Oa ee t4ie bata Vy yad i . 4 A « WA tie aide tok dd idea ad who a ORO Ce ea ; Dee ae Me 4 i Ce oe eat) Dh ovis hae ae VA * #4 4 ' SA ey sy Vea b Pe ra nure) ’ at Vit ws ane es 4h Pe ea) sane eens a wna HO , eva hn) ih 4 Ne) . PUAN 4) i Yay yly HURRY LARISA yy Vea NAR woe ddd hey Ad wine iY) MCN Yt a CCK os yIRVe Fy yy has Hay ede aS tir Kd i i a Ah ee hee 4 mitts - Viet 4 . tt yin) ) oI ie . ay if cA ff Wit yy ie nt) nity a A Ue TM We alah i: { nin ht “ oh 37 1M pte Yi vy 4) Ne at vie yf! tf Weetee ih fa : in b its ss “Walh mh in Hy ny . ie joules Pasa Ss Con : ‘Gh é ae y ) ie wh Wap th BIRDS OF AMERTIEC A. Vor, tb 1 Cea heaveas Wohl roel? ~ THE BIRDS OF AMERICA, FROM DRAWINGS MADE IN THE UNITED STATES AND THEIR TERRITORIES. BY JOHN JAMES AUDUBON, F. R. SS. L. & E. Fellow of the Linnean and Zoological Societies of London; Member of the Lyceum of Natural History of New York, of the Natural History Society of Paris, the Wernerian Natural History Society of Edinburgh; Honorary Member of the Society of Natural History of Manchester, and of the Royal Scottish Academy of Painting, Sculpture, and Architecture; Member of the American Philosophical Society, of the Academy of Natural Sciences at Philadelphia, of the Natural History Societies of Boston, of Charleston in South Carolina, the Quebec Literary and Historical Society, the Ornithological Society in London, the Société Francaise de Statistique Universelle de Paris, &c. &c. Vicon wok. NEW VORK: PUBLISHED BY J. J. AUDUBON. PHILADELPHIA: i. BRB. CHEVALIER: 1841. Entered according to the Act of Congress, in the year 1839, by J. J. Aupuzon and J. B. Cue- VALIER, in the Clerk’s Office of the District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. . — E. G, DORSEY, PRINTER. LIBRARY STREET. CONT FAMILY VIII. SYLVICOLINA.. WOOD-WARBLERS. Genus I. Myropiocres. Furyc ENTS. ATCHING-W ARBLER. = Hooded Flycatching-Warbler, - Myiodioctes Mitrata, - Canada Flycatcher, - - - Bonaparte’s Flycatching-Warbler, Kentucky Flycatching-Warbler, Wilson’s Flycatching-Warbler, - Canadensis, Bonapartii, Jormosus, Wilsonii, Genus II. Syztvicota. Woop-WARBLER. - - - Yellow-crowned Wood-Warbler, Audubon’s Wood-Warbler, - Black-poll Wood-Warbler, - Yellow-throated Wood-Warbler, Bay-breasted Wood-Warbler, —- Chestnut-sided Wood-Warbler, Pine Creeping Wood-Warbler, Hemlock Warbler, - - - Black-throated Green Wocd-Warbler, Cape May Wood-Warbler, - Cerulean Wood-Warbler, - - Blackburnian Wood-Warbler,_ - Yellow-poll Wood-Warbler, - Rathbone’s Wood-Warbler, - Yellow Red-poll Wood-Warbler, Blue Yellow-backed Wood-Warbler, Townsend’s Wood-Warbler, - Hermit Wood-Warbler, - - Black-throated Grey Wood-Warbler, Sylvicola coronata, - Aludubonii, - striata, - pensilis, - castanea, = icterocephala, pinus, - parus, - VITeENS, - - maritima, - cerulea, - Blackburniz, xLStiVA, - Rathbonii, - petechia, - Americana, Townsend, - occidentalis, - NUSTESCENS, - 11 v1 CONTENTS. Black-throated Blue Wood-Warbler, Sylvicola Canadensis, Black-and-yellow Wood-Warbler, maculosa, Prairie Warbler, miro - discolor, Blue-Mountain Warbler, - - montana, Connecticut Wood-Warbler, - agilis, Genus III. Macgillivray’s Ground-Warbler, Tricuss. GrRouNnD-WARBLER. - = Mourning Ground-Warbler, Maryland Yellow-throat Ground- Warbler, - Delafield’s Ground-Warbler, Genus IV. HeEtInata. Swainson’s Swamp-Warbler, Worm-eating Swamp-Warbler, - Prothonotary Swamp-Warbler, - Golden-winged Swamp-Warbler, Bachman’s Swamp-Warbler, Trichas Macgillivray?, - Philadelphia, Marilandica, - Delafieldii, SwAmp-W ARBLER. - - Helinaia Swainsonii, VerMiVOrA, chrysoptera, - Bachmanit, | Carbonated Swamp-Warbler, —- carbonata, Tennessee Swamp-Warbler, . peregrina, Blue-winged Yellow Swamp-Warbler, solitaria, Orange-crowned Swamp-Warbler, celata, Nashville Swamp-Warbler, - rubricapilla, Genus V. Myiori.ra. CREEPING-WARBLER. - Black-and-white Creeping-Warbler, Mniotilta varia, FAMILY IX. CERTHIANZ. CREEPERS. - Genus I. CERTHIA. Brown Tree-Creeper, - Genus II. Rock Wren, TROGLODYTES. Great Carolina Wren, - Bewick’s Wren, Wood Wren, House Wren, TREE-CREEPER. - - . Certhia familiaris, WREN. - - = - Troglodytes obsoletus, - ludovicianus, - Bewickit, = Americanus, = edon, protonotarius, 63 65 68 69 71 73 74 76 78 81 82 83 86 89 oF 93 95 96 98 100 103 104 105 108 108 109 113 113 116 120 123 125 Winter Wren, - - - Parkman’s Wren, - - Marsh Wren, - - - Short-billed Marsh Wren, FAMILY X. PARINA, Genus I. Parus. Tir. Crested Titmouse, - - Black-cap Titmouse, “ Carolina Titmouse, - - Hudson’s Bay Titmouse, - Chestnut-backed Titmouse, Chestnut-crowned Titmouse, CONTENTS. - Troglodytes hyemalis, - - Parkmanii, stan palustris, - - brevirostris, - Parus bicolor, - - - atricapillus, - - Carolinensis, - - Hudsonicus, - - rufescens, - - MINimuUSs, - FAMILY XI. SYLVIANA. WARBLERS. - - Genus I. Reeutus. KInewet. - s x z - Cuvier’s Kinglet, - - - Regulus Cuvierit, - American Golden-crested Kinglet, satrapa, - Ruby-crowned Kinglet, - - calendula, - Genus IJ. Srauia. BLvue-pirp. = = = 2 Common Blue-bird, - - Western Blue-bird, - = Arctic Blue-bird, é 3 - Sialia Wilsonti, - - - occidentalis, - - arctica, - - FAMILY XII. TURDINA. THRUSHES. - - Genus I. Cuincuus. Dipper. = = < 2 ie American Dipper, - - - Cinclus Americanus, - Genus II. Ornpuevs. Mocxi1nG-sirp. - - - Common Mocking-bird,_ - Mountain Mocking-bird, - Cat-bird, - - - - - Orpheus polyglottus, - - montanus, - - Carolinensis, - ee Naat Vie ae oa TO THE READER. Ir is with sincere pleasure that I acknowledge the support of an already considerable number of subscribers, to the present edition of the “Birds of America,” among whom are many highly valued and esteemed friends, as well as eminent persons, both in our country and Europe—to all of whom I offer my heartfelt thanks. The many letters I have received from our distinguished natu- ralists, assure me that this publication has progressed—as every work should do—improving with each succeeding number—this I owe, independent of my constant desire to please my patrons and the world of natural science, to the talents, perseverance, industry and care of all engaged on the work. 'To them, therefore, I offer my thanks, accompanied, as I believe, by those of many of the subscribers. Although this work has been issued so far, under, perhaps, more ~ than the ordinary difficulties generally attending the beginning of every similar publication, I am gratified to say that it has appear- ed with regularity, and that the 15th number, commencing the 2nd volume, is now before you. Joun J. Aupupon. New York, August, 1840. Vor, Il. 2 ‘ LG Bevin a ehsdrchae BRPRDS Of ARV E REC FAMILY VIII. SYLVICOLINA. WOOD-WARBLERS. Bill short, or of moderate length, rather slender, somewhat conical, consi- derably broader than high at the base, gradually compressed toward the end; upper mandible with its dorsal outline straight until near the end, the point very narrow, the notches very slight; lower mandible with the angle rather short and narrow, the dorsal line straight, the edges somewhat involute, the tip acute. Head moderate, ovate; neck short; body rather slender. Feet of moderate length; tarsus longer than the middle toe, slender, much com- pressed, with eight anterior scutella, of which the upper are blended; toes rather small, or of moderate size, hind toe proportionally stout, outer adhe- rent for a short way at the base; claws moderate, much compressed, arched, acute. Plumage generally soft and blended. Wings of moderate length. Tail of moderate length, of twelve feathers. Tongue of moderate length, sagittate, tapering. C&sophagus of moderate width, without dilatation; pro- ventriculus bulbiform; stomach of moderate size, roundish or elliptical, moderately muscular, with the muscles distinct; epithelium dense, longitudi- nally rugous; intestine short, rather wide; cceca very small; cloaca oblong. Trachea simple, with four pairs of inferior laryngeal muscles. Genus I.—MYIODIOCTES, Aud. FLYCATCHING-WARBLER. Bill of moderate length, stoutish, straight, considerably broader than high, compressed toward the end; upper mandible with the ridge distinct, the dor- sal line convex toward the end, the edges sharp and overlapping, with a very We 12 THE HOODED FLYCATCHING-WARBLER. faint notch close to the slightly deflected tip; lower mandible with the ridge indistinct, the sides rounded, the edges somewhat involute, the | tip. narrow, not ascending. Nostrils basal, oblong. Head ovate, of moderate size; neck short; body rather slender. Feet of moderate length; tarsus pretty stout, much compressed; scutella blended, excepting the lower three; toes of mode- rate length, very slender, the hind toe proportionally large, the third and fourth united at the base, all scutellate. Claws moderate, extremely com- pressed, well arched, very acute. Jristles at the base of the bill elongated but slender. Wings of moderate length, the second and third quills longest, the first scarcely shorter than the fourth. Tail moderate, slightly rounded. Name from Mviz, an insect, Amurns, a pursuer. THE HOODED FLYCATCHING-W ARBLER. +-Myropiocres mirrata, Lath. PLATE LXXI.—Mate anp Femate. In many parts of our woods, the traveller, as he proceeds, cannot help stopping to admire the peaceful repose that spreads its pleasing charm on all around. The tall trees are garlanded with climbing plants, which have en- twined their slender stems around them, creeping up the crevices of the. deeply furrowed bark, and vying with each other in throwing forth the most graceful festoons, to break the straight lines of the trunks which support them; while here and there from the taller branches, numberless grape-vines hang in waving clusters, or stretch across from tree to tree. The underwood shoots out its branches, as if jealous of the noble growth of the larger stems, and each flowering shrub or plant displays its blossoms, to tempt the stran- ger to rest awhile, and enjoy the beauty of their tints, or refresh his nerves with their rich odours. Reader, add to this scene the pure waters of a rivu- let, and you may have an idea of the places in which you will find the Hooded Warbler. , The Southern and Western States are those to which this beautiful bird gives a preference. It abounds in Louisiana, along the Mississippi, and by the Ohio nearly to Cincinnati. It is equally plentiful in the northern parts of the Floridas, Georgia, and the two Carolinas, after which it becomes rare. None, I believe, are ever seen east of the State of New York. It enters the lower parts of Louisiana about the middle of March, and by the beginning of N&is Pale 1 Male 2 Female raw Irom Nature by J J Audubon. VHS 61.5 Joh? Printed & Col by J Bowen. Piilad® THE HOODED FLYCATCHING-WARBLER. 13 May has laid its eggs, or sometimes even hatched them. It arrives in South Carolina in April, immediately constructs its nest, and has young quite as soon as in Louisiana. The Hooded Flycatcher is one of the liveliest of its tribe, and is almost continually in motion. Fond of secluded places, it is equally to be met with in the thick cane brakes of the high or low lands, or amid the rank weeds and tangled bushes of the lowest and most impenetrable swamps. You re- cognise it instantly on seeing it, for the peculiar graceful opening and closing of its broad tail distinguishes it at once, as it goes on gambolling from bush to bush, now in sight, now hid from your eye, but constantly within hearing. Its common call-note so resembles that of the Painted Finch or Nonpareil, that it requires a practised ear to distinguish them. Its song, however, is very different. It is rather loud, lively, yet mellow, and consists of three notes, resembling the syllables weet, weet, weeteé, a marked emphasis being laid on the last. Although extremely loquacious during the early part of spring, it becomes almost silent the moment it has a brood; after which its notes are heard only while the female is sitting on her eggs; for they raise two, sometimes three, broods in a season. Full of activity and spirit, it flies swiftly after its insect prey, securing the greater part of it on wing. Its flight is low, gliding, and now and then pro- tracted to a considerable distance, as it seldom abandons the pursuit of an insect until it has obtained it. The nest of this gay bird is always placed low, and is generally attached to the forks of small twigs. It is neatly and compactly formed of mosses, dried grasses, and fibrous roots, and is carefully lined with hair, and not un- frequently a few large feathers. The eggs are from four to six, of a dull white, spotted with reddish-brown towards the larger end. The male and female sit by turns, and show extreme anxiety for the safety of their eggs or young. My worthy friend Joun Bacuman, gave me the following account of the courageous disposition and strength of attachment of the Hooded Flycatcher. “J found a nest of these birds in a low piece of ground, so entangled with smilax and briars that it was difficult for me to pass through it. The nest was not placed more than two feet from the ground. This was in the month of May, and the parents were engaged in feeding the young it contained. Not far from that spot, whilst on a stand, waiting for a deer to pass, I saw another pair of the Hooded Flycatcher collecting materials to build a nest. The female was the most active, and yet the male was constantly near to her. A sharp-shinned Hawk suddenly pounced upon them, seized the female, and flew off with her. The male, to my surprise, followed close after the Hawk, flying within a few inches of him, and darting at him in all directions, as if Vox. IL 3 14 THE CANADA FLYCATCHER. fully determined to make him drop his prey. The pursuit continued thus until the birds were quite out of my sight!”’ This species, like many of its delicate tribe, appears to suffer so much from occasional cold, that, although at all other times a shy and wary bird, when chilly weather surprises it, it becomes at once careless of its safety. On such occasions I have approached them near enough to touch them with my gun. By the middle of September they all retire farther south. Hoopep Fiycatcuer, Muscicapa cucullata, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. iii. p. 101. Syivia mirraTa, Bonap. Syn., p. 79. Hoopep Warster, Sylvia mitrata, Aud. Or. Biog., vol. ii. p. 66. Adult Male and Fe- male; vol. v. p. 465. Sexpy’s Fiycatcuer, Muscicapa Selbyiz, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. i. p. 46. Young. Third quill longest, second longer than fourth, which slightly exceeds the — first; tail slightly emarginate and rounded. Male with the forehead, sides of the head, breast, sides, abdomen, lower wing and tail coverts rich pure yellow; hind head and neck all round black; upper parts yellowish-olive; wings and tail dusky brown, margined with yellowish-olive, an oblique patch of white on the inner webs of the three outer tail-coverts. Female with the forehead, the sides of the head, the throat, and all the lower parts yellow, the hind part of the head dusky, the upper part as in the male. Young similar to the female, but with the tints a little duller. Male, 54, 8. From Texas to Virginia. In the interior, as far as Memphis on the Mis- sissippl. Rather common. Migratory. PHESCAN ADA EE VOLE CHER: +Myroptoctres Canapensis, Linn. PLATE LXXII.—Mate anp Femate. What a beautiful object, in the delightful season of spring, is our Great Laurel, covered with its tufts of richly, yet delicately, coloured flowers! In imagination I am at this moment rambling along the banks of some murmur- ing streamlet, overshadowed by the thick foliage of this gorgeous ornament of our mountainous districts. Methinks I see the timid trout eyeing my movements from beneath his rocky covert, while the warblers and other syl- LL eee - 1 Mate? Kemale. Drawn from Nature by J.J. Audubon. F.K.S.F1,5. Lith Primed & Colby J.'PBowen.Philad# Fhe 7 Ne THE CANADA FLYCATCHER. 15 van choristers, equally fond of their wild retreats, are skipping in all the freedom of nature around me. Delightful moments have been to me those when, seated in such a place, with senses all intent, I gazed on the rosy tints of the flowers that seemed to acquire additional colouring from the golden rays of the sun, as he rode proudly over the towering mountains, drawing aside as it were the sable curtain that till now hung over the landscape, and drying up, with the gentleness of a parent towards his cherished offspring, the dewy tears that glittered on each drooping plant. Would that I could ‘describe to you the thoughts that on such a morning have filled my whole soul; but alas, I have not words wherewith to express the feelings of grati- tude, love, and wonder that thrilled and glowed in my bosom! I must there- fore content myself with requesting you to look at the blossoms of the laurel as depicted in the plate, together with two of the birds, which, in pairs, side by side, are fond of residing among its glossy and verdant foliage. - A comparison of the plate in which I have represented this interesting species, with the next, (Plate 73,) exhibiting the bird named by me Bona- parte’s Flycatcher, will suffice to convince you, good reader, that these birds are truly distinct. My excellent friend Mr. Witx1am Swainson, is quite correct, when, after describing the present species, he says, “we can per- ceive no character, either in the figure or the description of Wixson, which does not accord with our bird,”’ but is certainly mistaken in supposing me to have informed him that the Canada Flycatcher and that named after the Prince of Musignano are one and the same. The Myiodioctes Bonapartii was met with in Louisiana, where, during a residence of many years, I never saw the present species. Nay, the Canada Flycatcher, although a migratory, may be said to be truly a northern bird, never having been observed south of Pennsylvania, east of the range of the Alleghany mountains, or below Pittsburgh, on their broad western slope. I first became acquainted with the habits of the Canada Flycatcher in the Great Pine Forest, while in company with that excellent woodsman Jrp1Au Irtsu, and I have since ascertained that it gives a decided preference to mountainous places, thickly covered with almost impenetrable undergrowths of tangled shrubbery. I found it breeding in the Pine Forest, and have fol- lowed it through Maine, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, and the country of Labrador, in every portion of which, suited to its retired habits, it brings forth its broods in peaceful security. It no doubt comes from the southern parts of America, or from the West Indies, but the mode of its migration is still unknown to me. In Pennsyl- vania, about the middle of May, a few are seen in the maritime districts, where they seem merely to be resting after the fatigues of a long and tedious journey, before they retreat to their favourite haunts in the mountainous 16 THE CANADA FLYCATCHER. tracts. There they are heard while concealed among the opening blossoms, giving vent to their mirth in song, perhaps thanking the Author of their being for their safe return to their cherished abode. Their notes are not unmusical, although simple and not attractive. Wherever a streamlet of rushing water, deeply shaded by the great mountain laurel (Rhododendron maximum) was met with, there was the Canada Flycatcher to, be found. You might see it skipping among the branches, peeping beneath each leaf, examining every chink of the bark, moving along with rapidity and elegance, singing, making love to its mate, and caressing her with all the fervour of a’ true sylvan lover. : The nest of this bird which I found, was filled to the brim with four young ones ready to take wing; and as it was on the 11th of August, I concluded that the parents had reared another brood that season. When I put my hand on them, they all left the nest and scrambled off, emitting a plaintive ¢sche, which immediately brought the old ones. Notwithstanding all the anxious eares of the latter in assisting them to hide, I procured all of them; but after examining each minutely I set them at liberty. They were of a dull greyish tint above, of a delicate citron colour beneath, and without any spots on the breast or sides. The nest was placed in the fork of a small branch of laurel, not above four feet from the ground, and resembled that of the Black-capped Warbler. The outer parts were formed of several sorts of mosses, support- ing a delicate bed of slender grasses, carefully disposed in a circular form, and lined with hair. In another nest found near Eastport, in the State of Maine, on the 22nd of May, five eggs had been laid, and the female was sit- ting on them. They were of a transparent whiteness, with a few dots of a bright red colour towards the large end. This nest also was placed in the fork of a small bush, and immediately over a rivulet. The flight of the Canada Flycatcher is rather swifter than that of sylvice generally is; and as it passes low amid bushes, the bird cannot be followed by the eye to any considerable distance. Now and then it gives chase on the wing, when the clicking of its bill is distinctly heard. By the 1st of October not one remained in the Great Pine Forest, nor did I see any in Labrador after the Ist of August. A few were seen in Newfoundland in the course of that month, and as I returned through Nova Scotia, these birds, like my own party, were all moving southward. Moracitia Canavensis, Linn. Syst. Nat., vol. i. p. 27. Canapa Frycatcuer, Muscicapa Canadensis, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. ill. p. 100. Syzvia ParRDALINA, Bonap. Syn., p. 79. Canapa Fiycarcuer, Muscicapa Canadensis, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. ii. p. 17. Third quill longest, scarcely exceeding the second, fourth slightly shorter, No15 ens Carle ra OF Mul ee Ayoatl IB feathng fb ler! 1 BONAPARTE’S FLYCATCHING-WARBLER. 17 first intermediate between the fourth and fifth; tail rounded. Male with the upper parts ash-grey; the feathers of the wings and tail brown, edged with grey; the head spotted with black; loral space, a band beneath the eye, pro- ceeding down the side of the neck, and a belt of triangular spots across the ~ lower part of the fore neck, black; the lower parts, and a bar from the nos- tril over the eye, pure yellow; lower wing and tail-coverts white. Female similar to the male, but with the black spots on the neck smaller and fainter. Young similar to the female, with the tints paler, and the neck unspotted. Male, 54, 9. From Kentucky northward. Not found in the Atlantic districts. Migra- tory. Tue Great LAUREL. RaHopoDENDRON MAXIMUM, /Villd. Sp. Pl., vol. ii. p. 600. Pursch, Flor. Amer., vol. i. p. 297.—Decanpria Monoeynia, Linn.—Ruopopenpra, Juss. This beautiful species frequently attains a height of fifteen or even twenty feet. It is characterized by its oblong, acute leaves, its terminal umbels or clusters of pink campanulate flowers, the divisions of the calyces of which are oval and obtuse. It exhibits several varieties depending on the shape of the leaves, the colour of the flowers, and the comparative length of the sta- mens and style. The wood, which is tough and stubborn, is well adapted for turner’s work. The species is found on all the moist declivities of our mountainous districts, from Carolina to Massachusetts. BONAPARTE’S FLYCATCHING-WARBLER. ~ Myropiocres Bonaparttt, Mud. PLATE LXXTIJ.—Mate. Whilst I have the pleasure of honouring this beautiful new species with the name of so distinguished a naturalist as Coartes Lucien Bonaparte, Prince of Musignano, I regret that I am unable to give any account of its habits, or even of its manner of flight, and must therefore confine my remarks upon it within very brief space. The following extract from my journal contains all that I have to say respecting it. “Monday, August 13, 1821. lLouisiana.—On arriving at the Cypress 18 BONAPARTE’S FLYCATCHING-WARBLER. Swamp (about five miles from St. Francisville) I saw a great number of small birds of different species, and as I looked at them I observed two engaged in a fight or quarrel. I shot at them, but only one fell. On reaching the spot, I found the bird was only wounded, and saw it standing still and upright as if stupified by its fall. When I approached it to pick it up, it spread its tail, opened its wings, and snapped its bill about twenty times sharply and in quick succession, as birds of the genus do when seizing insects on wing. I carried it home, and had the pleasure of drawing it while alive and full of spirit. It often made off from my hand, by starting suddenly, and then would hop round the room as quickly as a Carolina Wren, uttering its tweef, tweet, tweet all the while, and snapping its bill every time I took it up. I put it into a cage for a few minutes, but it obstinately thrust its head through the lower parts of the wires. I relieved it from this sort of confinement, and allowed it to go about the room. Next day it was very weak and ruffled up, so I killed it and put it in spirits.’? To this account I have only to add, that I have not seen another individual since. Bonaparte’s Frycatcuer, Muscicapa Bonapartii, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. i. p. 27. Bristles longer than in the last, second quill longest; tail very long, nearly even; upper parts light greyish-blue; quills dusky brown, their outer webs greyish-blue, the two outer margined with white; middle tail-feathers and edges of the rest like the back; lower parts and a band on the forehead ochre- yellow, with a few faint dusky spots on the lower part of the fore neck. This species differs from the last chiefly in being of a more elongated form, in having the bristles much longer, the upper parts of a much lighter tint; in wanting the black band down the side ofthe neck, and the yellow band over the eye; the bill is straighter and more pointed, and the outer primaries are edged with white. Male, 5}. Louisiana. Only one specimen ever found. Tue Great MAGNOLIA. Macnonia GRaNDIFLORA, Weild. Sp. Pl., vol. ii. p. 1255. Pursch, Flor. Amer., vol. ii. p. 380. Mich. Arbr. Forest. de l’Amer. Sept., vol. iii. p. 71. Pl. ii—Potyanpria PoLyGy- nia, Linn.—MAacGno.i&, Juss. The magnificent tree, of which a twig, with a cone of ripe fruit, is repre- sented in the plate, attains a height of a hundred feet or even more. The bright red bodies are the seeds, suspended by a filament for some time after the capsules have burst. The trunk is often very straight, from two to four RI LK aby hacky. Iiycatehen ees Vasler a SY eee 7 Male 2 Female: Drawn from Narare by J JAudubon PKS -FLS Lith" Printed & Col* by J.T Bowen. Philad® THE KENTUCKY FLYCATCHING-WARBLER. 19 feet in diameter at the base, with a greyish smooth bark. The leaves which remain during the winter are stiff and leathery, smooth, elliptical, tapering at the base. The flowers are white, and seven or eight inches in diameter. It is known by the name of large magnolia, big laurel and bay-tree, and oc- curs abundantly in some parts of Carolina, Georgia, the Floridas and Loui- siana. THE KENTUCKY FLYCATCHING-W ARBLER. +Myropioctes Frormosvs, Wils. PLATE LXXIV.—Mate anp FEMALE. This beautiful species is the most common and abundant that visits the State of Louisiana and those States situated on the borders of the Mississippi. In Kentucky it is much less common, and in the State of Ohio scarcer still. It is an extremely active and lively bird. It is found in all the low grounds and damp places near water-courses, and generally among the tall rank weeds and low bushes growing in rich alluvial soil. Continually in motion, it is seen hopping in every direction from stalk to stalk, or from one twig to another, preying upon insects and larve, or picking small berries, seldom, however, pursuing insects on wing. During spring, its agreeable notes are heard in every quarter. They are emphatic, and resemble the words fwee- dle, tweedle, tweedle, distinctly repeated. This little bird is seen at inter- vals of a few minutes on the skirts of the tall plants, peeping cunningly to discover whether any intruders may be near; after which it immediately re- enters the thicket, and repeats its little ditty. I never saw this bird fly farther than a few yards at a time. Its flight is low, and performed in a quick gliding manner, the bird throwing itself into the nearest bush or thicket of tall grass. It arrives in the Southern States, from Mexico, about the middle of March, and remains with us until the mid- dle of September, during which time it rears two broods. Its nest is small, beautifully constructed, and usually attached to several stems of rank weeds. The outer parts are formed of the bark of stalks of the same weeds in a with- ered state, mixed with a finer kind and some cottony substances. It is beau- tifully lined with the cottony or silky substance that falls from the cotton- wood tree. The eggs are from four to six, of a pure white colour, finely sprinkled with bright red dots. 20 THE KENTUCKY FLYCATCHING-WARBLER. This species destroys great numbers of spiders, which it frequently obtains by turning over the withered leaves on the ground. The young males do not attain the full beauty of their plumage until the first spring, and resem- ble the mother during their stay with us the first season. Young and old associate together, and live in great harmony. I have not seen this species farther eastward than North Carolina. The branch on which two of these birds are represented, is that of the tree commonly called the white cucumber, a species of magnolia. It flowers as early in the season as the dog-wood. ‘The flowers open before the leaves are expanded, and emit an odour resembling that of a lemon, but soon becoming disagreeable, as the blossom fades. This tree seldom grows to the height of thirty feet, and is consequently disregarded as a timber-tree. I have met with it only in the States of Mississippi and Louisiana, where it grows on the grounds preferred by the Kentucky Warbler during its stay in those States. Kentucky Warster, Sylvia formosa, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. iii. p. 85. Syzvia rormosa, Bonap. Syn., p. 34. Kenrucky Warster, Sylvia formosa, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. i. p. 196. Third quill longest, second scarcely shorter, first longer than fourth, the outer three being nearly equal. Tail slightly emarginate and slightly round- ed. Male with the upper part of the head and a band from the base of the upper mandible under the eye and down the side of the neck black; a streak from the nostril over the eye, and all the lower parts bright yellow; the upper parts yellowish-olive; wings brown, the feathers margined with yel- lowish-olive; tail light greenish-brown. Female similar, without the black band on the cheek and neck, and the black of the head less extended. Male, 53, 8. Valley of the Mississippi, and Kentucky. Migratory. Macnouia auricutaTa, Willd. Sp. Pl., vol. ii. p. 1268. Pursch, Flor. Amer., vol. ii. p. 482. Mich. Arbr. Forest. de l’Amer. Septentr., vol. iii. p. 94. Pl. 7.—Potyanpria Po- LyGyniA, Linn.—MacGnoia, Juss. This species, which is remarkable for the beauty of its foliage, is known in America by the names of white cucumber tree, long-leaved cucumber tree, and Indian physic. The latter name it has obtained from the cireum- stance of its bark being used in intermittent fevers. It is characterized by its rhomboido-oboval acute leaves, which are narrowed and two-lobed at the base; and its ovate acute petals. The flowers are greenish-white. Nea : Pir cor Libor - Uyuletung ya, ( ‘g? LZ Lo G7 ra « eo ae i SA ; TDheelooses Cs dew 1. Wade 2 Feral Lith Prmted & Colla J 1 Bowen Walad® WILSON’S FLYCATCHING-WARBLER. ~.Myioproctrs Wiisonir.— Bonap. PLATE LXXV.—Mate anp Femate. This species passes rapidly through the United States on its way to the Northern Districts, where it breeds and spends the summer. WuLson saw only a few specimens, which he met with in the lower parts of Delaware and New Jersey, and supposed it to be an inhabitant of the Southern States, where, however, it is never found in the summer months. It is not rare in the State of Maine, and becomes more abundant the farther north we pro- ceed. I found it in Labrador and all the intermediate districts. It reaches that country early in June, and returns southward by the middle of August. It has all the habits of a true Flycatcher, feeding on small insects, which it eatches entirely on the wing, snapping its bill with a smart clicking sound. It frequents the borders of the lakes, and such streams as are fringed with low bushes, from which it is seen every moment sallying forth, pursuing its insect prey for many yards at a time, and again throwing itself into its fa- vourite thickets. The nest is placed on the extremity of a small horizontal branch, amongst the thick foliage of dwarf firs, not more than from three to five feet from the ground, and in the centre of the thickets of these trees so common in Labra- dor. The materials of which it is composed are bits of dry moss and delicate pine twigs, agglutinated together and to the branches or leaves around it, and beneath which it is suspended, with a lining of extremely fine and trans- parent fibres. The greatest diameter does not exceed 34 inches, and the depth is not more than 14. The eggs are four, dull white, sprinkled with reddish and brown dots towards the larger end, where the markings form a circle, leaving the extremity plain. The parents shew much uneasiness at the approach of any intruder, skip- ping about and around among the twigs and in the air, snapping their bill, and uttering a plaintive note. They raise only one brood in the season. The young males shew their black cap as soon as they are fully fledged, and be- fore their departure to the south. The head of the young female is at first of the same tint as the back, but I could not ascertain if they acquire their full colour the first autumn. I found these birds abundant in Newfoundland, but perceived that they had already begun to migrate on the 20th of August; they were moving Vox. II. 4 99 . WILSON’S FLYCATCHING WARBLER. from bush to bush, and seldom flew farther than thirty or forty yards at a time; yet when crossing the arms of the Gulf of St. Lawrence, they are obliged to fly forty miles or more without alighting. The little Winter Wren must perform the same task, it being found in the same countries, to which some individuals travel from the United States. I observed the Green Black-capped Flycatcher in considerable numbers, in the northern parts of Maine, in October 1832, and concluded that the individuals seen must have come from a great distance. Green Buack-cart Frycatcuer, Muscicapa pusilla, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. iii. p. 103. Syztvia Wixzsoni, Bonap. Syn., p. 86. Green Buack-capr Warsier, Nutt. Man., vol. i. p. 149. Green Buack-capreD Fiycatcuer, Muscicapa Wilsonii, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. ii. p. 148. Wings short, the second and third quills longest and about equal, the first much shorter than the fourth and a little longer than the fifth; tail even. Back, rump, and upper tail-coverts yellowish-green; crown glossy bluish- black, bordered on the forehead and over the eyes with a broad band of bright yellow, of which colour are all the lower parts; wings and tail dusky brown, the feathers margined with yellowish-green. Female similar to the male, but with the black of the crown of much less extent. Young similar to the female, without black on the head. Male, 43, 63. From Texas northward, Columbia River, and intervening regions. “Not in the Fur Countries. Rather rare. Migratory. Tue SNAKE’s HEAD. CuHetone Giasra, Willd. Sp. Pl., vol. iii. p. 225. Pursch, Flor. Amer. Sept., vol. ii. p. 427.—Dipynamia ANGIOSPERMIA, Linn.—ScROPHULARINE, Juss. This plant grows on the banks of rivers and swamps, in the Middle and Southern States. It is herbaceous and perennial, with opposite lanceolate- oblong, acuminate, serrate leaves, and dense terminal spikes of pale red flowers, not remarkable for beauty. tien eat N16 , PL. 16. 4 | 5 OE : Wood 4 Ue! a = Pe rsccotor 1 Mate? Young. Draws trom Nature by J J Audubon FR OS PLS Lath* Pounted & Colt by JT Bowen Philad*® Genus I].—SYLVICOLA, Swains. WOOD-WARBLER. Bill short, straight, rather strong, tapering, scarcely broader than high at the base, compressed toward the end; upper mandible with its dorsal outline declinate and nearly straight, the tip slightly declinate, the edges overlapping, with a slight notch; lower mandible with the angle short and rounded, the dorsal line straight, the sides convex, the edges a little inclinate, the tip nar- row. Nostrils basal, oval or oblong, partially concealed by the feathers. Head of ordinary size; neck short; body rather slender. Feet of ordinary length, rather slender; tarsus longer than the middle toe, much compressed, covered anteriorly with seven scutella, very sharp behind; toes of moderate length, slender, free, the outer united as far as the second joint, the hind toe proportionally large; claws moderate, well arched, much compressed, laterally grooved, very acute. Plumage soft and blended. Bristles at the base of the upper mandible feeble. Wings rather long, little curved, pointed; the second quill longest, the first and third slightly shorter. Tail rather long, emar- ginate. THE YELLOW-CROWNED WOOD-W ARBLER. +.Syztvicota coronaTa, Lath. PLATE LXXVI.—Mate anp Fremate. This very abundant species I observed in East Florida, on the Ist of March 1831, in full summer plumage. In South Carolina, no improvement on its winter dress could be seen on the 18th of the same month. On the 10th of April, many were procured by my friend Bacuman and myself, in the neighbourhood of Charleston. They were in moult, especially about the head and neck, where the new feathers were still inclosed in their sheath; but so rapidly did the change take place, that, before a few days had elapsed, they were in full plumage. During a winter spent in the Floridas, I saw these birds daily, and so had abundant opportunity of studying their manners. They were very social among themselves, skipped by day along the piazzas, balanced themselves in the air, opposite the sides of the houses, in search of spiders and insects, 9A. THE YELLOW-CROWNED WOOD-WARBLER. rambled among the low bushes of the gardens, and often dived among the large cabbage-leaves, where they searched for worms and larve. At night they roosted on the branches of the orange trees, in the luxuriant groves so abundant in that country. Frequently, in the early part of warm mornings, I saw flocks of them fly off to sea until they were out of sight, and again observed their return to land about an hour after. This circumstance I con- sidered as indicative of their desire to migrate, and as shewing that their journeys are performed by day. In the beginning of May, I found them so abundant in Maine, that the skirts of the woods seemed alive with them. They appeared to be merely waiting for warmer weather, that they might resume their journey north- wards. As we advanced towards Labrador, I observed them at every place where we happened to land. They were plentiful in the Magdaleine Islands; and when we landed on the Labrador coast, they were among the first birds observed by our party. As Professor MacCurtocu of Halifax, Nova Scotia, informed me, few breed in the province of Nova Scotia, nor had his sons, who are active col- lectors, ever found one of their nests in the vicinity of that town. I am indebted to his liberality for a nest with four eggs, which formed part of his fine collection. Although they are abundant in Labrador, we did not find any of their nests; but we had the good fortune to procure several young birds scarcely able to fly. The nest above mentioned was placed near the extremity of the branch of a low fir-tree, about five feet from the ground. It resembles that of the Sylvia xstiva of Latham, being firm, compact, the outer parts formed of silky fibres from different plants attached to the twigs near it by means of glutinous matter, mixed with stripes of the inner bark of some tree unknown to me. Within this is a deep and warm bed of thistle- down, and the inner layer consists of feathers and the fine hair of small quad- rupeds. The eggs are rather large, of a light rosy tint, the shell thin and transparent; they are sparingly dotted with reddish-brown near the larger end, but in a circular manner, so that the extremity is unspotted. This species feeds on insects, is an expert fly catcher, and a great devourer of caterpillars. During winter, however, its principal food consists of berries of various kinds, especially those of the Myrtle and Pokeweed. They also feed on the seeds of various grasses. When, at this season,a warm day occurs, and the insects are excited to activity, the Warblers are sure to be seen in pursuit of them. The rows of trees about the plantations are full of them, and, from the topmost to the lowest branches, they are seen gliding upwards, downwards, and in every direction, in full career after their prey, and seldom missing their aim. At this time of the year, they emit, at every movement, a single éweef, so very different from that of any other Warbler, THE YELLOW-CROWNED WOOD-WARBLER. 95 that one can instantly recognise the species by it among a dozen. They rarely enter the woodlands, but prefer the neighbourhood of cultivated or old fields, the nurseries, gardens, and trees about towns, villages, or farm- houses, or by the sides of roads. They are careless of man, allowing him to approach within a few yards, or even feet, without manifesting much alarm. As they breed so far north, it is probable that they raise only one brood in the season. They return south early in September, already clad in their winter dress. YeLLow-rumP Wareter, Sylvia coronata, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. ii. p. 138. Sytyra coronaTa, Bonap. Syn., p. 78. YELLow-crowNeD Warster, or Myrtie Birp, Sylvia coronata, Nutt. Man., vol. i. p. 361. YELLOwW-RuMP WarBxER, Sylvia coronata, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. ii. p. 303. Second quill longest, third scarcely shorter, first longer than fourth; tail slightly emarginate. Male with the upper parts deep ash-grey, streaked with black; crown, rump, and a patch on the sides of the body, rich yellow: secondary coverts, and first row of small coverts tipped with white, which forms two bars on the wing; quills dark brown, margined with light greyish- brown; tail feathers brownish-black, margined with ash-grey, the outer three on each side with a white patch on the inner web near the end; a slender white line over the eye; feathers of the eyelids white; lore and cheek black; throat white; lower neck, fore part of breast and sides variegated with black, the tips of the feathers being white; the rest of the lower parts white. Fe- male without the yellow spot on the crown, although the feathers there are tinged with that colour at the base; the upper parts tinged with light brown, the yellow spots on the sides and rump paler. Male, 51, 83. From Texas northward, and throughout the interior. Extremely common. Migratory. IRIS VERSICOLOR. Iris versicotor, Willd. Sp. Pl., vol. i. p. 233. Pursch, Fl. Amer. Sept., vol. i. p. 29.— TeranpriA Monoeynia, Linn.—Irives, Juss. Beardless; the stem round, flexuous, equal in height to the leaves, which are ensiform; the stigmas equalling the inner petals; capsules ovate, with their angles obtuse. This Iris is extremely common in all the swampy parts of the Southern States, and extends far up along the Mississippi. In many places I have seen beds of a quarter of an acre. It is cultivated here and there in gardens. hs GTS ee 26 AUDUBON’S WOOD-WARBLER. ~ +SyLvICoLa AunuRORe Townsend. PLATE LXXVII._—Mate anp Femate. we This species, so very intimately allied to Sylvia coronata, that an observer might readily mistake the one for the other, was discovered by Mr. Town- SEND, who has done me the honour of naming it after me. He states, that “the Chinook Indians know it by the name of ‘Fout-sah,’ and that it is very numerous about the Columbia River, arriving there in the middle of March, and remaining to breed, but disappearing in the end of June. In the begin- ning of October it is again seen, with its plumage renewed. Its voice so nearly resembles that of the Chestnut-sided Warbler as to render it difficu to distinguish them. It keeps in the most impervious thickets, and is always silent when engaged in seeking its food.” Mr. Nurrarz has favoured me with the following animated account of it. “This elegant species, one of the beautiful and ever-welcome harbingers of approaching summer, we found about the middle of April, accompanying its kindred troop of Warblers, enlivening the dark and dreary wilds of the Oregon. The leaves of the few deciduous trees were now opening rapidly to the balmy influence of the advancing spring, and flowers but rarely seen even by the botanist, sent forth their delicious fragrance, and robed in beauty the shady forests and grassy savannahs. But nothing contributes so much life to the scene as the arrival of those seraphic birds, the Thrushes and Warblers, which, uniting in one wild and ecstatic chorus of delight, seemed to portray, however transiently, the real rather than the imaginary pleasures » of paradise. Nor in those sad and distant wilds were the notes of the gilded , __ messenger of summer (Sylvia xstiva) the less agreeable“that I had heard them a thousand times before. The harmonies of Nature are not made to ~ tire, but to refresh the best feelings of the mind, to recall the past, and make 7 us dwell with delight upon that which best deserves our recollection. Bue what was my surprise to hear the accustomed note of the Summer Yellow- _in an improved state by this new Warbler, clad in a robe so but yet so beautiful. Like that species, also he was destined t r re he could at all time y n the sth of June the zr . ; * ; J Ly ’ * : 2 * become our summer acquaintance, breeding and rearing his offspring in shady firs by the borders of the prairie ope easily obtain a supply of insects or their > °C loz) PAST C _Midibows YieLYllyy a y) : Ahawberry Gooey Ce oe 1.Mate 2 Kemuale FHRAELS Jath® Vrinted & Colt by AUDUBON’S WOOD-WARBLER. 27 young of this species, at that time so much like those of the Yellow-Rump, were already out in small roving and busy flocks, solicitously attended and occasionally fed by the still watchful parents. We may notice in this species’ as a habit, that, unlike many other birds of its tribe, it occasionally frequents trees, particularly the water oaks and the lower branches of those gigantic firs, which attain not uncommonly a height of 240 feet. In the branches of the latter, near a cliff, opening on a prairie by the banks of the river Colum- bia, I have reason to believe that a pair of this fine species had a nest, as great solicitude was expressed when I several times accidentally approached the place.”’ T have given figures of the male and female, taken from specimens obtained by Mr. TownsEnp on the Columbia. Syrvia Avupusontt, Aupuson’s Warster, Townsend, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sc. Philadelphia, vol. vil. p. 190. Avpupon’s Warster, Sylvia Audubonit, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. v. p. 52. Outer four quills nearly equal, second longest; tail slightly emarginate. Male with the upper parts bluish ash-grey, streaked with black; crown, rump, upper part of throat, and a patch on the sides of the body, rich yellow; first row of small coverts largely tipped, and secondary coverts broadly mar-: gined and tipped with white, which thus forms a conspicuous patch on the wing; quills and tail brownish-black, narrowly margined with greyish-white; a patch of white on the inner webs of all the tail-feathers, but on the central reduced to a mere edging; a small white spot on each of the eyelids; loral space and cheek black; lower part of neck anteriorly, fore part of breast, and sides, variegated with black and white or ash-grey, the latter colours margin- ing the feathers; the rest of the lower parts white. Female without the yellow spot on the crown, although the feathers there are tinged with that colour at the base; upper parts light brownish-grey, streaked with dusky; lower parts whitish, tinged with brown, and streaked with dusky; throat and rump yellow, but of a lighter tint than in the male, and but slight indi- cations of the yellow patch on the sides; there is much less white on the wings, and the white patches on the tail-feathers are of less extent. In size, form, and proportion, this species and Sylvicola coronata are almost precisely similar; and their colours are almost exactly alike, the only remarkable difference in this respect being, that the throat of the present species is yellow, while that of the former is white. Male, 53, wing, 3). Columbia River, northward. Common. Migratory. 98 THE BLACK-POLL WOOD-WARBLER. THe STRAWBERRY TREE. Evonymus Americanus, Willd. Sp. Pl., vol. i. p. 1182. Pursch, Fl. Amer., vol. i. p. 168. This beautiful shrub, which attains a height of five or six feet, is common in most parts of the United States, growing in low or swampy ground, and in shady places, is characterized by having the branches quadrangular, the leaves subsessile, elliptico-lanceolate, acute, and serrate. The fruit is large, round, tuberculate, of a scarlet colour, and very ornamental. THE BLACK-POLL WOOD-WARBLER. Sytvicota srriavTa, Lath. PLATE LXXVIII.—Mate anp Femate. No sooner had the Ripley come to an anchor in the curious harbour of ~ Labrador, known by the name of Little Macatina, than my party and myself sought the shore;—but before I proceed, let me describe this singular place. It was the middle of July, the weather was mild and pleasant, our vessel made her way under a smart breeze through a very narrow passage, beyond which we found ourselves in a small circular basin of water, having an extent of seven or eight acres. It was so surrounded by high, abrupt, and rugged rocks, that, as I glanced around, I could find no apter comparison for our situation than that of a nut-shell in the bottom of a basin. The dark shadows that overspread the waters, and the mournful silence of the surrounding desert, sombred our otherwise glad feelings into a state of awe. The scenery was grand and melancholy. On one side, hung over our heads, in stupendous masses, a rock several hundred feet high, the fissures of which might to some have looked like the mouths of some huge undefined monster. Here and there a few dwarf-pines were stuck as if by magic to this enormous mass of granite; in a gap of the cliff the brood of a pair of grim Ravens shrunk from our sight, and the Gulls, one after another, began to wend their way over- head towards the middle of the quiet pool, as the furling of the sails was accompanied by the glad cries of the sailors. The remarkable land-beacons erected in that country to guide vessels into the harbour, looked like so many figures of gigantic stature formed from the large blocks that lay on every hill around. A low valley, in which meandered a rivulet, opened at a distance q idiubon. FES Ly ( Wr s ee ) VD hitch) Dt Li YPLOMG MAM 1 .Mates.2 hemeale FS ay Me) GIL yn 4 Lith? Printed & Col” by J.1. Bowen. Philad® THE BLACK-POLL WOOD-WARELER. 99 to the view. The remains of a deserted camp of seal-catchers was easily traced from our deck, and as easily could we perceive the innate tendency of man to mischief, in the charred and crumbling ruins of the dwarf-pine forests. But the harbour was so safe and commodious, that, before we left it to find shelter in another, we had cause to be thankful for its friendly protection. We were accoutred for the occasion, and, as I have said, instantly made for the shore. Anxious to receive as much information as possible in a given time, we separated. The more active scaled the most difficult heights, and among them was our Captain, Mr. Emzry, than whom a more expert seaman and a better man is rarely to be found. Others chose the next most difficult place of ascent; while I and my young friend Dr. SHarrucx of Boston, slowly moved along in quest of birds, plants, and other objects. We soon reached a considerable elevation, from which we beheld the broad Gulf of St. Lawrence gathering its gray vapours, as if about to cover itself with a mantle; while now and then our eye was suddenly attracted by the gliding movements of our distant parties, as they slipped down the declivities. In this manner we had surveyed the country for several miles, when the sea-fog began to approach the land so swiftly, that, with the knowledge we all had acquired of the difficulty of proceeding overland when surprised by it, we judged it prudent to return to our vessel. There we compared notes, and made preparations for the morrow. One fair morning, while several of us were scrambling through one of the thickets of trees, scarcely waist-high, my youngest son chanced to scare from her nest a female of the Black-poll Warbler. Reader, just fancy how this raised my spirits. I felt as if the enormous expense of our voyage had been refunded. “There,” said I, “we are the first white men who have seen such a nest.”’ I peeped into it, saw that it contained four eggs, and observed its little owner looking upon us with anxiety and astonishment. It was placed about three feet from the ground, in the fork of a small branch, close to the main stem of a fir tree. Its diameter internally was two inches, the depth one and a half. Externally it resembled the nest of the White-crown- ed Sparrow, being formed of green and white moss and lichens, intermixed with coarse dried grass; within this was a layer of bent grass, and the lining was of very dark coloured dry moss, looking precisely like horse-hair, ar- ranged in a circular direction with great care. Lastly, there was a thick bed of large soft feathers, some of which were from Ducks, but most of them from the Willow Grouse. I must now return to the United States, and trace the progress of our Warbler. It enters Louisiana as early as the middle of February. At this time it is seen gleaning food among the taller branches of the willows, ma- ples, and other trees that overhang the rivers and lakes. Its migrations east- Vox. II. 5 ee a a ea 30 THE BLACK-POLL WOOD-WARBLER. ward follow the advance of the season, and I have not been able to compre- hend why it is never seen in the maritime parts of South Carolina, while it is abundantly found in the State of New Jersey close to the sea shore. There you would think that it had changed its habits; for, instead of skipping among the taller branches of trees, it is seen moving along the trunks and large limbs, almost in the manner of a Certhia, searching the chinks of the bark for larve and pupe. They are met with in groups of ten, twelve, or more, in the end of April, but after that period few are to be seen. In Mas- sachusetts they begin to appear nearly a month later, the intervening time being no doubt spent on their passage through New York and Connecticut. I found them at the end of May in the eastern part of Maine, and met with them wherever we landed on our voyage to Labrador, where they arrive from the Ist to the 10th of June, throwing themselves into every valley covered by those thickets, which they prefer for their breeding places. It also breeds abundantly in Newfoundland. In these countries it has almost become a Flycatcher. You see it darting in all directions after insects, chasing them on wing, and not unfrequently snapping so as to emit the clicking sound characteristic of the true Fly- catcher. Its activity is pleasing, but its notes have no title to be called a song. They are shrill, and resemble the noise made by striking two small pebbles together, more than any other sound that I know. They may be in some degree imitated by pronouncing the syllable sche, sche, sche, sche, sche, so as progressively to increase the emphasis. I found the young fully grown in the latter part of August, but with the head as in the females, and like them they obtain their full plumage during the next spring migration, after which these birds return southward. They raise only one brood in the season, and if any of them breed in the United States, it must be in the northern parts. They are seldom seen in autumn in the States, and very seldom during the summer months. The Black-poll Warbler is a gentle bird, by no means afraid of man, al- though it pursues some of its smaller enemies with considerable courage. The sight of a Canadian Jay excites it greatly, as that marauder often sucks its eggs, or swallows its young. In a few instances I have seen the Jay con- founded by the temerity of its puny assailant. The occurrence of this species so far north in the breeding season, and the curious diversity of its habits in different parts of the vast extent of country which it traverses, are to me quite surprising, and lead me to add some re- marks on the migration of various species of Sylvia, which, like the present, seem to skip, as it were, over large portions of the country. In the course of my voyages to the south-eastern extremity of the Penin- sula of the Floridas, I frequently observed birds of many kinds flying either THE BLACK-POLL WOOD-WARBLER. 