Library Society,
W m. Price,
Alfred H. Powell, .
John Payne Tod,
Rev’d. John H. Rice,
Wm. D, Martin,
Je. Sylvestra Rebello,
A. S. Lisboa,
Jonathan Elliott,
James Thomas,
David Hosack, M. D.
Jacob Harvey, .
. Philadelphia.
. do
do
do
. do
. do
do
. do
do
. do
S. Navy, . . . do
do
do
. do
do
. do
. . . do
Germantown.
. do
Pittsburg, Pa.
. Burlington N. J.
. . Wilmington, Del.
Hagerstown, Md.
. . Winchester, Va.
Montpelier, Va.
Prince Edward court house, Va.
. Barnwell, S. C.
Washington city,
do
do
. Georgetown, D. C.
. New York,
. . do
SUBSCRIBERS’ NAMES.
394
Peter Augustus Jay, . . , .New York.
Cadwallader D. Golden, • ... do
Henry H. Schieffelin, . . . . do
Edmund Haviland, ..... do
Joseph Walker, .... do
Geo. Newbold, .... .do
Thomas Cock, ..... do
Isaac S. Howe, . . . . .do
Sami. F. Mott, ..... do
Joseph Kernochan, . . . . . do
Arthur Tappan, . . . . do
Nathan Comstock, ..... do
Francis Thompson, .... do
Barney Corse, • ■ • . . do
Valentine Mott, M. D. . . . . do
W. B. Astor, • . • . . do
Jno. Johnston, . . . . • do
J. Boorman, . . . . . do
W. W. Mott, . . . . . do
George S. Fox, ..... do
John D. Keese, ..... do
Right Rev. J. H. Hobart, .... do
Philip Hone, . . . . . do
Stephen Van Rensselaer, . . . .do
Augustus Fleming, . ... • do
Jas. L. Brinckerhoff, . .... do
Abraham Bell, ..... do
William Calder, ..... do
John Watts, ..... do
John C. Hamilton, . . • . . do
Chas. Henry Hall, .... do
Hezekiah How, ..... do
Lanuza Mendia & co. . . . . do
Geo. W. Strong, . . . ' . do
John Watts, Jr. . . . . . do
Danl. B. Dash, ..... do
Jno. L. Lawrence, . . . . . do
Robert C. Cornell, . . . . do
SUBSCRIBERS’ NAMES
395
Chas. Wilkes,
New York.
E. Parmly,
. • do
Rev’d. J. F. Schroeder,
do
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do
John Neilson,
do
James M'Bride,
• do
M. Van Beuren, .
do
D. M‘Carthy,
do
Nathl. Paulding, . -
. do
Cyrus Perkins,
.
do
Isaac U. Coles,
. do
Sami. Wright,
. do
Robert Donaldson,
do
Wm. Barrow,
. do
Danl. W. Kissam, Jr.
. do
Hamilton Wilkes,
. do
S. S. Howland,
do
James J. Jones,
. do
Jer. Van Rensselaer,
. do
Richard Varick,
do
J. H. Paulding,
do
S. Converse,
. do
Geo. T. Trimble,
. do
Geo. W. Bruen,
. do
Henry Rutgers,
do
Isaac Pierson,
do
James Rogers,
do
P. Perit,
i do
F. G. King, M. D.
. do
Benjamin Marshall,
. do
Francis Baretto, Jr.
do
Isaac Hill,
. do
J. M. Scott McKnight,
do
Timothy Hedges,
do
J. A. Vandenheuvel, .
Ogdensburgh, N. Y.
P. Cleaveland,
. Brunswick, N. Hampshire.
Seth Swift,
Nantucket.
United Library Association,
do
396
SUBSCRIBERS’ NAMES.
G. A. Dewitt,
. . Providence, R. 1.
Hon. Nathaniel Silsbee, S. U. S. .
Salem, Mass.
T. C. Flournoy, . .
. . Columbus, Ohio.
Ralph Letton,
Cincinnati, do
Wilkins Tannehill,
. Nashville, Te.
J. Roane,
do do
G. Troost,
. . do do
Chas. Pugsley,
. . do do
G. W. Campbell,
. . do do
Robert Weakly,
do do
J. L. Wheaton,
. , Franklin, do
H. Holmes,
. Murfreesborough, do
FOREIGN SUBSCRIBERS.
Baron Cuvier,
. . . Paris.
Edward Pease,
Darlington, England.
George Braithwaite, .
. . Crewden, do
Richard Towning,
. . Aux Cayes.
A. D. Roberts,
do
Gm. Chegaray,
. . do
i