31 high or low over the sea. Of these the greater number were, like the pre- sent species, Sylyize which are never found in Georgia or the two Carolinas. Their course was a direct one, and such as led me to believe that the little yoyagers were bound for Cape Hatteras. The meeting with many of the species to which I allude, along the shores of Maryland, New Jersey, the eastern coast. of Long Island, &c., and all along to the Bay of Fundy, has strengthened the idea; but as I may not be correct, I leave the matter to the determination of more experienced observers. ‘The subject appears to me to be one of the greatest importance, for the occurrence of plants in certain parts of a country and not in others may possibly be caused by the absence, during migration, of such birds as move by “short cuts’? from one point of land to another. Biack-PoLtL WARBLER, Sylvia striata, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. iv. p. 40. SyLv1A sTRIATA, Bonap. Syn., p. 81. Syzvicota striata, Black-poll Warbler, Swains. and Rich. F. Bor. Amer., vol. ii. p. 218. Buack-pott Warster, Sylvia striata, Nutt. Man., vol. i. p. 383. Buack-Pott Warster, Sylvia striata, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. ii. p. 201. First and second quills equal and longest, third a little shorter; tail emar- ginate. Male with the upper parts bluish ash-grey, streaked with black; the upper part of the head deep black; the secondary coverts and first row of small coverts largely tipped with white; quills and tail-feathers blackish- brown; primaries narrowly edged with greenish-yellow, secondaries broadly with white; three outer tail-feathers with a patch of white on the inner web at the end; cheeks and lower parts white; a band of black spots from the base of the lower mandible down the side of the neck and body. Female with the upper parts oil-green, streaked with black; the rump and upper tail-coverts plain and edged with grey; white wing-bands tinged with yel- low; cheeks yellowish-grey, mottled with dusky, lower parts dull white, tinged with yellow and reddish, the sides of the neck and body with fainter dark streaks. Young like the female. Male, 51, 82. From Texas to Labrador, where it breeds. Columbia River. Common. Migratory. Tue Brack Gum TREE. Nyssa aquatica, Linn. Sp. Pl. 1511. Mich. Arbr. Forest, vol. ii. p..265, pl. 22.—N. Bi- FLorA, Willd. Sp. Pl., vol. iv. p. 1113. Pursch, Flor. Amer., vol. i. p. 177,—Po.yea- MIA Mon@cIA, Linn.—EL#@acni, Juss. ee ae ee ee 39 THE YELLOW-THROATED WOOD-WARBLER. The Black Gum is seldom found of a greater height than from fifty to sixty feet, with a diameter of about three. The wood is of little use, even fo firing, as it takes a long time — ‘consume, affords no blaze, and burns disr ly. A trunk of this tree falling into the water immediately sinks and mains. Its foliage is pleasing to the eye, and in many parts of the Middle — Districts some are kept standing as shade-trees for cattle. The berries, which _ hang in pairs, and sometimes three or four together, at the extremity of their slender peduncle, are eaten in great quantities during winter by various spe- cies of birds. THE YELLOW-THROATED WOOD-W ARBLER. SyLvicoLa Pensitis, Lath. PLATE LXXIX.—Mate. This beautiful bird absents itself from the State of Louisiana only for two months in the year, December and January. When they return in the be- ginning of Iebruary, they throw themselves by thousands into all the cy- press woods and cane-brakes, where they are heard singing from the first of March until late in autumn, sometimes in November. ee Their habits are very different from those of the Warblers, and are more in general accordance with those of the Certhiez. They move up and down, sidewise and spirally, along the trunks, branches, and even twigs of the tall- est and largest cypresses, or such other trees as are found intermingled with them. They are extremely active, in fact, fully as much so as the little Brown Creeper itself. Like it, they suddenly leave the uppermost branches or higher parts of the trunks, and diving downwards alight on the roots, and renew their search after small insects and larve. I never saw any of them pursue insects on wing. The nest of this species is prettily constructed. Its outer parts are com- posed of grey lichens and soft mosses, the interior of silky substances and a. few fibres of the Spanish moss. The female lays four pure white eggs, having two or three purple dots near the larger end. I think they raise two broods during their stay in Louisiana, but cannot speak of this as certain. The nest is placed on a horizontal branch of a cypress, twenty, thirty, or even fifty feet above the ground, and is with difficulty discovered from below, as it re- sembles a knot or a tuft of moss. ie 7 2 Aaa 5 Dy ea A f vu Male: Wn from Nature by | mERSFIS lure J J Audubon ERS FL.S Jath? Printed & Col4 by JT Bowen Philad® THE YELLOW-THROATED WOOD-WARBLER. 33 The song of the Yellow-throated Warbler would please you, kind reader. Of this I have not a doubt, as it is soft and loud, and is continued for two or three minutes at a time, not unlike that of the Painted Finch, or Indigo Bird. As it is heard in all parts of our most dismal cypress swamps, it contributes to soothe the mind of a person whose occupation may lead him to such places. I never saw this species on the ground. The male and the female are nearly alike in plumage, but the young birds, which hunt for insects in company, in the manner of Creepers or Titmice, do not acquire the yellow on the throat, nor the full brilliancy of their plumage, until the first spring. These birds confine themselves to the Southern States, seldom moving far- ther. towards the Middle Districts than North Carolina. ‘They do not even ascend the Mississippi farther than the Walnut Hills. They are abundant in the neighbourhood of the Red River, and probably do not go farther south than Mexico, during their short absence from the United States. Happening to shoot several of these birds on a large chinquapin tree, grow- ing on the edge of a hill close to a swamp, I have put a male on one of its twigs, which is furnished with a few fruits quite ripe and ready to leave their husks. In the Southern States this tree is rare. It generally prefers elevat- ed places, and rocky declivities, with an arid soil. The wood resembles that of the chestnut, but the trees being generally small, little use is made of it as timber. The fruit is eaten by children. This tree is abundant along the greater part of the range of the Alleghanies and its branches. YELLOW-THROATED Wars.er, Sylvia flavicollis, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. ii. p. 64. Sy.via PENSILIS, Bonap. Syn., p. 79. YELLOW-THROATED WarBLeR, Sylvia pensilis, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. i. p. 434. Outer three quills almost equal, second quill longest, fourth shorter than first; tail slightly emarginate. Male with the upper parts light greyish-blue; the forehead black, the crown spotted with the same; a white line over the eye; secondary coverts and first row of small coverts largely tipped with white; quills greyish-black, margined with light greyish-blue; tail-feathers of the same colour, the outer three with a patch of white on the inner web at the.end; loral space, a band under the eye, ear-coverts, a band down the side . of the neck, and numerous oblong spots on the sides of the body, black; throat bright yellow; rest of lower parts white. Female similar, but with the tints paler. Male, 54, 8. From Texas to New Jersey. In the interior along the Mississippi to Nat- chez. Common. Migratory. 34 THE BAY-BREASTED WOOD-WARBLER. THE ae a, Castanea pumita, Wiild., Sp. Pl., vol. iv. p. 461. Pursch, Flor. Amer., vol. ii. p. 625. Mich., Arbr. Forest. de l’Amer. Sept., vol. ii. p. 166. Pl. 7.—Monacta POLYANDRIA, Linn.— MENTACEE, Juss. - This species of chestnut is characterized by its oblong, acute, sharply-ser- rated leaves, which are whitish and downy beneath. The fruit is very agree- able, and is a favourite food of Squirrels, and birds of different species, such as Pigeons, Jays, Turkeys and Woodpeckers. THE BAY-BREASTED WOOD-WARBLER. ~- Syztvicona casTANEA, JVils. PLATE LXXX.—Mate anp Femate. This species does not breed in the United States, or if it does, must spend the summer in some of the most remote north-western districts, so that I have not been able to discover its principal abode. It merely passes through the better known portions of the Union, where it remains for a very short time. There is something so very uncommon in its appearance in different States, that I cannot refrain from briefly mentioning it. It is sometimes found in Pennsylvania, or the State of New York, as well as in New Jersey, as early as the beginning of April, but is only seen there for a few days. I have shot some individuals at such times, when I observed them employed in searching for insects and larve along the fences bordering our fields. At other times I have shot them late in June, in the State of Louisiana, when the cotton-plant was covered with blossoms, amongst which they were busily searching for food. The Bay-breasted Warbler, however, has so far eluded my inquiries, that I am unable to give any further account of its habits. Bay-BrEASTED WarBLER, Sylvia castanea, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. il. p. 97. Syzvia casTanea, Bonap. Syn., p. 80. Bay-BrEAsTED WaRrBLER, Sylvia castanea, Nutt. Man., vol. i. p. 382. Bay-BREASTED WarBLER, Sylvia castanea, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. i. p. 358. Outer three quills almost equal, fourth considerably shorter; tail slightly Ay y, “ PE Gotonilawt Gaarpisrahaslater Wwe. 1 Male 2. bernale: Lith? Printed & Col? by J.T. Bowen. Philad® ture by JJ Andubon VRS EILS THE CHESTNUT-SIDED WOOD-WARBLER. 35 emarginate. Male with the upper part of the head, the fore neck, and the sides, chestnut-red; forehead and cheeks, including a small space over the eye, deep black, behind which is a transverse patch of yellowish-white on the sides of the neck; back bluish ash-grey, streaked with black; tips of the se- condary coverts and first row of small coverts white; quills and tail-feathers brownish-black edged with grey, the outer three of the latter with a white patch on the inner web near the end; middle of breast, abdomen, and lower tail-coverts white, tinged with reddish. Female similar to the male, but with the tints fainter, especially the chestnut of the head and throat, which are converted into light brownish-red. Male, 54, 11. From Texas northward. Rather common. Migratory. Tue HigHLAND CoTTron-PLANT. GossIPiuM HERBACEUM, Linn., Syst. Nat., vol. ii. p. 462,—MoNADELPHIA POLYANDRIA, Linn, —Matvacea, Juss. This species, commonly known in America, is distinguished by its five- lobed leaves and herbaceous stem. THE CHESTNUT-SIDED WOOD-W ARBLER. ~+SyLVICOLA ICTEROCEPHALA, Lath. PLATE LXXXI.—Mate anp Femate. In the beginning of May 1808, I shot five of these birds, on a very cold morning, near Pottsgrove, in the State of Pennsylvania. There was a slight fall of snow at the time, although the peach and apple trees were already in full bloom. I have never met with a single individual of this species since. They all had their wings drooping, as if suffering severely from the sudden change of the weather, and had betaken themselves to the lower rails of a fence, where they were engaged in searching after insects, particularly spi- ders. I procured every one of those which I met with that morning, and which were five in number, two of them males, and the rest females. Where this species goes to breed I am unable to say, for to my inquiries on this subject I never received any answers which might have led me to the * ee Ca THE CHESTNUT-SIDED WCOD-WARBLER. a districts resorted to by it. oI can only suppose, that if it is at all plentiful in any portion of the United States, it must be far to the northward, as I ran- sacked the borders of Lake Ontario, and those of Lakes Erie and Michigan, without meeting with it. I do not know of any naturalist who has been more fortunate, otherwise I should here quote his observations. The females had the ovaries furnished with numerous eggs, about the size of the head of acommon pin. The stomach of all the birds which I killed contained some grass seeds of the preceding year, and a few small black spi- ders; but the birds appeared half starved. Having procured them near the ground, I have placed them on a plant which grows about the fields, and flowers in the beginning of May. Cuestnut-sipeD Warster, Sylvia icterocephala, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. i. p. 99. Sy.via icTeRocePHALA, Bonap. Syn., p. 80. Cuestnut-sipep Warster, Sylvia icterocephala, Nutt. Man., vol. i. p. 380. CueEstTNuT-sIDED WarBLER, Sylvia icterocephala, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. i. p. 306. Outer three quills nearly equal, second slightly longer; tail slightly emar- ginate. Male with the upper part of the head light yellow, a small part of the forehead white; loral space and two bands proceeding from it, one over and behind the eye, the other downwards, black; upper parts bluish ash- grey, tinged behind with greenish-yellow, and streaked with black; seconda- ry coverts and first row of small coverts largely tipped with pale yellow; quills and tail-feathers brownish-black, primaries edged with greyish-white, secondaries with yellowish-green; outer three tail-feathers on each side with a white patch on the inner web at the end; lower parts white, sides of the neck and body deep chestnut. Female similar, but with the chestnut on the sides less extended, and the yellow on the head tinged with green. Male, 5}, 8. From Texas northward. Rather common. Migratory. Tue Mors MUvUttein. VerpascuM BLaTTariA, Willd. Sp. Pl., vol. i. p. 1005. Pursch, Flor. Amer., vol. 1. p. 142. Smith. Engl. Flor., vol. i. p. 518.—Penranpria Monocynia, Linn.—So.ane&, Juss. A biennial plant, distinguished from the other species of the same genus by its amplexicaul ‘ovato-oblong, rugose, serrated, glabrous leaves, and one- flowered solitary pedicels. The ordinary colour of the flowers is yellow, but the plant represented is of a variety with larger whitish or pale rose-colour- ed flowers. It grows in fields and bye-roads, and is of common occurrence. Dene shile Lie Zi I IP) beanuteadd Web) balled! WEF Ye ° Ves Ve L Z, L. Male. 2 bent: Drawn from Nature by J.J.Audubon.¥.8.S.F.L.5 Lith? Printed & Colt by JV) Bowen Philad N°17. | , Pl. 82. Py | a, ee Vine -~creefung :&: PY, blew Yow HO lo. es vauatile). 1 Male 2 Female Drawn from Natume | ! Ambon £K SFIS : Luh? Printed & Col* be J.T. Bowen. Piilad* o¢ THE PINE CREEPING WOOD-WARBLER. ~ Syznvicota pinus, Lath. PLATE LXXXII.—Mate anp Femate. The Pine Creeping Wood-Warbler, the most abundant of its tribe, is met with from Louisiana to Maine, more profusely in the warmer, and more sparingly in the colder regions, breeding wherever fir or pine trees are to be found. Although it may occasionally be seen on other trees, yet it always prefers those of that remarkable and interesting tribe. I found it on the sandy barrens bordering St. John’s River, in East Florida, in full song, early in February. Iam pretty certain that they had already formed nests at that early period, and it seems to me not unlikely that this species, as well as some others that breed in that country at the same time, may afterwards travel far to the eastward, and there rear another brood the same year. In some degree allied to the Certhiz in its habits, it is often seen ascend- ing the trunks and larger branches of trees, hopping against the bark, in search of the larve that lurk there. At times it moves sidewise along a branch three or four steps, and turning about, goes on in the same manner, until it has reached a twig, which it immediately examines. Its restless ac- tivity is quite surprising: now it gives chase to an insect on wing; now, it is observed spying out those more diminutive species concealed among the blossoms and leaves of the pines; again, it leaves the topmost branches of a tree, flles downwards, and alights sidewise on the trunk of another, which it ascends, changing its position, from right to left, at every remove. It also visits the ground in quest of food, and occasionally betakes itself to the wa- ter, to drink or bathe. It is seldom that an individual is seen by itself going through its course of action, for a kind of sympathy seems to exist in a flock, and in autumn and winter especially, thirty or more may be observed, if not on the same tree, at least not far from each other. Although it feeds on insects, larve, and occasionally small crickets, it seems to give a decided preference to a little red insect of the coleopterous order, which is found inclosed in the leaves or stipules of the pine. Low lands seem to suit it best, for it is much less nu- merous in mountainous countries than in those bordering the sea. Like many other birds, the Pine Creeping Warbler constructs its nest of different materials, nay even makes it of a different form, in the Southern Vox. IL. 6 a 38 THE PINE CREEPING WOOD-WARBLER. and Eastern States. In the Carolinas, for instance, it is usually placed among the dangling fibres of the Spanish moss, with less workmanship and less care, than in the Jerseys, the State of New York, or that of Maine. In the latter, as well as in Massachusetts, where it breeds about the middle of June, it places its nest at a great height, sometimes fifty feet, attaching it to the twigs of a forked branch. Here the nest is small, thin but compact, composed of the slender stems of dried grasses mixed with coarse fibrous roots and the exuvie of caterpillars or other insects, and lined with the hair of the deer, moose, racoon, or other animals, delicate fibrous roots, wool, and feathers. The eggs, which are from four to six, have a very light sea-green tint, all over sprinkled with small pale reddish-brown dots, of which there is a thicker circle near the larger end. In these districts, it seldom breeds more than once in the season, whereas in the Carolinas, Georgia, and the Floridas, where it is a constant resident, it usually has two, sometimes three, broods in the year, and its eggs are deposited on the first days of April, fully a month ear- lier than in the State above mentioned. Its flight is short, and exhibits undulating curves of considerable elegance. It migrates entirely by day, flying from tree to tree, and seldom making a longer flight than is necessary for crossing ariver. The song is monotonous, consisting at times merely of a eontinued tremulous sound, which may be represented by the letters trr-rr-rr-rr. During the love season, this is changed into a more distinct sound, resembling ¢wé, twé, té, ¢é, té, téé. It sings at all hours of the day, even in the heat of summer noon, when the woodland songsters are usually silent. It is a hardy bird, seldom abandoning the most northern of the Eastern States until the middle of October. I saw none beyond the Province of New Brunswick, and Professor MacCurtocu of Pictou had not observed it in Nova Scotia. In Newfoundland and Labrador I did not see a single indi- vidual. I have placed a pair of these birds on a branch of their favourite pine; but the colouring of the male is not so brilliant as it is in spring and summer, the individual represented having been drawn in Louisiana in the winter, where, as well as in the Carolinas, the Floridas, and all the Southern Districts, it is a constant resident. I have already mentioned that the Pine Creeping Warbler is the parent of- Vicgors’s Warbler. Of this fact I gave intimation to the Prince of Musigna- no, during his recent visit to London. I found it abundant in the Texas, where it breeds. Pine Creepinc Warster, Sylvia pinus, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. ill. p. 25. Syzvia Pinus, Bonap. Syn., p. 81. ‘s THE PINE CREEPING WOOD-WARBLER. 39 Pine Warster, Sylvia pinus, Nutt. Man., vol. i. p. 387. Pine Creepinc Warster, Sylvia pinus, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. ii. p. 232. Vicors’s Warster, Sylvia Vigorsiz, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. i. p. 153. Young. Wings of moderate length, with the outer three quills almost equal, the first and second longest; tail emarginate. Male with the upper parts light yellowish-green, inclining to olive, the rump brighter; a streak over the eye, the eyelids, throat, breast, and sides, bright yellow, with a greenish tinge, the rest of the lower parts white; wings and tail blackish-brown; secondary coverts and first row of small coverts largely tipped with dull white; prima- ries edged with whitish, secondaries with brownish-grey; outer two tail- feathers with a patch of white on the inner web, near the end. Female with the upper parts yellowish-brown, tinged with grey, the lower parts of paler and duller tints than in the male. Young similar to the female. Male, 5, 8. From Texas to Maine. Very abundant. Resident in the Southern and Middle States. Tuer YELLOW PINE. Pinus variaBiLis, Pursch, Flor. Amer. Sept., vol. ii. p. 643.—P. mitis. Michaux, Arbr. Fo- rest., vol. 1. p. 52. pl. 3.—Monaera Monapetpuia, Linn.—Conirer@, Juss. This species is known by various names:—Long-leaved Pine, Yellow Pine, Red Pine, and Pitch Pine. It attains a height of a hundred feet, and has a diameter of four. The leaves are very long; three in a sheath, and fas- ciculate at the ends of the branches. It is very abundant in the Southern States, where it is employed for various purposes, more especially for the in- closure of cultivated fields, and for ship-building and domestic architecture. Most of the tar of the Southern States is obtained from this tree. Pty ai es rp be 40 THE HEMLOCK WARBLER. ~;Syzvicota parus, Wils. PLATE LXXXIII.—Mate anp Femate. It is to the persevering industry of Witson that we are indebted for the discovery of this bird. He has briefly described the male, of which he had obtained but a single specimen. Never having met with it until I visited the Great Pine Forest, where that ardent ornithologist found it, I followed his track in my rambles there, and had not spent a week among the gigantic hemlocks which ornament that interesting part of our country, before I pro- cured upwards of twenty specimens. I had therefore a fair opportunity of observing its habits, which I shall now attempt to describe. The tallest of the hemlock pines are the favourite haunts of this species. It appears first among the highest branches early in May, breeds there, and departs in the beginning of September. Like the Blue Yellow-back War- bler, its station is ever amidst the thickest foliage of the trees, and with as much agility as its diminutive relative, it seeks its food by ascending from one branch to another, examining most carefully the under parts of each leaf as it proceeds. Every insect that escapes is followed on wing, and quickly secured. It now and then, as if for variety or sport, makes a downward flight, alights on a smaller tree, surveys it for awhile, and again ascends to a higher station. During the early part of autumn it frequents, with its young, the margins of rivulets, where insects are then more abundant. Its notes are sweet and mellow, and although not numerous, are easily dis- tinguished from those of any other Warbler. Like a true Sylvia, it is often seen hanging at the end of a branch, searching for insects. It never alights on the trunk of a tree, and in this particular differs from every other species of its genus. Its food is altogether of insects. To the inimitable skill of the worthy Jep1au IrtsuH in the use of the rifle, I am indebted for the possession of a nest of this bird. On discovering one of the birds, we together watched it for hours, and at last had the good for- tune to see itself and its mate repeatedly enter.a thick cluster of leaves, where we concluded their nest must be placed. The huntsman’s gun was silently raised to his shoulder, the explosion followed in course, and as I saw the twig whirling downwards, I experienced all the enthusiastic anxiety ever present with me on such occasions. Picking up the branch, I found in it a nest, RI Yop Mpls! Giatim? pi 1 Maled Female. Drawn fF : 4 > ; om Nature by J.J Audubon. F-K.S.¥A.S Lith? Printed & Colby J.T. Bowen. Philad® THE HEMLOCK WARBLER. 41 eontaining three naked young, with as yet sealed eyelids. The nest was small, compact, somewhat resembling that of the American Goldfinch. It was firmly attached to the leaves of the hemlock twig, which appeared as if intentionally closed together over and around it, so as to conceal it from all enemies. Lichens, dry leaves of hemlock, and slender twigs formed its ex- terior. It was delieately lined with the fur of the hare and racoon; and the young lay imbedded in the softest feathers of the Ruffed Grouse. The pa- rents soon became aware of the mischief which we had done; they descend- ed, glided over our heads, manifested the most tender affection and the deep- est sorrow, and excited our sympathy so far, that I carefully placed their tender offspring on a fallen log, leaving them to the care of their kind pro- tectors, and contenting myself with their cradle. I have since met with this species in the State of Maine, and have seen several individuals in Newfoundland; but never again have I found a nest, nor can I say any thing regarding its eggs. Confined as it is to the interior of the forests, I cannot even tell you more respecting its mode of flying than what I have already related, never having observed it performing a longer flight than from one tree to another. The bird described under the name of Sylvia autumnalis by Witson, Bonaparte, Nutra, myself, and all the compilers, is only the young of this species, Sylvia parus. Of this I gave intimation to the Prince of Mu- signano when in London. Hemtock Warster, Sylvia parus, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. v. p. 114. Male. AvutumnaL Warsier, Sylvia autumnalis, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. iii. p. 65, Young. Syzvia parus, Bonap. Syn., p. 82. SYLVIA AUTUMNALIS, Bonap. Syn., p. 74. Hemiock Warster, Sylvia parus, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. ii. p. 205. Adult. AutTumnaL Warster, Sylvia autumnalis, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. i. p. 447. Wings of moderate length, with the outer two quills almost equal, the first longest, the third little shorter; tail very slightly emarginate. Male with the upper parts yellowish-green, spotted with dusky, the head greenish-yel- low; secondary coverts and first row of small coverts largely tipped with white; quills and tail-feathers blackish-brown; primaries narrowly edged with greenish-white, secondaries broadly with white; outer two tail-feathers with the greater part white; a bright yellow streak over the eye; a dusky band on the lore and behind the eye; fore neck and breast bright yellow, the rest of the lower parts white, the sides streaked with black. Female similar to the male, but rather paler. Young with the upper parts light olive-brown; a pale line over the eye, which is encircled by a narrow line of whitish; wings and tail dark brown, the former with two brownish-white bands, the we 492 BLACK-THROATED GREEN WOOD-WARBLER. quills edged with brownish-white, the two outer tail-feathers with a white patch on the inner web; the lower parts dull white, tinged on the neck with yellow, on the sides with greyish-brown. i Male, 51,8)... 7 . Middle districts. Rather common. Migratory. ; THe Dwarr Mapte. ACER SPICATUM. This is a low shrubby tree, which does not attain a greater height at most than fifteen or twenty feet. It abounds along the rocky margins of creeks or rivers, especially those meandering at the bases of the Alleghany mountains. ‘ * BLACK-THROATED GREEN WOOD-W ARBLER. * Syztvicona virens, Lath. PLATE LXXXIV.—Mate anp Femate. I have traced this species from the Texas to Newfoundland, although at considerable intervals, along our Atlantic coasts, it being of rare occurrence or wanting in some parts, while in others it is abundant; but in no portion of the United States have I met with it so plentiful as around Eastport in Maine, where I saw it in the month of May. Many remain all summer in that State, as well as in Massachusetts, and the northern parts of New York; and some are found at that season even in the higher portions of Pennsylva- nia. On the coast of Labrador it was not observed by me or any of my par- ty, and it is not mentioned by Dr. RicuArpson as having been seen in the Fur Countries. Its habits are intermediate between those of many of our Warblers and the Vireos, the notes of which latter it in a great measure as- sumes. It usually makes its appearance in Maryland and New Jersey about the first week of May, when it is observed to be actively engaged in search- ing for food, regardless as it were of the presence of man. Its movements when proceeding northward are rapid, and it advances through the woods solitarily or nearly so, it being seldom that more than two or three are found together at this time, or indeed during the breeding season, at which period each pair appropriates to itself a certain extent of ground. Its retrograde N°47. PL 84. LEAs Ly ae “pepe Cupry ‘ar Sern perinins 1 MaleZ Fimate: dature by JOLAminbon FAS FL.S 1? Printed & Colt by 5 VY Bowen Vbitad* BLACK-THROATED GREEN WOOD-WARBLER. 43 march is also rapid, and by the middle of October they all seem to have pass- ed beyond the limits of our most southern States. The food of this species consists during the summer months of various kinds of flies and caterpillars, many of the former of which it captures by darting after them from its perch, in the manner of Flycatchers and Vireos, emitting like them also a clicking sound from its bill. In the autumn it is often seen feeding on small berries of various sorts, in which respect also it resembles the birds just mentioned. I never found the nest of this bird, of which, however, Mr. Nurraxu has given a minute description, which I shall here, with his permission, place before you. “Last summer (1830), on the 8th of June, I was so fortunate as to find a nest of this species in a per- fectly solitary situation, on the Blue Hills of Milton. The female was now sitting, and about to hatch. The nest was in a low, thick, and stunted Vir- ginia juniper. When I approached near to the nest, the female stood mo- tionless on its edge, and peeped down in such a manner that I imagined her to be a young bird; she then darted directly to the earth and ran, but when, deceived, I sought her on the ground, she had very expertly disappeared; and I now found the nest to contain four roundish eggs, white, inclining to flesh-colour, variegated, more particularly at the great end, with pale pur- plish points of various sizes, interspersed with other large spots of brown and blackish. The nest was formed of circularly entwined fine stripes of the in- ner bark of the juniper, and the tough white fibrous bark of some other plant, then bedded with soft feathers of the Robin, and lined with a few horse hairs, and some slender tops of bent grass (2grostis).”’ My friend describes the notes of this species as follows:—“This simple, rather drawling, and somewhat plaintive song, uttered at short intervals, re- sembles the syllables *¢e de’ territica, sometimes ¢ederisca, pronounced pretty loud and slow, and the tones proceeding from high to low.’? These notes I am well acquainted with, but none can describe the songs of our different species like Nurratt. I have represented the male and female; the latter, I believe, has not been hitherto figured. Buack-THroaTep Green Wareier, Sylvia virens, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. ii. p. 127. Syivia virens, Bonap. Syn., p. 80. Buack-THroaTeD Green Warster, Nutt. Man., vol. i. p. 376. Biack-THroateD Green Wareter, Sylvia virens, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. iv. p. 70. Outer three quills almost equal, second very slightly longer; tail slightly emarginate. Male with the upper parts very light yellowish-green; the an- terior part of the forehead, a band over the eye, the cheeks, and the sides of 44 CAPE MAY WOOD-WARBLER. the neck bright yellow; the fore part of the neck, anterior part of the sides, and some spots on the hind parts of the latter, black; the rest of the lower parts white, partially tinged with yellow; quills and tail-feathers brownish- black; secondary coverts and first row of small coverts largely tipped with white, quills margined with greyish-white, as are the tail-feathers, of which the greater part of the outer three, and a patch on the inner web of the fourth, are white. Female with the upper parts similar, bat with less yellow on the forehead; ear-coverts greenish; the yellow band over the eye less bright, the yellow on the sides of the neck of less extent; the lower parts dull yellowish- white, the sides streaked with dusky. Male, 412, wing, 24. Female, 44, wing, 223. From Texas to Newfoundland. Abundant. Migratory. CAPE MAY WOOD-WARBLER. SyLvicota MARITIMA, Wils. PLATE LXXXV.—Mate anp Femate. Of this beautiful species, which was first described by Witson, very little is known. It seems to pass rapidly through our Middle Districts in May. I have never met with a single bird of this kind on my rambles, and am in- debted for the fine specimens of both sexes in my possession, and from which I drew the figures in the plate, to my generous friend Epwarp Harris, Esq. of Moorestown, New Jersey, who procured them, with several others, in that district. Care May Warster, Sylvia maritima, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. iv. p. 99. Syzvia MAriTiMA, Bonap. Syn., p. 79. Care May Wars.er, Sylvia maritima, Nutt. Man., vol. i. p. 156. Care May Warster, Sylvia maritima, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. v. p. 156. Wings pointed, first quill longest, the second a quarter of a twelfth shorter, the third a twelfth shorter; tail slightly emarginate. Male with the upper part of the head and fore part of the back yellowish-olive, streaked with black; the rump, throat, and a collar scarcely meeting behind, yellow; ear- coverts and a band over the eye. yellowish-red, loral space paler; a white patch on the wing, formed by the first row of small coverts and the outer Ne 17. PL 85. 7 Mate? Female! Drawn from Nature by SJ. Audubon. FILS L.S. Lith® Printed & Col! bv J.T Rowen .Miilad! ast eh unital - A i oo a) / 7 ig3 Saye rie fed! oll 7 Old Male:2. Toung Male: Y CF ta ae Bar? lony ae Fansite MMers yf teawn tram Natere be a J Audubon ERS i ual? Painted SiGe 0 a eee SRE THE C@RULEAN WOOD-WARBLER. 45 edges of the secondary coverts; quills and tail-feathers blackish-brown, edged with dull greyish-white, the secondaries more broadly; tail-feathers edged with yellow at the base, the outer three with a white patch on the inner web near the end; lower parts yellow, streaked with black, abdomen and lower tail-ecoverts white, the latter tinged with yellow. Female similar to the male, with the tints duller, the dusky streaks on the upper parts very faint, the rump greenish-yellow, the ear-coverts dull yellow, the white of the abdomen more extended, and the black streaks on the breast less distinct. Male, 53, 83. New Jersey, and Blue Mountains of Vermont. Exceedingly rare. THE CGQZERULEAN WOOD-WARBLER. +SyLvicona caruLea, Wils. PLATE LXXXVI.—Mates. So scarce is this bird in the Middle Districts, that its discovery in the State of Pennsylvania has been made a matter of much importance. Its habits are consequently very little known, even at the present day, and it would appear that only a few individuals have been seen by our American ornithologists, one of which, a young female, has been figured by the Prince of Musignano. It arrives in the lower parts of the State of Louisiana, in company with many other species of Warblers, breeds there and sets out again about the beginning of October. It is as lively as most species of its genus, possesses the same manner of flight, moves sidewise up and down the branches and twigs, frequently changing sides, and hangs to the extremities of bunches of leaves or berries, on which it procures the insects and larve of which its food is principally composed. ‘The liveliness of its notes renders it conspi- cuous in those parts of the skirts of the forests which it frequents; and its song, although neither loud nor of long continuance, is extremely sweet and mellow. I have no precise recollection of the time when I first made a drawing of this pretty little bird, but know this well, that a drawing which I had of it was one of the unfortunate collection destroyed by the rats at Henderson. Vor. IL 7 46 : THE CdsRULEAN WOOD-WARBLER. In Louisiana, where it is as numerous as other Sylviz, I have several times shot five or six during a single walk, towards the end of August, when the young are nearly full coloured. The nest is placed in the forks of a low tree or bush, more frequently on a dog-wood tree. It is partly pensile, projecting a little above the twigs to which it is attached, and extending below them for nearly two inches. The fibres of vines and of the stalks of rank herbaceous plants, together with slen- der roots, compose the outer part, being arranged in a circular manner. The lining consists entirely of the dry fibres of the Spanish moss. The female lays four or five eggs, of a pure white colour, with a few reddish spots at the larger end. When the female is disturbed during incubation, she trails along the twigs and branches, with expanded tail and drooping wings, and utters a plaintive note, resembling in all these circumstances the Blue-eyed Warbler. I am not sure that they raise more than one brood in a season. When the young abandon the nest, their plumage partakes of a greenish tinge, and no difference can be perceived between the sexes without dissection. The little family move and hunt together, and exhibit much pleasure in pursuing small insects on wing, which they seize without any clicking sound of their bill. They seem at this period to evince a great partiality for trees the tops of which are thickly covered by grape vines, amongst the broad leaves of which they find ample supplies of food. They also sometimes alight on the tall weeds, and pick a few of their seeds. The males or females do not assume the full brilliancy of their plumage until the following spring. In the course of my late journey to the Texas I found the Azure Warbler entering the United States from Mexico, early in April, when it was in per- fect plumage. On an island on which we landed, about an hour before sun- set, some hundreds had stopped to pass the night, the appearance of the weather being threatening. My friend Epwarp Harris and my son shot a number of them. Next day few were seen, and in about a week they had all proceeded eastward. ‘The whole breadth of our country, from the At- Jantic shores to those of the Pacific, is visited by this bird, which was found along the Columbia River at Fort Vancouver by Mr. TownsEenv. The most eastern point at which I have known it to be procured is the neighbourhood of Pictou, Nova Scotia. It is not mentioned by Dr. RrcHarpson. As to the Sylvia rara, my doubts regarding its specific distinction from Sylvicola cerulea, are as great as ever, especially as no one has found its nest. I mentioned this to the Prince of Musignano, who has placed it in his list as the young of Sylvia azurea. CaruLean Warster, Sylvia cerulea, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. ii. p. 141. Male. BLUve-GREEN WarBLER, Sylvia rara, Wils. Amer. Om,, vol. iii. p. 119. Young. THE CQARULEAN WOOD-WARBLER. 47 SyLv1a azurEA, Bonap. Syn., p. 85. Sytyia nara, Bonap. Syn., p. 82. CaruLean Warster, Sylvia azurea, Bonap. Amer. Orn., vol. ii. p. 27. Female. Azure Warster, Sylvia azurea, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. i. p. 255, Male; vol. v. p. 456. Bive-GREEN WarBxeR, Sylvia rara, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. i. p. 258. Young Male. Wings long, with the outer three quills nearly equal, the first and second longest; tail slightly emarginate, upper parts of a fine light blue, brighter on the head, the back marked with longitudinal streaks of blackish; a narrow band of black from the forehead along the lore to behind the eye; two con- spicuous white bands on the wings, formed by the tips of the secondary co- verts and first row of small coverts; quills black, margined with pale blue; tail-feathers black, edged with blue, all with a white patch on the inner web near the end; lower parts white, with a band of dark bluish-grey across the fore neck, and oblong spots of the same along the sides. Female with the upper parts light bluish-green, the lower and a streak over the eye very pale yellow. Young of both sexes like the female. Male, 43, 8. From Texas to Nova Scotia. Columbia River. Rather common. Mi- gratory. Tue BEAR-BERRY. ILEx Danoon, Mich. Fl. Amer., vol. ii. p. 228. Pursch, Fl. Amer., vol. i. p. 117.— TETRANDRIA TETRAGYNIA, Linn.—Ruamnt, Juss. This species of Holly is distinguished by its elliptico-lanceolate leaves, which are thick, leathery, shining, and reflected at the margin, and its co- rymboso-paniculate, lateral and terminal peduncles. The berries are globu- lar and bright red. Tue SpantsH MuLperry. CaLLicaRPA AMERICANA, Willd. Sp. Pl., vol. i. p.619. Pursch, Fl. Amer., vol. i. p. 97.— TetranpRia Monoeynia, Linn.—Viticrs, Juss. A perennial herbaceous plant, with oval, serrate leaves, which are downy beneath; sessile cymes of red flowers, and globular red berries, arranged apparently in dense whorls. It grows in dry gravelly or sandy soil, in Virginia, Carolina, and Louisiana. 48 THE BLACKBURNIAN WOOD-W ARBLER. ~.Syitvicota Bracksurni2, Lath. PLATE LXXXVII.—Mate anp Femate. This charming and delicate Warbler passes through the United States in April and May. I have met with it at different times, although sparingly, in every part of the Union, more frequently in the southern districts in spring, and in the eastern in early autumn. In the State of Maine, on the north-eastern confines of the United States, it is not uncommon, and I have reason to think that it breeds in the vicinity of Mars Hill, and other places, along the banks of St. John’s River, where my sons and myself shot several individuals, in the month of September. While at Frederickton, New Brunswick, Sir Arcuipatp CamrBe.t kindly presented me with specimens. On the Magdeleine Islands, in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, which I visited in June 1833, I found the Blackburnian Warbler in all the brilliancy of its spring plumage, and had the pleasure of hearing its sweet song, while it was engaged in pursuing its insect prey among the branches of a fir tree, moving along somewhat in the manner of the American Redstart. Its song, which consisted of five or six notes, was so much louder than could haye been ex- pected from the size of the bird, that it was not until I had fairly caught it in the act, that I felt satisfied as to its proceeding from my old acquaintance. My endeavours to discover its nest proved fruitless. In Labrador we saw several individuals of both sexes, and on the coast of Newfoundland, on our return westward, we again found it. To President MacCurxocu of Dalhousie College, Halifax, N. S., I am indebted for a nest and three eggs of this bird. While looking at his valu- able collection of the Birds of Nova Scotia, my attention was attracted by a case containing nests with eggs, among which was that of the Blackburnian Warbler. It was composed externally of different textures, and lined with silky fibres and thin delicate stripes of fine bark, over which lay a thick bed of feathers and horse-hair. The eggs were small, very conical towards the smaller end, pure white, with a few spots of light red towards the larger end. It was found in a small fork of a tree, five or six feet from the ground, near a brook. The Doctor informed me that it was the only nest he had seen, and that he considered this species of Warbler as rare in the district. My friend Joun BacuMan has since informed me, that, in June 1833, he N%8 Pore Bckeamin’ Ud Yell 1 Maie.2 Female, fra from ¥ e 7 Se ntte awn irom Nature by J.J. Audubon. ¢.k.S.¥ LS Lith? Printed & Colby 31 Bowen.Philaa pus een og THE BLACKBURNIAN WOOD-WARBLER. 49 saw a pair of these birds engaged in constructing a nest near Lansingburgh, in the State of New York. He never saw the species in the maritime parts of South Carolina. The specimen from which I made the drawing copied in the plate before you, I procured near Reading in Pennsylvania, on the banks of the Schuyl- kill River, about thirty years ago. Some specimens shot in New Bruns- wick in September, were mottled somewhat in the manner of a two years old Tanager or Summer Redbird, being probably very young birds. BiacksBuRNIAN Wareter, Sylvia Blackburnie, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. iii. p. 67. Syivra Buackeurni#, Bonap. Syn., p. 80. BLacKBURNIAN WarBLER, Sylvia Blackburnie, Nutt. Man., vol. i. p. 379. BiacksuRnian Waprster, Sylvia Blackburniea, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. il. p. 208; vol. v. p. 73. Outer three quills nearly equal, first generally longest; tail slightly emar- ginate. Male black above, streaked with white; a small patch on the top of the head, a band from the base of the upper mandible over the eye, passing down the neck and curving forwards, and a small band under the eye, orange- yellow; lore and a patch behind the eye black; quills black, the outer mar- gined with grey, the inner with white, of which there is a large patch on the wing, including the inner secondary coverts, and the tips of the outer, with those of the first row of small coverts; three outer tail-feathers on each side white, excepting an oblong portion toward the end, the next also partially white; throat and fore part of breast rich reddish-orange; breast dull yellow, the rest white; the sides of the neck and body streaked with black. Female with the upper parts light olivaceous, each feather dusky in the centre, the other parts as in the male, but the tints much paler, the spot on the top of the head greenish-yellow, the feathers tipped with dusky, the band over the eye pale yellow, that on the lore and ear-coverts brown, the fore part of the neck yellow, and the sides less strongly streaked with black. Male, 42, 72. Female, 48,, wing 223. From Texas northward. Rather rare. Migratory. Puiox macutata, Willd. Sp. Pl., vol. i. p. 840. Pursch, Flor. Amer. Sept., vol. i. p. 149.—PENTANDR1A MONOGYNIA, Linn.—Po.LEmonis, Juss. Erect; the stem rough, with purplish dots; the leaves oblongo-lanceolate, smooth, with the margin rough; the flowers in an oblong crowded panicle, of a purplish-red tint, the segments of the corolla rounded; the calycine teeth acute and recurved. It grows abundantly in wet meadows, from New Eng- land to Carolina, The flowers, although pleasing to the eye, have no scent. Mean HAA Sa THE YELLOW-POLL WOOD-WARBLER. ~LSyivicota mstiva, Gmel. PLATE LXXXVIII.—Mates. As soon as the welcome note of the Purple Martin is heard in spring, on its return to the United States, which, in Louisiana, sometimes takes place early in March, the little Warbler here presented to your inspection follows, and is seen gaily moving from tree to tree, feeding on the smaller insects, and tuning its pipe, which, however, is not the most melodious. It ap- proaches the gardens and orange-groves, and again flies off to the willows, along the margins of the pools and lagoons. Its sojourn is of short duration in Louisiana, for it moves gradually eastward as the season advances. Its migration, in as far as I have been able to ascertain, is principally performed during the night. I have observed many in the course of one day in a place, which, next day, if the weather had become warm, scarcely contained a sin- gle individual. I have seen many of these birds, as well as their nests, on the Genessee river; but in the States of New York, Connecticut, Pennsylva- nia, Maryland, and Virginia, they may be found in every orchard and gar- den, and even in the streets, among the foliage of our trees. The males chase each other with great courage, and fight for a few mo- ments, to establish their claim to any particular spot or tree, after which they are seen climbing up and down among the twigs and smaller branches, look- ing keenly among the leaves and blossoms for insects. Careless of the pre- sence of man, the Blue-eyed Warbler is easily approached. The same care- lessness makes it build its little nest almost always within reach. The parents are very assiduous in the discharge of their duties. They construct a nest about the middle of May, in the forked branches of a small tree, often within a few paces of a house. The nest is strongly fastened to the twigs, is formed externally of hemp, flax, or woolly substances, and is well lined with differ- ent kinds of hair, intermixed with softer materials. It breeds twice during the summer, and returns southward in the beginning of autumn, in small parties, shifting chiefly by night. During the breeding-season, this little bird, when approached, shews great anxiety for the preservation of its eggs or young, and tries, with all the artifices employed by many other species, to entice the aggressor away from its nest. They are seen, on their return to the south, passing through Louisiana in October. Its migrations northward are almost as wonderful as those of several other | ) ae Lye i pee LU LW bw! Males. Srawn from Nature bx lAudubon FH S.FL:S jth? Printed &Coltby J) Bowen Viilad® THE YELLOW-POLL WOOD-WARBLER. 51 birds, that seem, as it were, not to have been endowed with sufficient power of flight to enable them to traverse a vast extent of country. Yet it proceeds in summer as far as the 68th parallel, where it was found by Dr. Ricuarp- son in numbers and breeding. Although it comes into the United States from the south at the early period mentioned, thousands follow in the wake of the first that are seen in Louisiana, for, I met with great numbers during the whole month of April, when on my way to the Texas, as well as after my arrival in that country, where they threw themselves into all the bushes along the sea-shore, apparently for the purpose of spending the night. At this period they are quite silent, and many of them have not yet obtained the reddish spots on the breast so conspicuous at a later season. Mr. Nurrat was the first naturalist who observed the very curious me- thod in which it contrives to rid itself of the charge of rearing the young of the Cowbird. “It is amusing,’ he’ says, “to observe the sagacity of this little bird in disposing of the eggs of the vagrant and parasitic Cow Troopial. The egg deposited before the laying of the rightful tenant, too large for eject- ment, is ingeniously incarcerated in the bottom of the nest, and a new lining placed above it, so that it is never hatched to prove the dragon of the brood. Two instances of this kind occurred to the observation of my friend Mr. CHARLES PicKkERING; and last summer I obtained a nest with the adventi- tious egg about two-thirds buried, the upper edge only being visible, so that, in many instances, it is probable that this species escapes from the unpleasant position of becoming a nurse to the sable orphan of the Cowbird. She, however, acts faithfully the part of a foster-parent when the egg is laid after her own,”’ The following note from my friend Dr. T. M. Brewer shews that this little bird is capable of still greater exploits. “There is a very interesting item in the history of the Yellow-poll Warbler, which has been noticed only within a few years, and which is well deserving of attention, both for the reasoning powers which it exhibits, and for its uniqueness, for it is not known, I believe, to be practised by any other bird. I allude to the surpris- ing ingenuity with which they often contrive to escape the burden of rearing the offspring of the Cow Troopial, by burying the egg of the intruder. I have known four instances in which single eggs have been thus buried by the Yellowbird’s building a second story to her nest, and enclosing the in- truder between them. In one instance, three of the Sylvia’s own eggs were _thus covered along with that of the Cow Blackbird, and in another, after a Blackbird’s egg had been thus concealed, a second was laid, which was simi- larly treated, thus giving rise to a three-storied nest. This last you have in your possession, and will, I hope, give to the world a drawing as well as a complete description of it. The Summer Yellowbird raises only one brood BeMare err ie: ay eee? Y, a, ie r ae fel a, Maoh’ Anew co? aN cn arly (nib ins PS 3 a! 52 THE YELLOW-POLL WOOD-WARBLER. in the season in Massachusetts. The eggs, four or five in number, measure 54 eighths in length, by a trifle more than half an inch in breadth; they are of a light, dull bluish-white, thickly sprinkled with dots and small markings of various sizes of dull reddish-brown, accumulated towards the great end.”” The fabric alluded to above may be thus described. A nest of the usual form had been constructed, of which the external diameter was three inches. It is composed of cotton rudely interwoven with flaxen fibres of plants, and lined with cotton of a reddish colour, with some hairs round the inner edges. The egg of the Cowbird having been deposited in this nest, another of a larger size, three inches and three-quarters in external diameter, has been built upon it, being formed of the same materials, but with less of the flaxen fibres. The egg is thus surmounted by a layer three-quarters of an inch thick, and was discovered by opening the lower nest from beneath. It is agglutinated to the lining of the nest, having been addled and probably burst. In this second nest a Cowbird had also deposited an egg, which was, in like manner, covered over by a third nest, composed of the same materials, and of nearly the same size as the second. The birds represented in the thirty-fifth plate of my-large work, and dedi- cated to Mr. Curipren, I have since found to be the young of this bird, pro- bably of a late brood of the previous year, they having been found breeding at a period when this species shews few or none of the reddish spots on the breast, the want of which induced me to consider them as of a distinct spe- cies. These circumstances I mentioned to the Prince of Musignano, in Lon- don, my friend Dr. BAacumawn and myself having discovered the error soon after the publication of my first volume of Ornithological Biography. I made my drawing of this species near Natchez, and having killed the specimen while it was searching for insects among the flowers of a large climbing plant, I have figured part of the latter also. This plant I have never seen, excepting in low, damp or marshy places. It there runs over decayed trees, spreading in the form of a bower, and hanging in graceful fes- toons. The long pendulous clusters of pale purple flowers are destitute of odour. All our little birds known by the name of Warblers, and referred by authors to the genera Sylvicola, Trichas, and Vermivora, present the same structure in their digestive and respiratory organs. Their cesophagus is rather narrow, without dilatation; the proventriculus bulbiform, with nume- rous oblong glandules; the stomach rather small, oblique, elliptical or round- ish, with the lateral muscles distinct, but of moderate thickness, the lower muscle thin, the epithelium dense, reddish-brown, and longitudinally rugous when not filled; the intestine rather short and of moderate width; two very small cceca; the rectum gradually enlarged. The trachea is composed of N°18 PL. 89. , YW Heathens © Wood ober: | Male.2 Female “a = y 2 Mam ping Juin ft flacver- . / \ath* Pranted & Colt by JT. Bowen. Phikadt® RATHBONE’S WOOD-WARBLER. 53 from 60 to 80 rings, flattened, somewhat tapering; the bronchi of ordinary size, of from 12 to 15 rings; there are cleido-tracheal muscles, lateral mus- cles, sterno-tracheal, and four pairs of inferior laryngeal. BLue-EYED WARBLER, Sylvia citrinella, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. ii. p. 111. ‘Syzvia estiva, Bonap. Syn., p. 83. YELLow-POLL Wars.er, Sylvia estiva, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. i. p. 476; vol. v. 453. Adult Male. CuILpReN’s WarsLeR, Sylvia Childrenii, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. i. p. 180. Young. Outer four quills nearly equal, second longest; tail emarginate. Male with the upper parts pale yellowish-green, the rump greenish-yellow, the fore part of the head, cheeks, throat, sides of the neck and lower parts pure yellow, the breast and sides streaked with brownish-red; feathers of the wings deep brown, primaries margined with yellowish-green, secondaries, their coverts, and the first row of small coverts with yellow; tail-feathers brown, with the greater part of the inner webs and a portion of the outer, yellow, excepting the middle two. Female similar, but with the colours less bright, and the streaks on the breast and sides obsolete. Young with the upper parts yel- lowish-green, tinged with brown; forehead, sides of head, and lower parts deep yellow. Male, 43, 8. From Texas northward, and throughout the interior. Abundant. Mi- gratory. RATHBONE’S WOOD-WARBLER. + Syntvicora Rarusonu, ud. PLATE LXXXIX.—Mate anp Femate. Kind reader, you are now presented with a new and beautiful little species of Warbler, which I have honoured with the name of a family that must ever be dear tome. Were I at liberty here to express the gratitude which swells my heart, when the remembrance of all the unmerited kindness and unlook- ed-for friendship which I have received from the Rarusones of Liverpool comes to my mind, J might produce a volume of thanks. But I must con- Vox. IL. 8 5A RATHBONE’S WOOD-WARBLER. tent myself with informing you, that the small tribute of gratitude which alone it is in my power to pay, I now joyfully accord, by naming after them one of those birds, to the study of which all my efforts have been directed. I trust that future naturalists, regardful of the feelings which have guided me in naming this species, will continue to it the name of Rathbone’s Wood- Warbler. I met with the species now under consideration only once, when I procur- ed both the male and the female represented in the plate. They were ac- tively engaged in searching for food amongst the blossoms and leaves of the Bignonia on which I have placed them. All my endeavours to discover their nest, or to procure other individuals, having proved abortive, I am un- able to say any thing of their habits and history; but should I be more for- tunate at some future period, I shall not fail to record the result of my ob- servations respecting this delicate little Warbler. The Bignonia on which they are represented, grows abundantly in the low alluvial grounds of the States of Mississippi and Louisiana, sparingly in Tennessee, and about the mouth of the Ohio. It twines round the trunks of various trees, and produces beautiful flowers, in which Humming-birds are frequently seen to search for the minute insects which form their food. They are destitute of smell, but are seen both during spring and autumn. RatTuBoneE Wars.er, Sylvia Rathbonia, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. i. p. 333. Wings of ordinary length, the second quill longest; tail nearly even. The general colour of the plumage ‘bright yellow, the upper parts olivaceous; quills and tail wood-brown, the former yellow on the outer web, the latter margined externally with the same. Female similar. Male, 43. Mississippi. Only one pair seen. Tue Ramrpine TRUMPET-FLOWER. BiGNoNnIA CAPREOLATA, Willd. Sp. Pl., vol. iii. p. 297. Pursch, Flor. Amer., vol. ii. p. 419.—DipynamiA ANGIOSPERMIA, Linn.—Bicnonix, Juss. This species is distinguished by its conjugate cirrhous leaves, with oblongo- lanceolate leaflets, which are somewhat cordate at the base, the lower leaves single. The flowers are carmine. Nv18. | Pl. 90. blow LZ (feed Yoed olhber 1. Males 2. Young Wid Change Shoo J Auchibon. Si Lath* Pramed & Col* by JT Bowen.)talad* THE YELLOW RED-POLL WOOD-W ARBLER. + Syzvicoza peTecutia, Lath. PLATE XC.—Mates anp Young. I most willingly acknowledge the error under which I laboured many years, in believing that this species and the Sylvia palmarum of BonAPARTE, are distinct from each other. To the sound judgment of my good friend Joun Bacuman, I am indebted for convincing me that the figure given by the Prince of Musignano is that of our present bird, at a different period of life; and therefore with different plumage. While at Charleston, in the winter and spring of 1833-4, I became convinced of my error, after examin- ing a great number of specimens, in different states of plumage. All these individuals had the same habits, and uttered the same notes. I may here remark, that the true Sylvia palmarum has not yet been met with in the United States. The Yellow Red-poll Warbler is extremely abundant in the Southern States, from the beginning of November to the first of April, when it migrates northward. It is one of the most common birds in the Floridas during winter, especially along the coasts, where they are fond of the orchards and natural woods of orange trees. In Georgia and South Carolina, they are also very abundant, and are to be seen gambolling, in company with the Yellow-rumped Warbler, on the trees that ornament the streets of the cities and villages, or those of the planter’s yard. They approach the piazzas and enter the gardens, in search of insects, on which they feed principally on the wing, now and then securing some by moving slowly along the branches. It never removes from one spot to another, without uttering a sharp twit, and vibrating its tail in the manner of the Wagtails of Europe, though less frequently. I never saw this species in Pennsylvania in summer, although occasionally in the month of May it is to be seen for a few days. It is very rare in Maine; but I found it abundant in Newfoundland and Labrador, where I seldom passed a day without searching for its nest, although I am sorry to say, in vain. In the month of August the old birds were feeding their young all around us, and preparing to return to milder winter quarters. Nothing can be more gladdening to the traveller, when passing through the uninhabited woods of East Florida, than the wild orange groves which he sometimes meets with. As I approached them, the rich perfume of the 56 THE YELLOW RED-POLL WOOD-WARBLER. blossoms, the golden hue of the fruits, that hung on every twig, and lay scattered on the ground, and the deep green of the glossy leaves, never failed to produce the most pleasing effect on my mind. Nota branch has suffered from the pruning-knife, and the graceful form of the tree retains the elegance it received from nature. Raising their tops into the open air, they allow the uppermost blossoms and fruits to receive the unbroken rays of the sun, which one might be tempted to think are conveyed from flower to flower, and from fruit to fruit, so rich and balmy are all. The pulp of these fruits quenches your thirst at once, and the very air you breathe in such a place refreshes and reinvigorates you. I have passed through groves of these orange trees fully a mile in extent. Their occurrence is a sure indication of good land, which in the south-eastern portion of that country is rather scarce. The Seminole Indians and poorer Squatters feed their horses on oranges, which these animals seem to eat with much relish. The immediate vicinity of a wild orange grove is of some importance to the planters, who have the fruit collected and squeezed in a horse-mill. The juice is barrelled and sent to different markets, being in request as an ingredient in cooling drinks. The straight young shoots are cut and shipped in bundles, to be used as walking sticks. YELLOW Rep-poLtt Waksier, Sylvia petechia, Wils. Amer. Orn., v. vi. p. 19. SyLvia PETEcHIA, Bonap. Syn., p. 83; S. palmarum, p. 78. Syzvico.a perecuis, Yellow Red-poll Warbler, Swain. & Rich. F. Bor. Amer., v. ii. p. 215. YeELLow Rep-Ppott WarsBLeER, Sylvia petechia, Nutt. Man., v. i. p. 364. Yettow Rep-potn: Warsier, Sylvia petechia, Aud. Orn. Biog., v. ii. p. 259, Adult Male and Young; p. 360, Adult Male and Female. Wings of ordinary length, with the outer three quills almost equal, the second longer than the first, which slightly exceeds the fourth; tail emargi- nate. Male with the crown of the head deep brownish-red, the upper parts yellowish-olive, streaked with brown; the rump greenish-yellow, without streaks; quills dusky brown, primaries edged with whitish, secondaries with yellowish; tail feathers dusky brown, margined with greenish-yellow, the outer two with a white patch on the inner web at the end, sometimes the outer white on both webs at the end; a bright yellow streak from the nostril over the eye; lore dusky; ear-coverts brownish-red; lower parts yellow; the sides of the neck, its lower part, and the sides of the body, streaked with deep red. Female similar to the male, but with the tints duller and paler, the red of the head scarcely apparent, and the fore-neck very faintly streaked. Young dull light greenish-brown, tinged with grey, the head streaked with dusky; lower parts yellowish-grey, the sides of the neck and body, with the breast, faintly streaked with greyish-brown. Mee ae ON ta weed psi My i 3 if aan SAAR Pcie PNAS: RI Whe Po Halle bached Yood babli eC 1 Mate 2 Female. (2 ZZ wet OULLAANLE =e lag. / y, ‘THE BLUE YELLOW-BACKED WOOD-WARBLER. 57 Male, 43, 8. From Texas northward. Very abundant. Spends the winter in all the Southern States. THE BLUE YELLOW-BACKED WOOD-WARBLER. +Syzvicota amertcana, Lath. PLATE X:CI.—Matr anp FEemate. This pretty species enters Louisiana from the south as early as spring appears, at the period when most insects are found closer to the ground, and more about water-courses, than shortly after, when a warmer sun has invited every leaf and blossom to hail the approach of that season when they all become as brilliant as nature intended them to be. The little fellow under your eye is then seen flitting over damp places, such as the edges of ponds, lakes, and rivers, chasing its prey with as much activity and liveliness as any other of the delicate and interesting tribe to which it belongs. It alights on every plant in its way, runs up and down it, picks here and there a small winged insect, and should one, aware of its approach, fly off, pursues it and snatches it in an instant. I have placed a pair of these Warblers on a handsome species of Iris. This plant grows in the water, and in the neighbourhood of New Orleans, a few miles below that city, where I found it abundantly, and in bloom, in the beginning of April. Several flowers are produced upon the same stem. I have not met with it anywhere else, and the name of Louisiana Flag is the one commonly given it. As soon as the foliage of the forests begins to expand, the Blue Yellow- backed Warbler flies to the tops of the trees, and there remains during the season, gleaning amongst the leaves and branches, in the same active manner as it employed when nearer the ground, not leaving off its quick and short pursuit of small insects on the wing. When on the branches, it frequently raises its body (which is scarcely larger when stripped of its feathers than the first joint of a man’s finger) upwards to the full length of its legs and toes, and is thus enabled to seize insects otherwise beyond its reach. Its flight is that of a true Sylvia. It ascends for awhile in a very zigzag Vor. E- 9 58 THE BLUE YELLOW-BACKED WOOD-WARBLER. manner, and returns suddenly to nearly the same place, as if afraid to encounter the dangers of a prolonged excursion. I do not think it ever flies to the ground. It hops sidewise as well as straight forward, hangs like a Titmouse, and searches the cups of even the smallest flowers for its favourite insects. I am inclined to think that it raises two broods in a season, having seen and shot the young on the trees, in Louisiana, early in May, and again in the beginning of July. The nest is small, formed of lichens, beautifully arranged on the outside, and lined with the cottony substances found on the edges of different mosses. It is placed in the fork of a small twig, and so far towards the extremity of the branches as to have forced me to cut them ten or fifteen feet from it, to procure one. On drawing in the branch carefully to secure the nest, the male and female always flew towards me, exhibiting all the rage and animosity befitting the occasion. The eggs are pure white, with a few reddish dots at the larger end, and were in two instances four in number. It was several years before I discovered one of these nests, so small are they, and so difficult to be seen from the ground. This species is found throughout the United States, and may be considered as one of the most beautiful of the birds of our country. It has no song, but merely a soft, greatly prolonged twitter, repeated at short intervals. It re- turns southward, out of the Union, in the beginning of October. Buive YELLOw-BACK WARBLER, Sylvia pusilla, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. iv. p. 17. Sytvia Americana, Bonap. Syn., p. 33. BLvue YELLOW-BACKED WARBLER, Sylvia Americana, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. i. p. 78. Bill much attenuated; outer three quills nearly equal, first or second long- est; tail almost even, with the feathers pointed. Male with the upper parts light blue, the fore part of the back yellowish-green; two broad bands of white on the wing, formed by the tips of the secondary coverts, and first row of small coverts; quills and tail-feathers dusky, margined with blue; a white spot on the outer three of the latter; loral space black; both eyelids with a white spot; throat yellow, with whitish patches, a lunular band of blackish on the fore neck; breast yellow, spotted with dull orange, the rest of the lower parts yellowish, fading into white; the sides pale greyish-blue. Fe- male similar but paler; the loral band wanting; throat, fore neckyand breast yellow, without the black lunule. Although the bill of this species is much attenuated, it is not essentially different in form from that of S. Blackburniz, and others of this genus; the wings are similar to those of the rest, and there seems no reason for setting it apart to form a genus, as has been done by Bonaparte. Male, 43, 64. INS Ws) Pe Made. = C Canotina ec Tespuce . jath® Printed & Cal‘ be J.T Bowen Philad* TOWNSEND’S WOOD-WARBLER. 59 From Texas, generally distributed. EEZxceedingly abundant. Migratory. Tue Copprery Iris, on LovistANA Fiaa. Iris cupREA, Pursch, Fl. Amer., vol. i. p. 30.—Trianpria Monoeynis, Linn.—IRiveEs, Juss. “Beardless, the stem equal in height to the leaves, which are broadly ensi- form, the stigmas linear and short, all the petals emarginate, reflected, and obovate, the inner shorter, the capsules large and hexagonal. Found on the banks of the Mississippi, near New Orleans. Flowers of a beautiful copper colour, veined with purple.” TOWNSEND’S WOOD-WARBLER. + Syntvicota Townsenp1, Nuttall. PLATE XCII.—Mate. Mr. Nutratt has honoured this beautiful Warbler with the name of his friend and companion Mr. TownsEnp. It was procured about the Columbia river. All the information respecting it that I possess is contained in the following brief notice by the former of these celebrated naturalists. “Of this fine species, we know very little, it being one of those transient visiters, which, on their way to the north, merely stop a few days to feed and recruit, previous to their arrival in the higher latitudes, or afterwards disperse in pairs, and are lost sight of till the returning wants and famine of the season impel them again to migrate, when, falling on the same path, they are seen in small silent flocks advancing toward the retreat they seek out for their temporary residence. As this species frequents the upper parts of the lofty firs, it was almost an accident to obtain it at all. The female remains un- known.”’ The plant represented, Calycanthus floridus, the Carolina allspice, is much esteemed on account of the fragrance of its large purple flowers, and abounds in the Southern States, growing on the margins of swamps and rivulets. 60 HERMIT WOOD-WARBLER. _ Sytvia Townsennt, Townsend’s Warbler, Towns., Jour. Acad. Nat. Sc. Philadelphia, vol. vii. p. 191. Townsenv’s Wareter, Sylvia Townsendi, Aud. Orn. Bice oe p. 36. Wings of moderate length, rather pointed, with the second and third quills _ longest, the first and second nearly equal and very little shorter; tail scarcely emarginate. Upper parts light greenish-olive, more yellow behind, all the feathers dusky in the centre; cheeks, ear-coverts, and throat black; a band over the eye, a broader band on the side of the neck, and the fore part of the breast bright yellow; the rest of the lower parts white, but the sides marked with oblong dusky spots; wings blackish-brown; the secondary coverts and first row of small coverts largely tipped with white, the quills margined with light grey; tail-feathers blackish-brown, edged with grey; outer two on each side almost entirely white, the next with a small white spot. Male, 448, wing 23%. Columbia river, northward. Migratory. HERMIT WOOD-WARBLER. +. SyLvIcoLA OCCIDENTALIS, Townsend. PLATE XCIIJ.—Mate anp Femate. Of this species discovered by Mr. Townsenp and Mr. Nurratt, in the forests of the Columbia river, all that I know is contained in the following notes from these enterprising naturalists:—“The Hermit Warbler,” says Mr. Nurratt, “I have little doubt, breeds in the dark forests of the Colum- bia, where we saw and heard it singing in the month of June. It is a re- markably shy and solitary bird, retiring into the darkest and most silent recesses of the evergreens, where, gaining a glimpse of light by ascending the loftiest branches of the gigantic firs, it occupies in solitude a world of its own, but seldom invaded even by the prying Jay, who also retreats, as a last resort, to the same sad gloom. In consequence of this eremitic predilection, it was with extreme difficulty that we ever got sight of our wily and retiring subject, who, no doubt, breeds and feeds in the tops of these pines. Itssong, * frequently heard from the same place, at very regular intervals, for an hour N°49. | : P1.93. um Lent Mol I LEPVWAM Z 1..Male2, Bemale. fs : . 4 Wi, Mi Lith? Peinted & Cals by J. Bowen Viilarss Drawn from Mauve by J Awinhen 4YS.47-S HERMIT WOOD-WARBLER. 61 or two at a time, is a soft, moody, faint, and monotonous note, apparently delivered chiefly when the bird is at rest on some lofty twig, and within convenient hearing of its mate and only companion of the wilderness.” Mr. TownsEnp’s note is as follows:—I shot this pair of birds near Fort Vancouver, on the 28th of May, 1835. I found them flitting among the pine trees in the depth of a forest. They were actively engaged in search- ing for insects, and were frequently seen hanging from the twigs like Tit- mice. Their note was uttered at distant intervals, and resembled very much that of the Black-throated Blue Warbler, Sylvia canadensis.”’ SYLVICOLA occipDENTALIS, Hermit Wood- Warbler, Towns., Journ. Acad. Nat. Sc. Phila- delphia, vol. vii. p. 190. Hermit Warster, Sylvia occidentalis, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. v. p. 55. Wings of moderate length, the outer three quills almost equal, the third longest; tail slightly emarginate. Male with the upper parts bluish-grey, spotted with black; the upper part of the head, which is similarly spotted, the cheeks, and sides of the neck, bright yellow; throat black; breast and abdomen white; ground and tail-feathers greyish-dusky; two white bands on the wing formed by the tips of the secondary coverts and first row of small coverts; two outer tail-feathers on each side almost entirely white. Female with the upper parts of a duller grey, the yellow of the head less extended and not so bright; throat whitish, spotted with dusky. Male, 35, wing 23%. Columbia river. Migratory. For a description of the plant see page 28. Vor. Hi. 10 BLACK-THROATED GREY WOOD-WARBLER. SYLVICOLA NIGREscENS, Townsend. PLATE CXIV.—Mates. This is another of the interesting species discovered and named by Mr. TowNnsEND, who informs me that it is called “4h Kah a qual’ by the Chinook Indians; that it is abundant in the forests of the Columbia, where it breeds and remains until winter; and that the nest, formed externally of fibrous green moss, is generally placed on the upper branches of the oak, suspended between two small twigs. Mr. Nurraxv’s notice respecting it is as follows:—“This curious species, so much resembling Sylvia striata, was seen to arrive early in May; and from its song more regularly delivered at intervals, in the tops of deciduous-leaved trees, we have little doubt but that they breed in the forests of the Columbia. On the 23d of May I had the satisfaction of harkening to the delicate but monotonous song of this bird, as he busily and intently searched every leafy bough and expanding bud for larvz and insects in a spreading oak, from whence he delivered his solitary note. Sometimes he remained a minute or two stationary, but more gene- rally continued his quest for prey. His song, at short and regular intervals, seemed like *¢ shee *¢ shay t shaitshee, varying the feeble sound very little, and with the concluding note somewhat slenderly and plaintively raised.” Syivia nicrescens, Black-throated Grey Warbler, Jour. Acad. Nat. Sc. Philadelphia, vol. vii. p. 191. Biack-THROATED GREY WARBLER, Sylvia nigrescens, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. v. p. 57. Wings of moderate length, with the outer three quills nearly equal, the second longest, the first shorter than the fourth; tail slightly rounded and emarginate. Male with the upper parts bluish ash-grey, the middle of the back and tail-coverts streaked with black; the upper part of the head and neck, the loral space and cheeks, and the fore part of the neck, with a small portion of the breast, black; a band from the nostril to near the eye, yellow; a band over the eye, and another from the lower mandible along the side of the neck, white; breast and abdomen white, the sides tinged with grey, and streaked with black; wings blackish-brown, with two white bands formed by the tips of the secondary coverts and first row of small coverts; quills N°19. ID 14s, awn trom Nature by J... Audubon FRS.PS Lith? Printed & Col! dw dV Bowen Uhilacde! Blick thaoated Bic Wd; 1 Male 2. Fenade. Ye y Drawn from Natare by J.J-Audnpon Ek SEL - Lath? Printed & Col? by J.1. Bowen. Philad? THE BLACK-THROATED BLUE WOOD-WARBLER. 63 edged with light grey; tail blackish-brown, the two outer feathers on each side almost entirely white, the next with a white patch on the inner web. Male 5, wing 255. Columbia river. Migratory. THE BLACK-THROATED BLUE WOOD-WARBLER. SyLvIcOoLA CANADENSIS, Linn. PLATE XCV.—Mate anp Youne. I have met with this species in every portion of the Southern and Western States, where, however, it is seen only in the early part of spring and in autumn, on its passage to and from its summer residence. In South Carolina it arrives about the 25th of March, and becomes more abundant in April; but it has left that country by the 10th of May. During its stay there, it ‘keeps in deep woods, where it may be seen passing among the boughs, at a height of from ten to twenty feet from the ground. Proceeding eastward, we find it more numerous, but residing only in the depths of the morasses and swampy thickets. I saw many individuals of the species in the Great Pine Forest of Pennsylvania, after which I traced it through the upper parts of the State of New York into Maine, the British Provinces, and the Magdeleine Islands, in the Bay of St. Lawrence. In Newfoundland I saw none, and in Labrador only a dead one, dry and shrivelled, deposited like a mummy in the fissure of a rock, where the poor bird had fallen a victim to the severity of the climate, from which it had vainly endeavoured to shelter itself. I am indebted to the generous and most hospitable Dr. MacCuriocn of Halifax for the nest and eggs of this Warbler, which had been found by his sons, who are keen observers of birds. The nest is usually placed on the horizontal branch of a fir-tree, at a height of seven or eight feet from the ground. It is composed of slips of bark, mosses, and fibrous roots, and is lined with fine grass, on which is laid a warm bed of feathers. The eggs, four or five in number, are of a rosy tint, and, like those of most other Syl- vie, scantily sprinkled with reddish-brown at the larger end. Only one brood is raised in a season. The young, when fully fledged, resemble their 64. THE BLACK-THROATED BLUE WOOD-WARBLER. parents in the colours of their plumage, which, however, is mixed with duller tints, the differences indicative of the sex being already observable. The Black-throated Blue Warbler is an expert catcher of flies, pursues in- sects to a considerable distance in all directions, and in seizing them snaps its bill so as to produce a clicking sound. It now and then alights on a low plant, such as that represented in the plate, and moves along the branches searching for pupe, ants, and insects. I have never heard its love-song, but its common note is a rather melancholy cheep. I am inclined to believe that it breeds in the State of Maine, having seen several individuals of both sexes not far from Eastport, in the beginning of June 1833, when several other species had nests. The birds represented in Plate 148 of my large edition as Sylvia sphag- nosa, are the young of the Black-throated Blue Warbler, the female of which resembles them so much that I looked upon it as of a species distinct from the male. I have no doubt that this error originated with Wizson, who has been followed by all our writers. Now, however, the Sylvia or Sylvicola sphagnosa of Bonaparte, which he altered from Witson’s S. pusilla, must be erased from our Fauna. This bird extends to the head waters of the Missouri, but is not mentioned as occurring in the Fur Countries. I found it abundant on my way to the Texas in the beginning of April; I have also seen it plentiful in June about Boston, where, however, it does not breed. Of this fact also I gave the first intimation to the Prince of Musignano. MoTaciILLa CANADENSIS, Linn. Syst. Nat., vol. i. p. 334. BLaAck-THROATED BLuE WarsLeER, Sylvia canadensis, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. il. p. 115. Male. SYLVIA CANADENSIS, Bonap. Syn., p. 84. Male. Biack-THroaTeD BLue WaArsxeER, Sylvia canadensis, Nutt. Man., vol. i. p. 398. Male. BLack-THROATED BLurE Wareser, Sylvia canadensis, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. il. p. 309. Male. Pine-swame Wars_er, Sylvia pusilla, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. v. p. 100. Young. SyLvra sPpHAGNOSA, Bonap. Syn., p. 85. Young. Pine-swamp Wars_er, Sylvia sphagnosa, Nutt. Man., vol. i. p. 406. Young. Pine-swampe WarBLER, Sylvia sphagnosa, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. ii. p.279. Female and Young. Vol. v. p. 458. Wings rather long, with the third quill longest, the second almost equal, the fourth longer than the first; tail even. Male dull light blue above, white beneath; frontal band, cheeks, throat, and sides, black; a white patch on the wing formed by the bases of the primaries; outer three tail-feathers with a patch of white on the inner web near the end, all the rest with a touch of the same. Female greenish-olive above, light dull yellow below, with a less extended white patch on the wing, the white on the tail unconspicuous. Young similar to the female. N° 20 4 Lae y Dock a yelow co ALLL. 7.. Male. 2 &« £ male JZ YWoang Pi , 7 heey 2, ay MLEALPLG « Masfe Certy kes otk arts 4 4 PSG: THE BLACK-AND-YELLOW WOOD-WARBLER. 65 Male, 5, 73. From Texas northward. Migratory. Abundant. Tue CANADIAN CoLUMBINE. AQUILEGIA CANADENSIS, Willd. Sp. Pl., vol. ii. p. 1247. Pursch, Flor. Amer. Sept., vol. li. p. 372.—PoLYANDRIA PENTAGYNIA, Linn.—RANUNCULACES, Juss. This species, which has the flowers of a bright red mixed with yellow, and is characterized by having the horns of the nectaries or petals straight, grows in the crevices of rocks, and in dry places near rivulets. THE BLACK-AND-YELLOW WOOD-WARBLER. +Syzvicota macutosa, Lath. PLATE XCVI.—Mate, Femate, anp Youne. Few of our Warblers have a more varied plumag®, or are more animated in their motions, than this beautiful little bird. In Louisiana it is met with now and then as early as the middle of March, but there its occurrence ap- pears to be merely accidental, as is indeed the case in Kentucky, Ohio, or any portion of the Middle States, through which a few are to be seen on their passage to more northern regions. In autumn I have seen them in great numbers near the Pocano Mountains, accompanied by their young, proceeding southward, as I thought, along the direction of that range. While in Maine, on my way to Labrador, in the month of May, I observed them to be very abundant by the roads, in the fields, the low woods, and even the orchards and gardens. In fact, so numerous were those interesting birds, that you might have fancied that an army of them had assembled to take possession of the country. Scarce a leaf was yet expanded, large icicles hung along the rocky shores, and I could not but feel surprised at the hardihood of the little adventurers. At night they roosted in numbers in the small evergreen trees, and by day they were to be seen flitting about wherever the sun shone. If the morning was cold, you might catch them with the hand, and several specimens, procured in that manner by children, were brought to Vox. II. 11 * 66 THE BLACK-AND-YELLOW WOOD-WARBLER. me. This happened in the neighbourhood of Eastport. By the end of a fortnight, the greater part of them had pushed farther north. I met them wherever I landed in the neighbouring islands, and along the shores of the Bay of Fundy, as well as in the Straits of Canso, the Magdeleine Isles, and Labrador. I have no doubt that the extraordinary congregation which I saw near Eastport, was caused by the foresight of the tiny travellers, aware that they could not at so early a period proceed farther without imminent dan- ger. Many of these birds, however, remain and breed in the State of Maine, and in the British Provinces. The Black-and-Yellow Warbler has a clear and sweetly modulated song, surpassing that of many other birds of its tribe. It sings in the interior of the low woods, to which it seems at all times to give a decided preference. Its motions are extremely graceful; its tail is constantly spread as it flits along the branches, or even while it is on the ground, to which it frequently betakes itself, and its wings are usually held in a drooping position, so as to display all the beauty of its plumage. It feeds on insects and their larve. Now and then it may be seen balancing itself in the air, opposite a cluster of leaves, among which it darts to secure its prey, and not unfrequently it emerges a few feet from among the foliage of a tree or bush, to seize a flut- tering insect. In catching its prey, it does not produce the clicking sound, caused by the sudden meeting of the mandibles, so remarkable in some other species. The nest, which is placed deep among the branches of low fir trees, is sup- ported by horizontal twigs, and is constructed of moss and lichens, lined with fibrous roots, and a great quantity of feathers. In one, found in Labrador, in the beginning of July, there were five small eggs, rather more elongated than is usual in the genus. They were white, sprinkled with reddish dots near the larger end. The female, on being disturbed, spread out her wings and tail, fluttered along the branches in the agony of despair, lingered trem- bling about the spot, and returned to the nest while we were only a few yards distant from it. During the first days of August, I saw many of the young following their parents, and perceived that some were already on their way southward. While in the Bay of St. George, Newfoundland, I again saw these birds daily, although they became scarcer the longer we remained in the country. I also traced their retrograde flight into Nova Scotia, but on landing in the United States lost sight of them. This beautiful Warbler is, according to Dr. R1cHarpson, a common bird on the banks of the Saskatchewan river, where it enlivens the thickets of young spruce trees and willows with its agreeable notes. It was not obsery- ed by Mr. TownsEnp on the Rocky Mountains or along the Columbia river. THE BLACK-AND-YELLOW WOOD-WARBLER. 67 As I proceeded towards the Texas, in the beginning of April, I found it in considerable numbers on its way toward the United States. The eggs measure five-eighths and three-fourths in length, four-eighths and a half in breadth; in some instances the ground-colour is slightly tinged with very pale yellow. BuacK-AND-YELLOW Wars._er, Sylvia magnolia, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. iii. p. 63. Adult. Sy.tvia MacuLosa, Bonap. Syn., p. 78. BLacK-AND- YELLOW WARBLER, Sylvia maculosa, Nutt. Man., vol. i. p. 370. Syxtvicota MacuLosa, Yellow-rump Warbler, K. Bor. Amer., vol. ii. p. 213. BuacK-aNnbD- YELLOW WaReLER, Sylvia maculosa, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. ii. p. 145, Adult; vol. i. p. 260, Young; vol. v. p. 458. Wings of moderate length, the outer four quills nearly equal, the second and third longest and equal, the fourth longer than the first; tail almost even. Upper part of head and hind neck ash-grey; eye-lids, and a band over the eye, white; part of forehead, loral space, and a broad band down the side of the neck, with the fore part of the back, and upper tail-coverts, deep black; lower parts and rump bright yellow; the lower part of the throat, the breast and sides, spotted with black; wings and tail-feathers brownish-black, edged with grey; two white bands on the wing; all the tail-feathers, except the middle two, with a large patch of white on the inner web, at about two-thirds of their length. Young yellowish-grey above, with the head light grey, the rump yellow; lower parts of a duller yellow, with only faint dusky streaks on the sides. Male, 5, 74. From Texas northward. Very abundant. Migratory. Tue FLoweriIne RASPBERRY. Roewus oporatus, Willd. Sp. Pl., vol. ii. p. 1085. Pursch, Fl. Amer. Sept., vol. i. p. 348. —IcOSANDRIA POLYGYNIA, Linn.—Rosacea, Juss. This species of rasp has the stems hispid; the leaves three or five-lobed, acute; the flowers in lateral and terminal corymbs, with divaricate stalks and appendiculate calyces. It is abundant in the Middle and Eastern, but rare in the Southern and Western Districts. It forms part of the rich under- growth of our woods, and also grows in old fields with other species of the genus. ‘The flowers are rose-coloured and showy, but destitute of odour, and the fruit is delicious and highly fragrant, from which circumstance the spe- cies derives its name. aay eine We Mls Enlil OES Ro ee o> ee ee 68 THE PRAIRIE WARBLER. ~ Syz3vicona piscotor, Vieill. PLATE XCVII.—Mate anp Frmate. This little bird has no song, at least I never heard any from it, excepting a delicate soft whirr, ejaculated whilst it stands erect on the top of some rank weed or low bush. Its nest, which forms by far the most interesting part of its history, is uncommonly small and delicate. Its eggs I have uni- formly found to be four in number, and of a white colour, with a few brown- ish spots near the larger end. The nest is sometimes attached to three or four blades of tall grass, or hangs between two small sprigs of a slender twig. At first sight, it seems to be formed like that of the Humming-bird, the ex- ternal parts being composed of delicate grey lichens and other substances, and skins of black caterpillars, and the interior finished with the finest fibres of dried vines. ‘Two broods are reared each season. In Louisiana I found this bird amongst our cotton fields, where it easily procures the small insects and flies of which its food is entirely composed. It is also found in the prairies along the skirts of the woodlands. I have shot several within a few miles of Philadelphia, in the Jerseys, in a large opening where the woods had been cut down, and were beginning to spring up again. Its flight is light and short, it making an effort to rise to the height of eight or ten yards, and immediately sinking down to the grass or bushes. Whilst on the ground, where it remains a good deal, it searches amongst the leaves slowly and carefully, differing in this respect from all the true warblers with which Iam acquainted. They go singly, and far apart, scarcely more than three or four being ever seen on an extent of twenty or thirty acres. It is one of the first birds that arrives in spring in Louisiana, and one of the first to depart, being rarely found after the first week of Sep- tember. I never saw it farther east than on the ridges of the Broad Moun- tain, about twelves miles from Mauch Chunk; but I have seen it on the Arkansas river, and high up on the Mississippi, as well as along the southern borders of Lake Erie. The young are apt to leave the nest if discovered when unable to fly, and follow their parents through the grass to be fed. The plant on which a pair of Prairie Warblers are represented, is com- monly called buffalo grass, and is found all along the edges of our extensive N°20 SS Se a a le ay BES ee, LZ IE Cie 1 Male. 2 himale Mi fele Gpou) Wawn trom Sature by JA Andubeo FILS IOL.S Lith? Printed & Coh* by J.1. Bowen Philad" INS 2-0) IPE See Be _HMoiwsliatse SEIEE Mal & Drawn from Nature by J.J Audubon. FR.S.FLS Lith* Primed & Col* by J.T Bowen. Philad# BLUE-MOUNTAIN WARBLER. 69 prairies, in the barrens of Kentucky, and in Louisiana, excepting in the swamps, it being more inclined to grow in dry soil and stiff grounds. Prarrie WagsieR, Sylvia minula, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. iii. p. 87. Syxvia piscotor, Bonap. Syn., p. 83. Prairie WarsBLER, Sylvia discolor, Nuit. Man., vol. i. p. 294. Prairie Wars.er, Sylvia discolor, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. i. p. 76. Wings rather short, with the outer four quills nearly equal, the second and third longest; tail emarginate and rounded. Male with the upper parts yellowish-green, the back spotted with chestnut-red; lower parts, and a band over the eye, bright yellow; two bands of dull yellow on the wing; outer four tail-feathers with a white patch on the inner web; a small streak before and behind the eye, one on the cheek, a spot on the side of the neck, and oblong markings on the sides, black. Female similar, but paler, especially beneath, and without the black streaks on the side of the head. Male, 5, 7. From Texas to Massachusetts. Migratory. Abundant. BLUE-MOUNTAIN WARBLER. +-SyLvicota montana, Wils. PLATE XCVIII.—Mate. It is somewhat strange, that among the numerous species of birds that visit the United States, a few should have been met with only in rare instances. The present Warbler is in this predicament, as it does not appear that many specimens have been obtained excepting that from which this figure and description were taken. For many years I never met with Bewick’s Wren, which is now, however, known to be abundant on the mountains of Virginia, and elsewhere in our Middle and Southern Districts, and still more so along the Columbia river. The same was the case with Henslow’s Bunting, which has become a common bird in the State of New Jersey, where it breeds, and in South Carolina and the Floridas, where it spends the winter. Of Town- send’s Bunting the only specimen as yet procured is in my possession; and Vox. TE 12 “0 BLUE-MOUNTAIN WARELER. it is only of late years that Macgillivray’s Finch has appeared in numbers in the neighbourhood of Charleston. Swainson’s Warbler, at one time scarce in South Carolina, where it was discovered by my good friend Dr. Bacu- MAN, has since been procured as far eastward as the vicinity of Boston by Tuomas M. Brewer, Junr., Esq. The Pipirie Flycatcher was not known to exist eastward of the Floridas until after I had found it there, although now it is not a scarce species, being found breeding in the very heart of the city of Charleston. ‘Traill’s Flycatcher, which I first discovered on the Arkansaw river, is now known to abound on the Columbia river. No other person has observed the Rocky Mountain Wren in any part of the country eastward of that great chain besides Dr. BAcuMAN, who shot one within a few miles of Charleston. I might mention several other species, which at one time were extremely rare in the United States, but are now abundant in many of our districts; but prefer returning to the Blue-Mountain Warbler, which it has not been my good fortune to meet with, although it would be in no degree surprising to find it a constant visiter to some portions of our vast country yet untrodden by the ornithologist. My figure was taken from a specimen lent to me by the Council of the Zoological Society of London, and which had come from California. ALEXANDER WItson, to whom we are indebted for our knowledge of this pretty bird, says that it “was first discovered near that celebrated ridge, or range of mountains, with whose name I have honoured it. Several of these solitary Warblers remain yet to be gleaned up from the airy heights of our alpine scenery, as well as from the recesses of our swamps and morasses, whither it is my design to pursue them by every opportunity. Some of these, I believe, rarely or never visit the lower cultivated parts of the coun- try, but seem only at home among the gloom and silence of those. dreary solitudes. The present species seems of that family, or subdivision, of the Warblers, that approach the Flycatchers, darting after flies wherever they see them, and also searching with great activity among the leaves. Its song was a feeble screep, three or four times repeated. “This species is four inches and three-quarters in length; the upper parts a rich yellow-olive; front, cheeks, and chin yellow; also the sides of the neck; breast and belly pale yellow, streaked with black or dusky; vent plain pale yellow; wings black; first and second row of coverts broadly tipped with pale yellowish-white, tertials the same; the rest of the quills edged with whitish; tail black, handsomely rounded, edged with pale olive; the two exterior feathers on each side white on the inner vanes from the middle to the tips, and edged on the outer side with white; bill dark brown, legs and feet purple-brown; soles yellow; eye dark hazel. “This was a male. The female I have never seen.” PRA bi any eh isin reas ha eos ¢ bib asyel ie rere Saar ee ae P : le i Pe tg wat Si era Le a hae i A oe ae N° 20 PL 99. ja ah eae y 2 boieclitee : je is dl 7 1 Male: 2. Fernate- 1 - ? G Za Lops CAVA Lefeoraria / CONNECTICUT WOOD-WARBLER. 71 Biup-Mowuntain Wareter, Sylvia montana, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. v. p. 113. SyLvia TIGRINA, Bonap. Syn., p. 83; but not of Gmelin or Latham, as the figure of Edwards, to which reference is made, has the tail not rounded, but emarginate. Buiue-Mountain Warecer, Sylvicola montana, Nutt. Man. 2nd Ed., p. 442. Buive-Mountain W arscer, Sylvia montana, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. v. p. 294. No bristles at the base of the bill; wings rather short, the third and fourth quills longest; tail much rounded. Upper parts light greenish-olive; a band across the forehead, one over the eye, the checks, throat, fore part and sides of neck bright yellow; the rest of the lower parts yellowish-white; the sides marked with narrow longitudinal dusky streaks; wings dusky brown, all the feathers edged with yellowish-white, the secondary quills more broadly, the first row of small coverts and the secondary coverts tipped with white, form- ing two conspicuous bands; tail brownish-black, the feathers edged with yel- lowish-green, the two outer on each side white in their terminal half. Male, 45, wing 25%. Blue Mountains of Virginia, and west of the Rocky Mountains. CONNECTICUT WOOD-WARBLER. Sytvicota aciiis, Wils. PLATE XCIX.—Mate anp Fematr. I procured the pair represented in the plate, on a fine evening, nearly at sun-set, at the end of August, on the banks of the Delaware river, in New Jersey, a few miles below Camden. When I first observed them, they were hopping and skipping from one low bush to another, and among the tall reeds of the marsh, emitting an often-repeated ¢weet at every move. They were chasing a species of spider which runs nimbly over the water, and which they caught by gliding over it, as a Swallow does when drinking. I followed them for about a hundred yards, when, watching a fair opportunity, I shot both at once. The weather was exceedingly sultry; and although I outlined both by candle-light that evening, and finished the drawing of them next morning by breakfast time, they had at that early hour become putrid, so that their skins could not be preserved. On opening them I counted up- wards of fifty of the spiders mentioned above, but found no appearance of mo CONNECTICUT WOOD-WARBLER. any other food. The sexual distinction was very apparent, and the brace proved a pair. They were not in the least shy, and in fact seemed to take very little notice of me, although at times I was quite close to them. These being the only individuals I ever met with, 1 am of course unable to say where the species breeds, or what are its migrations. The plant on which they are placed grew abundantly on the spot whee I procured them; and as they had just alighted on it when I shot them, it being moreover a handsome species, I thought it best to attach it to them. Witson’s account of this bird is as follows: “This is a new species, first discovered in the State of Connecticut, and twice since met with in the neighbourhood of Philadelphia. ‘The different specimens I have shot corre- spond very nearly in their markings; two of these were males, and the other undetermined, but conjectured also to be a male. It was found in every case among low thickets, but seemed more than commonly active, not re- maining for a moment in the same position. “Length five inches and three quarters; extent eight inches; whole upper parts a rich yellow-olive; wings dusky brown, edged with olive; throat dirty white or pale ash; upper part of the breast dull greenish-yellow; rest of the lower parts a pure rich yellow; legs long, slender, and of a pale flesh-colour; round the eye, a narrow ring of yellowish-white; upper mandible pale brown, lower whitish; eye dark hazel. “Since writing the above, I have shot two specimens of a bird, which in every particular agrees with the above, except in having the throat of a dull buff-colour, instead of a pale ash. Both of these were females; and I have little doubt but they were of the same species with the present, as their pe- culiar activity seemed exactly similar to the males above described.’’ The males thus described by Witson, however, I am inclined to think were young birds in their second plumage. This species forms a connecting link between Sylvicola and Trichas, having the long pointed wings of the former, and the general appearance of the latter, which it resembles, especially in its tail, which is neither emargi- nate nor marked with the white spots seen on that of almost all the other Sylvicolz, but which do not exist in the genus Trichas. Some of the Sylvi- colz are, in like manner, assimilated to Myiodoctes, and others to Vermivo- ra. Of the former may be mentioned, Sylvicola 4uduboni and S. coronata; of the latter, S. Blackburniz. Connecticut Warster, Sylvia agilis, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. v. p. 64. SyLvia AGILis, Bonap. Syn., p. 84. Connecticut Warester, Sylvia agilis, Nutt. Man., vol. i. p. 399. Connecticut WarsLeER, Sylvia agilis, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. ii. p. 227; vol. v. p. 81. CONNECTICUT WOOD-WARBLER. 73 Wings long, with the first quill longest, and exceeding the first secondary by eleven-twelfths of an inch; middle toe and claw longer than the tarsus; tail of moderate length, nearly even, with acuminate feathers. Male olive- green above; a ring of yellowish-white round the eye; the head, neck all around, and part of the breast ash-grey, the sides greyish-green; the rest of the lower parts bright yellow. Female olive-green above, yellow beneath, the sides of the neck and a band across the breast tingéd with brown. Male, 53, 8. New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Connecticut. Very rare. Migratory. GENTIANA SAPONARIA, Willd. Sp. Pl., vol. i. p. 1388. Pursch, Flor. Amer., Sept. vol. i. p. 185.—Prntanpria Dieynia, Linn.—GENTIANES, Juss. Stem round, smooth; leaves oblongo-lanceolate, three nerved; flowers ses- sile, tufted, terminal and axillar; corolla quinquefid, campanulate, ventricose, with the divisions obtuse, the internal plaits with toothed segments. It grows in meadows and woods, from Canada to Carolina, flowering in August and September. GENUS III.—TRICHAS, Swains. GROUND-WARBLER. Bill of moderate length, similar in form to that of Sylvicola, differing only in being a little decurved. The general form does not differ materially from that of Sylvicola, the head being ovate and of moderate size, the neck short, the body rather slender; the feet of moderate length, slender; tarsus slender, much compressed, longer than the middle toe with its claw, anteriorly cover- ed with eight scutella, of which the upper are blended; toes of moderate size, hind toe proportionally large, lateral toes equal, fourth adherent at the base; claws rather long, arched, much compressed, laterally grooved, very acute. Plumage soft and blended. Wings rather short, convex, considerably round- ed, the third and fourth quills longest, the fifth little shorter. Tail of mode- rate length, rounded, always plain, or without white spots. 74 MACGILLIVRAY’S GROUND-W ARBLER. -"TRICHAS MACGILLIVRAYT, Aud. PLATE C.—Mate anp Femate, When I first saw the specimens of this bird, which had been transmitted by Mr. TownsEnp to the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, I considered them as identical with Sylvia Philadelphia of Witson; but on subsequently comparing them with a number of individuals of the latter species, procured by my friend Epwarp Harris, Esq. in our Middle and Kastern Districts, I found differences sufficient to indicate their being speci- fically distinct. In consequence of which I have dedicated this pretty little bird to my excellent friend Witt1am Maceriiivray, Esq. and feel much pleasure in introducing it to the notice of the ornithological world, under a name which I trust will endure as long as the species itself. Mr. TownseEnp, who found it on the banks of the Columbia, states that it is “mostly solitary and extremely wary, keeping chiefly in the most im- penetrable thickets, and gliding through them in a cautious and suspicious manner. It may, however, sometimes be seen towards mid-day perched upon a dead twig over its favourite places of concealment, and at such times warbles a very sprightly and pleasant little song, raising its head until its bill is almost vertical, swelling its throat in the manner of its relatives.” Mr. Nurratt has also favoured me with the following interesting account of it.—“This species is one of the most common summer residents of the woods and plains of the Columbia, appearing early in May, and remaining until the approach of winter. After the manner of the Maryland Yellow- throat, it keeps near the ground in low bushes, where it gleans its subsist- ence. When surprised or closely observed, it is shy and jealous, immediately skulking off, and sometimes uttering a loud snapping clink. Its note has occasionally the hurried rattling sound of Turdus aurocapillus, resembling Vish Vish ttsh tsheetee, alternating into tsh tsh tsh teet shee. Another male, on the skirts of a thicket, called out at short intervals vish vishtyuy changing to vit vit vit vityu and vit vit vityu, sometimes, when approach- ed, dropping his voice and abbreviating his song. Another had a eall of visht visht, visht e visht t’shew, and visht visht vishteshew or vititshee. On the 12th of June, a nest of this species was brought to me, containing two young birds nearly quite fledged, in the garb of the mother, pale yellow De 2 f: Pe HOO: sual 7 Male.? Female Drawn tron Nature by J.J.Audubon. 1 iSiteises: Jah" Printed & Colt by JV Bowen, Phila MACGILLIVRAY’S GROUND-WARBLER. 15 beneath, and brightish yellow-olive above. The nest was chiefly made of stripes of the inner sealy bark of probably the white cedar, thuya occidenta- lis, lined with slender wiry stalks of dry weeds, and concealed near the ground in the dead mossy limbs of a fallen oak, and further partly hidden by a long tuft of wsnea. It was less artificial than the nest of the Yellow- throat, but of the same general appearance, and concealed in a similar situa- tion, probably in a thicket near the ground. On returning the nest to the place it had been taken from, I had almost immediately the satisfaction of seeing the anxious parents come to feed-their charge, and for some days they shewed great anxiety on being approached.”’ “This,” says my friend Mr. Harris, “is the warbler that so closely re- sembles the S. Philadelphia. Mr. Townsrnp has brought in more speci- mens, which agree with the others in the very distinctive mark of the white eyelids, with dark spots from the base of the bill to the eyes, and also dark on the front at the root of the upper mandible. I cannot but think it en- tirely distinct.”’ This species, as has already been observed, is very intimately allied in form, proportions, colours, and habits with that described by Witson under the name of “Mourning Warbler, Sylvia Philadelphia.” His account of the latter is as follows:—“The bird from which the figure in the plate was taken, was shot in the early part of June, on the border of a marsh, within a few miles of Philadelphia. It was flitting from one low bush to another, very busy in search of insects, and had a sprightly and pleasant warbling song, the novelty of which first attracted my attention. I have traversed the same and many such places, every spring and autumn since, in expecta- tion of again meeting with some individual of the species, but without suc- cess. I have, however, the satisfaction to say, that the drawing was done with the greatest attention to peculiarity of form, markings, and tint of plumage; and the figure on the plate is a good resemblance to the original.’ Maceriiivray’s Ware.er, Sylvia Macgillivrayi, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. v. p. 75. Wings rather short, the second quill longest, the fourth longer than the first, the tail long, considerably rounded, its feathers rounded; tarsus longer than the middle toe and claw. Male olive-green above; the head, hind part, and sides of the neck bluish-grey; the fore neck and part of the breast _ greyish-black, lunulated with greyish-white; a black loral band; a conspicu- ous white spot on each eyelid; the lower parts bright yellow. Female olive- green above, yellow beneath, the sides of the neck and a band across the breast ash-grey. Male, 54, 63. Female, 5, wing 24%. Columbia river. Common. 76 MOURNING GROUND-WARBLER. + Tricuas Puinapetruia, Wils. PLATE C].—Mate. Although this beautiful species has been met with in various portions of our eastern maritime districts, it cannot be said to be an abundant one; and no one has, as yet, been able to discover its nest. Several of my ornitholo- gical friends have supplied me with specimens procured in the neighbour- hood of New York, Philadelphia, and in the mountainous parts of Vermont; all these were found during the spring and summer months, none having been seen during the autumn; where, on the contrary, the Connecticut War- bler is plentiful. The habits of the Mourning Warbler resemble, considerably, those of the Maryland Yellow-throat, and other birds of the genus ¢richas, keeping in low thickets, among the branches of which it hops, as well as on the ground. Its flight also resembles that of the bird above mentioned. So curiously.and cautiously does it pass from south to north, and from north to south, that its migratory movements have eluded the most attentive observers. My friend the Rey. Jonn BacuMman never has seen it in South Carolina; and in one instance only, have I met with it in Louisiana. The figure represents a fine adult male in perfect plumage. Moovrninc Wars.er, Sylvia Philadelphia, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. ii. p. 101. Sy.viA PHILADELPHIA, Bonap. Syn., p. 85. Mourninc Ware.er, Sylvia Philadelphia, Nutt. Man., vol. i. p. 404. Mournine Wars.er, Sylvia Philadelphia, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. v. p. 79. Bill short, straight, conico-subulate, compressed toward the end, acute; upper mandible with the dorsal line declinate, straight, a little convex at the end, the ridge narrow, the sides convex, the edges direct and overlapping, with a slight notch, the tip narrow; lower mandible with the angle of mode- rate length and narrow, the dorsal line ascending and slightly convex, the sides rounded, the edges inflected, the tip acute; the gape-line straight. Nostrils basal, lateral, operculate, exposed. Head of moderate size, ovato-oblong; neck short; body rather slender; feet rather long; tarsus slender, longer than the middle toe, much compress- ed, covered before with seven scutella, behind with two longitudinal plates ; Leesratt iy hci i ae = FRA Mewar 7 NOR Fe RAT alan a Re Me 5 a < ; Bes ‘ H Ole wane ML saritine distriets, 1 cannot ar I 4 noe one has, as ¥ et, been able o dise ver its nest Several of my mnie PRY Ree Ry se oa} © ere = “ q eat Weds NAVE SUPPUeA Me Wilh specimens Hrocured “1 he Marian Ye " ; : Sap in Fev ih = ee | " . Pte ae b bye ; ts PIN Loci a a GA ee ee ee) Rare " et 9 ; SGA: Se ~o rurivaghy and! 9 : os , . i ee a m north to south, that ite s.8 a wikigentor moverments heey ted Ee radet strontitee observers, Me friend! on “ 2 co, the Rev. Jonw Bs (ure hus seen It io South Carolina; and in one instance only, have I met with-t in Louisiana: The 1 gure represents a fing * aay : ‘ : y a adult male in perfect plumage, ; = 7 Oca ae . > ‘ ‘Movantno Wareier, Sylri Wils. Amer. Orn, vol. iimp OL. y ah, ve Sin va. Pananetrets, Gonap.S Pp. BS... > b ‘he , i ms 5° Monaro W ANBLEN, Sylvia Hadelphig, Nutt, Man., vol. i. py df an , FY ‘MévawinG Warren; Syleia P) iphia, Aud. Orn. Bing, vol, ve p. 79. ; ; WE ehort, straight; .: stihulate, compréssed toward feet acute; | | onvex® at the. Pate Wingth vas ) dig: and Biahtby sites: sounder the ee y i4 ite: the tocw-ting ‘Wostrils basal, tatéeal, At aig we Y sqasedang moderate sige, vent +e ae ‘vimecsand long; tarsus slender, ios hai iene covered before with seven « | INV AL. PL 104 Aowrnay ‘ Gon Yh be Wile. Qe ey Sao Monts Nature bw J 1 Audubon (is dL.S Lith? Printed & Cot? by 7." Bowery, Yiilad® MOURNING-GROUND WARBLER. Wi meeting so as to form a thin edge; the lateral toes meeting so as to form a thin edge; the lateral toes nearly equal, the third much longer, and united at the base to the fourth, hind toe stronger and rather large; claws moderately arched, extremely compressed, laterally grooved, acute. Plumage soft and blended, with little gloss; wings of moderate length, somewhat concave; the second, third, and fourth primaries having the outer web cut out toward the end; the second quill is longest, the third scarcely a quarter of the twelfth of an inch shorter, the fourth half a twelfth shorter than the third, and a quarter of a twelfth shorter than the first; the other primaries slowly graduated, the longest or second being only eight and a half twelfths longer than the first secondary. All the quills, primary as well as secondary, are rounded; and there are only nine primaries. Tail rather long, considerably rounded, the lateral feathers a quarter of an inch shorter than the middle, which are longest; all the feathers rather narrow and ob- liquely pointed. Upper mandible brownish-black, its edges in their whole length pale yel- lowish flesh-colour, as is the lower mandible, which, however, is a little dusky at the end. Iris hazel. Feet and claws flesh-coloured. The upper part of the-head, the hind part and sides of the neck, are deep ash-grey, tinged with blue; the back, scapulars, and rump deep olive-green; the wings and tail greyish-brown, the edge of the wing and the outer margin of the first quill bright yellow, the other primaries narrowly edged with greenish- yellow, the secondaries of a paler brown externally, as are the tail-feathers. From the ridge of the upper mandible to the eye is a rather broad band of black, which extends a little way under the eye, but is not nearly so conspi- cuous as that of the species above described; nor are the eyelids marked with white, their marginal feathers being all dusky grey. The fore part of the neck and a portion of the breast, to the distance of an inch and five-twelfths from the bill, are deep black, with lunulate white markings, each feather being margined with that colour; the white edges of the lower black feathers being extremely narrow leave a crescent of nearly pure black; the breast, abdomen, lower tail-coverts, and lower wing-coverts are bright yellow, the sides of the body yellowish-green. Length to end of tail 5 inches; “extent of wings.8;’’ bill along the ridge 42, along the edge of lower mandible 73; wing from flexure 275; tail 274; tarsus =°;; hind toe 23, its claw 23; middle toe -$,, its claw 23. Fios-AponIs. ADONIS AUTUMNALIS, Linn. Sp. Pl, p. 771. Willd. Sp. Pl., vol. ii. p. 1304. Smith. Enel. FL, vol. iii. p. 43.—Potyanpria PenracyniA, Linn.—RaNnuncuLACER, Juss. Wou. El: 13 78 MARYLAND YELLOW-THROAT. 7 This plant, vulgarly named Pheasant’s-eye, grows in Louisiana and Europe in the cornfields. It has an erect, branched stem, with copiously pinnatifid, alternate, sessile, dark green leaves, the segments of which are linear and acute, and deep crimson flowers, having a black spot near the claw of each of the petals, which vary from six to ten. MARYLAND YELLOW-THROAT. --TRICHAS MARILANDICA, Linn. PLATE CII.—Mate, Femane, anp Youne Mate. The notes of this little bird render it more conspicuous than most of its genus, for although they cannot be called very musical, they are far from being unpleasant, and are uttered so frequently during the day, that one, in walking along the briary ranges of the fences, is almost necessarily brought to listen to its whztititee, repeated three or four times every five or six minutes, the bird seldom stopping expressly to perform its music, but merely uttering the notes after it has picked an insect from amongst the leaves of the low bushes which it usually inhabits. It then hops a step or two up or down, and begins again. Although timid, it seldom flies far off at the approach of man, but instantly dives into the thickest parts of its favourite bushes and high grass, where it continues searching for food either along the twigs, or among the dried leaves on the ground, and renews its little song when only a few feet distant. Its nest is one of those which the Cow Bunting, J/olothrus (Icterus) pecoris, selects, in which to deposit one of its eggs, to be hatched by the owners, that bird being similar in this respect to the European Cuckoo. The nest, which is placed on the ground, and partly sunk in it, is now and then covered over in the form of an oven, from which circumstance children name this warbler the Oven-bird. It is composed externally of withered leaves and grass, and is lined with hair. The eggs are from four to six, of a white colour, speckled with light brown, and are deposited about the middle of May. Sometimes two broods are reared in a season. I have never observed the egg of the Cow Bunting in the nests of the second brood. It _ Mary Lyne C Lye Mi! 1 Adult Male. 2 Young Male. 3. kemale VIED ZZ vood” es, Wei pus wn from Nature by J.J.Audubon.1S4 LS Lath? Printed & Col? by J. F. Bowen. Philad® MARYLAND YELLOW-THROAT. 79 is less active in its motions than most birds of the genus, but makes up this deficiency by continued application, it being, to appearance, busily employed during the whole of the day. It does not chase insects by flying after them, but secures them by surprise. Caterpillars and spiders form its principal food. Although this species is found throughout the Union, the Middle States seem to attract and detain more individuals, during the breeding season, than any others. Very few breed in Louisiana. In Kentucky, however, many breed in the barrens. The neighbourhood of swamps and such places is their favourite ground, but every field provided with briar patches or tall weeds harbours some of them. It leaves the Central Districts about the middle of September. The male bird does not attain its full colouring until the first spring, being for several months of the same tints as the female. The twig on which the males are seen, is commonly called in Louisiana the Wild Olive. The tree is small, brittle and useless. It bears an acid fruit, which is sometimes employed asa pickle, and eaten when ripe by some people. This bird was published in my Ornithological Biography erroneously as a new species. Of this I informed my friends Dr. Bacuman, Mr. Harris, and Dr. Brewer, and afterwards the Prince of Musienano. I have nothing to add to my account of its habits. It was found on the Columbia river by Mr. TownsEnp, several of whose specimens I have seen. I also found it in the Texas in April. No mention is made of it in the Fauna Boreali-Ame- ricana; and I saw none in Labrador or Newfoundland. The eggs of this species measure 54 eighths in length, by four and a half eighths, and are rather pointed at the small end. The roof of the mouth is flat, posteriorly with two ridges, anteriorly with a middle prominent and two very slight lateral ridges; its width 3 twelfths. The tongue is 44 twelfths long, sagittate and papillate at the base, thin, con- cave above, tapering to a deeply slit and slightly lacerated point. The cesophagus is 1 inch 7 twelfths long, its greatest width 2 twelfths. The stomach is rather small, elliptical, 44 twelfths long, 34 twelfths broad; its lateral muscles moderate, the lower very thin; the epithelium longitudinally rugous. ‘The intestine is 5 inches long, its greatest width 1 twelfth; the ceca 1 twelfth long, and about a third of a twelfth wide, their distance from the extremity 7 twelfths. The trachea is 14 inch long, 1 twelfth broad at the top; its rings 60; its muscles as usual. Bronchial rings 15. MaryLanp YELLOw-THROAT, Sylvia Marilandica, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. i. p. 88, Male; vol. ii. p. 163, Female. Syivia Mariwannica, Bonap. Syn., p. 85. 80 MARYLAND YELLOW-THROAT. MaryLaNnD Y ELLOW-THROAT, Nutt. Man., vol. i. YELLOW-BREASTED WARBLER, OR MaryLanpD YELLOW-THROAT, Sylvia Trichas, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. i. p. 121, Adult; vol. v. p. 463. Roscor’s YELLow-THROAT, Sylvia Roscoe, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. i. p. 124. Youle, Adult Male. Bill of ordinary length, tapering, slender, nearly straight, acute. Nostrils basal, lateral, elliptical, half-closed by a membrane. Head and neck of ordinary size, the latter short. Body rather short. Feet longish, slender; tarsus longer than the middle toe, covered anteriorly with a few scutella, the uppermost long; toes scutellate above, the inner free, the hind toe of mode- rate size; claws slender, compressed, acute, arched. Plumage loose, blended. Wings very short, the first quill longest. Tail rounded. Bill dark brown. Iris dark hazel. Feet flesh colour. A broad band of black across the forehead, including the eyes, and terminating in a pointed form half-way down the neck; behind which is a narrower band of very pale blue; a slender white streak under the eye. Fore part of the neck bright ochre-yellow, the rest of the under parts pale brownish-yellow, fading into white on the abdomen and under tail-coverts. Upper parts dull greyish- olive, on the head tinged with red. Inner webs of the quills deep brown. Length 5} inches, extent of wings 53; bill along the ridge +; along the gap 4; tarsus +3. Adult Female. The female has the upper parts lighter, the under parts tinged with reddish-brown, and wants the two bands on the head, which is of a pale brownish-red colour. Tue Snow-prop TREE, SILVER-BELL TREE, oR WILD OLIVE. Ha esia TETRAPTERA, Willd. Sp. Pl., vol. ii. p. 849. Pursch, Flor. Amer., vol. ii. p. 448. —Monavevrnuia Decanpria, Linn.—Guaiacane, Juss. Leaves ovate, acuminate, serrate; flowers with twelve stamina; the fruit rhomboidal. It grows in shady woods, generally near rivers. a) Mvp f He ah “€OVv Td “PELL MOMog. °F AG, 109® POVWEerL LUNE TL SP roqrapny {| Aq QRN sty WAVE TC] “VeoN 81 DELAFIELD’S GROUND-WARBLER. --+Tricuas DreLarrenpitl, Aud. PLATE CIIl.—Mate. This beautiful little bird I named in honour of Colonel DeLarrexn, President of the Lyceum of Natural History in the city of New York, a gentleman distinguished by his scientific attainments, not less than by those accomplishments and virtues which tend to improve and adorn society. It so much resembles the Maryland Yellow-throat, (Zrichas Marilandica,) Sylvia Trichas of the older authors, Trichas personatus of Swatnson, that one might readily confound the two species. The differences between them will be easily seen on comparing their descriptions. ‘The only specimen in my possession was obtained from Mr. Townsrenp, who procured it in California. DELAFIELD’s YELLOW-THROAT, Sylvia Delafieldii, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. v. p. 307. Bill longish, nearly straight, conico-subulate, rather broader than high at the base, compressed toward the end, acute; upper mandible with the dorsal line declinato-convex, the ridge narrow, the sides convex, the edges direct and overlapping, with a very slight notch, the tip narrow; lower mandible with the angle of moderate length and narrow, the dorsal line ascending and straight, the sides rounded, the edges inflected, the tip acute; the gape-line considerably arched. Nostrils basal, lateral, oblong, operculate, exposed. Head of moderate size, ovate; neck short; body moderately stout. Feet rather long, tarsus slender, longer than the middle toe, much compressed, covered anteriorly with seven scutella, behind with two longitudinal plates meeting so as to form a thin edge; the lateral toes nearly equal, the third much longer, and united at the base to the fourth, the hind toe large; claws moderately arched, extremely compressed, with the sides faintly grooved, acute. Plumage soft and blended with little gloss. Wings rather long, somewhat concave; the second, third, and fourth primaries have the outer web cut out towards the end; the first quill is three and a half twelfths shorter than the second, which is two twelfths shorter than the third; the latter is longest, but scarcely exceeds the fourth, and the fifth is only a quarter of a twelfth 82 DELAFIELD’S GROUND-WARBLER. shorter than it; the other primaries very slowly graduated, the longest or third being only five-twelfths longer than the first secondary; all the quills are rounded. ‘Tail rather long, being half an inch shorter than the middle. Upper mandible blackish-brown, with the edges yellowish flesh-colour; straight, much rounded, the lateral feathers lower mandible of the latter colour, slightly dusky at the point. A band of black passes across the forehead, includes the loral space and eyes, and terminates on the ear-coverts. The upper part of the head is light greyish- blue, tinged behind with green; the rest of the upper parts dull greyish-olive; the quills and tail-feathers wood-brown, the edge of the wing, and the margin of the outer primary, yellow. The fore part of the neck, and all the lower parts, rich yellow, excepting the sides, which are shaded into dull yellowish- green, and the lower wing-coverts and axillaries, which are nearly white. Length to end of tail 54 inches; bill along the ridge £4, along the edge of lower mandible ;;; wing from flexure 25; tail 24; tarsus 11; hind toe #, its claw 42; middle toe 72, its claw 53,. This species has the bill much stronger and more elongated than Trichas Marilandica; its wings are much more rounded, the first quill being nearly five-twelfths shorter than the third, whereas in the latter it is scarcely a twelfth and a half shorter; its tail is more rounded; and its tarsi and toes are proportionally larger. The colours are, however, similar; but the present species has no whitish band margining the black band on the head, and this latter band is much narrower in front, and does not proceed so far down the neck, extending only to the distance of four and a half twelfths from the eye, whereas in 7. Marilandica it extends to the distance of half an inch. GENUS IV.—HELINAIA, 2ud. SWAMP-WARBLERS. Bill rather long, being nearly of the same length as the head, straight, or slightly decurved, tapering to a very acute point, much compressed; the upper mandible with the ridge distinct, the sides declinate and flat at the base, the edges somewhat inflected beyond the middle, the notch obsolete; lower mandible with the dorsal line straight, the edges involute, the tip extremely acute. Nostrils oblong; exposed. Feet of moderate length; tarsus about equal to the middle toe and claw, slender, much compressed, with the IN Ze PI. 104: = Hate : as) - 4 / . Pit rage-coloured e aaded. ae, lealew ate Lith? rinted & Col“ by 3.7 Kowen Vhilad® c. © CeCe ae waif toove trom Nature by J.J Audubon. FiCS.FES SWAINSON’S SWAMP-WARBLER. 83 upper scutella blended; toes slender; claws rather long, moderately arched, slender, much compressed, laterally grooved, extremely acute; plumage soft and blended. SBristles obsolete. Wings rather long, somewhat pointed, the outer three nearly equal, the second longest. Tail of moderate length, nearly even.—Name from “Eas, a swamp, and Nz, to inhabit. SWAINSON’S SWAMP-WARBLER. + HELINAIA Swainson, Aud. PLATE CIV.—Matez. Shortly after the death of Witson, one of the wise men of a certain city in the United States, assured the members of a Natural History Society there, that no more birds would be found in the country than had been described by that justly celebrated writer. Had the assertions however been made in the hearing of that ornithologist, he would doubtless at once have refuted the speech of this extraordinary orator, who continued as follows:—“No more Finches, no more Hawks, no more Owls, no more Herons, and certainly no more Pigeons; and as to Water birds, let the list given by Wizson of such as he has not described be filled, and again I say, there will end the American Ornithology.” The orator has travelled much, having gone a few miles to the eastward of his own city, and even crossed the Mississippi; but, as he had predicted, he never discovered a bird in all his wanderings. Time passed on, and the orator has dreamed over it; but several industrious students of nature, doubting if all that he had said might really be strictly correct to the letter, have followed in the track of Wiitson, have extended their investigations, ransacked the deep recesses of the forests and the great western plains, visited the shores of the Atlantic, ascended our noble streams, and explored our broadest lakes;—and, reader, they have found more new birds than the learned academician probably knew of old ones. Then, be not surprised when I assure you that our Bonararres, our NuTTALLs, our Bacumans, our Coopers, Picxrrines, Townsenps, PEALEs, and other zealous naturalists, have very considerably augmented the Fauna of the United States. To the list of these amiable men may be added the names of learned and enterprising Europeans—Parry, Franxiin, RicuArpson, Ross, 84 SWA'NSON’S SWAMP-WARBLER. Drummonp, and others, who w a a zeal equalled only by that of Wizson himself, have crossed the broad A. lantic, and made discoveries in ornithology in portions of North America ne ét before visited, in which they have met with species that, although previously unknown to us, have since been found to traverse the whole extent of our wide territories. ‘Then, reader, will you not agree with me in believing that even now, discoveries remain to be made in a region so vast that no individual, whatever might have been his exer- tions, could truly say of it that he had explored it all? The bird represented in the plate before you was discovered by my friend Jc wx Bacuman, near Charleston in South Carolina, while I was in another part of our continent, searching for the knowledge necessary to render my ornithological biographies as interesting as possible to you:—it was in the spring of 1832, when I was rambling over the rugged country of Labrador, that my southern friend found the first specimen of this bird, near the banks of the Edisto river. I have been favoured by him with the following account of it. . “I was first attracted by the novelty of its notes, four or five in number, repeated at intervals of five.or six minutes apart. These notes were loud, clear, and more like a whistle than a song. They resembled the sounds of some extraordinary ventriloquist in such a degree, that I supposed the bird much farther from me than it really was; for after some trouble caused by these fictitious notes, I perceived it near to me, and soon shot it. “The form of its bill I observed at once to differ from all other known birds of our country, and was pleased at its discovery. On dissection it proved to be a male, and in the course of the same spring, I obtained two other males, of which the markings were precisely similar. In the middle of August of that year, I saw an old*female accompanied with four young. One of the latter I obtained: it did not differ materally from the old ones. Another specimen was sent to me alive, having been caught in atrap. I have invariably found them in swampy muddy places, usually covered with more or less water. The birds which I opened had their gizzards filled with the fragments of coleopterous insects, as well as some small green worms that are found on water plants, such as the pond lily (Nymphza odorata) and the Nelumbium (Cyamus flavicomus). The manner of this species resemble those of the Prothonotary Warbler, as it skips among the low bushes growing about ponds and other watery places, seldom ascending high trees. It retires southward at the close of summer.”’ The Azalea and Butterfly accompanying the figure of this species were drawn by my friend’s sister, Miss Martin, to whom I offer my sincere thanks. Dr. T. M. Brewer informs me that a specimen of Swainson’s Warbler SWAINSON’S SWAMP-WARBLER. 85 has been obtained in Massachusetts, by Mr. Samurx Cazor. This is the only instance in which it is known to have been procured, or even observed, in that part of the country, where nothing farther has therefore been ascer- tained respecting its history. The species to which this approaches nearest is the Sylvia vermivora. The bird, however, is very closely allied to the Wrens, which it greatly resembles in the form of its bill and feet, although in the form of its wings it differs essentially. To none of my ornithological friends could I assuredly with more pro- priety have dedicated this species than to him, the excellent and learned author, whose name you have seen connected with it—to him, who has himself traversed large portions of America, who has added so considerably to the list of known species of birds, and who has enriched the science of ornithology by so many valuable works. Swaryson’s WarBLER, Sylvia Swainsonti, Aud. Orn. Biog.,vol. ii. p. 563; vol. v. p. 462. Adult. Bill as long as the head, slender, straight, tapering to a point, much com- pressed, the ridge rather sharp, the sides of the upper mandible at the base declinate and flat, the edges inflected. Nostrils basal, lateral, oblong, half filled above by a cartilaginous membrane. The form is slender and graceful. Feet of ordinary length, slender; tarsus compressed, anteriorly covered with a few long scutella, posteriorly sharp, longer than the middle toe; toes free, but the outer united to the second joint; claws arched, very slender, very acute, extremely compressed, with a lateral groove, the hind claw much larger. Plumage soft, blended, slightly glossed. Wings longish, the first three quills almost equal, the first being very slightly shorter, secondaries narrow and rounded. ‘Tail of ordinary length, straight, even, of twelve rather narrow rounded feathers. Bill light brown, darker at the tip. Iris brown. Feet and claws flesh- coloured. The colouring of the plumage is extremely simple, the whole of the upper parts being of a rich brown, tinged with red on the head, while the under parts are very pale brownish-grey, the sides darker. The sides of the head are brownish-white, the feathers tipped with brown, and a whitish line passes over the eye. Length 5}, extent of wings 8]; bill along the ridge 74, along the edges +; tarsus 7%, middle toe including the nail 2. Vot. IL. 14 86 THE WORM-EATING SWAMP-WARBLER. Tue ORANGE-COLOURED AZALEA. AZALEA CALENDULACEA, Mich., Flor. Amer., vol. i. p. 151. Pursch, Fl. Amer. Sept., vol. i. p. 151—PrentTanpria Monoeynia, Linn. Leaves oblong or lanceolate, downy on both sides; flowers large, not viscous, of a deep orange colour, the hairy tube of the corolla shorter than its segments. It is a native of Georgia. THE WORM-EATING SWAMP-WARBLER. -+- Heninara veRMivora, Lath. PLATE CV.—Mate anp Femate. The nest of this active little bird is formed of singular materials, being composed externally of dried mosses and the green blossoms of Hickories and Chestnut-trees, while the interior is prettily lined with fine fibrous roots, the whole apparently rather small for the size of the occupants. About the middle of May the female lays four or five eggs, which are cream-coloured, with a few dark red spots near the larger end, leaving a circular unspotted part at the extremity. The nest is usually placed between two small twigs of a bush, not more than eight or nine feet from the ground, and sometimes only four or five. The flight of the Worm-eating Warbler resembles that of the Crested Titmouse, being of short duration, and accompanied with the same rustling noise, which is occasioned by the rather concave formation of their wings. It merely passes through Louisiana in spring, appearing there as early as_ the beginning of April, and extends its migrations to the borders of Lake Erie, where I shot several in autumn. It is probable that it proceeds farther north. It returns through Louisiana about the end of October, only remain- ing a few days on its passage. It is an inhabitant of the interior of the forests, and is seldom found on the borders of roads or in the fields. In spring they move in pairs, and, during their retrograde marches, in little groups, consisting each of a family, seven or eight in number; on which account I am inclined to believe that Wei Pl. 105 1 Male. 2 benrale. - OLE Lee) Pilatus decantia Drawn lrom Nature by 4S Audubon KULS.4I.S. Lith? Printed 4 Copi by fb owen thik THE WORM-EATING SWAMP-WARBLER. 87 they raise only a single brood in the year. They are ever amongst the decayed branches of trees or other plants, such as are accidentally broken off by the wind, and are there seen searching for insects or caterpillars. They also resort to the ground, and turn over the dried leaves in quest of the same kind of food. They are unsuspecting, and will suffer a person to approach within a few paces. When disturbed, they fly off to some place where withered leaves are seen. They have only a few weak notes, which do not deserve the name of song. Their industry, however, atones for this defect, as they are seen continually moving about, rustling among the leaves, and scarcely ever removing from one situation to another until after they have made a full inspection of the part in which they have been employed. This species reaches the Central Atlantic Districts in the middle of May, and breeds there, as well as farther northward. Ihave found them more numerous in the Jerseys than in any other portion of the Union. In Kentucky and Ohio I have seen only a few of them; nor have I ever found their nests in either of these States. According to Dr. RicHarpson, this species visits the Fur Countries, where a single specimen was produced at Cumberland House, on the banks of the Saskatchewan. It is found in the State of Maine, and in the British Provinces of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, but I did not meet with it farther eastward. None were seen on the Rocky Mountains, or about the Columbia river, by Mr. Townsenp. My friend Dr. Bacuman says that it breeds sparingly in the swamps of Carolina. He observed a pair followed by three or four young ones nearly fledged, all of which already exhibited the markings on the head. The eggs of this species measure five and a half eighths of an inch in length, and half an inch in breadth; the smaller end is rather rounded; its colour and markings as already described, though I have seen some more copiously marked than others, and the cream-colour of their ground tinged with a rosy hue. The plant on which you see a pair of Worm-eating Warblers is well known throughout the United States by the name of pokeberry. It grows in every situation, from the tops of the most arid mountain-ridges to the lowest and richest valleys; and it is almost impossible to follow a fence for a hundred yards without seeing some of it. Its berries are food for numerous species of our birds, and produce a beautiful dark crimson juice, which is used instead of red ink by some of the country people, although it does not retain its original colour for many days. This plant grows to the height of four or six feet, and is eaten when it first shoots from the ground as a substi- tute for asparagus, quantities of it being not unfrequently exposed in the markets. The juice of the berries is taken in cases of ague and continued 88 THE WORM-EATING SWAMP-WARBLER. fever, but requires to be used with judgment, as too large a dose proves deleterious. The roof of the mouth is flat and slightly arched, posteriorly with two ridges, anteriorly with a middle prominent and two very slight lateral ridges; its width 3} twelfths. The tongue is 5 twelfths long, emarginate and papil- late at the base, narrow, tapering, thin, concave above, the tip rather abrupt, and terminated by several stiffish bristles, like that of a Titmouse. The cesophagus is 1 inch 9 twelfths long, its greatest width 3 twelfths. The stomach is small, elliptical, 55 twelfths long, 44 twelfths in breadth; the lateral muscles moderate, the lower very thin; the epithelium longitudinally rugous. The stomach is filled with insects. The intestine is 5} inches long, from 14 twelfth to 1 twelfth in width. The ceca are 14 twelfth long, and 4 twelfth wide; their distance from the extremity 7 twelfths. The trachea is 1 inch 7 twelfths long, flattened, 1 twelfth broad at the upper part; the rings about 70, moderately firm; bronchial half rings about 15; the muscles as usual. W orM-EATING WARBLER, Sylvia vermivora, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. iii. p. 74. SYLVIA VERMIVORA, Bonap. Syn., p. 86. WorM-EATING WaRBLER, Sylvia vermivora, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. i. p. 177; vol. v. p. 460. Bill longish, nearly straight, rather strong, elongated-conical, as deep. as broad at the base, with sharp, nearly straight edges. Nostrils basal, oval, half concealed by the feathers. Head rather large, neck short. Body short and full. Feet of ordinary length, rather slender; tarsus compressed, covered anteriorly with a few long scutella, acute behind, longer than the middle toe; toes scutellate above, free; claws arched, slender, compressed, acute. Plumage blended, soft and tufty. Wings of ordinary length, considerably curved, the second quill longest, the first little shorter. Tail rather short, a little rounded, of twelve rather narrow, obtuse feathers. Bill blackish-brown above, greenish-grey beneath. Iris hazel. Feet flesh- colour. General colour of the upper parts deep green, tinged with brown. Head and lower parts light brownish-yellow, the former with four longitu- dinal black bands, of which one on each side proceeds from the middle of — the upper mandible, the other from the inferior angle of its base. The lower part of the neck anteriorly, and the fore part of the breast are more yellow than the rest of the under parts; the abdomen and under tail-coverts nearly white. Length.53 inches, extent of wings 83; bill along the ridge 74, along the gap 2; tarsus 2, middle toe 2. The female hardly differs from the male in external appearance. Neh ive ite Sue aly Ne i y N® 22. Drawn tror Nature PTO Ge Gq a7. > 74) “6% 7 g Pee Lethonotary Fampeburtler Male. 2Femaic. aw, ips - o SA MLE by J Audubon ECAP bo Lith? Pranted a Col? by JU Bowen Phikul* PROTHONOTARY SWAMP-WARBLER. 89 Tur AMERICAN PoKE-WEED. Puyrotacca pEcANDRA, Willd. Sp. Pl., vol. i. p. 322. Pursch, Fl. Amer., vol. i. p. 324. —Decanpria Decacyni, Linn.—AtRIPLices, Juss. This species is distinguished by its elliptico-lanceolate leaves, and de- candrous flowers, the other species differing in the number of stamina and one of them being dicecious. The berries, which are nearly globular, are disposed in an elongated, pendulous raceme, and are of a purplish-black colour. The flowers are white, their peduncles, partial and general, of a bright carmine-purple colour. PROTHONOTARY SWAMP-WARBLER. +Hetinara Proronorartius, Lath. PLATE CVI.—Mate anp Youne. I never saw this pretty bird in any of our eastern districts, and rarely farther up the Ohio than Louisville, in the neighbourhood of which place it rears its young. Louisiana seems in fact better suited to its habits than any other state, on account of its numerous lakes, creeks and lagoons, over- shadowed by large trees, which are favourite places of resort for this species. It is fond of flying over the waters of these creeks and lagoons, and is seldom seen in the interior of the woods. Its flight is rapid, and more steady than is usual in birds of its genus; and as it moves along, the brightness of its colours attracts the eye. On alighting, it moves rapidly along the twigs, partly sidewise, frequently turning about and extending its neck to look under the leaves, from which it picks various kinds of insects. It often perches upon the rank grasses and water plants, in quest of minute mol- luscous animals which creep upon them, and which, together with small land snails, | have found in its stomach. It does not perform sorties, or sally forth after flying insects, as many other Warblers are in the habit of doing. It has a few notes for its song, which possess no interest. The males, when chasing each other, keep up a creaking noise, until the little battle is over, when they perch and balance their body with much grace and liveliness. Vor. I. s 15 90 PROTHONOTARY SWAMP-WARBLER. I have observed their arrival in Louisiana to take place, according to the state of the weather, from the middle of March to the first of April. At Henderson, in Kentucky, they do not arrive until a month later. They remain until October, but, I am inclined to believe, rear only a single brood inaseason. The nest is fixed in the fork of a small twig bending over the water, and is constructed of slender grasses, soft mosses, and fine fibrous roots. ‘The number of eggs is from four to six. I could never ascertain whether the male assists in incubation, as the difference of plumage in the sexes is not perceptible when the bird is at large, and indeed can hardly be traced when one has procured the male and the female for comparison. It cannot be called a plentiful species. ‘To search for them on the high lands, . or at any considerable distance from the kind of places above mentioned, would prove quite useless. Dr. Bacuman informs me that he has watched this species for hours at a time, when on the borders of streams, and observed it to seize insects on wing by gliding through the air after them, but never heard it click its bill, as is usual with Flycatchers. It breeds in South Carolina, and he saw a pair with four young ones near Charleston, on the Ist of June 1836. The plant on which you see these birds, grows in swampy places, but is extremely rare, and I have not been able to procure any scientific appellation for it. In Louisiana, it is called the cane vine. It bears a small white flower in clusters. The berries are bitter and nauseous. The stem, which runs up and over trees, resembles that of other climbing plants, is extremely elastic, and as tough asa cord. The leaves, of which you see the form and colour, are also tough and thick. ProtnonotTary Ware.er, Sylvia Protonotarius, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. iii. p. 72. Sytvia Proronorarius, Bonap. Syn., p. 86. ProrHonorary WarsLER, Sylvia Protonotarius, vol. i. p. 410. ProTHonoTary WareLER, Sylvia Protonotarius, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. i. p. 22; vol. v. p. 460. Adult Male. Bill nearly as long as the head, slender, tapering, nearly straight, as deep g as broad at the base. WNostrils basal, lateral, elliptical, half closed by a mem- brane. Head rather small. Neck short. Body rather slender. Feet of ordinary length, slender; tarsus longer than the middle toe, covered ante- riorly with a few scutella, the uppermost long: toes scutellate above, the inner free, the hind toe of moderate size; claws slender, compressed, acute, arched. Plumage soft, blended, tufty. Wings of ordinary length, acute, the first and second quills longest. Tail nearly even, of twelve straight, rather IN°22 B52 Bas 0) 7. AX Drawn thom Nature by ad Authwbon EHSL S Jonh? Printed & Coit by 1.1Bowen, Philad® GOLDEN-WINGED SWAMP-WARBLER. 91 narrow feathers. Bill brownish-black. Iris hazel. Feet and claws greyish- blue. Head all round, neck and under parts generally, of a bright rich pure yellow, paler on the abdomen, and passing into white on the under tail- coverts. Fore part of the back and lesser wing-coverts yellowish-green. Lower back and wings light greyish-blue. Inner webs of the quills blackish. Inner webs of the tail-feathers bluish-grey at the base, then white to near the tip, which is black, as well as the outer webs. The two middle feathers blackish, tinged with greyish-blue. Length 54 inches, extent of wings 83; beak along the ridge 7, along the gap #; tarsus 44. Adult Female. The differences which the female exhibits are so slight as scarcely to be describable, the tints being merely a little duller, GOLDEN-WINGED SWAMP-WARBLER. -+HELINAIA CHRYSOPTERA, Linn. PLATE CVII.—Mate anp FEMALE. Although I have met with this species entering the United States from the Texas in the month of April, and have procured several specimens in Kentucky and Louisiana, as well as a single one in New Jersey, I never had the good fortune to find its nest. When it first makes its appearance in Louisiana or Kentucky, it usually resorts to the higher branches of trees, where, amid the opening leaflets and blossoms, it actively searches for its insect food, occasionally following its prey on wing to some distance, and moving by short leaps among the twigs, in the manner of Helinaia car- bonata, which, in its elongated and slender shape, it in some measure resembles. The flight of this species is, unlike that of the Cape May Warbler, Sylvicola maritima, elevated, swift, and irregularly undulated, until it is about to alight, when it dives toward the spot selected by it, as most Warblers are wont to do. I never saw a bird of this species in autumn, and therefore infer that its southward journey must be accomplished in a very secret and careful manner, or by night. A male and a female are figured in their perfect spring plumage. 92 GOLDEN-WINGED SWAMP-WARBLER. GoLpEeN-wincep Warsier, Sylvia crysoptera, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. ii. p. 113. SYLVIA CHRYSOPTERA, Bonap. Syn., p. 87. GoLDEN-WINGED WaRrBLER, Sylvia chrysoptera, Nutt. Man., vol. i. p. 411. GoLDEN-WINGED WARBLER, Sylvia chrysoptera, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. v. p. 154. Male in spring. Bill shorter than the head, slender, conical, compressed toward the end, tapering to an acute point; upper mandible with the dorsal line almost per- fectly straight, being very slightly convex toward the end, the ridge narrow, the sides sloping at the base, rounded toward the end, the edges a little inflected, without notch, the tip acuminate; nostrils basal, oblong, opercu- late; lower mandible with the angle rather short and obtuse, the dorsal line straight, the sides convex, the edges inflected, the tip acuminate, the gape- line nearly straight. Head of moderate size, ovate; neck rather short; body slender. Feet of moderate length, slender; tarsus longer than the middle toe, much com- pressed, covered anteriorly by seven scutella, posteriorly by two plates meeting so as to form a very thin edge; toes small, much compressed; hind toe comparatively large, lateral toes nearly equal, middle toe much longer; claws moderate, well curved, much compressed, laterally grooved, acute. Plumage very soft and blended. Wings of moderate length, the second quill longest, the third scarcely shorter, the first and fourth about equal, the first with the outer web narrowed in its whole length, the next three toward the end; secondaries long, rather narrow, rounded. Tail rather long, nearly even, the middle feathers being scarcely a twelfth of an inch shorter than the lateral. Bill and feet black; iris brown. The general colour of the upper parts is light ash-grey, of the lower white; the upper part of the head, and a patch on the wing, formed by the first row of small coverts and the secondary coverts, bright yellow; a band from the bill to the eye, continued under it, and enlarging behind, so as to include the ear-coverts, together with the throat, to the extent of about an inch, black; a white band from over the eyes to behind the ears, and another from the lower mandible down the side of the neck, enlarging as it proceeds; the sides under the wings very pale ash-grey. The quills and tail-feathers are brown, edged with ash-grey; the outer three feathers of the tail have a large portion of the inner web white. Length to end of tail 43 inches, to end of wings 33; extent of wings 73; bill along the ridge #2, along the edge of lower mandible 73; wing from flexure 2;8;; tail 23; tarsus 23; hind toe 53, its claw 34; middle toe, 3% its claw 2;. Adult Female. The female resembles the male, but has the tints less bright, the sides of on Se i spewinace i dick salt ues sitet ol Ne2e2. PL 108. Q ( /. Py ae. = SF Ye pies 0 e Jo ee 1 Male.2 Female L / . _Lerdona frlsens. BACHMAN’S SWAMP-WARBLER. 93 the head and the throat grey instead of black, and the white bands on the head narrower and less extended. Length to end of tail 4 inches, to end of wings 33; extent of wings 74. BACHMAN’S SWAMP-WARBLER. 7 Heninara Bacumantt, Aud. PLATE CVIII.—Mate anp Femate. My friend Bacuman has the merit of having discovered this pretty little species of Warbler, and to him I have the pleasure of acknowledging my obligations for the pair which you will find represented in the plate, accom- panied with a figure of one of the most beautiful of our southern flowers, originally drawn by my friend’s sister, Miss Martin. I myself have never had the good fortune to meet with any individuals of this interesting Sylvia, respecting which little is as yet known, its discoverer having only procured a few specimens of both sexes, without being able to find a nest. The first obtained was found by him a few miles from Charleston, in South Carolina, in July 1833, while I was rambling over the crags of Labrador. According to my amiable friend, it was “a lively active bird, gliding among the branches of thick bushes, occasionally mounting on the wing and seizing insects in the air in the manner of a Flycatcher. It was an old female that had to all appearance just reared a brood of young.’’? Shortly after, several were seen in the same neighbourhood; and we may still expect an account of its man- ners, migration, and breeding, although not yet discovered. Bacuman’s Ware.er, Sylvia Bachmanii, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. ii. p. 483. Adult Male. Bill rather long, slightly bent towards the tip, subulato-conical, extremely acute, the edges sharp and inflected. Nostrils basal, lateral, elliptical, half- closed above by an arched membrane. The general form slender. Feet of ordinary length; tarsus slender, compressed, anteriorly scutellate, sharp behind; toes free, the hind toe strong, the two lateral nearly equal, the middle one much longer; claws slender, arched, compressed, acute. Vor. IL 16 04. BACHMAN’S SWAMP-WARBLER. Plumage soft and blended, slightly glossed. Wings of moderate length, the first four quills nearly equal, the second longest; the second, third, and fourth slightly cut out on the outer edge towards the end; the secondaries long and rounded. ‘Tail of ordinary length, slightly emarginate. ; Bill dusky brown above, light blue beneath. Iris dark brown. Feet umber. The general colour of the upper parts is brownish-olive, the rump yellowish-green, the feathers of the crown brownish-black in the centre; the forehead, a line over the eye, the cheeks, the chin, the sides of the neck, the flexure of the wing, lower wing-coverts, and breast, yellow; the sides green- ish-grey, the lower tail-coverts white. On the fore part of the neck is a large patch of black, enlarging beneath. Quills and tail wood-brown, nar- rowly margined with whitish; a large white spot on the inner web of each of the tail-feathers, excepting the two middle ones. Length 4,1, inches, extent of wings 64; bill along the ridge 23, along the edge 73; tarsus 23. Adult Female. The female is considerably smaller than the male, and differs only in having the tints fainter, the forehead yellowish-green, and the fore-neck dusky. Length 34%. Gorponia pubescens, Willd. Sp. Pl., vol. iii. p. 841. Pursch, Fl. Amer. Sept., vol. ii. p. 451.—MoNADELPHIA POLYANDRIA, Linn.—MatvackE&, Juss. This beautiful tree, which grows in Georgia, seldom attains a height of more than fifteen feet. Its leaves are obovato-lanceolate, deep green, downy beneath, and its large white flowers, with their numerous yellow anthers, have a very beautiful appearance. ING 22. 4 pa a Oe oh - May, ie ee ec _ ( A © MAILE Mates ( pf? VW oa MOO ook Vy Foy a fain PUTOg a J.th? Printed & Col* by J.T. Bowen. Philad* — 95 CARBONATED SWAMP-WARBLER. ~ Herrnara carsonata, Aud. PLATE CIX.—Mates. IT shot the two little birds here represented, near the village of Henderson, in the State of Kentucky, in May 1811. They were both busily engaged in searching for insects along the branches and amongst the leaves of a dog- wood tree. Their motions were those common to all the species of the genus. On examination, they were found to be both males. I am of opinion that they were each young birds of the preceding year, and not in full plu- mage, as they had no part of their dress seemingly complete, excepting the head. Not having met with any other individuals of the species, I am at this moment unable to say any thing more about them. They were drawn, like almost all the other birds which I have represented, immediately after being killed; but the branch on which you see them was not added until the fol- lowing summer. The common name of this plant is service-tree. It seldom attains a greater height than thirty or forty feet, and is usually found in hilly ground of se- condary quality. The berries are agreeable to the taste, and are sought after by many species of birds, amongst which the Read-headed Woodpecker is very conspicuous. Young Male. Bill of ordinary length, nearly straight, subulato-conical, acute, nearly as deep as broad at the base, the edges acute, the gap line slightly deflected at the base. Nostrils basal, lateral, elliptical, half-closed by a membrane. Head — rather small. Neck short. Body slender. Feet of ordinary length, slen- der; tarsus longer than the middle toe, covered anteriorly by a few scutella, acutely-edged behind; toes scutellate above, the inner free, the hind toe of moderate size; claws slender, compressed, acute, arched. Plumage soft, blended, tufty. Wiaings of ordinary length, acute, the se- cond quill longest. Tail short, notched. CareONATED WARBLER, Sylvia carbonata, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. i. p. 308. Bill brownish-black above, light blue beneath. Iris hazel. Feet light flesh-colour. Upper part of the head black. Fore part of the back, lesser 96 TENNESSEE SWAMP-WARBLER. wing-coverts and sides dusky, spotted with black. Lower back dull yellow- ish-green, as is the tail, of which the outer web of the outer feather is whitish. Tips of the second row of coverts white, of the first row yellow; quills dusky, their outer webs tinged with yellow. A line from the lore over the eye, sides of the neck, and the throat, bright yellow. A dusky line behind the eye. The rest of the under parts dull yellow, excepting the sides. Length 4? inches; bill along the ridge #5, along the gap 74; tarsus 2. Tuer MaAy-susH or SERVICE. Pyrus Botryapium, Willd. Sp. Pl., vol. ii. p. 1013. Pursch, Flor. Amer., vol. i. p. 339. —Icosanpria Pentacynia, Linn.—Rosacen, Juss. This species is distinguished by its ovate, acuminate leaves, racemose flowers, linear-lanceolate petals, pubescent germens, and smooth calycine segments. TENNESSEE SWAMP-W ARBLER. + HeLInArIA PEREGRINA, PVils. PLATE CX.—"fate. So very rare does this little bird seem to be in the United States, that in the course of all my rambles I never saw more than three individuals of the species. The first was procured near Bayou Sara, in the State of Louisiana, in the spring of 1821, when I drew it with the holly twig on which it was standing when I shot it. The second I obtained in Louisiana also, not many miles from the same spot, in the autumn of 1829, and the last at Key West, in May 1832. Of its migrations or place of breeding I know nothing. It is an active and nimble species, an expert catcher of flies, fond of hang- ing to the extremities of branches, like several others of the tribe. It utters a single mellow ¢weet, as it passes from one branch to another in search of food, or while on the wing, when it moves in a desultory manner for some distance, diving suddenly towards the tree on which it intends to alight. All the individuals which I procured were males. ie — LEITH. pea bbe’ Male wee, bacsflova < r oma. ‘ ne Drawn from Nature by J.J Audubon. F.R.S.F.L:S Lath? Printed & Cols by J.1. Bowen. Philad! " red — yd > ie a TENNESSEE SWAMP-WARBLER. 97 TENNESSE WARBLER, Sylvia peregrina, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. iii. p. 83. SYLVIA PEREGRINA, Bonap. Syn., p. 87. TENNESSEE WARBLER, Sylvia peregrina, Nutt. Man., vol. i. p. 412. ‘TENNESSEE Wanrser, Sylvia peregrina, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. ii. p. 307. Bill of moderate length, thick at the base, tapering, straight, acute; upper mandible nearly straight in its dorsal outline, the edges sharp, without a notch. Nostrils basal, oval, covered above by a membrane, and partially concealed by the feathers. Head of ordinary size, neck short, body rather slender. Feet of ordinary length, rather slender; tarsus compressed, covered anteriorly with a few long scutella, sharp behind; toes slender, free, the outer united to the second joint, the hind-toe proportionally large; claws arched, slender, much compressed, acute. Plumage blended, soft. Wings longish, little curved; the second and third quills longest. Tail rather longish, nearly even, the lateral feathers bent outwards. Bill dark brown, paler beneath. Iris hazel. Feet brown, tinged with blue. The general colour above is yellow-olive, the head darker, the under parts cream-coloured, fading behind into white. A pale yellow line over the eye; quills dark brown, the primaries margined with yellowish-grey; the wings without bands. Length 4% inches, extent of wings 8; bill along the back 4%, along the edge -8;; tarsus 74. ILEX LAXIFLORA. ILex Laxirtora, Pursch, Fl. Amer. Sept., vol. i. p. 117—TerTranpria TETRAGYNIA, Linn.—Ruammi, Juss. Leaves ovate, sinuato-dentate, spinous, shiny, flat; peduncles supra-axillar, aggregated on the younger branches. An evergreen shrub, with yellowish- red berries. 98 BLUE-WINGED YELLOW SWAMP-WARBLER. | + Heniara sorrraria, Wils. PLATE CXI.—Mate anp Femate. This pretty little Warbler is migratory, and arrives in Louisiana from the south, in the beginning of spring. It is found in open woods, as well as in the vicinity of ponds overgrown with low bushes and rank weeds. Along with a pair of Blue-winged Yellow Warblers, I have represented a species of Hibiscus, which grows on the edges of these ponds. Its flowers are handsome, but unfortunately have no pleasant odour. The species which now occupies our attention is a busy, active bird, and is seen diligently searching among the foliage and grasses for the small insects on which it feeds, mounting now and then towards the tops of the bushes, to utter a few weak notes, which are in no way interesting. Its nest, which is singularly constructed, and of an elongated inversely conical form, is attached to several stalks or blades of tall grass by its upper edge. The materials of which it is formed are placed obliquely from its mouth to the bottom. The latter part is composed of dried leaves, and is finished within with fine grass and lichens. The female lays from four to six eggs, of a pure white colour, with a few pale red spots at the larger end. The first brood is out about the middle of May, the second in the middle of July. The young disperse as soon as they are able to provide for themselves, this bird being of solitary habits. It leaves Louisiana in the beginning of October. I have never seen this species farther eastward than the State of New Jersey, where I have killed several within a few miles of Philadelphia. It is frequent in the barrens of Kentucky, and up the Mississippi, as far at least as St. Genevieve, where I shot two individuals many years ago. Its flight is short, undetermined, and is performed in zig-zag lines, as in most of its tribe. It sometimes ascends twenty or thirty yards in the air, as if with an intention of going to a great distance, but still moving in a zig-zag manner, when it suddenly turns about, and comes down near the place from which it set out. It does not chase insects on wing, but feeds in a great measure on the smaller kinds of spiders, not neglecting, however, to seize other insects when they come within reach. It remains almost con- stantly among the bushes, and is seldom seen on trees of any size. BLUE-WINGED YELLOW SWAMP-WARBLER. 99 BLvs-wINGED YELLOW WarsLER, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. ii. p. 109. Sy via sotirariA, Bonap. Syn., p. 87. ; Buvue-wincep YELLOw WakzsieER, Sylvia solitaria, Nutt. Man., vol. i. p. 410. B.ive-wincep YELLow Wakrs_er, Sylvia solitaria, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. i. p. 102. Adult Male. Bill nearly as long as the head, straightish, subulato-conical, acute, as deep as broad at the base, the edges acute, the gap line a little deflected at the base. Nostrils basal, lateral, elliptical, half-closed by a membrane. Head rather small. Neck short. Body slender. Feet of ordinary length, slender; tarsus longer than the middle toe, covered anteriorly by a few scutella, the uppermost long; toes scutellate above, the inner free, the hind toe of mode- rate size; claws slender, compressed, acute, arched. Plumage soft, blended, tufty. Wangs of ordinary length, acute, the second quill longest. Tail longish, rounded when expanded, slightly forked when closed. Bill black, with a pale margin. Iris dark brown. Feet and claws flesh- colour, tinged with yellow. Forehead, crown, and under parts of a rich bright-yellow. Back of the head and neck, the back and upper tail coverts bright grass-green. Lore black. Wings greyish-blue, slightly margined with paler, the first two rows of coverts tipped with whitish. Four middle tail-feathers greyish-blue, the outer webs of the rest, and an oblique portion of the outer feather at the end, of the same colour, their inner webs white. Length 4? inches, extent of wings 7; bill along the ridge 4, along the gap l. Adult Female. The female scarcely differs from the male in appearance, and is of nearly the same dimensions. LARGE-FLOWERED Hisiscus, Corton Rost, on WILD ALTHEA. Hieiscus GranpirLorus, Mich. F]. Amer., vol. ii. p. 46. Pursch, Fl. Amer., p. 455.— MonabELPHIA POLYANDRIA, Linn.—Matvacea, Juss. This beautiful species of Hibiscus, which does not precisely agree with any that I have seen described, although it is probably the above, is characterized by its ovato-cordate, obtusely and irregularly serrated, acute, venous tough leaves, and its large rose-coloured flowers, which are deep red at the base, and streaked with the same colour. The corolla is about five inches in diameter, the anthers yellow. ‘The stem and leaves are smooth. It grows in salt marshes, and by the edges of pools. 100 ORANGE-CROWNED SWAMP-WARBLER. ~HELinata cELaTA, Say. PLATE CXII.—Mate anp Femate. This species is seen in the company of Sylvicola coronata and Sylvicola petechia, both in the Southern States where it passes the winter, and while crossing the Union in early spring on its way to those North-eastern Districts where it breeds. It leaves Louisiana, the Floridas, and the Carolinas, from the beginning to the end of April; is seen in the Middle States about the 10th of May; and reaches the State of Maine and the British provinces by the end of that month. On its return, besides settling in the Southern States, it spreads over the provinces of Mexico, from whence individuals in spring migrate by the vast prairies, and along the shores of the western parts of the Union, entering Canada in that direction in the first days of June. The Orange-crowned Warbler is thus very widely distributed over North America. I met with none, however, between Halifax and Labrador, nor did I see one in the latter country. In the summer months, it manifests a retiring disposition, keeping among the Jow brushwood that borders the rivers and lakes of the Northern Districts. While in the south, however, where it is rather common near the sea-shore, it is less cautious, and is seen, in considerable numbers, in the orange groves around the plantations, or even in the gardens, especially in East Florida. Like the Sylvicola petechia, it plays about the piazzas, skip- ping on wing in front of the clapboarded house, in quest of its prey, which it expertly seizes without alighting, or without snapping its bill, except during the disputes that occur among the males, as the spring advances. You find it among the branches of the Pride-of-China, a tree that ornaments the streets of the southern cities and villages, as well as on trees bordering the roads. From these it descends into the smilaxes, rose-bushes, and other shrubs, all of which yield it food and shelter. At the approach of darkness, it enters among the foliage of the evergreen wild orange and wild peach, where, with the Sylvicola petechia and Sylvicola coronata, it quietly passes the night. Its food principally consists of insects, partly caught on the wing, but chiefly along the branches and twigs, where the little depredator seeks them out with great activity. The flight of this bird is short, rather low, and is performed by gently hl XToe 9) 2 =N:+ 20). IPA WG —— Ys 2) | r yee Yi, IT Yo 1. Male 2. Female ¢ i) f fo J JAndobon.F.K.S.F.L.S Vie 5 y (~ Lith? Printed & Colt by J.1, Bowen. Phidad® NO 23. ‘Pita: pS PNUD ett ——— 5 Crange ee ae yy y y We. Z. Malbec? heruale: a. Wes MACAULAY / L404. alostttHy ‘ Z uth! Pemted & Col ov IT Bovey. thiiad QRANGE-CROWNED SWAMP-WARBLER. 101 curved glidings. When ascending, however, it becomes as it were uncertain and angular. The Orange-crowned Warbler breeds in the eastern parts of Maine, and in the British provinces of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia., Its nest is com- posed of lichens detached from the trunks of trees, intermixed with short bits of fine grass, and is lined with delicate fibrous roots and a proportionally large quantity of feathers. The eggs, which are from four to six, are of a pale green colour, sprinkled with small black spots. The nest is placed not more than from three to five feet from the ground between the smaller forks of some low fir tree. Only one brood is raised in the season, and the birds commence their journey southward from the middle of August to the beginning of September. In autumn, it nearly loses the orange spot on its head, there being then merely a dull reddish patch, which is only seen on separating the feathers. In the breeding season, the part in question becomes as bright as you see it in the plate, in which are represented a pair of these birds, on a twig of the great huckleberry. The young do not shew any orange on the head until the following spring. SyLvia CELATA, Say, Long’s Exped., vol. i. p. 169. SYLVIA CELATA, Bonap. Syn., p. 38. i ORANGE-CROWNED Wareter, Sylvia celata, Bonap. Amer. Orn., vol. i. p. 45. ORANGE-CROWNED W aRBLER, Sylvia celata, Nutt. Man., vol. i. p. 413. ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER, Sylvia celata, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. ii. p. 449. Adult Male. Bill longish, slender, straight, tapering to a very sharp point. Nostrils basal, oval, feet of ordinary length, slender; tarsus compressed, covered anteriorly with a few long scutella, sharp-edged behind, longer than the middle-toe; toes scutellate above, free; claws arched, slender, compressed, acute. Plumage blended, the feathers soft and tufty. Wings rather short, the second and third quills longest. T'ail slightly emarginate, of ordinary length, the twelve feathers rather narrow, and tapering broadly to a point. Bill dusky above, yale greyish-blue beneath. Iris hazel. Teet and claws dusky. The general colour of the plumage above is dull brownish-green, the rump and tail-coverts light yellowish-green, the edge of the wing at the flexure yellow. On the crewn is a spot of bright reddish-orange, more distinct when the feathers are raised. The under parts are of a dull olivaceous yellow, the lower tail-coverts bright yellow. The quills and tail- feathers dark brown, slightly margined with paler. Vor. II. Ve! 102 ORANGE-CROWNED SWAMP-WARBLER. Length 53 inches, extent of wings 744; bill along the ridge +, along the edge 3; tarsus 3%. Adult Female. Bill and feet of the same colour as in the male, the former inclined to yellowish-grey beneath. The female wants the orange spot on the crown, but in other respects resembles the male in colour, although the rump and upper tail-coverts are of a darker tint. Length slightly less than that of the male. Tue HuckLeserRY OR BLUE-TANGLES. Vaccinium FRONDOsUM, Willd. Sp. P1., vol. ii. p. 352. Pursch, Flor. Amer., vol. i. p. 285. —Decanpria Monoeynia, Linn.—Erice#, Juss. Leaves deciduous, ovato-oblong or lanceolate, entire, smooth, glaucous beneath, resinous; racemes lax, bracteate; pedicels long, filiform, bracteolate; corollas ovato-companulate, with acute laciniz and included anthers. The flower is white, the calyx green, the berry globular and of a bluish-black colour. It varies greatly in the form of the leaves, as well as in stature, sometimes attaining a height of six or seven feet. Huckleberries form a portion of the food of many birds, as well as of various quadrupeds. Of the former, I may mention in particular the Wild Turkey, several species of Grouse, the Wild Pigeon, the Turtle-dove, some Loxias, and several Thrushes. Among the latter, the Black Bear stands pre-eminent, although Racoons, Foxes, Opossums, and others destroy great quantities. When the season is favourable, these berries are so thickly strewn on the twigs, that they may be gathered in large quantities, and as they become ripe, numerous parties resort to the grounds in which they are found, by way of frolicking, and spend the time in a very agreeable manner. 4 ; ay ray i ie Bh bi ye ¥ dey xo J S. ag” 2 5 a Me ee Ue ere . Metall nd Avarafs ACA LA ¢7° C , = Male err arp ae : a C frmodtes Drawn liven Nature by Jd Audubon Fits # | iath* Printed &Col* hw JT Bowen, Philad* 103 NASHVILLE SWAMP-WARBLER. ~ HELINAIA RUBRICAPILLA, Wils. PLATE CXIIT.—Mate anp Femate. I have shot only three or four birds of this species, and these were all that TI ever met with. I found them in Louisiana and Kentucky. A few speci- mens belonging to Mr. Trr1an Prate of Philadelphia, and which he, with his usual kindness, lent me for a few days, to compare their colouring with my drawings and notes, were the only others that I have seen. It is probable -he had procured them in Pennsylvania, although I cannot now recollect if this was really the case. The flight of this little bird is short, light, and entirely similar to that of the other species of this genus already described. Its food consists of insects and larvee, which it procures by searching diligently and actively amongst the leaves and buds of low trees. It does not pursue insects on wing. With the exception of a few low, eagerly repeated, creaking notes, I have not heard any sounds from them. While uttering these notes, which are all the species seem to have in lieu of song, the male stands erect and still. I am not aware of its nest having been discovered or described by any naturalist. The plant on a twig of which two Nashville Warblers are represented, is usually called the swamp spice. It is a low bush, grows in the water, in swampy and muddy ground, and occurs from Georgia to New York. The berries, which are seldom eaten by birds, have little pulp, and consequently a large seed. Nasavitte Wareier, Sylvia rubricapilla, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. iii. p. 120. SYLVIA RUBRICAPILLA, Bonap. Syn., p. 87. NasHviLLE Wars.er, Sylvia rubricapilla, Nutt. Man., vol. i. p. 412. NasHviLLeE Wars.er, Sylvia rubricapilla, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. i. p. 450. Bill rather short, slender, tapering, nearly straight, as deep as broad at the base. Nostrils basal, lateral, elliptical, half-closed by a membrane. Head of ordinary size, neck short, body full. Feet of ordinary length, slender; tarsus longer than the middle toe, anteriorly scutellate; toes free, scutellate above; claws slender, compressed, acute, arched. Adult Male. 104. NASHVILLE SWAMP-WARBLER. Plumage soft, blended, tufty. Wings short, curved, the first and second quills longest. Tail short, forked, of twelve rounded feathers. Bill greenish-brown. Iris dark brown. - Feet yellowish-green. Head and cheeks brownish-grey, the upper part of the head dark red. A circle of white round the eye. The general colour of the upper parts is brownish- green, of the under greenish-yellow, brighter on the throat and breast. Inner webs of the wing and tail-feathers dusky, the outer brownish-green, and of the primaries bright yellow. Length 44 inches, extent of wings 7; bill along the ridge 4, along the gap 4; tarsus 2. Adult Female. The female is much duller; the head and hind-neck dark brownish-grey, tinged with green, the former without the red patch, the under parts more mixed with grey, the sides olivaceous, and the yellow of the wings less pure. THe Swamp SPICE. ILEx prinoweEs, Willd. Sp. Pl., vol. i. p. 709. Pursch, Fl. Amer., vol. i. p. 118.— TerranpriaA Terracynis, Linn.—Ruamni, Juss. Leaves lanceolate, attenuated at the base, slightly serrated; peduncles one- flowered. The leaves of this species are deciduous, the berries bright red. i 2 5 GENUS V.—MNIOTILTA, Vieill. CREEPING-WARBLER. Bill rather long, straight, very slender, nearly as broad as high at the base, much compressed toward the end; upper mandible with the dorsal line very slightly convex, the edges a little inflected toward the end, the notches obsolete, the tip acute; lower mandible with the dorsal line straight, the sides convex, the edges involute, the tip attenuated. General form slender. Feet of moderate length, very slender; tarsus shorter than the middle toe and claw, much compressed, the upper scutella blended; toes rather long, extremely compressed, the first very long, the second shorter than the third, which is adherent at the base, claws rather long, well arched, extremely uae. cu ae fiir tes 6 O23. | Bien ri. a Le Ri Oe C Mea h-and -u Ste ee Jbrbbr « U2: c et gawk OF ee” #, Wack Larch Cirvasferidaa Drawn from Nature by J.J Audubon FR SFL S Loth® Printed & Colt bw 2 1 Kewen Philad® BLACK-AND-WHITE CREEPING-WARBLER. 105 compressed, and acute. Plumage very soft and blended. Bristles obsolete. Wings long, with the second and third quills longest and about equal, the first slightly shorter, and exceeding the fourth. Tail of moderate length, nearly even. This genus connects the Sylvicolinz with the Certhiane. BLACK-AND-WHITE CREEPING-WARBLER. +-MNrIoTitTa varRra, Linn. PLATE CXIV.—Mate. The Black-and-white Creeper appears in the State of Louisiana as soon as the buds on the trees begin to expand, which happens about the middle of February. It throws itself into the forests, where it breeds, and remains until the beginning of November. It is usually seen on the largest trees of our woods. It has a few notes, consisting of a series of rapidly enunciated tweets, the last greatly prolonged. It climbs and creeps along the trunks, the branches, and even the twigs of the trees, without intermission, and so seldom perches, that I do not remember ever having seen it in such a posi- tion. It lives principally on small ants and their larvee, which it secures as it ascends or descends in a spiral direction, sidewise, with the head either uppermost or beneath. It keeps its feet close together, and moves by suc- cessive short hops with a rapidity equalling even that of the Brown Creeper. It dives from the tops of the trees to their roots, and again ascends. At other times, it alights on a decayed fallen tree, and searches the bark for food, peeping into the crevices. It has only a very short flight, and moves directly from the tree it is on to the nearest. In this manner the Black-and-white Creeper reaches the Northern Dis- tricts. It always prefers the most uncultivated tracts, and is especially fond of the pines and hemlock-trees of the mountain-glens. I have met with it on the borders of Canada, round Lake Champlain, in the country far to the north-west, on the banks of the Illinois, in Ohio, Kentucky, and all the wooded districts of the Arkansas and Red River. In Louisiana, its nest is usually placed in some small hole in a tree, and is composed of mosses in a dry state, lined with cottony substances. The eggs 106 BLACK-AND-WHITE CREEPING-WARBLER. are from five to seven, of a short oval form, white, with a few brownish-red spots chiefly at the large end. Two broods are raised in the season. The young go about in company, following the parents, and it is not unusual to see nine or ten of these birds scrambling with great activity along the trunk of a tree. Ihave not found its nest in the Middle States, where, however, I am convinced many breed. I found this species in the Texas, breeding near Buffalo Bayou, where I saw a young one that had fallen out of the nest, which was in the prong of a broken limb not more than ten feet from the ground. It breeds in localities greatly distant from each other, and, like many other birds, on this account, places its nest in different situations, and varies the materials of which it is composed. Mr. Nurra.tr saw a nest in the vicinity of Boston, which was ‘“niched in the shelving of a rock, on the surface of the ground, and was externally composed of coarse stripes of the inner bark of the hemlock-tree (Abies canadensis) which overshadowed the situation. With these were mixed soft dissected old leaves, and a few stalks of dead grass; the lining was made of a thin layer of black hair.” The eggs of this bird measure four and a fourth eighths in length, and half an inch in breadth. Some of them are much more spotted with light reddish-brown and purplish dots than others. Of this latter kind I have a beautiful specimen presented by my friend Dr. T. M. Brewer of Boston. As some persons might suppose from my account of its habits, that it uses its tail to aid it in climbing, like the Brown Creeper, I must here state that it never does so, but hops in the manner of the Nuthatches. My friend Dr. Bacuman has observed it in spring perched on small twigs and uttering its song composed of half a dozen notes, which are heard at a considerable distance. It arrives in South Carolina early in April, remains until about the 10th of May, and has been seen on its return as early as the Ist of September. Dr. T. M. Brewer sends me the following notice:—“This bird, which you speak of as breeding in the hollows of trees, with us always builds its nest on the ground. I say always, because I never knew it to lay anywhere else. I have by me a nest brought to me by Mr. Arrpteron from Batternits, New York, which was found in the drain of the house in which he resided. It is neat and compact, measures 3} inches in external diameter, 24 in internal; its internal depth is 1 inch, the external two. It is composed externally of coarse hay, and lined in an unusually compact manner with horse-hair. The eggs are oval, nearly equal at both ends, and measure six- eighths of an inch by nine-sixteenths, and are in markings exactly as you describe them. The number in this nest was three, but their complement is, I believe, four.’’ BLACK-AND-WHITE CREEPING-WARBLER. 107 BLAck-AND-WHITE Creeper, Certhia varia, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. ili. p. 23. Sy.via VARIA, Bonap. Syn., p. 81. BLacK-AND-WHITE CrepreEr, Certhia varia, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. i. p. 452; vol. v. p. 471. Adult Male. Bill rather long, slightly arched, compressed, extremely slender, acute; nostrils basal, narrow, half-closed by a membrane. General form slender. Feet of ordinary length, slender; tarsus longer than the middle toe, scutel- late before; toes free, scutellate, the hind one proportionally larger; claws compressed, very acute, arched. Plumage soft and blended. Wings of ordinary length, third quill longest, secondaries short. Tail nearly even, of twelve narrow, rounded feathers. Bill black. Iris hazel. Feet dusky yellow. Middle of the head longitu- dinally white, bordered on each side by a broad stripe of black, beneath which, on each side, over the eye, is a line of white. Ear-coverts and chin black. Back and breast streaked with white and black. Wings black, the outer margins of the quills greyish-white, the tips of the larger coverts, excepting the primary ones, white, forming two broad bands of that colour across the wing. ‘Tail black, tinged with bluish-grey externally, the ends of the inner webs of the three outer feathers on each side white. Abdomen white; sides and under tail-coverts white, spotted with black. Length 53 inches, extent of wings 74; bill along the ridge 4. The young are similar in colouring to the females. The young males do not acquire their full plumage until the following spring. A male of this species is represented on a twig of the tree commonly called the Black Larch. Tue Buackx Larcnu. Pinus peNpULA, Pursch, Flor. Amer., vol. ii. p. 645.—Monacia Potyanpria, Linn.— ConiFreRs, Juss. Leaves fasciculate, deciduous; cones oblong, the margins of the scales inflected; bracteoles panduriform, with an attenuated tip. This species, which grows in cedar swamps, in the Northern States, attains a great size, and resembles the European larch in appearance. 2 Ot SE Sa ere ae 108 FAMILY IX. CERTHIANA. CREEPERS. Bill of moderate length or rather long, slender, slightly arched, much compressed, acute; upper mandible with its dorsal outline convex or arched, the ridge narrow, the notches slight or obsolete, lower mandible with the angle rather long and narrow, the dorsal line straight or slightly decurved, the edges inclinate, the tip acute. Head moderate, ovate; neck short, body slender. Feet of moderate length, or rather short; tarsus about the same length as the middle toe, compressed, with eight anterior scutella; toes of moderate length, much compressed, hind toe proportionally long, outer adherent at the base; claws rather long, extremely compressed, arched, acute. Wings short or of moderate length. Tail of twelve feathers, gene- rally much rounded. ‘Tongue slender, emarginate and papillate at the base, very narrow, tapering to a lacerated point. C&sophagus of moderate width, without crop; proventriculus bulbiform; stomach of moderate size, oblong, or elliptical, moderately muscular, with the muscles distinct; epithelium dense, longitudinally rugous; intestine short, rather wide; cceca very small; cloaca globular. Trachea simple, with four pairs of inferior laryngeal muscles. GENUS I.—CERTHIA, Zinn. TREE-CREEPER. Bill about the same length as the head, very slender, arched, much com- pressed, acute; upper mandible with the dorsal line arched, the ridge narrow, the sides sloping at the base, nearly erect in the rest of their extent, the edges sharp, arched, without notch, the tip acute; lower mandible with the angle rather long, narrow, and pointed, the outline decurved, the sides erect and convex, the edges inclinate, the tip acute. Nostrils linear-oblong, oper- culate. Head ovate; neck short; body slender. Feet rather short, very slender, tarsus rather shorter than the middle toe, very slender, mucl¥ com- pressed; toes extremely compressed; the first comparatively large, longer than the middle toe, including the claw; the inner toe shorter than the outer; claws long, moderately arched, slender, extremely compressed, laterally grooved, acute, that of the hind toe very long. Plumage long, loose, very soft. Bristles obsolete. Wings of moderate length, very broad; the first quill very short, the fourth and fifth longest. Tail long, graduated, of twelve moderately stiff pointed feathers. Nic 23. | lt be 0 — : a / ° a ; pier - ele / Male 2 Female wn from Nature by J Jawdubon TR SALS 109 BROWN TREE-CREEPER. > CERTHIA FAMILIARIS, Linn. PLATE CXV.—Mate anp Femate. The only parts of the United States in which I have not met with this species during winter are the eastern and northern portions of the Floridas. This has appeared the more strange to me, because I have observed several of these birds in Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana, at that season, during which it is not rare in any of the States intervening between these and Maryland. In the spring and summer months, or what is usually called the breeding season, the Brown Creeper may be found over the whole country, from the thick woods of the northern parts of Pennsylvania to Newfoundland. None were seen by my party or myself in Labrador, and as no mention is made of this species in the Fauna Boreali-Americana, I suspect that the want of sufficiently wooded localities prevents it from pro- ceeding so far north. This bird alights on trees of all kinds, in the Carolinas on pines, in Maine on maples, in Kentucky on hickories, oaks, or ash-trees; and as, from the time when it is first able to fly, it is one of the most constant roamers of the forest, you may meet with it in almost any part of the woods. The taller trees, however, are generally preferred by it, perhaps on account of its reluctance to fly from one tree to another at a distance. It seldom leaves a tree without searching all its crannies, from near the roots to the tops of the larger branches, which it does with incomparable assiduity and care, yet by movements so rapid that a person unacquainted with it might be inclined to think that it runs up the trunk and branches, directly or spirally, above or beneath the latter, without any other intention than that of reaching the end of its journey as quickly as possible. The reverse of this, however, is the case, for, shoot one of them when you please, you will find its stomach crammed with insects and larve, such as occur on the trees. When these are not found in abundance, the Creeper appears to discover the scarcity very soon, and instead of continuing its search, abandons the tree when not many yards from the ground, and launching off shoots downwards in its usual manner, and alights a little above the roots of another in the neighbourhood. I have observed it when satiated, remain still and silent as if asleep, and, as it were, glued to the bark, for nearly an hour at a time. But whether the Voz. II. 18 ee 110 BROWN TREE-CREEPER. : bird was really asleep, or wished to elude us, is more than I can affirm, although I am inclined toward the latter supposition, because toward night it retires to a hole, where frequently as many as a whole brood repose together, as I have on several occasions witnessed. When on the-move, the Brown Creeper emits at short intervals a sharp, quick, rather grating note, peculiar to itself, and by which you may, if acquainted with it, discover from a distance of more than sixty yards, in calm weather, where it is. Yet, after all, it requires some time, and a good eye, to perceive it, if on one of the upper branches ofa tall tree. The name of “Gleaner,” applied to this bird, is, in my opinion, very inappropriate; for instead of its following the different tribes of small Woodpeckers, or even Nuthatches, which, however, are at times found in company with it, I have seen our little hunter travel over every part of a large and tall tree, and afterwards remove to another, before the Woodpecker had hammered its way to a grub, which it knew to be under the bark; and all the-activity of our Nuthatches does not perhaps surpass that of the present species. Yet they all pursue their avocations at the same time, and now and then on the same trees, although this is by no means a constant habit with them. Witson was of opinion that the Brown Creeper moves “rapidly and uniformly along, with his tail bent to the tree, and not in the hopping manner of the Woodpecker;”? but I must differ from him, for the bird at each move actually hops, assisted by the pressure of its elastic tail, which indeed is the case with all our Woodpeckers, whether on the upper or the lower surface of a branch. This may be easily seen on placing a Brown Creeper in a cage containing a piece of a branch covered with scaly bark. This bird breeds in the hole of a tree, giving a marked preference to such as are small and rounded at the entrance. For this reason, perhaps, it often takes possession of the old and abandoned nests of our smaller Woodpeckers and Squirrels; but it is careless as to the height of the situation above the ground, for I have found its nest in a hole in a broken stump which I could reach with my hand, although I could not examine it on account of the hard- ness of the wood. All the nests which I have seen were loosely formed of grasses and lichens of various sorts, and warmly lined with feathers, among which I in one instance found some from the abdomen of Tetrao Umbellus. The eggs are from six to eight, but in some instances I have found only-five, when I have supposed them to belong to a second brood. They measure five-eighths and three-fourths of an inch in length, four and a quarter eighths in their greatest breadth. Their ground-colour is white, with a yellowish tint, irregularly marked with red and purplish spots and dots, which are larger and more crowded toward the broad end, leaving a space at “its apex nearly free, as is also the case with that of the narrow end; there are small BROWN TREE-CREEPER. 111 dots of pure neutral tint here and there, but none of those “streaks of dark brown”’ described by Witson. The young, like those of our Woodpeckers and Nuthatches, remain about the nest until they are able to fly, and in their minority are well supplied with food. The members of a family usually remain together until the next spring. The males of this species are larger than the females. This difference is very apparent in the bill. In the winter months, the Brown Creeper is not unfrequently seen in orchards, and at a short distance from farm-houses; but in the breeding season it retires to the interior of the forests. Its food con- sists chiefly of ants, larve, small insects, and particles of lichens; and, if one be placed near the nose, it is generally found to emit an odour like that of ants, Brown Creeper, Certhia familiaris, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. i. p. 122. CERTHIA FAMILIARIS, Bonap. Syn., p. 280. Brown Creeper, Nutt. Man., vol. i. p. 585. Brown Creeper, Certhia familiaris, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. v. p. 158. Adult Male. Bill a little shorter than the head, arched, very slender, much compressed, acute; upper mandible with the dorsal line arched, the ridge narrow, the sides sloping at the base, nearly erect in the rest of their extent, the edges sharp and arched, without notch, the tip acute; nasal groove rather long, nar- row, feathered; nostrils linear-oblong, operculate; lower mandible with the angle rather long, narrow, and pointed, the outline decurved, the sides erect and convex, the edges inclinate, the tip acute. Head rather small, ovato-oblong,; neck short; body slender. Feet rather short, very slender; tarsus rather shorter than the middle toe, very slender, much compressed; toes extremely compressed; the first comparatively large, longer than the middle toe, including the claws; the inner toe shorter than the outer; claws long, slender, extremely compressed, laterally grooved, acute, that of the hind toe very long. Plumage long, loose, very soft; the feathers ovato-oblong, with disunited filaments. Wings of moderate length, very broad; the first quill very short, being ten and a half twelfths shorter than the second, which is four-twelfths shorter than the third, the fifth longest but scarcely exceeding the fourth, which is one-twelfth longer than the third. Tail long, graduated, of twelve moderately stiff pointed feathers, of which the lateral are eight-twelfths shorter than the middle. Upper mandible brownish-black, lower flesh-coloured, with the tip dusky. Iris brown. Feet light reddish-brown, claws yellowish-grey. The upper 112 BROWN TREE-CREEPER, parts are reddish-brown, the head darker, the rump light brownish-red; all the feathers with a central dull whitish streak. Wings deep brown, the coverts tipped, the secondary coverts barred at the base with dull yellow, of which a broad band in the midst of a brownish-black space crosses both webs of the quills, excepting the inner webs of the outer four, and the outer webs of the outer three; most of the quills have also a greyish-yellow patch along the outer web toward the tip, which is dull white, the tail-feathers are yel- lowish-brown, with shafts of the same colour, the webs darker toward the end. A silvery white band passes over the eye; the cheeks are dark brown; the lower parts are silvery-white, the sides tinged with brown. Length to end of tail 5} inches; to end of wings 4; to end of claws 44; extent of wings 84; bill along the ridge 73, along the edge of lower mandible 1°; wing from flexure 2,’,; tail 23%; tarsus $3; hind toe 33, its claw 23; middle toe £2, its claw #3. Adult Female. The Iemale is considerably smaller, and generally of a darker colour, but otherwise similar. Length to end of tail 53 inches, to end of wings 43, to end of claws 43; extent of wings 8; bill along the ridge $3. The shafts and webs of the tail are somewhat undulated, so as to give the appearance of their being barred with dusky. Younger individuals have the rump less red. Some have the lower parts almost pure white, while in others they are dusky white, being soiled by matter rubbed from the trees. On comparing four fresh and several dried specimens shot near Edin- burgh, with eight dried specimens from America, one of which is from the Columbia river, I can find nothing on which to found a specific distinction. The roof of the mouth is flat, but the mandible concave; the posterior aperture of the nares linear, margined with two rows of papille. The tongue is slender, decurved, long, measuring 64 twelfths, deeply emarginate and papillate at the base, concave above, horny in the greater part of its length, and tapering to a point. The csophagus is 1 inch 8 twelfths long, of moderate width, its average diameter 14 twelfth, without dilatation. The proventriculus is enlarged to 2 twelfths. The stomach is a muscular gizzard, of a somewhat elliptical form, 5 twelfths long, 45 twelfths in breadth; its lateral muscles very strong, the tendons of moderate size; the epithelium thin, tough, longitudinally rugous, reddish-brown. The contents of the stomach are remains of insects of various kinds, and one large particle of quartz. The intestine is short, being only 4§ inches long; its greatest diameter 1 twelfth; the rectum is dilated; the cceca, which come off at the distance of 5 twelfths from the extremity, are 4 twelfth long, and 4 twelfth in breadth. Silt eh (Fak PL ANG: Drawn trom Nature by J.J Audubon FOS -FL.S Jath" Printed & Col by C1 powen Vhakwt® 113 GENUS II.—TROGLODYTES, Cuv. WREN. Bill of moderate length, or nearly as long as the head, slender, slightly arched, much compressed toward the end; upper mandible with the dorsal __ line slightly convex, the edges a little inflected toward the end, the notches slight, the tip rather acute; lower mandible with the angle rather long and narrow, the outline slightly decurved, the sides erect and convex, the edges ' inclinate, the tip acute. Nostrils oblong, operculate, exposed. Head oblong; neck short; body slender. Feet of ordinary length, rather strong; tarsus longer than the middle toe, compressed, with eight anterior distinct scutella; toes of moderate size, the third and fourth united at the base, the first very large, the lateral nearly equal; claws rather long, moderately arched, much compressed, very acute. Plumage soft and blended. Bristles obsolete. Wings of moderate length, or short, convex, much rounded; the first quill very small, the fourth and fifth longest. Tail rather short, rounded, of twelve slightly arched, weak, rounded feathers. ROCK WREN. TROGLODYTES OBSOLETUS, Say. PLATE CXVI.—Apvutt Femate. This species was discovered by some of Major Lone’s exploring party, and first described by Mr. Tuomas Say. My friend Tuomas Nurratt, who had opportunities of studying its habits, during his recent journey in company with Mr. Townsenp, has assured me that they are very similar to those of the other Wrens. The figure in the plate was taken from an adult female, given to me by Mr. Nurraut; and I have since then obtained two males. “On the 21st of June,” says Mr. Nurraxt, ‘on the ledges of the bluffs Vot. IL. 19 114 7 ROCK WREN. which border the bottom of Hare’s Fork of the Siskadee (or Colorado of the West), I heard, and at length saw this curious Mountain Wren. Its actions are those of the Carolina species, Troglodytes ludovicianus. The old female (as I supposed) sat upon a ledge of rock at the head of a high ravine in the bluff, cocking her tail, and balancing herself, at the same time uttering a fshurr, tshurr, and té aigh, with a strong guttural accent, and now and then, when approached, like the common Short-billed Marsh Wren, Troglodytes brevirostris, a quick guttural ¢she de de. It has also a shrill call at times, as it perches on a stone on the summit of some hill, again similar to the note of the Carolina Wren, occasionally interrupted by a tshurr. Among these arid and bare hills of the central table-land they were quite common. The old ones were feeding and watching a brood of four or five young, which, though fully grown, were protected and cherished with the querulous assiduity so characteristic of the other Wrens. They breed under the rocky ledges where we so constantly observed them, under which they skulk at once when surprised, and pertinaciously hide in security, like so many rats. Indeed so suddenly do they disappear among the rocks, and remain so silent in their retreat, that it is scarcely possible to believe them beneath your feet till after a lapse of a few minutes you begin to hear a low cautious chirp, and the next moment, at the head of the ravine, the old female probably again appears, scolding and jerking in the most angry attitudes she is capable of assuming. In the same rocky retreats they are commonly accompanied by a kind of small striped Ground Squirrel, like that of the eastern coast in many respects, but much smaller. These little animals, which are numerous, the White-chinned Buzzard, Buteo vulgaris of RicHarpson and Swarnson, and the Raven frequently hover over and pounce upon. We met with this species as far west as the lowest falls of the Columbia, or within a few miles of Fort Van Couver, but among rocks and cliffs as usual.’ TROGLODYTES OBSOLETA, Say, Long’s Exped. TROGLODYTES OBSOLETA, Bonap. Amer. Orn., vol. i. p. 6. Rocxy Mountain Wren, T'roglodytes obsoleta, Nutt. Man., vol. i. p. 435. Rock Wren, Troglodytes obsoletus, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. iv. p. 443. Adult Female. Bill nearly as long as the head, slender, slightly arched, compressed toward the end; upper mandible with the sides convex towards the end, flat and declinate at the base, the edges sharp and overlapping, with a very slight notch close to the declinate tip; lower mandible with the angle long and narrow, the dorsal line very slightly concave, the sides sloping outwards and ROCK WREN. 115 concave, the tip narrow. Nostrils oblong, basal, with a cartilaginous oper- culum, open and bare. Head oblong; neck short; body slender. Legs of ordinary length; tarsus longer than the middle toe, compressed, with eight anterior distinct scutella, and two lateral plates forming a sharp edge behind. Toes of moderate size, the third and fourth united at the base, the first large, the outer considerably longer than the inner. Claws rather long, moderately arched, much com- toy) pressed, with an abruptly tapering, very acute tip. Plumage soft and loose. Wings of moderate length, convex, broad and rounded; the first quill very short, the second a quarter of an inch shorter than the third; the fourth longest, but scarcely exceeding the third and fifth. Tail rather long, much rounded, of twelve broad, rounded feathers. Bill dusky, with the edges pale yellow. Iris hazel. Feet dusky. Upper parts light dull yellowish-brown, and, excepting the rump, transversely barred with greyish-brown; the wings barred in the same manner, excepting the primaries, which are plain; the secondary coverts with a small white spot near the tip. Tail-coverts barred like the back, as are the two middle tail-feathers; the others broadly tipped with pale yellowish-red, undulated with dusky; behind which is a broad band of brownish-black; the remaining or basal part banded like the central feathers, the outer feather with four reddish-white spots or bars on the outer web, the intervals being brownish- black, and a spot of white on the inner web. The lower parts are greyish- white, tinged with sienna, the sides inclining to yellowish-red. The lower tail-coverts are barred with brownish-black. Length to end of tail 6 inches, wing from flexure 214; tail 24; bill along the ridge 23; tarsus 23; hind toe +4, its claw 2; middle toe ~&, its claw 22. SMILACINA BOREALIS, Pursch, Flor. Amer. Sept., vol. i. p. 233.—Hexanpria Monocynia, Linn. Leaves elliptico-obovate, ciliated; the scape pubescent, with a corymbose umbel. The flowers are large, and of a greenish-yellow colour; the fruit roundish, of a beautiful deep blue. It is extremely abundant in the dark woods of Maine, growing in moist places. * 116 GREAT CAROLINA WREN. ~-TROGLODYTES LUDOVICIANUS, Bonap. PLATE CXVII.—Mate anp Fematr. The flight of this bird is performed by short flappings of the wings, the concave under surfaces of which occasion a low rustling, as it moves to the distance of a few steps only at each start. It is accompanied by violent jerks of the tail and body, and is by no means graceful. In this manner the Carolina Wren moves from one fence-rail to another, from log to log, up and down among the low branches of bushes, piles of wood, and decayed roots of prostrate trees, or between the stalks of canes. Its tail is almost constantly erect, and before it starts to make the least flight or leap, it uses a quick motion, which brings its body almost into contact with the object on which it stands, and then springs from its legs. All this is accompanied with a strong chirr-up, uttered as if the bird were in an angry mood, and repeated at short intervals. The quickness of the motions of this active little bird is fully equal to that of the mouse. Like the latter, it appears and is out of sight in a moment, peeps into a crevice, passes rapidly through it, and shews itself at a different place the next instant. When satiated with food, or fatigued with these multiplied exertions, the little fellow stops, droops its tail, and sings with great energy a short ditty something resembling the words come- to-me, come-to-me, repeated several times in quick succession, so loud, and yet so mellow, that it is always agreeable to listen to them. During spring, these notes are heard from all parts of the plantations, the damp woods, the swamps, the sides of creeks and rivers, as well as from the barns, the stables and the piles of wood, within a few yards of the house. I frequently heard these Wrens singing from the roof of an abandoned flat-boat, fastened to the shore, a small distance below the city of New Orleans. When its song was finished, the bird went on creeping from one board to another, thrust itself through an auger-hole, entered through the boat’s side at one place, and peeped out at another, catching numerous spiders and other insects all the while. It sometimes ascends to the higher branches of a tree of moderate size, by climbing along a grape-vine, searching diligently amongst the leaves and in the chinks of the bark, alighting sidewise against the trunk, and moving like a true Creeper. It possesses the power of creeping and of Drawn from Natere N° 24 SA Audubon KIS VALS 1 Mile 2. Fenatle. mit VELA CYE. LAAAAS Zp AAV PAA: Zo Lith? Printed & Cot! by 3.7 Bowen. Mhikad® fds, pat “at ad ney GREAT CAROLINA WREN. f 117 hopping in a nearly equal degree. The latter kind of motion it employs when nearer the ground, and among piles of drifted timber. So fond is this bird of the immediate neighbourhood of water, that it would be next to im- possible to walk along the shore of any of the islands of the Mississippi, from the mouth of the Ohio to New Orleans, without observing several on each island. Among the many species of insects which they destroy, several are of an aquatic nature, and are procured by them whilst creeping about the masses of drifted wood. Their chirr-wp and come-to-me come-to-me seldom cease for more than fifteen or twenty minutes at a time, commencing with the first glimpse of day, and continuing sometimes after sunset. The nest of the Carolina Wren is usually placed in a hole in some low decayed tree, or in a fence-stake, sometimes even in the stable, barn, or coach-house, should it there find a place suitable for its reception. I have found some not more than two feet from the ground, in the stump of a tree that had long before been felled by the axe. The materials employed in its construction are hay, grasses, leaves, feathers, and horse-hair, or the dry fibres of the Spanish moss; the feathers, hair or moss forming the lining, the coarse materials the outer parts. When the hole is sufficiently large, the nest is not unfrequently five or six inches in depth, although only just wide enough to admit one of the birds at atime. The number of eggs is from five to eight. They are of a broad oval form, greyish-white, sprinkled with reddish-brown. Whilst at Oakley, the residence of my friend JAamus Prr- RIE, Esq. near Bayou Sara, I discovered that one of these birds was in the habit of roosting in a Wood Thrush’s nest that was placed on a low horizon- tal branch, and had been filled with leaves that had fallen during the autumn. It was in the habit of thrusting his body beneath the leaves, and I doubt not found the place very comfortable. They usually raise two, sometimes three broods in a season. The young soon come out from the nest, and in a few days after creep and hop about with as much nimbleness as the old ones. Their plumage undergoes no change, merely becoming firmer in the colouring. Many of these birds are destroyed by weasels and minxes. It is, notwith- standing, one of the most common birds which we have as residents in Loui- siana. They ascend along the shores of the Mississippi as high as the Missouri river, and along the Ohio nearly to Pittsburgh, although they do not occur in great numbers in the neighbourhood of that city. They are com- mon in Georgia, the Carolinas, Kentucky, Ohio and Indiana. A few are to be seen along the Atlantic shores as far as Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York. In New Jersey I have found its nest, near a swamp, a few miles from Philadelphia. I never observed them farther to the eastward. Wor. I 7 20 118 GREAT CAROLINA WREN. I found it very numerous in the Floridas and all along the coast of the Mexican Gulf to within the Texas, where it spends the whole year. Mr. TowNsEND mentions it as being found on the Missouri. The dwarf buck-eye, on a blossomed twig of which this pair of Great Carolina Wrens are placed, is by nature as well as name alow shrub. It grows near swampy ground in great abundance. Its flowers, which are scentless, are much resorted to by Humming-birds, on their first arrival, as they appear at a very early season. The wood resembles that of the common horse-chestnut, and its fruit is nearly the same in form and colour, but much smaller. I know of no valuable property possessed by this beau- tiful shrub. Great Carotina Wren, Certhia Caroliniana, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. ii. p. 61. TROGLODYTES LUDOVICIANUS, Bonap. Syn., p. 93. Great Carotina Mocxine Wren, Nutt. Man., vol. i. p. 429. Great Caroiina Wren, Troglodytes ludovicianus, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. i. p. 399; vol. v. p. 466. . Adult Male. Bill nearly as long as the head, subulato-conical, slightly arched, com- pressed towards the tip; upper mandible with the sides convex towards the end, concave at the base, the edges acute and overlapping; under mandible with the back and sides convex. Nostrils oblong, straight, basal, with a cartilaginous lid above, open and bare. Head oblong, neck of ordinary size, body ovate. Legs of ordinary length; tarsus longer than the middle toe, compressed, anteriorly scutate, posteriorly edged; toes, scutellate above,- inferiorly granulate; second and fourth nearly equal, the hind toe almost as long as the middle one, third and fourth united as far as the second joint; claws long, slender, acute, arcuate, much compressed. Plumage soft, lax, and tufty. Wings short, very convex, broad and rounded, the first quill very short, the fourth longest. Tail rather long, curved downwards, much rounded, of twelve narrowish, rounded feathers. Bill wood-brown above, bluish beneath. Iris hazel. Legs flesh-colour. The general colour of the upper part is brownish-red. A yellowish-white streak over the eye, extending far down the neck, and edged above with dark brown. Quills, coverts and tail barred with blackish-brown; secondary and middle coverts tipped with white; shafts of the scapulars white. Throat greyish-white, under parts reddish-buff, paler behind. Under tail-coverts white, barred with blackish. Length 5} inches, extent of wings 74; bill along the ridge #, along the gap +3; tarsus 2. Adult Female. GREAT CAROLINA WREN. 119 The female differs from the male in being lighter above, tinged with grey beneath, and in wanting the white tips of the wing-coverts. The roof of the mouth is flat, with two slight ridges on the palate, and a prominent median line anteriorly, the posterior aperture of the nares linear, 4 twelfths long, papil- late; the tongue 74 twelfths long, very slender, 14 EDI) twelfths broad at the base, where it is emarginate ry and papillate, channelled above, tapering to a rather ND) MN obtuse bristly and horny point. The width of the mouth is 4 twelfths. The esophagus, a bc, is 1 inch 9 twelfths long, 3 twelfths in width; the pro- ventriculus, 6 c, 34 twelfths. The stomach, cde, is elliptical, a little compressed, 73 twelfths long, 54 twelfths broad; its muscles moderate, the lower very thin, the tendons rather large; the epithelium tough, with large longitudinal rugs, and of a red- dish-brown colour. The contents of the stomach are insects and seeds. The intestine, e/g A, is 5 inches 9 twelfths long, its width 14 twelfths; the cloaca, 7, globular, 6 twelfths in width; the ceca, 2, 14 twelfths long, and 4 twelfth wide. The trachea is 14 inches long, considerably flat- tened, scarcely 1 twelfth broad at its widest part, and contracting to 4 twelfth; the rings 58, with 2 addi- tional dimidiate rings. The muscles as in all the singing birds, those of the inferior larynx considerably developed. Bronchial half rings about 15. There is a pretty large oblong salivary gland in the usual place, opening with a single duct into the fore part of the mouth. Tue Dwarr BucKk-EYE. fEscutus Pavia, Willd. Sp. Pl., vol. ii. p. 286. Pursch, F]. Amer., vol. ii. p. 254.— Heptanpria Monoeynia, Linn.—Acera, Juss. Leaves quinate, smooth, unequally serrated; racemes lax; generally with ternate flowers; corollas tetrapetalous, their connivent claws of the length of the calyx; stamens seyen, shorter than the corolla. The flowers are scarlet. - Din bid * 120 BEWICK’S WRENN. --TroctopyTEs Brewicxi, Aud. PLATE CXVIII.—Mate. The bird represented under the name of Bewick’s Wren I shot on the 19th October, 1821, about five miles from St. Francisville, in the State of Louisiana. It was standing as nearly as can be represented in the position in which you now see it, and upon the prostrate trunk of a tree not far from a fence. My drawing of it was made on the spot. Another individual was shot a few days after, by a young friend, JosEpH R. Mason, who accom- panied me on my rambles. In the month of November 1829, I had the pleasure of meeting with another of the same species, about fifteen miles from the place above mentioned, and as it was near the house at which I was then on a visit, I refrained from killing it, in order to observe its habits. For several days, during which I occasionally saw it, it moved along the bars of the fences, with*its tail generally erect, looking from the bar on which it stood towards the one next above, and caught spiders and other insects, as it ran along from one panel of the fence to another in quick succession, now and then uttering a low ¢éwitter, the only sound which I heard it emit. It occasionally hopped sidewise, now with its head towards me, and again in the contrary direction, at times descending to the ground, to inspect the lower bar, but only for a few moments. At other times, it would fly to a peach or apple-tree close to the fence, ascend to its top branches, always with hopping movements, and, as if about to sing, would for an instant raise its head, and lower its tail, but without giving utterance to any musical notes. It would then return to the fence, and continue its avocations as already described. I shot the bird, and have it preserved in spirits. In shape, colour and movements, it nearly resembles the Great Carolina Wren, and the House Wren. It has not, however, the quickness of motion, nor the liveliness, of either of these birds. For the following observations regarding this species I am indebted to my friend Dr. Bacuman. “In the month of July 1835, when on a visit to the mountains of Virginia, I heard at the Salt Sulphur Springs the note of a Wren that I did not recognise as that of any of our known species. On procuring the bird I ascertained it to be the Bewick’s Wren. There were a PV AGS: I oO: egy ? ON Lees Miler Lith? Printed &Col* by J.T Bowen. Philad C ° s 5 | s s 2 = a ey 5 s S S) & § iy Sa ist I Th ‘ g gS , * ‘ew je ve ef “Aq Pes ee Saye cn i y Pe whi ¢ faprdgree he BEWICK’S WREN. 121 pair, accompanied by four or five young, nearly full grown. The notes bore some resemblance to those of the Winter Wren, scarcely louder and more connected. It possessed all the restless habits of the other species, creeping actively between the rails of fences and among logs and stumps. One of them ascended an oak nearly to its top in the manner of a Creeper. I found the young several times during the morning entering a hole in the limb of a fallen tree a few feet from the ground, and conjectured that they had been bred in that situation. I was unable to see the nest. During a residence of a few weeks in the neighbourhood of the Virginia springs I saw several of these birds every day, and ascertained that this was the only species of Wren common in the mountains. The Troglodytes edon was abundant in all the low country of Virginia, to the foot of the Alleghanies. The 7. ludovicianus was sparingly seen in the valleys and along the water-courses, but the present species seemed particularly attached to the highest ridges, preferring grounds that had once been cleared, but now partially overgrown. It did not appear to be a shy bird, but, from its active restless habits, was procured with difficulty. It probably sleeps in hollows during the night, as I saw two or three issuing from the hole of a tree at day-light one morning. The stomachs of those which I examined were principally filled with small spiders, minute caterpillars, and the larve of insects. A specimen of this bird was sent me from Columbia in South Carolina, procured by Dr. Gizzs, and I have no doubt it will be found on the whole range of our southern mountains.”” Dr. TrupeEAv has sent the following note:—“The Bewick’s Wren must be common in Louisiana. I shot but one there, but I frequently found them in the vicinity of the woods, where it must breed. They are seen in the bushes and dive among them as soon as they perceive the gunner. The nest is different from that of the Carolina Wren.” My friends Mr. Nurraxy and Mr. Townsenp found this species on the Columbia river, from which country I have specimens perfectly similar to that figured in my plate. No doubt can exist that it has a wide range along the Rocky Mountains, as well as along the elevated portions of our Atlantic States. Mr. Townsenp says that it breeds on the ground. I honoured this species with the name of Brwicx, a person too well known for his admirable talents as an engraver on wood, and for his beau- tiful work on the Birds of Great Britain, to need any eulogy of mine. I enjoyed the pleasure of a personal acquaintance with him, and found him at all times a most agreeable, kind, and benevolent friend. The little twig on which the Wren is perched, is from the tree commonly called the zron-wood tree, a species of elm, the wood of which is very hard and of close texture. The branches, and sometimes the stem, are ornamented 1h = eo 2 alee 129 BEWICK’S WREN. with longitudinal expansions, resembling cork in their nature, but much harder. Bewicx’s Wren, Nutt. Man., vol. i. p. 434. Bewicx’s Wren, Troglodytes Bewickit, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. i. p. 96; vol. v. p. 467. Adult Male. Bill nearly as long as the head, subulato-conical, acute, slightly arched, compressed. Mandibles of equal breadth, with acute margins, the gap line a little arched, and slightly deflected at the base. Nostrils basal, oval, half closed by a membrane. Feet longish, proportionally rather robust; tarsus anteriorly scutellate, compressed, acute behind, longer than the middle toe; toes free, scutellate above, the lateral ones nearly equal, the posterior long; claws slender, compressed, acute, arched, that of the hind toe much larger. Plumage rather compact above, blended beneath. Wings short, very convex, rounded; first quill short, third and fourth longest. ‘Tail erect, long, of ten feathers, much rounded, the outer feather not more than half the length of the middle one, all rounded at the end. Bill blackish-brown above, pale blue beneath. Iris brown. Feet and claws pale brown. ‘The general colour of the upper parts is rusty brown, that of the lower greyish-blue. Quills and wing-coverts barred with rusty brown and black, as are the two middle tail-feathers. Outer web of the lateral tail-feather, and the terminal portion of that of the others, whitish, barred with black, their middle parts black, toward the base barred with rusty brown. A line of pale brownish-yellow extending from the upper mandible, over the eye, to half way down the neck. The rump feathers white towards their base, with central spots. A specimen in my possession measures 53%; inches in length; the bill 42. tarsus =°,; hind toe #2, its claw 2i; middle toe £3, its claw 23; wing from flexure 25; tail 22;. The first quill is 4 shorter than the fifth, which is longest, but scarcely exceeds the fourth and sixth. The lateral tail-feathers _ are >; shorter than the middle. ct te ae a wt ae Need. PY Ao —— _—_ = gee. Seis) oa heat ny é é Lobes ets - c Vie. —- Lergt— “ Vrawn irom Namre be Jl 4udebon KS + LS pie 123 WOOD WREN. ~"TRoGLODYTES AMERICANUs, Aud. PLATE CXIX.—Mates. I feel much pleasure in introducing this new species to you, a family of which were shot by my sons in a deep wood, eight or ten miles from East- port in Maine, in the summer of 1832. The young were following their parents through the dark and tangled recesses of their favourite places of abode, busily engaged in search of their insect prey; but their nest was not seen. Some weeks afterwards three adult birds of the same kind were shot near Dennisyille in the same district; and, on shewing them to my young and intelligent friend Tuomas Lincoxn, Esq. he told me that they bred in hollow logs in the woods, and seldom if ever approached the farms. He had seen the eggs, but, considering it a common species there, had made no notes of their number or colour; nor had he attended to the form or mate- rials of their nest. My drawing was made at that place. In winter, while at Charleston, South Carolina, I saw many of them: they had much the same habits as in Maine, remaining in thick hedges along ditches, in the woods, and also not far distant from plantations. I procured several through the assistance of my friend Jonn Bacuman, which now form part of my large collection of skins of our birds. The notes of this species differ considerably from those of the House Wren, to which it is nearly allied. I hope to be more familiar with the Wood Wren before my labours are completed, in which case I shall not fail to make you acquainted with the result of my observations. An egg of this bird, procured in the State of Vermont, and presented to me by Dr. T. M. Brewer of Boston, differs from those of all our other Wrens: it measures six-eighths of an inch in length, four and a half eighths in breadth; its ground-colour is dull yellowish-white, blotched all over with rather large markings of pale purplish-red, and zigzag streaks of deep blackish-brown, more numerous around the middle than at either end. Woop Ween, Troglodytes Americana, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. il. p. 452; vol. v. p. 469. Adult Male. Bill of moderate length, nearly straight, slender, acute, subtrigonal at the 124 WOOD WREN. wow base, compressed towards the tip; upper mandible with the ridge rather sharp, the sides convex towards the end, the edges acute and overlapping, the tip slightly declinate and acute; lower mandible narrow, the sides con- vex, the sharp edges inflected. WNostrils elliptical, straight, basal, with a cartilaginous lid above, open and bare. Head ovate, neck short, body rather full. Legs of ordinary length, rather large; tarsus rather long, compressed, covered anteriorly with seven scutella, sharp behind; lateral toes equal and smallest, hind toe strongest; claws rather long, slender, acute, arched, much compressed. Plumage soft, blended, slightly glossed. No bristly feathers about the base of the beak. Wings short, broad; the first quill half the length of the second, which is much shorter than the third; the fourth and fifth longest. Tail rather long, broad, graduated, of twelve rounded feathers. Bill dusky brown above, lower mandible brownish-yellow, the tip dusky. Iris hazel. Feet flesh-colour, tinged with brown. ‘The general colour of the upper parts is dark reddish-brown, duller, and tinged with grey on the head, indistinctly barred with dark brown; wings and tail undulatingly banded with dark brown, the edges of the outer primaries lighter. The under parts are pale brownish-grey, faintly barred on the fore-neck, breast, and sides, the under tail-coverts distinctly barred. Length 4%, extent of wings 635;; bill along the ridge #3, along the edge =8,; tarsus 3%. é This species is most intimately allied to the House Wren, from which it ean hardly be distinguished in description, the colours being nearly the same in both. The present species, however, is considerably larger, wants the light coloured line over the eye which is conspicuous in the House Wren, and has the tail much more graduated. Arsvurus Uva-ursi, Willd. Sp. Pl. vol. ii. p. 618.—Dercanpria Monoeynu, Linn. This small creeping plant grows in pine barrens, and in rocky and moun- tainous places in the Northern and Eastern States. The berries are scarlet, dry and unpalatable. ZA Vane | No24 ‘PL120 ego pa Boy fee /. Mate. 2 Female 3 Jiung woo Rote eZ 22 ct Flat Drawn from Nature by {J Audubon FR.S.EL.S 1th” Printed & Cel* by 3.7 Bowen #hitar 125 THE HOUSE WRENN. ~-TrocLopytTrs «pon, Vieill. PLATE CXX.—Mate, Femaur, anp Youne. From whence the House Wren comes, or to what parts it retires during winter, is more than I have been able to ascertain. Although it is extremely abundant in the States of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Virginia, and Mary- land, from the middle of April until the beginning of October, I have never been able to trace its motions, nor do I know of any naturalist in our own country, or indeed in any other, who has been more fortunate. Its flight is short, generally low, and performed by a constant tremor of the wings, without any jerks of either the body or tail, although the latter is generally seen erect, unless when the bird is singing, when it is always depressed. When passing from one place to another, during the love-season, or whilst its mate is sitting, this sweet little bird flutters still more slowly through the air, singing all the while. It is sprightly, active, vigilant, and courageous. It delights in being near and about the gardens, orchards, and the habitations of man, and is frequently found in abundance in the very centre of our eastern cities, where many little boxes are put up against the walls of houses, or the trunks of trees, for its accommodation, as is also done in the country. In these it nestles and rears its young. It is seldom, however, at a loss for a breeding place, it being satisfied with any crevice or hole in the walls, the sill of a window, the eaves, the stable, the barn, or the upper side of a piece of timber, under the roof of a piazza. Now and then, its nest may be seen in the hollow branch of an apple tree. I knew of one in the pocket of an old broken-down carriage, and many in such an old hat as you see represented in the plate, the little creatures anxiously peeping out or hanging to the side of the hat, to meet their mother, who has just arrived with a spider, whilst the male is on the lookout, ready to interpose should any intruder come near. The same nest is often resorted to for several successive years, merely receiving a little mending. The familiarity of the House Wren is extremely pleasing. In Penn- sylvania a pair of these birds had formed a nest, and the female was sitting in a hole of the wall, within a few inches of my (literally so-called) drawing- room. The male was continually singing within a few feet of my wife and myself, whilst I was engaged in portraying birds of other species. When the Vor. II. 21 126 THE HOUSE WREN. window was open, its company was extremely agreeable, as was its little song, which continually reminded us of its happy life. It would now and then dive into the garden at the foot of the window, procure food for its mate, return and creep into the hole where it had its nest, and be off again in a moment. Having procured some flies and spiders, | now and then threw some of them towards him, when he would seize them with great alacrity, eat some himself, and carry the rest to his mate. In this manner, it became daily more acquainted with us, entered the room, and once or twice sang whilst there. One morning I took it in to draw its portrait, and suddenly closing the window, easily caught it, held it in my hand, and finished its likeness, after which I restored it to liberty. This, however, made it more cautious, and it never again ventured within the window, although it sang and looked at us as at first. The antipathy which the House Wren shews to cats is extreme. Although it does not attack puss, it follows and scolds her until she is out of sight. In the same manner, it makes war on the Martin, the Blue Bird and the House Swallow, the nest of any of which it does not scruple to appropriate to itself, whenever occasion offers. Its own nest is formed of dry crooked twigs, so interwoven as scarcely to admit entrance to any other bird. Within this outer frame-work grasses are arranged in a circular manner, and the whole is warmly lined with feathers and other equally soft materials. The eggs are five or six, of a regularly oval form, and uniform pale reddish colour. ‘Two broods are raised in the season. The male seems to delight in attempting to surpass in vocal powers others of his species, during the time of incubation; and is frequently seen within sight of another, straining his little throat, and gently turning his body from side to side, as if pivoted on the upper joints of his legs. T'or a moment he conceives the musical powers of his rival superior to his own, and darts towards him, when a battle ensues, which over, he immediately resumes his song, whether he has been the conqueror or not. When the young issue from the nest, it is interesting to see them follow the parents amongst the currant bushes in the gardens, like so many mice, hopping from twig to twig, throwing their tail upwards, and putting their bodies into a hundred different positions, all studied from the parents, whilst the latter are heard scolding, even without cause, but as if to prevent the approach of enemies, so anxious are they for the safety of their progeny. They leave Pennsylvania about the 1st of October. . This species is not found farther eastward along our Atlantic shores than the province of Nova Scotia, where it is not very common, and I suspect that the specimen of a Troglodytes procured by Mr. Drummonp at the foot of the Rocky Mountains, and described in the Fauna Boreali-Americana, THE HOUSE WREN. 127 was the Wood Wren, 7. mericanus, it being found from Maine to the Rocky Mountains, as well as on the Columbia river, from which specimens have been brought by Mr. Townsenp. »The House Wren, if I am not greatly mistaken, passes southward of the United States, to spend the winter. The other spends that season within our limits. Dr. Bacuman informs me that a bird resembling the Wood Wren, as well as the House Wren, so closely that he could never distinguish it from either species, spends its winters in great numbers in South Carolina. Dr. BREwER has favoured me with the following notice respecting the House Wren. “This bird never constructs with us a distinct nest, but always conceals it in olive-jars, boxes, and such things, placed for its convenience around the houses, or in the hollow of trees. Whenever the places in which they build are larger than necessary, they usually endeavour to fill up the vacant parts with additional materials. I have by me a nest built two years since in the clothes-line box of Professor Warr of Cambridge, which is in size con- siderably more than a foot square; and it must have cost its tiny architect many days of hard labour to have arranged there such a mass of various materials. The variety and size of some of those of which it is composed is truly surprising. Among them are the exuvia of a snake several feet in length, large twigs, pieces of India-rubber suspenders (which, by the way, are old acquaintances) oak-leaves, feathers, pieces of shavings, hair, hay, &c. It contained six eggs, which evidently were suffered to become stale in con- sequence of the anxiety of the bird to fill up the empty space.’? The eggs measure five-eighths of an inch in length, and four and a half eighths in breadth. House Wren, Sylvia domestica, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. i. p. 129. TROGLODYTES ZDON, Bonap. Syn., p. 92. House Wren, Nutt. Man., vol. i. p. 422, TrocLopytes =pon, House Wren, Swains. & Rich. F. Bor. Amer., vol. ii. p. 316. House Wren, Troglodytes edon, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. i. p. 427; vol. v. p. 470. Adult Male. Bill of ordinary length, nearly straight, slender, acute, subtrigonal at the base, compressed towards the tip; upper mandible with the ridge obtuse, the sides convex towards the end, concave at the base, the edges acute and over- lapping; under mandible with the back and sides convex. WNostrils oblong, straight, basal, with a cartilaginous lid above, open and bare. Head ovate, eyes of moderate size, neck of ordinary length, body ovate, nearly equal in breadth and depth. Legs of ordinary length; tarsus longer than the middle toe, compressed, covered anteriorly with six scutella, posteriorly with a long plate forming an acute angle. Toes scutellate above, inferiorly granulate, 128 WINTER WREN. second and fourth nearly equal, the hind toe almost equal to the middle one, third and fourth united as far as the second joint; claws long, slender, acute, arcuate, much compressed. : Plumage soft, tufty, slightly glossed. No bristly feathers about the beak. Wings shortish, broad, rounded: first quill half the length of the second, which is very little shorter than the third and fourth. Tail of ordinary length, of twelve narrow, lax feathers. Bill dark brown above, yellowish-brown beneath. Iris hazel. Feet flesh- colour. The general colour of the upper parts is reddish-brown, darker on the head, brighter on the tail-coverts, indistinctly barred with dark brown; wings and tail undulatingly banded, tips of the larger wing-coverts whitish. A yellowish-grey line from the upper mandible over the eye; cheeks of the same colour, mottled with brownish-red. Under parts brownish-grey; sides barred with brown, as are the under tail-coverts. Length 4} inches, extent of wings 54; bill along the ridge J, along the gap 2; tarsus 2, middle toe 75. Adult Female. The female scarcely differs from the male in external appearance. Young Birds. The young are of a lighter brown, more indistinctly barred, but resemble the old birds in the general distribution of their colouring. This species differs from the Winter Wren chiefly in having the bill a little stouter, the tail considerably longer, and the under parts less distinctly barred. WINTER WREN. +-TrocLopyTes nyemauis, Vieill. PLATE CXXI.—Mate, Femaue, anp Youne. The extent of the migratory movements of this diminutive bird, is certainly the most remarkable fact connected with its history. At the approach of winter it leaves its northern retreats, perhaps in Labrador or Newfoundland, crosses the inlets of the Gulf of St. Lawrence on tiny con- cave wings, and betakes itself to warmer regions, where it remains until the N°25. Mode presen Drawn from Mature | SY Bowen. Phikad* ean He eo sis iiiminallae St Aaa inant 9. ko yycin 2 Sag Aig DNs a the f ¢ a Sena MTD i at eee muigees Gi ype ha ‘ . = > . ; * dl repaed ee sit A ‘ > 2 4 i t , if 4 é bg 4 « " ¥ ve ‘ is 14 ae | [ , ; 4 : “¥ "i 9 i ~ ; : ue my ; Se Am a ~, * v “ty “ u — Le z MD] yh at Se hay ‘pias SIA Ko PRA > = ' eR a I ee eh nieaberata ai lara NE eet bah dhe ae oo eee we Tee teed in PL: oo) aie aber Tanne gil Mietia 6 ee Cm ase eee Mee es aaah ve | ins WINTER WREN. 129 ww beginning of spring. Playfully and with alacrity it performs the task, hopping from one stump or fallen log to another, flitting from twig to twig, from bush to bush, here and there flying a few yards; feeding, singing, and bustling on, as if quite careless as to time or distance. It has reached the shore of some broad stream, and here a person ignorant of its habits might suppose it would be stopped; but no, it spreads its wings, and glides over like a meteor. I have found the Winter Wren in the lower parts of Louisiana, and in the Floridas, in December and January, but never saw one there after the end of the latter month. Their stay in those parts rarely exceeds three months; two more are employed in forming a nest and rearing their broods; and as they leave Labrador by the middle of August at the latest, they probably spend more than half of the year in travelling. It would be interesting to know whether those which breed along the Columbia river, near the Pacific Ocean, visit the shores of our Atlantic States. My friend Tuomas NurraLy informs me that he occasionally saw the Winter Wren feeding its young in the woods, along the north-west coast. At Eastport, in Maine, when on my way to Labrador, I found this species in full song, and extremely abundant, although the air was chill, and icicles hung from every rock, it being then the 9th of May. On the 11th of June, I found it equally plentiful in the Magdeleine Islands, and wondered how it could have made its way there, but was assured by the inhabitants that none were ever seen in winter. On the 20th of July, I met with it at Labrador, and again asked myself, how it could possibly have reached those remote and rugged shores? Was it by following the course of the St. Lawrence, or by flying from one island to another across the Gulf? I have seen it in almost every State of the Union, but only twice found it breeding there, once near the Mohawk river in New York, and again in the Great Pine Swamp in Pennsylvania. It breeds abundantly in Maine, and probably in Massachu- setts, but few spend the winter even in the latter State. The song of the Winter Wren excels that of any other bird of its size with which I am acquainted. It is truly musical, full of cadence, energetic, and melodious; its very continuance is surprising, and dull indeed must be the ear that thrills not on hearing it. When emitted, as it often is, from the dark depths of the unwholesome swamp, it operates so powerfully on the mind, that it by contrast inspires a feeling of wonder and delight, and on such occasions has usually impressed me with a sense of the goodness of the Almighty Creator, who has rendered every spot of earth in some way sub- servient to the welfare of his creatures. Once when travelling through a portion of the most gloomy part of a thick and tangled wood, in the Great Pine Forest, not far from Mauch Chunk Vor. II. 22 130 WINTER WREN. in Pennsylvania, at a time when I was intent on guarding myself against the venomous reptiles which I expected to encounter, the sweet song of this Wren came suddenly on my ear, and with so cheering an effect, that I instantly lost all apprehension of danger, and pressed forward through the rank briars and stiff laurels, in pursuit of the bird, which I hoped was not far from its nest. But he, as if bent on puzzling me, rambled here and there among the thickest bushes with uncommon cunning, now singing in one spot not far distant, and presently in another in a different direction. After much exertion and considerable fatigue, I at last saw it alight on the side of a large tree, close to the roots, and heard it warble a few notes, which I thought exceeded any it had previously uttered. Suddenly another Wren appeared by its side, but darted off in a moment, and the bird itself which I had followed disappeared. I soon reached the spot, without having for an instant removed my eyes from it, and observed a protuberance covered with moss and lichens, resembling those excrescences which are often seen on our forest trees, with this difference, that the aperture was perfectly rounded, clean, and quite smooth. I put a finger into it, and felt the pecking of a bird’s bill, while a querulous cry was emitted. Ina word, I had, the first time in my life, found the nest of our Winter Wren. Having gently forced the tenant from his premises, I drew out the eggs with a sort of scoop which I formed. I expected to find them numerous, but there were not more than six, and the same number I afterwards found in the only other nest of this species ever discovered by me. The little bird called upon its mate, and their united clamour induced me to determine upon leaving their treasures with them; but just as I was about going off, it struck me that I ought to take a description of the nest, as I might not again have such an opportunity. I hope, reader, you will believe, that when I resolved to sacrifice this nest, it was quite as much on your account as my own. Externally it measured seven inches in length, four and a half in breadth; the thickness of its walls, composed of moss and lichen, was nearly two inches; and thus it presented internally the appearance of a narrow bag, the wall, however, being reduced to a few. lines where it was in contact with the bark of the tree. The lower half of the cavity was compactly lined with the fur of the American Hare, and in the bottom or bed of the nest there lay over this about half a dozen of the large downy abdominal feathers of our Common Grouse, Tetrao Umbellus. The eggs were of a delicate blush-colour, somewhat resembling the paler leaves of a partially decayed rose, and marked with dots of reddish- brown, more numerous towards the larger end. The nest which I found near the Mohawk was discovered by mere acci- dent. One day in the beginning of June, and about noon, feeling fatigued, I sat down on a rock overhanging the water, where, while resting, I might WINTER WREN. 131 have the pleasure of watching the motions of some fishes in sight. The damp of the place produced a sudden chillness, and caused me to sneeze aloud, when from beneath my feet there flew off a Winter Wren. The nest, which I soon found, was attached to the lower parts of the rock, and pre- sented the same form and structure as that already described; but it was smaller, the eggs, six in number, contained young far advanced. The motions of this interesting bird are performed with great rapidity and decision. While searching for food it hops, creeps, and leaps about from one spot to another, as if it derived pleasure from exercise. At each movement it bends its breast downward, so as almost to touch the object on which it stands, and by a sudden extension of its strong feet, aided by the action of its half drooping concave wings, jerks itself forward, keeping its tail elevated all the while. Now through a hollow log it passes like a mouse, now it clings to the surface in various attitudes, suddenly disappears, but presently shews itself by your side; at times it chirrups in a querulous rolling tone, then emits single clear sharp chirps resembling the syllables ¢shick, tshick, and again remains silent for a time. It will now and then reach the upper branches of a small tree or a bush, by hopping and leaping from twig to twig; in the course of this transit it will present its opposite sides to you a score of times; and when at length it has gained the summit, it will salute you with its delicate melody, and then dash headlong and be out of sight in a moment. This is almost constantly observed during the spring season, when more than ever its alertness is displayed. On all such occasions, how- ever, whilst in the act of singing, its tail is seen to be depressed. In winter, when it takes possession of the wood-pile, close to the husbandman’s dwell- ing, it will challenge the cat in querulous tones, and peeping out here and there, as it frisks in security, wear out Grimalkin’s patience. The food of the Winter Wren consists chiefly of spiders, caterpillars, and small moths, as well as larve. Towards autumn it eats small juicy berries. Having lately spent a winter at Charleston, in South Carolina, with my worthy friend Jonn Bacuman, I observed that this little Wren made its: appearance in that city and its suburbs in December. On the Ist of January I heard it in full song in the garden of my friend, who informed me that in that State it does not appear regularly every winter, but is sure to be found during very cold weather. The Winter Wren so closely resembles. the European Wren, that I was long persuaded of their identity; but a careful comparison of a great number of specimens, has convinced me that permanent differences in colouring may be pointed out, although still I am not by any means persuaded that they are specifically different. 132 WINTER WREN. Winter Wren, Sylvia Troglodytes, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. i. p. 139. TROGLODYTES EUROP EUS, Bonap. Syn., p. 93. TROGLODY'TES HYEMALIS, Winter Wren, Swains. & Rich. F. Bor. Amer., vol. ii. p. 318. Winter Ween, Troglodytes hyemalis, Nutt. Man., vol. i. p. 427. Winter Wren, Jroglodytes hyemalis, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. iv. p. 430. Adult Male. Bill rather long, slender, tapering, acute, nearly straight, subtrigonal at the base, compressed towards the end. Upper mandible with the dorsal out- line slightly arched, the ridge narrow, the sides sloping at the base, towards the end slightly convex and erect, the edges sharp, direct, without note; lower mandible with the angle narrow and rather acute, the dorsal outline straight, the back narrow, the edges sharp and inflected, the tip very narrow; the gape-line very slightly arched. Nostrils linear-oblong, basal. Head ovate, of moderate size, neck short; body ovate. Feet of ordinary length; tarsus compressed, with seven anterior scutella, of which the upper are indistinct; toes rather large, compressed; first large, and much longer than the two lateral, which are equal, the third much longer; the third and fourth coherent as far as the second joint of the latter. Claws long, arched, extremely compressed, laterally grooved, acute. Plumage soft and blended; no bristle-feathers at the base of the bill. Wing shortish, broad, much rounded; first quill very small, being little more than half the length of the second, which is 24 twelfths shorter than the third; the fourth longest, and exceeding the third by half a twelfth, and the fourth by somewhat less; secondaries long, rounded. ‘Tail short, much rounded, of twelve slightly arched, weak rounded feathers. Bill dusky brown, with the basal edges of the upper and two-thirds of the lower mandible paler. Iris brown. ‘Tarsi and toes pale greenish-brown, as are the claws. The general colour of the upper parts is reddish-brown, darker on the head, brighter on the tail-coverts, quills, and tail. There isa white spot near the tips of the posterior dorsal feathers. The secondary coverts, and the first small coverts, have each a white spot at the tip. The- Wing-coverts and quills banded with blackish-brown and brownish-red, the bands of the latter colour becoming reddish-white on the outer five quills. Tail with twelve dusky-bands. The dorsal feathers and scapulars are more faintly barred in the same manner. A brownish-white band from the upper mandible over the eye; the cheeks brown, spotted with brownish-white, the margins of the feathers being of the former colour; the lower parts pale reddish-brown, the sides and abdomen barred with brownish-black and grey- ish-white; the fore neck and breast more faintly barred; the lower wing- coverts and axillars greyish-white, barred with dusky; the lower tail-coverts brownish-red, barred with dusky and haying the tip white. N° 25 Piee Cc LIRICA dD YKECR . Mate = oGerid Livarecata Brawn irom Nature by JJ Audubon FHS FILS Luh? Printed & Col* by J.T Bowen. Philad® PARKMAN’S WREN. 133 Length to end of tail 33 inches, to end of wings 34, to end of claws 43; extent of wings 61; wing from flexure 14; tail 14; bill along the ridge 3%; tarsus =; hind toe ;4, its claw 34; middle toe 4%, its claw ?/. Weight 6 dr. Female. : The female is somewhat smaller than the male. Length to end of tail 33 inches, to end of wings 3, to end of claws 43; extent of wings 53; wing from flexure 14; tail 174. Weight 4 dr. Young in autumn. The upper parts are much darker than in the adult; the lower parts of a deeper tint. Length to end of tail 3} inches, to end of wings 3}, to end of claws 43; extent of wings 53; wing from flexure 14%. The young bird just ready to fly, has the bill bright yellow, excepting the ridge of the upper mandible, which is brown; the feet yellowish-brown. The upper parts are reddish-brown, faintly barred with dusky; the wings as in the adult, but the secondary coverts with only a very small dull white spot at the tip, and the first row of coverts with a line of the same colour along the shaft. The lower parts are dull greyish-brown, with the terminal margin of each feather darker, and the sides and hind parts barred with dusky. PARKMAN’S WREN. ~+Troctopytes Parkmani, Aud. PLATE CXXII.—Mate. A single specimen of this Wren which differs considerably from T'rog/o- dytes hyemalis and T. europeus, has been sent to me by Mr. Townsenp, who procured it on the Columbia river, along with several others, all exactly similar. The principal difference is in the bill, which is much longer, stouter, and decidedly arched. The wings also are considerably longer, as is the tail in a still greater degree. The plumage is similar, and presents nearly the same markings, but the colours are much paler, and the lower parts nearly greyish-white. This, however, may be merely the effect of the weather. This species may be briefly characterized as follows: Vox. IF 23 134 PARKMAN’S WREN. T. Parkmanii. The bill much longer, stouter, and more curved than that of Z. hyemalis; the upper parts reddish-brown, faintly barred with dusky, the lower parts dull brownish-white; the sides barred with brownish- black and greyish-white, the foreneck and breast with scarcely any mark- ings, the lower wing-coverts and axillars greyish-white, obscurely barred with dusky; the tail half an inch longer than that of the common species, and more rounded. Bill rather long, slender, tapering; as broad as high at the base, slightly arched, compressed toward the end. Upper mandible with the dorsal out- line slightly arched, the ridge narrow, the sides sloping at the base, toward the end slightly convex and erect, the edges sharp, direct, without notch; lower mandible with the angle narrow and rather acute, the dorsal outline decurved in an almost imperceptible degree, the back narrow, the edges sharp and inflected, the tip very narrow; the gape-line sighily arched, Nostrils oblong, basal, operculate. Head ovate, of moderate size; neck short. Feet of ordinary length; tarsus compressed, with seven anterior scutella, all of which are very distinct; toes rather large, compressed; first large, and much longer than the two lateral, of which the inner is a little shorter; the third and fourth coherent as far as the second joint of the latter. Claws long, arched, extremely compressed, laterally grooved, acute. Plumage soft and blended; no bristle-feathers at the base of the bill. Wing of moderate length, broad, much rounded; the first quill very small, being only half the length of the second, which is three and a half twelfths shorter than the third; the fourth longest, and exceeding the third by halfa twelfth, and the fourth by scarcely a quarter of a twelfth; secondaries long and rounded. ‘Tail rather long, much rounded, the lateral feathers being nearly half an inch shorter than the middle. Bill dusky brown, with the basal edges of the upper and two-thirds of the lower mandible pale. Tarsi greyish-yellow; toes and claws light brownish. The general colour of the upper parts is reddish-brown, tinged with grey. There is a white spot near the tips of the posterior dorsal feathers. The secondary coverts, and the first small coverts, have each a white spot at the tip. The wing-coverts and quills are banded with blackish-brown and dull brownish-red, the bands of the latter colour paler on the outer quills; the inner webs and tips of all the quills plain brown, as in the other species. All the upper parts are more faintly barred in the same manner. On the tail are twelve dusky bars, as in 7. hyemalis. A dull whitish band from the upper mandible over the eye; the cheeks whitish, with the basil margins of the feathers brown; the lower parts are dull brownish-white, tinged with grey, the sides brownish, barred with dusky; the fore neck and breast with faint Piao. ey page ae Tie a << lad* MARSH WREN. 135 indications of bars; the lower wing-coverts and axillaries greyish-white, some of the former with dusky markings; the lower tail-coverts brownish-white, barred with dusky. Length to end of tail 4; inches, to end of wings 374; bill along the ridge 3; Wing from flexure 24; tail 143; tarsus 7%; hind toe #%, its claw 45 middle toe -8,, its claw 23. Feeling perfectly confident that this species is distinct from any other, and not finding it anywhere described, I have named it after my most kind, generous, and highly talented friend Gzorecr Parkman, Esq., M. D., of Boston, as an indication of the esteem in which I hold him, and of the gratitude which I ever cherish towards him. Parkman’s Wren, Tvroglcdytes Parkmanii, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. v. p. 310. Nuttall, Man., vol. i. p. 483. (Second Edition.) MARSH WRENN. —+TrocGLopyres PaLustris, Wils. PLATE CXXIII.—Mate, Femaue, anp Nest. The haunts of this interesting little bird are, in the Middle Districts, the margins of rivers at their confluence with the sea, and the adjoining marshes of our Atlantic shores. In such places, the Marsh Wren is found in great numbers, from the beginning of April to the middle of October, when it re- tires southward, many individuals wintering on the south-western shores of the Floridas, and along the mouths of the Mississippi. It is a homely little bird, and is seldom noticed, unless by the naturalist, when searching for other species, or by children, who in all countries are fond of birds. It lives entirely amongst the sedges, flags, and other rank plants that cover the margins of the rivers, and the inlets of the sea. Its flight is very low and short, and is performed by a continued flirting of the wings, but without the motions of the tail employed by the Great Carolina Wren. Its song, if song I can call it, is composed of several quickly repeated notes, resembling the grating of a rusty hinge, and is uttered almost con- tinuously during the fore part of the day, the performer standing perched on 136 MARSH WREN. the top of a tall weed, from which, on the appearance of an intruder, it instantly dives into the thickest part of the herbage, but to which it returns the moment it thinks the danger over, and renews its merry little song. The males are extremely pugnacious, and chase each other with great animosity, until one or other has been forced to give way. This disposition is the more remarkable, as these birds build their nests quite close to each other. I have seen several dozen of these nests in the course of a morning ramble, in a piece of marsh not exceeding forty or fifty acres. The nest is nearly of the size and shape of a cocoa-nut, and is formed of dried grasses, entwined in a circular manner, so as to include in its mass several of the stems and leaves of the sedges or other plants, among which it is placed. A small aperture, just large enough to admit the birds, is left, generally on the south-west side of the nest. The interior is composed of small dry grasses, and is nearly of the depth and width of a common bottle. The eggs, which are from six to eight, are of a regular oval form, and deep chocolate colour, and, from their small size, resemble so many beads. The Marsh Wren raises too broods in the season, and on each occasion forms a new nest. In consequence of this practice, the deserted nests of the year, and those remaining since the preceding season, may be seen in the marshes in every direction, there being scarcely a tuft of tall weeds that is not adorned with one of them. The food of the Marsh Wren principally consists of minute aquatic insects, and equally diminutive mollusca, which it procures by moving along the blades of the grasses, or the twigs of other plants, which it does with great activity. Indeed, so rapid are its movements among the weeds, that one might easily mistake it for a mouse, did he not observe its tail now and then raised over its back, so as to allow the white under-coverts of the former to become conspicuous. Although I have shot and examined many birds of this species, I have not found any remarkable differences in the plumage of the sexes. The young birds assume their full colouring so soon after they leave their nest, that by the time the species departs from the Middle Districts on its way southward, it is hardly possible to distinguish them from the old birds. A nest of this bird with eggs was seen in the salt marshes of Barnstable by Dr. Srorrer of Boston. At the south-west pass of the Mississippi, I found it very abundant, in full song, and breeding, on the 1st of April, 1837. At the latter place this species sings during the whole of the night. Marsa Ween, Troglodytes palustris, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. iii. p. 58. TROGLODYTES PALUSTRIS, Bonap. Syn., p. 93. Marsa Wren, 7'roglodytes palustris, Nutt. Man., vol. i. p. 439. MARSH WREN. 137 TRoGLopyTEs PALusTRIS, Marsh Wren, Swains. & Rich. F. Bor. Amer., vol. ii. p. 319. Marsa Wren, Jroglodytes palustris, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. i. p. 500; vol. v. p. 467. Adult Male. Bill longish, slightly arched, slender, acute, subtrigonal at the base, com- pressed towards the tip; upper mandible with the ridge obtuse, the sides convex towards the end, concave at the base, the edges acute and overlap- ping; under mandible with the sides and back convex. Nostrils oblong, direct, basal, with a cartilaginous lid above, open and bare. Head ovate, eyes rather large, neck of ordinary length, body short and full. Legs of ordinary length; tarsus longer than the middle toe, compressed, covered anteriorly with six scutella, posteriorly with a long plate, forming an acute edge; toes scutellate above, the second and fourth nearly equal, the hind toe almost equal to the middle one, the third and fourth united as far as the second joint; claws rather long, slender, acute, arched, much compressed. Plumage soft, tufty, slightly glossed. No bristly feathers about the bill. Wings short, broad, rounded: first quill half the length of the second, which is very little shorter than the third and fourth. Tail of ordinary length, much rounded, of twelve rounded feathers. Bill dark brown above, yellow beneath. Iris hazel. Feet light brown. The general colour of the upper parts is dark brown, the sides of the head deeper, the fore part of the back brownish-black, longitudinally streaked with white, the quills externally margined with lighter brown, the tail barred with dark brown. A white line over the eye, extending down the neck; the sides of the latter mottled with light brown and grey; the under parts of a silvery greyish-white; the abdominal feathers and under tail- coverts tipped with brown. Length 5 inches, extent of wings 64; bill along the ridge nearly 74, along the gap #; tarsus 3, middle toe nearly 2. Adult Female. The female differs very little in external appearance from the male. The black of the back is less deep, and the white lines are less conspicuous; the under parts, also, are of a duller white. 138 SHORT-BILLED MARSH WREN.. + 'TROGLODYTES BREVIROSTRIS, NVutt. PLATE CXXIV.—Matr, Femate, anp Nest. I hope, kind reader, you will approve of the liberty which I have taken in prefixing the name of my friend Nurraxt to the present species, which was discovered by his indefatigable and enthusiastic devotion to science, in a country where Witson, Bonaparte, BacuMAN, PickERiInG, Cooper, SAY, and others had already exerted themselves to the utmost in their endeavours to complete its diversified and interesting Fauna. I hope, too, that you will allow me to present you with the history of this sweet little inhabitant of our freshwater marshes, as given by him. “This amusing and not unmusical little species inhabits the lowest marshy meadows, but does not frequent the reed flats. It never visits cultivated grounds, and is at all times shy, timid, and suspicious. It arrives in this part of Massachusetts about the close of the first week in May, and retires to the south by the middle of September at farthest, probably by night, as it is never seen in progress, so that its northern residence is only prolonged about four months. “Its presence is announced by its lively and quaint song of ¢sh, tship, a diy, dy, diy, déy, delivered in haste and earnest at short intervals, either when he is mounted on a tuft of sedge, or while perched on some low bush near the skirt of the marsh. The ¢sh, ¢ship, is uttered with a strong aspira- tion, and the remainder with a guttural echo. While thus engaged, his head and tail are alternately depressed and elevated, as if the little odd performer were fixed on a pivot. Sometimes the note varies to tschip, tschip, tshia, dh, dh, dh, dh, the latter part being a pleasant trill. “When approached too closely, which not often happened, as he permitted me to come within two or three feet of his station, his song becomes harsh and more hurried, like tship, da, da, dd, and de, de, de, de, d, d, dh, or tshe, de, de, de, de, rising into an angry petulant cry, which is also sometimes a low hoarse and scolding daigh, daigh. Then again on invading the nest, the sound sinks to a plaintive ¢sh, tship, tsh, tship. In the early part of the breeding season, the male is very lively and musical, and in his best humour he tunes up a éship, tship, tship, d dee, with a pleasantly warbled and reiterated de. Ata later period, another male uttered little else than a Pl 124. ORO AIO IPE RI bos WY; V/ Silage ih gl ey CMMMALYE po Yi) 1 Wnle 2. henile pnd > YZ Lith? Printed& Col hy J.T) Bowen. Philad! SHORT-BILLED MARSH WREN. 139 hoarse and guttural daigh; hardly louder than the croaking of a frog. When approached, they repeatedly descend into the grass, where they spend much of their time, in quest of insects, chiefly crustaceous, which, with moths, constitute their principal food. Here unseen they still sedulously utter their quaint warbling; and éship, tship, a day, day, day, day, may, for about a month from their arrival, be heard pleasantly echoing on a fine morning, from the borders of every low marsh and wet meadow, provided with tussocks of sedge grass, in which they indispensably dwell, for a time engaged in the cares and gratification of raising and providing for their young. “The nest of the Short-billed Marsh Wren is made wholly of dry or partly ereen sedge, bent usually from the top of the grassy tuft in which the fabric is situated. With much ingenuity and labour these simple materials are loosely entwined together into a spherical form, with a small and rather obscure entrance left on the side. A thin lining is sometimes added to the whole, of the linty fibres of the silk-weed, or some other similar material. The eggs, pure white, and destitute of spots, are probably from six to eight. In a nest containing seven eggs, there were three of them larger than the rest, and perfectly fresh, while the four smaller were far advanced towards hatching. From this circumstance we may fairly infer that two different individuals had laid in the same nest, a circumstance more common among wild birds than is generally imagined. This is also the more remarkable, as the male of this species, like many other Wrens, is much employed in making nests, of which not more than one in three or four are ever occupied by the females! “The summer limits of this species, confounded with the ordinary Marsh Wren, are yet unascertained; and it is singular to remark how near it approaches to another species inhabiting the temperate parts of the southern hemisphere in America, namely the Sylvia platensis, figured and indicated by Burron. The description, however, of this bird, obtained by Commer- son, on the banks of La Plata, is too imperfect for certainty. It was found probably in a marshy situation, as it entered the boat in which he was sailing. The time of arrival and departure of this species, agreeing exactly with the appearance of the Marsh Wren of Witson, inclines me to believe that it also exists in Pennsylvania.”’ While in New Jersey, in the summer of 1832, after I had become acquainted with this species through Nurratz, I spent several days in searching the freshwater marshes, often waist-deep in mud, in the hopes of procuring it; but my efforts, as well as those of my friend Kpwarp Harris, Esq. and my sons, were unsuccessful. It is very abundant in South Caro- lina, where the Rey. Joun Bacumay, myself, and others, have often seen it. Nay, I am of opinion that it spends the winter there, as well as in the NN ee 7 140 SHORT-BILLED MARSH WREN. Floridas, as I shot several individuals in February 1833, nine miles from Charleston, at a distance from any river, and on high, usually dry plains, at that season partially covered with water. They did not rise until we had almost walked upon them, and could be shot only on wing, as they flew directly off at the height of a few inches above the grass, and alighted on the first bunch as abruptly as if they had been shot. They then emitted a single rough grating note, quite distinct from that of any other Wren. About this time I received from Nurraxu a letter, which completes the history of this diminutive species. “¢Concerning the Short-billed Marsh Wren of which you inquired, I have but little to add to what I have already published; but it is for you to fill up the history of its summer migrations. Did you find it in Maine or Labrador? This season they have been more than usually abundant. Last year (1832). I saw extremely few, and believe many were famished, or some way destroyed by the long continuance of our spring rains. This year (1833) also, several pairs of Marsh Wrens have been seen occupied in making their nests in the reeds, on the margin of Fresh Pond, in our vicinity. ‘These nests are suspended; those of the short-billed species always repose directly on the surface of the sedgy tussock of which they are made. The young are easily approached, appearing, by the placid innocence of their manner, as if wholly unconscious of danger. Coleopterous insects are the principal food of the species. I heard once or twice this season, the anxious guttural bubbling sound attributed to the Marsh Wren, mentioned by Wixson. The Short- billed species and the Common, now near the time of their departure for the south, frequents the reeds by Fresh Pond, in little roving companies.— Cambridge, September 12, 1833.” I found this small species very abundant in the Texas, where it breeds in such situations as are usually selected by it elsewhere. When within a few feet of them, I observed that whilst the males are singing, the tail is allowed to hang loosely. JI mention this because the bird has been represented as elevating its tail while so engaged. Dr. TrupEAv informs me that he found its nest in the Delaware marshes, and saw both the male and the female near it, but could not procure them, being at the time without a gun. The eggs- were four. Swort-BiLLED Marsu Wren, Tvoglodytes brevirostris, Nutt. Man., vol. i. p. 436. Norrauv’s SHorvr-Bittep Marsu Wren, J'roglodytes brevirostris, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. ii. p. 427; vol. v. p. 469. Adult Male. Bill of moderate length, slender, nearly straight, acute, subtrigonal at the SHORT-BILLED MARSH WREN. 141 base, compressed towards the end; upper mandible with the dorsal outline slightly arched, the sides convex towards the end, the edges sharp, the tip narrow but rather obtuse; lower mandible also much compressed, with the dorsal line straight, the sides nearly erect and slightly rounded, the sharp edges inflected. Nostrils basal, lateral, oblong, with an arched membrane above, open and bare. Head rather compressed, neck and body short. Legs of ordinary length; tarsus compressed, anteriorly covered with six scutella, posteriorly with a long plate forming a sharp edge; toes scutellate above, the second and fourth nearly equal, the hind toe much stronger, with a much larger claw, the third and fourth united as far as the second joint; claws arched, much compressed, acute. Plumage soft and blended. No bristly feathers about the bill. Wings short, broad, rounded, first quill about half the length of the second, which is considerably shorter than the third, fourth, and fifth, which are nearly equal, the fourth, however, being the longest. ‘Tail of ordinary length, graduated, of twelve narrow rounded feathers. Bill dusky above, pale brownish-yellow beneath. Iris dark hazel. Feet pale flesh-colour. The upper parts are blackish-brown, each feather with a brownish-white line along the shaft, and the outer edge towards the end reddish-brown. Wings dusky, the outer edges barred with pale yellowish- brown on the outer webs. Upper tail-coverts and tail similarly barred. Throat and central part of the breast greyish-white, the rest of the lower parts pale reddish-brown, the sides under the wings faintly barred with dusky. Length 42 inches, extent of wings 5; bill along the ridge #%, along the edge +8; tarsus 22. Adult Female. The female resembles the male, and the young birds are distinguishable only by having the bill shorter, and the lower parts more tinged with red. The Common Marsh Wren (Plate 123) is very closely allied to the present species, and the two form part of a group which ViniLLor dis- tinguishes by the name of Thyrothorus. Vot. II. 24 LF eae 142 FAMILY X. PARINA. TITS. Bill very short or of moderate length, straight, strong, compressed, rather sharp; both mandibles with the dorsal line sloping and slightly convex, the sides convex, the edges sharp; notches obsolete. Nostrils basal, roundish, concealed by the feathers. Head rather large, roundish; neck short; body short, and rather full. Feet of moderate length, rather stout; tarsus rather short, compressed, with eight distinct scutella; toes large, the three anterior united as far as the second joint, the hind toe much stronger and flattened beneath; claws rather long, stout, arched, much compressed, acute. Plumage very soft, blended, and full. eathers at the base of the bill directed for- wards. Wings of moderate length, much rounded, with the first quill very small, the fourth and fifth longest. Tail rather long, slerider, of twelve narrow rounded feathers. Tongue emarginate and papillate at the base, abrupt at the tip, with four bristles. Csophagus narrow, without dilatation; proventriculus oblong; stomach a rather strong oblong gizzard, with the muscles distinct, the epithelium dense, thin, longitudinally rugous; intestine short, of moderate width; cceca very small; cloaca oblong. ‘Trachea simple, with four pairs of inferior laryngeal muscles. Genus I.—PARUS, Linn. TIT. Bill short, stout; upper mandible with the dorsal line slightly decurved toward the end, the edges overlapping, with a slight lobe or festoon near the base, destitute of notch, rather acute; lower mandible with the dorsal outline slightly convex, the edges direct, the tip rather acute. Nostrils roundish, covered by bristly feathers. Head rather large, roundish; neck short. Feet proportionally large; tarsus of moderate length; hind toe very large and strong, the two lateral nearly equal, the outer adherent at the base; claws large, much compressed, very acute. Wings of moderate length, convex. Tail long, or of moderate length, rounded or graduated, of twelve rather narrow feathers. (ie iy. tase ING: PL125 > ( f_ - ee 7 CI vase Li ee 1 Male 2Lenwale 1g aid ) d era I hure Le SOM be . Tirhng: Drawer tian Netare bet Audubon ERS ELS Lath! Printed&Col by UT bowen Philad? ¢ i: 143 CRESTED TITMOUSE. + Paruvs Brcotor, Linn. PLATE CXXV.—Mate anp FEMALE. Although this smart little bird breeds in the State of Louisiana and the adjacent districts, it is not there found in so great numbers as in the Middle States, and farther to the northward. It generally prefers the depth of the forests during summer, after which it approaches the plantations, and even resorts to the granaries for corn. Its flight is short, the bird being seldom seen on the wing long enough to cross a field of moderate extent. It is performed by repeated flaps of the wings, accompanied by jerks of the body and tail, and occasions a rustling noise, as it takes place from one tree to another. It moves along the branches, searches in the chinks, flies to the end of twigs and hangs to them by its feet, whilst the bill is engaged in detaching a beech or hazel nut, an acorn or a chinquapin, upon all of which it feeds, removing them to a large branch, where, having secured them in a crevice, it holds them with both feet, and breaks the shell by repeated blows of its bill. They are to be seen thus employed for many minutes at a time. They move about in little companies formed of the parents and their young, eight or ten together, and escorted by the Nuthatch or the Downy Woodpecker. It is pleasing to listen to the sound produced by their labour, which in a calm day may be heard at the distance of twenty or thirty yards. If a nut or an acorn is accidentally dropped, the bird flies to the ground, picks it up, and again returns to a branch. They also alight on the ground or on dry leaves, to look for food, after the trees become bare, and hop about with great nimble- ness, going to the margins of the brooks to drink, and when unable to do so, obtaining water by stooping from the extremity of a twig hanging over the stream. In fact, they appear to prefer this latter method, and are also fond of drinking the drops of rain or dew as they hang at the extremities of the leaves. Their notes are rather musical than otherwise, the usual one being loud and mellow. They do not use the ¢ee-tee-tee of their relative the Black- capped Titmouse, half so often as the latter does, but emit a considerable variety of sounds, many of which, if the bird from which they come does not happen to be known to the listener, are apt to induce disappointment in ‘ 144 CRESTED TITMOUSE. him, when on going up he finds it to be very different from what he expect- ed. These sounds sometimes resemble a whistle, at another time a loud murmur, and seem as if proceeding from a bird at a much greater distance. The crest of this species, which is generally erect, is a great improvement to its general appearance, the tints of the plumage being, as you perceive, kind reader, none of the most brilliant. The Crested Titmouse is of a rather Vicious disposition, which sometimes prompts it to attack smaller birds, and destroy them by thumping their heads with its bill until it breaks the skull. This species sometimes forms a nest by digging a hole for the purpose in the hardest wood, with great industry and perseverance, although it is more frequently contented with the hole of the Downy Woodpecker, or some other small bird of that genus. It fills the hole with every kind of warm materials, after which the female deposits from six to eight eggs, of a pure white, with a few red spots at the larger end. The eggs are laid about the beginning of April in the Southern States, and nearly a month later in the Middle Districts. As soon as the young are able to leave the nest, they are seen following the parent birds, and continue with them until the next spring. a My friend Dr. Bacuman informs me, that he “kept a bird of this species in confinement for some time. It was in the habit of hiding its food in the corner of its cage in a crevice, and at night crept into a small box, where it lay doubled up like a ball till the first light of the morning, when it resumed its restless habits, continually trying to escape from the cage.”? This species was not seen by Mr. TownsEnp on the Rocky Mountains, or near the Columbia river; and Dr. Ricuarpson does not mention its occurring in the Fur Countries. I found it abundant in the Texas, and in all our Atlantic States, as well as in Nova Scotia. In this species as in the rest, the palate is flat, with two longitudinal ridges; the posterior aperture of the nares oblongo-linear; the tongue 34 twelfths long, emarginate and papillate at the base, flat above, horny toward the end, with three grooves terminating abruptly, and furnished with stiffish bristles. The cesophagus is 2 inches long, and of the uniform width of two- twelfths; the proventriculus a little wider. The stomach is small, elliptical, 4i twelfths long, 3$ twelfths broad; its lateral muscles moderate; the epithe- lium longitudinally rugous, and reddish-brown. The intestine is five inches long, from 23 twelfths to 2 twelfths in width; the cceca extremely small, about 1 twelfth long, and 1 twelfth in width. There is on each side a very slender salivary gland with two ducts. The trachea is 1 inch 43 twelfths long, of the uniform width of 1} twelfths, considerably flattened; its rings 60, the bronchial half rings 12. The muscles as in the Warblers and Thrushes. - 4 CRESTED TITMOUSE. 145 The species of pine, on a twig of which you see a pair of these birds, is the white pine (Pinus Strobus), a tree of great beauty, of which individuals have been observed of the enormous height of 180 feet, with a diameter at the base of from six to eight feet. The trunk is branchless for two-thirds of its height, and affords the most valuable wood perhaps of any tree in the United States. Crestep Titmouse, Parus bicolor, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. i. p. 137. Parus BICOLOR, Bonap. Syn., p. 100. Tourtrep Tirmouse, Parus bicolor, Nutt. Man., vol. i. p. 236. Crestep Tirmouse, Parus bicolor, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. i. p. 199; vol. v. p. 472. Adult Male. Bill short, straight, rather robust, compressed, acute; both mandibles with the dorsal outline arched, the upper slightly declinate at the tip. Nostrils basal, roundish, concealed by the recumbent feathers. WHead large. Neck and body robust. Feet of ordinary length, rather robust; tarsus compressed, anteriorly scutellate, a little longer than the middle toe; outer toe slightly united at the base, hind one much stronger; claws rather large, much com- pressed, arched, acute. Plumage blended, tufty; feathers of the upper part of the head elongated into a crest. Wings of moderate length, the second, third, and fourth quills nearly equal and longest. Tail long, even, of ten rather narrow, rounded feathers. Bill black. Iris dark brown. Feet lead-colour. The general colour of the upper parts is a dull leaden-blue; the forehead black; sides of the head lighter, and tinged with brown. Under parts greyish-white, sides tinged with yellowish-brown. Length 64 inches, extent of wings 9; bill along the rides *, along the gap 4; tarsus +4, middle toe 2 Adult Female. The female hardly differs from the male in external appearance, being equally crested, and having the same tints. Tue WuiTe Pine. Pinus Stroegvus, Willd. Sp. Plant., vol. iv. p. 501. Pursch, Flor. Amer., vol. ii. p. 644. Mich. Arb. Forest. de PAmer. Sept., vol. i. p. 104, pl. x.—Monazcra MonapEcpuia, Linn.—Contrers, Juss. This species, which is a true pine, has the leaves very slender, five together, with very short sheaths, and is further characterized by its cylin- Vor. I. 25 146 BLACK-CAP TITMOUSE. drical, pendulous cones, which are longer than the leaves, and have their scales lax. It grows in rich soil, in all parts of the United States from Canada to Virginia, and affords the best timber for masts, as well as for other purposes. In Britain, where it has long been planted, it is generally known by the name of Weymouth pine, or Lord Weymouth’s pine, from the name of the nobleman who introduced it. BLACK-CAP TITMOUSE. ~-Parus aTricapitius, Linn. PLATE CXXVI.—Mate anp Femate. The opinion generally entertained respecting the extensive dispersion of the Black-cap Titmouse, has in all probability originated from the great resemblance which it bears to the Carolina Titmouse, Parus Carolinensis, that species being now known to extend its spring and summer migrations as far eastward as the State of New Jersey, where it has been found breeding by my friend Epwarp Harris, Esq. of Moorestown. The Black-cap, on the other hand, is rarely observed farther south, and then only in winter, when it proceeds as far as beyond the middle portions of Maryland, from whence I have at that season received specimens in spirits, collected by my friend Colonel THroporr ANpERson of Baltimore. Westward of the Alleghanies it extends as far as Kentucky in winter, but at the approach of spring returns northward. In Pennsylvania and New Jersey some are known to breed; but as the Carolina Titmouse breeds there also, it is diffi- cult to say which of them is the most numerous, they being so like each other that one is apt to confound them. In the State of New York it is abundant, and often rears two broods in the season; as you proceed eastward you may observe it in all places favourable to its habits; and, according to Dr. RicHarpson, it is found as far north as lat. 65°, it being in the Fur Countries the most common bird, ‘‘a small family inhabiting almost every thicket.’? None were seen by Mr. Townsenp either on the Rocky Moun- tains or about the Columbia river, where, on the contrary, Parus Caroli- nensis is abundant, as it is also in the Texas, where I found it breeding in the spring of 1837. Although bearing a considerable resemblance to the aoe P1126 ZZ i 1affe* ALPICOMDE Y Male2 berale aoe Coe vay aa Se ge hires. - Mee 5 See. re pte a ¢ ln’ — 3 dat . si ™ + « om 4 a ™ > 5 a A =f, by : v ¥ ‘ Re r ~ BLACK-CAP TITMOUSE. 147 Marsh Titmouse of Europe, P. palustris, it differs from that species not only in colour, but more especially in its habits and notes. Hardy, smart, restless, industrious, and frugal, the Black-cap Titmouse ranges through the forest during the summer, and retiring to its more secluded parts, as if to ensure a greater degree of quiet, it usually breeds there. Numerous eggs produce a numerous progeny, and as soon as the first brood has been reared, the young range hither and thither in a body, search- ing for food, while their parents, intent on forming another family, remain concealed and almost silent, laying their eggs in the hole deserted by some small Woodpecker, or forming one for themselves. As it has been my fortune to witness a pair at this work, I will here state what occurred, not- withstanding the opinion of those who inform us that the bill of a Titmouse is “not shaped for digging.’? While seated one morning under a crab-apple tree (very hard wood, reader), I saw two Black-cap Titmice fluttering about in great concern, as if anxious to see me depart. By their manners indeed I was induced to believe that their nest was near, and, anxious to observe their proceedings, | removed to the distance of about twenty paces. The birds now became silent, alighted on the apple-tree, gradually moved towards the base of one of its large branches, and one of them disappeared in what I then supposed to be the hole of some small Woodpecker; but I saw it presently on the edge, with a small chip in its bill, and again cautiously approached the tree. When three or four yards off I distinctly heard the peckings or taps of the industrious worker within, and saw it come to the mouth of the hole and return many times in succession in the course of half an hour, after which I got up and examined the mansion. The hole was about three inches deep, and dug obliquely downward from the aperture, which was just large enough to admit the bird. I had observed both sexes at this labour, and left the spot perfectly satisfied as to their power of boring a nest for themselves. The Black-cap Titmouse, or Chickadee, as it is generally named in our Eastern States, though exceedingly shy in summer or during the breeding season, becomes quite familiar in winter, although it never ventures to enter the habitations of man; but in the most boisterous weather, requiring neither food nor shelter there, it may be seen amidst the snow in the rugged paths of the cheerless woods, where it welcomes the traveller or the wood- cutter with a confidence and cheerfulness far surpassing the well-known familiarity of the Robin Redbreast of Europe. Often, on such occasions, should you offer it, no matter how small a portion of your fare, it alights without hesitation, and devours it without manifesting any apprehension. The sound of an axe in the woods is sufficient to bring forth several of these _ busy creatures, and haying discovered the woodman, they seem to find \ UO See an ae 148 BLACK-CAP TITMOUSE. - pleasure in his company. If, as is usually the case, he is provided with a dinner, the Chickadee at once evinces its anxiety to partake of it, and loses no opportunity of accomplishing its object, although it sets about it with much circumspection, as if it were afraid of being detected, and brought to punishment. A woodcutter in Maine assured me, that one day he happened to be at work, and had scarcely hung up his basket of provisions, when it was observed by a flock of these birds, which, having gathered into it at once, attacked a piece of cold beef; but after each peck, he saw their heads raised above the edge, as if to guard against the least appearance of danger. After picking until they were tired or satisfied, they left the basket and perched directly over his fire, but out of the direction of the smoke. There they sat enjoying themselves and ruffling their feathers to allow the warmth more easy access to their skin, until he began his dinner, when they imme- diately alighted near him, and in the most plaintive tones seemed to solicit a portion. Witson and others have spoken of this species as being addicted to moving in the company of our smaller Woodpeckers and Brown Creepers, and this in such a way as to induce most readers to believe the act to be customary; but I have often found groups of them, at times composed of more than a dozen, without any such companions, and I should be more inclined to think that the Downy Woodpecker, and the Brown Creeper, seek the company of the Titmice, rather than that the latter associate with them. Often indeed have I watched the busy Chickadees, as they proceeded from tree to tree, and from branch to branch, whether by the road-side or in the interior of the forest, when no other birds were with them. The light rustling sound of their concave wings would intimate their approach as well as their retreat, as gaily one after another they passed onwards from one spot to another, chattering, peeping everywhere, and determined as it were, not to suffer a chink to pass without inspection. Now hanging, back downward, at the extremity of a twig, its feet almost up to its bill, it would peck at a berry or a seed until it had devoured it, or it had fallen to the ground: should the latter be the case, the busy bird would at once fly down, and hammer at the fruit. To the Black-cap Titmouse the breaking of a hazel- nut is quite a pleasure, and I have repeatedly seen the feat accomplished not only by a bird in its natural state, but by one kept in confinement. Courageous and at times exceedingly tyrannical, it will attack young birds, break their skulls, and feed upon their flesh, as I have more than once witnessed. In this habit they resemble the Jays, but in every other they differ entirely from those birds, although the Prince of Musrenano has thought fit to assimilate the two groups. The Chickadee feeds on insects, their larve, and eggs, as well as on every sort of small fruit, or berries, hai it ti | BLACK-CAP TITMOUSE. 149 including grapes, acorns, and the seeds of various pines. I have seen them eat the seeds of the sunflower, the pokeberry, and pears, as well as flesh of all kinds. Indeed it may be truly called omnivorous. Often, like Jays, you may see them perched as it were upon their food, and holding it beneath their feet while pecking at it; but no Jays are seen to hang head downwards at the end of a branch. My friend Tuomas M‘Cutzocu, Esq. of Halifax, in Nova Scotia, has favoured me with the following interesting remarks having reference to this species. “Sometimes I have been inclined to think, that the sight of this bird is comparatively imperfect, and that it is chiefly indebted to some of the other senses for its success in obtaining subsistence. ‘This idea may not be correct, but it seems to derive some support from the little incident which I am about to mention. While standing at the edge of a patch of newly- felled wood, over which the fire had recently passed, and left every thing black in its course, I observed a small flock of these birds coming from the opposite side of the clearing. Being dressed in black and aware of their familiarity, I stood perfectly motionless, for the purpose of ascertaining how near they would approach. Stealing from branch to branch, and peering for food among the crevices of the prostrate trunks, as they passed along, onward they came until the foremost settled upon a small twig a few feet from the spot upon which I stood. After looking about for a short time it flew and alighted just below the lock of a double-barrelled gun which I held in a slanting direction below my arm. Being unable however to obtain a hold, it slided down to the middle of the piece, and then flew away, jerking its tail, and apparently quite unconscious of having been so near the deadly weapon. In this country these birds seem to be influenced by a modification of that feeling by which so many others are induced to congregate at the close of autumn and seek a more congenial clime. At that period they collect in large flocks and exhibit all the hurry and bustle of travellers, who are bent upon a distant journey. If these flocks do not migrate, their union is soon destroyed, for when the Black-cap Titmice again appear, it is in small flocks; their former restlessness is gone, and they now exhibit their wonted care and deliberation in searching for food.” The nest of this species, whether it be placed in the hole of a Woodpecker or squirrel, or in a place dug by itself, is seldom found at a height exceeding ten feet. Most of those which I have seen were in low broken or hollowed stumps only a few feet high. The materials of which it is composed vary in different districts, but are generally the hair of quadrupeds, in a con- siderable quantity, and disposed in the shape of a loose bag or purse, as in most other species which do not hang their nests outside. Some persons have said that they lay their eggs on the bare wood, or on the chips left by Vor. ib 26 a tS GATE MS leah dai 8 150 BLACK-CAP TITMOUSE. Woodpeckers; but this is not the case, in so far as I have examined them; and in this my observations are confirmed by those of Dr. Brewuzr of Boston and Mr. M‘Cuutocn of Halifax, who also have inspected nests of this species. The eggs rarely exceed eight in number; they measure five- eighths of an inch in length, by three-eighths and three-quarters, are rather pointed at the smaller end, white, slightly sprinkled with minute dots and markings of light reddish. hose of the first brood are deposited from the middle of April to that of May; for the second about two months later. The parents I have thought generally move along with the young of the second brood. Dr. Brewer says, “on the 20th of June, I found in a single Titmouse’s hole a mass of the hair of the common skunk and moss large enough to weigh two or more ounces, and sufficient to construct a nest for some of our larger birds, such for instance as Wilson’s Thrush.”’ Mr. M‘Cuxtoca found a nest of this bird placed about two feet from the ground in a small stump, which seemed to have been excavated by the birds themselves. It contained six young, and was lined entirely with the hair which cattle, in rubbing themselves, had left upon the stump. The flight of this species, like that of all our American Titmice, is short, fluttering, generally only from tree to tree, and is accompanied with a mur- muring sound produced by the coneavity of the wings. It is seldom seen on the ground, unless when it has followed a fruit that has fallen, or when searching for materials for its nest. It usually roosts in its nest during winter, and in summer amid the close foliage of firs or evergreens. In winter, indeed, as well as often in autumn, it is seen near the farm-houses, and even in villages and towns, busily seeking for food among the trees. “On seeing a cat, or other object of natural antipathy,’’ says Mr. Nurratt, “the Chickadee, like the peevish Jay, scolds in a loud, angry, and hoarse note, *tshe, diigh daigh ddigh. Among the other notes of this species, I have heard a call like ¢she-de-jay, tshe-de-jay, the two first syllables being a slender chirp, with the jay strongly pronounced. The only note of this bird which may be called a song, is one which is frequently heard at intervals in the depths of the forest, at times of day usually when all other birds are silent. We then may sometimes hear in the midst of this solitude two feeble, drawling, clearly whistled, and rather melancholy notes like ’te-dérry, and sometimes ye-pérrzt, and occasionally, but more rarely in the same wiry, whistling, solemn tone, *phebé. The young in winter also sometimes drawl out these contemplative strains. In all cases the first syllable is very high and clear, the second word drops low, and ends like a feeble plaint. This is nearly all the quaint song ever attempted by the Chickadee. On fine days, about the commencement of October, I have heard the Chickadee sometimes, BLACK-CAP TITMOUSE. 151 for half an hour at a time, attempt a lively, petulant warble, very different from his ordinary notes. On these occasions he appears to flirt about, still hunting for his prey, in an ecstasy of delight and vigour. But after awhile the usual drawling note again occurs. ‘These birds, like many others, are very subject to the attacks of vermin, and they accumulate in great numbers around that part of the head and front which is least accessible to their foot.” Buacx-capt Trrmouse, Parus atricapillus, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. i. p. 134. PARUS ATRICAPILLUS, Bonap. Syn., p. 100. Buacx-cart Titmouse, Nutt. Man., p. 241. Buiacx-capt Titmouse, Parus atricapillus, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. iv. p. 374. Adult Male. Bill short, straight, strong, compressed, rather obtuse; both mandibles with the dorsal line slightly convex, the sides sloping and convex, the edges sharp, that of the upper mandible slightly sinuate. Nostrils basal, roundish, concealed by the recumbent feathers. Head large, neck short, body robust. Feet of ordinary length, rather robust; tarsus compressed, with seven anterior scutella; toes large, the three anterior united as far as the second joint; the hind one much stronger, and with its claw nearly as long as the middle toe. Claws large, arched, much compressed, acute. Plumage blended, tufty; feathers of the head glossy. Wings of moderate length, the first quill scarcely half the length of the second, which is equal to the first secondary, the third and seventh about equal, the fourth and fifth equal and longest. Tail long, a little arched, emarginate and rounded, of twelve slender rounded feathers. Bill brownish-black. Iris dark brown. Feet greyish-blue, as are the claws. The whole upper part of the head and the hind neck pure black, as is a large patch on the throat and fore-neck. Between these patches of black is a band of white, from the base of the bill down the sides of the neck, becoming broader behind, and encroaching on the back, which, with the wing-coyerts, is ash-grey tinged with brown. Quills dark greyish-brown, margined with bluish-white, the secondary quills so broadly margined as to leave a conspicuous white dash on the wing; tail of the same colour, the feathers similarly edged. Lower parts brownish-white, the sides pale yellowish-brown. Length to end of tail 5% inches, to end of wings 3%, to end of claws 43; extent of wing 84; wing from flexure 24%; tail 27%; these measurements taken from three males. In another, the bill along the ridge ae along the edge of lower mandible 7%; tarsus 73; hind toe ;%;, its claw 74; middle toe +5, its claw 3%. 152 CAROLINA TITMOUSE. Adult Female. The Female is similar to the male. Male examined. The tongue is 43 twelfths long, emarginate and papillate at the base, flat above, depressed, tapering, the point horny, slit, with four bristly points. C&sophagus, 6, c, d, 14 inches long, tapering at the commencement to the diameter of 2 twelfths, and then continuing nearly uniform, without dilatation; the proventriculus, c, d, 1s not much enlarged. The stomach, d, e, is a strong gizzard, of an oblong form or ovate, 4 twelfths long, 3 twelfths broad, with strong lateral muscles; its epithelium longitudinally rugous, and of a dark red- dish-brown colour. Intestine 74 inches long, the diameter of its duodenal portion, f, g, h, 24 twelfths. The rectum, g, #, is 74 twelfths long; the ceca, 7, 1 twelfth long, and 4 twelfth in diameter. The trachea is 17; inches long, its diameter uni- form, # twelfths, its rings 42. It is furnished with lateral or contractor muscles, sterno-tracheal, and four pairs of inferior laryngeal. Bronchi short, of about 10 rings. CAROLINA TITMOUSE., + Parus CAROLINENSIs, Aud. PLATE CXXVII.—Mate anp FEMALE. 3 It was not until 1833 that I discovered the difference as to size and habits between this bird and the Black-cap Titmouse, which inhabits the Middle and Northern States, and which has been so well described by Wixson, Nourrarz and Swainson. Indeed, I never was struck with the difference of size until I reached Eastport in the State of Maine, early in May 1833, when one morning my friend Lieutenant Green of the United States army entered my room and shewed me a Titmouse which he had just procured. 2 d a { 8 3 —_——_—_ ON 0/5 , Dip : ee 1. Male. 2. Female . CLAY LY) aA nb fath Penited& Col“by JU Bowen. Pla Sis wth oirn le a i TER . *% = Hine ee Maat) A ee a ee CAROLINA TITMOUSE. 153 The large size of his bird, compared with those met with in the south, instantly struck me. On my return from Labrador, I immediately proceeded to Charleston in South Carolina, with a view of once more visiting the western portions of the Floridas and the whole coast of the Gulf of Mexico. In the course of conversation with my friend, the Reverend Jonn Bacuman, I mentioned my ideas on the subject of Titmice, when he immediately told me that he had for some time been of the same mind. We both went to the woods, and procured some specimens. I wrote to several persons of my acquaint- ance in Massachusetts, Maine, and Maryland, and before a month had elapsed, I received an abundant supply of the Northern species, preserved in spirits, from my friend Joun M. Beruune of Boston, Lieutenant Grezn, and Colonel TuEoporE AnpERSON of Baltimore. We examined and com- pared many individuals of both species, and satisfied ourselves that they were indeed specifically distinct. This new species, the Carolina Titmouse, is a constant inhabitant of the Southern States, in which I have traced it from the lower parts of Louisiana . through the Floridas as far as the borders of the Roanoke river, which separates North Carolina from Virginia; and it is now ascertained that this species reaches eastward as far as the State of New Jersey, where it has been procured by my friend Epwarp Harris. In general it is found only in the immediate vicinity of ponds and deep marshy and moist swamps, rarely during winter in greater numbers than one pair together, and frequently singly. The parent birds separate from the young probably soon after the latter are able to provide for themselves. ‘The other species moves in flocks during the whole winter, frequenting the orchards, the gardens, or the hedges and trees along the roads, entering the villages, and coming to the wood-piles of the farmers. The southern species is never met with in such places at any time of the year, and is at all seasons a shyer bird, and more difficult to be obtained. Its notes are also less sonorous, and less frequent, than those of the Titmouse found in the Middle and Northern Districts. My friend Jonn Bacumawn is of opinion that the smaller species partially retires from South Carolina during winter, in consequence of the small number met with there at that season. On referring to my journals, written in the Floridas, in the winter of 1831-32, I find that they are mentioned as being much more abundant than in the Carolinas, and as breeding in the swamps as early as the middle of February. The Carolina Titmouse breeds in the holes abandoned by the Brown- headed Nuthatch; but I have not yet examined either its eggs or its nest, having at first carelessly supposed the bird to be identical with the northern species, as my predecessors had done. 154 CAROLINA TITMOUSE. My drawing of the Carolina Titmouse was made not far from New Orleans late in 1820. I have named it so, partly because it occurs in Carolina, and partly because I was desirous of manifesting my gratitude towards the citizens of that State, who by their hospitality and polite atten- tion have so much contributed to my comfort and happiness, whenever it has been my good fortune to be among them. A nest was presented to me by Dr. Bacuman, who found it in a hollow stump, at the height of about four feet from the ground, is cup-shaped, two inches in diameter at the mouth internally, three externally, its depth two inches. It is composed of fine wool, cotton, and a few fibres of plants, felted together so as to be of uniform thickness throughout. The eggs are pure white. Carotina Tirmovuse, Parus Carolinensis, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. ii. p. 341; vol. v. p. 474. Adult Male. Bill very short, straight, strong, compressed, rather obtuse; both mandibles with the dorsal outline slightly convex, the sides convex, the edges sharp. Nostrils basal, roundish, concealed by the recumbent feathers. Head large, neck short, body rather robust. Feet of ordinary length, rather robust; tarsus compressed, anteriorly scutellate; toes large, the three anterior united as far as the second joint, the hind one much stronger; claws rather large, compressed, arched, acute. Plumage blended, tufty; feathers of the head glossy. Wings of moderate length, the third and fourth quills longest and equal, fifth little shorter, second longer than sixth, first and seventh about equal. ‘Tail long, slender, slightly incurved, rounded, of twelve narrow, rounded feathers. Bill black. Iris dark brown. Feet bluish-grey. The whole upper part of the head and the hind neck pure black, as is a large patch on the throat . and fore neck. Between these patches of black, there is a band of greyish- white, from the base of the bill down the side of the neck, becoming broader and greyer behind. Back and wing-coverts ash-grey, tinged with brown. Quills brown, margined with greyish-blue, as is the tail, which is more tinged with grey. Lower parts greyish-white, tinged with brown, the sides more deeply tinted. Length 4} inches, extent of wings 6; bill along the ridge +5, along the edge 5; tarsus $3. Adult Female. The female is similar to the male, but somewhat fainter in its tints. Dees vial Hein) i hs a. Ava i on oe N°26. PIs" Wo A dem las : PE ciate ae tay yi Ae ee 27 2 =r ae 4A Poe of Laie. 2 LOULNG HUDSON’S BAY TITMOUSE. 155 Tue SuprLe JACK. The supple jack is a species of smilax extremely abundant in all the swampy portions of the Southern States. Its slender stem entwines the trunk and branches of even the tallest trees, and, with its delicate branches, is extremely tough and pliant, one of half an inch in diameter being strong enough to suspend a body having a weight of several hundred pounds. It is frequently used instead of a cord to hang clothes upon to dry. The festoons which it forms are graceful and pleasing to the eye. HUDSON’S BAY TITMOUSE. ~-Parvus Hupsonicus, Lath. PLATE CXXVIIJ.—Ma te, Femare, anp Youne. Nothing ever gave me more pleasure than the meeting with a bird long since discovered, at a time when I could fully study its habits. I had fre- quently searched for this interesting little Titmouse in the State of Maine, where it breeds, but always without success, nor was it until I visited Labrador, that I had an opportunity of seeing it. On the 18th of July, after an early breakfast (at three o’clock), my party, accompanied by our captain and myself, left the Ripley in three boats for the main shore, distant about five miles. Although the fog was thick, the wind was fair, and we reached the land in safety, when we immediately commenced our search for birds. Having traversed an extensive marsh, without finding any thing of interest, the captain and I, fatigued and depressed by our want of success, retired to wha in that country is called a wood, with the hope of mending our fortune. We separated and with great difficulty made our way among the stubborn tangled trees. Only a few minutes had elapsed when the report of my companion’s gun reached my ear, and I at the same time heard him shout to me to come up as quickly as possible. This I managed to do after awhile, and with much tugging and tearing; but as I approached him I heard with joy the notes of the Canada Titmouse. One had been shot, anda nest had been found. Securing both SS ee ao ee 156 HUDSON’S BAY TITMOUSE. the parents and the young, which had leaped out on hearing the guns, we sat down to examine the curious fabric the birds had reared for their brood. The nest was placed at the height of not more than three feet from the ground, in the hollow of a decayed low stump, scarcely thicker than a man’s leg, the whole so rotten that it crumbled to pieces on being touched. I cautiously removed the woody enclosure, and took possession of the nest, which I obtained in perfect order. It was shaped like a purse, eight inches in depth, two in diameter inside, its sides about half an inch thick. It was entirely composed of the finest fur of different quadrupeds, but principally of the great northern hare, so thickly and ingeniously matted throughout, that it looked as if it had been felted by the hand of man. It was quite elastic throughout, and rather wider at the bottom, probably in consequence of the natural growth of the young. ‘The captain told me that he had seen the parents enter the stump, and that on his walking towards it he was immediately assailed, not only by the owners of the nest, but by several other pairs of the same species, all of which, however, had retired when I reached the spot. It is probable they had nests in the vicinity, but we did not succeed in finding any. The male, which was shot last, several times flew at me so close, that I attempted to catch it alive, but it always eluded my grasp with dexterity, perched on a low branch, and emitted its angry te-te-te-tee. ‘The young I carried on board alive. This hardy little bird resembles in its manners the other species of its interesting and beautiful tribe; but as the habits of our Titmice are well known, and have been already spoken of by me, I shall not here trouble you with unnecessary repetitions. Its notes resemble those of the Carolina Titmouse, but are much weaker. This species is much scarcer in those parts of Labrador which I visited than in Newfoundland, where I found it as abundant as our northern Black- headed Titmouse. The old and young birds were moving in groups in the direction of Nova Scotia, whither I suppose they all retire in the autumn, and where I have seen the species along the roads between Halifax and Windsor. Many breed in that province, as well as in New Brunswick, and, as I have said, in Maine, where my young friend Linco has at times found them. None have ever been seen as far south as even Massachusetts. I have represented the male, the female, and the young, in the plumage in which I found them. The brown of the head is much duller in winter than in summer. The young do not acquire it until towards the spring following their birth. Parus Hopsonicus, Lath. Ind. Orn., vol. ii. p. 566. Hunpson’s Bay Tirmouse, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. ii. p. 543. HUDSON’S BAY TITMOUSE. 157 Adult Male, in summer. Bill short, straight, of moderate strength, somewhat conical, compressed towards the end; both mandibles with the dorsal outline a little convex, the sides sloping and slightly convex, the edges sharp, the tip acute. Nostrils basal, roundish, concealed by the recumbent feathers. The general form is slender. Feet proportionally large; tarsus of moderate length, anteriorly covered with a few long scutella, and sharp behind; hind toe very large and strong, the two lateral nearly equal, the outer united at the base with the middle; elaws large, arched, much compressed, very acute. Plumage blended, tufty. Wings of moderate length, the fourth quill longest, fifth almost equal, third scarcely shorter than fourth, first very short. Tail long, much rounded, of twelve rather narrow, rounded feathers. Bill black. Iris very dark brown. Feet lead-colour. The general tint of the upper parts is dull leaden, tinged with light brown, the head umber- brown; primaries edged with pale greyish-blue. The throat and fore neck are deep black, that colour being separated from the brown of the head by a broad band of white running under the eye. The breast and belly greyish- white, the sides light yellowish-brown. Length 5 inches, extent of wings 7; bill along the ridge 32, along the edge #5; tarsus +z, middle toe with the claw -&, hind toe the same. Adult Female, in summer. The female resembles the male, but the upper parts are deeply tinged with brown, and the head and throat are of a lighter tint. Young fully fledged. Bill greyish-blue. Upper parts of a dull greenish-grey. The throat marked as in the adult, the under parts pale greyish, tinged with brown. The plant represented in this plate is abundant in Labrador, Newfound- land, and our Northern States. It is a species of Prunus, and attains a height of eight or ten feet. Worle: 27 158 CHESTNUT-BACKED TITMOUSE. + Parus RuFEscens, Towns. PLATE CXXIX.—Mate anp Femate. Mr. Nurrau’s notice respecting the present species is as follows:— “The Chestnut-backed Titmouse is seen throughout the year in the forests of the Columbia, and as far south as Upper California, in all which tract it breeds, forming, as I have some reason to believe, a pendulous, or at least an exposed nest, like some of the European species. It is made of large quantities of hypna and lichens, and copiously and coarsely lined with deer’s hair and large feathers, such as those of the Grouse and the Jay. They are commonly seen in small flocks of all ages in the autumn and winter, when they move about briskly, and emit a number of feeble querulous notes, after the manner of the Chickadee, or common species, Parus atricapillus, but seldom utter any thing like a song, though now and then, as they glean about, they utter a ?’she, de, de, or t’dee, t’dee, dee, their more common querulous call, however, being like Z’she, dé, de, vait, t’she, de, de, vait, sometimes also a confused warbling chatter. ‘The busy troop, accompanied often by the common species, the Regulus tricolor, and the small yellow- bellied Parus, are seen flitting through bushes and thickets, carefully gleaning insects and larve for an instant, and are then off to some other place around, proceeding with restless activity to gratify the calls of hunger and the stimulus of caprice. Thus they are seen to rove along for miles together, until satisfied or fatigued, when they retire to rest in the recesses of the darkest forests, situations which they eventually choose for their temporary domicile, where in solitude and retirement they rear their young, and for the whole of the succeeding autumn and winter remain probably together in families. When the gun thins their ranks, it is surprising to see the courage, anxiety, and solicitude of these little creatures: they follow you with their wailing scold, and entreat for their companions in a manner that impresses you with a favourable idea of their social feelings and sympathy.”’ Mr. TownsEnD says, that “the Chinook Indians call this species a kul. It inhabits the forests of the Columbia river, where it breeds and goes in flocks in the autumn, more or less gregarious through the season. The legs and feet are light blue.” Reeunus sarrapa, Lichienstein. PLATE CXXXII.—Mate anp Femate. This active little bird breeds in Labrador, where I saw it feeding its young in August, when the species appeared already moving southward; but although it was common there and in Newfoundland, as was the Ruby- crowned Kinglet, we did not succeed in our search for its nest. It enters the United States late in September, and continues its journey beyond their limits, as I have met with it on the borders of our most Southern Districts during winter. Individuals remain in all the Southern and Western States the whole of that season, and leave them again about the beginning of March. They generally associate in groups, composed each of a whole family, and feed in company with the Titmice, Nuthatches, and Brown Creepers, perambulating the tops of trees and bushes, sometimes in the very depth of the forests or the most dismal swamps, while at other times they approach the plantations, and enter the gardens and yards. Their movements are always extremely lively and playful. They follow minute insects on the Wing, seize them among the leaves of the pines, or search for the larve in the chinks of the branches. Like the Titmice they are seen hanging to the extremities of twigs and bunches of leaves, sometimes fluttering in the air in front of them, and are unceasingly occupied. They have no song at this season, but merely emit now and then a low screep. On the 23d of January, while in company with my friend Joun Bacuman, I saw great numbers of them in the woods near Charleston, searching for food high in the trees as well as low down, and so careless of us, that although we would approach within a few feet of them, they were not in the least disconcerted. ‘Their feeble chirp was constantly repeated. We killed a great number of them in hopes of finding among them some individuals of the species known under the name of Regulus ignicapillus, but in this we did not succeed. At times they uttered a strong querulous note, somewhat resembling that of the Black-headed Titmouse. The young had acquired their full plumage, but the females were more abundant than the males. At this season the yellow spot on their head is less conspicuous than towards spring, when they raise their crest feathers while courting. Wor, M1. 29 166 AMERICAN GOLDEN-CRESTED KINGLET. The young shot in Newfoundland in August, had this part of the head of a uniform tint with the upper parts of the body. With us they are amazingly fat, but at Newfoundland we found them the reverse. I have represented a pair of them on a plant that grows in Georgia, and which I thought might prove agreeable to your eye. GoLDEN-CRESTED Wren, Sylvia Regulus, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. i. p. 126. REGULUS cRISTATUS, Bonap. Syn., p. 91. AMERICAN FIERY-cROWNED Wren, Regulus tricolor, Nutt. Man., vol. i. p. 420. AMERICAN GOLDEN-CRESTED Wren, Regulus tricolor, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. ii. p. 476. Adult Male. Bill short, straight, subulate, very slender, depressed at the base, com- pressed towards the end. Upper mandible with the dorsal outline nearly straight, the sides convex, the edges inflected towards the end, the tip slightly declinate, with an obscure notch on each side; lower mandible straight, acute. Nostrils basal, elliptical, half-closed above by a membrane, covered over by a single adpressed feather with disunited barbs. Head rather large, neck short, body small. Legs rather long; tarsus slender, much compressed, covered anteriorly with a long undivided plate above, and a few scutella beneath; toes slender, the lateral ones nearly equal and free, the hind toe proportionally large; claws arched, compressed, acute. Plumage very loose and tufty. Bristles at the base of the bill. Wings of ordinary length; the first primary extremely short and narrow, the third, fourth, and fifth almost equal, but the fourth longest. Tail of ordinary length, slender, emarginate, of twelve narrow, acuminate feathers, the outer curved outwards towards the end. Bill black. Iris brown. Feet brownish-yellow, the under part of the toes yellow. The general colour of the upper parts is ash-grey on the neck and sides of the head, tinged with olive on the back, and changing to yellowish-olive on the rump. ‘There is a band of greyish-white across the lower part of the forehead, which at the eye separates into two bands, one extending over, the other under the eye; above this is a broadish band of black, also margining the head on either side, the inner webs and tips of these black feathers being of a bright pure yellow, of which colour are some of the feathers in the angle formed anteriorly by the dark band; the crown of the head in the included spaces covered with shorter flame-coloured silky feathers; an obscure line of dusky feathers from the angle of the mouth to beneath the eye, which is margined anteriorly and posteriorly with the same colour; the throat and lower parts are greyish-white, tinged anteriorly with yellowish-brown. Quills and coverts dusky, the quills margined with greenish-yellow, the secondary coverts broadly tipped with the same, as is AMERICAN GOLDEN-CRESTED KINGLET. 167 the first row of smaller coverts; the base of all the quills, excepting the four outer, white; from the seventh primary to the innermost secondary but two, a broad bar of blackish-brown. ‘Tail of the same colour as the quills. Length 4 inches, extent of wings 7; bill along the back 3%, along the edge I= #3; tarsus 3%. Adult Female. The female is somewhat smaller than the male, from which it differs in external appearance, chiefly in having pure yellow substituted for the flame- colour of the crown, and in having less grey on the hind neck. If we compare the American Golden-crested Wren with the European, we find that they agree in general appearance, in the proportional length of the quills, and in the form of the tail, as well as that of the bill and legs. Their differences are the following. Regulus tricolor is longer by half an inch than &. cristatus, its bill is stronger and +5 of an inch shorter, its claws are also stronger and shorter, and the flame-coloured patch on the head is more extended and brighter. The European species has never so much grey on the neck and back, and its lower parts are always more tinged with brownish-yellow. The other differences are not very obvious, but the difference in the size of the bill, were there no other characters, would be enough, in a family of birds so closely resembling each other as the Reguli, to point out the American as distinct from the European species. THALIA DEALBATA, Pursch, Fl. Amer. Sept., vol. ii. p. 584.—Gynanpria Monanprlia, Linn.—Orcuwes, Juss. This beautiful plant is a native of Georgia and South Carolina, where, according to Purscu, it was discovered by J. Miii1neron, Esq. of the latter State. It is perennial, flowers in August and September, attains a height of four feet, and grows in swampy places. The leaves are large, ovate, with parallel oblique ribs, and a revolute apex; the flowers are pale purple, in pairs, in a large panicle. I was indebted to Mr. Notserre for the specimen which I have represented. : : te ee 168 ; ee. RUBY-CROWNED KINGLET. -- REGULUS CALENDULA, Linn. PLATE CXXXIII.—Mate anp Femate. The history of this diminutive bird is yet in a great measure unknown; and, although I have met with it in places where it undoubtedly breeds, I have not succeeded in finding its nest. On the 27th of June, 1833, while some of my party and myself were rambling over the deserts of Labrador, the notes of a warbler came on my ear, and I listened with delight to the harmonious sounds that filled the air around, and which I judged to belong to a species not yet known to me. The next instant I observed a small bird perched on the top of a fir tree, and on approaching it, recognised it as the vocalist that had so suddenly charmed my ear and raised my expectations. We all followed its quick movements, as it flew from tree to tree backwards and forwards without quitting the spot, to which it seemed attached. At last, my son Joun raised his gun, and, on firing, brought down the bird, which fell among the brushwood, where we in vain searched for it. The next day we chanced to pass along the same patch of dwarf wood, in search of the nests of certain species of ducks, of which I intend to speak on another occasion. We were separated from the woods by a deep narrow creek; but the recollection of the loss of the bird, which I was sure had been killed, prompted me to desire my young friends to dash across and again search for it. In an instant six of us were on the opposite shore, and dispersed among the woods. My son was so fortunate as to find the little Regulus among the moss near the tree from which it had fallen, and brought it to me greatly disappointed. Not so was I; for I had never heard the full song of the Ruby-crowned Wren, and as I looked at it in my hand, I could not refrain from exclaiming—“And so this is the tiny body of the songster from which came the loud notes I heard yesterday!’? When I tell you that its song is fully as sonorous as that of the Canary-bird, and much richer, I do not come up to the truth, for it is not only as powerful and clear, but much more varied and pleasing to the ear. We looked for its mate and its nest, but all around us was silent as death, or only filled with the hum of millions of insects. Imade a drawing of it in its full spring plumage. A month later, the young of this species were seen feeding among the bushes. if PI. 133 by 1.7 Barven Phitac. RUBY-CROWNED KINGLET. 169 The Ruby-crowned Wren is found in Louisiana and other Southern States, from November until March. Near Charleston, in January, they are some- times very abundant. The old birds are easily distinguished from the young, without shooting them, on account of the curious difference in their habits, for while the latter keep together among the lowest bushes, the former are generally seen on the top branches of high trees. I have not observed a similar difference in Regulus tricolor. ‘The rich vermilion spot on the head in the present species was wanting in the young, that part being of the same plain colour as the back. I have found this bird in Kentucky also during winter, but generally in southern exposures, and usually in company with the Brown Creeper and the Titmouse. The little bird of which I speak appears to feed entirely on small insects and their larve; and I have often thought it wonderful that there should seem to be no lack of food for it even during weather sometimes too cold for the birds themselves. It appears to migrate during the day only, and merely by passing from one bush to another, or hopping among the twigs, until a large piece of water happens to come in its way, when it rises obliquely to the height of above twenty yards, and then proceeds horizon- ‘ tally in short undulations. It emits a feeble chirp at almost every motion. So swiftly, however, does it perform its migration from Louisiana to New- foundland and Labrador, that although it sometimes remains, in the first of these countries until late in March, it has young in the latter by the end of June; and the brood is able to accompany the old birds back to the south in the beginning of August. The pair before you are placed on a plant which occurs in abundance from Maine to Labrador. Rosy-crownep Wren, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. i. p. 83. RecuLus CaLenpDULA, Bonap. Syn., p. 91. Rupy-crowNneD Wren, Sylvia Calendula, Nutt. Man., vol. i. p. 415. Rusy-crownepD Recuius, Regulus Calendula, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. ii. p. 546. Adult Male, in summer plumage. Bill short, straight, subulate, very slender, compressed, with inflected edges; upper mandible nearly straight in its dorsal outline, the edges scarcely notched close upon the slightly declinate acute tip; lower mandible straight, acute. Nostrils basal, elliptical, half-closed above by a membrane, covered over by the feathers. The whole form is slender, although the bird looks somewhat bulky, on account of the loose texture of the feathers. Legs rather long; tarsus siender, longer than the middle toe, much compressed, covered anteriorly with a few indistinct scutella; toes scutellate above, the 170 RUBY-CROWNED KINGLET. lateral ones nearly equal and free; hind toe stouter; claws weak, compressed, arched, acute. Plumage very loose and tufty. Short bristles at the base of the bill. Feathers of the head elongated, silky. Wings of ordinary length, the third and fourth primaries longest. Tail of twelve feathers, emarginate, of ordi- nary length. Bill black, yellow at the base of the lower, and on the edges of the upper mandible. Iris light brown. Feet yellowish-brown, the under parts yellow. The general colour of the upper parts is dull olivaceous, lighter behind. The eye is encircled with greyish-white, of which colour also are the tips of the wing-coverts. Quills and tail dusky, edged with greenish-yellow. The | silky feathers of the crown of the head vermilion. The under parts greyish- white. Length 4} inches, extent of wings 6; bill 3; tarsus 3. Adult Female, in summer plumage. The female resembles the male, but the tints are in general duller, espe- cially the greenish-yellow of the wings. Tur NARROW-LEAVED Kania, or LAUREL. Kaumia ancustironia, Willd., Sp. Pl., vol. ii. p. 601. Pursch, Fl. Amer., vol. i. p. 296. —Decanpria Monoeynia, Linn.—RHopoDENDRA, Juss. This species is characterized by its petiolate, ternate, cuneato-oblong leaves, which are obtuse and tinged with red beneath. The corymbs of beautiful deep rose-coloured flowers are lateral; the peduncles and calyx downy, and the bracteze smooth. It grows to the height of two or even sometimes four feet, and is common in the Northern States and British Provinces; flowers from the end of June to the middle of August. N°27. PL 134. es flue Baird 1 Male. 2. Fermale:3 Yourg. Za ESS pene EZ ee Ua. Meroe? OL, Cascum Soapeaces. Sawn from Nainre by J. JAndubon TRS FL.S Lith? Printed &Col* by J T Bowes Plulad" 171 Genus IL.—SIALIA, Swains. BLUE-BIRD. Bill of ordinary length, nearly straight, broader than high at the base, compressed toward the end; upper mandible with the dorsal line straight and slightly declinate, until near the end, when it becomes convex, the ridge g, with a distinct notch close to the narrow deflected tip; lower mandible with the angle of moderate length, and narrow, the dorsal line straight, the sides convex, the edges direct, the tip narrow. Nostrils basal, oval. Head rather narrow, the sides convex toward the end, the edges overlappin large, ovate, neck short; body moderately full. Feet of ordinary length, rather slender; tarsus shorter than the middle toe and claw, its lower scutella only distinct; toes of moderate length, the first stouter, the lateral equal, the third much longer; the fourth adherent at the base; claws moderate, well curved, compressed, laterally grooved, acute. Plumage soft and blended; short bristles at the base of the upper mandible. Wings very long, pointed; the first quill very small, second, third, and fourth longest. Tail rather long, emarginate, of twelve rather strong feathers. COMMON BLUE-BIRD. + S1atra Witsonitr, Swains. PLATE CXXXIV.—Mate, Femare, anp Younc. This lovely bird is found in all parts of our country, and is generally a permanent resident of the Southern States. It adds to the delight imparted by spring, and enlivens the dull days of winter. Full of innocent vivacity, warbling its ever pleasing notes, and familiar as any bird ean be in its natural freedom, it is one of the most agreeable of our feathered favourites. The pure azure of its mantle, and the beautiful glow of its breast, render it con- spicuous, as it flits through the orchards and gardens, crosses the fields or meadows, or hops along by the road-side. Recollecting the little box made 172 COMMON BLUE-BIRD. for it, as it sits on the roof of the house, the barn, or the fence-stake, it returns to it even during the winter, and its visits are always weleomed by those who know it best. When March returns, the male commences his courtship, manifesting as much tenderness and affection towards his chosen one, as the dove itself. Martins and House Wrens! be prepared to encounter his anger, or keep at a respectful distance. EXven the wily cat he will torment with querulous chirpings, whenever he sees her in the path from which he wishes to pick up an insect for his mate. The Blue-bird breeds in the Floridas as early as January, and pairs at Charleston in that month, in Pennsylvania about the middle of April, and in the State of Maine in June. It forms its nest in the box made expressly for the purpose, or in any convenient hole or cavity it can find, often taking possession of those abandoned by the Woodpecker. The eggs are from four to six, of a pale blue colour. ‘Two and often three broods are raised in the year. While the female sits on the second set of eggs, the male takes charge of the first brood, and so on to the end. The food of this species consists of coleoptera, caterpillars, spiders, and insects of various kinds, in procuring which it frequently alights against the bark of trees. They are also fond of ripe fruits, such as figs, persimons, and grapes, and during the autumnal months they pounce on grasshoppers from the tops of the great mullein, so frequent in the old fields. They are extremely fond of newly ploughed land, on which, especially during winter and early spring, they are often seen in search of the insects turned out of their burrows by the plough. The song of the Blue-bird is a soft agreeable warble, often repeated during the love-season, when it seldom sings without a gentle quivering of the wings. When the period of migration arrives, its voice consists merely of a tender and plaintive note, perhaps denoting the reluctance with which it contemplates the approach of winter. In November most of the individuals that have resided during the summer in the Northern and Middle Districts, are seen high in the air moving southward along with their families, or alighting to seek for food and enjoy repose. But many are seen in winter, whenever a few days of fine weather occur, so fond are they of their old haunts, and so easily can birds possessing powers of flight like theirs, move from one place to another. Their return takes place early in February or March, when they appear in parties of eight or ten of both sexes. When they alight at this season, the joyous carols of the males are heard from the tops of the early-blooming sassafras and maple. During winter, they are extremely abundant in all the Southern States, and more especially in the Floridas, where I found hundreds of them on all COMMON BLUE-BIRD. 173 the plantations that I visited. ‘The species becomes rare in Maine, still more so in Nova Scotia, and in Newfoundland and Labrador none were seen by our exploring party. My excellent and learned friend Dr. Ricuarp Harwan of Philadelphia, told me that one day, while in the neighbourhood of that city, sitting in the piazza of a friend’s house, he observed that a pair of Blue-birds had taken possession of a hole cut out expressly for them in the end of the cornice above him. They had young, and were very solicitous for their safety, insomuch that it was no uncommon thing to see the male especially, fly at a person who happened to pass by. A hen with her brood in the yard came within a few yards of the piazza. The wrath of the Blue-bird rose to such a pitch that, notwithstanding its great disparity of strength, it flew at the hen with violence, and continued to assail her, until she was at length actually forced to retreat and seek refuge under a distant shrub, when the little fellow returned exultingly to his nest, and there carolled his victory with great animation. This species has often reminded me of the Robin Redbreast of Europe, to which it bears a considerable resemblance in form and habits. Like the Blue-bird the Redbreast has large eyes, in which the power of its passions are at times seen to be expressed. Like it also, he alights on the lower branches of a tree, where, standing in the same position, he peeps sidewise at the objects beneath and around, until spying a grub or an insect, he -launches lightly towards it, picks it up, and gazes around intent on discover- ing more, then takes a few hops with a downward inclination of the body, stops, erects himself, and should not another insect be near, returns to the branch, and tunes his throat anew. Perhaps it may have been on account of having observed something of this similarity of habits, that the first settlers in Massachusetts named our bird the Blue Robin, a name which it still retains in that state. I have not received any intimation of the occurrence of this interesting bird to the west of the Rocky Mountains, although it was observed by Mr. TownseEnp on the head waters of the Missouri. Dr. RicHarpson mentions it as being found in summer to the eastward of the Rocky Mountains, up to the 48th parallel of latitude, beyond which none were seen by the members of the expedition. I found it abundant and breeding in the Texas. The eggs measure seven and a half eighths of an inch in length, five-eighths and three-fourths in breadth, and are rather more bulky than is usual in birds of this family. In the United States, when in an uncultivated district, it forms its nest in the hollow or hole of a tree. Buiuve-zizp, Sylvia Sialis, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. i. p. 56. Vor. J; 30 174 COMMON BLUE-BIRD. SAXICOLA SIALIS, Bonap. Syn., p. 39. Brytuaca (S1atia) Witsonu, Swains. and Rich. F. Bor. Amer., vol. ii. p. 210. Biove-eirp, Ampelis Sialis, Nutt. Man., vol. i. p. 444. Buue-eirp, Sylvia Sialis, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. ii. p. 84; vol. v. p. 452. Adult Male. Bill of ordinary length, nearly straight, broader than deep at the base, compressed towards the end; upper mandible with the dorsal line convex, the tip declinate, the edges sharp. Nostrils basal, oval. Head rather large, neck short, body rather full. Feet of ordinary length, slender; tarsus compressed, covered anteriorly with a few long scutella, acute behind, scarcely longer than the middle toe; toes scutellate above, the two lateral ones nearly equal; claws arched, slender, compressed, that of the hind toe much larger. Plumage soft and blended, slightly glossed. Wings of ordinary length, broad, the first quill longest, the second scarcely shorter, the secondary quills truncato-emarginate. Tail rather long, broad, nearly even, of twelve broad, rounded feathers. Short bristle-pointed feathers at the base of the mandible. Bill and feet black, the soles yellow, iris yellowish-brown. The general colour of the upper parts is bright azure-blue, that of the lower yellowish- brown, the belly white. Shafts of the quills and tail-feathers dusky. Length 7 inches, extent of wing 10; bill along the ridge 4, along the edge $; tarsus 3%. Adult Female. The female has the upper part of a tint approaching to leaden, the foreneck and sides yellowish-brown, but duller than in the male, the belly white. Length 64 inches. Young Bird. When fully fledged, the young have the upper part of the head, the back of the neck, and a portion of the back broccoli-brown; the rest of the upper part much as in the female. The lower parts are light grey, the feathers of the breast and sides margined with brown. In a male preserved in spirits, the roof of the mouth is flat, and similar to that of the Thrushes; the tongue triangular, deeply emarginate and papillate at the base, very thin, flat above, horny towards the end, tapering to a slit point, and having the edges lacerated. The cesophagus, a 6 ¢, is 24 inches long, its width at the upper part 4 twelfths; the proventriculus, 6 ce, large. The stomach, d e, is of moderate size, broadly elliptical, a little compressed, S twelfths long, 7 twelfths broad; its muscles distinct, the lateral of considerable thickness, the lower very thin, the tendons elliptical; the epithelium tough, dense, with longitudinal ruge. The intestine, e fg h COMMON BLUE-BIRD. 175 (Te - tl if wi Li z,is rather short and wide, its length being 74 inches, its breadth in the duodenal portion 2? twelfths, contracting to 2 twelfths; the rectum of the same width at first, but enlarging into an oblong cloaca, 7, 5 twelfths wide; the coca, h, 2 twelfths long, $ twelfth broad, cylindrical, 1 inch 1 twelfth distant from the extremity. Elongated salivary glands. The trachea is 1 inch 10 twelfths long, moderately flattened, its rings 65, firm, with 2 additional half rings. There are four pairs of inferior laryngeal muscles; the bronchi of about 15 half rings. Tue GrReAT MULLEIN. Vereascum Tuapsus, Willd., Sp. Pl., vol.i.p. 1001. Pursch, Flor. Amer., vol. i. p. 142. Smith, Engl. Flor., vol. i. p. 512.—Prntanpria Monoeynia, Linn.—Souanea, Juss. This plant, which is well known in Europe, is equally so in America; but whether it has been accidentally or otherwise introduced into the latter country, I cannot say. At present there is hardly an old field or abandoned piece of ground on the borders of the roads that is not overgrown with it. In the Middle and Southern Districts, it frequently attains a height of five or six feet. The flowers are used in infusion for catarrhs, and a decoction of the leaves is employed in chronic rheumatism. 176 WESTERN BLUE-BIRD. +SIALIA OCCIDENTALIS, Towns. PLATE CXXXV.—Mate anp Femate. Of this handsome bird, which was discovered by Mr. Townsenp, Mr. Nourraut has favoured me with the following notice: —“The Western Blue- bird possesses many of the habits of our common kind. The male is equally tuneful throughout the breeding season. Mounting some projecting branch of an oak or low pine, he delivers his delightful ditty with great energy, extending his wings, and exerting all his powers as it were to amuse his sitting mate, or to allure attention to his short, often-repeated, but thrilling lay. In the midst of all this charming employment economy is rarely forgotten, and a crawling beetle or busy insect is no sooner seen than snatched up by our still watchful songster, who resumes his wonted perch, to be again interrupted by the cares of providing a subsistence; or, reite- rating his melody, strives to drown the song of some neighbouring rival by tender strains and more earnest endeavours. He appears also equally solicitous with our common species to shew his affection for his mate, whom he constantly accompanies, feeds, and caresses with an ardour of affection seldom rivalled. His song is more varied, sweet and tender than that of the common Sialia, and very different in many of its expressions. In the small rocky prairies of the Columbia, near its bank, where I first heard and saw this species, they were exceedingly shy, probably in consequence of the presence of birds of prey, which prowled around, and it was with difficulty that we got sight of them, but afterwards, in the vicinity of Santa Barbara, in Upper California, I saw them in considerable numbers, and very familiar, making at this time (April) their nests in the knot-holes of the oaks which abound in the neighbouring plains. We first met a flock of young birds alone, in the winter, near to Fort Vancouver, flitting through the tall fir trees, like so many timorous and silent winter passengers. These had so much the appearance of young of the common species, that for some time we paid little attention to them; but their silence, the absence of the usual complaints of ¢ shaye vit, &c., and at length their different notes, convinced me of their being distinct, previous to any examination of their plumage. This species, unlike Sialia arctica, does not extend to the mountains, but Ne? ; PL135. Dhce’ 7. Mate. 2 Kerate. Sad jrawn froin Nature by J.J Audubon-F.RS.F.L.S. Lith? Printed & Col? by J.T. Bowen. Philad# WESTERN BLUE-BIRD. TZ seems constantly to affect similar situations with our common kind, along the coast of the Pacific, as ours does along that of the Atlantic.”’ I have given figures of both the male and the female in their spring dress. Sratta occrentauis, Western Blue-bird, Towns., Journ. Acad. Nat. Sc. Philadelphia, vol. vii. p. 188. Western Buve-pirp, Sylvia occidentalis, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. v. p. 41. Adult Male in summer. This species in size and form, as well as in colour, is very similar to the Common Blue-bird. Its bill is of ordinary length, nearly straight, broader than high at the base, compressed toward the end; upper mandible with the dorsal line straight and a little declinate at the base, convex toward the end, the ridge narrow, the sides convex toward the end, the edges direct and overlapping, with a slight notch close to the narrow deflected tip; lower mandible with the angle of moderate length and narrow, the dorsal line straight, the sides convex, the edges direct, the tip narrow. Nostrils basal, elliptical, operculate, partially concealed by the feathers. Head rather large; neck short; body moderately full. Feet of ordinary length, slender; tarsus compressed, covered anteriorly with seven scutella, behind with two long plates meeting so as to form a thin edge; toes of moderate length; the first stouter, the second and fourth nearly equal, the third much longer; claws moderate, well curved, compressed, laterally grooved, tapering to a fine point. Plumage soft and blended, with considerable gloss. Short bristles at the base of the upper mandible. Wings very long; the first quill very small, being only seven-twelfths of an inch long, the second half a twelfth shorter than the third, which is longest, but only exceeds the fourth by three-fourths of a twelfth; the other primaries rapidly graduated; outer secondaries emar- ginate, inner not elongated. Tail rather long, deeply emarginate, the mid- dle feathers being four-twelfths of an inch shorter than the longest. Bill and feet black; iris brown. The general colour of the upper parts is bright blue, of a tint approaching to ultramarine; a broad band across the fore part of the back, and the scapulars, chestnut-red; the quills and larger coverts dark greyish-brown, the outer webs blue, the primaries light brown at the end, the secondaries faintly margined with whitish. The tail-feathers are also brown toward the end, but blue toward the base; the lateral with the margin of the outer web whitish. The sides and fore part of the neck are light blue, tinged with grey; the fore part of the breast and the sides of the body light chestnut-red; the rest of the lower parts greyish-white, tinged with blue. Vox. IL. 3 178 ARCTIC BLUE-BIRD. Length to end of tail 7 inches; bill along the ridge #3, along the edge of lower mandible 72; wing from flexure 44; tail 212; tarsus 19, hind toe 4, its claw 74; middle toe 5%, its claw 33. Adult Female in summer. The female differs from the male in the same degree as that of the Arctic Blue-bird from its male; the upper parts being light greyish-brown, tinged with blue, which is brighter on the rump; the wings and tail are as in the male, but with less blue; the lower parts are bluish-grey, the breast and sides light brownish-red, tinged with grey. ARCTIC BLUE-BIRD. +-Sratra arctica, Swains. PLATE CXXXVI.—Mate anp Femate. This beautiful species, first introduced to the notice of ornithologists by Dr. Ricwarpson, who procured a single specimen at Fort Franklin, in July 1825, is merely a summer visitor to the Fur Countries. Both the male and the female are represented in my plate. The latter I believe has not hitherto been figured. Mr. Nurraxu’s notice respecting this interesting bird, so closely allied to Sialia Wilsoni, is as follows: “Sialia arctica. Ultramarine Blue-bird. About fifty or sixty miles north-west of the usual crossing place of that branch of the Platte called Larimie’s Fork, in the early part of June, this species of Sialia is not uncommon. The female utters a low plaint when her nest is approached, the place for which is indifferently chosen in a hole ina clay cliff, or in that of the trunk of a decayed cedar. At this time the young were hatched. The nest is made of the usual material of dry grass in very insignificant quantity. They are more shy than the common species, and have the same mode of feeding by watching on some low bush or plant, and descending for an insect. We afterwards saw a nest of this species on a cliff of the Sandy river, a branch of the Colorado of the West. The female and male were both feeding their brood. The former chirped and appeared uneasy at my approach, and at intervals uttered a plaintive yéow. The male sings more Ad WY, GEL Audohon F.RAS ELS. Lith. & Pronted ‘by Endicott New York . PL.i136 ARCTIC BLUE-BIRD. 179 quaintly and monotonously than the common kind, but in the same general tone and manner.”’ To this Mr. Townsenp adds that it is found in the “Forests on the banks of the Platte river, in the vicinity of the Black Hills, and in the same situations on the banks of the Columbia. This species,’’ he continues, “was observed in the winter at Fort Vancouver, associating with S. occidentalis. They confine themselves chiefly to the fences in the neighbourhood of the Fort, occasionally flying to the ground, and scratching in the earth for minute insects, the fragments of which were found in their stomachs. After procuring an insect, the male usually returned to the fence, and warbled for a minute most delightfully. Its note, although like that of our common - Sialia, is still so different as to be easily recognised. It is equally sweet and clear, but of so little power (at least at this season) as to be heard only at a short distance. In the spring it is louder and bolder, but is at all times much less strong than that of the common species.” Eryruaca (S1auia) Arctica, Arctic Blue-bird, Swains. and Rich. F. Bor. Amer., vol. li. p. 209. Arctic Buus-pirp, Sialia Arctica, Nutt. Man., vol. il. p. 573. Arctic Buue-zirp, Sylvia Arctica, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. v. p. 38. Adult Male. Bill of ordinary length, nearly straight, broader than high at the base, compressed towards the end; upper mandible with the dorsal line straight and declinate, until near the end, when it becomes convex, the ridge narrow, the sides convex towards the end, the edges direct and overlapping, with a distinct notch close to the narrow deflected tip; lower mandible with the angle of moderate length and narrow, the dorsal line straight, the sides convex, the edges direct, the tip narrow. Nostrils basal, oval. Head rather large; neck short; body moderately full. Feet of ordinary length, slender; tarsus compressed, covered anteriorly with seven long scutella, posteriorly with two very long plates meeting so as to form a sharp edge; toes of moderate length; the first stouter, the second and fourth nearly equal, the third much longer; claws moderate, well curved, slender, com pressed, laterally grooved, tapering to a fine point. | Plumage soft and blended, with considerable gloss; short bristles at the base of the upper mandible. Wings very long; the first quill very small, being only seven-twelfths of an inch long, the second one-twelfth shorter than the third, which is longest, but exceeds the fourth only by half a twelfth, the other primaries rapidly graduated; the outer secondaries emar- ginate, the inner not elongated. ‘Tail long, deeply emarginate, of twelve strong feathers, of which the medial are five-twelfths shorter than the lateral. 180 ARCTIC BLUE-BIRD. Bill and feet black; iris brown. The general colour of the upper parts is light azure blue, approaching to smalt blue; the quills and larger coverts dark greyish-brown, the outer tinged with blue, the primaries broadly margined with light blue, the secondaries with greyish-blue, the inner chiefly with dull white. The tail-feathers are also brown, gradually more blue toward the base, and all broadly margined externally with that colour. The sides of the head, the fore part and sides of the neck, and the anterior half of the breast, light greenish-blue; that colour gradually fading on the hind part of the breast; the abdomen and lower tail-coverts greyish-white. Length to end of tail 74 inches; bill along the ridge +, along the edge of lower mandible 22; wing from flexure 472; tail 211; tarsus 4%, hind toe 74, its claw ;4; middle toe 23, its claw 23. Adult Female. The female differs greatly. The parts which retain the same colour are the rump, wings, and tail, of which, however, the blue edgings are less pure and of less extent, and the outer primary and outer tail-feathers are margined externally with white. The upper part of the head, the hind neck, the back, scapulars, and wing-coverts are light greyish-brown, margined with pale greenish-blue; the cheeks and sides of the neck are paler; the fore part of the neck and the anterior portion of the breast are light greyish-brown, on the breast tinged with red; the rest of the lower parts of an undecided brownish-white tint; the lower wing-coverts pale greyish-brown, edged with white, the lower tail-coverts with a medial dusky streak. Length to end of tail 62 inches; bill along the ridge £3; wing from flexure 42,; tail 2; tarsus 12; hind toe +4, its claw #4, middle toe £3, its claw 2. The above descriptions are taken from skins procured by Mr. TownszEnp on the Columbia river. That of the male is from a specimen shot in June 1835; and that of the female from one shot on the 26th of the same month and year. Of two other specimens in my possession, a male agrees with that described, but has the blue of the upper parts deeper, and of a tint approaching to that of the common species. The female is also similar to that described, but has a dull white spot before the eye, and the upper part of the throat brownish-white. 181 FAMILY XII. TURDINAY. THRUSHES. Bill short, or of moderate length, rather strong, straight, compressed toward the end; upper mandible with its dorsal outline a little convex and declinate, the tip small, rather acute, the notches small; lower mandible with the angle rather short, of moderate width, the dorsal line straight, the sides convex, the tip acute. Head oblong, compressed, of moderate size; neck rather short; body moderate. Eyes of moderate size. External aperture of ear large and roundish. Feet of moderate strength; tarsus compressed, with seven anterior scutella; toes rather strong, compressed; first, second, and fourth, nearly equal, third much longer, and adherent to the fourth at the base; claws rather long, arched, compressed, laterally grooved, acute. Plumage rather blended. Bristles small. Wings of moderate length, broad, rounded; the firSt quill very small, third and fourth longest. Tail of twelve feathers, varying in length. Tongue sagittate, and papillate at the base, slender, tapering, its tip slit. Csophagus rather narrow, without crop; pro- ventriculus oblong; stomach a gizzard of moderate strength, its lateral and lower muscles distinct; the epithelium dense and rugous; intestine of mode- rate length; cceca very small, cylindrical. Trachea simple, with four pairs of inferior laryngeal muscles. Genus IL—CINCLUS, Bechst. DIPPER. Bill rather short, slender, slightly ascending, much compressed toward the end; upper mandible with its dorsal line straight until toward the end, the ridge rounded, the sides convex, the edges somewhat inflected, with an obscure notch close to the narrow deflected tip; lower mandible slightly bent upwards, the angle medial and very narrow, the dorsal line ascending and slightly convex, the tip narrow and rather acute. Nostrils linear, direct, exposed. General form short, full, and compact. Head oblong, compressed. Legs strong; tarsus of moderate length, compressed, covered anteriorly with a long undivided plate and four inferior scutella; toes rather large and strong; claws arched, much compressed, laterally grooved, that of the hind toe considerably larger. Plumage ordinary, rather blended. Bristles obsolete. Wings rather short, convex, rounded. ‘Tail short, even. Vox. II. 32 182 AMERICAN DIPPER. -. Cinctus AMERICANUs, Swains. PLATE CXXXVII.—Mate ann Frmae. The specimens from which the figures here given have been taken, were procured on the Rocky Mountains, on the 15th of June, when they were supposed to be breeding, so that they were probably adults in full plumage. Having little taste for critical discussions, I shall refrain from inflicting on the reader a long and elaborate review of all that has been said on the subject of this interesting but little-known bird, which was figured by the Prince of Mustenano from a specimen obtained near the sources of the Athabasca river, under the name of Cinclus Pallasii; and has been described by Mr. Swarnson, first as C. Mexicanus, and again, in the Fauna Boreali- Americana, as C. Americanus. Unfortunately very little is known respect- ing the habits of the American Dipper, which, however, being in form and size so very similar to that of Europe, probably resembles it in its mode of life. I will therefore endeavour to supply the deficiency by presenting you with some extracts from the history of the latter, as given by my friend Witiiam Macertiivray, of Edinburgh, who, among the wild hills of his native country, has studied its habits with a zeal and acuteness certainly not exceeded by those of any ornithologist. “This bird having in a particular manner engaged my attention in the course of my many rambles, I have been enabled to trace its history in a satisfactory degree, so that the account here presented of it I consider as amongst the most accurate of those which I have written. “It frequents the sides of rivers and streams of inferior magnitude, espe- cially such as are clear and rapid, with pebbly or rocky margins. I have met with it in every part of Scotland, as well as in the hilly parts of Cumberland and Westmoreland, and it is said by Monraev to occur in Wales and Devonshire. In Scotland it is not peculiar to the mountainous regions, being found in the lowest parts of the Lothians, as well as on the alpine rills of the Grampians, and other elevated tracts, but it is generally more abundant in hilly ground, and, although never common in any district, is nowhere more plentiful than on the Tweed and its tributaries, in the pastoral counties of Peebles and Selkirk. It is also a well-known inhabitant of all the larger Hebrides. It is not only a permanent resident, but seldom QU Oty eA Cy Ay SUR WoL eps Py DBC: Ay’ LO ) OC Guay, proqu vy NR MON HOO PUT N ‘9 Go AET Vd as. Af sey gta cies aes Ré ‘a eer ice taht YALE Maite 2 ott sieve ‘i 4 i pieseats® Pa rsa Toe oudoak he nag fal ol +p mes Iapaocihitions wrgila tw wee ag § geinty festivied WON eB BRED EN, earey ot abe al 2 te Mite ALE Watt hw, GUE A Bei ime we ‘Gari ied. sesh} lca idett ude a gt thes alee ee Par AG! Sioyrne Abs gain Ie aden tei. Bay peksaes | Fi seat pay ghee ge? prey Oh KOR SE RATES OT! 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Panes ne umsbines lh gale | oe ape (e045 DL ihe ue linen sat) 1,90 tied PRR E OGM wie. sh haga dae pina 0b yh Ta SHe seems OF Peo Oe hdl ode tina Je ef AI 4 AA. 1 6 OR, Boles ptegdhy, oll encalec ita dots whine #16) 709 Bs bo 0 moreno qa. dt bona ratesia Align Gy, Ha er Oe eee Gee 19 ene) Bech yews ats UAB Ge Ts. ‘heal. 01 >.oeeiepaee a ccna Pee Pier ne eA BIG are, 46 Sa panies y Wl tid de oe foe © ln. wae tod. gi ‘i . ane aie alae ht. nabraeie a Mah neree, s0ligaiins Lasigy vie dah ‘4 tag Te Oe ee ee ae | ae ait digll a indies’: nn yephsite bce — ‘at soa Aid padenc booth " rey Oe en siya, —, ee a ~~ sc nae AMERICAN DIPPER. 183 shifts its station to any great extent, excepting during continued frosts, when it descends along the streams, and is seen flitting about by the rapids and falls. Mill-dams are also favourite resorts, especially in winter and spring. On lakes having a muddy or peaty bottom I have never observed it; but it may sometimes be seen on those which are shallow and pebbly at the margins, as on St. Mary’s Loch in Yarrow, where I have shot it. “The flight of the Dipper is steady, direct, and rapid, like that of the Kingfisher, being effected by regularly timed and quick beats of the wings, without intermissions or sailings. It perches on stones or projecting crags by the sides of streams, or in the water, where it may be seen frequently inclining the breast downwards, and jerking up the tail, much in the manner of the Wheatear and Stonechat, and still more of the Wren; its legs bent, its neck retracted, and its wings slightly drooping. It plunges into the water, not dreading the force of the current, dives, and makes its way beneath the surface, generally moving against the stream, and often with surprising speed. It does not, however, immerse itself head foremost from on high like the Kingfisher, the Tern, or the Gannet; but either walks out into the water, or alights upon its surface, and then plunges like an Auk or a Guillemot, slightly opening its wings, and disappearing with an agility and dexterity that indicate its proficiency in diving. I have seen it moving under water in situations where I could observe it with certainty, and I readily perceived that its actions were precisely similar to those of the Divers, Mergansers, and Cormorants, which I have often watched from an eminence, as they pursued the shoals of sand-eels along the sandy shores of the Hebrides. It in fact flew, not merely using the wing, from the carpal joint, but extending it considerably and employing its whole extent, just as if advancing in the air. The general direction of the body in these circum- stances is obliquely downwards; and great force is evidently used to coun- teract the effects of gravity, the bird finding it difficult to keep itself at the bottom, and when it relaxes its efforts coming to the surface like a cork. Montagu has well described the appearance which it presents under such circumstances: —“In one or two instances, where we have been able to perceive it under water, it appeared to tumble about in a very extraordinary manner, with its head downwards, as if picking something; and at the same time great exertion was used, both by the wings and legs.’? This tumbling, however, is observed only when it is engaged in a strong current, and its appearance is greatly magnified by the unequal refraction caused by the varying inequalities of the surface of the water. When searching for food, it does not proceed to great distances under water; but, alighting on some spot, sinks, and soon reappears in the immediate neighbourhood, when it either dives again, or rises on wing to drop somewhere else on the stream, 184 AMERICAN DIPPER. or settle on a stone. Often from a shelving crag or large stone it may be seen making short incursions into the water, running out with quiet activity, and presently bobbing up to the surface, and regaining its perch by swim- ming or wading. The assertion of its walking in the water, on the bottom, which some persons have ventured, is not made good by observation, nor countenanced by reason and the nature of things. The Dipper is by no means a walking bird: even on land I have never seen it move more than a few steps, which it accomplished by a kind of leaping motion. Its short legs and curved claws are very ill adapted for running, but admirably calcu- lated for securing a steady footing on slippery stones, whether above or beneath the surface of the water. Like the Kingfisher, it often remains a long time perched on a stone, but in most other respects its habits are very dissimilar. “On these occasions it is not difficult to approach it, provided due pre- caution be used; but in general it is shy and easily alarmed. I have several times shot at an individual which observed me as I was quietly walking up to it; but it is not often that one remains until you come within shot. A method which I have often successfully practised was to mark the position of the bird at a distance, taking note of an object on the bank opposite to it, then make a circuit, and suddenly come upon the spot. When one has been pursued either up or down a stream for a quarter of a mile or so, it usually turns, to regain its ordinary station, when it may be shot as it dashes past. “On being wounded the Dipper commonly plunges into the water, flies beneath its surface to the shore, and conceals itself among the stones or under the bank. In fact, on all such occasions, if enough of life remains, it is sure to hide itself, so that one requires to look sharply after it. In this respect it greatly resembles the Common Gallinule. “The food of the Dipper is said by authors to consist of small fishes, roe, and water-insects. I have opened a great number of individuals, at all sea- sons of the year, but have never found any other substances in the stomach than Lymnex, ncyli, Coleoptera, and grains of gravel.. As to the ova and fry of the salmon, there is no evidence whatever that the’ Dipper ever swal- lows them; and, therefore, the persecution to which this bird has been sub- jected in consequence of the mere suspicion, ought to cease until the fact be proved. That the mollusca above mentioned form a principal part of its food was never suspected, and therefore I was much pleased with making the discovery, which satisfactorily accounted to me for all the subaqueous excursions of the species.”’ The only original observations respecting the habits of the American Dipper that I have to present here are the following, with which I have AMERICAN DIPPER. 185 been favoured by Mr. Townsenp:—“This bird inhabits the clear mountain streams in the vicinity of the Columbia river. When observed it was swimming among the rapids, occasionally flying for short distances over the surface of the water, and then diving into it, and reappearing after a long interval. Sometimes it will alight along the margin, and jerk its tail upwards like a Wren. I did not hear it utter any note. The stomach was — found to contain fragments of fresh-water snails. I observed that this bird did not alight on the surface of the water, but dived immediately from the wing.”” Cincius Patiasu, Bonap. Amer. Orn., vol. ii. p. 173. CincLus Americanus, American Dipper, Swains. & Rich. F. Bor. Amer., vol. ii. p. 173. Brack Water-Ovuzex or Dierer, Nutt. Man., vol. ii. p. 358. American Direrer, Cinclus Americanus, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. iv. p. 493; vol. v. p. 303. Adult Male. Bill rather short, slender, slightly ascending, much compressed toward the end; upper mandible with its dorsal line slightly arched, the ridge rounded, the sides convex, the edges sharp and inflected, with an obscure notch close to the narrow slightly deflected tip; lower mandible slightly bent upwards, the angle medial and very narrow, the dorsal line ascending and slightly convex, the tip narrow and rather acute, the gape-line straight. Nostrils linear, direct, in the lower and fore part of the nasal membrane, which is covered with very short feathers. Eyes rather small; eyelids densely feathered. The general form is short, full, and compact; the head oblong, compressed, rather small; the neck rather short; the body rather deeper than broad. Legs strong, of ordinary length; tarsus compressed, covered anteriorly with along undivided plate and four inferior scutella, posteriorly with two long plates meeting at a very acute angle. Toes rather large and strong; the first, second, and fourth, nearly equal in length, but the first much stronger, the third much longer; the third and fourth united as far as the second joint of the latter. Claws rather long, arched, much compressed, that of the hind toe considerably larger. Plumage very soft and blended, the feathers oblong and rounded; those about the base of the bill very short and*velvety. No bristles at the base of the bill. Wings rather short, broad, convex, and rounded; the first quill very short and narrow, being about a third of the length of the second, which is shorter than the fourth, the third longest, and with the next three slightly cut out on the outer web towards the end; secondary quills long, broad, and rounded. ‘Tail short, even, of twelve rather broad feathers, 186 AMERICAN DIPPER. which are slightly decurved. Legs feathered to the joint, but the tarsus entirely bare. Bill brownish-black; iris hazel; feet flesh-coloured, toes dusky towards the end; claws yellowish-grey. The general colour of the plumage is blackish-grey or deep bluish-grey; the head and neck chocolate-brown, that _ colour extending lower on the fore part of the neck than behind; the downy feathers of both eyelids white; the quills and tail-feathers dusky; the secondaries terminally margined with white. Length to end of tail 7} inches; extent of wings 103; wing from flexure 32; tail 24; bill along the ridge 3%, along the edge of lower mandible 44; tarsus 134; hind toe +4, its claw +4; middle toe 18, its claw +4. Adult Female. The female is in all respects similar to the male. In form, size, and proportion, the American Dipper is almost precisely similar to the European. Genus IJ —ORPHEUS, Swains. MOCKING-BIRD. Bill of moderate length or longish, rather slender, straight or slightly arched, broader than high at the base, compressed toward the end, acute; upper mandible with the ridge rather narrow, the sides convex toward the end, the notches very slight, the tip narrow; lower mandible with the angle of moderate length, the dorsal line straight or slightly decurved toward the end, the sides nearly erect, the tip narrow. Nostrils oblong, partially concealed by the feathers. Head of ordinary size, ovato-oblong; neck of moderate length; body rather slender. Feet of ordinary length, slender; tarsus scarcely so long as the middle toe and claw; hind toe of moderate length, stout, lateral toes equal; claws moderate, arched, compressed, acute. Plumage soft and blended. JBristles rather long. Wings of ordinary length, broad, rounded, the first quill very small, the fourth and fifth longest. Tail very long, straight, much rounded, or graduated. ayia air Non PL.138. ." ~ Ce "PPEDPPOPE © heKvrige ‘ Lieve ie = ies ie! c— bales SEE? Someate F, Cc Ser oe om = . o korea : Fearaeze PLE, — P7ELPELLE PPE: vecitbit Pt i Raiilesratce Drawn from natare by JJ Andubon FR.SFLS lath. & Printed by Endwott New York . 187 COMMON MOCKING-BIRD. }-ORPHEUS POLYGLOTTUS, Linn. PLATE CXXXVIII.—Mate anp Femate. It is where the great magnolia shoots up its majestic trunk, crowned with evergreen leaves, and decorated with a thousand beautiful flowers, that perfume the air around; where the forests and fields are adorned with blossoms of every hue; where the golden orange ornaments the gardens and groves; where bignonias of various kinds interlace their climbing stems around the white-flowered stuartia, and mounting still higher, cover the summits of the lofty trees around, accompanied with innumerable vines, that here and there festoon the dense foliage of the magnificent woods, lending to the vernal breeze a slight portion of the perfume of their clustered flowers; where a genial warmth seldom forsakes the atmosphere; where berries and fruits of all descriptions are met with at every step;—in a word, kind reader, it is where Nature seems to have paused, as she passed over the earth, and opening her stores, to have strewed with unsparing hand the diversified seeds from which have sprung all the beautiful and splendid forms which I should in vain attempt to describe, that the Mocking- bird should have fixed its abode, there only that its wondrous song should be heard. But where is that favoured land?—It is in this great continent.—It is, reader, in Louisiana that these bounties of nature are in the greatest perfection. It is there that you should listen to the love-song of the Mocking-bird, as I at this moment do. See how he flies round his mate, with motions as light as those of the butterfly! His tail is widely expanded, he mounts in the air to a small distance, describes a circle, and, again alighting, approaches his beloved one, his eyes gleaming with delight, for she has already promised to be his and his only. His beautiful wings are gently raised, he bows to his love, and again bouncing upwards, opens his bill, and pours forth his melody, full of exultation at the conquest which he has made. They are not the soft sounds of the flute or of the hautboy that I hear, but the sweeter notes of Nature’s own music. The mellowness of the song, the varied modulations and gradations, the extent of its compass, the great brilliancy of execution, are unrivalled. There is probably no bird in the 188 COMMON MOCKING-BIRD. world that possesses all the musical qualifications of this king of song, who has derived all from Nature’s self. Yes, reader, all! No sooner has he again alighted, and the conjugal contract has been sealed, than, as if his breast was about to be rent with delight, he again pours forth his notes with more softness and richness than before. He now soars higher, glancing around with a vigilant eye, to assure himself that none has witnessed his bliss. When these love-scenes, visible only to the ardent lover of nature, are over, he dances through the air, full of animation and delight, and, as if to convince his lovely mate that to enrich her hopes he has much more love in store, he that moment begins anew, and imitates all the notes which nature has imparted to the other songsters of the grove. For awhile, each long day and pleasant night are thus spent; but at a peculiar note of the female he ceases his song, and attends to her wishes. A nest is to be prepared, and the choice of a place in which to lay it is to become a matter of mutual consideration. The orange, the fig, the pear- tree of the gardens are inspected; the thick briar patches are also visited. They appear all so well suited for the purpose in view, and so well does the bird know that man is not his most dangerous enemy, that instead of retiring from him, they at length fix their abode in his vicinity, perhaps in the nearest tree to his window. Dried twigs, leaves, grasses, cotton, flax, and other substances, are picked up, carried to a forked branch, and there arranged. Five eggs are deposited in due time, when the male having little more to do than to sing his mate to repose, attunes his pipe anew. Every now and then he spies an insect on the ground, the taste of which he is sure will please his beloved one. He drops upon it, takes it in his bill, beats it against the earth, and flies to the nest to feed and receive the warm thanks of his devoted female. When a fortnight has elapsed, the young brood demand all their care and attention. No cat, no vile snake, no dreaded Hawk, is likely to visit their habitation. Indeed the inmates of the next house have by this time become quite attached to the lovely pair of Mocking-birds, and take pleasure in contributing to their safety. The dew-berries from the fields, and many kinds of fruit from the gardens, mixed with insects, supply the young as well as the parents with food. The brood is soon seen emerging from the nest, and in another fortnight, being now able to fly with vigour, and to provide for themselves, they leave the parent birds, as many other species do. The above account does not contain all that I wish you to know of the habits of this remarkable songster; so, I shall shift the scene to the woods and wilds, where we shall examine it more particularly. The Mocking-bird remains in Louisiana the whole year. I have observed with astonishment, that towards the end of October, when those which had COMMON MOCKING-BIRD. 189 gone to the Eastern States, some as far as Boston, have returned, they are instantly known by the “southrons,’? who attack them on all occasions. I have ascertained this by observing the greater shyness exhibited by the strangers for weeks after their arrival. This shyness, however, is shortly over, as well as the animosity displayed by the resident birds, and during the winter there exists a great appearance of sociality among the united tribes. In the beginning of April, sometimes a fortnight earlier, the Mocking- birds pair, and construct their nests. In some instances they are so careless as to place the nest between the rails of a fence directly by the road. I have frequently found it in such places, or in the fields, as well as in briars, but always so easily discoverable that any person desirous of procuring one, might do so in a very short time. It is coarsely constructed on the outside, being there composed of dried sticks of briars, withered leaves of trees, and grasses, mixed with wool. Internally it is finished with fibrous roots disposed in a circular form, but carelessly arranged. The female lays from four to six eggs the first time, four or five the next, and when there is a third brood, which is sometimes the case, seldom more than three, of which I have rarely found more than two hatched. The eggs are of a short oval form, light green, blotched and spotted with umber. The young of the last brood not being able to support themselves until late in the season, when many of the berries and insects have become scarce, are stunted in growth;—a circumstance which has induced some persons to imagine the existence in the United States of two species of Common Mocking-bird, a larger and a smaller. This, however, in as far as my observation goes, is not correct. The first brood is frequently brought to the bird-market in New Orleans as early as the middle of April. A little farther up the country, they are out by the fifteenth of May. The second brood is hatched in July, and the third in the latter part of September. The nearer you approach to the sea-shores, the more plentiful do you find these birds. They are naturally fond of loose sands, and of districts scantily furnished with small trees, or patches of briars, and low bushes. During incubation, the female pays such precise attention to the position in which she leaves her eggs, when she goes to a short distance for exercise and refreshment, to pick up gravel, or roll herself in the dust, that, on her return, should she find that any of them has been displaced, or touched by the hand of man, she utters a low mournful note, at the sound of which the male immediately joins her, and they are both seen to condole together. Some people imagine that, on such occasions, the female abandons the nest; but this idea is incorrect. On the contrary, she redoubles her assiduity and care, and scarcely leaves the nest for a moment; nor is it until she has been Vor. Il. 33 190 COMMON MOCKING-BIRD. repeatedly forced from the dear spot, and has been much alarmed by frequent intrusions, that she finally and reluctantly leaves it. Nay, if the eggs are on the eve of being hatched, she will almost suffer a person to lay hold of her. Different species of snakes ascend to their nests, and generally suck the eggs or swallow the young; but on all such occasions, not only the pair to which the nest belongs, but many other Mocking-birds from the vicinity, fly to the spot, attack the reptiles, and, in some cases, are so fortunate as either to force them to retreat, or deprive them of life. Cats that have abandoned the houses to prowl about the fields, in a half wild state, are also dangerous enemies, as they frequently approach the nest unnoticed, and at a pounce secure the mother, or at least destroy the eggs or young, and overturn the nest. Children seldom destroy the nests of these birds, and the planters generally protect them. So much does this feeling prevail throughout Louisiana, that they will not willingly permit a Mocking-bird to be shot at any time. In winter, nearly all the Mocking-birds approach the farm-houses and plantations, living about the gardens or outhouses. They are then frequently seen on the roofs, and perched on the chimney-tops; yet they always appear full of animation. Whilst searching for food on the ground, their motions are light and elegant, and they frequently open their wings as butterflies do when basking in the sun, moving a step or two, and again throwing out their wings. When the weather is mild, the old males are heard singing with as much spirit as during the spring or summer, while the younger birds are busily engaged in practising, preparatory to the love season. They seldom resort to the interior of the forest either during the day or by night, but usually roost among the foliage of evergreens, in the immediate vicinity of houses in Louisiana, although in the Eastern States they prefer low fir trees. The flight of the Mocking-bird is performed by short jerks of the body and wings, at every one of which a strong twitching motion of the tail is perceived. This motion is still more apparent while the bird is walking, when it opens its tail like a fan and instantly closes it again. The common ery or call of this bird is a very mournful note, resembling that uttered on similar occasions by its first cousin the Orpheus rufus, or, as it is commonly ealled, the “French Mocking-bird.’’ When travelling, this flight is only a little prolonged, as the bird goes from tree to tree, or at most across a field, scarcely, if ever, rising higher than the top of the forest. During this migration, it generally resorts to the highest parts of the woods near water- courses, utters its usual mournful note, and roosts in these places. It travels mostly by day. Few Hawks attack the Mocking-birds, as on their approach, however sudden it may be, they are always ready not only to defend themselves COMMON MOCKING-BIRD. 191 vigorously and with undaunted courage, but to meet the aggressor half way, and force him to abandon his intention. The only Hawk that occasionally surprises it is the &stur Cooperii, which flies low with great swiftness, and earries the bird off without any apparent stoppage. Should it happen that the ruffian misses his prey, the Mocking-bird in turn becomes the assailant, and pursues the Hawk with great courage, calling in the mean time all the birds of its species to its assistance; and although it cannot overtake the marauder, the alarm created by their cries, which are propagated in succession among all the birds in the vicinity, like the watchwords of sentinels on duty, prevents him from succeeding in his attempts. The musical powers of this bird have often been taken notice of by European naturalists, and persons who find pleasure in listening to the song of different birds whilst in confinement or at large. Some of these persons have described the notes of the Nightingale as occasionally fully equal to those of our bird, but to compare her essays to the finished talent of the Mocking-bird, is, in my opinion, quite absurd. The Mocking-bird is easily reared by hand from the nest, from which it ought to be removed when eight or ten days old. It becomes so very familiar and affectionate, that it will often follow its owner about the house. I have known one raised from the nest kept by a gentleman at Natchez, that frequently flew out of the house, poured forth its melodies, and returned at sight of its keeper. But notwithstanding all the care and management bestowed upon the improvement of the vocal powers of this bird in confinement, I never heard one in that state produce any thing at all approaching in melody to its own natural song. The male bird is easily distinguished in the nest, as soon as the brood is a little fledged, it being larger than the female, and shewing more pure white. It does not shrink so deep in the nest as the female does, at the sight of the hand which is about to lift it. Good singing birds of this species often bring a high price. They are long-lived and very agreeable companions. Their imitative powers are amazing, and they mimic with ease all their brethren of the forests or of the waters, as well as many quadrupeds. I have heard it asserted that they possess the power of imitating the human voice, but have never met with an instance of the display of this alleged faculty. Mockinc-pirp, Turdus polyglottus, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. ii. p. 14. TurpDUS POLYGLOTTUS, Bonap. Syn., p. 74. Mocxine-pirp, Turdus polyglottus, Nutt. Man., vol. i. p. 320. Mockine-zirp, Turdus polyglottus, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. i. p. 108; vol. v. p. 438. Male. Upper parts greyish-brown; feathers of the wings and tail greyish-black; 192 COMMON MOCKING-BIRD. tips of secondary coverts, edges of primary quills, and a large spot at the end of the three lateral tail-feathers, white; lower parts whitish, marked with triangular dusky spots, of which there is a distinct line from the base of the bill; throat, middle of the breast, abdomen, and lower tail-coverts unspotted. In an adult male of this celebrated bird, the roof of the mouth is flat, with two narrow longitudinal palatal ridges, and an anterior median prominent line; the posterior aperture of the nares is oblongo-linear, margined with acute papillz, with which also the whole membrane of the palate is covered. The tongue is slender, 7 twelfths long g, emarginate and pa- pillate at the base, channelled above, horny and thin toward the end, which is slit and lacerated. The width of the mouth is 6 twelfths. The cesophagus, a@ 6 c, is 3 inches long, and of the nearly uniform width of 43 twelfths, unless at the commencement where it is a little wider. The proventricular glands form a belt 5 twelfths of an inch in breadth. The stomach, c de, is rather small, broadly elliptical, 9 twelfths long, f. 74 twelfths broad, considerably compressed; its &/- muscular coat moderately developed, the right muscle being 13 twelfths thick, the left 1 twelfth; the epithelium dense, tough, reddish-brown, with seven longitudinal rugz on one side and three on the other. The intestine, e f/ghijk, is of moderate length and width; the duodenum, e fg, curves at the distance of 14 inches, and is 3 twelfths wide, as is the rest of the intestine, of which the entire length is 93 inches; the cloaca, k, very little enlarged; the ceca, z, 2 twelfths long, and } twelfth broad, their distance from the extremity 8 twelfths. The right lobe of the liver is very large, being 1 inch 13 twelfths in length, and extending under the anterior part of the stomach, in the form of a thin- edged rounded lobe; the left lobe is 10 twelfths long, and lies under the proventriculus and left side of the stomach. The heart is of moderate size, 73 twelfths long, 5 twelfths in breadth, of a conical obtuse form. The aperture of the glottis is 1} twelfths long, and furnished with the COMMON MOCKING-BIRD. 193 same muscles as the other singing birds, viz. the thyro-arytenoideus, which passes from the edge of the thyroid cartilage at its lower part to be inserted into the tip and sides of the arytenoid cartilage; the thyro-cricoideus, which passes from the anterior edge of the thyroid backward to the ecricoid; a small muscle, the crico-aryfenotdeus, which assists in closing the glottis; and several small slips similar to those observed in other Thrushes, and especially in the Crows, in which the parts, being larger, are more easily seen. The trachea is 1 inch 10 twelfths in length, considerably flattened, gradually tapering from 14 twelfths to 1 twelfth; the rings, which are firm, are about 60, and 2 dimidiate rings. The lateral muscles are slender, as are the sterno- tracheal. There are four pairs of inferior laryngeal muscles; an anterior, going to the tip of the first half-ring, another to the tip of the second, a third broader and inserted into a portion of the last half-ring, the fourth or posterior or upper, long, narrow, and inserted into the point of the same half-ring. Besides these, as in all the land-birds, there is a pair of very slender muscles, the cletdo-tracheal, arising from the sides of the thyroid cartilage and inserted into the furcula. The bronchi are rather wide and short, of 12 cartilaginous half rings. As in all the birds of this family, there is a very slender salivary gland on each side, lying between the branch of the lower jaw and the mucous membrane of the mouth, upon which latter it opens anteriorly to the frenum of the tongue. This species is abundant in the Texas, where it breeds. The eggs are generally one inch in length, and nine-twelfths and a quarter in breadth. Tue FiLoripA JESSAMINE. GELSEMINUM NiTIDUM, Mich. Flor. Amer., vol. i. p. 120. Pursch, Flor. Amer., vol. i. p. 184.—PrenTanpreia Dieynia, Linn. APpocinen, Juss. A climbing shrub, with smooth lanceolate leaves, axillary clusters of yellow flowers, which are funnel-shaped, with the limb spreading and nearly equal, the calyx five-toothed, the capsule two-celled and two-valved. It grows along the sea-coast, especially near rivers, from Virginia to Florida, flowering through the summer. The flowers are fragrant. It is also named Carolina jessamine and yellow jessamine. 194 MOUNTAIN MOCKING-BIRD. -+ORPHEUS MONTANUS, Jovwns. PLATE CXXXIX.—Mate. This interesting and hitherto unfigured species was procured on the Rocky Mountains by Mr. TownsEnp, who forwarded a single specimen to Phila- delphia, where I made a drawing of it. The following notice by Mr. Nourra.u shews that it is nearly allied in its habits to the Mocking-bird:— “On the arid plains of the central table-land, betwixt the northern sources of the Platte and the Colorado of the West, in the month of June, we frequently heard the cheering song of this delightful species, whose notes considerably resemble those of the Brown Thrush, with some of the imitative powers of the Mocking-bird. For a great part of the day, and especially early and late, its song resounds through the desert plains, as it warbles to its mate from some tall weed or bush of wormwood, and continues with little interruption nearly for an hour at a time. We met with it in the plains exclusively, till our arrival at Wallah Wallah, but we are not certain of having seen it in any part of California, it being apparently entirely confined to the cooler and open regions of the Rocky Mountains. Just before arriving at Sandy Creek of the Colorado, while resting for refreshment at noon, I had the good fortune to find the nest in a wormwood bush, on the margin of a ravine, from whence the male was singing with its usual energy. It contained four almost emerald green eggs, spotted with dark olive of two shades, more numerous towards the greater end, the spots large and roundish. The nest itself was made of small twigs and rough stalks, lined with stripes of bark and bison wool. The female flew off to a little distance, and looked on her unwelcome and unexpected visiter, without uttering either call or complaint.’’ OrpHevs MontTanus, Mountain Mocking-bird, Towns., Journ. Acad. Nat. Sc. Philadel- phia, vol. vii. p. 192. Mountain Mocxine-pirp, Jurdus montanus, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. iv. p. 487. Bill of moderate length, rather slender, compressed, straightish, pointed; upper mandible with the dorsal line slightly declinato-arcuate, the sides convex toward the end, the edges sharp, with a slight sinus close to the narrow declinate tip; lower mandible with the angle short and narrow, the N°Qs. P1139. LHe Urawis from natare by JE Audubon KF RS ELS. Lith. & Printed by Endicott New York N28. P1140. A 2aE FE et Bw f sas a enieede A EFome ee see Plant Blsci:- berry Aiubizes PIMOSiUs . Drawn from natire by JJ, Audubon F.R.S FLS. Lith. & Printed ‘ry Endicott New York . CAT-BIRD. 195 dorsal line. straight, the edges sharp and a little declinate at the end, the tip narrow; the gape-line very slightly arched. Head oblong Ss? Feet longish, rather strong; tarsus compressed, anteriorly covered with seven of ordinary size; neck rather short, but somewhat slender. large scutella, sharp-edged behind; toes of moderate length, slender, the hind toe stout, the lateral nearly equal, the anterior united for a short space at the base. Claws slender, arched, compressed, acute. Plumage soft and blended. Wings of moderate length, rounded, the first quill short, the third and fourth longest, the second and fifth equal, and about a quarter of an inch shorter than the fourth. Tail long, rounded, of twelve rather narrow rounded feathers. Bill dark brown, the base of the lower mandible paler. Feet yellowish- brown, claws dusky. The general colour of the upper parts is greyish-brown, the tips of the secondary coverts, the edges of the primary quills, and a large spot at the end of the three lateral tail-feathers, white; the lower parts whitish, marked with triangular dusky spots, of which there is a distinct line from the base of the bill; the throat, the middle of the breast, the abdomen, and lower tail-coverts unspotted. Length to end of tail 8 inches, to end of wings 53; wing from flexure 3,33 tail 34; bill along the ridge 72; tarsus 1-2;; hind toe 74, its claw 4; middle toe =8;, its claw 2:. CAT-BIRD. +ORPHEUS CAROLINENSIS, Jinn. PLATE CXL.—Mate anp Femate. Some individuals of this species spend the winter in the southern portions of East Florida, where I have found them during the months of December and January; but the greater number retire beyond the limits of the United States about the middle of October. They are very rarely seen in the State of Louisiana, nor have I known any to breed in that portion of the country. They pass in abundance through Georgia and the Carolinas early in Sep- tember, feeding then on the berries of the sweet gum, those of the poke and sumach, the seeds of grasses, &c. On their return in spring, they reach the 196 CAT-BIRD. neighbourhood of Charleston about the 20th of March, when they feed on insects found along the Janes and garden-walks; but none are heard to sing, or are found to breed there. They are abundant during summer in the whole of the western country, and are plentifully dispersed from Virginia to the middle portions of Massachusetts, beyond which, proceeding eastward, I saw none. They are in fact unknown in the State of Maine, as well as in the British provinces. Their migration is performed mostly during night, when they move slowly from bush to bush, scarcely ever extending their flight beyond the breadth of the rivers which they meet with. Ina place where not an indi- vidual is to be seen in an afternoon, in the months of April or May, a con- siderable number may be found the following morning. They seem to give a preference to the Middle States during the summer season. Pennsylvania is particularly favoured by them; and it would be difficult to walk through an orchard or garden, along a field, or the borders of a wood, without being saluted by their plaintive notes. They breed in these places with much carelessness, placing their nests in any bush, tree, or briar that seems adapted for the purpose, and seeming to think it unnecessary to conceal them from man, who indeed ought to protect such amiable birds, but who sometimes destroys them in revenge for the trifling depredations which they commit on the fruits of the garden. No sooner has the Cat-bird made its appearance in the country of its choice, than its song is heard from the topmost branches of the trees around, in the dawn of the morning. This song is a compound of many of the gentler trills and sweeter modulations of our various woodland choristers, delivered with apparent caution, and with all the attention and softness necessary to enable the performer to please the ear of his mate. Hach cadence passes on without faltering; and if you are acquainted with the song of the birds he so sweetly imitates, you are sure to recognise the manner of the different species. When the warmth of his loving bosom engages him to make choice of the notes of our best songsters, he brings forth sounds as mellow and as powerful as those of the Thrasher and Mocking-bird. These medleys, when heard in the calm and balmy hours of retiring day, always seem to possess a double power, and he must have a dull ear indeed, and little relish for the simple melodies of nature, who can listen to them with- out delight. The manners of this species are lively, and at intervals border on the grotesque. It is extremely sensitive, and will follow an intruder to a con- siderable distance, wailing and mewing as it passes from one tree to another, its tail now jerked and thrown from side to side, its wings drooping, and its breast deeply inclined. On such occasions, it would fain peck at your hand; CAT-BIRD. 197 but these exhibitions of irritated feeling seldom take place after the young are sufficiently grown to be able to take care of themselves. In some instances, I have known this bird to recognise at once its friend from its foe, and to suffer the former even to handle the treasure deposited in its nest, with all the marked assurance of the knowledge it possessed of its safety; when, on the contrary, the latter had to bear all its anger. The sight of a dog seldom irritates it, while a single glance at the wily cat excites the most painful paroxysms of alarm. It never neglects to attack a snake with fury, although it oftens happens that it becomes the sufferer for its temerity. The vulgar name which this species bears, has probably rendered it more conspicuous than it would otherwise be, and has also served to bring it into some degree of contempt with persons not the best judges of the benefits it confers on the husbandman in early spring, when, with industrious care, it cleanses his fruit-trees of thousands of larvee and insects, which, in a single day, would destroy, while yet in the bud, far more of his fruit than the Cat- bird would eat in a whole season. But alas, selfishness, the usual attendant of ignorance, not only heaps maledictions on the harmless bird, but dooms it to destruction. The boys pelt the poor Thrush with stones, and destroy its nest whenever an opportunity presents; the farmer shoots it to save a pear; and the gardener to save a raspberry; some hate it, not knowing why: in a word, excepting the poor, persecuted crow, I know no bird more gene- rally despised and tormented than this charming songster. The attachment which the Cat-bird shews towards its eggs or young is affecting. It even possesses a humanity, or rather a generosity and gentle- ness, worthy of beings more elevated in the scale of nature. It has been known to nurse, feed, and raise the young of other species, for which no room could be afforded in their nests. It will sit on its eggs after the nest has been displaced, or even after it has been carried from one bush to another. Like all our other Thrushes, this species is very fond of bathing and roll- ing itself in the dust or sand of the roads or fields. Several are frequently seen together on the borders of small ponds or clear rivulets, immersed up to their body, splashing the water about them until completely wetted; then, ascending to the tops of the nearest bushes, they plume themselves with apparent care, notwithstanding which they are at times so infested with a minute species of louse as to be destroyed by it. This is also the case with the Mocking-bird and the Ferruginous Thrush, many individuals of which I have known to be killed by these parasitic animals. Although the Cat-bird is a pleasant songster, it is seldom kept in a cage, and I believe all attempts at breeding it in aviaries have failed. Its food consists of fruits and berries of all descriptions, worms, wasps, and various Vox. II. 34 198 : CAT-BIRD. other insects. Its flight is low, often rapid, and somewhat protracted, gene- rally performed by glidings, accompanied with sudden jerks of the tail. It moves on the ground with alertness and grace, not unfrequently going before a person the whole length of the garden-walk. The nest of the Cat-bird is large, composed externally of dry twigs and briars, mixed with withered leaves, weeds, and grass, and lined with black fibrous roots, neatly arranged in a circular form. The eggs are from four to six, of a plain glossy greenish-blue, without spots. Two and sometimes three broods are raised in the season. I have placed a pair of these birds on a branch of the blackberry bush, on the fruit of which they feed. The young attain their full plumage before they depart in autumn. Cat-pirp, Jurdus lividus, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. ii. p. 90. TURDUS FELIVOX, Bonap. Syn., p. 75. OrpPHEUS FELIVOX, Cat-bird, Swains & Rich. F. Bor. Amer., vol. ii. p. 192. Car-rirp, Turdus felivox, Nutt. Man., vol. ii. p. 332. Cat-pirp, Turdus felivox, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. ii. p. 171; vol. v. p. 440. Adult Male. Bill of moderate length, rather weak, slightly arched, broad at the base, compressed, towards the end acute; upper mandible with the ridge rather acute, the sides convex, the edges sharp, the tip a little declinate; lower mandible nearly straight. Nostrils basal, oblong, half closed above by a membrane, and partially concealed by the feathers. Head of ordinary size, neck rather long, general form slender. Feet of ordinary length, slender; tarsus compressed, anteriorly scutellate, acute behind; toes free, scutellate above, the lateral ones nearly equal; hind toe rather stronger; claws com- pressed, arched, acute. Plumage soft and blended. Bristles at the base of the bill. Feathers of the hind head longish. Wings of ordinary length, broad, rounded, the fifth quill longest, the fourth nearly equal, the first very short. Tail long, rounded, of twelve straight narrowly rounded feathers. Bill black. Iris hazel. Feet dark umber.. The general colour of the plumage above is blackish-grey, the head and tail brownish-black, as are the inner webs of the quills. The cheeks, and under surface in general, deep bluish-grey, the abdomen paler, and the under tail-coverts brownish-red. The outer tail-feather transversely barred with white on the inner web. Length 9 inches, extent of wings 12; bill along the ridge 25, along the edge 22; tarsus 154. Adult Female. CAT-BIRD. 199 The female is a little paler in the tints of the plumage, but in other respects is similar to the male. Tue BLACKBERRY. Rusus vittosus, Willd., Sp. Pl., vol. ii. p. 1085. Pursch, Flor. Amer. Sept., vol. i. p. 346.—IcosanpRIA Potyeynia, Linn.—Rosaces, Juss. This species of bramble is pubescent, prickly, with angular twigs; the leaves ternate or quinate, with ovato-oblong, serrate, acuminate leaflets, downy on both sides; the calycine leaves short, acuminate; the flowers white, in a loose raceme. Blackberries are so plentiful in all parts of the United States, that they are gathered in great quantities, and often exposed for sale in the markets, especially those of the Eastern Districts, where they are applied to various domestic uses. They grow to a remarkably large size in the Southern States, where the plant itself is larger and more productive. 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